On this Shabbat before Shavuot, we begin reading the Book of Numbers, Bamidbar (In the Wilderness, in Hebrew). Shavuot is called Hag Matan Toratenu, the holiday of the giving of our Torah. The holiday begs a fundamental question: why was the Torah given in the heart of the desert? Why not in the heart of a great city in a great nation? Why not publicize the message?
A midrash on the opening words of this week’s Torah portion, B’midbar (In the Wilderness) provides an answer: “And God spoke to Moses in the Sinai Wilderness” (Numbers 1:1). Why the Sinai Wilderness? From here the sages taught that the Torah was given through three things: fire, water, and wilderness… And why was the Torah given through these three things? Just as [fire, water, and wilderness] are free to all the inhabitants of the world, so too are the words of Torah free to them…
Another explanation: “And God spoke to Moses in the Sinai Wilderness” — Anyone who does not make themselves ownerless like the wilderness cannot acquire the wisdom and the Torah. (Bamidbar Rabbah 1:7) We learn from this that Torah is available to all, regardless of status or wealth. It cannot be owned but is open to all who wish to embrace it. It was given to everyone, from the lowest of the low to the most exalted, for all are special in God’s eye.
And what does the midrash mean by “ownerless?” Just as Torah is open to all, we must be open to Torah. The Torah asks us to worship no other gods but God, not wealth, or power, or material comforts, or our anger, or resentments, or our work.
These are idols and illusions that enslave us. But if we can be humble and open ourselves to Torah, then Torah will open to us and we can embrace its strength and its power.
Bamidbar, Numbers 1:1 – 4:20 – Parashat ha Shavuah for Saturday, May 15, 2021
May 14, 2021 by Dean Kertesz • Drashot
On this Shabbat before Shavuot, we begin reading the Book of Numbers, Bamidbar (In the Wilderness, in Hebrew). Shavuot is called Hag Matan Toratenu, the holiday of the giving of our Torah. The holiday begs a fundamental question: why was the Torah given in the heart of the desert? Why not in the heart of a great city in a great nation? Why not publicize the message?
A midrash on the opening words of this week’s Torah portion, B’midbar (In the Wilderness) provides an answer: “And God spoke to Moses in the Sinai Wilderness” (Numbers 1:1). Why the Sinai Wilderness? From here the sages taught that the Torah was given through three things: fire, water, and wilderness… And why was the Torah given through these three things? Just as [fire, water, and wilderness] are free to all the inhabitants of the world, so too are the words of Torah free to them…
Another explanation: “And God spoke to Moses in the Sinai Wilderness” — Anyone who does not make themselves ownerless like the wilderness cannot acquire the wisdom and the Torah. (Bamidbar Rabbah 1:7) We learn from this that Torah is available to all, regardless of status or wealth. It cannot be owned but is open to all who wish to embrace it. It was given to everyone, from the lowest of the low to the most exalted, for all are special in God’s eye.
And what does the midrash mean by “ownerless?” Just as Torah is open to all, we must be open to Torah. The Torah asks us to worship no other gods but God, not wealth, or power, or material comforts, or our anger, or resentments, or our work.
These are idols and illusions that enslave us. But if we can be humble and open ourselves to Torah, then Torah will open to us and we can embrace its strength and its power.
~Rabbi Dean Kertesz