This week's parashah is Vaera. In this parashah, god reveals Himself to Moses. He promises to take the Children of Israel out of Egypt, redeem them from their slavery, and then acquire them as His chosen people at Mount Sinai. Afterward, He would lead the patriarchs to the land promised, as their eternal inheritance. God passed the message to the nation, but they were too busy and weak under the slavery that they could not believe and did not do anything about it. Their mindset would be the mindset of slaves that are not aware of any situation of being saved and no hope.
This week I feel like the parashah really resonates with our situation in Israel at the moment. We feel trapped in the Israeli-Palestinian story, of the war that is happening non-stop. And the other side, which this time is Hamas, does not make our lives easy getting to an agreement. From the beginning of the parashah, it focuses first on the right of the Herbrew tribes on their land in Israel, something that is debatable nowadays worldwide.
As the parashah goes on, Moses and Aaron repeatedly speak to Pharaoh, demanding, in the name of God, "Let My people go, that they may serve Me in the wilderness." Pharaoh refuses each time. Aaron's staff turns into a serpent and swallows the magicians' staffs.
In my opinion, using this mythic creature that is so familiar with the Egyptian culture against them would be like mocking them.
God sends a series of plagues upon Egypt.
The waters of the Nile turn into blood; a plague of frogs covers the land; lice infest all humans and animals; swarms of wild animals invade the cities; pestilence kills domestic animals; painful boils afflict the Egyptians. For the seventh plague, fire and hail combine to descend from the sky as devastating rain. Yet, "Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he did not let the Children of Israel go, as the Lord had spoken to Moses."
There was one time he agreed to let the people go to the desert, but then did not keep his promise in real time. This really reminds me of the situation at these days, when Israel is trying to negotiate for getting the hostages back and ending the horrors of the war. But the other side (aka Hamas) is not responding, and even if they release some of them, they do not follow their promises (for example separating families that are brought back).
There are lots of times where this story of tough situations like that happen to our nation, and this story is just a reflection of it. Also, I think that unfortunately, some parts of the story could fit also to the narrative of the Palestinian part these days. I do believe that this time we are in much better circumstances, and with united strength and values we can overcome these hard times. Hope for better days for Israel and Palestine and for all the hostages to come back.
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