In an article on Parshas Vaera, Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb describes a conversation between friends, where they each shared what to them was the saddest pasuk (verse) in the whole Torah. While all of them were most definitely sad, I identified greatly with Rabbi Dr Weinreb’s choice, a pasuk from this week’s parsha. The verse states “But they would not listen to Moses because of their crushed spirit and difficult toil.”

Context is important. In last week’s Torah portion, we see that “the people were convinced.” Moshe told them about the redemption and they were excited; they had hope.

But now, after Moshe intervened with Pharoah with seemingly disastrous results, forcing the Jews into worse servitude than ever, our nation lost one of our most valuable treasures: hope.

The eighteenth century mystic and ethicist, Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzato explains that Pharoah was an expert in breaking the human spirit. After Moshe came to him on behalf of his people, Pharoah multiplied their workload intentionally to deprive them of the opportunity to reflect and hope.

When we reach points, whether through collective Jewish suffering or our own personal challenges, where we feel hopeless, we need to create time to pause and reflect and connect with Hashem, the source of all hope. Ultimately, our nation WAS rescued from Egypt. And painful as it was, Moshe’s conversation with Pharoah was the beginning of that process. When we are in pain, we need to remember that we have not been forgotten. We need to gather the inner fortitude to create the time and space to reflect and connect with our Creator. It is in that space that we can rediscover hope, and in doing so we begin the path toward redemption.

Wishing you a beautiful Shabbos with time for reflection and connection,
Leora Estersohn