The journeys of our lives: Let them be meaningful

Mattot-Masei Num. 30:2-36:13

RABBI PAUL BENDER Congregation Ner Tamid

This week we complete the Book of Bamidbar (in the wilderness) with the double Torah portion Mattot-Masei (literally meaning staffs-journeys). Masei begins with the words "These are the journeys of the Jewish people" and goes on to list each of the forty-two journeys of the Jewish people in their wanderings in the wilderness. The word, wanderings, is the name of Chaim Potok's classic illustrated book of Jewish history, and this word reminds us that Jewish wanderings were not restricted to the Book of Bamidbar, but began with our exile from the Garden of Eden and have extended throughout time to the Jews dispersed to every corner of the world today. The very name of our Torah portion, Staffs- Journeys, from the Book of the Wilderness, creates an image of a people, walking, holding, staffs in their hands, journeying through a rugged wilderness country of awesome beauty like the rocky hills of the Negev or the Judean wilderness. Those of us who are planning to go on vacation this summer or who have recently returned know that being close to nature can be awe inspiring and can help to renew our spirits by opening our hearts and minds to the wonders with which the Creator has endowed our Universe.

The Torah portion of Masei begins with a detailed listing of all 42 journeys which the Children of Israel took after leaving Egypt and before entering the Promised Land. This list of 42 journeys is bracketed by the 42 verses of the previous chapter, and a subsequent chapter mentioning an additional 42 cities for the Levites who owned no land of their own. This repetition of 42 makes us wonder if the Torah is hinting at some special unstated significance of this number. Kabbalists suggest that the universe was created by the power of G*d's unpronounceable 42-letter name. In this light, the purpose of the list of 42 journeys may be to suggest that they are a Divine process of the creation of a Jewish nation from a multitude of slaves.

Another explanation for the Torah's unusual listing of these journeys comes from Rashi, our primary interpreter of Bible and Talmud, who offers a parable from Midrash. The retelling of the journeys can be compared to a king whose son was sick, and the king took him to a distant place to cure him. On the return trip home, the father described their earlier trip to his son; "here we slept; here we were cold; here you had a terrible headache etc." This story expresses G*d's kindness for his child, and his fatherly love and concern for his son. The father's retelling of their earlier trip also helps his son learn that each of their stops was necessary for the son's strengthening, just as the Torah's description of the 42 journeys was meant to help the Children of Israel develop a mature faith in G*d and in themselves, so that they would finally be prepared to enter the Promised Land.

We are each unique, and in the ongoing journeys of our lives we must each try to discover how we can best contribute to society. Our journeys consist of both positive and negative experiences, but each experience holds the potential for wisdom, growth, discovery and harmony. Rabbi Simon Jacobson of Chabad has created a web series that outlines the 42 psycho-spiritual journeys that we each go through in our lives. (http://meaningfullife.com/oped/2008/08.01.08.) May your journeys add meaning to your life, and as we say at the conclusion of every book of the Torah: Be strong, be strong, and may we strengthen one another.

Shabbat Shalom. .