Parashat Bo
Ex. 10:1-13:16

The weekly reading of Parashat Bo focuses on the story of the Israelites when they were enslaved by the Egyptians. After God sent several plagues on the Egyptians, Pharaoh’s advisors urged Pharaoh to accede to Moses’ request to allow the Israelite men to leave in order to worship their God. Pharaoh says to Moses “l’chu na hagvarim,” let the men [gever=lad] go forth and serve the Lord.

Our Sages understand “men,” in this context, to signify the strong willed; those who caused unrest. In other words, Pharaoh figured that if he allowed the troublemakers to leave, he could once again control the Israelite people. In contrast to Pharaoh’s emphasis on the “men,” Moses responds with the words “binaraynu u’vizkaynaynu nelech, b’vanaynu u’vivnotaynu,” we will all go, young and old; we will go with our sons and our daughters.

Moses‘ secret weapon was his insight that power lies not in the physical strength of the able bodied young men alone but rather in the fullness of community made up of both sexes and all ages. One might see Moses not just as a leader of our people, but really as the first community organizer. His Facebook status at the time might have been “taking the entire mishpacha with me out of Egypt.”

Further, Moses understood that for there to be a true community, the Israelites would have to journey not only physically, but also spiritually and educationally. Historians have argued that in ancient Egypt, the masses were kept ignorant so that they could never question authority and rebel against their leaders. Egypt was built on physical labor, not learning. Under God’s direction, Moses charted a different course. He led his people out of Egypt not only to widen the distance between the Israelites and physical slavery, but also to enrich their lives spiritually and educationally. Over the course of the Israelites’ subsequent journey in the desert, Moses led them to Mount Sinai to achieve his mission.

Mount Sinai was a spiritual and educational experience for everyone— the text tells us , the entire nation witnessed the Revelation at Sinai, not just the elite. It was an educational experience in which the entire nation learned the laws that would guide their lives. The Israelites learned from Moses’ insights to include everyone in the spiritual and educational process. Moses planted the seeds and recognized the power that comes from harnessing the energies of ALL people in the learning process. He knew the power that can be generated by making the most of each member of the community, young and old, men and women.

The story of the exodus from Egypt teaches us that ours is a religion founded for all the people, not for the elite. How fortunate are we to be able to have such experiences and to give them to our children. Jewish education in our time follows the guidance of Moshe. We strive to educate our families spiritually and emotionally while providing the academic components that prepare us to be leaders in our communities and the world.

Shabbat Shalom. .