Don't Follow the Fear

In our Torah portion this week, Ki Tisa,
We watch as Moshe went back up the mountain
And the people grew afraid he would not return.

In their panic
They fashioned for themselves a god.
Out of gold, silver and precious stones
They made something they could see and touc
Something they could hold onto.
From their own hands
They made a god that was static, immovable
A god that was definite
And would never change.

In the throes of fear,
Our ancestors grasped for certainty
They tuned away from mystery
And the presence of the unknown.

And when Moshe returned to camp,
Carrying the tablets
Inscribed by the Divine Presence

There was a shattering.

The tablets, containing the light of the Infinite Mystery,
Could not enter a place where
Certainty was worshipped
And fear ruled.
 
As fragments of the broken tablets spread through out the camp
The people mourned and wailed.

But from within the brokenness,

         The Mystery called:
Hinei makom iti—There is a place for you with me.     
Exodus 33:21

In the midst of fear,
In the grip of doubt and mistrust,
Amid the shattering and dread,
Even here,
There is a place for you with me.

Feel my presence.
I am standing right beside you.
Listen as I call out my name:

All Being, All Being, Compassion and Graciousness,
Patience, Forbearance, Abounding in Love and Truth,
Extending Generosity through time and space,
Lifting up Guilt and Despair from the Depths of Misdeeds,
And making you free.        
Exodus 34: 5-7

The Torah urges us to keep watch,
So as not to be hijacked by doubts and fears,
No matter how loud and insistent they become.
And not to let regrets and misdeeds
Shatter hope and possibility.

Listen, the Mystery calls:
There is a place for you with me.
 I am standing right beside you.
And this is my name:

Compassion, Graciousness, Patience, Love, Truth, Generosity, Forgiveness.
May these calls give us strength to face the brokenness we encounter
and join together for healing.


--Rabbi Yael Levy