By Rabbi Zsolt Balla
The past two years our communities and our world experienced major crises. The COVID-pandemic was a serious challenge to individuals and communities. Many of our old ways and concepts had to change. How can we make sure that we do not lose contact with our elderly members? How can we make sure that we keep the spark of tradition alive for those less connected? How can we make sure that those who are not visible to us will not be exploited or abused?
Two years after the pandemic started, we still struggle with these questions. And now another crisis has come our way which is perhaps even more dangerous. The war in Ukraine will have repercussions – not only the discomfort of rising costs of energy, but an entire system becoming even more chaotic and complex. There may be famine in store for African countries, who are dependent on food from Russia and Ukraine. And how many people will have to face poverty in Europe? So many questions, and we have no answers…
But we do have a precedent. The month of Iyar connects the formative events in the history of the Jewish people: the Exodus from Egypt and the receiving of the Torah at Mount Sinai.
Pesach introduced the concept of freedom. Had G-d not brought the idea of liberty into world history, even now, over 3000 years later, the notion of freedom would not exist.
The second is the model of the Divine law. Freedom can exist only with rules. Freedom does not mean simply doing whatever one wishes to do. It means one is responsible for one’s actions and for their consequences.
Both events were spectacular ones. But in between the Jewish people had to be in the desert. These seven weeks were a serious letdown, a feeling of being abandoned in a place where there is no life. They were on their own.
The month of Iyar was a month of uncertainty. The children of Israel had to work every day, one step at a time, to become, who they were supposed to be, people worthy of divine law. They did this by using the twin concepts of freedom they learned from pesach and responsibility which they would learn at Shavuot. They kept together, caring for each other and respecting each other’s freedom and this allowed them to reach Mount Sinai, together, in unity.
With each crises comes a great opportunity. Our job today is to weather our current predicament by caring for and respecting each other by working harder than ever and going higher and higher.
And it’s happening before our eyes. It took only a few days for our communities to act in so many ways! To name just one, Jewish refugees from the Ukraine celebrated the Seder-night in places they had not even known of earlier. They saw and felt and experienced unity and shared responsibility. They had a taste of Mount Sinai.