The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: “When you take the sum of the children of Israel according to their numbers, let each one give to the Lord an atonement for his soul when they are counted; then there will be no plague among them when they are counted. (Exodus 30:11-12)

This first count served a number of purposes. It was a census. It provided silver for the construction of the Mishkan (Tabernacle), and it was affected atonement. The Jewish nation has misused its wealth in the creation of the Golden Calf and were now redeeming themselves (and their wealth) by contributing to a holy and higher cause.

The Lubavitcher Rebbe (1902-1994) makes a fascinating observation. The verse read, “Ki sisa es rosh bnai yisroel, when you count the children of Israel.” The true translation of “Ki sisa es rosh” is “when you lift up the head.” But how can you lift the head? Is it not already the “highest” part of the body? And it is here that the Torah is teaching us a beautiful, yet nuanced lesson. Even if you are a rosh, accomplished and spiritually elevated, you must always strive to live a life of ki sisa, elevation and growth. We have dreams and aspirations, and BH, many times we put in the requisite effort, and we accomplish. We cross the finish line. Our goals materialize. We become the rosh. But even in those moments of incredible life accomplishment, we must ask ourselves, “what’s next?” What is the next journey? What is the next accomplishment? What else needs to be done? Even the rosh has to lift itself higher.

It is important to be cognizant of my accomplishments and take pride in all I have achieved. The existential danger we encounter is when that cognition leads to stagnation. We must avoid the temptation of feeling fully accomplished and complacent. No matter how high and holy the rosh may be, we must always lead lives of ki sisa.

(Originally published in 5779)

No matter how many times we read it, it is still difficult to comprehend. On the heels of the most dramatic, inspirational, and transformative experience, we hit rock bottom. We panicked. We thought Moshe died on the top of Mount Sinai leaving us leaderless and alone. What would we do? Where would we go? How can we move forward without Moshe at our helm? A plan was devised.

Aaron said to them, “Remove the golden earrings that are on the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters and bring them [those earrings] to me.” And all the people stripped themselves of the golden earrings that were on their ears and brought them to Aaron. He took [them] from their hand[s], fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made it into a molten calf, upon which they said: “These are your gods, O Israel, who have brought you up from the land of Egypt!” When Aaron saw [this], he built an altar in front of it, and Aaron proclaimed and said: “Tomorrow shall be a festival to the Lord.” On the next day they arose early, offered up burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings, and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and they got up to make merry (Exodus 32:3-6).” 

Aharon needed to buy time; he knew Moshe would return. Never did he imagine the people would part with their wealth so quickly. Never did he imagine that the Golden Calf would turn into a deity and form of idolatry, sparking the worst national rebellion against God in the history of our people. Moshe is ordered to leave the mountain. He descends, and upon seeing the decadent behavior of the people, smashes the luchos (tablets). God tells Moshe of his intention to destroy the Jewish nation and begin to rebuild through Moshe. Moshe responded:

Moses pleaded before the Lord, his God, and said: “Why, O Lord, should Your anger be kindled against Your people whom You have brought up from the land of Egypt with great power and with a strong hand? (Exodus 32:11)

What does this mean? How could Moshe ask why God was angry? The Rabbis in the Talmud compare the sin of the Golden Calf to a bride who commits adultery underneath her bridal canopy. Sinaitic revelation represented the pinnacle of Divine closeness and spiritual intimacy, and yet amid this special moment, we turned our attention to a Golden Calf. God’s wrath and displeasure are warranted and understood. Yet, Moshe asks, “Why should Your anger be kindled against Your people?” How are we to understand Moshe’s question to God?

Rebbe Nachman of Breslov (1772-1810) provides an incredible insight. Moshe was urging God to look at the people in their totality. Don’t only see the sin of the Golden Calf; remember their good and holiness as well. Remember, these are the same people, “Your people whom You have brought up from the Land of Egypt.” These are the same people who followed You out into the desert, the great unknown. They barely knew You yet embraced You as the God of their forefathers. Don’t solely view them through the lens of their failure. See their successes, accomplishments, and commitment as well.

The Rebbe teaches us an incredible lesson. When people fail and hurt us, we only see them through the lens of the current failure, often ignoring all the good which came before. When those who we love and cherish fail us, there are often feelings of hurt and betrayal. Before we discard or unravel the relationship, we must take a moment to reflect on the good and moments of commitment my relationship partner has exhibited. God’s ability to view us in totality saved our relationship. May we find the courage to do the same for one another.

We were confused and overwhelmed. Moshe was gone for over forty days (according to our ancestors’ calculations) and the nation feared the worst. We built the Golden Calf, proclaimed it as our god and committed one of the most severe relationship trespasses in the history of our people. Hashem in His divine wrath, ordered Moshe to descend the mountain. But before Moshe left, God told him of His plan to destroy the Jewish people and begin again with Moshe. Moshe, the loving advocate of the Nation of Israel beggede and pleaded for Divine mercy for the fledgling Jewish nation.

Moses pleaded before the Lord, his God, and said: “Why, O Lord, should Your anger be kindled against Your people whom You have brought up from the land of Egypt with great power and with a strong hand?” (Exodus 32:11)

What exactly was Moshe saying to God? “Why are You so angry?” Did Moshe not understand God’s anger and pain? Had Moshe somehow missed the severity of this act? How could he minimize what his beloved nation had just done? Furthermore, why does the Torah convey this exchange? What are we to learn from it? How are we to grow from this episode?

Rabbi Moshe Alshech (born in Turkey in 1507, and died in Safed in 1593) answers this question with a simple phrase, “HaBeyt u’reeh mey’heychan ba’u (look and see from where they came).”  When someone we love makes a mistake we have two options. We can focus exclusively on the misdeed and mistake or we can take a step back and look at the person in totality, reminding ourselves of his/her positive traits and deeds. Moshe says, “Hashem, I know you are upset and I understand Your feelings of betrayal and sadness. But look how far they have come. This nation left Egypt just a few short months ago and in that short amount of time they have accomplished so much. They followed You into the desert. They followed You into the sea. They sang the magnificent words of Az Yashir with a united soul. They said Naaseh V’Nishma (we will do and we will listen) as one people with one heart. I know they messed up, but don’t just look at their mistakes, look at their accomplishments as well. Don’t just dwell on their failures, be cognizant of their successes.”  Moshe was not minimizing God’s pain – he was trying to frame it appropriately and put it into a proper perspective.

Rabbi Nachman of Breslov explains that we are obligated to “Dan es kol haAdam l’kaf zechus (Judge every person favorably).”  We generally understand this to mean that we should try our best to give every person the benefit of the doubt. But the rabbis were ask us to do so much more. We must try to find the good in every person. We must seek out the redeeming qualities within the other – even when the other is profoundly compromised. We must condition ourselves to not only judge favorably; but to see that which is favorable within the other. The Rebbe explains that this is not only true with others – this is true with ourselves as well. We must strive to see the good we possess despite the multitude of mistakes we have made. The ability to see the good in others and the ability to see the good in myself requires one very important thing – perspective. We are able to judge both others and ourselves favorably when we are able to not only to see the negative shortcomings, but the beautiful qualities as well.

In Pirkei Avos (Ethics of the Fathers, Chapter 2, Mishna 13) Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakai asks his students, “What is the proper path a person should choose for himself?” In other words, what is the most important trait to possess? Rabbi Elazar responds, “Ayin tova (a good eye)”. Rabbeinu Yonah explains that a “good eye” refers to proper perspective. The ability to maintain proper perspective in life allows one to navigate all of life’s tumultuous circumstances and maintain relationships with all kinds of people.

It is in this gripping exchange between Moshe and God that the Torah teaches us the all-important need for proper perspective. Don’t just see the calf, see all of the holiness. Don’t just see the mistakes; look at all of the accomplishments. We don’t control many of the situations and circumstances in life – but we absolutely control the way we choose to look at ourselves, at others, and at life.

No matter how many times we read it, it is still difficult to comprehend. On the heels of the most dramatic, inspirational and transformative experience, we hit rock bottom. We panicked. We thought Moshe died on the top of Mount Sinai leaving us leaderless and alone. What would we do? Where would we go? How can we move forward without Moshe at our helm? A plan was devised.

Aaron said to them, “Remove the golden earrings that are on the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters and bring them [those earrings] to me.” And all the people stripped themselves of the golden earrings that were on their ears and brought them to Aaron. He took [them] from their hand[s], fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made it into a molten calf, upon which they said: “These are your gods, O Israel, who have brought you up from the land of Egypt!” When Aaron saw [this], he built an altar in front of it, and Aaron proclaimed and said: “Tomorrow shall be a festival to the Lord.” On the next day they arose early, offered up burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings, and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and they got up to make merry.” (Exodus 32:3-6)

Aharon needed to buy time, he knew Moshe would return. Never did he imagine the people would part with their wealth so quickly. Never did he imagine that the Golden Calf would turn into a deity and form of idolatry, sparking the worst national rebellion against God in the history of our people. Moshe was ordered to descend the mountain, and upon seeing the decadent behavior of the people smashes theluchos (tablets). God tells Moshe of his intention to destroy the Jewish nation and begin to rebuild through Moshe. Moshe responds:

“Why, O Lord, should Your anger be kindled against Your people whom You have brought up from the land of Egypt with great power and with a strong hand?.” (Exodus 32:11)

What does this mean? How could Moshe ask why God was angry? The Rabbis in the Talmud compare the sin of the Golden Calf to a bride who commits adultery underneath her bridal canopy. Sinaitic revelation represented the pinnacle of Divine closeness and spiritual intimacy and yet amid this special moment, we turned our attention to a Golden Calf. God’s wrath and displeasure are warranted and understood. Yet, Moshe asks, “Why should Your anger be kindled against Your people?” How are we to understand Moshe’s question to God?

Rebbe Nachman of Breslov (1772-1810) provides an incredible insight. Moshe was urging God to look at the people in their totality. Don’t only see the sin of the Golden Calf, remember their good and holiness as well. Remember, these are the same people, “Your people whom You have brought up from the Land of Egypt.” They are the same people who followed You out into the desert, the great unknown. They barely knew You, yet embraced You as the God of their forefathers. Don’t solely view them through the lens of their failure, see their successes, accomplishments and commitment as well.

The Rebbe teaches us an incredible lesson. When people fail and hurt us we only see them through the lens of the current failure, often ignoring all the good which came before. When those who we love and cherish fail us, there are often feelings of hurt and betrayal. Before we discard or unravel the relationship, we must take a moment to reflect on the good and moments of commitment our relationship partners have exhibited. God’s ability to view us in totality saved our relationship, may we find the courage to do the same for one another.