Yithro: Believe (in)

            The ten commandments, the most widely accepted section of the Bible, the core of the legalistic aspect of the Abrahamic religions, is in this parsha. To me, this parsha is about how and why I believe in them.

Believing in is obviously different from believing without the “in.” To believe “in” means that invocation is a solution. If there is conflict between people, their mutual belief in a code of law directs the solution that will be deemed just. [ It is talk like this that creates anti-liberals].  Believing in Gd means that there is hope in reaching out.  The second half of the parsha describes events that brought the Hebrews to believe in the power of Gd and Moshe’s messenger role.  It was these beliefs that sealed the acceptance of the commandments. The retelling of the events allows the consideration of future generations, up to and beyond my own.

Are the events described credible? Yes, but the interpretation that is proffered is open to (modern) skepticism.  I have no trouble believing that a volcanic mountain in the Sinai wilderness erupted, generating sound and light.  I can believe that Moses ascended the erupting mountain. The attribution of these events to a visitation by the Deity  is something I believe, but in a different way. It is a choice to forgo the skepticism I (usually) apply to interpretations. This belief is much more tentative scientifically; much deeper and firmer in my soul. I recognize this belief as an act of will. It is how I know that I possess the power to choose.

The parsha opens with Jethro returning to Moshe. Jethro has established himself as a paradigm of righteous kindness. He is the model for the Stycz family that hid my parents from the Nazis. Jethro’s daughter told their father that an Egyptian stranger had helped them complete their work by confronting the bullies who were barring their access to water. Jethro insisted on housing this man. The man was a person without a home. He was in exile, hence probably criminal. He was a (hot headed) killer.  Moses marries Jethro’s daughter. Given these qualities, Jethro might have suspected that Moses would leave one day, probably to die trying to liberate his people. Moses did leave, and he left Jethro with his (abandoned) wife and sons. When grandparents raise children, there is something awry in the family.

Jethro’s intelligence is unparalleled. He sees that a system of justice based upon a singular judge is not viable. He makes suggestions that are so strong… even Gd accepts the advice.

אִ֣ם אֶת־הַדָּבָ֤ר הַזֶּה֙ תַּעֲשֶׂ֔ה וְצִוְּךָ֣ אֱ

If you do this—and Gd so commands you

 

Sometimes it takes an outsider to see the flaws.

Jethro’s system has two parts. A hierarchy of judges, with Moshe, the judge that almost everyone trusts and the person who has access to Divine power, at the top.  The second suggestion is to provide  an instruction set: tell the people how they are to behave. In the timeline of the text, the ten commandments seem to be  an attempt to  serve this purpose .  These are rules that are independent of circumstance, stronger than an appeal to reason. Jethro does not write these ten commandments; he merely suggests that their existence would be a good idea.

The parsha then moves to the presentation of the ten commandments. Moses orders three days of preparation, clean clothes. The people’s involvement in the process reinforces its significance.  The holy Presence has caused the mountain to exceeds the sanctity tolerance of every human being except Moses, it is lethal to touch. The sound makes the people (and the earth beneath them) quake. It is all terrifying.  That is the point. The awe was created to inspire adherence, to give something to believe “in.”

וַיֹּ֨אמֶר מֹשֶׁ֣ה אֶל־הָעָם֮ אַל־תִּירָ֒אוּ֒ כִּ֗י לְבַֽעֲבוּר֙ נַסּ֣וֹת אֶתְכֶ֔ם בָּ֖א הָאֱ  וּבַעֲב֗וּר תִּהְיֶ֧ה יִרְאָת֛וֹ עַל־פְּנֵיכֶ֖ם לְבִלְתִּ֥י תֶחֱטָֽאוּ׃

Moses answered the people, “Be not afraid; for God has come only in order to test you, and in order that the fear of God may be ever with you, so that you do not go astray.”

 

 

The first two statements are a continuation of the theme of establishing an entity to believe in.  Anochi (translated I) establishes the  Gd who is the source of the law (and the terrifying scene that introduces it) as an entity to which the people can relate. Gd has a pronoun that is related to the ordinary I ( ani), only more so (anochi).  There is no shying away from remoteness, but, perhaps, sometimes, the distance can be breached.

The jealousy of Gd has an outward element of irony. The tenth commandment forbids envy! There is an important difference.  The envy that is forbidden by the tenth commandment involves entities that do not belong to the covetous person.The prohibited action in the tenth commandment, thachmod, invokes the emotional complex that is desire. Gd’s jealousy is a reaction to being robbed of the attribution that is deserved.

 

We all believe in some things. The Grateful Dead sing:

Some folks trust to reason
Others trust to might
I don't trust to nothing
But I know it come out right

There is great merit in choosing carefully. There are wrong answers.