Parashat Beha’alotecha- Keeping the Kettle on the Fire
Keeping the Kettle on the Fire
Parashat Beha'alotecha tells of Benei Yisrael's departure from Mount Sinai: "They journeyed from the Mountain of God…" (10:33). The Talmud approaches this event as one of the gravest sins committed by Benei Yisrael in the wilderness. The nation sinned not in taking leave of Sinai – after all, they were supposed to leave Mount Sinai to enter the Land of Israel – but rather in the manner in which they departed. The Rabbis compare Benei Yisrael to a "child fleeing from school." We are all quite familiar with the way children "flee from school": the bell rings, and the children jump and storm for the exits as fast and frantically as possible. This is how Benei Yisrael journeyed from Sinai.
It is commonly understood that Benei Yisrael's sin relates to the contrast between their attitude in this instance and their response at the Yam Suf (Sea of Reeds). After the splitting of the sea, Moshe summoned the people to leave the shores and proceed to Sinai, but they were busy collecting the riches of the Egyptian horsemen that had washed ashore. The people pleaded with Moshe for some extra time so they could accumulate more wealth. But when the time came for them to depart Mount Sinai, they left immediately without objection. This time, they did not ask to remain another few hours to learn more Torah, to absorb more of the sanctity of Mount Sinai. Whereas they had been reluctant to leave the gold-ridden shores of the Yam Suf, they were all too eager to depart "the Mountain of God" where they had received the Torah.
Rav Mordechai Gifter Z"L, however, suggested a different perspective on Benei Yisrael's sin. He begins by asking, why do children rejoice when the bell rings and they leave school? After all, the next morning they must return to the same classrooms, the same teachers, and the same grueling schedule of learning. Why do they leave so enthusiastically? The answer, of course, is that they celebrate the "break in the action," the respite they are offered from their studies. Although they must return to school the next morning, they are at least given the opportunity to relax in the interim.
Herein, Rav Gifter claimed, lies the gravity of Benei Yisrael's jubilant departure from Sinai. They longed for a break, for some time-off from learning and strict observance. They were eager for a period of relaxation and respite from the demands of the Torah that they had received at Sinai.
This attitude is a very dangerous one. Commitment to learning and observance must be consistent; there are no "breaks." Our religious obligations remain binding at all times, throughout the year, and we must never allow ourselves a period of "freedom" or "vacation" from Torah.
Rav Gifter developed this message through an analogy to a tea kettle that one removes from the stove just before it reaches a boil, and then returns to the stove after it has cooled. Unless the kettle remains on the fire consistently, it will never reach a boil. Similarly, a Jew must remain consistently on the "fire" of Torah, and never allow himself to be "cooled."
All too often, students leave yeshiva in June "on fire," inspired and driven to learn Torah and observe the Mitzvot. But by the time September comes, they hardly know how to hold a pencil or open a book or Siddur. While the summer months are certainly a time for relaxation and enjoyment, the kettle must remain on the fire; we cannot allow ourselves or our children to take a break from religion. If we do, then the yeshivot will have to start training and inspiring the children anew each autumn, rather than building on the previous year's achievements.
Perhaps it cannot be realistically expected that all children will grow spiritually during the summer months; at very least, however, we should ensure that they remain where they are, and not be "taken off the fire."
