Parshas Ki Tisa: Self Sacrifice and The Gifts of Divine Love and Mercy

Our Torah portion this week, Ki Tisa, Shemot (Exodus) 30:11 - 34:35, includes the gifts of Divine love and mercy that are given us after the debacle of the Golden Calf.

The portion opens as God tells Moses to instruct the Jews that each must contribute a 1/2 shekel of silver for the completion of the Tabernacle. This act of self sacrifice not only pays for the physical work, it also begins a process of ego reduction that allows the infusion of a God consciousness into the national psyche.

Obligatory Sabbath observance comes next in the portion. Because Sabbath observance demands setting aside personal ambitions for a day, it builds upon this theme of self sacrifice, an important element in the spiritual growth of the Jewish people. Knowing the presence of God and following His holy direction in life will affirm our relationship with Him. The children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, to make the Sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant.

A Broken Covenant

The portion then describes the Golden Calf incident, a resumption of idol worship with devastating long term results.

Moses ascends the mountain, leaving his brother, Aaron, in charge.  Without Moses' leadership, corrosive elements within the liberated society lure the majority of people back into relying on false gods to determine their way. Aaron submits to the crowd, enabling the apostasy to occur. God watches this pathetic lapse of faith and vows to destroy everybody.

Moses returns to the camp. In disgust, he smashes the sacred tablets into dust. Then he intercedes on behalf of the people. He pleads with God for mercy so that the supernatural revolution starting a Sinai can succeed. God relents. The tribe of Levi answers Moses' call for loyalists, who identity and execute three thousand insurrectionists. 

A Restored Covenant

Moses convinces the Almighty to forgive the defectors. He ascends the mountain again to receive a second set of Tablets. This experience of God radiates so intensely upon his return that he must cover his face to protect anyone from blindness who looks at him.

On the mountain, Moses also receives a vision of the Divine Thirteen Attributes of Mercy, for God knows that many generations will pass where rules alone will not keep his wayward children in line. We need a Father's tender mercies and the consolation of second and third chances to redeem ourselves along the way to transformative living.

Paganism in the Land of Israel

In this week's Haftarah, I Melechim (Kings) 18:20-39, four hundred years after Sinai, Elijah denounces state sanctioned idol worship. Under King Ahab's tenure, religious practice in the Northern Kingdom of Israel resembles that of Egypt.

To convince the King of his wrong thinking, Elijah stops the rain for three years. King Ahab denies a Divine cause of the drought. Elijah finally proves that God exists when the Almighty ignites a sacrificial alter doused with water, a miraculous event of which false gods are incapable.

Personal Refection and Purification Before Passover

The time between Purim and Passover is set aside for Jews to practice intense personal reflection and moral inventory. We identify and correct wrong thinking, agnostic driven motives, moral confusion and unholy behaviors. Thus, our special  Torah portion this week is Parshas Parah, portion of the cow, Chukat: Bamidbar (Numbers) 19:1 - 22:1.

This portion includes the account of the Red Heifer, an inexplicable, divinely decreed remedy for the most degraded spiritual impurity possible, proximity with a human corpse. This contamination must be rectified to ensure God's presence and protection.

Ahab's successors ignore Elijah's prophecy of national disintegration. Instead, they focus on territorial consolidation and financial gain. They fail to stop idolatry in the Kingdom, continuing to disrespect God and His image by endorsing Baal worship, known for child sacrifice. Three hundred years after Elijah's prophecy, the Northern Kingdom's demise becomes a reality.  

Our special Haftarah reading this week, Ezekiel 36:16-36, inspires hope for Jewish redemption and restoration during the Babylonian exile. Despite years of moral decay, God will redeem His experiment at Sinai by returning the Jews to Jerusalem as a holy people in a holy nation.

On our path towards spiritual integrity, we can empathize with frequent lapses of faith experienced by people only recently awakened to God's presence. We understand Aaron's regretful lack of courage at Sinai. Many other biblical leaders fall short of expectations and continue leading responsibly though eventually they do suffer for their errors.

We know that God determines how we each must suffer for our lapses in judgement and that sincere repentance moderates His judgement. Therefore, we can rely on God's mercies as we muster the courage and self sacrifice it takes to stop evil in our own time. 

The Greatest Evil Persists

Hordes of abortion homicide advocates surround us, their love of child sacrifice akin to Baal worship. Our elected leaders refuse to use their power to stop it. Instead, they focus on war and wages, similar national priorities of Ahab and his successors in the Northern Kingdom of Israel. This is a proven formula for disaster and one that calls for greater education, persuasion, and public outrage. 

The greatest evil in our time is the war against those who have absolutely no defense, pre-born human beings. Their protection garners no monetary gain and little political sway. Societal refusal to stop the carnage and close proximity to all the blood and body parts represents the most degraded type of spiritual impurity possible. Force and fortune notwithstanding, this contamination must be rectified to ensure God's presence, protection and our national survival.

We profoundly appreciate our second and third chances to get things right. Armed with a faith and belief that the Almighty can and will use even our most tragic transgressions to redeem us, we sacrifice our time and energy in the pursuit of a Heaven on earth where all innocent human life, from conception to natural death, is respected and protected.

Please share this post on your social media to amplify our message in this troubled world. Thank you.

Cecily Routman

May there be abundant peace from Heaven, and good life upon us and upon all Israel. Amen.

Cecily Routman is the founder and president of the Jewish Pro-Life Foundation. She opposes abortion homicide in general and among Jews in particular and laments secular policy making in Israel that results in loss of Jewish life and delays the messianic redemption. Cecily envisions a Torah based holy Land of Israel and a world that respects the life of every human being from conception.

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