Two Minute Torah Podcast

Ki Tissa 5772 by Rabbi Jacob Blumenthal

Shalom! My name is Jacob Blumenthal, rabbi of Shaare Torah in Gaithersburg, Maryland. Welcome to KOACH's Two-Minute Torah; a project of the College Department of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism.

Every once in a while I wake up and I can't move my head without having severe shooting pain in my neck. Maybe I slept in a bad position, or had a stressful dream. But whatever the cause, I have to lie still. Even after I get out of bed, for some time I have to turn my whole body in a particular direction to talk with someone, or to accomplish my morning routine. After a while, I can move my neck freely. But the memory of the pain stays with me for a while.

These experiences drew my attention to a section in this week's parashah, Ki Tissa, in which the Torah calls the Jewish people a "pain in the neck." The Israelites make a big mistake. They build and worship an idol, a golden calf. Seeing what is going on, God says to Moses, "Ra'iti et ha'am hazeh, v'hinei am keshei oref hu - I have seen this people, and indeed they are a stiff-necked people" (Exodus 32:9). The commentator Seforno says that the term "stiff necked" reflects people with necks that are like iron, unbendable, refusing to listen to the teachings of others. Rashi says that such people turn the backs of their necks to people who try to correct them. And Ibn Ezra says that it is like a person who is walking down a path and refuses to turn around when someone calls out to him or her.

The people heard the commandment at Mount Sinai, "You shall not make for yourself a sculptured image—lo ta'aseh lekha fesel." But rather than turn towards the Promised Land and faith in God, the Israelites keep facing Egypt and their experience as slaves. They can't turn their heads towards something new. When God calls them "stiff necked," we hear God's frustration and anger at their inflexibility. After all the miracles, why can't the Israelites embrace change and face the challenges of freedom with courage and fidelity?

When I get that pain in my neck in the morning, it forces me to remember how much flexibility I need to get through my day. I need to face other people when they speak. I need to turn towards the teachings of our tradition. I need to hear the words of my teachers and friends. I need to be open to my own mistakes, and be ready to turn onto another path.

Maybe to make the pain in my neck go away, I need to be less of a pain in the neck!

Have a great week, and Shabbat Shalom!