Our parasha this week, parashat Bamidbar, is strikingly relevant today. The parasha reminds us that the Israelites have been wandering in the desert, and are still there. The parasha then goes on to name the members of each tribe, and count them…and count them….and count them, again and again. In the parasha, the heads of the tribes are meant to go around and check who is in which tent, and make sure all the Israelites are where they should be. Its as if these heads of tribes were the first contact tracers! They too count and recount. By the end of the parasha, to be honest, I become a bit bored by the list of numbers.
But we face the same counting today. We open the newspaper, or check the news, and find more and more lists of numbers—the numbers of cases, in states, countries, hospitals….the numbers of dead, continuing with new numbers every day. Some numbers are higher, some are lower, but still, the counting continues.
I am not bored by our numbers. Rather I am saddened and concerned. In Massachusetts, the numbers of deaths from COVID seems to be steadying, so Governor Baker, as we know, is beginning to loosen the restrictions on sheltering at home. We are being given the freedom to visit each other’s ‘tents’ as long as we stay physically distant. We are even given the ability to go back into our physical Mishkan.
But just like the journey from Pesah to Shavuot that we have been counting with the Omer, from freedom from slavery, toward Mt. Sinai, with freedom comes responsibility. Receiving the Ten Commandments represents responsibility for Jews. We celebrate the giving of the Torah at Shavuot next week. One of the Ten Commandments is ‘You shall not kill.’
Governer Baker may say we can reopen our building, but Judaism is not based on secular law. We respect and follow secular law, but we are rooted in Jewish law and values. ‘You shall not kill ‘commands us to practice the value of saving life above all.
Mishkan Tefila will be guided by “You Shall not kill.’ Gathering again in our sacred space, which does not allow for adequate physical distancing, puts our members lives and health at risk. The 384 Campus will remain closed for the time being.
I urge you to follow the commandment we are about to receive again at Shavuot. Protect yourself and the lives of others by wearing a mask outside, gloves in shops, and continuing to keep physical distancing. We may be bored of being indoors, especially on pretty days. But we are a resilient, determined people. We can endure and be patient in order to help save lives. Beautiful weather will come again; a life can never return.
I look forward to no longer counting lists every day. In the meantime…I count on you, and me, to help bring that day soon.
May this Shabbat be filled with savlanut/patience and a love for the gift of life.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Marcia Plumb
