This Shabbat we begin the reading of Exodus, the second book of the Hebrew Bible.
Rabbi Carole Balin, a professor at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York, asks a fundamental question about the Exodus story: “Is it true?” That is, did the events described in our Bible actually happen? Were we slaves to Pharaoh in Egypt all those years? Did God literally bring us out of bondage or is this story just an invention of our imaginative ancestors?
Here’s how she answers: “As a non-literalist, non-fundamentalist, liberal, and committed Jew, I ascertain the message behind the medium. To me, the text asserts God’s ability to subvert nature as a means of demonstrating God’s vital interest in the welfare of the Israelites, which extends through time—indeed, I fervently hope, to our own time. To my students’ question, ‘But is it true?’ I respond, ‘Yes!’ and ‘No!’ The Exodus’ visible and venerated place in the Jewish calendar assures that it will be believed in, year in and year out, to our rational consternation and spiritual delight.”
Indeed, a story can be “true” even if it didn’t happen precisely as it is told. The truths of the Exodus narrative are many, among them: that God wants us (and all peoples) to be free; that good will triumph—eventually—over evil; and that freedom comes with responsibility. I believe all of these truths with all of my heart even as I acknowledge that the Exodus story contains elements of hyperbole and imagination that were designed by our ancestors to (quite effectively) inspire us to commit ourselves with courage and tenacity to becoming God’s partners in bringing Redemption to the world.
What truths do you see (and celebrate) in the Exodus story?
— Rabbi Yoshi Zweiback
