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By Rabbi Daniela Szuster,
B´nei Israel Congregation, Costa Rica

Translated by Inés Baum - Proofreading by Ellen Zindler

This parashah tells us that Moses was a little bit tired of leading the people by himself and, for this reason, God advised him to choose seventy old men who would stand by his side and support him in his task.

Moses chose the seventy elders and, according to the Torah, God took from the spirit that was in Moses and instilled it within the seventy old men.

There is an interesting commentary concerning this passage, which compares Moses to a candle that lights other candles, emphasizing that, although it kindles the others with its fire, the first one is never put out but remains lit as well.

The same happened with Moses; no matter how much life wisdom and experience he transmitted to these seventy men, he did not lose his internal flame.

This commentary leaves us with a very interesting message.

How did Moses transmit his fire? It is not easy; that is the real challenge for a teacher. You can have the fire and have a candle with no fire beside you, but it is not easy to light it. If I give it too much of my fire, I could burn it. If I give it too little, it will not have enough energy to light up. That was one of Moses’ wisdoms: to be able to transmit the fire of Judaism to many people without burning them, but actually achieving the transmission. He achieved his purpose of lighting the fire in each one of them.

That is the challenge we face as teachers, parents, community, UJCL: to find a way to illumine and enlighten in our students, children and members of the community the passion for Judaism, our tradition, and its values. To begin with, we have to keep the spark of Judaism alight in ourselves, and then decide how we will kindle other candles. That is what tradition is about: to light candles from generation to generation, so that each candle can shine, warm, and illumine its surroundings.

It is our challenge to follow in our teacher Moses’ footsteps.

This week’s Haftarah ends with the words: “Not by might, nor by power, but by My spirit, saith the LORD of hosts” (Zechariah 4:6). It is not by way of force or power that we will be able to transmit our great treasure, but rather through the spirit, with love, devotion, and passion.

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Forwarded by Rabbi Gustavo Kraselnik, from Kol Shearith Israel Congregation, Panama.
Translated by Inés Baum and proofread by Ellen Zindler, from B’nei Israel Congregation, Costa Rica.

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