Keep Singing

Those who expect an easy victory in a climate of complacency are going to be disappointed. Whether it is our reliance on medical professionals and scientists to rescue us, or on politicians to correct injustice, some have forgotten that all are a part of the solution of our challenges. We begin by lifting up our voices. We achieve success through cooperation. We complete the task with faith.

This week in Torah, the wandering Hebrews needed water. God told Moses to assemble the people at Be’er. God said – “so that I might give them water. וְאֶתְּנָ֥ה לָהֶ֖ם מָֽיִם”  Note that God directed Moses to bring the people to a place called Be’er which literally means well! The people sang a song – “spring up O well”. Then the nobles loosened the earth and the chieftains dug it out. Water sprang up.

The leadership listened to the song of the people and undertook the task. The precursor to success was the encouragement of prayerful singing. Then, in a combined effort, the tribal heads provided relief through collaboration. While the water was already there, success came only when the leadership pulled together to complete the task. What a model for our time! Together the Hebrews transformed parched to pouring.

The progression of the story itself is uplifting. The people next continued their travels toward Canaan from the Midbar (wilderness) to Matanah (a gift) to Nahaliel (an inheritance from God) to Bamoth (high places). With song, cooperation and faith they moved from the wilderness to a holy place.

Torah reminds us that God is the source of life. With that faith, we transform what might appear to be a mere gift into an inheritance from God. Holiness is understanding blessings as inheritances from God. Our role in bringing down holiness begins by uplifting our voices. It continues with collaboration and reaches completion with awareness that the source of our rescue is Divine. Then we return to song; hallelujah!

The prayer songs of today are songs of hope for a cure, justice for all people and healing for the planet. After the singing comes cooperation which is the way to quench thirst in the droughts of our time – a vaccine for Covid 19, justice for all people, and saving the environment. We need more cooperation to overcome the plagues of our day.

Whether your role is to sing out in prayer, enable the responders, or heal our world, each of us should act in recognition that we can always be partners with God.  After all, the well provided by God has always been there!

Keep singing and believing friends, especially until the election in November.

Rabbi Evan J. Krame