A series of inspirational messages on the weekly Torah portion by members of the UJC Rabbinic Cabinet

UJC Rabbinic Cabinet Chair: Rabbi Bennett F. Miller, D.Min.
Vice Chair: Rabbi Ronald Schwarzberg
President: Rabbi Harold J. Berman
Director: Rabbi Eric M. Lankin, D.Min.
Mekor Chaim Editor: Lisa Kleinman
Coordinator: Rafi Cohen

Parashat Ki Tissa
By Rabbi Steven L. Denker

The struggle for our loyalty that takes place between the God of Israel and the forces of idolatry are central themes of both the Torah and Haftarah readings for this Shabbat.  In the Torah, the newly freed Hebrews lose faith in a leader who has disappeared “up the hill,” and respond by pressing Aaron into helping them create a golden calf.  In the Haftarah, Elijah leads the battle for loyalty to God and Israel at Mt. Carmel.  His competition is the “Prophets of Ba’al,” who had gained Israelite adherents, at least in part because of support from King Ahab and his wife Jezebel.

These parallel cases point out the difficulty of maintaining faith in the God who cannot be seen. They shed light on the even greater complexity of developing support for the institutions that sustain the People who are loyal to this same God.  Moses and Elijah both had concerns going far beyond the issue of “how many people showed up” for services or activities.  In the wilderness, it was not clear if the gold and fine goods of the Hebrews would be used to build and sustain the Mishkan -- a dwelling place for God -- or a golden calf.  At Mt. Carmel, would the Israelites’ terumot (offerings) benefit the prophets of the latest fad in Ba’al worship or to support the true Word of God?  The question before our leaders, and the struggle for the hearts and minds of our People, was not only allegorical and theological; it was a most practical and immediate concern.

Our own society does not present a clear choice between idols and a true God.  However, it does ask us to allocate our resources, financial and otherwise, among many competing causes and purposes.  Some, like the idols of Ba’al and the Golden Calf, are poor physical substitutes and mistaken representations of a less easily perceived Eternal Reality.  Will our “gold” benefit mistaken notions of what is true or important?  Will our worldly portion be ground into dust, or directed toward building, supporting and sustaining the Covenant between the People of Israel and their one real God?

We encounter the same question faced by our Biblical ancestors.  Secular or non-Jewish organizations and institutions address many worthy causes, and some deserve of a measure of our support.  The organs of our Jewish community may be working on many of those same issues.  By channeling our support through our own community we can, at the same time, strengthen and build the Covenant that sustains the Jewish People.  Moreover, support for synagogues, federations and communal agencies that are charged with building today’s physical and spiritual “tabernacles” for the People of Israel comes only from within our own community.

Like the Hebrews of the Exodus and the Israelites admonished by Elijah, we are free to support what we choose – golden calves and idols or the People of Israel and the God of our Ancestors.

Rabbi Steven L. Denker, a member of the UJC Rabbinic Cabinet, is Interim Rabbi of Temple Emanu El, University Heights, Ohio.