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Jill

Perhaps it's an unconscious
attempt on the parts of all
Jews, no matter what their
religious orientation, to rally
around one common issue
with which no one can find
fault. The problem, however,
is that in the process of rally-
ing around this issue, too
much attention is assigned to
the tragedy of destruction
rather than to the power of
redemption. After the
speeches and the candle-
lighting ceremonies, what
have we actually accomplish-
ed if we overlook the fact that
there is one place on this
globe where, on the night of
Yom Hashoah, memories are
translated into action as the
whole country shuts down its
public entertainment. Yom
Hashoah does not fill every
Jew with hapless frustration
and despair only because it is
followed in the Hebrew calen-
dar by Yom Haatzmaut, Israel
Independence Day. And no
matter how many cities build
museums and monuments, or
how many elected officials
stand on podiums, such com-
mitment as Israel's cannot be
duplicated in America.
In this week's Torah portion
we find a theologically
balanced approach to Jewish
suffering. After Moses fails in
his first attempt to convince
Pharaoh to free the Israelites,
God declares that he is "God
Almighty (El Shad-ai)."
El Shaddai is the name of
God which evokes power, the

Shlomo Riskin is chief rabbi
of E•at, Israel, and dean of
Oh.r Torah institutions of
Israel.

one who seizes, not only giv-
ing life but taking it.
But God also uses four
words of redemption: "I will
take (v'hotzaiti) you out from
under the burdens of Egypt
. . . and I will deliver (u'hit-
zalti) you from their bondage,
and I will redeem (v'goalti)
you with an outstretched arm
and with great judgments,
and I will take (v'lokachti) you
to Me for a nation."
We learn that although
Egypt is momentous in the
history of the Jews, when we
eternalize the experience
each Passover we don't con-
centrate solely on the sub-
jugation and slavery endured

Shabbat Va'era:
Exodus 6:2-9:35,
Isaiah 66:1-24.

for 210 years, we also eter-
nalize Egypt's redemptive ele-
ment. During the Seder, we
drink four cups of wine as
token of the four expressions
of redemption. Of course Pass-
over also uses symbols of
slavery — the bitter herbs, the
charoset — but at the heart of
the celebration is our escape
from Egypt by virtue of God's
eternal promise to His eter-
nal nation.
"This promise made to our
forefathers holds true also for
us," we read from the Hagga-
dah.
Precisely because a model
for understanding slavery
and freedom has been with us
for more than 3,000 years,
shouldn't we first look close to
home as a source for Holo-
caust memorial and rituals?
One thing for sure: our per-
ception should not begin and
end with the El Shaddai as-
pect of God. Exodus follows
Genesis. Ultimately, Judaism
understands that no destruc-
tive force is unleashed with-
out a redemptive force some-
where in its shadows. This is
not to say that the murder of
6 million Jews could possibly
be compensated by the crea-
tion of Israel. But if one lec-
tures about the Holocaust
without acknowledging
subsequent events, Jewish
history is being done a
disservice.
Miracles do happen. Who
would believe that from the
Soviet Union, a land where
religion was a state crime,
we'd be witnessing an exodus
which is turning out to be one
of the wonders of our times,
uniting an amputated limb to
the body of the Jewish people.
Every day one hears stories