FEBRUARY 2 • 2023 | 51

ongoing concern. And, as God’s partners, 
we are part of this process, we help drive 
it. Through simple acts of kindness, we 
change the lives of others, and by fulfill-
ing our God-given mandate to do so, we 
create cosmic change in ourselves. We 
become Godly.
We see this on a practical level. Time 
and again, even a small act of kindness, 
a greeting, a gesture, a smile, a telephone 
call, a visit, will transform a person’s day. 
Or even that person’s entire life. Showing 
warmth and kindness and comfort to 
someone who is mourning the loss of 
a loved one, or who is facing a serious 
illness, can change a life. Helping a person 
going through difficulties with emotional 
support, but also physical and material 
support, can change a life. Acts of kindness 
are soft and gentle, but their impact is 
powerful and awesome.
And it goes beyond the effect we have 
on others. When we alleviate another’s 
pain, ease another’s burden, put another’s 
troubled mind at rest, meet someone else’s 

basic emotional, psychological or physical 
needs, it transforms not just the recipient 
of our kindness — it transforms us. 
The language of the Talmud is key: We 
should be compassionate because God 
himself is compassionate. This speaks not 
just to the acts of kindness we perform 
(the world outside ourselves), but also 
to who we are as people — our interior 
world. Being compassionate is about self-
transformation, with the ultimate goal of 
becoming greater, more elevated human 
beings.
Ultimately, the mitzvah of kindness 
and compassion is about striving for a 
certain commonality and alignment with 
God. It’s a radical idea — that we can be 
God-like — but it’s made possible by our 
essential makeup as human beings. We 
are God-like in our essence. The Torah 
says we are created in God’s image; that 
our souls are in some way a reflection of 
the Divine. This is the unique feature of 
the human being. Indeed, nurturing and 
giving expression to that image of God 

within us is the very purpose for which 
the world was created, which is why, says 
the Talmud (Sanhedrin 37a), the human 
being was created last, as the very pinnacle 
of creation.
We see that through simple acts of 
kindness — emotional support, physical 
assistance, warmth, praise — we are 
recognizing and upholding the Tzelem 
Elokim, “the image of God,” in our fellow. 
And we are cultivating it within ourselves. 
Ultimately, being kind and 
compassionate fits into a beautiful, 
intricate pattern. By emulating God, we 
forge a connection with our Creator, and 
with our fellow human beings. And by 
making the world a kinder, gentler place 
and improving the lot of those around us, 
we nurture their souls, their Tzelem Elokim; 
and we nurture our own souls, our Tzelem 
Elokim, our God-given greatness. 

Rabbi Warren Goldstein has a Ph.D. in Human 

Rights Law and is the chief rabbi of South Africa. This 

essay was first printed at aish.com.

continued from page 50

I 

can just imagine the entire Israelite 
people standing on the shores of the 
Red Sea, looking out into the water 
with their toes in the sand. The Egyptians 
are behind them, coming for them. They 
can hear the pounding of the hooves of 
the horses of the soldiers beating 
the ground in the distance. They 
are terrified, having gathered 
their few possessions and their 
surviving children and run for 
their lives. They are running. 
From the soldiers … from the 
backbreaking slavery that defined 
them … but more than what 
they’re running from is what 
they’re running toward. Freedom.
And now they’re here, at the 
sea, glistening in the heat. In front 
of them there is water, so much 
water. But behind them is death. 
They hold each other. They hold their 
children. There is silence.
And then, as Moses fumbles and the 

people begin to weep, one man steps into 
the water. His family looks at him with 
horror. They cry out to him, “Nachshon, 
what are you doing? Stop, where are you 
going?” But like a man possessed, he 
walks forward. The water pools around 
his knees, his waist, his chest. He 
walks into the depths and, finally, as 
the water fills his mouth and nose, it 
begins to part. 
The people pour into the sea, 
which has split for them, thanks to 
the bravery and determination of 
one ordinary man. It may be Moses 
that leads our people to freedom, 
but it is Nachshon who sees the 
possibility of what lies ahead, and 
has the courage to take the risk.
It’s a famous midrash, one that 
we invariably share as we reach this 
pinnacle moment in our people’s 
history as we do this week in our Torah. 
But I love it — and each time I come 
back to it, it makes more sense to me. 

We, too, are at a pinnacle moment 
standing on the shores of the sea, if you 
will. We can look behind us, at the last 
few years, which for so many were years 
of isolation and fear, suffering and death. 
Or we can look toward the future with 
bravery, overwhelmed with pride at our 
amazing, vibrant, loving community, 
ready to plunge back into the world of 
Jewish communal life. 
So, wade in; don’t wait. Sign up for 
classes and for young family programs. 
Send your teens on youth retreats and fill 
our sanctuaries with your sweet voices 
on Shabbat. Get to the book clubs, the 
concerts, the incredible guest speaker 
events. It’s time to show up. To get our 
feet wet. To invest in our present and, like 
Nachshon, to see the possibility of what 
lies ahead. 
We can’t wait to see you. 

Rabbi Jennifer Lader is a rabbi at Temple Israel in 

West Bloomfield.

Take That First Step

SPIRIT
TORAH PORTION

Rabbi 
Jennifer 
Lader

Parshat 

Beshalach: 

Exodus 

13:17-17:16; 

Judges 

4:4-5:31.

