It seems every day I turn on the news, I hear about more change. We are in unchartered territory in our American life where what many of us thought were the norms for many years have changed. Our country is very divided with those who are happy with the changes and those who are not. Our Jewish values are based on making our world a better place, including caring for the needy and providing a safety net for those who are most vulnerable. I grew up believing that our Jewish values and our American democratic values were one in the same. The generations of Americans before us saw injustice in our society and made laws and created social service programs to make it more just. When Americans wanted to help those in need, they created that social safety net. People who were frustrated in the past used their voice to make change. This week’s Torah portion, Chukat (Numbers 19:1-20:22) helps us understand how this is not new.
The Israelites, who were wandering in the desert on the way to the Promised Land, were frustrated, unhappy and downright angry. They didn’t like the conditions, their beloved Miriam died, they were fearful of what lies ahead, desperate for solutions that they believed in, and they were thirsty as there was no water in the desert. They cried out to Moses in despair, asking why he brought the people out of Egypt to just die in the wilderness? God told Moses that he should “order” water from the rock for the Israelites to get them water and bring them comfort. But Moses, who was also very frustrated at the time had no patience, took his staff and struck the rock twice rather than speaking to the rock, perhaps out of frustration. This angered God, and while the Israelites got their water, Moses and Aaron were punished by not being allowed to go into the Promised Land. What would have happened if Moses would have used his voice instead of his anger?
We sometimes get so angry, so frustrated that we want to “strike the rock” instead of using our voices to make change. I was reminded at this week’s annual convention of the American Conference of Cantors here in DC, that all of us have the power to use our voices to make change and to support each other. Perhaps you’ve heard the song by Elana Arian with the lyrics “our voice can change the world.” We can use our voices to sing out for justice, call for change, and comfort those in need. Music has the power to soar directly to our hearts and feed our emotion. Rather than sitting with our anger, and striking out in frustration, we can lead with our voices. Our voices can comfort, they can disturb, they can stimulate, they can move our hearts. For those in despair and frustration watching unwanted change happen before your eyes, let’s use our voices to bring strength and comfort. Our voices truly have the power to change the world.
Shabbat Shalom,
Cantor Michael Shochet
