Shabbat Commentary - Mishpatim

Mishpatim is the type of Torah Portion that makes B'nai Mitzvah students groan. No catastrophic forces of nature as in Noach. No dramatic family sagas like those of Jacob and Joseph. No cruel pharaoh, eye-popping plagues, or anxious flight into the wilderness. Mishpatim is mostly about laws which God tells to Moses who then tells them to the Israelites assembled at the foot of Mt. Sinai.

God's laws describe how to deal justly with the crimes of assault, theft, idolatry, destruction of property; how to treat slaves, strangers, widows and orphans ethically; and much more. The famous, far-reaching phrases "...eye for eye, tooth for tooth" (Exodus 21:24) and "You shall not boil a kid in its mother's milk." ( Exodus 23:19) are found in Mishpatim.
In addition, God commands the Israelites to celebrate Sukkot, Passover, and Shavuot..

God sends an angel to watch over the Israelites on their continuing journey and promises to be ..."an enemy to your enemies..." (Exodus 23:22), if the Israelites behave as God has commanded. The Israelites respond, "All that the Eternal has spoken we will faithfully do." (Exodus:24:7).

Even without the cinematic imagery of previous Portions, Mishpatim is filled with thought-provoking concepts which continue to generate commentary. In the Book of B'reishit and the initial Portions of the Book of Shemot, we see God as the Almighty Miracle Worker. This week's Portion, Mishpatim shows God as the demanding Teacher with very high expectations for the Israelite "students."

God's Commandments (Mitzvot) provide the framework for building just, moral , compassionate families and society; for dealing ethically with transgression; for celebrating God's Holidays and worshipping God.

Through God's teachings, God empowers the Israelites to develop from a crowd of runaway slaves to a nation of strong, righteous people firm in their faith in One God and capable of passing on their understandings and belief to to their children and grandchildren.

However, just as our students don't always grasp a concept the first time we teach it, - or even the second or third time - so the Israelites needed to be taught, tested, and taught again. Experienced teachers re-teach, review, repeat, re-test until their students "get it." Do we Jews "get it?" Does humankind "get it?" Not yet! The world is still filled with acts of destruction, corruption, disrespect, oppression. So far, there are no graduates of "Living as God Commands 101." God continues to teach us and test us.

As Jewish Educators, we are truly doing God's work, with regard to our students. While we don't expect to see the waters part, we do hope to cross with our students from ignorance to understanding by studying and following God's Commandments, by fulfilling Mitzvot, and by thankfully acknowledging everyday miracles.

No drama, no spectacles in Mishpatim? Look again! As we struggle to follow God's Laws, we are players in the greatest drama and spectacle of all - the life long challenge of living up to God's expectations for us.

Shabbat Shalom Rest and Renew

Quotations from the Torah in this post were taken from The Torah - A Modern Commentary edited by W. Gunther Plaut.