The Embrace of Sinai
Compulsory volunteerism
Shavuos, the upcoming Jewish Holiday, the anniversary of the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai, is arguably the most important event in all of Jewish, if not all of human, history. It marks the time that G-d revealed Himself at Mount Sinai, and communicated the Torah and raison d’etre for the very existence of the universe, through the Jewish people to the entire world.
When the Jewish people were told that they would receive the Torah at Mount Sinai, they apparently appreciated the momentousness of the event and they therefore enthusiastically exclaimed, “Na’aseh v’nishmah-We will do it and we will hear it.” This implied that they were prepared to accept the Torah even before they knew what commandments it contained.
Yet, when the Torah describes the way they stood at Mount Sinai, the Talmud comments that G-d had to “place the mountain over them” thereby compelling them to accept the Torah.
Why, our Sages wonder, did G-d have to compel them to accept the Torah when they already enthusiastically expressed their absolute willingness to accept the Torah?
Psyched
One answer that reveals some insight into human psychology is that, on the contrary. Precisely because we were so “psyched” about the prospects of receiving the Torah, we then recoiled when we came so close to realizing our greatest desire.
So great was their desire to receive the Torah that when the Jewish people were told upon leaving Egypt that they were going to receive the Torah in fifty days, it immediately generated a feeling of yearning and anticipation for this momentous event. They even began to count the days, demonstrating their anxiousness and eagerness to receive the Torah.
Indeed, the counting of days was actually more than just an expression of anticipation. It was also a manifestation of their desire to refine themselves so that they would be worthy of the Torah. And the more they refined their character, the more their souls became sensitized to spirituality. The more sensitized their souls became, the more they realized the incredible holiness and awesomeness of the occasion. It was much like the anticipation and love that grows day by day in anticipation of one’s marriage. Every day of preparation just increases the love and intensifies the yearning for the bride and groom.
And just as they had gone through seven week’s of intense preparation and “psyching themselves up” for their rendezvous with G-d at Sinai, they recoiled in horror! The more they became aware of what awaited them, the more overwhelmed and humbled they became, to the point that G-d had to envelop them with the mountain, which was G-d’s way of leading them into His embrace.
Apprehension is normal
One very basic lesson that can be derived from this narrative is that when a person exhibits a certain measure of resistance to a spiritual experience, it is not necessarily a sign that they are opposed to it. On the contrary. Human nature often puts up the greatest resistance to something that we want so badly and are so awed by the prospects of actualizing that desire. Our reaction is to remain static, paralyzed by the fear and awe of the impending experience. At times like this, we appreciate G-d “twisting our arms” enabling us to march forward and receive that for which we so yearned and prepared ourselves.
There is also a parallel for our generation in particular. For thousands of years — not just 49 days — the Jewish people, and indeed the entire world, has been searching, hoping and yearning for the time when universal peace would prevail. This hope — known to Jews as the Messianic Age, ushered in by the Moshiach, — we were told by many of the greatest Jewish leaders of most recent times is almost upon us. We are standing on the very boundary between exile and the Age of Redemption. Yet, there is a palpable feeling of reticence, apprehension and even resistance by some.
We shouldn’t worry. The Holiday of Shavuos has already prepared us for this eventuality. As we are poised to enter into the awaited transformation of the world with the coming of Moshiach, we are likely to experience a certain measure of spiritual paralysis. But, we are also assured by the past experience associated with Shavuos, that G-d will ultimately take us into His embrace, and give us the strength to realize our greatest dream and love.
From the book Light from the Future: Shavuos by Rabbi Heschel Greenberg, published by the Jewish Discovery Center.
