Parsha: Elevating religiosity

Every time I hear a chillul Hashem story involving so-called religious Jews going to prison, I contemplate what the term “religious” means. I will not be one to say that people are perfect and don’t make mistakes. And perhaps, some people are in the wrong place in the wrong time, and are drawn in for the unfortunate ride.

And, of course, there’s always room for teshuva.

But when the media refers to a person, going to or already in prison, as “a religious Jew,” who demands kosher food, and the need to have a minyan, or to attend his son’s bar-mitzvah or his grandson’s bris, I can’t help thinking that there’s something very very wrong with this picture. While in oppressive regimes and anti-Semitic cultures it was common for a Jew to be put in prison under false pretenses, in the United States it is extremely difficult to present such an argument.

And so I arrive at the conclusion that these are not really religious Jews, because a religious Jew is supposed to live a life that will never end with him in prison.

Perhaps the flaw lies in the fact that a rote and systematic form of “religious practice” does not speak for the soul of the human being, does not answer for how a person feels, and how his Jewish practices are supposed to enter his heart.

This is an extremely important lesson that the Israelites learn in the events leading up to the splitting of the sea.

The Torah tells us that “As Pharoh approached, the Israelites saw the Egyptians marching at their rear, and they became very frightened (“Va’yi’r’oo me’od”). The Israelites cried out to God.” (14:10) The source of their fear is the Egyptian army, which causes them to cry out.

Moshe rebukes and encourages the people, and then splits the sea. When the Israelites cross the sea the Egyptians follow them and the Egyptians finally recognize G-d and as the walls of water come tumbling down upon them.