Community Torah Corner, Feb. 7, 2025

This coming Shabbat we will read about the monumental episode of the splitting of the sea and Bnei Yisrael’s safe passage to the other side, following their departure from Egypt. Subsequently, led by Moshe and Miriam, the Children of Israel demonstrate their gratitude through the singing of the Shirat HaYam, the famed Song of the Sea. 

The Talmud states that the song was recited in celebration of their release from captivity; however, this begs the question, why did they wait a whole seven days to celebrate their freedom? Upon leaving Egypt, they didn’t know that Paro was going to chase them, they thought they were now free, therefore why didn’t they sing immediately or at the very least after one or two days? 

One answer, suggested by Rabbi Yosef Dov Soloveitchik known as the Bais Halevi, is that the crossing of sea was a turning point in the experience of Bnei Yisrael. Until that point, all the wondrous miracles that they had witnessed, throughout the occurrence of the 10 plagues, had all been directed at the Egyptians, while for the Jews their normal existence continued. It was not until crossing the sea, that the Jews began to experience miracles themselves as they crossed the dry land between suspended walls of water. At the splitting of the sea, every single Jew was escorted by Hashem and only after the last Jew was safely across did the sea resume its natural state and drown their Egyptian pursuers. 

Without wishing to criticize Bnei Yisrael, we can nonetheless learn an important lesson from this answer, in that we should try not to wait until we ourselves are directly affected by something to be able to take meaningful note of it. We should express gratitude for the miracles that we see and hear about in the lives of others as well as the ‘natural occurrences’ that surround us. We should endeavor to empathize with the sadness, pain and suffering endured by others even though we may be far removed from it. As we go into Shabbat, let us all try to refine our sensitivities both to the people and the world around us, expressing joy, empathy or gratitude where appropriate.