JBFCS: Rita J. Kaplan Jewish Connections Programs

Rita J. Kaplan Jewish Connections Programs of the Jewish Board of Family and Children's Services

January 2004

Rabbi Simkha Y. Weintraub, LCSW, Rabbinic Director, JBFCS

Stages on the Road to Redemption: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and Parashat VaEra

Jews read the Five Books of Moses through an annual cycle of weekly Torah portions (in Hebrew, parshiot, singular parashah), generally containing 3 — 5 biblical chapters each. These weekly readings of biblical narrative and law are cherished as a source of spiritual inspiration and practical instruction, linking our ancient past to our current reality.

This year, during the week of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Jews worldwide will read and study the portion known as VaEra, Exodus 6:2 through 9:35. Recounting some telling moments from the beginning of the Exodus story, this parashah seems powerfully relevant to the observance of the national holiday that highlights Dr. King’s legacy.

In chapter 6 of Exodus, in the face of the demoralized spirits of Moses and the enslaved Israelites, God strongly re-affirms the promises made to the people. In doing so, God uses several verbs that Jewish tradition understands as reflecting key dimensions/phases of the coming Redemption:

Verse 6:
  "I will free you…." — from physical enslavement;
  "…and deliver you…" — from the psychological mindset of the slave;
  "I will redeem you…" — so you will think of yourselves as free people;

Verse 7:
"I will take you out…" — into a special relationship with God;

Verse 8:
"I will bring you into the land…" — to your own special destiny and self-fulfillment.

Thinking about these stages challenges us as we celebrate the words and actions of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.. The end of physical enslavement — such as eradicating discriminatory laws, separate facilities, insidious cultural practices— is only the first, albeit important, step. Along with that concrete and more obvious effort are the ongoing and long-term struggles in social, psychological, moral, and spiritual domains. The descendants of slaves, other people of color, as well as those from the more privileged classes of society, all need not only to be freed from the shackles of oppressive legal policies, cultural mores, and institutional roles (some persisting to this day), but to be liberated from demeaning interpersonal encounters, from mindsets that imprison, from relationships that prevent personal and professional fulfillment and damage if not destroy human dignity.

It is for these reasons that JBFCS is engaged in a number of initiatives of self-examination and organizational change. The current Saul Z. Cohen Chairs in Child and Family Mental Health, Dr. Anderson J. Franklin and Dr. Nancy Boyd-Franklin, are working at various levels of the agency specifically to address the continuing realities of racism, "out there" as well as "in here." Several divisions within the agency have organized teach-ins and small discussion groups to help staff uncover, name, and confront the lingering impact of racism on service provision, in terms of client’s experience, staff relationships, and organizational structure.

Let us, then, hear an echo of the promises and challenges from the ancient Exodus story in the resounding call of Dr. King’s vision and demands. Ultimately, it is up to us, individually and collectively, to rise to these challenges and to be partners in actualizing the promises they reflect.

These "Spirituality Notes" are excerpts from our monthly E-newsletter. Articles are © JBFCS Rita J. Kaplan Jewish Connections Programs and may be reprinted free of charge as long as this credit line is included.

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