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Longing For Our Leaders: Commentary on Parashat Nitzavim 5784
By Rabbi Lauren Tuchman, Hebrew Seminary Professor of Rabbinic Literature
Parashat Nitzavim marks an important turning point both in our calendrical cycle and in Moses’ lengthy oration to the Israelites as they are about to enter into the land. Moses’ days are numbered. The Torah is nearing its end. I cannot help but think back to Parashat Chukkat in which Moses learns that he will not enter the land. I wonder how Moses continues to process this, knowing that the assembled masses of people to whom he is speaking will enjoy that which he has yearned for. What is remarkable for me is that, despite his own inner landscape, Moses reiterates multiple times in Parashat Nitzavim that the covenant includes everyone, those present on this day and those who are not. The entire people is assembled—all genders and generations, from the wood-chopper to the water-drawer. Everyone is part of the covenant. Covenantal relationship extends beyond time and space.
The book of Deuteronomy has largely concerned itself with recounting the history of the Jewish people until this point from Moses’ perspective. We also get a host of mitzvot. In fact, Deuteronomy is often called the Mishneh Torah, or “repetition of the teaching,” because so much of its ground has been covered before. We also encounter key liturgical passages, including the Shema and two of its subsequent three paragraphs; the ritual declaration of bikkurim (“first fruits”) in Parashat Ki Tavo, which the rabbis brilliantly included in the Passover Haggadah; and the Torah readings that many communities in the Diaspora read on the Three Pilgrimage Festivals (Passover, Shavu’ot, and Sukkot). A resounding theme in Deuteronomy is the centrality of divine relationship as embodied in the covenant. The covenant is unearned but can often feel conditional, particularly in last week’s parashah, Ki Tavo.
In some ways, Parashat Nitzavim feels to me like another moment of revelation. Moses wants to leave the people with some key takeaways. This covenant includes you—yes you, whoever you are. Never forget that the Torah is within you, right here, right now. Deut 30:14 urges:
לֹ֥א בַשָּׁמַ֖יִם הִ֑וא לֵאמֹ֗ר מִ֣י יַעֲלֶה־לָּ֤נוּ הַשָּׁמַ֙יְמָה֙ וְיִקָּחֶ֣הָ לָּ֔נוּ וְיַשְׁמִעֵ֥נוּ אֹתָ֖הּ וְנַעֲשֶֽׂנָּה׃
It’s not in the heavens so that you might ask “Who will go up and get it for us?” Nor is it across the sea. It’s in your mouth and in your heart to do it.
This verse is one of my favorites because it affirms that Torah is living and exists within each of us. Moses’ reminder to the people at the beginning of our parashah also is an affirmation that Torah is ours collectively and, as individuals, we each add to its beautiful and complex tapestry. This covenant isn’t some transcendent, fearful, and removed thing. It’s here, now, with all of us.
Blessedly, we live in a time in which we are beginning to recognize what we’ve always had—a rich, diverse, and beautiful people. We are a people composed of individuals who come from a variety of backgrounds, life experiences, and perspectives. Finding a way for all to feel a sense of spiritual home in our communities can be a daunting, sometimes uncomfortable, endeavor. When we expand our minds, hearts, and souls to experiences and perspectives we might not have considered, we are being given the incredible opportunity to deepen and enrich our thinking. I revel in those experiences as I recognize the limitations of my own assumptions and misperceptions. It’s hard, yes, but truly humbling and helps us as teachers and learners to be the best human beings we can be.
When we take the lead and warmly embrace Jews from all backgrounds into our communities, the Torah we find within them is that much deeper, more resonant and spiritually alive. Barukh HaShem (“Blessed is God!”), I believe we are living in a time in which we are receiving a plethora of new chiddushim (“new teachings”) from voices and perspectives that have historically been marginalized, including women, Jews with disabilities, Jews of color, and members of the LGBTQIA community. In my own life and experience, I find myself feeling such hakkarat ha-tov—tremendous gratitude—for the Torah I am learning from the teachers I most admire, many of whose voices have historically not been heard. Indeed, Hebrew Seminary is truly fulfilling an incredible gift and responsibility—to teach Torah to all who seek it and to raise up students whose Torah is a life-giving one rooted in deep learning, love and lived experience.
After all, the berit (“covenant”) we all entered included those who stood there on that day and all of those across time and space who did not. May we never cease working to build communities and spaces in which the Torah from all can find a home and be heard. May we work to be the leaders we long for.
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