This week we read Pashi’ot Matot and Mas’ei, Parshat Mas’ei begins with the words “Eleh mas’ei”- These are the journeys of Bnei Yisrael. The Torah describes – in painstaking detail – each and every stopover the Jewish people took on their path through the desert, as they made their way from Egypt to Eretz Yisrael. All together forty-two journeys and encampments are enumerated. Sometimes they ‘stopped-over’ in a specific place for a very brief period, while at other times there were extended lengthy encampments.

The question we might ask (together with the Midrash Hagadol) is: What is the purpose of listing all of the 42 journeys? “They journeyed, and then they encamped. They journeyed, then they encamped…” – At some point (rather early on some might say…) we seem to have already gotten the picture…

There are several approaches to answer this question. Rashi provides an explanation, based on the Tanchuma, likening the situation to that of a king (G-d) dealing with a son who had become ill. The father gathered his sick and delirious child and travelled with him a great distance until they finally found a cure to successfully remedy his situation. Upon their happy return home, the father provided the son with running commentary recounting each and every step they took along the way: “Here’s where we slept one of the nights; here is where we felt the cold; here you complained of a headache, etc. etc. What was the father’s purpose in telling over these details? Perhaps one can suggest that this recounting was to show that while the end-goal (the cure) is of supreme importance, the process too must not be overlooked. Much can be learned from our historical experiences, both as individuals as well as a People. For indeed: “Those who forget their past are doomed to repeat it”.

The Biblical description is prescriptive as well. For as a People, we go through the same pattern time after time, as we make our way back again to Eretz Yisrael, our final destination. It was Kierkegaard who said: “Life must be understood backward but lived forward.”

As mentioned earlier, the stopovers in the Parsha were of varied duration. This was true of our People’s journey through history as well. While some stays were short, others were much much longer. Our lengthy stay in Spain and Portugal came to an abrupt end with the Expulsions as people slowly made their way towards the Ottoman Empire. In his book “Farewell Espana”, Howard Sachar reports that in the year 1576, the city of Constantinople was home to close to 30,000 Jews, crowning it – at the time – with the title of the largest Jewish city in the world.

It would seem, that over the ages the Jewish People gravitate to the centers of contemporary civilization.

Bearing this in mind, it is interesting to note that presently, the metropolitan area with the largest Jewish population in the world is Tel-Aviv (Gush-Dan)!

Although so many have returned home, nonetheless, countless others continue to wander in the desert – albeit not the Sinai Desert, but rather the wilderness of “Midbar HaAmim”- the wilderness of the Peoples, (Yechezkel 20:35).

According to the Malbim, this expression encapsulates the notion that for the Jewish People life amongst the nations is akin to a journey through the desert. We must realize that when separated and distanced from the Holy Land, we are in truth like a vagabond in the desert lacking access to all basic (spiritual) necessities.

Reading through the lengthy chronicle of our journey through the desert serves as a reminder that not all those who began the journey merited to see its conclusion and enter the Holy Land. Even Moshe Rabbeinu himself, who personally brought the nation to the penultimate step, was buried outside. This is reminiscent of our own journey back to the Land. Many in our generation have merited to come home, but all their forbearers, buried in the four corners of the universe, each took part in the on-going journey of Jewish history. Each particular family saga is told, and retold again, as parents and children explain to the young generation: “Your great grandfather ran away from the pogrom and made it to… Your great grandmother survived the Holocaust and shortly afterwards found herself…

Each and every stage of our collective journey, was a steppingstone in the development of Am Yisrael, inching forwards towards the ultimate Geula.

Your children already know their family’s past – but what will their future hold? How long will it still take till your family leaves the desert and comes home? When will future generations, recounting the family’s personal tale, finally be able to include mention of the first ancestors to have made Aliyah?

It is in your power to decide that your family’s next encampment will be in Eretz Yisrael! The time has come to write your own personal verse: “Vayis’u M’-________ (*insert here your current location), Va’yachanu B’Eretz Yisrael, B’Eretz Hashem”!

B’ruchim Haba’im B’shem Hashem- Welcome home!

RABBI YERACHMIEL RONESS was born and raised in Montreal, Canada. After serving as a congregational Rabbi and as a Hillel Director in New York City, he made Aliyah in 1983 with his wife Dina and their five young children.

Ever since, Rabbi Roness has dedicated his life to promoting Aliyah. First, as Rabbi of the Jewish Agency’s Absorption Centers, and subsequently as the executive director of the Aloh-Naaleh organization.

This article was taken from Rabbi Roness’s new book: Aloh Na’aleh – Eretz Yisrael and Aliyah in the Weekly Parshah.

 The book is for sale on Amazon.

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