This week’s parsha features the climax of the story of the Exodus. Fleeing Egypt and bondage, the Jewish people at last reach the yam suf and find themselves trapped. Behind them, the Egyptian armies bear down. 

According to the midrash, Nachshon Ben Aminadav of the tribe of Yehuda, in an act of supreme faith, steps into the waters of the sea while the nation wails in despair. Once the waters reach his nose, a great miracle takes place and Hashem sends a wind splitting the sea and enabling the Jewish people to cross. 

One of the foundations of Judaism is the precept of following what we are told to do by Hashem through the sages. The Torah teaches us in Deuteronomy 17:9:

וּבָאתָ֗ אֶל־הַכֹּֽהֲנִים֙ הַֽלְוִיִּ֔ם וְאֶל־הַ֨שֹּׁפֵ֔ט אֲשֶׁ֥ר יִֽהְיֶ֖ה בַּיָּמִ֣ים הָהֵ֑ם וְדָֽרַשְׁתָּ֙ וְהִגִּ֣ידוּ לְךָ֔ אֵ֖ת דְּבַ֥ר הַמִּשְׁפָּֽט:

“And you will come to the priests, the levities and to the judge which will be in those days, and you shall inquire, and they will tell you the words of judgement.”

Halachic Judaism cannot exist without the words of the sages to guide us, to instruct and inspire us. But Hashem did not tell Nachshon to enter the water. This inspired act, to show complete faith and trust in G-d was something quite different. A part of our religious life we all too often neglect. The aspect of faith. It is easy to get caught up in the technicalities of our Jewish lives. What heksherim to eat, what I can and cannot do on shabbat, whether I’m giving enough tzedaka and so on. Of course, these questions are foundational. We cannot function as a religion or a community without knowing the laws and studying them. Torah teaches us how to follow.

But faith, faith teaches us how to lead. Not necessarily lead in the sense of leading others. Rather, leading in the sense of choosing to push ourselves forward and to strive for that faith in the divine.  Invariably, the inspiration to begin to lead a sanctified and G-d focused life does not stem from the study of a Talmudic tractate or rabbinic responsa. It comes from something raw and emotional. A connection with something greater than ourselves. The desire for a relationship with it, and to trust in it. 

That was the inspiration behind Nachshon’s act.

Many girls at this point in the year of seminary begin to think about the end of the year approaching in just a few short months. How can they take the lessons they learned back home? What is the next step in their religious journey? How could what they have learned influence their wider relationships with friends and family? These are all good questions, and each brilliant Bat Yisrael that passes through our doors will find their own answers and chart their own course. However, my advice is always this. When we are in the walls of the seminary, we need to be Moses, learning and growing. When we go out into the world, it is time to be Nachshon and to push ourselves to strive into the sea. We must lead ourselves to the next stage and set an example for others to follow. 

Ladies, continue to learn, grow and flourish. But don’t forget what brought you here. Faith, emunah. The belief in something bigger, greater and more beautiful than we can ever put into words or describe. 

When the time comes, trust in that faith, walk into the sea, head held high. Hashem will do the rest.

Shabbat shalom