This week’s parashah, Bechukotai, is a difficult one to read. It includes a long list of curses that will befall the Israelites should they fail to heed God’s word and fulfill God’s mitzvot. But one of these curses stood out to me more than others. “They will stumble over one another as before their sword” (Vayikra 26:37). We will get in each other’s way. We will keep each other from moving forward; we will trip over our own people and it will lead to our own downfall. The Kli Yakar, a 17th century commentator, taught that this means there will be discord among us, a trait he felt was more common among Israelites than other nations.
The Kli Yakar’s view is cynical, but I’m not sure he was wrong. The clock ticked especially loudly this week as we waited to see what would happen in the Israeli government. As is customary, the president appointed the prime minister to work with the members of Knesset to form a coalition, a requirement of Israel’s parliament. But as midnight on Wednesday approached, it became clear that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu was not able to form a coalition. Despite multiple attempts to work with different parties elected to the Knesset, Netanyahu declared he had failed and called for a vote to send the Israeli public into another election. The Knesset approved, and Israeli citizens will head back to the polls on September 17th.
This unprecedented move in Israel’s history tells us something not just about where we are now as a people but what we should hope for. Why does our discord have to get in the way of us moving forward? Why must we stumble over each other such in a way that stalls our progress? Forming coalitions of any kind requires us to hear other people’s stories, to understand what drives them, and to see the common good in what we strive for.
Despite the many potential curses articulated in Bechukotai, we also are told we have the potential for abundant blessing. I believe that blessing will come when we are able to build bridges with each other, both based on our beliefs and also our desire to move forward, together. I want to live in a world where we’re able to hear each other. I pray that we build towards an Israel full of coalitions - not just political ones but also spiritual, cultural, and emotional. This will be the Israel that brings us blessing, and this is the Israel that I pray for.
