By: Brandon Rattiner
Senior Director, Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC)
Parashat Va’era is a monumental moment for our people. Not because redemption happens in it, but because it hasn’t happened yet. It captures what it feels like to stand at the very beginning of change, when hope is hardest to hold onto.
When Moses brings God’s promise of redemption to the Israelites, this week’s parsha tells us they do not listen. The reason is simple and deeply human: kotzer ruach va’avodah kashah—shortness of spirit and harsh labor. They are exhausted and beaten down. Their bodies are worn out, their spirits crushed. In that place, even good news can feel impossible to hear. Hope feels like something meant for someone else.
That feeling is so familiar right now. Rising antisemitism, ongoing global turmoil, fear and uncertainty at home, and the daily work of holding our lives and communities together. It can feel like everything is heavy at once. Everywhere you look, people are in pain.
But just a few paragraphs later, Va’era shows us what happens when hearts harden. People suffer worse than ever.
We cannot afford to turn away from hope or to harden our hearts to the suffering of others. We are not slaves in Egypt. We do not need plagues or forty years in the desert to undo what we are carrying. But we do need to be careful not to let exhaustion, anger, or busyness close us off completely.
The Exodus reminds us that redemption is not instant. It is slow and uneven, and it often comes after more struggle than we would like. But it does come. Our responsibility is not to feel hopeful all the time. It is to stay open. To leave room for healing, for connection, and for moral clarity. To not turn ourselves away from redemption before it has a chance to reach us.
Please email Brandon Rattiner at brattiner@jewishcolorado.org with questions or comments.