Shabbat Shalom, everyone.
My name is Yuval Manor, I am 16 years old, and I am an 11th-grade student at the Leo Baeck Education Center. I got to know the EHRS community through a school program, in which I was sent to your community for two weeks last summer. I would like to express my gratitude to you, the community members and staff, and especially to Rabbi Mark, for the incredible kindness I received—both last year and during this past week.
This week’s Torah portion is Ki Tisa. In this portion, Moses ascends Mount Sinai to receive the Tablets of Stone, but he takes longer than expected to return. The Israelites, camped at the foot of the mountain, search for another manifestation of God. They turn to Aaron, who takes the jewelry of the women and young girls and molds a golden calf. When Moses returns and sees what has happened, he breaks the Tablets in anger, burns the golden calf, grinds it into dust, and mixes the ashes into water that he gives the people to drink.
When I read this portion, more than anything, I was struck by the struggle of the Israelites. You see, it was difficult to be an Israelite in the desert. They had lived in a world of Idolatry and were, after all, a nation of former slaves. It was not easy to convince them that they were the chosen people and that they had to put their faith in a God they could not see, one with no physical representation. To them, Moses was a kind of embodiment of God, and without him, they sought an image to worship.
At this moment in the story, God turns to Moses and calls the Israelites a “stiff-necked people.” Although the phrase is said in a negative light, in Hebrew, it can also be understood as a positive trait. While its primary meaning is stubbornness, it can also be interpreted as determination.
In my view, we, as modern-day Jews, also face difficulties. One of the struggles I’ve heard about from Jews in the Diaspora is the challenge of maintaining a “dual” identity. For many, the dilemma between Jewish identity and local culture has become more difficult than ever due to the war. The desire to support and stand by Israel, combined with rising antisemitism, has strengthened Jewish-Zionist identity. Yet, at the same time, there are voices—especially among liberal minded and younger Jews—who criticize Israel’s policies. I remember that during the summer, at Schmooze with the Rabbis, a member of the community framed this dilemma with a simple question: If there were a football match between Israel and England, in which stands would you sit?
We, Israelis – especially people my age – face similar struggles. Before October 7th, Israel was deeply divided between the political left and right, but within hours of the war breaking out, we united. We were, without question, stiff-necked people, and we remained so throughout most of the war. There was an extraordinary sense of unity, with everyone stepping up to help.
But honestly, being a 16-year-old Israeli right now is tough. Sitting in a math class when explosions start in neighboring cities, knowing that in a few minutes, we, too, will have to run to the shelter. Sitting in history class while hostages are being released from Islamic Jihad captivity. And the hardest part? Sitting in class when our teachers refuse to talk about the return of the bodies of the hostages. It’s a constant and overwhelming tension between wanting to be a “normal” teenager and facing the surreal Israeli reality.
And this is what I take from this week’s Torah portion: determination.
God further said to Moses, “I have observed this people, and it is indeed a stiff-necked people.
We are a stiff-necked people. In difficult and destabilizing times—like the one Jewish communities worldwide have been experiencing over the past year and a half—this quality is what keeps us going.
