5784/2024

In Parshat Ki Tisa Bnei Yisrael committed the sin of the Chet HaEgel, or the Golden Calf. An obvious question can be asked: how could Bnei Yisrael, who saw many miracles in Mitzrayim and in the Midbar, create an idol and worship it? 

Rashi explains that it wasn’t Bnei Yisrael who started the sin; rather, it was the Erev Rav who pushed Bnei Yisrael to do this sin based on the fact that it says in the Pasuk, “These are your god”, and not “this is our god” (Shemot 32:4).

Additionally, the Ramban explains that Bnei Yisrael just wanted a replacement leader for Moshe,  rather than to make an actual idol to worship as a God. Rav Yaakov Kaminetzky adds that we shouldn’t blame Bnei Yisrael for their actions, because, imagine being in the desert without food and without a leader. Maybe their sin wasn’t making and workshopping the Golden Calf, maybe it was a lack of Emunah in trusting that Hashem would take care of them. 

Moreover, according to the Beit Halevi, Bnei Yisrael’s intentions were to create the Golden Calf in order to connect with Hashem because Moshe had not yet returned and he was their connection. They wanted to connect with Hashem! What was so bad about Bnei Yisrael’s attempt to connect with Hashem? Although Bnei Yisrael’s intentions were good in wanting to connect with Hashem, the way that they did this was not grounded in the Torah and they were wrong to try something that wasn’t commanded by Hashem as a Mitzvah. 

We learn from this that while Bnei Yisrael may have had good intentions, the way that they went about it was wrong. The Torah gives us the ability to serve and connect with Hashem in our own way. However, it needs to be done in the context that the Torah allows. For example, some people like to spend more time davening to connect with Hashem, some like to learn Torah, and others prefer chesed. We have the ability to personalize the way we connect with Hashem, but it needs to be in a way that the Torah describes.