blogs/rabbi-huberman

I believe in miracles �" but perhaps not in the way in which the Bible lays them out.

God turning the Nile into blood? Impressive.

Daniel emerging from the Lion's Den? Remarkable.

Aaron's rod turning into a snake? Awesome.

God parting the Sea of Reeds? Incredible.

Yet, in a world, where we as Jews are encouraged to act rather than react, how can we incorporate the idea of divine miracles into our lives?

Indeed, Jewish tradition has always struggled with the idea of miracles. How and when did God create them?

In Pirkei Avot, Judaism's ancient collection of wise sayings, we are told that at the close of the sixth day of creation, God added ten miraculous things into the world. These included manna, the rainbow, Bilaam's talking donkey, the tablets used to write the Ten Commandments, and Aaron's rod �" to name of few.

And subsequently, something very important was added to that list: the east wind which would eventually blow upon the Sea of Reeds, ultimately parting its waters.

And here is where it gets interesting.

Our tradition holds that it was not God so much who created the miracle, but rather the behavior of the Israelites along the banks of the sea.

We are told in this week's Torah portion, Beshalach (“When Pharaoh let the people go”), that soon after the Exodus from Egypt, the Israelites found themselves pinned against the sea.

Pharaoh's army was approaching, and renewed slavery or possibly death was imminent. So Moses and the Israelites begin to pray. God looks down from heaven and is confused by this.

“Why do you cry out to Me,” asks God. “Tell the Israelites to go forward.” (Exodus