Romi Morales
The parasha Shmot narrates the dramatic passage of Yaakov’s family into a nation. Seeing the growing number of Israelites, the new Pharaoh becomes concerned and sees them as a threat to the stability of his kingdom. Ruled by fear, Paroh will order a cruel solution: to throw all the newborn males into the river. Immersed in this context of oppression and fear, there are those who must face the dilemma of doing what they are ordered to do or doing what they believe is right. In this article we will look at the example of some people who dared to question the imposed norms and chose to rebel against injustice. Do we stand up for our values when they contradict established norms? Do we educate our young people to stand up against injustice? These central questions of our educational practice will be explored below.
Shifra and Pua
Driven by the fear of losing his power, Paroh gives the order to throw the baby boys into the river. However, two Hebrew dulas named Shifra and Puah, in an act of rebellion full of justice and integrity, decide to defy Pharaoh, leaving many newborns alive. With this action they not only save innocent lives, but also bring hope in a time of great pain. Choosing to risk one’s own life to save the lives of others, especially when they are in a vulnerable situation, will from now on become a much more common pattern in our sources. Without going much further, in this parasha alone we will see at least five moments in which characters decide to do the right thing, even if it means paying a high personal price for it. Acting on the basis of justice and integrity is what will lead many people throughout history to choose ‘life obedience’ over ‘due obedience’[1].
Justice and integrity are also deeply rooted in our worldview and in our philosophical understanding of education. They underpin the ideal of the world we dream of and the vision of how we should act to achieve it. Through the constant study of the values that define us as a movement (and on a personal level) we contribute to our young people learning to be able to choose and act according to these principles in order to guarantee a dignified life for all, as Shifrá and Pua did. Learning to define one’s own basket of values, to put it into action in all areas of daily life and to act with coherence and authenticity in the face of passing interests is one of the greatest challenges of education for the future. And in this context, Tnua is the ultimate platform for ensuring such learning.
Yojevet and Miriam
Yojevet knows of Paró’s order, but refuses to be part of the macabre plan. For several months, she hides her baby and only when the danger increases does she decide to put him in a basket in the Nile. Miriam, his daughter, will stay near the shore until the baby arrives safely in the hands of someone with a good heart. Paroh’s daughter Batya rescues Moshe from the river.
Both Yojevet and Miriam could have accepted their tragic fate and obeyed orders, however cruel and painful. However, they both took a proactive attitude to resolve the situation in the best possible way. The same values and attitudes that we see in these women are what define the very essence of what we mean by the Youth Movement. Choosing to be part of the solution and not merely denouncing injustices or problems, is what characterises the education on which we have built during our first 100 years of history and on which we choose to educate the years to come. Hence for us: The youth movement, responsible for its role, is not content to assume a position of sterile criticism: it leads its chanichim on the path of creativity and action. This translates into taking up challenges in a changing and dynamic world with the responsibility that we have as an educational and formative entity[2].
Batya and her wet nurses
Batya, the daughter of Paró chooses not to follow her father’s orders. She acts benevolently towards the little Hebrew baby when she rescues him from the river, and also makes sure that he grows up healthy and strong, by nothing less than adopting him and making him part of her own family, the royal family. But what would our story be if Batya had not had the courage to defy his father’s command? His act reminds us that questioning the status quo can change the destiny of generations.
Batya is the earliest ancestor of what we would today call ‘Righteous Among the Nations’, for she meets all three criteria: she was not a Hebrew, she put her own life in danger, and she saved at least one life of our people.
Batya’s example shows us that educating for the development of critical thinking is essential if we want to give our young people relevant tools to navigate the world today and in the future. Hence: Our educational path sees it as fundamental to show the different positions, visions and perspectives of the dilemmas that may arise in reality. Therefore, our education emphasises the processes of thought, doubt, action, learning and decision-making. Our goal is the development of horizons, intelligences, as well as autonomous and critical thinking[3] Through our educational practice, we give our chanichim and chanichot the possibility to constantly doubt, question, ask and (re)learn. We encourage a curious stance towards life that contributes to breaking those paradigms that hurt them and others. In a world of artificial truths, we educate our young people to construct their own truths, for only then can they be the true creators of their own destinies.
By way of conclusion
Parashat Shmot shows examples of people who chose to go against the tide, being true to their own values, ideas and principles. While it is true that discourse generates reality, in this parashah we learn that sometimes it is not enough to denounce injustice; in order to make profound changes we must act on what we believe in and want so much. Especially in times of deep darkness, our example can be the beacon of light that others need to see to join us on our path. For 100 years we have been inspiring to educate by personal example by acting justly, responsibly and critically, even (or especially) in the face of adversity. From the beginning of our history as a youth movement we have chosen to raise generations of young people who question the status quo, stand up for what is right and dream of a better world. We take deep pride in knowing that it is through the education we provide in our kenim that our young people become the leaders that the Tnuot and the world so desperately need.
[1] Due obedience, also called hierarchical obedience, is a social situation in which one person or a group of people has a legal obligation to obey another person. As opposed to this, life obedience is planted to refer to a situation in which this legal obligation contradicts the moral order of the particular person and is therefore cancelled.
[2] Darkenu, p.18.
[3] Idem.
