Making Sense of the Sedra: Eikev

Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks z’l tells a story of a dinner party he once hosted. At the end, everyone said thank you to him and Lady Elaine and left. One guest insisted on thanking the entire staff – something Rabbi Sacks had never experienced in his time in office. That person was John Major, who served as Prime Minister of Great Britain.

Is it not astounding that perhaps the most senior person in the room, with the most authority, would be the only one to thank cooks and waiters after a meal! He was surely used to being waited upon, served and respected by all – one could imagine how easy it would be to take this all for granted.

In this week’s parasha, Eikev, Moshe describes God as “the great, mighty and awe-inspiring God, who shows no favouritism and accepts no bribe. He does justice by the orphan and widow, and loves the stranger…” (Devarim 10:17-18).

Sadly, we often see examples today where those in positions of power, the so-called ‘great and mighty’, engage in nepotism and corruption. Moshe’s message in this parasha becomes even more crucial. We know what it is like to suffer as a people. In the parasha, Moshe cites the slavery in Egypt as an example: “You too must love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.” (Devarim 10:19) We know of many more modern examples as well.

We are in a position of comfort and safety as Jews in the United Kingdom, where we are not only allowed to practice freely, but are encouraged and enabled by government itself to live according to our religious laws and values. We have been given the respect and status of equality that our ancestors could only dream of. It would be very easy for us now to retreat into ourselves and enjoy (relative) peace and quiet.

Thirty years ago on 10 August, Ruth Bader Ginsburg was made a Supreme Court Justice. When she was 13, she wrote the following in an essay: “No one can feel free from danger and destruction until the many torn threads of civilization are bound together again. We cannot feel safer until we meet together in good faith, the people worthy of mutual association.”

When Moshe tells us in this week’s parasha to “walk in God’s ways” (Devarim 10:12), this is what he means. We need to do as God does – use the power and influence He has given us, not for our own benefit, but for the sake of those who lack their own.