Parashat Bo

What do Target and Torah have in common? Well, today I walked into Target, and was met with rows and rows of heart-shaped paraphernalia for the upcoming holiday of Valentine’s Day. However, Target isn’t the only one who wants to draw our attention to the heart. This week, in Parashat Bo, we encounter Moshe and Aaron as they continue to press Pharoah to release Israelites. It’s our classic cast of characters: Moshe, Aaron, Pharaoh, and Hashem, but I want to draw our attention to a quiet yet incredibly powerful character: Pharaoh’s heart.  

In the past few chapters, we have heard quite a bit about Pharaoh’s heart-hardening as he revokes his decree to free the Israelites. In some cases, Pharaoh hardened his own heart, sometimes his heart hardened itself, and sometimes Hashem hardened Pharaoh’s heart. In all cases, the heart is a character that plays a pivotal role in the story. It is the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart– this changing of his mind–that keeps the Israelites from their freedom.  

As we enter a new month on the Hebrew and Gregorian calendars, I invite you into a moment of reflection. This month, try to personify your heart as the Torah personifies Pharaoh’s heart. Put your heart in conversation with Hashem, put your heart in conversation with yourself, and try to listen to what is causing your heart to harden. Perhaps with that close listening, you can cause your heart to soften to the people and the world around you. 

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