Vaera - Empowerment - Jan. 13, 2026

Re-Imagined from 2018

Shalom,

I recall vividly my high school physics teacher, Mr. Ruehl.  From the first day of class through my year in AP Physics, we knew amazing wonders awaited each day as we walked into class.  When the lessons on centrifugal force began, Mr. Ruehl stood up front talking about bicycles.  He held in his hand a bike wheel with a handle attached to the axle.  As he continued he spun the wheel.  He talked about great rides, the sights ahead and to the left and right as he sat down on his stool, wheel spinning in his hand.  The presentation had all of us riveted as he sat down, our eyes were glued to the spinning wheel and suddenly he grabbed the rubber of the tire with his hand, stopping its revolutions, and he began to spin around on the stool!  The energy from the wheel transferring to his body upon the stool spun him around as his tale of riding bicycles stopped, he had performed a wonder before our eyes.

This was how a typical day began in our classroom.  Mr. Ruehl always gave us a sign, a wonder or some visual experience which we then set out to understand further.  This week in Torah, we begin the saga of the plagues upon Egypt.  The word itself, in English, imparts negativity, yet the Hebrew informs us of a deeper purpose; Otot and Moftim, signs and wonders are described by Torah.  These wonders were marvelous displays of God’s power before Pharaoh and Egypt.  Many have worked through their scientific and natural explanations of the how, yet as I often understand Torah it is less, or not at all, about the how, but rather the why.  What purpose did these signs and wonders serve in our story?

Moses is the reluctant leader at first, as he claims this week in Torah, “But Moses appealed to the Lord, saying, "The Israelites would not listen to me; how then should Pharaoh heed me, a man of impeded speech!” (Exodus 6:12)  At first, the plagues, these marvels unfolding, work to convince Moses of his ability to become Moshe Rabbenu, Moses our Teacher.  As Exodus continues, the why becomes about motivating Pharaoh to let us go.  And even more, these wonders are displayed before our ancestors, the Israelites, to grasp the power of not only God, but also the power of change beginning to take shape.  It is through these acts, these signs, that we as a people begin to take our future into our own hands.  First Moses rises to the occasion and then our journey from a rag-tag bunch of slaves to a people fleeing and finally to a free people determining our own future.

This past Shabbat, a beautiful group of our Tahoe Jewish Community, of NTHC and TBY, spent time in Tahoe Meadows off Mt. Rose highway snowshoeing and Cross-country skiing.  We discussed the miracles in our lives and the distractions that prevent our witnessing.  We used the story of the burning bush and Moses' ascension to his stature in our tradition as an example of noticing - seeing the signs and the wonders.  We also shared about missed opportunities to see the miraculous, the signs and wonders that fill our lives.  It takes practice, it requires work to embrace living to its fullest and missing the moment will happen.  Yet, if we practice, if we intentionally put effort into recognizing and celebrating our own burning bushes, and the signs and wonders that fill our world, perhaps the hard, the challenge, and the struggle of living will be lessened in its burden.      

Mr. Ruehl gave me and my classmates the ability to search for understanding, to gain confidence in our knowledge, and its power.  Torah works to unfold the Exodus story in a way that builds for us an understanding of ourselves and the confidence to become Am Yisrael, the People of Israel.  As we journey once again through our epic story of freedom and self-discovery, we have the opportunity once again to move from reluctant, as Moses, to individuals, and a people, empowered with self-knowledge, confidence and understanding by noticing and embracing the miraculousness of our world, of simply being alive! 

May we see the signs and wonders of the Divine around us daily and may we embrace the power we have to shape our lives.

Shavua Tov,

Rabbi Evon