Rabbi Yaakov Neuberger

Shekalim - The Art of Counting

Apparently concerned that we would not properly observe the mitzvah of the national census, Hashem did not simply describe the half shekel by which every Jew would be counted. Rather, as Rashi points out, Hashem actually showed Moshe the very coin as He said, "Zeh Yitnu -This is the [half shekel that every Jew] shall contribute"(Ki Sisa, 30:13). That coin, Rabbi Meir tells us, was made of fire and was brought forth from no less sacred a place than from under the Kisei Hakavod - the throne of the A-mighty. (Rashi, ad loc.) Why did Hashem express such anxiety about this mitzvah? Surely Moshe could picture a half shekel on his own with due description. After all it is unlike the menorah that understandably needed virtual visible support to help Moshe guide those who will hammer out the menorah's flowers, bulbs and cups, angles and curves. In this matter it would seem that each Jew would respond to Moshe's call with the appropriate half shekel even if Moshe had never seen the shekel of fire.

Perhaps the "coin of fire" vision came to impress upon Moshe and future leaders that every census of any sort is fraught with danger. Indeed counting any people and certainly the "mamleches kohanim" was nothing less than playing with fire. We all know fire to be the most destructive of natural forces when it is not contained and allowed to consume indiscriminately all that it meets. We are also equally aware of the creative and purifying powers of controlled fires, that provide energy, heat and a host of modern materials. Similarly counting people into aggregates can easily communicate a disinterest in one's individual strengths and the personal passion that may accompany them. Being impressed with numbers may train us to overlook that which defies quantification, the "chelek eloka mima'al" - that Hashem invested in each and every one of us. How many times were we reminded just last year to participate in the American national census in order to make sure that our needs would be recognized? These reminders implicitly assured us that a small unique group, no matter how much they would have to offer, would carry little weight. On the other hand, letting one know that the community counts on their contribution - be it the financial contribution of only a half shekel, a brief visit to someone in need, or a probing question in a shiur- shapes lives that are confident in their ability to affect the common good. Moreover it will forge a community that capitalizes on the strength of all its members. In this regard, I often think of the feeling that a bar mitzvah age boy must feel when he is the tenth man in a minyan, and certainly in a town to whom that does not come easy. The child quickly learns the that simply being in the right place can make a difference and will hopefully build on that in the future. So it was with the half shekel count that would bring every Jew to a private moment with Moshe Rabeinu and Aharon Hakohen, making sure that this count will raise the self-image of every Jew.

The power of this kind of census is taught to us through the phrase "Ki sisa" which translates "when you count" but literally means "when you raise up". That is why the medrash portrays Hashem directing Moshe to study this parsha in order to find in it the eternal protection of our distinctiveness.