Suddenly, like the Israelites, we find ourselves untrained to live in the bewildering wilderness-like place that our decision places us. Like the Israelites we must reformat so that we can grow into our hopes and dreams. Even Moses, one of the all-time great CEO's, becomes frustrated and challenged by trying to manage people in the midst of radical change. Like him, we too find times in our lives when we feel like we are climbing mountains. Torah stories which teach us to anticipate this reality and feel supported while we are moving through it.
Christians often mistake the Torah for being all there is to the Torah of Judaism.
They are unaware that it is our sacred starting point, from which we have evolved for several thousand years. We have developed neat tools for interpreting and modifying the impact of those verses which reflect the values we have outgrown. Without an awareness of Talmud, Midrash, the Responsa literature and other more contemporary Jewish religious texts, it is possible to greatly misunderstand Judaism and the Jewish people. There are also troubling passages in our sacred texts. It became an essential revelation for me to notice that Judaism holds midrash as an important source of sacred learning.