by Rabbi Russ Resnik

A recent book on Jewish pastoral care introduces a Hebrew phrase, hitlavut ruchanit, or spiritual accompanying:

The root of this term, lvh, is used in biblical and rabbinic texts to refer to one who "walks with" another. Ministering angels, God's presence, friends, priests, peers all are described as lvh, accompanying people as they go on their path. The reflexive form of the verb [hitlavut] connotes a person involving himself or herself in the journey with the other. (Rabbi Dayle A. Friedman, Jewish Pastoral Care, p. xii)

The book goes on to outline the power of hitlavut ruchanit, simply being there for others as they go through life's challenges and transitions. A rabbi or pastor may have much to give to those he serves, but the essential thing is often simply walking with them through the key moments of life.

Indeed, accompanying others in this way is so vital that one of the greatest obstacles to serving others effectively is the urge to "do something." When someone has lost a loved one, we rush to say, "I understand," when we really cannot understand. We respond to distress or despair by dispensing advice like a talk show host, instead of just listening deeply, which is often what the suffering person needs most. Suffering makes us insecure, and we respond by trying to alleviate it in some way, but what our friends need most is for us to just be with them. Often, it is through our simple presence in the midst of suffering that the Lord himself is present.

The final chapters of Exodus apply this idea of spiritual accompanying to God himself. After the incident of the golden calf, the Lord tells Moses,

Depart and go up from here, you and the people whom you have brought out of the land of Egypt, to the land of which I swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying, 'To your descendants I will give it.' And I will send My Angel before you . . . for I will not go up in your midst, lest I consume you on the way, for you are a stiff-necked people. (Exod. 33:1-3)

Moses pleads with the Lord, "If Your Presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here" (Exod. 33:15). Moses cannot envision Israel apart from the presence of God in their midst. It is more important to him than the Promised Land and deliverance itself. Moses' plea for divine accompaniment reminds us that the presence of the Spirit is essential to us as well. Beyond all that God tells us, vital as it is, we long for him simply to be with us.

Even as Moses is presenting his case, however, the Lord has already relented. He promises Moses, "My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest" (Exod. 33:14). The Lord had threatened to send "My Angel before you." Now he promises "My Presence will go with you." He will indeed practice hitlavut ruchanit, spiritually accompanying his people Israel.

Accordingly, the Lord tells the people to begin building the tabernacle. He had given the instructions before the incident of the golden calf, and now, after the people are punished and restored, the tabernacle can be built. The glory cloud, the Presence of the Lord, that was within the tent of meeting outside the camp (Exod. 33:7ff.) will now be present in the holy place in the heart of the camp. Hence, it is called "the tabernacle of witness" (Exod. 38:21), writes the S'fat Emet, because "it witnessed to Israel that God had truly forgiven them for making the Golden Calf, for now He was causing His presence to dwell among them."

All this prepares us for the glorious conclusion of Exodus:

Then the cloud covered the tabernacle of meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the tabernacle of meeting, because the cloud rested above it, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. Whenever the cloud was taken up from above the tabernacle, the children of Israel would go onward in all their journeys. But if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not journey till the day that it was taken up. For the cloud of the LORD was above the tabernacle by day, and fire was over it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel, throughout all their journeys. (Exod. 40:34-38)

Note the poetic cadence of these final verses. In each one, the word "cloud" appears. In addition, the phrase, nearly synonymous in this context, "glory of the Lord" appears twice, for a total of seven mentions of the divine presence. Seven, of course, is the number of Creation completed. The tabernacle as a model of Creation is complete only now as the glory-cloud fills it. To underline this truth the identical phrase, "and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle," is stated twice. The tabernacle fulfills God's purposes in bringing Israel forth from Egypt, and the Israelites will journey continually with a sense of this fulfillment.

This noble conclusion is echoed in the conclusion of another book of Scripture, where Messiah says, "Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matt. 28:20). This conclusion provides lessons for all who seek to walk in God's ways.

First, if he whose glory is unapproachable was willing to accompany Israel in its desert wanderings, how much more should we accompany those who are passing through one of life's deserts. We live in community, which means that we break out of isolation and make ourselves available to those around us.

Second, it is the greatest of gifts that God chose us and called us to be near to him. For us to be who we are meant to be, to reach our true destination, God must accompany us. Or rather, we must not depart from his Presence. All of us need to seek the Lord, to discern and detect the moving of the cloud, before we set out on our way.

Finally, in a narcissistic age, it is good to remember that the big story is not about us, but about God. He delivers Israel, not simply to free us from bondage, or to give us his good instructions in the Torah, but ultimately to reveal himself. The narrative concludes as the glory-cloud of God fills the tabernacle and no man can enter in. His glory, not our deliverance, is the point of the story.

The story is not about me, but about God and his glory. Therefore, I am here to accompany others, to simply be with them as they pass through life's difficulties and challenges. Who is the one who needs my spiritual accompaniment even today?

Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Russ Resnik

From "Creation to Completion: A Guide to Life's Journey from the Five Books of Moses", by Russell Resnik
Messianic Jewish Publishers, 2006. www.messianicjewish.net .