Remember that beloved talking horse?
Well, I think I may have found his creators’ inspiration….in this
week’s Torah portion.
In the narrative, an anti-Semitic prophet, Bilaam, is bent on cursing
the Jewish people. Mounted on his donkey, Bilaam travels to meet his
co-conspirators in order to move ahead with his dastardly plan.
An angel of G-d appears in his way, blocking the path. Bilaam can’t see the angel but his donkey can; it
swerves to the side, while Bilaam furiously tries to stay the course.
Frustrated at his inability to control his donkey, Bilaam begins to beat the animal.
In response, the donkey begins to speak “why are you
beating me? Have I not served you loyally all these years?”
Bilaam ultimately attempts (three different times) to curse the Jewish
people, and discovers that every time he opens his mouth
to utter curses, words of blessing came out instead.
It’s a beautiful story of Divine intervention and Divine mastery of
the universe.
But who needs the talking donkey? The narrative would run smoothly without that detail. It would be simple:
Bilaam wants to curse the Jews. An angel of G-d warns him and his plan
is ultimately foiled.
The talking-donkey seems to add nothing substantive.
Jewish thought teaches that G-d doesn’t work miracles without an
objective. So what purpose did this talking donkey achieve?
Perhaps G-d wants wanted to teach Bilaam – and us – an important lesson:
The Torah teaches (Parables 18:21): Death and life are in the power of
the tongue”.
Speech is a powerful tool in the human arsenal. A kind and encouraging word, a simple expression of prayer and sincerity, can better ourselves, build relationships and brighten the world.
Words can also hurt. A lot.
So the story of Bilaam, who tried to use words in a destructive way, calls attention to the uniqueness and power of human speech.
It's more than the ability to
communicate. Animals can do that too.
Bilaam's donkey spoke - in a human way - so that he should understand how the gift of speech lets us convey thoughts in a way that considers the recipient’s context and feelings.
Human speech is APPROPRIATE communication. It's communicating with consciousness and sensitivity.
Because Mister Ed is a fantasy.
But you're not.
ב"ה