In the Cloud: Emunah, Tragedy, and the True Meaning of Kabbalat HaTorah – Parshat Yitro

Parshat Yitro is the parsha of Matan Torah—one of the greatest moments in all of history. But before we received the Torah, we were in a place of unimaginable darkness.

Chazal teach us that Matan Torah didn’t happen in a vacuum. It came after galut Mitzrayim, after the suffering, after the pain. The Torah wasn’t given to us when we were soaring—it was given when we were broken, yet ready to become whole through connection to Hashem.

Sometimes, we think we can only serve Hashem when we feel strong, spiritual, uplifted. But Parshat Yitro teaches us a powerful truth: The greatest light comes from the deepest darkness.

"Vayichan sham Yisrael neged hahar" – One Heart, One People

Before the giving of the Torah, the pasuk uses the singular form—“Vayichan sham Yisrael”—to tell us that Bnei Yisrael encamped “as one man with one heart.” Rashi highlights this moment of complete achdut, unity.

This wasn’t just a detail—it was a condition. Hashem waited for us to be unified before giving us the Torah.

In our world, so broken and divided, this pasuk reminds us that geulah—like Torah—requires ahavat Yisrael. When we stop judging, when we choose compassion over criticism, when we seek to understand rather than separate—we rebuild Har Sinai.

The Torah is Given Anew Every Day

Our sages say that the voice of Hashem at Har Sinai never stopped—it still echoes today. The giving of the Torah wasn’t just once in history. It’s every day we choose to live with emunah, every time we overcome a personal Mitzrayim, every moment we choose to hear Hashem’s voice in the silence.

For me, this week’s parsha is personal. The Torah was what carried me through the hardest times—the pain of losing, the loneliness, the questions with no answers. It was in those moments that the Torah wasn’t just a book—it was life itself. And it still is.

Har Sinai: The Humble Mountain

Why did Hashem choose Har Sinai? Our sages say it was a humble mountain—not the tallest, not the most magnificent. Because Hashem rests His Shechinah on those who are humble.

If you feel low, unworthy, small—you are exactly where Torah can dwell. The most powerful transformation begins when we say, like the Jewish people, “Na’aseh v’nishma”—we will do, even before we fully understand.