Translation by Yehoshua Siskin
Don't be ashamed to be slow. In this week's Torah portion, parashat Ki Tisa, Moshe Rabbeinu takes his time while on Mount Sinai. The Children of Israel have no patience to wait and build a golden calf. Rabbi Yaakov Galinsky derived a lesson from this event for our own era:
"Many times in life, 'Moshe Rabbeinu arrives late.' Whoever is identified with eternal values does not move at the pace of drivers on an expressway. He does not have expectations to get everything here and now, does not react instanteously, and is not always available. Neither does he offer magic solutions. He does not promote 'peace now' or 'justice now' or 'security now' or 'calf now.' And he does not only eschew promises of instant gratification, but mainly demands from the people that they undergo a longer and more protracted process of development.
And what was will forever be: from then until now, the Jewish nation has absorbed criticism that it is not sufficiently up-to-date. It is as if we have not stood the test of time, and therefore it would be worthwhile to adopt a quicker, more convenient, and flashier way of life. This is not only a story from the past, but a present danger. The Torah of Moshe does not always glitter like a golden calf."
