This coming Monday across our southern border in the United States, the life and tragic death of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., z"l with be marked with a civic holiday. Though he is not a part of Canadian history, his mission and actions during his lifetime serve as inspiration to all humanity. Dr. King was a man who was not afraid to stand up for what he believed in, not afraid to take a leadership role in fighting for what he thought was right and just, not afraid to rise up on behalf of those who were unable to have their voices heard, not afraid to climb out from among his people and be their voice. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was a dugma/role model for all of us and reminds each one of us of the difference that a brave individual can make in history. How appropriate it is that parashat Sh'mot falls during the weekend of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a reading that provides us with two peaceful resisters of our own.

The beginning of this week's parasha transitions us into the period of Israelite enslavement in Egypt. A Pharaoh who did not know the exploits of Joseph feared the growing size of our people in his land and decided to place our nation under back-breaking hard labor, building store cities for the Egyptian empire. He ordered the systematic slaughter of Israelite male newborn babies by the Israelite midwives in order to prevent the continued widespread procreation of the slaves who had the potential to turn into an army of their own against their "host" nation. Two such midwives, heroic women who are infrequently recalled in discussions of Torah characters, decided to go against Pharaoh's directive and save the lives of the Israelite boys. Their names were Shifra and Pu'a and deserve the name recognition given them by the Torah for their selfless heroism.

Willingly accepting the responsibility to do what is right is the charge we are given both by this week's parasha and by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Oftentimes, doing the right thing will be the more difficult or, perhaps, even a dangerous choice. However, that does not make it any less the choice we should make. The Torah will later teach us "...not to follow the masses to commit evil acts." The popular road, if it leads you down a path of wrongdoing does not take precedence over the one that leads to righteousness just because "everyone is doing it." We must conjure up the inner strength to be able to stand for what is right and just. Three times each day during the Amidah, we ask God to give us the ability to choose righteousness and justice because God loves those values and they make the world a better place. Dr. King paid the ultimate price for his choices and the Torah goes out of its way to remind us of the noble acts of Shifra and Pu'a, two simple midwives. It is our duty to honor their memories by following their leads with the choices we make and the stands we take. Not to do so would defeat the purpose of the efforts made to keep their legacies alive.

May we all take on a new slogan for our lives to "Do the right thing!" and become "soldiers" for justice and righteousness in this generation.

Rabbi Matthew Bellas

Vice Principal of Judaic Studies/School Rabbi