Midrashic Monologues

I could tell my brother was furious. His nostrils flared as he stood on the mountain, looking down on the crowd dancing around a golden calf. Jaw clenched, arms shaking, he lifted the two tablets up high. His eyes seemed to pick me out from amongst the multitudes. I could feel his gaze boring a hole through my head. Then, anger consuming him, he threw down those tablets and flew toward our people, destroying the golden calf, meting out punishment to those who danced for the

In this Midrashic Monologue, we meet Zipporah, wife of Moses and mother to Gershom and Eliezar, as she and her family travel toward Egypt. As they make camp, she considers and struggles with how her life has changed now that Moses has learned of his destiny as God’s prophet. As the sun arrived at its tallest point, we reached the crest of a particularly large dune and were stunned to find a small oasis directly in our path. We decided to make camp, luxuriating in the shade an

Moses fled his life from Egypt and in Midian assumed the quiet life of a shepherd. When he encountered what our tradition has called the “burning bush,” Moses began his transformation into a leader able to confront the all powerful Pharaoh. What led him to radically reshape his life yet again? In this Midrashic Monologue, Moses reflects upon that illuminating, transformational moment. In the map of my life, there are moments - flashpoints - when everything changed, and my pa