It is not unusual for Moshe to engage in conversation with God. The Torah is full of verses that describe their conversations, invariably opening with the words: “The LORD spoke to Moses, saying.” God attests to the fact that Moshe reached a level of direct conversation – speaking to each other “mouth to mouth” (Bamidbar 12:8). There are even places in the Torah where it is clear that Moshe can initiate a conversation with God without waiting to be invited to speak; they have open channels of communication. Perhaps that is why the unique call that God makes to Moshe at the beginning of Sefer Vayikra stands out. Why must He call out to someone with whom He can simply strike up a conversation?
The midrashim deal extensively with this unique “call” and many approaches are offered.
One approach suggests that the call symbolizes the mission that is incumbent on Moshe:
“The LORD called to Moses.”
We find written: “Then You spoke to Your faithful ones in a vision…” (Tehilim 89:20).
While The Holy One blessed be He spoke with Adam, the first man, commanding him regarding the Tree of Knowledge, Adam was the only one in the world.
Similarly Noah, with whom He spoke, was uniquely blameless in his time.
Avraham, Yitzhak and Yaakov were also unique individuals in the world.
But in Moshe’s time, there were many righteous people in the world. We know of the seventy elders, Bezalel, Uri, Aharon and his sons, together with the princes of each of the tribes.
Yet He did not call to any of them aside from Moshe.
(Tanhuma Vayikra 5).
Chosenness was not Moshe’s innovation, nor was he the first chosen by God to engage in conversation. Previously, Adam, Noah, Avraham, Yitzhak and Yaakov all merited to converse with God. According to the Tanhuma, however, there is something special about Moshe’s relationship with God. In contrast with the others, Moshe does not appear to be unique in his time; there are others who could have been chosen. It appears that what was special about Moshe was that he accepted upon himself the responsibility of a mission. Being called to speak is not simply conversation – it indicates a calling. Moshe is being drafted to serve in a position of responsibility.
An alternative approach raised in the midrash relates to being called as being given a name:
As it says: “The LORD called to Moshe.”
Moshe was a great man,
See that is written: “God called the light Day” (Bereishit 1:5).
This is a calling and this is a calling.
(Tanhuma Vayikra 6)
God calls Moshe by name, just as he called the light by name – “This is a calling and this is a calling.” This comparison can be explained in a variety of different ways. On its simplest level, when there is ongoing face-to-face conversation there is no need to call out, nor is there reason for participants to call each other by name, since the conversation is fluent and ongoing. Calling someone by name indicates an element of distancing. Still, the ultimate purpose of this distancing is to create a closer relationship.
The comparison made by the midrash to God’s calling light “Day” on the first day of creation, adds an additional layer of meaning to the call made to Moshe. Now there is an element of creativity involved. There are many elements to light. Sometimes light brings clarity to the darkness; on occasion the idea of light is a metaphor. There is a wide spectrum of the effects of light, but there is also light that is Day, whose light is only one element of the broader essence that is Day. Calling something by name serves to make a statement about it that attempts to encompass all of its details. In the case of the name “Moshe,” the whole indicates that Moshe the man is a complete phenomenon, greater than the sum of his parts. This is not the first time that we find parallels between Moshe and light. When he was born, the Torah writes regarding his mother: “…and when she saw how good he was, she hid him for three months” (Shemot 2:2). The rabbinic sages suggest that the house became full of light, perhaps because of the language parallel to the creation of light: “God saw that the light was good” (Bereishit 1:4).
Perhaps we can suggest a new approach to the idea of being called.
Generally speaking, it is people who call out to God. “In distress I called on the LORD” (Tehillim 118:5); “I called to You, O LORD; to my Lord I made appeal” (Tehillim 30:9).
In ordinary times, God accompanies us quietly and without being conspicuous. Only at times of extraordinary difficulty – at the most challenging moments – does man feel a need to turn to God and to call out to Him, to ensure that He hasn’t abandoned us. Nevertheless, it is clear that at those very moments, it is God calling out to man, as He waits expectantly to hear man’s voice.
This is what we find in our parasha. God calls out to Moshe at the beginning of the book of Vayikra, which deals with sin and atonement. In the course of the Temple service there are, on occasion, elements of sacrifice that serve as part of the process of repentance, that are accompanied by a call and an appeal to God. Those calls to God are an expression of an invitation from Him – a call to man from on High. God calls out to us, even as we call out to Him.
