Shoes Off

When God met Moses through a burning bush, He told him to take off his shoes because He was standing on holy ground. I've been thinking about that holy ground lately and wondering why God had Moses remove his shoes.

...One rabbi remarked how Jews cover their heads as a sign of respect, but uncover their feet. That would seem to indicate to both humility and vulnerability.

Rabbi Yaacov Haber commented about that vulnerability. "With shoes, one can walk over stones, glass, water, even fire and not feel a thing. Without shoes, one can feel everything. Step on the slightest protrusion, even a little Lego, and the pain climbs right up the spine.

"If you're going to be a leader... you must remove the insulation that you wear to protect yourself.... It will hurt but you must be able to feel every bump, every nick and cranny; you must be able to feel the pain. A person who is responsive to external conditions or stimulation is a person who will be susceptible to the attitudes, feelings, or circumstances of others. It is this individual who can develop a meaningful relationship."

...As if this wasn't enough, there is still one more interpretation of the metaphor, and perhaps it is the most important. For Moses, the burning bush represented the presence of God. Today, the kingdom of God has come; His Holy Spirit is here; and thus the presence of God is everywhere. So Rabbi Melanie Aron can say, "The place upon which you are standing, that is the exact situation in which you find yourself, is a holy place. In whatever distracting and difficult situation you find yourself, there are opportunities for holiness."

...May we walk today as if our shoes were off -- sensitive to the environment and to the needs of those around us, humble and vulnerable before the Lord, and aware of the fact that wherever we step, it's holy ground.

- John Fischer, "shoes off" (excerpts, catch of the day, may 18th '07)

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"It will hurt but you must be able to feel every bump, every nick and cranny..."

...Lord, let me be the tender warrior -- the one who bears the bears the yoke and burden of servant-kingship, the one who will step into the gap in the critical moment, and the one who loves those in his charge deliberately without fail...