If you squint your eyes while looking into the sun, you might imagine that the gold reef mine dumps that are dotted around the city are really pyramids. With the right effort, you might further imagine that instead of being in Gauteng, you are in downtown Cairo. Because in some respects, Johannesburg is reminiscent of ancient Egypt.
Once upon a time, when the Israelites were slaves to their Egyptian masters, G-d decided that it was time to rain 10 awful plagues upon them. Not an angel. Not a proxy. But He Himself. Because He could. And because those Egyptians were too darn stubborn for their own good. And they had a leader who just couldn’t make up his mind.
It was a land of plenty back then. They had stores of produce, they had a great infrastructure, and they were respected on the global stage. But then they became arrogant. And lazy.
Johannesburg in January 2023 hasn’t been without its plagues. With wild tigers roaming the streets, with the plague of Eskom’s darkness visited upon the city every few hours, with COVID-19 having passed over many a household, leaving death in its wake, one must consider if, perhaps, history is repeating itself.
Which is more than a little unnerving.
The past few years have had a particularly biblical feel to them. Everything felt more dramatic, and the number of times we have repeated the phrase “this is unprecedented” is in itself unprecedented.
The heat this past summer has been more intense, the hailstorms have been more aggressive than normal, even the mosquitos have moved from being mildly annoying to unrelenting and obsessive. It’s like they have been emboldened and weaponised. And they’re on a mission.
That’s not to say that the plagues haven’t moved with the times. Whereas the frogs of ancient Egypt might have been infuriating and no doubt harmful, the plague of corruption in modern-day South Africa isn’t to be trifled with.
Whereas in ancient Egypt, the source of water, the Nile, might have turned to blood, resulting in scarcity, load shedding has achieved the same result with interrupted water becoming the norm.
Livestock might have perished from pestilence back then, today, lack of reliable electricity is achieving the same result.
There are plagues of political arrogance, of lack of accountability, and the plague of too much expectation can unquestionably be added to the list of 10 suffered in South Africa today.
All of which is leaving South Africans wondering what will come next.
It’s no coincidence that the Torah portion this time of the year focuses on the plagues. They are a reminder that as Jews, we believe we live in a world not controlled by us. And even if we think that the African National Congress is master of the county’s destiny, nothing could be further from the truth.
Our responsibility is to assist those who are struggling, to remain true to who we are, and to know that even if the water of the sea is churning in front of us, all it takes is the waving of a staff, belief in our purpose, and the determination to take one step at a time, and the way will be cleared for a much calmer future.
