So, I have regularly purchased travel insurance to cover myself for any untoward occurrences that may God forbid take place. However, like everything else in life, purchasing travel insurance today has become more complicated than it once was. I remember being able just to call up on the phone, update my information and the insurance company accepted my word that I was in good health.

 

However, insurance companies earn their profits by not paying claims made against them. To obtain viable travel insurance today first one must visit a physician to obtain a medical opinion as to one’s well-being. Then, having successfully obtained that document, the insurance company will inform the potential customer whether a policy will be issued and what the cost and conditions of such a policy will be.

 

All of this, upon reflection, is very reasonable even if time-consuming and requiring a great deal of personal effort on the part of the potential customer. Having received my approval, the policy was sent to me by email and now my only problem is how to get my computer and printer to cooperate in printing it out. I will persevere though and eventually will have the actual policy in hand.

 

The concept of commercial insurance is one of the most fascinating ideas in the development of business, a fundamental concept which operates in the world's financial market structure. Travel insurance gained wide market value when air travel became the norm for getting around the globe. Even though statistically it has been proven that air travel is the safest mode of travel available, people still feel somewhat queasy about getting on an airplane.

 

Because of this and to protect families in case of rare but not impossible unforeseen occurrences, travel insurance boomed over the past century. It serves as a solace in the dreaded cases of lost luggage, canceled flights and other headaches and mishaps while traveling. People always feel reassured when they have that insurance policy, though many times it is not that easy to obtain one's rights under that policy. In any event, everyone feels that the best thing about insurance is never having to use it or make claims upon it. I think that this is doubly true when travel insurance is involved.

 

When the Jewish people traveled for 40 years in the desert of Sinai on the way to the land of Israel they lacked human travel insurance. Instead, Heaven was meant to provide all the necessary insurance that they would need. It provided them with protection from all mishaps, enabled them to have food on the road and to be protected from enemies. However, this type of travel insurance was not deemed to be permanent and was subject to cancellation and readjustment depending upon the nature and behavior of the Jewish people in the desert.

 

Just as today's travel insurance policies exclude coverage for certain activities or destinations deemed to be excessively dangerous, so did this Divine form of travel insurance allow for exclusions, changing circumstances and forbidden behavior and actions. There is no type of insurance that is so all-encompassing as to obviate the behavior of the insured customer.

 

And this Divine form of travel insurance, like its human counterpart, contains conditions that must be met by the insured for the policy to have any validity. And that basically is the story of the Jewish people during their 40-year sojourn in the desert of Sinai. If one violates the conditions of the policy, then obviously the policy itself will be called into question and become invalid.

 

Shabbat shalom

 

Berel Wein