|
| Sun, 22 Dec 2024 02:25:36 -0600 — |
|
|
|
D'var: Parashat Chuqat 5784 Commentary by Michael Goldstein Friday, July 12, 2024 |
| Chuqat Numbers 19:1 — 22:1 |
|
The title of this week’s parashah, Chukat, is Hebrew for law. In it,
God tells Moses and Aaron the law about the way the ashes of a red heifer
can cleanse someone who has touched or been near a dead person.
Miriam dies. Moses hits a rock to bring forth water. The death of
Moses is foretold when God tells him that he and Aaron that will not go
to the Promised Land. Aaron dies. His son, Eleazar, becomes the Kohan Gadol,
the high priest. The Israelites reach the Jordan River.
In my D’var on this Parashah two years ago, I bemoaned that the only thing the author of Chukat saw fit to say about the death of Miriam, certainly one of the most important and courageous people in the Torah was: "Miriam died there and was buried there" (Numbers 20:1). While I still feel strongly about that slight, it is not my focus here. After Moses hits the rock to get water, God tells Moses and Aaron, "Since you did not have faith in Me to sanctify Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly to the Land which I have given them" (Numbers 20:12). For years, many of those who comment on the Torah have tried to come to terms with the severity of that punishment. After all, Moses was the leader of God’s chosen people. He stood up to Pharaoh, led the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt, continued to lead them for 40 years, built them into a nation, and coped with their griping. Now, after schlepping around with these kvetches for 40 years, shouldn’t he at least be allowed to enter the land that had been promised to his people for so long? Sure, he was the trail boss, but as a human, isn’t he subject to frustration and self-doubt? His sister’s death must have compromised his thinking. What did he do to deserve such a severe punishment? Shouldn't God have shown more mercy to his most faithful servant? It is generally thought that Moses was punished for disobeying God’s commands. God instructed him to speak to the rock, but, instead, he hit it, not just once, but twice. Rashi suggests that God seemed to be dismayed that Moses denied Him a chance to show off with another miracle. Moses exhibited a lack of faith in God’s command, something common among the Israelites. But Moses was not just your average Israelite. He was their leader and must therefore be held to a higher standard. Kabbalah’s basic work, the Zohar, says: "The acts of the leader are the acts of the nation. If the leader is just, the nation is just; if he is unjust, the nation, too, is unjust, and is punished for the sin of the leader." Moses’ sin may not have been great. If anyone else had done it, he surely would have been given a second chance. However, for the same reasons we might feel that Moses should have received some consideration, as top dog, he was held to the ultimate measure. We understand that he was human, and that grief, frustration, weariness, and stress can certainly weigh enough to make us less than our best selves. But in positions of high leadership, tough decisions and constancy of action are expected, even during times of weakness. That’s what separates a great leader from a good leader. Moses was a great leader, but he did have weaker moments and, for that, he was held accountable. Earlier, in Parashah Beha’alotecha, when the people wanted meat, Moses probably upset or angered God when he suggested that might not be able to enough provide enough. Numbers 11:21-22 reads: Moses said, Six hundred thousand people on foot are the people in whose midst I am, and You say, 'I will give them meat, and they will eat it for a full month'? If sheep and cattle were slaughtered for them, would it suffice for them? If all the fish of the sea were gathered for them, would it suffice for them? To say that God could not provide enough meat… isn’t that a greater sin than hitting the rock with a 2 x 4 instead of speaking to it? Why didn’t God punish Moses for that, but sentence him to death at this point? He didn’t because that was in private, whereas the sin of hitting the rock was committed before all Israel, and thus it desecrated God’s name. Remember, in Exodus, God tells Moses, "For you shall not prostrate yourself before another god, because the Lord, Whose Name is "Jealous One," is a jealous God."(Exodus 34:14) So, here is the message of Chukat: While leadership has its rewards, it also comes with grave responsibilities. There is an old Chasidic adage: "We should each have two pockets. In one should be a note saying, ‘I am but dust and ashes,’ and in the other, one that reads, ‘For my sake was the world created.’" Life lives in the window between our small physical size and our spiritual importance. Defeat, despair, and a sense of tragedy are always premature. Yes, life is short, but when we look ahead, we walk tall. Michael Goldstein |
|
|
|
Site Last Updated: Copyright © 2015–2024— |
May 31, 2024
by The Jewish Community of the Hill Country |