Lessons from Moshe

Pinchas 5778 / 7 July 2018

Shabbat shalom.  Thank you to Rabbi Friedman for inviting me to speak today, and for my wife, Alexandra for holding off on delivering our baby for another 10 minutes.

In today’s parsha we read Parashat Pinchas and we reflect upon the Israelites, in their infancy as a people, at a critical juncture.  By this point in time, the Israelites had escaped Egypt and the wrath of Pharaoh, received the Torah at Mt. Sinai, survived attacks and military battles, and survived an internal rebellion led by Korach.  Most recently, as read in last week’s parsha, the Israelites dodged another bullet by evading the curses, wizardry, and scheming of Balak and Balaam.

Now, the Israelites, led by G-d and Moshe are approaching the land of Canaan as a people in political and spiritual transition with Moshe in need of a successor.  There is a lot to discuss in this parsha, but on the heels of July 4th in Philadelphia, the birthplace of our country and modern democracy, I am drawn to the Torah’s lesson of moral and political leadership and the different styles of leadership.

The parsha starts with Pinchas, the man, who with zealous Braveheart-like rage kills an Israelite who was sleeping with a Moabite woman in defiance of G-d’s instruction.  There is something to be said for Pinchas’ passion and extreme moral clarity, as well as his acting upon his conviction. G-d rewarded Pinchas with friendship and priestly status, but he was not flagged as a successor to Moshe to lead the Jewish People.  While G-d appears to have favored his actions, the sages were disturbed by the extreme behavior and summary justice that he took upon himself to carry out.

In contrast to Pinchas, I am drawn to what we can learn from Moshe.  After all, what do we call Moshe – Moshe the Prophet? Moshe the General?  Moshe the King? We refer to him as Moshe Rabenu – our rabbi, our teacher. So what does he teach us?  There are 3 distinct lessons:

1)      Listening to the Daughters of Zelophchad.

Zelophchad was a man with no sons and five daughters (something I can relate to).   In the patriarchal, male-dominated world of the time, the daughters had no hereditary rights.  They mustered up the courage to go before Moshe and the chieftains to plea for their right to inherit their deceased father’s possessions.  For the lawyers in the room, this was “a matter of first impression.” What does Moshe do? There is no indication that the daughters were wealthy, politically powerful, or influential.  He could have easily dismissed them and their cause as “something that was not done.” On the contrary, he listened, considered what was just – even if it involved a radical change – and took their case to the Lord who ruled in their favor.  And a new legal precedent was established. Here, we can learn a sense of justice and a willingness to listen to the powerless and those outside of one’s inner circle.

2)      G-d tells Moshe that he will not enter the land of Canaan.

How does Moshe react?  Does he ask G-d to reconsider?  Does he think about his own well-being?  No. His immediate reaction is one of concern for who will take his place and watch over his people “so the Lord’s community may not be like sheep without a shepherd.” He demonstrates selflessness, fortitude, and foresight for succession planning.  God and Moshe choose Joshua, who had long been learning at Moshe’s feet and had demonstrated strength, optimism, and steadiness. Moshe had invested considerable time and energy in teaching Joshua, which is another lesson we can learn in preparing our leaders.

3)      The Transition of Power.

After selecting Joshua, G-d set forth specific instructions to Moshe to publicly demonstrate the transition of power and authority:

18 The Lord said to Moses, “Take for yourself Joshua the son of Nun, a man of spirit, and you shall lay your hand upon him.		יחוַיֹּ֨אמֶר יְהֹוָ֜ה אֶל־משֶׁ֗ה קַח־לְךָ֙ אֶת־יְהוֹשֻׁ֣עַ בִּן־נ֔וּן אִ֖ישׁ אֲשֶׁר־ר֣וּחַ בּ֑וֹ וְסָֽמַכְתָּ֥ אֶת־יָֽדְךָ֖ עָלָֽיו:
19 And you shall present him before Eleazar the kohen and before the entire congregation, and you shall command him in their presence.		יטוְהַֽעֲמַדְתָּ֣ אֹת֗וֹ לִפְנֵי֙ אֶלְעָזָ֣ר הַכֹּהֵ֔ן וְלִפְנֵ֖י כָּל־הָֽעֵדָ֑ה וְצִוִּיתָ֥ה אֹת֖וֹ לְעֵֽינֵיהֶֽם:
20 You shall bestow some of your majesty upon him so that all the congregation of the children of Israel will take heed.		כוְנָֽתַתָּ֥ה מֵהֽוֹדְךָ֖ עָלָ֑יו לְמַ֣עַן יִשְׁמְע֔וּ כָּל־עֲדַ֖ת בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל:
21 He shall stand before Eleazar the kohen and seek [counsel from] him through the judgment of the Urim before the Lord. By his word they shall go, and by his word they shall come; he and all Israel with him, and the entire congregation.”		כאוְלִפְנֵ֨י אֶלְעָזָ֤ר הַכֹּהֵן֙ יַֽעֲמֹ֔ד וְשָׁ֥אַל ל֛וֹ בְּמִשְׁפַּ֥ט הָֽאוּרִ֖ים לִפְנֵ֣י יְהֹוָ֑ה עַל־פִּ֨יו יֵֽצְא֜וּ וְעַל־פִּ֣יו יָבֹ֗אוּ ה֛וּא וְכָל־בְּנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֥ל אִתּ֖וֹ וְכָל־הָֽעֵדָֽה:
22 Moses did as the Lord had commanded him, and he took Joshua and presented him before Eleazar the kohen and before the entire congregation.		כבוַיַּ֣עַשׂ משֶׁ֔ה כַּֽאֲשֶׁ֛ר צִוָּ֥ה יְהֹוָ֖ה אֹת֑וֹ וַיִּקַּ֣ח אֶת־יְהוֹשֻׁ֗עַ וַיַּֽעֲמִדֵ֨הוּ֙ לִפְנֵי֙ אֶלְעָזָ֣ר הַכֹּהֵ֔ן וְלִפְנֵ֖י כָּל־הָֽעֵדָֽה:
23 He laid his hands upon him and commanded him, in accordance with what the Lord had spoken to Moses.		כגוַיִּסְמֹ֧ךְ אֶת־יָדָ֛יו עָלָ֖יו וַיְצַוֵּ֑הוּ כַּֽאֲשֶׁ֛ר דִּבֶּ֥ר יְהֹוָ֖ה בְּיַד־משֶֽׁה:

 

The parsha reads that Moshe “did as the Lord had commanded,” but this is not entirely true.  G-d instructs Moshe to “lay your hand” – singular – upon Joshua. By contrast, Moshe “laid his hands” – plural.  The rabbis teach us that every word, letter, and punctuation has meaning. So what is the significance? There is commentary that laying his hands – plural – was Moshe’s transfer of his prophetic powers to Joshua.

What strikes me, however, is the lesson in leadership that we should judge our leaders not only by what they did in office or on the job, but also by how they leave the position.  Here, Moshe doesn’t just do the bare minimum. He doesn’t just give his “two weeks’ notice” and hand over the keys to the office. He does more. He does more than what was commanded in what appears to be a genuine desire to ensure a smooth transition of power and give Joshua his best opportunity to succeed.  Whether it be a political leader, retiring rabbi, outgoing board president, we can learn from Moshe’s graceful and thoughtful exit.

Lastly, I want to point out that Moshe had children.  Why weren’t Moshe’s kids considered as the heirs to the throne?  This is something that Rabbi Friedman and I discussed. There is a lesson here – that Jewish leadership was intended to be on its merits, not by bloodline, which his exactly as our Founding Fathers contemplated some 250 years ago, just down the street.

Shabbat Shalom and happy July 4th.