Korach

Here's my adaptation of

Living Each Day's thought on Korach.

And click here for part I of a Korach thought,

and here for the conclusion that thought of

Rabbi Yitzchak Twersky about the connection

between Kayin/Hevel and Korach.

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On Politicians
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One member of the board says that the president of the Shul is a jerk. Another Shul member says he’s an idiot. A third guy asks, "Why does the nut job stay president?" And the other two answer in unison – “For the Kavod”.

The 90's: Hilary is talking to the garbage collector outside The White House. She explains to Bill that she dated this man in college. Bill says, “That’s funny, because if you’d have married him, you’d now be the wife of a garbage collector.” And she says, "Nooo, if I’d have married him, he’d be president!”

Ever since childhood I’ve been enamoured by the human side of politics, as it were, but not to the side of it that takes it seriously as a real means to a real end (I’ve always felt that same way about sports too, the human drama is cool – who are these people, etc - but the scores don’t matter in my life and don't interest me).

This week’s parsha introduces the first modern day politician. He had money. He had charisma He had an ambitious, manipulative wife. And he had a populist message that attracted followers.

In the very beginning of the story Korach and his followers come out fighting. They are introduced with three verbs that all begin with the letter Kuf – three fighting words. They grabbed, got up, and gathered. In response Moshe is described with three passive verbs: he listened, fell forward, and spoke.

Korach’s emphasis is on external appeal. His message was: Why should Moshe be special, why not let the best man (i.e. one with biggest PR machine, most money, sharpest commercials) win and rule?

Moshe’s answer was: What do you want from my life? What G-d says goes. I’m the one G-d wants. He’ll spell it out for you, if that’s what you’d like.

Korach’s public confrontation of Moshe betrayed Korach's insincerity. Why didn’t he ask respectfully and privately? Like the audience member who enjoys to hearing his own voice and seeing a leader squirm under public attack, Korach was out to make a ruckus more than he was out for the truth.

In society at large, as well as in Jewish society in many instances the razzmatazz leaders get the recognition. But ultimately honor/kavod is illusory. If we feel that G-d wants us to lead others, we must do it humbly for that reason alone (to the extent that that’s humanly possible).

When Moshe became a Jewish activist, he looked around. How he hoped there was some one else to do the job! But he saw that he was the one to fill the need for action at that moment in time.

May we be blessed to be like Moshe in the way we deal with our outreach, activism, and leadership. Please, may it be G-d’s will.