Click to print/View in PDF

Parsha Perspectives by Ozer Alport

(וילנו כל עדת בני ישראל ממחרת על משה ועל אהרן לאמר אתם המתם את עם ד' (17:6

“The entire assembly of the Children of Israel complained the next day against Moses and Aaron, saying, ‘You have killed the people of Hashem.’”

Parshas Korach revolves around an uprising led by Korach against Moses and Aaron. Korach and his followers challenged Moses’s claim that Hashem had chosen him to lead the Jewish nation. After his unsuccessful attempts to quell the rebellion peacefully, Moses proposed a test to resolve the dispute. Korach and his followers would offer incense offerings to Hashem, as would Aaron. Hashem’s selected High Priest would survive, but everybody else would die.

After Korach accepted the challenge, even at the risk of his own life, Moses beseeched Hashem not to accept their offerings. Just as Moses foretold, Aaron’s incense offering was accepted, while Korach and his followers all perished.

The Jewish people reacted by accusing Moses and Aaron of causing their deaths. This is difficult to understand. Moses conducted himself with the utmost humility in attempting to dissuade them from their uprising. When this was unsuccessful and with his Divine authority on the line, he was left with no choice but to propose this test, and warned them of the disastrous results which awaited them. If they ignored his warnings and Hashem punished them, how could they blame Moses and Aaron for their deaths?

A student of Rabbi Yisrael Salanter (1810-1883), the founder of the Mussar (Jewish ethics) movement, once approached his saintly teacher. He told Rabbi Salanter about the extent of a certain Rabbi’s righteousness that if the Rabbi ever became upset with someone and cursed him, the curse was always fulfilled. Rabbi Salanter was far from impressed. He explained that just as we are responsible for causing damage with our hands or actions, so too are we accountable for causing damage with our speech..

The student asked Rabbi Salanter if there was a source in the Torah for the concept that a person is responsible for his speech, and where it might be found. Rabbi Salanter cited our verse, in which the Jewish people held Moses and Aaron responsible for the deaths of Korach and his followers. He explained that they maintained that it was the prayers of Moses and Aaron which resulted in this outcome, and that they must therefore be held accountable. Although they were mistaken, as Moses and Aaron had no alternative in this situation, we still derive from here that a person is responsible not only for the consequences of his actions, but also for his speech.

In a society where people are often admired for their sharp tongues, we would do well to consider the Torah’s perspective that speech may be more damaging than it seems. One of the 613 commandments is a prohibition against saying something which hurts another person’s feelings (Leviticus 19:33). The Talmud (Bava Metzia 58b) teaches that publicly embarrassing another person is comparable to killing him. The next time we are tempted to roll a sharp line off our tongues as we convince ourselves that it’s only words, we should remember the lesson taught by Rabbi Salanter. return to top
Ozer Alpert can be reached at ozer@partnersintorah.org  

talking points - parshas Korach
Rabbi Elazar Meisels

1. The Power to Lead

“And they congregated around Moses and Aharon and they said to them, ‘It is enough for you. The entire congregation, they are all holy and the Lord is in their midst. Why do you raise yourselves above the congregation of the Lord.’” 16:3

• The Entire Congregation, they are all holy – All of them heard words of instruction at Sinai from the Almighty – Rashi

While Korach and his cohorts were ostensibly arguing over specific positions, there was another underlying sentiment that they insinuated with these words. They resented the fact that some people would hold sway over others. In their minds, Judaism should be a democracy, in which all are equal, and all opinions equally valid and acceptable by virtue of the fact that we all stood at Sinai and heard the Almighty speak. The reality, however, is that this is patently not the case. Each individual is precious, important, and possesses a sacred soul, but the authority rests with those who were empowered by Hashem to lead the nation. Moses and Aharon were selected by the Almighty, and that fact had yet to be assimilated by the masses. By challenging Moses’s authority to appoint leaders, they were, in effect, rejecting a basic tenet of Judaism.

2. It Is Your Problem

“Separate yourselves from this congregation and I’ll destroy them in an instant. And they [Moses and Aharon] fell on their faces and said, ‘G-d…shall one man sin and you cast your wrath upon the entire congregation? 16:21-22

• One man sin…the entire congregation – This is hard to fathom. If they all sinned, then why did Moses and Aharon claim that only one man sinned? If they didn’t all sin, why indeed, should G-d’s wrath affect them? – Ramban
• “You shall not despise your brother in your heart; [rather] you must admonish your brother and you shall not bear sin on his account.” – Leviticus 19:17

If indeed, only a small number of the people sinned, why did G-d see fit to have them all destroyed? The Torah tells us that one who fails to protest evil is himself guilty of perpetrating that evil. By not standing up to Korach and his cohorts, the people were guilty of allowing his evil plot to fester and wreak havoc upon the nation. For this, they were judged complicit in aiding and abetting his criminal behavior and sentenced to death. Only the prayers of Moses and Aharon spared them from this terrible fate.

3. Face-Off

“And they [Moses and Aharon] fell on their faces and said, ‘G-d…shall one man sin and you bring down your wrath upon the entire congregation? 16: 22

• Fell on their faces – Rabbeinu Bachya explains that this verse serves as the basis for our custom to “fall on our faces” during the daily prayer service in the prayer known as “Tachanun.” There are three reasons for doing so:
  1. To demonstrate our awe of the Divine Presence before whom we pray. For when praying, one must envision himself as standing before the Almighty. This aids in maintaining proper concentration and focus.
  2. To demonstrate our discomfort, humility, and insignificance. These attitudes are a form of repentance and greatly enhance the efficacy of our prayers.
  3. To demonstrate the shuttering of our sensory organs and a disavowal of our personal desires. In doing so, we send an explicit message that even though we pray for our welfare, we don’t really know what we need or want, and we trust the Almighty to arrange our lives as best suits our needs.

4. One For All, All For One?

“And they [Moses and Aharon] fell on their faces and said, ‘G-d, Master of the Spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin and you cast your wrath upon the entire congregation? 16:21-22

• Master of the Spirits of All Flesh – When a country rebels against a human king, he is hardly expected to know exactly who is guilty, and who innocent. Therefore, he is justified in administering collective punishment. You, Hashem, are the master of all spirits and You know what transpires in the heart of all men. Therefore, it is inconceivable that You would administer collective retribution, when you could just as easily single out the evildoers! – Rabbi Yosef Bechor Shor

Although a shallow interpretation of human history would appear to indicate that G-d is nothing more than a vengeful deity seeking to obliterate and annihilate all and sundry, a deeper examination of the facts reveals that exactly the opposite is the case. His mercy extends far beyond that of the most merciful human being. His tolerance for our indiscretions, His ability to parse judgment with laser-like precision, and willingness to delay His punishment until the offender can withstand it, is unlike any form of justice found in the human race. The fact that the Jewish people eventually made it into the Land of Israel in spite of their numerous lapses is ample testimony to that effect. return to top
Rabbi Elazar Meisels can be reached at rabbimeisels@partnersintorah.org 

This page is dedicated to, and written for the 6,000 Partners in Torah mentors.
We welcome you to join their ranks by calling 800-STUDY-4-2.
Please send your comments, questions, and suggestions to info@partnersintorah.org
Contact info for Partners in Torah Mentor Advisors*:
Rabbi Elazar Meisels | 732-917-6370 (Sunday & Tuesday 8:00 – 11:00 pm; Thursday 10 am-12 pm) rabbimeisels@partnersintorah.org
Rabbi Pinchos Jung | 845-425-6533 (leave message)
*Kindly reserve use of our advisors for mentor contact.

Soulful Questions - Part 2 Rabbi Leiby Burnham

Dear Rabbi,
Your recent letter about the soul after death left me with a lot of mixed emotions. The idea that the soul must complete all of its growth in this world, before being frozen in place in the next world is kind of scary. On the other hand, knowing that every good thing I do will be with me forever is empowering. What I’m stuck on now is why do we say kaddish, and give charity in the memory of the deceased if they can’t change their status in heaven?
Thanks,
Michael R.

Dear Michael,
You hit the nail on the head! At the end of my last letter in which I discussed what happens to the soul after death, I mentioned that there are some very important exceptions to the concept of the next world being a place of status quo. A relative who recites the kaddish prayer or makes charitable donations in honor of the deceased are the most common exceptions. However, in order to understand how that works let’s first explore some fundamentals of Judaism.

What are we created for? How would we sum up our role on this planet? One way is to state that our job is to bring spirituality into the physical, light into the darkness, G-dliness into the mundane.

A Rabbi I know once told me that the most inspirational message he ever found was in a campsite in the Rockies. Hung on a tree was a sign that said, “Please leave this place a bit cleaner than you found it.” Our job, he said, is to leave this world a bit more G-dly than we found it. We do this by making proper choices, , studying and performing the mitzvot that Hashem gave us in the Torah, and by teaching others to do what’s right.

In our last discussion, we talked about how one who is alive is described as “holeich,” walking, while one who is dead is described as “omaid,” standing still. What fuels our walking, our advancement as human beings, is the amount of G-dliness we bring into this world. Under normal circumstances, once someone is dead they can no longer infuse the world with light because they no longer have free will, and therefore cannot choose light over darkness. With nothing to fuel the tank, they grind to a complete halt, and stay frozen in place, standing still for eternity.

However, some people leave a legacy of goodness, along with those who they inspired to do mitzvot they might not have done otherwise. In this way, the deceased is effectively bringing G-dliness into this world even though he is not here! This is how one can still move forward even after death, when most people have stopped. When people say Kaddish, give charity, learn Torah, or other acts of giving in the memory of the dead, they are giving that person life after death, the ability to walk among the standing.

This concept clarifies a point that bothers many people. People wonder why the kaddish prayer makes no mention of the deceased, and instead only talks about the greatness of G-d and His name being recognized in the world. But now that we realize that the kaddish is not said to remember the dead, but to fuel their tank, we understand it perfectly. The only way we can fuel a soul’s tank is by bringing G-dliness to this physical world in their memory, not by talking about how much we miss them.

This also explains a famous enigmatic statement in the Talmud. The sages state that the righteous are called alive even after they’re dead, while the wicked are called dead even while they are alive (Tractate Brachos, 18A-B). With our new understanding that the essential function of life is the ability to transform darkness into light, this statement is clear. Righteous people live on long after they die, because the inspiration and guidance they provided to us continues to illuminate the world long after their souls have left. Wicked people, on the other hand, are called dead even while they are alive, because they are “omdim,” standing still even while alive. They don’t choose the spiritual over the physical, so even while they are alive, and there are “gas stations” all around (opportunities to choose properly), they never fill up and never move.

The true challenge of life is to live it in such a way that we not only illuminate the darkness while we are alive, but we leave a legacy of light for those we leave behind.

Best Regards
Rabbi Leiby Burnham
return to top
Submit your questions for publication consideration to questions@partnersintorah.org
Rabbi Leiby Burnham can be reached at rabbiburnham@partnersintorah.org

Rav Zalman Sorotzkin says that there is a remarkable lesson to be learned from the miracle of the staffs. The Torah states that after the staff of Aharon blossomed, Moses brought out all the staffs and each nasi (head of a tribe) took his own. He asks: What was the point of each nasi taking home the unchanged staffs, which showed only that Hashem had not chosen him or his tribe?

He explains by first asking: Why was there such a strong desire by all the tribes to be chosen to be the Leviim? As Leviim (Levites) they would forfeit their rights to a portion in The Land of Israel, and would have to collect maaser (tithing) and always be dependent on others. There were many times in history that the Leviim were extremely poor, lacking the basic necessities to sustain themselves.

So why indeed did all the tribes want to be Leviim? The answer is that the desire to serve Hashem in the Tabernacle (and later in the Holy Temple) was far greater than any other pleasure. The דּוֹר דֵעָה, the generation that saw with such clarity, were willing to accept upon themselves a lifetime of struggle, including forfeiting their rights to a portion in the land.

After the nesiim (tribal leaders) saw that only Aharon's staff had blossomed, and acknowledged the fact that Hashem had chosen him and his tribe, with a broken heart they each took their own staffs, each one having been inscribed by Moses with their tribe's name. This staff would serve as a permanent testimony to the fact that they had at least tried to be candidates to serve in the Mishkan (Tabernacle), even if it meant giving up a lifetime of peace and prosperity, and even if their only job would have been to serve as watchmen and gate-keepers.

This can be compared to one who attempts to run for the office of president. Although he did not receive the votes needed to win the nomination, he can still walk around and be proud of the fact that he was considered a viable candidate to serve the country.

The staff of each nasi was the proof that they at least did what they could to fill this important role. Although only Levi was chosen, every nasi still had a right to be proud that he had been ready to make great sacrifices in order to serve in the Mishkan. This was why they wished to retain the staffs.

Furthermore, there is a rule that if someone plans and prepares to do a mitzvah, and in the end he does not succeed in doing so because of circumstances beyond his control, he still receives reward as if he had performed the mitzvah. This, too, was a reason for the nesiim to take home this proof of greatness, for it was a badge of honor that testified to their wholehearted attempts to be the agents of Hashem and His nation in the Beis HaMikdash (Holy Temple). return to top

Hey, I never knew that! By Ozer Alport

Amazing Insights About the Weekly Parsha   

Q:Judaism teaches that people are punished for their sins measure-for-measure. In what way was Korach’s punishment of being swallowed alive by the ground (16:32-33) for rebelling against Moses and Aaron specifically appropriate for his crime?

A: Rabbeinu Bechaye explains that Korach erred in seeking out a lofty position for which he was unfit. Therefore, he was punished by being swallowed up by the ground, sending him down to the lowest abyss possible. Rabbi Wolf Strickover answers that Korach challenged Moses and Aaron (16:3), “Why do you exalt yourselves over the congregation of Hashem,” accusing them of arrogance. In reality, the Torah testifies (12:3) that Moses was the most humble man on earth and viewed himself as no greater than the ground itself. In order to punish him, Korach had to be placed even lower than Moses, who considered himself equal to the ground. Therefore, the only choice was for the earth to swallow him up. Alternatively, the Mishnah in Ethics of our Fathers (3:2) teaches that without a leader to make and enforce laws, people would swallow up and devour one another. Since Korach argued that the entire nation was holy and didn’t need a leader, he was punished by being swallowed up by the ground to hint to the natural consequence of his proposal.

Q:The Talmud (Sotah 13b) teaches that Moses was punished for telling Korach and his followers (16:7) רב לכם בני לוי – it is too much for you, children of Levi. When Moses petitioned Hashem to annul the decree preventing him from entering the land of Israel, Hashem answered him (Deuteronomy 3:26) using a similar expression: רב לך (“it is too much for you”), to hint that Moses sinned in using this expression when addressing Korach. What was Moses’s sin in speaking to Korach in this manner, and in what way was his punishment measure-for-measure and not just a linguistic play on words?

A: Rabbi Yehuda Zev Segal, known as the Manchester Rosh Yeshiva, explains that although Korach and his followers committed a grave sin and error in their rebellion against the leadership of Moses and Aaron, it was still inappropriate for Moses to speak to them in this manner. Moses told them that the spiritual elevation they sought was too much for them. Although they were indeed mistaken and misguided, it was still incorrect to speak to them in a way which implies that the pursuit of spiritual growth is capped and limited. Several commentators explain that Hashem instilled within us the attribute of the lack of satisfaction with our lot so that we will constantly seek to grow and change in spiritual endeavors. As a result, Moses’s desire to enter the land of Israel to grow through doing the mitzvot which may uniquely be performed in Israel was met with a response (“it is too much for you”). This was comparable to the inappropriate message Moses had used, alluding to the impropriety of his message to Korach. return to top

Ozer Alport can be reached at ozer@partnersintorah.org return to top

Parsha Partner is a publication of Partners In Torah
a division of Torah Umesorah, The National Society for Hebrew Day Schools.
Rabbi Eli Gewirtz, National Director;
Parsha Partner Production Team- Yaffa Baslaw, Chani Davis, Dafnah Nojowitz

Partners in Torah is a multi-faceted educational organization dedicated to fostering unity among jews of all backgrounds and assisting them in their quest for a deeper appreciation of their heritage. Partners in Torah brings adults from across the spectrum of religious observance together for a variety of study programs and jewish life experiences. Our growing participant base of 12,000+ is serviced by 24 trained professionals who work to maximize the experience of each participant.
For more information call 800-study-4-2 or visit www.partnersintorah.org
Distributed in UK by Phone and Learn (PaL), a division of Partners in Torah. www.phoneandlearn.org, 08000 J-LEARN (553 276)

Honor or remember a loved one by dedicating an issue of parsha partner which reaches over 15,000 people each week. dedications (up to 15 words) for yahrtzeits, refuah sheleyma, etc. are $180 an issue. For dedication and free subscriptions information or to have Parsha Partner sent to your shul, call 732-363-3330 ext. 6377, or via e-mail parsha@partnersintorah.org

Please pray for a refuah shlema for Lieba bas Nechama Miriam,
Bracha Sheindel Rochel bas Chaya Sara, Mordechai Hirsch ben Miriam and Pesach Chaim ben Perel