Timeless Torah

The rebellion that challenged Moses’ leadership comprised a variety of factions. Korach, prime mover of the uprising, was aggrieved that Moses had not appointed him as high priest. Members of the tribe of Reuben, descendants of Jacob’s eldest, believed they too were entitled to leadership positions. The 250 other rebels, firstborn themselves, were still not reconciled to the fact that after the sin of the golden calf, the role of special service was taken away from them.
Each group had grounds for feeling that they had been passed over. The irony of their challenge was unmistakable. They posed as egalitarians. “All the community are holy. . .Why then do you raise yourself above the L-rd’s congregation?” What they said is that everyone should be a leader. What they meant is: I should be a leader.
As long as the Israelites were moving towards the Promised Land, these disparate malcontents had no real chance in rousing the rest of the nation to revolt. But following the debacle of the spies, it was decreed that their generation would not enter Israel. Once the people realized that they would not live to cross the Jordan, rebellion was possible. A disillusioned people was ripe for a campaign of mutiny.
Thus far, the story of Korach is intensely realistic. A people had been mobilized by an inspiring vision. But the journey from the real to the ideal, from starting point to destination, was fraught with setbacks and disappointments. That is when the current leaders are in danger of being deposed. Korach, symbol of the coldly calculating man of ambition, fomented discontent. He agitated in the name of equality, but what he really wanted was to be the leader himself.
What is exceptional is the story’s finale. Sensing that the contemptuous rebels are provoking a showdown, Moses sought an immediate and dramatic resolution. “By this you shall know that it was the L-rd who sends me to do all these things...the ground [will] open its mouth and swallow them up...and they go down alive into Sheol.”
No sooner had he finished speaking, than the ground opened up; no more rebels. By all convention we would expect the rebellion to fold.
This is precisely what did not happen. Instead, the very next day, the entire community grumbled against Moses. “You have killed the L-rd’s people,” they said.
So G-d Himself intervened. He told Moses to take twelve staffs, one for each tribe, and deposit them overnight in the Sanctuary. The next morning, Aaron’s staff alone, representing the tribe of Levi, had sprouted, budded, blossomed and borne almonds. Only then did the uprising calm down.
This is an astonishing denouement, and what it tells us is profound. Force by itself does not end conflict. It may temporarily quell it, but it also adds grievance to injury. Even a miracle of ‘ground-breaking’ proportions did not secure for Moses the vindication he sought. What brought the dispute to a peaceful resolution? A visible symbol that Aaron was the chosen servant of G-d.
Once again, world focus is on a tiny piece of real estate called Israel. Old-time Zionists spoke of attaining a piece of land to ‘normalize’ our people. The French had France; the British, England; and the Jews would have the Jewish state. No more would we be, “A people apart”; we would become, “A nation among nations.”
The irony is that the “Land” which was supposed to help us blend in, is a lightning rod for what makes us different. Anti-Semitism, disguised as anti-Israel condemnations at the U.N., or academic and economic boycotts are at an all time high. Is this battle to wage on endlessly? Is there no way to finish it off, once and for all?
The episode of Korach teaches us that there are two stages in resolving controversy. First, we muster all necessary force. We even plead for Divine intervention. We’re not choosy. We’ll accept an Opened Earth, a Six Day War, or an Entebbe. (As Golda Meir remarked, “In Israel, to be a realist one has to believe in miracles.”) Nonetheless, this is not a long-term solution.
Therefore, we employ a second approach. We address our opponent’s challenge: “Why do you raise yourself above [us]?” We turn to the first sentence in the Bible (accepted by all of Islam), “In the beginning G-d created the heavens and the earth.”
A curious opening for a Book of laws. Why not begin with a rule, a call to action? Rashi answers: To assert Jewish ownership over Israel. For if the nations of the world say to us, “You are thieves, for having conquered the lands of the seven nations,” we should reply, “The entire world is G-d’s,” and He deeded this portion of it to us. This promise of a Promised Land is reiterated countless times.
Remarkable isn’t it, that a real estate title is the first item on G-d’s Book! More remarkable, is the attention given to those who would complain.
The world needs a sign that this land was chosen for us. We could provide such a sign: By living as if we were chosen for this land. So forget about being like every other people. We are anything but. It’s not what everyone else says that counts, it’s what the Jews do that matters. Like Aaron’s staff, we must make the land sprout, bud, blossom and bear fruit. When we plant, not uproot; when we act as the servants of G-d so that our homes become His Sanctuary, and not our shame; then the battle will be over.