Parshat Tzav
by Rabbi Avi Billet
Many years ago I read a book that suggests, among other things, to imagine your funeral and what people would say about you. [There are many books which cover this theme, so forgive me for not recalling the title.] The author went on to suggest that what is said about you then is up to you to write the script of your life, starting now.
Some people who had terrible reputations in their earlier lifetimes turned things around through philanthropy or through bequeathing gifts to the world (think Nobel, think Gates). Whether their philanthropy was actually a change of heart or whether it was self-serving is a different discussion, but the effort certainly gave the world a reason to reconsider what their legacy should be.
This is the story of the Kohanim that we read of the opening parshas of the Book of Vayikra in which the family of Aharon is given the chance to immortalize their reputations through being the channels through which the people of Israel are to complete their service of God through the sacrificial order.
While it is a longer discussion, Aharon’s reputation was certainly sullied in the eyes of the people in the aftermath of the Golden Calf. There may have even been people who were unconvinced that he was the man for the job on account of what had taken place at the foot of the mountain on that fated day.
Chapter 8 begins with God telling Moshe to gather Aharon and sons, their new Kohen clothing, animals for inaugural sacrifices, and bring all these in front of the gathered people. Moshe goes on to say, “This is what God has commanded.” And without saying anything more, he proceeds to wash Aharon, dress Aharon, and go through the ritual that turns Aharon HaLevi (see Shemos 4:14) into Aharon HaKohen.
Rashi notes that in Moshe’s introduction, he meant that the people should watch what he is doing because that is the message from God.
Or HaChaim goes into a larger analysis noting that everything Moshe was doing was against his own honor, for he had the status of a king. Moshe emphasized that he was doing what he was doing specifically because God commanded him to do so. While a human king is generally not allowed to be mochel al k’vodo (humble himself against the honor due to him), before God all bets are off. He may indeed humble himself, and is obligated to do so when responding to a direct command. Moshe was also aiming to put to rest any protests that may come, such as the one later mounted by Korach. Korach’s rebellion, while not defensible, came in the aftermath of the spies, when it became clear this generation of Israelites would not be entering the Promised Land.
While it is certainly not the same thing in our world of politics today where we grant the term “honorable” to people whose only “honorable” achievement is being elected to office, there are a few people who make it through the muck of our political system with a good reputation intact. One of them was the Honorable Joseph Lieberman, who passed away this week, allegedly from complications from a fall. A human like the rest of us, he surely was imperfect. But as a career politician, he was known for his integrity, eventually learning that he was not a Democrat or a Republican, but an Independent, because he spoke his mind, voted per his conscience, and did not like to play the party-line voting game that has destroyed politics.
With rising to the highest voting-ticket in the United States as a Vice Presidential candidate, he wore his Judaism on his sleeve, publicly defended his Shabbos observance, and was the personification of the notion that “a Jew can achieve anything in this country.”
Even his latest political project of “No Labels” was meant to galvanize a political movement of people who vote for what is “right” (as in “just, good, moral”) rather than what is “politically expedient.” May his memory be a blessing.
Moshe stood for what was right. He followed the word of God. Even in the aftermath of the Golden Calf, God told him Aharon was the man for the job, and Aharon’s sons were to be his assistants – the family of Kohanim. This wasn’t nepotism. This wasn’t a political appointment. This was a Divine appointment, and Moshe stepped aside from his own Kavod to see it would be done in the manner God wanted, because that is what one does in the service of God. Unquestionably Moshe and Aharon did their best to live lives of Kiddush Hashem. That is how Moshe is remembered, and how Aharon is remembered. And of course through the many havdalot, that is how Senator Lieberman will be remembered…. Which leaves us to ask, how will we be remembered – do we live lives that are a Kiddush Hashem?
What follows is a letter written by South Africa’s Chief Rabbi Warren Goldstein as a tribute to Senator Lieberman. [Among other accomplishments, Rabbi Goldstein founded the Shabbat Project.]
Dear friends,
The words that come to
me as I absorb with great sadness the sudden passing of Senator Joe Lieberman,
of blessed memory, are from the verses describing his namesake, Joseph in
ancient Egypt - how all who encountered him, from the top echelons of government
to those imprisoned in its dungeons, could see that “God was with him, and
everything he did, God made succeed in his hand.” (Genesis 39:3). As Pharaoh
himself said, on appointing Joseph the prime minister of Egypt, “Could we find
another like him - a man who has the spirit of God within him…there is no one
as insightful and wise.” (Genesis 41:38-39)
Like
Joseph in ancient Egypt, as a United States Senator, Joseph Lieberman held high
office in a global superpower, succeeding in everything he did, enjoying Divine
blessings. God’s ambassador for the Torah’s noblest attributes - humility,
wisdom, integrity and compassion - he was the ultimate Kiddush Hashem,
sanctifying the Divine name in the world, carrying it with befitting dignity
and grace.
Senator
Lieberman was a public servant in the truest sense, living, as our sages
describe, “for the sake of Heaven”. His memoir, In Praise of Public
Life, is a tribute to the idea of politics for a higher purpose. The
book is about the importance of making a difference; of getting involved in
public life in order to make the world a better place. He writes, paraphrasing
Pirkei Avot: "The day is short…and there is much work to be done, tikkun
olam, repairing our government and improving our beloved country and world.
We are not required to complete the work ourselves, but, as good and grateful
citizens, we cannot withdraw from it either."
Senator
Lieberman was a man of principle. He was the first national Democrat to
publicly criticize President Bill Clinton for his infidelity, drawing the anger
of his party and risking his political career. And yet, the following year, Al
Gore - Vice President under Clinton - turned to Senator Lieberman to join the
ticket for the 2000 presidential elections, making him the first Jewish
candidate on a major-party ticket for the White House.
But
Senator Lieberman wasn’t just Jewish by birth - he was a proud, vocal Jew,
unreserved and totally committed to his Judaism. In the heat of the campaign,
he made it publicly known that he would not be campaigning on Shabbat. As
renowned political commentator Charles Krauthammer put it, “Jews in American
public life are old news; Orthodox Jews are not… Which is why Lieberman's entry
onto the national stage is so significant. It not only confirms and ratifies
the full entry of Jews into the higher councils of American life. It marks the
entry of Judaism into the deeper recesses of the American consciousness.”
And
at the heart of Senator Lieberman’s own Jewish consciousness was Shabbat. In
the opening pages of The Gift of Rest - the title of his
book on the subject - he describes how, delayed by an important vote at the
Senate, he had to walk home one Friday night in the rain:
“It's Friday night and it’s one of those torrential downpours
that we get in Washington, D.C., and I'm walking from the Capitol to my home in
Georgetown getting absolutely soaked - the United States Capitol policemen at
my side as we make our way up Pennsylvania Avenue from the Capitol building
towards our distant goal, a four-and-a-half-mile walk. But I do not - indeed, I
cannot - accept a ride in the car.”
Reflecting
on this symbolic moment he wrote, “Sabbath observance is a gift that has
anchored, shaped and inspired my life.” It was through Senator Lieberman’s
passion for Shabbat that I got to know him personally. We shared a vision of
spreading Shabbat in the world. He kindly joined the International Advisory
Board of The Shabbat Project, giving so generously of his time and effort, and
sharing his connections and wisdom. He was a cherished advisor and mentor, and
his gentle warmth and friendship meant the world to me. I will miss him
dearly.
Our
world is dimmer without Senator Joseph Lieberman. Let us illuminate it by
living the values he personified - sharing the light of Shabbat, dignity,
decency, and faith, in our world.
May
his memory be a blessing - like his beloved Shabbat, “the source of all
blessing.”
Rabbi Warren Goldstein
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