Parshat Korach

Parshat Korach

After the controversy over the spies, the Israelites were forced to wander the desert for forty years. The sense of unity, that existed amongst the people, is shattered by Korach, who challenges Moses and Aaron for leadership of the Jewish people. Korach appealed to the people’s sense of fairness and democracy in a perverted attempt to wrest control from Moses. After all, he reasoned, G-d chose all of the Israelites to be a holy nation. Why should only Moses be the leader and why should there be a priesthood only descended from Aaron? Why should there be any divisions at all? Korach did not immediately run around the camp yelling and screaming. He used subtle logic and small elements of truth to twist things to his way of thinking. Many Levites followed Korach. Dasan and Aviram were Reuvenites who joined Korach and contended for the right to be leaders of their tribe.

Moses warned the people not to follow Korach. A challenge was issued in which G-d would decide who the leaders should be. Korach and his followers, were swallowed up by the earth as punishment. The remainder of his followers, began to murmur against Moses and were punished by a plague. G-d ordered the prince of each tribe to bring a rod with his name on it to the tent of the meeting (ohel moed). These rods, together with the rod of Levi (which bore the name of Aaron), were placed before the Ark. In the morning, the rod of Aaron was the only one to have blossomed indicating that the priesthood would flow from Aaron’s seed. The rod was preserved as a warning never to challenge Aaron’s right to the priesthood (kehuna).

After these events, G-d tells Moses that the Kohanim and Leviim will not inherit any land when Canaan is conquered. The Kohanim would receive their food in the form of contributions (terumah and bikurim). The Leviim would likewise receive a portion of produce known as ma’aser rishon (first tenth).

The mishnah, in Pirke Avos (5-20) states:

“Any dispute that is for the sake of heaven will endure; but one that is not for the sake of heaven will not endure. What sort of dispute was for the sake of heaven? The dispute between Hillel and Shammai. And which dispute was not for the sake of heaven? The dispute of Korach and his entire company.”

The subject of machalokes or controversy is a sad but prevalent one in Jewish history. It is said that the Second Temple was destroyed because of baseless hatred (sinat chinan). Also, the sages state that the twenty-four thousand disciples of Rabbi Akiva were martyred because they did not show proper respect for each other during their Talmudic disputes. In modern times, we have seen rocks being thrown down on worshipers at the Western Wall by other Jews!

The mishnah stated that the disputes between Hillel and Shammai were for the sake of heaven. Why would G-d want such a dispute to endure? Hillel and Shammai were two of the greatest sages of the Talmud. They often took opposite sides in a dispute over halachah. They each founded “schools” of followers, which tended to maintain the approach of their master. The Talmud in Eruvin (13b) states:

“Rabbi Abba saud in the name of Samuel: For three years there was a dispute between beis Hillel (the school of Hillel) and beis Shammai…Then a bath kol (a heavenly voice) announced ‘both are words of the living G-d, but the halacha is in accord with beis Hillel.’ Since both were the words of the living G-d, what was it that entitled beis Hillel to have the halacha fixed in accord with their rulings? Because they were kindly and modest, they studied their own rulings as well as those of beis Shammai…”

The Talmud is full of disputes among the sages. In an attempt to seek the truth about Torah law, arguments could become quite sharp. But these disputes were for the sake of studying Torah. Any sage could easily argue a point from his opponents view as well as his own. G-d does not, in general, like controversy. However, when such debates are strictly for the advancement of Torah study and practice, the sages say that G-d delights in the mental gymnastics and verbal jousting of honest debate.

The rebellion of Korach was not designed for further the advancement of the Jewish people. Korach appealed to the weaker side of the people with smooth arguments. The Jewish people were led to freedom not by Moses by G-d. We have enough evidence in the Torah to show how humble Moses was. He did not seek out the leadership post and did not present a slick appearance. He was not a great orator and would not do well with today’s thirty- second sound bite on television. Leading the Jewish people after their redemption from over four hundred years of slavery was not a democratic option. Unlike Amalek or Hamen (may their names be blotted out for eternity!), he did not overtly begin his campaign of jealousy and hatred. There is an old saying in English: “Better the devil you know, than the devil you don’t.” I can illustrate this with a story:

Once there was a mother mouse and her son. They lived in a wall located on a farm. The son was about to go out for the first time on his own. His mother warned him to be careful about their enemy. “Don’t worry”, the son replied. A few minutes later, the son returned to the hole in the wall all out of breath and scared. “I saw our enemy!”, he cried. “It was awful. Perched on two legs, with a flaming red crown, he cackled and shrieked like the devil!” “Silly boy”, said the mother. “That was a rooster. He is not our true enemy. Our true enemy is very quiet and purrs like a summer breeze or rippling stream. He is soft and cuddly. But watch out! He will lure you in and then like lightning, gobble you up!”

The Talmud tells a story about Rabbi Akiva. The Romans had forbidden the teaching of Torah and Rabbi Akiva was openly defying that ban. Someone asked him why he doesn’t just swear allegiance to Rome and do what he wants in secret. Rabbi Akiva answered with the following parable. Once there was a fish that lived in a lake. The fish was scared that some birds flying overhead might eat him. A fox on the shore offered to help the fish by asking it to come on land. “Do you think I am a fool, you clever fox!”, exclaimed the fish. “If I come onto the land, away from my life sustaining element, I will quickly die and be eaten by you. If, on the other hand, I remain in the water, I at least have a chance to survive in my natural habitat.” Rabbi Akiva said, that like the fish, the natural element for the Jew is to study Torah. Torah is often compared with water because it gives life. By living with Torah, there is a chance that maybe G-d would protect them. If they abandon the Torah, they will lose all of their knowledge and differences, and die a spiritual death through assimilation and giving up all tradition.

Korach and all of his kind (in every generation) are like the clever fox. They think that they can smooth talk the Jews into abandoning their faith. Some, like Haman or Hitler, will be overt in their attempts to destroy us. Others may be more subtle in their approach. By fighting amongst ourselves, we may serve the needs to these evil doers better than they could themselves! The serpent that lured Eve into eating from the forbidden Tree of Knowledge, did so with cunning logic. First, he showed her, that she would not die by touching it. Then he showed her that she wouldn’t die, by picking it. Convinced, Eve quickly became convinced that nothing would happen to her if she just took one little bite. What harm could it do?

This is the way the yetzer hara leads us to sin. It does so with cunning logic. Don’t worry about doing mitzvos. You won’t be struck down by lightning. First, it is a gradual lessening of performance and then quickly it snowballs into complete disregard for all traditions. The Talmud writes: “The reward for a mitzvah is another mitzvah”. In other word, one good deed leads to another. However, the reverse is also true; one sin leads to another. A pathological liar has become so used to not telling the truth, that it has become second nature. Like a person addicted to smoking or an alcoholic, the body becomes tolerant of the abuse. The same is true for our neshama (soul). Constant use of loshen hara makes relating gossip second nature. Cheating in business becomes “everyone does it…it’s just business” The Torah tells us that this is not the way it is supposed to be. The Talmud writes that G-d said: “I created the yetzer hara and I created the Torah as its antidote.”

Moses demonstrated great leadership in handling Korach’s rebellion. He displayed his confidence in G-d by meeting Korach face to face. He could have hid in his tent. Instead, he tried to reason with Korach, Dasan, and Aviram, before asking G-d for help. There is a nice story that illustrates this point. A farmer went to the barn every day with a pail, but always came back with the pail empty. His wife finally asked him why he never comes back with any milk. The farmer replied, “Because the only way for me to get milk, is to bend down and milk the cow and I’d rather die than lose my pride and bend down before a cow!” This false sense of pride is similar to the expression “cutting off your nose, to spite your face”. Moses did not suffer from any false sense of pride. Yes, he tried to resolve the issue first himself, but then (just as he asked for help with judging), he asks G-d for help ending the rebellion.

Disputes and disagreements are natural in any organization. Our synagogue is not immune to that. We thrive on the diversity of opinions. However, there comes a point when we need to come together and get things accomplished. May all of our disputes be of the kind like those of Hillel and Shammai; strictly for the sake of heaven and for the benefit of our congregation.

	Oceanside Jewish Center Weekly Parsha By Jonathan Wolf
	Parshat Korach Numbers 16:1 - 18:32 After the controversy over the spies, the Israelites were forced to wander the desert for forty years. The sense of unity, that existed amongst the people, is shattered by Korach, who challenges Moses and Aaron for leadership of the Jewish people. Korach appealed to the people’s sense of fairness and democracy in a perverted attempt to wrest control from Moses. After all, he reasoned, G-d chose all of the Israelites to be a holy nation. Why should only Moses be the leader and why should there be a priesthood only descended from Aaron? Why should there be any divisions at all? Korach did not immediately run around the camp yelling and screaming. He used subtle logic and small elements of truth to twist things to his way of thinking. Many Levites followed Korach. Dasan and Aviram were Reuvenites who joined Korach and contended for the right to be leaders of their tribe. Moses warned the people not to follow Korach. A challenge was issued in which G-d would decide who the leaders should be. Korach and his followers, were swallowed up by the earth as punishment. The remainder of his followers, began to murmur against Moses and were punished by a plague. G-d ordered the prince of each tribe to bring a rod with his name on it to the tent of the meeting (ohel moed). These rods, together with the rod of Levi (which bore the name of Aaron), were placed before the Ark. In the morning, the rod of Aaron was the only one to have blossomed indicating that the priesthood would flow from Aaron’s seed. The rod was preserved as a warning never to challenge Aaron’s right to the priesthood (kehuna). After these events, G-d tells Moses that the Kohanim and Leviim will not inherit any land when Canaan is conquered. The Kohanim would receive their food in the form of contributions (terumah and bikurim). The Leviim would likewise receive a portion of produce known as ma’aser rishon (first tenth). The mishnah, in Pirke Avos (5-20) states: “Any dispute that is for the sake of heaven will endure; but one that is not for the sake of heaven will not endure. What sort of dispute was for the sake of heaven? The dispute between Hillel and Shammai. And which dispute was not for the sake of heaven? The dispute of Korach and his entire company.” The subject of machalokes or controversy is a sad but prevalent one in Jewish history. It is said that the Second Temple was destroyed because of baseless hatred (sinat chinan). Also, the sages state that the twenty-four thousand disciples of Rabbi Akiva were martyred because they did not show proper respect for each other during their Talmudic disputes. In modern times, we have seen rocks being thrown down on worshipers at the Western Wall by other Jews! The mishnah stated that the disputes between Hillel and Shammai were for the sake of heaven. Why would G-d want such a dispute to endure? Hillel and Shammai were two of the greatest sages of the Talmud. They often took opposite sides in a dispute over halachah. They each founded “schools” of followers, which tended to maintain the approach of their master. The Talmud in Eruvin (13b) states: “Rabbi Abba saud in the name of Samuel: For three years there was a dispute between beis Hillel (the school of Hillel) and beis Shammai…Then a bath kol (a heavenly voice) announced ‘both are words of the living G-d, but the halacha is in accord with beis Hillel.’ Since both were the words of the living G-d, what was it that entitled beis Hillel to have the halacha fixed in accord with their rulings? Because they were kindly and modest, they studied their own rulings as well as those of beis Shammai…” The Talmud is full of disputes among the sages. In an attempt to seek the truth about Torah law, arguments could become quite sharp. But these disputes were for the sake of studying Torah. Any sage could easily argue a point from his opponents view as well as his own. G-d does not, in general, like controversy. However, when such debates are strictly for the advancement of Torah study and practice, the sages say that G-d delights in the mental gymnastics and verbal jousting of honest debate. The rebellion of Korach was not designed for further the advancement of the Jewish people. Korach appealed to the weaker side of the people with smooth arguments. The Jewish people were led to freedom not by Moses by G-d. We have enough evidence in the Torah to show how humble Moses was. He did not seek out the leadership post and did not present a slick appearance. He was not a great orator and would not do well with today’s thirty- second sound bite on television. Leading the Jewish people after their redemption from over four hundred years of slavery was not a democratic option. Unlike Amalek or Hamen (may their names be blotted out for eternity!), he did not overtly begin his campaign of jealousy and hatred. There is an old saying in English: “Better the devil you know, than the devil you don’t.” I can illustrate this with a story: Once there was a mother mouse and her son. They lived in a wall located on a farm. The son was about to go out for the first time on his own. His mother warned him to be careful about their enemy. “Don’t worry”, the son replied. A few minutes later, the son returned to the hole in the wall all out of breath and scared. “I saw our enemy!”, he cried. “It was awful. Perched on two legs, with a flaming red crown, he cackled and shrieked like the devil!” “Silly boy”, said the mother. “That was a rooster. He is not our true enemy. Our true enemy is very quiet and purrs like a summer breeze or rippling stream. He is soft and cuddly. But watch out! He will lure you in and then like lightning, gobble you up!” The Talmud tells a story about Rabbi Akiva. The Romans had forbidden the teaching of Torah and Rabbi Akiva was openly defying that ban. Someone asked him why he doesn’t just swear allegiance to Rome and do what he wants in secret. Rabbi Akiva answered with the following parable. Once there was a fish that lived in a lake. The fish was scared that some birds flying overhead might eat him. A fox on the shore offered to help the fish by asking it to come on land. “Do you think I am a fool, you clever fox!”, exclaimed the fish. “If I come onto the land, away from my life sustaining element, I will quickly die and be eaten by you. If, on the other hand, I remain in the water, I at least have a chance to survive in my natural habitat.” Rabbi Akiva said, that like the fish, the natural element for the Jew is to study Torah. Torah is often compared with water because it gives life. By living with Torah, there is a chance that maybe G-d would protect them. If they abandon the Torah, they will lose all of their knowledge and differences, and die a spiritual death through assimilation and giving up all tradition. Korach and all of his kind (in every generation) are like the clever fox. They think that they can smooth talk the Jews into abandoning their faith. Some, like Haman or Hitler, will be overt in their attempts to destroy us. Others may be more subtle in their approach. By fighting amongst ourselves, we may serve the needs to these evil doers better than they could themselves! The serpent that lured Eve into eating from the forbidden Tree of Knowledge, did so with cunning logic. First, he showed her, that she would not die by touching it. Then he showed her that she wouldn’t die, by picking it. Convinced, Eve quickly became convinced that nothing would happen to her if she just took one little bite. What harm could it do? This is the way the yetzer hara leads us to sin. It does so with cunning logic. Don’t worry about doing mitzvos. You won’t be struck down by lightning. First, it is a gradual lessening of performance and then quickly it snowballs into complete disregard for all traditions. The Talmud writes: “The reward for a mitzvah is another mitzvah”. In other word, one good deed leads to another. However, the reverse is also true; one sin leads to another. A pathological liar has become so used to not telling the truth, that it has become second nature. Like a person addicted to smoking or an alcoholic, the body becomes tolerant of the abuse. The same is true for our neshama (soul). Constant use of loshen hara makes relating gossip second nature. Cheating in business becomes “everyone does it…it’s just business” The Torah tells us that this is not the way it is supposed to be. The Talmud writes that G-d said: “I created the yetzer hara and I created the Torah as its antidote.” Moses demonstrated great leadership in handling Korach’s rebellion. He displayed his confidence in G-d by meeting Korach face to face. He could have hid in his tent. Instead, he tried to reason with Korach, Dasan, and Aviram, before asking G-d for help. There is a nice story that illustrates this point. A farmer went to the barn every day with a pail, but always came back with the pail empty. His wife finally asked him why he never comes back with any milk. The farmer replied, “Because the only way for me to get milk, is to bend down and milk the cow and I’d rather die than lose my pride and bend down before a cow!” This false sense of pride is similar to the expression “cutting off your nose, to spite your face”. Moses did not suffer from any false sense of pride. Yes, he tried to resolve the issue first himself, but then (just as he asked for help with judging), he asks G-d for help ending the rebellion. Disputes and disagreements are natural in any organization. Our synagogue is not immune to that. We thrive on the diversity of opinions. However, there comes a point when we need to come together and get things accomplished. May all of our disputes be of the kind like those of Hillel and Shammai; strictly for the sake of heaven and for the benefit of our congregation.