Who Owns the Problem?

Parshas Korach

Posted on June 11, 2021 (5781) By Rabbi Label Lam | Series: Dvar Torah | Level: Beginner

 

Korach the son of Izhar, the son of Kohas, the son of Levi took [himself to one side] along with Dasan and Aviram, the sons of Eliab, and On the son of Peled descendants of Reuven. They confronted Moshe together with two hundred and fifty men from the children of Israel, chieftains of the congregation, representatives of the assembly, men of repute. They assembled against Moshe and Aaron, and said to them, “You take too much upon yourselves, for the entire congregation are all holy, and the Lord is in their midst. So why do you raise yourselves above HASHEM’s assembly?” Moshe heard and fell on his face. He spoke to Korach and to all his company, saying, “In the morning, HASHEM will make known who is His, and who is holy, and He will draw [them] near to Him, and the one He chooses, He will draw near to Him. Do this, Korach and his company: Take for yourselves censers. Place fire into them and put incense upon them before HASHEM tomorrow, and the man whom HASHEM chooses, he is the holy one; you have taken too much upon yourselves, sons of Levi.” (Bamidbar 13:1-7)

 

There is so much going on this dialogue between Korach and Moshe and then Moshe to Korach. Korach accuses Moshe of taking too much upon himself. Moshe’s reaction is to fall on his face. Why? Then Moshe volleys back to Korach, “You have taken too much upon yourselves, sons of Levi.” Each one, starting with Korach, believes the other has taken too much.

 

Who’s right? We know the answer, of course because we read further and saw what happens in the end. If we were bystanders at the time, we might have trouble discerning who is being genuinely genuine and who is being disingenuous.

 

Let us analyze the situation with a ubiquitous psychological phenomenon. It’s commonly called, “projection”. There is a subconscious tendency to hoist our own foibles and faults upon others and to assume that even our darkest motives must be theirs. Why and how this works is not our discussion here and now. That it exists and is pervasive is a reality that we must be on guard for. How might it apply here?

 

Korach assumes that Moshe must have some political motive for the appointments that he made. He is crowning himself as the leader because of his love for power and control and authority. He selects his brother because of nepotism. Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. On a Machiavellian level it all makes much sense.

 

However, we are talking about Moshe Rabbeinu, the most self-effacing and humble man on the face of the earth. He has done nothing on his own without consulting with the Creator first. He does what he is told and when he is told to do it. He has dedicated his life to serving the People of Israel and being dutifully loyal to whatever HASHEM commands him to do. There is no personal discretion in any of his appointments. He didn’t want this job in the first place and he is willing to surrender again and again.

 

So where did Korach get this big idea that Moshe is doing all this for himself and his family? The answer is as simple as a dimple. It is born in his own mind. He has political ambitions and an appetite for grander grandeur, so he projects his own subconscious motives onto Moshe and assumes that he too must have these same ulterior motives and is acting out of self-interest.

 

Nothing could be farther from the truth. Moshe falls on his face because the accusation is so preposterous. Moshe realizes that Korach grossly misunderstands his true motives, so he points back to him, “you have taken too much upon yourselves, sons of Levi”. The problem is with you!

 

Admittedly it is hard for most of us to understand a level above our own and to appreciate that some people really are operating on a higher plane of existence. This is like the farmer who fed his horse a healthy bale of hay every day. One day the farmer failed to feed the horse and the horse was thinking to himself, “Hey, the farmer must have eaten my hay!” We know that the farmer is not interested in eating his hay, but hey that’s the way a horse thinks!

 

In business and in psychology it is important to know “who owns the problem?”. In this particular situation it is abundantly clear that it is Korach who is the one who owns the problem.

Wealth Risks

Parshas Korach

Posted on June 10, 2021 (5781) By Rabbi Berel Wein | Series: Rabbi Wein | Level: Beginner

 

The Torah teaches us in this week’s reading that one should never underestimate the power and influence that ego and arrogance can play within the lives of people who are otherwise seen as wise, capable, and even moral. Throughout the ages, the commentators have asked themselves the famous question, quoted by Rashi and based on midrash: “What drove Korach to commit such a foolish act?”

 

Rashi points out that Korach understood that his descendants in future generations would be prominent people of great leadership. He could not imagine that they would achieve such a status of power and recognition when he himself was not able to boast of such an achievement. While this explanation certainly cast some light on the issue, it does not fully resolve the problem.

 

There are many instances in life and history when later generations of a certain family rose to power and influence, even though their origins were humble. Most commentators fall back on the idea that it was the great wealth that Korach possessed that drove him to this folly of behavior.

 

We are aware that wealth and money many times do strange things to otherwise normal people. The Talmud always pictured money – coins – as being made of fire. They can warm and illuminate or burn and destroy. That certainly is true of the nature of money and how it affects individuals, especially those who have become wealthy over a short period of time. Our world is full of examples of wealthy people who suddenly become experts in all sorts of disciplines in life, whereas before they were wealthy, did not claim such expertise.

 

It is interesting to note that the Torah sought to limit the potential for any of the Levite families from becoming exceedingly wealthy. Levites in the land of Israel were subject to public service. Their income was based upon the goodwill of their Israelite neighbors, who would grant them their share of the food  ordained by the Torah. I imagine that no matter how much of the tithe any given Levite would have received, the feeling of being wealthy – certainly, exceedingly wealthy – would not ever be experienced.

 

People who are dependent upon the goodwill of others never feel themselves as secure as those who possess great wealth. The truth is that no one is secure, and that even great wealth can disappear in an unknowing and unpredictable fashion. Nevertheless, when a person knows that he or she does not possess great wealth, that person is more careful and circumspect in advancing opinions and demanding honor. The combination of the natural ego that exist within all of us, and especially those like Korach who have aristocratic bloodlines combined with the bounty of great wealth, can oftentimes be a lethal mix that leads to disaster. That certainly was the case regarding Korach and his group of followers.

 

Shabbat shalom

Rabbi Berel Wein

 Guilt by Association

Parshas Korach

Posted on June 25, 2020 (5780) By Rabbi Naftali Reich | Series: Legacy | Level: Beginner

 

We read in this week’s parsha of Korach, the tragic episode of Korach’s rebellion against Moshe Rabeinu. Korach was punished in an unprecedented, shocking way, with the ground suddenly opening and swallowing him and his family alive. This is the first and only time such a phenomenon ever took place since the world’s creation, our sages tell us.

 

The commentaries are perplexed as to why Divine retribution for Korach’s rebellion had to take such an unprecedented form. True, the man was undeniably wicked but why was he not punished in a manner more consistent with the natural order?

 

The dialogue between Moshe and Hashem regarding Korach’s rebellion is likewise puzzling. Hashem apparently felt that Korach’s insurrection was so serious that it implicated some degree of guilt in the entire Jewish people. “Remove yourself from their midst and I will destroy the whole nation in an instant,” Hashem said to Moshe, to which Moshe countered, “If one man sins, should the entire congregation suffer?”

 

Hashem relented and said, “In that case, remove everybody from around Korach and I will have the ground swallow him up.”

 

Why did Hashem initially want to punish the entire nation for the sin of one evildoer?

 

The following analogy may shed light.

 

A man of poor means took a third class ticket on a boat and traveled in stowage. His little cabin had a porthole that was beneath the waterline and afforded him no view. A few days into the voyage, his fellow passengers saw water seeping from under the door to his room. They knocked on his door but there was no answer. When the water began spreading into the corridor, they called down the captain who finally broke open the door. They discovered the hapless fellow with a drill in his hand boring a large hole in the side of the boat. The water was pouring in through the hole, flooding the room.

 

“Are you crazy?” screamed the captain, “Are you trying to sink the boat?” The man replied, “What do you want from me? I paid for my room, I have a right to do as I please here. Leave me alone!”

 

One of the cornerstones of our existence as a nation is that, unlike the fool in the boat, we understand that we are all responsible for one another. Each one’s life and fortunes are inexorably linked to those of his fellow Jew. We are all networked, so to speak, and a bug in one part of the system infects the whole system. Therefore, regardless of whether righteous Jews are mixed with evil ones in a particular group, the whole “boat” can potentially sink. Good people can, in certain situations, suffer the fate of evil ones in their midst.

 

Hashem deemed it appropriate to destroy the whole Jewish people as a result of Korach’s sin. “Remove yourself from the nation and they will all die in an instant!” he instructed Moshe. Moshe responded with a vigorous challenge. “Ha’ish echad yechta?” Shouldn’t the one who sinned, thereby removing himself from the congregation, be isolated? His sin will therefore not affect the rest of the Jewish people.

 

Hashem acceded to his request by administering a revolutionary form of punishment, which clearly demonstrated that Korach was a complete outsider, that he had cut himself off from the fabric of the Jewish nation. He and his family were swallowed up alive, demonstrating that he had no portion in the nation’s destiny.

 

This tragic story offers a startling lesson in how interdependent Jews are, how responsible we are for one another’s spiritual and physical welfare. The message should be taken in a positive light. If one malignant individual can wreak havoc and bring retribution on an entire nation, it follows that the opposite is true: one righteous Jew can channel his spiritual talent and tremendous love and concern for his fellow Jews to accomplish remarkable things for his people!

 

Let us pray that we merit to be among those in the latter group who are granted the opportunity to bring Divine blessing upon the Jewish people.

 

Wishing you a wonderful Shabbos

Rabbi Naftali Reich

 

Text Copyright © 2013 by Rabbi Naftali Reich and Torah.org.

Rabbi Reich is on the faculty of the Ohr Somayach Tanenbaum Education Center.