School of Soft Knocks
Parshas Vayeilech
Posted
on September 25, 2025 (5786) By Rabbi Mordechai Kamenetzky | Series: Drasha| Level: Beginner
Parshas Vayelech has Moshe handing
the reign of power to his beloved disciple Yehoshua, who now will grasp hold of
the destiny of the Children of Israel. Moshe does
not leave him without first guiding him through the difficult mission of
leadership. At the end of Parshas Vayelech,
(Deuteronomy 31:7), “Moshe summoned Yehoshua and said to him before the eyes of
all Israel, ‘Be strong and courageous and do not be broken before them, for Hashem your G-d — it is
he who goes before you.'”
The Torah does not specify what “strong and courageous”
actually means. I conjured my own visions of how to be strong and courageous
when dealing with a “stiff-necked” nation. It entailed exacting demands and
rigid regulations. The Medrash, however, offers a
totally diametric explanation.
TheYalkut Shimoni, a compendium of Midrashim compiled in the Middle
Ages, discusses a verse in Hoshea. “Israel is
but a beloved lad and in Egypt I had called them my child.” It quotes the verse
in Deuteronomy 31:7, and explains the words “strong and courageous.” Moshe explained to Joshua, “this
nation that I am giving you is still young kids. They are still young lads. Do
not be harsh with them. Even their Creator has called them children, as it is
written, (Hoshea 11:1) “Israel is but a beloved lad.”
Can the Midrash find no
better words to translate the phrase telling Joshua to “be strong and
courageous” other than be patience and understanding? In which way does
forbearance show strength? How does courage translate as tolerance?
In the years of World War I, a young student who was fleeing the
war-ravaged city of Slabodka sought refuge in Tiktin, a village near Lomza,
Poland. A prodigious Torah scholar, he compensated for room and board by
becoming a simple cheder teacher. He gave his lecture in a small
schoolhouse, but the townsfolk were quite suspicious. There were no shouts from
inside the one-room schoolhouse as it was with other teachers; the boys seemed
to be listening. Rumor had it that the young man even let the children play
outside for ten minutes each day in the middle of the learning session.
They decided to investigate. They interrupted his class one
morning and were shocked. The kanchik (whip) used
by every cheder-Rebbe was lying on the floor near the trash bin. Upon
interrogating the children the parents learned that this radical educator never
used it.
Outraged, the townsfolk decided to call a meeting with
their Rabbi to discuss the gravity of the situation. Who knows what ideas a
teacher who would not use the kanchik was imbuing in our children? They
worried.
The local Rabbi pointed to a picture of Rabbi Isaac
Elchonon Spector, the leader of Lithuanian Jewry. “Do you see that picture of
the Kovno Tzadik?” He asked the townsfolk. “One day thousands of homes across
the world will have this young man’s picture hanging on their walls.”
The elderly Rabbi was right. The young man became the
leader of a generation, teacher of thousands and dean of Yeshiva Torah Vodaath.
It was the beginning of, Rabbi Yaakov Kamenetzky’s career in education.
Moshe, the guide and architect of
Jewish leadership, was empowering his disciple with a message of guidance. The
words “be strong and courageous” embodied leadership of love and understanding.
One cannot talk of forbearance and patience without talking of strength and
courage. But more important: one cannot show true strength and courage if he is
not patient and understanding.
Moses’s Legacy Goes On
Posted
on September 21, 2011 (5771) By Rabbi Berel Wein | Series: Rabbi
Wein | Level: Beginner
Moshe can no longer lead the Jewish people. He informs us that he
is no longer allowed “to forth out or to come in.” He whose eyes did not dim
even in death is now shorn of his superhuman powers and subject to the
mortality that faces us all. At that moment Moshe does
not wallow in sadness nor does he seem to review in detail his life’s
achievements and the disappointments that occurred in his lifetime of
greatness.
He expresses no regrets and voices no complaints. He does
not refer to those who persecuted him, injured his pride, questioned his worth
or doubted his words. Rather his whole focus is on the future of the Jewish
people. He points out that their future failings will clearly lead to tragedy
and defeat but never to complete destruction. He cautions them against
falling into the trap of adopting new ideas and values simply for the sake of
change or newness.
He makes it abundantly clear that the covenant of Israel
with G-d and His Torah contains no escape or cancellation clauses. The bond is
an eternal one. He sees the future and continues to look forward to new
generations and recurring challenges. To the end he remains the leader and not
the historian, the teacher and not merely the observer.
It is the presence of this implicit spirit of innate
optimism, even in the face of known problems and Jewish failings, which
characterizes Moshe’s relationship with the Jewish people and his guidance of
Israel through all of its generations. That is why “there
arose none like Moshe” in all of Jewish history.
The Torah teaches us “Vayelech Moshe” – Moshe went and walked and proceeded. Immediately
thereafter the Torah records for us that Moshe said “I
cannot go forth or return any longer.” So which is it? Did Moshe walk forth and proceed or did he remain
housebound and passive. It is obvious that Moshe’s inability to go forth and
return describes the physical limitations placed upon him on his last days on
earth.
But “Vayelech Moshe” – Moshe’s goings and comings are the
spiritual guidance and moral vision that he invested in the Jewish people that
remain vital and active in all later generations of Israel even after Moshe’s
passing. Leadership and inspiration is rarely judged by physical criteria.
Franklin Roosevelt was afflicted with polio before he rose
to become the president of the United States. He certainly is to be reckoned as
one of the strongest and most influential presidents in American history though
he could not physically go forth or come in. If we see this truism in the life
of a “regular” human being such a Roosevelt, how much more so is this obvious
in the life and achievements of the superhuman Moshe.
Vayelech not only means that Moshe once
went but it also implies grammatically in Hebrew that Moshe is
still going forth. The Jewish people are still guided by Moshe’s Torah and
teachings and his spiritual legacy continues to inspire and instruct. As
long as there are Jews in the world, Moshe will
continue to go forth and come into our hearts and minds.
Shabat shalom,
Rabbi Berel Wein
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