Thoughts on Parashat Korach.
This week’s Torah portion describes the beginning of a revolution which proved to be an utter and complete failure. Korach was trying to incite a rebellion by questioning the leadership of Moses and the fact that Aaron was made a priest. In his undertaking he is accompanied by the implacable enemies of Moses, Datan and Abiram. They are joined by 250 members of the community, who offer a sacred ketoret (incense) to prove that they are worthy of becoming priests. In the culminating point of this story the land splits open and swallows the rebels, and a fire consumes those aspiring to priesthood. Moreover, God is angry and sends a plague as a result of which an additional 14,700 Israelites die.
We won’t be debating here over whether these events really took place or how it came about that the ground suddenly split open etc. By engaging in such a discussion we’d be missing the point, since the Bible is first and foremost a collection of stories whose aim is to pass on certain wisdoms for our benefit. This is one of the reasons why these stories were written down – so that certain messages could be passed on to subsequent generations. The wisdom and messages inscribed in the Biblical text are often hiding beneath the literal content of its stories. This rule applies to our story as well. I’d like to propose the following interpretation: Let’s not ask how it was physically possible for the ground to suddenly split open. Rather, let’s try to understand why, according to the Biblical narrative, that ground had to split open. The answer is as follows: the splitting of the ground was the result of a split within the society.
Here I would propose a thesis known to many scholars from the field of social studies: If splits within societies are ignored, ultimately they always lead to a tragedy. Of course the answers to questions such as what should be done in order to prevent such splits and how they could be eliminated or counteracted are topics for extensive dissertations and scientific writings. We won’t elaborate on this topic either. But considering that religions, including Judaism, exist in order to teach us and adapt us to living in the world by offering us relatively simple, practical and easy to understand answers, let’s present one of the instructions related to this subject given to us by the Babylonian Talmud:
“The Sages taught in a Tosefta: One who sees multitudes of Israel recites: Blessed is He Who knows all secrets. Why is this? He sees a whole nation whose minds are unlike each other and whose faces are unlike each other, and He Who knows all secrets, God, knows what is in each of their hearts. The Gemara relates: Ben Zoma once saw a multitude [okhlosa] of Israel while standing on a stair on the Temple Mount. He immediately recited: Blessed is he who knows all secrets and Blessed is He Who created all these to serve me.
Explaining his custom, he would say: How much effort did Adam the first man exert before he found bread to eat: He plowed, sowed, reaped, sheaved, threshed, winnowed in the wind, separated the grain from the chaff, ground the grain into flour, sifted, kneaded, and baked and only thereafter he ate. And I, on the other hand, wake up and find all of these prepared for me. Human society employs a division of labor, and each individual benefits from the service of the entire world. Similarly, how much effort did Adam the first man exert before he found a garment to wear? He sheared, laundered, combed, spun and wove, and only thereafter he found a garment to wear. And I, on the other hand, wake up and find all of these prepared for me. Members of all nations, merchants and craftsmen, diligently come to the entrance of my home, and I wake up and find all of these before me.” (Talmud, Berachot 58b)
Therefore, we should bless the societies we live in regardless of all the human flaws and imperfections we encounter in them every single day. And that’s because we form a unity and we would not be able to survive without it, although we might be taking this for granted in our everyday life. Moreover, the stance taken here by the Talmud is also anti-elitist. It rules out any contempt shown by those “at the top” towards those at the bottom, in many different aspects: material, social or intellectual. Thus there is no place here for any contempt shown by the rich towards the poor, by the “haves” towards the “have-nots”, and neither by intellectuals towards the uneducated. All negative social relations of this sort should disappear.
Just one look at our societies will make us see how very distant they are from the above mentioned ideal. Contempt of the rich towards the poor is something that we observe every day. Admittedly within the “more civilized” societies this contempt usually isn’t being expressed openly. But it doesn’t mean that it isn’t there. In many circles comprised of the well-off the “problems of the rest of the society” are simply never mentioned. When it comes to people who don’t lead “successful” lives (by which we usually mean high material status and high social status – the latter usually accompanies the former), they believe that “it’s their own fault”. The tragedy of “successful people” begins when those “who have only themselves to blame” become a majority in a given society. Excessive social stratification sooner or later always leads to a tragedy. We know this very well from history. Many times the arrogance of the aristocracy and other people from “higher spheres” was the cause of revolutions, during which the same aristocracy faced a miserable end. Suddenly it proved to be completely helpless when faced with a “blood-thirsty” mob.
The same rule applies to the arrogance displayed by intellectuals and representatives of the so called “high-brow culture”. All too often, though seldom openly – they have good manners, after all – they have nothing but contempt for the uneducated and they do not notice their problems. Yes, usually it is because they have problems of their own. But our own problems do not exempt us from the obligation to be sensitive to the problems of others. It is exactly such a “disregard for the mob” that is often the reason for its rebellion against its intellectual elites. The consequences of such a rebellion are usually horrific – for the entire society.
But let’s go back to our Parashat. We read in it about the beginnings of a revolution which proved to be a total failure, since it was a revolt against God. I’m not claiming that it was the behavior of Moses and Aaron that caused the rebellion of Korach and his supporters, but undoubtedly anger can be sensed here on both sides – both on the side of the Israelites who faced many frustrations and also on the side of the Eternal. It was exactly this stubbornness and unwillingness to engage in a dialogue displayed by both sides that led to a tragedy. Of course ultimately God’s plan was carried out, but at the price of the lives of over 15,000 Israelites, including completely innocent people, also women and children.
History has seen many developments which started with seemingly minor splits and injustices but ended with tragedies and the deaths of hundreds, thousands or even millions of innocent people. Therefore let us remind once more the words of the blessings from tractate Berachot: “Blessed is he who knows all secrets and Blessed is He Who created all these to serve me.”
Let’s keep them in mind and let’s recite them every time we see a crowd displaying a peaceful attitude towards the world – and towards other people. Also – or especially if – they are (peacefully) protesting against something.
Shabbat Shalom!
