You, Who Choose To Lead, Must Follow (Robert Hunter & Jerry Garcia - "Ripple")

           Sixty-five years ago, a book was co-authored by a young U.S. Senator and an attorney who would later become a Presidential advisor. The book’s title soon became part of the canon for any academic course "Leadership". The book, written in 1956 by then-Senator John F. Kennedy and Ted Sorenson is entitled Profiles in Courage. I first read the book while I was attending business school in Toronto. I read the book again while in Rabbinical School. I’ll never forget what my Rebbe, my spiritual mentor to whom I went with questions about observance or existential angst, said about leadership. He explained that sometimes leadership requires the courage and integrity to make difficult unpopular decisions even if it comes at the expense of losing one’s job. However, underlying courage is empathy, and the ability to express empathy allows that leader to face his/her congregants with a pure heart.

          In this week’s Parshah, Shmot, we encounter a man who is born a Jew, but he grows up in the Pharaoh’s Palace. He is a totally assimilated Jew. Pharoah’s daughter gives him an Egyptian name, “Moshe” (Ex 2:10). After fleeing Egypt, this well-bred, noble Egyptian, is befriended by a non-Jewish (Midian) priest and marries his non-Jewish daughter (Ex 2:21). While shepherding his father-in-law’s flocks (Ex. 3:1), he experiences a revelation. Through a burning thorn bush, he sees an angel and then God (Ex.3:1-3). God tells Moshe of the ancestral covenant and chooses Moshe to lead B’nai Yisroel out of Egypt. Moshe humbly explains that he is the wrong person for the job. “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh…” (Ex.3:11). He doesn’t believe he has enough credibility to lead. “They will not believe me and they will not heed my voice…” (Ex 4:1). He doesn’t speak well. “I am not a man of words…heavy of mouth and heavy of speech” (Ex. 4:10). Several times he explains that he doesn’t feel worthy to lead  B’nai Yisroel out of Egypt. Finally, Moshe returns to Egypt and now he begins to challenge Pharoah’s authority which will culminate in the tenth plague and the exodus.

          So, what qualities did Moshe possess that warranted his becoming the leader of B'nai Yisroel and the prototypical leader in the TaNaCh? Moshe grew up in the halls of power, he understood power, he knew how to use power, and he was raised to use it judiciously. Moshe learned and understood the balance between leadership and authoritarianism. Unlike his Egyptian family, however, Moshe also embodied one other vital quality. Moshe possessed the ability to empathize. “Moshe grew up and went out to his brethren and observed their burdens…” (Ex.2:11). Regarding this verse, Rashi comments Natan Einav V’Libo LiHeyot Matzar Aleihem- He focused his eyes and heart to be distressed over them. He looked closely at their burdens. He saw individual suffering and understood individual pain suffering to the point where he could personalize and identify with it. He could just as easily have stayed in the palace or not concerned himself with the plight of the “underclass”. Moshe chose to get involved, he chose to make a difference, and he chose to make an improvement. All that was left for God to do was convince, and then command Moshe to lead.

          The Torah’s version of Profiles in Courage is just a little older than the 1956 John F. Kennedy/ Ted Sorenson edition. In a sense, the Torah offers the prototype for Profile in Courage and it is Moshe. From the second chapter in Shmot until the end of the Torah, Moshe provides the first and foremost profile in courageous leadership and it is displayed in Parsha Shmot. First, we learn that a profile in courageous leadership is grounded in empathy for the less fortunate, the alienated, those that are enslaved. Second, we learn that a profile in courageous leadership means dealing with problems and issues, and not ignoring a problem or hope that it will magically disappear. Third, a profile in courageous leadership means willing to risk a job or social standing for the benefit of those less fortunate. Fourth, a profile in courageous leadership is never based upon a cynical assessment of a situation, or self-aggrandizement but rather a desire to make a difference in the lives of those who need help. Fifth, a profile in courageous leadership requires speaking “truth to power”. Finally, a profile in courageous leadership begins with the acknowledgment that no person is above God.

Peace,
Rav Yitz