Parashat Korach
3 Tammuz 5779 / 5-6 July 2019
Torah: Numbers 16:1 - 18:32
Haftarah: 1 Samuel 11:14 - 12:22
Calendar and dedications
follow below. For a full calendar of events and other info about Temple B’nai
Hayim/Congregation Beth Meier, check out:
Please feel free to pass this on to a friend,
and please cite the source.
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HOLIER THAN THOU?
'(Korach and his followers) assembled against Moses and against Aaron, and said to them, "There is too much for you; for the entire congregation, every one of them, is holy, and the Lord is among them; then why do you lord it over the assembly of the Lord?"' Numbers 16:3
Rashi, citing Midrash Tanchuma: Much more than necessary have you taken high offices for yourselves. All of them heard the commandments at Sinai from the mouth of the Mighty One. If you yourself have taken the kingship, you should not have selected for your brother the priesthood; not you alone heard at Sinai, "I am the Lord your God"; the entire congregation heard!
Korach's argument, especially as elucidated by the Midrash, appears compelling. What makes Moses and Aaron so special? The problem, of course, is that Korach is not arguing that all of the people should have the rights and duties of the priests - he is not advocating equality. Rather, Korach was trying to usurp power solely for himself, and using this rhetorical technique to incite the Israelites to join in his rebellion. Rashi, again citing Tanchuma, says: Korach spent all night haranguing the Israelites, enticing them: "Do you think that I care for myself alone? I care only for all of you! These people come and take all the high offices, for himself the kingship, and for his brother the priesthood!" - until all of them had been enticed.
We hear this kind of stuff from politicians, snake oil salesmen and others all the time, and it works. We must be saps! Do we think that we are all going to have power? In this particular case, didn't God say to all of the Israelites, "You shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy people"? Exodus 19:6 So Korach is partly correct - we are all holy. But we already have the power that we really need. Unlike the priests, who have only ritual power, we the people, each and every one of us, have actual power, through spreading God's word to the world, by living out a visible Judaism. We do this by caring for the stranger and the needy, preserving the environment, seeking peace, and observing God's commandments in a meaningful way. It is the holiness of our lives that positively affects the lives of others, and that gives us the real power in the world.
Have a wonderful Shabbat!
HOLIER THAN THOU?
'(Korach and his followers) assembled against Moses and against Aaron, and said to them, "There is too much for you; for the entire congregation, every one of them, is holy, and the Lord is among them; then why do you lord it over the assembly of the Lord?"' Numbers 16:3
Rashi, citing Midrash Tanchuma: Much more than necessary have you taken high offices for yourselves. All of them heard the commandments at Sinai from the mouth of the Mighty One. If you yourself have taken the kingship, you should not have selected for your brother the priesthood; not you alone heard at Sinai, "I am the Lord your God"; the entire congregation heard!
Korach's argument, especially as elucidated by the Midrash, appears compelling. What makes Moses and Aaron so special? The problem, of course, is that Korach is not arguing that all of the people should have the rights and duties of the priests - he is not advocating equality. Rather, Korach was trying to usurp power solely for himself, and using this rhetorical technique to incite the Israelites to join in his rebellion. Rashi, again citing Tanchuma, says: Korach spent all night haranguing the Israelites, enticing them: "Do you think that I care for myself alone? I care only for all of you! These people come and take all the high offices, for himself the kingship, and for his brother the priesthood!" - until all of them had been enticed.
We hear this kind of stuff from politicians, snake oil salesmen and others all the time, and it works. We must be saps! Do we think that we are all going to have power? In this particular case, didn't God say to all of the Israelites, "You shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy people"? Exodus 19:6 So Korach is partly correct - we are all holy. But we already have the power that we really need. Unlike the priests, who have only ritual power, we the people, each and every one of us, have actual power, through spreading God's word to the world, by living out a visible Judaism. We do this by caring for the stranger and the needy, preserving the environment, seeking peace, and observing God's commandments in a meaningful way. It is the holiness of our lives that positively affects the lives of others, and that gives us the real power in the world.
Have a wonderful Shabbat!
Rabbi Richard A. Flom
Temple B'nai Hayim/Congregation Beth Meier
Blogging at: http://rav-rich.blogspot.com
"שתיקה כהודאה דמיא"
"Silence in the face of wrongdoing is
consent.”
BT Yevamot 88a
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Candle lighting: 7:50 pm
Friday: NO
Shabbat Evening Service – resume July 12.
Saturday: Torah
study/breakfast – 8:45 am. Shabbat Morning Service – 9:30 am.
Kiddush lunch follows.
Tuesday: Lunch
and Learn – 12:00 noon.
Friday, July 12: Tot Shabbat Service – 6:30 – 7:15 pm. A Singalong with Reb
Jason and stories by Rabbi Flom. Special Oneg Shabbat follows. Shabbat
Evening Service – 7:30 pm. Oneg Shabbat follows.
Saturday, July 13: Torah study/breakfast – 8:45 am. Shabbat Morning
Service – 9:30 am. Kiddush lunch follows.
This d’var torah is
offered for a refuah shleimah for Leah bat Sarah Imanu, Sarah bat
Devorah, Susan Arbetman, Ken Bitticks, Mark Brownstein, Susan Burke, Jerry
Daniels, Maya Fersht (Maya bat Esther), Dr. Samuel Fersht (Shmuel Natan ben
Gittel), Annabelle Flom (Channah Bella bat Kreina), Bernard Garvin, Leah
Granat, Carol Herskowitz, Brandon Joseph, Gabor Klein, Philip Kovac, Tonya
Kronzek (Zlata Malkah bat Sarah Imanu), Marilyn Lee, David Marks, Sandra Raab,
Marguerite Rassiner, Josef Sands, Debra Schugar Strauss (Devorah bat Chaya
Feiga), Helen Schugar (Chaya Feiga bat Kreina), Bernie Seeman, William
Sragow, and Jonathan Woolf.
Please let me know if
there is anyone you would like to add to this list or if there is anyone who
may be removed from this list.
Next time you come to
TBH/CBM, please bring some non-perishable canned and packaged foods and
personal items (no glass) for SOVA.
And be sure to tell your
neighbors, friends, and relatives about our warm and welcoming community and
our programs!
We are looking
for volunteers for services: chant Torah or Haftarah, daven, lead
English readings, deliver d’rashot, and have aliyot and other Torah/bimah
honors. Training available! Contact Rabbi Flom by e-mail for details and to
sign up!
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