Delivered: June 15, 2013 by Al Kohn
Parashat: Chukat – Num. 19:1 – 22:1
Verses 1-2 of chapter 20 of this parashat, Chukat are as follows:
1 The Israelites arrived in a body at the wilderness of Zin on the first new moon, and the people stayed at Kadesh. Miriam died there and was buried there. 2 The community was without water, and they joined against Moses and Aaron.
Verses 7-12 are as follows:
7 and the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 8 “You and your brother Aaron take the rod and assemble the community, and before their very eyes order the rock to yield its water. Thus you shall produce water for them from the rock and provide drink for the congregation and their beasts.”
9 Moses took the rod from before the Lord, as He had commanded him. 10 Moses and Aaron assembled the congregation in front of the rock; and he said to them, “Listen, you rebels, shall we get water for you out of this rock?” 11 And Moses raised his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod. Out came copious water, and the community and their beasts drank.
12 But the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not trust Me enough to affirm My sanctity in the sight of the Israelite people, therefore you shall not lead this congregation into the land that I have given them.”
To quote Gunther Plaut from page 1156 of his “THE TORAH, A Modern Commentary”, he states, “If the Torah implies sin on the part of Moses and Aaron, it can only be the sin of failure; for leaders are always held responsible for the performance of those they lead. Both Moses and Aaron apparently considered the divine judgment to be just and knew it to be irreversible. Aaron never raised his voice concerning it and Moses did it once and then ever so briefly in Deut. 3:23-25.” Close quote. So Moses took responsibility for his actions. To use a true play on words, ”he was caught between a real rock and a hard place he would never enter!”
The sign “The Buck Stops Here” was on President Harry Truman’s desk in his White House. The saying “the buck stops here” derives from the slang expression “pass the buck” which means passing the responsibility on to someone else.
Today, I believe we do have a major problem in society with people not fully taking responsibility for their actions by passing the buck. People are always making excuses. According to Audrey Marlene, life coach:
“Why is it so difficult for us to accept responsibility for our actions? There is a story of two parents with two children who attended 5 schools before 10th grade all within a 20 mile radius because they claimed the schools were horrible and the teachers showed favoritism. At what point would these parents accept responsibility for their children’s involvement in the problems they experienced?”
She goes on to say,” we all like to feel important and have others have a high opinion of us. Some more than others develop an over-inflated view of themselves. These tendencies act to wrap us in what many call “denial”, which creates a false perception of self and the inability to accept the truth about us. It then becomes painful to accept that mistakes are possible and when we make them the first reaction is to point the finger at someone else. We refuse to think objectively and accept any involvement for our actions. Taking responsibility can be a very painful thing to do.
Ms. Marlene closes by saying,”The inability to accept responsibility for our actions and behaviors is a result of insecurity. By taking responsibility one feels they are admitting to being weak, powerless, or an opportunity to lose the respect of others. It may cause one to feel they will lose their sense of value and importance. On the contrary, taking responsibility earns you respect. We can’t be perfect all the time, we all make mistakes. When we accept responsibility we are accepting the blame for our actions and also accepting the responsibility for making improvements in our lives.”
In the early 1970s, comedian Flip Wilson hosted his own weekly variety series, The Flip Wilson Show. Wilson popularized such catchphrases as “What you see is what you get”, and “The devil made me do it!”.. So whether the devil or not made us do it, let’s all start to take responsibility for our actions
Before Yom Kippur we seek out and reconcile with friends, colleagues, family members and even enemies. Yom Kippur is the time to forgive and move on. “If we cannot forgive others,” said the Hassidic Master Israel Ba’al Shem Tov, “how can we expect God to forgive us?”
Jewish tradition outlines three paths to help along this process of fixing our lives leading up to and during Yom Kippur:
Tzedakah (Charity) – The ethical imperative to contribute our resources to support the needy, our communal organizations, and to make the world a better place.
Teshuvah (Repentance)- Acknowledging our shortcomings, showing regret for what we did, and resolving to not make the same mistakes again, reconciles our relationship with God.
Tefillah (Prayer)- Opening our hearts, putting thoughts into words, we pray in the plural, asking for the good of all, not for our own personal needs.
So let’s not wait until Yom Kippur to recognize our shortcomings, showing regret for what we did, and resolving to not make the same mistakes again. Let’s start today!
Moses set the example and took responsibility for his actions and was prohibited from entering “The Promised Land ” with the children of Israel. Let’s all attempt as best as we can to try to take responsibility for our actions. In my opinion, we’ll probably be better for it.
Shabbat Shalom!