Parshas Pinchas -- 14 Tammuz, 5771 / July 16, 2011 -- Vol. 2, Issue 19
This was past week has been a most exciting and exceptional time in the Shurack household. My daughter Bayla has taken her first steps. It actually first happened last Shabbos just before seudah shlishit (the third meal between Mincha & Maariv). Ettie and I were learning Pirke Avos (Ethis of Our Fathers) when all of a sudden Bayla stood up, took three steps and then sat back down. Such a seemingly little event was followed by much clapping, smiling, laughter, and unbridled happiness and joy.
In taking a closer look, what is it that we were so happy about? I walk all the time. Okay, well not all the time and certainly not enough, but still I am fairly adept at walking. Yet, as I walk in the supermarket or to collect the mail no one claps, no one cheers me on and no one tells me how amazed they are at my actions. With Bayla, however, we were thoroughly impressed by her new found skill.
We were captivated because Bayla had taken a leap of faith in trying something new that she wasn’t sure she could do. She was willing to try walking even though there was the potential she might fall. How did she attempt this new feat? One step at a time. She didn’t stand up and run, skip, or hop. Rather, she took one single step, and then another, and then another. From there, each day this week she has become more proficient with walking.
In our lives, we are often skeptical to try new things, hesitant to learn something difficult, afraid that we might fail. What we have to realize is that Hashem doesn’t expect us to complete everything we do immediately; what He does expect is that we start.
Pirke Avos, chapter 3, verse 16 states, “It is not incumbent upon you to complete the work, yet you are not free to desist from it…” We must busy ourselves with Torah and mitzvahs, even ones that seem difficult or complicated.
Life isn’t about how fast you get where you’ going, it’s about growing throughout the journey. Every time we do a mitzvah, we are that much closer to the coming of Moshiach. It’s true, Torah and Mitzvahs are time consuming, and bringing Moshiach is a most arduous task. But we can do it together, one step at a time!
In taking a closer look, what is it that we were so happy about? I walk all the time. Okay, well not all the time and certainly not enough, but still I am fairly adept at walking. Yet, as I walk in the supermarket or to collect the mail no one claps, no one cheers me on and no one tells me how amazed they are at my actions. With Bayla, however, we were thoroughly impressed by her new found skill.
We were captivated because Bayla had taken a leap of faith in trying something new that she wasn’t sure she could do. She was willing to try walking even though there was the potential she might fall. How did she attempt this new feat? One step at a time. She didn’t stand up and run, skip, or hop. Rather, she took one single step, and then another, and then another. From there, each day this week she has become more proficient with walking.
In our lives, we are often skeptical to try new things, hesitant to learn something difficult, afraid that we might fail. What we have to realize is that Hashem doesn’t expect us to complete everything we do immediately; what He does expect is that we start.
Pirke Avos, chapter 3, verse 16 states, “It is not incumbent upon you to complete the work, yet you are not free to desist from it…” We must busy ourselves with Torah and mitzvahs, even ones that seem difficult or complicated.
Life isn’t about how fast you get where you’ going, it’s about growing throughout the journey. Every time we do a mitzvah, we are that much closer to the coming of Moshiach. It’s true, Torah and Mitzvahs are time consuming, and bringing Moshiach is a most arduous task. But we can do it together, one step at a time!
Parshas Pinchas: Right Man for the Job
Consider the following scenarios:
You're tired from the whole week and it is 3:30pm on Thursday when the boss walks over to your desk and tells you he has a special project for you. It's going to be a great deal of work, you'll need to stay late several nights (starting with that day), there is very little extra money involved, and it has to be completed in the next 2 weeks. “Fantastic,” you think to yourself, “that's just what I wanted, more work. It doesn't make any sense; I just finished a big project last week. So and so hasn't had to complete a project in months and he went home early today! Why was I picked for this assignment?”
or:
You just came home from a long day at school. You have three projects due within the next month, a novel to read and critique, and math homework which you barely understand. Your mother comes home and asks if you could please unload the dishwasher, sweep the garage, and put away the baby’s toys. “But what about Sarah?” you think to yourself. “She's off from school right now and doesn't even have any homework to do. Can't she do some of these tasks? Why do I have to do them?”
or:
You finally catch up on your mortgage payments, finished off the antibiotic medication for that cold that you just couldn't shake, and booked a ticket to visit your cousin in California. You wake up in the morning, have breakfast, and get into your car to go grocery shopping, when your car won't start. You take it to the mechanic and find out it is going to cost $1200.00 to fix. One thought crosses your mind, “why was I chosen for this challenge?”
How do we look at being chosen to do a particular job? What kind of perspective should we take when encountering a challenge? Should we compare ourselves to others in regards to our workload?
We can learn a powerful lesson from this week’s parsha, which gives us the answer to these very important and pertinent questions.
When we read that Pinchas was zealous in doing what was right, it is easy to become confused. Someone violates a Torah prohibition publicly and the greatest leader of all time fails to act on it? Shouldn’t Moshe have quickly assessed the situation and carried out justice swiftly and promptly? After all, it seems out of place for Moshe Rabbeinu to have delegated such an important task to someone else.
When Zimri decided to commit an improper act with a Midianite woman, he approached Moshe and asked him if she was forbidden. “If she is forbidden, who permitted you to marry the daughter of a Midianite?” Zimri asked Moshe. The Rebbe explains that Moshe didn’t take action against Zimri because since he was invested in the matter his actions and decision could be motivated by personal interest. Other commentaries explain that Moshe forgot the halacha and that is why he did not act. Rashi writes that Pinchas reminded Moshe of the law of forbidden relationships and Moshe told Pinchas that since it was he who remembered the law, he should be the one to carry it out.
Moshe Rabbeinu was the world’s first CEO. Every successful CEO will attest to the fact that a major part of being a good leader is being able to delegate responsibility. Let’s face it, there’s no one who can do everything, or even close to everything. What they can do, however, is appoint the right people for each task.
We see this again in the parsha when Hashem tells Moshe to climb the mountain of Avarim and look at the land of Israel. Because of Moshe Rabbeinu’s sin of hitting the rock, he would not enter the Promised Land, the land of Israel. Imagine if you had worked towards a goal for your whole life and because of one mistake the entire reward was taken from you; swept out right from under your feet. Most of us would react to such a situation with contrite, disappointment, and anger.
How did Moshe react? He valiantly not only readied himself to step down from his position, but asked Hashem to appoint someone to replace him. Moshe even listed the qualities he thought were important for the next leader to possess; a testament to his unrelenting concern for the Jewish people. How many people would step aside from their position so gallantly, so readily, and so willingly train another to take their place? This is the sign of a true leader.
This was part of Moshe’s true greatness, recognizing and supporting individuals to reach and maximize their potential. Hashem, in His infinite wisdom and kindness, has handpicked, specifically selected, and carefully chosen each of us for our particular mission in life. The situation that we find ourselves in is never a coincidence and always purposeful, even if sometimes we are completely confused as to what the reason is. We must trudge forward with great zeal and energy. After all, in our life we are the right man for the job!
You're tired from the whole week and it is 3:30pm on Thursday when the boss walks over to your desk and tells you he has a special project for you. It's going to be a great deal of work, you'll need to stay late several nights (starting with that day), there is very little extra money involved, and it has to be completed in the next 2 weeks. “Fantastic,” you think to yourself, “that's just what I wanted, more work. It doesn't make any sense; I just finished a big project last week. So and so hasn't had to complete a project in months and he went home early today! Why was I picked for this assignment?”
or:
You just came home from a long day at school. You have three projects due within the next month, a novel to read and critique, and math homework which you barely understand. Your mother comes home and asks if you could please unload the dishwasher, sweep the garage, and put away the baby’s toys. “But what about Sarah?” you think to yourself. “She's off from school right now and doesn't even have any homework to do. Can't she do some of these tasks? Why do I have to do them?”
or:
You finally catch up on your mortgage payments, finished off the antibiotic medication for that cold that you just couldn't shake, and booked a ticket to visit your cousin in California. You wake up in the morning, have breakfast, and get into your car to go grocery shopping, when your car won't start. You take it to the mechanic and find out it is going to cost $1200.00 to fix. One thought crosses your mind, “why was I chosen for this challenge?”
How do we look at being chosen to do a particular job? What kind of perspective should we take when encountering a challenge? Should we compare ourselves to others in regards to our workload?
We can learn a powerful lesson from this week’s parsha, which gives us the answer to these very important and pertinent questions.
When we read that Pinchas was zealous in doing what was right, it is easy to become confused. Someone violates a Torah prohibition publicly and the greatest leader of all time fails to act on it? Shouldn’t Moshe have quickly assessed the situation and carried out justice swiftly and promptly? After all, it seems out of place for Moshe Rabbeinu to have delegated such an important task to someone else.
When Zimri decided to commit an improper act with a Midianite woman, he approached Moshe and asked him if she was forbidden. “If she is forbidden, who permitted you to marry the daughter of a Midianite?” Zimri asked Moshe. The Rebbe explains that Moshe didn’t take action against Zimri because since he was invested in the matter his actions and decision could be motivated by personal interest. Other commentaries explain that Moshe forgot the halacha and that is why he did not act. Rashi writes that Pinchas reminded Moshe of the law of forbidden relationships and Moshe told Pinchas that since it was he who remembered the law, he should be the one to carry it out.
Moshe Rabbeinu was the world’s first CEO. Every successful CEO will attest to the fact that a major part of being a good leader is being able to delegate responsibility. Let’s face it, there’s no one who can do everything, or even close to everything. What they can do, however, is appoint the right people for each task.
We see this again in the parsha when Hashem tells Moshe to climb the mountain of Avarim and look at the land of Israel. Because of Moshe Rabbeinu’s sin of hitting the rock, he would not enter the Promised Land, the land of Israel. Imagine if you had worked towards a goal for your whole life and because of one mistake the entire reward was taken from you; swept out right from under your feet. Most of us would react to such a situation with contrite, disappointment, and anger.
How did Moshe react? He valiantly not only readied himself to step down from his position, but asked Hashem to appoint someone to replace him. Moshe even listed the qualities he thought were important for the next leader to possess; a testament to his unrelenting concern for the Jewish people. How many people would step aside from their position so gallantly, so readily, and so willingly train another to take their place? This is the sign of a true leader.
This was part of Moshe’s true greatness, recognizing and supporting individuals to reach and maximize their potential. Hashem, in His infinite wisdom and kindness, has handpicked, specifically selected, and carefully chosen each of us for our particular mission in life. The situation that we find ourselves in is never a coincidence and always purposeful, even if sometimes we are completely confused as to what the reason is. We must trudge forward with great zeal and energy. After all, in our life we are the right man for the job!