Parshat Pinchas: Hope and Strength

“The plea of Zelophehad’s daughters is just: you should give them a hereditary holding among their father’s kinsmen; transfer their father’s share to them.” (Numbers 27:7)

 

In this week’s Torah portion, Parshat Pinchas, the daughters of Zelophehad provide an example of women who found the courage and conviction to stand before God, Moses, and the People of Israel, and petition for the right to inherit their father’s portion in the Holy Land so that their father’s name would be remembered.

 

I would like to highlight what this particular decree of God’s meant to Moses. We pick up the story a few verses later.

 

“God said to Moses, “Ascend these heights of Abarim and view the land that I have given to the Israelite people. When you have seen it, you too shall be gathered to your kin, just as your brother Aaron was.  For, in the wilderness of Zin, when the community was contentious, you disobeyed My command to uphold My sanctity in their sight by means of the water…” (27:12-14)

 

Rashi asks why these particular verses about the end of Moses’ life follow the conclusion to the daughters of Zelophehad saga. He wrote that when Moses heard God state in v7 “…you should give them a hereditary holding among their father’s kinsmen; transfer their father’s share to them,” Moses said to himself, “It is me that the Omnipresent has commanded to apportion the inheritance. Perhaps then the decree that I must die in the wilderness is annulled and I shall enter the Promised Land!”

 

We feel Moses having a very human reaction to the potential of these words. He recognized that he had disobeyed God in a very public manner and had been told what the consequence was – he would not be allowed to enter the Promised Land. Yet, the way that Moses hears God’s words gives him hope. Maybe, just maybe, God has rescinded the decree, and he would in fact be allowed to enter the land. His hopes are raised… and then immediately dashed, “Whereupon God said to him, “My decree remains exactly as it was.” (Midrash Tanchuma)

 

How many times have each of us had our hopes raised only to have them dashed again? How many times have we recognized that we erred and yet still tried to convince ourselves that things would turn out differently than we knew that they would? It is human nature to have hope, even when we know that the hope may not be grounded in reality. In fact, there are times when the only way one can carry on is to have hope, real or imagined.

 

How then do we react to this disappointment/loss of hope? Do we descend into melancholy, or do we pick ourselves up and continue on?

 

What do we learn from this? Instead of wallowing in emotion, Moses immediately thinks of the people he has led for so many years. He asks God to appoint a successor so that the people will have someone to lead them into the land and ensure that things will go as smoothly as possible once he dies. God heeds his request and names Joshua ben Nun as Moses’ successor. Moses lays hands on Joshua and commissions him to his new role.

 

Moses may have erred at Meriba when he struck the rock, but here, toward the end of his life, he shows exactly what type of man and leader that he is. May we all have lives filled with the strength of Moses.

 

Some food for thought:

What roles do hope and disappointment play in your life? Can this story of Moses act as an example for you? If not, is there another story in the Torah that provides you with inspiration?

 

 

Guest Dvar on Parashat Pinchas - A Perspective for Today

Dvar Torah on Parshat Pinchas 

by Warner Ferratier

Delivered At Congregation Moreshet Yisrael, Jerusalem, Israel 

on Monday Morning, July 7, 2014

Boker Tov!

In this week's Parasha, we learn about the aftermath of Pinchas's actions,  an additional census, the apportionment of the promised land among the tribes, and the ritual sacrifices for the various holidays. In the section about apportioning land, we first meet the five daughters of Zelophechad. Zelophechad died without male heirs, and the daughters request that their father's name not be allowed to die, and that they be allowed to inherit. Moses takes their case before God, who acknowledges the justice of their claim. 

What interests me is that when the daughters explain their case, they say that their father died, not because of participation in the rebellion of Korach, but rather for his own sin. The Torah remains silent about the nature of that sin. Rashi, however, comes to assuage our curiosity. He cites two possibilities: according to Rabbi Akiba, Zelophechad was the one executed for gathering wood on the Sabbath, and according to Rabbi Shimon, he was one of the people who dared to ascend the mountain after it had already been forbidden to the Children of Israel.

While the two possibilities are interesting, the truth is that we don't really know what his sin was. We are to understand that his death was an act of Divine justice in one way or another. What seems most significant to me is that despite his status as a sinner deserving of death, there doesn't seem to be much question that his descendants are due an inheritance. Indeed, the only issue seems to be whether daughters can inherit, not whether there should be an inheritance at all. The children of a sinner, whether daughters or sons, are still part of the community of Israel.

I think there is an important lesson in this for us. Too often, we tend hold the sins of one person against those around them. We get angry at one person, and not only give the silent treatment to him or her, but also to that person's friends and family. When a person from one population commits an act, we tend to globalize the guilt to all members of that group. We, of all people, should know better. For centuries, Jews have been accused of deicide, blood libel, and theft. When it comes down to it, most acts of revenge end up being carried out against someone besides the perpetrator.

In our Torah portion, God does not punish the children of Zelophechad for Zelophechad's sin. When we remember Zelophechad, we remember him because of his daughters. We should all be so lucky as to be remembered for the merits of our children, rather than the sins we have committed. 

May we take this example so that when justice is exacted, it is exacted only against the guilty. May we be blessed with the compassion to recognize the merits of the innocent, rather than punishing them for the deeds of others.

Ken Yihi Ratzon 

Warner Ferratier is a student at the Conservative Yeshiva.
He will be starting rabbinical school this September.