Spark of Jewish Experience

The Gemara (Ketuvot 111a) has a fascinating interpretation of this verse; “Better is the one who shows the white of his teeth (i.e. in a smile) to his friend, than the one who gives him milk to drink.” In other words, “white toothed from milk” can be interpreted as, “to be white toothed with a smile is better than to give milk.” This is because one who provides milk to the poor provides a physical gift that sustains the person for a little while. But one who smiles at and comforts the forlorn with encouraging words, provides a listening ear or a pat on the back, gives that person an everlasting feeling of self worth. This lifts his spirits and sustains him more than any physical gift which merely amounts to a temporary respite. This concept is also found in the animal kingdom. The Gemara (Kiddushin 82b) describes what kind of professions certain animals would assume if they had to enter the workforce; the lion would be a porter and a fox would be a merchant etc. While it is easily understandable how the cleverness of a fox would make him a successful merchant, why would a lion, king of all the animals, choose the lowly job of a porter?

The answer lies in the Torah’s view of leadership.
Real leadership is about empowering others to actualize their potential. In other words, leadership isn’t about the majesty of the head position. True leaders take the resources at their disposal to help move others forward. Sometimes, perhaps even often, this means carrying the “baggage” of others so that they can get to where they need to go. Leaders realize that their role is to move the overall mission forward and take responsibility for its execution. A lion becomes a porter because his real desire has nothing to do with his own self-aggrandizement, rather his true leadership role of helping others. Let’s get back to the question of why Moav was not targeted in the battle. Rashi points out that Hashem commanded Moshe to decimate the Midianites and not the Moabites, although they were more instrumental than the Midianites in enticing Bnei Yisroel to sin. The Midrash explains that since Ruth, the great grandmother of King David, was destined to descend from Moav, G-d refrained from destroying them. This answer seems only to create yet another question. If in fact, Moav deserved to be destroyed, why could G-d not have orchestrated a scenario by which the majority of the nation was killed, but Ruth’s existence was assured by the few survivors? The reason is, that since Ruth was the ancestor of the Davidic dynasty, it was crucial that she herself descend from aristocracy and nobility. Ruth was the daughter of Eglon, King of Moav. In order for this to occur, the entire nation of Moav had to be preserved. If the nation had been decimated, Ruth would have stemmed from refugees, making it unlikely for her to be born into a family of nobility.

The benefits gained by Ruth’s stemming from aristocracy are twofold: From the perspective of the Jewish nation, the genetic base of monarchy has already been established through her own personal standing. From a universal perspective, the Moshiach who will stem from the Davidic dynasty will influence and teach all of mankind. The infusion of nonJewish monarchy into the Davidic dynasty will allow for a greater universal impact.
What is this great universal impact introduced through Ruth? The scriptures of Megilat Ruth indicate kindness, “a porter carrying the load” and a caring person. Ruth is the grandmother of the royal Jewish dynasty par excellence. Her mother-in-law Naomi, was a woman who lost everything, including her vast wealth and her family and proceeds to return to her homeland with virtually nothing. She tries to dissuade her non-Jewish daughters-in-law from returning with her, though she cannot convince Ruth. In one of the most poignant moments in our holy scriptures, Ruth injects life into her mother-in-law, Naomi, by telling her I’m with you! ” And Ruth said: “Entreat me not to leave you, or to return from following after you. Wherever you go, I will go; and where you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your G-d my G-d. Where you die, I will die, and there will I be buried; G-d do so to me, and more also, if aught but death part you and me” (Ruth 1:16-17).

This is the message that Yaakov wanted to instill in the future kings of the Jewish people, through Yehuda, ancestor of King David. They will have the wine of royalty but it must be used with the “white teeth” to empower others.

The Midrash tells us that during Moshe’s tenure as a shepherd, one of the sheep ran away. He chased the sheep, brought it back to the rest of the flock, and carried it home. G-d looked upon him and said, “A man who cares for his sheep will care for his people.” That act catapulted Moshe to the position we know. Acts that are bold and courageous often personify leadership, character, and commitment. People think that only those gallant and daring acts can lead them to greatness and glory. The Torah tells us that it is not so.

The Torah links Moshe’s selection to Divine leadership with the simple task of shepherding. The qualifications that G-d looks for are not necessarily what we humans would. We often look for honors, accolades, achievements, and accomplishments that are almost superhuman. G-d, on the other hand, cherishes simple shepherding, He loves care and concern for simple Jews. We may come to Him with resumes of brilliance, courage and valor, but He does not need that. He wants consistency, love, compassion, and, perhaps most of all, humble simplicity.

Moshe had those qualities too. It was those qualities of compassion, not the forceful abilities he used in attacking the Egyptian taskmaster, fending off evil shepherds, or rebuking Israel in Devarim, that were chosen to cast Moshe into the light of leadership. We may be bold and courageous, but without compassion for the little things, without the humility to find lost sheep, we may be simply overqualified.

There is a Medrash that tells us “G-d does not elevate a person to greatness until he first tests him with the little things.” What makes the leader is his ability to relate to the common man and to see the mundane needs of regular people.

This is the lesson of Moshe, as well as of Yehoshua, the following leader. Yehoshua’s gift is that he was able to relate to any individual at his level, white color, blue color, Sefaradi, Ashkenazi yalah yalah yalili. A leader has to hear the problems “I have problems with my wife, my children, my business…” This is what the leader gets. If he can’t relate to these types of problems, he can’t be an effective leader.

Over the course of my life I have visited Israel quite often. Even though I was born and bred in the Unites States, as the result of my parents being Israelis and having a rather large mishpacha in the holy land, my visits were a testament to the realistic lifestyle of the people living there, as opposed to witnessing Israel through the eyes of a tourist, staying in a hotel or a dorm room full of Americans.

Although our family was always Shomer Shabbat, at the time, we were more modern and I would go mixed swimming. That is something my family does not do today, as we are more careful with the laws of modesty. My summer days, on one of my visits when I was 16, consisted of grabbing a trendy, large, fresh squeezed fruit drink for breakfast and taking the kav 11 bus with my cousins to the beach of Tel Aviv, Chof Frishman. On a number of occasions on our way back on the crowded, 5:00 bus, returning to my cousins’ residence at Yad Eliyahu, I would witness Israeli soldiers returning from their tour of duty. Interestingly, as they entered the crowded bus with their rifles and heavy gear, the passengers would get quiet, out of awe and respect, and the girls my age that I knew from Chof Frishman would rise and give them their seats. Many of the 16 year olds couldn’t wait to enter the army. It was a sense of pride. A soldier was well respected and would try to enter the most elite squad in the army or air force. Fast forward about eight years until I was learning in a Yeshiva in Yerushalayim. Here too, I had relatives who I would frequently visit. On many occasions on the crowded bus returning from Yeshiva to their residence, I witnessed how the entrance of Yeshiva boys wearing black hats and carrying heavy holy books, would also initiate the respect and awe of the passengers. Almost the same scene unfolded, where the young girls would rise and give up their seats for the Yeshiva students. Many 16 year olds couldn’t wait to enter the big Yeshivot. They would take exams and hope they would get excepted to the best Yeshivas in Israel. Two polar opposites and different cultures, though both deserve the same respect, for both protect our country!! Though the rift between these two cultures can be a bit hostile at times, in the 1970’s when both worlds were defining their marks more clearly and veering off in opposite directions, an unfortunate event happened. We recently marked the 40th anniversary of the raid on Entebbe.. When the shocking news of the hijacking reached Yeshivat Mir, many quite expectedly, were in a somber mood. A massive Yeshiva Tehilim reading was scheduled, preempting all learning. The Yeshiva awaited the great Rosh Yeshiva, Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz, whom we quote many times in our articles, to enter and lead the services. Rav Chaim was up in age and was not a well man. As a matter of fact, two years later he would pass on. As the Yeshiva stood silent after hearing that the Rosh Yeshiva was about to enter, they heard the foot steps of the Rav, slowly climbing up.

Clearly he was not a well man at this juncture. What happened next was a memory stitched in every one’s mind who attended that Tehilim reading. As he entered the study hall, he stopped by the second to last row and started weeping. He then, perhaps because of his illness or out of anguish, sat in the empty chairs that was available and was weeping uncontrollably. Everyone in the Yeshiva had their eyes fixed on Rav Chaim. They heard the echoes of his cry vibrating throughout the study hall. It was only about 3 or 4 minutes but it felt like a lifetime. He then rose and made it to the front of the study hall where he led the Tehilim reading. Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz, the fiery, no nonsense, Rosh Yeshiva made a statement that day. He showed the Yeshiva world and for that matter the whole world, that every Jew is precious whether he is religious or not religious, soldier or Yeshiva student. We are all G-d’s children and we must all care about each other. Here is a man who showed the pinnacle quality of leadership, caring. This is the number one quality the politicians want to convey. ” I care about you!! Vote for me. And for that reason, Moshe was instructed not to harm Moav even though they were just as guilty as Midyan, for Ruth had to blossom so the Royal Jewish Monarchy could emerge unscathed, with the quality of caring.

The Talmud states [Sanhedrin 8a] that a Judge has to suffer with his congregation, like a nursemaid carries a baby [Bamidbar 11:12]. This is a very apt analogy.