This week’s Torah reading, Vayikra, begins the third book of the Torah, Leviticus. Last week we completed the reading of the book of Exodus, which concluded with a description of the construction of the Tabernacle. This week’s portion will provide a description of the various sacrifices – animal, fowl, and meal-offerings – offered by the priests in this newly constructed Sanctuary.
Let’s read together from this week’s parsha:
I’m going to read several short passages from Leviticus chapter 4:
Lev 4:1 And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
Lev 4:2 “Speak to the people of Israel, saying, If anyone sins unintentionally in any of the LORD’s commandments about things not to be done, and does any one of them,
Lev 4:3 if it is the anointed priest who sins, thus bringing guilt on the people, then he shall offer for the sin that he has committed a bull from the herd without blemish to the LORD for a sin offering.
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Lev 4:13 “If the whole congregation of Israel sins unintentionally and the thing is hidden from the eyes of the assembly, and they do any one of the things that by the LORD’s commandments ought not to be done, and they realize their guilt,
Lev 4:14 when the sin which they have committed becomes known, the assembly shall offer a bull from the herd for a sin offering and bring it in front of the tent of meeting.
Lev 4:15 And the elders of the congregation shall lay their hands on the head of the bull before the LORD, and the bull shall be killed before the LORD.
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Lev 4:27 “If anyone of the common people sins unintentionally in doing any one of the things that by the LORD’s commandments ought not to be done, and realizes his guilt,
Lev 4:28 or the sin which he has committed is made known to him, he shall bring for his offering a goat, a female without blemish, for his sin which he has committed.
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Lev 4:22 “When a leader sins, doing unintentionally any one of all the things that by the commandments of the LORD his God ought not to be done, and realizes his guilt,
Lev 4:23 or the sin which he has committed is made known to him, he shall bring as his offering a goat, a male without blemish,
Did anyone notice the difference in these 4 passages. There is apparently room for doubt as to whether a priest, the nation, or an individual Israelite will sin. However, when it comes to a leader among the people, the Torah seems to think that sin is a sure thing. In the first 3 cases, the Hebrew word eem is used. It is a conditional word and ‘if’ is a good translation. In the case of a leader however, the word is asher. This word carries with it the idea of certainty and the word ‘when’ is a good translation. The word here for leader is nasi. It is a generic word in Hebrew for a leader with a great range of use. It can refer to a king, a ruler, a judge, or even an elder of the community. What is God trying to tell us about leaders?
In many positions of leadership, the leader is involved in the arena of politics. Politics involves difficult judgments. A leader must balance competing claims, and will sometimes get it wrong. One example from the Bible occurred after the death of King Solomon. People came to his son and successor, Rehoboam, complaining that Solomon had imposed unsustainable burdens on the population, particularly during the building of the Temple. Led by Jeroboam, they asked the new king to reduce the burden. Rehoboam asked his father’s counselors for advice. They told him to concede to the people’s demand. Serve them, they said, and they will serve you. Rehoboam however turned to his own friends, who told him the opposite. Reject the request. Show the people you are a strong leader who cannot be intimidated. It was disastrous advice, and the result was tragic. The kingdom split in two, the ten northern tribes following Jeroboam, leaving only the southern tribes, generically known as “Judah,” loyal to the king.
The reason leaders – as opposed to the others – cannot avoid making mistakes is that there is no textbook that infallibly teaches you how to lead. Priests and judges follow laws. For leadership there are no laws because every situation is unique.
There is another reason why leadership is so challenging. Once a man has been placed at the head and has put on the cloak of office, he may not say: I have to look after my welfare, I am not concerned with the community. Instead, the whole burden of communal affairs rests on him. If he sees a man doing violence to his fellow, or committing a transgression, and does not seek to prevent him, he is punished on account of him. A private individual is responsible only for his own sins. A leader is held responsible for the sins of the people he leads: at least those he might have prevented. With power comes responsibility: the greater the power, the greater the responsibility.
A ruler, in the best interests of the people, may sometimes have to make decisions that a conscientious individual would shrink from doing in private life. He may have to decide to wage a war, knowing that some will die. He may have to levy taxes, knowing that this will leave some impoverished. He may have to decide to remove a disruptive or divisive person from the community. Only after the event will the leader know whether the decision was justified, and it may depend on factors beyond his control.
What matters is not that leaders never get it wrong – that is inevitable, given the nature of leadership – but that they constantly study scripture and pray to remind themselves of Godly standards and ultimate aims of leadership. The most important thing from a Torah perspective is that a leader is sufficiently honest to admit his mistakes.
Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai summed it up with an interesting commentary on the word asher, “When a leader sins.” He relates it to the word ashrei, “happy,” and says:
Happy is the generation whose leader is willing to bring a sin offering for his mistakes.
Leadership demands two kinds of courage: the strength to take a risk, and the humility to admit when a risk fails.
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