The Danger of Hero Worship
Parshat Lech Lecha recounts the emergence of our first Patriarch and Matriarch, Abraham and Sarah. All told, the Jewish people have three Fathers and four Mothers, a situation unique in the annals of history.
Most religions and political, intellectual, and social movements trace themselves back to a single founder. However, as great as Abraham was, he occupies a position that is shared by others: his wife, Sarah, and his sons Isaac and Jacob and their wives.
There are important lessons contained here. Most significantly, it is not good to attribute too much greatness to a human being. Judaism is leery about hero worship, especially in the spiritual realm. There is a very thin line between legitimate respect and excessive reverence.
Why have so many crossed that line to deify humans, a tendency which has brought great harm to Mankind? It is because man’s religious instincts often lead him astray. People are not comfortable with an abstract deity who cannot be compared to anything we are familiar with in our own sphere of existence.
They are searching for “Superman," a figure who is like us, but infinitely greater in power and magnitude. One can’t help but be amazed at the irony: God created us in His image, but we are not at peace with that and seek to recreate Him in our puny likeness.
Sarah: An Independent Voice
Judaism does not establish role models who are exclusively male. Abraham was joined by his wife, Sarah, whose participation in their “movement" was absolutely consequential. The Torah depicts how these two figures interacted.
Sarah Imeinu (Our Mother) was an independent thinker who had prophetic insight. It was her bold idea for Abraham to marry the slave girl, Hagar, to bear a child who would perpetuate his religious movement.
Yet, after the birth of Isaac, she noticed the jealous disdain of Hagar’s son, Ishmael, and decided it was absolutely essential that he be banished from Abraham’s house. Sarah advocated this action, even though it was extremely displeasing to Abraham. These two wise and discerning spouses disputed over this, although neither of them would impose their will on the other.
Hashem decided the outcome by instructing Abraham, “Listen to the voice of Sarah in all that she tells you" (Genesis 21:12), meaning that, in this department of human behavior, her insight is superior to yours.
This message was communicated to Abraham alone, who accepted the painful reality and sent Hagar and Ishmael on their way. Acknowledging the truth and eschewing ego is a paramount component of the Abrahamic tradition.
The founders of our religion are three generations of men and women who were absolutely committed to its ideals of wisdom, compassion, and truth. We do not believe in people, but only in Hashem. It is not the impulses and “visions" of charismatic characters that we live by, but only by the wisdom of Hashem, which is revealed in His Torah.
Abraham’s Journey-and Ours
Parashat Lech Lecha describes the origin of the Jewish mission to spread God’s religion throughout the world. Hashem commanded Abraham to “Depart from your land, birthplace, and father’s house to the Land I will show you" (Genesis 12:1).
Abraham’s willingness to abandon his family ties and familiar relationships is considered a great act of courage and faith. We do not necessarily appreciate the full magnitude of this gesture.
To do so, we should ask whether we would be able to make a similar journey. For we find ourselves in almost the same position as our forefather.
Eretz Yisrael (The Land of Israel) is available to us, but many of us choose to remain in a country that is not our own. The journey today in an airplane, with all amenities provided, gets us there in less than a day, but it is one that many are reluctant to make.
We can’t pull ourselves away from our birthplace and “father’s home." We simply have it too good here. We can’t separate from our social attachments and luxuries and immigrate to “the Land I will show you."
Rashi explains that Hashem mentioned “land, birthplace, and father’s house" to increase Abraham’s reward for each enumeration. However, Hashem immediately says that He will make Abraham into a great nation and magnify his name.
The Meaning of Divine Reward
This was quite a promise. So wouldn’t that constitute a compelling incentive and detract from the greatness of his willingness to leave his home? Wouldn’t our decision to make aliyah (move to Israel) be much easier if we knew that great rewards awaited us there?
We need to comprehend the nature of Abraham. He harbored no desire for personal glory. He served Hashem purely out of love and a natural desire to make Him known throughout the world.
Hashem’s promise that, through Abraham, “all the nations of the world would be blessed" (Genesis 12:3), did not appeal to Abraham’s ego. It meant that Hashem had selected him to be the medium through which the Divine plan would come to fruition on Earth. However, it did not imply a life of ease or glory. Soon after arriving in Canaan, in fact, there was a severe famine and Abraham was forced to travel to Egypt. There his life was endangered, and he had to say that Sarah was his sister in order to save himself.
Hashem places many challenges before those who seek to serve Him. Certainly the rewards are great, but they do not come quickly or easily. Nor are they the kind that motivate people to wait on long lines to purchase lottery tickets.
Abraham and Sarah and all the other great Torah heroes who have graced our history essentially sacrificed the ordinary satisfactions of life to be partners with Hashem in the great mission of sanctifying His name in the world. This is the essence of Abraham’s journey. Whoever is motivated by his spirit can embark on it at any time.
Leadership Without Ego
The Presidential election of 2016 comes to mind in this regard. I found it amazing that neither candidate was a youngster (they were both about 70) and yet displayed almost superhuman energy in pursuit of the office.
For over a year and a half they worked around the clock, holding extremely draining meetings, rallies, interviews, and debates. Not to mention the constant stream of crises and dilemmas that are inevitable in all such endeavors. Both displayed tremendous energy and stamina. What was their secret?
I do not mean this in a bad way, but both candidates were and are extremely ambitious and ego-driven, with an almost insatiable desire for power. I have no problem with that, as long as they put the energy generated by these motives to positive use, to benefit America.
There are enormous differences between these types of leaders and those who have been the shepherds of the Jewish people. The Patriarchs and Matriarchs were modest people who had absolutely no desire for personal adulation.
Moshe Rabbeinu was the most humble of men and pleaded with Hashem to be excused from leading the greatest mission in history. He had to be coerced into becoming the King of the Jews. To this day, Judaism views the desire for power as a serious flaw that should make us suspicious of all who cultivate it.
It behooves us to be grateful to Hashem for allowing us to be graced with the most noble role models throughout our glorious history. May we be inspired to study their unique accomplishments and the virtues they cultivated which made them possible.
And may their wisdom and moral perfection continue to illuminate the world through us, their fortunate descendants.
Questions? Comments? Mitch Rosner • WhatsApp: 054-426-3419 • mitchrosner@gmail.com