Va'era

We begin the Torah portion Va’era with a response from G-d reminding Moses of who G-d is and the promises that He made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. At the end of the previous parasha of Shemot, Moses, like his forefather Abraham, has challenged G-d. Although we learn and teach about Moses as a great leader, there is always a caveat. We often not merely acknowledge, but in fact focus on his failings.

When we talk about Abraham, we emphasise his strengths. He ran to do mitzvot, it was the driving force of Abrahams actions again and again. Whether it was hosting the angels or saddling his own ass in preparation for the Akeida, Abraham himself, got up and took action.

Moses, on the other hand, was initially a reluctant leader. Despite his affirmation of “hineini” (here I am) at the Burning Bush, Moses spends much of the first part of his leadership role, shying away from responsibility and questioning his own worth. It is an interesting juxtaposition as despite the fact that he was technically criticising himself, by very virtue of his argument, he was challenging G-d.

It is in this action, that we see the mettle of the man and the true steel within Moses. Just as Abraham argued with G-d over the destruction of Sedom, and questioned his decisions, so too, does Moses argue about whether or not he he himself is worthy and should be representative in talking to Pharoah.

Looking at Va’era, we are seeing a number of different forms of leadership being demonstrated for us. Vae’ra details for us the lineage of Moses and Aaron just as Pharaoh himself, comes from a long line of Pharoahs. It is not just Moses that models governance. Aaron comes into his role as the principal priest, and of course Pharaoh although harsh and cruel, demonstrates yet another way to lead.

We are taught that the best leaders engender loyalty by their actions. Not sitting above those they govern, but by working alongside them. A good captain leads from the front and does not expect others to do all of the work. Moses here shows us his skill as the first leader of the Israelites. We cannot expect others to do as we say and not as we do. Moses leads, as did Abraham before him, with questions and not blind obedience. He continually questions G-d yet this does not stop his actions. He may not run to do the mitzvot of following G-d’s command blindly but he does do G-d’s bidding.

We learn from Moses that we should question authority. Not indiscriminately, and certainly not with aggression. Moses was questioning whether he was the man for the job, that is a valid question. We should ask ourselves this regularly, are we the leaders? Should we be the leaders, and what are our skills that qualify us to take on that mantle?

The Torah teaches us to stand up for what is right and in the very first pasuk of Va’era this is demonstrated. The word used for G-d is Elokim, this is characterised by referring to G-d’s attribute of Justice. So we start this Torah portion with a reminder of Justice which always leads us to pursue it.

“tzedek tzedek tirdof”

Moses doubts his abilities and Pharoah continually rescinds on his decisions. Through the power of the first seven plagues, the Children of Israel are renewing their belief in G-d. The portion starts with a reminder from G-d of his promises to our forefathers and the covenant made with them.

Abraham is the first patriarch of our Jewish heritage and Moses is the first leader of our Jewish nation. As the actions taken by Moses display, they both lead us on a journey of enquiry and learning. Our belief in G-d is our constant reminder that we are not the most important thing in the world. The world is bigger than us and we are a microcosm within it.

Yet no living thing can exist without a nucleus and we ourselves together with our families, our friends and our communities are that central core that can join together and ask the questions needed for the pursuit of Justice.

Va’era is full of questions, doubts and decisions, for better and for worse and within it we can find questions that will help guide us as we decide what type of leader we will choose to be.