MISC section - contents: Q: I am a young rabbi; I have begun looking for rabbinical positions. I have tried to work on anava (humility), but now people advise me to write an impressive resume and stress my talents to potential employers. Should I be leading this double life, or is there some fallacy here? A: The attribute of anava is extremely important, and according to some, is the most important one (Avoda Zara 20b). The Rambam writes that it is the one area where one should not follow the golden mean. That being said, by under- standing the nature of humility, one can apply it in a livable manner. Going through classical sources on anava and its opposite, ga'ava, (such as in Maharal's Neitvot Olam and Orchot Tzadikim), one finds clearly that humility is primarily related to what one thinks and feels, rather than what he says. Speech is just one way in which one's feelings become known to others. The offense of haughtiness is not only in the way it makes others feel but, philosophically, in how one views himself within Hashem's world. A perfect G-d created a world in which each person has the potential to leave his mark, but he does not become the ruler or the center of the little world around him. Failure to understand this is an affront to the Creator and Ruler Who commanded him to think about other individuals and community. Let us give two of many sources that illustrate some of these ideas. R. Yochanan says (Sota 4b) that whoever is haughty is as if he denies the existence of Hashem, as it says: " and your heart will be high, and you will forget Hashem, your G-d." This puts haughtiness in the theological realm as we have posited. The gemara (Megila 31a) says: "Wherever you see Hashem's greatness, you see His humility." It then brings p'sukim that extol Hashem's greatness, followed by a pasuk that Hashem loves and helps the stranger. If humility depends on what one says about himself, this makes no sense. How is Hashem humble if He says in His Torah that not only is He great, but He also cares for the weak? Rather, the gemara means that Hashem does not use his greatness to build Himself up but to help others. Ga'ava, then, is about being self-centered. To think just about oneself and look down on others but speak humbly is hypocrisy, not humility. However, there are guidelines for speech. It says in Mishlei (27:2): "Others should praise you, but not your mouth." Yet, the gemara (Nedarim 62a) says that in a place where a Torah scholar is not known, he may identify himself as such. When there is another to point out who he is, it is improper to speak about oneself. Tosafot (Kidushin 30a) brings a contradiction. Bava Metzia 23b says that one can/should lie rather than tell how much Torah he has learned. Kidushin 30a says that when one is asked a question, he should answer with confidence, not hesitantly. This implies that he should show his greatness in Torah. Tosafot answers that when there is no purpose for the counterpart to know of his scholarship, he should hide it. When others should know that one is a talmid chacham, he should let it be known. If one is lucky, he will not have to say so himself, which is uncomfortable for one with internal humility. If he needs to, he should find the appropriate way to let out the information. Using a resume and a confident (not haughty) presentation of one's accomplishments and qualifications is appropriate to secure a job. (It is better to hint or cite facts than to make a self- appraisal.) A rabbi must ensure that his class or congregation knows it can rely on his expertise. An institution that needs money to continue its work has an obligation to its projects and dependents to convince potential donors that it is a wise philanthropic choice. If they do so too openly, they will be viewed as lacking anava. If they do not feel uncomfortable doing so, they may have lost their internal anava. So "show what you've got," as necessary, now and in the future, and continue to feel uncomfortable about it. Ask the Rabbi Q&A is part of Hemdat Yamim, the
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Rebbe is partially funded by the Jewish Agency for Israel This interpretation would seem to fly in the face of all reasonable thought. After all, Moshe had correctly predicted nine terrible and unusual events that had literally plagued the Egyptian people. He then predicted the most terrible of all - the death of Egypt's first-borns. Imagine that he had said that this would take place exactly at midnight. Let's assume that the palace clocks were inaccurate and according to their time all the first- borns died at midnight plus twenty seconds. What is the response of Egypt's best and brightest? "You see how Moshe is nothing but a liar." The level of self deception and refusal to face facts is so mind boggling that we might well wonder at the sanity of such wise men or, alternatively, at what the Tamudic sages were trying to tell us in this seemingly odd interpretation. Perhaps the lesson to be drawn from this discussion is that the Rabbis profoundly understood the true nature of man and the depths of his psyche: 1) We don't like to face unpleasant truths. Should we be surprised by the ancient Egyptian think tank's reaction? After all, modern Jewish history has seen its Egypts and their wise men, perhaps those Ph.D.s who met at Wansee or commanded Einsatzgruppen. It has witnessed the birth of a Jewish State in which Jews no longer have to live under non- Jewish rule, in which Torah flourishes, and in which we are called to help shape our destiny. Is it possible there are yet those wise and many
who are more than wise who are still waiting because they think that this
great drama of Reishit Tzemichat Geulateinu is but an illusion? Do their
sojourns in the Egypts of Jewish History continue because the details of the
Reishit do not meet their redemption clocks? R' Yisrael Salanter found out about this. One night, he went to the HEKDESH, lay down on the ground, and slept there that entire night. In the morning, they saw that R' Yisrael had spent
the night there, and a commotion arose in the city. The community leaders
immediately began to repair the building. "Rebbe," he was asked, "why do you do this?" "When I read these," replied R' Zvi, "I realize
how people regard me, and I resolve to be careful not to sin out of respect
for the writers." The plagues touched every aspect of the physical world, to show the Egyptians that Hashem alone controls all forces of nature (not that there are many different forces as the Egyptians believed). In the ninth plague the Egyptians were hit by darkness. Why did Hashem bring this plague? For one thing, it is very hard to do anything without light. That is why a blind person, who is in the dark all the time, is considered as dead. He is cut off from connection with everything in the world; objects, people, even in some ways himself because he can not see himself. That is why light was the first thing that Hashem created. The midrash Shmot Rabba relates a practical reason for the darkness. There were some wicked Jews who had become wealthy in Egypt and did not want to leave with their brethren. Hashem brought on the darkness so that He could kill those Jews without the Egyptians noticing. Otherwise the Egyptians would say that the Jews died for the same reason as the Egyptians (and not because they were wicked in their own way). The Chidushei Harim teaches us a moral lesson from the plague of darkness. He says that the worst type of darkness is when one Jew doesn't want to see the sorrow of his fellow Jew and doesn't lend a helping hand. That's how the Avnei Ezel explains Chazals words that the darkness had the thickness of a gold coin. Running after money increases a person's selfishness and makes it hard for him to see the hardship of others. The Jewish people did not suffer from any of the
plagues. Therefore while the Egyptians were blinded by the thick darkness,
the Jews were basking in the light. The Rebbe from Kotzk says that Hashem
even let them enjoy the special light, created on the first day of the
world, that had been hidden immediately after its creation so wicked people
could not benefit from it. In Egypt, since all the wicked people were
sitting in the dark, Hashem let out this unique light for the Jews. May we
"see" the plight of our brothers and help each other in whatever way we can
so we may be worthy of this special light speedily in our day. The technical reason for withholding the lamb, offered by Rashi, is that the lamb would need to be checked for blemishes, a process that normally takes four days. However, since the Egyptians considered the sheep a deity, the rabbis note that the tethering of the lambs was designed to induce their curiosity, if not their anger at their (former) slaves. Miraculously, the Egyptians not only refrained from reprisals, they allowed the Jews to leave with their silver and gold utensils appropriated during the plague of darkness. A Chassidic interpretation of this 4-day delay stresses the self-sacrifice made by the individual, in the light of what could have been a disastrous act on the part of the Jewish householder. Moreover, the goal was to take an object of extreme idol worship - with which the Jews were highly accustomed - and to transform it gradually into an object of holiness. In the natural course of events, eating turns food into the very essence of the individual, to blood that is associated with the Nefesh or soul. Thus, it is not surprising that, in that fashion, the consumption of the Korban Pesach in those ancient times marked the beginning of the spiritual journey of Bnei Yisrael, characterized by sacrifice, in every sense of the word. Shabbat Shalom, Menachem Persoff [The Parshat Bo Homepage]
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