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Parshat Emor

The Leadership of a Generation

Rabbi Alan Iser

The Torah begins rather simply by stating: “The Lord said to Moses: Speak to the

priests (Kohanim) the sons of Aaron and say to them . . “ (Leviticus 21:1). The text

then proceeds to discuss the laws of ritual defilement for priests, particularly with

regard to contact with the dead, to whom priests can be married, and what

disqualifies them for priestly service. There is a fascinating midrash that takes this

opening verse in a seemingly different direction. What did God actually tell

Moses? God showed him every generation and its judges, kings, sages and leaders

as well as its robbers and thieves (Leviticus Rabbah 26:7).

What in the world is this midrash doing here? For the rabbinic author of

this homily, God is instructing Moses, Aaron and his sons about the nature of

leadership, beyond the particulars of their ritual involvement.

The great Hassidic master, Rabbi Simcha Bunim of Peshicha, understood

the phrase “every generation and its leaders” to mean each generation gets a

leader according to its needs. Thus a lesser generation needs a greater leader. He

draws an analogy to illness. The more severe the illness, the more expert

physician the patient needs. However, history shows us that this is not always the

case. Not every generation gets a Lincoln or a Churchill in a time of crisis.

Another commentary on our midrash by a twentieth century Polish rabbi,

Rabbi Aharon Levin, pointedly asks, “Why did God show Moses the robbers and

thieves of each generation?” The answer, he says, is that what is considered a

crime in one generation, is not necessarily considered a crime in another. What is

murder in one generation is called patriotism and survival by another. What is

referred to by one generation as hypocrisy and corruption is referred to by

another as ideological conflict and party loyalty. So, by knowing the nature of a

generation’s robbers and thieves, one can tell the nature of the generation and its

leaders (Hadrash Vehaiyun).

In my opinion, scurrilous individuals are occasionally at the margins of

society and sometimes they are in positions of power. We need the perspective of

history to properly judge our leaders. Rabbi Levin himself was no stranger to

politics. He was one of the foremost leaders of Polish Jewry in the interwar years,

serving in the Polish Parliament in the 1920’s and 1930’s. Rabbi Levin modelled

leadership and Jewish values in his most famous speech in the Polish parliament

when he argued for abolishing the death penalty. He was murdered by the Nazis

in 1941.

Does each generation get the leadership it deserves? How should we judge

political leaders from the viewpoint of Jewish values? These are vital questions

which rabbis both ancient and modern pondered, as we must, too, today.

Rabbi Alan Iser is a retired rabbi who previously was a congregational rabbi,

Hillel director and adjunct professor at St. Joseph’s University, Villanova

University and St. Charles Borromeo Seminary.