Parshat Korach: What Kind of Leaders Do We Need?

This week’s parashah/portion is Korach (Bamidbar/Numbers 16:1 - 18:32). It tells the story of a revolt against Moses’s leadership led by his cousin Korach and 250 elected leaders of the community. They didn’t revolt because Moses was an unjust leader or because the people were being oppressed. Rather, the reason for the revolt can be found in Korach’s statement “All the people are holy...why then do you [Moses] raise yourself above God’s congregation?” In other words, this is a revolt based on jealousy and ego.

Centuries later the rabbis of the Talmud asked what constitutes an “argument for the sake of heaven?” The arguments of Korach and his followers are the prime example of an argument that is NOT for the sake of heaven, which I will define as “for the good of the community.”

Moses’s response to Korach, after his initial shock, is to tell him that “God will make known who is holy and who is not.” And after a ritual which proves to the whole community that Moses is God’s chosen leader, the earth opens up and swallows Korach and all his followers. If that’s not proof that they were in the wrong, then what is?

When Korach and his followers challenge Moses’s authority, it is God’s authority and decision making which is ultimately being challenged. For it was God who chose Moses as their leader, just as it was God who chose the Israelites to be God’s treasured nation.

The concepts of chosenness, leadership, ego and revolt are central to this  narrative. However, I couldn’t help but think that this week’s narrative have something important to teach us during these uniques and difficult times.

As we celebrate this Shabbat this week there are three forces interacting in our country and beyond. We are in the midst of a week which has seen a significant increase in cases of Covid-19, even as our president, some governors, and others continue to downplay this and obscure the facts. At the same time, the movement for peace and justice for people of color in the face of police brutality and systemic racism continues unabated.

Finally, this is the culmination of Pride month, when we both celebrate the LGBTQ community and remember the work that still needs to be done. This is actually “Pride Shabbat” in many places and this weekend is the 50th anniversary of the first Pride March in New York City, one year after the Stonewall uprisings.

And so this is a time when equality, protest, and community are in the forefront of our minds. This also reminds us that leadership is of great importance. It was grassroots leadership chosen by the people, and not by some higher authority, which is at the forefront of the LGBTQ rights movement, the Black Lives Matter movement, and all social justice movements.  It is the leadership of those willing to act for the good of the community that has caused the Black Lives Matter movement to continue to grow, rather than die off.  It is leadership for the sake of heaven which continues to fight for the rights of LGBTQ people as well.

At the same time, it is a lack of governmental leadership which has brought us to where we are in terms of the Covid-19 epidemic. And it is a lack of governmental leadership, as well as unethical leadership, which has brought us to the point we are in terms of racial inequality and systemic racism. And is the leadership of our broken justice and policing system which has allowed things to get where they are today.

And yet, it doesn’t have to be this way, because it has also been through  governmental leadership, specifically the past administration and, somewhat surprisingly, the Supreme Court, which has allowed us to celebrate successes in the LGBTQ movement in terms of marriage, and more importantly, the right to work. And it is the biased leadership of the current administration which has slowly tried to erode the rights achieved by LGBTQ people, including access to health care. It has also been this administration and others who have tried to prevent and suppress the BLM movement to express itself through free speech and protest. Like Korach and his followers they are leaders serving their own personal agendas and their public perception rather than thinking of the good of all. Instead of being motivated by a love of community, equality, and compassion, they are motivated by a sense of entitlement, privilege, and inequality. 

In the Torah narrative the people are chosen to be God’s “treasured nation” and Moses is chosen by God to be their leader. Neither chose their roles voluntarily. The leaders of the LGBTQ rights movement, the Black Lives Matter movement, and all movements for social justice were not chosen by some higher power. They were not chosen by God. Today's protest movement was brought about by the systemic racism that is ingrained in our country, just as Stonewall was brought about by unjust laws which punished people for their sexual orientation or expression of gender identity. In both cases the people were drawn to protest and revolt.  And it was from those people protesting that leaders were choses.

However, our political leaders have been chosen. They’ve not been chosen by God, though some might want you to believe that they were. Rather, they were chosen by the people (even if they did not receive the majority of actual votes). That means their mandate is to serve and protect  the people, just as Moses’s responsibility was to God and, by extension, to the people as well. 

However, so many governmental leaders and their followers are dividing the people and instead serving themselves and their warped ideology that they are truly following in Korach’s footsteps. 

This is even true in terms of the Covid-19 pandemic, where the role of our leaders should be to protect the people, even when it may be inconvenient or isn’t good for “optics.” There are many state and local leaders who have done just that. Governor Cuomo of New York is just one example. He’s certainly not someone without an ego or a desire to be popular, after all what politician is? Yet, it is the health and safety of the people that is guiding him and not his ego.

However, the president, much of his administration, and many state and local leaders, seem to see their role as either serving the privileged or maintaining their approval ratings. All of this is being done in the name of defending individual rights. But individual rights to not give permission to individuals to act in ways that are potentially harmful to others. And reviving the economy does not take precedence over protecting the lives of the people.  If those prioritizing the economy did so in order to support those most in need, I might be willing to listen to them. But even then, those people can be helped right now by increased government assistance rather than being forced to go back to work and risk their lives.

But I don’t truly believe that those pushing this action have the good of the people in mind. For if they  were truly looking out for the people they would realize that the recovery of the economy is IMPOSSIBLE without first controlling the pandemic. And so, those so-called leaders are willing to sacrifice the lives of thousands more and provide a false sense of security rather than keeping people safe and at home, while being provided for by the government, until the pandemic is truly under control. It will cost, rather than make, money. But that is not a reason to ignore what is necessary.

As a Reconstructionist, I have problems with the doctrine of chosenness. I reject it. I believe it causes us to act in a superior way, even if that is not it’s intentions. I also believe it implies that acting in a holy way is not a personal choice, it is something that is foisted upon us by God. This is the antithesis of how we need to look at the world today. We each must choose how to serve our community and how to heal our country and our world. We need to make the personal choice to fight for justice for all oppressed groups. We need to make the choice to protest and act for change because we know that we are equal and created in God’s image. 

We must choose leaders now who want to lead because they want to work to achieve equality for everyone. We must also do the same in November when we choose who is to lead our country. If we choose those who have the good of the community, our country, and our world we will once again be on the right path.

If we instead elect those who believe that they are the chosen ones and act from that place we risk repeating the punishment meted out to Korach and the other rebels, all of whom were supposed to be leaders of the people. The only difference is that we will all be swallowed up, and it will be our unjust leaders who will be left standing. And that will mean destruction for our country and our world.