Parashat Pinchas - Passing Along Leadership

In my writings this year I have mostly commented on events happening in Israel and the Jewish world. That is the spirit of this project and that is what I will continue to do. However, this week's world events and the Torah portion seemed to align in such an interesting way that I could not help myself and step outside of my normal content and make the connection. 

In this week’s portion the following is written: 

“Moses spoke to GOD, saying, “Let GOD, Source of the breath of all flesh, appoint someone over the community who shall go out before them and come in before them, and who shall take them out and bring them in, so that GOD’s community may not be like sheep that have no shepherd.”

And GOD answered Moses, “Single out Joshua son of Nun, an inspired man, and lay your hand upon him. Have him stand before Eleazar the priest and before the whole community, and commission him in their sight. Invest him with some of your authority, so that the whole Israelite community may obey. But he shall present himself to Eleazar the priest, who shall on his behalf seek the decision of the Urim before GOD. By such instruction they shall go out and by such instruction they shall come in, he and all the Israelites, and the whole community.”

Moses did as GOD commanded him. He took Joshua and had him stand before Eleazar the priest and before the whole community. He laid his hands upon him and commissioned him—as GOD had spoken through Moses.” (Numbers 27:15-23)

Moses, no longer a young man, has a moment of tremendous clarity as he takes a moment to consider all that has happened between his interaction with the unconsumed burning bush, through the wilderness, to this moment of the Israelite arrival on the doorstep of the Land of Israel. As he takes stock of all he has done, I am sure he was filled with incredible pride from all he accomplished, and deservedly so. 

Alongside that feeling of deserved pride, there were likely other emotions as well. The wanderings bamidbar - in the wilderness (the Hebrew name of the book of Numbers) had taken their toll. He daily had to care for the entire Israelite nation. He faced revolt both against his leadership and against the will and plan of God. He lost his beloved sister and his brother, who had served as his right hand for nearly the entirety of the journey. He shepherded, he guided, he protected - he gave so much of himself for people he never met and often did not realize just how much he affected their lives for the better. He poured his soul into his people for forty years and, as they approached the Promised Land, Moses was tired. So he turned to God, realizing that his days as leader were coming to an end, and asked God to find him a replacement. There was no joy in this decision. In fact, I am sure it pained Moses greatly to do so. Yet, he knew the time had come to pass along the mantle of leadership, to hand it to a new generation, to let them finish the mission to which he had dedicated his life. 

This week we got to witness a real life example of leadership being passed from the older to the younger generation when President Joe Biden announced that he would not accept the Democratic party’s nomination for president. Three and a half years into an extremely productive and successful presidency by any measure, Biden made the difficult decision to not seek the presidency for a second, instead passing the baton on to Vice President Harris. 

I can only imagine what an agonizing decision this must have been. Biden ran for and won the presidency in 2020 speaking about a fight for the soul of America. He inherited a deeply divided America in the midst of a pandemic and its costly economic consequences. Against all odds, Biden was able to summon the spirit of what feels like bygone bipartisanism to make massive investments in American infrastructure and industry. While not all the issues facing the United States were solved on his watch, I believe that history will show that he took a nation in crisis and led it into calmer waters. 

Alongside all of these successes, Biden also had to face a reality that all human beings must, from the least to the most powerful, the passage of time. He had spent decades in the wilderness of politics fighting battles, building coalitions, working on behalf of others. 

In his personal life he had faced loss and sacrifice, never letting his tragedy dim his faith in the future. Even so, these events no doubt took a great toll. All of those losses, all of the years of service meant that he was not the young man who so many years ago was elected to the United States Senate.

While his tireless work on behalf of his nation was unceasing, willing to give all of himself to ensure the safety and wellbeing of others, the bright light of energy and youth was more difficult to discern from the outside. The fire that burned so brightly in years past was, while still unquestioningly still present, was not the conflagration it once was. 

He walked alongside his people for nearly two generations, leading every step of the way. But, as happens with all nations, those that walked beside him in years past were no longer those who made up the nation today. While appreciative of all he had done, so many in the nation that did not grow up and grow old alongside him no longer saw him as the model of leadership they so badly sought that would lead them in their next steps into an uncertain future. 

I am sure that he did not want to step aside. What leader who has been so committed and so successful ever does? Yet from his position of leadership he looked around and was able to recognize the new and unfamiliar place in which he found himself: the road behind him was long, winding, and full of accomplishment while the road ahead was shorter than ever before. He could see the promised land, he could look down and still recognize the destination where the journey was all leading. And for the first time he was not sure that he would make it alongside his people. While he could have ignored all that he saw, he once again rose to the call of leadership and said that, for the betterment of his nation and his people, he would let someone else lead the rest of the way. I am not sure how many historical examples of this there are, certainly there are very few in our modern era, and its rarity speaks to both its difficulty as well as its bravery. 

There are those who will view this decision cynically. There will be voices who claim ‘he had no choice’ or ‘he was pushed out’. Making a decision of this magnitude is, of course, made up of myriad considerations. But think about how rare it is, in our day or really in any time period, for someone who has been imbued with incredible power to, rather than doing all he can to keep it, knowingly set aside their own personal gain for the betterment of the whole. Because of the times we live in we can often misread moral courage when we see it. But make no mistake, this decision was an incredible example of putting the many ahead of oneself. 

Great leaders recognize the moment. They are able to look around and understand that, no matter how much good they have done, no matter how much they have contributed, their hour has passed. They have given everything of themselves, but now have to believe that their sacrifice and example will inspire the next generation to lead to new places, to new heights that even the greatest leaders can only imagine. 

Neither Moses nor Joe Biden wanted to step down. In their heart of hearts they believed that they were the man for the job. Their bravery in accepting what others demanded of them rather than what their soul was telling them is what great leaders are remembered for. While Biden is no Moses (because there is no one quite like Moses) the parallels between these two towering figures of history coinciding this week is, to my mind, not a coincidence. It reminds us that great leaders, great leadership, are timeless. They take different forms and are embodied by different people, but what we seek in our leaders changes very little across the ages. 

I will just add one personal note as I conclude. Joe Biden reminds me a great deal of my grandfather, of blessed memory. Born to a generation far different than mine, yet effortlessly embodies the best of what America offers: family, decency, honesty, grit, and compassion. We will not soon see leaders of their ilk because the generations that shaped them will slowly leave us in the next years. We will, I think, miss them more than we know. 

I want to end by saying: thank you, Joe. Thank you for believing in America, for believing in me. Thank you for your steadfastness, your decency, your care for your fellow Americans. Thank you for loving Israel, for understanding the Jewish story in a way that few non-Jews have. Thank you for reminding me that the promise of America, while never quite fulfilled, is a guidepost to creating one of humanity’s greatest societies. When my time comes to walk away from leadership, and may that day be far from now, if I can look back and say, “I led like Joe,” I will know that I have done something right.