June 26th: Korach
THIS WEEK IN THE TORAH
Rabbi David E. Ostrich
Korach is both one of the most distressing and the most satisfying of Torah portions. It is delightfully satisfying because Moses’ egotistical and selfish enemy is literally swallowed up into the earth. "Moses said, 'By this you shall know that it was the Lord who sent me to do all these things; that they are not of my own devising: if these men die as all men do, if their lot be the common fate of all mankind, it was not the Lord who sent me. But, if the Lord brings about something unheard-of, so that the ground opens its mouth and swallows them up with all that belongs to them, and they go down alive into Sheol, you shall know that these men have spurned the Lord.' Scarcely had he finished speaking all these words when the ground under Korach and his followers burst asunder, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up with their households, all Korach's people and all their possessions." (Numbers 16.28-33)
It's not that I'm bloodthirsty, but wouldn't it be lovely to win an argument so decisively?! Argument over! Case closed! Boom! Then, of course, the angel within takes over, and I wonder why Korach's complaints had to lead to such a total and tragic disaster.
The text is not particularly helpful in understanding his issues. He complains about Moses’ leadership and status, but the details are rather vague. When he and his band of 250 accost Moses and Aaron, they say, "You have gone too far! For all the community are holy, all of them, and the Lord is in their midst. Why then do you raise yourselves above the Lord's congregation?" (Numbers 16.3)
It seems that all they want is fairness and equality—a point noted by every Bar/Bat Mitzvah student of mine who has worked with this portion. The Torah text does not show any nefarious motives on Korach’s part, and the aspiring teenagers side with him because his demands seem quite reasonable. Why should not all the Israelites be on equal-footing with Moses?
Well and good, but the text does provide another salient factor, God’s FURY! God is so angry at Korach and anyone who listens to him that the initial Divine inclination is to destroy the entire Israelite nation (except Moses and Aaron). As dramatic and devastating as the earthquake is, it is God’s less severe response. So, figuring that God knows Korach’s true motivations, the Tradition has always read Korach’s demands as nothing but selfishness, jealousy, and rebelliousness for its own sake.
If we read the Torah as a a manipulative document justifying one group’s rule over another group, then Korach’s complaint seems reasonable and his treatment a miscarriage of justice. However, if we read the Torah as a history of God training a stiff-necked people to be a holy community, then Korach’s protest seems inappropriate and possibly disruptive to the mission. Is he sincere, or is he ego-driven? Is he attempting to help, or is he thriving on disruption as a means to raise his stature? Is he telling the truth, or is he couching his selfish, power-grabbing aspirations in high-sounding platitudes about equality? Though we moderns like to think in terms of democracy, that is not the the Weltanschauung (worldview) of ancient Israelite society. They see themselves in a military model—with a Commander (God) giving commandments (mitzvot) to the commanded (the Israelites). Discipline and obedience are central to the Torah’s approach, and Korach presents as disruptive and disloyal.
And, we must sadly admit, even if it were a democratic setting, dishonest people can use the ideals of equality and fairness as pretenses for less-than-democratic goals. Korach speaks of equality, but there is no indication that he is willing to give up his own special Levitical status—a never-earned privilege that he attains just by being born into the Tribe of Levi. Do his demands really call for full equality, or is he hoping to use his new-found stature to rise among the Levites to Moses’ level? When I think of his possible subterfuge, I think of George Orwell’s Animal Farm and Napoleon the Pig, a leader who speaks of liberty and equality but who twists them into: “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.” When we hear the words of idealistic reformers, it behooves us to look into their souls and ascertain their sincerity and how they will respond to power.
Perhaps a hint to Korach’s true motivations can be found in the way he presents his message. He gathers and whips up an angry mob and then accosts Moses and Aaron. Though he cites no evidence, he accuses Moses—his cousin and a man known as the humblest of human beings—of ill-gotten gains and haughtiness. Rather than present his complaints and proposals in a constructive way, he ramps up the anger and tries to turn “democracy” into a mob. Whatever political capital he may have—with perhaps legitimate issues, he squanders it with his ego-involvement and hostility. Perhaps we should ask about Korach’s real audience? Is he trying to convince Moses to be more democratic, or is his real goal to stir up a rebellion that he can take over? As I look around at political leadership, I get the feeling that some are more interested in prominence than improvement—more interested in being seen as tough enough “to take on the man,” than in trying to work with the system for actual solutions. Let us beware of such Korach’s. I worry they are not leading us to the Promised Land.
The case of Korach is exceedingly troubling because we do not know his heart. He could be a legitimate reformer, or he could be a demagogic rebel. His disapproval of Moses could be based on a different vision of a holy community, or it could spring from no more than his own jealousy and greed. The Tradition comes down hard on Korach based on God’s rather decisive judgment, and we are left wondering what this human being really intended. I believe that the ultimate message is less about this ancient character and more about us—us and our own motivations. When we lead or when we object, when we support or when we rebel, what is truly in our hearts? Are our goals noble, or are they selfish? Are they pure, or are they tainted with an over-abundance of ego and self-indulgence? Let us conclude with these words from Rabbi Yochanan the Sandalmaker in Pirke Avot (4.14): “Every assembly which is for the sake of Heaven will eventually endure. And one which is not for the sake of heaven will not endure.”