Responsible Leader 

Can you imagine someone running for public office, and their flyer would state that the candidate is a humble statesman? Or that he is modest? That candidate would become a laughingstock in the world of politics. And now, close your eyes and imagine the following. Imagine a leader saying: “oops.” Or “I made a mistake.”  Unthinkable!

Yet, that is exactly what this parsha celebrates.

We read of three different kinds of national figures who sin – the high priest, the president, and the high court. When describing the situation of the high priest and the Sanhedrin, it says “if” they sin.1 When discussing the president, however, the Torah uses a different language. The Torah writes “that a president shall sin” instead of “if”. Rabbi Yochanan Ben Zakkai notes that the Hebrew word “asher” (that), utilized in the Torah, contains the same root letters of “ashrei” (happy). The double entendre is actually intended and not a random or poetic change of style. Happy is the generation, he says, who has a leader who is willing to admit his mistake in public.2

The Maharal of Prague expands on the uniqueness of this idea. The president is not too embarrassed or afraid of what the polls will say. He is humble. He is also responsible enough to admit publicly to his error. The generation in which such an individual is the leader is truly unique - and fortunate.

We may then view the leader as a true leader and emulate his actions. If that leads us to our own path to meaning then all is good. But if we do not have a leader who can serve as a role model for us, then we are obligated to search for that leader who can help us to move towards our unique meaning. That leader may even be hidden within.

“Man is revealed as a being in search of meaning”—Frankl

As we celebrate Dr. Viktor Frankl’s 120th birthday, we remember his message that it is our responsibility towards ourselves to find that path. We have our own unique life with our own unique meanings as we are “beings in search of meaning”.3

It would be wonderful if we had leaders who could show us the way. But even if that is lacking, we can be our own humble, responsible  leaders to ourselves and help ourselves discover our own meaning in our lives.

Image by Dorothe from Pixabay

Footnotes

  1. Vayikra Chapter 4 discusses the three different personalities and their respective Sin Offerings
  2. Tosefta Bava Kama 7:2
  3. Frankl, Viktor E.. The Unheard Cry for Meaning: Psychotherapy and Humanism (p. 16). Touchstone. Kindle Edition.

 

Have A Great Shabbat!laughing

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