This week’s Miller’s Musings is sponsored by:
Shmuli and Mimi Kopftsein in honour of their beloved family
בס''ד
Debate and intellectual disputes have been a key component of Jewish life and learning for thousands of years. They come with the proviso that they must always be predicated upon mutual respect and a genuine thirst for truth for them to be considered valuable. Yet the exchange that takes place between Moshe and Hashem does cause alarm bells to ring. For if G-d has decided that Moshe was to be the one to lead the Jewish people out of Egypt, we must pause to wonder what Moshe’s thinking was to claim that he was not appropriate to do so, given his weakness in oratory skills. In truth the very notion of Moshe arguing with Hashem is tremendously challenging to grasp. But if we put that to one side, we will instead look solely at the logic of his contention that he was the wrong choice.
The concept of humility is one that is often misconstrued and one which we have dealt with before. The basic principle is that humility is not claiming that one is nothing and has no worth, but rather the belief that one has many wonderful qualities, but that they are all gifts from Hashem. The upshot of this, is that since these have been given by Hashem, they have been given for a reason. It is therefore incumbent upon us to make use of those faculties for purposes which Hashem would want us to use them for. Instead of humility forcing us to cower away from responsibility, it in fact compels us towards it. The corollary of this, however, is that if, due to no fault of our own, we have not been given the capabilities to perform a given role, it must simply be the case that this is not a role Hashem envisaged for us. Perhaps then this was Moshe’s assertion to Hashem. Since I lack the wherewithal to effectively communicate, it must be that this is not the task that was assigned to me.
We spend much of our lives trying to ascertain our place in the great scheme. We strive to understand what we are meant to be doing and what our path is meant to be. But as much as we need to resolve what it is that we should be doing, we also need to be cognizant of those tasks that are not part of our life’s purpose. There is no way that every person can achieve everything and there are some roles that are not meant for us. This is not a lacking in us or a poor reflection of our life’s choices, it is a necessary part of human existence where not all things can be achieved by all people. There needs to be an acceptance of this, for otherwise it can lead to disillusionment and despondency with regard to our situation in life. If we have done all we can do but are simply lacking the means to fulfil a particular duty or position, then this is quite simply not what Hashem wants from us and if He does not want it from us, we should be accepting and not want it from ourselves.
*May this Shabbos help us see clearly where we are meant to be*
לעילוי נשמת לאה בת אברהם
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