FOR VAYIKRA
EMPOWERING LEADERSHIP
It seems that most of the free and advanced world breathed a sigh of relief late last week when the news came through that Hugo Chavez, autocratic president of Venezuela, had died. I have friends and colleagues who currently reside in that country. They, together with their communities, did not shed any tears when they learned they were rid of this man.
Chavez possessed a big mouth. He pursued his popularity and fame through bluster. He openly, and needlessly, took on the mighty United States, behaving immaturely towards the President – while, at the same time, most of his oil and export business was, in fact, with the United States. He befriended and championed many leaders of countries hostile to the United States – whose hostility to the free world is as a result of oppressing people, or at least supporting regimes of terror and evil.
Back in Venezuela, as a typical dictator, he hunted his opposition, controlled the media, and gave himself sweeping abilities and powers. He was heading, it seems, to de-facto control of everything. He was very much turning into a prototypical Communist dictator, who, as history has proven, have suppressed and controlled people due to their own paranoia and their need for control and absolute power.
The Jewish religion, and those who wish to observe it, have never fared well under such circumstances. Dictators fear religion. Jewish observance has terribly suffered under people with such ideas of suppressing freedom.
Some argue that Chavez fought for and delivered aid to the poor. They point to the hope he provided to the downtrodden. They promote his standing for the national pride of Venezuela, his country.
A person seeking to perform good deeds should have no reason to hide. Nothing can be more heartwarming and superior than providing support and benefit to those in need. To offer hope to those in despair is wonderful. If such actions, however, lead to muzzling and stifling the opposition, the actions of goodness purported to support and aid the people are not the motivating factor. They are, instead, a front for this person’s need for power and control.
It is unfortunate that, out of despair, so many people buy into this type of “salvation.” History has proven how once such people are on the course, there is very little anyone can do to turn back the clock until it is too late. Tens of millions of human beings remain trapped in oppressive countries like North Korea, Mongolia, Saudi Arabia, and so forth. Their pitiful conditions did not begin this way.
On the surface, or on paper, it would seem that a government providing all needs for its citizens should be ideal. In this way, people are guaranteed food, housing, a little stipend, and all their basic needs.
At the same time, they are typically fed only the information that their leaders wish them to know. Truth is withheld, lest it interfere with how the masses perceive their so-called leader. In the end, these systems that should seem to work, typically fail quite miserably.
According to the Torah, a balance between the individual and community is crucial for any form of success in governance, as evidenced in the presentation of this week’s Torah portion, “Vayikra,” the opening portion of the Torah’s eponymous third book, Leviticus. The portion presents instruction for offerings to the Temple and addresses several forms of submissions, such as voluntary, peace, sin, and guilt offerings.
Nowhere in this week’s portion, though, does the Torah address communal offerings. This includes neither the directives regarding the daily offerings nor the special Shabbos and festival offerings, which are, instead, discussed at length in other portions.
One would think that communal obligations would precede private offerings. What is even more surprising is how the opening discussion addresses voluntary offerings, not obligatory ones.
The role of offerings and sacrifices was a central one, if not the most central, in the Temple. This would be an opportunity for the people to approach, to come close and to bond with the Almighty, in His place. It was a time of reflection and introspection, providing inspiration and focus for all people.
And yet, it is the individual that precedes the community, and the voluntary ahead of the obligatory. This is because the community is only properly functional when its individuals are unrestricted. True, the benefit of the whole takes precedence over any individual. This must always be the case. But if any individual is suppressed, inhibited, or crushed, the entire community loses.
The Torah, in its presentation of the central and critical role of the Temple – namely, the sacrifices – goes first with the individual, and with donations, rather than duties and requirements. The Torah is teaching that a successful community is predicated upon respect for the individual and personal choices.
While a major role of government is to focus on provisions for the needs of its subjects, its primary role is to enable its citizens to be themselves and to excel. In this manner, the collective whole is strengthened beyond measure, since it come from the people.
The greatest leaders also promote and enable their followers to become leaders in their own right. In this way, the community or country is blessed with success.
SUMMARY: Leaders, who claim to provide their citizens with all their needs, while overpowering and squashing them, are actually weak and destructive.