"To be a teacher in the right sense is to be a learner.  I am not a teacher, only a fellow student."  (Soren Kierkegaard)

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A FEW PRE-SHABBAT AND POST SHAVUOT WORDS FROM RABBI AARON

Breakdown
The rebellion of Korach comes on the heels of the story of the Spies and the Israelite reaction to the majority report. Many of our commentaries see a larger theme of breakdown and rebellion in the wilderness. When we read parashat korach closely we confront several challenges in the narrative. The text does not read smoothly. It's as if we're trying to peer through the fog of war. 

Is there more than one rebellion? The text lists Korach as a ringleader, but we also find Datan and Aviram agitating against the leadership. And there's mention of two hundred fifty chieftains allied to Korach. As readers we can follow the lead of classic writers [Hirsch, Abravanel, others] and construct a picture of several revolts coming together as a large coalition threatening the leadership of Moses and Aaron. Another option is to view the Torah's narrative as a blended story which evolved from earlier literary traditions reflecting separate revolts. This modern approach notes the usage of specific phrases in certain verses [a few  examples: levites versus chieftains, divine punishment by fire versus earthquake, Moses appeals to God to refuse the rebels' korban versus minchah, etc] and concludes that the Torah's narrative has artistically pulled all these strands together into one dramatic event.

A few quick observations
Hirsch's close reading yields some important insights about Korach's motivation. His words resonate deeply as we think about the difference between a revolutionary and a demagogue. Korach is a skilled wordsmith. He knows how to play the populist card. Moses, however, sees through the clever speeches as he unmasks Korach's greed - it's really about his coveting the role of the kohanim. Datan and Aviram have their own agenda. They're not really interested in the role of koheyn; they ask Moses: who appointed you? 

The earth swallows them up...
You have to admit - special effects are terrific in this section of the Torah. You would think that God's powerful intervention would put a definite stop to the Israelites' murmuring against Moses and Aaron. You would be wrong. The people are subdued by the blunt force of God's wrath but there is no reconciliation here. There is no winning of hearts and minds. Beyond the wow factor we might consider the all-too-real phenomenon of the revolution that consumes its own children. We find ourselves witness to a number of revolutions occurring right now - and if anything at all is clear, it is that we cannot easily make sense of the unfolding events. Like other revolutions, earlier leaders [students, women] are pushed aside by other actors [military, more politically and culturally conservative groups]. In the cases of each revolt there is a particular spark that ignites the conflagration but that initial event doesn't really explain the multiple agendas being acted upon by various parties.

...sorry. I'm not so sure that the story is meant to be that simple unless the moral is: you had better be obedient and compliant unless you want God to swallow you whole. My own take is that Moses and Aaron find themselves buffeted by relentless smear campaigns, and they finally (understandably) lash out in anger when the agitators paint them as illegitimate leaders who have grabbed power unjustly. While their call for serious divine backup yielded overwhelming firepower - it's so important to note that even the fire and the quake do very little to resolve the breakdown in the wilderness. Moses and Aaron regroup but long-lasting damage has been done. Finally, our parasha offers an excellent study in demagoguery. Korach feels like a modern political animal whose dangerousness lies in his cynical manipulation of words and emotions. Korach's descendants have learned his techniques well.

Rabbi Aaron

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