TORAH PORTION
You're Needed
Today. Because
Someone Will
Need Us
Tomorrow.
Our waiting list
includes a toddler.
When she becomes an
adult, her parents
want to know her
future is secure, no
matter what happens
to them.
Help JARC last as
long as it's needed
with your lasting
endowment gift.
That little girl, and
the 280 others on our
list, will thank you all
their lives.
A Jewish Association for Residential Care
for persons with developmental disabilities
28366 Franklin Road Southfield, MI 48034 ,(313) 352-5272
Love
Kids?
Good in
Math?
We Want
You!
SQL
DBASE
njoy a part-time career with unique rewards as a
Kumon CenterOwner and Instructor! You'll spend two
afternoons per week helping kids learn with the Kumon
Method of mathematics... featured in Time, Newsweek and
the Wall Street journal for its outstanding results. Start-up
expenses are nominal and to qualify all you need is a
fundamental ability in math—teaching experience
is not required.
An information meeting will be held in
your area soon. Discover a new career that
can give you financial rewards as
well as the satisfaction of know-
ing you're bringing the joy of
learning to growing young
minds! For full details and
a free brochure call
1-800-937-6284
Monday—Friday, 9 to 5
e.
KUMON
NEED A PROGRAMMER?
...OR AN INTERPRETER?
'C'
COBOL
CCR Analysts grasp your
business requirements and
interpret them for our
programmer "propeller
heads" and "hackers."
Saves you learning a new language
Z ORIENTAL RUGS
we buy them, sell them,
appraise them, clean them
repair them
and Love them!
In-Home & Office
Carpet Cleaning
(313) 399-2323
OAK PARK OUTLET • 546 - RUGS
BIRMINGHAM • 646-RUGS
• 973-RUGS
ANN ARBOR
CCR Center for Computer Resources
CLASSIFIED
GET RESULTS!
547-5540
Call The Jewish News
3895 W. 12 Mile
Berkley
48
E
Contact lack Parish or David Bite!
FRIDAY, JUNE 21, 1991
354-5959
Aaron's Legacy:
Gentle Peacemaking
RABBI RICHARD C. HERTZ
Special to The Jewish News
T
his week's sedra re-
cords the death of
Aaron, the brother of
Moses. What kind of man was
Aaron?
He seems to have been a
simple-hearted man, innocent
of guile or responsibility who
wanted to give the people
what they wanted. Moses was
respected; Aaron was loved.
He was a beloved priest.
Since Moses was slow of
speech and of a slow tongue,
Aaron was to act as his
spokesman before Pharoah
(Exodus 4:16). In the battle
with the Amalekites, Aaron
was one of those who held up
the hands of Moses, assisted
by Hur, a layman (Exodus
17:12). Aaron is best
remembered as having been
in charge of the Israelites
when Moses tarried on the
mountain to receive the Ten
Commandments; the people
demanded a visual god and
made the golden calf.
Later, during the wander-
ing in the wilderness, Aaron
lost his two oldest sons Nadab
and Abihu, but bore his loss
quietly and without rebelling
against God (Leviticus 10).
Like Moses, he was forbidden
to enter the Promised Land
and died near the end of for-
ty years of wandering near
Mt. Hor.
Aaron did not possess his
brother's stature to have
stood his ground firmly over
the incident of the golden
calf. Later generations tried
to whitewash his conduct.
When he lost his two sons, he
displayed remarkable
stoicism and strength of
spirit. Aaron seemed to have
been a good subordinate, a
man who could accomplish
much under the guidance of
a stronger spirit such as the
inspiration of his brother. Yet
he was gentle and yielding, a
character that inspired the
people to remember him with
gratitude and love.
Aaron's participation in the
incident of the golden calf was
explained away by the com-
mentators in this manner.
The infuriated crowd had
already slain Hur in the
presence of Aaron for refusing
to make the calf. Aaron knew
that a like fate would befall
Richard Hertz is rabbi emeritus of
Temple Beth El in Birmingham
and distinguished professor of
Jewish studies at the University of
Detroit Mercy.
him if he too kept refusing to
grant the people their desire.
Rather than have the calami-
ty of God's anger fall on all
the Israelites, he delayed the
work as long as possible in
the hope that Moses might
return in time.
The rabbis tell how Aaron
would go from tent to tent in
the camp teaching the ig-
norant how to pray and how
to study the law. He would
greet even the wicked in kind-
ly fashion so that they would
be ashamed to sin. He was
especially adept at peace-
making, settling quarrels bet-
ween friends and families by
telling each that the other
side was ready for peace.
Though Moses was looked
upon as the embodiment of
(
Shabbat Chukat:
Num. 19:1-22:1
Judges 11:1-33
justice and truth, Aaron was
made to represent mercy and
peace.
The difficulty of reconstruc-
ting a comprehensive biogra- c(
phy of Aaron is due to the fact
that many details are scat-
tered over several source
materials in the Torah.
Scripture says that Aaron
died on the first day of the
fifth month at the age of 123
years (Numbers 33:38-39).
The account of his passing is
unusually detailed, doubtless
due to the fact that it involv-
ed the all-important matter of
priestly succession. When
Aaron ascended Mt. Hor, ac-
companied by Moses and
Eliezer, the son of Aaron, the
high priest was stripped of
the garments of his office and
his son was immediately in-
vested in his stead.
The rabbis described the
death of Aaron with loving
detail; how he died on the
first of Av by the kiss of God.
At his death, the clouds of
glory disappeared from the
camp, since their presence
had been due only to the
merits of Aaron. When the
people realized that Aaron
was dead, they mourned for
him for a period of 30 days, as
they later did for Moses. The
rabbis say that angels saw
Aaron floating in the air after
his death and chanted, "The
law of truth was in his mouth,
unrighteousness was not
found on his lips. May he
come in peace." Later they
lamented him and said, "The
righteous man passed away;
the peacemaker has
departed."
❑