At Jewish Newport
June 22, 2019
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A Man with a Vision
Last Saturday at Newport’s Touro Synagogue, we enjoyed joining a local family as their son was called to the Torah for his aufruf, and we were grateful for their kiddush sponsorship. It was nice to be with so many people who were celebrating a happy occasion.
Rabbi Marc Mandel spoke about politics…almost.
“This week, President trump officially began his presidential campaign for 2020 and next week 20 Democratic candidates will be debating and launching their campaigns. Who will be the leader of the most powerful country in the world?
“Leadership is the topic of this weeks Torah reading. Who will lead the Jewish people as they prepare to enter the Holy Land? In an interesting twist, Moshe asks his father-in-law, Yithro, to travel with the Jews and to lead them. Yithro said, ‘No, I don’t want the job. I like my life the way it is and I like my home.’ Moshe pleaded with him, ‘We need You. We need you to be our eyes.’
“What does that mean, to be our eyes? Rashi says, ‘Moshe was telling Yithro, “There are things that I don’t see that you see. I need your help.”’ Moshe believed in collaborative leadership-working together towards a common goal.
“But why did Moshe need Yithro! Surely there were other people who could have helped Moshe? Yithro was a non-conformist, he challenged the status quo and he introduced new ideas that improved an ailing system. Moshe understood and knew this and that’s why he pleaded with his father-in-law.
“And then there is the vision thing.
“Moshe was having trouble presenting a coherent vision to the people. After all, it was Aharon his brother who built the Mishkan.
“He was asking Yithro to help him develop a vision that he could share with the Jewish nation, a vision that could inspire the people.
“One thing I noticed over the years about the groom is that he is a person with a vision. He knows how to chill; but he has a vision of what is important and he leads people with the vision.
“Did Yithro end up going with Moshe? That’s a dispute between the Ramban and the Sforno. Ramban says he stayed and the Sforno says he left.
“Now the groom is ready to take his journey with kallah, but they’re not leaving anyone They are taking the values and the vision of both families and as they start their journey we look forward to sharing the their success and their blessings.
Shabbat Shalom.”
William Wilberforce
I am reading a book called “Amazing Grace - William Wilberforce and the heroic campaign to end slavery,” by Eric Metaxas. William Wilberforce was very intelligent, but as a youth adopted many of the ways of the upper classes. In eighteenth century England religion and idealism were out of style. This was probably a reaction to 200 years of war and strife in the name of religion. Many enjoyed the good life, defaulting their roles as leaders.
Wilberforce inherited a large fortune in college, which enabled him to become a member of parliament in 1784, when he was 25 years old. In those days, one had to pay for each vote.
In 1785 he became a fervent Christian (Methodist) and realized that he was doing nothing with his life. He became interested in two causes, the abolition of the slave trade, and the promotion of a more civil society. England was a very different place from the country we know today. There was widespread poverty, drunkenness, prostitution, and cruelty. Many crimes were punished by public hanging, which was a spectacle to titillate and intimidate the masses.
Since 1688, every King of England had issued a proclamation on the accession to the monarchy that urged the ruling classes to act as leaders of society. They had abrogated that role.
Wilberforce’s lobbying persuaded King George III to issue the Proclamation for the Discouragement of Vice 1787. The role of religion in this was a secret. Being a sincere Christian was a non-starter.
Wilberforce helped create Proclamation Societies starting with the elite to get them to live up to their role. It took a long time for his vision to become a reality, but gradually England became a more civilized, less brutal place where people cared for each other and for those who were less fortunate. Sometimes it takes a man with a vision!
Shabbat Shalom!
A Man with a Vision
Last Saturday at Newport’s Touro Synagogue, we enjoyed joining a local family as their son was called to the Torah for his aufruf, and we were grateful for their kiddush sponsorship. It was nice to be with so many people who were celebrating a happy occasion.
Rabbi Marc Mandel spoke about politics…almost.
“This week, President trump officially began his presidential campaign for 2020 and next week 20 Democratic candidates will be debating and launching their campaigns. Who will be the leader of the most powerful country in the world?
“Leadership is the topic of this weeks Torah reading. Who will lead the Jewish people as they prepare to enter the Holy Land? In an interesting twist, Moshe asks his father-in-law, Yithro, to travel with the Jews and to lead them. Yithro said, ‘No, I don’t want the job. I like my life the way it is and I like my home.’ Moshe pleaded with him, ‘We need You. We need you to be our eyes.’
“What does that mean, to be our eyes? Rashi says, ‘Moshe was telling Yithro, “There are things that I don’t see that you see. I need your help.”’ Moshe believed in collaborative leadership-working together towards a common goal.
“But why did Moshe need Yithro! Surely there were other people who could have helped Moshe? Yithro was a non-conformist, he challenged the status quo and he introduced new ideas that improved an ailing system. Moshe understood and knew this and that’s why he pleaded with his father-in-law.
“And then there is the vision thing.
“Moshe was having trouble presenting a coherent vision to the people. After all, it was Aharon his brother who built the Mishkan.
“He was asking Yithro to help him develop a vision that he could share with the Jewish nation, a vision that could inspire the people.
“One thing I noticed over the years about the groom is that he is a person with a vision. He knows how to chill; but he has a vision of what is important and he leads people with the vision.
“Did Yithro end up going with Moshe? That’s a dispute between the Ramban and the Sforno. Ramban says he stayed and the Sforno says he left.
“Now the groom is ready to take his journey with kallah, but they’re not leaving anyone They are taking the values and the vision of both families and as they start their journey we look forward to sharing the their success and their blessings.
Shabbat Shalom.”
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William Wilberforce
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I am reading a book called “Amazing Grace - William Wilberforce and the heroic campaign to end slavery,” by Eric Metaxas. William Wilberforce was very intelligent, but as a youth adopted many of the ways of the upper classes. In eighteenth century England religion and idealism were out of style. This was probably a reaction to 200 years of war and strife in the name of religion. Many enjoyed the good life, defaulting their roles as leaders.
Wilberforce inherited a large fortune in college, which enabled him to become a member of parliament in 1784, when he was 25 years old. In those days, one had to pay for each vote.
In 1785 he became a fervent Christian (Methodist) and realized that he was doing nothing with his life. He became interested in two causes, the abolition of the slave trade, and the promotion of a more civil society. England was a very different place from the country we know today. There was widespread poverty, drunkenness, prostitution, and cruelty. Many crimes were punished by public hanging, which was a spectacle to titillate and intimidate the masses.
Since 1688, every King of England had issued a proclamation on the accession to the monarchy that urged the ruling classes to act as leaders of society. They had abrogated that role.
Wilberforce’s lobbying persuaded King George III to issue the Proclamation for the Discouragement of Vice 1787. The role of religion in this was a secret. Being a sincere Christian was a non-starter.
Wilberforce helped create Proclamation Societies starting with the elite to get them to live up to their role. It took a long time for his vision to become a reality, but gradually England became a more civilized, less brutal place where people cared for each other and for those who were less fortunate. Sometimes it takes a man with a vision!
Shabbat Shalom!
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