Yitro
In parashat Yitro,we read how Moses’ Father- in-law brings Moses’ wife and two sons to the camp of the newly liberated Israelites and observes Moses at work. He spends the entire time listening to pleas, settling arguments making judgements. The ten commandments have not yet been given; all law it would seem is in Moses’ head. Jethro watches and then pronounces.
‘The thing that you do is not good.’ He says.
Not good?
This is Moses; who speaks to God and to whom God speaks. Moses, who amazingly and single handedly took the children of Israel out of Egypt. Moses, who in spite of a speech impediment has the charisma to mobilise a whole nation.
But Jethro is older and wiser. He is a priest – a leader in his own nation of Midian. He has seen a thing or two and can see ahead in a way that Moses cannot. Moses is heading for burn out – and with forty years still to go – forty years of complaints, instransigence, confrontations with enemies and open rebellions he has to keep his life in control. Moreover, Jethro has had the care of Moses’ wife and family while he did all these things. It is time Moses took over that responsibility.
Sophie Kenfield, in her d’var Torah for her bat Mitzvah, will talk of Moses’ early life. Through the midrash and through what we learn from the Torah itself – the killing of the Egyptian slave master, his intervention between two quarrelling Hebrew slaves, his rescue of Jethro’s daughters from molestation by Midianite youths – a picture builds up of a young man passionately committed to social justice, championing the underdog, not averse to using violence himself if it brings about a just end. It is these qualities that single him out for leadership. He cares for every individual, will not be cowed by grandeur and refuses to accept bullying of any kind. Not one of the young or old, weak or ill, lame or disadvantaged will get left behind in the long march through the desert.
But this deep concern for the weakest of individuals has a downside in the day-to-day administration of the camp of Israel. Precisely because he cares, he spends his time listening to every detail of every complaint, however minor or futile. Because he cares he wants to ensure that everyone will get a fair hearing. There are six hundred thousand male Israelites camped in the wilderness, and undisclosed number of women and children and a mixed multitude of others who left Egypt. There is one Moses. Do the maths.
So Jethro steps in and points out the problems with micro management. Moses may be in touch with God, and in love with his people but he has also to trust them, delegate to them and have faith in their innate abilities to do the job just as well as he. This is a problem so many of us have. The feeling ‘if you want a job doing well, do it yourself’. A bit arrogant really. Moses may have been able to make the claim that he was better than others, - only he didn’t – he was a very humble man. But we have no right to say that of ourselves, that our way of working is better, that only we can get things done.
Or we fall into a trap of self congratulation. We think ‘I am spending all this time, what a good, what a dedicated person I am’
If it is not the outward competition in the workplace it is an inner urge – like a drug - to do more and more and more – sacrificing all that is real and sane in this world for the false feeling that what we are doing is the only thing that matters. Our society champions this idea, but as Jethro said, ‘The thing that you do is not good.’ We need to take a step back, take stock. Take time out and remember what is really important in our lives.
Moses listened to Jethro’s advice, but it was already too late. He was never reconciled to his wife and children. There is no evidence that he ever lived with them as a proper family again. We are not Moses, nor do we actually have Moses’ workload. But we make the same mistake as Moses time and again. For some of us, the consequences are apparent, for others they can still be avoided, but will we do anything about it? Can we in fact stop?
Sybil A. Sheridan