Rabbi Leonard Rosenthal
SAN DIEGO — It’s easy to take those we love for granted. Sometimes it is only after they are gone that we realize how much they meant to us, how much we counted upon them, and how much they added to our lives.
This was the lesson the Israelites learned after the death of Aaron, the High Priest.
Shortly before Aaron’s death, the Israelites were up to their usual antics, complaining about their plight. Korach and his followers had just been sucked into the earth by the hand of God, yet his supporters refused to accept the fact that he was a power-lusting demagogue, and rallied against Moses and Aaron: “You two have brought death upon the Lord’s people!” (Num. 17:6)
However, the Israelites’ anger was short-lived. As soon as Aaron died, they realized how much he had done for them and how great was their loss.
Aaron was the one, who more than anyone else, strove to improve Israelite society and promoted peace and reconciliation among his fellow Israelites. When Aaron crossed paths with someone who committed wicked, sinful, and criminal acts, he did not avoid or condemn him. Instead, he greeted him with words of peace, welcome, and friendship. The next day, when such a person began planning his next crime, he would remember Aaron’s kindness and was ashamed that he was about to disappoint him.
Similarly, when Aaron learned that two Israelites were fighting, he would go to each of them and say, “You know, your friend wants to make up with you, but he is too embarrassed to take the first step.” Soon the two would approach each other and reconcile.
Now that Aaron was gone, there was no one else who had the decency, heart, and ability to bring people together in the same way. Now the Israelites not only realized how much they had lost, but were ashamed of how they had treated Aaron and taken him for granted throughout his life.
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Rabbi Rosenthal is spiritual leader of Tifereth Israel Synagogue. He may be contacted via leonard.rosenthal@sdjewishworld.com