What happened to Moshe’s children?

What happened to Moshe’s children?  There is a strange verse in this week’s Parsha, Bamidbar (3:1):  “These are the descendants of Moshe and Aharon…,” and then it lists Aharon’s children, not Moshe’s.  

 

Rashi’s commentary explains why Aharon’s children are called the descendants of Moshe:  “They are considered descendants of Moses because he taught them Torah. This teaches us that whoever teaches Torah to the son of his fellow, Scripture regards it as if he had begotten him.”  

 

That still doesn’t answer why Moshe’s children were not listed.

 

We know that Moshe had two sons.  We also learn that Moshe asked Hashem to allow his son to take over the leadership, and instead Hashem gave the leadership to Yehoshua.  The fact that Moshe, known as the “faithful shepherd” of the Jewish people, made the request, tells us that his son was worthy of the position.  So it seems perhaps unfair that the greatest leader of all time should not have his children enumerated among his descendants, and why in fact did his son not take over? 

 

(Pardon the Interruption - This Sunday, the first day of Shavuot, Chabad will be hosting a Ten Commandments reading and ice cream party at 11AM at 3070 Louis Road. We would love to see you there!)

 

In general, the Halacha is that a king’s position, and in fact any leadership position in the Jewish community, passes in inheritance to the leader’s son, as long as he is worthy.  We see this in the lineage of the Davidic dynasty and other kings of Israel, and also throughout our history, like for example the line of seven Chabad Rebbes.  Yet Moshe gets left out of this inheritance model?

 

I saw an answer from Rabbi Shlomo Ganzfried, author of the Kitzur Shulchan Aruch, commonly known as the Code of Jewish Law.  He writes that while leadership generally passes down in inheritance from parent to child, it was different for Moshe, because his primary role was as Torah teacher.  

 

Although Moshe led us out of Egypt and did so much else as leader of the Jewish people, the main focus of his life was Torah – bringing it down from heaven and teaching it to his and all future generations. 

 

Torah is available to everyone, it is the inheritance of the entire Jewish people.  Had Moshe’s son taken over his position, had his children been listed prominently in the Torah, the message would be that the Torah is the inheritance of the family.  

 

The message Hashem sent here is that this is not the case, nobody can claim rights on the Torah.  Our religious leaders don’t own the Torah, they can’t decide what they want it to say or how it should be studied.  

 

Torah is open and available to anyone who wants to study it, and the leaders’ role is to teach and help everyone understand it.  Any interpretation of our Sages must be faithful to what Moshe taught, and is open to scrutiny by any Torah student.

 

Sunday and Monday are the days of Shavuot, the time of our receiving the Torah.  As with all Jewish holidays, we are not just remembering past history.  We are reliving the original event.  Every Shavuot, we recommit to Torah as the Jews did at Sinai.  

 

When asked if they would accept the Torah, the Jews said: Naase V'nishma, we will observe and we will hear (or understand).  We made an unconditional commitment to observe the Torah, knowing that it is our heritage and our mission as a people.

 

Just as when Hashem gave the Torah every Jew – men, women and children – was present, it is customary now for all men, women and children, even infants, to walk to shul for the reading of the Ten Commandments on the first day of Shavuot.  Torah is the domain of every single Jew.  It is mine and yours and our children’s.  Let’s show up and celebrate it together!

 

I offer you the traditional Chassidic blessing for Shavuot:  May you receive the Torah with joy, and internalize it.