Last year, the annual reading of Parashat Va-Era fell close to the new American Memorial Day in honor of Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., the great Black civil rights leader.
Because of the proximity of the two events, I started to think about the parallels between the two of them. Both deal with a remarkably courageous leader who has the courage to insist on nothing less than liberty and justice for his oppressed people. Both suffered the initial scorn and derision of powerful leaders who despised them and belittled their mission. And both lived to see the leaders of their oppressors forced to concede respect and deference to their noble efforts. Moses and Dr. King share a lot in common.
Thinking about Dr. King led me to reflect on another great Black leader of an earlier time, one who has been explicitly compared to Moses, and that was Harriet Tubman. A remarkable woman, she was a former slave who escaped and then returned to the South many times to assist other men and women find freedom in Canada and the North. Like Moses, she led her people from slavery to freedom.
Walking into a classroom of the religious school, I spotted a book about Harriet Tubman that the children of the school were reading. I opened it, and noticed that it spoke about her in glowing terms, even mentioning that she met the President of the United States--so prominent and significant was this American Black hero.
What struck my attention, however, was not the praise lavished on her, but that the textbook didn't think it was important enough to mention the name of the president!
Today, we all know the name of Harriet Tubman, the former slave. But how many people know the life of Franklin Pierce or James Buchanan? Yet, in their time, these men were the leaders of the nation--powerful and wealthy, they were heads of state, known throughout the land!
Today, no one knows who they were. But the former slave woman inspires school children everywhere with her simple decency and her tenacious courage.
Those reflections pertain to our Torah portion as well. You see, Moses is also known and loved throughout the world. Liberation movements the world over all recall Moses and his actions as inspirations for their own struggles against despotism and oppression. Yet the name of the Egyptian king is completely unknown. The Torah tells us his title, Pharaoh, just as the textbook told us the title, President. But the name isn't significant enough to even mention.
Isn't it odd that the most powerful potentate of his age is now unknown--a bad-guy foil for the heroic former slave, Moses. And James Buchanan is simply a backdrop to reflect glory on Harriet Tubman.
Power may be fun, and prominence may thrill the heart. But what lasts across the ages is more lofty stuff: justice, compassion, courage, and a willingness to fight for the dignity and freedom of your fellow human beings.
Want to be famous? Enlist as a soldier in the struggle against human suffering and oppression. In standing up for his people, Moses cast a glow that will inspire generations until the end of time, and in liberating her people, Harriet Tubman lit a torch that will blaze in human hearts forever.
Got a match, anybody?
Shabbat Shalom!