Dvar Torah on Parshat Korach

In one of the more dramatic stories which takes place during the Jewish people's sojourn in the desert, Korach, one of the Levites, leads a rebellion against Moshe and Aharon, challenging their leadership and demanding power for other members of the Jewish people and, specifically, other Levites. At the beginning of the story, Korach is introduced as "Korach the son of Yitzhar, the son of Kehat, the son of Levi." Korach's family tree stops there, and does not go on to identify the father of Levi, Korach's great-great-grandfather, Yaakov. Rashi, working with material from Midrash Tanchuma, explains: "[The Torah] does not mention that he was the son of Yaakov, for he [Yaakov] asked for mercy for himself so that his name would not be mentioned in connection with their argument, as it is written [in Genesis, 48,6, when Yaakov was on his deathbed and talking about his son Levi and his descendants] 'and with their assembly may my honor never be united'. And where is his name mentioned together with that of Korach? When their genealogy was mentioned in connection with the Temple service in the Book of Chronicles (Chronicles I, 6, 22-23), as it is written, '...the son of Aviasaf, the son of Korach, the son of Yitzhar, the son of Kehat the son of Levi, the son of Yisrael.'"

According to this Midrash, as Rashi presents it, Yaakov foresaw the argument that Korach and his assembly would have with Moshe and Aharon, and wanted no part of it. So, he asked God to have mercy on him, and not mention his name in the portion of the Torah which reports the dispute. Therefore, in Korach's genealogy, Yaakov is not mentioned by either of his names, Yaakov or Yisrael, and Korach's family tree only goes back as far as Levi, Yaakov's son. Rashi tells us, however, that Yaakov is mentioned in a happier context; when the Book of Chronicles lists the Levites who served in the Temples of David and Solomon, the descendants of Korach are mentioned, and there the genealogy goes all the way back to include Yisrael/Yaakov.

There are a few things of particular interest here. The fact that Yaakov chooses to employ the strategy of asking for mercy, so that his name would not be mentioned in connection with his great-great-grandson's rebellion, is suggestive. Rather than praying or acting in some way for or against the rebellion, rather than getting involved and taking a stand, Yaakov chose to have no part in it, to simply not be mentioned in connection with Korach's actions. Also of interest is the insistence on the part of the Midrash that this withdrawal by Yaakov is not absolute; Yaakov/Yisrael's name is ultimately mentioned together with that of Korach, but in a different context.

If we look at this story through the prism of fathers and sons, parents and children, and the way in which they interact, I think we discover an interesting dynamic. Yaakov chooses not to fight or argue with Korach. He doesn't try to sway him, or change the facts of the revolution which the unborn Korach is fated to lead many years in the future. Yaakov seems reconciled to it; this is who Korach will be, this is what he will do, all I can do, as a father, is not be a part of it.

What we see here is Yaakov facing a difficult dilemma. There is sometimes a place where a child goes (and here I am equating great-great-grandchild with child) that a parent will not, and can not go. Yaakov, when asking for mercy, is not, first and foremost, trying to do something for the good of his descendant, Korach. Rather, he is trying to do something for himself. Korach, in his actions against Moshe, is behaving in a way which Yaakov can not accept, he is doing something which Yaakov is embarrassed and hurt by, and is unable to deal with. The merciful thing to do is to simply allow Yaakov to not be there. There is nothing Yaakov can do about Korach, he will be who he must be and do what he must do. But also, at the same time, Yaakov, the parent, asks to be allowed to be who he must be, and do what he must do, which is to not be there with Korach.

The parenting expectation that we might have, that somehow Yaakov will deal with the way Korach is, and with what he does, by engaging with him, by either accepting or actively opposing him, is not a choice that Yaakov wants to make. He simply, in an expression of his own autonomy, of his desire to maintain his beliefs and sensitivities, asks to be the way he is, and not be a part of, not be involved in, the way Korach is, which is a choice which is ultimately Korach's. On the other hand, the Midrash insists, Yaakov remains Korach's parent. In other circumstances, when it comes to other behaviors and actions, he is willing to be connected to Korach and his descendants. His rejection of his off-spring is not total, it is, rather, contingent upon and related to certain actions, certain behaviors of his offspring. When Korach is a rebel, when Korach acts against Yaakov's God and His choice of Moshe and Aharon as leaders of the nation, Yaakov feels he has no choice but to remove himself from his connection with his off-spring. For Yaakov's sake, for the sake of his autonomy and integrity as a person, he asks that God be merciful and allow him to absent himself from this behavior. This does not, however, automatically entail a complete rejection of Korach as his descendant; it is specific behavior on Korach's part which Yaakov feels himself unable to face and identify with, and not Korach as a person. In the Book of Chronicles, by his willingness to be mentioned alongside Korach, Yaakov accepts and validates Korach as a person, as someone with whom he can be identified.

The message of this Midrash is relevant beyond the realm of parenting, although its point may be most acute there. In terms of how we relate to other people, and other communites, the notion that, at times, one may feel a need to disassociate from the activities or behaviors of another, and that it would be cruel - the opposite of the mercy which Yaakov asked for from God - to demand from someone a total identification with or acceptance of the other's behavior, is a powerful one. Just as powerful is the demand that, when possible, we reaffirm our ultimate connection to and validation of those whose behaviors are sometimes difficult or challenging for us, as Yaakov does in the book of Chronicles, where he is present as a forefather of Korach. 

Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Shimon Felix