April 5, 2012 Shemini

The Right Man For The Job

"Moshe said to Aharon, ‘Come near to the Altar’…" (9:7)

Bungee-jumping, hang-gliding, free-fall parachuting, and riding over Niagara Fallsin a beer barrel all share one thing in common. You have to be absolutely meshuga to do them.

There’s a big difference between being fearless and being foolhardy.

However, there are times when even being afraid is an advantage. The Chafetz Chaim once decided that a particular talmid should take a vacant post as the Rabbi in distant community. Thetalmid was reluctant to go. He told the Chafetz Chaim he was afraid of the responsibility of being the only halachic authority for an entire community. The Chafetz Chaim replied to him, "Should I send someone who’s not afraid?"

Sometimes being afraid doesn’t disqualify someone from being the right man or woman for the job. Sometimes it’s the essential quality.

Moshe had to tell Aharon to "Come near to the altar". Rashi says that Aaron was embarrassed and afraid to approach the altar. Moshe told him not to be afraid, for it was precisely Aaron’s quality of awe which qualified him to be the Kohen Gadol.

When we want to become closer to G‑d and serve Him with more conviction and faithfulness, we could be embarrassed by our inadequacies. We might feel afraid, incapable of such a task. "Who am I to serve G-d?" we can think to ourselves. It is precisely that quality of self-effacement, of fear, which is the pre-requisite to be ‘the right man for the job".