Hukkat- Passing the Torch

Kach et Aharon v’et Elazar b’no v’ha’al otam hor hahar.  V’hafsheit et Aharon et b’gadav v’hilbashtam et Elazar b’no v’Aharon yei’aseif umeit sham… Vayafsheit Moshe et Aharon et b’gadav vayalbeish otam et Elazar b’no vayamot Aharon sham b’rosh hahar…

Take Aharon and Elazar his [Aharon’s] son, and bring them up to the base of Mount Hor. And strip Aharon of his clothes, and dress Elazar his son, and Aharon shall be gathered and die there… And Moshe stripped Aharon of his clothes, and laid them upon Elazar his son, and Aharon died there at the top of the mountain.

This section of Torah is replete with lessons on leadership. Each week we are treated to vivid images of leaders: good and bad, charismatic and self-differentiated, those working b’shem shamayim (for the sake of God and heaven) and those looking for power. We see the effects of these leaders, and, in Hukkat, we see the passage of leadership.

Miriam’s leadership comes simply through being who she is, and she leaves the position through her death, mourned by the entire community. Moshe will lay his hands on Joshua before going to God. For Aaron, not only does the theoretical and philosophical mantle need to be passed on, but the literal mantle as well.

Together, Moshe, Aaron, and Elazar come to the base of the mountain God has designated as Aaron’s burial site. There, commanded by God, Moshe strips Aaron of his mantle, and passes it on to Aaron’s son Elazar.

There are a number of lessons we can take from these few verses. As leaders we need to do these things:

-       To be able to recognize when others need to step down, even when we are swayed by personal feeling, and be able to talk to others about the need and the time of passing on leadership. God tells Moshe it is time to do this. Perhaps Moshe feels for his older brother, and sees the end of his own position in this passing.

-       We must be willing to hand over the mantle of leadership. Aaron is often quiet in our text, but our traditions see him as actively involved, deep in thought, rather than passively accepting. Aaron understands it is time to pass the mantle to the next generation, and he submits gracefully.

-       Finally, we must be compassionate about this passing. Was Aaron vigorous until the end? Did he die due to his loss of position/purpose, or was his death near, and therefore he was ready for Elazar to take over. Having Moshe act as the conduit of power from Aaron to Elazar may also remove some of the sting of the loss.

We will never know the true feelings of those standing at Mount Hor that day. We can learn from their actions. We can work to create positive experiences at all stages of leadership, helping renew our organizations, while continuing to appreciate the lessons learned from those who came before.