One hundred years ago, a mother of five opened the curtains in her apartment. With light streaming in, this Russian-born immigrant could only marvel at the blessing of her new life in America, as well as the dawn of a glorious day.

It is easy to imagine that same sense of wonder and possibility permeating the air as Moses and the Children of Israel first gazed upon the finished Mishkan. By building something together for Hashem, the people opened a new chapter not only in their own lives, but also in the covenant first established between Abraham, Sarah, and Hashem generations before.

The next item on Moshe’s agenda was the consecration of the Kohanim, as the Torah instructs: “קח את אהרן / Take Aaron and his sons with him…” (Vayikra 8:2). Our commentators, however, are distracted by the verb “take,” which suggests reluctance on the part of Aaron.

It seems unfathomable that anyone would resist such a high honor, one of the most elevated roles in the Jewish community. And yet, the text intimates that Aaron paused when offered this opportunity.

One explanation is Aaron’s humility. Perhaps he resembled his brother Moses, the reluctant prophet who initially resisted Hashem’s call to leadership, and thought: Who am I to lead this people, let alone represent them before Hashem?

Rashi deepens this idea by linking Aaron’s hesitation to a sense of unworthiness. In fact, Aaron felt so unworthy that Moshe must persuade his brother to accept the priesthood, reflected in the moment when Moshe tells Aaron to “Come near the Altar” (Vayikra 9:7). According to Rashi, “Aaron was ashamed and feared to approach.” Aware of his brother’s lingering remorse for his role in the Golden Calf, Moshe reassures him that his contrition and commitment to teshuva are precisely what make him worthy of serving the people in this sacred role.

While these traditional commentaries offer great wisdom, this episode in the Torah also teaches us a lesson about leadership. G-d sees Aaron’s potential and encourages him to grow into it. According to the Midrash, Moses tells his brother, “For this you were chosen.”

Called to a life of service, Aaron and his sons would bless the Jewish people for generations.

Moshe understands the impact of leadership better than anyone and that leadership frequently is accompanied by personal sacrifice. The Torah’s model of leadership is not confined to ritual service. It lives on wherever someone is called upon to carry responsibility and care for others.

Thousands of years later, these responsibilities would frame the decisions of millions of Jews struggling to deal with raging antisemitism. Driven by both the pain of government- sanctioned persecution in the czar’s Russia and unyielding hope for a better future, Libby Mirkin, my great-grandmother, uprooted her family and brought them to America.

After opening the curtains on that beautiful spring morning a century ago in Boston, Libby collapsed suddenly. Within days, she learned that death was imminent from a silent illness growing within.

Shortly before her passing, Libby called her oldest son to her side and shared words that would define his life: “Sam, help your father take care of your brothers.” Recognizing his wisdom, patience, and empathy, she entrusted him with the responsibility of holding the family together in a new world where language and culture remained unfamiliar. In that moment, like Aaron before him, Sam was called into a form of leadership defined not by honor, but by responsibility.

My great-uncle Sam remained faithful to that charge. He devoted his life to his siblings and later to their children. At Uncle Sam’s funeral nearly seventy years later, although he had no biological heirs of his own, all of us present understood that we were Sam’s children.

Next week, on Pesach, when the sons of Aaron bless the Jewish people, may we remember the sacred nature of communal service and the lasting impact that those called to serve can have across generations.

In loving memory of Hannah Sarah bat Tzvi Hakohen z”l, Doba bat Fishel Hakohen z”l, Leba bat Simchah z”l, and Zalman Mendel ben Moshe Tzvi Halevi z”l

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)