For some reason, the historically practical procedure of the changing of the guard has, in many places around the world, become a major tourist attraction, full of pomp. On the one hand, I remember my time in the IDF and when I relieved someone from guard duty, it was not impressive. If you got a smile, it was cool.

Although I’ve never seen the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace (perhaps the world’s most famous example), I have been a number of times at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington, VA and once at the Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen. Cool, but not momentous. In this week’s Torah reading, we read about one of the most significant ‘changing of the guard’ ceremonies in human history. 

Moshe hands over the reins of power to his faithful disciple Yehoshua. What’s most fascinating to me is that it is a very modest ceremony. Very much like the passing of the baton to Elazar by Aharon last week. No pomp! No ceremony! Reading these stories makes us feel like Peeping Toms.

Questions abound! But I will only deal with the actual process, and its implications for us, the heirs to this event.

Interestingly, it doesn’t seem like the ascent of Yehoshua was a foregone conclusion. Rashi suggests that since God acquiesced to the request of the daughters of Tzelofchad, there was a chance that Moshe could make a request for his own family. According to Rashi, Moshe wanted his sons to succeed him as leader of the Jewish nation.

I’m not convinced. But the........

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