People wonder if their ‘past,’ or their battles with the yetzer hara, disqualify them from being in a position of leadership. In his Chaburas Yosef Hatzaddik, HaRav Moshe Weinberger addresses this head on. He teaches that on the contrary — personal struggle and past imperfections are a prerequisite for effective spiritual leadership. When someone is able to overcome their own skeletons in the closet, they become uniquely qualified to guide others.
Let’s consider Noach. The Torah describes him as a tzaddik, and the Medrash delineates that his tzidkus was metchilaso v’ad sofo, consistent throughout every single day of his life. Meaning, he had no major struggles. Therefore, he couldn’t relate to his dor at all, and he couldn’t actually help his dor. He was only able to help himself and his own family, by building a teivah and sheltering inside. He was a tzaddik, indeed, but he wasn’t zocheh to become one of our avos. He didn’t become a leader who directly brought people to awareness of the Ribono Shel Olam.
Who was the first leader to be able to do this? Avraham Avinu. The first of the seven shepherds and the first of our avos. Called “Avraham, Avraham” because he was so beloved by Hashem. He had a serious ‘past’, being born to Terach in Ur Casdim, a city immersed in impurity. His story is not the one of a person suddenly discovering Hashem and then leaving the Ur Casdim lifestyle immediately. He had quite the long journey to fully finding Hashem, starting at age three and continuing till age 40 or even 48. Decades of seeking, searching, and struggling within his surroundings. And this struggle to overcome, and choose Hashem above all, is what qualified him to reach and inspire others, becoming our forefather for eternity.
And then there’s Shaul Hamelech. The Gemara asks why Shaul’s malchus wasn’t long lasting, and answers because Shaul was in essence ‘a goody goody’. He was a bchir Hashem, chosen by Hashem, and spiritually above everybody else. Rashi even describes Shaul as a king who was like a one-year-old who had never tasted sin. That is a lofty madreiga, but it disqualified him from being a lasting king for Klal Yisroel. The Noam Elimelech says the job of a manhig (and by extension a leader, parent, rebbe, or morah) is to understand and be able to reach every single Jew, at any level, and be able to understand the nefesh hachoteh, the soul of the one who’s lost his path.
You may be surprised to find out about another leader who truly understood cheit. The Mekor Mayim Chaim brings down a fairly unknown story involving an ancient king, an artist, and none other than Moshe Rabbeinu himself! There was once a king in the ancient Middle East who was a master at reading people. He could discern their character through the lines, features and shape of their faces. The king had heard about Moshe, the man of G-d who had brought the mighty Pharaoh to his knees, and he was eager to see Moshe’s face. He sent his royal artist to the desert to locate the Jewish tribe, and paint an exact portrait of Moshe’s face. When the artist returned, the king saw the picture, and discerned a corrupt sinner in his face. He was enraged that his artist must have lied about who he drew, so he ordered him executed.
He then sent a second artist on the same royal errand. When that artist arrived and saw Moshe’s appearance, he realized that the original portrait from the first artist had indeed been an accurate depiction. He panicked. If he would paint the same face for the king, he would likely be executed also! He asked Moshe himself what to do. Moshe explained to this artist that all the ‘good people’ that the king and his society are used to looking at, aren’t truly good. They are just people doing what they were gifted to do, compelled by their inner nature. The credit doesn’t belong to the ‘good’ person, rather to the One who bestowed him with a good soul. True good is something created by man, by actively choosing good. Moshe explained that when a person’s soul (and face) contains all the impurities imaginable, and against all odds and with great strength, the person chooses to do the right thing, he transforms that bad into good. True good is when a person created it through struggle, sacrifice, and difficult choices.
A real leader can understand those they are leading. They understand their makeup, their struggles, their questions, and their doubts. They lead with authenticity, humility, and empathy. You may perceive your own Ur Casdim as behind you. Or you may still be in that place, in the thick of the battle. If you are, battle away, you holy soldier. Your presence on the battlefield is forging you into a leader, a warrior, and a builder of that which is truly good.
This article was found in Nekuda Tova Issue 104.
