In this week’s Parsha, the Bible details for us the birth of Moses. Moses continues on to become the leader of the Jewish. However, Moses was not an ordinary leader; he was a leader that will live on for eternity. While many births are listed in the Bible, Moses’ birth leaves us with much ambiguity. In Exodus Chapter 2 it reads:
1. A man of the house of Levi went and married a daughter of Levi. 2. The woman conceived and bore a son, and [when] she saw him that he was good, she hid him for three months. 3. [When] she could no longer hide him, she took [for] him a reed basket, smeared it with clay and pitch, placed the child into it, and put [it] into the marsh at the Nile's edge. 4. His sister stood from afar, to know what would be done to him. 5. Pharaoh's daughter went down to bathe, to the Nile, and her maidens were walking along the Nile, and she saw the basket in the midst of the marsh, and she sent her maidservant, and she took it. 6. She opened [it], and she saw him the child, and behold, he was a weeping lad, and she had compassion on him, and she said, "This is [one] of the children of the Hebrews." 7. His sister said to Pharaoh's daughter, "Shall I go and call for you a wet nurse from the Hebrew women, so that she shall nurse the child for you?" 8. Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Go!" So the girl went and called the child's mother. 9. Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Take this child and nurse him for me, and I will give [you] your wages." So the woman took the child and nursed him. 10. The child grew up, and she brought him to Pharaoh's daughter, and he became like her son. She named him Moses, and she said, "For I drew him from the water."
If one examines the text closely, one will become aware of the lack of names mentioned. The Bible appears to go out of its way to not tell us Moses’ lineage. Moses’ parents are indeed Amrom and Yocheved. His sister is Miriam, and the daughter of Pharaoh is Batya. But these names are deliberately not present. Perhaps we can suggest two answers.
In order to understand this absence of names, one must first question, why was Moses chosen to become the leader of the Jewish people? Conceivably, it may not have been due to something Moses did, but rather due to something his family did or better yet, what they didn’t do. Very often, people feel as if their children are in this world in order to serve them, however, this may not be accurate. Having children is not for the parents, but rather for the child. Even though the popular saying goes, “Be nice to your children for they will choose your nursing home.” The essence of populating the world is not for the ego of the parents. Perhaps, Moses is the paradigm example of this. His family was dedicated to raising this child and keeping him alive; they took their names out of the picture. It was no longer about Amram and Yocheved, rather, it was about Moses. Moses was born into a family that dedicated themselves to the future of the Jewish people. They had Moses despite the harsh decree of Pharaoh to “cast all the male children into the sea”. Amram, Yocheved, Miriam and even Batya acted Leshem Shamayim - for the sake of heaven. Their names were not important, as long as the job gets done. Titles within committees or organizations are ineffectual, but rather anonymous interactions and the removal of one’s ego will ultimately allow the goal to prosper.
A second approach to our dilemma, albeit diametrically opposed to the first one, is to understand Moses’ lineage, or lack there of. There is something in Judaism known as Yichus – lineage. Lineage is an important part of our religion. It determines the status of a Jew; it demonstrates the validity of our religion (being able to trace ourselves back to Moses). But very often lineage becomes the focal point of our lives. Frequently, there are people that wear their lineage on their shoulders. “Do you know who my grandfather or great-grandfather was?” We can segregate and dissociate our fellow Jews based upon their ancestry. The Bible here goes out of its way to demonstrate that although there are parts of lineage that are important, leadership shall be determined by the person themselves. One shall not judge someone based upon their last name, but rather look at the person standing before them and allow time to experience who they are. Yes, Moses came from prestigious parents. Yes, Moses had a prestigious brother and sister. And yes, Moses was to be brought up as the prince of Egypt. But little baby Moses became the great leader Moses through his own efforts.
If one would seek to determine how Jewish and committed they are to their religion, one shall not look back on who their ancestors were; but rather to determine how committed they are to Judaism, one shall look and see how Jewish are their grandchildren!
