Machlokes (disagreements) are as ageless as Klal Yisroel itself. It seems as if the only thing as indestructible as the Jewish people is the Jewish people’s own inability to get along with one another. Why has this been so difficult for us to overcome and how will things ever change? What strategies can we use to try to root out this terrible affliction?
The first place to look would be in the most famous machlokes in the Torah, the machlokes of Korach. We know that Korach led a rebellion against Moshe because he was unhappy with his leadership position. He not only argued with Moshe but gathered others to his cause to fight with Moshe leading to a terrible Machlokes. At the end of the terrible story the Torah tells us “וְלֹֽא־יִהְיֶ֤ה כְקֹ֙רַח֙ וְכַ֣עֲדָת֔וֹ “don’t be like korach and his followers”. This seems pretty obvious, after seeing Korach swallowed up by the earth it is doubtful that anyone was ever going to argue with Moshe again. So we need to understand what the Torah was teaching us when it says don’t be like Korach. It might seem that as long as I don’t argue with Moshe, maybe it’s not that bad to start a Machlokes. One would never argue with someone as great as Moshe but if my neighbor encroaches on my property I can, of course, start an argument with them. Or if I feel slighted by what a family member said or did not say then what would be the problem with starting a fight? How would this be comparable to acting like Korach, who started an argument with Moshe the greatest prophet who ever lived?
The Gemarah in Sanhedrin explains what the Torah means when it says to not be like Korach.
״וַיָּקׇם מֹשֶׁה וַיֵּלֶךְ אֶל דָּתָן וַאֲבִירָם״. אָמַר רֵישׁ לָקִישׁ: מִכָּאן שֶׁאֵין מַחְזִיקִין בְּמַחְלוֹקֶת, דְּאָמַר רַב: כׇּל הַמַּחְזִיק בְּמַחְלוֹקֶת עוֹבֵר בְּלָאו, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: ״וְלֹא יִהְיֶה כְקֹרַח וְכַעֲדָתוֹ״.
“And Moses arose and went to Dathan and Abiram” (Numbers 16:25), Reish Lakish says: From here we derive that one may not perpetuate a dispute, as Rav says: Anyone who perpetuates a dispute violates a prohibition, as it is stated: “And he will not be like Korah and his assembly,
The Gemarah explains the commandment to not be like Korach by quoting the pasuk describing how Moshe dealt with the dispute brought to him by Korach. The Torah teaches us that Moshe got up from his tent and went to seek out dasan and aviaram to try to make peace. By bringing this analogy the Torah is teaching us that anything short of this great act of humility on Moshe’s part would be considered making machlokes. This is amazing. There was never a machlokes in which one party was more right and the other more wrong than the machlokes of Moshe and Korach. Moshe was actually picked by the word of G-d. After all the miracles and the giving of the Torah, there was no question Moshe was the leader of the Jewish people and acting on behalf of Hashem. And on the other side was Dassan and Aviram who were trying to get rid of Moshe since back in Mitzrayim. Yet the Torah teaches us that Moshe’s obligation nonetheless was to get up and actively make peace with them or he would be just as bad as Korach. We see from here the extreme to which the Torah wants us to avoid Machlokes. It has nothing to do with who is right and who is wrong Hashem does not want Machlokes period. And even if you are the greatest person who ever lived, and regularly spoke face to face with G-d, if a machlokes lands unannounced at your door step, through no fault of your own you are still obligated to do everything in our power to put an end to it and make peace. Surely it was very degrading for Moshe to have to plead with Dassan and Aviram. After having learned Torah directly from the mouth of G-d, Moshe is forced to go out and bargain with these evil people. Yet anything less than that extreme effort in the eyes of Hashem is considered perpetuating the Machlokes and puts you in the lot with Korach. So for us, surely, if we were slighted, even in a big way, we need to do whatever we can to stay away from machlokes. And if we hear rumbling of discord whether in a family, office or shul. We must do whatever we can, even at great personal risk, to quickly put an end to it.
The truth is in the heat of the moment when emotions are high it might seem like a difficult task and that we may be losing out emotionally, socially, or monetarily from not putting up a fight and just giving in. However we again see from chazal this is not true. In fact the greatest thing we can do for ourselves, our families, and the Jewish people is to stay as far as possible from machlokes.
The Yerushalmi in Maseches Peah says something astounding that, if taken to heart , could totally change the world.
אָמַר רִבִּי אַבָּא בַּר כַּהֲנָא דּוֹרוֹ שֶׁל דָּוִד כּוּלָּן צַדִּיקִים הָיוּ וְעַל יְדֵי שֶׁהָיָה לָהֶן דֵילָטוֹרִין הָיוּ יוֹצְאִין בַּמִּלְחָמָה וְהָיוּ נוֹפְלִין
אֲבָל דּוֹרוֹ שֶׁל אַחְאָב עוֹבְדֵי עֲבוֹדָה זָרָה הָיוּ וְעַל יִדֵּי שֶׁלֹּא הָיָה לָהֶן דֵּילָטוֹרִיָּא הָיוּ יוֹרְדִין לַמִּלְחָמָה וְנוֹצְחִין
Rebbi Abba bar Cahana said, the generation of David were all righteous but because there were slanderers among them they went to war and were falling.
The generation of Ahab were idolaters but since there was no informing among them they went to war and were victorious.
While some passages of the Gemara can be quite complicated this one is crystal clear. The Jewish people have been fighting wars for thousands of years and the key to victory is clear as can be. The greatest protection we can have is by staying away from Machlokes. Even the great Dovid Hamelech was affected by the Machlokes that were taking place in his generation. We see again that it doesn’t matter if you are right or wrong, righteous or wicked, Hashem has a special abhorrence to Machlokes and discord among the Jewish people. So when faced with a choice of creating a wedge between people over money, honor or anything else in this world remember that in the long run you will certainly lose out. And that whatever it may seem that you are giving up will surely be returned to you by Hashem who loves nothing more than to see his children getting along.
The question is as a nation, sometimes it can seem like a lost cause. Maybe a few individuals can get along with others but there are so many difficult and deeply entrenched arguments in Klal Yisroel how will we ever get to a place where there is true unity. And furthermore don’t we need to stand up for what is right. Where does justice and protecting what is correct and proper fit into this?
We can look at the ramabam in Hilchos Daot to gain a perspective on this. The Rambam explains that in general the best path in life is the middle of the road. We should not be stingy but not overly giving. We should not be obstinate but we should not be push overs. Basically find an even balanced approach to life. The Rambam goes on to explain that there are certain times when things get out of balance and we slip too much into bad Middos. In this case we must go to the opposite extreme to recondition ourselves to what is proper and create equilibrium. If we look at the Jewish people as a whole, since the time of the destruction of the Bait Hamikdash we have certainly slipped too far into the bad Middah of Machlokes and have not been able to correct it. It therefore seems that we now need to try, as much as we can, to go to the opposite extreme and avoid Machlokes at all costs. We will not be able to solve all the world’s problems but at a time when there is increased Machlokes in the Jewish people for whatever reason. We can certainly do our part of trying to bring equilibrium back to the Jewish people by going to the extreme to avoid Machlokes. It might not be fair to us or our families at the moment and we might have to overlook things that upset us in the short term, but the Rambam teaches us that sometimes we do need to go to that extreme to help right the ship. We can not control what other people do and what is right or wrong for each person is between them and G-d. What we can do is take one for the team and pull Kal Yisroel closer to Shalom by going out of our way to make peace with people whenever we can. And as we learned in the long run this is the only thing that will save us and Klal Yisroel.
As good as we have had it in the United States over the past decades, we all hope that America is our last stop in Galus before the coming of Moshiach and we return to Eretz Yisrael. At each stop in Galus we are supposed to learn something that will help bring us one step closer to Geula. It is certainly not a coincidence that July 4th 1776 was the 17th of Tamuz, the beginning of the 3 weeks, which is a time that we are supposed to focus on improving our relationships. The United States was founded on the idea of people being free to live their lives as they see fit but at the same time joining together for the common good of the country. This ideal is encapsulated in the national motto “e pluribus unum” “out of many, one” which dates back to the time of the revolution and is still used today. At the time it was a radical experiment to have people from different religions and backgrounds coming together with unity and living side by side. The United States is the country of live and let live where there are 50 different states but they are united by common ideals. Maybe it is this unity that we are supposed to pick up during our stay in the United States of America on our way back home. The Jewish nation has a lot of opinions and perspectives but we need to find a way to learn to accept and respect the fact that we are all one people united by Hashem and the Torah. We need to learn again the importance of peace at all costs and that even when we have differences of opinion we have much more in common. That even differences that sit at the core of how we relate to the Torah, Hashem and our very existence should be no match for the fact that we are all one nation waiting for redemption together. Hopefully through this we will merit to once again live together in peace as one united people in Eretz Yisroel
Leave a Reply