Voices of WRJ: Sh’lach L’cha

by Madelyn A. Davidson The central theme of this parashah is rebellion, but the biggest question it raised in my mind is not addressed in the many commentaries I have read to prepare this blog. The portion recounts the sending of scouts into Canaan before the Israelites enter the land. The suggestion for sending the scouts came from God and was executed by Moses. He sent one leader from each of the 12 tribes to find out if Canaan was indeed a land “of milk and honey.” They were tasked with bringing back samples of produce and reports on the current inhabitants of the land. God had already promised that the land would belong to the Israelites, but 10 of the 12 scouts returned with rumors of Giants and unconquerable people. Only Joshua and Caleb returned with positive reports of the Israelites’ future home. The negative reports played on the fears of the people and they cry and worry that they will all perish. God is angered by the negativity and imposes the world’s worst time out. Only the families of Joshua and Caleb are allowed immediate access to the Promised Land. The adult Israelites who belong to the 10 tribes of the negative scouts will not be allowed to enter Canaan. They will roam the desert for 40 years until they have all died. Then their children will be allowed to enter and dwell in Canaan. The Contemporary Reflection commentary by Josee Wolff in The Torah A Women’s Commentary proposes that the 10 negative leaders were acting from their pessimistic nature and that Joshua and Caleb had a more optimistic outlook. “A pessimist observes a situation, generalizes about the bad aspects, and interprets them as a permanent and constant feature. In contrast, the optimist observes the same situation and sees the bad aspects, but particularizes them and interprets them as a temporary obstacle that can be overcome.” This outlook indicates that Joshua and Caleb had faith that the people had the ability to overcome the challenges of a new life, a true optimistic outlook. In a psychology class in college we studied the Nature-Nurture controversy. At that time I, being young and naive, fell squarely in the middle of the belief in Nurture. I felt that how you were raised was more important than what you were at birth. From years of life experience I now lean more toward Nature. I feel that brains are hard-wired by neurology, chemistry and genetics to deeply influence how we think and behave. Yes, Nurture is a big part of the outcome, but to quote the wise sage Popeye the Sailor Man, “I yam what I yam.” The Lubavitcher Rebbe, R. Menachem Mendel Schneersohn, turns the explanations upside down and offers another interpretation that makes more sense to a modern psychological outlook. He suggests that the 10 negative leaders were well intentioned, but feared success, not failure. Their concern was spiritual as they did not want to leave the desert where they so closely felt the presence of God. In the desert the people ate manna from Heaven and drank water from the rock and experienced daily miracles. If they proceeded into Canaan they would be just one more nation among the nations of the earth. As a hard-wired optimist, I feel the truth lies somewhere between these two outlooks, but I also feel that it is the job of every good leader to encourage their “tribes” to overcome obstacles and challenges through their own intelligence and strength of will. As leaders, we act as the conductor of an orchestra, guiding our followers to make their own decisions and then act on them. To me, whether the 10 negative leaders did their tribes a disservice by not trusting them to succeed in Canaan or whether they wanted to remain closer to the presence of God doesn’t really matter. The bigger question in my mind is why did God issue such a harsh punishment to the 10 tribes knowing that they were predisposed to act as an optimist or a pessimist by the fact that we are all of His creation and design? Madelyn Davidson is the current WRJ SE District Recording Secretary, a proud WRJ Board Member, and past president of Sisterhood of Congregation Beth Am in Tampa, Florida. In her spare time she is President of Davidson Insurance, Inc.