21 Mar VAYIKRA: MOSHE WAITED FOR THE CALL

Moshe Waited for the
Call
A verse in this week’s
parsha says, “And G-d
called to Moshe and He
spoke to him…”
[Vayikra 1:1]. The
Medrash comments that we learn from here
that “any Torah scholar who does not have
intelligence (da’as), an animal’s carcass
(neveilah) is superior to him.”
The Medrash elaborates: “Look at Moshe,
the greatest of all Sages, the father of all the
prophets and yet he did not enter the innermost
Tent of Meeting until he was called, as it is
written ‘And He called out to him.’”
Rav Bergman, in his sefer Shaarei Orah
explains this Medrash. Rav Bergman proves
that the word intelligence (de’ah) as used by
the Medrash refers to Derech Eretz (manners,
courtesy). The Sages are saying that a Torah
scholar who does not display courtesy is
inferior to a dead animal.
The Medrash describes Moses as the greatest
of all Sages. IQ and brainpower do not make
a person the greatest of all Sages, but rather
the desire to learn. A person excels in any

endeavor as a result of an unquenchable thirst
for knowledge. Consequently, Moshe must
have had an overpowering desire to acquire
wisdom.
And yet, when G-d was there in the Tent of
Meeting and Moshe had the opportunity to
learn Torah from Him, and he was yearning to
begin learning, he nevertheless waited for
The Call. He dared not enter until summoned,
because it would not have been proper Derech
Eretz, proper conduct, to do so.
The laws of Derech Eretz require us to wait
until we are called. As great a Sage as Moshe
was, he was a greater master of Derech Eretz.
This is what the Medrash means — a scholar
that does not have Derech Eretz is inferior to
a carcass.
The Gerer Rebbe explained this very
sharply. A dead carcass stinks, and everyone
knows to stay away. But people do not
necessarily stay away from a Talmid
Chochom who does not possess manners –
they even come and learn from him – because
he doesn’t stink on the outside!

We Must Be Doing Something Wrong
Someone recently showed me a report called

“The Current State Regarding Derech Eretz
in our Schools.” This was a report written
about a specific Jewish community, but it is
no Mitzvah to say which community it was.
But it is a fine community — a prominent city
with a distinguished Jewish community, and
many good Jewish schools. And the truth of
the matter is that it applies to all communities.
We are in a sad state…
“Teachers are quitting in large numbers;
parents seem unconcerned that teachers are
victims of abominable disrespect by our
children. There is a pervasive atmosphere of
Moshav Leitzim (see glossary) in many of
our schools. This is manifest in the classroom
in the concerted effort to waste time, often
combined with tremendous chutzpah and a
derogatory attitude…
“Many teachers have told their classes that
they have never seen such disrespectful
behavior in twenty years teaching experience,
and that our children are disgracing the
community. The current favorite pastime of
students is constant and vicious mimicking of
teachers and principals…
“Teachers will confirm that there is a serious
lack of respect among the children themselves.

A student who lives by Torah law and refuses
to participate in class pranks is called the
worst of all terms — a ‘Neb’ [short for
‘Nebach’, an unfortunate] — and is often
ostracized…”
Now we would be remiss if we did not
remind ourselves that this is hardly unique to
the Jewish community. We can count our
blessings for all that has happened in the
larger community, which is rare or unknown
within the halls of a Jewish day school. But
neither have we demonstrated ourselves
immune to the general decline of the last
several decades. Come and see — Moshe was
the greatest of all Sages, but he didn’t breach
the laws of etiquette, no matter how much he
wanted to learn.