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An Unlikely Jewish Hero
Contributed by Margalit R

  • TOP HAGGADAHS FOR 2023

The traditional telling of the Passover story does not mention Moshe’s name; all the miracles were Adonai’s, after all, and Moshe and his brother Aaron were merely human envoys—mouthpieces for the Divine. But let’s take a moment now to discuss Moshe as a person. Though he is one of Judaism’s most beloved leaders and prophets, he had some qualities that would possibly make many Jews look askance at him if he were a member of their communities today:

  • He was adopted.

  • He was an ex-con and a fugitive.

  • He married a non-Jewish woman and lived away from his people for decades.

  • He had a speech impediment that made him self-conscious and doubtful of his ability to lead.

  • He was an octogenarian by the time he led his people out of Egypt.

  • He argued with Adonai a lot, and even disobeyed a direct order, which barred him from entering the promised land.

Moshe was a good leader precisely because he was so ordinary, even flawed. He was truly a man of Yisra-el: a man who struggled with the divine. Here is a hero for those of us who don’t quite fit in, who have made mistakes, who doubt, who feel disconnected from our people—and who push through all of these obstacles in our lives and lead anyway, because we know it’s our responsibility and the right thing to do. Moshe is also of an example of how it’s never too late in one’s life to start along a new path.
haggadah Section: -- Exodus Story
Source: Original

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