Korach & Lincoln
A short thought on Parashas Korach
Abraham Lincoln in his capacity as President during the Civil War had many good reasons to be upset at others. He would spend time writing long angry letters to those he felt had wronged him. After writing such a letter, he would address it, seal it and put in his desk drawer. This is where the letter remained. It was never actually sent, although the angry feelings have been adequately expressed.1
Korach was annoyed at the way Moshe was running the show, in fact he was angry. He gathered a group of likeminded friends and confronted Moshe with his complaints. As I read the Parashah, I couldn’t help but think — what would have happened had Korach just kept all his angry feelings to himself? How different would we look today as a people? How much more spiritually enriched would we be?
While we cannot go back in time, we can try not to emulate Korach and instead emulate Lincoln and those like him who found ways to express their feelings without causing infighting and enimity.
In the age of email and instant communication, it can be a huge challenge not to click ‘Send’, but perhaps this is how we can eradicate arguments and strife from around us.
Just make sure not to mail the letter.