Moses and Aaron were both brothers and leaders of the Jewish people, yet they couldn’t have been more opposite. Moses was a man of truth and justice and black and white, while Aaron on the other hand, was a man of peace, mediation, and compromise.
When I think of Aaron, I’m reminded of a story about a rabbi who couldn’t resolve a conflict between two parties, so he brought both parties to his rabbi for resolution. The rabbi asked the first party to state his case and once stated, the rabbi said, “I see your point, you are right.” He then asked the second party to state their case, to which he responded, “I see your point and you are right.” To this, the rabbi’s disciple responded, “They have a conflict, how can they both be right?” The rabbi then responded, “I see your point, you are right.”
This is the process towards mediation, when it isn’t black and white and we all have a valid point, yet without a figure like Moses, we don’t have the law, we don’t have order, and all we have is compromise.
In life, we must be both Aaron and Moses, especially when it comes to our own actions. When it’s wrong, we must not find a justification to act differently, however when it comes to giving others—and ourselves—grace, we must be peaceful and compromising like Aaron.
I’m reminded of one more story. The rabbi Levi of Berditziv told his students, “Instead of worrying about your friend’s spirituality, worry about his physical needs and worry about your own spirituality.”
This week, let’s save the black and white for the letter of the law, yet find ways to mediate and chase peace.
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