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THE JEWISH PRESS
Halacha and Hashkafa
Friday, March 5, 2010
HALACHIC POSITIONS OF RABBI J. B. SOLOVEITCHIK, ZT”L
FREE LARGE PRINT HAGGADAHS
FROM A LECTURE SERIES BY RABBI AHARON ZIEGLER
Moshe Rabbeinu’s Prophecy The Rambam’s sixth article of faith is, “I believe with complete faith that all the words of the prophets are true.” The seventh principle is, “I believe with complete faith that the prophecy of Moshe Rabbeinu, peace upon him, is true, and that he was the father of the prophets – both those who preceded him and those who followed him.” Rav Soloveitchik questioned the necessity of enumerating these two ideas separately, as two distinct principles of faith. The Rav explained that to understand the thinking of the Rambam we must first have a clear comprehension of what transpired between Moshe and his sister Miriam. Moshe owed his very existence to his sister’s prophecy, for her prophecy caused her separated parents to reunite, leading to Moshe’s birth. Keeping in mind Miriam’s status as a prophetess, we can appreciate why Miriam, in Parshat B’ha’alotecha (Bamidbar 12:2), felt she had the right to criticize Moshe for separating from his wife,
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while she and Aharon continued living with their spouses. Miriam, who was aware of her brother’s greatness, thought she had greater insight in this instance, and a moral right to express her displeasure with her brother. She recalled her parents’ separation and saw the dangers inherent in her brother’s behavior. Upon hearing of his separation, Miriam speaks with moral outrage: How could Moshe, the living proof of her prophecy, how could he of all people separate from his wife? Nonetheless, Miriam was mistaken in this instance. Although separation is not normative behavior for ordinary Jews, or even prophets, Moshe was different. Moshe’s prophecy was unlike any other. Ultimately, Hashem agreed that Moshe should remain alone, showing that he alone would remain constantly on the level of “closeness to Hashem” that all of Israel obtained at the moment of revelation at Sinai. This is why at the end of our morning davening there is a minhag to recount the six items that the Torah specifically commands us to remember, one of them being the commandment to remember what happened to Miriam. That is also why the Rambam lists the belief in the unique prophecy of Moshe Rabbeinu as one of the Thirteen Principles of Faith.
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