Why I miss Moses this Passover

I miss Moses. Moses is often remembered as an unconventional leader, contrasting sharply with the archetype of charismatic figures like Winston Churchill or David Ben-Gurion. His leadership was marked by humility, hesitation, and reliance on God rather than personal charisma or eloquence.

Unlike leaders who depend on personality, Moses left a timeless legacy rooted in freedom, law, and covenant with God—values celebrated annually during Passover. 

A “real” leader—at least as far as popular culture is concerned—must have three main qualities: 

1. The leader must believe in his own power in such a way that his followers truly accept him as someone worth following. 
2. The leader’s faith in his vision should infect the public and sweep them into devotion to it.
3. Classical leaders know how to use language for their benefit. Speech is the most powerful tool available to those who seek to motivate people to action.

So how does Moses match up?

• Exodus 3:11: “But Moses said to God, ‘Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?’”
• Exodus 5:22: “Then Moses turned to the Lᴏʀᴅ and said, ‘O Lord, why have you done evil to this people? Why did you ever send me?’”
• Exodus 4:10: “But Moses said to the Lᴏʀᴅ, ‘Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.’”

Obviously, Moses is not the classical leader we are used to. We might even say Moses is an anti-leader in many ways. So why do I miss him?

A thousand years from now I doubt if someone will celebrate our prime minister’s legacy. I am not even sure there is a legacy. It will probably be a memorial day for the biggest tragedy we had since the establishment of the state of Israel.

Yet, on Saturday, Jews from all over the world will sit around the table and celebrate PESAJ Passover. It’s one of the three most important days of the year. We will remember the most significant leader we ever had, Moses, his humble, honest leadership, and his relationship with God. 

It’s a celebration of freedom, of going from slavery in Egypt to freedom in the desert, of independence, of receiving the laws from God. 

In many of our homes, we will have all the elements of Passover: matza, wine, an empty chair for the prophet Elijah, and the booklet we read from called the Hagada. 

However, there will be one thing missing: the celebration. I can not celebrate freedom when we have 59 hostages still in the tunnels of Gaza. 

So, instead, we will take this time to remember all that God has done and to pray that he will once again deliver us from the evil that threatens our lives and our freedom. Will you join me in that prayer?