The Book of Exodus opens with multiple stories about civil disobedience, about justice, and about leadership. The story of the Exodus from Egypt is, of course, a foundational text in our tradition—but one of the striking things about this part of the story are the women who are named and celebrated for their roles. This week, we’ll explore some of those stories.
In just a few weeks, we will read of the moment where Miriam takes her timbrels in her hand and leads the women of Israel in song and in dance. For my admissions essay to Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, I wrote about Miriam and this moment. While I think the original essay is a casualty of the demise of the floppy disk as a storage medium, I can remember—at 22—being frustrated that in this moment, when she is given the chance to step into power and leadership, she brings her brother’s words. What—I imagined—might it have looked like for her to offer her own vision, her own celebration, her own song?
Jacinda Arden, the Prime Minister of New Zealand, recently announced that she will not seek reelection. In a leadership lesson unto itself, she told journalists: “You cannot and should not do the job unless you have a full tank, plus a bit in reserve for those unplanned and unexpected challenges.” She concluded by saying: “I no longer have enough in the tank to do the job justice.”
Setting aside that remarkable lesson—and one that I think Moses learns and teaches reluctantly—I want to offer another quote from Prime Minister Arden, this one bringing me back to Miriam. Several years ago, Arden commented that:
One of the criticisms I’ve faced over the years is that I’m not aggressive enough or assertive enough, or maybe somehow, because I’m empathetic, it means I’m weak. I totally rebel against that. I refuse to believe that you cannot be both compassionate and strong.
Almost 20 years into my rabbinate, I still wish we got to meet Miriam in her own words in that one moment, but I have also realized that her leadership appears in different ways and in different places. She is the sister who watches over her brother, and pulls strings behind the scenes to make sure that he receives the care and love and instruction that he needs. And, she is the nurturer, ensuring that the Israelites have water—the stuff of life—throughout their years in the desert. And as my friend and teacher Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg writes: “Miriam was brave and smart and without her, the Israelites would never have found their way to freedom, and certainly not with the amount of joy and song and dance she did it with!”
Miriam is a reminder that leadership looks different depending on the leader. And so while I’ll always hope that Miriam stepped into the spotlight and took up her space, I’m also thankful for—and try to emulate—her leadership of strength combined with compassion.
—Rabbi Sari Laufer