The Jewish View on Aging

PARSHA INSIGHTS - VA’AIRA (5758)

IT’S A GOOD THING MOSHE RABAINU DID NOT RETIRE IN HIS OLD AGE!

“ Shimon ben Akashya says that elderly people who are ignorant of Torah become more disoriented as they age. But elderly Torah scholars are not so. On the contrary - the older they grow, their minds become more and more stable...” (Mishna at the very end of Tractate Kinim). Why is this so?

The Aitz Yosef on Agada explains that an am ha’aretz [ignoramus], someone uneducated in Torah, considers this world and its pleasures his main purpose. He does not believe firmly in the continuity of the neshama [soul] and the spiritual reward awaiting those who truly fear G-d. As a result, the older he gets, the more confused and disturbed he becomes. He is irritated at the fact that he is soon going to leave this physical world and its gratification. He is approaching death! On the other hand, aged talmidai chachamim [wise scholars] have always considered the delights of this world to be worthless in their own right. For them, Torah and mitzvos [commandments/good deeds] are the mainstay of their existence, since these will bring them eternal bliss and everlasting life. Consequently, the closer they get to seeing their lifelong purpose fulfilled, to witnessing their own spiritual success as an all-encompassing endeavor, the more serene they become. Their emotions and demeanor tend to improve with time, just like old wine.

Who was a greater talmid chacham [wise student] than Moshe Rabainu [Moses our teacher]? How about his brother, Aharon Hakohen [Aaron the priest]? These two certainly typify the picture Chazal [our Sages] draw of what a human being can become. These two superior leaders and role models undoubtedly improved with age. In fact, our parsha [Torah portion] emphasizes this very point by showing that Moshe and Aharon accomplished their most noteworthy achievements when they were already “senior citizens”.

Before we look at the comments of the Lutzker , let us examine some insights of earlier commentators on our parsha. “And Moshe was eighty years old, and Aharon, eighty three years old, when they spoke to Paroh” (7:7). Why tell us about their ages? Sforno points out that despite their advanced years, they were enthusiastic and energetic to perform Hashem’s will. This is evident from all their awesome undertakings.

And in case you think that eighty years old was not considered elderly in the time of Moshe, the Sforno shows that it WAS. In Pirkai Avos 5:26 it states that a sixty year old has reached “zikna” [seniority]. In other words, a sixty-year-old is considered a zakain [elder]. Seventy years old marks “saiva” [ripe old age]. Eighty shows “gevura ” [genuine strength]. Someone who comes this far has already advanced past the former stages of long life. How do Chazal know that an eighty year old has attained gevura? They derive this from Tehillim [Psalms] chapter 90, called “a prayer of Moshe”. There, in Pasuk Yud [verse 10], Moshe Rabainu declares that “the days of our years are seventy, or if by reason of special strength (gevuros), eighty years...” Please take notice! This perek [chapter] of Tehillim was authored by Moshe Rabainu himself and put into Sefer Tehillim [the Book of Psalms] by Dovid Hamelech [King David]. Moshe makes it quite clear that already in his time, the dictum of Chazal in Pirkai Avos applies: One needs special power to live to eighty years old. It is more common to live into the seventies. Thus, Moshe and Aharon were considered “seniors”, even back in the year 2448, when they helped deliver Bnai Yisroel [the Children of ] from Mitzraim [Egypt]. It is true that they lived to 120 (Devarim [Deuteronomy] 34:7) and 123 years old, but such longevity was unusual already in their times, as we have just shown.

The bottom line is that these two leaders carried out most of their monumental tasks when they were already at “retirement age”. What is the Torah’s message in informing us of their ages?

Rav Zalman Sorotzkin eloquently sends the message home to us by interpreting the Torah’s narrative here. The “velt” [the common people in the world] have a tendency to retire, to rest, in their old age. What is sometimes the objective in retirement? There are many who wish only to relax and experience the fleeting pleasures of Olam Hazeh [this world]. Oznaim L’Torah remarks that this is an improper approach for a Jew.

The real Torah sages, the genuine leaders of our people - these individuals gain momentum as they age. Dedication to talmud [learning] Torah increases, moral improvement is enhanced, and quality of life is elevated. Talmidai chachamim seek new opportunities to contribute time and energy for the betterment of their communities and society.

The pasuk in today’s parsha is stressing this most crucial idea. As stated before, people in Moshe’s time were already living shorter lives, into their seventies and sometimes eighties. Thus, Moshe and his brother were surely closer to the end of their lives than to the beginning. When they spoke to Paroh about releasing Bnai Yisroel, two thirds of their lives were past. Yes, since they lived to about 120, and they spoke to Paroh at eighty and eighty-three, this observation is accurate. Look what these brothers achieved for Klal Yisroel [the Jewish people] and for all humankind in their old age. Their astonishing success in rescuing the Jewish people from the clutches of Mitzraim was performed at an age when an average person is “relaxing”! Imagine how desolate the world would be without Kabolas Hatorah [accepting the Torah]. Picture how backward mankind would be without Yetzias Mitzraim [exodus from Egypt]. Envision a primitive world community, an unsophisticated and crude population, steeped in idolatry, worshipping demons, revering the occult powers. How uncultivated and uncivilized society would have been if Moshe and Aharon would have retired!

But wasn’t this vacation something they deserved? Had they not lived and experienced many rewarding and productive years up to the ages of eighty and eighty-three? True, but this is not the attitude of talmidai chachamim. There is ALWAYS more to do. To urge us not to take off time from our spiritual endeavors in our later years, says Rav Sorotzkin, the Torah makes it a point to tell us the ages of Moshe and Aharon when they negotiated with Paroh, monarch of Egypt, for the release of the Jews.

Regarding vacations in general, I will tell you what I heard from a rebbe [rabbi/teacher] of mine during one summer in my teenage years. At Camp Ma Navu, I had the privilege of having close contact with a number of great sages. Among them were Rav Feivel Cohen (author of the world famous Badai Hashulchan on many sections of Shulchan Aruch, plus other sefarim [books]), Rav Tuvia Goldstein (Rosh [head of religious school] of Aimek Halacha), and Rav Tzvi Bosch (a talmid [student] of Rav of Lakewood). In shiur [class] one day, Rav Bosch discussed “vacation”. What did the gedolim [great Torah scholars] of Europe do on their vacations? True, they went to retreats and resort areas, often spending time with nature, in the woods. But what was the objective? It was to learn Torah, A LOT OF TORAH, but in a different setting from usual. The change of atmosphere, climate, and regular routine would provide refreshment and rest for them. This is what a vacation and retirement is supposed to be. Spiritual growth must continue with fervor, accompanied by SOME activities for diversion. Less structure is usually needed for relaxation and for renewed strength to return to the regular schedule, but one must never really take a vacation or retire from Torah. This is one of the numerous lessons we can learn from today’s parsha.

By Rabbi Moshe Heigh

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