The Royal We, The Divine Us
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The Royal We, the Divine Us (Parshas Bereishis)
Rabbi Elchanan Schulgasser
This article originally appeared in the Kansas City Jewish Chronicle. Subsequently, it was published in “L’Shma,” the Kollel’s Journal.
Genesis Chapter One, Verse 26
And G-d said, “Let us make Man…”
The Torah’s account of G-d’s decision to create Man, “Let us make Man,” contains a curious pronoun. To whom does the word “us” refer? G-d had required no help on the earlier five days of Creation as, at His sole command, He created darkness and light, flora and fauna. There is no evidence that G-d worked with a committee then. And, if G-d needed help, why did the outsourced talent make its debut at the creation of Man on the sixth day?
The Midrash explains that, “us,” refers to the angels, although, the angels themselves had no hand in Man’s creation. The Talmud points out that the next verse: “And G-d created Man in His own image…” refers to G-d in the decidedly singular (and is a clear refutation to any polytheistic notion a reader might have). Still, G-d took counsel with the angels. At that moment, the angels were the loftiest creatures in existence, although Man would have the potential to become even greater than them. However, rather than unilaterally bringing a new creature onto His inner-circle, G-d consulted with the angels before Man’s creation. This willingness to consult with His subordinates, the Midrash concludes, shows us G-d’s humility.
Surely G-d did not include this verse in His Torah to boast of His humility—that would be absurd. Rather, there must be an important lesson for all of us contained in this exchange. Indeed, one parallel can be found in the Sanhedrin, the Highest Court in the land of Israel, which functioned from the days of the Tanach through Talmudic times. When the Sanhedrin deliberated on a case, the seventy judges would share their opinions beginning with the lowest-ranking judges and proceeding in turn until the Court’s wisest, most respected member had spoken. Good manners would seem to suggest the opposite: the junior judges should wait for their senior colleagues to speak. But protocol demanded otherwise. Were the senior judges to speak first, the others, less experienced, less confident, might be reluctant to share their own thoughts. This could not be accepted, since the full participation of the entire Court was required. The most senior judge, therefore, patiently listened to the opinions of his sixty-nine colleagues before speaking.
Contemporary evidence exists for the value to such an approach. A runaway bestseller was required reading in business schools some years ago. The book examined several large corporations that had enjoyed unusual success after long periods of relative mediocrity. To the researchers’ surprise, flashy, outspoken, celebrity CEOs—the sort whose names regularly appear in the media—did not lead these companies through their turnarounds. On the contrary, board directors and subordinates alike widely described their leaders as unassuming, cooperative, and extremely humble.
What can we learn from G-d, the Sanhedrin, and successful CEO’s? A new year has started and with it a new beginning. Let us commit to listening—to really hearing out that subordinate who disagrees with us, that child who respectfully offers a different opinion, that spouse who just won’t admit that we know better. It worked for the CEOs. It worked for the judges of the Sanhedrin. And it worked for the Almighty Himself.
