Over my career as a Rabbi I have been blessed to have many conversations with people who are exploring the rabbinate a path for themselves. I have had a particularly larger number of these conversations in the last year. There are some clear factors contributing to this increase. This is interesting in light of the larger leadership pipeline crisis in our community. There are an interesting emergent responses to this pipeline issue. See Atra Study and the myriad of the responses it inspired. Relatedly there is an increase in rabbinical programs recruiting people to join the ranks. It is also possible that this increase is a response to the heightened search for meaning post October 7th. More people are seeking purpose, connection, and a sense of being grounded in family, people, and tribe. And I am sure that this is only the tip of the iceberg.

All of this has pushed me to explore why I chose this path. What was my calling? It is funny to even use those words. This is not a Jewish language for why to become a rabbi, but an interesting question nonetheless.

I was thinking about all of this when reading the begining of Vayikra, this week’s Torah portion. Here we read:

Vayikra -And [GOD] called to Moshe and spoke to him from the Tent of Meeting, saying: Speak to the Israelite people, and say to them: When any of you presents an offering of cattle to GOD: You shall choose your offering from the herd or from the flock. (Leviticus 1:1-2)

G‑d calls to Moshe from the Tent of Meeting, and communicates to him the laws of the korbanot, the animal and meal offerings brought in the Sanctuary. On this Rashi quotes the midrash to say:

AND [THE LORD] CALLED UNTO MOSHE — All oral communications of the Lord to Moshe whether they are introduced by דבר or by אמר or by צו were preceded by a call (to prepare him for the forthcoming address) (cf Sifra, Vayikra Dibbura d’Nedavah, Chapter 1 1-2). It is a way of expressing affection, the mode used by the ministering angels when addressing each other, as it is said (Isaiah 6:3) “And one called unto another [and said, Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts]”. ( Rashi on Leviticus 1:1)

There are many different verbs used to “call” Moshe, but they are all terms of endearment. There is an element that God is calling Moshe near to bring him in to do his bidding. And in this case Moshe is being brought in to teach the people how to give sacrifices. But the word korbanot- sacrifices it self come from karov- to draw close. The holiness might be less in the “calling” than in the “drawing them close”.

I was thinking about this calling in the context of those who aspire to serve as Rabbis. I am not sure I can make a theological claim for myself let alone anyone else, but there is clearly “drawing close”. That is to say to serve as a rabbi is to put oneself out there to be empathetic to the needs your people. There may or may not be a discovery of the divine Other, but there certainly an openness and drawing close of others. In this drawing close I have found true holiness. I have no regrets as for the choice of this path.