‘Where There Is No One — Be the Person’ — A Lesson for Our Times
“Where There Is No One — Be the Person” — A Lesson for Our Times
In Parshas Shemos, Moshe Rabbeinu witnesses an Egyptian striking a Hebrew slave. The Torah says: “ויפן כה וכה וירא כי אין איש” — he looked carefully and saw that no one was stepping in. Chazal explained that Moshe was not only observing others; he was asking himself: Who will act? Who am I going to be in this moment? The Torah deliberately leaves the word ish open — it is not about who is around us, but who we choose to be right now. Moshe weighs two options: his own comfort and safety, or standing up for what is right. Then he realizes: if no one else will act, I must be the person to do it. The Torah later calls him “והאיש משה ענו מאד” — he became a true ish, not because of power or position, but because of responsibility, courage, and the willingness to act even alone.
The Mishnah in Pirkei Avot teaches the same principle: “ובמקום שאין אנשים, השתדל להיות איש” — in places where there is no initiative, no one taking responsibility, no one standing against injustice, strive to be that person. Even Moshe benefited from the courage of others: Miriam, his sister, watched over him, and Pharaoh’s daughter saved him from the Nile, risking her own status to preserve a Jewish child. Responsibility is sometimes a chain — one person acts, enabling others to fulfill their potential.
A powerful example in Jewish history is Recha Sternbuch (1905–1971). From a deeply religious family — her nephew is Rabbi Moshe Sternbuch, a leading Torah authority in Jerusalem — Recha risked her life during the Holocaust to save Jews. She arranged forged visas and travel documents, smuggled refugees across dangerous borders, coordinated communication with Jewish organizations abroad, negotiated with diplomats to release prisoners, and visited and cared for Jewish orphans hidden in convents and orphanages. She undertook all these actions at grave personal risk, enduring arrest and personal loss, yet never hesitating because the duty was clear. She did not wait for anyone else to act — she chose responsibility and action. She was one of many heroic religious Jews who stepped forward when others could not.
Modern examples — starting at an early age — include standing up for a classmate when he is bullied or excluded, helping a fellow Jew who is struggling so he stays on a Jewish path, reporting or intervening when someone is treated unfairly, helping the sick or elderly, speaking out against dishonesty, injustice, or antisemitism, and defending Israel in speech and action. These moments are never easy. Doing nothing is safer, but responsibility demands action. Like Moshe standing up for the Hebrew slave, and Recha Sternbuch risking everything for Jews in peril, we too must choose to be the ish — the person who takes responsibility, acts decisively, and refuses to stand aside when others suffer.
The final takeaway: “במקום שאין איש — תהיה איש.” When no one else acts, ask yourself: Who will I choose to be? Taking responsibility and standing up for what is right is not only for leaders; every Jew must act for our people, uphold Torah values, and fulfill the mitzvos — in every time and in every generation.
