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By far, in my opinion, the most important person to live was Moses. He was not only the great emancipator, but a law giver, who, not only gave his people the rules (Ten Commandments), but established the groundwork for the institution of justice, based on the Ten Commandments.
When he led his people across the vast expanse of desert to Canaan (renamed Israel), he proved that persistent leadership is important and there could be no compromise in the way of achieving any goal. Emancipators, such as Abraham Lincoln, Gandhi and Martin Luther King

had learned a great deal from the example that Moses had set. It was not easy for Moses to execute the colossal task of trying to placate and control a whole generation of Jews under those circumstances. One can imagine the burden that he had to shoulder. He was also a risk-taker. His standard of morality was unquestionably superb; so, too, was his faith and belief in a divine power in whom implicit confidence and trust must be reposed. Forty years in the wilderness was a monumental biblical and historical event.

Before Moses there were many systems of law that could not endure. The Mosaic Law continues to this day and is the foundation on which the laws of all great religions of the Western world have been built. It is inherent in the principle of democracy in which the exercise of freecdom is paramount.

There is no doubt that Moses initiated the beginning of civilization. Indirectly, he had pioneered the usage of intellectual resources in order to enrich the world. As a leader, he was subject to harassment and lack of confidence on the part of many people who had not trusted him, but he managed to survive their indiscretion and ingratitude through his patience and tolerance. How he had succeeded to achieve his objective is beyond human comprehension. The appropriate definition of leadership can only be calculated in terms of the sterling character of Moses. His prophetic understanding of the nature of the universe could not be denied. Yet Moses was not a hundred percent perfect, just as those that lead the nations of the world are not entirely perfect and must seek advice, as Moses had sought the advice of his brother, Aaron, and had to contend with challenges that he had confronted tenaciously.

Today's leaders can learn a great deal from a simple man that had once led his people across the vast expanse of terrain in the name of humanity and freedom.

Learn more about this author, Maurice Sassoon.
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