Shimush

Shavua Tov. One of the points of Parshat Pinchas was that Moshe was concerned who would lead the people after his death. Hashem told Moshe that Yehoshua was the most worthy to lead primarily because of his loyalty.The Hebrew word describing Yehoshua's unending devotion to Moshe was "Shimush." The Midrash goes so far to say that Yehoshua was the guy who set up the benches in preparation of Moshe's public discourses. He was the first to arrive and the last to leave.Traditionally, this idea of "Shimush" has been handed down from generation to generation from Rabbi to student. The student learns from up close how his mentor puts Judaism into practice and how he analyzes Jewish Law. This is something unique to Judaism in that it is far more than theoretical. It is also far more than practical in that each generation the two are combined, the practical and theoretical in a way that began from Moshe to Yehoshua until today.