Insights on the Parsha & Mo'adim - From Joshua Moshe Mitchell

Following last week’s double parsha, we are met with another this week - פרשת אחרי מות-קדושים. In אחרי מות, HaShem prohibits the consumption of blood, stating that He will “Set His face against” the transgressor, and that they shall be cut off from עם ישראל. The Torah explains the reason behind this restriction, stating: “כי נפש הבשר בדם הוא ואני נתתיו לכם על־המזבח לכפר על־נפשתיכם כי־הדם הוא בנפש יכפר - for the soul of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the Mizbe’ach to attone for all your souls; for it is the blood that makes attonement for the soul”. It then outlines the proper procedure when hunting: one must pour out the blood of the wild animal and cover it with dust. Finally, to conclude the discourse on this איסור, the Torah reiterates the relationship between blood and soul. This passage is very difficult, and only raises questions: Why does one need to cover the blood in dust? Why does the Torah state both the connection to the soul and מזבח as reasons for this prohibition? How is the blood connected to the soul, and why is this sin warrant כרת, a punishment more severe than the rest of כשרות? 

This week’s Parsha is פרשת תזריע-מצורע, the second double פרשה of the year. Large portions of these פרשיות are dedicated to צרעת, a white lesion-like affliction on the body. This condition is described at the beginning of תזריע where the Torah states: “אדם כי־יהיה בעור־בשרו שאת או־ספחת או בהרת והיה בעור־בשרו לנגע צרעת והובא אל־אהרן הכהן או אל־אחד מבניו הכהנים - when a man has in the skin of his flesh a se’et, or a sapachat or a baheret and it will be in the skin of his flesh plague of tzara‘at, he shall go to Aharon the Kohen or to one from his sons, the Kohanim.” The Torah here introduces three different forms of צרעת, and goes into detail on the process of affirming the authenticity of this affliction. It then describes cases of uncertainty and what one should do with a positive and negative diagnosis. However, one can easily walk away from this פרשה and still wonder, what is צרעת about, really? Is it an ancient disease or a divine sign? What causes it? Why are there 3 different forms of it? And, today, in a time without this affliction, how is it, and its lessons still relevant? 

This שבת we read פרשת שמיני, the third פרשה in ספר ויקרא. This Parsha is most well known for the death of נדב and אביהוא, two sons of אהרן, who offered an uncommanded קטורת before HaShem, and as a result, were consumed by a fire from G-d. Despite this, אהרן and his remaining sons are not allowed to mourn them publicly; instead, they must continue the work in the משכן. As a part of that, משה commands them to eat the קרבנות in the מקום קודש, in the holy place. However, משה finds that instead of eating the קרבן, they burned it. The תורה relates his reaction, stating: “ויקצף על־אלעזר ועל־איתמר בני אהרן הנותרם - And he (Moshe) became angry with Elazar and Itmar, the remaining sons of Aharon”. Moshe then inquires why they didn’t eat the חטאת, for it was given to atone for all of כלל ישראל, and all the proper conditions were in it to be eaten. אהרן responds, asking that after all the things that have befallen him, would it really be proper in the eyes of HaShem to eat it? The תורה concludes that Moshe listened, and אהרן’s words were good in his eyes. Understanding this passage is incredibly difficult. What is the argument really about between אהרן and משה, and what connection does it have to נדב and אביהוא? Moreover, how are we to understand Moshe’s anger, what caused it, and how is it possible for him to experience it, for is it really the way of a צדיק to be angry? 

This Wednesday night, we partake in the most unique night of the year, ליל הסדר. There, we read the הגדה, highlighted by מגיד. In רבי אלעזר בן עזריה ,מגיד states: “הרי אני כבן שבעים שנה ולא זכיתי שתאמר יציאת מצרים בלילות עד שדרשה בן זומא - I am like a 70 year old, and I haven’t merited to prove that one must speak the exodus from Egypt at night until I heard the Drasha of Ben Zuma.” This statement is very confusing. Why does he say that he is only ‘like’ a 70-year-old? What is the relevance of this proclamation to recounting the Exodus at night? And if it’s just referring to his age and wisdom, how then can we understand such a צדיק boasting about himself?

Recorded in Yerushalayim

This week’s Parsha is פרשת צו, the second Parsha in ספר ויקרא, where the כהנים are commanded more about the עבודה in the מקדש. Within this פרשה, the Torah states one striking statute about the Mizbeach: “אש תמיד תוקד על־המזבח לא תכבה - A continuous fire shall burn on the altar, it shall not be extinguished.” This פסוק is perplexing and raises several questions: Firstly, what exactly is this אש תמיד, and what work is required from the כהנים regarding it? Why must the fire continue to burn even when there is no other קרבן or עבודה taking place? And why is such a fire needed when there are already other continuous lights in the מקדש? 

Recorded in Ramot

This שבת we read פרשת ויקרא, the opening Parsha of the third ספר in the חמשה חומשי תורה. Commonly referred to as תורת כהנים, much of ספר ויקרא details the עבודה of the מקדש, partically the קרבנות sacrificed there. Many קרבנות are simply referred to as an אשה לה׳ - a fire to G-d, but a select few are given the designation of an אשה ריח-ניחוח לה׳ - a pleasant-smelling fire to HaShem. In our Parsha, this term appears nine times - associated with the שלמים ,מנחה, עולה, and personal חטאת offerings. But, why - why isn’t this term universal to all קרבנות? Why do only some merit being called a ריח-ניחוח? And what does ריח-ניחוח truly mean? Can it really just be a pleasant aroma? If not, then what does it represent, and how is it achieved?  

Recorded in Yeshivat Sha'alvim

This week’s Parsha is ויקהל-פקודי, the final פרשה in ספר שמות. At the end of the ספר, after the משכן is fully assembled, the Torah states: “ויכס הענן את־אהל מועד וכבוד ה׳ מלא את־המשכן - and the cloud covered the Tent of Meeting, and the glory of HaShem filled the Mishkan.” As a result of this כבוד, Moshe was unable to enter the אהל מועד. The תורה then describes the ענני הכבוד, illustrating that it would lead בני ישראל throughout the מדבר. Finally, ספר שמות concludes stating: “כי ענן יהוה על־המשכן יומם ואש תהיה לילה בו לעיני כל־בית־ישראל בכל־מסעיהם - for the cloud of HaShem was on the Mishkan by day, and fire by night, in the eyes of all of the house of Israel, in all of their journeys.” This ending is striking and raises many questions. Firstly, what does it mean that the כבוד ה׳ filled the משכן, and why is this something that prevents משה רבינו, someone who spoke to HaShem face to face, from entering the אהל מועד? Furthermore, why must the Torah state that the cloud was over the משכן by day and the fire by night - what is the significance of this? And finally, how do these passages contribute to and conclude ספר שמות as a whole?

On Monday night, we will begin Purim, a חג that, at least at first glance, seems to commemorate the events and miracles that took place 2400 years ago in שושן. Unlike חנוכה, this חג has a ספר in מגלת אסתר :תנ”ך. There, we are given the reasoning behind the name ‘פורים’. The פסוק states: “על־כן קראו לימים האלה פורים על־שם הפור על־כן על־כל־דברי האגרת הזאת ומה־ראו על־ככה ומה הגיע אליהם - Therefore, they called these days Purim after the name Pur, therefore because of the words of this letter and what they had seen concerning this, and what had befallen them.” The naming of פורים is puzzling, and leaves us with many questions: Why is the holiday named after a פור rather than the downfall of המן, reversal of אחשורוש’s decree, or the heroism of מרדכי and אסתר? How does this name capture the message of פורים as a whole? What exactly is this message that the פור represents, and if פורים is just a זכרון, how is it relevant to us today?

In this week’s Parsha, פרשת תצוה, the Torah goes more in depth on the משכן, specifically focusing on the appointment of אהרן and the כהנים. One of the essentials for their service is, of course, their בגדים (clothing) - as it’s how they are presented to HaShem and the rest of the world. Therefore, HaShem commands that only very specific individuals be permitted to make this clothing, as the Torah states: “ואתה תדבר אל־כל־חכמי־לב אשר מלאתיו רוח חכמה ועשו את־בגדי אהרן לקדשו לכהנו־לי - and you (משה) shall speak to all the wise-hearted people - whom I (ה׳) have filled with the spirit of wisdom, and they shall make Aharon’s clothing, to sanctify him to serve Me as a Kohen.” This verse does more than simply describe who will make the garments; it emphasizes that these individuals must be חכמי לב, filled with wisdom granted by HaShem. But what does it mean to be called a חכם לב? And why does the תורה need to state that HaShem gave them this wisdom - isn’t it obvious!? Furthermore, looking later in ספר שמות we find that these חכמי לב not only make the בגדי כהונה, but also constructed the entire משכן. But why them? What makes these people uniquely fitting to build the משכן?

This Shabbat, we will read פרשת תרומה, where HaShem commands בני ישראל in building the משכן, and its fixtures. However, before G-d mandates the creation of every vessel, He instructs us to build a מקדש for Him. As the תורה states: “ועשו לי מקדש ושכנתי בתוכם - And make Me a Mikdash, and I will dwell amongst them.” This פסוק is quite perplexing. Firstly, what does it mean to build a מקדש? If this is solely a reference to the משכן, then why use a different term? What does this specific language teach us? Moreover, the implication from this פסוק is that עם ישראל can only receive the שכינה (Divine Presence) when they assemble a מקדש for G-d. But, why is this so - why does the שכינה only rest after the מקדש’s construction?

Recorded in Yeshivat Sha'alvim