Vayikra in Lockdown (Vayikra)

Beyond the words "And Hashem called" or "And Hashem said," this week's parsha is completely without narrative. It is about karbanos, the offerings in the sanctuary. It is an incredibly detailed list of why a korben is brought, how it is brought, how one determines what needs to be brought, and what happens after it is brought. It is not the easiest parsha to just read, to say the least.

As we have seen so often repeated now in memes and tweets and posts, we all hope that, please Hasham, this bizzare twist in our lives is the gentle birthpangs of Moshiach. Perhaps we should really focus hard on these karbanos to understand what we will be able to do when the Third Temple stands once more in Jerusalem. But this is not the first time that the world has been in crisis and people have declared it “the moment;” alas, we are still here is galus. Therefore we must look to the parsha to teach us lessons for today as well as to learn the detailed laws of our past and our future.

Since we are not able to offer karbanos here in galus, what can we learn from Parshas Vayikra? The parsha describes five different categories of offerings, and then it discusses the variables of the sacrifices and the way in which they were offered. There was the Oleh - the elevation offering, the Mincha - the meal offering, the Shelamim - the peace offering, the Chatat - the sin offering, and the Asham - the guilt offering. Some of these offerings are voluntary, meaning one chooses to bring them. The ones that are mandatory, however, are, fascinatingly, connected to unintended transgressions or even the CONCERN that one might have unintentionally transgressed.

Sitting here, as I desperately seek a peaceful corner to grasp a few moments of my own, I think there is a lesson for all of us in lockdown. Whether the space we are in is large or small - the fact that we can’t leave is considerably challenging We need to constantly remind ourselves that most of the things that other people do that set us on edge are unintentional, and that the beautiful moments when we do a little more are voluntary. Shut in together, remembering these facts will help us appreciate each other a little more -- or at least maintain a level of shalom bayis. Now is a wonderful opportunity to work hard on not making our children karbanos, not sacrificing our shalom bayis for things our spouses don’t even know they are doing, and not offering up our own sanity. We must focus on gratitude and forgiveness.

On a more abstract note, it occurred to me that the word Vayikra (kuf reish aleph) is very close to Vayikarov (kuf reish beis), the words for calling and being close. The difference between how we need to treat each other during this time is hidden in the name of the parsha when we see our friends or neighbors we must be an aleph - a leading example, and we must call out to our friends and neighbors. We must not be “bad” bet, and come karov, close.

Wishing you all a healthy and inspirational Shabbas.

Ki Tisa and the Corona Crisis (Ki Tisa)

This has been a week during which, I think, most people are feeling a sense of chaos, of anxiety … a sense of something unique happening in the world. Not surprising, this week’s parsha, Ki Sissa, is rife with passukim that one can find relevant to our current world situation. There is, significantly, the verse “they shall wash their hands and feet, that they may not die. It shall be a law for all time for them – for him and his offspring – throughout the ages” (30:21) – and see, it is verse 21, an allusion that one person should wash their hands for 20 seconds!

Another interesting piece of this week’s parsha is the worship of the Golden Calf, always a troubling parsha to review. But this week, as we have all watched with concern how the stock market has tumbled, one wonders if a connection cannot be made to a reminder that we must not rely on gashmius, but that we must look to spiritual richness.

Of course, one cannot do a quick review of the parsha and the Corona Virus without noting Moshe’s mask that he wore anytime he went in public!

One last small thought is one I saw in the Sefer Talelei Oros on the pasuk “And I shall remove My palm, and you will see My back, but you will not see My face” (33:23). “The Chasam Sofer points out that there are many things in life that seem totally incomprehensible at the time they occur, but, with the passage of time, their purpose becomes clear in retrospect.”

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“And God said to Mosher, ‘carve for yourself two stone tablers, like the first ones, and I will write on the tablets the words that were on the first Tablets that you broke'” (34:1). They broke. A human broke the tablets that God had carved, but Hashem was willing to write on a new set of tablets. Hashem was willing to try again.

Perhaps this is a way to look at the seeming chaos of the current world situation. Even before the Corona virus began to spread, many of us were watching the news, scratching our heads, puzzled by how the world seemed to have lost its sanity. And it is not just a North American thing, although the politics of the United States dominate the news. But in many countries, including Israel, there has been a sense of witnessing a political circus? Most of the people I know are strikingly moderate people who stare at the news and are bewildered by the strange turns the political extremes both sides have taken. And it seems to me that the reason we are having an era of such strong political opinions is because, Baruch Hashem, we are also living in an era of incredible prosperity. Many of the problems of the past have been resolved, if not completely but greatly, and so people find new problems to think about.

The markets have stopped. Politics have been (or should be) put on hold. We have to come together as a world and figure out what we can do, all of us. And because we have been forced to stop, forced to think, we are also looking at an opportunity when, if we are wise, we have the ability for a fresh start. As the Carona virus unfolds, it is easy to focus on fear, but now is the time to focus on the amazing ways we are being shown how Hashem runs the world.

Indeed, we can see it even in the thought that Hashem sends the cure before he sends the illness. Imagine how much harder this massive amount of quarantine would be if we did not live in an age of when we can order food by phone or on websites. Schools are being closed, but thousands of children are using online learning so that their education will not be disrupted.

Alas, this will be a shortened piece with no clear conclusion… but remember in this time of uncertainty that we have been blessed with the guidance of the Torah.

1Kayla Bauer

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The Constant Impact of the Light from Within (Titzaveh #2)

It is an interesting fact that Parshas Titzaveh does not begin at the start of a new perek (chapter), but rather with the last two verses of perek 27. This would not be particularly interesting if one chapter specifically connected to the next, but while both chapters discuss necessary objects for service in the Mishkan, Chapter 27 is focused on the altar while Chapter 28 is about the clothing of the kohanim. The last two verses of Chapter 27, however, are about the lighting of the Ner Tamid: "Now you shall command the Children of Israel that they shall take for you pure, pressed olive oil for illuminations, to kindle the lamp continually. In the tent of meeting, outside the partition that is near the testimonial tablets, Aharon and his sons shall arrange it from evening until morning, before Hashem, an eternal decree for their generations, from the Children of Israel" (27:20-21).

Pure olive oil, as it always must be in the Mishkan/Beis Hamikdash, is to be lit every evening and last until morning just outside the Holy of Holies. From a practical perspective, a light at night keeps the kodesh area protected, keeps the Cohanim from accidentally entering an area that is forbidden except on the holiest day of the year. More than that, however, it has resonance as a reminder that even at night we must be focused on our Torah, on our relationship with Hashem.

At this time of year, so close to Purim, it is almost impossible not to find an inspirational message here. The Aron containing the luchot and from whence Hashem let His voice be heard, is hidden behind the parochet, a curtain… a mask so to speak. The light outside reminds us that just because Hashem is not seen does not mean He is not there - a fact that is true especially in the darkest times. We must use the light of emunah, as Mordechai did, to illuminate the darkness.

How can this mitzvah be "an eternal decree for the generations" if omniscient Hashem knew we would have times without a Mishkan or a Beis Hamikdash? Because the Ner Tamid has deeper significance than just the light of a lamp in front of the partition before the Aron. Perhaps it is a reference to how we ourselves must light up the Torah even in an era where it seems that people are in darkness. We who love the Torah, the mitzvos, and having a relationship with Hashem must strive to live clear, open lives, like the pure olive oil, to be fuel for inspiring the world around us. This might be why the verse concludes “m’ait Bnei Yisrael,” from the Children of Israel, because it is we who must provide the fuel.

This may also provide an idea as to why these two verses were attached to the instructions for the clothing of the Cohanim. The Cohanim are to the Jewish people what the Jewish people are meant to be to the world as we have the unique goal of being a mamleches cohanim, a kingdom of priests. The garb of the cohanim is simple, yet deliberate; so too the Jewish people must present ourselves to world in a way that is deliberate but approachable - in a way that brings inspiration to others.

Hashem commands that the light be kindled from evening until morning, but it is referred to as a Ner Tamid, a continual light. One would think that a continual light never goes out. Indeed, this is the heart of the message. The actions that we take, the mitzvot that we perform with honest emunah, have the power to create inspiration throughout all time.