Put in the Time to Prepare for the Big Day

Parshat Tzav  / Shabbos HaGadol

 by Rabbi Avi Billet 

In the last four verses of the parsha, we see the warning and instruction given to the Kohanim as to where they are supposed to be for the 7 days leading up to the “Yom HaShmini” that will be described in the coming Parsha with chapter 9. 

 Verse 33 - And you shall not leave the entrance of the Tent of Meeting for seven days, until the day of the completion of your investiture days, he will inaugurate you for seven days. 

Verse 35 - And you shall stay day and night for seven days at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. You shall observe the Lord's command, so that you will not die, for thus I was commanded. 

I would argue that the message is clear. But is it? Are they stuck at the opening of the Tent of Meeting (Ohel Moed) for 7 days? What if someone needs a break? Or to relieve oneself? 

The Ro”sh makes an interesting comment as he notes the tradition that Moshe assembled the Mishkan each morning and disassembled it each night for the period of the 7 Inaugural days. While he doesn’t say this straight out, it could be suggested that the “rule” in question was only applicable while the Mishkan was standing. Once Moshe took it down at night, there is no longer an “opening of the Mishkan” to which they are confined. 

 Anyway, if that explanation is irrelevant, Chizkuni explains that the nighttime is for exactly the purpose of relieving oneself. His exact language (8:33) is “They shall not involve themselves with anything else, they should not go to another place. However, at night they may go out to take care of their needs (a euphemism for restroom activity). An example of [this kind of Bible-talk is] ‘and they cried for Moshe for 30 days’ as if to suggest there was no moment when they weren’t crying (?). And also ‘and you shall dwell in sukkahs for 7 days’ [does anyone stay exclusively in the sukkah for 7 straight days?]. And so too ‘and from the Mikdash he shall not leave.” In other words, that is their base, they have a task to do, but a short break is certainly reasonable and understandable. 

 Ramban and Rabbenu Bachaye are more direct, in quoting a “Braisa Shel Toras Kohanim” that the verse is simply instructing that there is no leaving that area, day and night, while there is Avodah (Mishkan service) that needs to be done. As long as there is work to do, their place is the Mishkan. When the service of the day is over, they are free to go. 

 Rabbenu Bachaye gives similar examples per the comment of Chizkuni (above) noting that the verses in Melachim describe the building of the Beis HaMikdash for 7 years, and the building of Shlomo’s palace for 13 years. Obviously the workers took breaks, including for Shabbos and Yom Tov, as the intention is that the work – over those periods of time – was ongoing on days which were work-worthy. So too, here, they were to be in the Mishkan when there was work to be done for the day. 

 Rabbenu Bachaye goes on, quoting a Midrash Tanchuma, which suggests the 7 days they were to sit at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting refers to the 7 days of mourning for Nadav and Avihu. This is similar to the 7 day waiting period before the Flood began (Bereshis 7:10), indicating that there is meant to be a 7-day mourning period before the event of devastation. 

The problem, obviously, is that in general we don’t know when disaster will strike, and so the time to mourn is after the event. God, however, who sees the future and is All-Knowing, knows what will be happening and so He gave them the tools for staying focused on the task at hand, and of being close to their brothers and sons for this 7 day period. 

No matter how we look at it, it is clear that the 7-day period is preparation for the Big Day, the day in which the Mishkan would be fully delegated and consecrated and put into action. 

 And sometimes a time commitment is necessary when seriously preparing for a Big Day. 

 This is a message for Shabbos HaGadol – the rabbi of a community prepares a special Drasha to help a community go into the holiday better prepared for the holiday. 

 It is worth the time of the congregation to make the effort to attend a Shabbos HaGadol drasha – take a serious amount of time to prepare for the Big Day, or should I say the Big Evening, the night of the Seder, when we intend to relive our collective experience of going out of Egypt. 

 May all rabbis give successful Drashas, and may their audiences be inspired to have a Chag Kasher V’Sameach, a very special Pesach holiday!

The Leader and the People

Parshat Vayikra

by Rabbi Avi Billet

Vayikra chapter 4 presents a few scenarios where either an individual or a leader sins or causes others to sin. What is the penalty? Who is responsible? 

ויקרא פרק ד - (ג) אִ֣ם הַכֹּהֵ֧ן הַמָּשִׁ֛יחַ יֶחֱטָ֖א לְאַשְׁמַ֣ת הָעָ֑ם וְהִקְרִ֡יב עַ֣ל חַטָּאתוֹ֩ אֲשֶׁ֨ר חָטָ֜א פַּ֣ר בֶּן־בָּקָ֥ר תָּמִ֛ים לַיקֹוָ֖ק לְחַטָּֽאת:

4:3 – “If the anointed Kohen sins, to the blame of the people, he is to bring a sin offering for the sin he perpetrated…”

 This seems pretty straightforward. The man is responsible to bring the offering in question. And while 4:13 introduces a scenario in which all of the people do something wrong, and thus must bring a communal sacrifice, it does not follow that that case is specifically connected to the one in the verse above.

Let us explore three ways of looking at what happened here, causing this breakdown in behavior. 

Even the Accidental Sin 

A. This verse (4:3) is meant to be a warning to the Kohen, of how he is to conduct himself on account of his being in such a position. People look to him, people admire him, people see him as a model of behavior, a leader to emulate on account of his position, his stature, and the role he plays in their lives. Rabbi Yaakov Loiberbaum of Lisa explained the verse to suggest that if he sins, even by accident (בשוגג), this is to the detriment of the congregation and the community, because what they see him doing is seen as being upright, ethical, proper, and allowed. This gives people license, even unwittingly and unwillingly, to do the wrong thing, simply because they saw this behavior or this action perpetrated by the anointed Kohen. 

Why is Kindling Fire Mentioned Exclusively as a Shabbos Prohibition?

Parshat VAYAKHEL - Fekudei

by Rabbi Avi Billet

In opening the parsha with an announcement about Shabbos, Moshe Rabbenu singles out the kindling of fire as something that should not be done on the holy day. Some of the commentaries note that this singling out demonstrates that just as this is forbidden, all of the categories of Melakha (creative labors) are forbidden on Shabbos. 

 This is a classic rabbinic analysis which simplifies a more complex issue, while essentially side-stepping the question of why was this prohibition singled out? 

The Pesikta (and Chizkuni and others) note that the Torah’s indication that you are not to kindle fire “in your dwelling places” excludes the Mikdash, where handling and dealing with fire, for the sake of the sacrificial order, is permitted on Shabbos. (אש תמיד תוקד על המזבח) 

Ramban quotes Rabbi Nosson, in a statement found in the Mechilta, who says that when Moshe gathered the people, the assumption everyone made was that it would be permitted to light a candle and to heat up food, and to make a fire on Shabbos (probably because inherently, fire by itself is not a creative labor), so Moshe needed to single it out. Rabbi Nosson (Ramban explains) says the Torah is not needed to tell us that baking, cooking, and other activities for food preparation are forbidden because we are told that in the context of the Mon (manna), that it would need to be prepared before Shabbos. 

Moshe's Mask

Parshat Ki Tisa

by Rabbi Avi Billet

It is important to read the verses in question, to understand what the Torah says. The following text and translation can be found here: 

29And it came to pass when Moses descended from Mount Sinai, and the two tablets of the testimony were in Moses' hand when he descended from the mountain and Moses did not know that the skin of his face had become radiant while He had spoken with him 30that Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses and behold! the skin of his face had become radiant, and they were afraid to come near him. 31But Moses called to them, and Aaron and all the princes of the community returned to him, and Moses would speak to them. 32Afterwards all the children of Israel would draw near, and he would command them everything that the Lord had spoken with him on Mount Sinai. 33When Moses had finished speaking with them, he placed a covering over his face. 34When Moses would come before the Lord to speak with Him, he would remove the covering until he left; then he would leave and speak to the children of Israel what he would be commanded. 35Then the children of Israel would see Moses' face, that the skin of Moses' face had become radiant, and [then] Moses would replace the covering over his face until he would come [again] to speak with Him.		כטוַיְהִ֗י בְּרֶ֤דֶת משֶׁה֙ מֵהַ֣ר סִינַ֔י וּשְׁנֵ֨י לֻחֹ֤ת הָֽעֵדֻת֙ בְּיַד־משֶׁ֔ה בְּרִדְתּ֖וֹ מִן־הָהָ֑ר וּמשֶׁ֣ה לֹֽא־יָדַ֗ע כִּ֥י קָרַ֛ן ע֥וֹר פָּנָ֖יו בְּדַבְּר֥וֹ אִתּֽוֹ: לוַיַּ֨רְא אַֽהֲרֹ֜ן וְכָל־בְּנֵ֤י יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ אֶת־משֶׁ֔ה וְהִנֵּ֥ה קָרַ֖ן ע֣וֹר פָּנָ֑יו וַיִּֽירְא֖וּ מִגֶּ֥שֶׁת אֵלָֽיו: לאוַיִּקְרָ֤א אֲלֵהֶם֙ משֶׁ֔ה וַיָּשֻׁ֧בוּ אֵלָ֛יו אַֽהֲרֹ֥ן וְכָל־הַנְּשִׂאִ֖ים בָּֽעֵדָ֑ה וַיְדַבֵּ֥ר משֶׁ֖ה אֲלֵהֶֽם: לבוְאַֽחֲרֵי־כֵ֥ן נִגְּשׁ֖וּ כָּל־בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל וַיְצַוֵּ֕ם אֵת֩ כָּל־אֲשֶׁ֨ר דִּבֶּ֧ר יְ-הֹוָ֛ה אִתּ֖וֹ בְּהַ֥ר סִינָֽי: לגוַיְכַ֣ל משֶׁ֔ה מִדַּבֵּ֖ר אִתָּ֑ם וַיִּתֵּ֥ן עַל־פָּנָ֖יו מַסְוֶֽה: לדוּבְבֹ֨א משֶׁ֜ה לִפְנֵ֤י יְ-הֹוָה֙ לְדַבֵּ֣ר אִתּ֔וֹ יָסִ֥יר אֶת־הַמַּסְוֶ֖ה עַד־צֵאת֑וֹ וְיָצָ֗א וְדִבֶּר֙ אֶל־בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל אֵ֖ת אֲשֶׁ֥ר יְצֻוֶּֽה: להוְרָא֤וּ בְנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ אֶת־פְּנֵ֣י משֶׁ֔ה כִּ֣י קָרַ֔ן ע֖וֹר פְּנֵ֣י משֶׁ֑ה וְהֵשִׁ֨יב משֶׁ֤ה אֶת־הַמַּסְוֶה֙ עַל־פָּנָ֔יו עַד־בֹּא֖וֹ לְדַבֵּ֥ר אִתּֽוֹ:

 A few points are worthy of note:

Special Clothing To Serve God Best

Parshat Tetzaveh 

by Rabbi Avi Billet

So much attention is given to the special clothing of the Kohanim, as they are described as being לכבוד ולתפארת, for honor and glory – on the one hand it is glorifying the Kohanim, putting them in a very clear position of honor, while on the other hand their uniform also glorifies God as it is a fulfillment of God’s instruction. The seeming white “simplicity” of their garments, as well as the beautifully ornate extra garments of the Kohen Gadol, stand as a testament to Whom the Kohanim are serving. 

The Sochatchover Rebbe asked what should be an obvious question. There is a whole other group that is present as well when it comes to serving in the Mishkan, namely the Leviim. And yet they do not have special garments! Why? 

Did the Ark Have Legs?

Parshat Terumah

by Rabbi Avi Billet

The first time I learned the book of Shemos, I was fascinated by the Mishkan. We had a project in 5th grade in which groups of kids made presentations about the different vessels of the Mishkan – you could make a poster, a slide presentation, or even build a mini-model – in some cases “to scale” and in some cases “actual size.” While I remember my project being the Kerashim (the beams that make up the walls of the Mishkan), I am pretty sure I limited my presentation to posterboard and diagrams, and not a model. An actual size “Keresh” would not have fit in our small classroom! 

In my fascination, I studied at length the pictures in the book “HaMishkan/The Tabernacle” (rather pricey at that link!) for which the author had made mini models, and the book was a crossover between the black and white photos that were part of the book and the color photos that were pasted into the book throughout the progress of the building of the Mishkan (it must have been much cheaper to print and assemble the book that way as color printing then was certainly not like it is now). *

This is the Aron (Ark) I remember 

Subsequent to that I (and I’m sure many readers) watched the movie “Raiders of the Lost Ark” – Steven Spielberg’s early film demonstrating his hatred for Nazis, in which the hero, Indiana Jones, survives the superpowers of the opened Ark, while the Nazis and their sympathizers all meet a beyond-nature end. 

What the Doorway Represents

Parshat Mishpatim

by Rabbi Avi Billet

Those who study Mishpatim are well aware that the first mitzvah in the parsha is Eved Ivri. Rabbis often make this the topic of their sermon because of its “leading the pack” status, and it makes for good “Drasha material” because it bespeaks of the need to look out for our fellow man, ideally so that he not come to have the need to sell himself to be the “Hebrew slave” in the first place. 

As the old Chinese proverb goes “Give a man a fish, feed him for a day; teach a man to fish, feed him for a lifetime.” [There are political jokes about if you give someone too much the person will vote for a certain political party for a lifetime…] 

The Torah’s instruction is that the Hebrew slave goes free after 6 years of service. However “if he says ‘I have come to love my master, my wife and my children, and I don’t wish to go free, then his master brings him to the court, and he is brought to the door and to the Mezuzah and hole is bored into his ear and he remains a slave forever.” The Rabbis teach us that “forever” means “until the Jubilee year.”