Parshat Tzav
by Rabbi Avi Billet
Having given all the instructions for the Kohanim, in Chapter 8 we see Moshe being given precise instructions to set the stage for Inauguration Day.
In one of the most immediate cause and effect episodes in the Torah, Moshe is told to gather the people at the Ohel Moed (Gathering Tent, the Mishkan) in 8:3, and in 8:4, “the community was assembled at the entrance of the Ohel Moed.”
Was the entire community really there to watch Moshe vest his brother and nephews in their priestly vestments (8:6-13)?
Ibn Ezra says the “entire community” refers to the “leaders of the tribes and the elders.” That would be a little over 80 people. The Rosh is of the view that 600,000 people were able to gather in a relatively small space to witness this momentous occasion. And the point, explains Chizkuni (based on the Midrash), is that everyone should learn to conduct themselves in a holy manner with respect to and when relating to the priests.
In support of Ibn Ezra, the Torah Temimah reminds us of the passage in Sanhedrin 2a that a High Priest can only be appointed by the Sanhedrin of 71. And that the term used to describe the community, “Eidah” certainly refers to a Sanhedrin which passes judgments. Thus while leadership must be present, the entire nation need not bother with coming to watch the dressing ceremonies.
Rabbenu Bachaye describes the gathering in 8:4 as a “miraculous occurrence” and he gives a number of examples where the population that gathered defied all logical explanations, because their reality entered the realm of the supernatural. One example is the 22,000 chariots of angels that were present at Revelation at the bottom of Sinai. Where did they all fit? Other examples include: that when all of Israel crossed the Jordan to enter the land, they walked between the poles of the Ark; during the time of Resurrection when all the good people through the history of the world will return the living, there will be enough room for everyone.
On a purely rational basis, it is hard to understand some of these passages, and even more difficult to explain the physics. Surely, as a believer, I can accept that something did happen or can happen in the future, but it is hard to visualize, even if I believe its possibility is real.
I think looking at this passage from the vantage point of Purim, which was celebrated on Thursday, we can appreciate how truly miraculous events just defy explanation.
We are all familiar with the efficiency of the Nazi killing machine. Yet despite its organization, and the sheer numbers of how at their height, they could be murdering over 10,000 people a day, it still took them over 5 years to kill 6 millions Jews, and they were, thank God, unable to complete their diabolical plans of the destruction of world Jewry.
And Haman, their spiritual ancestor, was hoping to achieve the same goal in one day? How could he even think such a task was possible.
It would seem that owing to his beliefs in his powers, honor, and supernatural abilities, he felt that his lottery showed that his goal was divinely ordained. And he believed that his charm and his charisma would gather enough volunteers and haters to get to every Jew in Achashveirosh’s kingdom in one day.
But the real world doesn’t work like that. In Shushan alone, Esther needed to ask for another day for the Jews to confront their enemies. On the 13th of Adar, 500 Shushanites died, and on the 14th of Adar 300 more Shushanites died in the skirmishes. Relatively small numbers, it would seem.
And therein lies the difference between the plans of the man and the works of God. Man can only achieve what is humanly possible. God – using man, when He wants it to be such – can achieve things that go beyond reason and viable explanation.
Will there be peace in the Land of Israel? Will the Arabs stop hating the Jewish people? Will anti-Semitism ever end? Will the Messiah come – when so many Jews in the world do not live a life of Torah, do not observe the Sabbath, and in some cases, don’t even know what it means to be a Jew, or that they are even Jewish? In the realm of human achievement and possibility, all of these are far-fetched possibilities. But in the realm of God, they are attainable.
Of course from Ibn Ezra’s and the Torah Temimah’s perspective, there was a respectable but manageable-size crowd at the dressing-ceremony. But the other view is not to be discounted. And it is the person of faith who learns from what happened at the inauguration of the Mishkan, when 600,000 people fit in to a small space, that when God wills it, the seemingly impossible becomes as simple as filling the universe with billions of billions of stars and having none of them touch each other.
Showing posts with label miracles. Show all posts
Showing posts with label miracles. Show all posts
Monday, March 21, 2016
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Helping Others Survive
This appears in the Jewish Star
Parshat Behar-Bechukotai
“The Living Torah” is the late Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan’s translation of the Chumash. In addition to the standard divisions by chapter and parsha, Rabbi Kaplan z”l gave subtitles to the sections he divided by topics.
For the verses in 25:35-38, he entitled the section “Helping others.” In the context of helping the poor, giving loans, the phrase “v’chai imakh” וחי עמך appears, as does “v’chay achikha imakh” - וחי אחיך עמך. He translates the former phrase “Help him survive,” and the latter as “and let your brother live alongside you.”
Many interpretations for these two phrases often focus on civil harmony and congeniality, and perhaps learning how to treat a spouse, or a date, or simply how to be a mentsch towards others in the game of life.
I have a different interpretation based on a story I heard this week. Had I not met the person to whom this happened, I would not likely believe the story. The narrator - the one to whom this story happened - said he could not believe how the story unfolded either.
“Last Sunday I was at a fishing pier with my wife, along the boardwalk. I was feeling nauseous, but it was also hot, so I figured I’d go get a drink of water. I gave my wife my fishing rod and went to get a drink, and I stopped on a bench just to collect myself.
“A stranger who was jogging came over to me and said, ‘You look terrible. I think you need to call an ambulance.’ I thought the guy was crazy. I said to him, ‘I’m feeling a little queasy, but I definitely don’t need an ambulance.’”
“He said to me, ‘Look man. I’m an EMT and you have a cardiac condition. You’re sweating in a way that isn’t normal, and you need an ambulance to take you to the emergency room.’”
“I argued with him for a couple of minutes until I let him convince me. I called the ambulance saying, ‘I’m on the boardwalk. This guy stopped to tell me I should call an ambulance. I feel fine. But he’s an EMT. Can you please pick me up?’”
“They got there within a couple of minutes. My wife and I went to the ER together. I was totally fine filling out the papers. Then I said something to the nurse as she left the room. And that was the last thing I remember until Tuesday morning.”
“I got the feeling that there were many people around me, but I flat-lined. I was on a ventilator for 24 hours. I woke up on Tuesday, and was in the hospital for three more days – came home on Friday, in time for Shabbos.”
And now he’s walking around telling the tale. At all of 35-years-old. Turns out he had a clogged artery, a condition doctors sometimes call “the widow maker.” Had he not been in the ER when he went into cardiac arrest he would be dead now.
I asked him, “So what does Eliyahu Hanavi look like?”
“He’s a good-looking black man who jogs on a board walk,” he answered.
This man, the jogger, lives the phrase “Vchai imakh,” – “help him survive.” He was jogging, he could have minded his own business, but he saw something, recognized something, and in a simple debate that lasted three minutes, he saved a man’s life. Did he have to? Was anything in it for him? No. The one who lives to tell the tale does not even know the name of his benefactor, nor any way in which to find him and thank him.
Not all of us are EMTs or medical professionals. We might not be so lucky to be in the life-saving business. But we can also fulfill “v’chai achikha imakh” – “and let your brother live alongside you.”
It’s not just about “letting” as much as it is about “teaching” or “helping” a person learn “how” to live.
Some people who go through experiences like this turn around and say “I was given a second chance. I am now going to take steps to do the things in my life I was meant to do but pushed off for another day. Life is too short for us to have regrets about the things we never got around to doing.”
With encouragement and the right kinds of inclusiveness, we can help others have experiences they might not otherwise have. Some of them follow the teaching that says we are to enjoy life. Others follow the school of thought that has us dedicating and devoting ourselves to spiritual pursuits.
Whatever paths we take with our newfound second chances, may they be experiences of brotherhood as we truly learn how to live in the company of dear family and friends.
********************************************
(Sad update - a few years later, the person who's life was saved here lost track. Some time after this story he and his wife divorced. A few years later, he overdosed and died. Life takes strange turns. The story is inspiring. But we also have to remember that "and they lived happily ever after" is only in fairy tales. Our job is to work on ourselves, try to overcome the challenges life sends our way, and always be working up towards greater purpose (tafkid) in life, while improving our relationship with the Almighty.)
Parshat Behar-Bechukotai
“The Living Torah” is the late Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan’s translation of the Chumash. In addition to the standard divisions by chapter and parsha, Rabbi Kaplan z”l gave subtitles to the sections he divided by topics.
For the verses in 25:35-38, he entitled the section “Helping others.” In the context of helping the poor, giving loans, the phrase “v’chai imakh” וחי עמך appears, as does “v’chay achikha imakh” - וחי אחיך עמך. He translates the former phrase “Help him survive,” and the latter as “and let your brother live alongside you.”
Many interpretations for these two phrases often focus on civil harmony and congeniality, and perhaps learning how to treat a spouse, or a date, or simply how to be a mentsch towards others in the game of life.
I have a different interpretation based on a story I heard this week. Had I not met the person to whom this happened, I would not likely believe the story. The narrator - the one to whom this story happened - said he could not believe how the story unfolded either.
“Last Sunday I was at a fishing pier with my wife, along the boardwalk. I was feeling nauseous, but it was also hot, so I figured I’d go get a drink of water. I gave my wife my fishing rod and went to get a drink, and I stopped on a bench just to collect myself.
“A stranger who was jogging came over to me and said, ‘You look terrible. I think you need to call an ambulance.’ I thought the guy was crazy. I said to him, ‘I’m feeling a little queasy, but I definitely don’t need an ambulance.’”
“He said to me, ‘Look man. I’m an EMT and you have a cardiac condition. You’re sweating in a way that isn’t normal, and you need an ambulance to take you to the emergency room.’”
“I argued with him for a couple of minutes until I let him convince me. I called the ambulance saying, ‘I’m on the boardwalk. This guy stopped to tell me I should call an ambulance. I feel fine. But he’s an EMT. Can you please pick me up?’”
“They got there within a couple of minutes. My wife and I went to the ER together. I was totally fine filling out the papers. Then I said something to the nurse as she left the room. And that was the last thing I remember until Tuesday morning.”
“I got the feeling that there were many people around me, but I flat-lined. I was on a ventilator for 24 hours. I woke up on Tuesday, and was in the hospital for three more days – came home on Friday, in time for Shabbos.”
And now he’s walking around telling the tale. At all of 35-years-old. Turns out he had a clogged artery, a condition doctors sometimes call “the widow maker.” Had he not been in the ER when he went into cardiac arrest he would be dead now.
I asked him, “So what does Eliyahu Hanavi look like?”
“He’s a good-looking black man who jogs on a board walk,” he answered.
This man, the jogger, lives the phrase “Vchai imakh,” – “help him survive.” He was jogging, he could have minded his own business, but he saw something, recognized something, and in a simple debate that lasted three minutes, he saved a man’s life. Did he have to? Was anything in it for him? No. The one who lives to tell the tale does not even know the name of his benefactor, nor any way in which to find him and thank him.
Not all of us are EMTs or medical professionals. We might not be so lucky to be in the life-saving business. But we can also fulfill “v’chai achikha imakh” – “and let your brother live alongside you.”
It’s not just about “letting” as much as it is about “teaching” or “helping” a person learn “how” to live.
Some people who go through experiences like this turn around and say “I was given a second chance. I am now going to take steps to do the things in my life I was meant to do but pushed off for another day. Life is too short for us to have regrets about the things we never got around to doing.”
With encouragement and the right kinds of inclusiveness, we can help others have experiences they might not otherwise have. Some of them follow the teaching that says we are to enjoy life. Others follow the school of thought that has us dedicating and devoting ourselves to spiritual pursuits.
Whatever paths we take with our newfound second chances, may they be experiences of brotherhood as we truly learn how to live in the company of dear family and friends.
********************************************
(Sad update - a few years later, the person who's life was saved here lost track. Some time after this story he and his wife divorced. A few years later, he overdosed and died. Life takes strange turns. The story is inspiring. But we also have to remember that "and they lived happily ever after" is only in fairy tales. Our job is to work on ourselves, try to overcome the challenges life sends our way, and always be working up towards greater purpose (tafkid) in life, while improving our relationship with the Almighty.)
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