Rabbi David Etengoff
 
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, and the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, Moshe ben Itta Golda, Yocheved Dafneh bat Dinah Zehavah, Reuven Shmuel ben Leah and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
Our parasha contains the well-known mitzvah of Birkat Kohanim:

The L-rd spoke to Moses saying: Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying: This is how you shall bless the children of Israel, saying to them: “May the L-rd bless you and watch over you. May the L-rd cause His countenance to shine to you and favor you. May the L-rd raise His countenance toward you and grant you peace.” They shall bestow My Name upon the children of Israel, so that I will bless them. (Sefer Bamidbar 6:22-27, this and all Torah translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)
 
The kohanim’s recitation of this three-fold bracha is a holy, dramatic, and auspicious moment within the cycle of the tefilot hayom (prayers of the day). While the emotive aspects of this act cannot be overestimated, in order to plumb its spiritual depths we must ask ourselves, “What transpires during Birkat Kohanim?” We are fortunate that my rebbe and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), known as the “Rav” by his followers and disciples, addresses this question in one of his drashot. In his view, this commandment entails two separate and distinct aspects: “the transmission of a direct blessing from G-d, and hashra’at ha-Shechinah (the manifestation of Hashem’s presence).” Moreover, the Rav opines that Birkat Kohanim “is a direct meeting with the Shechinah that presents us with an intimate encounter in which we come face to face with G-d.” (These, and the following quotations of the Rav, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Darosh Darash Yosef: Discourses of Rav Yosef Dov Halevi Soloveitchik on the Weekly Parashah, Rabbi Avishai C. David, editor, pages 290-296.)
 
If, as the Rav maintains, Birkat Kohanim is preeminently a time when we experience hashra’at ha-Shechinah, how is it possible that nearly any kohen may participate in this mitzvah?  After all, it seems that only very holy and righteous kohanim should be privileged to participate in this exalted act. The Rambam (Maimonides, 1135-1204) focuses on this very issue in his Mishneh Torah:

Do not wonder: “What good will come from the blessing of this simple person?” for the reception of the blessings is not dependent on the priests, but on the Holy One, blessed be He, as the Torah states: “They shall bestow My Name upon the children of Israel, so that I will bless them.” The priests perform the commandment with which they were commanded, and G-d, in His mercies, will bless Israel, as He desires. (Hilchot Tefilah 15:7, translation, Rabbi Eliyahu Touger with my underlining and emendations.)
 
This halacha has several salient points: Almost any kohen is fitting to fulfill the mitzvah of Birkat Kohanim, since “the reception of the blessings is not dependent on the priests, but on the Holy One, blessed be He.” Moreover, and of singular import, the Rambam stresses that when the kohanim bestow Hashem’s name upon the Jewish people, i.e. they serve as the viaduct through which the Almighty’s blessing flows, and it is “G-d, in His mercies, [who] will bless Israel, as He desires.” This reading of the Rambam was emphasized by Rabbi Elazar Rokeach (1665-1742) in his commentary on the Mishneh Torah, Ma’aseh Rokeach:

This, then, is the reason why we need the Torah’s phrase, “v’ani avarachame — so that I will bless them,” to say to us, “know that I chose the kohanim, and I did not differentiate between them [regarding who is fit to engage in the Birkat Kohanim], as the [fulfillment of the] bracha is not contingent upon them in any manner. Rather, osim schlichuti v’ani hu hamevarach — they act as my agents and I am the One Who bestows the blessing.” (Translation my own)
 
In addition, the Rambam’s answer to his question, “What good will come from the blessing of this simple person?” is a powerful support for the Rav’s assertion that Birkat Kohanim is the time of hashra’at ha-Shechinah. As the Rav maintained:

Here the Rambam states clearly that the blessing in Birkat Kohanim comes not from the kohen but directly from G-d. This is why the kohen who recites the blessing does not require any special level of sanctity… Contrary to appearances, Birkat Kohanim is not only a relaying of the heavenly blessing, but also a direct enactment of hashra’at ha-Shechinah. Nesiat kapayim (the “raising of the hands,” as in the priestly blessing) — a face-to-face encounter between G-d and the Jewish people – leads to hashra’at ha-Shechinah. It reflects G-d’s act of extending kindness. (Underlining my own)
 
May it be Hashem’s desire that He will ever extend kindness and mercy to the entire Jewish people, bless us, and watch over us. May He cause His countenance to shine upon us and favor us. May the L-rd raise His countenance toward us and grant peace to all of His people. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom and may Hashem in His great mercy remove the magafah from klal Yisrael and from all the nations of the world.
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:[email protected].
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.

Rabbi David Etengoff

Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh and Jersey City, and the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, Moshe ben Itta Golda, Yocheved Dafneh bat Dinah Zehavah, Reuven Shmuel ben Leah and the safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
HaRav Yosef Dov Halevi Soloveitchik zatzal (1820-1892) was one of the 19th century’s greatest European Torah scholars. He is known as the Beit HaLevi after the title of his grand exposition of the Pentateuch that is universally recognized as a jewel within the Lithuanian Torah tradition. In his comments on Sefer Shemot 19:5, the Beit HaLevi discusses exactly why Hashem gave us the Torah and, in so doing, helps us understand its role in our lives. He explains that the Torah was given to the Jewish people so that we would analyze it in accordance with the accepted rules of Biblical exegesis as delineated by our Sages, who have been tasked as the protectors of Hashem’s Torah in this world. He notes that the conclusions that are reached according to these guidelines thereby constitute that which is undeniably true. In addition, he asserts that since the Torah is “lo b’shamayim he — no longer in Heaven” (Talmud Bavli, Baba Metziah 59b), its authentic interpretation can only be apprehended via the intense study and analysis of the earthly beit din (Court of Law). After all, “lo nitnah Torah l'malachei hashareit — the Torah was not given to the Ministering Angels” (Talmud Bavli, Yoma 30a), but rather to us.
 
After presenting these ideas, the Beit HaLevi focuses on why our Sages call Shavuot zeman matan Toratainu (the time of the Giving of our Torah), instead of ‘zeman matan Torah’ (‘the time of the Giving of the Torah’). His answer is mesmerizing: “The reason why Shavuot is called zeman matan Toratainu and not zeman matan Torah is because Toratainu means that the Torah became our own. [How did it become our own? This happened] as a result of Torah She-be'al Peh — the Oral Law, and the explanations of the [Torah] that are the product of our people.” For the Beit HaLevi, though the Torah She-Biktav — the Written Law is the Almighty’s greatest gift to the world besides life itself, it is through the never-ending dynamic process of Torah She-be'al Peh —the study and explanation of His holy Torah — that humankind encounters Him.
 
In many ways, the Beit HaLevi infuses profound meaning into the phrase we recite each morning in our tefilah, “Ashreinu mah tov chelkeinu u’mah nayim goraleinu — We are fortunate, how good is our portion, how pleasant our lot, and how beautiful our heritage!” (Translation, The Complete Artscroll Siddur, p. 27)  Chelkeinu, our portion, is two-fold in nature. It includes the outright gift of the Torah She-Biktav and the ever-developing Torah She-be'al Peh, through which we analyze, interpret and apply that bequest to the challenges and realities of our lives. Truly then, Ashreinu!
 
May we be zocheh (merit) to witness the fulfillment of the passage we proclaim every day in the Birchot HaTorah (Ibid., p. 17): “Please, Hashem, our G-d, sweeten the words of Your Torah in our mouth and in the mouths of your people, the family of Israel. May we and our offspring and the offspring of Your people, the House of Israel — all of us, know Your Name and study Your Torah for its own sake.” V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom, Chag Sameach and may Hashem in His great mercy remove the magafah from klal Yisrael and the entire world.

Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.

The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:[email protected].

*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd

*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.

Rabbi David Etengoff
 
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, and the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, Moshe ben Itta Golda, Yocheved Dafneh bat Dinah Zehavah, Reuven Shmuel ben Leah and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
Chazal’s name for the fourth book of the Torah is “Sefer HaPekudim — the Book of the Counting;” little wonder, then, that it has been given the English title, “Numbers.” The accuracy of this name becomes clear upon reading the first 46 pasukim of our parasha that focus on a detailed numerical census of our nascent nation. Throughout this presentation, the phrase, “misspar shemot — according to the number of their names,” is repeated no less than six times. This fact alone gives us pause to ponder, since there is a general exegetical principle that words and phrases are repeated in the Torah in order to emphasize their importance. In each of these instances, however, this expression does not seem to add to the verses’ essential meaning; as such, its inclusion in these pasukim conceals more than it reveals.
 
We are fortunate that the Ramban (1194-1270) tackles the singular import of misspar shemot in his Commentary on the Torah. Therein, he cites a beautiful midrash found in Bamidbar Rabbah that we no longer have in our editions:

The Holy One blessed be He said to Moshe to count the Jewish people with dignity and [with a focus on] the recognition of their inherent greatness, each person on an individual basis. Moreover, he was prohibited from saying to the head of the family, “How many are there in your family, how many sons do you have?” Instead, [said the Almighty:] “Everyone will pass before you in awe and respect and you will count them…” (Gloss on 45:1, all translations my own)
 
What exactly transpired as a result of Moshe counting everyone among the Jewish people by name? Once again, the Ramban addresses this question and adds that Aharon was an equal partner in this process:

When an individual would come before the Father of all Prophets [Moshe] and his brother, the Holy One to Hashem [Aharon], and he would become known to them by name, he would acquire great zechut — merit and [long] life, for he had entered into the sod — the ultimate sanctum of the Jewish people — and onto the [spiritual] roster of b’nai Yisrael. [Therefore,] he would henceforth enjoy the merits of the entire people as he was now counted amongst them.
 
The Ramban continues to explain how each Jew who passed before Moshe and Aharon acquired such zechut: “…for when they looked upon them for solely positive purposes, they would request mercy for them and ask that Hashem, the G-d of their fathers, should add to their descendants a thousand-fold and never diminish their numbers…” In my view, Moshe and Aharon’s tefilah was not only quantitative in nature, but qualitative as well. In other words, they prayed for both the continued numerical and spiritual growth of the Jewish people — a tefilah whose fulfillment we continue to pray each day.
 
My rebbe and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), known as “the Rav” by his students and followers, analyzes the Ramban’s interpretation of the rationale inherent in the census of our forebears, and presents the following depth-level understanding as to why it had to be performed b’ misspar shemot:

G-d’s intent was a dual one. It was not enough for Moshe to know the total number of the Jewish people. He had to perform a head count in order to get to know each person as an individual with their own background and life experience. Moshe’s additional obligation emanates from the fact that he was rabban shel Yisrael, the rebbe of the entire Jewish nation, and therefore had to know every Jew by name. It was as though G-d were telling him: “Moshe, when you pray, you will pray not for the general public, but also for every Jew in his or her moments of joy and pain.” This duality, specifically the focus on the individual, was the Ramban’s true intent. (Darosh Darash Yosef: Discourses of Rav Yosef Dov Halevi Soloveitchik on the Weekly Parashah, Rabbi Avishai C. David editor, page 284, underlining my own)
 
For the Rav, who throughout his many works and public lectures, continually focused on the existential trials and tribulations of the individual, misspar shemot in the thought of the Ramban emerges as a constitutive element of the entire census enterprise. Significantly, each and every Jew had a name representative of their identity, value and unique importance before Hashem.
 
May the Almighty Who knows the names of all mankind, remove the magafah from klal Yisrael, and the entire world, soon and in our days. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:[email protected].
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.

 
Rabbi David Etengoff
 
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, and the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, Moshe ben Itta Golda, Yocheved Dafneh bat Dinah Zehavah, Reuven Shmuel ben Leah and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
The beginning of Parashat Behar focuses on the mitzvah of Shemittah:

And the L-rd spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai, saying, “Speak to the children of Israel and you shall say to them: ‘When you come to the land that I am giving you, the land shall rest Shabbat l’Hashem — a Sabbath to the L-rd. You may sow your field for six years, and for six years you may prune your vineyard, and gather in its produce, but in the seventh year, the land shall have a complete rest Shabbat l’Hashem — a Sabbath to the L-rd; you shall not sow your field, nor shall you prune your vineyard…’” (Sefer Vayikra 25:1-4, this, and all Rashi and Bible translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)
 
The phrase “Shabbat l’Hashem” appears twice in these pasukim, suggesting that it is a constitutive element of the Shemittah experience. Rashi (1040-1105) interprets our term as: “L’shame Hashem — For the sake of the L-rd, just as is stated regarding the Sabbath of Creation.” In some ways, this very terse explanation conceals far more than it reveals, as we are left to ponder how it advances our understanding of the original expression “Shabbat l’Hashem.”
 
Many of the supercommentators on Rashi’s Torah Commentary spent a great deal of time wrestling with Rashi’s interpretation. In my estimation, the Mizrachi (Rabbi Eliyahu Mizrachi, 1455-1525) offers the most compelling analysis. He suggests that Rashi never meant that we fulfill the laws of Shemittah “in honor of Hashem’s name and glory.” In addition, he notes that Shemittah is not for the farmer’s benefit to enable “the land to rest for a year in order to increase the power of its fertility in the coming years — a practice that was prevalent among the farmers of the time.” Instead, the Mizrachi maintains that Rashi held that the prohibition of working the Land of Israel during the Shemittah year is “sh’yiyeh sh’vitatah l’shame HaShabbat — so that the cessation of all agricultural work will be in recognition of Shabbat... [For, as we know,] Hashem rested on it [that is, Shabbat] at the time of the Creation of the world.” He reinforces his understanding of Rashi’s gloss in the following manner:

Therefore [Rashi writes], “just as is stated regarding the Sabbath of Creation,” for [in the Aseret HaDibrot] the Torah explicitly states: “But the seventh day is a Sabbath to the
L-rd, your G-d… For [in] six days the L-rd made the heaven and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, and He rested on the seventh day. Therefore, the L-rd blessed the Sabbath day and sanctified it.” (Sefer Shemot 20:10-11, all Mizrachi translations my own)
 
The Mizrachi concludes this portion of his commentary on Rashi’s statement by noting that, while it is true that Shemittah clearly refers to resting in the seventh year and Hashem’s refraining from further creative activity at the time Creation took place “on the seventh day,” nonetheless, we can rely on the Ramban’s (1194-1270) famous position that “all instances of the word ‘seven’ in the Torah are a zacher —a reference to the seventh day [Shabbat].” In sum, for the Mizrachi, the correct formula for understanding Rashi’s comment is: “Shabbat l’Hashem = l’shame Hashem = l’shame HaShabbat.”
 
As we have seen, the Mizrachi focused his exegetical skills on analyzing the phrase, “Shabbat l’Hashem,” in order to comprehend the inner meaning of the Shemittah experience. Closer to our own time, my rebbe and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), known as “the Rav” by his students and followers, followed a different, but complementary approach in this quest, noting the singular import of the word “land” that appears three times in our passage:

And the L-rd spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai, saying, “Speak to the children of Israel and you shall say to them: ‘When you come to the land that I am giving you, the land shall rest Shabbat l’Hashem — a Sabbath to the L-rd. You may sow your field for six years, and for six years you may prune your vineyard, and gather in its produce, but in the seventh year, the land shall have a complete rest Shabbat l’Hashem…
 
This emphasis generates the following incisive observation of the Rav:

The Torah speaks of a land “defiled” and of a land “resting” and observing its “sabbatical years.” The Land of Israel possesses a distinct personality. It is likened to a human being who can be defiled, can be sanctified, can rest and can be appeased. Just as a Jew observes the Sabbath once a week, the Land of Israel observes the Sabbath once every seven years. In this way the Land of Israel takes on human dimensions. (Darosh Darash Yosef: Discourses of Rav Yosef Dov Halevi Soloveitchik on the Weekly Parashah, Rabbi Avishai C. David editor, page 267)
 
As for the Mizrachi and the Ramban, Shemittah for the Rav is ultimately a code word for Shabbat. In this case, the Land of Israel — in all its metaphorical human dimensions — observes the Shabbat once every seven years, just as we, the Jewish people, do each and every week.
 
Shabbat Shalom and may Hashem in His great mercy remove the magafah from klal Yisrael and the entire world.
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:[email protected].
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.

 
Rabbi David Etengoff
 
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh and Jersey City, and the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, Moshe ben Itta Golda, Yocheved Dafneh bat Dinah Zehavah, Reuven Shmuel ben Leah and the safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
One of the most celebrated sections of our parasha focuses on the Moadim. Its 44 pasukim comprise the 23rd chapter of Sefer Vayikra and serve as an encyclopedic presentation of the Torah’s holy days. It begins with these words: “And the L-rd spoke to Moses saying, ‘Speak to the children of Israel and say to them: The L-rd’s appointed
[holy days] asher tik’re’u otam mikraei kodesh — that you shall designate as holy occasions. These are My appointed holy days.’” (23:1-2, this and all Bible translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)
 
The Rashbam (Rabbi Shmuel ben Meir, 1085-1158) examines the phrase, “asher tik’re’u otam mikraei kodesh,” and suggests the following interpretation: “asher t’zamnu otam zemani kodesh — that you [the Jewish people] should schedule these times as times of holiness.” He furthermore suggests that all uses of the term, “kriah” — “to call,” in reference to the Moadim are an expression of establishing a fixed time,” similar to the phrase in Megillat Eichah: “kara ali moed — He [Hashem] summoned an assembly…” (1:15)  In sum, for the Rashbam, our pasuk’s expression, “asher tik’re’u otam mikraei kodesh,” refers to our obligation to recognize that the mikraei kodesh are different in kind and degree from standard weekdays. As such, we, the Jewish people, must invest them with kedushah — holiness.

In his Commentary on the Torah on our pasuk, the Ramban (Nachmanides, 1194-1270) suggests several interpretations of mikraei kodesh. In this context, he cites a short statement from Midrash Sifrei, Parashat Pinchas 147: “Proclaim them [that is, let the Moadim be recognized] through food, drink and clean clothes.” He proceeds to elaborate upon this in a manner that parallels the Rashbam’s analysis:

This means that chukam — their manner of observance — in your personal behaviors should not be like the way you treat a standard weekday. Instead, you should make of [the Moadim] a mikra shel kodesh — a declaration of holiness — and change them in regards to the food and clothing [you eat and wear], from that which you [normally do] from the weekday to this holy time. (Translation and brackets my own)
 
In sum, both the Rashbam and the Ramban view the mikraei kodesh as special occasions that we must treat differently from other days of the year, in order to ensure their kedushah status. Quite simply, we, the Jewish people, must sanctify these times through our actions and behaviors in a clearly demonstratable manner, our food and clothing on these days should reflect the best that we have to offer.
 
In his Kedushat Hayom Shiur, my rebbe and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), known as “the Rav” by his students and followers, utilized the term, mikraei kodesh, as a springboard to analyze the essential nature of time within Judaism:

To Judaism… time is a living entity. There is substance and essence to time. Time is not a void but a reality. One can ascribe attributes such as joyous or sad to time just as one can ascribe these attributes to people. One can refer to a day as evil, meaning that the day itself is cursed. When we refer to a holy day, we do not merely mean to signify that it is a day in which man somehow experiences holiness. The day itself has an inner endowment; a charisma hidden in its very substance… (Chumash Mesoras HaRav, Sefer Vayikra, page 180, underlining my own)
 
In these few words, the Rav advances our understanding of mikraei kodesh in a novel way. True, like the Ramban in particular, these are days in which the Jewish people experience holiness on a practical level. Yet, each of these days is more than this, for at this time, “the day itself has an inner endowment; a charisma hidden in its very substance.” In other words, we do not simply celebrate a Tuesday or Thursday as a mikra kodesh. Instead, the day is a mikra kodesh, its very essence has been altered because it is sanctified.
 
With Hashem’s help and our fervent desire, may we strive to recognize and fulfill the true nature of the mikraei kodesh, and celebrate them soon and in our days in the newly rebuilt Beit HaMikdash. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom and may Hashem in His great mercy remove the magafah from klal Yisrael and the entire world.
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:[email protected].
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.