Rabbi David Etengoff
 
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, 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, Shayndel bat Mordechai Yehudah, 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.
 
Birkat Kohanim is one of the most dramatic moments of the Yom Tov experience. When we hear the words of the kohanim uttered in profound devotion, our thoughts are transported to a higher spiritual plane, and we yearn to draw closer to Hakadosh Baruch Hu. What is the role of the kohanim in this entire wondrous process? Do they bless us as active parties, or are they spiritual aqueducts through whom Hashem’s blessing mystically flows? In his interpretation of Bamidbar 6:27, Rashi zatzal (1040-1105) suggests that the kohanim actually bestow their bracha upon us: V’ani avarachem: “l’yisrael — v’askim im hakohanim” (“I will bless them — the Jewish people — and I will agree with the kohanim”). The Siftei Chachamim (Rabbi Shabbetai Bass, 1641-1718), in his clarification of Rashi’s interpretation, states: “One should not explain that Hashem will bless them on His own; if that were to be true, what value would the Priestly blessing have, since Hashem would [subsequently] bless them?” In other words, it seems that Rashi is asserting that the kohanim give the bracha directly to us, or at the very least, are partners with Hashem in this holy act.
 
The Rambam zatzal (Maimonides, 1135-1204) takes the polar opposite approach regarding the role of the kohanim in birkat kohanim:

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 kohanim, but on the Holy One, blessed be He, as [the text] states: “And they shall set My name upon the children of Israel, and I shall bless them.” The kohanim perform the mitzvah with which they were commanded, and G-d, in His mercies, will bless Israel as He desires. (Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Tefilah and Birkat Kohanim, 15:7, translation, Rabbi Eliyahu Touger)
 
For the Rambam, the bracha originates from Hashem and not from the kohanim: “for the reception of the blessings is not dependent on the priests, but on the Holy One, blessed be He.” In addition, the kohanim, at Hashem’s command, are merely the viaducts for Hashem’s bracha: “[as it is He who,] in His mercies, will bless Israel as He desires.”
 
Approximately 700 years later, Rabbeinu Shimshon Raphael Hirsch zatzal (1808-1888) echoed the Rambam’s words in his commentary on birkat kohanim:

According to this, our priests in pronouncing the blessing, are a completely passive instrument. Only in reply to the summons of the congregation and only in the blessing dictated to them by the representative of the congregation do they pronounce it. So that, in truth, it is the congregation which has the blessing prescribed by G-d pronounced over itself through their mouths. (Isaac Levy translation, second edition, London, 1964, page 100)
 
In Rav Hirsch’s view, the entire purpose of the kohanim during birkat kohanim is to serve as the conduits through which the congregation receives its blessing. As such, the function of the kohanim, as commanded and defined by the Torah, is to give voice to the spiritual hopes and desires of the congregation.
 
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, provides us with a deep insight into the very nature of birkat kohanim:

Birkas Kohanim is unique because it requires heartfelt love for its fulfillment. The blessing requires that the love of the kohen for the whole of Israel should flow spontaneously. The kohen’s blessing is a reflection of the divine love that the Almighty has for His own creatures, as the Shechinah [Divine Presence] dwells between the kohen’s fingertips. Maimonides (Hilchot Tefilah u’Nesiat Kapayim 14:3) indicates that the kohanim hold their fingers closed until beginning the blessing, and then open them…During the priestly blessing, these fingers of the hand are spread apart, the open fingers serving as a conduit for blessing. (Teshuva Lecture, 1970, cited in, Chumash Mesoras HaRav, Sefer Bamidbar, page 47)
 
The Rav builds upon the Rambam’s idea that “the kohanim perform the mitzvah with which they were commanded, and G-d, in His mercies, will bless Israel as He desires,” noting that “the Shechinah [Divine Presence] dwells between the kohen’s fingertips…the open fingers serving as a conduit for blessing.” Moreover, the Rav emphasizes that, even though Hashem is, indeed, the mevorach (He who blesses), the act of birkat kohanim “requires that the love of the kohen for the whole of Israel should flow spontaneously,” since his blessing “is a reflection of the divine love that the Almighty has for His own creatures.” This enables us to better comprehend why, prior to beginning birkat kohanim, the kohanim recite, “Blessed are You Hashem, our G-d, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us with the holiness of Aharon, and has commanded us to bless His people with love.” (Translation, The Complete ArtScroll Siddur)
 
“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.” May these words ever resonate in our hearts and souls, and may they remind us of the love He has for our people. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and 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:rdbe718@gmail.com.
 
*** 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, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, 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 first mishnah in Pirkei Avot cites a statement from the Anshei Kenesset HaGadolah, a group of sixth century BCE jurists that constitute one of the crucial links in shalshelet hakabbalah (the great chain of Jewish being and tradition). Even though nearly all its members remain anonymous, it is universally recognized as one of the singular institutions in the storied history of our nation. One of their greatest accomplishments was the formalization of the liturgy so that all members of our people, regardless of their level of education, would have an equal opportunity to stand before the Almighty and pour out their hearts in soulful prayer.
 
When we study the tefilah of Shavuot, we notice that the Anshei Kenesset HaGadolah labelled it z’man matan Torateinu (the time of the giving of our Torah). In considering this phrase, our focus is immediately drawn to the first set of the Luchot HaBrit (Tablets of the Covenant): “Now the tablets were G-d’s work, and the inscription was G-d’s inscription, engraved on the tablets (charut al haluchot).” (Sefer Shemot 31:16, this and all Bible translations translation, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach, underlining my own)
 
The original Hebrew words in Tanach are written without vowels; therefore, they can be pronounced in a variety of ways that differ significantly from the Masoretic vocalized versions found in our standard texts. Chazal often utilize one of these alternative readings in order to underscore a fundamental concept or idea. The reinterpretation of our pasuk’s words, “charut al haluchot,” is a well-known example of this approach that appears in many diverse sources: “Do not read the word ‘charut’ (‘engraved’) as ‘charut,’ instead, read it as ‘cheirut’ (‘freedom’).” Rather than “engraved on the tablets,” the reading, therefore, becomes “freedom on the tablets.”
 
Rabbinic literature views the Torah’s concept of freedom as being comprised of two aspects: negative (freedom from) and positive (freedom to). The Midrash Rabbah on Sefer Shemot (32:1 and 41:7) and Sefer Vayikra (18:3) focus upon the freedom from element of the Torah, in the sense that we will ultimately be free from exile (Rabbi Yehudah), the Angel of Death (Rabbi Nechemiah), the hegemony of other nations (Rabbi Nachman) and the trials and tribulations we face on an ongoing basis (the Rabbis). In contrast, Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi’s statement in Pirkei Avot 6:2 underscores the positive freedom that is a hallmark of the Torah:

It says in Sefer Shemot 32:16: “And the tablets were the work of G-d, and the writing was the writing of G-d (charut) engraved upon the tablets.” Do not read the [non-vocalized] word as charut (engraved); instead read it as cheirut (freedom). [This is so] since there is no one who is truly free except for one who engages in Torah study.
 
In Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi’s view, engaging in talmud Torah is the paradigm of freedom, since it enables us to understand and fulfill Hashem’s Torah. He therefore concludes with the celebrated words, “there is no one who is truly free except for one who engages in Torah study.”
 
My rebbe and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), known as “the Rav” by his students and followers, expands upon Chazal’s many statements regarding freedom in his analysis of the Exodus and the Haggadah. He notes that the Haggadah states, “vayotzi’einu Hashem E-lokeinu mi-sham” (and Hashem, our G-d, took us out from there), rather than “vayotzi’einu Hashem mi-sham” alone. For the Rav, the significance of adding the word, “E-lokeinu,” cannot be overestimated:

If the Haggadah had said simply Vayotzi’einu Hashem mi-sham, it would have referred only to the fact that God has mercy on us, that He does not tolerate injustice and iniquity, that when we pray to Him, He hearkens to our voice…God intervenes in the process of nature, in history and society, saving the persecuted and protecting them against their persecutors. But we understand freedom at a different level than others. When we say that God has taken us out of the house of bondage and granted us freedom, we add that freedom consists in serving God, abiding by His will and conforming to His mitzvot… (This and the following quote, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Festival of Freedom: Essays on Pesah and the Haggadah, pages 50-51)
 
This passage contains an implicit reference to a recurrent idea in the Rav’s thought, that the purpose of yetziat mitzrayim (Pesach) was to receive the Torah and its mitzvot at Mount Sinai (Shavuot), for only then could we be free:
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If we had been taken out of Egypt without E-lokeinu, without accepting His code, without surrendering to His authority, without reaching a covenant with Him, without obligating ourselves to surrender freedom in order to gain a higher form of freedom — then we would have been in bondage again. Instead of bondage to Pharoah, it would have been bondage to our own fears, to our own phobias, to nature, to society, to slogans.
 
With the Hashem’s help and our fervent desire, may this Shavuot be the time when we, as individuals and as a people, rededicate ourselves to renewing our covenant with the Almighty and to fulfilling His mitzvot, for then, we will be truly free. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom and Chag Sameach and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and 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:rdbe718@gmail.com.
 
*** 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, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, 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 second verse of Parashat Behar contains the well-known words, “When you come to the Land that I [Hashem] am giving you,” that serve as a prologue to the mitzvah of smittah (the Sabbatical year). Many brachot found in Parashat Bechuchotai also have a pronounced Eretz Yisrael-centered focus:

If you follow My statutes and observe My commandments and perform them, I will give your rains in their time, the Land will yield its produce, and the tree of the field will give forth its fruit. Your threshing will last until the vintage, and the vintage will last until the sowing; you will eat your food to satiety, and you will live in security in your land. And I will grant peace in the Land, and you will lie down with no one to frighten [you]; I will remove wild beasts from the Land, and no army will pass through your land. (Sefer Vayikra 26:4-6, all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)
 
These pasukim, like so many others throughout Tanach, teach us that Eretz Yisrael is the place of and for, the Jewish people. Yet, while almost seven million Jews live in Israel today, the remainder of the world’s nearly 15 million Jews live outside of Israel. It seems that although many of us are familiar with Rabbi Yehudah Halevi’s (1075-1141) famous words, “Libi b’mizrach v’anochi b’sof ma’a’rav” (“My heart is in the East, and I am in the uttermost West”), we have not yet heeded their message.
 
What is necessary for kibbutz galyuot (ingathering of the exiles) and permanent resettlement in our land? Perhaps Rabbi Yehudah Halevi said it best in his classic work, HaKuzari:

When people become aroused to love this holy place and to press for the anticipated event this, too, generates great reward. Therefore, it says, “You shall arise and have mercy upon Zion, for it is time to be gracious to it, for the appointed time has arrived. For your servants have desired its stones, and they favor its dust.” (Sefer Tehillim 102:14-15) This means that Jerusalem will be rebuilt when the Jewish people yearn for it to the ultimate degree. (Chapter 5:28, translation, Rabbi Daniel Korobkin)
 
These words are congruent with the celebrated statement in Midrash Bereishit Rabbah: “It is better to live in the deserts of Eretz Yisrael than to live in palaces in the diaspora (Parashat Lech Lecha, 39:8)  Based upon these sources, it appears that kibbutz galyuot will take place when the Jewish people sincerely yearn for the very dust and stones of Eretz Yisrael, for then, our love for the land will be truly manifest.
 
One of the essential sources wherein Chazal present the Land’s central theological significance is Tosefta Avodah Zarah 4:5:

Dovid HaMelech suggested a homiletic interpretation and said: “Anyone who abandons the Land at a time of peace, and travels to the diaspora is as if he is worshipping idols, as the text states: ‘And I will rejoice over them to do good to them, and I will plant them in this land truly with all My heart and with all My soul.’ (Sefer Yirmiyahu 32:41).  [That is,] during the entire time they are upon it [the Land,] it is as if they are planted thereupon before Me in truth, with all My heart and with My entire soul, but, if they are not [living] on it, it is as if they are not planted thereupon before Me in truth, with all My heart and with My entire soul.’” (Translation my own)
 
A stirring analysis of this passage was authored by Rabbi Yisachar Shlomo Teichtal zatzal (1885-1945), in his celebrated work on Religious Zionism entitled, “Eim HaBanim Semeicha:”

“…but, if they are not [living] on it, it is as if they are not planted thereupon before Me in truth, with all My heart and with My entire soul.” This is an amazing statement, for the Holy One blessed be He is saying to us that when the Jewish people are not in Eretz Yisrael, they are not cleaving to His heart and soul. As such, what is being done to us at this time [1943], and the diminished level of hashgacha (Divine Providence) that is upon us, should not be surprising in our eyes, precisely since we are not cleaving to Him within His entire heart and soul, as we are in the land of the nations of the world [that is galut]. (From the Second Introduction, this and the following translations my own).
 
For Rav Teichtal, who was murdered on a transport train by the Nazis (yemach sheman v’zichram) during the closing days of WWII, the unspeakable horrors of the Shoah and the palpable lack of Hashem’s hashgacha at that time were direct results of our living in galut, rather than in Eretz Yisrael. These are dour words, indeed, that seem to leave little room for anyone to live in the diaspora. Nonetheless, his following words offer a ray of hope for those of us who have not yet made the commitment to begin the aliyah process:
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But as soon as we try to return to it [the Land], then we will immediately be cleaving to Him within His entire heart and soul…that is to say that one whose eyes and heart yearn to go up to Eretz Yisrael is considered as if he is already in Eretz Yisrael. As such, it is clear that if we focus our thoughts on the idea of returning to our holy land, then we will immediately be cleaving to Him within His entire heart and soul, and His hashgacha will rest upon us with the totality of His soul, may He be blessed, so that He [once again] will protect us with an open eye that will never close. [Moreover,] He will never cease to save us from our enemies, and He will enable us to be successful in everything that we will do, for then, we will go up to Tzion in joy, and the Jewish people will go out with an upraised hand from their physical and spiritual exile...that will reach completion with the fulfillment of the Torah and the mitzvot…
 
May the time come soon, and in our days, when our entire people will be dedicated to implementing kibbutz galyuot, when we will leave our physical and spiritual exile behind, return to Eretz Yisrael in joy, and fulfill the Torah and mitzvot in their entirety. With Hashem’s help and our heartfelt desire, may this be so. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom, and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and 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:rdbe718@gmail.com.
 
*** 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, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, 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.
 
One of the well-known halachot found in our parasha is the law of retributive justice (lex talionis), known popularly as “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth (ayin tachat ayin):"

And a man who inflicts an injury upon his fellow man just as he did, so shall be done to him [namely], fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth. Just as he inflicted an injury upon a person, so shall it be inflicted upon him." (Sefer Vayikra 24:19-20, this and all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)
 
This is the second time we have encountered this halacha, as it initially appears in Parashat Mishpatim: “But if there is a fatality, you shall give a life for a life, ayin tachat ayin, a tooth for a tooth, a hand for a hand, a foot for a foot, a burn for a burn, a wound for a wound, a bruise for a bruise.” (Sefer Shemot 21:23-25)  It seems that our four verses suggest that if the mazik (one who physically injures another) is to receive his just consequences, his punishment must consist of receiving the exact same injury he inflicted on the nizak (harmed individual), a practice known as “mirror punishment.” In fact, such an approach was followed in the ancient Mesopotamian Code of Hammurabi (approximately 1750 BCE).
 
A very different interpretation, however, is found within the Rabbinic tradition. One of the earliest of these texts to analyze our pasukim is the second century work, Mechilta d’Rabbi Yishmael, the halachic midrash on Sefer Shemot:

“Ayin tachat ayin”: Monetary compensation (mammon). You say it is mammon, yet perhaps the phrase is to be taken in a literal fashion! Rabbi Yisrael always explained this phrase in the following manner… [Based upon the analysis of various Torah passages, we learn that] just like injuries against an animal are redressed by monetary compensation (tashlumin), so, too, are damages against a person remedied by monetary compensation.” (Mesechta d’Nezikin, Parasha VIII, translation and brackets my own)
 
In sum, Rabbi Yishmael categorically rejects the concept of mirror punishment and asserts that the Torah champions monetary payment in its stead. Moreover, both he and Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai are quoted as maintaining this position in Talmud Bavli, Baba Kama 84a. This is the accepted p’sak din (halachic conclusion), as we find in the Rambam’s (1135-1204) Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Chovel u’Mazik I:1-6:

What is meant by “damages?” If a person cuts off the hand or the foot of a colleague, we theoretically consider the injured colleague as a servant being sold in the marketplace and evaluate his value before the injury and his value afterwards. The person who caused the injury must pay the depreciation in value. This is alluded to in the Torah’s phrase, “ayin tachat ayin.” The oral tradition interprets “tachat,” translated as “for,” as an indication that the verse requires financial recompense (l’shalame mammon). (1, all Mishneh Torah translations, Rabbi Eliyahu Touger)
 
The Rambam expands upon his understanding of ayin tachat ayin in the following fashion:
How do we know that the intent of the Torah’s statement regarding the loss of a limb, “ayin tachat ayin,” is financial restitution? That same verse continues, “a wound tachat a wound.” And regarding the penalty for a giving a colleague a wound, it is explicitly stated: “When a man strikes his colleague with a stone or a fist… he should pay for his being idled and for his medical expenses.” (Sefer Shemot 21:18-19) Thus, we learn that the word tachat mentioned regarding a wound indicates the necessity for financial restitution, and so one can conclude that the meaning of the same word regarding an eye or another limb is also financial restitution. (5)
 
In addition, the Rambam utilizes ayin tachat ayin as a platform for expounding upon the inextricable link that obtains between the Written Law (Torah She’Bichtav) and the Oral Law (Torah She’Ba’al Peh):

Although these interpretations are obvious from the study of the Written Law, and they are explicitly mentioned in the Oral Tradition transmitted by Moshe from Mount Sinai, they are all regarded as halachot from Moshe. This is what our ancestors saw in the court of Yehoshua and in the court of Shmuel of Ramah, and in every single Jewish court that has functioned from the days of Moshe our teacher until the present age. (6)
 
The Rambam’s first sentence is more or less what we would expect in reference to the connection between Torah She’Bichtav and Torah She’Ba’al Peh. What, however, does the phrase, “this is what our ancestors saw in the court of Yehoshua and in the court of Shmuel of Ramah…,” add to this analysis? My rebbe and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), known as “the Rav” by his students and followers, addresses this unusual formulation in his 1964 Yahrzeit drasha for his father, Rav Moshe Soloveitchik zatzal. The Rav calls this act of bearing witness, massoret ha’ra’iyah, a unique aspect of Torah She’Ba’al Peh that is acquired through having seen actual court cases and the decisions that were rendered. In our particular instance this refers to the countless piskei din (halachic decisions) that conclude that ayin tachat ayin must be understood as mammon.
 
How is this massoret ha’ra’iyah to be differentiated from other parts of Torah She’Ba’al Peh? The Rav notes that in almost all areas of Torah exegesis, it is acceptable to explain a verse according to its peshat, rather than according to the drashot found in Oral Law. In the case of massoret ha’ra’iyah, however, it is forbidden to follow such an approach:

But in reference to the interpretations of these verses that were accepted and bequeathed throughout the generations, when generation after generation saw the actions of the previous generation and the manner in which they comported themselves, for example regarding ayin tachat ayin, etrog and matters of a similar nature, in these cases they declared that the actual peshat of the text is in accord with the massoret [ha’ra’iyah]. As such, anyone who would interpret these verses in a different manner [regarding their halachic outcome] would be in the category of “megaleh panim b’Torah shelo k’halacha,” one who reveals a heretical interpretation of the Torah that violates the Law, since the accepted peshat within the massorah (Tradition) in this matter is, in itself, Torah She’Ba’al Peh. (Rabbi Herschel Schachter shlita, Divrei HaRav, page 101, translation, underlining and brackets my own)
 
The Rav’s examination of the Rambam’s words, “this is what our ancestors saw in the court of Yehoshua and in the court of Shmuel of Ramah…,” is a conceptual tour de force, for, in so doing, he reveals to us a new aspect of Torah She’Ba’al Peh that brings us to a deeper level of understanding. While the phrase might seem to be a simple narrative assertion by the Rambam, the Rav teaches us that massoret ha’ra’iyah is emblematic of an entire class of statements within Torah She’Ba’al Peh, and serves as a crucial conceptual and halachic link between Torah She’Bichtav and Torah She’Ba’al Peh.
 
May our deeper appreciation of the multiple aspects of Torah She’Ba’al Peh and its unbreakable connection to Torah She’Bichtav bring us ever closer to the Almighty. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom, and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and 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:rdbe718@gmail.com.
 
*** 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, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, 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 first of our two parshiot begins with the well-known verse that references the death of Aharon’s sons, Nadav and Avihu: “And the L-rd spoke to Moshe after the death of Aharon’s two sons, when they drew near before the L-rd, and they died.” (Sefer Vayikra 16:1, this and all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)  The Torah teaches us that Nadav and Avihu followed in their father’s footsteps in their complete dedication to Hashem. As a result, they were vouchsafed a vision of His Divine Presence:

And to Moshe He [G-d] said, “Come up to the L-rd, you and Aharon, Nadav and Avihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and prostrate yourselves from afar.” … And Moshe and Aharon, Nadav and Avihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel ascended, and they perceived the G-d of Israel, and beneath His feet was like the forming of a sapphire brick and like the appearance of the heavens for clarity. And upon the nobles of the children of Israel He did not lay His hand, and they perceived G-d, and they ate and drank. (Sefer Shemot 24:1)
 
In light of the incredible spiritual heights that Nadav and Avihu achieved, the following two verses in Parashat Shemini are particularly difficult to comprehend:

And Aharon’s sons, Nadav and Avihu, each took his pan, put fire in them, and placed incense upon it, and they brought before the L-rd foreign fire (aish zarah) which He had not commanded them. And fire went forth from before the L-rd and consumed them, and they died before the L-rd. (Sefer Vayikra 10:1-2)
 
There are several essential elements in this brief, but overwhelmingly powerful, narrative:
​

1. Nadav and Avihu each took their own incense pans, put fire (coals) in them, and then placed incense on top of the coals.
2. This incense offering lacked G-d’s command and received the appellation of aish zarah.
3. The punishment for bringing aish zarah was swift and irrevocable: “And fire went forth from before the L-rd and consumed them, and they died before the L-rd.”

 
Rabbi Naftali Tzvi Yehuda Berlin zatzal (known as “the Netziv,” 1817-1893) notes in his Torah commentary, Ha’amek Davar, that Nadav and Avihu acted with a deep and abiding sense of ahavat Hashem (love of G-d) when they entered the Ohel Moed (Tent of Meeting) to offer their incense: “They entered [the Ohel Moed] with the fire of the love of Hashem burning deeply and profoundly within them.” (Sefer Vayikra 10:1)  If this is the case, why, asks the Netziv, did they have to pay for this manifestation of their love of G-d with their very deaths?
 
The Netziv’s clear and direct answer to this question enables us to understand some of the more salient aspects of ahavat Hashem:

The Torah teaches us [through the deaths of Nadav and Avihu] that, although ahavat Hashem is precious in the eyes of G-d, it was not viewed as such when pursued in this manner, that is, without G-d having commanded [the offering of this incense].
 
To further underscore his approach, the Netziv contrasts the forbidden aish zarah of Nadav and Avihu with the preceding words of Moshe and actions of Aharon:

And Moshe said, “This is the thing the L-rd has commanded; do [it], and the glory of the L-rd will appear to you.” And Moshe said to Aharon, “Approach the altar and perform your sin offering and your burnt offering, atoning for yourself and for the people, and perform the people's sacrifice, atoning for them, as the L-rd has commanded.” So, Aharon approached the altar and slaughtered his sin offering calf. (Sefer Vayikra 9:6-8)
 
The Netziv explains this passage according to the interpretation of the Sifra, the halachic Midrash to Sefer Vayikra. He notes that Moshe was well-aware of the tendency among certain G-d-intoxicated groups and individuals to demonstrate their love of Hashem in a prohibited manner. Such breaches of the law, while performed with the ostensible intent to serve Hashem, are, in reality, self-serving. Since these behaviors entail unauthorized actions, their origin must be found in the illicit urgings of the yetzer hara. Therefore, Moshe declared: “This is the thing the L-rd has commanded; do [it], and the glory of the L-rd will appear to you.”
 
My rebbe and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), known as “the Rav” by his students and followers, implicitly agrees with the Netziv, suggesting that the key phrase in understanding the story of the tragic death of Nadav and Avihu is, indeed, “they brought before the L-rd foreign fire, which He had not commanded them.” He interprets these words in the following manner:

On the day of their installation, wearing their priestly vestments, they were overcome by ecstasy and by the need to express their emotions. The incense that they burned was identical to that which their father, Aharon, had offered. But there is one significant difference. Aharon was obeying G-d’s will, while Nadav and Avihu performed an action that G-d had not commanded. (This, and the following quotations are from Darosh Darash Yosef: Discourses of Rav Yosef Dov Halevi Soloveitchik on the Weekly Parashah, Rabbi Avishai C. David editor, pages 223-226)
 
The Rav utilizes this explanation as the foundation of his analysis of the proper means to serve Hashem. In his view, the authentic Jewish way “requires us to fashion our lives according to God’s discipline, as illustrated by the word ve-tzivanu (and He has commanded us)… [Hence,] “the reason we perform the mitzvah is our absolute surrender to God’s will.” Unfortunately, rather than acting in this manner and demonstrating their obeisance to the Almighty, Nadav and Avihu chose their own misguided path to serve Him:
​
Therefore, the transgression of Nadav and Avihu, whom the Torah describes as sanctified, was that “they offered a strange fire concerning which they had not been commanded.” The divine command and our discipline in obeying that command are the only healthy routes to religious inspiration. Any deviation, especially by tzaddikim is unacceptable and ultimately doomed to failure. (Underlining my own)
 
In sum, the Netziv and the Rav teach us that, while ahavat Hashem is a legitimate and powerful impetus for authentic spiritual expression, it must ever be governed by the mitzvot, as commanded by the Almighty. With Hashem’s benevolent guidance and our fervent desire, may we demonstrate our ahavat Hashem through the fulfillment of His holy commandments, and may these bring us ever closer to Him. May this time come soon, and in our days. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom, and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and 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:rdbe718@gmail.com.
 
*** 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, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, 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 primary focus of our parshiot is the illness known as tzara’at. The unique nature of this class of disease is emphasized by the Rashbam (Rabbi Shmuel ben Meir, 1080-1158) in his introduction to our topic:
 
All of the sections dealing with the negayim (afflictions) affecting people, garments, houses and the manner in which they appear, as well as the number of days requiring sequestering, and the white, black, and golden identifying hairs, may not in any way be understood by following the simple and direct meaning of the text. Neither may we rely upon standard human knowledge and expertise [that is, current medical information]. Instead, we must follow the analysis (midrash) of the Sages, their decrees, and the inherited body of knowledge that they received from the earliest Sages. This is the essence [of this matter]. (Commentary on the Torah, Sefer Vayikra 13:2, translation and brackets my own)
 
In sum, according to the Rashbam, tzara’at can only be understood from the Torah’s standpoint, rather than from a physiological or medical perspective. This is because its etiology does not follow the normative laws of biology. Instead, it is a spiritually based ailment that manifests in a physical fashion.
 
As the Rashbam notes, one of the forms of tzara’at directly affects a house:

When you come to the land of Canaan, which I am giving you as a possession, and I will place a lesion of tzara’at upon a house in the land of your possession, and the one to whom the house belongs comes and tells the kohen, saying, “Something like a lesion (k’nega) has appeared to me in the house.” (Sefer Vayikra 14:34-35, this and all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)

The pasuk, “When you come to the land of Canaan, which I am giving you as a possession, and I will place a lesion of tzara’at upon a house in the land of your possession,” appears to be quite negative, especially in light of the Torah’s command to “demolish the house, its stones, its wood, and all the [mortar] dust of the house” (14:45) if the tzara’at cannot be removed in any other way. Rashi (1040-1105), basing himself upon the Talmud and two midrashim, however, notes that the destruction of the house actually results in a very fortunate outcome:

“I will place (v’na’tati) a lesion of tzara’at upon a house” — This was an announcement to them that these plagues would come upon them (Midrash Sifra, Metzora, 14:75, Talmud Bavli, Horayot 10a), because the Amorites concealed treasures of gold in the walls of their houses during the whole 40 years the Israelites were in the wilderness in order that these might not possess them when they conquered Palestine, and in consequence of the plague [tzara’at] they would pull down the house and discover them. (Midrash Vayikra Rabbah 17:6, translation, Pentateuch with Rashi’s Translation, M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silberman)
 
At first glance, it is difficult to understand why Chazal and Rashi interpret, “V’na’tati a lesion of tzara’at upon a house,” in this manner.  Rabbi Baruch Halevi Epstein (1860-1941) addresses this problem and suggests a cogent textually based solution:

The reason for this analysis stems from the word, “v’na’tati,” since, in our instance the Torah does not state: “when a lesion of tzara’at will be found in a house in the Land,” as is the case regarding lesions that affect people and clothing. Moreover, in general, [any form of] the expression, “netina,” [giving, such as the word v’na’tati] that is from the Holy One blessed be He, leads to something good. [Thus, we find,] “v’na’tati your rains in their time” (Sefer Vayikra 26:4), “v’na’tati peace in the Land” (Sefer Vayikra 26:6) and “v’na’tati salvation in Zion, to Israel, My glory” (Sefer Yeshayahu 46:13). Therefore, they interpreted this use of our term, v’na’tati, as having a positive valence. (Torah Temimah, Parashat Metzora, note 111, translation my own)
 
In sum, according to Rav Epstein, our Sages’ understanding of v’na’tati” is congruent with Rabbi Akiva’s famous aphorism: “Everything that the Holy One blessed be He does is for the best.” (Talmud Bavli, Berachot 60b)  
 
The next pasuk contains a fascinating nuance: “Something like a lesion (k’nega) has appeared to me in the house.” Why do homeowners need to speak in such an indeterminate fashion, especially if they are well-versed in the laws of negayim and know that their home is afflicted with tzara’at? Why can they not straightforwardly declare to the kohen who comes to inspect their premises: “A lesion (nega) has appeared to me in the house?”
 
Rashi (14:35) draws our attention to this issue when he cites the statement from Mishnah Negayim 12:5 which rules, like our pasuk, that k’nega, rather than nega, is the halachically mandated statement — even for talmidei chachamim. As we would expect, there are many different approaches as to why this is the case. One of the most fascinating is offered by Rabbi Eliyahu Mizrachi (1455-1525), one of Rashi’s best-known supercommentators:
​
But I have heard from my teachers, that this verse is not being precise in its nomenclature in regard to stating something is absolutely [nega] or doubtfully [k’nega] a ritually pure (tahor) or impure lesion (tamei), rather it is addressing a matter of derech eretz (ethical behavior). That is, a person [should never declare a lesion to be tamei,] even if the matter is crystal clear in their eyes (vadai), instead, they must always state that the lesion is only perhaps (safek) tamei [and leave the determination to the kohen]. This is in congruence with Chazal’s dictum: “One should always teach his tongue to say: ‘I don’t know.’” (Talmid Bavli, Berachot 4a, Sefer Ha-Mizrachi, Sefer Vayikra 14:35, translations my own)
 
The Mizrachi’s explanation is particularly beautiful. In a few short words, he has universalized the Mishnah’s ruling and placed it squarely in the category of derech eretz, an area of our spiritual lives whose import cannot be overestimated. As Rav Yishmael bar Rav Nachman famously said: “Derech eretz preceded the [giving of] the Torah by 26 generations.” (Midrash Vayikra Rabbah 9:3) The underlying meaning of this concept was given voice in Rabbi Elazar ben Azariah’s far earlier aphorism: “If there is no Torah, there is no derech eretz; if there is no derech eretz, there is no Torah.” (Pirkei Avot 3:17)  In other words, even though we are blessed with the Torah, it is in addition to, and does not supplant, the fundamental obligation to live lives based upon ethically-suffused actions, for the Torah, itself, depends upon derech eretz.
 
May the Almighty ever guide us on the path of righteousness and justice, and may the derech eretz reflected by our actions enable us to become His authentic servants. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom, and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and 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:rdbe718@gmail.com.
 
*** 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, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, 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 essence of Hashem’s purpose in gifting the Torah to the Jewish people is imparted immediately prior to the Revelation at Mount Sinai: “And now, if you obey Me and keep My covenant, you shall be to Me a treasure out of all peoples, for Mine is the entire earth. And you shall be to Me a kingdom of princes and a holy nation (goy kadosh) …” (Sefer Shemot 19:5-6, this and all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)  The obligation to attain this sanctified status is writ large in two pasukim in our parasha:

For I am the L-rd your G-d, and you shall sanctify yourselves and be holy, because I am holy, and you shall not defile yourselves through any creeping creature that crawls on the ground. For I am the L-rd Who has brought you up from the land of Egypt to be your G-d. Thus, you shall be holy, because I am holy. (Sefer Vayikra 11:44-45)
 
In these verses, ki kadosh Ani (because I am holy) emerges as the basis of Hashem’s command to us to pursue kedushah (holiness). The expression, “Thus, you shall be holy, ki kadosh Ani,” however, does not seem to fit a standard “if x then y” kind of model. This is especially the case, since the Master of the Universe is omnipotent, infinite and eternal, and we are finite and “like a passing shadow.” (Rosh Hashanah liturgy)  What, then, does Hashem’s kedushah have to do with our kedushah?
 
Rabbeinu Shimshon Raphael Hirsch zatzal (1808-1888) helps us formulate an answer to our question:

Ki kadosh Ani Hashem Elokeichem: the source of the possibility that you can be holy and the reason why you should be holy, lies in the fact that kadosh Ani Hashem Elokeichem, that I, Who am Hashem Elokeichem, am kadosh. The kedushah, the holiness to which you are to strive with all the force of your moral free will is, in its true absolute purity, an attribute of Me Myself, and as Hashem have I given you with My Breath, participation in this freedom, and continue giving you constantly strength and assistance for everything which is good. In kadosh Ani Hashem lies the source of your ability for kedushah. (Commentary on the Torah, Sefer Vayikra 19:2, translation, Rabbi Isaac Levy, second edition, page 499)
 
Rav Hirsch’s interpretation of how and why we can and should be kadosh is an exegetical tour de force. In his view, the potential to attain kedushah is an attribute of the Almighty that He bestows upon us at the moment of our creation. As such, ki kadosh Ani, and all that it entails, is the source of our ability to pursue kedushah and actualize it in our lives.
 
Rav Hirsch’s analysis is congruent with a statement of the Midrash Sifra on the above-cited pasukim in our parasha: “Just like I am holy, so, too, should you be holy. Just like I am separate [from all that is antithetical to kedushah], so, too, should you be separate.” (Translation and brackets my own)  The pursuit of kedushah, therefore, is inextricably linked to the mitzvah of v’halachta b’drachov (walking in Hashem’s ways). This idea is also given powerful voice by Rabbi Ovadia Seforno (1475-1550) in his Commentary on the Torah on our verses:
​
I [Hashem] desire that you will sanctify and prepare yourselves for kedushah. It is fitting that you will be holy and ever successful in your recognition of your Creator and emulate His actions, for this is what I desire — that you should model yourselves after Me. (Translation my own)
 
With Hashem’s help and our heartfelt desire, may we ever endeavor to emulate Him in our pursuit of kedushah. May this enable us to live lives that bring honor to the Jewish people, and glory to His holy name. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom, and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and 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:rdbe718@gmail.com.
 
*** 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, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, 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.
 
Baruch HaMakom baruch Hu. Baruch sheh’natan Torah l’amo Yisrael, baruch Hu (Blessed be the Omnipresent One, may He be blessed. Blessed is He Who gave the Torah to His people Israel, blessed is He).  This is one of the many celebrated and beloved portions of the Haggadah. It is juxtaposed to the Arba’ah Banim (Four Sons), and serves as its hakdamah (introduction). This prompts us to ask, “Why does this section require such a hakdamah?” Our question was addressed by the 9th or 10th century anonymous work, Perush Kadmon, an exegetical analysis of the Haggadah that was utilized extensively by Rashi and many other Rishonim:

One must utter a bracha prior to reciting [and analyzing] a midrashic passage. As we learn [Talmud Bavli, Berachot 11b]: “Many times I stood before Raba to learn a chapter of Midrash Sifra d’Bei Rav from him. Before beginning, he would wash his hands and recite a bracha, at that point he would teach us the chapter.” (Translation and brackets my own. Note: this text follows the version of the Rif)
 
The Perush Kadmon contains two crucial points regarding our question: The Arba’ah Banim is a midrashic passage, and, as such, requires the recitation of birchot haTorah prior to being taught. In some ways, Baruch HaMakom seems to fulfill this role, yet it is missing Hashem’s name and a reference to His universal kingship (shame u’malchut: “Baruch Atah Hashem Elokeinu Melech HaOlam”), as found in the standard text of birchot haTorah. The editor of the Perush Kadmon printed in the Torat Chaim Haggadah (Mossad HaRav Kook) focuses upon this question and provides us with a fascinating answer:

One might think that the reason why Hashem’s name and a reference to His universal kingship is missing from Baruch HaMakom is because we have already recited the standard birchot haTorah in the morning. This is not the case, however, since Chazal established special blessings before and after one is called to the Torah [that contain shame u’malchut], even though birchot haTorah have already been said. Nonetheless, although they established the recitation of Baruch HaMakom prior to Midrash Arba’ah Banim, it was not enacted as a bracha per se, rather, as a statement [of praise] that is similar [but not the same as] an actual blessing. As such, it does not contain shame u’malchut. (Translation, brackets and underlining my own)
 
In sum, Baruch HaMakom is not, in fact, a bracha; rather, it merely has elements that parallel a standard Torah benediction. As such, Chazal decreed that it be said before the Arba’ah Banim, but without shame u’malchut.
 
Like the Perush Kadmon, my rebbe and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), known as the Rav by his students and followers, views Baruch HaMakom as a modified form of birchot haTorah. In addition, he emphasizes that these brachot connote the concept of masorah (the passing on of Torah knowledge from generation to generation), a theme that is alluded to in the placement of Baruch HaMakom immediately before the Arba’ah Banim:

We repeat it at the Seder because the concern of the Seder is masorah and kabalah [acceptance of the Torah]. When we are about to proclaim the idea of masorah — “The Torah speaks about four kinds of children” — we offer thanks to the Almighty in the same manner as we do every morning. The blessing is related not only to talmud Torah but to the masorah of Torah as well. (The Seder Night: An Exalted Evening, commentary based on the teachings of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Rabbi Menachem Genack, editor, pp. 45-46, brackets my own)
 
Since, in the Rav’s view, Baruch HaMakom, like birchot haTorah, is strongly connected to the idea of masorah, we must ask ourselves which specific Torah principle should be highlighted during the masorah process? The Rav’s poetic analysis of Pesach night helps us formulate a response:
​
And on Pesach night, man, free, hopeful, and courageous, enhanced by fulfillment, exalted by independence, surges forward, expands, grows, ready to accomplish all that is related to his blessedness and freedom. All selfishness renounced, he forgets himself, rising like the mighty river to do, to practice, and to immerse himself in hesed [acts of kindness]. (Festival of Freedom: Essays on Pesach and the Haggadah, Joel B. Wolwelsky and Reuven Ziegler eds., page 31, brackets my own)
 
For the Rav, Pesach night confers upon the Jewish people a sense of freedom and independence that enables us to recognize the inextricable bonds that join us together. In turn, this recognition produces a powerful desire within our very souls to help others through acts of hesed. As such, hesed emerges as a key element of our masorah that we share on Seder night. After all, the Almighty, Himself, is described by Michah the prophet as “chafetz hesed Hu” (He who desires kindness, 7:18). With Hashem as our guide, may we ever do heartfelt hesed for one another. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Chag Sameach and Shabbat Shalom, and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and 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:rdbe718@gmail.com.
 
*** 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, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, 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 term, “tzav,” (command), the namesake of our parasha, is stated by Hashem to Moshe in reference to Aharon and his sons. Rashi (1040-1105), based upon Midrash Sifra, explains it is an expression of alacrity and eternality that urges swift fulfillment of commandments by present and future generations. As such, our parasha prompts us to reflect upon our relationship to the mitzvot. Each time we are mekayam a mitzvah (fulfill a commandment), we demonstrate our loyalty to Hashem. Moreover, we declare that the relationship He forged with our forebears continues until our own historical moment.
 
During the periods of the Tannaim (Mishnah) and the Amoraim (Talmud), Chazal developed at least three over-arching approaches as to how we should approach the mitzvot: l’zakot et Yisrael (to confer merit upon the Jewish people), l’tzrofe et Yisrael (to purify the Jewish people), and l’kadash et Yisrael (to sanctify the Jewish people). One of the most celebrated expressions, of l’zakot et Yisrael given voice by Rabbi Chanania ben Akashia, is recited at the end of each chapter of Pirkei Avot (Ethics of the Fathers):

Rabbi Chanania ben Akashia says: “The Holy One, Blessed is He, wished to confer merit upon Israel; therefore He gave them Torah and mitzvot in abundance, as it is said: ‘Hashem desired for the sake of its [Israel’s] righteousness, that the Torah be made great and glorious.’” (Sefer Yeshayahu 60:21, translation, ArtScroll Siddur) 
 
This teaching emphasizes that Hakadosh Baruch Hu (the Holy One, Blessed is He) gave us His holy Torah to make us even more worthy in His eyes. Rashi underscores this idea in his comment entitled “l’zakot” on Talmud Bavli, Makkot 23b:

The Torah had no need to command many of the mitzvot and the admonitions (prohibitions) regarding crawling bugs and improperly slaughtered animals, since there is no one who naturally does not pull back from them [in disgust]. The only reason why they were commanded was to [enable one] to receive reward by separating [oneself] from them. (Translation, my own)
 
Rav, one of the major disciples of Rebbi Yehudah HaNasi, champions the idea of l’tzrofe et Yisrael as the rationale underlying the mitzvot in the following pivotal Midrashic statement:

Rav said: “The commandments were only given to purify His creations through [performing] them. Do you really think that HaKadosh Baruch Hu cares if a person slaughters an animal on the underside of its neck or on the back of its neck? [No!] The entire purpose of the mitzvot is to purify His creations.” (Midrash Bamidbar Rabbah 44:1, translation, my own)
 
It is important to note that this source contains the Hebrew words l’tzrofe et Yisrael, and not l’tahare et Yisrael. Although often translated in the same manner, these expressions have entirely different connotations. L’tahare refers to taking something or someone from a state of ritual impurity and, through one of several means, changing that status to one of ritual purity. In contrast, l’tzrofe means to purify, in the sense of purifying a metal, such as gold. Through the metallurgy process, the gold smelter is able to remove the dross and produce nearly pure gold. When Rav explains the commandments as having the purpose of l’tzrofe et Yisrael, he is metaphorically teaching us that Hashem wants us to be “as good as gold,” as pure as the finest gold that we can produce.
 
Rabbi Isi ben Yehudah enhances our understanding of the concept of l’kadash et Yisrael: “When the Omnipresent (HaMakom) gave a new mitzvah to the Jewish people, He added to their holiness.” (Mechilta d’Rabbi Yishmael, Mishpatim, Parasha 20) A second source for the idea of holiness achieved through mitzvot observance is found in Midrash Sifrei Bamidbar:
 
“And you shall be holy to your G-d.” Is this referring to the holiness that is brought about through the commandments in general or is it referring to the holiness that is brought about specifically through the mitzvah of tzittzit? As it is said, this is referencing the idea of the holiness of all of the mitzvot.” (Piska 115, translation, my own)
 
This notion is also underscored by Chazal’s formulation of the first part of every birkat hamitzvah (blessing prior to performing a commandment): “… asher kiddashanu b’mitzvotov vitzivanu” (“[He] who makes us holy through His mitzvot and commands us.”) Chazal clearly are teaching us that one of the reasons Hashem gifted us the commandments was to make us holy.
 
The great and eternal treasure of the mitzvot is a blessing to the Jewish people. May their fulfillment continue to bring us merit and may the purity and holiness we achieve help us draw ever closer to Hashem. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
May Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and from all the nations of the world.
 
Shabbat Shalom and Chag Sameach.
 
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:rdbe718@gmail.com.
 
*** 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, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, 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 laws regarding the korbanot (sacrifices) are one of the major themes of Sefer Vayikra. The Rambam (Maimonides, 1135-1204) discusses their underlying reasoning in two well-known passages in The Guide of the Perplexed:

His wisdom, may He be exalted, and His gracious ruse, which is manifest in regard to all His creatures, did not require that He give us a Law prescribing the rejection, abandonment, and abolition of all these kinds of worship [practiced by the surrounding nations] … Therefore He, may He be exalted, suffered the above-mentioned kinds of worship to remain, but transferred them from created or imaginary and unreal things to His own name… (The Guide of the Perplexed, III:32, vol. II, p. 526, translation and notes, Dr. Shlomo Pines, underlining and bolding my own)
 
The second section in this work that discusses korbanot appears in III:46. In this passage, the Rambam maintains that the entire sacrificial service is a repudiation of the practices and opinions of the surrounding idol-worshipping nations who forbade the offering of sheep (Egyptians), goats (Sabians), and oxen (all nations of the time):

Thus, it was in order to efface the traces of these incorrect opinions [that is, forbidding the offering of sheep, goats, and oxen] that we have been ordered by the Law to offer in sacrifices only these three species of quadrupeds: “When a man from [among] you brings a sacrifice to the L-rd; from animals, from cattle or from the flock you shall bring your sacrifice.” (Sefer Vayikra 1:2) … Thus, wrong opinions, which are diseases of the human soul, are cured by their contrary found at the other extreme. (Pages 581-582, brackets and underlining my own)
 
In sum, the Rambam opines that the korbanot were included in the Torah as a concession to our ancestors and in order to negate the erroneous opinions of the Egyptians, Sabians and other cultures of the Middle East. In essence, he asserts a causal-sociological analysis of this entire class of mitzvot.
 
The Ramban (Nachmanides, 1194-1270) summarily rejects the Rambam’s position. In his Commentary on the Torah (Sefer Vayikra 1:9), he states that the Rambam’s approach is nothing other than divrei havai (patent nonsense). More substantively, he turns the Rambam’s causal-sociological position on its head:

Behold when Noah and his three sons went out of the Ark, there were no Chaldeans and Egyptians in existence. Nevertheless, he offered korbanot that were pleasing to Hashem, concerning which it is stated: “… and the L-rd said to Himself, ‘I will no longer curse the earth because of man…’” (Sefer Bereishit 8:21)  Hevel also brought a sacrifice from the first born and best of his flock: “And the L-rd turned to Hevel and to his offering.” (Sefer Bereishit 4:4) And, it must be noted, there was not even the remotest thought of idol worship in the world at that time! (Commentary on the Torah, translations, and underlining my own; these and all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach, underlining and brackets my own).
 
The Ramban concludes this part of his argument with the powerful words: “And G-d forbid that one would even think that the sole purpose and ultimate value of the korbanot is to negate the notion of idol worship in the minds of the foolish!”
 
Nearly all Rishonim and Acharonim (early and later Torah authorities) join the Ramban in his repudiation of the Rambam’s rationale for the korbanot. Closer to our own time, my rebbe and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), explains why this is the case:

While we recognize his [the Rambam’s] opinions on more complicated problems such as prophecy, teleology and creation, we completely ignore most of his rational notions regarding the commandments… [This is due] to the incontrovertible fact that such explanations neither edify nor inspire the religious consciousness. They are essentially, if not entirely, valueless for the religious interests we have most at heart. (Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, The Halakhic Mind: An Essay on Jewish Tradition and Modern Thought, pp. 92 and 98, brackets my own)
 
As a result, the Rav conceptualizes the underlying meaning of the celebrated second verse of our parasha, “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘When a man from [among] you will bring a korban to the L-rd…’” in a very different manner than the Rambam:

What did man bring as an offering? What was man called upon to sacrifice? Judaism gave a straightforward answer to this basic theological and ethical question. Man must offer everything he possesses. Nothing is to be spared and nothing is to be saved for man. The logic of this answer is self-evident… Since there is nothing within the reach of man which he does not have in trust for and from God, there is nothing whose return to God [that] would not be considered a hallowed sacrificial service. Judaism has insisted upon a total sacrificial gesture on the part of man. When the latter is confronted with his Creator, man must return to the Master of the universe not only all he possesses in the form of physical goods but himself as well; his body, mind, spirit soul — the whole of his existence in all its boundless manifestation at all levels. (Community, Covenant, and Commitment: Selected Letters and Communications, Nathaniel Helfgot, editor, page 298)
 
For the Rav, korbanot emerge as a symbolic expression of all that one owns. As such, a korban, which must be the property of the one who offers it, is the perfect representation of that which is “within the reach of man” that he has received “in trust for and from God,” rather than based solely upon his own efforts. Therefore, bringing a korban is considered to be a “hallowed sacrificial service” and an ideal example of that which “man must return to the Master of the universe.” In sum, korbanot demonstrate that our entire existence, “in all its boundless manifestation at all levels,” belongs to the Almighty.
 
Rabbi Shimshon Raphael Hirsch (1808-1888) provides us with an etymologically based analysis of the word “korban” that underscores its spiritual meaning:
​
A korban is never used for a present or gift; it is used exclusively with reference to a person’s relation to God and can only be understood from the meaning that lies in its root krv. Krv means to approach, to come near, and to enter into a close relationship with someone… The makriv [the one bringing the korban] desires that something of himself should come into closer relationship to God, that is what his korban is, and the procedure by which this greater nearness to God is to be achieved is called “hakravah. It is kirvat Elokim, nearness to God which is striven for by a korban.” (Commentary on the Torah, Sefer Vayikra 1:2, translation, Isaac Levy)
 
In Rav Hirsch’s view the ultimate goal of a korban is to achieve kirvat Elokim (nearness to God).  This echoes King David’s phrase in Sefer Tehillim: “kirvat Elokim li tov” (“Closeness to God is what is truly good for me,” 73:28).  This is a spiritual level that each of us can try to achieve when we do mitzvot and gemilut chasadim (deeds of lovingkindness), and thereby strive l’takane ha’olam b’malchut Sha-dai (“to perfect the world through Hashem’s kingship”).  With Hashem’s help and our fervent desire may this be so. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom, and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic 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:rdbe718@gmail.com.
 
*** 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.