BS”D
FIRE: FUSION,
FORGIVENESS, AND FRUITION – PARSHAT SHEMINI
Shira Smiles shiur 2021/5781
Adapted by Channie Koplowitz Stein
After
seven preliminary days of “practice”, on the eighth day after the completion of
the Mishkan, Bnei Yisroel gathered to inaugurate the Mishkan/Tabernacle
into full service for Hashem. “Vatetzei aish milifnei Hashem/A fire went
forth from before Hashem and consumed upon the altar the elevation offering…
the people saw vayoronu vayiplu al peneihem/and they sang glad songs and
fell on their faces.”
What
was so special about this fire that evoked such dual emotions in Bnei Yisroel,
emotions of joy and of awe simultaneously? After all, reminds us Rabbi
Schwadron, Bnei Yisroel had already witnessed so many open miracles, including
the splitting of the Sea, and these miracles did not evoke these extraordinary
responses. As a further question, in addition to the inauguration of the
Mishkan, only one other major idea is discussed in this parsha, the laws of
pure and impure foods. of those that are permitted and those that are
prohibited. What is the connections between these two themes, asks the Tosher
Rebbe in Avodat Avodah.
We
begin our discussion with Rabbi Mintzberg who explains in Ben Melech the
major difference between Hashem’s revelation in earlier experiences and His
revelation in the Mishkan. While Hashem appeared to Bnei Yisroel so many times
earlier, these revelations were all transitory, lasting only for a short time.
In contrast, Hashem’s presence in the Mishkan was to be permanent, ensuring
Hashem’s constant presence and love of Bnei Yisroel.
The
Ben Melech notes that Hashem appears three times through the medium of
fire. First Hashem appears to Moshe in the burning bush. In spite of the fire,
the bush was not consumed. Hashem’s message here was a message of love, for
Hashem was initiating the redemption of Bnei Yisroel. Then Hashem appeared to
Bnei Yisroel from atop Har Sinai when Bnei Yisroel were accepting the yoke of
Heaven with awe and trepidation. If Bnei Yisroel would transgress these laws
and break the covenant they here established with Hashem, the fire would be a
consuming fire of punishment. This third fire that Hashem sent from heaven to
consume the offerings on the altar of the newly dedicated Mishkan was a
synthesis of the chesed and love of that first fire with the awe and fear of
that second fire. With the inauguration of the Mishkan, Hashem’s presence would
never leave Bnei Yisroel while providing a path to redemption from
transgressions through the offerings upon the altar. This fire represented tiferet/glory/splendor.
Therefore, Bnei Yisroel reacted with both joy and humility, by singing and by
prostrating themselves before God.
Although
we no longer have a Mishkan and a Beit Hamikdosh, this model is relevant today
as we turn to Hashem in tefillah/prayer, suggests Rebbetzin Smiles.
While we joyously sing praises to Hashem, we stand before Him in humility at
our own unworthiness as we ask Hashem to accept our prayers. We too combine awe
and joy.
The
Tosher Rebbe quoting the Midrash notes, that the dedication of the Mishkan is
introduced with Vayehi bayom hashmini/And it was on the eighth day. This
terminology echoes the language the Torah uses for each of the seven days of
creation, “Veyehi erev vayehi boker yom echad.., vayehi erev vayehi boker yom
sheni…/And there was evening and there was morning one day…, and there was
evening a second day,” ending with “vayehi erev vayehi boker yom hashishi/And
there was evening and morning the sixth day.” With this pattern, the Tosher
Rebbe suggests that creation wasn’t completed until this eighth day, for Hashem
created the world so that He would have am abode in the world He created, a
presence among His creations, among mankind. That purpose was stated in Parshat
Terumah, “Veasu li mikdash veshachanti betochom/Let them make for Me
a Tabernacle that I may well among them. When Adam and Chava sinned, that goal
was subverted. When Bnei Yisroel accepted the Torah, they reinstituted that
sanctity of creation, only again to destroy it with the sin of the golden calf.
Finally, with the completion of the Mishkan, that purpose for the initial seven
days of creation was being actualized, and Hashem’s presence would again be
manifest in the world.
But
while Aharon placed all the offerings on the altar, the heavenly fire did not
descend immediately to accept the offerings and consume them. Perhaps Hashem
had not fully forgiven them for the sin of the golden calf. Perhaps His
presence would not reside and be manifest among them. But after Moshe entered ohel
moed/the tent of meeting, prayed with Aharon and they then came out to
bless Bnei Yisroel did the fire came down and accept the sacrifices. Then Bnei
Yisroel knew that they had been forgiven for the sin of the golden calf. In
appreciation, they burst out in joyous song.
But
this joy and appreciation was coupled with a sense of humility, of
understanding that they were non existent without Hashem. This sense of
nullification translated naturally into the melting of their bodies into
prostration before Hashem. It was the connection to Hashem as the be all and
end of their existence that sustained the sanctity of Bnei Yisroel from one
foot festival to the next while the Beit Hamikdosh existed. Then Bnei Yisroel
would go up to Yerushalayim to be seen [by Hashem] and to prostrate themselves
before Him in the manner they did here, at the dedication of the Mishkan. This
is the mindset we still declare today at the end of each prayer service as we
recite Aleinu as we acknowledge and bend our knees and bow before
Hashem, and yearn for in a state of perfection in the future.
The
Tosher Rebbe now makes the connection between the dedication of the Mishkan and
the laws of acceptable foods. Hashem desires to reside within each of us, as He
did during the time of the Mishkan and Beit Hamikdosh. But just as we needed to
be pure in Hashem’s presence in the Sanctuary, so do we need to maintain our
purity and sanctity now, when we longer have that place of connection. [May
that condition change soon.] Since the food we eat gets integrated into our
blood, and hadam hu hanefesh/blood is the very soul of man, we are
commanded to eat only those foods which would maintain that sanctity and
purity.
At
least equally important to the foods we eat are the middos, the
character trait we inculcate within ourselves, and the environment we surround
ourselves with. The proper focus on all these will help us preserve both
physical and spiritual purity, for both my spirit and my body need to be
dedicated to Hashem’s service. How we interact with each other, especially
husbands and wives, and how we face our challenges will create the role models
our children will follow.
When
Hashem did not immediately respond to the sacrificial offerings with His fire,
Bnei Yisroel felt that they remained guilty for the sin of the golden calf.
They sorrowfully accepted their responsibility. When Hashem then sent His
heavenly fire to consume the sacrifices, Bnei Yisroel felt they had been
forgiven, breaking out in songs of gratitude and praise, writes the Tiv
Hatorah. Only when everyone takes his personal responsibility for his
actions, as did Aharon and each member of Bnei Yisroel, can we hope to bring
God’s presence into our lives and into our homes. A husband and wife who look
inward at their own failings and responsibilities rather than at each other for
their difficulties invite God’s presence into their home, teaches us the
Brisker Rav.
Understanding
that we are inadequate and taking responsibility are the very core of the
teshuvah process. Only when we feel our brokenness can we begin the process of
repair. Only when the seed begins to disintegrate and rot can the new plant
begin to grow, says the Netivot Shalom.
We
now return to the eighth day as the completion of creation. With the Mishkan
now in place as the “dwelling lace” of Hashem on earth, both heaven and earth
can be joyous and sing praises to Hakodosh Boruch Hu. The earth can now mirror
the joy of heaven at the culmination of creation, yismechu hashamayim
vetagail ha’aretz/the heavens will be joyful and the earth will be glad (Tehillim
91:11), writes Rabbi Schorr.
Herein
lies the true meaning of galus/exile and geulah, redemption
writes Chochmat Hamatzpun citing Ramban. Galus and geulah
have less to do with residing in our land than with our connection to Hakodosh
Boruch Hu. Full redemption came about when Hashem took us to be His nation, not
when He took us out of Egypt. That connections remains within us even when we
are dispersed among the nations.
In
the context of the eighth day of creation, we can now better understand why
this was an appropriate time, at the inauguration of the Mishkan, to sing
praises to Hashem, writes Rabbi Druck. The first song of praise, Mizmor shir
leyom haShabbos/A song of praise for the Shabbat Day (Tehillim 92)
is attributed to Adam Harishon. While it seems to have very little to do with
Shabbos, it is a song of praise thanking Hashem for all of creation. Similarly,
we bless Hashem for each creation, from thunder and lightning to the foods we
eat. But it is only by stepping back on Shabbat that we take in the full panorama
of creation and thank Hashem for its entirety, for the creation of the entire
world. Similarly, Bnei Yisroel now witnessed a new fire from heaven, come down,
signifying a new dimension of creation, Bnei Yisroel sang a new song of praise
just as the first man sang a song of praise at the completion of the initial
phase of creation.
Rabbi
Mandelbaum, quoting Rav Moshe Shapira brings a novel interpretation to our
discussion of shirah. In another context from the commentator Onkelos,
defines shir as a circular adornment, a bracelet. In this
interpretation, a song is a circle that brings you back to the beginning, to
complete the circle. This eighth day was the day that completed the original
vision for creation, bringing us back to the beginning, closing and completing
the circle. This circle was now a spiral, raising the world to a higher level
where mankind, specifically Bnei Yisroel, were only now elevated enough to
receive and accept the laws of purity in foods, laws that would enable us to
retain that elevated status.
Bnei
Yisroel had spent many months building the Mishkan, and a full seven days
inaugurating it. Yet, the Shechinah did not come down. Only after Moshe
and Aharon and Bnei Yisroel approached Hashem in prayer would God’s presence
come down. This is the lesson for each of us in our own lives, writes Rabbi
Wolbe. We toil in so many ways for so many things, especially in doing teshuvah
and in all areas of Torah study and spirituality. If we want to succeed, we
must not forget to include tefillah/prayer to bring Hashem’s presence
and providence into our endeavors and into our lives.