CAUTIONARY
CLOSENESS: PARSHT SHEMINI
Shira
smiles Shiur – Shushan Purim 5774/2014
Summary
by Channie Koplowitz Stein
With
the completion of the Mishkan, the time had come to put it to
its
intended use, as the place where the altar was erected and the kohanim
could
offer the sacrifices. Moshe instructs Aharon and his sons to bring the
sin and
elevation offerings. “This is the thing that Hashem has commanded
you to do;
then the glory of Hashem will appear to you.” It seems that
Aharon hesitated,
for Moshe again addresses him saying, “Come near to the Altar and
perform the
service of your sin offering and your elevation offering and provide
atonement
for yourself and for them, as Hashem has commanded.” Only after
this second
urging does Aharon come near the Altar and perform the service.
Two
obvious questions present themselves: Why did Aharon hesitate to
perform the
service, and how did Moshe convince him to move forward?
Rashi
writes that Aharon hesitated because he was ashamed. About what? Rabbi
Reiss in
Meirosh Tzurim cites Ramban and explains that when Aharon saw
the horns
of the Altar, he remembered the sin of the golden calf in which he had
participated. Having his sin so obviously present before him made
Aharon feel
unworthy of performing this exalted service before Hashem. Moshe
therefore
urged him forward, telling him that Hashem had already forgiven him
that sin,
and it was time to move forward to the next stage, to submission to His
will
and perform the service according to His command.
Rabbi
Schlesinger, in Eleh Hadvarim, jars our sensibility with an
even more
fundamental question. How did Hashem allow such a great righteous
person to
stumble and be implicated in such an overwhelming sin, a sin which he
initially
stood up against? Citing the Baal Shem Tov, Rabbi Schlesinger provides
tremendous insight into the primary function of the priesthood. That
purpose
was to bring the rest of us closer to Hakodosh Boruch Hu and to atone
for our
sins. In order for the priest to do that effectively, explains Rabbi
Schlesinger,
he himself needs to experience the sin and ask for his own forgiveness
as well.
Then, when Aharon pleads for forgiveness for the people, he is acting
as one of
them. This detail, continues Rabbi Schlesinger, is the difference
between the
offering of Aharon and those of Nadav and Avuihu who brought a strange
offering
to Hashem, for they brought it in their personal fire pans, not as part
of the
Klall. Thus Aharon becomes the model of repentance for the sin of the
golden
calf and for repentance for sin in general.
But
Aharon is a model not just for that generation and that sin, but also a
model
for all of us as we approach Hashem with our prayers, cautions Rabbi
Beyfus in Yalkut
Lekach Tov. Our lives are like a tightrope, writes Rabbi Yaakov
Hillel, and
we must be forever mindful of each step we take so that we can maintain
our
balance and move forward while still maintaining a healthy fear
of Hashem
and distance from sin. We must be watchful and alert, weighing our
actions, for
we carry within ourselves our priceless souls.
In
this vein, Rabbi Mordechai Druck in Drash Mordechai sees this
kind of
shame before the Creator as a healthy shame, for it keeps us aware and
leads us
to take responsibility for our actions.
There
was yet another message Moshe was relating to his brother. This was the
only
sin Aharon had committed, yet it was constantly in his consciousness.
What
Moshe was telling Aharon and which serves as a message for all
generations,
according to Rabbi Epstein, was that even though we sin, through the
process of
teshuvah, Hashem is quick to embrace us again. That’s why the
atonement of Yom
Kippur is followed each year with Succoth where we reestablish our
intimate
relationship with Hashem. As Rabbi Meisels reminds us, even though we
have
sinned, we must never despair of Hashem’s love for us. The
realization and
shame of our sin should not paralyze us, and we must ever try to move
closer to
Hakodosh Boruch Hu.
With
all of , we can nevertheless approach Aharon’s embarrassment from
a different
direction. Rabbi Reiss quoting a second view of the Ramban,
points to
this embarrassment as proof of Aharon’s great humility and as the
reason for
his being chosen for this position. In contrast, Nadav and Avihu took
their
greatness instead of humility to heart, brought an unauthorized
offering, and
died as a result.
Rabbi
Zelig Pliskin understands the importance of humility, but he cautions
us
against using that sense of unworthiness as a crutch that prevents us
from
worthy accomplishments, especially since a truly humble person
understands his
limitations and will willingly listen to criticism and accept help from
others.
As
Aharon was chosen to be Priest, so are we all a Kingdom of Priests,
reminds us
Rabbi Reiss. That realization must instill in us awe and humility, for
Hashem
has entrusted us to be a light unto the nations. Our gifts, whether to
enlighten the nations or to help each other, are all gifts from God.
Especially
when we are appointed to a high position, points out Rabbi Gamliel
Rabinowitz
in Tiv Hamoadim. We must recognize that that appointment too is
a gift
from Hashem, and humility here is counterproductive. If you are the
most
capable, step up as Aharon did, and accept your responsibility. Along
these
lines, writes Rabbi Henoch Leibowitz in The Majesty of Man,
Aharon was
able to control his emotions of fear and awe, focus on the tasks at
hand, and
perform them with enthusiasm and fervor. It is a myth, he writes,
citing the
Rambam, that we cannot control our emotions.
It
is precisely the emotion of despair after having sinned that the Satan
focuses
on after he’s accomplished the first part of his mission, after
he’s brought us
to sin, writes Rabbi Mordechai Ezrachi in Bircas Mordechai. Not
content
with having brought us to sin, the yetzer horo wants to keep us
in a
state of despair so that we would never feel God’s love again and
not be able
to move forward. When Aharon felt this way, Moshe reassured him. You
will be
successful, he said, first because God has already forgiven you and
also
because if God chose you for this task, He has also given you all the
tools you
need to complete it successfully.
The
Ohr Doniel adds another dimension to our discussion. Whatever
trait the yetzer
horo chooses to keep us from moving forward in our relationship
with
Hakodosh Boruch Hu, that is the exact character trait we must work on
to
perfect in ourselves. When, according to Rashi, Moshe’s response
to Aharon’s
sense of shame was, “Move forward, ki lekach nivcharta
– for this very
reason were you chosen,” Moshe was telling him that this was
Aharon’s
challenge, that Hashem wants him to overcome this feeling and move
forward in
service to Him. Similarly, continues the Ohr Doniel, when we
are faced
with challenges, we too must understand that working through this
personal
challenge will become the source of our strength, as it did for Aharon
Hakohen.
As the Slonimer Rebbe points out in Netivot Shalom, not only
our gifts
and talents, but also our challenges and difficult situations were
tailor made
for our spiritual growth on the stage of our physical life.
How
are we to keep from falling into despair and work toward achieving our
God
given potential? Rabbi Orlowick, in Turning Ideas into Action
teaches a
twofold process of patience and persistence. Most worthwhile things
take time
to accomplish, and to keep motivated, one must learn to celebrate the
small
achievements along the way. First, the small achievements eventually
add up to
a large achievement, and secondly, the “small” achievement
may in fact be
larger than you think. By consistent persistence and patience, you will
move
ever closer to fulfilling your mission and actualizing your potential.
Each
small, doable change moves you up another rung on the ladder.
The
few words with which Moshe urged Aharon onward serve as a lesson for
all of us
to harness our feelings of shame and humility and use them towards
connecting
with others and with Hakodosh Boruch Hu, for if Hashem has put a task
before
us, we must know that Hashem has also given us all the tools we need to
succeed. May we learn from Aharon to accept our tasks and fulfill them
with
love.