Dvar Torah for Parshas Acharei Mos-Kedoshim

Due to the eighth day of Pesach falling out on Shabbos, for the next few weeks Eretz Yisrael and Chutz La'aretz will be one Parsha off. Since I am in Eretz Yisrael, I will be following the calender here. This week in Chutz La'aretz they will be laining Parshas Tazria-Metzora. For a link to the Dvar Torah, click here. We will continue to be one week off till Parshas Bechukosai.

      Parshas Acharei Mos-Kedoshim discusses the Bnei Yisrael’s obligation to be קדוש, holy. As the chosen nation of Hashem and the (at this point in the Torah, future) residents of the holy land of Eretz Yisrael, we must hold ourselves to the highest standards to be deserving of our title. Some of the topics covered are immoral relationships, Avodah Zara, and various laws of בין אדם לחברו, interpersonal relationships, and בין אדם למקום, relationship between Man and God. The Torah makes very clear that a prerequisite for staying in Eretz Yisrael is the keeping of these standards. It explains how other nations were forced to leave Eretz Yisrael at various points in history specifically because many of these abominable acts were a normal part of their lives.

       I would like to take two similar pesukim from the end of Parshas Acharei Mos which express this idea and compare them. The first pasuk says, “וַתִּטְמָא הָאָרֶץ וָאֶפְקֹד עֲוֹנָהּ עָלֶיהָ וַתָּקִא הָאָרֶץ אֶת יֹשְׁבֶיהָ” “The land became impure and I recalled its iniquity upon it; and the Land vomited out its inhabitants” (Vayikra 18:25). Rashi has no comment on this pasuk. A few pesukim later, the pasuk says, “וְלֹא תָקִיא הָאָרֶץ אֶתְכֶם בְּטַמַּאֲכֶם אֹתָהּ כַּאֲשֶׁר קָאָה אֶת הַגּוֹי אֲשֶׁר לִפְנֵיכֶם” “Let not the land vomit you out for having made it impure, as it vomited out the nation that was before you” (18:28). These pesukim are almost completely identical, yet here, Rashi gives a mashal (parable) on how to understand this pasuk. He explains that a prince who is used to eating only the finest quality foods, and one day is fed something of lesser quality, he will vomit it out. So too people who do Aveiros are forced out of Eretz Yisrael. Two questions immediately arise at this point. First off, how are these pesukim different that Rashi does not comment at all on the first pasuk but does comment on the second? Secondly, why does Rashi need to explain to me what vomiting is? The experience is most likely something familiar to us all, so why does Rashi feel the need to give me a mashal to explain exactly how it works?

       This week’s Parshah contains probably the most famous Ramban in the entire Torah and it is written on the pasuk we just brought, Pasuk 25. The Ramban asks, what do the immoral relationships that the Torah just spoke about (See 18:6-24) have to do with staying in Eretz Yisrael? The obligation to be moral is a physical commandment, not dependent on the land? He explains that every single country has a ministering angel which is its’ conduit between that country and God. While God still controls everything that goes on, there are certain laws of nature that are put in place which control what happens in that place. Everything flows with very few changes in the natural order of things, the seasons change, the weather is consistent and time goes on.

       In Eretz Yisrael however, everything works differently. There is no angel between God and the land, Hashem himself oversees everything that happens. This means that there are no rules of nature; if it is cold in the winter, it is because Hashem decided that this day in the winter should be cold and not just because there is a natural system in place running things. This idea is seen especially by rainfall which is not as simple in Eretz Yisrael as it is in other places. More than anything else, Hashem wants to see our actions and hear our tefillos before he brings rain, he does not just bring it because of natural law. And when we do pray for rain, Hashem will bring it in the best way possible. Chazal teach us that when the rain falls, it will fall only on Wednesday and Shabbos nights, which are times when people do not generally go out (at least at the times of Chazal), and only at the time of night when everyone is actually inside. This applies only to Eretz Yisrael and nowhere else. Outside of Eretz Yisrael, while Hashem certainly controls what goes on, since he uses an angel as a conduit, his presence is not as strong.

       The Ramban brings a Tosefta (Avodah Zara 5:5) which says that as long as Bnei Yisrael are in Eretz Yisrael, Hashem will be a God to us. However if we are not in Eretz Yisrael, then it is as if he is not our God. This point certainly presents some difficulty, how could this be that at certain times in history Hashem will act as if he is not our God? The Ramban then brings a Sifri (Eikev 43) which says that Hashem tells Bnei Yisrael that if they will be forced to leave Eretz Yisrael they must continue to perform the mitzvos while they are in exile in preparation for when they will perform them when they eventually return. What an incredible statement from the Sifri! The Ramban explains this statement that performing the mitzvos is only necessary in the land of Israel since only there is there a proper spiritual atmosphere. However, outside of Eretz Yisrael, they aren’t necessary! There is no obligation (and maybe even no purpose) to mitzvos outside of Eretz Yisrael. The only reason why we still do mitzvos nowadays outside of Eretz Yisrael is to make sure that we do not forget how to do them for when we return. However, the עיקר, the main purpose, of the mitzvos is to perform them in Eretz Yisrael. This is the natural form of Torah, to keep it in Eretz Yisrael.

       To summarize the Ramban, because Hashem’s presence is strongest in Eretz Yisrael more than anywhere else, it is more sensitive to Tumah than anywhere else. Therefore, if we do not act morally while we are here, the pasuk of “וַתָּקִא הָאָרֶץ אֶת יֹשְׁבֶיהָ” “and the Land vomited out its inhabitants” applies. Secondly, Eretz Yisrael is the only place in the world where mitzvos can be performed to their fullest potential. Because of this, the obligation to do mitzvos outside of Eretz Yisrael is only in order to remember how to do them for when they can be done in Eretz Yisrael.  

       Rabbi Yehuda Halevi in his famous work, The Kuzari, says that every country in the world has something special which they produce better than any other place in the world. For example, France grows the best grapes for wine, the United States has tremendous wheat fields covering the Midwest, and so and so forth. What is the special material produced in Eretz Yisrael? The Kuzari says that it is Nevuah, prophecy. He explains that the natural effect of Eretz Yisrael is to bring someone closer to Hashem, ultimately resulting in the high spiritual level of Nevuah. Simply being in Eretz Yisrael leads a person on this path.

       If we put this together with the Ramban, we come out with an unbelievable idea. The Ramban says that Eretz Yisrael is constantly under Hashem’s watch and is the only place in the world where mitzvos can be done with the complete spiritual effect. Simply put, it is much easier to get closer to Hashem in Eretz Yisrael than anywhere else in the world. However, this closeness is only from the standpoint that Hashem is here. The Kuzari says that it is from the standpoint of Eretz Yisrael itself that we can get closer to Hashem! The land itself was created with a special ability to bring you closer to Hashem, bringing you closer to the level of Nevuah.

       My rebbi, Rabbi Elchonon Fishman, used these two Meforshim to explain our Rashi. In Pasuk 25 it says, “…וָאֶפְקֹד עֲוֹנָהּ עָלֶיה” “and I recalled its iniquity upon it…”. The pasuk says that Hashem will notice the Tumah that has been done in the land, and then “וַתָּקִא הָאָרֶץ אֶת יֹשְׁבֶיהָ” “and the Land vomited out its inhabitants”, meaning that Hashem will throw them out. This is the pasuk that the Ramban comments on since his point is Hashem’s direct supervision over Eretz Yisrael and nowhere else. However, in pasuk 28, the pasuk says, “וְלֹא תָקִיא הָאָרֶץ אֶתְכֶם” “Let not the land vomit you out”. There is no mention of Hashem at all in this pasuk! It is the land that will throw you out, just like the Kuzari explained. Since we might not understand how it could be that an inanimate piece of ground could do this, Rashi brings this Mashal here of a prince. Since he is not used to eating foods of lesser quality, he will automatically vomit out something below his standards, simply as a natural reaction. He cannot prevent this from happening, he simply cannot handle this food! So too Eretz Yisrael cannot handle people of lesser quality, i.e. sinners and immoral people, and will automatically vomit them out. Rashi even brings the Targum here to translate this word, “תָקִיא”, to mean, “ריקון”, which means to empty itself out.

       In the first pasuk in the Torah, Rashi asks, why does the Torah start from the story of the Avos and the Shevatim? If the whole purpose of the Torah is to teach us the mitzvos, why don’t we start from Parshas Bo where the first mitzvah is recorded? Rashi answers that the entire Torah from Parshas Bereishis till Parshas Bo was written in order to prove to the world that Eretz Yisrael was given to the Jewish People. According to what we have explained, this makes perfect sense. Eretz Yisrael is the key to the entire Torah! It is the only place where the mitzvos can be performed to perfection. Therefore, before the Torah starts teaching us the mitzvos, we must know that we own Eretz Yisrael. It shows us that the whole point of creation, and the only place where every action you do is a mitzvah, is in Eretz Yisrael.        

       As Jews, the driving force in our lives is to get closer to Hashem. According to Chazal, Eretz Yisrael is the only place we can do this completely! Nowhere else can we fulfill the true potential of mitzvos. And when we do the mitzvos in Eretz Yisrael, we do not live under the laws of nature, rather, we live under the constant actions and monitoring of Hashem. A land where every step is a mitzvah, where every event is dependent on the Torah, where everything you do pushes you closer to God; why would you want to be anywhere else?

Shabbat Shalom!

Click here for last year's Dvar Torah on Parshas Kedoshim

Last year Parshas Acharei Mos fell out on Pesach so there was no Dvar Torah.

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Dvar Torah for Parshas Tazria-Metzora

As a result of last Shabbos being a regular Shabbos for Israel while still being Pesach for those outside of Israel, for the next few weeks there will be a difference of one week's parsha between those living inside and outside Israel. Since I am in Israel right now, I will be writing the Dvar Torah according to the schedule here. Therefore, this week's Dvar Torah is on Parshas Tazria-Metzora, while outside Israel, they read Parshas Shemini. We will continue to be one week off till Parshas Bechukosai.

This week we read a “double” parsha, Tazria-Metzora. These parshiyos deal with certain special cases of Tumah (Spiritual Impurity) that a person can be subject to and how they can return to a state of Taharah (Spiritual Purity). Most of the parsha deals with the case of someone who is punished with Tzara’as (best translated as Leprosy) which no longer exists. Instead, we will focus on the beginning of Parshas Tazria which deals with a woman who has just given birth.

The pasuk says, “אִשָּׁה כִּי תַזְרִיעַ וְיָלְדָה זָכָר וְטָמְאָה שִׁבְעַת יָמִים” “When a woman conceives and gives birth to a male, she shall be impure for a seven-day period” (Vayikra 12:2). The next pasuk says that there is a mitzvah to circumcise the baby on the eighth day following his birth. Later on, the pasuk talks about when you give birth to a girl, “וְאִם נְקֵבָה תֵלֵד וְטָמְאָה שְׁבֻעַיִם” “If she gives birth to a female, she shall be impure for two weeks” (12:5). Why is there a difference between the impurity periods for the birth of a girl and a boy? Also, why is the mitzvah of Bris Milah mentioned here by the mitzvah of Tumah when it has nothing to do with Tumah at all?

The Kli Yakar answers these questions with two famous statements from Chazal. Chazal teach us that Chava’s punishment for eating from the עץ הדעת (Tree of Knowledge) was the pain of childbirth and the impurities that come as a result of it. (These impurities come through the דם נידה- Menstrual Blood.) He also brings another famous Gemara which explains how the gender of a child is determined. The Gemara says that the man influences the embryo to be female and the woman influences it to be male.

Using these maxims of Chazal, we can understand the halachos of Tumah by childbirth. Since the mother brings this Tumah into the world, and since she is the reason for this child being a boy, she has passed on this Tumah to her son, which then manifests itself physically on the baby’s body in the form of the foreskin. On the eighth day, after the mother’s Tumah has been removed, we remove the baby’s foreskin, thereby removing the Tumah from his body. That is why the pasuk brings down the mitzvah of Bris Milah here by the halachos of Tumah; even though the boy does not have this Tumah himself, his mother passes it on to him. However, by a baby girl, there is no need for seven days of Tumah since it was her father, who does not have this Tumah, who influenced her birth. Her mother did not pass anything on to her so she has no need for a Bris. (The Kli Yakar says that this is a good answer to the question that if boys become pure through a Bris, how do girls become pure.)

However, this baby girl will, God-willing, have children someday and will then bring this Tumah into the world. So even though her birth came through her father, she still carries this Tumah inside of her. Therefore, her mother is impure for two weeks after childbirth in order to take care of her own Tumah and the Tumah that she has now brought into the world with her daughter. Since this does not apply to a boy, his mother only has to take care of her own Tumah which takes seven days.

Shabbat Shalom!

Last year Parshas Tazria fell out on Parshas Hachodesh. There was no Dvar Torah for Parshas Tazria.

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Dvar Torah for Pesach 5772-2012

AIMeM would like to wish all of our readers a Chag Kosher V'Sameach, a healthy and happy Yom Tov. See you after Chag!

Once again, Pesach has arrived, the Holiday where we celebrate coming out of Mitzrayim and becoming a nation. This time is one of the highlights of the year for many people. Beginning with the Seder and going through the entire week of Pesach, it is a time to celebrate and reminisce over everything good in our lives together with our family and friends. The celebration is for all types of Jews, as we see clearly from the Hagadah.

One of the most well-known parts of the Hagadah is the Four Sons, which represent the four types of Jews that join in the Seder. They consist of the Chacham (the Wise Son), the Rasha (the Wicked Son), the Tam (the Simple Son), and the שאינו יודע לשאול (the Son Who Does Not Know How to Ask). Each son, with the exception of the שאינו יודע לשאול, asks a different question after which we answer each one of them. While the explanations on this part of the Hagadah are numerous, if you take each son at face value, the Rasha sticks out from the rest as the worst one.

It is written in the Hagadah, “רָשָׁע מָה הוּא אוֹמֵר מָה הָעֲבֹדָה הַזֹּאת לָכֶם” “What does the Wicked Son say? ‘What does this service mean to you?” The Hagadah continues and says that based on how he is asking his question, he has clearly removed himself from the general Jewish community and would not have been worthy of leaving Mitzrayim during the time of Yetzias Mitzrayim to become part of the Jewish Nation. The question I had while reading this was why is the Rasha at our Seder in the first place? If he really does not want to be a part of the Seder, why do we force him to be here? He will probably ruin the experience for us as well! Furthermore, the Hagadah goes on to say that, “וְאַף אַתָּה הַקְהֵה אֶת שִנָּיו” “…you must blunt his teeth”. Is this the proper Chinuch for the Rasha? We force him to sit through a ceremony which he has absolutely no interest on attending, and then when he causes trouble, we punch him in the mouth! Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson zt’’l even says that there are really five types of sons with the fifth one being the one who doesn’t even show up to the Seder! According to this, he does want to be here! So what is our Rasha doing here anyway?

I believe the answer is very simple. In reality, the Rasha does want to participate and he does want us to answer his questions. This is the reason he showed up in the first place! His attacking questions and seemingly aggressive anti-Torah attitude is simply the way he knows how to react, but deep down inside, all he wants is to feel that attachment to the Klal. He wants nothing more than to join in together with us and experience and enjoy the connection to Hashem that we all feel at the Seder.

But at the end of the day, the only way we can help this Rasha is by getting him to listen to what we want to answer him. Therefore, in order to get him to be quiet, we knock out his teeth, thus eliminating his ability to speak! In fact, there is a famous גימטריה (Numerology) that the value of the word רָשָׁע (Rasha) minus the value of the word שִנָּיו (teeth) equals the value of the word צדיק (Righteous Man)! If we can just get the Rasha to listen to us, we can easily turn him into a tzaddik. This is our responsibility, to see the צדיק within every Rasha. Still, at the end of the day if we cannot get him to listen, then he has shown through his attitude that he has removed himself from the Jewish community and does not deserve to be included in our Seder.

Regardless of a person’s background, Pesach and Seder night is the time when we sit together as families all part of a larger nation and enjoy all that is given us. Whichever type of person you are and whichever type of person you have at your Seder, everyone involved is hoping to gain the same thing, an understanding of what this is all about and what it all means. Why did Hashem choose us and take us out of Mitzrayim? How do I relate to that and what does that obligate me in? These are the questions we ask and have answered as we go through the Hagadah. It starts with Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov and continues on to where we have reached today. This Pesach, let us try to help one more person understand what this is all about and hopefully give ourselves a deeper understanding of this holiday and our lives. May we all be zoche to eat the Korban Pesach together in Yerushalayim with the Beis Hamikdash speedily in our days.

L’Shana Haba’a B’Yerushalayim!

Chag Kosher V’Sameach!

Click here for last year's Dvar Torah for Pesach

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Dvar Torah for Parshas Tzav

Parshas Tzav goes into the details of the different korbanos (sacrifices). Korbanos can be brought for a variety of reasons but the two main ones are as part of the process of forgiveness for a sin or to give thanks to Hashem. While the Torah goes into great detail about them and in general they are connected with some very exciting events, we learn a tremendous lesson about korbanos from this week’s Haftorah. “כי לא דברתי את אבותיכם ולא צויתים ביום הוציא [הוציאי] אותם מארץ מצרים על דברי עולה וזבח כי אם את הדבר הזה צויתי אותם לאמר שמעו בקולי והייתי לכם לאלהים ואתם תהיו לי לעם והלכתם בכל הדרך אשר אצוה אתכם למען ייטב לכם” “For I did not speak with your forefathers nor did I command them- on the day I took them out of the land of Egypt- concerning an olah or any sacrifice. Rather, I commanded them regarding only this matter, saying: ‘Hear My voice that I may be a God unto you and you will be a people unto Me; and you shall follow along the entire path in which I command you, so that it will go well for you” (Yirmiyahu 7:22-23). The pasuk tells us that when we first became a nation, Hashem did not mention anything about the korbanos. This shows us that while the korbanos are a tremendous gift from Hashem, he would rather we keep all the mitzvos properly and not have to bring korbanos at all (or at least the ones that are not direct commandments)! This is something to keep in mind as we discuss this concept.

The Kli Yakar points out a few differences in the language of the different korbanos. The pasuk says by a Korban Shelamim, “וְזֹאת תּוֹרַת זֶבַח הַשְּׁלָמִים אֲשֶׁר יַקְרִיב לַי־הֹוָ־ה” “This is the law of the sacrifice of the peace-offering that one will offer to Hashem” (Vayikra 7:11). The Shelamim is the only korban which has the phrase “that one will offer to Hashem” written by it. This is because, as we have explained, all the other korbanos are brought to atone for sins. The Shelamim, however, is brought to give thanks to Hashem. Therefore, it is more special to Hashem than the other ones. Similarly, in Pasuk 30, the pasuk writes, “יָדָיו תְּבִיאֶינָה” “His hands shall bring [it]” (7:30). The pasuk is speaking about the Shelamim and says that “his hands” shall bring the korban, something which is not written by any other korban. This is because, to give an example, someone who is bringing a present to the king is more than happy to bring it himself while someone who is trying to gain forgiveness instead sends a messenger.

The Kli Yakar also gives a deeper insight into the korbanos. Five times in this parshah, by each one of the five types of korbanos, the phrase “זֹאת תּוֹרַת” “This is the law [of]”, is used. He explains that each one of these phrases correspond to a different one of the five books of the Torah. Sefer Bereishis is compared to the Korban Olah which is completely burnt up on the Mizbe’ach. We learn this from the four times in Sefer Bereishis where we see someone bring an Olah, by Hevel, Noach, Avraham and Yaakov.

Sefer Shemos is compared to the Korban Mincha which is made out of flour, oil, and other spices. When the Mincha is later baked, it is made into Matzah. The laws of Matzah and leaven and unleavened bread are explained extensively in Sefer Shemos by the laws of Pesach, thus giving this korban a strong connection to Sefer Shemos. Sefer Vayikra is represented by the Korban Chatas, the sin-offering. This sefer comes right after the sin of the Golden Calf at the end of Sefer Shemos. And as we have already explained, the laws of the korbanos, which this sefer is about, were only given to us in order that we should be able to gain atonement for our sins (besides for the Shelamim).

Sefer Bamidbar corresponds to the Korban Asham, the guilt-offering. This is because even though the laws of an Asham are discussed here in Sefer Vayikra, there is one more section of the Torah that discusses it in Parshas Bamidbar, making that point the official end of the laws of Asham. And lastly, Sefer Devarim is comparable to the Korban Shelamim since the laws of Shelamim are discussed several times throughout the sefer.

The point of this is that one who engages in the study of any of the books of the Torah, it is as if they have brought that corresponding korban. What a tremendous opportunity! Even though we do not have the Beis Hamikdash or the Mizbe’ach nowadays, we still have the opportunity to be rewarded for the mitzvah korbanos. But as great as korbanos are, let us remember that it is even better to not need them at all. May we all be zoche to see the day when the Beis Hamikdash is rebuilt and all its services are restored.

Shabbat Shalom!

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Dvar Torah for Parshas Vayikra/Hachodesh

This week’s parshah starts off, “וַיִּקְרָא אֶל מֹשֶׁה וַיְדַבֵּר יְ־הֹוָ־ה אֵלָיו מֵאֹהֶל מוֹעֵד לֵאמֹר” “And He called to Moshe, and Hashem spoke to him from the Tent of Meeting, saying.”(Vayikra 1:1). If you take a look inside a Torah Scroll, you will notice that the א in the word “וַיִּקְרָא” is written smaller than the other letters. There are a number of explanations offered for this. One is that while Hashem wanted to write the word “וַיִּקְרָא” “And He called” in the Torah, Moshe felt that this would be a very haughty thing for him to write about himself, that Hashem would call specifically for him. Instead, he wanted to write the word “ויקר”, which could be translated as “and it happened”, meaning that it was only happenstance that Moshe was the one who answered Hashem’s call. In the end, they compromised by writing a small א. The Medrash explains that Moshe put the extra ink from the א on his face which caused his face to shine brightly (See Shemos 34:29).

In Parshas Balak when Hashem appeared to Balaam, the non-Jewish prophet, the pasuk uses the word “ויקר”. Rashi explains that this means that Hashem appeared to Balaam in a transient and impure way. This is meant to show us that Balaam had no business receiving prophecy from Hashem. In fact, Chazal tell us that the only reason why Balaam became a prophet was in order that the nations of the world should not claim that they would have followed Hashem if they had had a prophet to guide them. This is very different from the word “וַיִּקְרָא” which Rashi explains is a language of affection and shows how much Hashem desired to speak specifically with the very righteous Moshe. Having explained on a midrashic level why the א is small in the last paragraph, on a pshat level, why would the א be written smaller knowing the bad connotations of the word “ויקר”?

The Kli Yakar explains that by writing the word “ויקר”, we actually want to compare Balaam’s prophecy to Moshe’s, but not in the way you might think. As we said earlier, Balaam did not deserve from his own merit to be a Navi, it was only in order to be able to refute the other nations’ claims that Hashem granted him nevuah. So Balaam exceeded his abilities by becoming a Navi. Moshe, on his own level, also exceeded his abilities in his own prophecy. The fact that Moshe could talk to Hashem face to face was not supposed to be attainable by anyone human, yet Moshe did so on many occasions. By making it appear as if the Torah wrote “ויקר”, we are connecting Moshe and Balaam and showing this common theme between them.

What was it that allowed these two men to go beyond their potential and allow them to reach higher levels than were possible for them? The answer to this question is also the same for both; it was purely because of the honor and the merit of Bnei Yisrael. Because of the high level that Bnei Yisrael reached in order to accept the Torah, Moshe was able to go up to the heavens and study it straight from the mouth of God. This is why once Bnei Yisrael sinned with the Golden Calf, Hashem tells him, “לך רד” “Go, descend”(Shemos 32:7), which the gemarah explains means to descend from his high level. Later on, the pasuk tells us that Moshe regained that kedushah and spoke to Hashem face to face (See 33:11). Similarly with Balaam, the only reason he became a Navi was to refute the nations’ complaint that they could have kept the Torah as well as the Bnei Yisrael. Now that this has been refuted, it is a great honor and credit to us that we are able to serve Hashem properly, like no one else can.

With this idea, the Kli Yakar explains why Rashi felt the need to bring two explanations for the word “ויקר”, transience and impurity. After we have explained that the Torah is trying to show how much Moshe and Balaam gained because of Bnei Yisrael by using the word “ויקר”, why is there an א in the pasuk at all, big or small? Rashi explains that the concept of impurity obviously doesn’t apply to Moshe’s prophecy. However, his nevuah was still transient since it was really beyond what he was supposed to have had and could have been nothing more than “happenstance”. Therefore the א was still written, albeit small.

It is easy to look at this explanation and decide that it is an insult to Moshe Rabbeinu, that in reality he did not deserve to see Hashem and was just the lucky man who happened to be leading Bnei Yisrael at the time that they were at their highest level. God forbid! Moshe was the most-deserving person to be able to speak to Hashem face to face in all of history, the same way that Balaam was the most deserving non-Jew to be a prophet. (Balaam, however, misused his opportunity.) Instead, we should focus on how much Hashem loves and affords honor to us, the Jewish People. Deserving or not, it was only in our merit that Moshe was able to reach the heights that he did. For we are Bnei Yisrael, the chosen nation of Hashem. Let us learn to appreciate and understand what that means. Am Yisrael Chai!

Shabbat Shalom!

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Dvar Torah for Parshas Vayakhel-Pekudei

This week we have a double parshah, Vayakhel- Pekudei, in which Moshe tells over to Bnei Yisrael all the details of the Mishkan which we have seen in previous parshiyos. We are introduced to Betzalel, Oholiav, and their entire team of artisans who were in charge of the construction. The pesukim also tell us that each and every member of the Jewish nation donated with full hearts to the Mishkan’s construction; all wanting to contribute to this very special building.

Parshas Vayakhel starts off, “וַיַּקְהֵל מֹשֶׁה אֶת כָּל עֲדַת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל” “And Moshe assembled the entire assembly of the Bnei Yisrael…” (Shemos 35:1). Rashi explains that this gathering took place the day after Yom Kippur which was the day Moshe came down from Har Sinai for the second time. The Kli Yakar points out that according to Rashi, this is the same day that Yisro set up the court system after seeing Moshe sitting and judging the entire nation by himself (See Shemos 18:13-26). It seems that this was quite a busy day! Between Moshe judging the entire nation, Yisro setting up a new system of judges, Moshe telling over the details of the Mishkan to the nation, and the collection of the materials for the construction, there just does not seem to be enough time in the day for all these events to have taken place.

The Kli Yakar explains that the first thing Moshe wanted to do was tell over the mitzvah of the Mishkan, however, he was worried that someone might donate something which was involved in a dispute as to who it belonged. In order to avoid this, he sat and judged every case so that all monetary disputes would be settled and then anything could be donated to the Mishkan without any doubts as to its ownership. After he finished judging, he then told Bnei Yisrael to donate. The donations were given over several days. He proves this from the pasuk later on which says, “קְחוּ מֵאִתְּכֶם תְּרוּמָה לַי־הֹוָ־ה” “Take from yourselves a portion for Hashem” (35:5), specifically from that which is yours.

The Kli Yakar also offers a deeper explanation of this pasuk. He explains that the word “וַיַּקְהֵל” does not refer to simply any gathering of people, but specifically a gathering of people who have joined together and want to be together with each other. In order for Bnei Yisrael to build the Mishkan together, they had to be a united group; therefore, Moshe gathered them together the day after Yom Kippur, which is the day on which we join together and become one people. At this time, it was very easy for Moshe to gather them together as the nation was still fully united after the Holiday.

However, the unifying effect of Yom Kippur does not extend to monetary disputes and without intervention Bnei Yisrael would soon fall out of this unified state. So Moshe spent that day judging everyone’s arguments in order that Bnei Yisrael would become united on all fronts. Once we were united as both brothers and businessmen, the construction of the Mishkan could really begin, for now the Mishkan would truly be a group endeavor.

(This is also why after this time we find several other places where Moshe gathers Bnei Yisrael using “וַיַּקְהֵל”. From this point on they were constantly in a state where this type of gathering was possible.)

The Kli Yakar concludes with a vort from the Zohar. After Moshe gathers the people but before he tells them to build the Mishkan, he tells over the halachah of not lighting a fire on Shabbos. The Zohar explains that this is in fact referring to the fire of Machlokes. We are more susceptible to arguing on Shabbos since we do not have any work do distract us, therefore the pasuk reminds us specifically to not argue on Shabbos. This is also true for us, Machlokes is so damaging, we must make sure that we are not burned by its’ fire. When we are united as one people, we can accomplish so much. We can even build the Mishkan, and in the future, the Beis Hamikdash, the building which houses the Shechinah of Hashem.

Shabbat Shalom!

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