Parasha Achrei Mot-Kedoshim, Making a Curtain Call: Leviticus 16:1-20:27, Haftarah Amos 9:7-15

Parasha Achrei Mot is the foundational section in Leviticus about the chag (holiday) of Yom Kippur whereas parasha Kedoshim is about inter and intra human morals and ethics regarding the holiness of behavior.  Both Yom Kippur and human behavior are Torah based and must be viewed through the lens of tahor (pure) and tamai (impure).  In the context of the two parshiyot a person better’s themselves by turning (t’shuvah) from human error and sin, hence Yom Kippur, which allows for living a life of what the Torah calls holiness tied into morals and ethics.  This week I’d like to look in particular at Leviticus 19 although I also want to begin with chapter 16, and even more so about the curtain, or the parochet.

In the first chapter of Achrei Mot the parochet, or the curtain in the Mishkan, is mentioned 10 times, so it must be important. The parochet was to separate the Holy from the Holy of Holies that only the High Priest was allowed to enter (Ex. 26:35 and Lev. 16:3). Later the parochet was used in the Beit Hamikdash, albeit differently and today the parochet is between the doors of the Aron Kodesh and in front of the Torot, the Torah scrolls.  In the Beit Hamikdash, the Temple, the Holy and Holy of Holies was now divided by a wall although the curtain still remained (1 Kings 6), prompting Rashi to ask - why the parochet?   In his commentary to the Talmud (Menachot 98a), Rashi writes that the “parochet was spread at the entrance of the Temple of the Holy of Holies for modesty and not because of a partition.”  In an early work on Responsa to Jewish Law (Terumat HaDeshen, 68) Rabbi Yisrael Isserlein speaks of the parochet as a separation that is behind the doors of the Aron Kodesh to show respect for the Torah scrolls inside, which is why we never leave a Torah uncovered.  This made me think about traditional forms of Jewish practice where women will wear a sheitel, a wig, to cover up their hair for her significant other alone, an issue of modesty and respect.  All that to say that I am going to approach the understanding of the parochet a bit differently as we move on to Leviticus 19 that is about holiness.

Looking at the movie, A Few Good Men, I want to call our attention to a scene where Tom Cruise, who plays the Navy Lawyer Lt. Daniel Kaffee, is questioning Jack Nicholson, who plays the part Colonel Nathan Jessep, in a military court of law. Well, during their heated interaction Colonel Jessep says in his retort to Lt. Kaffee, “I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain myself to a man who rises and sleeps under the blanket of the very freedom that I provide and then questions the manner in which I provide it.”  Well context aside, it’s the part about the blanket that I recalled, and in a similar way we should see the parochet as us, a symbol of a blanket of modesty and respect we offer each other that matters very much how it is provided.  In Kedoshim one of the first things Moses taught was “You shall be holy, for I, your God am holy” (Lev. 19:2).  While the Jewish purpose was tied into the identity of “a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (Ex. 19:6), the Jewish being is about acts of holiness.  Leviticus 19:18 and 19:34 are two like but different verses. The first verse says “Love your fellow as yourself: I am the Lord” while the second is about the strangers (non-Jews) who are given equal rights as "your citizens [who] you shall love each one as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am your God.”  This is why the Jewish DNA supports causes such as immigration, the LGBTQ community, BLM movement and even Palestinian rights (another conversation of course).  In a sense we stand upon the wall (another refernce to A Few Good Men) of human dignity and provide the blanket of protection for a person’s modesty and self-respect. 
 
For the most part Leviticus 19 is not about ben Adam Lamakom (between a person and God) but ben Adam Lachaveiro (between a person and a person, because of God).  We are to recall that each of us has a holy spark within because we are fashioned B’tzlem Elohim, in the image of God, endowed with the capacity of chesed, the ability to show love to another.  In Kedoshim we see that in honoring parents, do not steal, bare false witness or deal with another in a deceitful way, even little while lies or omissions of fact.  We are told not to defraud another or withhold wages from a worker longer than allowed.  There is an express obligation to feed the hungry, do not cause undue hardship to those with a handicap, rendering fare decisions to the poor and rich alike by avoiding distinction or preference.  There are values of personal relationships, not eating blood because it represents life, self-harm, selling children into harlotry, respecting the elderly, engaging in fare business practices and the like; all because we were slaves in Egypt and should know better about being treated with modesty and respect.  When it says “You shall be holy, for I, your God am holy,” both friend and stranger, these are the values of God that guides our interpersonal interactions with others. This for Leviticus is the definition of holiness. 

Leviticus 19 is an ethic of behavior more so than a moral deed.  Loving your neighbor or the stranger in our midst is not an option or a deed alone, but it is a Torah based ethic that by definition means to govern behavior or the conducting of an activity, again it is like a blanket of protection for others, let alone ourselves.  A fare question; what about the people who we feel differently about or may not care for?  We find the answer for that question in Pirkei Avot 2:16 that says,“ It is not your duty to finish the work, but neither are you at liberty to neglect it,” meaning that just because we struggle to love another person does not mean we lose our value of love, showing modesty and respect to others just like the parochet does for the scrolls of Torah.  Maybe this is why our Rabbis choose the words of the prophet Amos (9:7-15) for the Haftarah, the lack of holiness created a community that harmed itself and the prophet wanted to remind the people that it is never too late to fix what is broke, making what is tamai relationally tahor.  This is a curtain call that has lasting value.  

Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Adam              

War of the Words - An Ongoing Battle: Parasha Tazria-Metzora, Rosh Chodesh Iyar, Numbers 28:9-15, Leviticus 12:1-15:23 and Isaiah 66:1-24

This week we are in Parasha Tazria-Metzora, two parshiyot we mostly read as one here in the book Leviticus.  In general they present the modern reader once again with a challenge, whether from the Kohenim who make rulings that are medical related, or the need to burn garments or disassemble stones of homes if they are affected with an external rash.  Then of course there are the impurity issues between men and women that differ, not to mention the duration of a mothers impurity after child birth regarding a boy baby verses a girl baby. We once again are confronted with the archaic nature of understanding those who wrote this text, but yet we read it every year so they are valued. Therefore regarding this idea of a tza'ra'at, or infection, Jewish tradition has equated it to the misuse of the tongue regarding the nature of spoken words, reminding us that there is a war of words in our communication as part of the ongoing human battle.  

The Chofez Chaim, Rabbi Yisrael Meir Kagan, tells the story of a man who owned a perfume factory and ventured into a factory that produced leather goods.  Once inside the odor was so strong that he was affected by terrible headaches and swore he would never enter that leather factory again, but that would change.  When it became necessary to liquidate his perfume factory he was left only with the leather factory, so he made the choice to contend with the terrible headaches. The early days were a challenge for him, needing to learn how to painfully tolerate the smell of the leather hides.  Finally as time passed the merchant grew accustomed, or immune to the odors, until one day it was as if he had been born to be a leather manufacturer.  In the same way we can become immune to thinking before we speak and not considering the harmful  words we use with another person.

In particular this parasha addresses what is called negah hatza-ra’at, an affliction that is usually translated as leprosy, which is found not only on the body but more curiously found upon garments of wool, linen, leather and everyday utensils (cf. Lev. 13:47-49), not to mention it can be found inside walls of a house (cf. Lev. 14:33ff). Regarding tza'ra'at we must ask what does human skin, garments, utensils and a house have in common and why does it matter?  I think it has to do with the various dimensions of life in general.  Here we are aware of our bodies, the cloths we wear, the tools of living that we use to eat and work as well as our dwelling places.  Regarding those various dimensions of life Rabbi Jonathan Sacks would say that the impact on a person’s skin, cloths, utensils or homes in effect is as if God is saying that a person cannot hide impurity, both inside and out.

In this case the dimension in question has become the idea of l'shon hara, or the impurity of malicious speech, which Maimonides teaches shares the same space as murder (Mishnah Torah, Hilchot De’ot 7:3).  In other words, Judaism would say that the physical maladies of Tazria-Metzora gave way to interpretations about evil speech.  In the Talmud (Arachin 15b) evil speech and its result get its foundation from this part of Leviticus, with Rashi saying that “impurity” is the same as l’shon hara, or malicious speech (cf. Lev. 14:4).  Likewise with the offering of “cedarwood” the Mishnah Tanchuma teaches that the cedar tree, which is tall and beautiful, serves as a reminder that a person should not consider themselves to be “high” and “glorious,” Rashi therefore writes that “cedarwood” is about “haughtiness.”  When we pray daily “My God, the soul You have given me is pure,” we remember that the souls within us are pure and the words of our mouth represent that very purity, thus haughtiness is in contradiction to holiness and must be avoided. The Jewish interpretation of Leviticus tells us that the haughtiness will lead to malicious speech, which is a reflection of corrupt middot, or human character.

In the book, Orchot Tzaddikim, The Ways of the Righteous, a result of malicious speech is bushah, or shame. Last week we talked about kosher laws in terms of separation that was assisted by building a fence around the commandment according to Pirkei Avot as away to safeguard it; likewise to protect both self and others from unwise speech Pirkei Avot 3:17  teaches that in this case  “a fence to wisdom is silence.”  In Talmud (Berachot 28b) Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai taught, “May it be God's will that the fear of heaven be upon you as the fear of flesh and blood,” perhaps better understood to mean that as people we need a sense of awe for the sacred that will guide us not to speak ill of others even if we think they may deserve it. Toward the end of Tazria-Metzora in Leviticus 15:31 it says, “you shall separate the people of Israel from their impurity,” but how?  Sometimes it’s not so easy. Consider Leviticus 13:50, 57, if a Kohen has a piece of clothing that has a tza'ra'at, infection, it must be isolated and burned in fire, and in Leviticus 14:38, 42 when the stones are infected the house must be deemed uninhabitable until the impacted stones are replaced with clean ones.  In the same way, the words that come out of our mouths at times must be burned with fire or replaced with cleaner words before damage has been done.

So even if we really cannot know the social or religious thinking that produced Tazria-Metzora, it is a pretty safe bet that the framers of this text given that it is about tahor (purity) and tamai (impurity) would be just fine that Judaism connects them with the purity of speech.  You do not have to look too far to see how words have become weapons today in ways that they have not for decades.  The lack of redemptive speech has become normal even at the expense of hurting others unjustly in the process, something we daily read about in the news, hear at the work place and even worse witness in our houses of worship.  Tazria-Metzora is asking us to consider the personal maladies that have gotten in the way, maladies that we must stop from becoming habitual, a war of words that seems to be an ongoing battle.  Even more so in this new month of Iyar our tradition teaches it is about strengthening the ways of our faith, which has to do with our speech as well, thus we read in Proverbs 10:19; "In the multitude of words sin is not lacking, But he who restrains his lips is wise."   

Shabbat Shalom and Rosh Chodesh Tov,
Rabbi Adam

Food for Thought, Parasha Shemini, Shabbat Mevarchim; Leviticus 9:1-11:47 and 2 Samuel 6:1-17

Hope everyone had a meaningful Passover Season as you left your own mitzraim (narrow place) for better time’s a head!  During Passover we eat a lot of food, and in fact food is an important part of every Jewish holiday and celebration, so it only makes sense that we find food as a subject in Torah.  After a week layoff we return to the book of Leviticus, a book we must remember has to do with Priestly concerns of tahor (pure) and tamai (impure) as this week we are in parasha Shemini that in part is concerned with the purity of food people eat.  Here, my focus will be more so about the “why” as opposed to the “how,” but lets begin with a brief overview.

 
Shemini is divided into two parts; the continuation of the ordination of the Kohenim and the expanded Laws of Kashrut, or dietary issues in the written Torah.  The section with the Kohenim that spans two chapters (Lev. 9 and 10) is about the culmination of the sacrifices that in the end reveals the presence of God in the Mishkan, only to be interrupted by the unfortunate deaths of Aaron’s two oldest sons and further laws regarding Priestly behaviors as well as the Minchah offering.  The second part is about kosher laws (Lev. 11).  In this section we find lists of what is permissible to eat and what is not, why it is and why it is not, as well as the reason; “You shall be holy, for God is holy” (v. 45).  Both parts of Shemini are connected by the following, “for you must distinguish between the sacred and the profane, and between the impure and the pure” (10:10), applicable to both offering sacrifices and foods consumed.
 
Looking only at the kosher laws, a problem to contend with is justification, something that we will return to in a moment. What also sticks our is the use of words throughout that speak to the nature of the offence; impure (tamai) or abomination (sheketz), the former being “unclean” whereas the latter is compared to the “worship of an idol” or something “detestable.”  In the case of “impure” it is in relationship to other land based animals that are not considered kosher whereas an “abomination” is tied into eating insects that fly in the air or creep on the ground, but also fish with no scales or fins.  Rashi understands this to mean that kosher laws are about what it means to emulate God, “impure” is to remind us of what is pure for the body and an “abomination” is about defiling the soul (see Rashi on Lev. 11:43-44), thus Rashi also calls upon “You shall be holy, for God is holy.”  The nature of "impure" and "abomination" makes this a purity issue, but how?
 
Above I said this section is an “expanded” teaching of kosher laws, because eating habits were first mentioned in Genesis 1:29 where every-seed bearing plant is for food both for humans and animals, followed by Genesis 7:1 that tells us a concession is made and meat became a part of the human diet.  Kosher laws were important before the destruction of the Second Temple that were central to Jewish life and death (1 Macc. 1:47ff and 2 Macc. 6) with our early Sages cementing the separation of milk and meat into Jewish practice (Mishnah, Chullin 8:1). Okay, so kosher laws are important, but why?  Maimonides answer's that question by saying “God knows that in all foods prohibited to the chosen people, elements injurious to the body are found. For this reason, God removed us from them so that the souls can do their function.”  Well, is that so?  A quick look at a medical site such as WebMD tells us the following about Catfish, a fish that is not kosher because it has no scales, yet it is low in calories and packed with lean protein, contains healthy fats, vitamins, and minerals, particularly rich in heart-healthy omega-3 fats and vitamin B12.  Likewise the consumption of too much red-meat (beef), which is Kosher, can raise the risk of type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, stroke and certain cancers, especially colorectal cancer.  In short, Maimonides proposed teaching not only seems to fall short of a medical advantage, but if kosher laws are about an exclusive right to Jews, then what does that say about Maimonides perception of God? 

The kosher laws, however, are considered an important religious commandment that is kept by practicing Jews regardless of denominational preference that is also about identity and tradition.  But there are also other reasons to keep kosher as a ritual practice, thus like a hand and a glove or an outward ritual practice that is like clothing to the inner spirit, kosher laws can ritualize the need to stay separate from social ills and such that affects all people, hence why Pirkei Avot (1:1 and  3:17) talks about building a fence around the commandment to protect a person from transgression; for some it might be a white picket fence while for others it may be solid cast-iron.  But others also see kosher laws in light of what is called Ethical Kashrut that speaks to the mistreatment of workers, mistreatment of animals and environmental laws.  Some say this was intended in the kosher laws as spelled out in Torah while others say they were later additions to an already robust system.  Either way since it about what people do in their spiritual lives kosher laws are about personal purity and impurity.  But I want to suggest another reason for kosher laws.

I think kosher laws here in Shemini can also teach us about the idea of human entitlement.  We learn from the story of Adam and Eve that they were entitled to everything that was permissible in the garden, although they were not entitled to whatever they wanted, hence the tree they could not eat from.  We also see that in the story of King David,  the prophet Nathan calls the King out for wanting what he was not entitled to since Bathsheba belonged to another man.  Stories like these are a reminder that humanity is plagued with a sense of entitlement; I want what I want just because I can.  In the same way kosher laws say that while this and that can be consumed not everything is ours to eat.  I will admit that entitlement can be just as much a struggle for me, which is why I think it is a fair general characterization of the human condition.  The Priests in the words of Leviticus presented the ritual of Kashrut to have a macro purpose that went beyond simply what we can and cannot consume, but was also a lesson to guard against presumed entitlement while at the same time being grateful for what is had, giving us some “Food for Thought.”  
 
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Adam   

Happy Passover - Answering the Four Questions: Exodus 33:12-34:26, Numbers 28:19-25, Ezekiel 37:1-14

Chag Pesach Kasher v’Sameach, happy Passover to you; I hope all of our Seders will be meaningful and full of richness this year.  As our Seders approach I find myself giving extra thought to the Ma Nishtanah, the four questions.  So while we answer the questions by saying, avadim hayinu, “we were slaves,” the fact is that the Ma Nishtanah holds two truths in tension; we are free, but we are also still slaves.  In other words no matter how small, or only significant to you or I, we all are slaves to something in this life, all of us have a mitzraim, a “narrow place” we aspire to get out of.  As such the first two questions ask why we eat maror and matzah only during Passover, something we do to remind us that were slaves in Egypt. The second two questions remind us of our freedom, being able to dip not once but twice and the ability to recline as only people who are free had the right to do.  Those questions in the end remind us that our freedoms mean more because we know what it means to be enslaved, yet being enslaved births our need to be free from what constrains us; hence two opposing but related truths that coexist simultaneously.

This week, on the 1^st day of Chol HaMoed that this year is on the Shabbat after our Seders, we do not read our normal Torah reading; we read instead Exodus 33:12-34:26, Numbers 28:19-25 and Ezekiel 37:1-14 from the Haftarah.  Looking just at the Exodus and Ezekiel reading, although very different, each speaks words of meaning during this season.  First, in Exodus 33:12-34:26 we encounter the story of Moses asking to see God’s face, yet only God’s back is revealed to Moses as he sits in the cleft of the rock.  This was not a passive request by Moses either, but a causative imperative, the word הַרְאֵ֥נִי (harayni) is an aggressive request meaning “show me now,” Moses absolutely needed to know!  For Maimonides (Guide of the Perplexed, 1:54) what Moses wanted to see was God’s “attributes” that were not physical but about God’s “essence,” something that is spelled out in this same reading from Exodus in 34:7-8 that says God is “compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in kindness and faithfulness, extending kindness to the thousandth generation, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin …,” emulated by people in our human characteristics that reflect God’s goodness and essence (see Avot 2:13), traits that we too must exhibit in our dealings with others we encounter.  

This is what happens during the Seder; we read, sing and pray words that allow us to see God’s goodness in the freedom and equality of all people. The God whom Moses wanted to know is a God who cares about people’s need to be free from enslavement, either forced, deserved or hidden still to be discovered, being free from what keeps one imprisoned (however that may look).  Is this not what the wise child wants to know, like Moses, aggressively asking what does the message of Passover mean to him or her?  This is also why we read Ezekiel 37:1-14 during Passover.  Here the Prophet Ezekiel utters what appears to be a cryptic prophecy about dry bones in a valley that will come together and cause life. After their formation God covers these bones with skin and breathes life into them so they may live as “a vast multitude.”  Ezekiel comes to learn that this vison of the dry bones is about the restoration of the House of Israel, reinforcing God’s commitment to the Jewish people just as it was with their deliverance from Egypt that is celebrated during our Seder. So why do we read the prophecy of the dry bones on Passover?  In this case Rabbi Dalia Marx answers that question by saying “if the story of Passover speaks of God's mighty hand, this prophetic reading speaks about God's spirit.”  Deliverance is spiritual as well.

We see this relationship between the physical and the spiritual in the Amidah prayer and how that was communicated in the Reform siddur, Mishkan Tefillah, ultimately speaking into the holiday of Passover and the words of Ezekiel. Theological reasons aside, the traditional words in the Amidah are that God m’chay’yay Mayteem, is the one “who give’s life from the dead.”  In the Mishkan Tefillah that has been replaced with m’chay’yay haCol, or the one “who gives life to all.”  But the editors also decided to leave Mayteem in the siddur even though it is put in parenthesis.  Again, theological reasons aside, we learn that by saying m’chay’yay haCol we are dealing with inclusive language that all may benefit from the goodness of God.  Yet this is also how we can understand m’chay’yay Mayteem although in parenthesis, and even more so how it can relate to Passover itself.  In this case it is about the experience of a newness of life, something that can be spiritually felt within our inner-being and/or our better-self that has been raised from the "dead" so to speak, hence the words of the Prophet Ezekiel, hence the deliverance of Passover and new life on the other side of enslavement.
  
After the Urchatz, washing the hands before the maggid section, our first b’racha is over the Karpas, or a green vegetable that is to remind us in part that spring is a symbol of new life.  Where I serve as a Rabbi I meet too many people who are trapped in the decline of their body, looking for a way to find meaning and hope, seeking not to give into the enslavements of their situations. But this is what happens to all of us when we partake of the elements before us on our Seder tables, we encounter (just like Moses did) the bitterness of what enslaves us but also the sweetness of freedom gained.  This is what I thought about as I pondered the Ma Nishtanah, not giving into the tension faced, but seeking to comprehend the extent of my freedoms while not letting what enslaves rob me of the freedoms I now own, let alone the ones I will embarce in the future.  Think that is an acceptable answer, hope you agree! 

Chag Pesach Sameach and Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Adam