פרשת פנחס
In this week’s Parsha, Moshe Rabenu, who had single handedly carried the Jews through their tribulations in the wilderness, finds himself in the unfortunate position of having to set up a successor to take over his endeavors to protect the Jewish people. This was because the time was coming near for the Jews to enter into the land of Israel, and since he already knew he was not allowed to come in with them, this meant that his pure soul would depart from his body prior to that entrance. Naturally, Moshe preferred to have one of his two sons succeed him as leader of the Jewish people, but Hashem informed him that this was not to be, and that instead, Yehoshua Ben Nun would lead the Jews into Israel in recognition of his unswerving dedication at attending to Moshe all these years. However, there are a number of puzzling points that require explanation in this week’s Parsha. Firstly, right after this dialogue, the Torah goes into the detailed instructions for how to offer sacrifices in the Holy Temple, and immediately afterward, delineates all the laws of the three yearly festivals. What is the connection between these two commandments and Moshe Rabenu’s relinquishing his leadership, and these two commandments to each other? Secondly, the Midrash records an interesting conversation between Moshe and Hashem. Moshe said to Hashem that he would like to find a suitable leader to take over after him so that if the Jews ever get into trouble, (which based on their earlier behavior, was a near certanity) there would be somebody to bail them out as Moshe had done. Hashem responded that before Moshe started telling Hashem about the needs of the Jewish people, he should concentrate on telling them about their obligations to Hashem. Hashem then goes on to tell Moshe about the offerings. Why did Hashem choose the Temple’s sacrifices as the paradigm for Jewish service? Why not any of the other 612 Mitzvos?
The Shem Mishmuel answers these questions with anther question. When Hashem told Moshe to look for a leader for the Jewish people, what criterion did He specify must be found in a leader? If we look toward Rashi, we find that the one characteristic Moshe was told to look for was that of a person capable of understanding and appreciating all Jews from every walk of life. Rashi explains that Jews by nature are extremely diverse in their opinions and their attitudes, and for this reason, their leader must be proficient in dealing with an extremely broad gamut of personalities, and talking to each individual on their level. One can imagine that finding such a person is not easy, but Yehoshua fit the bill just fine. However, the Shem Mishmuel adds one caveat. He says that this leader’s ability to talk to each and every Jew and successfully communicate with them is dependent on the Jews’ decision to serve Hashem. Meaning although what we said is true – that as the joke goes, if there are nine Jews in a room, there are at least ten different opinions – these differences must be stemming from each Jew’s desire to seek truth in its pristine form, and only then can a leader be successful in getting through to them. If on the other hand, the Jews’ opinions stem from a desire to be argumentative or belligerent, and deep down, they have no aspiration to inquire about the facts of the Torah, then it will be impossible, even for the most diplomatic of leaders, to successfully and harmoniously lead them into the land of Israel.
With this explanation, we can now easily understand some of the issues that were troubling us earlier. Hashem said to Moshe, “Before you tell me how to take care of the Jewish people, tell them how to treat Me!” Obviously, this statement was not coming from some sort of childish pouting that Hashem was doing, but rather Hashem was giving Moshe the secret to a flourishing leadership. Only if the Jews have decided to accept Me as their master will you meet with victory in trying to set up a new chief for them. This also explains why the sacrifices are mentioned immediately following this chapter in the Chumash. A sacrifice represents total subservience to Hashem. The Maharal adds that it is well know that one of the primary purposes of the sacrifices was to humble the sinner who was responsible to offer them. In fact, the one offering the sacrifice was supposed to picture himself on the altar, and when the animal’s innards were splattered against the altar and burned, he was supposed to consider the fact that it should have been his innards which were being splattered and burned in recompense for the sin he committed. In summation, the goal of the sacrifices was to humble the Jewish people and allow them an opportunity to realign themselves to the will of their father in Heaven. The Shem Mishmuel concludes by saying that this is especially true by the Tamid offering which is mentioned in this week’s Parsha. The Midrash asks, “Why was the Tamid specifically a sheep, and not a cow or bull which is a more respectable animal? This is to teach us that just as the sheep only has one voice, so to the Jewish people only have one heart for their Father in Heaven”.
Similarly, The Seforno says that the whole point of the cyclic holidays we celebrate each year is to remind ourselves of this fact. We have a commandment for every Jew to convene in the Beis Hamikdash three times a year and “meet” with Hashem there. We offer up sacrifices and are meant to renew our connection with our Creator in a most meaningful way. And the seasons in which we are commanded to come are no coincidence either. If one pays close attention to the time of year the holidays come out, they happen to coincide perfectly with the agricultural periods. This is to remind ourselves at each fiscal juncture where our food comes from lest we ever forget who is ultimately responsible for our sustenance. Before we sow our seeds or reap our harvest, we must pay tribute to the Architect responsible for those things to successfully take place. R’ Chaim Friedlander adds in the Sifsei Chaim that he found a mandate that only landowners were officially required to ascend to Jerusalem during the three holidays, and that for all “regular” Jews, it was merely optional. Based on what we have said, the reason for this is clear. For the average Jew who did not own any land, there was very little danger of letting life’s successes “go to his head”. He depended on Hashem for his daily bread, and hence was constantly looking upward for salvation. But for landowners, there was a very real danger of letting the power that comes with owning property make a person become a bit arrogant, and forgetting who was really in charge, hence the commandment to recalibrate three times a year in Jerusalem.
Today, we unfortunately no longer have the Beis Hamidash, ergo we cannot connect to Hashem and reset ourselves in that way. But obviously Hashem did not leave us bereft completely. The word “Moed” means a meeting. Although we can no longer “meet” with Hashem in Jerusalem, we have two very powerful weapons in our arsenal. Firstly, we have the Beis Midrash. Chazal teach us that each and every house of study is like a miniature Mikdash, to which we can always travel if we want to connect ourselves with a direct link to the Master of the universe through the holy books which are found there, and the advice of our sagacious leaders who are always available to consult with in order to determine the will of our Creator. The second asset available to us is prayer. Prayer is a unique opportunity in which we get to assemble with Hashem several times a day and discuss any issue on our mind, and it is an especially opportune time to remind ourselves of the oneness and awesome power that our Father in Heaven possesses and that nothing in this world moves even slightly without His say so. This reminder is critical to our performance as Jews, and must be utilized fully in order for us to remain spiritually healthy. In essence, we must use prayer as a tool to completely negate our own abilities in front of the Creator’s, and remind ourselves who is boss.
I would just like to conclude with an exceptional story about a little known Rosh Yeshiva here in Jerusalem named R’ Aharon Cohen. Although very few people knew him well, my brother in law wrote a book about him. His brilliant shiurim were legendary. His refined character traits were simply breathtaking. But those who knew him best, couldn’t help being awestruck when they would see him pray. It was as if they could see on his face that he was connecting with his Maker so intimately that it was palpable to everyone in the room that he had left the physical world behind – and he did this three times a day. Everyone who merited to see it was affected deeply by his intensity during prayer. Although he was a weak man who was reduced to walking with a cane, during prayer this weakness disappeared completely, and was replaced by a man who looked more like a lion. He once shared with his close students that when he was younger, he visited the Chaon Ish and asked for advice how to improve his intent during prayer. The Chazon Ish told him to go observe and discuss the matter with R’ Aharon Rota, the Shomer Emunim, a man who invested so much time and strength in his prayer that there was literally not one prayer uttered during the year bereft of feeling and emotion. His visit and ensuring relationship changed his life forever. R’ Aharon Kotler once shared with his students that it was worthwhile to make the arduous journey to Jerusalem for two reasons. To hear a “Shmuz” from R’ Eli Lopian, and to bear witness to one of R’ Aharon Cohen’s legendary Shmone Esreis.
May we all merit to reach a state of complete subjugation to Hashem!