This Shabbos we leyn from the 2nd of 2 doubleheader Parshas Achrai Mos/Kedoshim (Last week’s Sedra was Taria/Metzora).
And in continuing to delve into personal aveirot projected onto the National level, Parsha Achrai Mos describes Aaron HaKohen’s special service in the Beit HaMikdash on Yom Kippur. The bulk of this Parsha HaShevua is derived from a vort from the sefer Shem Mishmuel, written by Shmuel Bornstein, the only son of Rabbi Avraham Bornstein, the Rebbe of Sochaczev, in Poland.
Our Parsha describes the Korban which Aaron brings to the Mizbeiyach and his clothing, the white-linen garments that he must wear in performing his Avodah, his service in the Kadosh Kedoshim.
Shem Mishmuel (Parsha Achrai Mos pages 254-256) begins by dealing with Chazal’s question of why not the gold vestments, and delves into the reason that the Kohen Gadol must wear these special white-linen garments on Yom Kippur when performing the Divine service rather than his normal eight vestments of gold. Chazal then answer with this principle; “Because an accuser cannot become an advocate.”
This Chazal refers to the sin of the eigel (the goldern calf). Since B’nai Yisrael sinned with an item manufactured of gold, it is deemed inappropriate for the Kohen Gadol to, as it were (chav’yochel) remind Hashem of this sin by wearing gold when entering the Kadosh Kedoshim.
It may be suggested that this principle applies only in certain cases; i.e. where the sin is not entirely forgiven and the item will therefore remind us as well as Hashem of the time when it was an accuser and bore witness to the act. If the aveirah is completely forgiven and leaves no trace, the item will not cause a problem when used to to reach atonement.
A posuk from Shemos (Shemos 32:34) illustrates the principle as it applies to the sin of the eigel;
“…on that day on which I punish, I will visit their sin upon them.”
A Rashi on the posuk is then presented which explains the posuk;
“On the day on which I punish” — I will visit a little of this sin upon them with their other transgressions, for no punishment comes upon Yisrael which does not contain a fraction of the sin of the eigel.”
The sin of the eigel, where the desires and aims of Klal Yisrael were badly misfocused, has been with K’lal Yisrael throughout history and is still with us today. It is so deeply etched in our national consciousness that we’ll not be entirely free of it until Messianic times. The aveirah was a national sin of intellect, thus the Teshuvah is largely an emotional one and the aveirah itself remained at least partially untouched. This is not unlike our national sins of today in which the national desires and aims are terribly out of focus with the Divine national goals.
Regarding Aaron, and subsequent Kohanim Gadolim, Shem Mishuel contrasts him with the people. He concludes that at least some of the people “wanted the eigel with all of their hearts.” But Aaron’s role was different; he definitely did not want it, his intentions were to reunite the people — “his entire error was in action, not in mind.” That he subsequently lost 2 of his sons, at least in part due to his involvement with the eigel, no trace of the sin remained within him.
The principle “an accuser cannot become an advocate” does not apply to Aaron and to most subsequent generations of Kohen Gadol on a personal level. But when the Kohen Gadol acts as an emissary for atonement of the entire nation, the principle “an accuser cannot become an advocate” kicks in. Thus Aaron, who himself could wear his normal gold vestments, could only wear the white vestments for his national avodah on Yom Kippur.
One of the main themes underlying Parsha Kedoshim is the loving care with which each Jew is to treat his Jewish brother. Indeed, we see that the first posuk of our Parsha conveys that spirit, “Hashem spoke to Moshe saying,
“Speak to the entire assembly of B’nai Yisrael and say to them: You shall be holy, for holy am I, Hashem, your G’d.” (Sefer Vayikra, Perek 19, posuk 1) Our Parsha then goes on to enumerate the Asseret HaDivrot, the Ten Commandments in depth.
But the spirit of our Parsha is best expressed by the principle taught by Rabbi Hillel to the convert, on one foot, that the entire Torah can be summed up with this one key concept whch says “V’ohavtoh L’reiachoh Komochoh” — “… you shall love your fellow as yourself…” (Sefer Vayikra, Perek 19, posuk 18); to want for your fellow Jew what you would want for yourself, to not do to your fellow Jew what you would not want to happen to youself.
And there is a connection between this mido of loving kindness to our brethren and the role of the Kohen Gadol as a unifier and as a national emissary. For in the concept of “V’ohavtoh L’reiachoh Komochoh” we all unify as one. And then we are zocha to fulfill our assigned mission, to serve as a light, a model to the nations of Hashem’s blueprint for creation.
May we be zocha in this coming year that our brethren — the refugee families from Gush Katif be permanently settled and be made totally whole, that our dear brother Jonathan Pollard and the 3 captive Chayalim and the other MIAs be liberated and returned to us and that we fulfill Hashem’s blueprint of B’nai Yisrael as a Unique people — an Am Segula, not to be reckoned with as with “the nations” and may we be zocha the Moshiach, the Ge’ula Shlaima, as Dov Shurin sings; “Yom Hashem V’Kol HaGoyim”, the Ultimate Redemption, bim hay v’yameinu — speedily, in our time”, — Achshav, Chik Chuk, Miyad, Etmol!!!
Good Shabbos!
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Moshe Burt, an Oleh, is a commentator on news and events in Israel and Founder and Director of The Sefer Torah Recycling Network. He lives in Ramat Beit Shemesh.
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