Parsha Sh’mini 5768 — The Sincerity, Purity of a Jew’s Service

Our Parsha Sh’mini begins by relating that on the eighth day, Aaron and his sons commenced their Avodah HaKodosh.

But our Parsha also relates the tragedy of the deaths of Aaron’s two oldest sons, Nadav and Avihu who died while performing an unauthorized Service, offering a “strange fire …, which he did not command them…” (Artscroll Chumash, Vayikra, Perek 10, posuk 1) And our Parsha relates that “Hashem spoke to Aaron saying: Do not drink intoxicating wine, you and your sons …, when you come to the Ohel Mo’ed (the Tent of Meeting), that you not die — this is an eternal decree for your generations. In order to distinguish between the sacred and the profane …” (Artscroll Chumash, Vayikra, Perek 10, p’sukim 8-10).

We see that Nadav and Avihu were so wrapped up in the joy and euphoria of the moment that they chose to serve Hashem in a unique way, untaught by Moshe during the previous training. And they chose to offer their fire without asking Moshe for his ruling. The Imrei Shefer quotes R’ Eliezer as saying, “Aaron’s sons died because they gave rulings in the halacha in front of Moshe, their teacher”(rather than asking him for p’sak Halacha). (Torah Gems, Aharon Yaaakov Greenberg, page 267)

And while we note that Nadav and Avihu sought to perform a unique service, thought by them to be pleasing to Hashem, many others through our history have sought to alter, to change their service, and not always seeking l’Sheim Shemayim and perhaps, eventually rendering whatever service they did unrecogizable in Shemayim.

Throughout our history, there have been, and continue to be in our days, those who sought to “cut corners” in their Avodah in a effort to achieve a perception of being “like nations.” There are many among our Jewish brethren who would deny Hashem’s control of the world and seek to tailor Torah and their Jewishness to fit the ways of the nations, rather than accepting Hashem’s reishut (command) over the world. They perceive that if only they didn’t look and act sooo Jewish, that then they’ll be loved by the gentiles. If only their eyes would be wide open, they would see how abysmally wrong they’ve been.

And there are others who, while seeming to be and wearing the outer trappings of frumkeit, are wanting on the inside. And it seems that during Purim or Shushan Purim, the inner realities of many bare themselves for others to see.

A few cases in point from our most recent Shushan Purim foray into Jerusalem; the unlocked door of a private, moving mini-van flung open by a young enibriated Har Nof bocher who, in his distorted, drunken state, though he was “having a good time”, obviously at the expense of the those in the vehicle who could have been endangered by the act.

Or this author’s visit to an old chaverusa. Let’s call him “Bloch.” Reb Bloch is a great guy and a huge top wrung Talmud Chacham — knew him from Philly Yeshiva back in the “old country”, we were Mishmar Chaverusas before he married and came to Israel. He and his wife are true Ba’alei Chassadim. He and his family act at all times in keeping with the above description. Even on Shushan Purim, when we lose the ability to distinguish Haman from Mordechai, things are leibidik at the Bloch Seudah table in the true tradition of Purim. But outside, in public, no matter what his enibriated state, he acts toward others with the utmost in menschlicheit.

Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for a lot of those who live in the vicinity of the Blochs. Whether it was in a previous Shushan Purim when this author was accosted for wearing a Gush Katif cap, or as happened yesterday; an enibriated individual walked through Bloch’s open door, cigarette in mouth, despite Bloch’s wife’s denial of permission to enter, parks himself in a chair next to where this author is trying to say over a Purim vort for Bloch, and starts demanding of Bloch hundreds of dollars because he needs dental work done. And when this author attempted to give mussar about his chutzpah in entering someone else’s home waving his lit cigarette around, his answer; “I can’t help it, I’m shickar.”

Are such individuals as listed above, ostensibly “religious”, “hareidi” who lack public menschlicheit toward their brethren under guise of “being drunk and unable to tell Haman from Mordechai” just as guilty of cutting corners in their Avodah as those who cut corners to be like the nations?

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!!!