Giving Up The Glory (Parashat VaYikra)

If one were to take a closer look at the first word in this week's parasha, they would notice that the letter "aleph" at the end of the word VaYikra is written smaller than the rest of the letters.  This is the case in every Sefer Torah that has ever been written.

The mefarshim explain that, when Moshe was writing the word for the first time, he didn't want to write the aleph at all.  Moshe preferred that the pasuk read VaYikar Moshe - and he chanced upon Moshe.  His reasoning was that the lashon of "He called Moshe" indicates that Moshe was special - and Moshe wanted to avoid that.  Regardless, Hashem insisted that Moshe write the alpeh - but Moshe wrote it in a smaller font so as to indicate that he wasn't really worthy of the great honor being bestowed upon him.

There is an extremely profound lesson that Moshe is teaching us in this word.  So often we want to receive credit for the things that we do - we crave attention.  As an educator, I sometimes see students even doing bad things in order to get attention because they feel they aren't capable of getting positive attention and negative attention is better than no attention.  However, Moshe is showing us that we don't need the attention we are craving - life isn't about being in the spotlight.

Imagine if we didn't feel this need to be important.  We would never get angry because we felt that we weren't recognized for something we did.  That was how Moshe was - and it's who we should be!

My father, a"h was zoche in mastering this trait of humility.  In reality, he had plenty to brag about – he had worked his way from a tenement apartment on the Lower East Side to a superior education from Stuyvesant, NYU and Adelphi and had managed to build himself a loving family who did, and always will, adore him.  My father had ample reason to feel chashuv but, like Moshe, he preferred to keep it simple.

May we all be zoche to live a life of humility - may we desire only to be chanced upon and not need to be called.  In this z'chut, may we see the coming of Mashiach speedily in our days.  Amen.

Shabbat Shalom!

Mirror, Mirror On The Wall...(Parashat Vayakhel-Pekudei)

"He made the Kiyyur (wash-basin for the Kohanim) and its pedestal of copper, with the mirrors of the women who congregated at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting"

Rashi comments on the above pasuk that the mirrors mentioned are those that the Jewish women would use when beautifying themselves.  He states that, initially, Moshe rejected the mirrors because he felt it was inappropriate to use an item meant for such purposes in as holy a place as the Mishkan.  Nonetheless, Hashem instructed Moshe to accept the mirrors saying they were "dearest to Him of all."  But why were they so dear to Him and, if they were, why specifically use them for this basin?

The midrash explains that one reason the Egyptians enslaved the Jewish men with such difficult labor was in an attempt to prevent them from procreating.  They had hoped that when the men got home they would be too exhausted to lay with their wives, thereby resulting in the ultimate extermination of the Jewish people.

The women, however, realized this and so - as Rashi explains - they would go out to the fields where the men were working and feed and wash their husbands.  They would then take out these copper mirrors and use them to entice their husbands by standing next to them and looking in the mirror saying "I am handsomer than you."  The men would become aroused and cohabit with their wives in that very place.  In essence, these mirrors helped save Klal Yisrael from extermination - that is why the are so dear to Hashem.

Rashi goes on to explain that the Kiyyur would also be used to provide the water that a woman accused of adultery by her husband (Sotah) would drink.  The reason it was made from these mirrors because the basin is meant to provide reassurance to the husband that his wife did not cheat on him - thereby resulting in a reaffirmed shalom bayit.

I must admit, Rashi's explanation of why the mirrors were used in the Kiyyur did not sit well with me.  Initially, I did not see the connection between the use of the mirrors in Egypt and the message they are supposed to carry in the Mishkan.  After giving it some thought, I came up with the following explanation:

When I teach Sotah to my students, I explain that - usually - a marriage that is "happy" doesn't result in an affair.  Rather, when a couple loses their flame is when one begins looking into other options.  That said, the Kiyyur is meant as a sign on how to not reach the point of adultery.  It is made with the mirrors to remind us of how they were used - in enticement and flirtation between the husband and wife.  The Kiyyur is telling us that as busy and exhausted as we may become, it is necessary to take the time to enjoy our spouses and their company or - Heaven Forbid - we may find ourselves needing to use its water for negative purposes instead.

Shabbat Shalom!

Follow the Leader (Parashat Ki Tisa)

"The people saw that Moshe delayed in descending the mountain, and the people gathered around Aaron and said to him, 'Rise up, make for us G-ds who will go before us, for this Moshe, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt - we do not know what became of him!'"

There are several troubling questions regarding the incident of the Golden Calf - many of which stem from the above pasuk.  One question, after all that B'nei Yisrael had witnessed from the time that Hashem lef them out of Egypt to this point - how could they turn their backs on Him and worship an idol??  The second question, what does Moshe's delay in descending the mountain have to do with their desire to worship said idol?  The answer to both questions is the same!

If we take a closer look at the pasuk, we see that there is no mention of Hashem in it - the people saw that Moshe delayed so they asked Aaron to make G-ds to represent them because Moshe seemed to have disappeared.  The pasuk didn't say that Hashem abandoned them, it said that Moshe abandoned them!

"Make G-ds who will go before us, for this Moshe...we do not know what became of him."  B'nei Yisrael wasn't looking for a G-d to "create" them - they were looking for a G-d to lead them - the way Moshe had been doing!

The commentaries explain that B'nei Yisrael didn't feel that they were capable of serving Hashem on their own - they needed a "go-between" to represent them.  That go-between was Moshe.  When they miscalculated his return and thought that Moshe had left them (the Satan presented them with an image of Moshe in heaven), they thought they had lost that go-between and would no longer be able to serve Hashem properly.  Therefore, they asked Aaron to make them "G-ds who would go before them" - who would represent them.

It's often hard for us to fathom the idea that we - as individuals - are capable of having our own relationship with Hashem.  Indeed, we don't need a go-between, we can speak to Him directly - and he will answer us!! B'nei Yisrael, too, could not fathom this relationship - that is why they panicked when Moshe didn't return and asked Aaron to build a G-d that would lead them.  You see, B'nei Yisrael wasn't turning their backs on Hashem.  The opposite, they wanted to serve Him!!  They just didn't think they could do it alone!!

May we all recognize the personal relationship we are fortunate to have with our creator and in doing so, may we come to serve Him properly!

Shabbat Shalom!