Parshat Shemini 5778: Between Two Days of Remembrance

4/18/2018

This past Shabbat was the Shabbat in between Yom HaSho’ah VeHagevurah when we commemorate the six million Jews who died, and Yom HaZikaron L’Chayalei Tzahal U’Peulot Hae’iva: Israel Memorial Day for the Fallen Soldiers of Israel and Victims of Terrorism. These are difficult days when it can be challenging to find comfort and answers; and Parshat Shmini which we read here in the US has a tragic story within it as well.

Parshat Shmini is about the eighth day of the inauguration of the Mishkan – the Tabernacle in the desert. This eighth day was coincidentally (or not?) Rosh Chodesh Nisan.

The seminal and tragic event in this Parsha is when Aharon’s sons Nadav and Avihu bring a strange fire (אש זרה) on the altar and they are killed. The pasuk unusually says: וידם אהרן “Aharon was silent”; perhaps the impetus for the siren heralding the two minutes of silence observed in Israel on these days.

Just after that – the following scenario transpires in the 5th Aliyah:

Moshe has instructed Aharon and his remaining sons to bring the Korban Chatat the “sin offering” of Rosh Chodesh and eat from it. When he discovers that they have not eaten from it – he is angry with them ויקצף – strong anger – the same word as קצף – foam! He says:

“Why didn’t you eat from the offering to carry the sins of the nations and have them forgiven before God? You have not done as I instructed you – כאשר צותי!”

In a rare moment - Aharon who just moments ago was silent – speaks up to his brother Moshe and says: “How could I eat from this offering? I am in mourning! God would not like this!”

וישמע משה וייטב בעיניו: And Moshe heard – and it was good in his eyes - he agreed.

Moshe and Aharon were discussing the תורה שבעל פה – the Oral tradition of how to understand and apply the Halachot that are described in the Torah. Aharon insists that he must be joyful to serve in his capacity as a Cohen and Moshe realizes that this is true.

There is a commentary on this very scene from the Ishbitzer Rebbe, a 19th century Chasidic master known as the מי השילוח (Mei HaShilo’ach) who explains the scene according to the following midrash:

In the beginning God created the sun and the moon to be the same size. The sun and the moon argued about who would have more control and the moon said to God: we can’t both be the same size! God agreed and said to the moon – make yourself smaller. That is why the moon makes itself smaller and bigger and every month we celebrate the birth of the new moon. But God continues and says: הביאו עלי כפרה – I want to bring atonement. For what? על שהמעטתי את הלבנה – for making the moon smaller.

The מי השילוח explains: who is the one bringing the חטאת – the sin offering on Rosh Chodesh? It is not Aharon bringing it to forgive the sins of Bnei Yisrael! Rather, it is God who is bringing the sin offering every Rosh Chodesh and saying – I know that I created a world with brokenness and with blemishes. PLEASE FORGIVE ME. Please forgive me.

Last week on Yom HaSho’a I had the זכות – the merit - of facilitating a conversation between a group of 11th graders and an amazing survivor, Mr. Kaidenow, whose parents were brutally murdered when he was only twelve and half years old. He became one of the youngest partisan fighters. He told us that the scenes from his life during the Holocaust were so horrific as to be indescribable.

One of the girls asked him: “How did you maintain your faith in God through all of what you went through?” He thought a moment and said: “I never lost my faith in God, but I did question God … and I still do.”

The Ishbitzer Rebbe offers us an image of a more approachable God Who recognizes our questions and even our anger at the brokenness in this world and says to us –

“I am here with you in your pain. Please forgive me.”

This past Shabbat we welcomed in the month of Iyyar. Rosh Chodesh Iyyar is always two days. Perhaps we need both days: one on the thirtieth day of Nisan to console us for Yom HaSho’ah and one on the first day of Iyar to console us for Yom HaZikaron.

May we feel God’s presence and love with us always. Chodesh Tov.

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