Parshat Tetzaveh
The Parsha begins with the making of the Bigdei Kehuna, the Priestly Vestments. The Torah goes to great lengths to explain in detail the processing of each garment so we should know this for all future generations; no change in them is allowed. We also find in many Parshiot in the Torah where most, if not all the laws are only applicable to Kohanim. However, one could ask: why did HaShem include these laws in Torah which is for all of Klal Yisrael? Obviously the majority of Klal Yisrael are not Kohanim, and thus, these laws do not apply to us. Therefore, why didn't HaShem set aside these laws specifically for the Kohanim and give them a special commandment to study them? Why is it that those of us who are not Kohanim have no less of a commandment to study these parshiot than do the Kohanim?
In order to explain, we must look at the Gemara in Nedarim (35b) where we find an interesting discussion. The Gemara has a difficulty: If a man makes a neder (oath) that he will not derive benefit from a specific Kohen, can that same Kohen be the agent to bring this man's Korbanot (sacrifices) for him on the altar, or is bringing the sacrifice considered a benefit to the man who made the oath? To resolve this issue, the Gemara asks an intriguing question: what is a Kohen? A Shluchay Didan - our emissary who brings the Korban, or a Shluchay D'shmayah, an emissary of Heaven. If he is our emissary than it is considered as if the Kohen is benefiting the one who made the oath. However, if he is Heaven's emissary, then the act of bring the Korban is not considered as being done specifically for the person, rather it is for HaShem, and not a violation of the oath, because he is not deriving benefit. The resolution is that a Kohen is an emissary of Heaven. This is fascinating because it goes straight to the essence of what defines a Kohen. He is the representation of HaShem in this world; a Kohen is commanded to remain holy and pure his entire life, to abstain from impurity and to devote his life to service in the Beit Hamikdash. This is the purpose of the Kohen – to be an emissary of the HaShem for the Jewish people as the epitome of holiness.
So why then does HaShem include their laws for the rest of Klal Yisrael?
Kohanim are a separate sect within Klal Yisrael, and we may tend to think of them as an elite group to which we cannot possibly relate. But this is not the case; this is not how Judaism views its hierarchy. Just as we, Klal Yisrael, are meant to set an example for the world to emulate, so too, the Kohanim, as an elite group, are there for us to emulate their holiness. Contained within every one of their laws is the concept of what it means to be holy, to devote our lives to HaShem and refrain from doing things that distance us from HaShem. Though these laws may not apply to us in action, the ideas which they permeate do apply. The ideas that Hashem conveys to them and the standards to which they are held can teach us about holiness and proper growth on our own level. From these parshiot, we can learn how a Jew acts, that as Jews we should be more keenly aware of things which are hazardous to our spiritual health and pull us away from our Creator. Today, when we cannot see the laws performed in order to learn these valuable lessons, we can at least study their details and allow them to affect our lives.
May we merit seeing the building of the Beit Hamikdash, the physical manifestation of true holiness in the world, very soon.
Shabbat Shalom
Naftali Kassorla
