Fresh
Miracles or Stale Bread
Parshas Emor
A quick thought for the week. At the end of
this week’s Torah portion, the Torah recounts the story of the individual who
committed the crime of blasphemy and uttered a vicious curse against the
Creator of the world. The Torah introduces us to the events surrounding this
saga with the cryptic words, “The son of an Israelite woman went out” which
prompts an obvious question: From where did he go out? The Midrash offers a few
answers . One interpretation explains the Midrash is that he “went out” (he
veered off the path) from a misunderstanding in the previous section that the
Torah was just discussing.
In that section (Chap 24 Verse 5), the Torah
enlightens us about the miracle of the 12 fresh loaves of bread, the ‘Lechem
Haponim’, that were placed each Friday on the shulchan, a specially crafted
golden table that was located in the sanctum of the Temple. These loaves of
bread were not moved until the week’s end, when they were distributed to the
kohanim. The blasphemer looked at this week-old bread and became annoyed at the
fact that the Kohanim were offering Hashem what was apparently old, stale
bread. How does one treat the King of Kings like this? He was so outraged at
the slight to the glory of G-d that he took his anger out on G-d Himself. He
went out and blasphemed the name of G-d.
This is rather difficult to understand. The fellow
was bothered by a perceived injustice and was standing up for the honor of G-d.
How then could he have stooped to commit an even worse affront to G-d?
The commentaries explain that in truth, the lechem
haponim bread actually miraculously stayed warm and fresh the entire week. They
didn’t decay as normal food would. In the Temple, the rules of nature were
suspended; the bread was as fresh and steaming hot seven days later as the
moment it came out of the oven.
However, this disgruntled individual didn’t want
to find out the true state of affairs. He was under a misconception that
provoked him to anger and he took the first opportunity to vent it. Rather than
step back and appraise the situation calmly, he was looking for the closest
target to dump on. He needed an excuse to express his gripes about the
religious system and as soon as he found an opening, he seized it.
The problem is, venting one’s
anger doesn’t diminish the negative energy but rather fuels it. Just like
alcohol prompts the urge for more alcohol, so too, anger has an addictive
quality. It tends to take on a life of its own, triggering even more anger
and indignation. For after all, one always needs to further rationalize the
initial burst of anger? Of course, brooding on the reasons and justification
for it only stokes the flames further.
Thus, after getting angry about the loaves of
bread, it wasn’t long before the person in our Parsha blasphemed G-d himself.
The word Panim, say the commentaries actually
means ‘pnim’ …the inside. Just like our faces provide a reflection of our inner
emotions so indeed, the way we see and evaluate others also is invariably
painted and colored by our innermost values and characteristics. What we see
with our panim is dictated by our pnim! This coldhearted individual saw cold
stale bread only because he was impervious to seeing the constant daily Divine
flow of blessings in his life that would have been readily apparent had he only
been more receptive.
In our own lives, when we look honestly at why we
get angry, we will often discover that the reasons are not very solid. Others
are not cooperating with us or doing as we wish them to. That fuels a sense of
frustration and disappointment. Doesn’t this person know they are making us
impatient and angry? How can they continue not doing what we want? It’s because
they don’t respect or care for us enough. They don’t realize they should be
catering to us!
When we shout at a co-worker
or family member for a slight infraction, the real culprit is not the
unfortunate target of our anger -but our own ego that has been offended.
Let us make every effort to control the angry
impulses that wear the mantle of righteous indignation but which in the end,
poison the atmosphere, destroy relationships-and hurt ourselves most of all.
Wishing you a wonderful Shabbos,
Rabbi Naftali Reich
Text Copyright © 2014 by Rabbi Naftali Reich
and Torah.org.
Rabbi Reich is on the faculty of the Ohr Somayach
Tanenbaum Education Center
Divine Enhancement
“The Kohain who is exalted above his
brethren…” (21:10)
The Torah describes the Kohain Gadol, the High
Priest as “exalted above his brethren”. The Talmud teaches that he should be
superior in strength, beauty, intellect, and wealth[1]. The Midrash elaborates
further, citing scriptural sources for each of these attributes required of the
Kohain Gadol. The Midrash proves that the Kohain Gadol should have superior
strength from Aharon Hakohain, who was required to raise each of the twenty-two
thousand Levi’im above his head during the course of one day[2]. This was part
of their consecration process, as it is recorded in Parshas Beha’alosecha:
“Veheinif Aharon es Halevi’im” – “And Aharon shall wave the Levites[3].”
However, the Mirrer Rosh Yeshiva, Harav Chaim Shmulevitz, cites the Chizkuni,
who says that such a feat could only be performed through Divine intervention.
If so, asks Rav Chaim, how can the Midrash cite this occurrence as a source for
Aharon’s prodigious strength, if it was due to a miraculous event?
The Midrash adds that the requirement of superior
strength is a prerequisite for the king as well. The Midrash cites a dialogue
between Dovid and Shaul as the source. In the Book of Shmuel we find that when
Goliath challenged Bnei Yisroel to send their greatest warrior to fight against
him, Dovid volunteered. When Shaul asked him why he thought he would be able to
vanquish Goliath, Dovid answered that when he was a shepherd, his flocks were
threatened by both a lion and a bear, yet he was able to slay them both. Shaul
then commented that killing animals is not necessarily indicative of being able
to claim victory against a seasoned warrior such as Goliath. Dovid’s response
was that Hashem helped him to kill the wild animals, and He will help him to
kill Goliath as well[5]. Why was Dovid’s first response to say that he was able
to slay a lion and a bear, instead of initially saying that Hashem, who helped
him destroy the wild animals will help him destroy Goliath?
The Talmud Yerushalmi teaches that when a
person is elevated to a new appointment he is granted forgiveness. The position
itself imbues within him talents and abilities which he did not previously
possess. Because of this transformation, he is considered to be like a new
person, and therefore, he is granted forgiveness[6].
The Midrash is teaching us that the Divine
intervention which imbues a person with new abilities is only an amplification
and enhancement of his preexisting potential. Hashem assists a person
if he is in a position for which he has a propensity. This explains what King
Dovid was conveying to Shaul. Since he was able to kill the lion and the bear,
he knew that he had the G-d-given ability to be a warrior. He also knew that
when he would be placed in a circumstance which required greater abilities,
Hashem would enhance his abilities in order to insure that Dovid would be
victorious. This notion is supported by the conclusion of the Midrash. The
Midrash records that although Shaul was the tallest man amongst Bnei Yisroel,
when he took off his armor and placed it upon Dovid, it fit perfectly. The Divine
assistance that came with Dovid’s new appointment enhanced his physical stature
to fit the armor.
The position of Kohain Gadol required great
strength, as is indicated by the consecration of the Levi’im. Although this
feat could only be accomplished through Divine assistance, Aharon was chosen
because he possessed the natural abilities that could be enhanced through
miraculous intervention. Therefore, the Midrash cites the consecration of the
Levi’im as the source for the requirement that the Kohain Gadol possess
superior strength.
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