929 Project: Leviticus 6-10; Tzav & Shemini

For the Audio Podcast reflecting on some of these sources please click here.

Leviticus 6 (trans by TaggedTanakh)

³The priest shall dress in linen raiment, with linen breeches next to his body; and he shall take up the ashes to which the fire has reduced the burnt offering on the altar and place them beside the altar.

⁴He shall then take off his vestments and put on other vestments, and carry the ashes outside the camp to a clean place.

⁵The fire on the altar shall be kept burning, not to go out: every morning the priest shall feed wood to it, lay out the burnt offering on it, and turn into smoke the fat parts of the offerings of well-being.

⁶A perpetual fire shall be kept burning on the altar, not to go out.​​​​​​​

(אֵ֗שׁ תָּמִ֛יד תּוּקַ֥ד עַל־הַמִּזְבֵּ֖חַ לֹ֥א תִכְבֶּֽה:)

"One of the daily services in the Temple was תְּרוּמַת הַדֶּשֶׁן, the removal of ashes from the altar. The altar represents the connection between God and Israel (Rashi, Ex. 20:21) and resting upon it is the ,נֵר תָּמִיד, the deeply symbolic “eternal flame,” which is never to be extinguished (Lev. 6:6). The ashes are removed to ensure that it continues to burn well."

-By Jonathan Sacks, The Removal of the Ashes, Between Necessity and Meaning

(Link here)

Question:

What are the ashes in your life that need to be removed on a daily basis so that your eternal flame keeps shining? For me, it's perfection. I constantly have to keep it in check and clear it away.

Leviticus 7 (trans by TaggedTanakh)

¹²If he offers it for thanksgiving, he shall offer together with the sacrifice of thanksgiving unleavened cakes with oil mixed in, unleavened wafers spread with oil, and cakes of choice flour with oil mixed in, well soaked.

¹³This offering, with cakes of leavened bread added, he shall offer along with his thanksgiving sacrifice of well-being.

¹⁴Out of this he shall offer one of each kind as a gift to the Lord; it shall go to the priest who dashes the blood of the offering of well-being.

¹⁵And the flesh of his thanksgiving sacrifice of well-being shall be eaten on the day that it is offered; none of it shall be set aside until morning.

"Deep joy is meant to be shared. In this instance, it is not just one’s family or friends who must be included, but also (and perhaps especially) those who are socio-economically vulnerable. The simple requirement that there not be any leftovers from the thanksgiving offering thus teaches us a fundamental theological and spiritual lesson. We are not meant to rest content with being recipients of God’s gifts but are asked to become givers ourselves."

-By Shai Held, The Thanksgiving Sacrifice: No Leftovers - Share Joy

(Link here)

Question:

When you feel grateful for something that has happened to you or something that you have received, do you feel moved to give back?

Leviticus 8 (trans by TaggedTanakh)

⁶Then Moses brought Aaron and his sons forward and washed them with water.

⁷He put the tunic on him, girded him with the sash, clothed him with the robe, and put the ephod on him, girding him with the decorated band with which he tied it to him.

⁸He put the breastpiece on him, and put into the breastpiece the Urim and Thummim.

⁹And he set the headdress on his head; and on the headdress, in front, he put the gold frontlet, the holy diadem—as the Lord had commanded Moses.

"What an august and majestic moment it must have been! Gathering the people together at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting, with Aaron and his sons in waiting, Moses brings out the anointing oil, the priestly vestments, the bulls for sacrifice, the basket of matzot and engages in an elaborate ritual of washing, clothing, and anointing the priestly family who will make the offerings on behalf of the children of Israel from that day forth.

All in silence!

Anyone who has witnessed the coronation of the Kings and Queens of England, for example, or the ceremonies launching a new Pope, or the inauguration of the President of the United States, are accustomed to a great many words. Those words make explicit the intended message of the moment – what is signified, and how we are to understand that actions transpiring before us."

-By Bradley Shavit Artson, Let the Ritual Do the Talking

(Link here)

Question:

The most common and most explicit religious ritual we witness is probably a wedding ceremony and there is a lot of talking by the wedding officiant - although in a traditional Jewish wedding there is barely any talking by the couple. Have you ever witnessed a silent ritual?

Leviticus 9 (trans by TaggedTanakh)

²²Aaron lifted his hands toward the people and blessed them; and he stepped down after offering the sin offering, the burnt offering, and the offering of well-being.

²³Moses and Aaron then went inside the Tent of Meeting. When they came out, they blessed the people; and the Presence of the Lord appeared to all the people.

²⁴Fire came forth from before the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat parts on the altar. And all the people saw, and shouted, and fell on their faces.

"Today’s chapter has what to say about [gifts], too. As the Israelites celebrate the inauguration of the Tabernacle, all of their gifts are to God, and the chapter ends with God’s accepting those gifts – by burning them to ashes. God, apparently, is not a consumerist. The real stuff of holidays can’t be bought, it can only be given in selfless devotion.

In America, Hanukkah has often been understood in terms of winning the fight for religious freedom against an intolerant majority, and in Israel it’s been seen as a celebration of the Jews’ new military prowess against our enemies. I think in both places the message should become a celebration of the enduring power of the spirit and of selfless love for God and one another, against the common enemy of materialism and consumerism. So I’m asking myself this year, how do I celebrate Hanukkah – for myself, for my children, for my neighbors – in such a way?"

-By Jeff Amshalem, God Is Not A Consumerist

(Link here)

Leviticus 10 (trans by TaggedTanakh)

¹Now Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu each took his fire pan, put fire in it, and laid incense on it; and they offered before the Lord alien fire, which He had not enjoined upon them.

²And fire came forth from the Lord and consumed them; thus they died at the instance of the Lord.

³Then Moses said to Aaron, "This is what the Lord meant when He said:
Through those near to Me I show Myself holy,
And gain glory before all the people."
And Aaron was silent.

"The Second Temple period scholar Philo suggests that Nadav and Avihu were not sinning but were intentionally throwing themselves at God. When God consumed them, God was simply accepting Nadav and Avihu’s self-offering...

Amidst the generally dry and orderly material of Leviticus, we receive a glimpse of the passion that Nadav and Avihu must have felt in God’s presence. The deaths of these men put a damper on the festivities of ordination and reminded the other priests that their service was to the Israelite people, not to themselves. But the placement of this story in the Book of Leviticus is an acknowledgment that to be human is to be passionate. Human passion may be tempered by societal rules and laws, but that yearning for an all consuming experience is a part of the human condition."

-By Tamar Kamionkowski, To Be Human Is To Be Passionate

(Link here)

Reflection:

Lev 10:2 brings the story of Nadav and Avihu who bring themselves as offerings because of all-consuming love of God.

But, Lev 18:5 teaches that "and he shall live by them (וחי בהם)".

But, Sanhedrin 74a continues that if you are being used as a pawn in a public setting by some dictator that wants to flout you breaking the mitzvot then it is better you die than to contribute to breaking the spirits of the general Jewish public.

Final "but"... there was no public shaming involved for Nadav and Avihu. There is no excuse for their martyrdom aside from youthful zealousness.