Parashat Metzorah Torah Study

(א) וַיְדַבֵּ֥ר יְהֹוָ֖ה אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֥ה לֵּאמֹֽר׃ (ב) זֹ֤את תִּֽהְיֶה֙ תּוֹרַ֣ת הַמְּצֹרָ֔ע בְּי֖וֹם טׇהֳרָת֑וֹ וְהוּבָ֖א אֶל־הַכֹּהֵֽן׃ (ג) וְיָצָא֙ הַכֹּהֵ֔ן אֶל־מִח֖וּץ לַֽמַּחֲנֶ֑ה וְרָאָה֙ הַכֹּהֵ֔ן וְהִנֵּ֛ה נִרְפָּ֥א נֶֽגַע־הַצָּרַ֖עַת מִן־הַצָּרֽוּעַ׃ (ד) וְצִוָּה֙ הַכֹּהֵ֔ן וְלָקַ֧ח לַמִּטַּהֵ֛ר שְׁתֵּֽי־צִפֳּרִ֥ים חַיּ֖וֹת טְהֹר֑וֹת וְעֵ֣ץ אֶ֔רֶז וּשְׁנִ֥י תוֹלַ֖עַת וְאֵזֹֽב׃ (ה) וְצִוָּה֙ הַכֹּהֵ֔ן וְשָׁחַ֖ט אֶת־הַצִּפּ֣וֹר הָאֶחָ֑ת אֶל־כְּלִי־חֶ֖רֶשׂ עַל־מַ֥יִם חַיִּֽים׃ (ו) אֶת־הַצִּפֹּ֤ר הַֽחַיָּה֙ יִקַּ֣ח אֹתָ֔הּ וְאֶת־עֵ֥ץ הָאֶ֛רֶז וְאֶת־שְׁנִ֥י הַתּוֹלַ֖עַת וְאֶת־הָאֵזֹ֑ב וְטָבַ֨ל אוֹתָ֜ם וְאֵ֣ת ׀ הַצִּפֹּ֣ר הַֽחַיָּ֗ה בְּדַם֙ הַצִּפֹּ֣ר הַשְּׁחֻטָ֔ה עַ֖ל הַמַּ֥יִם הַֽחַיִּֽים׃ (ז) וְהִזָּ֗ה עַ֧ל הַמִּטַּהֵ֛ר מִן־הַצָּרַ֖עַת שֶׁ֣בַע פְּעָמִ֑ים וְטִ֣הֲר֔וֹ וְשִׁלַּ֛ח אֶת־הַצִּפֹּ֥ר הַֽחַיָּ֖ה עַל־פְּנֵ֥י הַשָּׂדֶֽה׃ (ח) וְכִבֶּס֩ הַמִּטַּהֵ֨ר אֶת־בְּגָדָ֜יו וְגִלַּ֣ח אֶת־כׇּל־שְׂעָר֗וֹ וְרָחַ֤ץ בַּמַּ֙יִם֙ וְטָהֵ֔ר וְאַחַ֖ר יָב֣וֹא אֶל־הַֽמַּחֲנֶ֑ה וְיָשַׁ֛ב מִח֥וּץ לְאׇהֳל֖וֹ שִׁבְעַ֥ת יָמִֽים׃

Leviticus 14:1-8

(1) יהוה spoke to Moses, saying: (2) This shall be the ritual for a leper at the time of being purified. When it has been reported to the priest, (3) the priest shall go outside the camp. If the priest sees that the leper has been healed of the scaly affection, (4) the priest shall order two live pure birds, cedar wood, crimson stuff, and hyssop to be brought for the one to be purified. (5) The priest shall order one of the birds slaughtered over fresh water in an earthen vessel; (6) and he shall take the live bird, along with the cedar wood, the crimson stuff, and the hyssop, and dip them together with the live bird in the blood of the bird that was slaughtered over the fresh water. (7) He shall then sprinkle it seven times on the one to be purified of the eruption and effect the purification; and he shall set the live bird free in the open country. (8) The one to be purified shall wash those clothes, shave off all hair, and bathe in water—and then shall be pure. After that, the camp may be entered but one must remain outside one’s tent seven days.

אבן עזרא על ויקרא י״ד:ז׳

על פני השדה. מקום שאין שם יישוב שלא תדבק הצרעת.

Ibn Ezra on Leviticus 14:7

INTO THE OPEN FIELD. An uninhabited place so that the leprosy does not infect anyone.

חזקוני, ויקרא י״ד:ז׳

ושלח את הצפר סימן טהרה הוא להפריח ממנו הצרעת ולעשות לו דוגמא שכבר ישב כצפור בודד על גג ונקשר ואסור מלבא עם שאר בני אדם ועכשיו הותר לבא עם חבריו כעין צפור זו שהיתה קשורה בידי אדם ועכשיו משולחת ורשויה ללכת עם חברותיה.

Chizkuni, Leviticus 14:7

ושלח את הצפור החיה, “whereupon he is to send off the living bird;” this is a symbol of the purity signifying that the tzoraat has “flown off” the owner of these birds who had suffered the affliction. The allegorical meaning is that whereas previously the owner of this bird had sat on the roof of a house (i.e. homeless and exposed to all kinds of danger, seeing that he had been forbidden any contact with human society, now he had miraculously been readmitted to civilization and all its advantages.)

William Bridge: Managing Transitions (p. 3-5)
"It isn't the changes that do you in, it's the transitions. They aren't the same thing. Change is situational: the move to a new site, the retirement of the founder, the reorganization of the roles on the team, the revisions to the pension plan. Transition, on the other hand, is psychological; it is a three-phase process that people go through as they internalize and come to terms with the details of the new situation that the change brings about."
The Three Stages:
1. Letting Go (of hold habits and identity), Ending, Loss
2. In-Between (old is gone, but new isn't fully in place), Liminality, Realignment and Re-patterning (critical psychologically)
3. New Beginning, New Identity, New Energy, New Sense of Purpose

Parashat Tazria, which precedes this week's Torah Portion, Metzora, details the experience of leprosy. This week marks the "re-entering" stage and the accompanying purification and transition rituals. While we no longer offer sacrifices as our biblical ancestors did, I believe we still need spiritual, ritual, meaning-making moments to accompany us on our transitions - whether from school year to summer, from masking to unmasking, from an old job to a new one, from an old apartment to a new space, gender transition, coming out etc... We experience transitions, both big and small, everyday and throughout our lives. In addition to navigating the externality of these moments (change), we also need to attend to our emotional and spiritual needs (transition). Victor Turner, Bruce Feiler, and others have studied the process of transition and there are three stages: loss, liminality, and newness.
What is the purpose or explanation for sending off a live bird as part of the purification ceremony for an ex-leper?
How might the bird-release ritual have helped Israelites transition from a state of ritual impurity (tzara'at) to a state of purity?
What are some moments of transition that we experience in our lives today?
What are some rituals or strategies that help us move through these transitions?