The Pshat Heard 'Round the World

"And it came to pass on the eighth day" - that is how this week's parashah, Shmini, opens. "The eighth of what?", you ask? Though the simple reference is to the eighth day of training - Milu'im  which Aharon and his sons were undergoing before the formal beginning of the divine service in the Mishkan, we explore a deeper association below. For me, however, this week, the "eighth" had a different, personal association. This week I marked the eighth yahrzeit for my father, Osher Kahan, may his memory be a blessing. As is frequently the case, his yahrzeit falls this year between parashot Tzav and Shmini. As is also frequently the case, one of the two is Shabbat Parah. All of this is of great significance for me, since he passed away on Shabbat Parah, Parashat Tzav. Both of those Torah passages make reference to mortality - the former instructing us regarding the rites of purification from the impurity imparted by physical contact with or proxim...

Quick - which sacrificial offering is more hamur (serious, substantial, and therefore, sacred): an asham (guilt-offering) or a chattat (sin-offering)? Conventional wisdom - and the order in which they are presented in this week's parashah tell us that it's the chattat, Thats the offering one brings for committing a serious transgression - such as eating a chunk of forbidden fat or chametz, violating Shabbat - unvittingly. The penalty for intentional violation of such prohibitions can be as serious as death, and unwitting violation cannot be let go with nothing. Lack of mindfulness about one's actions is in itself an indictment. Thus, the Torah prescribes the bringing of a particular offering as part of the process of atonement. There is much behind the symbolism of the act of bringing a sacrifice that time and space and mine (my limited one) does not permit us to explore here, but suffice it to say that the chattat is part of a reconciliation with Hashem, coming o...

This week's Pshat is dedicated to the memory of the eight young men murdered learning Torah last night at Yeshivat Merkaz Harav, two of whom were my son's classmates through eighth grade: Segev Avichayil and Avraham David Moses . Y'hi Zichram Baruch, Hashem Yikom Damam. The last cold snap has barely lifted, but outside, the almond trees have no time to wait. They are so suddenly filled with beautiful, fragrant white blossoms that it is hard to believe that little over a week ago, they weren't there. Even harder to believe that by the time Nisan comes and we can say Birkat HaIlanot, they will be long gone. What's their rush? Where are they going? Can't they wait for the other trees? The word for almond in Hebrew is shaked , which means "quick and diligent". Yeshivah Letzi'irim, popularly known as Yashlatz , is the high-school branch of Yeshivat Merkaz Harav, the yeshiva founded by Rav Kook almost eighty-five years ago. It's know as bein...

I overheard my daughter on the phone with a friend this morning. It wasn't hard to do - she was speaking animatedly in the living room! The Hakhtarah is coming up - the crowning of the Rabbanit Purim - the Purim Rebbetzin - in her Ulpana. She is in twelfth grade, and the twelfth-graders put on the Purim Shpiel. There was brisk competition for the various parts, and Shalhevet was chosen for the lead role. Her good friend also was chosen for a part, albeit a minor one. In the most recent rehearsal yesterday, it seems that a number of girls who had minor parts skipped the rehearsal, and their lines had to be read by the directors. A few dedicated girls are trying to pick up the slack, but that creates ill-will. Shalhevet was engaged in giving musar in a forthright but loving way, to her good friend, one of those who skipped the rehearsal to tend to personal matters. She said that she understood the thinking - how much can the absence of one line impact a rehearal, and why sho...