Apr 2/05 — Shabbat Shemini

Commentary by Rabbi Lawrence Pinsker

"And Moses and Aaron came to the Tent of Meeting and they went out and blessed the people — and the glory of the Almighty appeared to all the people.” (Leviticus 9:23).

The medieval commentator Rashi tells us that Aaron felt a great sense of despair. Despite having performed every sacrifice and ritual for dedicating the Mishkan, the portable sanctuary, God’s Presence did not appear as God has promised. Rashi says that Aaron was afraid that he had failed to do his job properly, and now God was angry and disappointed.

Aaron turned to his brother Moses and shared his doubts and fears. Rashi says that Moses immediately joined with his brother Aaron and the two of them entered the Mishkan. Because they entered together to ask for God’s mercy, the Divine Presence indeed came to rest upon the Israelites.

In Tuvcha Yabiu, Rabbi Isaac Silberstein says that this story describes a central principle of Torah: teamwork and cooperation are important in every hope and effort. Rabbi Silberstein traces the idea back to Creation itself, where God declares that “it is not good for human beings to be alone.” As important as worship of God may be, we also must care about each other in order for our connection to God to become real. The Patriarchs and the Matriarchs, Moses’ leadership, and even the ancient Israelite government — where monarchy, prophets, and priesthood shared in governance — all share a common theme: Meaningful life emerges only when people join forces and share resources with each other.

Further proof of this is found in our Torah portion: On one of the greatest days since leaving Egypt, the deaths of Nadav and Avihu, two of Aaron's sons, cast a deep shadow over the festive dedication of the Mishkan.

In Lev. 10:1 we read: “And the sons of Aaron, Nadav and Avihu, each man took his fire pan….” The commentary called Sifra interprets the phrase “each man took his fire pan” to mean that the two brothers went into the Sanctuary without paying attention to each other. They neither respected nor encouraged each other; they neither coordinated their actions nor wished each other well: “they did not consult with one another.” Each dies because he is self-centered and focused only on becoming “the first.”

The story is ironic counterpoint to Moses, Aaron, and Miriam’s shared endeavour in bring the Israelites out of Egypt. If the spirit of cooperation is not modeled by leaders, the Divine presence cannot rest in the midst of the Jewish people — because in its highest form, such partnership is also the essence of the relationship between God and human beings.

In our time the lesson drawn by our commentators from the deaths of Nadav and Avihu is particularly poignant. Walking together into the presence of God stands in sharp contrast to standing alone in the spotlight after having crushed all the competition. Nadav and Avihu remind us of the need to strengthen the ideals of cooperation and mutual concern so important to Jewish life.