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Friday, March 29, 2024

Parshat Acharei-Kedoshim (Leviticus 16:1-20:27)

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The Rule of Habit

“The L-rd said to Moses: Speak to Aaron your brother, that he not come at any time to the Sanctuary inside the Partition, to the front of the Ark-cover that is over the Ark, and he shall not die. For in a cloud I shall appear over the Ark-cover.” (Vayikra 16:2)

Rashi comments on “for in a cloud I shall appear over the Ark-cover”: I always appear there with My pillar of cloud. Because the revelation of my Divine Presence takes place there, he should take care not to make a habit of coming there.”

This divine commandment is meant to warn Moses, too, that he not make a habit of coming to the Sanctuary at any time. This can be seen from the text of the passage. It opens with, “The L-rd spoke to Moses,” and then it repeats, “The L-rd said to Moses: Speak to Aaron your brother.” This indicates that the first verse implies that the commandment was directed at Moses too. It is mentioned in conjunction with the death of Aaron’s sons to teach him that even those who have the closest of relationships with G-d are not immune from the death penalty (Or HaChaim).

The greatest of Jewish thinkers deal with the rationale behind this commandment. The Creator of man knows just how man thinks. He is familiar with his nature and characteristics. When man sees or hears something out of the routine in terms of its aesthetic appeal, at first he gets excited about it. He develops an attachment to this phenomenon which brings him delight. But as time passes by, through repetition, the passion the individual may once have had for the object of beauty cools. So it is with a Jew filled with longing to see the Presence of G-d. When he sees, three times a year, the wonders that took place in the Holy Temple, all the while witnessing the priests officiating at the sacrificial service and hearing the Levites at their song, he brims over with feelings of faith and fear of G-d. He is sustained by this experience until the time of his next visit. But were he to be found there constantly, he would be exposed to the danger of routine. He would no longer be moved. The fire of excitement would die with the loss of novelty.

The Prophet says, “When the common people come before the L-rd on the festivals, he who comes in by way of the northern gate to bow shall exit by way of the southern gate, and he who comes in by way of the southern gate shall exit by way of the northern gate. He shall not return by way of the gate through which he entered, but shall go out opposite it.” (Yechezkel 46:9)

We must understand why one is barred from exiting through the gate by which he entered. As we have said, one who made the pilgrimage to Jerusalem on a festival would be deeply impressed by what he saw when he entered the Temple courtyard. The great zeal and enthusiasm of the priests at their tasks and the supernatural phenomena that took place there all left their mark. A person who saw all this undoubtedly felt elevated and inspired with a spirit of holiness and faith. Despite this, G-d insisted that a person not view the same gate twice in quick succession lest he begin to compare it to the gate of his own dwelling place and the walls of the Temple to his own walls (Commentary of Chassid Yaavetz to Avot 1:4).
This is why the verse stresses “When the common people come before the L-rd on the festivals” – that is, intermittently, for the common people are impressed by externals, and the impression of externals is great at the outset, but diminishes with greater exposure. As an example of this the Sages have said, “A Torah scholar seems to an ignorant person like a pitcher made of gold. Once he has spoken with him, he seems like a pitcher made of silver. Once the scholar has derived some benefit from the ignorant person, he seems to him like a broken earthenware vessel” (Bava Batra 168a). This is because the ignoramus does not have a true impression of the scholar. It is not based on intellectual appreciation, but on illusory external factors. Once the ignoramus sees that there is a vast chasm between them and reality he rejects the scholar.

We must therefore stand firm against our great “enemy,” which wishes to blot out any trace of feeling and excitement – the phenomenon of routine. It wants to take our service of G-d, which should be performed joyously, and make of it dull habit. It wishes to petrify our souls. Thus, in order to preserve the impression one feels upon entering the Temple grounds and to ensure that it not dim, the prophet has the entrant come in and go out by different gates, to avoid habit and routine, and to prevent the extinguishing of the spark of holiness that burns in the depths of the soul.
It is conceivable that the prophetic injunction is directed primarily at the Jew who has succeeded in approaching G-d and becoming a constant visitor in His Sanctuary. Such a person must take special care against falling into the trap of routine and extinguishing the holy coals that burn upon the altar of his heart. Habit may erase all of the holy impressions he has aggregated. For indeed, even Moses and Aaron, the cream of humanity, were warned against the effects of habit lest they damage the fabric of delicate feelings woven inside them.

This is also the intent of King David when he says, “There is one thing that I have asked of the L-rd. It is this that I request – to dwell in his sanctuary” (Tehillim 27:4). King David’s words here seem self-contradictory. He starts by asking “to dwell in the House of the L-rd,” which implied staying in His house on a permanent basis. But then he asks “to visit His Sanctuary” which implies transiency. King David, however, did want a permanent presence in the House of G-d, as he said, “My soul longs and yearns for the courtyards of the L-rd.” But he was afraid that if he were to be present in the House of G-d on a daily basis, his feelings of enthusiasm might cool. His awe of the Divine Glory might fade. Therefore, he prayed a special prayer that no matter how often and how long he comes to the House of G-d, his presence there should always be regarded as a visit. He prayed that the novelty and specialness of the occasion never wear off, that he always retain the fervor of his first visit.

How can we protect ourselves against falling into routine? We must first not allow ourselves to become distracted. We must be conscious of Whom we stand before. We must be aware of Who it is who will reward us for our actions when their objective is Divine. If we maintain this consciousness, each of our actions will have a life of its own.

This idea is stated in the Midrash: Moses was aggrieved upon hearing that Aaron could not enter the Holy of Holies freely. He thought, “Could it be that my brother Aaron is being rejected?” But the Holy One, Blessed is He, continued, “ ‘With this shall he come to the Sanctuary…’ It is not as you think. Aaron may enter whenever he wishes, as long as he follows this procedure.”

The message of the Midrash is that the Torah merely wished that Aaron not enter the Holy of Holies without any specific task to perform. However, if he enters according to the instructions laid out in the Torah, with the proper sacrificial procedure which entails involvement in matters that lead to holiness, Aaron’s entrance into the Holy of Holies is viewed favorably. Under those conditions, it will never be a matter of routine…

Reprinted with permission from Imrei Shefer: Torah Wisdom on Weekly Parsha, by R’ Shemuel Pinchasi

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