Iyar 5, 5776/May 13, 2016
This week's Torah reading, Emor, opens with a series of commandments stipulating the qualifications and requirements of kohanim (priests) serving in the Holy Temple. These stipulations include both physical attributes which are beyond the control of the individual kohanim and life decisions by which kohanim who wish to serve in the Holy Temple must abide. While some of these requirements may seem unjust to our modern sensibilities, (akohen with a physical deformity cannot perform offerings upon the altar), and others may seem unfair or even inhumane, (a kohen may not attend the funeral of a loved one), these and other strict requirements are nevertheless imposed by Torah upon the sons of Aharon who desire to fulfill their G-d given mandate to serve in the Holy Temple.
Torah then goes on to describe the requirements of the High Priest - the Kohen Gadol. "And the kohen who is elevated above his brothers, upon whose head the anointment oil has been poured or who has been inaugurated to wear the garments he shall not leave his hair unshorn or rend his garments." (Lev. 21:10) Thus Torah begins its description of the prerequisites for the office of High Priest. But wait a minute. Did we get that right?"And the kohen who is elevated above his brothers," or, more literally, "And the kohen who is greater than his brothers," as the Hebrew words 'gadol m...' means bigger or greater than. This turn of phrase employed by Torah immediately sounds an alarm for us: Hasn't man been beset by sibling rivalries, jealousies and even hatred ever since Cain killed his brother Abel after the two made offerings to G-d and G-d favored Abel's offering over Cain's? From Cain and Abel to Yitzchak and Yishmael, to Yaakov and Esau, and to the ten sons of Yaakov who envied their brother Yosef and sold him into slavery, the book of Genesis chronicles the tragically fatal flaw of sibling adversity which has afflicted mankind from its first generation and ultimately delivered the children of Israel into Egyptian slavery, far from their appointed destiny of dwelling in G-d's presence in the land of Israel.
It was only after the sons of Yaakov repented, forgave one another and reunited in the land of Egypt at the close of Genesis that the spark of hope for mankind was rekindled. And it was only after the great brotherly love between Moshe, Miriam, ("His sister stood from afar, to know what would be done to him..." Exodus 2:4) and Aharon ("behold, he is coming forth toward you, and when he sees you, he will rejoice in his heart" ibid 4:14) revealed itself in the opening chapters of the book of Exodus, does G-d "remember" His promise to Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov, and shares with Moshe His intention to deliver Israel from bondage and take them for His people. Why then, after G-d has liberated Israel from Egypt and Israel has built for G-d a Sanctuary and G-d has filled the Sanctuary with His presence, does Torah dare raise again the 'demon' of brotherly rivalry?"And the kohen who is elevated above his brothers?" How dare Torah risk it all?
The additional requirements demanded of the Kohen Gadol - the High Priest - are not perks or privileges of office, but responsibilities and additional stringencies. The High Priest must never leave the Temple compound and he must always wear his unique priestly garments. But having to measure up to these imposing requirements is not what makes the High Priest "greater than his brothers."
The Kohen Gadol is required to represent the entire nation of Israel before HaShem in the Holy Temple, from the greatest to the smallest, from the most righteous to the least righteous, every man woman and child. It is toward this end that the Kohen Gadol wears every day the breastplate - the Choshen Mishpat and the Ephod embedded with the twelve stones representing the twelve tribes of the nation of Israel. He cannot leave the Temple complex nor defile himself via contact with the dead, even at the expense of attending the burial of his own father or mother, because he needs to be on duty, representing his people before G-d twenty four hours a day, seven days a week, every day of his life until he dies. He is allotted no pension, sick days or vacation. His level of constant and unwavering commitment is truly a sign of greatness. But from where does his greatness derive?
From our knowledge of Aharon the first High Priest, it is clear that his outstanding quality was that of modesty and selflessness. He humbled himself before his younger brotherMoshe, accepting his leadership and authority. In the debacle of the golden calf he attached his fate to the fate of his sinning brethren, rather than take the high road and say, after the fact, "I told you so." The death of his two sons, Nadav and Avihu, in the very place of his own service, he accepted silently, without complaint or resentment. When a plague broke out after the bitter dispute with Korach and his followers, he rushed into the abyss with the ketoret incense to stop the spread of death. When his sisterMiriam was afflicted with tzar'at after speaking harshly about Moshe, Aharon pleaded with G-d for her recovery. Ancient tradition has it that Aharon worked tirelessly throughout the forty years in the desert as a mediator, resolving disputes between husband and wife, so much so that the name Aharon became the most popular name given to newborn baby boys of the generation that would enter the land of Israel. In short, the greatness required of the Kohen Gadol is the greatness of humility and modesty, of placing everyone else's well-being before his own, of always being there in the right place and the right time, (the Holy Temple), to represent and bear responsibility for his people, the nation of Israel, every last soul.
If this is true, then we are left with a riddle. If Aharon was "greater than his brothers" in humility and selflessness, and his one brother was Moshe, then how could Torah testify that "this man Moshe was exceedingly humble, more so than any person on the face of the earth?" (Numbers 12:3) Even more so, it would seem, than Aharon. Aharon's humility, in fact, derives from the exceeding humility of his brother Moshe, who was commanded to raise his brother Aharon to the position of Kohen Gadol. Being "greater that his brothers"in the case of the Kohen Gadol, means being greater in selflessness and humility, elevating all one's brothers and sisters above oneself, treasuring and guarding their fate and standing before G-d , even before one's own. Greatness in selflessness.
-The Temple Institute
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