Yom Kippur 5772
A few weeks ago in Parshas Niztavim we read the opening line “אַתֶּם נִצָּבִים הַיּוֹם כֻּלְּכֶם, לִפְנֵי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם: רָאשֵׁיכֶם שִׁבְטֵיכֶם, זִקְנֵיכֶם וְשֹׁטְרֵיכֶם, כֹּל, אִישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל.” “ATEM Nitzavim hayom culchem lifnei Adonai Eloheichem”” You stand before me today, all of you, before the Lord your G-d. Chazal mention that the word אַתֶּם is an acronym for “אל תשליכני מלפנך” “Do not cast me away from before you”. Why would this sentiment be expressed here, when Moshe states that the entire nation is standing before G-d?
There is an interesting concept taught in “Tomer Devorah” by Rabbi Moshe Cordovero. In there, he makes the point that when we pray as a community, we are seen as a community, that we judged as a community and thus are punished or forgiven as a community. When we pray as individuals, we are seen as individuals, we are judged as individuals and punished or forgiven as individuals. However, we know that as a nation g-d will never forsake us, as a nation though F-d may distance himself from us, he will never abandon us complete. As it states in Sefer Yermiyahu, “Israel, though it sins, remains Israel”. Does this same concept apply to individuals?
To that I can only say- to a limited extent. As individuals, we CAN cut ourselves off from G-d, we can find ourselves punished with kares, spiritual excision, where our soul is eternally cut off from G-d. However, even someone who has earned the punishment of Kares, can do teshuvah and return and once again to connect to G-d. Even such a person can once again be fully a part of the community that they have been cut off from and assured of their place in the world to come.
Here is where I will introduce yet another concept from “Tomer Devorah”- the idea that one of G-d’s attributes of mercy is that he forgives even when we don’t deserve it. Essentially he wipes the slate clean and sees if we can live without repeating the same mistakes, allowing us an opportunity to be righteous even when we are too stubborn to repent for ourselves. This we see in the Tanakh at those times that Israel sinned, were being punished and G-d allowed them to rise up again, even though they had not manifestly changed their way of living. G-d was prepared to give the nation another chace, in his mercy he wanted us to be close to him, and not estranged. Similarly, G-d exercises this restraint towards us as individuals, forgiving us, even though we may not have repented in ourselves.
However, as a community, this forgiveness is much easier to come by. When we participate as a community, when we join with a community, we part of a while. Our own individual foibles and deeds become submerged within the whole, we become part and parcel of the greater group. Every one of us has a great role to play, every one of us is an important part of the mix, every one of us has an unique voice to add to the chorus but we are part if a whole, whose sum is far greater than its parts.
Thus the statement of Moshe, you stand before G-d, as a group, as a whole- do not become estranged, do not become cast away. The plaintive cry of “Do not cast me away from before you G-d” is part of the Musaf service on Yom Kippur, we beg G-d not to send us away, not to punish us by dismissing us from his presence. We want to be part of the whole, we want to be part of a nation that no matter what, G-d will never abandon.
As we stand here, at the start of Yom Kippur, as we have just recited Kol Nidre, along with its introduction that “With the permission of the heavenly court, and the permission of the earthly court we declare it lawful to pray with the sinners”, we see that a community is only complete when all its elements are present. The Temple incense, burned in the holy of holies, contained galbonim, a foul smelling herb, since, as the sages teach, we are only a complete nation when those with a foul odor i.e. the sinners, are included. And now, at the start of Yom Kippur, we want those sinners there, we want them to have the chance to have their sins forgiven, to be joined with us, to be forgiven as part of the national forgiveness that G-d shows to Bnei Yisrael.
Yet there is an element of sadness here that there is one category of sinners that have so completely abandoned Judaism that they are not considered part of the community, that cannot join with the community at either times of joy or times of sadness. When it comes to the apostate, to the Jew that has converted to another religion, the Torah states that the person is no longer a part of the Jewish people, that they are no longer a part of the community. It states this in connection with the Korban Pesach in Shmot 12:43, forbidding the Jew converted to another religion from offering it, and thus indicating that they are punished with kares, spiritual excision. As such, at a time when they are excluded from the community, what better time to exhort them to repent, to return to Judaism, so they, too, can be counted amongst the community and receive forgiveness from G-d
Tactic: Fake apologies to appear “holier than thou!”
First an apology, I have been woefully bad at blogging this year, both here and over at “Musings of an Orthodox Jew”. It comes from just taking on too much at once, something has to give. So far to has been this blog, but that is because I have had to devote extra time to preparing shiurim. I now give two shiurim a week at a weekly study session, one in which we are studying maschta Menachos the other, the laws of prayer. Thus, blog posts will be fewer, but will still appear from time to time.
SO why have I taken time out for this post? Previously I blogged about apologising with one account while attacking with another. Of course that caused a furious storm of denials from the “messianic jews” involved, they were none too happy to be caught out using multiple accounts for fake apologies! This time, they were more careful and only used one account, what they lacked was self-control!
So first, there was an exchange in which they thought they could score brownie points by attacking me because I had an error in a blog post. Yes, its true, I’m human and make errors (now now, don’t all protest too loudly LOL). Pointing out that I was 1) aware of the error, and 2) had corrected it months ago led to them throwing around more insults (anyone reading this surprised at that?) So a bit of evidence later and Adelphi (using the Ascii butterfly nowadays) apologised, both in the comments and by mail via the Yahoo!Answers PM function. Sounds good doesn’t it? She accuses me of something, gets proven wrong, and then does the “Christian” thing and apologises. So, lets look at the apologies (graphic files of the apologies at the bottom of this post.
First one: In the comments thread (second to last comment in the graphics; feel free to read all 100, though you might just want to the end)
Yes, you are right, I was wrong. Since I was wrong and misjudged you, I will leave the forgiveness part up to you. I’m sorry. You did correct the story of the 4 Sages, and I, unaware of your other answers, blamed you for continuing in error.
My sincerest apologies.
Second: The mail apology (yeah, bad netiquette and all)
Subject: Personal
Message: I posted an apology regarding the 4 sages fiasco. I hope you accept it.
I don’t post on the comments much, and don’t expect to in the future.
I hope you are able to rise above all the ugly exchanges and find room to forgive misjudging you on that matter. It was sincere and it’s what G-d would have me do under the circumstances.
I do wish you well,
Adelphi
Even better, right? Sounds sincere, she’s going to stray out of the comments in the future etc. Well, aside from the holier than thou attitude quickly seized on by her “messianic jewish” cohorts about how the apologise and I am so evil as to not take them seriously. Kinda spoils the holier than thou stance if you make it look like your apologies are political tools for debating points. But, then, we have seen from their actions that the truth is, that IS what apologies are to them, not a sign of remorse, but a tool to try to score points. Heh, it also helps if you have some self-restraint; not a noticeable trait amongst the “messianic jews” of Yahoo!Answers.
So a few days later, Adelphi posts a new set of insults. Honestly, these were so ridiculous that I had a good laugh. Amongst them was a warning to be careful of me since I am a master of kabbalah and know all their secrets! It was funny, it was amusing, it was obviously said with a bit of tongue in cheek sarcasm for effect- I didn’t even have the heart to report it. Then again, maybe it was too intelligent for them so it was quickly removed (with me being accused of having it deleted (and Adelphi admitting to multiple accounts)- wish it were that easy, getting stuff removed from the comments section seems impossible!)
So instead of the more cleverly thought out, amusing and enjoyable insults (yeah, it can be fun when insults are properly constructed and not just the equivalent of a ten-year old in the school’s yard taunt), we are back to the boring, staid rubbish they love, plus a new wrinkle. Now I am a cult leader on Yahoo!Answers (damn, I really chose the wrong place for that! No groupies or money around, what kind of self-respecting cult leader has a cult like that?). And to bolster everything- attacks on Chabad/Lubavitch as a cult, accusing me of being a member of Chabad Lubavitch (hey, no point in attacking them if they cannot attack me, right?), and thus of being a cult member! Never mind that I have frequently stated I am NOT a member of Chabad or of any Chassidic movement; nor of the fact that I have frequently stated that I generally follow the rulings of HaRav Moshe Feinstein zs’l who is solidly Litvak and far from anything Chassidic. Nope, reality does not intrude into the world of “messianic jews”, so they throw accusations around without bothering with the evidence to the contrary.
Thus, yet again, we see the “messianic jews” trying to use fake apologies to build a platform to make themselves seem righteous; but failing since they have the willpower of a child and demand instant gratification.
Information: The location of sacrifices
Some of the “messianic jews” when attacking Judaism like to claim that we don’t follow the Torah because we don’t offer sacrifices anymore. They claim that the Rabbi’s just wanted to grab power for themselves and thus removed sacrifices, made up the excuse that sacrifices have to be offered in the Temple, and then stopped the rebuilding of the Temple. One of the things they try to bring to show they are right is the fact that Moses offered sacrifices in the desert. So, let us look at what the Torah and Tanakh have to say on this topic.
Vayikra (Leviticus)
Chapter 1
3. If his sacrifice is a burnt offering from cattle, an unblemished male he shall bring it. He shall bring it willingly to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting, before the Lord. ג. אִם עֹלָה קָרְבָּנוֹ מִן הַבָּקָר זָכָר תָּמִים יַקְרִיבֶנּוּ אֶל פֶּתַח אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד יַקְרִיב אֹתוֹ לִרְצֹנוֹ לִפְנֵי יְ־הֹוָ־ה:
5. And he shall slaughter the young bull before the Lord. And Aaron’s descendants, the kohanim, shall bring the blood, and dash the blood upon the altar, around [the altar] which is at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting. ה. וְשָׁחַט אֶת בֶּן הַבָּקָר לִפְנֵי יְ־הֹוָ־ה וְהִקְרִיבוּ בְּנֵי אַהֲרֹן הַכֹּהֲנִים אֶת הַדָּם וְזָרְקוּ אֶת הַדָּם עַל הַמִּזְבֵּחַ סָבִיב אֲשֶׁר פֶּתַח אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד:
Chapter 3
2. And he shall lean his hand [forcefully] upon the head of his sacrifice and slaughter it at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting. And Aaron’s descendants, the kohanim, shall dash the blood upon the altar, around. ב. וְסָמַךְ יָדוֹ עַל רֹאשׁ קָרְבָּנוֹ וּשְׁחָטוֹ פֶּתַח אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד וְזָרְקוּ בְּנֵי אַהֲרֹן הַכֹּהֲנִים אֶת הַדָּם עַל הַמִּזְבֵּחַ סָבִיב:
8. And he shall lean his hand [forcefully] upon the head of his sacrifice, and slaughter it before the Tent of Meeting. And Aaron’s descendants shall dash its blood upon the altar, around. ח. וְסָמַךְ אֶת יָדוֹ עַל רֹאשׁ קָרְבָּנוֹ וְשָׁחַט אֹתוֹ לִפְנֵי אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד וְזָרְקוּ בְּנֵי אַהֲרֹן אֶת דָּמוֹ עַל הַמִּזְבֵּחַ סָבִיב:
13. and he shall lean his hand [forcefully] upon its head and slaughter it before the Tent of Meeting, and Aaron’s descendants shall dash its blood upon the altar, around. יג. וְסָמַךְ אֶת יָדוֹ עַל רֹאשׁוֹ וְשָׁחַט אֹתוֹ לִפְנֵי אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד וְזָרְקוּ בְּנֵי אַהֲרֹן אֶת דָּמוֹ עַל הַמִּזְבֵּחַ סָבִיב:
Chapter 4
4. And he shall bring the bull to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting before the Lord, and he shall lean his hand [forcefully] upon the bull’s head and slaughter the bull before the Lord. ד. וְהֵבִיא אֶת הַפָּר אֶל פֶּתַח אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד לִפְנֵי יְ־הֹוָ־ה וְסָמַךְ אֶת יָדוֹ עַל רֹאשׁ הַפָּר וְשָׁחַט אֶת הַפָּר לִפְנֵי יְ־הֹוָ־ה:
7. And the kohen shall place some of the blood on the horns of the incense altar which is in the Tent of Meeting, before the Lord, and he shall pour all the blood of the bull onto the base of the altar [used] for burnt offerings, which is at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting. ז. וְנָתַן הַכֹּהֵן מִן הַדָּם עַל קַרְנוֹת מִזְבַּח קְטֹרֶת הַסַּמִּים לִפְנֵי יְ־הֹוָ־ה אֲשֶׁר בְּאֹהֶל מוֹעֵד וְאֵת כָּל דַּם הַפָּר יִשְׁפֹּךְ אֶל יְסוֹד מִזְבַּח הָעֹלָה אֲשֶׁר פֶּתַח אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד:
14. When the sin which they had committed becomes known, the congregation shall bring a young bull as a sin offering. They shall bring it before the Tent of Meeting. יד. וְנוֹדְעָה הַחַטָּאת אֲשֶׁר חָטְאוּ עָלֶיהָ וְהִקְרִיבוּ הַקָּהָל פַּר בֶּן בָּקָר לְחַטָּאת וְהֵבִיאוּ אֹתוֹ לִפְנֵי אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד:
16. The anointed kohen shall bring some of the bull’s blood into the Tent of Meeting, טז. וְהֵבִיא הַכֹּהֵן הַמָּשִׁיחַ מִדַּם הַפָּר אֶל אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד:
18. And he shall then place some of the blood on the horns of the altar that is before the Lord in the Tent of Meeting. And then he shall pour all the blood onto the base of the altar [used] for burnt offerings, which is at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. יח. וּמִן הַדָּם יִתֵּן עַל קַרְנֹת הַמִּזְבֵּחַ אֲשֶׁר לִפְנֵי יְ־הֹוָ־ה אֲשֶׁר בְּאֹהֶל מוֹעֵד וְאֵת כָּל הַדָּם יִשְׁפֹּךְ אֶל יְסוֹד מִזְבַּח הָעֹלָה אֲשֶׁר פֶּתַח אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד:
I could go on like this through the book of Vayikra, and show others from Devarim, but the point has been made. Sacrifices in the desert (and before the building of the Temple) had to be made at the tent of meeting by the Kohanim (Aharon and his descendants)- i.e. the Mishkan. Before that they could be made anywhere. Since Moshe only offered sacrifices before the investure of Aharon and his sons, these laws never applied until they became relevant.
Hmm, but why do we say this is the only place they could be offered? Perhaps they could be offered elsewhere as well and this was just the best case scenario and preferred method rather than the only method? To teach us otherwise the Torah states:
Vayikra Chapter 17
3. Any man of the House of Israel, who slaughters an ox, a lamb, or a goat inside the camp, or who slaughters outside the camp, ג. אִישׁ אִישׁ מִבֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל אֲשֶׁר יִשְׁחַט שׁוֹר אוֹ כֶשֶׂב אוֹ עֵז בַּמַּחֲנֶה אוֹ אֲשֶׁר יִשְׁחַט מִחוּץ לַמַּחֲנֶה:
4. but does not bring it to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting to offer up as a sacrifice to the Lord before the Mishkan of the Lord, this [act] shall be counted for that man as blood he has shed blood, and that man shall be cut off from among his people; ד. וְאֶל פֶּתַח אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד לֹא הֱבִיאוֹ לְהַקְרִיב קָרְבָּן לַי־הֹוָ־ה לִפְנֵי מִשְׁכַּן יְ־הֹוָ־ה דָּם יֵחָשֵׁב לָאִישׁ הַהוּא דָּם שָׁפָךְ וְנִכְרַת הָאִישׁ הַהוּא מִקֶּרֶב עַמּוֹ:
8. And you should say to them: Any man of the House of Israel or of the strangers who will sojourn among them, who offers up a burnt offering or [any other] sacrifice, ח. וַאֲלֵהֶם תֹּאמַר אִישׁ אִישׁ מִבֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל וּמִן הַגֵּר אֲשֶׁר יָגוּר בְּתוֹכָם אֲשֶׁר יַעֲלֶה עֹלָה אוֹ זָבַח:
9. but does not bring it to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting to make it [a sacrifice] to the Lord, that man shall be cut off from his people. ט. וְאֶל פֶּתַח אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד לֹא יְבִיאֶנּוּ לַעֲשׂוֹת אֹתוֹ לַי־הֹוָ־ה וְנִכְרַת הָאִישׁ הַהוּא מֵעַמָּיו:
So before the Temple was built it seems unequivocal that sacrifices had to be brought to the Mishkan to be offered. How do we know this sanctity transferred to the Temple, and more importantly, how do we know the Temple has to be built in a specific place and thus why we cannot just rebuild it somewhere else?
First we have King David being ordered to build it in a specific area
Divrei HaYamim (Chronicles) 1 ch 21
18. And the angel of the Lord said to Gad to say to David that David should go up to erect an altar to the Lord in the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite. יח וּמַלְאַךְ יְהוָה אָמַר אֶל-גָּד, לֵאמֹר לְדָוִיד: כִּי יַעֲלֶה דָוִיד, לְהָקִים מִזְבֵּחַ לַיהוָה, בְּגֹרֶן, אָרְנָן הַיְבֻסִי.
19. And David went up according to the word of Gad that he spoke in the name of the Lord. יט. וַיַּעַל דָּוִיד בִּדְבַר-גָּד, אֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר בְּשֵׁם יְהוָה.
20. And Ornan returned and saw the angel, and his four sons who were with him hid themselves, and Ornan was threshing wheat. כ. וַיָּשָׁב אָרְנָן, וַיַּרְא אֶת-הַמַּלְאָךְ, וְאַרְבַּעַת בָּנָיו עִמּוֹ, מִתְחַבְּאִים; וְאָרְנָן, דָּשׁ חִטִּים.
21. And David came up to Ornan, and Ornan looked and saw David, and he went forth from the threshing-floor, and he bowed down to David with his face to the ground. כא. וַיָּבֹא דָוִיד, עַד-אָרְנָן; וַיַּבֵּט אָרְנָן, וַיַּרְא אֶת-דָּוִיד, וַיֵּצֵא מִן-הַגֹּרֶן, וַיִּשְׁתַּחוּ לְדָוִיד אַפַּיִם אָרְצָה.
22. And David said to Ornan, “Give me the place of the threshing-floor, so that I may build thereon an altar to the Lord; give it to me for the full price, so that the plague be stayed from the people.” כב. וַיֹּאמֶר דָּוִיד אֶל-אָרְנָן, תְּנָה-לִּי מְקוֹם הַגֹּרֶן, וְאֶבְנֶה-בּוֹ מִזְבֵּחַ, לַיהוָה; בְּכֶסֶף מָלֵא תְּנֵהוּ לִי, וְתֵעָצַר הַמַּגֵּפָה מֵעַל הָעָם.
23. And Ornan said to David, “Take for yourself, and may my lord the king do what seems good in his eyes. See, I have given the cattle for burnt offerings, and the threshing tools for [fire] wood, and the wheat for a meal offering; I have given everything.” כג. וַיֹּאמֶר אָרְנָן אֶל-דָּוִיד קַח-לָךְ, וְיַעַשׂ אֲדֹנִי הַמֶּלֶךְ הַטּוֹב בְּעֵינָיו; רְאֵה נָתַתִּי הַבָּקָר לָעֹלוֹת, וְהַמּוֹרִגִּים לָעֵצִים וְהַחִטִּים לַמִּנְחָה–הַכֹּל נָתָתִּי.
24. And King David said to Ornan, “No, for I will buy [it] for the full price, for I will not take what is yours for the Lord, and offer up burnt offerings for nothing.” כד. וַיֹּאמֶר הַמֶּלֶךְ דָּוִיד, לְאָרְנָן, לֹא, כִּי-קָנֹה אֶקְנֶה בְּכֶסֶף מָלֵא: כִּי לֹא-אֶשָּׂא אֲשֶׁר-לְךָ, לַיהוָה, וְהַעֲלוֹת עוֹלָה, חִנָּם.
25. And David gave to Ornan for the place shekels of gold weighing six hundred. כה. וַיִּתֵּן דָּוִיד לְאָרְנָן, בַּמָּקוֹם, שִׁקְלֵי זָהָב, מִשְׁקָל שֵׁשׁ מֵאוֹת.
26. And David built an altar there to the Lord, and he offered up burnt offerings and peace offerings, and he called out to the Lord, and He answered him with fire from heaven on the altar of the burnt offerings. וַיִּבֶן שָׁם דָּוִיד מִזְבֵּחַ לַיהוָה, וַיַּעַל עֹלוֹת וּשְׁלָמִים; וַיִּקְרָא, אֶל-יְהוָה, וַיַּעֲנֵהוּ בָאֵשׁ מִן-הַשָּׁמַיִם, עַל מִזְבַּח הָעֹלָה.
Then King Solomon build the Temple in the specified area
Divrei Hayamim II
Chapter 3
1. And Solomon commenced to build the House of the Lord in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where He had appeared to his father David, which he had prepared in David’s place, in the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. א וַיָּחֶל שְׁלֹמֹה, לִבְנוֹת אֶת-בֵּית-יְהוָה בִּירוּשָׁלִַם, בְּהַר הַמּוֹרִיָּה, אֲשֶׁר נִרְאָה לְדָוִיד אָבִיהוּ–אֲשֶׁר הֵכִין בִּמְקוֹם דָּוִיד, בְּגֹרֶן אָרְנָן הַיְבוּסִי.
Then we have G-d appearing to King Solomon to bless him and declare that he had chosen the area thus sanctifying it
Chapter 7
12. And the Lord appeared to Solomon at night, and He said to him, “I have heard your prayer, and I have chosen this place for Myself for a House of sacrifice. יב. וַיֵּרָא יְהוָה אֶל-שְׁלֹמֹה, בַּלָּיְלָה; וַיֹּאמֶר לוֹ, שָׁמַעְתִּי אֶת-תְּפִלָּתֶךָ, וּבָחַרְתִּי בַּמָּקוֹם הַזֶּה לִי, לְבֵית זָבַח.
and then we have the statement that this was an eternal statute for where the Temple had to stand
16. And now, I have chosen and consecrated this House that My name be there forever, and My eyes and heart will be there at all times טז וְעַתָּה, בָּחַרְתִּי וְהִקְדַּשְׁתִּי אֶת-הַבַּיִת הַזֶּה, לִהְיוֹת-שְׁמִי שָׁם, עַד-עוֹלָם; וְהָיוּ עֵינַי וְלִבִּי שָׁם, כָּל-הַיָּמִים.
So, David chose the spot, Solomon built on the spot and then G-d said that would be the spot forever! So, once G-d has said that is the spot forever, its not exactly like we have the right to go against a direct statement by G-d for our convenience!
What this discussion does display very clearly is the fact that the “messianic jews” despite claiming to be knowledgeable in the Torah and Jewish beliefs clearly are ignorant in both! None of this is hidden, esoteric, hidden away or difficult to find. Anyone knowledgeable in Tanakh would have read these and understood their implications; thus this illustrates that the “messianic jews” are not knowledgeable and have little to no understanding of what is taught in the Torah, Nevi’im and Ketuvim