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Shiurim & Adult Education
THOUGHTS ON TETZAVEH BY AVI SON
Throughout the entirety of parshat Tetzaveh our focus deals almost exclusively with the Cohanim and their service in the Mishkan. We describe in vast details their immaculate garments, their rituals and their offerings. Yet, there is one detail in this week’s parsha which doesn’t seem intrinsically linked as part of the accessories of the Cohanim, this is the ner tamid, the eternal flame.
In fact, our parsha begins by discussing this ner tamid before proceeding to move on to the central theme surrounding the Cohanim. Why do we start our parsha in this way? Surely, it would have made more sense for the commandment regarding the ner tamid to be written at the conclusion of last week’s sedrah, Terumah, rather than at the beginning of Tetzaveh, then we could have started off with the inauguration of Aharon and his sons and continued on along this central theme?
The answer must lie in the fact that there is something intrinsically powerful within the concept of the ner tamid that relates and elucidates the role of the Cohanim.
The role of the Cohanim was to continuously reflect G-d’s light in this world, to unceasingly strive for spirituality and spiritual perfection and to tirelessly work to ensure G-d’s presence could rest in the Mishkan. Ramban, based on the Gemara in Menachot 98b, explains that the western menorah remained lit the entire time. So too, the cohanim’s work and dedication was unending, it was a constant job that consistently required the utmost attention. When the Cohanim were on duty in the Temple there would be a special room there where they slept, as they needed to be present 24/7 for that period.
In parshat Yitro the Jewish people are described as ‘mamlechet cohanim v’goi kadosh’ – ‘a kingdom of priests and a holy people’. It is the role of every Jewish person to emulate these Cohanim, to draw strength from the potency of the ner tamid, to ensure we all unceasingly work to bring and reflect G-d’s Light in the world. It is a hard and unending task, but we strive towards it bit by bit, day by day, mitzvah by mitzvah. Just as the Cohanim worked to make the Mishkan a place Hashem would reside, so too we have the same task with the wider world to make it a better place, a more spiritual place where we can live fully within the context of Hashem’s laws. The Mishna in Pirkei Avot tells us that “the task is never complete” but nevertheless, the act of bringing light into the world, of reflecting the ner tamid, is a worthy achievement and goal in of itself.
Shabbat shalom
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