Tzav 2010

It is easy to be overwhelmed, perhaps under-whelmed, by the often repetitive and detailed delineation of the korbanot (sacrifices) that comprise the Book of Leviticus.  This week’s parsha, Tzav, is true to Levitical form by showering the reader with details of sacrifice and ritual and cult as performed by the Kohanim on behalf of the Israelites.  The natural inclination of the reader is to glance-read over the details until the eye hits something of interest.  However, as is the way of traditional Torah study, the thoughtful method of learning the Torah portion is to invest time in each verse in order to uncover meaning that at first is not apparent.  An example from this week’s portion is, “And every grain offering of a Kohen will be whole, it shall not be eaten.” (Leviticus 6:16).  What does Judaism learn from this verse that appears in the commentaries?  1)  A Kohen eats the grain offerings of others but not his own as he, too, must make sacrifices in his relationship with Gd, and, 2) A Kohen must first expiate his own sins before expiating those of others, thus exemplifying the Talmudic dictum, קשט עצמך, ואחר כך קשט אחרים, ‘adorn yourself, and only then can you adorn others’ or, more colloquially, ‘point the finger at yourself before turning it on others.’  Perhaps we can also apply this teaching to our Torah study:  invest yourself in learning the week’s parsha, and only then can you critique it from a place of knowledge.