Shemini 2008

Rabbi David Ellenson, the president of Hebrew Union College, tells a story about something that happened to him when he was a boy. He was in his synagogue, and they came to the part of the service where the Cohanim gave the priestly blessing. Ellenson’s father had always told him not to look, because he would see Gd, and go blind. He looked. He didn’t go blind. So David asked his father why he didn’t see Gd, and why he didn’t go blind. His father had a simple answer: “Ask the rabbi.”

So David asked the rabbi. Fortunately, the rabbi also had a good answer. Abraham Joshua Heschel was in the congregation, so the rabbi was able to say “Ask Rabbi Heschel.”

Of course, David Ellenson’s father was not being completely honest when he said his son would go blind. In fact, it was death that David Ellenson was risking, not merely blindness. In chapter 33 of Exodus, Moses asks to see Gd. And Gd replies “You cannot see My face, for man may not see Me and live.” 

In this week’s Torah portion, Shemini, Moses finishes the ordination of Aaron and his sons, and Aaron performs his first sacrifices as High Priest. We then go into a list of which foods are kosher and which are not. 

In between is the mysterious scene in which two of Aaron’s sons, Nadav and Abihu, bring “strange fire,” whatever that might be, and offer it before the Eternal. A fire comes out from before Gd and consumes them. Yet their bodies are not burned, or at least we know their clothes are not, as Aaron’s cousins then must drag them out by their clothes. 

Let us put this bizarre story in context. The Mishkan has just been completed, instructions on how to perform sacrifices were given, and then Aaron and his sons were ordained. At the beginning of this week’s Torah portion Moses instructs Aaron and his four sons to perform the first sacrifices. Moses tells them that when they do so, Gd will be seen.

The sacrifices are made. Aaron blesses all of the people. When he does so,  וַיֵּרָא כְבוֹד־יְי אֶל־כָּל־הָעָם: The presence of Gd is seen by all the people. The presence of Gd is seen by all the people!

Now, you might say that in our Torah portion, we are talking about the presence of Gd, not Gd face to face. But when we look at Exodus 33, we see that that is the very thing-- כְבוֹד־יְי-- that Moses asks to see.

What is the כְבוֹד־יְי? The word כְבוֹד means honor, but the phrase כְבוֹד־יְי is usually translated either as the presence of Gd or the glory of Gd. In Exodus 24:17 it is described as a “consuming fire.” In fact, in our Torah portion, immediately after  we are told that the people see כְבוֹד־יְי, a Divine fire comes forth and consumes the sacrifices on the altar.

Two verses later, in the exact same words, a Divine fire comes forth and consumes Nadav and Abihu. 

I think that without a doubt, these three things are connected. Moses is told he cannot see the glory of Gd, the people do see the glory of Gd, which is like a fire, and then that fire destroys Aaron’s sons.

What does it mean to see Gd? According to the son of the great 12th century commentator Maimonides, to see כְבוֹד־יְי has three possible meanings: It can mean actually seeing Gd. It can mean seeing a Divine light. Or it can mean seeing evidence of Gd’s existence. 

In our Torah portion, when the people see the fire that suddenly appears and consumes the sacrifice, they see evidence of Gd’s existence in the world.

Right after Nadav and Abihu are killed, Moses tells Aaron “This is what the Eternal meant when He said 

בִּקְרֹבַי אֶקָּדֵשׁ וְעַל־פְּנֵי כָל־הָעָם אֶכָּבֵד

This is another mystery. First of all, Gd never said it, or at least it is not written in the Torah. Our commentary translates this as “Through those near to Me I show Myself holy/ and gain glory before all the people.” This could be translated many different ways. It could also mean “I will make holy those who are sacrificed to Me, and My glory will be in the faces of all the people.”

The glory of Gd is the evidence of Gd’s existence in the world, and the evidence of Gd’s existence in the world is in the face of everyone around us. The evidence of Gd’s existence is also in nature, in birth, in transformative ritual, and also in death. Some commentators say that Nadav and Abihu died because they did something wrong. Others say that they did nothing wrong, but just came too close to Gd to live. The word that means to sacrifice also means to come close. “I will make holy those who are sacrificed to Me.”Perhaps Nadav and Abihu didn’t die because they saw Gd. Perhaps they saw Gd because they died.

In Exodus 33, when Moses asks to see Gd’s glory, Gd tells him you cannot see my face and live, but I will hide you in a cleft in the rock while my glory passes by, and you will see that I have passed by. Abraham Joshua Heschel wrote that this means we do not always know that Gd is with us in the midst of our troubles, our joys and our sorrows, but when we look back, we realize that yes, Gd was there.

Heschel gave a different answer to the young David Ellenson, though. He bent down and looked in his face. “Don’t you know that we were made in the image of Gd?” he asked. “If you want to see Gd, go home, and look in a mirror.”

The glory of Gd is all around us. We don’t always remember that it is there. Look in the faces of those around you. כְבוֹד־יְי. Here is the glory of Gd.

Shabbat shalom