Rabbi Benjamin Yudin Discusses Parshas Shemini (5786)

Good morning. Good shabas everybody. Tomorrow we have the privilege of reading parasi. Paras shimini contains 17 mitzvos. The first half of the para deals with that incredible day of yashi the eighth day. And as the maral says the number seven is usually denoting tea, the natural order of things and 8 as in kaneka and eight as onatas and eight over here in this week's parisha it is the eighth day following the seven days of miluim the seven days of inauguration whereby the kohanim were so to speak training for this day when the sanctuary began its fullfledged operation. And this is the day that Hashem moves into the Jewish community and his presence is literally made visible as the Torah tells us that fire comes down from heaven. The people saw it and the people literally call out in song and they fall on their face. They in respect and trepidation. It is clear to them that God has moved in. This is the first part of the para. The second half of the parisha deals with the uh laws of kashus, the extensive laws we should say. The Torah gives us no less than 47ukim in chapter 11 with all the laws of identifying the kosher animals, fish, birds, insects. And I want to point out something which is fascinating. Wherever the Torah speaks about the Jewish dietary laws, kashus, it is always either preceded or followed by the aspect of kaduca sanctity. In other words, the Torah doesn't tell us why we are to keep kosha. But in Mishim in chapter 22 30, the Torah says, "You are to be a people of holiness to me." And the second half of the pa continues, "You're not to eat the flesh of an animal that was torn in the field." Again, the preface to the law of tra is the being holy. In the fifth book of the Torah in paras, the introductory verse right before the enumeration of the specifics of kash of that you're not to eat any abomination and the rest of the laws that are found in chapter 14. What does the Torah say in in verse two? For you are a holy people to Hashem your God and you it is that Hashem has chosen for himself to be a treasured people from among all the peoples on the face of the earth. And finally in this week's para of Shmini, how does the Torah conclude the laws of Kashus in chapter 11 verse 44ish? I am your God and you are to sanctify yourselves from the word kadusha and holiness and you shall be holy for I am holy and you're not to contaminate you're not to pollute your souls and again the next verse I am God. And it doesn't say who literally took you out and extricated you and Moi which is what we usually find. But here ma literally to elevate and what does Rashi say that you have and in the name of Rashi quotes mole were not for Israel if it weren't for the fact that to give them these laws of right this is says Rashi malusabayu this is considered an elevation And this is considered that which elevates the Jewish psyche. And I'd like to point out something which again I invite for your table discussion. What might be the connection between the first part of the para and the second part? The first part deals with God literally causing his shina, his divine presence to dwell in man, in the community of man through the sanctuary. And the second part is the laws of kashras. And I believe that one answer might very well be that just as we can appreciate the detailed laws of when you can and when you cannot enter the sanctuary and in what condition you are to be in a state of purity and one could not enter the sanctuary if they were not pure. Now that we don't longer unfortunately have a sanctuary, each and every Jew is to look upon themselves as a miniature sanctuary. And therefore the laws of Kashros, the laws of keeping kosher literally uplift the individual. And those same details of what can and cannot go in literally to our bodies affect our sanctity, our holiness. Because indeed we are a continuation of God's presence in this world. And having just finished the holiday of Pesak with all the incredible details that we had in the preparation and the observance thereof, it is worthy for us to pause for a moment and remember the kadoshim to remember the many many in various labor camps in various ghettos, in various concentration camps that went to such great length to try in every which way to maintain the dietary laws throughout the year and especially on Pesak. And it is very noteworthy to reflect upon their incredible gavor, their incredible strength of character that they exhibited at that time. The late Rabbim Ushri who survived the war. He was a RV in the Kovn ghetto and he survived the war and he came to the shores of America was a RV on the lower east side and wrote five volumes of Shalos Unchuos Mimakim. He incredibly notes how Jews asked all kinds of questions under the most extreme and challenging circumstances. Of course, the tried every which way to not simply work with the people, but told them that when there is no matzah on the night of Pes and you have no choice but to eat on the night of Pesak, there is a special prayer that one will recite in the concentration camp before he eats the matzah. And instead of saying the of what they said was God, we are fulfilling the mitzvah of whereby the Jew is bound to live by the laws of the Torah and not. So they ate the when they had to, but they did so not only with a craft. They did so by showing their incredible devotion to the law and their longing to be a part thereof. We must learn from them in terms of their asking. We too should not assume that we know all of Jewish law, but rather we too are to question and to try to do it in the best way possible. And as the Torah tells us that Kashurus is to lead towards sanctity, I'd like to share with you an most moving account of an individual's final moment on this earth as recorded by Rav Mosha Praga. He wrote about the great sadikra mendel of pabyanit as he took his final journey to treblinka. As the speeding train came to a screeching halt, the thousands of Jews on it were emptied out to the orchestration of the German guard dogs. The children held on tightly to their mothers while the elderly stumbled and struggled to move forward with the stream of the confused and terrified crowd. The stench of death filled the air. A few hundred feet from where they stood, billows of smoke ascended, carrying the cries of the innocents to heaven. The guards screamed at the new arrivals. The younger ones probably had no idea where they were heading, but most of the older ones knew exactly what was in store for them. They knew that within a few moments they were going to join the millions of other nishamos. But Mendel walked among the crowd. He seemed to be quietly preparing himself for his final journey. Suddenly, he stumbled and looked down and was shocked to see a tiny baby just a few months old on the ground. He bent down to pick up a child and immediately noticed that it was bleeding. He tried to make the bleeding stop, but was unsuccessful. He walked along trying to quiet the baby while looking for its mother. With hundreds of people standing around, he could not find her. All of a sudden, a German god approached him and laughed. Rabina, you have such a beautiful beard. He ran his thick fingers through Rendle's beard and then added, "You will lead the procession to the showers." Rendle was dragged to the front of the huge crowd. And then he turned around toward them and lifted the innocent baby. Rabosai, do you see what I am holding in my hands? I am holding Kadusha. There is nothing more precious or holy in the entire world than a Tyra Yiddish aakind. His words rattled the group. Most people were stumbling about numb with fear. When one is steeped in darkness and suddenly is exposed to light, he scurries to run away to hide from the light. The creatures who live in darkness will stop at nothing in order to keep the light from shining. Why are these rishims so anxious to destroy this baby? Is it because he represents Kadusha and they are the most wretched and lowly of humanity? They are repulsed by the light of our son. Remendal baby in his arms continued to speak to the crowd more passionately than ever. The Nazis Makim came to my home and began to beat me. But when they saw the safetra, they left me alone and pounced on it like dogs trying to utterly destroy it. I thought to myself, why? Why attack an inanimate object with such hatred? And the answer he said is simple. It is because they hate Kadusha. And that is why they hate the safety Torah and they hate this beautiful baby and they hate you and me and every Jew on the face of this earth because we are holy and they hate holiness. And when you destroy a safety Torah, you are destroying the Jew connected to it. Rendle could see the life returning to their faces. They were special and holy and now they knew it. Don't ever forget what this battle is all about. It's not about you and me. This fight goes back many years from before we were ever around. It is the fight of the Satan who seeks out the most evil nation on earth and unleashes that nation on Clai Israel. We are just one link in the long chain of cla. The Satan will continue to unleash his enemies against us because of what we represent. Yidden. We are Gar Hale. We are extremely holy. The hundreds of Jews who had listened hung on to each word as if someone had given them a lifeline. This battle has spanned centuries. There have been Edom and Moab and Amik and Plesius and San andar and Titus and in more recent years Tokimada and Kamonitzki. They have all fought us for one reason because we are holy. The Satan will always find the most powerful nations on earth and use them to destroy us. But he never will because amil is nitri eternal. Ra mendo lifted up the bleeding baby as if it were a safetyra. Vizo listen. This is the hero of our battle. This beautiful baby is what infuriates a Nazi guard more than anything else. The purity and sanctity of a Yiddisha child. And know this, no matter how strong the enemy gets, they will eventually crumble before the kaduca of a Jew. Ramen began to sing. He held the baby and danced with it as he sang. Those who survived say they witnessed as these dead bodies rose from the depth of the ashes and sang as they continued the procession toward their death. As they reached the entranceway, he looked back once more. Tyra Yeden. When Ara went to the Ao, he went with one child and we go with our entire families. Can you imagine the impression our Aados will make in Shamayim Mamas and Tatis with their children, Bubbies and Zades with their anulfill this mitzvah with a proper mindset. And then silently they walk together into Ganeden. But from these ashes we will rise once more. Parasi ends on the note of Kadusha. And pinch yourself because this is the very stock that we come from. Ashenu Matov. Shabbat shalom to all.