Rabbi's Sermons

Shabbat Shalom,

Which is the first Jewish holiday on the Hebrew calendar that began to celebrate the people of Israel? What would you answer? Some commentators claim, that the people of Israel had already know about the Sabbath, even long before receiving the Torah at the mountain of Sinai, based on the way in which the fourth commandment indicates: "Remember". Remember the Sabbath, this would mean, to do something that the people of Israel already knew. Most commentators agree that the intention of that word was to remember about the manna that fell from the sky every day, except of Saturdays. In this week's Parashat Bo, we read, in Exodus 12, that the first feast the Israelites formally received, was Passover, and the first mitzva was a sacrifice. The first 28 verses of this chapter are a very detailed, and even dramatic, introduction to the events that would happen two weeks later. In the first of the month of Nisan, God declared that this month would be the first in the Hebrew calendar, and asked to keep for 14 days, a small goat or a lamb, for the Passover sacrifice, which would take place on the eve of the 14^th day of the month. God also announced, in advance, the most severe plague to Egypt: The death of the firstborn of human beings and animals. If we analyze it further, the goat or lamb’s sacrifice took the place of the firstborn son (God forbid) that God intended to take that night. The fear of all the Israelites was clear, as they rushed to prepare it, to sacrifice it, take from it the blood and mark with it the Mezuzot at the entrance of their homes, and eat it immediately, with Matzah and bitter herbs, yearning for the desired salvation.

The sacrifices, however, were not new to the people of Israel. In the first chapters of Genesis we learn, that the first who sacrifice an animal, was Abel. Later, Noah made a sacrifice after leaving the ark, and later Abraham, during the Akedat Itzhak. The custom of offering sacrifices of flora and fauna was not new, and was also natural for the people of Israel. The tradition of sacrifice continued after the exodus in the Tabernacle with the priests, and eventually, this issue became quite complicated, since there were several types of sacrifices: complementary sacrifices, obligatory sacrifices, sacrifices for sins, and other types.

In later times, during the first and second temples, sacrifices became the most important part of the religious worship, so Judaism, as we know it today, is very different from what it was in those days. The prophets, in fact, tried to change the concept, and vigorously fought against the custom of using sacrifices as substitutes for a true prayer. Although the purpose of the sacrifices was quite clear, for example, in Yom Kippur, as a means of forgiveness and penance, the prophets always demanded to make justice. The prophet Isaiah opens his book by asking: "To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto Me?” saith the Lord. “I am full of the burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of lambs or of hegoats"; meaning, no more blood and sacrifices offered by sinful people, and surprisingly, explains what God's true will is:"¹⁶ Wash you, make you clean, put away the evil of your doings from before Mine eyes. Cease to do evil, ¹⁷ learn to do well. Seek judgment, relieve the oppressed; judge the fatherless, plead for the widow”. So, if that is what the Eternal wants, why then, to continue with the sacrifices?

After the destruction of the Second Temple, the sacrifices remained in history. It is common to affirm that without the Temple today, there is no place for sacrifices. But this was not always the case, even during the Temple period, sacrifices were also made outside of Jerusalem. King Solomon made sacrifices to other gods in the high places. The Chanukah story began in Modiin, when the old Mattathias killed a Greek priest who intended to sacrifice pork at his local altar. When the Romans destroyed the Temple, they closed a chapter in Jewish history. There were no more sacrifices, either in Jerusalem or outside of it. In fact, Yochanan Ben Zakai had started a new chapter in the spiritual development of the Jewish people: the Temple became the synagogue, and although there are still descendants of Cohen today, its role in worship was handed to the rabbis, and the sacrifices became prayers, as in the book you have right now in your hands, the Sidur. During prayer, you hold in your hands the new kind of Jewish sacrifice. But what does Judaism expect in the future?

To this day, the Jewish people waits for the arrival of a messiah, or a messianic period, and according to tradition, this will include the construction of a Third Temple. If you visit the ancient city in Jerusalem, you will discover an interesting place, called “The Temple Institute”, where the tools of the Temple are constructed as described in the Torah, and all this in preparation for the arrival of the Messiah, and the renewal of worship, which will include, according to their vision, animal sacrifices at the altar. It is very difficult for me to imagine a temple, in which priests as a ritual, carry out animal slaughters. I can only imagine the reactions of organizations like "Let the animals live" or representatives of "Green Peace", that perhaps, will try to scale up the walls of the new Temple by force, not to mention the reactions of many modern Jewish movements. In the end, this whole topic seems very unlikely.

In Hebrew, the word KORBAN sacrifice comes from the root KRB קרב, which is related to KAROB, which means "close", and according to the Kabbalah, is a way of "bringing" the person closer to the Creator of the Universe. In ancient times, it was the most appropriate way for Abel, Noah or the people of Israel in the desert, or later, in the Temple period: to offer the best to God, for the many blessings received, and a way to ask for forgiveness and penance. The sacrifices were, in fact, an appropriate form, for someone that remained "far", from the infinite concept of a universal God.

The very idea of ​​being "close to...", totally contradicts the belief in an omnipresent almighty God, a God that exists beyond space and time. By definition, no one can be far from God, and therefore nobody needs to "get close", to something that exists everywhere! On the Torah it is written about the Tabernacle, in the book of Exodus: "And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them", right inside our hearts. If the meaning then, is not to be near, and the real sacrifice God wants, is justice, and the sacrifices became the book of Sidur, today we can offer our kind of “sacrifice” with one of the things we value the most: Our time.

So let's dedicate our valuable time in a week full of activities, work and endless hours of terrible traffic. Let's dedicate those time gaps to a spiritual experience. At home, let's dedicate our time to family, friends. Dedicate time for yourself! By doing so, you give time to the divine spark within yourself. Spend your time with a group prayer in the congregation, with songs, study and spiritual development. And if, for some reason, you can’t make it, it is comfortable to know, that if at some moments you feel “far” from the Divinity, God is always KAROB, very close to your heart. Rabbi Yehuda Halevi wrote a beautiful poem about it:

Lord, where shall I find You? Your place is lofty and secret.

And where shall I not find You? The whole earth is full of Your glory!

You are found in man’s innermost heart, yet You fixed earth’s boundaries. You are a strong tower for those who are near, and the trust of those who are far...

I have sought to come near You, I have called to You with all my heart;

And when I went out towards You, I found You coming towards me…

Shabat Shalom!

Rabbi David Laor

January 31^st, 2025