3 minute read
Menachem Persoff
DIVREI MENACHEM
BY MENACHEM PERSOFF
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Special Projects Consultant, OU Israel Center mpersoff@ou.org
Keeping the Flame Alive
Our Parsha opens with the wellknown directive to Moshe to speak to Aharon HaKohen concerning how the lamps of the Menorah should be kindled, followed by a brief description of the Menorah (Bemidbar 8:1-4).
Standing by Titus’ Arch in Rome and gazing upon the carving of the Menorah being carried away by the Roman conquerors (and some say by the Jewish slaves, as indicated by the dress of those bearing the Menorah), one can only be mesmerized. The Menorah on that arch symbolizes the catastrophe that befell the Jews with the destruction of the Second Temple. But it also reminds us
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of the centrality of the Menorah in our collective Jewish consciousness.
Notably, the Menorah has become a fixed icon in Jewish thought and culture. Representations of the sevenlamp artifact have been found on tombs and monuments dating from the first century, most often as a symbol of Judaism and the Jewish people. Perhaps the most notable contemporary example is the emblem of the State of Israel.
The commentators ask why the directive to Aharon appears immediately after the recitation of the tribal offerings during the dedication of the Mishkan. The Midrash Tanchuma indicates that Aharon was upset that he and his tribe were left out of the dedication ceremony.
Now, Aharon was being enlightened that the task of kindling the Menorah was of far greater significance than a temporary offering.
Ramban indicates further that only the Kohen Hagadol could undertake the task of lighting the Menorah. It fell to Aharon’s lot because, one day, his descendants, the Chashmona’im, would succeed in driving out the SyrianGreeks, in rededicating the Temple, and in rekindling the Menorah. In essence, Aharon (whose actions in the saga of the Golden-Calf were calamitous) would now represent the noble and courageous family that would, one day, save the entire nation.
The Menorah is said to symbolize
the ideal of universal enlightenment
and wisdom. Six branches of human
knowledge 1 are indicated by the six lamps that incline towards the central lamp, eternally lit: That is the Light of God – or Knowledge of Torah – that informs and feeds the human intellect.
1 Based on Rav Aharon Soloveitchik, cited in “Emes Ve’emunah" website, May 26, 2013, the six branches of knowledge are, respectively: 1) Tevunah - the ability to understand and draw conclusions. 2) The knowledge of nature - in subjects like chemistry and physics. 3) The knowledge of the soul – or as Rav Aharon puts it, the study of psychology. 4) The knowledge of biology. 5) Music. 6) Metaphysics (philosophy).
Moreover, the miracle of that eternal flame signaled that the Shechinah rested among Israel (cf. Shabbat 22b).
The lamps of the Menorah were lit daily from fresh, consecrated olive oil, and they burned from evening until morning (Shemot 27:21). Aharon’s duty was to clean and prepare the lamps daily such that in the words of the Ohr Hachaim, he would effectively build a new Menorah every single day. May we, too, in Aharon’s merit, rekindle our faith and Torah knowledge from one day to the next.
Shabbat Shalom!
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