Tetzaveh, this weeks Torah portion, has two main themes: sacrifice (surprise,surprise) and the priestly garments that Aaron and his sons wore.
וְעָשִׂ֥יתָ בִגְדֵי־קֹ֖דֶשׁ לְאַֽהֲרֹ֣ן אָחִ֑יךָ לְכָב֖וֹד וּלְתִפְאָֽרֶת “You shall make holy garments for your brother Aaron for honor and glory”. (Exodus chapter 28 verse 2)
The third verse also states “And you shall speak to all the wise hearted, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom, and they shall make Aaron's garments to sanctify him, [so] that he serve Me [as a kohen].” (Exodus chapter 28 verse 3)
So the question here is "Why does the Torah spend so much time (all of Exodus chapter 28) describing the clothes Aaron and his sons wore as Kohanim?"
I remember when I was in college and I acted in plays and musicals. I would spend a lot of time trying to develop who my character was but I struggled to do so. When it came time to put on the costume of the character, something happened. I felt I truly became that person. I was in their clothes and living their life.
While Aaron and his sons were technically kohanim all the time, they didn’t assume the outward identity of a kohen until they put on the priestly garments. The clothes helped them get into the mind space in order to do their holy work for God. God might have wanted them to wear holy garments that were decorated because God knew that if Aaron and his sons were in plain clothes they might not feel holy and would have trouble doing God’s work and the sacrifices would be without feeling and love for God.
Whenever we put on a suit or dress or fancy outfit to go to synagogue we are doing the same thing. We are putting on holy garments so we can connect with God and have a conversation. By doing so it makes the Synagogue a holy place.
Wishing everyone a lovely Shabbat,
Cantor Kowitz
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Israel Trip 2020 with Rabbi Bernstein
We're organizing a 2020 trip to Israel and we would like to know your thoughts and ideas for this trip. We want to know what time of year works for you, and what sites and activities are important to you.
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