Divrei Azriel: Torat Kohanim, Recreating the World
Divrei Azriel: Torat Kohanim, Recreating the World
With this week's parsha we begin the third of the five books of the Torah. Referred to as Torat Kohanim by the medrash, the book of Vayikra primarily deals with the role of the Kohanim and the details of their service in the mikdash (Temple).  Following straight on from the building of the mishkan (Tabernacle), these parshiyot prescribe that which should take place within in it, carried out by Aaron and his family, the guardians of Hashem's earthly abode.  

However, this title seems to only account for the first few parshiyot of Sefer Vayikra.   What then follows are extensive passages devoted to other seemingly unrelated topics such as the festivals and shemitta and yovel. What is the connection between the two halves of this book of the Torah, and why do they appear in this order. Furthermore, why is the name Torat Kohanim chosen to typify a book which is replete with many themes besides the laws of the Kohanim.

The Midrash Tanchuma (Pekuday 5) draws a parallel between the creation of the mishkan and the creation of the world itself. In some sense, when Moshe and the Jewish People built the mishkan they were creating the world anew. To understand the full significance of this let us briefly explore the original creation of the world and how the building of the mishkan relates to it.

Hashem created the world to be a home for His shechina, Divine Presence.  Initially, the entire world was to be bathed in the concentrated holiness of Hashem's Presence, as we say twice daily in the kedusha, "מלואו כל הארץ כבודו". All mankind were to be His ambassadors on earth, recognizing and connecting to the Divine Glory. However, man went astray, rebelling against Hashem both in the generation of the Flood and then again in the building of the Tower of Bavel. They forgot Hashem, forcing His shechina to retreat from the face of a wicked and immoral world. 

As we know, one man rediscovered Hashem and the Divine mission of the world. Avraham was his name. Thereafter it was Avraham and his family that Hashem chose to carry out the original task of mankind, appointing them to be His new exclusive ambassadors on earth.

Although this religious revolution began with the Avot (Patriarchs), it was not until yetziyas mitzrayim, the Exodus, when the Jewish people were born as a nation that the new course of history took hold. The redemption from Egypt and the acceptance of the Torah were not only the birth of the Jews as Hashem's chosen people. These cataclysmic events also served as a second creation of the entire world.

With the creation of the Jewish Nation the world was rededicated to its original Divine mission, albeit on a smaller and more concentrated level. Just as Hashem divided between light and darkness on the first day of creation, so too in Egypt He delivered the people who were going to carry His light from amidst a nation of darkness.

Similarly, on the second day of creation Hashem split the upper and lower waters, thus forming the heavens on high and the oceans down below. Paralleling this, upon the exit from Egypt Hashem split the sea, allowing the Jewish People to pass through. As they journeyed through the dry land within the sea this rabble of slave families were transformed into Hashem's People on earth. In that moment the 'emptiness and darkness' that had enveloped the world for two thousand years was finally banished. 

Yet, this striking parallel goes further. When Hashem created the world He did so in three stages. For most of six days He created a formation in space, complete with its furnishings, which we call earth. Nearing the end of those six days He placed into that space a unique being called man. At the conclusion of those six days, when the scene had been set and the characters in place, Hashem gave man the gift of time - the special day of Shabbos.

When it came to creating the world for a second time, upon the redemption of the Jewish People from Egypt, Hashem followed these three stages once again. He commanded the Jews to build a space to serve as a home for His shechina. The mishkan and its furnishings were a microcosm of the entire world, and the Divine Presence that should have filled the entire world dwelled in it. Into that space Hashem placed a group of men, the Kohanim, who were responsible to embody His holiness and radiate it to the rest of the people.

One man in particular, the Kohen Gadol, symbolized this mission most. He alone was allowed to enter into the Kodesh HaKadoshim, perhaps just like only one man, Adam, ever experienced the unadulterated Presence of Hashem during his short stay in Gan Eden. And finally, once the Divine space was erected and the role of the Kohanim specified, Hashem gave the Jewish People a new gift of time - the festivals.

Now we can return to Torat Kohanim and the overarching theme of this book of the Torah. In the second half of the book of Shemot the Torah details the creation of the Mishkan, the Divine space. Directly following this comes the beginning of Sefer Vayikra, the section in Torah which exclusively deals with the men who occupied that space, the Kohanim. Finally, the second part of Sefer Vayikra is the Parshas HaMoadim, the portion in which Hashem gifts us with special time.

Originally, Shabbos alone was sufficient to provide an occasion for man to stand back from his worldly endeavours and sense the Presence of Hashem all around him. But in a world where the Presence of Hashem became increasingly hidden because of man's insistence on defying Him, the festivals were needed to fulfil this purpose. They afforded the Jewish People the opportunity to ascend to Yerushalayim, Jerusalem,  where the Beis HaMikdash (Temple) was situated and to encounter the shechina concentrated there.

Yet, we still need to answer why Sefer Vayikra which is equally about Divine time as it is about a Divine group of men, is called Torat Kohanim by the medrash.  Perhaps our sages, Chazal, chose this name to emphasize that it is man in the space-man-time formula of creation who plays the central role.

It was not a deficiency in earth or in the institution of time that brought the world to the edge of the abyss the first time round. Rather, it was the wickedness of man that forced Hashem to redirect His plan for the world, ultimately handing over His Divine mission to the Jewish People alone. Therefore, on the second time around the Torah emphasizes the role of man in bringing the world to its perfection. Indeed the space called the Mishkan and the festivals in time are crucial components in this sacred task.

Nonetheless, it is on the shoulders of the Kohanim who serve within the walls of the mishkan where the ultimate responsibility lies to bring the world to a time when there will be constant rejoicing before Hashem.   

Divrei Azriel is edited by Gidon Schneider