“Help Us Be Strong,” Rabbi Elaine Zecher’s Shabbat Awakenings
April 4, 2025 | 29 Adar 5785
Welcome to Shabbat Awakenings, a weekly reflection, as we make our way toward Shabbat. You can listen to it as a podcast here.
This Shabbat, we make a shift. From Exodus to Leviticus, we move from the monumental story of leaving Egypt to the detailed instructions about the sacrificial system. Thousands of years later, we are still studying and examining these rules of sacrifice.
The use of the word sacrifice is an unfair translation. It means to give up. The Hebrew noun is korban, קורבן; the Hebrew verb is lehakriv, להקריב. Both contain the root k.r.v, ק.ר.ב., to draw near, to get close. The purpose of the sacrificial system offered the Israelites a tangible vehicle for drawing near to God with the hope of reciprocity.
I want to bring us back to the book of Leviticus through the five methods of drawing near offered in the beginning chapters and use these descriptions as a midrashic metaphor for how we might approach one another here in our community in a world filled with anxiety, uncertainty, and chaotic decisions.
The first is the Olah. It was to be burned completely. Nothing but the hide would remain. No part of it would be eaten by the priests or by the donors. Although it may have been done by individuals, it was primarily about a communal offering. There was no personal benefit. The focus away from the self to the greater good of the whole elevates everyone as the word olah (ascend) provides. Whatever we do as individuals affects the whole.
The second offering described was the Minchah, the grain/vegetarian option. Minchah also means gift. Bringing a gift means having a certain attitude of appreciation of what anyone and everyone brings forward. Once again, we find gratitude of the other rather than ourselves.
The third is Zevach Sh’lamim, the offering of well being, a sacred offering shared between the donors and the priests. To break bread together, to sit side by side in conversation, and to share in a meal makes us feel whole. There is much we share in our values of justice and compassion, of the rituals we engage in to bring meaning, of the stability being side by side with Judaism to guide us.
The fourth offering is the Hatat, expiatory in purpose for intentional or unintentional transgressions. We are imperfect. Within our community, we might not convey an idea or perspective in a way that brings another in or we might be quick to reject. Hatat asks for grace. Our intentions don’t always match the impact of how someone reacts. It just means we must keep on trying to build and to strengthen relationships, however fragile.
The fifth offering is the Asham, reparation for trespassing of sacred things. The Torah recognizes the imperfection of our humanity. We will do wrong, wittingly and unwittingly, yet we can cautiously, gingerly, and gently step over into those sacred encounters slowly, carefully, and thoughtfully to allow ourselves to forgive and be forgiven.
Vayikra el Moshe begins the book of Leviticus. The subject of the sentence is assumed to be God. God called to Moses. Perhaps, the future called to him as well with the mindful practice engendered by the sacrificial system.
It calls to us as well. Don’t give up. Don’t despair. Help us be strong, filled with the sacred, blessed by our yearning to be near to that which is sacred and divine.
Shabbat Shalom! שבת שלום
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Rabbi Elaine Zecher