Shmini                                                                                                        Avi Ossip

The inauguration ceremony lasted for seven days and nights.  A newly created place of Holiness in the midst of the people – the Mishkan (Tabernacle) – had just been built with great care and subservience to G-d’s detailed instructions. Sticking with that theme, the preceding parsha ends with a declaration that the newly designated family of priests was dutifully obedient during these ceremonies.

The eighth day (Shmini) was the culminating event.  The entire nation gathers to participate in the grand finale of karbanot and in anticipation of a return of the divine presence (missing since the spiritual fissure created by the incident known as the Golden Calf).  Aharon performs many ritual sacrifices precisely as commanded. Overwhelmed with joy Aharon, seemingly off-script, turns to the gathered nation and for the first time invokes the priestly blessing that is now etched on every Jewish child’s lips (Sfas Emes). A good day just kept getting better. The entire nation is now able to sense the heightened spiritual presence of G-d. Perhaps to make sure the people correctly interpret this sensation, G-d sends a holy fire and consumes the animal parts on the altar. The people sing joyously and fall on the face. The nation was in a mixed state of joy and awe. Notice, the nation did not sing and dance (as during the Golden Calf incident). But just then the highest ranking priests – Aharon’s oldest sons - Nadav and Avihu approached G-d with an “alien fire that G-d did not command of them”.  Did they not internalize the message from the sins of the Golden Calf incident, the meticulous compliance with G-d’s instructions during the construction of the Mishkan and the performance of sacrifices during these past eight days?  The closer one gets to G-d the more important it is to acquiesce and be subservient to G-d’s wishes.  Alas, the moment overwhelmed them; Nadav and Avihu did not control their desire.  They improvised and creatively and assertively expressed their need to be even closer to G-d.  Our sensibilities tell us that this is a mistake that cries for an act of forgiveness. And yet, G-d decided that this ‘teaching moment’ was paramount.  The entire celebration comes to a horrifying halt as G-d issues yet another holy fire, this time killing Nadav and Avihu. 

How did they make this mistake? Our sages have looked at hints in the text and proposed a number of theories including: intoxication, preference to not have children, creating their own fire, not listening to Aharon & Moshe. It appears to me the primary flaw exhibited by a confidence to burst forward with a creative encounter with G-d is a lack of humility.

In our interpersonal relationships we can be creative and spontaneous in our acts which show care, concern and even love. Aharon is praised for blessing the nation in a seemingly impromptu act of spiritual love. But we need to know our place in our relationship with G-d. We can only have the proper insight when we are humble and constrained in our natural preference to personalize and express creatively our closeness to G-d.  Rabbi David Fohrman notes that this story shares many key words with the story of the ‘original sin’ to highlight the connection with Adam & Eve’s desire to be more “G-d-like” by eating the forbidden fruit. It appears to me that it is an ongoing battle to control our egos and desires to be the arbiter of all that is good (in a spiritual sense). We all see ourselves as innately good and empowered to create the environment for holiness. Through many mitzvot as well as narratives in the Torah, G-d is sending us a clear message. Holiness (kedusha) requires that mankind concede a piece of his ego and allow for G-d to fully occupy a space – be it measured by time (such as Shabbat) or physical – such as a Beit Hamikdash.  This just touches the surface of a fascinating perspective of Rabbi Jonathan Sacks (“Fire- Holy and Unholy”) who suggests that mankind must create holiness in our encounters with G-d via acts of ‘tzimtzum’ as we constrain ourselves via specific acts of ‘self-limitation’.  It is not surprising that our parsha continues with commandments introducing us to the concept of kashrut – forbidden foods.  By curbing our natural animalistic instincts and differentiating between permitted and forbidden foods we are given the opportunity to take the mundane and create a sliver of holiness.