Torah Readers Reflections

The details of the various sacrifices detailed in this week's portion of Vayikra must seem archaic, outdated and even barbaric to us in this modern age. It has been almost 1,953 years since the destruction of the second temple that brought a final end to the practice of offering up sacrifices, yet we still learn about it in depth and even pray for the rebuilding of the Temple and the resumption of sacrifices. Could you imagine the outcry today over the practice of slaughtering thousands of animals in a public display and then offering them up on an altar?  It’s almost incomprehensible.

In fact the Rambam, in what is still a very controversial opinion, described the practice of sacrifices as something that has passed from the world. In his opinion he stated that sacrifices were never meant to be the primary form of worship, however prayer was the medium for worship that God preferred. He justified his opinion by providing the context in which the Torah was given to the Israelites. At this time, the key medium for worshiping in all religions was through the offering of sacrifices, it would have been incomprehensible for worship to be defined in any other manner. God understood that it will take man many generations to evolve to the point where he will understand that sacrifices are not the preferred medium for worship.

Just as slavery is allowed in the Torah, albeit with some serious limitations, it took until the 19th century in America for slavery to be abolished and then a civil war had to be fought over the issue.

Likewise with sacrifices, the Rambam states that God placed some serious limitations on sacrifices; where they could be offered, when they could be offered, who could perform the ceremony, what types of animals and for what purpose could they be offered. Within the context of the time, God is willing to accept worship through sacrifice, however with some serious limitations. Prayer on the other hand could be offered whenever and wherever and by anyone. It wasn’t until the time of Ezra, after the destruction of the first temple, that prayer only just started to become organized. Today, obviously prayer has replaced sacrifices as the medium of worship and according to the Rambam, this is what God always intended.

So why do we still learn about the sacrifices?

There are many lessons we can learn from the sacrifices that were made in the Tabernacle and later in the Temple, however I want to focus on a unique idea that links the specific types of sacrifices to the soul.

What is it that we are giving God when we sacrifice an animal? 

Every human alive today has two souls; one soul is called “the mortal soul”, this is the soul that manages the body's needs, specifically when we are very young and can’t communicate or fend for ourselves. It is a selfish soul that makes sure that the body gets what the body needs. When we are young it makes sure that we are fed, changed, cleaned. In early life, this is the prominent soul and it drives us to be self absorbed and more interested in our own survival and betterment over others. This soul has animalistic attributes as far as it is focused on survival - where will I get my next meal, where will I find shelter, etc.

The other soul, and this is the one that differentiates us from all other animals, is the immortal or godly soul - this is the soul that is infused with the spirit of God. Initially this soul has no power over the human body which is dominated by the mortal soul, however through education and nurturing this soul will come to shine and dominate the actions of the body.

The body requires both souls in order to function, however it is our life's goal to enhance the immortal soul through positive interactions, study and leading a fulfilling life.

On the one hand, if we were to have only a mortal soul we would be no better than an animal. As Ecclesistes so correctly describes it in chapter 3 verse 19:

Man’s fate is like that of the animals; the same fate awaits them both: as one dies so does the other. Both have the same breath, man has no advantage over the animal. Everything is a mere fleeting breath.

However, with the inclusion of the immortal soul infused with the Godly spirit we are transformed into a being that can think for itself, can fashion speech, can delay satisfaction, and is moved by high ideals. Psalm 8 verses 4 - 7 explores this very idea:

When I behold Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,

the moon and stars that You set in place,

what is man that You have been mindful of him,

mortal man that You have taken note of him,

that You have made him little less than divine,

and adorned him with glory and majesty;

You have made him master over Your handiwork,

laying the world at his feet.

When we think about the sacrifices from a psychological view the reason for offering certain animals suddenly becomes very clear - we are not offering just the sacrifice of the animal, but also the mortal, animalistic soul that resides within us.

There are three types of animal listed in the verse: behema (animal), bakar (cattle), and tzon (flock). Each represents an animal-like feature of the human personality.

The behema (animal) represents the animalistic instincts of our mortal soul. As we have learnt above, the mortal soul is interested in the survival of the human body, in finding food, in making a better life for ourselves. It is a selfish soul that if left on its own to grow will consume us with selfishness, narcissistic and egocentric tendencies (to name but a few). By sacrificing the animal within us enables us to be moved by the immortal soul and realize that there is more to life than just our own selfish needs.

Bakar (cattle) know no boundaries. When they stampede they break through all barriers. The only way to contain cattle is to place a fence around them and constrain them to a certain area. So it is with human beings. To sacrifice cattle, is to recognize that we as human beings require boundaries. An immortal soul will be impulsive and reactive - just as cattle are when they stampede. We must learn to have boundaries between right and wrong, holy and impure, permitted and forbidden. These barriers that we nurture become stronger than walls.

Finally tzon (flock) represents the herd instinct. The instinct to do what everyone else is doing and to not stand apart and stand up for something that we believe in. When we are young we often hear our parents use analogies such as “if everyone else jumps off a bridge, would you?” This was to teach us that just because other people decide to do something, doesn’t necessarily make it right. Ellie Wiesel stated that the opposite of love is not hate, it is indifference. Had the German people not been indifferent to their Jewish neighbors, the holocaust might not have happened. People tend to behave like a flock of sheep - there is comfort in numbers, in not standing out. However, it is great people who stand out above the crowd, who forge their own way, who show the world what is right when everything seems to be wrong.

We have in us the spirit of God. What differentiates us from the animals and the animalistic impulses of the mortal soul is the immortal soul carrying in it the spirit of God. To implement the spirit is to place curbs on the mortal soul, to differentiate between what animals do and what we do - this is in essence being spiritual. Growing our immortal soul through actions that have nothing to do with survival of the body such as listening to music, appreciating art, loving someone, doing acts of kindness - all these and so much more differentiate us from the animals and grow our immortal soul, enabling the spirit to shine through in everything we do.

Shabbat Shalom,

Gideon Paull.