[Ashkenazim/Sefardim:
Malachi 1:1-2:7
Yemenite
Jews: Malachi 1:1-3:4]
In
our Haftarah, the prophet Malachi bitterly laments the catastrophic state of
the priesthood during the period of the Second Temple: the cohanim had turned
into the lowest level of technocrats offering sacrifices. Following the behavior of the cohanim,
Malachi warns with anger: "Hashem of Hosts says to you: O Cohanim, you who
despise My name. And you respond: In
what way have we despised Your name? You
offer disgusting bread on My altar and you say: In what way have we polluted
You?" (Malachi 1:6-7). The prophet
emphasizes that the religion has changed radially from what it is supposed to
be, service and closeness to Hashem, into something mechanical, a ruse close to
idol worship, a device designed to attain favors from Heaven. If service of Hashem could sink to the level
of business for profit, why shouldn't the cohanim limit their expenses? They simply decided: we have spoiled food
which cannot be used, so why don’t we save money by offering it on the altar?
After all, either way it will be burned in the fire, and G-d Himself will not
notice anything!
The
cohanim were unaware of the seriousness of their behavior, and their attempts
at justification made their transgression even worse. "In that you say: The table of Hashem is
contemptible" (7). You are
profaning Hashem's Name and turning the religion into a business of fraud. "And if you offer the blind for a
sacrifice, is it not evil? And if you
offer lame and sick animals, is it not evil?
Please offer it to your governor; will he be pleased with you or will he
show you favor? – says Hashem of Hosts" (8). "You have brought stolen, lame and sick
animals as a sacrifice. Should I accept
this from your hand? – says Hashem" (13).
We must not forget that a worker in the Temple, whether a cohain or a levi,
is before all else an educator. Before
his death, Moshe Rabbenu described the role of the Tribe of Levi in this way:
"They shall teach Your statutes to Yaakov and Your Torah to Israel. They shall place incense before Your presence
and burnt offerings on Your altar" (Devarim 33:10).
They
were obviously involved in the holy service in the Temple, but they also had
great influence over Torah learning throughout the entire Land. Their role in the Temple only occupied them
for a few weeks each year. During the
remaining time, they would travel from place to place to teach, educate and
build spirituality. This was all in order to come closer to G-d, since they
themselves were capable of getting ensnared in the monotonous routine of daily
life and forgetting about the light (Maran Ha-Rav Kook in Orot, Orot Ha-Techiya
4).
Our
prophets returned to this topic with a special emphasis. "And you should know that I have sent
this commandment to you, so that My covenant will be with Levi, says Hashem of
Hosts. My covenant was with him for life
and peace, and I gave them fear with which he feared Me and was afraid of My
Name" (Malachi 2:4-5). The cohain –
and in our time, the educator - needs to actualize in his own life the great
ideals which he will teach to others: awe of Hashem and humility. The Divine service he performed in the Temple
was not merely the focus of his activities -
it had to be his way of life as well.
His service was built upon an inner sense of nullifying one's ego before
the Creator, a merging of one's character with the Divine light. "The Torah of truth was in his mouth,
and iniquity was not found on his lips" (6). The character became united with the Torah in
all of its truth. Intellect and emotion
are Torah, the body and the spirit are Torah.
And unjust words never departed his lips.
His
behavior was to be without stain, and his societal relations were to be the
climax of his purity: "He walked with me in peace and uprightness"
(6). Closeness to Hashem must reveal
itself not only in the highest spheres of his character but also in his
interpersonal relations. When people
would meet a person such as this, they would have to be influenced. Before they would judge the cohain on his
actions or his worship, they would judge him on his behavior towards other
people. They thus would see that the
Kingdom of Hashem is not only in Heaven, but is also on earth; that the awe of
Hashem which fills and directs the cohain is expressed through behavior of
peace and love. Therefore, "many
turned away from iniquity" (6). In
order to return others to the straight path, one must first be an example of
uprightness himself.
"For
the cohain's lips should keep knowledge and they should seek Torah from his
mouth" (7): The cohain is a man of knowledge, a Torah scholar, but the
essence is "for he is an angel of Hashem of Hosts" (ibid.). He is an angel on earth! This expression says it all! Our Sages rule that one should only learn
Torah from a rabbi without blemish.
"If the rabbi is similar to an angel of Hashem, seek Torah from his
mouth, and if not, do not seek Torah from his mouth" (Moed Katan 17a).
The
Torah is not only a theoretical science, it is instruction for life. It is told that a professor of Jewish thought
was asked by a student: "Why doesn't his honor perform what he
teaches?" He responded: "Does
a math professor have to be a triangle?"
The comparison obviously lacks reason.
Our
Sages tell us that in a large city in Babylonia, with many wise people, there
was once a great rabbi who allowed himself to be involved in extra-marital
relations – and this caused major gossip.
The Sages were extremely distressed by this desecration of Hashem's
Name. After a difficult discussion, they
decided to excommunicate him (Moed Katan ibid.). One needs great courage for a decision such
as this, but it was necessary since their rabbi, despite his wisdom, was far
from being an angel of Hashem.
