Giving it
Up
By Rabbi Joshua ( teleologically known as The Hoffer) Hoffman
On the third day of his journey to bring his son as a sacrifice to God,
Avraham tells the two young men accompanying Yitzchak and him until now, " Stay
here by yourselves with the donkey, while I and the lad willgo up to here ( 'ad
koh) : and we will bow down and we will return to you " Bereishis, 22:5). Rabbi
Yissochor Frand, in a talk on parshas Lech Lecha, cited an enigmatic midrash,
which brings the opinion of Rabbi Nechemiah that in the merit of Avraham saying
"koh'" ( here) the Jewish people merited the mitzvah of the blessing of the
kohanim, which is introduced in the Torah by the words " so (koh) shall you
bless the children of Israel: ( Bamidbar, 6:23). What is the connection
between Avraham's comment to his young men and the blessing of the kohanim to
the people? Rabbi Frand cites the explanation of Rabbi Yitzchak Zev Yadler, in
his commentary to the Midrash Rabbah, Tiferes Tziyon, whch connects the two
verses mentioned in the midrash to another verse which uses the word ' koh,'
namely, the verse in parshas Lech Lecha in which God tells Avraham to count the
stars, and tells him, ' so( koh') will be your offspring' ( Bereishis,
15:).
Rabbi Yadler explains that according to the midrash in parshas Naso, the
priestly blessing includes in its formulation all possible physical and
spiritual blessings, no matter what the priests themselves have in mind when
they say the words. How are the priests able to incorporate all of thee
blessings in their words without investing them with such content? The midrash
answers that they are able to do this through the merit of Avraham saying 'ad
koh,' or until here. what Avraham meant to say, explains Rabbi Yadler, is that
even though sacrificing his son would seem to place the divine promise of '' so
shall be your offspring' into question, explains that when Avraham took
Yitzchak to bring him as a sacrifice, he said that even though he didn't
understand what would now happen with God's promise of ' so shall be your
offspring,' he would still keep on walking with Yitzchak and lead him to his
sacrifice, and leave the details to god. So, too, when the kohanim pronounce the
words introduced by the words ' so shall you bless the children of Israel,' they
do not understand the wider implications of the words they will be saying, but
trust in God to deliver the blessings included in the formula they will recite.
This explanation, as I see it, leaves us with a mystical view of the entire
event of the Akeidah, and does not seem to offer a message that is meaningful in
our own lives. I would like to offer a different explanation, rooted in Rabbi
Yadler's connection of the word 'koh' mentioned in connection with the akeidah
and the priestly blessings with that mentioned in parshas Lech Lecha, but with a
somewhat different twist, so that we need not rely on mystical
thought in order for the midrash to deliver an important message to us.
Rav Avraham Yitzchak haKohein Kook, in his commentary to the siddur,
Olas Reiyah, writes that what particularly distinguished Avraham in the test of
the akeidah was the great love with which he went to carry out God's command,
from the beginning until the time when he was told to bring an animal sacrifice
in place of Yitzchak ( the interested reader is referred to an article by Rabbi
Shalom Carmy, " Paradox, Paradigm and the Birth of Inwardness: On R.Kook
and the Akeda" in the volume Chazon Num,"pps 459-579, for an extended
presentation and analysis of Rav Kook's approach to the akeda). Rav Kook's son,
Rav Tzvi Yehuah, adds, in a talk included in the work Peamim, that the mesirus
nefesh, or self-sacrifice, of Avraham exhibited at the akeidah consisted not
only of his willingness to give up his portion in this world, which was embodies
in his son, but his portion in the next world, as well, which was also embodied
in his son. Why did God have such a special relationship with Avraham? God
Himself articulated the reason, as recorded earlier in parshas Vayeira.
Before destroying Sedom, God , " Shall I conceal from Avraham what I do, and
Avraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of
the earth will be blessed through him? For I have cherished him and his
household after him that they keep the way of God, doing charity and justice, in
order that God might bring upon Avraham that which he had spoken of him" (
Berishis, 18: 17-19). Avraham's love for God, then, entailed no personal
interest at all. His desire for offspring was ultimately part of his love for
God, enabling him to further God's plan for the world. Thus, when God told him
to bring his child as a sacrifice, he preceded to comply, with love, to carry
out God's plan for the world. His love for his son was a result of his love for
God, and he viewed God's promise of 'so will be your offspring' within this
context.
Before delivering the formula of the priestly blessing, the kohanim recite
a blessing in which they say that they were commanded by God to bless the Jewish
people with love. R. Zadok HaKohain of Lublin explains that any expression of
human love must be expressed within the context of divine love, because,
otherwise, it can go awry and lead to disastrous consequences. Thus, before the
kohanim, whose task is to pursue peace and spread love among the Jewish people,
bless the people with all possible blessings, as incorporated in the formula of
the priestly blessing, they first pronounce a blessing to the effect that God
has commanded them to bless the Jewish people with live. Human love is thus
incorporated in divine love, so that all human endeavors are seen, ultimately,
within the context of divine love, as means of reaching that ultimate level of
connection with God. This is what Avraham achieved through the akeidah, and that
is why he Jewish people merited the priestly blessing as a result.
Please address all
correspondence to the author (Rabbi Hoffman) with the following address -
JoshHoff @ AOL.com.
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