Parshas Shemini
13 maamarim of the tzaddikim on this week's reading, each in Hebrew and English with a takeaway.
Lehavas David
Rav Dovid Matisyohu Rabinowitz ›Lehavas David · Rav Dovid Matisyohu RabinowitzHumility Before the Shechinah: Taking the Mishkan ApartPride drives the Shechinah away, so even the Mishkan, a work as great as creation, was taken apart each day to keep its builders humble. Like a baby at his bris, who has no…Lehavas David · Rav Dovid Matisyohu RabinowitzCompleting Ourselves: The Pain That Brings the ShechinahFeeling how much we still lack is a sign that we have begun to grow, and the humility it brings is what let the Shechinah rest in the Mishkan. We were created incomplete, like…Lehavas David · Rav Dovid Matisyohu Rabinowitz*Vayehi* and Unity: Reaching the Shechinah TogetherLooking back honestly at our service should leave us feeling that we have not yet done anything, and that brings real distress. The remedy is unity: each of us can say, “I may be…Lehavas David · Rav Dovid Matisyohu RabinowitzSimple Obedience Brings Us Before HashemWe often want to feel and understand before we act, yet there are times when we find no taste at all in our service. Moshe's message at the Mishkan was the reverse: do what Hashem…Lehavas David · Rav Dovid Matisyohu RabinowitzSimple Faith Beyond Lofty AttainmentsIt is easy to tie our service to how inspired we feel and to let it slip when the inspiration fades. The thing Hashem commanded is to serve Him simply because He commanded, with…Lehavas David · Rav Dovid Matisyohu RabinowitzChecking Our Mitzvos: The Way to Hashem's GloryWhile we stand before Hashem in Torah and prayer, we should feel how great our service is, not a broken heart. Afterward we should look back honestly and ask whether we did it as…Lehavas David · Rav Dovid Matisyohu RabinowitzDriving Out Discord: Unity Reveals Hashem's GloryThe “thing” Hashem asked of Israel before His glory could appear was to drive out hatred and strife. No one, however great, is complete on his own: the simple Jew's mitzvah is…Lehavas David · Rav Dovid Matisyohu RabinowitzChosen Because He Was AshamedAharon's shame before the altar was the very reason he was chosen, and each time he lit the Menorah he felt it anew, as if for the first time. Yet that shame need not hold us…Lehavas David · Rav Dovid Matisyohu RabinowitzAtonement for Himself, for the Sake of the PeopleAharon atoned for his own blemish, yet the Torah calls it atonement “for the people,” for he sought it only so that he could then atone for them. Moshe, too, came down from the…Lehavas David · Rav Dovid Matisyohu RabinowitzMaking Israel a Vessel for BlessingHashem's blessing is always ready to flow; what is needed is a vessel to hold it. Aharon made Bnei Yisrael that vessel by coming down to them, drawing them close to their Father…Lehavas David · Rav Dovid Matisyohu RabinowitzRaised Hands: Blessing That Looks Past SinThere is a time to rebuke and a time to bless, and they cannot share the same moment: one who is looking at another's sins cannot pour blessing upon him. When Aharon came to…Lehavas David · Rav Dovid Matisyohu RabinowitzRevealing Hashem's Glory: The Mishkan and the Passing of TzaddikimHeaven and earth, the Mishkan and every Jew all exist to increase Hashem's glory, and the tzaddikim, who gave their lives for it, go on shining kindness upon us even after their…Lehavas David · Rav Dovid Matisyohu RabinowitzTogether in Deed, Alone with Hashem in ThoughtHashem's glory could rest on the Mishkan only when Israel removed the yetzer hara of division and served Him as one. Holiness is not found by hiding away; R' Elimelech walked…