|
שבת שלום - פרשת כי תשא - פרה
|
|
Video Shiur
|
|
Click play to watch the video shiur by Rav Yosef Kaminetsky
|
|
News and Notes
|
This past Shabbat, Parashat Tetzaveh and Zachor, was an in-Shabbat at the yeshiva, hosted by Rabbi Ariel Greenberg and his family. Rabbi Greenberg gave several Purim-related shiurim, including "Unmasking the Evil of Amalek" and "Comedy in Gemara, Halacha and Hashkafa." Rabbi Yehoshua and Rachel Hershberg hosted the week's spirited oneg Shabbat.
On Motzaei Shabbat, the Yeshiva began its Purim celebrations. Following the reading of the Megillah, our annual Mesibat Purim took place in the Beit Midrash, with food, drinks, and dancing to the music of the yeshiva band, featuring Tuvia Ditchek, Dan Rende, Yossi Silverman and Joshua Eckmann. This was followed by several shpiels, including a shpiel put on by the rabbeim, as well as an extensive production by our students.
After Megillah reading on Sunday, our students visited with many of their rabbeim, and delivered mishloach manot throughout the morning. Rav Wolicki, Rav Kwass, and Rav Arram hosted Purim seudot in the afternoon, and the entire yeshiva reconvened at the Kahns' house for a gala dessert spread to close out the day. On Sunday night and Monday, many of our students ventured into Jerusalem in order to experience a second day of Purim, as well.
Finally, the entire yeshiva community sends its condolences to David Katz on the loss of his grandmother, Mickey Katz, A"H, and to Dr. Garry Katz and Mr. Zoltan Katz.
|
The Golden Calf
By Rabbi Pesach Wolicki
"And the people gathered around Aharon and said to him, "Rise up! Make for us gods that will go before us, for this man Moshe who brought us up from the land of Egypt - we do not know what became of him." Aharon said to them, "Remove the rings of gold that are in the ears of your wives, sons, and daughters and bring them to me." The entire people removed the gold rings that were in their ears and brought them to Aharon. He took it from their hand, fashioned it with an engraving tool [or mold (Ibn Ezra)] and made it into a calf of cast metal [heb. masechah]. They said, "These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt!"
"G-d spoke to Moshe: "Go descend, for your people that you have brought up from the land of Egypt has become corrupt. They have turned aside very quickly from the path that I have commanded them; they have made themselves a calf of cast metal! [masechah]" (Shemot 32:1-4,7-8)
Parshat Ki-Tisa is dominated by the story of the sin of the Golden Calf. In describing both the sin and G-d's reaction to it, the Torah mentions the method of making the calf - that it was cast metal. At the end of this narrative, Moshe is given a set of laws by G-d. (Shemot 34:10-26) Included in this section is the following - an obvious reaction to the Golden Calf: "You shall not make for yourselves gods of cast metal." (34:17) Forty years after this sin, Moshe is recounting the events of the sojourn in the desert. There - forty years later - Moshe recalls G-d's initial reaction to the Golden Calf. "G-d said to me, "Arise! Go down quickly from here because your people has corrupted - whom you took out of Egypt. They have turned aside very quickly from the path that I have commanded them; they have made themselves a cast metal image [masechah]]!" (Devarim 9:12)
Remarkably, Moshe does not even mention that it was a calf. It seems that G-d was angered primarily at the fact that they had made a cast metal image. The fact that it was a calf - or golden - is of secondary importance! We see from all of the above that the primary sin was that the calf was cast metal. Why? What is the importance of cast metal that makes it so central to this sin?
Casting and Pouring
The Hebrew word for cast metal used in all of the verses mentioned above is masechah. This word has variant meanings. It sometimes means "a mask" or "a cover" (see Isaiah 25:7, 20). Masechah can also mean "leader" or "anointed one" (Isaiah 30:1, see Rashi). In the latter from it relates to the verb "lisoch" or "linsoch", meaning "to pour", "to anoint", or "to offer a libation".
Masechah - cast metal - is metal that is poured. It is melted down into liquid and then poured into a mold or onto a three dimensional form.
The Method is the Message
That the Torah places great importance on the way an object is fashioned should not be surprising. The instructions for the building of the Mishkan are full of specific instructions regarding the methods of manufacturing the particular items. The altar, for example, may not be made of hewn stones "for if you have wielded your sword over it [a stone], you will have desecrated it." (Shemot 20:22)
The two objects made of pure gold - the Cherubs and the Menorah - have specific instructions as well. Each of these items must be made out of a solid piece of gold. Also, each of these items had to be smithed - not cast. Smithing is the process of molding a piece of metal by hammering and beating it into shape. Smithing is a much more difficult and time-consuming method of making these two items than casting would be. Both the Cherubs and the Menorah required a great deal of fine detail work. It certainly would have been quicker and easier to make a wax mold of the Menorah, melt down the gold, and cast it. Nevertheless, the Torah requires smithing - not casting.
Casting G-d?
When Israel made the Golden Calf, they intended to make an object that would allow them to connect to G- d - an intermediary. They felt a need for a physical representation of G-d's presence. They were not trying to replace G-d. They thought that they would create a physical object that could serve as a receptacle and vehicle for G-d in this world. This is why they said of the calf, "These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt!" They saw the calf as a vessel that would now house G-d - the same G-d who took them out of Egypt.
The problem with this is that G-d can not be housed in any physical object. G-d can not take any physical form whatsoever. For this reason, drawing or fashioning physical representations of G-d is forbidden. Liquid has no form of its own. Liquid takes the physical form of whatever vessel it is in. In the absence of a vessel, it will expand and flow endlessly. In casting, liquid is given a specific form. Casting provides a perfect metaphor for the theological mistake made by those who made the Golden Calf. G-d - like liquid - has no physical form. To create an outside form and "pour" G-d into it - to cast G-d - is heretical. G-d fills all of creation and can not be restricted or housed by a particular object.
Casting & Smithing
As stated above, the solid gold objects in the Tabernacle had to smithed rather than cast. In casting, the form - the mold or cast - and the content - the metal - are two separate entities. They exist separately at the beginning of the process. The content is melted down and is shaped by the already existing form - a form that exists separately from the finished product.
In smithing, this is not the case. The form of the Menorah - as that of the Cherubs - has never existed and will never exist outside of the content - the Menorah itself. The form of the Menorah can not exist outside of the content. There is no empty wax mold.
There is a very fine theological point here. In all of Judaism, form and content are one and the same. In fact, form is merely a development of content. For example, the mitzvot-commandments and the lessons that they teach are indistinguishable.
Smithing represents the unity of form and content. Casting represents the duality of form and content. Casting and G-dliness can not go together. G-d can take no form. G-d is One.
|
