The kiddush of hashem: drink l'chaim! | Rabbi Stewart Weiss | Beit Midrash

Beit Midrash

Torah Portion and Tanach
Vayikra
Tazria - Metzora

קטגוריה משנית

Parashat Hashavua Series'Library Piskei Din (Hebrew)Test Yourself

This Shabbat's Sedra of Tazria introduces the
concept of Niddah. When a woman begins to
menstruate & cannot conceive, she enters the
Niddah state and separates from her husband for a
period of 7 days (biblically, that is;
the Rabbis tacked on 5 more days for a total of 12 days).

These 7 days connect to the 7 days of mourning.
In both cases, death is present: actual death for
the mourner; potential death for the woman who
did not conceive. When we confront death, we
temporarily move away from pleasure – such as
relations with our spouse - in order to
contemplate life, loss, G-d & our role in the universe.

Both the state of mourning (aveilut) & that of
niddah are what the Torah calls Tumah: a
progression away from life - real or possible -
and a somber reaction to demise. Man is meant to
create - just as G-d is the ultimate Creator - &
when life is destroyed, rather than created, we mourn.

Yet after the obligatory mourning period comes
renewal, hope & joy. The waters of the Mikva
purify us; water is the ultimate symbol & source
of growth & new life. The very fact that we
grapple with loss inspires us to appreciate life
even more, & pursue it with greater zeal.

7 days can also connect to 7 weeks. The 7 weeks
from Pesach to Shavuot represent a progression
from the death, degradation & impurity of
Egyptian slavery to the life & pleasure of the
Torah, which is always symbolized by water - mayim chaim - Torat chaim.

The trauma of war confronts us on a daily basis.
Like aveilut, this must give us pause as we ask
the deepest questions: Why do we suffer? For what
cause do we die & more importantly, for what
cause do we live? What can I create & build that
will be a pure & lasting source of life?

The most potent tumah/impurity is that of a
corpse, in Hebrew a chalal, or empty space. That
which once held a precious soul/neshama, & is now
empty of that neshama, is supremely impure.
Challal is also connected to the word chillul -
desecration, as in chillul Hashem, the profaning
of G-d’s name. A person - or a nation! – that
lacks a neshama sullies G-d’s name. Whenever Jews
die at the hands of an enemy that, too, is a
chillul Hashem. We must all stand in awe of our
holy, pure soldiers, for they guard us from death
& bring us life. They are, literally, a Kiddush
Hashem & it is to them that we should raise our
glasses & drink l’Chayim. Let us honor them by
keeping them in mind each time we make Kiddush, &
by this simple act remember these brave men &
women who are truly the "Kiddush of Hashem."

Tazria - Metzora