Wednesday, February 5, 2014

Parshat Tetzaveh- "Enlighten Your Home"





"ואתה תצוה את בני ישראל ויקחו אליך שמן זית זך כתית למאור להעלות נר תמיד"
"And you command the children of Israel to take for themselves pure olive oil and to light the candle".
The word תצוה Tetzave literally means you shall command. However, the word can also be read as a derivative of Tzivta צוותא, meaning together or united. G-d tells Moses to unite with the Children of Israel. Thus every Jewish person in every generation carries a spark from Moses. (אור החיים : Ohr ha-Chaim)בעל הטורים (Baal ha-Turim) brings a very interesting approach to the word Tetzaveh. He explains that the numerical value of the word Tezaveh תצוה is 501 and is equal to that of the word Nashim Tziva (spelled in hebrew) which means command the women. From here the Baal Haturim derives the womens obligation to light the Shabbat candles weekly.
Aahron Hacohen was commanded to clean the menorah in the Mishkan. Why does Aahron the Cohen Gadol recieve such a dirty job? To show us that even the job that seems so low and dirty is the most holiest thing because you are serving Hashem. 
So too, a woman is the Cohen in her home which is the mini Beit Hamikdash and she hasd to make sure that nothing impure enters her home and also to remember that even though she feels she is doing a lowly thing in the home- washing dishes, changing diappers, etc. remember that you are doing the most holiest thing because you are serving Hashem to your fullest. Just like Aahron, the Cohen Gadol was cleaning and preparing the Menorah to be relit looks like a lowly job but in reality it is the biggest and most important task in the Mishkan without him they wouldn't be able to relight the Menorah,
Shabbat Shalom 
By:Esther Shamayev
































































































































































































































tzaveh תצוה. He explains that the numerical value (gematriya) of the word Tetzavehbתצוה is 501 and is equal to that of the word נשים צוה or Commanded the Women. From here the Baal ha-Turim derives womens obligation to light weekly Shabbat candles.