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Perashat Pinhas 5778

Home > Rabbi's Weekly Message > Perashat Pinhas 5778

Perashat Pinhas 5778

Friday, July 06, 2018 Author: Rabbi Mimoun Miller

The last two chapters of Perashat Pinhas describe the mussafim, additional sacrifices that are brought on specific days such as Shabbat, Rosh Hodesh and festivals. Before describing these offerings, the Torah details the korban tamid, the daily continual offerings. Regarding the korban tamid the pasuk says: "The one lamb you shall make in the morning and the second lamb shall you make in the afternoon" (Bamidbar 28:4). We are commanded to offer these sacrifices daily even on Shabbat and festivals, before the mussafim.
 
The mussaf offerings signify the exalted moments in life, the highlights and the important milestones, while the korban tamid express the seemingly mundane routine of our lives. One would imagine that the special mussaf offerings would be more important and take precedence over the korban tamid. Yet the Mishna states: "Any offering that is more frequent than another precedes the other offering." (Zebahim 10:1) Therefore, the daily tamid offerings precede the mussaf offerings, which are only sacrificed on certain days. 
 
Regrettably we have become accustomed to value to a greater extent that which is rare. It is why we give considerably more importance to special occasions. However, the Torah is teaching us that the psychological perception that exalts only what is rare is mistaken. 

Abodat Hashem should be constant, ingrained by routine so that it becomes our primary focus. In our daily lives, those who wait for the day of Rosh HaShanah to be cautious of their actions and pray fervently cannot be compared to a person who consciously strives to improve his middot every day of the year. A great person is not measured by the way he or she prays the Neilah service, nor by the way one treats their spouse on their anniversary. What is truly important is the way the person acts day in and day out.

While it is necessary to commit to constant service to G-d, there's a potential downside to routinely performing missvot. Eventually they become monotonous and stale, and soon enthusiasm dissipates. The challenge then is to maintain the fervor in our day to day service of G-d.

As the pessukim go on to describe the specifications of the korban tamid we find a seemingly out of place statement: "It is the continual elevation offering that was done at Har Sinai" (Bamidbar 28:6). In his commentary, Rabbi Yosef Salant asked what does the offering that was brought on Mt. Sinai, have to do with this section about the daily sacrifice? After all, that which happened on Mt. Sinai was history, and the pessukim here are delineating present commandments. Rabbi Salant explains that the elevation offering that was brought on Har Sinai was the first korban tamid ever. One could imagine the excitement in the desert as the inaugural tamid was offered. By mentioning the offering at Har Sinai, the Torah is encouraging us to remember that feeling of excitement as we bring the tamid each day.
 
As we recite the daily tefillot and observe the usual missvot, we must infuse them with the same enthusiasm and kavanah we had when we offered up to Hashem our first korban tamid at Har Sinai.

Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Mimoun Miller

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