Parashat T'tzavveh (Exodus 27:20 - 30:10)

by Rabbi Frank Dabba Smith, Harrow and Wembley Progressive Synagogue

Summary
In the previous Sidrah, detailed instructions are specified for the building of the Tabernacle and crafting its furnishings including the tent, the ark, ritual items and the menorah.  The intended purpose is to provide the setting and tools for collective tribal worship.  In Tetsavveh, further instructions are given to the Israelites concerning the oil used for lighting the lampstand, the vestments for both the high priest and the ordinary priests and, finally, the elaborate ceremonies for installing the priests.  Just as a ‘holy’ space must be differentiated from a ‘profane’ space so the priests must be distinguishable from ordinary people.  

Commentary

Some 2,200 years ago, the historian Ben Sira described the impression made on worshippers by the appearance of the high priest attired in his full regalia:

‘How glorious was he when he looked forth from the tent and emerged from behind the Temple veil!  He was like the morning star appearing between the clouds, like the full moon on a festival day….’ 

It’s tempting to be flippant when discussing the importance of clothing especially if we wish to think of ourselves not as being ‘fashion slaves’ or as materialistic ‘posers’.  But even in some secular settings clothing carries tremendous importance.  It is conventional wisdom that if one gains a job interview, it is necessary to learn what your interviewers might be wearing and then to present yourself as very slightly more smartly dressed (but not too much more so!).  The idea is not to present oneself as ‘separate’  --like the priest—  but as more than willing to play by the codes of conduct that are deemed necessary by the other players.  In work settings where codes of conduct and procedure are elaborate and vitally important  --such as in the legal or medical professions and in aviation--   prescribed uniforms may well be mandatory. 

In Judaism, according to Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, the lack of priestly vestments today reflects the idea that holiness is about deeds not ceremony:  ‘The goal is not that a ceremony should be performed… our task is to let the Divine emerge from our [actions].’   In other words, the most humble gesture of kindness to one’s fellow is more important than any of the acts performed by the high priest in the temple in Jerusalem.  For Heschel,  the scaffolding in which we choose to build or tear down our hopes of God lies in our hearts and is made or broken by each of our actions involved in the ordinary business of daily life.  Exotic regalia and grand entrances are wholly unnecessary.

Rabbi Frank Dabba Smith

Harrow and Wembley Progressive Synagogue