Last week, in Parshat Kedoshim, we learned about lots of mitzvot that every single person can do, in order to become holy. This week's parsha has even more mitzvot - including one that is so important, Jews throughout the ages have given up their lives to perform it!
The Holiest Tribe
All of the Jewish people are holy. That's why they were given so many mitzvot to do. But of all the Jews, the tribe of Levi is the holiest. And within the tribe of Levi, the Kohanim are the holiest! Moshe's brother, Aharon, was the first Kohein Gadol, and his children were the first Kohanim. And so it continued, down through the generations, until today.
HaShem saw that the Levi'im (people of the tribe of Levi) were different from everyone else. When the Jews were in Egypt, the Levi'im never served idols. In the desert, when the rest of the Jewish men gave their gold jewelry to make the golden calf, the Levi'im refused to have anything to do with it.
As a reward, the Levi'im were given special jobs to perform in the Beit HaMikdash - including singing and playing music - and the Kohanim were given the privilege of performing the actual korbanot (sacrifices) - which was the holiest job of all.
Here's a riddle? Can you think of a case when there were two brothers, one a Kohein and the other a Levi?
Hands Off
Since Kohanim have to stay spiritually pure in order to serve in the Beit HaMikdash, they were given a commandment not to touch a dead body, which would make them tamay (impure).
Included in this mitzvah is the rule that a Kohein is not allowed to enter a cemetery or go to a funeral. But there's an exception to the rule. It's a mitzvah for a Kohein to bury his close relatives - his wife, mother, father, son, daughter, brother, or unmarried sister.
It's a Mitzvah
Next is a very special mitzvah, called a meit mitzvah (a mitzvah dealing with a dead person). If a Kohein finds the body of a Jewish person outside, far from where other people live, he must call out, "I've found Jew who needs to be buried! Anyone here that can help bury him? It's a BIG mitzvah!" If there's no answer, the Kohein has the great mitzvah - one of the greatest of all - to bury the dead person. And that's why it's called a meit mitzvah! If a Kohein buries one of his close relatives or a meit mitzvah, he becomes tamay, and afterwards must be purified by being sprinkled with the ashes of a para aduma (red cow). Then he may return to his service in the Beit HaMikdash. We'll learn more about the para aduma in a few weeks. Even nowadays, a Kohein must still keep these special mitzvot.
Absolutely Perfect
If a Kohein has any kind of physical defect, then he can't serve in the Beit HaMikdash. It makes no difference whether the defect is something he was born with, such as blindness, or whether it happened through an accident, such as a broken arm. In fact, a Kohein who had any kind of disability or injury was not even allowed to go into the Kodesh section of the Beit HaMikdash at all!
There was something else that had to be perfect, too - the animals that were offered as korbanot in the Beit HaMikdash. If you were going to give someone a gift, you wouldn't want to give something that is damaged in any way - even though the damage might only be minor, or affect only the appearance of something and not its usefulness or its value. Let's say you want to give your mother a coffee mug for her birthday. Just before you wrap it up, you notice that there's a small chip on the edge of the mug. You decide that instead of giving the chipped mug to your mother, you'll exchange it for a perfect one. Sure, a mug with a little chip works just fine, and your mother might not even notice anything wrong with it! But it's a gift - and doesn't your mother deserve something that's just right? In the same way, since a korban was a gift to HaShem, it makes sense that an animal that was offered had to be absolutely perfect in every way. If someone did bring an imperfect animal to the Beit HaMikdash, the Kohein was not allowed to offer it on the mizbeyach (altar).
Still Special
Nowadays, Levi'im and Kohanim still have certain privileges. For example, if there's a Levi or a Kohein in the room, he's the one chosen to lead the Birkat HaMazon (blessing after meals). And when the Torah is read in synagogue, a Kohein gets called up for the first aliyah, and a Levi gets called up next. You may have heard the gabbai (the one who calls people to the Torah) call them up: "Ya'amod! Stand up! HaKohein!" or "Ya'amod! HaLevi!"
Putting Your Life on the Line
There are times when the biggest mitzvah is to refuse to do something that is forbidden - even if it will cost you your life! If a Jew is told that he will be killed unless he does one of the "Big Three" sins - murdering someone, worshipping idols, or marrying a person he is not allowed to marry - then the Jew must let himself be killed rather than do any of these sins. Otherwise, it would be like saying to the person making the threat, "You know, I guess HaShem isn't that important after all. Even though you are asking me to do something terrible that HaShem absolutely forbids me to do, I'd rather save my own life".
On the other hand, being willing to put one's life on the line for the sake of HaShem's honor is a huge mitzvah. It's called making a Kiddush HaShem, sanctification of HaShem's name. Most people will never be in a situation where their life would actually be in danger if they refuse to sin. But there have been times in Jewish history when many, many people were threatened. During the Crusades, for example, and during the Spanish Inquisition, whole communities of Jews were ordered to convert to Christianity - or be killed. And thousands of Jews made a Kiddush HaShem when they refused to convert.
Even though you can be pretty sure that you will never be in such a dramatic situation, there are still plenty of ordinary ways you can make a Kiddush HaShem every day. When you behave with consideration and respect in public, you make a good impression on other people who see you. They notice that Jewish people are kind and thoughtful, and they tell other people positive things about Jewish people. This is another way to sanctify HaShem's name.
Think about this next time you're riding a bus, or shopping in the supermarket with your mother, or walking through a park. What can you do to make sure that other people who see you will have a good impression of you? Can you offer your seat to an older person? Walk without making too much noise, and show respect for your mother by listening to her? Or smile and say hello to a child who rides by on a scooter?
Remember that you are a representative of the Jewish people. When you make a good impression on others, you are also making a good name for the Jews, and for HaShem!
Around the Year
HaShem took Moshe on a tour of the Jewish calendar, explaining the laws of each Jewish Yom Tov (holiday). Then Moshe taught the Jewish people: "You already know that there are 39 types of work that may not be done on Shabbat. Now I want to teach you about the holidays of the year. A Yom Tov is like Shabbat, and we are not allowed to do any work. There are two exceptions to this, however. We can cook food, and we can carry things in the street if we need them for the holiday."
Moshe went on to describe five major holidays. Pesach, Shavuot, and Sukkot were called the Shalosh Regalim, which literally means "three legs." On those days, Jewish men were required to travel (on foot) to the Beit HaMikdash in Jerusalem to offer special korbanot (sacrifices).
