Torah Talk for Your Shabbos Table on this week’s Torah portion: Emor!
“And you shall sanctify him, for the bread of your G-d does he offer, he shall be holy to you for I am G-d who sanctifies you.”
The Gemara teaches these words mean that the Kohain is to be honored by others. He is to be called to the Torah first, allowed to speak first at events, and to recite the Birkas Hamazon, to lead the Grace after Meals.
The simple meaning of “and you shall sanctify him,” however, is discussed by Rashi and other here. It refers to a Kohain who chooses not to act as he is supposed to. For example, if he marries a divorcee, something forbidden to a Kohain, he is forced to divorce her, even if he doesn’t want to do it. It is the responsibility of the Bais Din and the populace to ensure that he lives as he is intended to live.
Today, people call this kefia datit, religious coercion. Modern society’s idea of democracy and self-determination states that we can do what we want, when we want, however we want. This concept is imminently disproved by this posuk. In truth, we are all part of an intricate plan, all interconnected, and each important in our respective roles.
The Ohr HaChaim here shares a striking insight. Previously, all references to the Kohanim were in the plural. “They shall not make a bald spot on their heads (in mourning) nor cut their flesh (in sorrow.) They shall be holy and not desecrate the name of their G-d.” Now, though, the Kohain is referred to in the singular, “and you shall make HIM holy.”
He continues: The verse says we are to force him to divorce his forbidden wife ‘for he offers the bread of your G-d,’ in other words, he performs the sacrifices in the Bais HaMikdash. We might therefore assume that if there are other Kohanim who can do the avoda, the sacrificial service, we do not need to force him to get rid of the wife.
Our assumption would be that he is not needed by the community, so we can let him be free to do as he pleases. This, says the Ohr HaChaim, is untrue. The verse is written in singular to say that even on a single one of them, we are to insist that he follows the law.
The underlying message in this is that every Jew is important, with his or her role to fulfill. Like the parable of the man drilling a hole in the bottom of a boat and saying, “I’m only drilling under MY seat,” the rest of us realize that if he continues, we will all go down together. Conversely, we can all rise together as well.
Not only is this message intended for us to realize that we should respect and honor others, but it is directed at each and every one of us as well. We may feel that we don’t matter to the rest of the group or that our actions don’t have consequences for anyone but ourselves. That is untrue, because we are all connected and everything we each do is crucial and has an impact on others.
That is why we must force this kohain to divorce his wife, because if he does not, he is harming himself unwittingly, by not fulfilling his role in Creation, and all of us, for the very same reason.
