TORAH PORTION I gSe pleasure olyour company is Ain(;(les y repeskor a/ /Se aven/y-eigkS 1/41-2nioersary .13arzuei ( of ."Afiea Jie,Cretv Day School To Relate To God, Relate To Each Other Sonoriny RABBI ELIEZER COHEN 7A'e Yionorage .71;folcsz c_Sund,=iy, 9aye 1992 - 2 9sa.n 5752 Congregaiion c_Vaarey Zecki 27375 sTeff soaor 7 cSoui.Efiefoc 7ckgan Cockaifs.- 5.•30 Dinner.-6:30 _71onoraly CSairpersons Yfonorage ✓ 'pern CoSn .72conora6l ..73arzy 32rowaror .7fonoraUe Mrtm . 711: Doctor°, ..71onorage 6clivarorSosnic.1 9eneral CSairpersons (Steven Z. CoSen, 6s9. 6ra Sam a Selesny, 6sf. ouyene LumSery, 6sf. (Stuart 7eger, 6sf. Zlacil tie optional Couuer• $2.50 per Couple We Can Never Say Thank You Enough. Over the years, thousands of you have sent JARC tributes to your family and friends. We've thanked you, but perhaps not enough. Your support has helped operate 11 beautiful homes for men and women with developmental dis- abilities. It has helped others learn to live independently. It has provided critical family support services. Thank you for your tributes. They are, like you, never forgotten. Call today to make a tribute. 352-5272. A Jewish Association for Residential Care for persons with developmental disabilities 28366 Franklin Road Southfield, MI 48034 (313) 352-5272 Special to The Jewish News his week's Torah por- tion, Tzav, deals pri- marily with the role of the kohayn, the priest, in the performance of the sacrifices. Clearly, the verses indicate that the kohayn is indispen- sable in the offering of the sacrifices, both voluntary and obligatory. This concept of reliance on another human being in our relationship to the Almighty seems somewhat foreign to most of us. For, after all, we are used to the "Jewish ideal" of each persori standing before his maker responsible and answering only for himself. We have been brought up to believe that we personally relate directly to God. Certainly in practice, this necessity of and reliance on others doesn't seem to exist at all. There is no practice in Judaism now that requires the services of a rabbi or anyone else if the individual himself is knowledgeable and able. Yet, it seems with the sacrifices, and if they are seen as the model, then, in general, that the authentical- ly Jewish concept of a rela- tionship with God requires more than the individual himself. Actually, this idea of ab- solute self-reliance and "each Jew for himself' before God is a misconception. To fulfill our obligations as Jews, we not only need other Jews — we need all other Jews. The Mishna (Tractate Rosh Hashanah, at the end of chapter three) declares: "This is the general rule: all who are not obligated in a mitzvah (commandment) cannot per- form it on behalf of the com- munity." Specifically, the Mishna is discussing the Baal Tikea, the one who blows the shofar on behalf of the con- gregation. If the one blowing the shofar has no obligation, for example, if he is a non- Jew, then he may not blow the shofar for the congregation to enable them to fulfill their obligation to hear the sound of the shofar on Rosh Hashanah. The enabler must be obligated or the others cannot fulfill their obligation. As the Mishna indicates, "This is the general rule." It applies, as well, to other obligations Eliezer Cohen is rabbi at Young Israel of Oak-Woods. 48 FRIDAY, MARCH 20, 1992 besides shofar. There are other mitzvot that one may perform for others. For exam- ple, one can recite a brocha, a blessing, and another may fulfill his obligation by hear- ing the brocha, and respon- ding amen. In evey case, the one performing the act must be obligated in the mitzvah. But what happens if the one performing the mitzvah had his own obligation but has already fulfilled it? If he has already blown or heard the shofar previously; if he has already recited the bless- ing, technically speaking, he is no longer obligated. He has Shabbat Tzav Leviticus 6:1-8:36. Jeremiah 7:21-8:3, 9:22-23. finished his mitzvah. The Talmud commenting on our Mislins (Rosh Hashanah 29A) declares in the name of Ahava the son of Rav Zeira: "In all blessings, even one that has already fulfilled his obligation may enable another . . ." Thus, a Jew who was obligated to perform the act may enable another even though he has completed his obligation, while a non-Jew who has no obligation may not . . . Why not? What's the difference? The answer is very simple — but revolutionary. Even though the Jew has already performed his mitzvah and ostensibly is no longer obligated, he may still enable others because his mitzvah is not complete. There is a mutual responsibility of one Jew for another Jew, and, in fact, one Jew for all Jews. If there exists another Jew anywhere who has not per- formed his own mitzvah, the fulfillment of the mitzvah by any and all other Jews re- mains incomplete. Thus the enabler is still "obligated." This mututality applies across the board, in every obligation and mitzvah that Jews have. When I put on tefillin (phylacteries), or daven (pray), eat matzah or keep Shabbat, if there is a fellow Jew who neglects these mitzvot, my mitzvah is incomplete; I'm still obligated. No Jew can stand before God alone. We are all inex- tricably and mutually bound together in our relationship to the Almighty.