kdrit litp
Torah Portion
Kaddish Derives Holiness
From The Acts Of Worshipers
sanctify the lights and the bread of
our homes and invest in them the
special significance previously
applied to the articles of the Temple
ritual.
The rabbis charged the people to
make their lives a series of "holy
ast week, we read what has
acts," to live them fully, in proper
been called the "essence of
relationship with each other, with
ethical monotheism," the
nature, and with God. They com-
holiness code of Leviticus
posed a statement that expressed
Ch. 19.
how important it was for us to praise
It began k'doshim t'hiyu, ki kadosh
God and acknowledge with awe
ani [haShem elokaychem] — You
God's majestic and wonder-filled
shall be holy because I, the Lord
world.
your God, am holy.
They wrote the state-
We translate kadosh as
ment in Aramaic, the
"holy," but Judaism has a
street language of the
different understanding of
Jewish world, for they
"holy" than do other reli-
wanted everyone to be able
gious systems. We declare
to fully understand and
that kadosh — holy -- is
comprehend this ultimate
relational.
poem of praise. When
Holiness is determined
recited, the moment .
by the quality of its connec-
became kadosh, even as
tion to us, rather than the
did the person who spoke
RABBI
divinity ()fits connection to
or sang its words.
JOSEPH
KLEIN
God!
Belonging to our peo-
Special to the
Defining our relation-
ple,
this statement, regu-
Jewish News
ships with each other, our
larly repeated, reaffirmed
relationship to this natural
our specialness, our unique
world and our relationship with
status within the world. It came to
God, "holiness" is not something
be called the Kaddish, perhaps
declared by God, rather something
beCause it was a daily reminder that
affirmed by humanity! When we
this people was to be kadosh, holy,
decide that a thing or idea is "set
in what they said, in what they did,
aside," is special, is uniquely mean-
in who they were.
ingful, then it becomes kadosh, holy.
Repeated in different forms in our
In our reading this week, we see
prayer book; it remains the ultimate
how "holiness" was applied to the
praise of God. It is unique in our
accessories of the Tabernacle. They
liturgy, for it is not directed to God,
were the most simple and common
but to the people present. Not writ-
of commodities: olive oil for lamps
ten in the Hebrew of Torah, it
and flour for bread (Leviticus 24:1-
remains in Aramaic, our ancient
9). But in bringing light and food
common language.
into the "House of the Lord," we are
Our worship.service serves to
to take special care that only the
reconnect us in proper relationship
"clear oil of crushed olives" and the
to others, to nature and to God. The
"choicest of flour" be used.
great symbol of that regular recon-
The lamps of the menorah and
riection is our Kaddish.
the bread arranged on the table are
really no different that the lamp and
bread of any dwelling — except in
how these are prepared: in the care
and attention given to them.
How does kadosh as "relational
Since the "House of the Lord,"
holiness" help us understand
the Jerusalem Temple, was destroyed
Kiddush (the blessing over wine)
by RoMe in 70 C.E., there have
and kiddushin ("holiness" of
been no "holy" things regularly
marriage)? What are ways in
brought before God. To replace what
which we .can bring kedushah —
had been taken away, what was no
holiness — into our everyday
longer able to be done, the rabbis
relationships? Does this under-
declared that "sacrifices of the
standing of the Kaddish help to
heart," or prayers were to replace the
explain how it might have come
offerings at the Temple. We were to
to be associated with those who
Shabbat Emor:
Leviticus 21: 1
24:23;Ezekiel 44:15-31
-
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