Service To The Creator
T
his week, the portion
discusses the pro-
cedure for various
sacrifices.
One such sacrifice was
the sin offering. A person
was obligated to bring a sin
offering if he unintentional-
ly transgressed a command-
ment whose intentional
violation would be punished
by death. There was a slid-
ing scale for this sacrifice. A
rich person brought an ox;
middle class, goat or sheep;
poor, two pigeons; destitute,
flour and oil. The Rambam,
Rabbi Moshe Maimonides,
writes that if a rich person
were to bring an offering of
flour and oil, his obligation
would not have been met. It did,
however, suffice for a poor person
to bring an ox.
The Alter Rebbe, first
Lubavitcher Rebbe, writes in his
Letters of Repentance, that in this
time, when we can no longer bring
sin offerings, a person should
increase in his service to HaShem.
If one learns one chapter daily, he
should increase to two. If one gives
one penny to charity, let him give
two, etc.
Even in Temple times, the
sacrifice did not provide
a magical formula for sin
removal. There has never
been a quick fix for repen-
tance. The main emphasis
was and is on the person
increasing in his Avodas
HaShem, service of the
Creator. By sinning, a per-
son puts a blemish or dent
in his soul. This blemish has
a direct effect on his con-
nection to God. By doing
teshuva, repenting, one fills
in those dents and fissures
and repairs the attachment.
The Rebbe explains that
poverty is only in knowl-
edge. When we first start
learning, we are poor. As
we grow in Yiddishkeit, we attain
wealth. A wealthy person, one
who is well developed in Judaism,
cannot suffice with doing simple
things. A poor person, one who is
not as knowledgeable, is commend-
ed for extending himself beyond
what is expected. ■
Rabbi Herschel Finman is co-director (with
his wife Chana) of Jewish Ferndale and
host of “The Jewish Hour” radio on WLQV
1500 AM - Sundays 11-noon; contact
www.rabbifinman.com.
Parshat
Vayikra:
Leviticus
1:1-5:26;
Deuteronomy
26:17-19;
I Samuel
15:1-34.
(Shabbat
Zachor)
Rabbi Hershel
Finman
Contributing Writer
spirit
torah portion
POINTS TO PONDER:
• Do you have a “dent” in your soul from sinning? What is it?
• Have you repaired the “dent”? If not, how will you do so?
30 March 14 • 2019
jn
Purim Fun
Purim Fun
Wednesday
March
20
Evening Festivities
hosted at Adat Shalom Synagogue
5:30 pm - Megillah Mania
A Family Purim Experience
6:00 pm - Free Carnival
with a Star Trax Dance Party
with a Sensory Friendly Room (NEW!)
Dinner available for purchase
8:00 pm - Minchah/Maariv Service
& Megillah Reading
Dessert reception
Morning Minyan &
Megillah Reading
followed by Breakfast
Thursday
March
7:00 am - hosted at B’nai Israel Synagogue
21
Purim Partners:
Questions? Contact one of the participating congregations.
Help Yad Ezra! Bring unopened
boxes of pasta to use as groggers!
PASTA SHAKE UP
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Community