38 March 28 • 2019
jn

Rabbi Jennifer 
Lader

Power And Responsibility
I

n this week’
s Torah portion, 
Nadav and Avihu, Aaron’
s eldest 
sons, are killed in a Divine fiery 
blaze after offering an esh zarah, a 
“strange fire before the Lord.” 
While commentators across 
the board argue about what 
exactly Nadav and Avihu did 
to deserve such a quick and 
violent death, the majority 
of them agree that Aaron’
s 
sons performed unauthorized 
and innovative acts of ritual. 
No matter what the two men 
actually did wrong, it’
s clear 
they did something that wasn’
t 
expressly spelled out by the 
rites that were previously in 
place. 
This interpretation poses 
a particular problem for lib-
eral Jews, who innovate, flex, 
redefine and grow based on 
the ever-changing needs of our con-
gregants in an ever-changing world. 
As a movement that aims to keep our 
spirituality and ritual original and 
inventive, we are faced with a biblical 
narrative that seemingly punishes 
two priests, appointed by God, for 
doing just that. 
Orthodox Rabbi Samson Raphael 
Hirsch takes this narrative as a direct 
Divine message against the liberal 
movements of Judaism. He writes, 
“We can understand that the death 
of the priestly youths is the most 
solemn warning for all future priests! 
Not by fresh inventions, even of 
God-serving novices, but by carrying 
out that which is ordained by God 
has the Jewish priest to establish the 
authenticity of his activities.” 
However, Nadav and Avihu’
s story 
cannot simply be intended as an 
allegorical warning against liturgi-
cal innovation, as Hirsch argues. 
Judaism is an evolving faith, which 
has played a huge role in its histori-
cal longevity. Jews have been revising 

and modifying ritual since ritual 
was around for us to amend. Had 
Judaism been unable to work with-
in a creative framework, the entire 
religion would have been lost 
with the destruction of the 
Beit HaMikdash. By modifying 
our religious practice into a 
community-oriented mobile 
religion, we survived. 
So, if we reject the idea 
that innovation is seen as a 
sin against God, where does 
that leave us with the sudden 
demise of Nadav and Avihu? 
 Directly after their deaths, 
God instructs Aaron as fol-
lows: “Do not drink wine or 
strong drink, you and your 
sons with you, when you enter 
the Tent of Meeting, lest you 
die.” (Leviticus 10:9-11). 
From this juxtaposition of 
verses, Rashi infers that Nadav and 
Avihu were, in fact, guilty of an SUI, 
sacrifice under the influence. This 
transgression warranted a swift pun-
ishment from above, not because of 
any malicious intent, but because 
these men were chosen as leaders 
and role models of their community. 
They were so infatuated with their 
newfound power that they took 
advantage of their situation, pushing 
ethical boundaries with no fear of 
consequence. 
In the words of a true scholar of 
our time, Spiderman’
s Uncle Ben, 
“With great power comes great 
responsibility.” We have the right to 
expect the spiritual leaders of our 
community to be mentshen. Because 
without honoring the ethical foun-
dation of our tradition, all of our 
hard work keeping Judaism fresh 
and relevant in today’
s world goes to 
waste. ■

Rabbi Jennifer Lader is a rabbi at Temple Israel 

in West Bloomfield.

Parshat 

Shemini: 

Leviticus 

9:11-11:47; 

Ezekiel 

36:16-38. 

(Shabbat 

Parah)

spirit

torah portion

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