Sacred & Profane
Thoughts on Parashat Aharei Mot 2019
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The Halakhah
has never despaired of man, either as a natural being integrated into his
physical environment, or as a spiritual personality confronting God.
(R.
Joseph B. Soloveitchik)[1]
And
he [Aharon]
shall take two he-goats for an offense offering…And he shall take the two goats
and set them before God at the entrance to Ohel Mo’ed. And he shall put lots on
the two goats, one for God and one for Azazel… (VaYikra 16:5-8)
The
beginning of Parashat Aharei Mot details God’s command to Aharon that he
separate two goats (se’irim) for the avodah of Yom Kippur. He
repeatedly referred to them as a single unit – “two goats,” and commanded that
they be set together at the entrance of Ohel Mo’ed. The Hakhamim
thus understood that the complete procedure of each goat was dependent upon the
fulfillment of the other, and that the chosen goats were to ideally appear the
same.[2]
Chosen by lots, however, the destiny of the respective goats was far from the
same:
And
Aharon shall bring forward the goat for which the lot for God comes up, and he
shall make it an offense offering. And the goat for which the lot for Azazel
comes up shall be set live before God to atone upon it, to send it off to
Azazel in the wilderness. (9-11)
Whereas
the goat “for God” was sacrificed to Him in the Mishkan, the goat “for
Azazel” was sent off alive into the wilderness. Significantly, however, even
the process of the goat for Azazel – in the wilderness, far from the Mishkan
– was described as taking place “before God.” What message was God sending with
his command of this enigmatic process of “the two goats” on Yom Kippur?
Human
beings naturally tend toward a dualistic understanding of existence. We
distinguish between the physical and spiritual domains of life,
viewing them as separate realities with little in common. R. Joseph B.
Soloveitchik z”l argued against this contention, writing:
The Halakhah
believes that there is only one world – not divisible into secular and hallowed
sectors – which can either plunge into ugliness and hatefulness, or be roused
to meaningful, redeeming activity, gathering up all latent powers into a state
of holiness.[3]
According
to R. Soloveitchik, Halakhah sets forth a vision of the world through monistic
lenses, dismissing the absolute division of kodesh and hol.
Indeed,
R. Hayim of Volozhin z”l commented on a classic debate about whether
humans or angels are greater, suggesting that while an angel might in fact be
“holier” in essence, a person possesses the significant advantage of being able
to “elevate and interconnect the worlds.” God’s words, “I have given you the
ability to move among these stationary ones” (Zekhariah 3:7) best
describe this difference – whereas angels can solely operate in realms of
sanctity – as “stationary” beings, man has the unique ability to unify the
seemingly “holy” and “profane” through his “movement” between worlds.[4]
The unique task of human beings, then, is to seek out and establish the unity
between these seemingly disparate aspects of life by realizing the meaning and
sanctity in every aspect of existence.
R.
Hayim z”l furthermore suggested that the fatal flaw of the dor
ha-mabul – the generation prior to Noah – lay in their inability to
perceive sanctity in the physical. He thus explained God’s rationale, “My
breath (ruhi) shall not abide in the human forever, for he is but
flesh” (Bereshit 6:3), as a description of their failure to find the
spiritual (“my breath”) amidst the physical (“flesh”).[5]
The
two goats of the Yom Kippur service exemplified the Torah’s version of
existence. Although their fate appeared entirely different – one slaughtered in
the Mishkan and the other set forth alive in the wilderness – they were,
in reality, playing parallel roles in a destiny of “standing before God.” The
message to us, in turn, is that our mission on the streets and in the workplace
is the same as that in the synagogue and bet midrash. While the environment
of our day-to-day life continuously shifts, the two se’irim remind us
that “standing before God” is a constant.