Who Is The “You” in
Tetzaveh
D’var Torah for
Parashat Tetzaveh
By Rabbi Boaz D.
Heilman
This week’s Torah portion, Tetzaveh (“You shall command,” Exodus 27:20—30:10) is unique in
that it is the only parasha in the
Torah since the birth of Moses and with the exception of the book of
Deuteronomy, which is told almost exclusively from Moses’s perspective, in
which Moses’s name is not mentioned once. The use of the 2nd person pronoun
has been addressed by rabbis since the third century and possibly even
earlier. Some explain it as a harsh
response by God to the “You” used pointedly by Moses to remind God of His
responsibility toward the People of Israel, the People God had created and
chosen. “You talking to me?” God seems
to ask; “How about you and what YOUR responsibilities are!”
The Chassidic Lubavitcher Rebbe has a softer interpretation. By using the familiar “you,” God bypasses the
formality of calling Moses by name. It’s
all about relationships, the Rebbe teaches.
Still, the question remains open. Why bypass the pattern the Torah uses so
frequently, “And God spoke unto Moses, saying…”?
By traditional understanding, the Torah was given to Moses
directly by God; the “you” therefore needs no further interpretation. To whom else would God be addressing these
words?
The rest of the portion seems to bear out this
understanding. The subject matter is
mostly the clothing of the High Priests and his fellow Levitical priests. Moses receives instructions for the
preparation of the High Priest’s clothing.
The ornate nature of the weave, the expensive materials, the gold thread
and precious stones and gems used for this outfit, are of the same pattern and
mold as the materials and patterns used for the Tabernacle. The holiness of the Mishkan, God’s dwelling-place among the Israelites, extends all the
way from the innermost Holy of Holies, to the outermost garments worn by the
priest. Clothing may not make the man;
yet it must have been difficult for the High Priest to distinguish between
God’s holiness, encased by the Holy Tabernacle, and his own importance, encased
by similar designs, forms and materials.
Gems on his breastplate, gold stones on his shoulders, a golden diadem
on his head—how easy it must have been for the High Priest to be carried away
by his own self- importance!
It’s a lesson easily adapted to our own day. At almost-daily awards shows, popular media
stars model the most lavish outfits, the most expensive accessories and the
most costly jewelry. In their own eyes,
and in the eyes of many of their followers, that qualifies them to give voice
to outrageous thoughts and opinions as though they were the very words of God
Himself. Sporting blue contact lenses,
Famous Person Tila Tequila recently called herself “an Aryan Goddess.” Another popular
media star, Kanye West, waxes exuberantly about his own superiority. And Presidential candidate Donald Trump,
notwithstanding the many business ventures he has failed in, describes himself
as being good—if not better or even best—at just about anything he touches and
does. A true Midas, that.
It is easy to let the trappings of power go to our heads and
turn us—in our own minds at least—into something greater than we truly are.
At CNN’s New Hampshire Democratic Town Hall, my friend and
colleague Rabbi Jonathan Spira-Savett recently directed a pointed question at
Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton:
“How do you cultivate the ego a person must have to be the leader of the
free world and the humility to know you can’t be expected to be wise about all
the things that the President has to be responsible for?”
In her eloquent and appropriate response, Hillary Clinton
did not place herself above or even alongside God. Rather, she explained that prayer and
devotional readings sent to her by spiritual advisors keep her balanced.
The recognition that we are not gods, that we are fallible
and prone to the excesses of ego and exaggerated self-worth, are essential
qualities for any leader. If we are to
remember the purpose for which we were elected or appointed, if we are not to
be blinded and swayed from the goals set for us by the people we are supposed
to represent, we must also understand that we are merely human beings, all
flesh and blood, all equal under the clothing we wear and the masks we put on.
Perhaps this is behind the Lubavitcher Rebbe’s teaching
regarding God’s use of “you” instead of addressing Moses by the name we know
him by. A name, regardless of how good
or royal, is no more than a handle. It’s
a superficial symbol, an arrow pointing towards someone. “You,” however, is a direct address. It reaches all the way to the very core of a
person’s being.
Still, without a name there, we can be excused for
wondering. Is it Moses that God
addresses?
On the one hand, of course it is Moses. On the other hand, the “you” that God speaks
to is you and me, the ordinary people whose responsibility it is to appoint or
elect our leaders. It becomes our charge
to remind them—as many times as it takes—that behind the trappings of power
resides a mere human being, as fragile and flimsy as anyone else. None of us has the one and only answer, the
one and only right way. It is only by
working together, with each of us fulfilling his and her role in life and
society, that we have a chance to solve the many issues and problems that face
us at any given moment in history.
“You” may refer to Moses, to a wise and kindly rabbi, or to
a child who perceives that the king’s new clothing is no more than his birthday
suit. Ultimately, the “You” in “You shall command” is each one of us,
commanded to remember and remind one another that, underneath it all, in God’s
eyes, we are all equal, all deserving of the same rights, all of us equally worthy
of equal dignity and respect.
© 2016 by Boaz D.
Heilman
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