Parshas Emor-breaking through the sound bite barrier
By Rabbi Shimon Raichik
This week’s parsha is parshas Emor. Hashem told Moshe to speak (emor) to Ahron and his children, “v’emarta – and to say to them”. Rashi comments on the double language emor and v’emarta and says that this teaches; “l’hazir hagedolim al haketanim”. This means that adult kohanim need to teach younger kohanim (about the laws of tuma and tahara etc). The word emor means to speak softly or pleasantly. Emor is different than the word ‘daber’ which means to speak strongly. This teaches us that if we want to teach in an effective way we need to repeat it often in a pleasant manner. We need to keep repeating it until it penetrates into the person(s) with which we speaking.
This lesson doesn’t apply only between adults and minors. It also can refer to dialogue between those who have learned towards others who haven’t yet learned. An example of this is from the Rebbe. When the Rebbe began the mivtza of tefillin he spoke of it repeatedly. The Rebbe about the importance of mivtza tefillin before the Six Day War and the positive effect it would have on the outcome of the war. After the war he continued to speak of the greatness of mivtza tefillin in general. In many sichos he answered people’s questions in halacha about the mivtza. He spoke about it over and over, on many occasions. The Rebbe followed the same pattern with regard to all the other mivtzaim. The Rebbe spoke about the mivtzoyim until the point that it became engraved in our beings, in a way of emor and v’amarta, l’hazir hagedolim al haketanim.
In 1974, the Rebbe spoke about the mivtza of neshek, that even unmarried girls should light Shabbos candles. The Rebbe spoke about this for many months and connected each time with other concepts (the parsha, yomim tovim etc.). This way the Rebbe permeated us with the idea – emor and v’amarta, l’hazir hagedolim al haketanim. This is the way the Rebbe taught and guided us.
When I was a bochur in Montreal, I used to go to the fabrengens of older chassidim to hear a good chassidishe vort. I enjoyed attending the fabrengens of Reb Hershel Ceitlin. He had a saying he used to often repeat; “zal halten bai a harale emes – we should be holding by a hair of the truth.” This had a deep affect on me because he spoke about it in a way of emor and v’amarta, l’hazir hagedolim al haketanim. He kept on finding ways to bring it in to whatever he spoke about. Reb Hershel was a chosid, he wasn’t a Rebbe. Nevertheless he had a truth, and he spoke about it until it penetrated us, emor and v’amarta, l’hazir hagedolim al haketanim. The word ‘l’hazir’ doesn’t mean just to teach but also to shine (zohar means to shine). We need to learn from this example a lesson in our avodas Hashem in general, and how we speak to our children in particular.
Today, everything is in ten second sound bites. People say; ‘just get to the point!’ No one wants to sit around while a concept is being developed. Even the news has gone from ten minutes down to three. Torah and Yiddishkeit cannot be a sound bite. If it is, it will just go over our heads. Emor v’emarta, we need to repeat it, we need to dwell and spend time on what we learn.
What kind of real baseball enthusiast would be satisfied with just hearing the scores and not going to the game? If you told him; “What do you need to go to the game, just get to the point, and wait for the final score?!” he would think you’re crazy. A real fan wants to experience the whole game in detail, play by play, otherwise he isn’t a fan. Therefore, it is not even good enough to show up in the ninth inning to just see how it ends. So too, l’havdil, with the Torah and mitzvos, we need to live through it, “play by play”, emor and v’amarta, l’hazir hagedolim al haketanim.
This is most especially true about the education we provide our children. We are the most important part of our children’s education. They look into our eyes when we speak to see if we truly mean what we say. In order to l’hazir, to illuminate their eyes, we need to be fully into it. When we are they will feel it and see it. We need to say it, we need to think it, and we need to live it – emor and v’amarta, l’hazir hagedolim al haketanim.
People sometimes ask; what should they do, they aren’t excited themselves. In chapter 46 of Tanya the Alter Rebbe gives an example. He says to think of a simple person lost in the street without a home. Suddenly the king appears from his palace, and brings this simple person inside the palace. He takes care of all his needs and gives him all His attention with every type of affection. The Tanya teaches us to think how we would feel towards this king. So too, we have to realize that we have this, l’havdil, with the King of all Kings, Hashem, who took us out of Mitzrayim and gave to us His Torah. This arouses our love to serve Him. When we realize how lucky we are to be Yidden and have the Torah and mitzvos, we appreciate how great and important what we live for is. We also realize what a great responsibility we have. When we dwell upon this in a way of emor and v’amarta, l’hazir hagedolim al haketanim, we internalize this for ourselves and for our children.
The challenges we face today surpass what we have seen in the past generations. This is true throughout the entire world. It is our love and fear of Hashem that can help us make guidelines to insure that we do not fall or falter. We will be successful once our eyes are upon the goal. This inspiration will do for us what a thousand locks and guards on the internet cannot. Emor and v’amarta, l’hazir hagedolim al haketanim carries over into all areas of life.
In Chabad we focus on depth. We have so much Chassidus, like nowhere else in the world. We need to open it up and use it, because it is all there. Any question that we have, we are able find a profound answer by looking into the sichos and letters of the Rebbe. It is upon us to open the sefer, to learn relearn and to live it. Emor and v’amarta, l’hazir hagedolim al haketanim.