In this week’s parsha the Torah presents all of the Yomim Tovim. Then the Torah commands us about the Menorah and the Shulchan. And our parsha closes with the horrifying incident of the megadef, the person who spoke against the name of Hashem.
How do these concepts connect with each other? What is the relationship between the Yomim Tovim, the keilim in the Mishkan and the incident with the megadef? Why does the Torah place all of these in the same setting? Let us try to understand this sequence of passages in the Torah by focusing on the megadef. The aveira of the megadef is very extreme. It is an expression of open rebellion against Hashem, a rebellion that is far from the imagination of most people. There is no natural inclination for this aveira, it is hardly a nisayon for the average Yid. Why then does the Torah devote so many words to discourage us from doing something that is so removed from our experience?
The Rambam writes (in a letter) that every sin can be committed in increments. The most obvious violation of many aveiros is something that most Yidden would never consider. But we all encounter lesser forms of each aveira in our daily lives. For the purpose of illustration we will consider the following. Murder is an act that is so far from the imagination of a Yid. But chazal teach us that embarrassing someone is a lesser form of murder and many of us find it challenging to avoid causing embarrassment to a fellow Yid.
Each extreme aveira that the Torah warns us against is a lesson for each of us, even to those who are removed from the obvious and open way of violating Hashem’s command. So what is the lesson of the megadef? What is a lesser form of speaking against the name of Hashem? The fact that the megadef was palced together with the parshiyos of the Yomim Tovim and the Klei Hamikdosh, may help us understand the underlying theme of the sin of the megadef and guide us to an answer to our question.
The name of Hashem represents the totality of Hashem’s interaction with this world. As created beings, we are far from understanding anything near the fullness of Hashem’s various middos and certainly not the confluence of all of them together. But as children of Hashem, we are raised higher. Every day we thank Hashem for bringing us closer to His name (ahava rabba).
The formative events that Hashem used to shape our nation and mold us to be His chosen people were Yitzias Mitzrayim, Mattan Torah and our 40 year journey through the wilderness. These three events are relived every year with the Yomim Tovim. The Yomim Tovim shape us again every year and bring us closer to living as a nation that can be called; “yod’ei shemecha” – “knowers of Your name.”
The Yomim Tovim bring us close to Hashem in two ways; in the time we spend devoted to learning and davening; “chatzi l’Hashem,” and in the eating and rejoicing; “chatzi lochem.” These two aspects of the Yomim Tovim are reflected in the menorah and the shulchan. The Menorah represents the light that we bring forth through our avoda in Torah and Tefila while the shulchan represents the joy that we experience in this world as we eat at Hashem’s table.
The Yomim Tovim and the klei haMikdosh together present that shleimus, that completeness of comprehension of Hashem’s ways that is the exclusive possession of the nation to which Hashem granted these gifts. The responsibility of living as a nation that was granted insight into Hashem’s “name” is highlighted by the Yomim Tovim together with the menorah and the shulchan.
We can now see how the parsha of the megadef follows from these two topics. The Torah is talking to us and telling us – You, Klal Yisroel, were so greatly elevated by Hashem. Hashem molded you to be a nation before Him and He continues to mold you every year through the cycle of the Yomim Tovim. Your bodies are elevated through the simcha of Yom Tov and your neshama is refined through the Torah and Tefillah of Yom Tov. You are the nation with which Hahsme allows His name to be associated. You have a responsibility to appreciate the gift that Hashem granted you. The megadef is the most extreme expression of rebellion against Hashem’s name. But this sin is not limited to its most extreme manifestation.
Every lack of appreciation for the greatness that Hashem granted Klal Yisroel, is a lesser form of this horrible aveira. At the same time we can understand that every bit of energy that we exert to raise our awareness of what it means to be a Yid, and every step we take to bring ourselves closer to living out our comprehension of Hashem’s name is a step closer to the ultimate Kiddush Hashem that will flood the world with the light of the ge’ula.