Parshios Acharei Mos & Kedoshim
A Holy Mindset
The direct message of these two parshiyot is clear: In order to live a
meaningful life that contains within it the necessary elements of spiritual
sanctity one must limit one’s desires and physical behavior patterns. The
Torah does not award accolades for great intellectual or social achievements
if they are unfortunately accompanied by uninhibited physical dissolute
behavior. It is not only the message that counts – it is just as much the
messenger as well.
There are many laws, mitzvot and strictures that are the stuff of these two
Torah parshiyot. The Talmud warns us against the dangers of false preaching
and hypocrisy. All faiths and political systems are strewn with the remains
of noble ideas preached by ignoble people and dissolute leaders. The Torah
is therefore prescient in demanding that Jews must first dedicate themselves
to the goals of righteousness and probity before it instructs them in the
details of Jewish living and normative behavior.
The Torah is wary of those who immerse themselves in purifying waters while
still retaining in their hands, hearts and minds the defiling creature
itself. The Torah is keen to apply this concept to its entire worldview.
Justice is to be pursued but only through just means. The Jewish nation is
not only to be an obedient and observant nation – it is charged with being a
holy nation. Without the goal of personal holiness being present in Jewish
life, observance of the Torah laws oftentimes will be ineffective, a matter
of rote behavior and not of spiritual uplift and improvement.
This required dedication to holiness in life is achieved in the small, every
day occurrences in human life. It defines how we speak and what we say and
hear. It prevents us from taking advantages of others in commerce and social
relationships. It fights against our overwhelming ego and our narcissistic
self. Holiness opens up to us the broad panorama of life and allows us to
view the forest and not just the trees.
It demands inspiration and makes us feel unfulfilled if we achieve only
knowledge. It creates a perspective of eternity and of future generations
and lifts us out of the mundane world of the ever-changing present. It
infuses our behavior with a sense of cosmic importance and eternal value so
that everything in life, in fact living itself, is of spiritual importance
and value.
It impresses upon us the realization that we are not only to be judged by
our current peers but by past and future generations as well. Even achrei
mot – after one’s departure from this world – kedoshim tihiyu – shall later
generations be able to judge one as being holy, dedicated and noble. This is
the mindset that the Torah demands from us as we proceed to fulfill all of
the laws and mitzvoth that are detailed for us in these two parshiyot. For
in the absence of such a dedication and mindset, the perfunctory observance
of those laws and mitzvot cannot have the necessary effect upon our souls
and lives.
Shabat shalom,
Rabbi Berel Wein
