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Ignite the Light of Torah, and Let It Spread©
Parashat Tetzaveh 2022/5782
As I thought about this idea of making a spark, I could not help but think about the Olympic torch.
Have you ever wondered why the Olympics begin with the lighting of the torch?
I know, it's a simple question, and maybe something we really think of when we watch the Olympics, but I learned that the Olympic torch relay has a surprising and interesting story.
Fire was considered holy to many ancient civilizations, so it is no surprise that the Olympics, which began in ancient Greece, used fire to kick off their games. In the case of ancient Greece, the fire was supposed to represent the fire that the Greek god Prometheus stole from Zeus.
To celebrate this passing of fire from Prometheus to human, the Greeks would hold relay races, where athletes would pass a torch lit with fire to one another until the winner reached the finish line.
The Olympic Games, first held in 776 B.C. by the Greeks, were held every 4 years honoring Zeus and other Greek gods. The games were a way to unify the people and promote peace. The lighting of the flame was also the starting point of a sacred truce from all wars that would last throughout the games. The flame represented purity, reason, and peace.
The use of the Olympic torch as we know it today, the fire beginning in Olympia and then being passed from athlete to athlete around the world is actually a modern invention.
The origin story of fire according to the Greeks was of fire as a gift that the gods wanted to hide from humanity until a rogue god shared this secret with humanity.
Judaism has its own origin story for divine fire, and we find it in this week’s parashah, Tetzaveh:
שמות כ״ז:כ׳-כ״א
(כ) וְאַתָּ֞ה תְּצַוֶּ֣ה ׀ אֶת־בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל וְיִקְח֨וּ אֵלֶ֜יךָ שֶׁ֣מֶן זַ֥יִת זָ֛ךְ כָּתִ֖ית לַמָּא֑וֹר לְהַעֲלֹ֥ת נֵ֖ר תָּמִֽיד׃ (כא) בְּאֹ֣הֶל מוֹעֵד֩ מִח֨וּץ לַפָּרֹ֜כֶת אֲשֶׁ֣ר עַל־הָעֵדֻ֗ת יַעֲרֹךְ֩ אֹת֨וֹ אַהֲרֹ֧ן וּבָנָ֛יו מֵעֶ֥רֶב עַד־בֹּ֖קֶר לִפְנֵ֣י יְהוָ֑ה חֻקַּ֤ת עוֹלָם֙ לְדֹ֣רֹתָ֔ם מֵאֵ֖ת בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃ (ס)
Exodus 27:20-21
(20) You shall further instruct the Israelites to bring you clear oil of beaten olives for lighting, for kindling lamps regularly. (21) Aaron and his sons shall set them up in the Tent of Meeting, outside the curtain which is over [the Ark of] the Pact, [to burn] from evening to morning before the LORD. It shall be a due from the Israelites for all time, throughout the ages.
The flame of the Mishkan seems so similar to the Olympic flame, and yet, it teaches a much different lesson.
The flame that Aaron and the priests have to kindle isn’t a flame that begins and ends like the Olympic games.
The light of the Menorah was not stolen from God, nor was it created by God alone; it was a human and divine partnership, and, it was a daily ritual. Rashi points out that someone had to fill the cup with oil every night, and someone would light it every morning. Maimonides took it a stop further claiming that the light of the Menorah never went out and it had to remain lit at all times.
The flame of the Menorah is the model for the Ner Tamid, the eternal light.
Our view of the Menorah and who could kindle it evolved over time. At first, it was literally a flame that existed in one place, but when that place was destroyed, that flame spread throughout the world in our Mikdashei Me’at, our small, holy places of gathering - our Batei Knesset. The responsibility of keeping the flame alive went to all the people, not just the priests, as we were reminded by Moshe that we are a Mamlechet Cohanim, a nation of priests.
The flame also became a metaphor for Torah. Proverbs teach, “A mitzvah is a candle, and the Torah is light” (Proverbs 6:23)
As Jews, we are obsessed with keeping the flame alive
How can you keep the flame going, and how do we pass it on to the next generation?
Of course, as Jews, we have been obsessed with Jewish continuity. We want our children to bring our flame to their hearts, and then pass on that exact same flame.
This brings me to one of my favorite teachings of how we teach Torah.
In the Talmud, we read a story about two rabbis who are asked to engage in an intellectual exercise: If the Torah was forgotten by our people, how would you bring it back? Rabbi Hanina said, “I would bring it back with my argumentative powers!” Rabbi Hiyya gave a different answer:
“To which Rabbi Hiyya rejoined: ‘Would you dispute with me, who achieved that the Torah should not be forgotten in Israel? What did I do? I went and sowed flax, made nets [from the flax cords], trapped deer, whose flesh I gave to orphans, and prepared scrolls [from their skins], upon which I wrote the five books [of Moses]. Then I went to a town [which contained no teachers] and taught the five books to five children, and the six orders [of the Mishnah] to six children And I said to them: "Until I return, teach each other the Torah (five books of Moses) and the Mishnah;" and that is how I preserved the Torah from being forgotten in Israel’.” (BT Bava Metzia 85b)
Rabbi Hanina’s approach is so much easier - all you need is one person, but Rabbi Hiyya’s approach is radically different. His answer involves giving his students ownership over the Torah, both written and oral, and they shift between being students to teachers, and back and forth. Rabbi Hiyya was interested not just in bringing Torah back to life, but also spreading it to others.
Rabbi Hanina only needed one voice; Rabbi Hiyya needs the voice of many others.
In the end, Rabbi Hiyya’s approach was judged as greater than Hanina.
I believe that to this day, Rabbi Hiyya’s approach is the best one to spread Torah throughout the world, and our community.
This is how we light the flame - Jewish continuity is not a single person relay, it’s a team sport.
So here’s where you all come in - we can’t keep this flame going alone, we need your help not just to start the fire, but to spread it.
That’s why I’m creating a new challenge - The Spreading Torah Challenge.
CLICK HERE FOR INFORMATION
You will learn what Torah is, and isn’t, and how to read and even teach Torah!
And, or, you can join me on the 929 Challenge to finish the entire Tanach in three years, all 929 chapters. All it takes is five minutes a day! Click here for more information.
You might say, but how can I do this? Just like the priests did, all it takes is a little bit of time each day.
The beauty of Hiyya’s approach to spreading Torah is that he eventually leaves. Interestingly enough, there is one person missing in this parashah that talks about the light of Torah: Moshe. It is the only parashah in the Torah after he is born where he is not mentioned. The rabbis said this was intentional to model tzimtzum, withdrawing in order to make space for others. But this idea is also baked into the commandment. The light was set up “mihutz laparochet,” outside the sanctuary’s curtain. We light the flame of Torah in our children and others, but we take a step back so they realize that the light is theirs, they own it, they are a part of it.
This is my blessing for you - that your inner spark is kindled again, that you give yourself some room to let it grown, and spread it to others.
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