Shmini answers

Shmini 5716

Alef.

1. Both R. Wiesel and R. Hirsch agree that the offering brought by Nadav and Avihu stemmed from being swept away by the overall Simcha and Ahava that pervaded the people in light of the Divine Fire that had come down to ignite the altar, as opposed to some malicious intent to deliberately violate an aspect of the law that had been delineated regarding offering sacrifices in the Mishkan.

2.  R. Wiesel attributes the sin to a lack of modesty on the parts of holy men. They should not have been ready to draw attention to themselves, which for “Krovei HaShem” is  a great transgression.

R. Hirsch understands the error in judgment as a reflection of a lack of “Hitbatlut” (self-abnegation) which all Kohanim are required to engender in order for them to properly serve HaShem. When the individual Kohen acts in accordance with his own sensibilities rather than what appears to be the legal requirements of his role, he has inserted an unacceptable degree of subjectivity into the process.

3.  R. Hirsch was a tremendous opponent of the Jewish Reform movement.¹ While he attributed subjectivity to idolatrous forms of religion, it is highly likely that he had the Reform movement in mind as well. It could be said that any innovation that is proposed is a reflection of subjective considerations rather than a sense of mission to carry our HaShem’s Commandments.

Beit.

תהלים פרק נ

(ג) יָבֹא אֱלֹקינוּ וְאַל יֶחֱרַשׁ אֵשׁ לְפָנָיו תֹּאכֵל וּסְבִיבָיו נִשְׂעֲרָה מְאֹד:

Our God Cometh, and Doth not Keep silence; a fire devoureth before Him, and round about Him it stormeth mightily.

תהלים פרק פט

(ח) אֵל נַעֲרָץ בְּסוֹד קְדֹשִׁים רַבָּה וְנוֹרָא עַל כָּל סְבִיבָיו:

A God dreaded in the great council of the holy ones, and feared of all them that are about Him?

1.  Moshe tells Aharon that the fact that Nadav and Avihu suffered a Divine Punishment is an indication of how close to HaShem they were, since He is much more Demanding of those who close to Him than those who are distant.

2.  The closer one is to HaShem, the higher the standard will be to which he will be held. Consequently, there is less margin for error, and punishment is much more quickly forthcoming.

3. In BaMidbar 20, when Moshe and Aharon instead of speaking to the rock, strike the rock with a staff, they are refused entry into the land of Israel.

4. 

עמוס פרק ה

(ד) כִּי כֹה אָמַר יְקֹוָק לְבֵית יִשְׂרָאֵל דִּרְשׁוּנִי וִחְיוּ:

(ה) וְאַל תִּדְרְשׁוּ בֵּית אֵל וְהַגִּלְגָּל לֹא תָבֹאוּ וּבְאֵר שֶׁבַע לֹא תַעֲבֹרוּ כִּי הַגִּלְגָּל גָּלֹה יִגְלֶה וּבֵית אֵל יִהְיֶה לְאָוֶן:

(ו) דִּרְשׁוּ אֶת יְקֹוָק וִחְיוּ פֶּן יִצְלַח כָּאֵשׁ בֵּית יוֹסֵף וְאָכְלָה וְאֵין מְכַבֶּה לְבֵית אֵל:

For thus Saith the LORD unto the house of Israel: Seek ye Me, and live; But seek not Beth-el, nor enter into Gilgal, and pass not to Beer-sheba; for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Beth-el shall come to nought. Seek the LORD, and live--lest He break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and it devour, and there be none to quench it in Bethel-- 

Amos approaches all of the Jewish people in the same manner, i.e., not that there are some who are closer and therefore more subject to Divine Punishment, but rather there are high expectations for the entire people and consequently the prospect for serious punishment if those expectations are not met.

Gimel.

1. 

רש"י ויקרא פרק י פסוק ג

(ג) הוא אשר דבר וגו' - היכן דבר ונועדתי שמה לבני ישראל ונקדש בכבודי (שמות כט מג). אל תקרי בכבודי אלא במכובדי. אמר לו משה לאהרן אהרן אחי יודע הייתי שיתקדש הבית במיודעיו של מקום והייתי סבור או בי אובך, עכשיו רואה אני שהם גדולים ממני וממך:

ChaZaL and RaShI interpret בקרבי as referring to Nadav and Avihu, while RaShBaM interprets the word as referring to the Kohanai Gadol in general and in this case Aharon in particular.

2.  From a Peshat perspective, it seems to me that ChaZaL and RaShI are closer to Peshat. When the entire verse is viewed,

ויקרא פרק י

(ג) וַיֹּאמֶר מֹשֶׁה אֶל אַהֲרֹן הוּא אֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר יְקֹוָק לֵאמֹר בִּקְרֹבַי אֶקָּדֵשׁ וְעַל פְּנֵי כָל הָעָם אֶכָּבֵד וַיִּדֹּם אַהֲרֹן:

particularly the final two words, it appears that Moshe is trying to comfort Aharon, rather than order him to continue the Avoda instead of engaging in mourning.

¹By the mid-1800s, the Reform Movement had in essence taken over Jewish life in Germany; there were very few Orthodox Jews and very little Orthodox power left… Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch was born in 1808 in Hungary and became rabbi in Moravia before coming to Frankfort, Germany… Where Rabbi Hirsch differed from Reform is that he did not compromise one iota on observance…Rabbi Hirsch disagreed completely with the idea of Reform that said that Judaism was a religion that evolved and changed with the times. He saw it as a metaphysical religion, given by God to a certain people, and that people would carry it throughout history, wherever they existed. The purpose of every Jew was to be part of that group of people, to find his place as an individual in the whole. Rabbi Hirsch was uncompromising in his stance against Reform...

Berel Wein  (http://www.jewishhistory.org/rabbi-samson-raphael-hirsch/ )