The Torah, in this week’s portion of Emor, requires a newborn animal set aside
to be an offering to be 8 days old before it is allowed to be sacrificed, as it
says: “When an ox or a sheep or a goat is born, it shall remain under its
mother for seven days, and from the eighth day onwards, it shall be accepted as
a sacrifice for a fire offering to the Lord” (Vayikra 22:27).
The Medrish Rabba brings a parable as to why one must wait 7 days before
bringing a newborn animal as a sacrifice which, it says, is also the reason why
the bris milah is on the 8th day. “‘It shall remain under its mother
for seven days.’ Rebbe Yehoshua of Sechnin said in the name of Rebbe Levi, a
parable to a king who entered one of his provinces and decreed and said, ‘Which
ever citizen here who would like to see my face must first see the face of the
matron.’ So to, Hashem said, ‘You shall not bring before me an offering until
Shabbos has passed, for there isn’t 7 days without Shabbos, and there isn’t a
bris milah without a Shabbos, therefore the pasuk continues,‘and from the
eighth day onwards’” (Vayikra Rabba 27:10).
The
Yefeh Toar observes that the reason why Shabbos is compared to a matron is
because Shabbos is referred to as the Shabbos Queen. The lesson learned from
this comparison is that Shabbos is a testimony to the fact that G-D created the
world, something from nothing, and that Hashem watches over and is involved in
His lower species. This belief must come before everything. Therefore, those
that bring an offering to burn before The Great Hashem without belief in the
nuance of the world and Hashem’s constant involvement has an untruthful belief.
For this reason, one Shabbos should pass before the mitzvah of bringing an
offering and the mitzvah of bris milah. (Click here for Hebrew text.)
What kind of a person is this medrish referring to? If it is someone who does
not have any belief at all then why is he bringing a sacrifice or giving his
son a bris? Even if he is just doing what his family does because that is the
Jewish thing to do, then what does one Shabbos do for him? He has no clue how
or why to keep Shabbos properly, so one Shabbos passing won’t make him a
believer? Yet, if this is referring to someone who is already a believer in
Hashem and he is bringing a peace offering, burnt offering, or even a sin
offering for accidentally sinning, then he is already a believer and he even
has observed many Shabbosim until now; so what does this add? It can’t be for
the sake of the animal or baby’s belief who were just born because they don’t
have the intellectual capacity to think in these terms?!
It must be referring to a believer who until now, if you would ask him, of
course he would say that Hashem created the world from nothing and has, is, and
always will be consistently involved in its existence and in minor and minute
details that exist in what He created. However, the experience of observing a
Shabbos reinforces this belief before such a momentous event as a father
connecting his son to the Jewish covenant with Hashem or a person bringing an
offering on the altar of Hashem to more closely connect or reconnect with
Him for whatever reason he or she is bringing the offering. This could be
one of the reasons why we have a shalom zachor the first Shabbos after a
baby boy is born, to acknowledge and reinforce this belief in Hashem, (see Sefer Taamei HaMinhagim: Inyanei
Milah).
Without the experience or observance of the first Shabbos when the baby
boy or animal is born then whatever belief, as strong as it was, won’t be the
same and in fact it’s as if the previous belief is nothing.
There are infinite levels of belief in Hashem and all the facets of His
involvement in this world. These beliefs must be constantly reinforced but
there are specific auspicious times like when bringing an offering or bris
milah where one is creating a special connection with Hashem so at these times
Hashem requires one to experience a Shabbos in order to create a deeper
impression of belief in preparation to connect with Hashem.
Good Shabbos,
Rabbi Dovid Shmuel Milder
Vayikra 22:27).
The Medrish Rabba brings a parable as to why one must wait 7 days before bringing a newborn animal as a sacrifice which, it says, is also the reason why the bris milah is on the 8th day. “‘It shall remain under its mother for seven days.’ Rebbe Yehoshua of Sechnin said in the name of Rebbe Levi, a parable to a king who entered one of his provinces and decreed and said, ‘Which ever citizen here who would like to see my face must first see the face of the matron.’ So to, Hashem said, ‘You shall not bring before me an offering until Shabbos has passed, for there isn’t 7 days without Shabbos, and there isn’t a bris milah without a Shabbos, therefore the pasuk continues,‘and from the eighth day onwards’” (Vayikra Rabba 27:10).
The Yefeh Toar observes that the reason why Shabbos is compared to a matron is because Shabbos is referred to as the Shabbos Queen. The lesson learned from this comparison is that Shabbos is a testimony to the fact that G-D created the world, something from nothing, and that Hashem watches over and is involved in His lower species. This belief must come before everything. Therefore, those that bring an offering to burn before The Great Hashem without belief in the nuance of the world and Hashem’s constant involvement has an untruthful belief. For this reason, one Shabbos should pass before the mitzvah of bringing an offering and the mitzvah of bris milah. (Click here for Hebrew text.)
What kind of a person is this medrish referring to? If it is someone who does not have any belief at all then why is he bringing a sacrifice or giving his son a bris? Even if he is just doing what his family does, because that is the Jewish thing to do, then what does one Shabbos do for him? He has no clue how or why to keep Shabbos properly, so one Shabbos passing won’t make him a believer? Yet, if this is referring to someone who is already a believer in Hashem and he is bringing a peace offering, burnt offering, or even a sin offering for accidentally sinning, then he is already a believer and he even has observed many Shabbosim until now; so what does this add? It can’t be for the sake of the animal or baby’s belief who were just born because they don’t have the intellectual capacity to think in these terms?!
It must be referring to a believer who until now, if you would ask him, of course he would say that Hashem created the world from nothing and has, is, and always will be consistently involved in it’s existence and in minor and minute details that exist in what He created. However, the experience of observing a Shabbos reinforces this belief before such a momentous event as a father connecting his son to the Jewish covenant with Hashem or a person bringing an offering on the alter of Hashem to more closely connect or reconnect with Him for whatever reason he or she is bringing the offering. This could be one of the reasons why we have a shalom zachor the first Shabbos after a baby boy is born, to acknowledge and reinforce this belief in Hashem, (see Sefer Taamei HaMinhagim: Inyanei Milah).
Without the experience or observance of the first Shabbos when the baby boy or animal is born then whatever belief, as strong as it was, won’t be the same and in fact it’s as if the previous belief is nothing.
There are infinite levels of belief in Hashem and all the facets of His involvement in this world. These beliefs must be constantly reinforced but there are specific auspicious times like when bringing an offering or bris milah where one is creating a special connection with Hashem so at these times Hashem requires one to experience a Shabbos in order to create a deeper impression of belief in preparation to connect with Hashem.