Vayikra Shabat Zachor March 23rd, 2024 13th of Adar II 5784
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Consecrated for Hashem

Rabbi David Chananya Pinto

“For what he has deprived the Sanctuary he shall make restitution, and add a fifth to it” (Vayikra 5:16).

The Ben Ish Chai, zy”a, writes (Vayikra shana rishona): “It seems to me, with siyata diShmaya, according to the Chazal (Baba Basra 75b) that in the future kadosh will be recited before tzaddikim just as one recites it before Hashem, that this refers to kadosh that is repeated three times before Hashem — “Kadosh, Kadosh, Kadosh”. The reason why they will merit this specifically in the future is because meriting the recitation of three times “kadosh” is due to perfection in three kinds of consecrations — thought, speech and deed. In this world these three consecrations cannot be considered perfect, without the slightest flaw, even among tzaddikim, whereas in the future (world) they will be perfected, and they will therefore merit this praise.” We will expand a little on the holy words of the Ben Ish Chai.

We know that one who benefits from hekdesh (an item that has been consecrated) abuses its holiness and the Torah obligates him to pay its restitution plus a fifth, besides bringing a guilt-offering. What is this fifth?

With siyata diShmaya, I would like to suggest that something that has been designated as holy (hekdesh), does not belong to us. It is set aside for Hashem and a person does not have permission to make use of it for his personal needs. If he transgresses and uses it, even unintentionally, he causes a blemish not just in this hekdesh, but in all the Five Books of the Torah. This is why he pays a fifth, to hint to this great blemish that he caused to all the Five Books. A person has no connection to an object that has been consecrated for Hashem and it is completely forbidden for him to benefit from it or profane it.

The beautiful building of the Beit HaKnesset Orot Chaim V’Moshe in Ashdod, is a building designated for the honor of Hashem Yitbarach. Our entire goal in establishing this building was to glorify Hashem’s Sanctuary and honor His name. To this end, I designated it as hekdesh for Hashem and no part of it is mine; everything belongs to Hashem. If, chalilah, a person misuses this holy place or isn’t meticulous enough with its holiness or cleanliness, it is a misuse of hekdesh and this is something which requires extreme caution.

If misusing an inanimate object that has been consecrated is considered to be an act of treachery and one is obligated to pay a fifth, all the more so one who one misuses his body for something profane, not in the spirit of the Torah, or for a sin, chalilah. He is considered as having caused a blemish in all the Five Books of the Torah, since a person’s limbs and organs are also considered as hekdesh since Hashem has commanded a person to be holy, as it says (Vayikra 19:2), “You shall be holy, for holy am I, Hashem, your G-d.”

Therefore, the Torah says (Vayikra 5:17), “If a person will sin and commit one of all the commandments of Hashem that may not be done, but did not know and became guilty, he shall bear his iniquity.” It is referring to a person who sins unintentionally, with no wicked intentions at all. Yet the Torah is clear that he has to bear the consequences, as is written “he shall bear his iniquity.” This sin weighs on him like a heavy burden. “He shall bear” is from the term “burden” — he carries the sin on his neck and is obligated to immediately bring a guilt-offering for his mistake.

Why does the Torah consider this as something so serious? After all, his sin was unintentional and he did not intend to commit a wrong-doing?

This idea can be understood according to the concept that a person’s body is considered as hekdesh. It is not one’s personal possession to do with it as he likes, but is consecrated for Hashem. All his limbs and organs have been designated as holy for one purpose — to perform the will of Hashem. This is the reason why an unintentional sin is considered as misusing something consecrated and carries the obligation to bring a guilt-offering to atone for his sin.

Now we can understand the Ben Ish Chai that we quoted above. Tzaddikim completely consecrate their bodies for the sake of Hashem Yitbarach, without leaving any small part for themselves. They dedicate the entire spectrum of their thoughts, speech and deeds as holy for Hashem. Therefore, in the future the angels will come and recite before them, “kadosh, kadosh, kadosh,” bearing witness that they consecrated their bodies for the sake of Hashem in all three areas of holiness.

May it be His will that we sanctify our bodies for Hashem Yitbarach and fulfill the command “You shall be holy.” May we merit being vigilant not to desecrate something designated as holy by profaning our bodies, and instead use it only to increase purity and holiness and to fulfill Torah and mitzvot. Amen v’Amen.

FROM THE TREASURY

Based on the teachings of Moreinu v‘Rabbeinu Hagaon Hatzaddik Rabbi David Chananya Pinto, shlita

For the Sake of Heaven

“When a man among you brings an offering to Hashem” (Vayikra 1:2).

Hashem commanded to bring offerings, which should be “among you,” meaning free of any shards of impurity or connection to the satan.

Indeed, only pure animals were selected as being fit to be brought as offerings. The holy books tell us that an impure animal contains no spark of sanctity for one to rectify and it is an address for forces of impurity, therefore Hashem Yitbarach forbade bringing them in to His Sanctuary in order not to profane the Mizbeach, chalila.

This idea also applies in a more comprehensive way: It is a lesson for us that all our deeds must be pure and unsoiled, simply for the sake of Heaven, without any trace of lust or personal desires.

My holy grandfather, Harav Hatzaddik Rabbi Chaim Pinto HaKatan, zy”a, once participated in a seudat mitzvah and as he was accustomed to do, he sang and played music with an instrument called an ud, to praise and glorify Hashem. When Harav Chaim heard that the arak had finished, he asked for a hammer and nail and then proceeded to bang a hole in the wall. Suddenly, to the amazement of all those present, arak started flowing out of the wall and filled the bottles and cups. Only when the simcha finished did Rabbeinu utter a few words and then the arak stopped flowing.

I heard this story from people who actually saw the hole in the wall and told me about this wonderful miracle. It is simply miraculous, an expression of “The will of those who fear Him He will do.” Without a doubt, had the participants been drinking arak for their own pleasure or in order to get drunk, chalilah, Hashem would not have performed this miracle for them. Due to Rabbeinu’s remarkable piety and righteousness, partaking of the arak was entirely l’shem Shamayim, to bring him to a state of joy so He could honor Hashem with song and praise.

We must realize that even our private actions should be performed l’shem Shamayim, and then the Shechina will rest in our endeavors and we will find favor in Hashem’s eyes.

If this is the way our ancestors behaved, all the more so our forefathers, who were the fathers of the nation, achieved this level. Certainly, when they offered korbanot they did so with pure intentions for the sake of Hashem, and when they brought the offerings they considered it as if they were sacrificing their own blood.

Avraham Avinu’s actions at the Akeida are a proof of this attitude. He was commanded to sacrifice his only son and he rejoiced at the ability to be able to perform Hashem’s will. His joy was boundless and didn’t let up even when he raised the knife to slaughter his son. When the angel called out and commanded him not to touch his son, he desperately sought a way to gratify Hashem and he wasn’t appeased until he found a ram that he could bring as an offering. As he slaughtered the ram he imagined to himself that he was offering his son, as it says (Bereishit 22:13), “He took the ram and offered it up as an offering instead of his son.”

MEN OF FAITH

The Holy House

The esteemed Maran Rabbi Chaim Pinto, zy”a, who used to live in Mogador, moved his family to Dar Labida toward the end of his life, where he remained until his passing.

After he was niftar, his entire family remained in Dar Labida, besides his son, the great tzaddik and miracle-worker, Rabbi Moshe Ahron, zy”a, who wished to remain in Mogador. He felt a strong connection to his father’s house in Mogador, which for so many years had served as a bastion for all those who sought direction and was the address for any embittered soul or needy person. He could not entertain the thought of seeing this special home abandoned and forsaken.

In addition, right next to the house stood the famous Beit Haknesset of Rabbi Chaim, zy”a, where the light that was ablaze day and night continued to burn even after Rabbi Chaim’s passing. Due to this, the tzaddik Rabbi Moshe Ahron decided to remain in his father’s home, until he later moved to Ashdod.

His decision to remain in Mogador was also combined with another motive. Many years ago, the tzaddik Rabbi Hadan, zy”a, a son of Rabbi Chaim HaGadol, zy”a, had given a quarter of the house as a gift to the Shamash of the Beit Haknesset, Rabbi Saliman ben Zakri, on the condition that he never sell his share to anyone his entire life.

Eventually Rabbi Saliman was niftar, and his inheritors relocated to Eretz Yisrael. Rabbi Moshe Ahron was concerned that his inheritors would now wish to sell their portion of the house, and who knows in whose hands it will end up. In light of his concern, the tzaddik Rabbi Moshe Ahron Pinto purchased that quarter of the house for himself, so the entire house remained in the possession of the illustrious Pinto family, together with the Beit Haknesset, which will never be sold or exchanged, right until the arrival of Mashiach.

In the merit of the tzaddik Rabbi Moshe Ahron Pinto, the holy house in Mogador remains as a bastion even after the passing of the esteemed Rabbi Chaim Pinto, and all those who seek solace come to the house to pray and pour out their hearts before Hashem. Until today it is a holy site that attracts people from all over the world.

WORDS OF THE SAGES

One Who Doesn’t Get the Message — Suffers

“He called to Moshe” (Vayikra 1:1).

The Likutei Batar Likutei explains why the word “Vayikra” is written in the Torah with a small alef. Without the alef the word can be read as “vayakar,” an expression of chance, whereas “vayikra” is an expression of Hashem calling a person.

Throughout life, a person experiences all kinds of challenges which all have one goal: to arouse the person and return him to his Creator. But, since people do not grasp the purpose and assume that the suffering is by chance, Hashem has to increase the dose of affliction, and one suffers greater and greater troubles.

After all this, one who still considers the events as chance occurrences, will have to suffer even bigger challenges, until he realizes that Hashem is calling him.

The Yalkut Me’am Lo’ez brings a wonderful mashal to enhance our understanding of this concept:

A group of hunters managed to capture a fox in the heart of the forest. The fox, realizing his end was near with little chance of escaping, decided to pretend he was dead. He lay on the floor completely still and hoped the hunters would leave him alone.

But they had a completely different plan for him. With great alarm, the fox suddenly heard that one of the hunters was planning to cut off his tail. His whole body started trembling but he realized that if his life was dear to him he must bear these pains with love, and not move in the slightest despite the enormous pain he will experience when they cut off his tail.

Thinking that with this his ordeal was finished, he was shocked to hear one of the hunter’s talking about extracting one of his teeth in order to sell it for a large sum.

Once again the fox suffered in silence, realizing that if he wished to remain alive he must co-operate.

After surviving the toothextraction, the fox sighed with relief. However, his relief was short lived when he realized what they were planning next… “Oh no,” wailed the terrified fox, “they wish to skin me!”

Knowing that without a doubt this was a prescription for certain death, he leapt into the air and took off. It took a few seconds for the hunters to get over their astonishment of this “resurrection of the dead,” and by that time he was already far away, in the thick of the forest…

“How stupid,” the fox tormented himself, “that I thought about running away only once I had already lost my tail and tooth… Had I done so right away I would not have had to part with them.”

The nimshal is clear: When Hashem wants to arouse a person, He first tries to get his attention by sending a challenge to someone close to him. If this does not serve as wake-up call, he has to suffer personally. At first these will be small things, like the washing machine breaking down or losing one’s purse, but if he still doesn’t get the message, worse tribulations will befall him.

In the end, he will be left with no option and will repent fully. It is worthwhile for him to do so before he loses his most precious possessions!

When a button fell off the Chatam Sofer’s coat, he would immediately call out: “Ribbono Shel Olam! Okay, I got the message, I don’t need any more than this…”

WALKING IN THEIR WAYS

Tidbits of faith and trust penned by Moreinu v‘Rabbeinu Hagaon Hatzaddik Rabbi David Chananya Pinto, shlita

Decisiveness Undermines Indecision

A young man merited becoming engaged to a fine Jewish girl. But after the engagement, doubts began to creep into his mind. Maybe this was not his Heavenly intended? Maybe he acted too hastily and the whole thing was one big mistake? His hesitations ate away at him, until he could not go through with the marriage and broke the engagement.

After some time, he became engaged again. This time, too, indecision gnawed at him. Eventually, he broke this engagement, as well. The same happened with the third and the fourth engagements. Each time, he was beset by uncertainty, which ultimately prevailed.

When kallah number five appeared on the scene, the couple came to see me in order to be blessed before their marriage. “Are you certain, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that this is your intended?” I asked him.

As expected, the man began having qualms, once again. I sincerely wished to help him and therefore asked him to leave the room for a few moments. After speaking with his kallah a bit, I realized she was a real eishet chayil, a true Jewish daughter, who would make an excellent wife and help him build a solid Torah home. I decided that, this time, I was the one who would make the decision. This way, he would never have feelings of regret.

I asked the girl to leave the room while I spoke with the young man. “If you break this engagement, you will forfeit your true intended, and forego the opportunity of a lifetime, for after this one, you will never manage to build a Jewish home. This girl is your intended partner from Shamayim. There is no need to look elsewhere for your soulmate.”

The young man heard my words and accepted them wholeheartedly. He married this wonderful young lady and, baruch Hashem, lives a beautiful life with her.

PARSHAH PEARLS

A Small Alef and a Big Alef

“He called to Moshe” (Vayikra 1:1).

The Rebbe Reb Bunim of Pashischa, said in the name of the holy Ba’al Hatanya, zt”l, that when his grandson (later to be the Tzemach Tzedek) started learning the alef beit, he explained that there are three kinds of alef; a big alef, a small alef and the regular alef.

The sefer Divrei Hayamim starts with the word Adam which is written with a big alef. This implies that Adam Harishon was a great man, but he considered himself great and because of his pride he sinned.

On the other hand, “He called (vayikra) to Moshe” is written with a small alef, implying that Moshe Rabbeinu was also a great person, as we are told (Bamidbar 12:8), “Mouth to mouth do I speak to him,” but he considered himself small, as a previous verse tell us, “Now the man Moshe was exceedingly humble.”

Reb Bunim of Peshischa expounds on this idea by bringing a mashal:

To what can this be compared? To a small bird that goes up to the roof. Although the roof is high, the bird remains as small as it always was…

So too with Moshe Rabbeinu; he ascended to heaven to receive the Torah, Hashem Himself called out to him, but in his own eyes he remained unimportant, no more significant than others.

Rabbi Akiva and the Fiftieth Gate

“He called to Moshe” (Vayikra 1:1).

The Gaon HaKadosh, the Chida, writes the following sublime explanation in his sefer Chomat Enoch:

“Vayikra is written with a small alef. The Kat Hakodmin, z”l, explains that this is a hint for the fifty gates of binah, of which Moshe Rabbeinu achieved only forty-nine.

This idea is hinted to here when Hashem called him. Moshe Rabbeinu achieved an extremely high level, he arrived at the forty-ninth gate, but he did not attain the fiftieth. The small alef hints to the fact that he was still missing one gate. The Chida continues: According to this Chazal, the word זעירא (small) stands for ,זה רבי עקיבא ישיג אותו according to the Ari, z”l, who writes that Rabbi Akiva did indeed achieve the fiftieth gate.

The Approach for Gifted Children

“On your every offering shall you offer salt” (Vayikra 2:13).

Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach, zt”l, was of the opinion that one must nurture talented children, unlike most people who only invest in the weaker children. He used to say that a gifted child requires an exceptionally sharp Rebbe in order to teach him Torah.

He based his reasoning on the above verse “On your every offering shall you offer salt.” The Tosefta teaches us that even if the meal offering is based on salt, it must be offered with an additional measure of salt.

From here we learn, Rabbi Shlomo Zalman derived, that even when talking about a shrewd and gifted child, he also needs the addition of salt, meaning encouragement and true guidance in learning. He must be taught on a higher level, in line with his extraordinary talents.

The Mistake is Caused by Overlooking

“If the entire assembly of Israel shall err, and a matter became obscured from the eyes of the congregation” (Vayikra 4:13).

The Ohr Hachaim Hakadosh, zy”a, explains that if Gedolei Yisrael refrain from rebuking the people to prevent them from sinning, it can result in the fulfilment of “One sin leads to another sin.” This negligence will lead them to err and they will permit something that the Torah forbids.

The above verse hints to this idea: “If the entire assembly of Israel shall err,” meaning if the congregation sins unintentionally because they were not rebuked, then “a matter became obscured from the eyes of the congregation.” This will cause the Torah to be hidden from the Sanhedrin, who are considered as “the eyes of the congregation,” and they will permit something that is actually forbidden.