Summary: In our portion this week Aaron and his sons follow Moses’ instructions and offer sacrifices so that God will forgive the people. In a tragic moment, two of Aaron’s sons, Nadav and Avihu, offer “alien fire” to God. For this act God punishes them immediately by killing them. Moses, Aaron and the surviving sons, are forbidden from mourning. However the rest of the people are commanded to mourn and make sacrifices in the Temple. Finally, laws are given that distinguish between pure and impure animals, birds, fish, and insects.
Lesson: When reading the Torah, our sages pay close attention to each and every word. In our portion this week they notice an odd repetition. In order to be ordained as the high priest, Aaron is commanded to bring two sacrifices, the first for both himself and the people and the second for the people. What is the purpose of the second offering for the people when Aaron has already made an offering for the people the first time around?
Maimonides, the great commentator of the middle ages, teaches that “only the innocent can atone for the guilty.” In the first sacrifice Aaron atones for himself and the people. Only once Aaron is free of guilt can he then atone for the people. Abraham ibn Ezra, another commentary from the middle ages, expounds on Maimonides when he writes: “No one can atone for another until first cleansed of all personal sin.”
Our leaders must be role-models, living examples for each us, setting the bar a bit higher so that we can strive to be like them. True leadership requires more than skill, insight and experience. True leadership, according to our portion this week, involves modelling our highest ideals. When we look at our leaders today, we see that many of them fail in this regard. Aaron was the first model of a leader committed to embodying in his personal lives the values he taught. Only once he was truly pure of sin could he then serve his people.