Rabbi Howard Morrison

Parshat Naso is the longest Parsha in the entire Torah. Yet the final chapter, the longest ever, is fairly easy for a Torah reader. Twelve paragraphs are completely repetitive, except for the name of the chieftain and his tribe. We read about the gifts that were presented at the dedication of the Tabernacle by the chieftains of the twelve tribes of Israel. They brought exactly the same gift, each, one day after the other. 

The medieval commentator Abarbanel says that the chieftains had all agreed in advance to bring identical offerings. Knowing how often sibling rivalry between brothers causes pride or jealousy to interfere with sibling relationships, they were being extra cautious to prevent that from occurring here. If that is true, then surely that showed they had learned a lesson from the experience of their ancient Joseph and his brothers, for whom the tribes are named. 

But why read the same identical list twelve times over? Why couldn't the Torah just give the list of the names of the chieftains and tell us that they all gave the same gifts, and list the content of the gifts one time only?

Now come some classical commentators: The Bchor Shor says that it was so that each chieftain and tribe would have his day in the sun. Ramban says that the Holy One wished to provide equal honor to all of them. While each tribe brought exactly the same things in the same amount, each had its own independent reason for doing so.

The Baal Ha'Turim, known for commenting on numbers, mentions that each chieftain's name is recorded twice, thus 24 times in total. The 24 names allude to 24 hours. Each chieftain was given his own 24-hour time period when his tribe's gifts were celebrated. In addition, each chieftain's name is recorded at the beginning and end of a 6-verse allotment. The 6 verses allotted to each chieftain are an allusion to the 6 workdays of the week.

With all of these commentaries in mind, we see an unmatched unity among the leaders and the tribes of Israel, while maintaining each one's personal intent and commitment.

Last weekend reminded me of this chapter of Torah in a couple of ways. During last Shabbat, we learned of the heroic rescue of four hostages: Noa Argamani, Almog Meir Jan, Andrei Kozlov,  and Shlomi Ziv. The unity and euphoria were felt in Israel and all over the Jewish world. A beachfront in Tel Aviv erupted when the announcement was made. In our own shul last Shabbat, there was not a dry eye. With this unmatched unity of spirit, there were also tears for the remaining hostages and their families. There were tears that Almog's father had passed away days prior to his son's liberation due in part to overwhelming grief. There were tears that chief inspector Arnon Zmora of the police forces died of wounds suffered in the rescue effort.

Then, last Sunday, as expected, neither rain nor anti-Israel protests kept some fifty thousand Jews from walking for and with Israel. I took some time to stand at the intersection of Bathurst and Sheppard to witness many of our own Beth Emeth members as well as the diverse segments of the entire Jewish community coming together. For 36 consecutive weeks, the Jewish community has stood as one with prayer and reflection at that intersection. With each individual expressing his/her commitment in a personal way, collectively, the many thousands stood and walked as one cohesive community.

While the last chapter in Parshat Naso could have been made shorter, its full repetition of the 12 days worth of gifts presented by the 12 tribes of Israel serves as a role model and paradigm for the kind of people we can be at the most important of times.

Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Howard Morrison