Chochmas Nashim: Moshe Meet Esther and Shlomo
By: Suri Davis
This week we have a convergence on Friday of the Torah portion, Megillat Esther and, since it’s Friday, it is customary to say each Friday Shir Hashirim, the Song of Songs. So let’s see how they work together.
Starting with this week’s Torah portion, Tetzaveh, the Torah commands that the Jews should donate pure olive oil to the Tabernacle. Generally, when there is a command with regard to the making of the Tabernacle, there is a command to make, but here it would have been impossible to make olive oil, in that there were no orchards in the desert. Where would the Jews have gotten olive oil to donate to the Tabernacle, from Egypt. (Toras Menachem, Exodus 27:20)
This hearkens back to the medrash in parshat B’shalach, the splitting of the sea, where Miriam and the other women brought out their musical instruments to dance their joy. The medrash asks, of all the things that people would bring from Egypt, the women brought musical instruments? The answer was that they had faith in G-d that He would bring joy to the Jews and they would want to rejoice. So to with the olive oil. G-d provided for the Jews food in the desert, yet they had olive oil, so that they may fulfill the commandment of building the Tabernacle. It shows Emunah/faith.
One more thing. The word Moshe is not in this week’s Torah portion. How can it be that the Toras Moshe has a whole Torah portion with no reference to Moshe. Well, let’s work our way to the Megillah of Esther, G-d’s name is missing from the ENTIRE megillah, so how do we know He is there. This is core belief, essentially core. Faith is not knowledge. Knowing is not only with one’s senses, but with one’s perception, Binah Yisayrah, the extra sense, that sense that you know that someone is watching you even when you can’t see or hear him. It is intentionally Mimaal latevah/above nature, so that it is not rational, but of the spirit/spiritual. [Moshe erred in asking G-d to erase him from the Torah, yet G-d listened to Moshe, and from this Torah portion his name is omitted, but clearly not his spirit]
Purim is Friday, we eat our seudah/banquet early, we are limited on our drinking and giving out shalach manot, we have to be very cognizant of the coming of Shabbos and its sanctity. We read shir hashirim, a megillah which do has no name of G-d, it is a romantic love story to an extent so passionate, as to cause great debate about the Megillas admission into Jewish canon. The rabbis accepted it as a holy book, on its merit of passion of man towards G-d. So appropriately written by King Solomon, who when asked from G-d what gift he wanted, he stated wisdom, and with this wisdom, he wrote several deeply insightful books, and this passionate love story of Solomon and G-d.
As the pandemic continues.
As different strains are found, which raise issues about our “savior vaccines,”
As Brooklyn which suffered heavily under the first round of pandemic is now going through a second
round,
As we sit with our thoughts that the last time we were innocently with family was our last Purim Seudah
We read a megillah missing G-d’s name in it, and we are taught to look further than the senses, look to what you know that can be perceived by the wonders of the world around us and the passion of the Jewish people for the king.
Hamans wife commands Haman to go to the king and EMOR/say/demand of the king to hang Mordechai[Esther 5:14). In the middle of the night Haman goes to the King, he doesn’t even wait for morning. The Megilla states that Haman went to the King’s palace Laymor to tell the king to hang Mordechai.
Rav Elimelech Bildman asks, what audacity does Haman think he has not to request of the king, but to demand of the king in the middle of the night what he wants. Rav Bildman answers: The medrash/commentary tells us that when the word Melech/king is written in this Megilla, it is a reference to G-d, and that on Purim, we have this ability to enter the King/G-d’s home at any time of the day on Purim, and not humbly request, BUT DEMAND what we want and need brazenly openly and without hesitation. It is a davening day on par with Yom Kippur, don’t waste the opportunity…
An meaningful fast.
Freilich Purim
Suri