This week’s Torah portion – Tzav opens with G-d telling Moses to command Aaron and his sons to be responsible for the offering of the daily sacrifices in the Temple.
Rashi notes the unusual usage of the term “Tzav-command!” Why was it necessary for Moses to order Aaron to comply? Why couldn’t G-d simply have told Moses to “speak” to Aaron and his sons? Why did it have to be articulated in such a harsh manner?
Rashi’s answer, citing the talmudic sage Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, is that wherever one must incur a financial loss, “chasaron kis”, in the fulfillment of a mitzvah, there is a need for an extra “push,” to encourage them to comply.
On the surface this sounds reasonable. The temptation to make and save money is one of the greatest pressures. Our sages alluded to the allure of money and its effects on our character when they said that one can tell a person’s character b’ka’aso (his anger), b’koso (his cup, i.e. alcohol) and b’kiso (his pocketbook).”
Just as rage and intoxication distort all of our perceptions and allow us to degenerate into anti-social behavior, similarly, the allure of money or the fear of losing it, can alter a person’s perceptions of reality and decency.
Still, it is hard to imagine that people of the caliber of Aaron and his sons would need this encouragement. Did money mean so much to them that they would cut corners and not do precisely what they had been commanded to do.
The following story provides us with a psychological insight that can shed some light on this matter.
Rabbi Sholom Dovber, the fifth Lubavitcher Rebbe, instructed his son, Rabbi Joseph Isaac (who succeeded his father as the leader of Lubavitch) to embark on a journey to the capital of Russia. This was one of many missions he was to undertake and successfully execute on behalf of the Jewish community.
Upon giving his father a detailed report of the completed mission, Rabbi Sholom Dovber wanted to reimburse his son for the full cost of the trip. The faithful son, known for his absolute self-sacrifice for Jewry and Judaism, was taken aback.
“Father,” he said, I don’t need to be reimbursed by you. I am more than happy to have shared in the cost of the mission on behalf of our people.”
Rabbi Sholom Dovber was adamant. “I must reimburse you for every cent. What you do with the money is your choice. You can keep it our contribute it to tzedakah.
Rabbi Sholom Dovber explained that had he not been reimbursed, it could have impacted the success of future missions. When confronted with two courses of action, one might be subconsciously influenced by the fact that one course of action would be more costly than the other. Without realizing the subtleties of the influence of the subconscious, one might choose the less preferred option.
The lesson is obvious. While no one would suspect people of high spiritual attainments of consciously making crucial decisions based on financial considerations, there is always the possibility of a subconscious effect.
Thus, the Torah exhorted Moses to command Aaron, his sons and all of us, to watch out for the subconscious influences that would somehow compromise the integrity of their/our mission. Even the most spiritual person could have a subconscious desire to save money in a way that could undermine the integrity of the mitzvah.
Standing on the threshold of the Messianic age, about which the prophet Daniel predicted that “everything will become manifest,” including the heretofore subconscious energies, good and bad, there is an added challenge. In the past, the subliminal and subconscious aspects of our personality, inasmuch as they were beneath the surface, exerted limited influence on our behavior. Now that they are coming closer to the surface greater care is needed to not allow them to affect our commitments to Judaism.
This awareness is the catalyst for us to make the final step into the Age of Redemption about which it is said that “the delights will be as abundant as the dust of the earth.” Then we will no longer have to worry about the effects of financial influences on our Jewishness.