Acharei: Context

The parsha begins by providing context.

וַיְדַבֵּ֤ר יְ

אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֔ה אַחֲרֵ֣י מ֔וֹת שְׁנֵ֖י בְּנֵ֣י אַהֲרֹ֑ן בְּקׇרְבָתָ֥ם לִפְנֵי־יְ

וַיָּמֻֽתוּ׃

And the Lord spoke to Moshe after the death of the two sons of Aharon, when they came near before the Lord, and died;

It is a little surprising that this victimless transgression, this trespass onto the off limits, merits such a severe punishment. It is a reminder not to act on our own understanding exclusively; the Divine instructions must be heeded and the penalty for violation can be death. The search for secrets comes at the risk of life.

This same source of danger is to be visited by the Kohen Gadol, the High Priest, annually, on Yom Kippur, as a critical part of the ceremony that provides expiation, and thus life, to the nation of Israel. The visit must be done in a special ceremonial way; sober, and ritually pure. The scene behind the curtain is obscured by the scented smoke that accompanies the visitor. One can never have a clear view.

The Yom Kippur ritual described in the parsha appeals to symbolic senses, perceptions that cannot be reduced to logic. Two nearly identical goats are brought forth. Lots are cast. One goat is used in  the usual sacrificial manner. The other is led into exile by a man of the times (ish iti).

וְשִׁלַּ֛ח בְּיַד־אִ֥ישׁ עִתִּ֖י הַמִּדְבָּֽרָה׃

The destination is called

אֶ֣רֶץ גְּזֵרָ֑ה

eretz gezerah

A cut off land

Perhaps the designation of this officer that leads the sin laden scapegoat into its exile, and ultimately to the cliff of its destruction, as an  ish iti, a man of his times, reflects on the nature of the sins: they are a reaction to the challenges that come up in that time. The transgressions are temporal, the opposite of spiritual. The sins are reactions that seem appropriate at the time; behaviors that value the fashionable over the eternal.

The temporal world, the world of now, is very confusing; and that confusion frequently leads to error. The American (stated, if not practiced) values of: mutual respect for all, freedom of expression, democracy etc. are not easily put aside. But these values, in practice, can, at times, lead to terrible outcomes.  The values can appear sober and pure; they are often (maybe always) subverted by very sullied people drunk with power.

In this context calling the destination, the site of execution, eretz gezerah , evokes the more frequent usage of gezerah: an edict.  My parents’ generation experienced governmental edicts that meant death to Jews. Exile is a dangerous place, subject to the whims and prejudices of the rulers of the moment.  The goat, chosen by lottery, is led into exile by temporal forces and succumbs to the foreign edicts.

We live in a time when context is used at the discretion of the speaker. I will never forget the first public reaction of the U N secretary general, Antonio Guterres, to the October 7 attack.  He said that the horror came  “in context.”  I knew what he meant; he was expressing a justification for the murder, kidnap and rape based upon the state of  Israel’s  dominant position.  This was part in an ongoing battle.  

I understood the Secretary General’s word slightly differently.  The attack had been perpetrated in a context that would immediately forgive the criminals and prejudge the state of Israel as overreacting, before anything was done. The  enemy that had just launched a horrendous attack. It is an enemy whose founding document calls for the expulsion or death of all Jews in the territory they call Palestine (Judenrein).  The context was  that antisemitism is a reliable concept that would  justify (almost) act against Jews.

I come away warned, but not enlightened. I recognize that there are many secrets I do not and cannot know. I doubt and trust  and wonder what is behind the curtain.