by Rav Avraham Yitzchak Kook
Animal sacrifices will diminish under the influence of the amount of consumption of completely non-sanctified meat.
This is because the verse states, “When your spirit desires to eat meat…” (Deuteronomy 12:20). And how can a person with a perfected spirit desire to eat the flesh of a living being, since such a person rather sees in the animal a proper instrument to perfect Divine justice by making an effort to improve the animal and impart intelligence to it?
For the sake of the needs of the day, it is possible that there will exist many animals throughout the course of an entire era at the threshold of such perfection that it will accustom them to sacrifice their lives as an offering to Hashem, as a sign of their great awareness of the goodness that accrues and will accrue to them as a result of the service of Hashem that has brought mankind to that point: that he has risen to such a degree that he focuses all of his endeavors upon elevating animals and their honor. And in accordance with the value of the animal’s perspective, they will require that approach--i.e., of being sacrificed.
Alternatively, there will still be a need to continue drawing such energy of the sacrifices into the world so that the worst and most degraded members of the human race will not return to freely choose evil deeds, regressing from ethical perfection. Offering sacrifices makes that possible.
Alternatively, the Sanhedrin may find it proper, in accordance with the power that it possesses to uproot a law from the Torah when that involves non-action (Yevamot 89b), to declare sacrifices of living beings non-obligatory, since the killing of animals for non-sanctified purposes has ceased to be the norm.
The Bible supports this, for the verse speaks of a sacrifice as “bread”: “My sacrifice, My bread for My fires” (Numbers 28:2), yet regarding the same sacrifice the Bible refers to “one sheep” (Exodus 29:39, Leviticus 14:12). This appears to be a contradiction. The resolution is that as long as animals are killed for non-sanctified purposes, one may offer them to God; but when animals are not killed for non-sanctified purposes, sacrifices should be composed of bread.
Our Sages allude to this in saying that “all the sacrifices will be nullified except for the thanksgiving offering, which will not be nullified” (Yayikra Rabbah 9:7)—because it is composed in part of bread. Thus, the verse states, “and the flour offering minchah of Judah and Jerusalem will be sweet to Hashem as in former days and years of old” (Malachi 3:4)--because that which remains fit to be a sacrifice after supernal human perfection is the flour offering.
And, to return to the verse on sacrifices, it speaks of “My sacrifice, My bread” (as noted above), and the following verse states, “And tell them: this is the fire-offering that you will offer to Hashem”—i.e., you realize that ultimately the offering will consist of “My bread for My fires,” “bread of the minchah.” However, at the present, until that time of perfection, tell them to sacrifice sheep.
The matter depends upon whether the sacrifice is considered to be “a pleasing fragrance.” And it will grow clear in the time of perfection that killing animals cannot give a “pleasing fragrance.”
It is possible that, in accordance with the ruling of the Sanhedrin and with verses found in the Prophets, the sacrificial service will revert to being offered by the first-born. Since there is an explicit verse in the Torah that leads to this presumption, such an idea is not to be considered as uprooting anything from the Torah, but rather as upholding the Torah.
The first-born were disqualified from offering sacrifices as a result of their role in the sin of the Golden Calf (Bamidbar Rabbah 3:5). But it is impossible that a sinful matter should last forever, because teshuvah, repentance, preceded the world (Tanchuma, Nasso 11:11).
Therefore, every impression of the sin of the Golden Calf will be rectified, and at that time the sacrificial service will revert to the first-born. The cohanim will of course not be disqualified, since “once they have ascended they do not descend” (Zevachim, Chapter 9).
We may derive that the obligation to offer animal sacrifices is in force only when those who offer them are solely cohanim. Therefore the verse states that in the present era, “[The person bringing the sacrifice] will have it slaughtered on the north side of the altar … [but only] the sons of Aaron, the cohanim, will sprinkle its blood” (Leviticus 1:11). However, when the first-born will also be qualified to serve, then due to the elevation of animals and all of existence, animals will not be used for sacrifices, but only bread and flour-offerings, as a sign of appreciation and elevation.
And in every case that we find a verse in the Torah and apply straightforward reasoning, the Great Court has the power to deliver such significant rulings—and in particular when we add the appropriate verses in the Prophets.
However, this vision refers to days in the far distant future. It is possible that the rectification of the world including with the resurrection of the dead will occur prior to that. And then in truth a number of matters will change in accordance with the quality of the new time.
Only wicked people eat the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge while it is unripe, for they do not appreciate the great worth of everything in its time.
Machberot Boisk 1:8
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