Tzav: On not passing over the chance to give thanks

Tzav

Leviticus 6:1-8:36

Malachi 3:4-24

by RABBI STEPHEN PEARCE

Shame and guilt have traditionally played such powerful roles in the lives of Jews that major portions of the Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur liturgy are devoted to helping worshippers deal with them. Nevertheless, these significant characteristics should not overshadow the many positive aspects of Jewish life.

Tzav, this week's Torah portion, like many of the others in Leviticus, is concerned with the functioning of the ancient cultic priesthood. Specifically, it covers the five varieties of sacrifice: olah, mincha, shelamim, chatat and asham -- the burnt, meal, peace, sin and guilt offerings. Of the peace offering, the text describes two varieties: neder, a free-will offering, and the todah, the offering of thanksgiving.

While todah, the Hebrew word for "thank you," found currency in the ancient Temple, it should also play a major role in modern life. The Psalmist, recognizing the importance of the thanksgiving offering, stated: "The one who offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving honors God" (50:23). Even Roman statesman Cicero suggested the supreme importance of gratitude as "not only as the greatest of all virtues, but the mother of all virtues."

A reader can infer from these statements that an offering of thanksgiving is so important that it overshadows all other types of offerings. Thus, it should come as no surprise that the Torah warns against neglecting thanksgiving and forgetting what God did for the Israelites. The biblical author bristles when considering the ultimate statement of hubris: "My own power and the might of my own hand have won this abundance for me" (Deuteronomy 8:17).

He understood that the temptation to greet success with self-congratulation is very strong because the self-made man or woman may attribute success solely to personal resourcefulness, wisdom and ingenuity. Often only a serious threat to the blessings taken for granted makes people finally appreciate them. Losing what we have and prize is a humbling experience and should teach us not to wait until such an event to stop and take stock, because by then it may be too late. So many people are guilty of forgetting to express thanksgiving for the simple blessings of life until they are gone.

Tzav can provide us with a wake-up call, as can Passover, which begins at sundown Wednesday. In some homes, the Passover seder constitutes a ceremoniously quick encapsulation of the Haggadah: "We were slaves to Pharaoh in Egypt and now we are free." The recitation of this one line of liturgy is always followed by the demand, "Let's eat."

It is presumptuous to think that the spiritual side of Passover has no real meaning when, in fact, it champions the liberation of our people from bondage and its accompanying thanksgiving. Waiting for Passover to express gratitude for the miracles displayed before all of Israel -- for the hard-won freedoms lost and regained many times since the Exodus -- makes no more sense than waiting for the third Thursday in November to express thanks for the rich abundance we share in America.

We are always in the midst of planting, tending and harvesting. These acts of growing and nurturing should always be accompanied by thanksgiving for the things we have planted in ourselves and in others, and for the things that have been planted by others in us.

Harvests of all types are always ripening, and it is for this reason that there are over 100 liturgical opportunities to say a variety of blessings each day, opportunities to say "thank you" for the simple pleasures, the victories and the many parts of daily living that we ordinarily take for granted.

Passover is but a few days away. This year, may its observance make those who participate in the seder mindful of all there is to be grateful for. In so doing, may its message reach the hearts of all who prize its meaning by not waiting until the next Passover to say: "You have given us so much, O God. All we ask for is but one thing more, a grateful heart that each day acknowledges Your gifts with thanksgiving!" Amen.