Tyler’s Torah Thoughts for 19 Adar II, 5784
Parsha Tzav – “Command”: (Leviticus 6:1 – 8:36)
Sixth Portion: Leviticus 8:22 – 8:29

Good morning! As we prepare for Shabbat today and the rest that is to come, we are working in Leviticus on this idea of being inaugurated.

Something I am reflecting on.  Are we distracted? Are we embracing the moments of inauguration?

Are we grounded in a moment as we transition?

We are moving out of the past calendar year. We are about to turn the calendar to the first month. Nisan is the first month of the Hebrew calendar. It is synced with the time the Children of Israel left Egypt and left slavery.

When does this happen? The evening of April 8^th.

Sound significant?

Because April 8, 2024? Is the Solar Eclipse.

We are being prepared for something. Something major. Are we distracted? Or are we preparing ourselves within to navigate this?

Whether we distract ourselves or focus is fully a free choice on our part. We are being inaugurated. The Torah is showing us. We are moving from War to Peace. From Kings and Queens who fight wars to High Priests and Priestesses who mend hearts. It starts within. Our hearts are mending. Will we be peaceful warriors? Or will we continue to fight?

Yesterday, we read about Moses anointing Aaron and his sons as High priests with the first sacrifices. Moses was being shed as the leader of Israel. And it started with the sin. Then? Guilt.

If we do not deal with our belief that we are mistakes? That will keep us stuck. And? Once we begin to believe we are NOT mistakes? We need to deal with our guilt. This is the anointing.

Once these are being navigated within, we enter today’s portion:

22And he brought near the second ram, the ram of the investitures, and Aaron and his sons leaned their hands [forcefully] upon the ram’s head.

The “Ram of the Investitures.”

I had to look up the word of investitures.

“The action of formally investing a person with honors or rank.”

Who have we, within our hearts, invested a person with honors or rank?

And. Have we SACRIFICED our own honors and rank to do so?

Full stop.

I will share. I have lived my entire life investing in OTHERS the honor and rank for my own sovereignty and heart. And doing this? I have sacrificed my OWN investiture.

It is time to move from sacrifice to surrender.

Will I release this paradigm? Will I surrender to the honor and rank within myself?

And will I CHOOSE to only anoint someone with honor and rank IF they reciprocate that same investiture?

These are deep questions of anointing within.

The Ram of Investiture.

We have the opportunity as we get ready for Passover. As we get ready for our freedom and liberation. To place our hands on this Ram of Investiture we’ve been working with our entire lives. To put all of the energy we’ve invested in OTHERS – for rank and honor within us. And let’s see what the Torah would have us do with it:

23And he slaughtered [it], and Moses took some of its blood, and placed it on the cartilage of Aaron’s right ear, on the thumb of his right hand and on the big toe of his right foot.

24And he brought Aaron’s sons forward, and Moses placed some of the blood on the cartilage of their right ears, on the thumbs of their right hands, and on the big toes of their right feet, and Moses dashed the blood on the altar, around.

25And he took the fat, the tail, all the fat which was on the innards, the diaphragm of the liver, the two kidneys together with their fat and the right thigh.

26And out of the basket of unleavened bread that was before the Lord, he took one loaf of unleavened bread, and one loaf of oily bread, and one wafer, and he placed them on top of the fats and the right thigh.

27And then he placed it all on Aaron’s palms and on his sons’ palms, and he waved them as a waving before the Lord.

All of that investiture. Everything we’ve invested in OTHERS.  To the sacrifice of our OWN rank and honor? Needs to be slaughtered.

Death.

Release.

Freedom.

AND. When we slaughter the Ram of Investiture? The blood – which is the life – is to be place upon OURSELVES. We are the high priest within. The skilled warrior becomes the peaceful warrior.

Remember. Aaron was the same leader who oversaw the Golden Calf.

Aaron was worthy of Investiture from Hashem.

We are ALSO worthy.

We’ve got to stop investing in OTHERS to the sacrifice, rejection, abandonment, and betrayal of OURSELVES.

Will we accept the rank and honor BESTOWED upon us? Will we anoint our souls within us with RANK and HONOR?

I am not talking Ego here. I am not talking narcissism. These are COUNTERFIETS to Investiture.  These are DISTRACTIONS from the hole in our hearts.

This is true deep love.

Someone very close to me, Kristina Sullivan came up with this:

“We evolve through pure love.”

This is the process.

Sacrifice our Ram of Investiture.

Sprinkle the blood on our own souls.

Let’s review:

24And he brought Aaron’s sons forward, and Moses placed some of the blood on the cartilage of their right ears, on the thumbs of their right hands, and on the big toes of their right feet, and Moses dashed the blood on the altar, around.

25And he took the fat, the tail, all the fat which was on the innards, the diaphragm of the liver, the two kidneys together with their fat and the right thigh.

26And out of the basket of unleavened bread that was before the Lord, he took one loaf of unleavened bread, and one loaf of oily bread, and one wafer, and he placed them on top of the fats and the right thigh.

27And then he placed it all on Aaron’s palms and on his sons’ palms, and he waved them as a waving before the Lord.

The blood goes on our right ear.  We are called to LISTEN.

The blood goes on our right thumb. We are called to ACT.

The blood goes on our right big toe. We are called to MOVE.

Then – the blood goes on the altar – the connecting point between the body and the soul. Between this world and Hashem’s.

Will we accept the rank and honor bestowed upon us?

And what is with the right side?

In Kabbalah – the right side is Understanding, Strength, Surrender.  The masculine.

We are called to LISTEN for UNDERSTANDING.

Side note. My dudes? Want to grow in your relationship with your partner?  Next time you are in a conflict with her? And you start getting annoyed? Listen for Understanding HER? And you will have an open portal to share how you feel misunderstood. Just saying.  “This is the way.”

We are called to ACT with STRENGTH.

We are called to MOVE into SURRENDER.

Let’s see how today’s portion closes:

28And Moses took them from their hands and made them [go up in] smoke on the altar along with the burnt offering. They were investiture offerings, as a pleasing fragrance, a fire offering to the Lord.

Moses took the bread – and burnt them. A pleasing fragrance.

29And Moses took the breast and waved it as a waving before the Lord. It belonged to Moses as a portion from the ram of the investitures, as the Lord had commanded Moses.

And. Our skillful warrior? Not dead. Moses had a part to play. He was given Rank and Honor too.

The skilled warrior within us? Doesn’t need to go away. He/she remains. But Moses BESTOWED rank and honor to the High Priest/Priestess within.

These are my thoughts. I am curious about yours.

Here are my thoughts from the past two years:

Tyler’s Torah Thoughts for 9 Nisan, 5783

As we enter into the “Big Shabbat” tonight as it is the last Shabbat rest before Passover and we engage on the story of exodus, the two questions from a year ago seem salient:

Who In our lives is helping us be inaugurated to our best selves? Who might not be?

Second; who are you serving and helping to be their best selves? Who are you working for to inaugurate them into a life and journey?

The Passover story begins in slavery. There are things in our lives right now that have us trapped. Who? Who has brought us to this place? Who can “inaugurate” us to take steps towards our own liberation.

That’s what I’m reflecting on today. Here is some information on the upcoming Shabbat:

Tyler’s Torah Thoughts for 15 Adar II, 5782

Today we continue with the inauguration of the tabernacle. Yesterday Moses slaughtered the first offering.

Today, we see the second ram; called “the inauguration ram.”

Moses did as God commanded him; Aaron and his sons laid their hands on it; Moses slaughtered it. He took blood and put it on the cartilage of Aaron’s right ear, on the thumb of his right hand, and the big toe of his right foot. He did the same to Aaron’s sons.

Next he dashed the blood on the altar; all around.

Moses took pieces of the ram, the bread, and stacked them; placing them in Aaron’s hands, and the hands of Aaron’s sons. He waved them as a waving before God. Then Moses took these and put them on the altar along with the burnt offering. They were inauguration offerings- a pleasant aroma before God.

Then, to close; Moses took the breast and waved it as a wave offering; it belonged to Moses as a portion from the inauguration ram.

So what can we take away from today’s portion.

First – when we are on a journey – we need help. Aaron and his sons were to be the high priests. Yet Moses was the one working on their behalf to inaugurate them.

Who In our lives is helping us be inaugurated to our best selves? Who might not be?

Second; who are you serving and helping to be their best selves? Who are you working for to inaugurate them into a life and journey?

These are the takeaways I see…how about you?