In Tzav, God instructs Moses to tell Aaron
and his sons how to do
the hardcore holiest of holy high priest things -
that is, how to perform
the heavy-duty animal and meal offerings
which happen in the Sanctuary.
First and foremost, keep the fire burning,
that’s super important.
These sacrifices are purification rituals
to purify the individual
as well as the community.
This is how the burnt offering works –
the sacrificed animal has been burning
on the altar all night and the next morning
the high priest gets dressed
in his linen tunic and trousers
and gathers the ashes from the burnt offering
and puts those ashes next to the altar.
Then the high priest changes out of his linens,
puts on some jeans,
and brings the ashes to a clean place
outside of the camp.
Now it’s totally essential
that the fire doesn’t go out.
The high priest must put fresh wood
on the fire every morning,
a continuous fire must be burning,
it shall not go out.
Never! Ever!
For the meal and the high priest offerings,
Aaron’s sons take a handful
from the flour that’ll be used for baking
the daily meal offering
and then mix it with frankincense
so it smells good when it’s burning;
It shall be completely burnt;
it shall NOT be eaten. Got it?
Meanwhile, here’s the recipe
for the daily meal offering
which should be eaten by the high priests:
take about nine cups of really good flour
and divide it, for half in the morning
and half in the evening.
Mix it with oil in a shallow pan.
Bake it through a couple of times
and burn the broken pieces,
which are sort of like crackers.
Chow down! It’s supposed to be eaten.
Next up is the sin offering
— an ox or sheep or goat is slaughtered
according to the rules —
now that is okay to eat too,
but it has to be eaten in a holy place,
that is, in the courtyard of the Tabernacle,
which is one heck of a place for a picnic.
Anything that touches it will become holy
– awesome!
It can be eaten by every male
among the high priests – check it out:
it is a holy of holies.
If it’s cooked in a clay pot,
the pot has to be broken and tossed out
every time, but if it’s cooked in copper,
the pot can be washed and used again.
Don't be wasteful; use copper every time!
Then comes the guilt offering –
same rules for slaughtering
as the sin and burnt offerings.
The priest makes sure the fat from the meat
smokes on the altar
as a fire offering to the Lord.
Finally comes the thanksgiving
peace offering
(which, after the burnt and sin and guilt
offerings, is kind of a relief)
and involves baking bread and crackers
in addition to sacrificing and cooking
an animal.
Make sure it’s eaten on the first or second day;
any leftovers have to be thrown out
on the third day no matter what!
Good idea, because there were no
refrigerators back then, right?
And then God told Moses to bring Aaron
and his sons, and the garments,
and the anointing oil, and the sin offering bull,
and the two rams, and the basket of crackers,
and assemble the whole community
at the Tabernacle’s entrance.
Once everyone was there,
Aaron and his sons took a bath
(Oy! In front of everybody?),
and Moses dressed them each
in a special high priest outfit,
and sprinkled everything,
including Aaron and his sons,
with the anointing oil,
sanctifying them,
making them the holiest of totally holy priests.
The bull and the rams were then slaughtered
and the crackers were added on,
and the whole thing went up in smoke
on the altar – woosh!
And then Moses said,
“Okay, you can have a snack
after all that anointing…
As Jews, we always have
a bite to eat after services."
As we read this parsha,
we recognize the importance of ritual
in our own lives.
In ancient times,
these rituals filled all five senses:
the Israelites could hear the burning wood
crackling on the altar;
see the smoke rising from the altar;
smell the aroma of meat, crackers,
and frankincense; taste the leftovers;
feel the ashes, flour, and animals.
Think about meaningful rituals
in your own life, what might they be?
Our love for God and the community
is like the holy fire
that the ancient high priests
were entrusted with.
Our own inner fires have to be tended,
or we lose our connection with God.
Keep that fire going!
Producer: Sarah Lefton
Animation Director: Nick Fox-Gieg
Animation: Colleen MacIsaac
Editorial Director: Matthue Roth
Theme Music: Tim Cosgrove
Written and Narrated by Jennifer Joseph
Sound Recording: Sarah Lefton