Parashat Emor- A Lesson in Sensitivity
Parashat Emor begins with the law that forbids Kohanim from coming in contact with dead bodies. Surprisingly, God instructs Moshe to teach this Mitzva to Aharon's sons, but not to Aharon himself, as the Torah writes, "Speak to the Kohanim, the sons of Aharon, and tell them that one shall not defile himself to a soul among his people." Aharon was not only a Kohen, but the Kohen Gadol, regarding whom these laws are even stricter than regarding standard Kohanim. Why, then, does God command Moshe to convey these laws only to Aharon's sons, and not to Aharon himself?
One explanation suggests that God did not want Moshe to convey this information directly to Aharon in order to spare him embarrassment. The Sages teach that at the time of Matan Torah, Benei Yisrael were released from the grip of the Mal'ach Ha'mavet (Angel of Death). They rose to the level where death would occur through "Neshika" (literally, a "kiss" from the Almighty), directly from God, without any involvement on the part of the Mal'ach Ha'mavet. Death would thus be entirely pure, without leaving any forces of Tum'a (impurity) upon the person's remains. It was only as a result of the sin of the golden calf that Benei Yisrael fell from this stature and once again became subject to the powers of the Angel of Death. After the incident of the calf, people would again die through the contaminating force of the Mal'ach Ha'mavet, which leaves a spirit of Tum'a upon the body after death. Only the greatest Tzadikim, such as Moshe, were privileged to die through "Neshika" without being subject to the contaminating forces of the Mal'ach Ha'mavet.
It thus emerges that the Tum'a which descends upon a body after death is a result of the unfortunate incident of the golden calf. For this reason, God did not wish for Moshe to convey the law of Tum'at Kohanim – the prohibition for a Kohen to come in contact with this Tum'a – directly to Aharon. Aharon – albeit unintentionally – played a central role in the sin of the golden calf. When the people came to Aharon and demanded that he make for them a graven image, he decided to stall for time, knowing that Moshe would shortly return. He therefore instructed the people to bring their gold jewelry with which to fashion a calf. Aharon never imagined what kind of debacle would ensue, but he nevertheless bore a degree of responsibility for this incident. In a sense, then, he was responsible for the return of Tum'a, and, by extension, for the prohibition for Kohanim to come in contact with corpses.
God therefore told Moshe to teach this prohibition to Aharon's sons, rather than to Aharon himself. Reminding a person – even indirectly – of his past mistakes causes him great shame and humiliation. We pray each day, "Al Tizkor Lanu Avonot Rishonim" – "Do not remind us of our earlier iniquities." We ask to be spared the embarrassment of being reminded of our sins. Here in Parashat Emor the Torah teaches us a powerful lesson in sensitivity, just how careful we must be never to even allude to a person's past mistakes, and to always show great concern for every individual's feelings and dignity.
