T orah P ortion
God’s Attentiveness Response to Need
BY RABBI KELILAH MILLER
Parashat Tetzaveh
THIS WEEK’S TORAH por-
tion, Tetzaveh, presents us with
a long list of specifications for
the vestments of the priests, who
will serve in the mishkan (taber-
nacle) once it is completed.

It is packed with excruciat-
ing detail, with no narrative to
speak of. It is pretty inhospitable
to the reader, refusing to offer
any whiff of pathos or drama.

Reading Tetzaveh can feel like
looking out over a barren, fea-
tureless desert landscape.

But, if you have ever hiked
in a desert, you also know that
there are secrets everywhere.

Someone familiar with the
desert will know which scrub
plants or geological features
indicate underground water;
likewise, we can seek out
strange turns of phrase in the
text which suggest that there is
some nourishing insight hid-
den beneath.

Classically, midrash (biblical
interpretation) requires just such
a “hook” in the text — some
oddity of language, expression
or image that invites us to dig
a bit deeper. Sometimes the
Torah portions that seem barren
expose these oddities more read-
ily because of the very monotony
of the landscape.

In that spirit, I want to
examine a single small section
of the reading, which describes
the robe of the High Priest.

According to Exodus 28:33-35,
the robe is meant to be deco-
rated with tiny bells:
“On its hem make pome-
granates of blue, purple, and
crimson yarns, all around the
hem, with bells of gold between
them all around. ... Aaron shall
wear it while officiating, so that
the sound is heard when he
comes into the sanctuary before
the LORD and when he goes
out — that he may not die.”
It seems, on the face of
it, that the Torah is suggest-
ing that Aaron is required to
wear these bells as he walks,
so that he does not catch God
unaware. And, indeed, the
classical rabbis amplify this
idea in order to teach a lesson
in social etiquette:
“Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai
said: The man who enters his
own house or, needless to say,
the house of his fellow man
unexpectedly, the Holy One
hates, and I too do not exactly
love him. Rav said: Do not
enter your Own City nor even
your own home unexpectedly.

When Rabbi Yochanan was
about to go in to inquire about
the welfare of Rabbi Hanina,
he would first clear his throat,
in keeping with [the verse] so
that the sound is heard when
he comes in (Exodus 28:35).”
This is a lovely social les-
son, and interesting in its own
right, but it raises a theological
problem — does God really not
anticipate Aaron’s approach?
Does Aaron really need to be
“belled” like a cat in order to
avoid startling the divine? One
response to this problem is
posed by the medieval Spanish
commentator Bahya ben Asher:
Actually, the sound of the
bells was not meant to give
warning either to the shechi-
nah (divine presence) or to the
angels that the High Priest was
approaching. It was intended
to warn the angels that the
approaching High Priest desired
to have privacy during his audi-
ence with the shechinah.

In an interesting reversal,
Bahya ben Asher suggests that
the bells are not added to pro-
tect the privacy of God, but
rather to protect the privacy
JFRE Continued from Page 7
when we meet,” said committee
member Jake Reiter, president
of Verde Capital. “But when
this group comes together, it is
magic. We all feel very fortu-
nate, at this stage of life, we are
in position to help our Jewish
community and provide for its
needs. All of us are on sev-
eral boards, and our executive
committee runs smoother than
any of them.”
Members say they’ve built a
formidable team with the eco-
nomic muscle to get things done.

“The [Holocaust Plaza] proj-
ect succeeded because we all
helped each other,” said David
22 FEBRUARY 14, 2019
JFRE Executive Board member Jake Reiter
Photo provided
Adelman, who also is the
“What we accomplished
chairman of the Philadelphia together was very satisfy-
Holocaust Remembrance ing,” said Matt Pestronk,
Foundation (PHRF).

president of Post Brothers
JEWISH EXPONENT
CAND LE LI GHT I NG
Feb. 15
Feb. 22
of the relationship
between Aaron and God. There
is something so intimate about
the encounter between them in
these moments that even the
ministering angels are asked to
leave and “give them the room.”
This interpretation is in
keeping with a long Jewish tra-
dition of imagining the rela-
tionship between humans, God
and angels as one that is some-
times fraught. There are many
tales of angels complaining
about the intimacy that human
beings enjoy with God, despite
our moral failings and general
unworthiness. The repeated lesson of these
tales is that it is precisely our
complexity and our failings
that make us the beneficiaries
of God’s intimate attention.

Angels, who are already perfect,
do not need God’s intimacy.

There is something so lovely
and important about this per-
spective on our connection with
God. God’s attentiveness to us
is not based on our worth, but
is a response to our need. We
don’t get what we deserve, but
we get what we require in order
to become better. God’s love is
a chesed (kindness), not a prize.

As a rabbi educator, I fre-
Apartments and an executive
committee member.

Those accomplishments
included Bill Glazer, president
and CEO of Keystone Property
Group, helping to sell $53 mil-
lion in Israel Bonds, setting
a record. In addition, JFRE
member Brad Krouse, manag-
ing partner of Klehr Harrison
Harvey Branzburg, chaired
the 2018 Jewish Federation
Main Event, while JFRE’s
Rob Zuritsky, president of the
Parkway Corp., chaired the
National Museum of American
Jewish History gala. Both cred-
ited their peers with making
the events a success.

But with all this very pub-
lic work, JFRE has also com-
5:18 p.m.

5:26 p.m.

quently encounter the “bad
kids” — the ones who act out or
disrupt lessons with challenging
questions. I confess that I often
love these students the best,
since I can most easily sense
their need for connection, empa-
thy and community (although
most of them would not admit
it). It is often only in one-on-one
encounters that these students
are able to share what is on their
minds and in their hearts.

As we spend time with this
week’s Torah portion, I pray
that we all find compassionate
listeners who love us despite, or
even because of our flaws. And
I pray that we all listen closely
for the tinkling of tiny bells —
the small indications that our
love and attention are needed
by others. l
Rabbi Kelilah Miller serves as the
cantor-educator at Congregation
Ohev Shalom in Wallingford.

The Board of Rabbis of Greater
Philadelphia is proud to provide the
Torah commentary for the Jewish
Exponent. pleted several under-the-radar
projects in recent years, invest-
ing nearly $1.5 million in
repairing homes for low-
income older adults and fam-
ilies, supporting food pantries
and safe houses for at-risk youth,
upgrading Jewish camp facilities
and facilitating other projects in
Philadelphia and Israel, where a
kindergarten was built.

“We try to help as many
as we can,” Reiter said.

“We work closely with the
Jewish Federation of Greater
Philadelphia. The money
comes in, the money goes out,
to help the community.” l
jweisberger@jewishexponent.com; 215-832-0737
JEWISHEXPONENT.COM



COMMUNITY NEWS
The Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia
mobilizes financial and volunteer resources to
address the communities’ most critical priorities
locally, in Israel and around the world.

Making Philly More Accessible
AS THE MOTHER OF a 16-year old
autistic son, Gabrielle Kaplan-Meyer
understands the way disabilities can
pose challenges for families partaking
in Jewish communal life.

“For example, Purim is loud and
wonderful,” said Kaplan-Meyer, direc-
tor of Jewish Learning Venture’s Whole
Community Inclusion, supported by
our Jewish Federation. “But from a
sensory perspective, it can be over-
whelming to walk into a place with that
much stimulation.”
Kaplan-Meyer’s family is far from
alone. According to the U.S. Census,
one in five people has some kind of
learning, cognitive, physical and/or
developmental disability. Mindful of
the need to make Jewish communal 
life welcoming to people of all abili-
ties, Whole Community Inclusion was
formed to make Jewish programming accessible for families raising kids with
special needs.

That includes creating sensory-friendly jkidphilly programs (like a Purim
party with the noise level turned down, or with a designated “quiet space”);
expanding education for synagogue leaders and early childhood educators;
compiling downloadable lesson plans and resources; and advocating on behalf
of special needs families through the Jewish Disability Inclusion Consortium
of Greater Philadelphia, a group which
includes Jewish Federation.

And every February, Whole
Community Inclusion programming
kicks into high gear. February is Jewish
Disability Awareness, Acceptance and
Inclusion Month (JDAIM), an interna-
tional initiative now in its 11th year, cele-
brated locally with “JDAIM Shabbat” — a
month’s worth of services, panels, movies
and speakers at more than 20 synagogues
across the region.

Rabbi Phil Warmflash, executive direc-
tor of Jewish Learning Venture, points
out that the awareness raised on JDAIM
Shabbat ultimately benefits everyone.

“In order to create truly inclusive com-
munities, all community members need to
better understand the complex issues facing
people with disabilities — whether this per-
sonally impacts their family or not,” he said.

Or, as Whole Community Inclusion’s JDAIM downloadable coloring book for
kids puts it: It’s important to think about how you like to be treated and treat your
friends that way. Be kind!
When you take time to understand friends who are different from you, you are
showing kindness/chesed. That is an important Jewish value.

For more information about Whole Community Inclusion and to access a
calendar of JDAIM Shabbat programming, visit jewishlearningventure.org.

Super Sunday
Volunteers Sought
SHOW YOUR FAMILY the value of volunteerism. Bring them
to one of our five Super Sunday locations on Feb. 24 and do a
mitzvah together.

Make the calls that make a difference on the day when, working
together, we secure vital resources for our communities. Encourage
your children to bring their tzedakah boxes for donation to our
2019 campaign and teach them the importance of philanthropy.

Child care will be available at two locations and they’ll have the
chance to decorate their tzedakah boxes among other activities.

Spend time with your friends and neighbors while helping to
keep our Jewish communities strong as we kickoff our 2019 Jewish
Federation of Greater Philadelphia campaign.

Visit jewishphilly.org/supersunday for locations, times and
additional information.

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