On Shabat afternoons I learn Chumash with my Mum. I have been plodding through the Torah for the better part of 4 years, and I am now studying Parshat Metzora, which means that I have already learnt my bat mitzvah parshah, Tzav. One Shabat afternoon recently, I found one part of Metzora specially interesting. It made me think of something in Tzav. So this connection is what I will be talking about today.
In Tzav, Aharon and his sons are made into kohanim during a long and complicated set of ceremonies, called miluim. They change their status, going from being ordinary people to kohanim who serve God in the Mishkan. In Metzora, we also have somebody changing their status - a metzora. A metzora is someone who has tzara'at, a disease sent by Hashem which makes you tame. The ceremonies the metzora goes through, after being cured of the disease, made him tahor again.
I find it very interesting that both the metzora's ceremony and the miluim ceremony for the kohanim had three parts, and that some of the things that were done in each part were the same.
In the first part of each of the two sets of ceremonies, the person whose life is being changed is separated from his normal life. The person is then prepared for the change. In the case of Aharon and his sons, Moshe brought them to the Mishkan, washed them, dressed them in special clothes, and then anointed them with shemen hamishcha. Then Moshe offered 3 sacrifices: a chatat, an olah, and a special miluim sacrifice. Moshe put some of the blood from the miluim sacrifice on the right ear, right thumb and right big toe of Aharon and his sons. Then he sprinkled more blood on Aharon and his sons and their special clothes. The whole ceremony took place in the Mishkan.
The ceremony for the metzora was held in a special place too. At this stage, the metzora was still tame, even though he was cured of the disease, so he could not have his ceremony in the Mishkan. Instead it was held at a place of mayim chayim -- living waters. Both the Mishkan and water are associated with life. Like Aharon and his sons, the metzora needed special equipment and sacrifices for his ceremony. A bird was slaughtered in a pot held over the waterby a kohen. Then red cloth, red cedar wood, hyssop (ezov) and a live bird were dipped in the blood of the dead bird. The live bird was allowed to fly away, back to life, just as the metzora was now returning to life. Having tzara'at was very like being dead, since a metzora could not live in the camp of Bnei Yisrael or take part in society. As in the case of Aharon and his sons, this ceremony too ended with blood being sprinkled on the metzora.
The second part of the ceremonies was very similar too. In both, the people whose lives were being changed had to spend a week sitting outside. Aharon and his sons sat for 7 days outside the Ohel Mo'ed, eating food from the sacrifices. The metzora came back into the camp after bathing, shaving and washing his clothes, and sat outside his tent for 7 days.
Each of the two sets of ceremonies has a grand finale on the eighth day, in which the people show that they have really turned into the new type of person that they want to be.
In the case of Aharon, he now performs three sacrifices in the Mishkan, which is the main part of a kohen's job. One of the sacrifices he performs is on behalf of all the people of Israel. Aharon has now shown Bnei Yisrael that he is a kohen.
In the case of the metzora, he has now become tahor and is back in society again. He shows this by bringing sacrifices in the Mishkan, where he could not go before, while he was tame. Like Aharon and his sons in the first part of their ceremony, the metzora is anointed with blood and oil on his right ear, right thumb and right big toe.
Both these sets of people have changed and become different. Aharon and his sons have become kohanim, and the metzora has become a normal member of society again. In both cases, the people involved have had to go to special places and go through special rituals with special equipment.
This is very similar to my case. I have changed from being a child into being bat mitzvah. I too have come to a special place -- Israel, Jerusalem, Yedidya. I too have been through a special ceremony, reading from the Torah and being called up to the Torah for the first time. And just like Aharon and the metzora, I am having a special party on the eighth day of being in Israel!
As a bat mitzvah, I have new responsibilities, just like Aharon. I can do new things -- like being counted in a mezuman -- just like the metzora could do more things when he was no longer tame. Bat mitzvah has many important things to be. There are the things that I can now do which I couldn't before, and the things that I am now responsible for doing. I will be bat mitzvah for the rest of my life and therefore I am responsiblefor keeping the mitzvot and living according to the Torah.