Last week we concluded the Book of Exodus. 

This week we start the Book of Leviticus and the first portion is called VaYikra, and he called. 

This refers to the fact that at the end of Exodus the work of building the Tabernacle has been completed. It becomes filled with a Cloud of Glory, an expression of Gd’s acceptance of the work done. 

But Moses cannot access the Tabernacle as it is filled, so to speak, with Gd’s presence. 

Now the work of the service is about to begin, and Gd summons Moses. 

The word Vayikra ends with the Hebrew letter Alef. If you would look on a Torah scroll, you would notice that the Alef is smaller than the other letters. 

The commentaries teach us a lesson in Moses humility from this little Alef, this little detail. 

Moses, who was transcribing Gd’s words, did not want to write the word VaYikra, he wanted to write the word VaYikar. 

It sounds very similar. 

Is there really much difference?

Moses wanted to write the word VaYikar because that is the word used when Gd reaches out to other prophets. It’s a word that stems from the word Mikreh, which means happenstance. 

It denotes a lower level of relationship. 

By using VaYikar the message would be that Moses, like any prophet, was in the right place at the right time and so he was summoned. 

Any other prophet would have been so summoned. 

But Gd wants Moses to write VaYikra which is a type of calling which is very close and connected. 

Gd wants to make it crystal clear that Moses had a unique relationship with Gd and was specifically called at that moment. 

Our Sages teach us Moses was humble and did not want to call attention to the special relationship he had which is why he petitioned for VaYikar. 

At the end of the day Gd prevailed, as Gd does, but Moses wrote the word with a tiny Alef, in the hope that a casual reader might not notice the Alef at all. 

This is a meaningful lesson in humility. 

But, what game was Moses playing at here?

We all know that Moses was the greatest prophet that ever lived. 

Even then, the Jewish people saw with their own eyes Moses saving them from Egypt and going up to Mt Sinai to receive the Ten Commandments. 

Is making a regular size Alef into a little Alef really going to make us think differently about Moses?

One of the commentaries suggests that Moses knew his greatness. 

He knew himself. 

He wasn’t playing at false modesty. 

But instead of focusing on his accomplishments and achievements, Moses chose a small Alef to signify there is always more to learn about oneself and there is always more growing to be done. 

There is a little Alef in us all that can continue to grow to its full potential. 

Even if you are Moses. 

The Lubavitcher Rebbe continues this thought by teaching us how we should understand the beginning of the verse 

“And he called to Moses”

This is a message for each one of us a “calling”, so to speak for one and all. 

We are being summoned to work on ourselves at all times to improve  our character.  

If a person is on a high level like Moses then they should constantly strive to go higher. Or perhaps, sometimes a person may be in a very dark ot low place - then too, there is a calling to remind them not to despair. 

“Despite your present situation you have the power to rise up and go from darkness to light”

That’s a powerful message to learn from a small detail. 

Last week I wrote about the inspiration we could gain from Devory Palai, the mother who tragically lost two precious children in a terrorist attack. I shared how Devory was moved by the chain of love created by Jewish women who encircled her with support and connection in her time of loss. 

I wanted to relate the next chapter in her journey. 

A week ago, Devory gave birth to a baby boy. The Brit Milah took place this week. The event was covered by the media and the heart wrenching sobs at the ceremony were devastating. We pray at a Brit that the child will grow to learn Torah, stand under the Chuppah, the marriage canopy, and do many good deeds. But this baby had two older brothers who did not have the opportunity to fulfill that blessing. So many were moved to tears. 

Then I noticed one of the photographs taken which showed Devory leaning over her newborn baby, and I noticed s little detail. She was wearing a necklace and the chain was dangling over her little one. 

It made me think about the necklace of love she has been weaving. 

What bravery it must’ve taken for her to get dressed and come to the ceremony. Yet she showed up and even put on a necklace. That little detail speaks to her finding a way to bringing joy into her pain, to showing up at a time of indescribable hurt, yet being present and focusing on the details which will ground her in a moment of joy. 

She rose to answer the call. 

To me, that necklace symbolized it all. 

She wove a necklace of unity in a time of her personal darkness and managed to lift and inspire so many at a time when she could have been mired in her personal pain. 

Mazel Tov to the Palai family. 

May this child be the source of joy and comfort to them. 

Shabbat Shalom and so much love!