It’s day 139!
Rachel Goldberg, devoted mother of hostage Hersh Goldberg Polin, said today was an exceptionally hard day.
I don’t know the particular circumstances she is referring to in her comment. But Rachel has been fighting like a lioness, unearthing every strength that she has in the fight to save her son.
She doesn’t want him to be forgotten.
She wants to make sure we still see him before our eyes. He may not be with her physically, but he has not disappeared.
She wants him home now.
It’s an odd phenomenon that sometimes we may not see something or someone, but they are still very much present, in our hearts and minds.
This week’s Torah portion is Tetzave, which means to command. It begins with Gd telling someone, “and you shall command”.
The subject of the verb is not identified.
But we know that it’s Moshe, Moses.
Gd is commanding Moshe regarding the clothing that the priests are to wear when they are involved in the Temple service.
Strangely enough, even though we know that it is Moshe being addressed, he is not identified by name.
In fact his name is not mentioned once in the entire Parsha.
Since Moshe’s birth, until his death, he will be mentioned numerous times, 600 times to be exact.
But not once in this Parsha.
He seems to have become invisible.
In this portion, there is great detail shared about the uniform of the High Priest.
One of the items he wears is a coat that has an edging of pomegranate-like decor interspersed with bells at the hem.
That meant every time the High Priest would walk, the bells would jingle, heralding his arrival.
He was by no means invisible.
The commentaries give various interpretations to the purpose of the bells.
They were there to serve as an instrument of communication, here comes the High Priest.
This would allow those he would be encountering to prepare themselves to meet the holiest person of the Nation.
They would straighten up their ties and their posture in anticipation of meeting such an august individual.
Another explanation is that the bells were for the High Priest himself, to ensure he would prepare himself properly, create the frame of mind needed, as he was entering into a meeting with Gd.
He was about to participate in an exalted service and he needed to be present, not invisible, as he entered into a relationship with the Divine.
Nachmanides, 12 th century commentator, makes this discussion very relevant.
He teaches us that we learn from the bells that herald the entrance of the High Priest and alert those of his arrival, that we too must be sensitive when we are about to enter into an exalted place.
Before entering a royal palace, the heralds blow the trumpets, and before we enter into our own homes, which is a palace in miniature, we need to announce our entry.

Knock before you go in the door!
This knocking before entering allows those within to prepare themselves for the arrival of the other.
It also gives the person who is entering, a moment to adjust their thoughts and be prepared to arrive with the proper frame of mind.
Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach, illustrious rabbi in Jerusalem who passed away in 2018 was a scholar of epic proportions. His students noticed that when he would arrive at his front door he would take a moment to adjust his clothing and make himself presentable. When they asked him about this habit he said he was about to enter his home and encounter Gd’s presence. This was an allusion to the idea that when a husband and wife live in harmony, Gd׳s presence dwells con their home. So the Rabbi was preparing himself for that encounter.
In other words, it’s all about respect.
We have respect for the other by announcing our arrival, and we have respect for other by taking a moment to prepare ourselves before entering so we will conduct ourselves properly vis a vis the one we are encountering.
Just like the High Priest and the bells.
He is not invisible.
Neither is the one who greets him.
It seems that the High Priest is wearing an elaborate costume.
Usually a costume masks the identity of the one who wears it.
Here the costume is a vehicle to bring out the inner character traits of its wearer.
The High Priest is engaged in service to Gd. He is only capable of authentic service if his inner being matched his outside behavior.
It can’t just be a show.
It has to be real representation of what is under the mask.
A Jewish leader is respectful of his people and in turn commands respect.
In the Purim story we hear of the mighty king Ahasverosh who throws a gargantuan party to celebrate his victories.
He comes to his party bedecked in the ultimate costume, wearing the glorious robes of the High Priest he has pillaged from the Jews.
But Ahashverosh was only a caricature of a king. He knew what clothes to wear, but they didn’t not reflect his inner essence.
He was and remained a lowly stable hand, dressed in emperor’s clothing.
He thought the clothing would make the man.
But he missed the lesson that the man makes the clothing.
Lessons from the war.
This week we got a glimpse of Shiri Bibas from additional footage found from October 7.
She is seen, holding her children close, under a long cloak that was designed to obscure her identity.
Make her invisible.
In that short snippet, Shiri has not disappeared under the long cloth. She can clearly be seen, holding her children close, enveloping them in her embrace.
She, like Rachel Goldberg, is a mother lioness protecting her young. Doing all she can to protect them.
May she return soon to her family, with her children in her arms.
Another heartbreaking image.
A young widow, newly pregnant, standing at the grave of her recently fallen husband.
She stands in a salute with one hand, wiping her tears with another.
Rabbanit Yemima Mizrachi said about this young woman that she is wearing a “uniform”.
Her “costume” in which she does not hide, but rather presents herself, is at attention.
She is present for duty.
Despite the tragedy of her loss, she is appearing, telling her beloved husband, that just as he put on his uniform and fulfilled his duty, she too will continue to appear and show up, carrying the mantle although she must now do so alone.
But carrying on nonetheless.
We may not see him anymore, but he is there, her guiding light, behind the scenes.
He tells her “and you shall command”, even if it’s a very, very hard day, you will carry on.
And while wiping her tears, she will.
Shabbat Shalom and so much love!