Rabbi Lavinsky's Message
Dear Friends,
Tomorrow
we will be celebrating the American holiday which best reflects the
genuine Jewish value of giving thanks. Of all of the sacrifices
that were offered in the Temple in Jerusalem, none was considered more
important than the Korban Todah - the "Thanksgiving" offering.
Other sacrifices were generally brought as a result of having
sinned. This sacrifice was brought with a sense of gratitude in
mind. It was also called "Korban Shelamim", the "wholeness
sacrifice" because it was brought when someone felt whole, satisfied,
and content.
The
rabbis of the Midrash were so keen on the notion of thanksgiving that
they believed that in the time of the Messiah, the only way that we
would be able to serve God was by acknowledging that we have much to be
grateful for in our lives:
In the future, all the sacrifices will be abolished, but the sacrifice of thanksgiving will not be abolished.
In the future, all prayers will be abolished, but the prayer of thanksgiving will not be abolished. (Leviticus Rabbah)
My
friend and teacher, Rabbi Reuven Hammer, wrote a column about
Thanksgiving that will appear later this week in the Jerusalem
Post. I share this with his permission. He writes:
"It
is not accidental, then, that the one sacrifice that the Talmud states
would never be abolished is the Korban Todah, the sacrifice of
Thanksgiving. Even today when there are no sacrifices we include Psalm
100 - called "Mizmor L’Todah" - a Psalm of Thanksgiving - in our daily
service on those days when such a sacrifice known as an offering of
thanksgiving - korban todah - was brought in the Temple. For that
reason, it is missing from the service for Shabbat and Yom Tov when
private sacrifices were not offered. Since the sacrifice contained
hametz, leavened bread forbidden on Pesah, it was not brought just
before or during Pesah when its remnants could not be consumed, nor on
the day before Yom Kippur because it could not be eaten that evening.
The
true basis of religious feeling is not guilt or fear but gratitude. We
recite this psalm as a verbal substitute for sacrifice, thus bringing
our own thanksgiving offering to God, an offering of the heart. We do
not do so in response to of any specific occurrence but because we are
aware that all of life, life itself, is a wondrous event, an act of
God's hesed, for which we must show sensitivity and appreciation. In a
sense, we celebrate Thanksgiving one way or another every day of our
lives."
During
this Thanksgiving holiday, and indeed throughout our lifetime, let us
be mindful of the many bounties in our lives. May we always be
grateful for the blessings which are ours, and may we bring blessings
to others through the example of our own actions.
Happy Thanksgiving and Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Arthur Lavinsky
