About Aaron HaKohen

[muman613]

http://www.jewishmag.com/129mag/aaron_peace/aaron_peace.htm

The Zohar on Aaron the Priest
By Larry Fine

Aaron, who lived during the exodus from Egypt, was the brother of Moses and Miriam. He was chosen to be the first priest of the newly emerging Jewish nation. As a matter of fact Aaron's selection was more than an election, being selected as the priest was a function that is passed down from father to son, so in reality all of Aaron's descendants on the paternal side inherit the priesthood through their connection to Aaron. It was only the priest that was allowed to perform the services in the holy Temple; the common Jew was not allowed to do such.

The Zohar, the ancient source of Jewish mysticism, explains why it was that Aaron was chosen above all to be the priest. The Zohar (Kodshim pg. 88) explains why the children of Aaron and not the children of the tribe of Levi to whom Aaron was a part were selected for the priesthood. This was because Aaron was a person who was known for bringing peace between husbands and wives and between neighbors and friends. It was known that if Aaron saw two people arguing he would wait until later and then call on each one separately and tell them separately that their friend really feels bad that they quarreled and really only desires to make up and be friends again. In this manner when the two friends saw each other again, they would patch up their dispute and become friends again.

The Zohar states that since this was the way of Aaron in all of his dealings, that bringing peace between two parties meant very much to him, for this reason he was selected to be a priest for the function of the priest is to bring peace between the Jews and G-d.

Now we must realize that the Zohar generally reveals deep secrets that were for centuries hidden from the common man and was available only to scholars of the mystic teachings. These secrets were very difficult to understand and it was for many centuries were forbidden to be revealed to the average person. Yet in this teaching we do not see any deep mystical concepts; just the opposite, we see only a very simple explanation as to Aaron's qualifications.

But let us not be fooled by the simplicity of the Zohar's explanation – within it is a deep idea.

The most important thing in this world is that man, especially the Jew, should realize that G-d is the master of the world and desires that the man build a close relationship with Him. Yet, like with all relationships, misunderstandings and improper actions cause a distance between two friends. When this situation is left unto itself, it often degenerates and the warm friendship that had existed disappears. This happens between people and could just as easily happen between man and G-d.

Aaron realized the importance of good relationships between husband and wife, between a man and his friends and neighbors. Without a close friend, a man becomes a loner, an island, a dessert island. It is the friendships that bring out the human aspect in man. Man was not made to be a lone wolf, he was born to fit into the community and interact with them. This is for the benefit of both the man and the community.

It pained Aaron to see broken relationships and he, on his own, would do his best to repair any relationship that was on the verge of breaking. When he explained to one side of the argument that the other side regretted the misunderstanding and the argument, it caused that person to want to continue the relationship.

G-d also has relationships with people. He desires that each and every person have a close and personal relationship with Him. However, it is highly unlikely that a man can exist with out sinning. A sin is a break in the relationship between man and G-d. If the break in relationship was allowed to continue, the man would drift far away from G-d and eventually forget that G-d exists. Since this be the case, some mechanism was necessary to bring man back to his original warm and close relationship with G-d – that was the institution of the priest and his service in the holy Temple.

Since this character was embedded in the heart of Aaron and since Aaron was already known and respected by all, he was the natural selection for the 'job'.

Don't be misled into thinking peace is a small thing; peace is a very important foundation of society. With out peace between man and his neighbor, society could not exist. Without peace between nations, progress and individual welfare can not exist. This is the important principle that the Zohar wanted to share with us – that peace, whether between men or between G-d is of the paramount importance.

Be of the disciples of Aaron love peace, pursue peace, and bring peace between man and his fellow and between man and G-d.

[muman613]

http://www.torah.org/learning/pirkei-avos/chapter1-12.html

Pirkei Avos

Chapter 1, Mishna 12
Aaron vs. Moses
By Rabbi Dovid Rosenfeld

"Hillel and Shammai received the transmission from them [the previous generation of scholars, of Mishna 10]. Hillel said: Be of the students of Aaron, loving peace and pursuing peace, loving people and bringing them closer to Torah."

Aaron was the older brother of Moses and co-leader of the Jewish People at the time of the Exodus and Israel's sojourn in the desert. After the dedication of the Temple, he served as High Priest, and the Kohanim, or Priests, are descended from his family. Aaron was also a prophet and leader of the people in Egypt before Moses' return from the Land of Midyan and the story of the redemption.

"Avos d'Rav Nassan" is an alternate, much lengthier version of Pirkei Avos. Its teachings were collected and edited by R. Nassan, a contemporary of R. Yehuda the Prince, the editor of the Mishna. It contains most of the material of Pirkei Avos together with much greater elaboration. In Chapter 12 (3-4) it illustrates some of the qualities of Aaron in inspiring fashion. Some of material found there appears in the following paragraphs.

If Aaron would see someone acting improperly, he would not go over and rebuke or criticize the fellow directly. He would *befriend* him, pretending not to be aware of his faults. The person would eventually grow ashamed: "What would my friend Aaron think if he knew I acted this way behind his back? How could I betray his trust and friendship?" Sooner or later the man would repent his ways.

Further, if Aaron would observe two people quarreling, he would afterwards approach one of them with the following: "I just saw the other fellow besides himself with grief. He's sitting there saying it's all his fault and how can he possibly face you again." Aaron then promptly went to the other fellow with the exact same story. ;-) Needless to say, the next time the people met they were hugging and kissing each other, the life-or-death issues they had been arguing about long forgotten. (Most arguments are about life-or-death issues which nobody can quite recall after.)

Lastly, Aaron was credited for saving many a marriage, for running back and forth between husband and wife working his same magic. The mishna attests that in those times thousands of children were named after him -- because they would have never been born had Aaron not been there to save the parents' marriages.

For all the above reasons, when Aaron died the Torah writes: "*All* the Children of Israel cried for Aaron 30 days" (Numbers 20:29). When Moses died, the Torah states merely that "The Children of Israel cried" (Deuteronomy 34:8): the word "all" does not appear, but for Aaron everyone cried. Everyone, learned and unlearned, man and woman, appreciated who Aaron was and what he had done for them.

I feel what is personally inspiring about these stories is that Aaron, High Priest and leader of the people, could have easily used his greatness to distance himself from the masses. Instead, he used his very high position to help others: "If Aaron is my friend how could I act this way?"

This assumes even more profound significance when we bear in mind the uniqueness of the Temple service which Aaron performed. Most of the Temple was off limits to the Children of Israel and only accessible to the Priests who performed the service. Further, the Holy of Holies, containing the Ark of the Covenant and the Ten Commandments, was inaccessible even to the Priests. Only the High Priest himself would enter there one day a year to perform parts of the Yom Kippur service.

Thus, if there was one person in Israel who literally could have claimed he is closer and goes closer to G-d than anyone else it was Aaron. He could have held himself distant and above the rest of the nation -- perhaps even with some degree of justification. Yet, that same Aaron was the one to run around between husband and wife and man and his fellow.

Possibly for this reason Aaron was selected by G-d to become the High Priest -- to represent the people he cared for so dearly and to perform the Temple service on their behalf. Aaron saw himself not as a superior of the people, but as a servant, one who serves and assists his fellow man both within the Temple and without.

Our mishna was authored by Hillel, one of the most famous of the early sages of the Mishna. It is not surprising that he too lived up to his advice and has become known as a student of Aaron in the hearts of the Jewish people. The Talmud (Shabbos 31a) records a number of fascinating incidents about him. A person once made a large bet that he could get Hillel angry. He waited until Hillel was washing his hair Friday afternoon and then began nagging him incessantly with nuisance questions. (Why do Babylonians have large heads, Africans have wide feet etc. -- questions which obviously could not have waited.) Nevertheless, the fellow lost the bet.

The Talmud then records a number of stories of non-Jews who approached Shammai (Hillel's colleague, also mentioned in this mishna) and afterwards Hillel with the request that they be converted to Judaism only if certain outrageous conditions be met. (One asked that he be taught the entire Torah while standing on one foot, another asked provided he be made High Priest.) In each case Shammai promptly threw the person out, seeing within him ulterior motives or a lack of respect for the Torah. Hillel on the other hand saw in them some degree of appreciation for the Torah and gave heed to them. Eventually, they all came to appreciate Judaism for its true worth.

To the one who asked to be taught the Torah on one foot, Hillel responded "What you don't like done to you don't do unto others. This is the entire Torah; the rest is commentary. Go and learn." (I don't believe a better one-line definition of Judaism has been formulated since...) The Talmud thereupon concluded that one should be modest and easygoing like Hillel, not strict and exacting like Shammai.

On the other hand, Aaron, for all his niceness and popularity, was never the true leader of Israel. That was Moses' job. He was the much less forgiving lawgiver and arbiter of justice. The Talmud sums us his attitude as "Let the judgment grind up the mountain" (Sanhedrin 6b). Moses received and taught the Torah to Israel -- and that required enormous and uncompromising discipline and diligence.

Aaron, by contrast, was nice practically to a fault. Exodus 32 describes how Israel came to commit the sin of the Golden Calf. Before Moses returned from receiving the Torah on Mount Sinai, a portion of the people clamored for an idol -- one to replace Moses. Aaron was the leader of the people in Moses' absence -- and he agreed. He felt it would be pointless to take such a frenzied mob head on. (What today we'd call the policy of "appeasement" -- which I think we can safely say has never really worked, only whetting the appetite of the aggressor for more.) According to the Sages, Hur, son of Miriam, had already been slain by the mob, and Aaron would accomplish little more than getting killed himself. (An excellent alibi -- but not for idolatry.) So Aaron consented, in the hope of slowing the people down until Moses' return. Aaron was faulted for his "niceness" terribly. The Talmud tells us that till this day we are suffering from the sin of the Golden Calf (Sanhedrin 102a).

Moses, upon his return the next day, showed no such softness and indecisiveness; he took Israel head on. He ground their idol to dust, threw it into the well, and forced the perpetrators to drink it.

It seems that to run a nation we need both types of leaders -- the Moses who ruthlessly defends law and order, and the Aaron who lovingly and gently brings peace and harmony to the people. And it is a leadership combination Israel has been blessed with many times over throughout its history. In fact, Hillel and Shammai of our mishna fulfilled these same roles. As we saw above, Shammai was the exacting one, who abruptly dismissed the would-be converts who were clearly not ready to embrace true Judaism.

The Talmud records many disagreements in Jewish law between the schools of Hillel and Shammai. The law almost always follows the decisions of the School of Hillel, the "nice" one. However, the Talmud tells us that the students of Shammai were sharper (Yevamos 14a), and there is a tradition that in the times of the Messiah we will follow the School of Shammai. Perhaps ultimately man will be able to live up to the more exacting standards of Moses and of Shammai. But our only hope of ever reaching there is by faithfully following the examples of Aaron and Hillel: through loving peace and humanity, and by using our knowledge and values to patiently bring the world closer to Torah.