Asking for Protection, Grace, and Peace

On Shavuot Charlie and I woke up at 3:45 a.m. after getting close to 4 hours of sleep, dressed, and walked out on the street near our apartment, Jaffa Rd. It leads to the Jaffa Gate of the Old City here in Jerusalem and by the time we reached it, at 4:15 a.m., although it was still dark, it was jam-packed with people of all ages walking to the Old City. Some were walking in silence, some were conversing with their compatriots, and others were holding prayerbooks and reciting prayers. Being part of the procession was truly emotional. After entering the Old City, we headed to the kotel ha mishpacha, the egalitarian part of the western wall where we davened at sunrise, observing Shavuot by hearing the 10 commandments while looking at the hyssop emerging from the ancient walls. One aspect of the service that was particularly moving was the birkhat kohanim, the priestly blessing. In this setting it was given by a Bat Kohen, a female daughter of a kohen, and one male kohen. What was particularly meaningful, is that they spoke the very same words as were found in this week’s parsha, Naso. The priestly blessing consists of 3 brief Hebrew sentences. The sentences are quite familiar, and often quoted – by Jews and non-Jews – at solemn ceremonies and at weddings and even at the inauguration of a president of the United States. “The first sentence, just 3 words long, vouchsafes physical safety. It drops to us as if from on High, like a gentle rain, as we are blessed with Divine protection. “May Ha Shem bless you and protect you.” The second one, in 5 words, lifts us to a level where Divine light can shine straight into our lives, where G-d will be kind to us as we can be kind to our friends, our equals. It inspires spiritual awareness: “ “May HaShem make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you.” And the third one’s 7 words promise peace. Says the great commentator the Klee Yokor — shocked at his own Chutzpeh – this lifts us to an even higher level. As if G-d was lifting G-d’s face toward us from below and establishing peace for us. “May HaShem turn his face toward you and give you peace.”That wonderful line asks for much more than the absence of armed conflict. It is addressed to each individual. It asks for peace of mind, and peace of spirit. (Baruch Cohon) When those who administer the blessing do so, they remove their shoes and cover their heads and faces with a tallit. The cantor says each word in a musical way which is then repeated by the Kohanim. “By saying the words to the Cohanim, the cantor in effect invokes G-d’s blessing on them first, and they then proceed to communicate that blessing to the people. As the commentators explain, you can’t pour anything out of an empty pitcher. “ (Baruch Cohon) The kohanim also use hand motions while reciting the blessing, to show that words must be accompanied by actions, it is not enough just to say nice things to others. This process of having the kohanim bless the congregation is called dukhening. Although it is not done in many congregations today, it is a very powerful experience. Perhaps its power comes from the fact that it requires the congregation to accept each part of the blessing by reciting the word (amen). Interestingly, one will see birkhat kohanim in Israel at all shuls, orthodox, conservative, and reformed, on every Shabbat and every holiday when kohanim are present. This is not the case in the U.S. In the U.S., the birkhat kohanim if done, is only done on the chaggim. Why? “The custom in all these lands [e.g., Ashkenazic custom] is that the Priestly Blessing is conferred only on yom tov [i.e., holiday], because then people are in a joyful and festive mood—and “only one who is glad of heart shall bless.” On other days, by contrast, even on Shabbat, [the kohanim] are preoccupied with their livelihood and their loss of working hours, and they are not in a happy state of mind. Indeed, even on yom tov the Priestly Blessing is conferred only in the Mussaf service,when [directly afterwards] they will leave the synagogue and partake of refreshments and rejoice in the celebration of the festival.2” (Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi) This ancient blessing done today, found in the book of Numbers for the first time, connects the past with the present. As the late Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, z’l, wrote: Protection, grace, peace – these are God’s blessings, communicated by the priests. We are what we pray for. If you seek to understand a people, look at its prayers. The Jewish people did not ask for wealth or power. They did not hunger after empire. They had no desire to conquer or convert the world. They asked for protection, the right to live true to themselves without fear; for grace, the ability to be an agent for good in others; and peace, that fullness of being in which each of us brings our individual gifts to the common good. That is all our ancestors prayed for, and it is still all we need.