By: Yisrael Yitzchak Rosenfeld
Shabbat shalom friends. One Shabbat follows another, so we continue in the Torah.
In the weekly Torah portion, Korach challenges Moshe Rabbeinu.
What exactly bothered Korach so much about the commandment of tzitzit?
What made him so strongly opposed to the entire concept of the priesthood and the Levites?
Why did he insist so strongly that everyone must be equal?
HaChalban (may his memory be for a blessing) explains:
Korach could not believe that holiness can be found in ‘lowly’ or insignificant places.
He believed that Hashem is so great and exalted
that His holiness can indeed be found in the garment as a whole—
but not in the small threads.
He can be present in the nation as a whole,
but not in the individual details within that nation—
not in the Levite,
not in the Kohen,
not in each separate component.
Even today there are religions
that follow Korach’s logic:
Yes, there is a God, and He is infinitely great.
But practical mitzvot?
Divine providence extending into the smallest detail?
That is asking too much.
The foundation of our faith is this:
That holiness extends to every place,
to every detail,
even to me—wherever I may be.
That is the greatness of Hashem!
May we reach the level where we can embrace the whole,
without thereby diminishing the infinite value of each individual detail!
