Parashat Tzav | Being Grateful

0:04Next lesson, we will learn about the korbanot, the sacrifices, specifically the Korban Todah, the Thanksgiving offering. Not Thanksgiving that happens in the Gregorian calendar of the goyim in November, but a thanksgiving that happened every single day. That's why Jews don't celebrate Thanksgiving, because we are obligated to give thanks to Hashem every day, not just once a year. And we had a sacrifice called the Thanksgiving offering, Korban Todah. Now, how do we apply this Korban Todah today? This Korban Todah was done every day, but there were conditions. What were the conditions? You could be the one that brings the Korban if you met these conditions. The conditions were, one, you survived a life-threatening crisis. ...almost got into an accident of some kind or got into an accident but didn't get hurt like our dear Rav Chaim Kachlon, Rav Chaim's father. Almost 40 years ago, he got into a car accident. He fell asleep at the wheel and got into a car accident; his car flipped multiple times in the air, and the car was completely crushed to nothing....

1:33The people came, and they realized they had to call for help. They had to cut the car open to see who survived. And as they're cutting, he's standing over there, and they said, "Sir, you have to move out of the way." "No, no, I was in that car," he responded. "What do you mean you were in that car? The car is crushed; the person must have died." He goes, "No, no, I was the person in that car." "How? There's not even a scratch on you!" Now, at that time, he wasn't keeping Torah and mitzvot yet. But after that car crash, he says, HaKadosh Baruch Hu, You're not going to regret saving me. You're not going to regret saving me. And for the last 40 years, he dedicated his life to Torah, to mitzvot, building a family full of kedusha. So, a person that has a life risk has to bring a korban. Or a person

2:34...that just came out of jail, i.e., someone who was in prison, has to bring a korban todah (thanksgiving offering). There are other situations that are similar in terms of risk. For example, someone who was seriously ill and bedridden for three days also has to bring a korban todah. Additionally, someone who went on a sea voyage is required to bring a korban todah... Another example of a dangerous trip is like going to the desert or crossing the sea, which would require offering a korban todah. How does this korban todah apply today? We have the birkat hagomel. Anyone that had any of these conditions: they were in a hospital, were sick and bedridden for three days, or were on a dangerous trip or life risk of some kind—any of these conditions—has to go to shul and tell the rabbi, "Rabbi, I need to do Birkat HaGomel." This blessing is traditionally recited when we read the Torah and...

3:41Typically, it's done on Shabbat, but it can be done at any time during the week. You say the blessing of thanking Hashem for saving your life, and you have to have at least a minyan of people that say "Amen." So, this korban is fulfilled today. Every day, somebody says this. Interestingly enough, this korban... different than the rest of the korbanot. Why? Because the Torah says you have to bring also different loaves of bread and biscuits or wafers, and all these different types of bread—40 loaves of bread. Now we're not talking about 40 little buns; we're talking about 40 pieces of huge bread. Forty of them with this korban, with the sacrifice. How long do you have to eat all of this? You have to take four of them and sacrifice them, but the rest of it you have to consume. How long? That night. You don't even have two days; that night you have to eat all of it. Why is Hashem shortening this time for me? If anything, He added so much bread, this meat. He said, "Who's gonna eat all of this?" Exactly the point.

5:02because you have an obligation to consume all of that that night, you don't have that much time. It forces the person who had this miracle to invite everybody. Why does Hashem want you to invite everybody and have this party? To publicize the miracles, to publicize the miracles. Oh, what's happened? Why am I here? Why is this? Wow, 40 pieces of bread. Oh, look at that korban. Look at that meat. Look at all these people. What's going on? Oh, you didn't hear? Hashem saved his life. How, and all of a sudden, you start hearing all the wonderful things that could be asked about what Hashem did for the host of the party. Imagine that every day, you have a shiur Torah about the miracles Hashem performed. The millions He took back. Imagine that Hashem saved me. I was in the desert. A lion almost killed me. Did the snake almost get me? Hashem saved me.

6:06Hashem saved me. Wow. The next day. Oh, you don't understand. There was a group of Arabs. They were throwing rocks. They were throwing this. They were throwing that. Hashem saved me. Wow. The next day. What happened? Oh, a group of Nazis. They were trying to attack. They were saying this. Hashem saved me. Wow. Oh, what happened? Oh, I was sick. I almost died. But Hashem saved me. How? Miracle. Every day Hashem saved me. Imagine that. Imagine every single day there's an event to show how HaKadosh Baruch Hu saved this person. Imagine every day somebody got saved every day. This is not just once, so it can happen multiple times every day. HaKadosh Baruch Hu structured it in such a way that you have to invite a bunch of people. They have to eat this bread; they have to eat this meat all in one night. After this night, it all becomes forbidden. So, to force us to sanctify HaKadosh Baruch Hu's name. Why is it important to sanctify HaKadosh Baruch Hu's name? The Gemara in Masechet Chagigah, I believe it's on Daf Dalet, Amud Alef, says that if you did not sanctify HaKadosh Baruch Hu's name today, there was really no reason for you to be born.

7:27if you didn't sanctify HaKadosh Baruch Hu's name, you didn't make it, you didn't publicize HaKadosh Baruch Hu's name today, there was no point for you to be born. Why? That's what you were born for, to sanctify Hashem's name. people get excited, "Oh yeah, I could do this particular mitzvah next week and then I could do Kiddush." No, no, you're not understanding. Yes, it's good to go do that mitzvah next week and to go do Kiddush, but really, you're supposed to do it every day. Every day, you have to find a way to do Kiddush. One of the best ways that a person can do Kiddush is to learn Torah, teach Torah, and to help other people do teshuva. That's the greatest Kiddush Hashem in the world. You could tell stories, but how many stories are you going to tell about miracles? You have to tell stories to different people every day, but to help people do Teshuva, you share the shiur, you share a different clip from our different channel to help people do Teshuva. These are ways to sanctify Hashem's name while you're publicizing His name. And the Gemara says, if you publicize Hashem's name, good. If not, there's no purpose for you to be alive.

8:38Because you're not fulfilling your purpose, although it's good to be excited for a big event next week and next month and next year, don't think that absolves you from the responsibility of doing it every day. Every day we need to do it, or at the very least, try to do it. As a rabbi, I must emphasize that this mitzvah is mandatory for every Jew, as it ensures all members of Am Yisrael can properly celebrate the holiday with dignity and joy. The importance of kimcha d'pischa stems from the fundamental halacha that one must ensure everyone can experience true simcha, happiness, during the holiday.