Parshiot Tazriah/Metzora

On the Wings of a bird

by: Rav Yosef Zvi Rimon

Founder and Board Chairman, JobKatif

Parashat Metzora discusses a person who sees an outbreak of leprosy and the procedure the priest takes to remove it. In order to understand this process, let’s take a look at how the pasukim detail this ritual.

“The priest will order two live, clean birds, cedar wood, crimson stuff, and hyssop to be brought for he who is to be cleansed. The priest will order one of the birds slaughtered over fresh water in a vessel made from pottery. He shall take the live bird, along with the cedar wood, the crimson stuff and the hyssop, and dip them together with the live bird in the blood of the bird that was slaughtered over the fresh water. He shall then sprinkle it seven times on he who is to be cleansed of the eruption and cleanse him. He shall set the live bird free in the open country” (Vayikra 14:4-7)

This episode seems to be a bit strange. The priest should take two live and pure birds and slaughter one and set the second one free. Before it flies away, the priest must dip him in the blood of the dead bird. What is the purpose of this whole process? Moreoever, the birds are identical, why is one specifically set aside for life and one specifically for death? Is there anything specific marking the birds that decides their destiny?

The truth is that there is nothing explicit; one is randomly chosen for death, and one is allowed to fly away free. By dipping the live bird in the dead bird’s blood, we remind him that he is only alive because the other bird was chosen to die.

The day of remembrance, Yom HaZikaron, is juxtaposed to the Israeli Independence day, Yom Ha’Atzmaut. Placing a difficult day so close to a euphoric day seems strange and even difficult to comprehend. The mourning that Yom Hazikaron requires, with the happiness we feel on Yom Ha’Atzmaut occurring so suddenly after can be explained beautifully.

On Yom Ha’Atzmaut we are celebratory and happy. We thank G-d for the privilege to have the Land of Israel in our hands and have it in a Jewish state. However, at the peak of every celebration, we must remember that our lives here are only due to the soldiers that gave up their lives.

Because of them we have the ability to build and expand the Land of Israel.

This living bird is dipped into the blood of the dead bird, and so too, our Day of Independence is dipped into the blood of the Day of Remembrance.