* Translation by Yehoshua Siskin
An inspiring message of how to live our lives is found at the beginning of this week’s Torah portion, Parashat Emor:
“Say to the kohanim, the sons of Aharon,” God tells Moshe before specifying what to tell them, which commandments to give them.
But wait — why is it necessary to first tell the kohanim that they are the sons of Aharon? Why remind them that they are descendants of Aharon the kohen gadol? They already know this.
Our sages explain: Before anything else, we must connect the kohanim to their roots. In this way, they are reminded of their importance as sons of Aharon, who was a moral and spiritual role model. Only afterward, once they understand where they come from, can they value instructions given to them by God. First and foremost, they must be uplifted by connecting them with their distinguished father.
In fact, God calls out this message to each of us: Know where you come from. This awareness fills a person with strength and a sense of purpose. The traits of our ancestors live within us; when we connect to them and learn from them, we come to understand ourselves more deeply — who we are and what we can become.
The prophet Isaiah reminds us that if we trace ourselves back far enough, we reach the very beginning: “Look to Avraham your father, and to Sarah who gave you birth.”
If we want to move people to act — our children, others, and even ourselves — we must connect to our past, to holiness, to the larger story. Everyone reading these lines is a descendant of many remarkable individuals who once lived, all the way back to Avraham our patriarch and Sarah our matriarch.
It’s worth pausing to reflect on this. Perhaps it can help us begin each day with renewed inspiration.
