I look back on almost 15 years of writing this blog and I realize that have basically ignored Tzav, this week’s Torah portion, every year. It is probably because it gets lost in the Purim shuffle. One thing that caught my eye this year reading Tzav was the a description of the priestly garments. There we read:

And the Lord spoke unto Moshe, saying: ‘Take Aaron and his sons with him, and the garments, and the anointing oil, and the bullock of the sin-offering, and the two rams, and the basket of unleavened bread; and you should assemble all the congregation at the door of the tent of meeting.’

Leviticus 8:1-3

On this Rashi comments that it was seven days before the erection of the Mishkan which itself happened on the first of Nissan. That would put it at the 23rd of Adar in the period between Purim and Passover. What is the significance of this happening during this period of time?

It is interesting, this year we had Adars. We have this second month to keep Chag HaAviv, Passover, in the spring. That said, why do we celebrate Purim in Adar Bet and not Adar Alef? Purim must take place in the month preceding Pesach. This concept is known as “Masmich Geulah L’Geulah” – connecting the two redemptions. ( Megillah 6b).

As we saw last week costumes are important on Purim. At some level it seems that we wear costumes on Purim to imitate Esther. She got her position of power by masking her identity. Ultimately she revealed her hidden identity and saved herself and her people.

A month after Purim is Passover. What is the nature of the Geulah, redemption, on Passover? It is interesting to note the Midrash as to why we were worthy of being redeemed from Egypt. There we read:

Another interpretation: “And there they became a nation” – this teaches that the Israelites were distinct there, in that their clothing, food, and language was different from the Egyptians’. They were identified and known as a separate nation, apart from the Egyptians.

Minor Pesikta, Devarim (Ki Tavo) 41a

If we do the work of being somech “Geulah L’Geulah” – connecting the two redemptions, we see a deep juxtipostion between Purim and Passover when it comes to when it comes to the role of cloths in our redemption. Where Esther dresses as a Persian to save her people by hiding and then revealed her identity, in Egypt we were redeemed specifically because we dressed distinct from the Egyptians and kept our unique public identity. There is a larger arch to the story of our redemption. It starts with Esther’s revelation/unmasking of her hidden self, goes to redemption of our ancestors who were advertising their identity with their clothing in Egypt, and then 50 days later on Shavuot. On Shavuot we commemorate God, as it were, taking off God’s mask to reveal God’s self to us at Sinai.

This week, amidst this cycle of revealing attire we learn about the priest getting dressed in their haute couture. Like Esther they get their position of power by masking their personal identity. In many ways their garments made them who they were to the people. Like the Israelites in Egypt the priests in their garments were an iconic representation of Jewish identity. It is also through the cult of the Temple that the people would experience the unmasked presence of God as we did on Shavuot.

It turns out the Tzav is not lost behind Purim, it is just woven into the fabric of this longer cycle involving clothing, redemption ,and revelation.

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