דַּבֵּר אֶל־בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְאָמַרְתָּ אֲלֵהֶם אָדָם כִּי־יַקְרִיב מִכֶּם קׇרְבָּן לַד’ מִן־הַבְּהֵמָה מִן־הַבָּקָר וּמִן־הַצֹּאן תַּקְרִיבוּ אֶת־קׇרְבַּנְכֶם׃
Speak to the Children of Israel and say to them: A person who will offer from among you a sacrifice to Hashem from the animals-from the cattle or the flock shall you offer your offering. (1:2)
The importance of korbanot (sacrifices) is clearly expressed in the words of Pirkei Avot( Chapters of the Fathers) 1:2:
עַל שְׁלשָׁה דְבָרִים הָעוֹלָם עוֹמֵד, עַל הַתּוֹרָה וְעַל הָעֲבוֹדָה וְעַל גְּמִילוּת חֲסָדִים׃
The world stands upon three things: the Torah, the (Beit HaMikdash) Service (i.e. the offering of korbanot) and the practice of acts of kindness.
So when we don’t have the Beit HaMikdash and the Service, are we missing the second pillar?
We find an answer to this in Avot D’Rabbi Natan chapter 4 that relates that once, Rabban (Our Rabbi) Yochanan ben Zakkai, left Jerusalem, and Rabbi Yehoshua followed after him. When he saw the ruins of the Beit HaMikdash Rabbi Yehoshua said, “Woe to us, for this is destroyed – the place where all of Israel’s sins are forgiven (through the korbanot that were offered there).” Rabbi Yochanan said to him, “My son, do not be distressed, for we have a form of atonement just like it. And what is it? Acts of kindness, as it says (Psalms 89:3), ‘For I desire kindness, not a well-being offering.'” How do acts of kindness bring atonement in place of the sacrifices?
The Hebrew word for kindness is chessed. This word actually means to go beyond established boundaries.This is why we find that a person who goes beyond the letter of the law in their Torah observance is called a chassid. What connection is there between this concept and kindness? Rabbi Shlomo Freifeld, of blessed memory, explained that by nature a person is self centered, only concerned with their own needs and desires. When one performs an act of kindness they break out from the established boundaries of self-centeredness.
That same self-centeredness is the cause of sin. If all one can see is their needs and desires how can they relate to the mitzvos that are meant to raise us above the limits of our physicality and make us G-dly ? Chessed means we’ve broken out of the limitations of self-centeredness and are ready to live a life of connection to Hashem.
Another answer to our question can be found in the commentary of Rabbeinu Yonah to Pirkei Avot 1:2 mentioned above. He writes that we have Tefilah (prayer) in its place. He bases this on verses in Tehillim (Psalms) 51:17-18:
אֲ-דֹנָי שְׂפָתַי תִּפְתָּח וּפִי יַגִּיד תְּהִלָּתֶךָ׃ כִּי לֹא־תַחְפֹּץ זֶבַח וְאֶתֵּנָה עוֹלָה לֹא תִרְצֶה׃
O Lord, open my lips, and let my mouth declare Your praise. You do not want me to bring sacrifices; You do not desire burnt offerings.
King David was saying to Hashem, “Open my lips so that I can pray because you don’t want my sacrifice.” He was referring here to a sinful act that he did on his own volition for which he therefore could not bring a sacrifice for atonement. “Had I been able to bring a sacrifice to atone for myself,” he said, “I would have brought one. Now that I cannot, ‘Lord, open my lips and let my mouth say your praise.’ Please accept my prayer in place of a sacrifice and let it atone me for my sin.” Rabbeinu Yonah concludes that we too who do not have a sacrifice to atone for us – not for accidental sins and not for volitional sins – call out to Hashem, “Lord, open my lips and accept our prayers in place of the sacrifices.”
Actually, here we see how prayer can be more powerful than korbanot. A korban cannot atone for a volitional sin while prayer can.
May Hashem answer all our prayers and may we soon see the coming of Moshiach with the rebuilding of the Beit HaMikdash and the return of the korbanot.
Shabbat Shalom!
Yitzchak