The kohanim (priests) were instructed to wear special garments during their service in the Tabernacle. If these garments were not worn, the kohain was disqualified from doing the service, and was liable for Divine punishment.
The Torah explains that the purpose of these garments was to add a dimension of glory and beauty to the Divine service. People are naturally impressed by beauty and a regal appearance.
The Kohain Gadol (High Priest) had eight vestments made especially for him. These included a pair of linen pants, a linen checkered tunic, a linen turban, and an embroidered sash. Over the tunic, he wore a blue, woolen, sleeveless robe called the Me’il. From the bottom of the Me’il there dangled little blue woolen pomegranates and golden bells that tinkled as he entered the Tabernacle.
Over the Me’il he wore the Ephod, an apron-type of garment with shoulder straps. It was woven from five different types of threads. A golden breastplate called the Choshen Mishpat, was connected to the Ephod. Twelve different jewels corresponding to the twelve tribes, were embedded in the Choshen. Each of the stones had a different tribe’s name engraved on it. The eighth vestment was a golden headplate called a Tzitz. It was worn across the High Priest’s forehead.
The regular kohain only wore the first four vestments when he did the service in the Mishkan; the shirt, pants, sash and a hat.
Because the kohanim could not even wear shoes, there was a special chamber called the Bais Hamokad, where a fire burned on the stone floor. The kohain would warm his feet there before doing the service on the cold floor of the Tabernacle.
One of the reasons for the great amount of attention and detail paid to the clothing was to show the importance of both the position and the service. The unique uniform that had to be worn would impress upon the kohain the uniqueness of his mission as representative of the nation.
The Talmud explains that the garments also served as atonement for specific sins that the nation had transgressed collectively as a group. Although each individual had to do his own repentance, the garments would atone for the nation as a whole. For example, the Me’il atoned for the Lashon Hora, evil slander. The Choshen atoned for improper judgment, the pants for immorality, the hat for pride, the belt for jealousy, the Ephod for idolatry, and the Tzitz for chutzpah.
“...pure, pressed oil for illumination...” (Exod. 27:20)
The Talmud says that the light of the menorah represents Torah wisdom. Torah study must be pure of outside influences. Rav Leib Malin was once told about a knowledgeable college professor who would lecture on Torah topics, giving the impression that Torah and his other areas of expertise were of equal importance. Rav Malin compared it to a village general store that, unlike the specialty stores in the larger cities, sells everything the villagers need, from clothing to hardware to food. It would seem at first that the villagers have it better since everything can be bought at one store. The reality is, however, that in the general store the pants smell like herring and the shirts have rust stains from the nails. In a person who values other fields of knowledge equally to Torah, the Torah itself becomes tainted. Torah must be pure.
Did You Know...
If a person passed away during Adar in a regular year, there are different opinions when the yahrzeit (anniversary of the death) is observed in a leap year where there are two Adars. Ashkenazic custom is to observe it in the first Adar, although some observe it in both months. If the person passed way in the second Adar, everyone agrees that the yahrzeit is observed in the second Adar.
Interestingly, regarding a birthday the opposite is true. If a person is born during a regular Adar, and the Bar or Bat Mitzvah is in a leap year, it is observed in the second Adar. If, however, the child was born in a leap year during the first Adar, the Bar or Bat Mitzvah would be observed in the first Adar.
