Vayikra Dvar Torah
In parshat Vayikra, different korbanot are discussed. Such korbanot include the burnt offering, which is made from meat, and the Mincha, which is made of vegetables. Nehama notes the fact that only five types of the mincha were mentioned here, while we know of other types that are mentioned throughout the Torah. So, why are some mentioned here, while others are not?
(this first question of Nehama is a very obvious, peshat one.)
She quotes Naphtali Weisel in answering this question. He says that the ones mentioned here were only ones made with the following specifications: oil, frankincense, the handful of flour and oil and the remainder. He says that the other mincha don’t follow these exact ingredients.
Nehama then quotes Rabbi Hoffman about the symbolism of bringing the Mincha. He compares the Mincha to the olah offering. The olah is brought to show Hashem that a person is giving over his possessions and trying to please Hashem. However, he says that the meal offering, the cheaper offering, was usually given by the poor man, and this fact makes it even more meaningful. For the poor person, this meal offering is everything he has so it’s as if he is giving himself over to hashem, while a person bringing an Olah is only bringing possessions.
Even more so, the Chachamim even mention that since it is the poor man who typically brings the mincha, and it is that reason that Hashem believes it is particularly important.
To prove this idea from the pasukim, Nehama quotes the Midrash haGadol. The midrash notes the fact that in the pasukim, when mention the olah, the person giving the korban is refered to as “any man” who brings that korban, for anyone can give from their possessions. On the other hand, the poor person who gives a mincha is refered to as a “soul that will offer” for they are truly giving over their soul when they give the sacrifice.
Furthermore, we can see a huge importance in this offering from the quantity of it. A person brings the amount of flour that is equal to the amount of food the manna was, which was necessary for a person to live. So, it seems that this connotes the idea of a person giving over what is almost as if it’s God given.
The idea of the mincha was even added into the end of shmone esrei by the compilers. She quotes Rabbi Kook explains the mincha according to its context in the amida. The context is that the “mincha of Yehuda and Yerushalyim be pleasant to the Lord, as in the days of old and as in former years.” So, he says right now the animals have no knowledge, so it’s good that we sacrifice them, for it gives them purpose. However, he says that this pasuk teaches us that in yemot hamashiach, they will have knowledge of God, and a purpose, so we won’t be sacrificing them. In those times, he says that the mincha will be the most important sacrifice and will always be meaningful.
We enjoyed reading about the development of the symbolism of the mincha, and it truly gave us a new light on something very important. An idea here that seems very relevant is that of everybody can give what they can and more doesn’t necessarily mean better. In fact, if a person gives his all and sacrifices what is very important, he will get more credit than a person who can give everything but gives something relatively small. Ultimately, it teaches us that we must take what we have been given and use it to our best ability even if that gift seems insignificant.
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