practicing

  This year on erev erev Pesach, at Kabbalat Shabbat I gave a drasha. As I reached for my notes I realized immediately that I had printed out a rough draft, and not the final version. I gave a drasha that I liked well enough, but not the version I had hoped to give. This week, I've been returning to the text of the Sfat Emet that forms the basis of the drasha and wanted to give this more complete drasha a home.  This week, in the first few verses of Tzav, our parasha, we read:  וְהָאֵ֨שׁ עַל־הַמִּזְבֵּ֤חַ תּֽוּקַד־בּוֹ֙ לֹ֣א תִכְבֶּ֔ה וּבִעֵ֨ר עָלֶ֧יהָ הַכֹּהֵ֛ן עֵצִ֖ים בַּבֹּ֣קֶר בַּבֹּ֑קֶר וְעָרַ֤ךְ עָלֶ֙יהָ֙ הָֽעֹלָ֔ה וְהִקְטִ֥יר עָלֶ֖יהָ חֶלְבֵ֥י הַשְּׁלָמִֽים׃ אֵ֗שׁ תָּמִ֛יד תּוּקַ֥ד עַל־הַמִּזְבֵּ֖חַ לֹ֥א תִכְבֶּֽה The fire on the altar shall be kept burning, not to go out: each and every morning the priest should feed it wood, lay out the burnt offering on it, and smoke the fat parts of the שלמים, wholeness offering. A perpetual fire is kindled on the altar, it wil...