These topics seem to be a broad range of ideas, why are they all put together? While they may seem like they have nothing to do with each other they all share one very important thing - holiness. Each of these topics all have the same level of holiness which is why even though they are very different they are all put next to each other according to the Midrash Says. How does a kohain become a kohein gadol?The "Midrash Says" notes that the kohein must possess five qualifications. They are:
1. Wisdom- the most important requirement. The kohein gadol's greatness in Torah needs to be tremendous.
2. A handsome appearance- yes, believe it or not this is one of the qualifications. Just like when people used to give korbanot they would look for the most beautiful objects, we do the same with the kohein gadol.
3. Physical Strength- this would be an advantage for the kohein gadol. On Yom Kippur he had to perform a strenuous service while fasting.
4. Wealth- the kohein gadol had to be in the best financial position- better than all the other kohanim.
5. Age- it was preferable that the kohein gadol came with a mature age to do the job but if he had all the qualifications the beit din would choose him anyway.
If the kohein gadol lacked wealth than other kohanim were allowed to help him out.
And, if a kohein is qualified to be the kohein gadol but he lacked looks or strength then when he was anointed with the shemen hamishcha it would convert his looks and weakness to become handsome and strong.
In conclusion, we are being taught the tremendous importance that the kohein gadol plays in the lives of the Jewish people and how every aspect of his kehuna and anointment are important. There are detailed laws surrounding nearly every part of the kohein gadol’s existence that need to be strictly followed. A great lesson for us to learn from this is how every detail and
aspect of our lives must be grounded in and surrounded by Hashem’s laws and the Torah. Each part of our lives are given directions and explicit ways that Hashem expects us to live and in order to live our lives properly we must follow them and commit ourselves to a life of Torah observance. We can also learn from this parsha that we can’t just take something as big as being a kohein for granted.
There are a lot of things that the kohanim had to adjust to and it was probably very hard for them. When I got rid of my knapsack for good I cried about it for three days because I missed it so much. But, I had to get rid of my knapsack because I had to move on.
Same thing with the kohanim. They had to listen to the rules because they wanted to obey Hashem and help their people. And they did it with love and devotion. So should we. We want to know the reasons for everything. Why shouldn’t we want to? But sometimes we just can’t and even though that’s hard for us we must listen anyway. Just like the kohanim did.