וַיֹּ֤אמֶר ה׳ אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֔ה אֱמֹ֥ר אֶל־הַכֹּהֲנִ֖ים בְּנֵ֣י אַהֲרֹ֑ן וְאָמַרְתָּ֣ אֲלֵהֶ֔ם לְנֶ֥פֶשׁ לֹֽא־יִטַּמָּ֖א בְּעַמָּֽיו׃
The LORD said to Moses: Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and say to them: None shall defile himself for any [dead] person among his kin,
I once heard a dvar Torah from a Rabbi in Irvine, CA (I wish I remember who) who pointed out Rashi’s question about why the Pasuk says both “Emor – Speak” and “V’Amarta – And you should say”. What’s the double word doing here?
Rashi says cryptically, quoting the Gemara “אמר ואמרת, לְהַזְהִיר גְּדוֹלִים עַל הַקְּטַנִּים”. These words come to “warn the olders about the young ones.” What does this mean?
There are different types of words the Torah uses for “tell someone”. One word used is להגיד (to tell), another לאמור (to say). Each word has its own nuance.
כה תאמר לבית יעקב ותגיד לבני ישראל
So you should say to the house of Yaakov and tell the sons of Israel
Chazal teach that the root אמר is a soft, gentle approach, whereas הגד is a more firm way to tell something.
The Rabbi in Irvine said that the Kohanim have to teach their children a very hard lesson. That as priests they are different from everyone else. They cannot just go on that bike ride with their friends, if the route goes through the cemetery.
And when we have to teach hard lessons, we must not only do it softly, but with a double-dose of softness. Not just one אמר, but two.
As we try to process what happened last night in Meron with our children, may Hashem grant us as much אמר as we need to help our children understand tragedy and pain without losing faith in Him as the Healer of all things.
