G‑d then instructed Moses regarding the daily and holiday communal sacrifices that were to be regularly offered up in the Tabernacle.
Nourishing G‑d
אֶת קָרְבָּנִי לַחְמִי לְאִשַּׁי . . . תִּשְׁמְרוּ וגו':
(במדבר כח:ב)
[G‑d instructed Moses to tell the Jewish people,] “You must guard My offering, My food for My fire-offerings.”
Numbers 28:2
G‑d calls the sacrifices His daily “food,” for just as food sustains the body, so did the sacrifices draw sustaining Divine life-force into the world. Furthermore, the constancy of the daily sacrifices expressed the eternal bond between G‑d and the Jewish people.
The daily prayers were instituted to parallel the daily sacrifices and to substitute for them in the absence of the Tabernacle or Temple. Thus, our daily prayers also “sustain” G‑d. If we ever doubt how important our prayers can be, we should recall that G‑d considers them vital to the world’s existence and maintenance. They are as important to Him as our daily bread is to us.1
This is lovely and right. Prayer is necessary, essential, and wonderful for both us and G-d, as the rabbis have taught since the fall of the Temple. Necessary, yes, but not, I fear, sufficient.
Not sure how a more satisfactory alternative system of modern day offerings could be established in the absence of the Temple, but I think prayer (as incredibly wonderful as it is) is not enough. Drama, loss, value to the keepers of sacred space - more of the experience of sacrifice and offerings is needed. I have thoughts…but for another day.
Thank you very much for your wonderful Torah wisdom each day.