Current events here in Israel have meant that I haven’t gotten a good night sleep between alarms and sirens, which translated to not writing here as often as I had been. Apologies. Here is a belated very short post for parashas VaYiqra, but it works for Tzav too.

Why does every qorban have salt (“עַל כׇּל־קׇרְבָּנְךָ תַּקְרִיב מֶלַח” Vayiqra 2:13), but you aren’t allowed to offer anything with honey (“כׇל־שְׂאֹר וְכׇל־דְּבַשׁ לֹא־תַקְטִירוּ מִמֶּנּוּ” -Ibid. v. 11)?*

Salt is used to enhance existing flavors. Honey is used to change them to something sweeter.

Avodas Hashem is not supposed to be about pretending there is no evil or tragedy in the world. (The world as we experience it, at least.) It is about utilizing our experiences constructively to the fullest.

* Fruit honey can be brought as bikkurim, but only because bikkurim do not go on the mizbei’ah.