Last week I had a second round, face to face interview with a hiring manager regarding a position I had applied for a couple of weeks ago. Almost four years had passed since my last such interview, the one for my current job at a healthcare facility that, unfortunately, will cease to exist come fall. After taking my navy skirt suit out of storage and considering my jewelry, make-up, and hairstyle choices, the last thing I did was to call my sister the night before the interview was scheduled. In her 20 year career as an RN encompassing multiple positions in a number of specialties, my sister has never once been turned down for a job that she interviewed for. She is naturally outgoing, extremely articulate, and the world’s best interview coach (in my opinion).
After spending a couple of hours coaching me on various details my sister ended with a final reminder regarding perfume. Having been a hiring director at one time she related that overpowering perfume or cologne can be a hindering factor regarding a positive job interview. On the interview day I avoided any perfume that might be too strong or lasting. Instead I opted for a light floral variety that is hardly noticeable shortly after applying it. In this tight economy it would seem that every imaginable detail must be considered, even down to the sense of smell of the one conducting the job interview.
The second half of this week’s double Torah portion, parashah Masei, begins with a recounting of the Wilderness journeys of Israel with forty-two encampments specifically listed (Numbers 33:1-50). Interestingly, the final stop of the forty-two journeys, Jericho (יְרֵחוֹ), alludes to the sense of smell, being a name derived from the same root as rayach (רֵיחַ) the Hebrew word for smell. It is commonly taught from a kabbalistic perspective that the encampment at Jericho speaks of the future Messianic redemption due to its connection with smell. This is derived from Sanhedrin 93b which teaches that Mashiach will be able to judge a person merely by smell, based on Isaiah 11:3;
And his delight shall be in the fear of the LORD. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear, (ESV)
The Sages note that the Hebrew phrase translated “and his delight” (veharicho/ וַהֲרִיחוֹ) contains within it the root word for “smell” which is also the root of “spirit” (ruach). From this it is derived that since Mashiach will not judge with his eyes or ears he will judge via smell, the most spiritual of the senses, ultimately judging every situation in the most perfect means possible, by the spirit of holiness within him.
Yeshua speaks most of his authority or role of judge in the Gospel of John. Here he seems to present a mixed message explaining that he “judges no man” while yet affirming that his “judgment is true” (John 8:15-16). The key perhaps is that Yeshua does not judge “according to the flesh” in the normative ways of man which rely on the testimony (hearing) of eye witnesses (sight) in order to make a right judgment. Yeshua instead judges by his spirit through which he “sees” and “hears” the will of the Father (cf. John 5:30).
The spiritual significance of the forty-two encampments is especially considered as Masei is read during the three weeks (of distress regarding the destruction of the Temple between 17 Tammuz and 9 Av). The encampments in the Wilderness are understood to speak of forty-two levels of repentance and spiritual refinement that Israel accomplished in leaving Egypt and that must yet again be accomplished, since the destruction of the Temple, before Mashiach will come. “Jericho”, the encampment highlighting “smell” and/or “spirit”, in which Mashiach will arrive and function, signifies the redemption ahead. In like fashion, Yeshua, in the Synoptic discourses regarding the destruction of the Temple and the signs of his coming/end of the age, related occurrences and situations along the way that will lead to the final redemption.
Over the past couple of years I have divided up Yeshua’s prophecies regarding the Temple destruction (Matthew 24:6-15:13, Mark 13:1-37, Luke 21:5-36) into twenty-one readings for the season of the three weeks. Ironically, with these prophecies and warnings fresh on my mind, I have also recently come across an argument presented from a Divine Invitation/Bilateral Ecclesiology perspective based on Romans 16:4. Here Paul’s greeting to “the churches of the Gentiles” is seen as proof that non-Jews established their own communities, distinct from their Jewish brethren who remained in the synagogues, under Paul’s approval and/or instruction.
From this proof text it is posited that although initially the early Gentile believers assumed the role of G-d Fearer within the synagogues, eventually, due to their non-obligation toward Torah and the Sinaitic Covenant as a whole, they established their own separate communities while the Jewish brethren remained in the Torah observant synagogue setting. This is understood as the original and intended model for the body of believers in which Jews and Gentiles worship G-d and live out their faith in His Messiah in distinct communities (church vs. Messianic synagogue) occupying separate roles. Yet, this entire argument undermines and overlooks the prophecies of Yeshua regarding Jewish believers within the synagogue setting. In the Synoptics, Yeshua stresses that the disciples and their fellow Jewish believers will be beaten in the synagogues, brought before councils, imprisoned, hated and even killed by those who are closest to them (siblings, parents, children). In John 16:1 he says;
They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God. (ESV)
According to Yeshua the synagogue would quickly become a toxic environment for believing Jews, and not the safe and exclusive haven of worship and Torah observance that the Bilateral Ecclesiology view understands it to have been. The book of Acts speaks extensively of this in details that uphold Yeshua’s very words. It seems untenable to assume that believing Jews remained in the synagogues under these conditions while Gentiles met in their own distinct communities. Based on the evidence of the Apostolic Scriptures, intense and unrelenting persecution would have driven both Jewish and Gentile believers out of the synagogue proper, just as Yeshua had prophesied. Instead of understanding the “churches of the Gentiles” which also can equally be translated “the assemblies of the nations” to be speaking of distinct Gentile communities, it would seem that such a term was used to describe the communities of believers in general located within and throughout the nations (outside of Israel).
More important than merely refuting this argument, the underlying motivation for its existence has been troubling and mournful to me, especially in reflecting upon this season of the three weeks. As Jews all over the world consider the distress of the Temple destruction, mourn and repent of past sins, and look hopefully toward the Messianic redemption ahead, their believing counterparts are consumed and driven by concerns regarding marginalization and identity. They judge by what they see and hear; the past abuses of the church, anti-Semitism, lawlessness, assimilation etc., and rightfully so. But yet the “smell” is being overlooked, the spirit of the believing community as one body in Messiah. How terribly far we seem to be from “Jericho” in this regard.
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As I arrived for the interview last week, I found myself in a unique setting. Because the job I had applied for was with a new hospital scheduled to open in the late fall, interviews were conducted en masse. I and other candidates (for various RN positions) were taken to a large conference room in which tables were set up along the periphery where managers would perform individual interviews. As I sat and waited with the others scheduled for the first interviews of the day, I couldn’t help but noticed how they were dressed. Without getting into details, in general the dress represented ranged from summer picnic casual to a hot night on the town. There I was, the obvious oddball, dressed in a navy business suit with a strand of pearls around my neck, careful to wear a subtle perfume lest I offend the nose of my interviewer. Ultimately I was glad for my sister’s advice, and for my attention to detail down to even the scent of my perfume. For such detail speaks not only of motivation in finding employment or furthering a career but also shows sensitivity toward the very spirit of nursing itself as a legitimate and noble profession.
As I don my blue business suit again early next week, for another interview involving a different position at a different hospital, my choice of perfume will remain the same. But as I apply it I will also be reminded of the spirit of this three week season, the longing for the smell of Messiah which will bring true clarity and right judgment to the entire world, and the assembly of believers in particular (including me).
