The very first Rashi of the Torah teaches that the Torah should have begun with, ?Hachodesh hazeh lochem?, which gives the Jewish people the obligation to establish its calendar, as it is the first mitzvah that was given to the Jewish nation. The Torah, which is our constitution, should have begun with the laws for the entire people, as opposed to the three mitzvos found in Sefer Braishis that were given to individuals. A more profound way to understand this Rashi is that just as maaseh Braishis (creation) is such a phenomenal event that it is most difficult to describe and appreciate its magnitude, similarly ?Hachodesh hazeh lochem?, the first mitzvah, is a type of Braishis, a new creation (Rav Chaim Freidlander, Sifsei Chaim, p. 259).
The concept of an individual or a nation enslaving another was nothing new with the Egyptian servitude of Am Yisroel. However, we were not only freed, transformed into free individuals, and elevated to the status of aristocrats, but ?Hachodesh hazeh lochem? teaches we were also sanctified by Hashem at that moment, a made into a new creation. As in Braishis (2:7) where Hashem blew into the nostrils of man a living soul, here at their emancipation Hashem endowed the former slaves with kedusha, enabling them to sanctify and hallow themselves and their environment.
Rabbi Yehoshua Ben Levi teaches in Pesachim (118a) that Psalm 136, known as Hallel Hagadol, which speaks of Hashem?s creation and rulership of the world contains twenty six verses of ?ki l?olam chasdo ? for His kindness endures forever? corresponding to the twenty six generations from creation until the revelation at Sinai. The emphasis being on His kindness, as G-d sustained the world not because of the merit or deservedness of man, but only because of His munificence and kindness. Now, on Rosh Chodesh Nissan, with hachodesh hazeh, a new world order was introduced. Hashem sanctified the Jewish people who were given the capacity to sanctify both time and objects (Shemos Rabbah 15:24). Mekadesh Yisroel vehazemanim, the bracha of Kiddush and every shemoneh esrei of the yomim tovim, highlights our capacity to sanctify time; when man takes parchment, quill, and ink for the purpose of writing a sefer Torah, upon completion man has created kedusha. The world was no longer completely on the receiving end but man now influences the events that emanate from on High by his actions. Parshas Hachodesh places the Jew on the pedestal of mekadesh ? one who creates and endows kedusha.
Parshas Tazria with its many laws related to negaim (commonly translated as leprosy) demonstrates a further and additional Divine endowment to man. The law regarding tzaraas is that if a baheres, a variation of a white patch on the skin, preceded the presence of white hair, the area and individual are pronounced tamei ? impure. If the white hair preceded the patch he is tahor ? pure. If we don?t know which came first, the Talmud (Bava Metzia 86a) tells us of a most remarkable and unusual debate on the matter. Hashem and his heavenly yeshiva disagreed on this case with Hashem ruling that the individual was tahor and the angels siding with the opinion that he is tamei. It was decided that the tie-breaking vote and opinion to be followed would be that of Rabbah bar Nachmeini, the recognized leading rabbinic authority on negiam in his day. The question reached Rabbah while he was in the throngs of death. His last two words on this earth were, ?Tahor tahor?. A heavenly voice proclaimed, ?How fortunate you are, Rabbah bar Nachmeini, that your body is pure and your soul departed in purity.?
It is most fascinating to note that the Rambam (Hilchos Tumas Tzaraas, 2:8) rules tamei in the above case. The Kesef Mishna explains this based upon the verse in Devarim (30:12), ?Lo bashomayim he ? it is not in Heaven?, which is understood earlier in Bava Metzia (59b) to mean that the Jewish people were given the capacity to expound and interpret Torah Shebal Peh ? the oral law. Prophecy, and even Heavenly voices, are not to be relied upon for psak halacha, but rather the due diligence of talmedei chachamim using the formula given to them to interpret Jewish law (the Chasam Sofer understands that since Rabbah bar Nachmeini?s decision was only made known through a bask kol (Heavenly voice) it was not to be relied upon). Wow! Man is not only a mekadeish, one who sanctifies himself and his environment by his performance of mitzvos. He is also a mechadeish ? one who is invited to interpret and apply Torah law. Of course this permissibility was granted to the Sanhedrin, the judicial body both legislative and representative of the Jewish nation.
?Hachodesh hazeh lochem? is really a second Braishis, a new creation, namely the Jewish nation. Rashi understands the first passuk in the Torah - ?Braishis bara? - to be charged with the meaning of why Hashem created the world: Braishis ? for raishis, i.e. the Jewish people whoa re called raishis, and Braishis, for the Torah called that is raishis. Now in Shemos (12) we have the implementation of Braishis. The Jewish people are enhancing and giving fruition, purpose, and meaning to creation. Hashem creates the physical material and the Jew endows it with holiness. He takes string and affixes it to a garment over which he recites ?asher kidshanu bmitzvosov - ?who has sanctified us with his commandments?, and we in turn sanctify our environment with this and all other performances of mitzvos. Furthermore, our ruling in Halacha validates Braishis, the world being created for Torah.
The two-Torah experience this Shabbos ? Tazria and Hachodesh ? not only sheds additional light on Yetzias Mitzrayim as a second Braishis, but also compliments and charges each member of Klal Yisroel to realize how important they are.