Sprinkling some of this holy oil on certain objects created for the Tabernacle (Ark, altars, etc.) and on certain individuals, designated them as being set aside for a God-appointed higher function. Throughout the Torah different prophets such as Samuel, Nathan, and Elijah used this oil to anoint the kings of Israel, signifying them as God’s chosen rulers. In fact, this idea of kings ruling by “Divine Right,” i.e. as a direct emissary of God, has persisted from the Pharaohs to the Babylonian and Persian kings and was even adopted in Medieval Christian Europe – a practice continued today. Several months ago, King Charles of England was anointed with a special “Chrism Oil” – created using olives harvested from groves on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem, and perfumed with sesame, rose, jasmine, cinnamon, neroli, benzoin, and amber as well as orange blossom. In 1953, when Elizabeth II was crowned Queen of England in Westminster Abbey in London, the Archbishop of Canterbury dabbed oil on her, in imitation of the prophets of ancient Israel. Following this coronation ceremony, the choir sang “Zaddok the Priest” composed in 1727 by Handel for the coronation of King George II, which opens with the lyrics “Zaddok the Priest and Nathan the Prophet anointed Solomon king.” You can’t make this stuff up. Thus, this concept of a messiah – an “anointed one” who was chosen as the emissary of the Almighty – though it has its roots in Judaism, has been adopted by much of the outside world. According to tradition, the eventual Messiah of the Jewish people will, among other things, bring peace to the world, rebuild the Third Temple, and usher in a society that observes the ancient laws of the Torah (for a detailed job description of the Messiah, see Maimonides Laws of Kings Chapter 12 – he also points out that only if someone fulfills all parts of the job description can one be considered the “true” Messiah). Because of the promise of peace and salvation during messianic times, tragic events throughout Jewish history spurred messianic fervor. Sadly, in the periods immediately following those terrible events there were huge upswings in messianic expectations, which naturally led to another unfortunate phenomenon: false messiahs who claimed to be the saviors of the Jewish people. Perhaps the most famous of these charlatans was the brilliant and charismatic man known as Shabtai Tzvi. It is no coincidence that Shabtai Tzvi came on the scene soon after the horrific Kehlmnitski Massacres of 1649-50. This false messiah led many, many communities astray in the latter half of the 17th century, which culminated in his eventual conversion to Islam when the Ottoman Empire had finally had enough of his nonsense. On a VERY related topic – this week’s Torah portion relates the unfortunate incident of the Golden Calf. For a complete understanding of the circumstances surrounding the sin of the Golden Calf, see this week’s Torah reading Exodus 32:1-35. A brief summary: A mere forty days after committing to receive the Torah on Mount Sinai, the Jewish nation erred in thinking Moses had abandoned them. They were at a loss as to how to interact with God without Moses and they instructed Moses’ brother Aaron to form a Golden Calf that they may use as an intermediary. Whether or not this was considered actual idol worship is a matter of much discussion among the sages, but this infidelity to their direct relationship with the Almighty was a serious sin. In fact, this sin was as serious as the sin of Adam who ate from the Tree of Knowledge. How do we know this? Because the punishment for both was that man became mortal. When Adam sinned he was cut off from the Almighty and was subject to death (this is what the Torah means when it says, “But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat of it; for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die”Genesis 2:17). Likewise, when the Jews stood at Mount Sinai, and everyone was healed (this is why medical centers all over the world are named “Mount Sinai”), they were healed spiritually as well, and death left the world. When they sinned by desiring to be disconnected from God and created and worshipped the Golden Calf, death returned to the world (see Talmud Shabbos 146a). The uncleanliness of death persists and renders one unfit for service in the Holy Temple. Today, everyone has come into contact with someone who has come into contact with a dead person so everyone is considered impure and unfit for service in the Holy Temple. This is the purpose of the Parah Adumah (“red heifer”) – the ritual of slaughtering it and burning it completely and mixing its ashes with waters from the Gihon spring near Jerusalem is the antidote to the uncleanliness of death in the world. Thus, it is only through the ashes mixed into the water that is sprinkled on the priestly caste that they become fit to serve in the Holy Temple. It is this process of removing the impurity of death that is required for serving in the Holy Temple. Thus, this week’s Torah portion is connected to all three of these themes (the Messiah, the Red Heifer, and the Golden Calf). May the Almighty bless His nation and the entire world with the immediate arrival of the Messiah leading to “peace in our time” and the resultant resumption of our connection to the Almighty through the service within the Third and permanent Holy Temple. Amen. | 
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