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Finding Common Ground
‘Do not hurt the stranger, he shall be as the townsfolk. Love him as yourself, for you were strangers in Egypt too…’
Rashi explains that we ought not make fun of his being a stranger, for we too were strangers once. People living in glass houses ought not throw stones…
We had another suggestion: To befriend someone, find some common ground. A ger, a stranger, often comes from a society so alien that it’s hard to find commonality with him. The Torah starts us off with by pointing out that we both experienced being a stranger in another land. Thats a commonality, and leads to connection.
The lesson here; to love one another, seek your similarities.
Too often, the first thing similar people look for is differences. Perhaps this comes from being unhappy in your own skin, forcing ones to self-define by distinguishing oneself from another.
Methinks thats pretty sad…
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Giving Lousy Stuff
Paradox; Charity is from our best: ‘all the fat – for Hashem!’. No second-rate stuff. Yet the Torah tells us to leave our fields’ leftovers for the poor: the corner-ends, dropped pieces, forgotten bundles and dropped off grapes. Why not give good stuff??
One suggestion was that the Torah knows its hard for someone to part with hard-earned produce. It only asks for what a person will give willingly – junk – even if he ought to give the best.
Another thought: this charity is not a tithe, nor based on the poorman’s need. (Those are obligations we fill with our very best produce!) Rather this charity derives precisely because these gifts are less meaningful to their owners.
Its junk. The Torah says ‘Come on, surely you can spare these!’. The lesson to us is that we are obligated to a larger-than-normal donation if we are giving old clothes or unneeded mishloach manos lying around the house.
Our not needing it obligates us.
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The Buck Stops Here
Why were the two goats used in the Yom Kippur sacrifice exactly the same size, price and look? Why do they need to be the same?
The kids suggested that since one for Hashem and one for Azazel, they needed to be fair, to appease Azazel that he received the same korban Hashem had. Interesting thought.
We suggested that these sacrifices addressed Responsibility. We are responsible for our own actions. Our conditioning and other factors may influence how easy or hard it will be, but ultimately we are personally accountable.
Some people are born with a predisposition to thievery, homosexuality and murder. Yet they must not steal, act on their homosexuality nor kill. Indeed, their trial is harder, doing the right thing comes to them with difficulty. They will be compensated for that difficulty. But they do need to toe the line.
The two goats are identical. There is no difference between them. Yet one end up in the holiest place in the world, the Kodesh HaKodoshim, and the other in the boondocks. Two goats, same background, but radically different destinies.
This means us. We too start out the same, and end up radically different. Some of us become good people, others crooks. The message is that our lives’ directors are not a broken home, but rather our own choices.
This sacrifice celebrates choice, represented by the lottery deciding each goat’s future, as our choices do. And when we accept responsibility for our choice, we accept our guilt. We take ownership of our bad behavior.
Now may atonement begin!
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Playing G-d
A judge may not help a poor man. The judge may think ‘Ach! This fellow is so poor, the rich man ought to support him anyhow; let me rule in his favor, as if the money really was his’.
Absolutely totally forbidden!
Why?
Perhaps the court is represents the “place of justice” in this world, and truth must reign there absolutely. After the judgement can come chessed, but the ruling – the naked truth – must be heard.
Perhaps too the integrity of the court in on the line: if we can toy with the truth, – even for good reason, – we will come to be lax and toy with it in general…
One more thought: a judge sits supremely powerful: his decision alone determines the outcome. Judges may start playing G-d. They think “I will make things right”. They think society depends on them.
This is dangerous. A judge is a jurist, not a social philosopher. A judge needs to know that he has a restricted mandate; issuing judgement. That, – only that – is his job.
Do not favor a pauper in court. You do not run the world!
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Going Public
The Torah describes sacrificing a son to Molech as a desecration of G-d’s name. Why is that?
The Sforno explains that we sacrifice mere animals for Hashem, while for Molech a son is given. By comparison it seems Molech is more important. That is a desecration of His Name.
(Lesson: When we spend more on a couch then on mitzvos, that desecrates Hashem’s Name!)
We suggested that someone so committed to Molech that he sacrifices his own son makes a statement: Molech matters! Molech is important, not Hashem. A public stand influences others, desecrating Hashem’s Name and cause.
Do take a public stand – for the good! That’s a Kiddush Hashem!
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Spilling Blood
“…its blood to him, he has spilled blood!…”
Sacrificing an animal outside of the Mishkan is spilling blood. This refers to either one who sacrifices a Korban outside the Mishkan, or someone who slaughters any animal during the Midbar period, when all slaughtering was done only inside the Mishkan.
Rashi explains the reference to spilling blood that these actions are as serious as spilling blood. Though murder was not committed, improper slaughtering is as serious as murder.
Sefer HaChinuch, however, explains this pasuk literally: we may kill animals only for human benefit; food, health, medicine. Gratuitous killing is out. Animals have rights too.
Depriving an animal of life for no human benefit is murder. Its not human murder, and does not carry the death penalty, but it is a serious sin. The Torah expresses that slaughtering an animal improperly – without mandate – is murder.
These are fighting words. The Nodah B’yehuda *(Yorah Deah 10) permits hunting, although he deems it unJewish and cruel. He does not consider killing animals for fun murder. But the Chinuch certainly does.
To discuss with kinderlach: A. What ought to be our attitude towards animals – Can we can kill ants invading our home and causing us pain? Yes. We have no right to kill them for no reason, but this sounds like a reason. B. Is having fun considered a reason? Most probably not. C. If we can get the animal out of the way in other ways, perhaps we ought to refrain from killing them. Animals have a right to be left alone unless we need to kill them, and here we can just as well make do without killing them.
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Respect
The parshah mentions twice “Fear your G-d; I am Hashem”.
Once it warns against cursing a deaf man or placing a trap before a blind man, and once it enjoins us to honor sages and the elderly. The first seems obvious; cursing a deaf man or placing a trap before a blind man are crimes no one will discover. What stops them? “I, Hashem, am keeping score!” But what is the connection to honoring sages and elders? (See Rashi)
‘Stand before elders, honor the sage, and fear your G-d, I am Hashem’ means; ‘if you will honor those deserving it, you will fear Me too. If you are sloppy in giving due honor, you will not honor Me either’.
We do not act in a vacuum. To honor Hashem, we need to develop our knack for honoring. We must be careful to render due honor to those who deserve it. We will be people who have learned the skill of honoring.
We need to create a society and environment of respect.
(How about starting by showing another respect one time a day by greeting them on the street?)
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No Comfort Zone
‘And if the townspeople will close their eyes from the man who gives his son to Molech, and not punish him, I will….’
Why does the Torah reiterate ‘who gives his son to Molech’ – we were discussing him all along?
One suggestion was that it means that they did not punish him because they too were Molech sympathisers at heart – they closed their eyes when he did the sin, not just when it was time for punishing him.
We suggested the some situations are so extreme that people do not know how to respond to them. Sometimes when tragedy happens, people will cross the street instead of confronting the person who suffered the tragedy, because they do not know what to say.
This can be dangerous. The Torah recognizes that perhaps the people do not approach this case because it is so strange – a man burnt his own son! – and people shy away from it. Thats why it exclaims ‘who gives his son to Molech!’
We are told to take action and punish the person: don’t hide when you don’t know how to react, but rather, figure out what to do, and do it!
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The Yom Kippur Sacrifice And Us
We bring incense to mask our approach to Hashem. The Shchina itself rests between the Keruvim, and it is arrogant for mortal man to approach Her directly. The Kohein Gadol brings a cloud of Ketores, covering the Kappores. Then the Kohein approaches to sacrifice.
What does he sacrifice? He atones for tumas Mikdash uKdoshuv; entering into the Beis HaMikdash or eating/handling Kodshim while ritually impure.
Is this so important? Why didn’t the Kohein Gadol spend his time on more serious averos, perhaps on the big three; arayos, avodah zarah and murder?
Tumas Mikdash means the direct practical relationship with Hashem. Before turning to Him for favors, we need to repair any insult or injury we have done Him directly. We need to redress damage done directly against Him before addressing not having followed His commands and directives.
Hashem lived amongst us, and approaching His area in a state of Tumah affronts Him directly – His person, as it were.
Today we no longer have a Beis HaMikdash where Hashem dwells in person, neither do we have the Korbanos of Yom Kippur. However the Shchina is still amongst us somewhat.
Chazal interpret the pasuk “who dwells amongst you despite your impurity” to mean that even today the Shchina is present.
We need to pay particular attention to our behavior towards him directly. Some things offend His sensibilities and taste. Immorality is one, we need to take particular care that our thoughts and actions stay pure.
First priority is to keep the channels open: don’t offend Him directly!
Another approach is that Rabbi Avigdor Miller z”l asked why David HaMelech was chosen and loved by Hashem, despite sinning, while his father Yishai was not, although he died without sin?
His answer was that Hashem doesn’t want our never sinning as much as He wants our devotion. David loved Hashem with all his heart. Yishai never sinned, true, but he was no David.
On Yom Kippur we need to focus on our relationship with Him, not on sin. Sin is secondary, a derivative. That’s why the focus is on tumas mikdash ukdoishav, the us and Him…
How is your relationship with Hashem going today?
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Gusto
We are forbidden to eat a sacrifice past its allowed time. The Torah claims this is ‘desecrating the Holies of Hashem’. How’s that?
A person is affected by how he experiences Mitzvos. If he had a good experience then he connects to Mitzvos. If not, he disconnects. Rashi (Sukkah 49) says that doing Mitzvos in a way that’s enjoyable is considered loving Mitzvos!
Eating half-rotten sacrifice meat, – meat way past its prime, – breeds an attitude of disdain for the Holies – sacrifices. The disgust the eater feels extends to the Mitzvah too. Eating old kodshim disgraces the Holies. To oneself!
What is the lesson? Ensure that every mitzvah we do is FUN!!!
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Keeping Score
In the Haftorah the Navi expresses Hashem’s complaint;
We had disappointed Him from the outset;
A. In Egypt, He wanted us to leave Egyptian idol worship and follow Him. Instead we stuck to the idols, rejecting Him. He felt like leaving us there for good. But He had sent Moshe to Paroh to speak His demand that the Jews be sent out. In honor of His name He followed thorough and took us from Egypt.
B. In the Desert we rebelled against Him again and again. He would have ended it all. For His honor’s sake he brought us into the Land, as He had promised our forefathers.
The entire affair was done grudgingly, without satisfaction or profit, solely for the sake of keeping his word and honor. Pretty sad.
In the Mishna in Sanhedrin, Rabbi Akiva opinions that those who died in the Midbar, neither have a share in the world to come nor will they arise from the dead. They are done for, gone for good. Reading our Haftorah, we start appreciating why!
The upshot of it all: We are grateful to Hashem when we realize that He did not enjoy the Exodus at all. Yet He did us the kindliest things. And so lovingly!
Thank you!