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DEUTERONOMY 11:26-16:17
RABBI ARTHUR SEGAL
"See Me, Feel Me, Touch Me, Heal Me"
("Tommy", The Who)
SYNOPTIC ABSTRACT:
Our portion this week has Moses promising Israel both blessings and
curses. The sanctity of the Land is reiterated. Rules of eating are given
which allow the people to eat meat even if it is not part of the
sacrifice. Rules against false prophets and one who entices others to go
astray are given. Commandments about "kosher" foods, tithes, loans,
charity, slaves, and the pilgrimage festivals are listed. To learn
further insight into some of these topics and to find some ways you can
put your learning into action we invite you to read on.
Our parasha is called "Re'eh." It is the command word "see" in the
singular. Two Shabbats ago, the people were commanded to "hear" (Shema ).
What is the difference between the way we learn with our eyes and the way
we learn with our ears? The sages say in Talmud Bavli Tractate Rosh Ha Shana
that "hearing is not comparable to seeing."
Why does the Torah sometimes command us to "look" and other times to
"listen"? What does Rabbi Israel Salanter, founder of the mussar (ethics)
movement of Judaism means when he writes, "the distance between the mind
and the heart is greater than the distance between the sun and the
earth"? Which affects us more, an event that we heard about or an event
that we witnessed? When we learn something in our minds, it is useless to
us until we can move it into our hearts and act on it.
Liberal Judaism places a high premium on individual choice and action.
Vision and seeing are unique senses. Our eyes are windows to our soul.
Modern Judaism came out of the Enlightenment in Europe. Developing our
own personal philosophy, our own "outlook", is called "hashkofa" in
Hebrew. It is derived from the root word "to look." Each of us has to
"see" as individuals. No one can do this for us. To see clearly, our eyes
must remain open. We cannot be spoon fed "does and don'ts". We have to
use our eyes to read and to study, so that we can see for ourselves. The
last thing modern Judaism needs is a modern halakah turning us into a
"reformadoxy."
We say the "Shema" in every prayer service we attend. But as we read in
my d'var on parasha Vaetchanan, few of us act as though those words have
made it into our hearts. There is a Talmudic adage that says that a wise
man is one who can foresee the outcome of actions. The parasha this
week is asking each of us individually to "see" what a different place
this world would be if we follow its teachings.
The Torah this week teaches us about "giving." Deuteronomy 15:7-19 says
"if there shall be an impoverished person from among you or any of your
brethren in your cities...you shall not harden your heart nor close your
hand...rather you should surely give to him and you shall not harden your
heart when you give to him." Why does the Torah repeat the phrase
"to him"? There are two parts of tsaddakah, the recipient and the patron.
Many times these two feel detached from one another, especially when we
follow the Rambam's (Maimonides) view that it is best to give anonymously
to an unknown recipient. Besides giving, the Torah is also asking us to
identify with the needy. They are only the flip-side of the giver's
situation. At any moment, the giver could come into circumstances that
make him a recipient.
The Torah also this week warns against idol-worship (Deut. 12:29-31). The
Ramban (Nachmonides) says that this passage is not really referring to
idol-worship, but is really talking about using the methods used in idol
worship to serve God. Talmud Bavli Tractate Ketubot 68A says that "anyone who
looks away from giving charity, is as if he served idols." The sages
also say in Tractate Sotah 4B that anyone who is haughty is an idol-
worshipper.
We learned last week about haughtiness. A haughty person is one who
thinks all of his blessings came from his own hand and not from God. One
who does not give charity believes he has earned his own money, and
therefore can keep all of it. He does not believe that all that he has is
really a loan from God, and can be taken at any moment. He does not have
faith in God to part with some of his wealth, as he secretly fears he may
not be able to have his success continue. Tractate Ketubot 66B says that
giving to others is the way to guarantee that you will have a plentiful
amount. It says that the "salt" for money, meaning its preservation, is
to make sure some of it is missing, by giving to charity.
If we look at the first sentence of our parasha (Deut. 11:26), we see
that while the word "see" is in the singular, the word "before you"
(lifneichem) is plural. In Talmud Bavli Tractate Kedoshim 40A, the rabbis say
that a person should see the world as if it is half good and half bad.
He should see the world as half meritorious and half lacking. He should
see that he as individual can make the difference by doing tsaddakah and
tilting the entire world toward good and merit with his actions.
When Moses says that he presents us with a blessing and a curse, it is our
choice to choose. We can make our world into a blessing or a curse. God
does not do it for us. We have free will. We are not just to hear this
and to know it intellectually. We are to see it and know it in our hearts
and to act upon it. We are all interconnected. We are all responsible for
our own actions, and our actions do have consequences for those around
us.
We are being taught in this first verse, as we discussed in last week's
d'var Torah, that doing good is its own reward. As Rabbi Samson Raphael
Hirsh explains, every time we do a mitzvah our entire being takes a step
forward, and we bless ourselves whenever we do a good deed. Deuteronomy
15:10 says that after you give charity "do not let your heart sink." This
is a very human thing...giver's remorse. Rashi says we should therefore
give "100 times" to make a habit of it.
The Rambam says that, even though
one tremendous selfless act can have a great impact on a person, even a
100 smaller deeds will have a large influence. Rabbi Kagen, the Chofetz
Chaim, says that it is better to give 100 individual dollars to 100 poor
people than all to one person. This way, one learns to fight his miserly
inclination 100 times, and it will be easier in the future to give. He
says it is not enough just to write a large check to the "Federation" or
a "building fund." This may be tithing, but it is not tsaddakah or ahavath
chesed, which are different mitzvoth. Tithing is "checkbook Judaism." It
is not a substitute for acts of loving kindness. It does not bring you
closer to spirituality, to God, or to your fellow man.
Why does the word "heart" come before "hand" in Deut. 15:7? Do not the
poor benefit from our hand rather than from what is in our heart? Rabbi
Isaac Karo (16th-century), uncle of Joseph Karo (author of the Shulchan
Aruch-compilation
of Jewish Law), says that this teaches that one should give charity with
a smile on one's face. It also teaches that even if you have nothing to
give, you should at least give kind words to the poor.
What does the Shulchan Aruch say about giving? "How much should be given to the poor?
If he is starving, feed him. If he needs clothing, clothe him. If he
needs items for his house, buy him those items for his house. Even if he
was used to riding on a horse with a slave running ahead of him while he
was rich, and now he is poor, buy him a horse and the slave. Each man
according to his needs." Did Marx and Engels quote Karo? They foresaw, as
did our sages, what can happen to a world of haves and have-nots. The
rabbis say in Talmud Bavli Tractate Shabbat 139A that "the world and Jerusalem will be
redeemed only through tsaddakah." Remember that tsaddakah just doesn't mean
charity. Its proper translation is "justice."
We are commanded not to "close our hand" to the poor (Deut. 15:7). When
we close our hand we make a fist. That is an act of meanness. When our
hand is in a fist, all of our fingers look equal. When we open our hands,
we see that some fingers are longer than others. This reminds us that not
all of us are enjoying life equally. Rabbi Akiva Eiger has gone so far as
to write that one must give tsaddakah even if he is so poor that he would
have to give away the very food that is in his throat!
We are also taught this week that we should "walk in God's ways and to cleave to Him"(Deut.
11:22). We need to try to emulate God. This means we are to be
compassionate and kind to others. One might think that doing ritual
brings one closer to God. The most essential ingredient in cleaving to
God is caring about our fellow human beings.
This parasha usually coincides with the month of Elul. Our Kabbalistic cosmology teaches that each month has a
special spiritual opportunity for success. Elul is the time to work on
personal growth and is a great time to being reclaiming one's Judaism through Jewish Spiritual Renewal. (Any day is perfect, as the ''gates of return, renewal, are always open." )
The Kabbalists write that the Hebrew letters of Elul is
an acronym for the words of King Solomon's Song of Songs "ani l'dodi
v'dodi li" (I am to my beloved, my beloved is to me). These words are
shared at marriage ceremonies. Elul is the time of year of heightened
spirituality. It is a time, in the terms of the Zohar, when God is closer
and more approachable. It is a time of introspection and preparation for
Rosh Ha Shanah. As we know, this is the time to take stock of ourselves
and mend our ways.
Just as we need to see; God also requires that we be seen by Him. "Three
times a year all...shall appear before God"(Deut. 16:16). "Seeing", as we
discussed above, is a personal, private, introspective affair. "Being
seen" requires a public display. It reminds us that we are part of a
community. This is why most of our prayers are in the plural. It reminds
us that we are responsible for one another. The Torah says (Deut. 15:11)
that "destitute people will not cease to exist." We can never give up.
This is why the Torah says twice to open our hands to the needy (Deut.
15:8 and 15:11). We are commanded to continually "see."
Doing ahavath chesed and tsaddakah helps not only the recipient. but also
the donor. The feeling one gets from giving of his time and resources is
indescribable. Even when it is frustrating, we are asked not to give up.
We need to continually see that we really do have before us the choice of
blessings and curses "this day." Proverbs 8:34-36 sums up the point of
this d'var wonderfully. "Fortunate is a man who listens to Me, and sits
by My doors every day, guarding the entrances of My house. Those who find
Me have found life and will obtain favor. A sinner damages his soul.
Those who hate Me, love death."
Shabbat Shalom,
RABBI ARTHUR SEGAL
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