Torah Teaches Not to Sin

I wrote this at around the time the rockets began flying and Israel started its retalliation - which I hope turns to an annihilation of Hamas' infrastructure, if not the entire entity. The message is still important - the difference between us and them

Parshat Pinchas                

by Rabbi Avi Billet

Parshat Pinchas contains the Maftir readings for all of the Biblical holidays. Every holiday had a specific set of korbanot (offerings) that were brought in its honor. A similarity running across all of the holidays is a single goat which was brought as a “chatat” (sin offering) to atone for the sins of the people.

                

However, when it comes to the holiday of Shavuot, the Torah does not label the goat as a “chatat.” That word is missing from the description, when it says, “A single goat, to atone for you.” (28:30)

                

The Minchat Shai notes that the way the goat is presented here is as a “s’ir izim” and not with a vov to say “u’s’ir izim.” As only Yom Kippur has a similar formulation (every other holiday says “u’s’ir” – AND a goat), he suggests that Yom Kippur and Shavuot have in common that they are days when the Torah was given. The Tablets were finally presented to the people on Yom Kippur, and the contents of the Tablets were declared to the people on Shavuot. In order to contradict the Sadducees who suggested the Torah was not given on Shavuot, the Torah made the S’ir to S’ir comparison to make it clear that Shavuot is a day when the Torah was given.

                

A number of commentaries point to the Yerushalmi in Rosh Hashana 4:8 which explains the phenomenon as follows: Rabbi Mesharshia explained that the “chatat” not being mentioned in the context of Atzeret (Shavuot) was God’s way of saying to Israel, “Since you accepted the yoke of My Torah, I am considering you as if you never sinned [and therefore don’t need a “sin offering.”]”  

                

This, concludes the Torah Temimah, is the proof that the Torah was actually given on the same date as Shavuot.

                

Of course, in Mishpatim (chapter 24, note 36), the Torah Temimah explains that Shavuot is on the 50^th day of the Omer – which can either fall on the 5^th, 6^th, or 7^th of Sivan. (Rosh Hashana 6b) This is why when we describe the holiday, we call it “zman matan torateinu” (the time period of the giving of the Torah) and not “yom matan torateinu” (the actual day of the giving of the Torah).

                

Rashi notes in Shmot 19:1 and Devarim 26:16 that we must view the Torah as if it was given every day. Pinning the giving of the Torah to a single day, in a sense, cheapens its value – makes it as if it is to be celebrated on an anniversary, as opposed to throughout the year.

                

It is fascinating that the Torah Temimah would suggest that the missing word “Chatat” in the description of the goat offering proves that Shavuot and the giving of the Torah coincided – even as he points to his own commentary in Shmot which suggests that it’s not an exact science.

                

In truth – the matter could be one of simple semantics. The Torah may have been given on Shavuot, but since the date of Shavuot (Biblically speaking) is not always the same date (could be 5, 6, or 7 Sivan), if we celebrate Shavuot as the day rather than a specific date as the day of the giving of the Torah, then everyone is right.

                

Because the truth is that whether a missing vov proves the point (Minchat Shai) or the missing word “chatat” proves the point doesn’t matter. The point is that we have the Torah. The anniversary of its giving is perhaps noteworthy, but to a large degree it is irrelevant.

                

When news came that arrests were made over the murder of an Arab teen after the deaths of Gilad, Eyal and Naftali became known, and that the initial suspects are Jews, my sister told me she was going to attend a “Lo Tirzach” (Thou Shalt not Murder) Rally in Israel. It was postponed, ironically, because of rockets out of the Gaza Strip.

                

A life governed by the Torah’s teachings is one in which the deliberate sin has no place. We are all human, and we make mistakes. But there is a major difference between human failure and human error and descending to depths that are completely antithetical to the Torah’s teachings. [The irony of Pinchas being a vigilante is not lost, but his circumstance was VERY different.]

                

I personally have no sympathy for terrorists and murderers, and I have a very different mindset than the State of Israel generally has about how to deal with those who have Jewish blood on their hands. But if it turns out that those who murdered an Arab teenager were Jews, and that they did it because Arabs murdered Jewish teens (or whatever reason), they were operating under a Hammurabi Code, and not under a Torah code.

                

We rally for our People when our People are in need. And we must also rally for our true beliefs, distancing ourselves from those who conduct themselves in a manner that is antithetical to the Torah’s teachings.

               

If Shavuot’s goat offering was not called a “chatat” because the giving of the Torah made the people sinless, then it is the Torah’s teachings which should always guide us in being sinless. 

It's About the Land

Parshat B'Har Bechukotai 

by Rabbi Avi Billet 

Many who write about this parsha focus on the question that Rashi asks (quoting the Sifra on B'har), "Why are the rules of Shmittah (the Sabbatical year for the land of Israel) mentioned in the context of 'Moshe at Mt. Sinai?'" The Hebrew phrase "May inyan Shmittah eitzel Har Sinai?" has taken on a life of its own, in that it has come to be the Hebrew idiom-equivalent of "what does this have to do with the price of tea in China?"

Is the assumption behind the question even correct?

According to the Or HaChaim, the focus of the connection to Sinai should not be on Shmittah, because Shmittah is not what is most immediately connected to Sinai in the verse.

"God spoke to Moses at Mount Sinai, telling him to speak to the Israelites and say to them: When you come to the land that I am giving you, the land must be given a rest period, a sabbath to God." (25:1-2)

The real question should be, "What is the connection between Mount Sinai and coming to the land?"

The Or HaChaim says, "Perhaps, because it mentioned that the land is a gift – 'that I am giving you' – it mentions that it stems from Mount Sinai. This is to teach that on account of the events of Mount Sinai, in other words, what they received there [the Torah], the gift could be completed. It is on account of [their having received] the Torah that God gave them the land."

Continuing along this line of thought, the Or HaChaim quotes Maimonides Laws of Possession and Gifts 3:11, who says, "An Israelite may not give an idolator (Aku"m) a gift for nothing. He may give [a free gift] to a stranger who lives in peace ['ger toshav']. To a total stranger ('nokhri') he must sell the item, but to a 'ger toshav' he may either sell it or gift it."

As a brief aside, a simple difference between a 'ger toshav' and a 'nokhri' is that the former not only lives in peace with the Israelites, but formally accepts their autonomy and system of laws and is an adherent of the Noahide laws. The latter, on the other hand, might live in peace out of a personal conviction, but he is not part of a formal group who has conceded power to the local Israelite autonomy. He has also not accepted the Noahide laws and might personally be an idolator. [There are many more details associated with these laws, including debates over which non-Jews qualify for each category.]

Having made clear that an "Aku'm" may not be the beneficiary of a free gift according to Torah law, Or HaChaim suggests that until they received the Torah, the Israelites were considered to be idolators. Only after they received the Torah did their status change, and they were able to receive the land as a gift.

This, he concludes, is the reason why in this specific context the Torah adds the phrase "That I am giving you" when referring to the land. It is obvious that God is the One with 'rights' to the land, who can do whatever He wants with His land. He has decided this specific land goes to the Israelite nation, and the action on the decision can be put in motion as soon as the Israelite nation are defined as gift-worthy after having received the Torah at Sinai.

Compare it to the verse we read two week ago (19:23), "When you come to the land you will plant every fruit-bearing tree." Why doesn't it say "…to the land I am giving you?" Because the land "is only given to you" as a direct result of the receiving and acceptance of the Torah at Sinai.

This is why the initial question should not be about Shmittah, because Shmittah is a mere by-product of the real focus in the verse, namely, the two great gifts God bequeathed to the Israelite nation, which are inextricably intertwined.

Without the Torah, it seems, there is no claim to the land of Israel. It was a gift for which God received nothing in return. A gift He gave because the recipients were now the Israelite nation, as defined by the Sinaitic experience at which they declared "Naaseh V'nishma" – we will observe [the law] and we will hear [as in, learn what it's all about].

The subtleties and nuances of the gift-giving that Maimonides discusses is open for discussion: what is a matnat chinam (free gift), how do we define each group and category, in what way does being or not being idolators change the possible benefits package?

What is clear is that God chose the people who were to be observing His Torah to receive the land as well. And they, in turn, are allowed to give gifts to those who are "Ger Toshav" – who accept the law of the land and who live in peace with their Israelite neighbors, and do not present a threat to their mortal existence.

Politics and political correctness aside, this seems like sane advice – don't give away anything if you do not receive something tangible in return. There are no freebies; there are only proper business transactions, where the cost of what you get is just about equal in value to what you are giving up.

From the other side of the coin, the Torah is the unequivocal key ingredient that makes the nation of Israel and the land of Israel a match literally made in heaven.

May we merit to see the day that all of Israel not only knows this to be true, but takes steps to live their Jewish lives guided by and in accordance with the precepts of the Torah.

The Month of E.L.U.L.

There is very nice young man now entering high school who has gathered a group of friends - we try to learn together once a week.

As tonight is Rosh Chodesh - well, it is Rosh Chodesh, even though it is still the 30th of Av - I decided to learn with them rules surrounding the beginning of the month of Elul. So we picked the laws of this same title in the Kitzur Shulchan Arukh (the one composed by Rabbi Ganzfried).

[As an aside, I've found really great resources on the internet, such as this website dedicated to the Kitzur Shulchan Arukh, when looking for links to put in this blog. The internet is incredible.]

Section 128 talks of how this time period, the forty day period from Rosh Chodesh through Yom Kippur is a time of longing and yearning - of the Jews to God, and of God for His people. It is a particularly open time for repentance, and those seeking to repent should utilize this time to do so. We compared it to the holiday season in the secular calendar, a time when people are apt to be more giving and more concerned for one another.

This time of year is a time in which God is exceedingly forgiving: He wants our repentance during this time.

The reason this time is so open for this yearning movement is because Moses spent this time period on the mountain, achieving forgiveness for the Jewish people for the sin of the Golden calf, and orchestrating the delivery of the second set of tablets.

Finally, we discussed the different acronyms which spell out E.L.U.L., which together indicate the moods of "teshuvah, tefillah, tzedakah" - repentance, prayer and righteousess (including charitable giving and behavior), which characterize where we need to focus our efforts of improvement during these times.

ואשר לא צדה והאלהים אנה לידו ושמתי לך, ראשי תבות אלול, לומר כי חדש זה, הוא עת רצון לקבל תשובה על החטאים שעשה בכל השנה. וגם רמז שגם על השגגות צריך לעשות תשובה בחדש הזה . עוד אמרו דורשי רשומות, ומל ה' אלהיך את לבבך ואת לבב זרעך, ראשי תבות אלול. וכן אני לדודי ודודי לי, ראשי תבות אלול. וכן איש לרעהו ומתנות לאביונים ראשי תבות אלול

May it be for a blessing.