|
Re'eh- Don't tell me what to do
For this year’s Parsha Lesson I will be focusing on a chinuch (parenting/educational) lesson that can be derived from the Dvar Torah.
Background
In this week’s Parsha (Torah portion), Moshe continues his final farewell speech to the Jewish people before his passing on from this world. Moshe reviews the Torah, as well as gives additional encouragement and guidance before the Jewish people exit the desert, where the Jewish people lived in a spiritual bubble removed from the ‘regular’ world, and enter into Eretz Yisroel (Israel).
As part of this were the various rules about how to go about serving Hashem properly in the Beis Hamikdash (Holy Temple, of which the Kotel is the remaining wall), which would ultimately be built in Yerushalayim about 480 years after entering the land. As part of the halachos (laws) which pertain to the bringing of sacrifices in the Beis Hamikdash, Moshe goes over how the sacrifices are to be eaten. It is in this topic that Moshe reviewed the halacha that a Jewish person is forbidden to eat blood. However, Moshe adds some additional encouragement and says- ‘strengthen yourselves and don’t eat blood!’
The great Tanna (sage of the Mishnaic era) R’ Shimon ben Azai explains that the reason why Moshe said this extra encouragement was in order to drive home to the Jewish people how important it is to constantly strengthen themselves in adhering to the laws of the Torah. If such a simple and easy command, such as refraining from eating blood, which is not a normally desirous or appealing food, needs encouragement and ‘chizzuk’ (strengthening), how much more so do other commands of the Torah which one is tempted to transgress- require constant strengthening to keep away from.
Question
The Sifsei Chachamim (R’ Shabsai ben Yosef, 1641-1718, Amsterdam) asks on this- but keeping away from blood does NOT require one strengthening themselves! For the typical person, for whom the Torah generally addresses, blood is repulsive! So what is R’ Shimon ben Azai referring to when he says that ‘if such a simple command needs strengthening’, it doesn’t!?
While it is true that the other commands of the Torah need much MORE strengthening than the command to stay away from blood, but the command to stay away from blood requires ZERO strengthening! So how would any encouragement of ‘strengthening one’s self’ to stay away from blood make any sense?
Answer
The Sifsei Chachamim answers with a piercing and eye opening insight into the human being. He explains that what R’ Shimon ben Azai was conveying to us that Moshe was telling the Jewish nation, and teaching us for all time, is that the basic foundational element within a person which leads them astray and leads them to sin, both against G-d, man, and even themselves, is the resistance to being ‘told what to do’.
Eating blood is repulsive and there is no appeal to a typical person. Until, that is, Hashem came along and forbade us from eating it. Now, there is a new desire which has been created for blood- an otherwise repulsive and disgusting food. Why? What is this desire?
To be free to do as one pleases and not have their behavior ‘hemmed’ in by anyone else or anything else.
Man has a part of him which grates against any direction, instruction or compulsion to act in any way- other than the whims of the animalistic within him. This part of man, then, wants and needs to do that which is otherwise disgusting and repulsive. Why? For no other reason than to be free from being told that they cannot partake in this type of behavior.and to demonstrate this freedom openly.
Chinuch Lesson
It is of great importance to educate and nurture one’s children and students to be rule followers and to be able to accept direction to their behavior. For a child to develop into someone who is not able to be told what to do, is a recipe for that child to not be able to function properly in society and with others.
When a parent or teacher realizes that this is a fundamental challenge to every person and part of what it means to be a person with an evil inclination (the source of this need to be free), then that educator will proceed with care and thoughtfulness as to how to best not arouse this resistance and to also slowly acclimate the child to be accepting and appreciative of direction and rules- in a healthy and productive fashion.
The question of whether or not a person can accept direction and to be ‘yes told what to do’, is the difference between this person living a happy and productive life with satisfying social relationships and connections and otherwise.
Lesson for our times
For the coming year, I will be applying the lesson, from the weekly Parsha lesson, to the world as we know it today. The Torah’s values and lessons give us direction to everything in life. The wisdom of G-d, the Creator of the world who knows all and directs all, is an invaluable resource for us to be able to make proper decisions and direct our lives accordingly.
From this insight and lesson from Moshe Rabbeinu (‘our teacher’, referred to as such for he taught the Torah to the Jewish people), as conveyed to us from R' Shimon ben Azai, one can understand a lot of the craziness we see in the world around us. People have an inclination inside of them for total anarchy and freedom from any direction or compulsion to act in any way- regardless of whether or not those rules and structures are good for them. It makes no difference. The ‘natural Man’ wants to tear down any rules, order and structure in order to be able to proceed as a ‘free’ and untethered spirit doing as it wishes, when it wishes.
The reality of the world, until recently, did not allow for this. Without the proper structure and rules man could not survive. And when people are rooted in reality, or in a set of religious values which demands adherence to rules and trains the person to be accepting of structure and appreciative of the good and benefit to humanity that structure bestows, man will embrace rules, structure and order which allow society to flourish. In fact, if one studies the various societies of history, the ones with more robust and developed social structure and order led to the more successful and productive- and relatively peaceful- societies.
If however, Man is freed from the reality of the world through technological innovation and the abundant wealth, comfort and ease that comes along with it, and man is not trained and rooted in any set of values which demands adherence and acceptance of rules and structure; then ‘natural Man’ will rear his ugly head and seek to destroy any rules and structure to enable his whimsical spirit to flit around as it pleases, in the moment. No rules or structure is acceptable. Why? For no reason other than the fact that rules and structure themselves are antithetical to Man’s yearning for freedom.
Wishing you and your family a wonderful Shabbos!
Rabbi Eli Meir Kramer
| 
