Rabbi Frand on Parshas Shoftim
These divrei Torah were adapted from the hashkafa portion of Rabbi Yissocher
Frand's Commuter Chavrusah Tapes on the weekly portion: Tape #426, The
Mitzvah of Escorting Guests.
Good Shabbos!
'Life Without Parole' For Unintentional Murder Would Be Inhumane
It a person killed someone unintentionally, the Torah stipulates that he is
exiled to a city of refuge and he must remain there until the death of the
Kohen Gadol [High Priest] [Bamidbar 35:38]. The Talmud discuses the
connection between the Kohen Gadol and the unintentional murderer. The Kohen
Gadol should have prayed that such tragic accidents not occur in the Land of
Israel.
The Talmud mentions that there were 6 cities of refuge, 3 on the eastern
side of the Jordan River and 3 on the western side. The 3 cities on the
eastern side were set aside even before the Jews entered the Land of Israel
proper (the western side). Nevertheless, they were not "effective" as cities
of refuge until the corresponding cities on the western side were conquered
and set aside as cities of refuge as well.
The Meshech Chochmah [Rav Meir Simcha HaKohen of Dvinsk 1843-1926] offers an
interesting insight into this phenomenon. As we stated previously, a person
exiled to a city of refuge had to remain there until the death of the Kohen
Gadol. When the Jews entered the Land of Israel, the Kohen Gadol was Elazar,
who succeeded his father Aharon in that position. Elazar was guaranteed to
remain in that role throughout the period of conquest and division of the
land (a period consisting of 14 years) [Bamidbar 34:17]. It follows that
anyone who would kill unintentionally before the Jews entered and conquered
the main part of the Land of Israel would have no chance of getting out of
his confinement for many years.
Under normal circumstances, any person in a city of refuge could think to
himself on any day of the year "today I may get out" (i.e. - perhaps the
Kohen Gadol will die today). But if we were to put a person in a city of
refuge before the process of conquering the Land of Israel began, this
fellow would have no hope of immediate release. The Torah guaranteed that
the Kohen Gadol would remain alive throughout the period of conquest and
division. The Meshech Chochmah suggests that to place a person in a city of
refuge with no hope of getting out any time soon would have been inhumane.
"Life without parole" for an unintentional murderer would be a punishment
that did not fit the crime. For this reason, the cities of refuge did not
function in TransJordan until the land was divided and the role that the
Torah guaranteed to Elazar was complete. At that point, the possibility of
an early release from confinement was realistic.
"When They Gossip In Vilna, They Desecrate The Sabbath In Paris"
The Talmud [Eruchin 16a] teaches that there are two forbidden actions, for
which there is no atonement achievable via regular sacrifices; atonement
is only achievable via other means. Those two forbidden actions are murder
and tale bearing (lashon hara). The example given of the atonement for
murder is the 'Eglah Arufah' [Decapitated Calf]. The pasuk [verse] at the
end of the section of Eglah Arufah [Devorim 21:9] in fact states, "And you
shall eradicate the innocent blood from your midst by doing that which is
upright in the eyes of G-d."
The simple meaning of this pasuk is that by performing the mitzvah of Eglah
Arufah one is "doing what is upright in the eyes of G-d" and thereby that
atones for the sin of the innocent blood being spilled.
The Ibn Ezra (1089-1164) offers a novel alternate interpretation of this
pasuk. The Ibn Ezra reads the pasuk as an admonition -- You should do that
which is upright in the eyes of G-d -- meaning fulfill the mitzvos in
general -- and thereby G-d will see to it that no innocent blood is spilled
in your midst. The Ibn Ezra quotes this as an application of the principle
"the reward for one mitzvah is another mitzvah". The pasuk thus means "You,
the Jewish Court, keep your commandments in order to prevent the spilling of
innocent blood in your midst. (For example, fulfill the command of escorting
wayfarers and seeing that the needs of itinerant travelers are met.)
If the righteous people, the scholars, and the elders do what they are
supposed to do, then all levels of society will behave properly and innocent
blood will not be spilled in the land.
This is akin to the famous teaching repeated in the name of Rav Yisroel
Salanter (1809-1883): "When Lashon Hara [gossip] is spoken in Vilna, the
consequence is Chillul Shabbos [desecration of the Sabbath] in Paris". Vilna
was the "Jerusalem of Lithuania" and Lithuania was the "Land of Israel of
Europe". Vilna had a reputation for being the home of great scholars and
Torah leaders. Obviously people there maintained a high level of observance.
What were their sins? They lapsed into the virtually unavoidable sin of
talking improperly about their neighbors. But spiritual laxity of any sort
in Vilna had a "snowball effect" throughout the Jewish world. Therefore, in
a city like Paris (which was already then known for looser behavior) the
consequence will be sins of much greater magnitude such as Sabbath
desecration.
This is exactly how Ibn Ezra interprets the last pasuk of our parsha: "If
you want to ensure that there will be no innocent blood spilled in your
land, then you must elevate society by doing even the "regular" commands
such as escorting one's guests, acts of kindness, and fulfilling that which
is upright in the eyes of G-d."
People complain that "The country is morally declining; morality is
terrible; society is amoral, etc. etc.". We sometimes have the attitude that
"What can I do about it? I'm sitting here in Yeshiva doing what I am
supposed to be doing. I pray. I learn. What do you want from me? I'm good!"
However, the lesson is that if we truly do what we are supposed to be doing
then, metaphysically, that has an effect on the planet. But if we speak
Lashon Hara in Vilna... or in Baltimore or in Boro Park or in Monsey or
where ever we live, then that can have a detrimental effect and enable the
worst type of sins committed everywhere else.
This week's write-up is adapted from the hashkafa portion of Rabbi Yissochar
Frand's Commuter Chavrusah Torah Tapes on the weekly Torah portion (#426).
The corresponding halachic portion for this tape is: The Mitzvah of
Escorting Guests. The other halachic portions for Parshas Shoftim from the
Commuter Chavrusah Series are:
Also Available: Mesorah / Artscroll has published a collection of Rabbi Frand's essays. The book is entitled:
and is available through your local Hebrew book store or from Project Genesis, 1-410-654-1799.
