Behar-Bechukotai
Leviticus 25:1–27:34
Jeremiah 16:19–17:14
If you’re like most people who do not bother to read the fine print on bank and credit card agreements regarding penalties, you may (or may not) want to take a closer look at this week’s portion, specifically chapter 26:14-46. This is the “fine print” of our agreement we made at Sinai that “we will do and we will obey” (Exodus 24:7).
This chapter is known as the tochacha, words of rebuke, or more ominously “the curses.” It traditionally is read swiftly and in a low monotone to soften the impact of the harsh, unrelenting consequences we will suffer for neglecting to heed God’s voice and follow his commandments.
Unfazed, however, the sages of the Talmud looked for clues that there were blessings embedded in these frightening words. In doing so, they discovered nothing less than Jewish immortality.
“You will stumble over one another as in flight from the sword …” (Leviticus 26:37). The Talmud does not explain it in its literal sense; rather, we will stumble on account of each other. The sins of Jews in one part of the world will cause their brethren to fall on the other side of the globe. Because “Kol Yisrael areivim zeh lazeh,” all Jews are guarantors and responsible for each other (Shavuot 39a).
What a strange way for the Torah to teach us such a revolutionary concept — that all Jews are interrelated, that the actions of Jews in San Francisco affect Jews in Israel and vice-versa. Deep down, we know it to be true and we wear that distinction with pride.
However, couldn’t the Torah “reveal” that truth to us in a more uplifting context? Would it not have been more appropriate to be informed of this unique status as we stood as one at Sinai? Or perhaps at the Jordan River with Joshua poised to enter the Holy Land for the first time as a nation? But alas, there was no other place in the Torah to learn this most foundational teaching.
In a sense, it is the ultimate response to a question first posed by Cain in Genesis and his like in generations thereafter: “Am I my brother’s and sister’s keeper?” Now God finally gives the answer, and it is a resounding yes!
But why is it that just because we are one nation we are destined to suffer on account of each other? Is Haman’s definition of the Jew as “one nation dispersed all over the world” (Esther 3:8) destined for persecution correct? Or does the Torah have a more positive take on Jewish collectivism?
Lord Jonathan Sacks, Britain’s chief rabbi, comments as to why of all places in the Torah we find this “blessing” of Jewish oneness among the curses and, furthermore, why the rabbis of the Talmud even thought of looking there for such inspiration.
It is natural for human beings of any nationality to be affected by the actions of others, provided one of two criteria are met: either geographic proximity or political affiliation. Thus it was never unique to Judaism that we had this symbiotic relationship with each other (nations rise and fall together), so the rabbis had to look elsewhere for hope. They needed a sign that even when we are in exile and scattered to the ends of the Earth with no apparent connection to one another, a Jew in Brooklyn and another in Bangkok are linked together. That there would always be something called a nation of Israel despite thousands of years of being away from home. Something unprecedented in the annals of history.
But where to look? All of the Bible and its commandments assume the Jews to be living together in Israel, except for the tochacha. This is the one instance that forecasts exile and separation. Where everyone, including most rabbis, saw curses and tragedy, one great mystical sage, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, the author of the Zohar, saw redemption. It takes a kabbalist to appreciate that although we may be reading curses, what a blessing it is to know that God still considers us his one nation. Even with no land, no autonomy, we have one soul that is a part of God and indivisible. We have each other.
When life feels challenging and the world seems dark, look even deeper and you may just find light. Or as a legendary grateful local musician once sang, “Sometimes you get shown the light in the strangest of places if you look at it right.”
Rabbi Shlomo Zarchi is the spiritual leader of Orthodox Congregation Chevra Thilim in San Francisco. He can be reached at [email protected].