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Torah Studies — Behar 5784

Выпуск: Torah Studies — Behar 5784. Темы: parsha_commentary. Поисковые термины: недельная глава, парша, parsha, פרשה, פרשת השבוע. Schneerson Adapted from Chassidic Dimensions PARSHAS BEHAR 5784 Behar BEHAR TAKING AN ACTIVE INTEREST This week's Torah portion contains the prohibition against giving or taking interest.1 The passage concludes:2 "I am G-d your L-rd who took you out of the land of Egypt... For whoever acknowledges the commandment of interest acknowledges the exodus from Egypt; whoever denies the commandment of interest is as if he denies the exodus from Egypt." Why -- far more so than other commandments -- is the prohibition against interest so closely connected to the exodus from Egypt and the acceptance of the yoke of heaven? This is alluded to in the blessing recited prior to the performance of a mitzvah, where we praise G-d for sanctifying us "with His commandments" -- the mitzvos that we perform are His, in that G-d performs them as well.3 There are two distinct aspects to G-d's performance of mitzvos: His performance precedes our performance of these selfsame commandments, as reflected in the saying of our Sages,4 "What He [first] does, He commands the Jewish people to do"; G-d performs the mitzvos in response to and as a result of our performance, in keeping with the statement of our Sages:5 "Whoever learns Torah, G-d learns and studies opposite him." And just as this is so with regard to G-d's study of Torah, so too with regard to His observance of the mitzvos. The ultimate manifestation of kindness is when a recipient earns the good he receives; a gift dispensed gratis, without the recipient having to exert himself, is considered "bread of shame"6 -- sustenance accompanied by a sense of shame at not having earned the bread that has been so graciously provided. Not only does He endow the person with potential before he begins his service -- "What He [first] does, He commands the Jewish people to do", but G-d remains an active partner 6 Behar -- "G-d reads and studies opposite him." We now understand the underlying connection between the prohibition against interest, the acceptance of the heavenly yoke, and the Exodus: The prohibition against interest is of all-embracing significance, reflecting the active partnership of G-d in one's service, an expression of G-d's yoke. The portion goes on to describe an unsettling situation that can resul

Издание

Torah Studies

Дата

23 мая 2024 г.

Страниц

12

Темы: parsha_commentary