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Parashat Tazria-Metzora: Unpleasant Torah Issues by Rabbi Binyamin Zev Kahane |
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Written by Binyamin Zev Kahane
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First published in 1996.
Parshat
Tazria-Metzora discusses all kinds of unpleasant subjects. One can even
say they are "not nice." Leprosy, plagues, scabs, semen and all
different forms of uncleanliness are expounded upon in the greatest of
detail. Why must the Torah deal with the most undignified of problems
that trouble man? Would it not be preferable for our holy Torah to skip
such subjects and discuss more spiritually uplifting matters? You know,
concepts such as holiness and purity, grandeur and splendor, and
similar religious subjects? Do we really need to read in such graphic
detail about semen and scabs on a Shabbos morning? Should not this
subject matter be dealt with modestly?
But the more we learn
Torah, the more we reveal that just as Torah deals with spiritually
uplifting concepts, so too it deals with matters we would not
categorize as "spiritual." For example, at the very beginning of the
Tur and Shulchan Aruch, in "Orach Haim" (the section dealing with day
to day matters), are the laws dealing with going to the bathroom,
elaborated upon in meticulous detail. Nothing more and nothing less.
And so, we see a basic principle: the Torah is a Torat hayim, applying to one's life in the fullest of senses.
Indeed,
it would be more comfortable for many if the Torah would deal with the
"lofty" subjects, and that their spiritual world would only include the
"nice", "pure" topics that go down smoothly. It would be preferable to
many if the trivial, everyday stuff would be placed outside the
spiritual realm. But the purpose of the Torah is precisely the
opposite. It is to bring holiness and spirituality to even the most
remote and lowly of places, in order to sanctify them. It intentionally
relates in great measure to the problematic areas of life, so it will
not be mistaken for some nice "folklore" that requires a consensus and
a distancing from controversy. It deals with the evil. And when the
time comes where one must perform some painful surgery - even at the
cost of a certain amount of blood-letting - then even this must be done
without undue hesitation.
One can not ignore tzaraat
("leprosy"). It is an expression of man's problems, and the sages tell
us that the very word tzaraat is from motzi shem ra ("slander"). And
so, the world needs to be corrected. Sometimes, it takes serious
surgery, and one can not ignore it by getting bogged down in all kinds
of "lofty" and "nice" concepts that are cut off from reality. That is a
Christian outlook. The Torah, by contrast, separates between good and
evil, and deals with the problems. It doesn't run away from reality; it
deals with it head on.
One of the problems with observant Jews
is that there is all too often a subconscious distinction between "nice
mitzvot" and "not nice mitzvot" (this categorization being dependent on
the "spirit" of the time). Everyone, for example, loves the mitzvah of
Shabbas; it has come to embody a concept pertaining to "social" and
family values. (Once this was not so, and it was looked upon in a
negative light, as we see that Haman tried to incite Achashverosh
against the Jews using the fact that the Jews rest on Shabbat.)
Everyone also loves the mitzvah of honoring one's parents. Who can
oppose such a nice mitzvah? (And this too isn't an absolute, as we know
of societies who cast off their elder citizens to die.)
On the
other hand, people tend to distance themselves from the mitzvot of
leprosy, as they do from the halachot of war, vengeance and the
expulsion of Goyim from the land, despite the fact that these subjects
are such a central and basic theme in authentic Jewish thought. For
these laws, too, belong to the category of "not nice" mitzvot in the
Torah, since they contradict liberal Western culture.
True, most
observant Jews would not dare to admit they make such a categorization.
But in their subconscious, they do it all the time, due to the non-stop
brainwashing, which, like gamma rays, penetrates their mindsets. This
is why many find themselves alienated from the parsha Tazria-Metzora,
and this is why they use all kinds of excuses to deny the parshas
dealing with war and vengeance.
Like a pillar, the parshas of
Tazria-Metzora appear between the parshiot that express the height of
holiness and the "beauty" of Judaism - parshat Shemini in which the
Tabernacle was consecrated and parshat Achrei Mot, which describes the
service of the Cohen HaGadol on Yom Kippur. This teaches us a vital
lesson: "Torat HaShem timeema, meshivat nafesh." - "The Torah of HaShem
is perfect (whole), restoring the soul." (Psalms 19)
When does it restore the soul? When it is whole and complete, and not
divided into different parts that we are more fond of or less fond of.
In
the final analysis, the greatness of Torah may even stem from the fact
that it relates to the "less nice" sides of life, offering clear
solutions to problems. Our Torah is not pareve, but rather determined
and unhesitating, carrying on its banner the need to cling to good and
burn out evil. Without compromises.
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