Transcript
Good morning, בוקר טוב Boker Tov, and welcome back to פרשה Parsha Perspectives for today. This is a very special edition of פרשה Parsha Perspectives for today because we are in the middle of the Bokeratone Synagogue Global Community Campaign. Whether you're living locally, you're part of the BRS community physically, or you're living at a distance and you're unable to participate physically, but you're part of the greater global BRS community, this is the opportunity to give back, to say thank you, and to be part of our community. First, I want to thank our generous פרשה Parsha series sponsors for the year, our dear friends Becky and Avi Katz. We don't take your sponsorship for granted. Thank you so much for your generosity, in loving memory of David Grossman, Becky's father, דוד בן מנחם מענדל Dovid ben Menachem Mendel, whose יארצייט yahrzeit will be next week. And this morning's class in particular is sponsored by David and Shoshi Meyerfeld on the שלושים shloshem of her beloved father, Zev Goldfisher, זאב בן יוסף הלוי Zev ben Yosef HaLevi, who was such a pillar of the Elizabeth community and had such an impact there. Thank you as well for your generosity and for your sponsorship. As I mentioned, this morning, special opportunity for the פרשה Parsha Perspective listeners live. If you express your generosity, your gratitude, your appreciation and your participation in our global community, during the next hour, during our פרשה Parsha class, if you donate $100 or more to our campaign, you are automatically entered into a raffle for $180 Amazon gift card. You could almost double your money, and either way, get a tax deduction, a מעשר maiser deduction. And either way, show gratitude and be part of a growing online global community. Go to BRsonline.org/global, BRsonline.org/global, join BRS Plus, the online global community, and we will acknowledge you in the scroll on the bottom of the שיעור shiur during the שיעור shiur, and you will automatically be entered into the raffle. And so I thank you in advance for showing your appreciation. Those who listen to the פרשה Parsha class and who benefit each and every week, I thank you for showing your appreciation and being part of this and being part of this effort.Okay, פרשת משפטים Parshas Mishpatim begins on page 462 in the Artscroll Stone חומש Chumash, and it begins the following, ואלה המשפטים אשר תשים לפניהם ve'eileh hamishpatim asher tasim lifneihem. These are the laws that I place before you. And these are the laws that I place before you. Every child going to school is learned in school, every young child has been corrected by their parents to know that you cannot begin a sentence with the word and. You don't begin a sentence with the word and. So how does the Torah get away with it? השם Hashem Almighty, the great grammarian in the sky, how in the world does he begin a sentence with and, ואלה המשפטים ve'eileh hamishpatim? First question is, it should be אלה המשפטים eileh hamishpatim, not ואלה המשפטים ve'eileh hamishpatim. So what is the ו vav coming to add? Rabbi Soloveitchik in the great רב Rav חומש Chumash of the OU addresses this question. We're going to come from three perspectives: the רב Rav, we're going to see the perspective of רב Rav Druck, we're going to come from the perspective of רב Rav שמחה בונים מפשיסחא Simcha Bunim of Pshischa, and then I'm going to offer you my own. So begins the רב Rav. Following the giving of the עשרת הדברות Aseres HaDibros, the Torah should have proceeded immediately with chapter כ\"ד khaf daled, chapter 24, in which השם Hashem tells משה Moshe to seal the covenant with the people. It's followed by the construction of the משכן Mishkan, פרשת תרומה, תצווה Parshas Terumah, Tetzaveh, the required step to fulfilling the divine promise of when we come out of Egypt and we come to the mountain, הר סיני Har Sinai. And finally, there's a return to the story of revelation, the episode of, of course, the עגל הזהב Eigel HaZahav, the golden calf. פרשת משפטים Parshas Mishpatim represents a dramatic departure from these themes, says the רב Rav. I don't understand, a moment ago we were on הר סיני Har Sinai. A moment ago was נעילה ne'ilah with the greatest קומזיץ kumzits, a moment ago we were on the spiritual high. And now פרשת משפטים Parshas Mishpatim, these major, major, dramatic departure and deviation from the track we were on. We were on this track of holiness and sanctity and spirituality, of being moved and being uplifted. And all of a sudden we're talking about the laws of נזיקין nezikin, the laws of damages, the laws of civil law, criminal law, tort law. What are we doing here? Apparently פרשת משפטים Parshas Mishpatim is an interpretation of the עשרת הדברות Aseres HaDibros, says the רב Rav. Without פרשת משפטים Parshas Mishpatim, there cannot be a גוי קדוש goi kadosh and ממלכת כהנים mamlaches kohanim. Almost all the fundamental principles of the מצוות mitzvos may be found here. Says the רב Rav, the reason פרשת יתרו Parshas Yisro continues with משפטים Mishpatim and the reason there's a ו vav, a ו' החיבור vav hachibur connecting the two, is to tell me that פרשת משפטים Parshas Mishpatim, which is the framework for civil law, the Torah addresses not only our religious or our spiritual selves. It doesn't just tell me how to connect with faith and optimism and spirituality, but the Torah is telling me what it means to be part of a ממלכת כהנים mamlaches kohanim and גוי קדוש goy kadosh in my everyday mundane life. If I שאקל shuckle in שול shul, if I have the longest שמונה עשרה Shmoneh Esrei, if I say all of ספר תהלים Sefer Tehillim, but then I'm ruthless in business, and I fail to hold the door, I don't say please and thank you, I'm unkind, I cut corners, I don't pay my taxes honestly, I damage someone but I don't compensate, I don't own up, I walk away, I don't know how to get along with others, if I don't follow, if I don't execute in practice in everyday life all that supposedly I stand for and I've learned at הר סיני Har Sinai, then הר סיני Har Sinai is not really realized. So the ו' החיבור vav hachibur, that ו vav, ואלה המשפטים ve'eileh hamishpatim, shows Rabbi Soloveitchik, why should the Torah care about the situation of a paid or unpaid watchman? פרשת משפטים Parshas Mishpatim discusses the issues of קנינים kinyanim, acquisitions and חזקות chazakos and שטר shtar. These monetary issues would seem to be out of place in a moral code. The conclusion then is that a civil law carries religious significance. Destruction of property and trespassing are not merely violations of civil law, they are moral transgressions. Says the רב Rav, משפטים Mishpatim, which is all about interpersonal law, which is all about damages and all about financial responsibilities, is not separate and apart and distinct from my religious life and religious personality, but they're all integrated, they all overlap, they're all connected. And that's why there is the ו' החיבור vav hachibur. That's why there is the ו' החיבור vav hachibur. In fact, the last משנה Mishna of בבא בתרא Baba Basra, Rabbi Soloveitchik points out, that if one wishes to become a תלמיד חכם talmid chacham, he should study the civil monetary laws. You want to become a חסיד chasid, you want to become a תלמיד חכם talmid chacham, you have to learn and master the מילי דנזיקין milay d'nezikin. The study of these topics sharpens the mind, allows development of precision and depth. Study of נזיקין nezikin inspires the one who studies, helping him develop the intuition and intellect. It's a special capacity which the Almighty implanted in הלכות נזיקין Hilchos Nezikin, that inspires both the emotional and intellectual level. The best farm of the ראשונים Rishonim and אחרונים Achronim were in the area of נזיקין nezikin. And so it's not like, why are we studying this dry area of law? I want to be immersed in התבודדות hisbodedus and התבוננות hisbonenus. I want to talk about אמונה emuna and בטחון bitachon and דבקות dveikus and חסידות chasidus, all of which I also want to talk about and learn and try to teach. However, it must transmit, it must translate, it must be executed in our everyday real life. We must bring it into the real world. It can't be something that exists only in theory and concept and an abstract. I can't be on הר סיני Har Sinai and be living the principles of wanting to talk about God. I've got to take it with me and go out into the world, bring it with me, execute on it, and put it into, and put it into practice. Thank you Robert Friedman for your sponsorship. Everybody take a moment in the middle of the פרשה Parsha שיעור shiur. Normally we run a campaign called Friends of BRS and every year we've raised tens of thousands of dollars for those who attend in person who aren't members of BRS, who give $180 in order to be a friend of BRS with the benefits that it brings. Obviously, we have that, don't have that ability to be in person, but we still need your help, we need your support. Frankly, we need it in order to continue to teach and share the inspiration, and I dare say you need it in order to show the gratitude and not just be somebody who takes, who listens, who learns without contributing, participating, or doing your part. So again, in the next now 15 minutes as we learn together, if you take a moment and hit the donate button, if you take a moment, be on, go on brsonline.org/global, $100 or more donation, although you can give any amount, that donation will enter you into $180 raffle. You can make your money right back. So that is Rabbi Soloveitchik. ו' החיבור vav hachibur, ואלה המשפטים ve'eila mishpatim. פרשת יתרו Parshas Yisro, seminal event, הר סיני Har Sinai, smoke, we saw the sounds, it moved us, it was amazing, it uplifted us, we had goosebumps, we left, we cried, and then civil law, tort law? Yeah, because that's where it's executed. You can't only leave it in theory.רב Rav Druck also tackles this issue, and רב Rav Druck says the following, רב Rav Druck says the following. He says ואלה המשפטים אשר תשים לפניהם ve'eila hamishpatim asher tasim lifneihem. אמר הקדוש ברוך הוא Amar Hakadosh Baruch Hu, רש\"י Rashi quotes, אמר הקדוש ברוך הוא למשה, לא תעלה על דעתך לומר אשנה להם הפרק והלכה ב' או ג' פעמים Amar Hakadosh Baruch Hu l'Moshe, lo sa'aleh al da'atcha lomar eshneh lahem haperek v'halacha beis o gimmel pe'amim, אשר תסדור בפיהם כמשנה, ואיני מטריח עצמי להבין אותם טעמי הדבר ופירושו asher tisdur b'fehem k'mishnah, v'eini matriach atzmi l'havin otam ta'amei hadavar u'peirusho. לכך נאמר אשר תשים לפניהם lekach ne'emar asher tasim lifneihem. Don't think to yourself, I'll teach it of the positive a couple times but I don't have to actually, I don't have to actually go through the great effort of explaining it to them and organizing it. אלה המשפטים eileh hamishpatim. כי תסכניהו ורביהו ki sisakneihu v'rivihu, these are the law. Now continue, give out the laws. What are these words doing here? אשר תשים לפניהם asher tasim lifneihem. These are the laws that you're placing before them. Where else would the laws go? Of course the laws go before them. Where else do the laws go? אלה המשפטים אשר תשים לפניהם Eileh hamishpatim asher tasim lifneihem, כשולחן ערוך ומוכן לאכול לפני האדם k'shulchan aruch umuchan l'echol lifnei ha'adam. So says רש\"י Rashi, we're all famous, we all are familiar with it because it's the book that is the greatest authority that communicates Jewish law called the שולחן ערוך Shulchan Aruch. Reb ר' Reb יוסף קארו Yosef Karo in the 16th century when he decides he's going to organize what he had previously offered as his commentary on the טור Tur called the בית יוסף Beis Yosef. And yet people were not studying the בית יוסף Beis Yosef, very intricate, very detailed, very complex. So he summarized his בית יוסף Beis Yosef into a book, and he writes in the introduction to that book, listen carefully. He writes in the introduction to the שולחן ערוך Shulchan Aruch that you'll be able to review the entire code of Jewish law once a year. And that's why he condensed and consolidated, he summarized his entire בית יוסף Beis Yosef into שולחן ערוך Shulchan Aruch because you'll be able to review the entire שולחן ערוך Shulchan Aruch once a year. Why did he call that book שולחן ערוך Shulchan Aruch? A שולחן ערוך shulchan aruch means a set table. Why did he call it the set table? Because of this רש\"י Rashi. רש\"י Rashi says אשר תשים לפניהם asher tasim lifneihem because of our פרשה Parsha, פרשת משפטים Parshas Mishpatim, a set table. Take the laws, organize them, make them clear, make them accessible, and present them, display them, distribute them כשולחן ערוך k'shulchan aruch, like a set table that one is ready to eat from. And wonders רב Rav Druck in him, אשר תשים לפניהם asher tasim lifneihem. היינו כמו שמניחים את האוכל על השולחן לפני האדם Hainu k'mo shemanichim es ha'ochel al hashulchan lifnei ha'adam. The same way that you put out, you put out platters of food, the same way that you serve someone, you set up the buffet, the same way you have a set table, כמו שפירש רש\"י k'mo shepeireish Rashi. תשים לפניהם כשולחן ערוך ומוכן לאכול לפני האדם tasim lifneihem k'shulchan aruch umuchan l'echol lifnei ha'adam. ויש לדקדק v'yesh l'dakdeik, and wonders רב Rav Druck a wonderful question. Why is the Torah compared, why is the teaching or transmission of Jewish law compared to a set table, to a great banquet? מה דמיון בין טרחת הרב להבין טעמי הדבר ופירושיהם לבין עריכת השולחן לאכילה Ma dimyon bein tirchas harav l'havin ta'amei hadavar u'peirushehem l'vein arichas hashulchan l'achila? What was רש\"י Rashi getting at? What were our rabbis getting at? Hey משה Moshe, don't get away with the bare minimum. Don't just deposit the information and those who understand it will understand it and those who don't, tough nuggies. Take the time, understand it and present it. Robert Friedman, you are in the lead to win the raffle. So far you are a shoo-in. Is anyone gonna give him a run in? $100 or more, get a $180 tax deductible, gratitude, appreciation, member of the BRS Global community with benefits. What are you all waiting for? Press donate, come online and join and be part of this. So why is the description for a תלמיד חכם talmid chacham to make the effort to present it clearly, why is that compared to a set table and to food? Listen to this from רב Rav Druck. I love this insight. A powerful, powerful insight. נירא לבאר, שהנה דוד המלך נתן עצה איך לקנות דברי תורה Nireh l'va'er shehineh Dovid HaMelech nasan eitzah eich liknos Divrei Torah. דוד המלך Dovid HaMelech says, you know how you can remember דברי תורה Divrei Torah? לעולם לא אשכח פקודיך כי בם חייתני l'olam lo eshkach pikudecha ki vam chiyisani. If you ever attended a סיום siyum, in the סיום siyum, this is in the, in the text, the liturgy of the סיום siyum that's recited at a סיום siyum, on a מסכתא masechta, on a סדר seder, on ש\"ס Shas, on a משנה Mishnah or גמרא Gemara, לעולם לא אשכח פקודיך l'olam lo eshkach pikudecha. דוד המלך Dovid HaMelech, תהלים קי\"ט Tehillim kuf yud tes, 119. It actually was yesterday's תהלים Tehillim. דוד המלך Dovid HaMelech says לעולם l'olam, forever לא אשכח lo eshkach, may I not forget, פקודיך pikudecha, your instructions, your manual, your Torah. Why? כי בם חייתני ki vam chiyisani, because it is what gives me life. I can't forget to breathe. If I forget to breathe, I'm dead. I can't forget to eat. If I forget to eat, I'm dead. If I forget to learn, if I don't set aside time for a learn, Howard Gaines, thank you for your generous support. If I don't set aside time to learn, how can I live? ביאור הדבר, מה שחיי אדם תלויים בו אינו שוכח אותו לעולם Be'ur hadavar, ma shechayei adam t'luyim bo, eino shoche'ach oso l'olam. The answer is, whatever you know you need to live, you don't ever, ever forget. In fact, breathing is a natural response. When is the last time that you had to stop and think about breathing? The people who God forbid get Corona, God forbid have to wear a device to track their oxygen and to ensure that they're able to breathe deeply, they're acutely aware of the quality of their breath each and every moment. God forbid it should, God forbid it should go down. But a healthy person, an otherwise healthy person, never even pauses or hesitates or thinks about or contemplates. Such a person doesn't have to think even for a moment about breathing. It's a natural response to breathe. We know we have to breathe. If we don't breathe, we can't live. A person doesn't go days without eating and go, oh, I forgot to plug in my phone and I forgot to eat. No, you know that you need to, some people are more aware of the battery level on their phone than whether they've eaten. But a healthy person knows whether they've eaten, whether they've eaten healthy foods, and so on and so forth. So ממילא, אם האדם מרגיש שדברי תורה הם חייו ממש ובלעדיהם אינו אלא מת memaileh, im ha'adam margish she'divrei Torah hem chayav mamash u'biladeihem eino elah meis. So therefore that's what דוד המלך Dovid HaMelech was saying, לעולם לא אשכח פקודיך l'olam lo eshkach pikudecha. Let me get to the point, God, that learning your Torah is so fundamental, so axiomatic, so natural, so instinctive, so necessary, that I realize that without it I'll die. Without it I'll die. Because the things that I know that without which I'll die, I don't even have to think about. I just do. כמו שכתב הרמב\"ם, כי חייב להקצות תלמיד חכם בעיר מקלט k'mo shekasav haRambam, ki chayav l'haktzos talmid chacham b'ir miklat. The רמב\"ם Rambam writes in הלכות רוצח Hilchos Rotzeach, why do we send, somebody who kills by accident and goes to an עיר מקלט ir miklat, their רבי rebbe comes with them. The רבי rebbe comes with them, their שיעור shiur comes with them. Why? Because it says that we have to provide the person life. So for some people life is I need my flat screen TV, I need my Netflix code, I need my Hulu, I need my all you can eat sushi. But for every one of us, what should be natural to I need for life and I can't live without is Torah, is Torah. כי בם חייתני ki vam chiyisani. I need it. I need it. I'm not alive. If there's a day that goes by that I haven't been able to learn, it's not the same day. You don't have the same energy level, you don't have the same life force, you don't feel the same way that you are alive. זהו ביאור גמכן zehu be'ur gam kan. So says רב Rav Druck, maybe that's what's going on here. הקדוש ברוך הוא, אמר למשה, למד את כלל ישראל Hakadosh Baruch Hu amar l'Moshe, lamed es Klal Yisrael. This is Hashem's instruction to Moshe. You are the ambassador, the agent. You are the great teacher, משה רבינו Moshe Rabbeinu. Go teach Torah. כדי ללמדם באופן שיסודר בפיהם עד שירגישו שהוא צורך חייהם כשולחן ערוך לפניהם kedei l'lamdam b'ofen sheyisudar b'fihem ad sheyargishu shehu tzorech chayeihem k'shulchan aruch lifneihem. So in order for a person to have the right attitude and the right access, to have the right relationship with Torah, a person has to feel it's like a שולחן ערוך shulchan aruch. Just like when I come to the table, I'm drawn to the food. I'm hungry, I have an appetite. I'm drawn, I want to eat. Thank you Linda and Jeff Miller. Thank you anonymous. Thank you Bracha Kaplan. Thank you Sam S. Thank you all those who are stepping up. Join them. Please everybody do your part. Be a friend of BRS, be part of the BRS global community. So just like the food, I have this appetite, I'm drawn to eat it and I know that I can't live without it, so too Torah, we have to have the same perspective. And that's why when we think about the code of Jewish law, it is like a שולחן ערוך shulchan aruch. You walk into a set table. Mmm, delicious. I can't wait to dig in. I'm hungry, I can't wait to dig in. I know I need to eat it to live. You know, I've said before, you ever come home late from a business trip, came home late from traveling, you came home late from work, and you didn't get a chance to eat dinner. And you're exhausted, you're ready to collapse, you're passing out, and yet, you say, you know, I never had dinner. So on my way to bed, I'm going to open the fridge, the pantry, and I've got to eat something on my way to bed. Because even though my exhaustion far outweighs my appetite, still, a person needs to eat. You can't go to sleep without eating dinner, even though I'm more tired than I am hungry. You can't go to sleep without eating dinner. So a person finds a way to eat even before they go to bed. Torah, כל וחומר kal vachomer, all the more so להבדיל l'havdil. If a person didn't get an opportunity to learn that day, you didn't get a chance for whatever reason, no matter how many times you tried, you didn't get the chance to learn that day, then even if you're exhausted before you can collapse in bed, you must take a moment to learn some Torah. You must, because Torah is, כי בם חייתני ki vam chiyisani, it's our life force, it's our oxygen. Thank you Bracha Kaplan, thank you Sam S, thank you Barbara Osband, thank you very much Barbara Osband for your generosity, greatly appreciated. So that's why Torah and learning Torah is likened to a שולחן ערוך shulchan aruch. It is a set table that is put out before us. It's a set table that we have access to and we're supposed to have the same exact attitude. שולחן ערוך ומוכן לאכול לפני האדם Shulchan aruch u'muchan l'echol lifnei ha'adam. The same way I don't have to be told I need to eat. Most of us have to be told, stop eating, you're full, you've had enough, that's not nutritious. Most of us don't have to be told to eat, we have to be told to stop eating. Torah, הלוואי halevai, someone would ever have to tell us stop learning. should never stop learning. We should have the same draw, the same appetite, the same instinct, the same desire. ר' שמחה בונים Reb Simcha Bunim has a fascinating. ר' שמחה בונים מפשיסחא Reb Simcha Bunim of Pshischa says something so beautiful. He says, אלה המשפטים אשר תשים לפניהם eileh hamishpatim asher tasim lifneihem. Listen to the words of ר' שמחה בונים מפשיסחא Reb Simcha Bunim of Pshischa. He says, מותר סחור והלא הן שמשפטי השם חולקים עד סופו של כלים, מראשם ועד סופם, עולם בחשיבות בחיי אדם mutar s'chur v'halo hen shemishpatei Hashem cholkim ad sofo shel kelim, meirosham v'ad sofam, olam b'chashivus b'chayei adam. When it comes to the שולחן ערוך Shulchan Aruch, it comes to the code of Jewish law, code of Jewish law is telling us how to wake up in the morning until how do we fall asleep at night. Code of Jewish law is telling us how to eat, how to speak, how to do business, how to tie my shoes, how to do, it governs and regulates every aspect of my life to lead towards a more mindful and meaningful Jewish life. That has to be the forefront of my mind. So says ר' שמחה בונים מפשיסחא Reb Simcha Bunim of Pshischa, that's what the פסוק pasuk's telling you. אלה המשפטים Eileh hamishpatim, these laws, these rules of God, this formula, this blueprint, this instruction manual for life, אשר תשים asher tasim, where should you place it? Where does it belong? You got a new computer, you got a new dishwasher, you got a new refrigerator, it came with an instruction manual. You probably never took it out of the plastic. Maybe if you're really well organized, you put it in a file somewhere. If you're like most people, it sat in a pile somewhere, and eventually when you realize you're never going to look at it and you can find it online, you throw it out and you never ever read it. It sits somewhere in the back in the recesses in the bottom of a pile, ends up in the bottom of the garbage. It's an instruction manual, I'll figure it out on my own. I'll only maybe benefit from 50% of what it could do, but I don't need it to do more. So I'll figure it out on my own and the instruction manual goes somewhere in the back. Says ר' שמחה בונים מפשיסחא Reb Simcha Bunim of Pshischa, God forbid a person should get the Torah and say, \"You know what God, thank you for the manual. It's in the plastic, I appreciate it. I'm going to figure it out in my own life. I'll figure out my relationship with food and time and with people. I'll figure it all out on my own.\" No. Says ר' שמחה בונים מפשיסחא Reb Simcha Bunim of Pshischa, אלה המשפטים eileh hamishpatim, this is the blueprint, the manual. This is how to live life. This is the instructions to mindfulness and meaningfulness. And אשר תשים asher tasim, where does it have to be? לפניהם lifneihem. לפני כל ענין אחר Lifnei kol inyan acher. It has to come before anything else. So הלכה halacha tells me, this is how I have to conduct myself, הלכה halacha regulates me in this way, who cares what society tells me? Who cares what my own instinct tells me? Who cares what the fashion or the culture of the time tells me? That's not what I follow. What I need to follow are the משפטים mishpatim that are placed where? לפניהם Lifneihem, before anything else. Unlike in the glove compartment and unlike the the vacuum cleaner manual and unlike all the other instruction manuals that I never open and I try to figure it out on my own, the instruction manual called Torah has to be לפניהם lifneihem first and foremost. It has to be before me. It has to inform and inspire my day, my life, my attitude, my joy, my relationships. It has to move me to express gratitude to those who benefit me, to do my part, to participate, like all those who have given so far this morning. And again, I'm going to keep pounding. I apologize, but look, the שיעור shiur is free 51 weeks a year. One week, we ask you to do your part. It's a pretty small price to pay in order to have access not to me, but to the beautiful דברי תורה divrei Torah that we're sharing from others. Again, so many of you have joined friends of BRS in the past, take a moment, press the donate button, go on BRsonline.org/global. If you do it right now during the rest of this שיעור shiur in the next 40 minutes, you'll be entered into a raffle. Who wouldn't want to be, you can be a hero and give a $180 Amazon gift card to your grandchildren. You'll be the bubby or the zaidy of the year.Okay, one last one on ואלה המשפטים ve'eileh hamishpatim because we have to get past the opening פסוק pasuk this morning. ואלה המשפטים ve'eileh hamishpatim, these are the laws. Immediately following this transmission on הר סיני Har Sinai, as we mentioned, Moshe continues with civil law, criminal law, tort law, religious law, and laws and statutes that Judaism is not the only one who has these laws and statutes. Every legal system in the world since antiquity, earlier and beyond, have legal statutes. Damages and loans and all kinds of rules. And in fact, many of the laws that we're going to read this week overlap with American law and many or most legal systems. Liability that you have for damages, what are the rules of of watching, the consequences of capital crimes, payment for theft, acts of self-defense, shared values, and these are shared laws, but there's something fundamentally different about הלכה halacha, fundamentally different about the way it's instructed to us in our פרשה Parsha. ואלה המשפטים Ve'eileh hamishpatim, the ו' החיבור vav hachibur. And רש\"י Rashi quotes the מכילתא Mechilta, מה ראשון מסיני, אף אילו מסיני ma rishon miSinai, af eilu miSinai. That just like the first 10 commandments find their source in הר סיני Har Sinai, they were divinely transmitted, so to the totality of Jewish law. Not only was Sinai, wow, not only that amazing kumzits, that ne'ilah, not only when I felt Hashem in my kishkes, but each and every detail of the law was given by Hashem. And Rashi continues by explaining the juxtaposition of the passages, it teaches that the סנהדרין Sanhedrin, that the Supreme Court of the Jewish people in fact was located near the בית המקדש Beis Hamikdash, in the בית המקדש Beis Hamikdash, on the הר הבית Har HaBayis itself. And the Midrash traditionally understood that in Judaism we don't distinguish between religion and law like the רב Rav said, that religion is not just while I'm in שול shul or while I'm in the בית מדרש beis medrash, religion informs and inspires, it regulates how I conduct myself at the gym and at work and in my kitchen, in my home, on the street and in all and every area and aspect of life. But I think there's another layer here. Secular legal systems are constructed, they're given, they're designed from the perspective of the individual. If you think about it, American law is constructed to speak about and to protect my rights and my entitlements and my privileges and my freedoms. The law is designed to provide them and to protect them, and I'm held accountable if I violate my own rights or I violate through my conduct the rights of other people. פרשת משפטים Parshas Mishpatim is communicating something else. That even though we have many laws that overlap with the secular law, they come from a very different perspective. They're not from the perspective of rights and entitlements, but rather they're from the perspective of responsibilities, obligations, and duties. Only the Jewish legal system has a mitzvah of ואהבת לרעך כמוך v'ahavta l'reiacha kamocha, you have to love your neighbor as yourself. Only has, don't cause pain to the stranger. Only says you have to extend a free loan, and you can't walk by, you have to return a lost object. In American law, I'm a good American if I don't murder and I don't steal and I don't rape and I don't pillage, which doesn't in fact make me good, it just means I'm not bad. To be a good Jew, you have to actually be good. You have to be good. In American law, you're not a nice person if you're mean to the widow or the orphan, but in Torah law, God himself in our פרשה Parsha promises and pledges to exact retribution, to take justice if you are cruel, if you aggravate or agitate a widow or an orphan. So you see the Torah vision is not limited to creating this functional civil society, some social contract. It is a blueprint, a blueprint for God's vision for how the world is meant to be and how we are to conduct in it. And so I'd like to suggest to you that maybe what the Midrash is telling us is that פרשת משפטים Parshas Mishpatim is not a set of laws to serve God, it is a set of laws to be like God. It's not a set of laws to serve God, it is a set of laws to imitate and to be like God. God is not centered on himself and his rights and his entitlements and his privileges. He selflessly is devoted to give and do good for us. And פרשת משפטים Parshas Mishpatim is a blueprint, it is a description, it's a vision for how we can live a life of virtue, a life of giving, a life of responsibility, a life of, a life of fulfilling a, fulfilling a mission of why we are here. It's an entirely and totally different perspective. And by the way, it's one which is the, the source or the very definition of what שמחה simcha is all about. We're going to celebrate ראש חודש אדר Rosh Chodesh Adar this Friday in Shabbos. משנכנס אדר מרבין בשמחה Mishenichnas Adar marbin b'simcha. We're going to talk more about that momentarily. But משנכנס אדר mishenichnas Adar, when the month of אדר Adar enters, משנכנס mishenichnas, we mentioned at the beach Friday morning, at our Friday morning sunrise minyan at the beach, משנכנס mishenichnas, when we enters inside us אדר, א-ד-ר Adar, aleph-dalet-resh, the אלוף aluf, the א aleph is the one and only is God Almighty. So when God enters us, when we see Him and feel Him and live Him and love Him, משנכנס אדר, א-ד-ר mishenichnas Adar, aleph-dalet-resh, when that sense, when that attitude of א-ד-ר aleph-dalet-resh enters us, מרבין בשמחה marbin b'simcha, we're overcome, we're filled with joy because instead of stumbling or struggling through life, instead of trying to navigate and make sense, we have confidence that there's meaning, there's purpose, it's all organized, it's all for a reason, it's all from Hashem. משנכנס אדר Mishenichnas Adar, then we are מרבין בשמחה marbin b'simcha. But what really is שמחה simcha, and where does שמחה simcha come from? שמחה simcha in Judaism, joy, is not a feeling, it's a decision. And שמחה simcha, joy, is not being the recipient, the taker who gets. Thank you to the Newcoms and the Cyclic family and another anonymous and another anonymous for your generosity. Please keep giving, please keep contributing. Everyone do your part. Just click the donate button or join brsonline.org/global. שמחה Simcha is not when I turn inward and it's not when I buy and it's not when I get and it's not when I shop and it's not when I take. שמחה Simcha is when I give. Listen to this רמב\"ם Rambam in הלכות מגילה Hilchos Megillah. The רמב\"ם Rambam writes in הלכות מגילה Hilchos Megillah, מוטב לאדם mutav l'adam, let's say I have a choice, and I share this each and every year, but I have a choice. I have a limited amount of funds and I can either buy more expensive wine, a greater cut of corned beef for my סעודת פורים Purim seudah, or I can give more for מתנות לאביונים matanos l'evyonim. I can give more away to those who need. Which one should I do? More elaborate משלוח מנות mishloach manos, a greater theme to my משלוח מנות mishloach manos, a more over-the-top costume, a more over-the-top סעודה seudah, or, or do I give more מתנות לאביונים matanos l'evyonim, more to help other people? Listen to the רמב\"ם Rambam. מוטב לאדם להרבות במתנות לאביונים מלהרבות בסעודתו ובמשלוח מנות לרעיו mutav l'adam l'harbos b'matanos l'evyonim m'she'lharbos b'se'udaso u'b'mishloach manos l're'av. Better if you have limited resources to give more, allocate more to help those who need than it is to indulge in yourself. Now, I would have thought the reason is because to be a good person, care about others, and so limit your שמחה simcha. Be willing to compromise or diminish your joy in order to provide joy for others. Thank you to the Bash family for your generosity. But that is not what the רמב\"ם Rambam writes. What he writes is, listen to this, listen carefully. שאין שמחה גדולה ומפוארה אלא לשמח לב עניים ויתומים ואלמנות וגרים She'ein simcha gedolah u'mefo'arah elah l'sameach lev aniyim v'yesomim v'almanos v'gerim. It's not that you should diminish or be willing to compromise or sacrifice your joy to provide joy for others. It's that the greatest joy you could have is to give others, because joy comes from giving, not receiving. Joy comes by being on a mission. Joy comes by duties, responsibilities, obligations, not rights and entitlements. And therefore, you'll have more joy when you share. We don't have time, but in fact, study after study has shown this. They took a group, they divided it in half, they gave money. Half they said go buy something for yourself, and half they said go buy something for someone else. And they measured emotional, spiritual, physical well-being afterwards, and they found that the group who allocated at least a portion of the money they received to buy something for someone else, in fact, they were happier, they were calmer, they were better off than the people who bought only for themselves. Says the רמב\"ם Rambam, if you have limited resources, spend it on others, not because you should be willing to compromise your שמחה simcha, but rather because that is the source, the driver of שמחה simcha is your willingness to share with others. It's a message. So instead of more elaborate or sophisticated or trying to impress or compete משלוח מנות mishloach manos or costume or סעודה seudah or wine or corned beef, allocate and help others. And this is a perfect opportunity to be part of the BRS Online Global Community. Join now. Thank you to those who are given throughout, especially now during these next 32 minutes, you'll be entered into a raffle. There is no time like the present to click donate and to be part of this mission.Okay, we move on. פרק ה, פסוק ה Perek hey, pasuk hey. So of course פרשת משפטים Parshas Mishpatim begins with the story of the עבד עברי eved ivri. Why is this the very first story, the עבד עברי eved ivri? So much to say, we don't have time. But why is this the very first story? Hardly romantic or passionate, hardly inspirational, the story of the slave, someone who stole and didn't have the money to pay it back, and so they have to sell themselves into slavery. And even though their term is up, they decide to remain, and so we pierce the ear. פרק ה, פסוק ה Perek hey, pasuk hey. אם אמר יאמר העבד, אהבתי את אדוני את אשתי ואת בני, לא אצא חפשי Im omar yo'mar ha'eved, ahavti es adoni, es ishti v'es banai, lo eitzei chafshi. So what if the servant finishes their term, the עבד עברי eved ivri, and they say, \"But I love my master, and I love my living situation, and I love the food, and I love the home. לא אצא חפשי lo eitzei chafshi, I don't want to go anywhere.\" והגישו אדוניו אל האלהים V'higisho adonav el ha'elohim. So what do we do? אל האלהים el ha'elohim. We bring the individual to the court. Here אלהים elohim is not God, but it means the court, the judges. והגישו אל הדלת או אל המזוזה ורצע אדוניו את אזנו במרצע ועבדו לעלם v'higisho el hadeles o el hamezuzah, v'ratza adonav es ozno b'marzea, v'avado l'olam. We bring him to the door, the doorpost, and we make a hole in his ear. Everybody is familiar with this. Everybody is familiar with this הלכה halacha. So what's going on over here? Why do we, why do we put a hole in his ear? Why specifically in his ear? So we all know, the גמרא Gemara in קידושין דף כב Kiddushin daf chaf beis, אמר רבי יוחנן בן זכאי Amar Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai, אוזן זו ששמעה על הר סיני לא תגנוב והלך וגנב ozen zo sheshama al har Sinai lo signov, v'halach v'ganav. This individual, this ear that was present at הר סיני Har Sinai and just last week's פרשה Parsha, and heard the Almighty say among the 10 commandments, the Decalogue, you cannot steal, and he went and stole. And now he doesn't have the means to pay it back. How could this individual steal after God said don't steal? And that's why we choose the ear. I might have said tattoo it across the forehead. I might have said pierce the eyebrow or the nose or one of the other really new places that you can apparently pierce on the face or the body. Why do we pierce specifically the ear? So רש\"י's Rashi's quote... as the Gemara in Kiddushin that tells us, because that ear, the ear that heard don't steal and it went and stole. ששמע בהר סיני כי לי בני ישראל עבדים she'shama b'Har Sinai ki li Bnei Yisrael avadim and now he sold himself. But God said, כי לי עבדים ki li avadim, that there's only one form of slavery in this world. The only form of mastery, the only form of being a servant, a slave, is to God. והלך וקנה אדון לעצמו V'halach v'kana adon l'atzmo, and this individual went and sold himself into slavery. תירצע Tirtza, such an individual's ear has to be, has to be pierced. ויש לדקדק V'yesh l'dakdek, and wonders Rav Druk, שהרי במתן תורה נאמר וכל העם רואים את הקולות she'harei b'matan Torah ne'emar v'chol ha'am ro'im et hakolot. Last week we just read that at Har Sinai, how is it described? The whole nation saw the sounds. I am, I won't tell you how old I am and how many years I've learned Parshas Mishpatim and how many times I focused on this Rashi, and I can't believe I never thought of this question. Ever. I wonder how many of you ever thought of this question. כל העם רואים את הקולות Kol ha'am ro'im et hakolot. The sounds at Har Sinai were described not by the sense of hearing or listening, not that we heard the sounds, but rather we saw the sounds. So just one week parsha, now we're talking about piercing an ear, why? Because the very ear that heard don't steal and went and stole. אם כן צריך ביאור מהו אוזן ששמעה Im kein tzarich biur mahu ozen she'shama. כיון שלא ראו את הקולות ולא שמעו Keivan she'lo ra'u et hakolot v'lo shamu, היה לו לומר אוזן שראתה על הר סיני haya lo lomar ozen she'ra'ata al Har Sinai. It should have been the ear that saw at Har Sinai, don't steal. We didn't deal with it last week in the parsha class, though many of you were with us last week and that's why you should contribute and be part and show appreciation for listening each and every week and be entered into a raffle. I feel like I'm a broken record over here. Take a moment, press donate, do your part. Please, thank you. The ear that heard at Har Sinai. What do you mean the ear that heard? It says וכל העם רואים את הקולות v'chol ha'am ro'im et hakolot, which אבן עזרא Ibn Ezra says means that the Torah was broadcast, it looked like a billboard. Others say that God spoke, it came so alive. They were able to picture and envision the lifestyle that was being described. However you're going to understand, however you're going to explain the words, וכל העם רואים את הקולות v'chol ha'am ro'im et hakolot, however you're going to explain it, however you're going to explain it, shouldn't in this week's parsha, when you talk about the ear, it should be the ear that saw, not the ear that heard. עוד יש לדקדק Od yesh l'dakdek, and furthermore, the פסוק כי לי בני ישראל עבדים pasuk ki li Bnei Yisrael avadim, where does that appear? When Hashem says כי לי בני ישראל עבדים ki li Bnei Yisrael avadim. You're only serves, you're only serve me. כי לי בני ישראל עבדים Ki li Bnei Yisrael avadim. Where does that פסוק pasuk appear? It appears in פרשת בהר Parshas Behar. ואמנם כל התורה ניתנה בסיני, אבל בוודאי ישראל לא שמעו אז דיבור זה V'omnam kol haTorah nitna b'Sinai, aval b'vadai Yisrael lo shamu az dibbur zeh. So even though all Torah was given at Har Sinai, this statement, this clause, this expression of God, כי לי בני ישראל עבדים ki li Bnei Yisrael avadim, that wasn't said until later to Parshas Behar. So why is the Gemara, why is Rashi referencing it right now? What in the world is going on? Wonders Rav Druk. I never wondered it before. I'm so grateful for his sefer אש תמיד Eish Tamid. He says the following, יש לעיין במה שאמר רבי יוחנן בן זכאי yesh l'ayin b'ma she'amar Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai. הלא ביאר לא תגנוב כסברת רש\"י Halo biar lo signov k'sivrat Rashi. Furthermore, he could ask another question. The ear that heard at Har Sinai, don't steal, לא תגנוב lo signov, but what did that לא תגנוב lo signov mean? If you're a student of the Talmud, you know that לא תגנוב lo signov, we have לא תגנוב lo signov and לא תגנובו lo signovu. And the Torah goes out of its way to tell us that the לא תגנוב lo signov of the עשרת הדברות Aseret haDibrot is not talking about stealing money. It's not talking about stealing property. It's not talking about stealing דברי תורה divrei Torah or שיעורים shiurim or benefiting without doing one's part. What is it talking about? It's talking about kidnapping a person. It's talking about kidnapping. So why when we talk about we pierce the ear of the slave who stole and didn't listen to don't steal, and then stayed and violated כי לי בני ישראל עבדים ki li Bnei Yisrael avadim? These three questions are so compelling. Number one, why the ear who heard, the ear saw. What happened with וכל העם רואים v'chol ha'am ro'im? That the whole nation saw the sounds. Number two, the expression כי לי בני ישראל עבדים ki li Bnei Yisrael avadim isn't said till later, Parshas Behar. Number three, that which you violated, לא תגנוב lo signov is a violation of kidnapping. This עבד eved if he didn't kidnap anyone, he stole money. He stole money. So what's going on? Answers Rav Druk. ונראה לבאר שהרי באמת השמיעה אמורה כאן אינה שמיעת האוזן V'nireh l'va'er she'harei be'emet hashmi'ah amurah kan einah shmi'at ha'ozen. כיון שהם ראו את הקולות Keivan she'hem ra'u et hakolot. We're not talking about hearing with the ear. האוזן Ha'ozen, the ear that heard at Har Sinai don't steal, the ear that heard at Har Sinai כי לי בני ישראל עבדים ki li Bnei Yisrael avadim, we're not talking about hearing. What it means is the following. הרי נאמר בדיבור הראשון Harei ne'emar b'dibbur harishon, the first of the עשרת הדברות Aseret haDibrot, the Ten Commandments was אנכי ה' אלקיך Anochi Hashem Elokecha, I am the Lord your God who took you out of Egypt, don't have any other gods. כל הרואה דיבור זה הרי הוא מבין ושומע מתוך הדברים שהוצאתי אתכם מארץ מצרים מבית עבדים כדי להיות עבדי השם Kol haro'eh dibbur zeh, harei hu meivin v'shomea mitoch hadvarim she'hotzeiti etchem mei'eretz Mitzrayim mi'beit avadim kedei lihiyot avdei Hashem. Implicit in the first command, implicit in Hashem's instruction, אנכי Anochi, I am the Lord your God, I took you out of Egypt, I took you out of slavery. Implicit is, I took you out of slavery, I'm the Lord your God, now you're עבדים avadim to me. הרי האדם הרואה דברים אלו, שומע ומבין על לבו Harei ha'adam ha'roeh devarim eilu, shomea u'meivin al libo. So a person who saw these דברים d'varim, heard and understood in their heart, it penetrated deep into their soul to realize, I didn't come into this world out of nowhere. I'm not on my own, I'm not independent. I'm not entitled. I have nothing coming to me. It's all from God Almighty. It's only by His goodness and His graciousness go I. And therefore I serve Him. I'm not here to take, I'm not here to receive. It's not about my entitlements and my rights, it's about my responsibilities, it's about my duties, it's about my obligation. It's about my mission in this world. And all that was implicit in the word אנכי Anochi. The moment God opened up and he said אנכי Anochi, me, I'm here. I am the creator. I'm the omnipotent, I'm the infinite one. I am responsible for everything in your life. In that was everything else. So אוזן ששמעה בהר סיני ozen she'shama b'Har Sinai. The ear heard at Har Sinai. The heard ear. So מעתה יש לפרש me'atah yesh l'faresh, גם ענין לא תגנוב שעליו מדבר בגונב נפשות ולא גונב ממון gam inyan lo signov she'alav medaber b'goneiv nefashot v'lo goneiv mamon. גם מזה יש לומר, אין הכוונה שמע בדיבור לא תגנוב Gam mizeh yesh lomar, ein hakavanah shomea b'dibbur lo signov. It's not the לא תגנוב עשרת הדברות lo signov Aseret haDibrot, אלא הכוונה שהיה צריך לשמוע בשמיעת הלב ela hakavanah she'hayah tzarich lishmoa b'shmi'at ha'lev. He needed to hear with his heart. גם את איסור של גניבת ממון Gam es ha'issur shel gneivat mamon. He needed to hear with his heart, not just what was explicitly articulated at Har Sinai, but to have a listening heart, to have a listening heart. It's a very powerful Rav Druk. It's a longer essay he has more to say, but I want to cover more ground. But the message, the parsha perspective for us today is to live our lives with listening hearts. Not just to pick up on the signals and the messages that are being articulated explicitly, but have listening hearts to the world around us. To see Hashem in the people and the things and the experiences, in the news, in the weather, in nature, in the world around us. That we will be responsible and we will be accountable, which is essentially what Rav Druk is saying, not only for what we heard explicitly, but neglected or rejected, but we will be responsible even for that which we heard implicitly. For a failure to have a listening heart, a לב שומע lev shomea, a לב lev, a heart that is picking up the signal that is being communicated to us from all around. That's what's really going on here in this passage, that's what's really being communicated. פרק כ\"ב פסוק א' Perek kaf-bet, pasuk aleph. Now we get into the long litany of laws of which there are no shortage. We could have chosen from so many. ורפא ירפא V'rapo yerapei, for example. מכאן שניתן רשות לרופא לרפאות Mikan she'nitan reshut l'rofeh l'rapot. This is the source of, we have a שול shul that's made up of almost 250 doctors, people in the medical profession, in our שול shul. ורפא ירפא V'rapo yerapei. Those medical professionals are on the forefront who are who are risking their lives throughout Corona, have been compromising, sacrificing. Thank you so much to the Halperns and the Webermans. Thank you to Benji Fine. Thank you to Rosalie Novik, Nancy Eisenberg, Mark Brandis, Rifky, Israel Shalitsky, and others who are continuing to contribute, Fay Stein, please add your name to that list. Be entered into the raffle. It's a no brainer. Press donate, brsonline.org/global, brsonline.org/global. Show your appreciation, be part of this growing community and this growing movement. I can't tell you personally how much I appreciate it. It means the world to me that you come to learn with me and that you enable me to continue to learn with you and others going forward. It really means the world and I appreciate it. ורפא ירפא V'rapo yerapei. So thank you to those who are working on the front lines as medical personnel. But where'd you have to do it? A surgeon. My חברותא chavrusa is a surgeon. He cuts people open for a living. Someone else knocks him out and puts him to sleep. I am in a similar profession. I always tell the anesthesiologist that they and I are in very similar lines of work. Someone knocks the person out and then the surgeon comes and takes the scalpel and cuts them open. Cut a person open. Why are you entitled to do that? Moreover, somebody is sick, why are you entitled to heal them? Maybe that's what God wants for them. Maybe that's the best thing for them. After all, כל מה דעביד רחמנא לטב עביד kol ma d'avid Rachmana l'tav avid, that everything God does is for the best. So it's this פסוק pasuk ורפא ירפא v'rapo yerapei, the Gemara learns מכאן שניתן רשות לרופא לרפאות mikan she'nitan reshut l'rofeh l'rapot, from here we know that God wants us to learn, to study, to invent, to break through medical progress and to be able to heal people, to be able to make sick people better, to be able to treat people and to improve them and make them better. It's what God wants. He gives license for ורפא ירפא v'rapo yerapei. Why do we need the license? Isn't it obvious that doctors should be entitled to? So it's a big מחלוקת machlokes, Rashi, Tosfos and the Rambam, what the reason is. Some say the reason is because you're going against the will of God. God determined the person should be sick, who are you to make them better? So you need to be given permission. God says, no, no, no. Whatever reason they're sick, but I invite you, I want you to make them better. Take the initiative, try, ורפא ירפא v'rapo yerapei. Others say the Rambam says because you're violating the prohibition of חבלה chabalah. You're not allowed to hurt or damage someone. So if you cut them open, let alone give a black and blue mark, you are violating the prohibition of חבלה chabalah. Why are you entitled to violate the prohibition of חבלה chabalah? Because ורפא ירפא v'rapo yerapei, מכאן שניתן רשות לרופא לרפאות mikan she'nitan reshut l'rofeh l'rapot. A couple years ago in the פרשה שיעור parsha shiur, we spoke about the statement of the Gemara, טוב שברפאים לגיהנם tov she'b'rof'im l'Gehinom, the best of doctors are going to what my kids would call H E double hockey sticks. So why would our rabbis describe the best of doctors? The best of doctors to me are going straight to heaven. Best of nurses, doctors, PAs, nurse practitioners, every medical personnel, they're going straight to heaven, especially for their selflessness over this year. Why would we say they're going straight to גיהנם Gehinom? Listen to the פרשה שיעור parsha shiur from a couple years ago. We dealt with it there. So פרק כ\"ב פסוק א' perek kaf-bet, pasuk aleph. This is a very important insight of Rabbi Soloveitchik. The pasuk says, אם במחתרת ימצא הגנב והכה ומת אין לו דמים im b'machteret yimatzei haganav v'hukah v'meit, ein lo damim. What happens if a thief is discovered while they are tunneling or borrowing into your house? You have cameras. When the Torah was given, we didn't know how easy it would be to have these wireless cameras that you can simply put on your home and on your phone be watching and it picks up movement and you can catch a person and you know who's coming in. So someone's trying to break into your home and they're armed and they're a threat and you kill them, then there's no guilt. You did nothing wrong. You are entitled to defend your life. It's a very powerful message that comes from here, says Rabbi Soloveitchik. Says Rabbi Soloveitchik. Where did he go, Rabbi Soloveitchik? He's right here behind me. Says the Rav. The following. אם במחתרת Im b'machteret. The majesty and dignity of a human being expresses itself in the fact that man has inalienable rights. He has the moral right not only to self-defense, but to defend his possessions and to fight for them. If a burglar enters one's home, there will be no danger to the homeowner if the if the owner does not interfere with the burglary. Yet, the Torah gives the homeowner the right to kill the burglar on the assumption that the burglar will kill the homeowner if confronted by him. One may defend his property even if that act of defense results in the act of killing. Did you hear? The Torah's weighing in on what are some contemporary debatable topics. But according to Rabbi Soloveitchik, the Torah is saying the following, in this law, אם במחתרת im b'machteret, that you could hide under your bed. Someone's breaking into your home and they just want to take your things. They just want to break into your safe or your vault. They just want to take your jewelry or your cash. They just want to take your family heirlooms or possessions. Someone's breaking into your home, so hide in the bed, run out the back door, escape. Let them. What right do you have to confront them? Certainly what right do you have to kill them, to maim them? Let them take your possessions. So the Torah is taking a very strong position here. And the Torah is telling you, you have inalienable rights. You're on your property. You're in your home. Those possessions, that property is yours, and you have a right to defend it. Even if your life is not threatened, why? Because the assumption is that if there were a confrontation with that burglar, then your life would be threatened. So the assumption that if there were a confrontation with the burglar, your life would be threatened, you're entitled to take out the burglar. The moment the burglar crossed that threshold into your property, you, that burglar forfeited the right to their safety. And therefore you're entitled to take their life. One may you defend his act of his property even if that act of defense results in an act of killing. Covenanantal community is not now listen to the insight of the Rav. This is Rabbi Soloveitchik, not me. The Covenanantal community is not a community of the meek. It is not a community that subscribes to turning the other cheek. Covenanantal community is often called on to defend itself and affirm its rights. And yet at the same time, the Covenanantal community displays the trait of sacrificial action. There are times Covenanantal man is summoned to lead a selfless life. Avraham is the exemplar of this duality. On the one hand, he is portrayed as someone who has accumulated wealth. On the other hand, he is ready to give up his only son. Selfhood and selflessness, dignity and sacrificial life are characteristic of the Covenanantal community. Says Rabbi Soloveitchik, we're striking a balance. On the one hand, we're not these barbarians. We're not aggressive. We don't embrace violence. God forbid, we're sensitive and we're selfless and we're mission-driven, and we sacrifice. And that is an enormous part of who we are. But at the same time, while we're all that, we're not חס ושלום chas v'shalom, God forbid, we're not meek, and we're not a pushover, and we're not soft. We have the right to defend ourselves. Our guest on Behind the Bima tomorrow night is the great member of כנסת Knesset, former minister, and candidate for Prime Minister, Naftali Bennett. He'll be our guest on Behind the Bima, you don't want to miss that conversation with him about his background, about his vision, about his life. He served in סיירת מטכ\"ל Sayeret Matkal and other elite commando units in the Israeli army, and he fought. He fought in battles. He risked his own life. And he recently put out a video this week when the International Court claims that they're going to evaluate and potentially hold Israel accountable for war crimes. And Naftali Bennett, our guest, put out a video saying, if you do, then put me at the top of the list. We did nothing wrong, and you have no jurisdiction, and there is no moral army than Israel. And he took out of his pocket, he said, you see this? This is the code of morality of every Israeli soldier. They carried it in their pocket next to their ammunition. It is with them as part of their uniform. And I think this is the beautiful commentary of Rabbi Soloveitchik on אם במחתרת im b'machteret, is the notion that the Jew, whether collectively and nationally in the form of an army, and tune in tomorrow night, 9:00 p.m. each and every Wednesday night, we have amazing guests on Behind the Bima. We're hitting our 40th episode and we've had incredible, incredible guests. So we have candidate for Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and even other incredible guests to come in the weeks ahead. If you enjoy Behind the Bima, join the BRS Online Global community, brsonline.org/global, brsonline.org/global. If you do it in the next amount of time, you'll be entered into the raffle. If you're listening later, still join, still give, still do, still show your appreciation, whether for the parsha shiur behind the Bima or anything else. So that's what the Rav is describing אם במחתרת im b'machteret. On the one hand, we're sensitive. On the one hand, we're mission-driven. On the one hand, we're willing to sacrifice. On the one hand, we are the flag of morality. But on the other, we're not meek, and we're not weak, and we're not a pushover. And we are able to stand up for, we're able to stand up for ourselves. We're able to stand up for ourselves and to push people back. פרק כ\"ב פסוק ז' Perek kaf-bet, pasuk zayin. פרק כ\"ב פסוק ז' Perek kaf-bet, pasuk zayin. אם לא ימצא הגנב ונקרב בעל הבית אל האלהים אם לא שלח ידו במלאכת רעהו Im lo yimatzei haganav v'nikrav ba'al habayit el ha'Elohim im lo shalach yado bimlechet re'ehu. Pasuk here is talking about the laws of שומרים shomrim, the laws of guardians. If somebody entrusts another to watch their property or their things, what is the responsibility? We have four types of guards. We have שומר חינם shomer chinam, שומר שכר shomer sachar, a שוכר socher, and a שואל shoel. The four types of guards, and depending on the benefit that you got will determine the level of liability that you, that you, excuse me, that you carry. So if a person gives something to someone else to watch, אם לא ימצא הגנב im lo yimatzei haganav, and then it gets stolen, and you don't find the גנב ganav, you don't find the thief, ונקרב בעל הבית אל האלהים v'nikrav ba'al habayit el ha'Elohim, so then the owner of the object approaches the court, אם לא שלח ידו במלאכת רעהו im lo shalach yado bimlechet re'ehu, and approaches the court that he had not laid his hand upon his fellow's property. He's got to take an oath that he in fact did not steal, that he is not responsible. Rav Meir of Premishlan, the great רבה Rebbe of in חסידות Chasidus has a beautiful insight. And he says homiletically, of course, ונקרב בעל הבית אל האלהים v'nikrav ba'al habayit el ha'Elohim, the בעל הבית ba'al habayit comes to the one who was watching it, the one who was guarding it, who from whom it was stolen, approaches the court, and to say אם לא שלח ידו im lo shalach yado that he did not put his hand, he did not personally benefit or take it, במלאכת רעהו bimlechet re'ehu. So, said Rav Meir of Premishlan to his חסידים chasidim, ונקרב בעל הבית אל האלהים v'nikrav ba'al habayit el ha'Elohim. Don't read it אלהים Elohim the court, the judges, but rather when is a person זוכה, ונקרב בעל הבית אל האלהים zocheh, v'nikrav ba'al habayit el ha'Elohim? When do we merit to come close? When do we merit to have a closeness with the Almighty? When do you merit to attach ourselves and glue ourselves and feel connected to him? אם לא שלח ידו במלאכת רעהו Im lo shalach yado bimlechet re'ehu. We merit it when, when we don't harm or hurt another person. The prerequisite to a relationship with God is loving his children. If you're not, דרך ארץ קדמה לתורה derech eretz kadma laTorah we spoke about last week from Rav Neventzal so beautifully. דרך ארץ קדמה לתורה Derech eretz kadma laTorah. You cannot claim to love God if you're unkind to his children. You can't claim to love me if you're cruel or unkind or mean to my children. You don't love me if you don't love my children. And you cannot claim to love God if you don't love His children. And therefore ונקרב בעל הבית אל האלהים v'nikrav ba'al habayit el ha'Elohim. You want to become קרוב karov? You want to draw close to God? says Rav Meir of Premishlan, then לא שלח ידו במלאכת רעהו lo shalach yado bimlechet re'ehu. Don't ever harm or injure, don't be cruel, don't aggravate or agitate a fellow. We're children of Hashem. We're children of Hashem. You can't came to love me and be cruel to my child. You can't claim to love God and be cruel to another one of his children. We spoke about the great Mabit. That's why the font of the בין אדם לחברו bein adam l'chaveiro in the עשרת הדברות Aseret haDibrot is much bigger than the font of בין אדם למקום bein adam laMakom. That's why דרך ארץ קדמה לתורה derech eretz kadma laTorah. You can be scrupulous and vigilant in the minutian details of הלכה halacha. You could have the longest שמונה עשרה shmoneh esrei and a מידה middah. You could finish the entire book of תהילים Tehillim twice a day. But if you then go out and gossip, if you then go out and you're rude, if you then go out and make a you're unkind to people, if you then don't show gratitude and don't do your part, and don't reciprocate, and don't contribute, then you can't draw close to God. You can't draw close to God. You can't share his דברי תורה divrei Torah if you didn't do your part in order to enable them to be communicated and shared to begin with. פרק כ\"ב פסוק כ\"ד Perek kaf-bet, pasuk kaf-daled, moving right along. אם כסף תלוה את עמי Im kesef talveh et ami, one of the laws of משפטים mishpatim again we mentioned earlier, the distinction between every secular system of law and the Torah and פרשת משפטים Parshas Mishpatim and the ו' החיבור vav ha'chibur connecting it back to Har Sinai and פרשת יתרו Parshas Yisro. These aren't just laws about our rights and entitlements. These are laws about how to make not just a not bad society, but how to craft and mold what is actually a good society, a God-like society, a holy society. So one of those things is to lend. There are people who will hit hard times who will need money. And we have to generously lend. We have to care. Thank you to the Lishaw and to Fay Stein. Thank you all for your generosity. So we have to be able to step up and show up. We have to be able to lend. And in the context of this pasuk says, אם כסף תלוה את עמי im kesef talveh et ami. First of all, it doesn't say אם im, it doesn't mean if, it means when. Because the nature of cycles of economic cycles is such that it's not if, but when people will need. The one who's on top today could be on the bottom tomorrow. Don't ever, ever take it for granted if you have resources today that you will not be in a position to need the help of someone else tomorrow. So not if, but when תלוה את עמי talveh et ami, you'll have to lend someone, את העני עמך et ha'ani imach, the poor person with you. לא תהיה לו כנושה Lo sihyeh lo k'nosheh. Don't be like a creditor. The attitude that we bring, you don't charge interest and you don't pressure. Of course, we have all kinds of laws that dictate our attitude, that govern our attitude when it comes to these loans. Why does it describe את העני עמך et ha'ani imach? The poor person with, why is the poor person with me? Why is the poor person with me? I get a knock on my door five times a day from the שולחים shlichim. I don't know them. I don't have a relationship with them. They're not with me. They need help. They've got some glossy certificate, laminated certificate. Maybe it was this year or 10 years ago. Maybe it's genuine, maybe it's not. And if I want to give them, I'm giving them, but why is it עמך imach? Why are they with me? In what way are they with me? Listen to this insight of Rabbi Soloveitchik. Based on this pasuk, Rashi comments that one should look upon himself, עמך imach, you're the poor person. The fact that you're the giver, the poor person is the receiver is nothing more than a capricious act of fate. Really, you could have been the poor person. What, you think you're so much smarter? What do you think that you're so much more entrepreneurial? You think you're so much more creative? You think that you're so much better that you're in fact the one in the position to give and they're the one receiving? It's all up to Hashem. It's a very fine line. In fact, we gave a shiur recently on Shabbos that we know קשה זיווגו כקריעת ים סוף kasheh zivugo k'kriat Yam Suf, everybody knows it's as difficult to make a shidduch as splitting the sea. But the Gemara also says פרנסה parnassah, earning a livelihood is as difficult as splitting the sea. You could have two people, the same IQ, they graduate the same institutions, they have the same level of work ethic, and one breaks through and is a millionaire and the other is struggling to put food on the table. And we'll say it's מזל mazal. But מזל mazal is just another name for God. It's God. God decides and God determines. So don't you dare be arrogant. And don't you dare be condescending. And don't you dare be selfish and be and and give so little. את העני עמך Es ha'ani imach doesn't mean the poor person with you as in lives in your community, although עניי עירך קודמין aniyei ircha kodmin, the poor of our community come first. What it means עני עמך ani imach, with you means see yourself as the poor person. There is such a fine line between the person who's donating to תומכי שבת Tomchei Shabbos and the person who is being supported from תומכי שבת Tomchei Shabbos. It is such a fine line. So don't ever grow arrogant. And the Rav somewhat uncharacteristically tells the story of one winter day, Rabbi Eliyahu Chaim Meisel of Lodz went to visit the home of a wealthy manufacturer by the name of Poznanski. And the butler answered the door, and this Rabbi Meisels said that I'd like to meet this wealthy man. He needed to raise money to help poor people. And he said, come on in. He wants to meet you in his office. It's warm. It's heated by the fire. And this Rav Meisels said, no, no, I want to meet him right here in the vestibule, the entrance to the home. And they went back and forth and he insisted, I want and must meet him right here. And he came out and they met there. And Mr. Poznanski said to him, I'm freezing. I'm shivering. Why can't we go inside? I have a heated home. We can sit by tea. Come with me inside. And Rabbi Meisels said to him, this Mr. Poznanski, I wanted to meet you here because I wanted you to know the feeling of the cold. I wanted you to shiver and shake. I wanted you to know that discomfort and that fear. I wanted you to be aggravated because that's what the poor people are going through. And I need your help in order to offer them a warm blanket, and warm clothing, and shelter, and a home. I wanted you to feel it. Historically, Jews have fared poorly when subjected to the trial of wealth. When a Jew acquires excessive wealth, he becomes animal-like. While the nations of the world divert a portion of their wealth towards spiritual matters, towards culture, higher ideals under similar circumstances, the Jew takes on trappings of vulgar, cynical materialism. And the Rav points to certain pesukim to support that. On the other hand, when confronted with the trial of poverty or suffering, Jews have fared well. A Jew doesn't spill blood when he's hungry. When he's hungry, he senses the hunger of his fellow. When he's cold, he feels his brother's discomfort. So, את העני עמך es ha'ani imach. The poor person with you doesn't mean in your vicinity geographically. The poor person with you means the poor person is you. We have to see ourselves as going through that. We're living in a pandemic time and there are people who are out of a job, there are small businesses who are struggling and suffering. So if you have a decision, if you can take out food and help a local restaurant, because when this is over, do you not want kosher restaurants to eat at and to go to? Small businesses to be there to service us? If you have the capacity and you can do, then do now את העני עמך es ha'ani imach. It is you. It's a fine line between you and that small business or you and the person who's hurting or you and the person who needs the scholarship or the shul dues adjustment or needs to be on תומכי שבת Tomchei Shabbos. It is such a fine line. It's a גלגל galgal, it's a wheel that's an economic cycle that spins and the one who's on top today could be on the bottom tomorrow. And so while on top, feel the pain and be connected to those who are on the bottom so that you provide and support את העני עמך es ha'ani imach. So even before you support the BRS Global campaign, which you can do by pressing donate or going to brsonline.org/global, make sure the poor people around us have what they need, they are provided for and they are able to sustain and go on. פרק כ\"ג פסוק כ' Perek kaf-gimmel, pasuk kaf. Says the following, פרק כ\"ג פסוק כ' perek kaf-gimmel, pasuk kaf. הנה אנכי שולח מלאך לפניך לשמרך בדרך ולהביאך אל המקום אשר הכינותי Hinei Anochi sholeiach malach l'fanecha lishmorcha baderech v'la'haviacha el hamakom asher hachinoti. I sent an angel before you to protect you on the way and to bring you to the place that I have made, that I have made ready. This is a very strange and peculiar pasuk. It is very, very unusual that this is here. Tucked into our parsha, in between the litany of laws in the first half of the parsha and before the story of נעשה ונשמע na'aseh v'nishma at the end of the parsha, is an often overlooked and a very curious and peculiar conversation between Hashem and Moshe. Hashem tells Moshe, I'm sending an angel to escort you and to protect you on your journey. Where did this come from? Why does he need an angel? Moshe didn't need an angel until now, and all of a sudden he needs an angel from now? So the Ramban says this is a prophecy that only comes to fruition later. And what's the prophecy? That after Moshe's passing, a guardian angel appeared to Yehoshua and now Yehoshua, who is not as great as Moshe, has the benefit of the companionship of a guardian angel who's going to escort the Jewish people into the land. So says that Ramban, that is the interpretation of the Ramban. But Rashi has a much more sobering suggestion. Says Rashi, this is alluding to the future building of the חטא העגל chet ha'egel, the עגל הזהב egel hazahav, and the consequence of Hashem withdrawing. His personal providential care was withdrawn and instead there's this angel, there's an agent. Hashem says I can't be around you, I'm not taking care of you. Here's a babysitter. Here's someone else, here's an angel. Pretty sobering, pretty depressing. Now I'm not saying I fully understand what it means to have an angel instead of Hashem. I don't know exactly what that means. But I want to ask a simple question. Why now? Why now? The Jewish people are standing at Har Sinai. This unprecedented and unparalleled moment of revelation. The celebrated iconic statement of נעשה ונשמע na'aseh v'nishma is in our parsha. Why in the world would God ruin this special moment? We're on a high and we're spiritually uplifted and we're excited. Is really now the time to portend and foretell of when a terrible mistake is going to happen, the חטא העגל chet ha'egel? You're an incredible moment, you're on a high. Now is when you interrupt the high, I bring to you that you're going to have a collapse and a crisis and you're going to make a terrible mistake and you're going to cheat on God. Why compromise the joyous experience with something that hasn't even happened yet? And perhaps the answer can be found in a ceremony that we've modeled after Har Sinai. Every single time that a חתן chosson and כלה kallah, a bride and groom stand under the חופה chuppah, they are recreating Har Sinai, when the mountain was held over their head like a חופה chuppah. That union, the beginning of a family, embracing that mission is a recreation and an extension of Har Sinai. They pledge a love and a commitment of נעשה ונשמע na'aseh v'nishma to one another. They say, אמן amen. נעשה Na'aseh even before נשמע nishma. And the moment of a חופה chuppah is filled with incredible joy and yet, very strangely, what's the practice at the end of the חופה chuppah? We break a glass. And many reasons are given for the origin of that custom, worth exploring another time, but one of the most important ones can answer our question. According to some, the reason we break a glass at the חופה chuppah is because it's critically important that before this star-struck, love-struck חתן כלה chosson kallah take leave of this most auspicious and joyous moment. This young man and this young woman have to realize that things are going to break. They have to know that obstacles will be encountered, that not everything is going to go according to plan and that not everything in their life is going to remain whole. When you stand under the חופה chuppah, it's amazing, and you're amazing, and I'm amazing, and everyone's telling us we're amazing. We've got singers and a band and delicious food and everything's incredible in non-Corona times. And it's just amazing and it's going to stay this way and last this way forever. So what do we do? We break a glass. We smash something. And we show them that things are going to break. There will be broken moments, things won't remain complete forever. And so yes, right here and right now in the most, in the middle of the most seminal event in human history, Hashem tells Moshe, yeah, right now you're on an incredible high, but I want you to know you're not going to be able to stay there. Life has ups and downs, triumph and failure, success and disappointment, but you need to know that there's going to be a חטא העגל chet ha'egel and that you're not going to have my providence and everything is still going to be okay. You need to know that the glass is going to break. And knowing that you and those around you and our lives themselves cannot and will not be perfect is so critical and important to finding happiness. That is what happened. מי שנכנס אדר מרבין בשמחה Mi'she'nichnas Adar marbin b'simcha. You need to know that it's not going to be perfect. Life is not perfect, we're not perfect. You have to let go and let God and you have to realize that there's a plan and he's in charge and he's in control. And so this parsha will end with this. This week we begin פרשת שקלים Parshas Shekalim on the first of four readings that we do to lead us up to Pesach. Every man over 20 was obligated to give a half shekel, a weight of silver, approximately worth about $4 today and it was used to operate the בית המקדש Beis HaMikdash. And it required an unusual condition. העשיר לא ירבה והדל לא ימעיט ממחצית השקל He'ashir lo yarbeh v'hadal lo yam'it mimachatzit hashekel. The rich person couldn't give more, the poor person couldn't give less. Everyone had to give the very same amount. And the Lubavitcher Rebbe zt\"l in ליקוטי שיחות Likutei Sichos, in volume 31 wonders, why is everyone giving the same amount? Why not the rich person give more? You don't hear me as we're promoting BRS Global Community, brsonline.org/global. I'm not telling everyone give the same $18. No one give more even if you're capable. If you're capable, give $50,000. If you're capable, help us spread Torah even more. There's no equalizer, there's no minimum. We're not telling everyone to give the same amount. So what kind of fundraiser was this? What kind of appeal was this in the משכן Mishkan in the בית המקדש Beis HaMikdash? So the Rebbe says because when it comes to the that which is going to drive the בית המקדש Beis HaMikdash, the contribution of every one of the members has to be equal. Everyone has to realize you're a half. You're not a whole. Every one of us is incomplete. Every one of us is imperfect. Every one of us is inadequate. Every one of us is is imperfect. We're all a fraction until we combine, until we come together. So מי שנכנס אדר מרבין בשמחה mi'she'nichnas Adar marbin b'simcha, may we all be filled with joy and happiness. the happiness of letting go, and the happiness of giving to others. And may we all recognize our own imperfections, the glass of life is going to break. We're only a half shekel, it's only by combining with others that we can become a whole. Thank you to those who generously donated. We'll run the raffle momentarily. It's not too late if you're listening later online or watching later online. Please subscribe on YouTube. Please go to brsonline.org/global. Please do your part, any amount, small or large, to help us continue to promote and spread תורה *Torah* all around us. Stay happy, stay healthy, stay holy. Tomorrow night 9:00 p.m. behind the במה *bima*.
