JHI Dvar Torah on Parshat Acharei Mot

PARSHAT ACHAREI MOT – EXALTED AND EXALTING SPIRITUALITY
Parshat Acharei Mot contains the prohibition against a form of idolatry known as the “Molech.” The Commentary of Ramban writes that the service of the Molech entailed presenting one’s young child or grandchild to a priest of the Molech who then passed the child through a fire until death ensued. According to the Torah, this idolatry is itself a capital offense (in addition to the other capital offence of murder for which only the Molech priest is technically liable).

In articulating the prohibition of Molech, the Torah in Parshat Acharei Mot (18:21) writes: “You shall not present any of your children to pass through for Molech, and do not profane the Name of your G-d…” The juxtaposition within the sentence is interesting. First, the Torah forbids one from serving the Molech; then it continues, “And do not profane the Name of your G-d.” How does the second part of the sentence follow upon the heels of the first?

The Commentary of Sforno explains: “If you sacrifice other (lesser) forms of life to The Blessed G–d and to the Molech you sacrifice a child, it would appear from this that the Molech is greater than He (G-d), perish the thought.”

According to the Sforno, the Torah is communicating this message to the one contemplating service of the Molech in order to dissuade him. According to the Torah, human sacrifice is never permitted. But ignoring this prohibition and sacrificing your own child makes you additionally guilty of an entirely different type of wrongdoing: Sacrificing a human child’s life to the Molech while sacrificing only animals to Hashem (G-d) in the Temple in Jerusalem, is a slight to Hashem’s Honor.

One who commits this sin is deeply entrenched into the degeneracy of idolatry. In particular, he is especially committed to the Molech. Serving the Molech entails violating one of Judaism’s three cardinal sins (idolatry, murder, and adultery). In ancient times when Israel was governed by the laws of the Torah, he could have been executed for the transgression. Furthermore, he is forfeiting the life of his own beloved child in order to serve the Molech.

How does one reach out to someone so decadent in order to inspire him to repent? To what message will someone so evil respond? Seemingly, in this situation, a more direct and jolting communication would be most effective “You are killing your own beloved child. You yourself could be executed. Look at the depravity to which you have sunk. Repent and reclaim your life!”

Yet based on the Sforno, the message for the would-be idolater touches upon sublime (if not esoteric) nuances of effrontery to G-d’s honor. “Would you dishonor Hashem bringing a dearer sacrifice to the Molech?” This person is profoundly driven to the debauchery of the Molech – so much so that he is willing to forfeit human life - his own and that of his own child. Seemingly, the exalted details of G-d’s honor mean nothing to such a person.

The Sforno’s understanding is based on an idea that is basic to the Torah’s understanding of mankind. All people are endowed with a G-dly neshama (soul). Even when one lives a life of sin, that soul and its lofty agenda are still a part of him. However, the soul is buried under layers of wrongdoing. Yet, at any time the soul of even the worst sinner might be awakened and energized by a call to G-dly behavior. Hence, when the Torah calls out to the one about to serve the Molech, it bypasses the person’s terribly sinful conduct and focuses instead upon that which is most exalted. It appeals directly to the neshama and reminds it that one should only act in a matter that honors The Almighty.

This points to an interesting dichotomy within man. People, as a rule, cannot easily acquire spiritual heights, no matter how hard they try. True spirituality must be accessed in developmental stages. (For this reason, many ‘baalei teshuva’ suffer setbacks - they try to ascend the ladder of holiness too-far-too-fast.) Yet, it is also true that a person mired in depravity can be rescued by a call to the sublime. People at the lowest rungs of immorality who are full of rationalizations that justify sinning are nevertheless responsive to the call of the most lofty of ideals. That higher call can somehow at times interface with the soul and deflate the human rationalizations.

It should also be pointed that obviously, being depraved is not a requirement in order to hear the call to extreme spirituality. All otherwise “good” people struggle with recurring and hard to control impulses that are detrimental to one’s personal growth. The Sforno is teaching that for all people, focusing on the imperative to attain holiness can be the catalyst that enables one to break loose from the frustrating grip of repetitive bad or immoral behavior.


Among the most grandiose statements of the Passover Haggadah is the phrase, “In each and every generation, one is obligated to see himself as if he exited Egypt.” The descriptions of the Bible and the Talmud indicate that the great events of the Exodus featured many outright manifestations of G-d’s Being. The obligation when sitting at the Seder is therefore to somehow relive the manifested G-dliness and spirituality of the Exodus to the extent of feeling as if physically present.

The Sforno in Achearei Mot adds yet additional significance to this Seder experience. It teaches that the exalted spirituality of the Seder can have an exalting effect on each person’s perpetual and hard to control shortcomings.


We wish a Chag Kasher V’Someach – a happy Passover to all.



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JHI Dvar Torah on Parshat Metzorah

PARSHAT METZORAH – KINDNESS AND ‘SERIAL SINNING’

Parshat Metzorah continues the discussion of the supernatural leprosy that afflicted sinners. When the Temple in Jerusalem stood, this miraculous affliction was a warning from The Almighty that one should repent.

In Chapter 14:35-35, the Parsha relates that at times, even homes were stricken with leprosy. When this happened, a learned Kohain (member of the priestly family) was then summoned to examine the affliction and ascertain its status. If it was determined to be a spiritual affliction, the house was quarantined. There were times when the entire house was destroyed because of the leprosy.

The Parsha relates that before the Kohain first comes, the house had to be entirely emptied of its contents. The Talmud (Yoma 11b) and Midrash Rabbah (Vayikra 17:2) explain why the Torah instituted this procedure. It was in response to a homeowner who would not share his possessions with others. When people would ask to borrow things, the homeowner would hide the requested items and say that he did not have them. Hashem (G-d) therefore struck the home with leprosy, thereby causing it to be emptied. All then realize that the homeowner had possessed those articles but lied in order to avoid sharing them. The Midrash adds that people will then curse the house saying that its fate was justified.

The Commentary of Eshed Hanichalim on the Midrash adds that this entire procedure was meant to benefit the Jews. It was a special opportunity bestowed by Hashem upon their entry into Israel. It helped assure that selfish but otherwise righteous people would cleanse their hearts of untoward behavior, such as not sharing one’s possessions with others. “He placed this leprous affliction for it is for his good to purify his heart so that he should not lack generosity.”

(at least) Two ideas emerge from this text:

KINDNESS is more than a mere ‘extra’ - something unnecessary that merely augments one’s character. An example of an ‘extra’ is when a financially solvent individual makes a good investment. Although the extra profit is noticed, that person could have managed very nicely without it.

The Torah is teaching that the trait of kindness is not viewed this way. One who does not proactively help others, especially when asked to do so, is considered to have a serious character deficiency. It is, in fact, so serious a personal failing that Hashem performed outright miracles to help that person change his ways and embrace the attribute of sharing.

Most people living in a Jewish community are often beseeched for various types of favors – physical and financial. As a practical matter, this text teaches that one should actively respond to at least some of these requests. One who always demurs when asked to ‘help’ is acting in a way that is reminiscent of the person whose house was stricken by leprosy.

‘SERIAL SINNING’ is an intellectually interesting psychodynamic. In the Midrash’s case, it is clearly implied is that if someone had not asked to borrow the item, the selfish homeowner would not have perjured himself to conceal his ownership – there was no need to. But he was asked for the favor, and that created a dilemma. On one hand, he was unwilling to brazenly say, “I have the requested item, but nonetheless, I will not allow you to borrow it.” On the other hand, he basically was not a liar. What ultimately ensued is that he compromised his principles thereby becoming just that…a liar.

This text teaches that very often, one wrongdoing creates the need for additional wrongdoing – even wrongdoing of an entirely different character. This man, in essence, was not dishonest. Nevertheless, in order to maintain his selfishness, he succumbed to proclaiming falsehoods. In the language of this Dvar, he became a ‘serial sinner.’ (Presumably, this lying will itself later give rise to yet other unrelated types of sin.)

In fact, the Talmud openly writes, “One mitzvah leads to another mitzvah, and one sin causes another sin” (Avot 4:2). If so, what is the added contribution of the insight into this Midrash? Isn't it simply a case of 'one sin causing another sin?'

One can answer that Avot 4:2 might only be referring to an “associative” phenomenon. For example, one who attends the morning minyan (service in the synagogue), will likely also end up giving charity, because at one point during the service, a charity box is typically passed around. Conversely, one who does not attend the morning minyan will likely not give the charity. Furthermore, he might end up reciting the prayers at an unacceptably late hour of the day. What the Dvar adds is that one sin can create the psychological need to pursue an entirely different form of wrongdoing in order to sustain the first sin.

In the instance of the Midrash in Parshat Metzorah, the urge to act selfishly created the need for a justification of lying – something that would not have otherwise occurred.

Examples of this phenomenon abound in everyday life. A student with a lazy streak might fail to keep up with schoolwork. As a result, he could suddenly find himself facing the possibility of flunking out of his program. What might then happen is that he suddenly “realizes” that he made a mistake in choosing this particular course of study – it isn’t what he likes. In truth, this course could be exactly what he likes, but in order to maintain his lazy work habits, he fabricates the canard that this program is ill-suited to his interests. In truth, whatever he undertook to study would have likely ended this same way and for this same reason – laziness.

In the religious realm, people sometimes stray from the path of “Mesorah.” Mesorah is the Talmudic approach to Judaism that has been faithfully passed from great and erudite teachers of Torah to great and erudite students of Torah in an unbroken chain since the time of Moshe Rabbenu (Moses our teacher). At times, the deviation entails an almost fanatical insistence on being even more ‘religious’ than the Torah’s norm. At other times, the deviation veers to the left in the form of leniencies and practices that great scholars of Torah have deemed objectionable for centuries.

A next step that almost invariably follows is that these zealots of the right and the left gravitate to ‘rogue rabbis’ who support their “contra-Mesorah” principles. A further corollary to this dynamic is to then disregard and delegitimize the generation’s recognized Talmudic scholars and proponents of Mesorah. Being disconnected from Mesorah will then surely beget a host of other problems. This teaches that one must be extremely careful when choosing religious ideologies and affiliations. One misstep can ultimately lead to ‘serial’ aberrations of Torah in many seemingly unconnected areas.

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