Tazri'a 5757

The Torah portion which we read this week, called Tazri’a, is from the book of Va'yikra, Leviticus, chapters twelve and thirteen. The overriding concern of this portion, and the one we shall read next week, Metzora -- which more often than not is combined with this week's portion -- is with leprosy. Scholars debate whether this is actually the disease which today is called "leprosy," which was not very often found among the Israelites. Still, there was a disease which the Torah calls "leprosy," and the afflicted is called a "leper". Leprosy required separation from the rest of the community. A healed leper needed an atoning sacrifice and immersion before being able to fully rejoin the community.

Traditional Jewish Rabbinic commentators see leprosy as symbolic of transgression and sin. In Bamidbar (Numbers) 12, God gave Miriam leprosy for slandering Moses. After Moses interceded she was still "...shut out from camp seven days..." [Numbers 12:14]. The Rabbis asked, 'Why is the leper, unlike other defiled persons, required to dwell alone? And they replied, because by his slander he causes a rift between husband and wife, or a man and his friend --and thus he, too, must suffer separation. Similarly the Sages teach that this affliction is punishment for bloodshed, false oaths, thievery, pride, robbery, and selfishness. The pattern that emerges is that failure to share the hurts and feel the needs of others leads to this form of Divine retribution. God rebukes and punishes antisocial behavior by isolating the offender from society, so that he may experience the pain he imposed on others—and heal himself through repentance and introspection.

All this, though, is the second issue discussed in today's portion. Actually, this week's parsha begins with "And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, Speak to the people of Israel, saying, If a woman conceives, and bears a male child; then she shall be unclean seven days; as in the days of her menstruation, shall she be unclean. And in the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. And she shall then continue in the blood of her purifying for thirty three days; she shall touch no consecrated thing, nor come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purifying be fulfilled. But if she bears a female child, then she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her menstruation; and she shall continue in the blood of her purifying sixty six days. And when the days of her purifying are fulfilled, for a son, or for a daughter, she shall bring a lamb of the first year for a burnt offering, and a young pigeon, or a turtledove, for a sin offering, to the door of the Tent of Meeting, to the priest who shall offer it before the Lord, and make an atonement for her; and she shall be cleansed from the issue of her blood." [Lev. 12:1-7]

Let me tell you that many feminists (and many women who don't call themselves by that name) have a real problem with this passage. They proclaim that it is discriminatory of women. They state that a woman feels bad enough at the time of birth because of the labor and its physical concomitant issues -- episiotomy, afterbirth, post-partum blues etc. She does not need to be shunned and called 'impure' -- as if she were a leper. They claim that Judaism is insensitive to the feelings of women, that they are chauvinist and cavalier in their attitude. I would like to dispel this notion.

Archeologists and historians have noted that many of the ancient religions of Canaan had "birth rights." These Canaanites religions did much more than present the new mother with some gifts for the baby or a bouquet of flowers. Entire cults surrounded the pagan gods, some of whom were female, who ruled over reproduction. A new mother might have been considered close to the god who had been instrumental in her bearing that child. Such women might be brought to the local temple dedicated to the goddess Ashera - Ashtarte or Anat or perhaps Lilith -- or the male God Ba'al, the traditional husband God. The new born child might be ritually passed through a fire as a dedication to the god Moloch. All this and much more were practices of the non-Jewish residents of Canaan and the whole Middle East. These pagan beliefs were acted upon in connection with anything to do with childbirth. They designated special powers to seed, the woman's monthly cycle, conception and birth. In particular, the birth of a child was considered to have been assisted by certain gods or spirits. The gods, like humans, were petty, argumentative, and highly irritable. A successful birth would arouse opposing gods and spirits to seek vengeance against their enemy. The mother and the baby alike required special protection from these gods and their demons. Appeasements of the gods were most definitely required. Some might ask for protection from the deity that had been instrumental in bringing the child into being. If a daughter was born she would need even more protection than a son -- for she was, herself, potentially a mother of her own children. Sometimes, especially in the birth of a woman's first child, it was required to sacrifice the newborn to the friendly God to insure protection of future births.

Needless to say all of this was totally unacceptable to the Jews who followed the teachings of the Torah and its concept of a single, benevolent, loving, merciful and graceful God. Yet, some may wrongly claim that our reading is proof that the Torah teaches us that such stupid beliefs as were held by the pagans were also embraced by the Israelites. After all, this week's parasha starts out by totally excluding birthing women from Biet Hamikdash -- the Temple. Maybe what we ought to see, in stead, is the fact that women were not excluded at all times -- and that there was a good reason to exclude them at this particular time in their lives, to prevent any misunderstanding as to the purpose of their visit to the Temple.

I believe that the whole process demonstrates Torah opposition to the previously mentioned polytheistic rituals. Pagans had a special affinity for fertility. Their fertility cults would have celebrations in front of idols which represented their gods and goddesses. They would demonstrate human procreation and the drama of giving birth at these celebrations. Children were a tool to extend one's power, to bring about greater wealth. Children were property, to be used or abused, to be kept or traded or sold. Women, likewise, were regarded as property, as baby-factories with a side benefit of house and field work. This viewpoint was totally rejected by the Torah. Since Torah teaches that only God is the source of every blessing in the world. God gives life and blesses all his children, male and female alike. He has created a world in which the woman is man's helpmate, not his property. Such ideas were the most revolutionary of the time.

Things have not changed much in the last three thousand years, either. In fact, in the Israeli Arab conflict, one of the major cultural differences is that of our opposite attitudes towards women and children and their role in society and in the conflict. The Jews believe in the basic right of children to grow free of strife and hate, as stated in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, "States, Parties (to a conflict) shall take all feasible measures to ensure that persons who have not attained the age of 15 years do not take a direct part in hostilities." [Article 38:2] We Jews would extend this convention to include children of all ages, as we strive for universal peace and understanding. At any rate, we certainly do not subscribe to Arab sentiments, as stated by the Palestinian Authority Ministry of Information on April 6, 1997, marking Palestinian Childhood Day: "The Palestinian people was not defeated in the long and bitter battle waged by the stone-thrower children against the Israeli military occupation to their land. The brave youngsters, who were born under occupation, were never hesitant to clash with Israeli soldiers to express indignation over the continued Israeli atrocities and crimes committed against their people. The youngsters were not scared by the soldiers guns aimed at their chests, killing or wounding many protesters. They were in fact giving a unique example for resistance which was not void of a mixture of positive and negative elements. The positive aspects can be summed up in developing the spirit of challenge, confrontations, resistance, and non-yielding inside our children who formed the first defense line against the Israeli military arsenal. They were protesting against constant Israeli infringement to human and national rights. They were uniting their ranks in resisting the Israeli dehumanization policy, the oppression, injustices, and distortion of facts delivered against them by the Israeli army. Their solid resistance has formed the first cornerstone towards the dawn of freedom, independence, and emancipation from Israeli servitude."

Golda Meir, may she rest in peace, commented once that the thing she could not forgive the Arabs was not the fact that they waged war against us but that they made us train our youth to become efficient soldiers-killers. In Judaism, every child is a gift from God, a blessing of promise and of potential. Children are for loving, for nurturing and encouraging. Children are for the future, if there is to be a future. This week's portion of the Torah teaches us to dedicate our children, to spare our birthing mothers and allow them to heal from the ordeal of giving birth without fuss and without exaggerate religious significance to their partnership in creation. May the day soon dawn when all mankind finds its own high standards for appreciating both mothers and their offsprings.

5758

This week's portion in the Torah is in the book of Va'Yikra, chapters12 to 16 -- a double portion combining Tazri’a and Metzora. The text for the week begins with the words, "Isha ki tazri'a -- when a woman gives birth," -- but the overriding concern of this portion is with leprosy (Chapters 13-14). Scholars debate whether this is actually the disease which today is called leprosy, but for the sake of simplicity we will call it "leprosy" and the afflicted a "leper". Leprosy required separation from the rest of the community. A healed leper needed an atoning sacrifice and immersion before being able to fully rejoin the community.

Early this week I was approached by a member of the congregation who informed me that his son has joined a "messianic congregation." "What am I supposed to do, Rabbi?" This man asked me? "I love this son of mine with all my heart -- but I am also an old fashioned Jew who does not believe that you can accept Jews who have left our fold as members of the clan. How can I make an exception in the case of my son?" He asked. I thought about how I am going to answer this congregant, and finally I said to him, "let me write a letter to your son."

Dear brother,

You do not know me. Not because if the fact that we have never met, but because of your recent action in becoming what you call a 'messianic Jew' -- had you known me, I'd like to think that you would not have made that choice. You see, you have been led astray, made to believe that you are not giving up anything, but only accepting a little more, expanding your horizons, becoming more complete. You have been shown texts and told that they are a part of your heritage -- but they are not! You have been made a square peg in a round hole, and now you try to tell your family and the rest of Judaism that it is 'the only way to be a 'real' or 'complete' or 'fulfilled' Jew. Well, you are wrong, and those who taught you are charlatans!

How dare they? We are the self same Jews who came out of Egypt, to become His people and carry His message. We were complete from the time of Egypt, and from the time of Sinai. We have been told by Moshe Rabenu, "You stand this day all of you before the Lord your God; your captains of your tribes, your elders, and your officers, with all the men of Israel, Your little ones, your wives, and your stranger who is in your camp, from the hewer of your wood to the drawer of your water; That you should enter into covenant with the Lord your God, and into his oath, which the Lord your God makes with you this day; That he may establish you today for a people to himself, and that he may be to you a God, as he has said to you, and as he has sworn to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. And not with you alone will I make this covenant and this oath; But with him who stands here with us this day before the Lord our God, and also with him who is not here with us this day; " [Deu. 29:9-14]

Our Rabbinic commentators see leprosy as symbolic of evil, of sin. In Numbers 12 God gave Miriam leprosy for slandering Moses' wife. After Moses interceded she was still "shut out from camp seven days." [Numbers 12:14] The Rabbis ask, "Why is the leper, unlike other defiled persons, required to dwell alone?" And they reply, "Because by his slander he parted husband from wife, or a man from his friend, and he too must suffer separation." The Sages teach us further that the affliction of leprosy is punishment for bloodshed, false oaths, pride, robbery, and selfishness.

There is a huge difference between the sincere Christian and the follower of Jesus who pretends to be a Jew. We Jews demand the right to define ourselves. We have a very clear idea of where we come from -- our history, who we are -- our identity, and where we are going -- our destiny and our purpose. Historically speaking, we are the decedents of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; we are the people who stood at Sinai, whose king David made Jerusalem his capital, whose prophets taught the basic values of Western civilization. In terms of our identity, we are the people of the Hebrew Scriptures, followed by the Mishna, the Gmara, the Midrash and Halakhah; our covenant has not lapsed and we are not in need of "esh zara" -- a foreign teaching that will somehow augment, supplant or supercede our teachings, our Torah.

We have been taught in the Torah, "Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse; A blessing, if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you this day; And a curse, if you will not obey the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn aside from the way which I command you this day, to go after other gods, which you have not known." [Deu. 11:26-28] Christianity has gone through a period of some sixteen hundred years of attempting to convert the Jews with a carrot and or a stick. The church cursed the Jews and had them expelled; in the name of the prince of peace they put them to the sword, burned them at the stake and massacred them from the time of the first Crusade to the days after the Holocaust. Some churches have seen fit to repent and ask the Jews forgiveness. We are willing to forgive, though we must never forget. Some churches choose to continue their mission to the Jews -- and we are on guard against their effort.

The only ones we do not countenance at all are the wolves in sheep's clothing! Because they come to our most vulnerable Jews, the disenchanted and the uninitiated, the poor and the ignorant. They offer a quick fix -- grab the cross and find salvation. Accept 'Yeshu'a' -- the Christian God figure, and you will find 'yeshu'ah' - redemption! Never mind that the solution they offer in not part of the Jewish paradigm. Never mind that what they offer is in total paradox with the teachings of our Torah. Never mind! Once you are 'fulfilled' you no longer owe any answer to reason. You are 'saved' -- so be at ease. So, never mind!

Except... Except that your grandfather was marched to the gas chambers by people who were similarly 'saved;' except that these messengers of salvation put your people to the rake in the Spanish inquisition; except that the fathers of the 'church' -- which you call a messianic synagogue, told their followers that the Jews are "Slayers of the Lord, murderers of prophets, adversaries of God, haters of God, men who show contempt for the law, foes of grace, enemies of their father’s faith, advocates of the devil, brood of vipers, slanderers, scoffers, men whose minds are in darkness, leaven of the Pharisees, assembly of demons, sinners, wicked men, stoners, and haters of righteousness." [Gregory of Nyssa, (331?-396?)] Is this the faith you want to "fulfill" your Jewish heritage? Or do you think that those who came to you and opened your eyes to their 'truth' are different? Think for a minute -- you and those who join you are lost to Judaism forever. What will the end of their effort bring about? It will bring about the disappearance of the Jewish people! Now, if this is the final result, how is it different from "the final solution of the Jewish problem?" Just because you will still breathe the breath of life. How different do you have to be before you are no longer the person your parents brought up? If they sit Shiva and mourn for you -- is their child less dead than the child who was killed by the Jew-haters?

The portion of the week begins with the matter of birth. When a woman gives birth, if she is Jewish, the child is Jewish. The woman lives by the teaching of Moshe, and the child has to do likewise. When he (or she) does not, they become infected with leprosy of the spirit. They need to be removed from the habitation of the people -- to prevent the desecration of the camp, to prevent infection and perversion. If one is sick and is then healed, he will be accepted again into the fold. We shall pray for your recovery, and may God bring you healing through Torah and Mitzvot.

Wishing you a quick recovery, I remain an authentic, complete and thoroughly fulfilled in Torah Jew un-augmented by non-Jewish concepts.

5759

This week's portion is tazri'a metzora, and deals with cleansing the festering disease of leprosy. We read, "When a person has the leprous curse (nega tzora'at), he shall be brought to the priest... and the priest must declare it unclean." (Leviticus 13:9-11)

ALTHOUGH it has a physical manifestation, the Talmudic tradition insists that "nega tzora'at" is primarily spiritual in nature. The Jewish people instituted washing and cleanliness as part of their tradition, and it stands to reason to believe that there were not so many lepers among our people, even in ancient times, as to justify such lengthy discussions about the matter. Hence the word used to describe the stricken person, metzora, is phonetically related to the expression "motzi ra" - one who spreads slander - the cause of the skin blemish. Motzi ra is a person who spreads stories, half truths and innuendos that tear the very good name of some one or some ones, as a pestering wound does, and when the story is done, it leaves a gaping hole where one's good name used to be. As a consequence of spreading lies that tear at the very structure of society, one is declared a pariah, and cut off from humanity. Hence this "leprous state" contains a crucial moral lesson.

We are celebrating today a Hadassah shabbat, between Yom Hasho'ah and Yom Hazikaron, the memorial day for Israel's fallen youth that gave their lives for the birth, security and continued existence of the state. Two events that are directly related to the slander we have received at the hands of the Goyim, the nations. This slander, this leprosy, ate at our flesh and devoured it. Throughout our history it gnawed at us, taking a finger here and a toe there -- and sometimes taking so much more. Pharaoh slandered us, as did Haman, Torkemada and the Tzars. We were set upon by the New Testament and by the perverted forgery called "the Protocols of the Elders of Zion." Their leprosy destroyed the body of Judaism, time and time again, while we hoped and prayed and worked for a BETTER WORLD. We raised our heads and gained new hope when the reformation and enlightenment came. We worked hard and contributed mightily for every cause of new learning, of advanced understanding between peoples. We labored ceaselessly to bring about the birth of a new world, a world without ignorance and prejudice. A world were people will be judged by their merit, not their pedigree. In the second quarter of the twentieth century, Europe, which was filled with hatred for the Jews, allowed this hatred to boil over, and through a diabolic combination with perverted science caused the hatred to matrerialize into the worst nightmare of Judaism and of humanity -- the holocaust. In the next quarter century, the Arab world and the Moslem world have connived, with the collusion of the world, to refuse us even a measure of succor and balm to soothe our trauma. Our dear newborn state was made a MILITARY BASTION against our nature and against all our own best wishes. Because of their own folly, Arabs lost their homes and sustenance in a war which was forced upon us and which we could not allow ourselves to lose, for fear of annihilation. A pioneering community of six hundred and fifty thousands fought against the onslaught of an Arab world numbering more than two hundred millions. In the next five decade Israel brought in four times more immigrants than its total population, made them a home and gave them a chance to make a living a rehabilitate themselves. Due in great part to Hadassah and other similar organizations around the world, Israel became a leader in science, medicine, education and technology. But it also became a conqueror and occupier of other people's territory. Our young men suffered the damage caused by the corrupting influence of carrying guns and shooting, even in self defence, to kill other human beings. A world full of festering evil forced us to the leper colony, making it necessary for us to fight for our lives, to become the best soldiers, the best pilots, the best frog-men in the world, to excel in the making of munitions and arms, to be unbeatable.

The past week we have seen the stories emanating from the middle east. Hizzbullah terrorists, religious fanatics who want to remove all Jews from their homeland, shoot rockets at Israel, and our boy retaliate -- and since the Hizzbullah use a human shield, shooting from refugee camps and from the neighborhoods of hospitals and schools -- innocent people get killed. My heart ached, my heart broke, at the sight of the mangled bodies of women and children on the CNN news. Yet, I must remind us all, they are victims of the same leprosy that is killing us, too.

5760

This week’s portion of the Torah is the twelfth and thirteenth chapters in the book of Va’yikra, Leviticus. The text deals with questions of health and holiness and begins with the following teaching: "And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, Speak to the people of Israel, saying, If a woman conceives, and bears a male child; then she shall be unclean seven days; as in the days of her menstruation, shall she be unclean. And in the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised." [Lev. 12:1-3] The last words open up the matter of ‘milah’ - circumcision, which was a practice of the Jews from the time of Abraham and a snare for Jewish males in hundreds of times of persecution, when all our enemies had to do was expose a man, to establish his Jewishness that would condemn him.

In the first part of the twentieth century, particularly in the United States, the health reasons for circumcision became known, and many non-Jews chose to undergo this simple procedure, even as adults. During World War Two, circumcision was the most often performed surgery in the armed services. Yet, there were always those who objected to having this "Jewish ritual" being performed and becoming a "standard" for males. Here are the words of a Dr. James DeMeo, whose insight is very interesting to note: "Simply put, all forms of male genital mutilation to include infant circumcision, are ancient blood rituals associated with primitive religion and absolution of the male... The ritual has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with medicine, health, or science in practically all cases. The fact that so many circumcised American men, and mothers, nurses, and obstetricians are ready to defend the practice in the face of contrary epidemiological evidence is a certain give-away to hidden, unconscious motives and disturbed emotional feelings about the penis and sexual matters in general." Yet, I wish to bring another element of "the covenant in the flesh" into focus for you - the issue of social responsibility.

There are two different commandments in Judaism that ‘milah’ takes care of: one that says that a father shall circumcise his son on the eighth day of his life, which this weeks text alludes to; and the other is the injunction for the Israelites to circumcise all the ‘arelim’ (uncircumcised) that are in their midst. Originally, the ceremony was performed by each father for his sons. Eventually, ‘specialists’ called "mohel" took over the task. There are four ‘actors’ in a Brit Milah ceremony: the mohel, the father, the ‘congregation’ and the ‘celebrant’ (usually a Rabbi). Each has a roll to play. The ancient texts, such as the first siddur of Se’ad’ya Gaon, Rabbi Amram Gaon and others teach us that the Mohel say the blessing, "Blessed are you... who commanded us concerning the milah." The father recites the prayer, "Blessed are you... who commanded us to enter him into the covenant of Avraham Avinu (Abraham our Father)." All those who are present (and traditionally the ceremony was conducted in the synagogue following the morning service, so the congregation was all present, not only relatives and a few invited friends) respond to the father’s blessing by saying "as he has entered the covenant, so may he be privileged to enter Torah, Khupa (the wedding canopy) and a life of good deeds." And the Rabbi recites a prayer over the wine, predicated on the knowledge of Jewish tradition and history, thanking God for His covenant, His protection and His keeping faith with us. Different authorities argued about the need for the second step, that of the father’s blessing – is it really necessary? They ruled that if the father performs the Brit, he need only recite the blessing of the mohel, and if the father is not present, the blessing is not recited. It is only when the father is there and does not actually officiate that this blessing is pronounced.

However, the real issue, and the one I wish to point out to you, is the response of the congregation. The ancient texts, from Se’ad’ya Gaon, who lived in the tenth century, to the Shulkhan Arukh, the definitive "law book" of Rabbi Joseph Karo, written in the sixteenth century, and including hand copied Talmud texts, tell us that the response of the congregation is to be, "as you have entered him in the covenant, so may you be privileged to enter him into a life of Torah, Khupa (the wedding canopy) and a life of good deeds." Indeed, this response is used as text by the Sepharadic community. However, the earliest printed Talmud, and every version since then, contains the non-personal "as he has entered the covenant, so may he be privileged to enter Torah, Khupa (the wedding canopy) and a life of good deeds." Why is that?

I would like to suggest to you that this change in the text is the result of the many massacres of Jews at the hands of Christianity from the time of the first crusade. The original response makes sense from a Torah text point of view, that a father is responsible for raising his son and teaching him right from wrong. But in the eleventh century life changed radically for the Jews, when their continued existence, from one day to the next became uncertain. In this predicament of uncertainty, the welfare of little children weighed heavily on expectant parents. Their concern changed from ‘will I be able to support and protect my child?’ to "will I be there to support and protect my child?’ This doubt and concern could have led to a decrease in marriages and child bearing. The entire community entered the picture to prevent this outcome. When a newborn boy was brought into the synagogue for brit milah, and the congregation witnessed and responded with "as he has entered the covenant, so may he be privileged to enter Torah, Khupa and a life of good deeds," they were pledging to the parents that should fate rob them of the personal experience, the community will step in and assume the responsibility.

This communal responsibility for the education and welfare of young Jewish children has not diminished since then. It has led to a community-wide literacy, striving for excellence, and pride in the acquisition of knowledge of our tradition, history, and culture that is unique among mankind. Let us pledge ourselves anew to this task, and let us insure that we remain a people informed and educated, enlightened and responsive to the Highest call - to serve God by serving His creation.

Amen

Tazri'a 5763

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Have a great and blessed day, whichever way you celebrate it.

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Have a good week-end, one and all!

You may mail your comments to: Rabbi Eliezer Ben Yehuda

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