From: Netvort@aol.com
Sent: Friday, July 13, 2007 2:27
AM
To: JoshHoff@aol.com
Subject: Netvort : parshas Matos -
Masei, 5767
There's Something in the
Air
By Rabbi Joshua (atmospherically known as The Hoffer)
Hoffman
In parshas Masei, the nation is given the boundaries of the land it
is about to enter, and which it is charged to capture. Forty-two cities are then
assigned to the Levites, and an additional six cities are given them to serve as
cities of refuge, to save the inadvertent murderer from the avenger of blood. We
have noted in the past the comment of the Talmud that there were an equal number
of cities of refuge on each side of the Yarden River, even though there were
only two and a half tribes on the eastern side of the river, and nine and a half
tribes on the western side. The Talmud explains that there was an abundance of
murderers on the eastern side, and that is why there had to be a proportionately
larger number of cities of refuge there. The Maharal of Prague asks, aren't the
cities of refuge set aside to serve the inadvertent? How, then, can an abundance
of willful murderers have any repercussions for the number of cities of refuge
needed? He answers that, because there was an abundance of willful murderers on
the eastern side of the Yarden, life, in general, was not valued properly, and,
in such an atmosphere inadvertent murders occurred more often, as well.
This observation of the Maharal can, I believe, help us understand the verses
preceding the section on the boundaries of the land and the purpose for bringing, at
length, the laws of the cities of refuge after setting out the boundaries.
Before the nation is given the boundaries of the land, it is
told, "If you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land before you, those of
them whom you leave shall be as pins in your eyes and as thorns in your sides,
and they shall harass you upon the land in which you dwell" (Bamidbar 33: 55).
The nation, then, was commanded to drive the inhabitants of the land out. As the
Talmud tells us, three options were given to these inhabitants. Either they
could make peace and accept observance of the Noachide laws upon themselves, or
they could leave the land and go to another country, or they could wage war. In
most cases, the war option was chosen, and, as a result, the nation had to
engage in a great deal of battle in the process of inhabiting the land. Such an
atmosphere, if carried into everyday life once they settled into their
designated homes, had the potential of having a negative effect on the
atmosphere of the country in general, placing it in a militaristic mode, and
lessening the value of life in general. Just as the Maharal taught us that
an abundance of willful murders can lead to an increase in inadvertent murders,
a militaristic mode could have the effect of viewing life as less important than
it is. Perhaps for this reason the laws of the city of refuge are presented at
length precisely at this juncture, in order to emphasize the value of life,and
the safeguards that must be taken to preserve it.
Rabbi
Yehudah Leib Ginzburg, in his commentary Yalkut Yehudah to parshas Shoftim,
mentions the Talmudic comment regarding the address made to Jewish soldiers
before waging war in the Holy Land. The kohein begins his address by saying,
"Hear Yisroel (Shema Yisroel) you are today approaching battle against your
enemies" (Devorim 20:3). Rashi, citing the Talmud (Sotah 42a), writes that the
seemingly superfluous words, 'Shema Yisroel' - Hear O Yisroel - are an allusion
to the prayer of Shema that is recited twice daily. The kohein, says the Talmud,
by beginning his address with these words, is telling the soldiers that even if
the only merit they have is that of the recitation of the Shema, they are worthy
of having God save their lives during battle. Why should the Shema be
effective specifically in regard to the battles that are described in parshas
Shoftim? Rabbi Ginzburg explains by referring to Rashi's explanation of the
first sentence of the Shema,"Hear Yisroel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one"
(Devorim 6:4).This verse expresses our hope that God, who is at the moment
recognized as the One God only by his people Yisroel, will, eventually, be
recognized as such by all nations. Before embarking on a war in which many human
beings will likely be killed, we must know that our motivation in doing so is
not any form of hatred of humanity, but, on the contrary, by our love for
humanity and hope that they will join us in our recognition of God's unity.
The nations we are commanded to wage war against transgressed
the seven Noachide laws, thereby ignoring, the fundamental elements of morality,
or, as my teacher Rav Ahron Soloveichik put it, the natural law that is embedded
in every man's heart and mind. Before we wage war against them, we offer to make
peace with them, on condition that they accept observance of the Noachide laws
upon themselves. Although there is a dispute among the medieval commentators as
to whether we send this peace offer even to members of the seven Canaanite
nations, Rav Ahron Soloveichik maintained that all agree that if they
offer to make peace on their own, we do accept their offer. Only if they insist
on remaining in the land and at the same time persist in violating the seven
laws do we go on to wage war against them. To allow the seven nations to remain
in the land and continue with their immoral, inhumane practices would make our
goal of bringing all the nations to a recognition of the One God virtually
impossible to attain.The kohein, in addressing the soldiers, alludes to the
Shema in order to remind them of the reason that they are about to wage war.
Keeping this message in mind as they go out to fight will help them wage war
with the proper intention, and thereby provide them with the merit they need to
win the battle. Following our discussion of the placement of the section
concerning the cities of refuge close to the section on driving the nations out
of the land, we can add that keeping in mind the true motivation behind these
wars when fighting them will prevent the creation of an atmosphere in which
human life is not valued, such as the institution of the cities of refuge is
meant to deal
with.
Please
address all correspondence to the author (Rabbi Hoffman) with the following
address - JoshHoff @ AOL.com.
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