Parashat Behar
Torah: Leviticus 25:1 – 26:2
Haftarah: Jeremiah 32:6-27 (Ashkenazim); Jeremiah 32:6-22 (Sephardim)
Torah: Leviticus 25:1 – 26:2
Haftarah: Jeremiah 32:6-27 (Ashkenazim); Jeremiah 32:6-22 (Sephardim)
Iyar 17, 5784 / May 24-25, 2024
-------------------------------------------------------
This d’var torah is offered in memory of all US military personnel who died in the service to our country. Please fly your flag on Memorial Day in their honor.
This d’var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for Sarah Raizel bat Elisheva, Elie Ya'akov ben Pesha Leah, and Yaffa bat Blimah.
This d’var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah and a speedy and safe return of all the hostages being held by Hamas.
This d’var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for all who have been wounded in the terrorist attacks and in fighting against the terrorists, as well as innocent non-combatants caught in the crossfire.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Lunch and Learn meets Mondays at 12:30 PM on Zoom and Facebook Live. On May 27 (yes, Memorial Day), we'll be at BT Shabbat 152b, page 211 of Ein Ya'akov (Glick edition) Volume 1:
'...א"ר אבוהו כל שאומרים בפני המת'
"R. Abuhu said: "Whatever is said in the presence of a dead body..."
Ein Ya'akov (Glick edition) is available for on-line reading or as a downloadable PDF at: https://hebrewbooks.org/9630
A pointed Hebrew text version with different pagination is available at Sefaria:
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Rabbi Van Leeuwen has a blog which you should read at:
Dr. Steve Pearlman writes up the "Midrashim of the Week", which you should read at:
------------------------------------------------------
Please pass this on to a friend - and please cite the source.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
YOUR SIBLING'S KEEPER
"And if your brother becomes poor and his strength fails him, you shall support him, whether he is a convert or a resident alien, in order that he may live with you." Leviticus 25:35
The great Kabbalist of Tz'fat, Rabbi Moshe Alshikh (1508-1593), notes that earlier verses were in the second person plural. That is, the Torah had set up a social regime to be followed by the community as a whole. In our verse, however, the Torah switches to the singular. He says that, when a person needs help, everyone tries to shift responsibility to someone else, claiming that some other person is more closely related or has more means to help, or... You get the idea.
R. Alshikh says the singular verb teaches that each of us, individually, is responsible for helping the poor. One cannot absolve oneself of this obligation simply by referring the poor person to someone else.
But there’s much, much more at play here. The verse calls the poor person “your brother”, and it clearly means someone beyond only a sibling with closely-shared DNA. Rather, the verse implies that every human being is related to every other human being – we are all siblings.
"The Creation of Adam" - ca. 1508-1512 - Michelangelo
The prophet Malachi (2:10) is explicit about this: “Do we not all have one father? Did not one God create us? Why do we deal treacherously every man against his brother, profaning the covenant of our ancestors?” See also Mishnah Sanhedrin 4:5: “...only a single human being (i.e., "Adam", which literally means "a human") was initially created for the sake of peace, so that no one should be able to claim lineage superior to another person…”
You and I are each our brother's and sister's keeper! If we don't support them, who will?
Shabbat Shalom! And have a meaningful Memorial Day!
Rabbi Richard A. Flom
Rabbi Emeritus, Temple B’nai Hayim
הרחמן הוא יברך אותנו כולנו יחד בברכת אחוה, ובברכת אהבה,ובברכת שלום
May the Merciful One bless us, all of us as one, with the blessing of brotherhood, the blessing of love, and the blessing of peace.
----------------------------------------------------
My weekly divrei torah are available through free subscription to the Cyber Torah e-mail list. No salesman will call! Cyber Torah list management:
To subscribe to Cyber Torah, send an e-mail from the receiving address to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net with the heading “Subscribe Cyber Torah”.
To unsubscribe from Cyber Torah, send an e-mail from the receiving address to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net with the heading “Unsubscribe Cyber Torah”.
To dedicate a Cyber Torah in honor of a simchah in memory of a loved one or for a refuah shleimah, send an e-mail to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net with the heading “Dedicate Cyber Torah” and provide details in the message body.
