THE FORGETTING COMMANDMENTS

Parashat Ki Tetze
Elul 14, 5782 / September 9-10, 2022
Torah: Deuteronomy 21:10 - 25:19
Haftarah: Isaiah 54:1-10; 54:11-55:5 (Fifth Haftarah of Consolation, followed by Third Haftarah of Consolation - it's complicated)
--------------------------------------------------------------
My Cheshbon Hanefesh Worksheet - 5783 Edition, is now available at my blog:
https://rav-rich.blogspot.com/2022/08/cheshbon-hanefesh-worksheet-5783.html 
I hope you find it useful.
-------------------------------------------------
This d'var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for Chanah Bella bat Kreina, Feigel bat Kreina, and Devorah bat Feigel.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lunch and Learn meets Tuesdays at 12:30 PM on Zoom and Facebook Live. We're continuing to read and discuss the Midrashic collection Ein Ya'akov. On October 4, we'll be at BT Shabbat 15a - page 112 of Ein Ya'akov Volume 1 - "...אמר רב כהנא" - "R. Cahana said:..." Or, we might do something a little different for Yom Kippur.
 
There will be NO Lunch and Learn in September due to travel and holy days. We will next meet on October 4, Erev Yom Kippur. 
 
Ein Ya'akov is available for on-line reading or as a downloadable PDF at: 
HebrewBooks.org Sefer Detail: Ein Yakkov Vol 1 -- S. H. Glick 
-----------------------------------------------
Rabbi Van Leeuwen has a blog which you should read at: 
https://rebjasonblog.wordpress.com/blog/ 
Dr. Steve Pearlman writes up the "Midrashim of the Week", which you should read at: 
https://midrashsrp.wordpress.com 
---------------------------------------------------------------------- 
Check out our wonderful community, and get lots of info about our various programs and becoming a Member at: https://bnaihayim.org/ 
 
Rosh Hashanah is two weeks from Sunday! Please submit your TBH Membership/High Holy Day forms ASAP! Check your mail for the High Holy Day bulletin! For more info call the temple office at (818) 788-4664. 
 
Please feel free to pass this on to a friend, and please cite the source.
--------------------------------------------------------------
THE FORGETTING COMMANDMENTS
 
"When you reap the harvest in your field and forget a sheaf in the field, do not return to take it; it shall be for the stranger, orphan and widow, in order that the Lord your God will bless you in all the work of your hand. When you beat your olive trees, do not go over them again; it shall be for the stranger, orphan and widow. When you harvest your vineyard, do not pick it over again; it shall be for the stranger, orphan and widow. And you will remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt; therefore I command you to do this thing." Deuteronomy 24:19-22
 
In these verses, as well as in Leviticus 19:9-10 and 23:22 (leaving the corners of the field and fallen fruit "for the poor and for the stranger"), we are told to leave grain, olives and grapes - basic foodstuffs which are also, not coincidentally, essential for offering the basic sacrifices to God. These are the necessities of the Israelites' physical and spiritual lives. And yet, according to the Rabbis, the commandment to leave forgotten sheaves in the field is the only commandment in the Torah that, in a way, can be fulfilled unintentionally.

The Gleaners - Julien Dupré, 1880

There are several rabbinic tales in which people celebrate the fact that they forgot sheaves in the field. But how can they celebrate unless they remember? It seems that what they are celebrating is that they "remembered" to forget! Sheaves on the ground? Forget about them! Olives still in the trees? Don't go back for them! Unripe grapes still on the vines? Don't do a second harvest. Forget about them!
 
This is all about overcoming human nature. When gathering in the harvest, anyone would be inclined to go back and get as much produce as possible - it was hard work to grow it, winter is coming, and who knows what the future will bring? But by remembering what it was like to have nothing, we can forget about trying to have everything.
 
These mitzvot can be fulfilled in a different way today. Please make a generous donation of food or money to SOVA, MAZON, or the local food pantry of your choice. Don’t forget!
 
Shabbat Shalom!
Richard A. Flom, Rabbi Emeritus
TBH/CBM
Sherman Oaks, CA
".איזה הוא חכם? הלומד מכל אדם"
Who is wise? The one who learns from every person.
Ben Zoma - Pirkei Avot 4:1
-----------------------------------------------
Cyber Torah list management (no salesman will call!):
To subscribe to Cyber Torah, send an e-mail with the subject heading “Subscribe Cyber Torah” to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net 
Send requests for dedications of Cyber Torah in honor of a simchah, in memory of a loved one or for a refuah shleimah to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net 
To unsubscribe from Cyber Torah, send an e-mail with the subject heading “Unsubscribe Cyber Torah” to: ravflom@sbcglobal.net