Give Honor to the Torah in the everyday life
Parashat Naso- Shavuot - Rabbi Eliezer Shenvald - 5780
Chag Shavuot and Shabbat Parashat Naso are close to each other, in their time and subjects; the central place the Torah takes and its importance in the everyday life.
This closeness is of special interest this year.
In the Parasha there is an unusual phenomenon. In fact, it starts already from the end of Parashat Bamidbar (beginning of Perek 4) with the commandment of the census of the הַקְּהָתִ֑י (Kohathite) family. And the opening of our Parasha is a direct continuation of it:
נָשֹׂ֗א אֶת־רֹ֛אשׁ בְּנֵ֥י גֵרְשׁ֖וֹן גַּם־הֵ֑ם לְבֵ֥ית אֲבֹתָ֖ם לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָֽם׃
"Take a census of the Gershonites also, by their ancestral house and by their clans". (Bamidbar 4:22)
The Midrash asks: Why does the Torah command censusing the two families: to "Take a census נָשֹׂ֗א אֶת־רֹ֛אשׁ - " and not "Record - פְּקֹ֨ד" like the other tribes?
And why were the Kohathites censused before, when Gershon was the oldest and should have been given priority?
And why is the word also used– גַּם־הֵ֑ם?
One answer to the three questions is 'Honor to the Torah'!
The Kohathites were brought forward because they were granted to carry the Ark of the Covenant with the two tablets of the Pact:
וְאִם לְחָשְׁךָ אָדָם וַהֲלוֹא גֵּרְשׁוֹן הָיָה בְּכוֹר לָמָּה הִקְדִּים הַכָּתוּב לִקְהָת לִנְשִׂיאַת רֹאשׁ וְאַחַר מָנָה לְגֵרְשׁוֹן, אַף אַתָּה אֱמָר לוֹ לְפִי שֶׁקְּהָת הָיָה מִטּוֹעֲנֵי הָאָרוֹן שֶׁהוּא קֹדֶשׁ הַקֳּדָשִׁים...וּמַהוּ שֶׁאָמַר הַכָּתוּב: גַּם הֵם, שֶׁלֹא תֹאמַר שֶׁלְּכָךְ מָנָה בְּנֵי גֵּרְשׁוֹן שְׁנִיִּים שֶׁהֵם פְּחוּתִים מִבְּנֵי קְהָת, לָאו, אֶלָּא כְּתִיב גַּם הֵם, שֶׁאַף בְּנֵי גֵּרְשׁוֹן כַּיּוֹצֵא בָּהֶם שֶׁל בְּנֵי קְהָת. אֶלָּא שֶׁהִקְדִּימוֹ הַכָּתוּב כָּאן בִּשְׁבִיל כְּבוֹד הַתּוֹרָה, אֲבָל בִּמְקוֹמוֹת אֲחֵרִים הִקְדִּים לְגֵרְשׁוֹן תְּחִלָּה לִקְהָת.
And it is written 'also' to say they were not of lesser importance but were mentioned before "to honor the Torah", since in other places they were mentioned the other way around. (Bamidbar Rabbah 6:2)
Therefore, the commandment was said with the words "Naso":
נָשׂא אֶת רֹאשׁ וגו', אֵינוֹ אוֹמֵר פְּקֹד, אֶלָּא נָשׂא אֶת רֹאשׁ, לְשׁוֹן נְשִׂיאוּת, כְּשֶׁנִּמְנוּ לְהִתְמַנּוֹת עַל מְלֶאכֶת הַקֹּדֶשׁ קִבְּלוּ נְשִׂיאוּת. מִתּוֹךְ בְּנֵי לֵוִי, שֶׁמִּכָּל בְּנֵי לֵוִי לֹא חֲשׁוּבִים כִּבְנֵי קְהָת.
נָשׂא אֶת רֹאשׁ 'Take the sum' does not mean פְּקֹ֨ד 'to take note'. Is an honor and reference of importance. When they were appointed to the sacred work, they received importance and preference. Within the sons of Levi, where not all the sons of Levi are as important as the Kohathites. Bamidbar Rabbah 4:12)
'נשיאות הראש' The honor and reference of importance and bringing forward the Kohathites is the practical realization of "Honor to the Torah." This is not about "honor" in the empty, extrovert negative sense; it is about "respect" in the deep and true sense, the realization of true worth and appreciation to something of value and importance.
The Torah is the foundation of the existence of the people of Israel and the entire world. The appreciation has to be changed to the manner of conduct of the individual and the public: the special respect to the carriers of the Torah, to the special respect to the Torah study and its contents, the special respect for the Torah itself, the respect for the wise students, and the sponsoring of Torah scholars to enable them to grow in Torah knowledge.
The Midrash also lists the order of precedence and respect among the holders of a high and authoritative position. And there, too, the honor of the Torah is at the top of the scale:
חָכָם קוֹדֵם לְמֶלֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵל, מֵת חָכָם אֵין לָנוּ כַּיּוֹצֵא בּוֹ, מֶלֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵל שֶׁמֵּת כָּל יִשְׂרָאֵל רְאוּיִן לְמַלְכוּת... אימתי? בזמן שכולן שוין, אבל אם היה ממזר ת"ח, קודם לכהן גדול עם הארץ"
"The wise goes first before the King of Israel! If the wise man dies, there is no one to replace him, if the King of Israel were to die, all Israel is suitable to rule the Kingdom instead, etc. But in case that everyone is equal, there are certain degrees of importance that are mentioned, like the King is before the Kohen, and Kohen Gadol goes before the Prophet and to top it all, if the Mamzer (bastard) is a wise person and the Kohen Gadol is ignorant, respect goes to the Mamzer first.” (Bamidbar Rabbah 6:1).
"Honor the Torah and its Learners" is related to a lesson learnt from the death of Rabbi Akiva's students between Pesach and Shavuot:
שנים עשר אלף זוגים תלמידים היו לו לרבי עקיבא מגבת עד אנטיפרס וכולן מתו בפרק אחד מפני שלא נהגו כבוד זה לזה... תנא כולם מתו מפסח ועד עצרת
"Rabbi Akiva had twelve thousand pairs of students in an area of land that stretched from Gevat to Antipatris in Judea, and they all died in one period of time, because they did not treat each other with respect… It is taught that all of them died in the period from Passover until Shavuot. " (Yevamot 62b).
It is precisely Talmidei Chachamim (Scholars) who should be more careful about this. How symbolic it is that
מִשֶּׁמֵּת רַבִּי עֲקִיבָא, בָּטַל כְּבוֹד הַתּוֹרָה
"When Rabbi Akiva died, the glory of the Torah ceased" (Mishnah Sotah 9).
The value of the "Honor of Torah" is one of Judaism's foundations that must be fulfilled in conducting our everyday life and to educate the future generations.
This year we were merited with 'Honoring the Torah'. During the time we had to converge and shut ourselves up in our homes, group digital communication apps (zoom etc.) came into our lives. The need to be in quarantine, forced even those who were until recently technophobes, to learn the way of operating them (not complicated).
In one moment, technology changed the accessibility and possibilities to view Torah lessons from anywhere in the world without partitioning the Beit Midrash. Together with the extra free time everyone had because of the closure and the shutdown of all services.
A wide array of Torah lessons of all kinds that were opened to the public at all times of the day in an unparalleled way. And the learners multiplied. People from all over the world joined the lessons:
אוֹתוֹ הַיּוֹם, סִלְּקוּהוּ לְשׁוֹמֵר הַפֶּתַח וְנִתְּנָה לָהֶם רְשׁוּת לַתַּלְמִידִים לִיכָּנֵס.
"On that day that they removed Rabban Gamliel from his position and appointed Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya in his place, there was also a fundamental change in the general approach of the study hall as they dismissed the guard at the door and permission was granted to the students to enter." (Berakhot 28a)
Now we are going back to a routine. Our free time is now limited.
But we have the tools. And the duty to increase the 'Honor to the Torah'.
הַכֹּל הָבוּ גֹֽדֶל לֵאלֹקינוּ וּתְנוּ כָבוֹד לַתּוֹרָה
"Let us all ascribe greatness to our G-d and give honor to the Torah".
Progress in the desert and the giving of the Torah
Parsha and its fulfillment - Naso - Shavuot - Rabbi Eliezer Shenvald - 5779
Our Parasha is a continuation of the Parashat Bamidbar - the census and the continuation of the preparations for the journey to the Land of Israel. The reading of our Parsha takes on a special significance when it is close to Shavuot, the time of the giving of our Torah. It also has a direction for dealing with one of the complex challenges of the modern era and the cross-continental media that make the world a global village.
The desert is not only the midpoint separating Egypt from the Land of Israel. The period of the desert in general is the period of spiritual preparation of the Jewish people before entering the Land of Israel. A newly born nation that just received the Torah in the Sinai desert. On its birth certificate, the line of the place of birth reads: "Bamidbar. Desert" Because "all the virtue and speech that Israel has acquired is from the desert," and so it says (Song of Songs 8: 5): " Who is she that comes up from the desert?"
“The Torah is from the desert, the Man is from the desert, Slav (quail) is from the desert, “the clouds of Glory" by which they were sheltered are from the desert, everything is from the desert, for it is written “He found him in a desert region” (Dvarim 32:10), and in Jeremiah 31:2: “Found favor in the wilderness”. (Sfatei Cohen Bamidvar 1:1)
The period of spiritual shaping is meant to be a spiritual preparation before arriving at a land, which has many constraints of life and livelihood, and there are many "distractions" which may distract from the spiritual world.
“Rabbi Yoḥanan said: “It is not in heaven” means that Torah is not to be found in the haughty, those who raise their self-image as though they were in heaven. “Nor is it beyond the sea” means that it is not to be found among merchants or traders who are constantly traveling and do not have the time to study Torah properly” (Eruvin 55a).
Therefore, it is not by chance that the desert was chosen to be the place where the people of Israel prepared for entering the land. In a sterile place in which he was freed from the preoccupation of the daily physical existence and free for spiritual pursuits.
It is not coincidental that the Sinai desert was chosen as the place where the Torah was given: "In three things the Torah was given: in the wilderness and in fire and in water, what is this for all the people of the world?" (Mekhilta Parashat HaChodesh). The desert is accessible and open to all, and thus staying in it is "free". A place without a real estate value, so too does the Torah not belong to one sector or another, it is "free" and accessible to all, and anyone who wants to use it and buy it is entitled to it. "
Why was the law given in the desert? To teach us that just as the desert is free to all men, so the words of the law are free to all who desire to learn them. Also, lest a man should say: “I am a student of the law that was given to me and my ancestors, while you and your ancestors are not students of the law; your ancestors were strangers”; hence it is written: An inheritance of the congregation of Jacob (Deut. 33:4). This tells us that the law was an inheritance for all who associate themselves with Jacob. Even outsiders who devote themselves to the law are equal (Mlidrash Tanchuma Vayakhel).
The Torah is not from this world, but from a Supreme world and therefore the Torah is equal to all, and no one receives more than the other" (Maharal Netivot Olam – Netiv haTorah - Chapter 2).
The Torah is "free" even in the sense that whoever buys it acquires a spiritual value of the first order and does not buy a lucrative profession for himself.
There is another sense that the Torah was given in the desert.
The desert is a place of humility and of correct proportions between the main and the less important: "
אמר רב מתנה מאי דכתיב וממדבר מתנה אם משים אדם עצמו כמדבר זה שהכל דשין בו תלמודו מתקיים בידו ואם לאו אין תלמודו מתקיים בידו
Similarly, Rav Mattana said: What is the meaning of that which is written: “The well that the princes dug out, that the nobles of the people delved, with the scepter, with their staves. And from the wilderness they went to Mattanah” (Numbers 21:18)? If a person makes himself humble like this wilderness, which is open to all and upon which everyone treads, his Torah study will endure and be given to him as a gift [mattana]. And if not, his Torah study will not endure. (Eruvin 54a).
"This interpretation is as it was explained before, that the Torah does not belong only some but to all. (Maharal ibid).
Precisely in an age of progress, the Jewish people needs formative frameworks such as the desert that will enable it to continue the eternal process of giving the Torah.
Progress and the media it developed have brought a blessing to the world. It has transformed the world into a global village where physical distance no longer constitutes a barrier between peoples and cultures. It enables the nations to help each other, and to be blessed with the resources of others. But this sophistication has become an arena in which a great deal of effort is invested to capture one's attention. Whose inclusion causes a flood of information and attention to the takeover and suffocation, to the point of addiction. In so doing, it distracts itself from the self, from the spiritual world and from divinity. And the continued realization of the “Maamad Har Sinai”. It is precisely in this age that man needs a "desert corner" for a sterile space free from external influences in which he can detach himself of all kinds of distractions for quality time, fill his batteries and unite with his self and G-d, with his mind and his soul.