Be Holy - Kedoshim 5784
“Be Holy.” What is your first thought when you hear these words? What do the first words, and the name of this week’s parsha, Kedoshim – “Holy,” teach us? Probably how to meditate. How to pray. How to reach up to the spiritual worlds and connect to our souls. Is that not what is holy?
Well, when we read the Parsha we see many seemingly basic laws of how to behave toward others. Respect your parents. Don’t cheat with weights and measures. Don’t steal. Don’t lie. Don’t withhold an employee’s salary. Don’t be corrupt in judgment. Judge others favorably. Love your fellow as yourself. Don’t embarrass people. Love the convert and don’t offend them. Be moral in family life and intimacy.
Holiness in Judaism is not about escaping the mundane world. It is about being involved in the world in a holy way. And that is accomplished primarily in our human interactions.
There is an underlying theme that we see when it comes to how to treat another human being. When it comes to giving advice and offering help, the Torah emphasizes the need to consider the other person’s needs without any ulterior motives.
Love your fellow as yourself, for example. Love can be a selfish thing. I love you and therefore I want to be with you. If you truly love someone, that love should be expressed as: I love you so I want to do what I can to help fulfill your needs.
There is a legend of a fisherman who caught a large pike. The pike is suffering on the floor of the boat but is comforted when it hears the fisherman say: this is a beautiful pike, I’ll bring it to the count, the count loves pike. At the harbor, the other fishermen comment on this beautiful pike that the count will love. The pike, really suffering now, has renewed hope. The pike is brought to the count who exclaims: I love pike! He then puts it on the kitchen counter and starts to give the chef instructions on how to prepare it. With its dying gasps, the pike shouts to the count: you don’t love pike, you love yourself!
The sensitivity to another’s needs is also expressed in the Mitzvah “do not put a stumbling block in front of the blind.” Rashi says that this is a metaphor for giving someone bad advice. When we look at Rashi’s specific terminology, there is a powerful lesson here: “Before a person who is “blind” regarding a matter, you shall not give advice that is improper for him (or her.).” Note that he doesn’t say just “you shall not give improper advice.” He adds the words “for him.” The Rebbe taught that what Rashi is emphasizing is that any advice given must be purely from the perspective of the recipient.
When giving advice, besides not having any ulterior motives, and certainly no nefarious motives, there is another step. I need to take my own ideas and prejudices out of the picture. It doesn’t matter what would be good for me in this situation. Proper advice is purely what is best for the person to whom we are giving it, even if it is not exactly what is best for me. That is a true expression of love for another.
The Alter Rebbe, founder of the Chabad movement, was once asked what is greater, love for G-d or love for a fellow Jew. He answered that while both are equally important, love for a fellow is greater. The Torah states (Malachi 1:2): “I love you, says G-d.) it is a greater expression of love when you love the one whom the beloved loves.
It is incumbent on the Jewish nation to show love for one another. More than just a good thing, this is the path to holiness. And it is Ahavat Yisrael that will undo the baseless hatred that, our Sages taught, brought about the destruction of the Holy Temple and the exile.
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