Life Laws - Acharei/Kedoshim 5785

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I am Hashem.”  This is a statement that is found many times in Parshat Kedoshim relating to various laws.  Respect your parents, keep Shabbat, I am Hashem.  Don’t make graven images. I am Hashem.  Leave the corner of your field for the poor, I am Hashem your G-d.  Don’t swear falsely by My name, I am Hashem.  Don’t curse a person, don’t place a stumbling block before the blind, fear your G-d, I am Hashem.  Don’t pay revenge. Love your fellow as yourself, I am Hashem. Respect the elderly, revere Torah scholars, fear your G-d, I am Hashem. Don’t gossip or slander, I am Hashem.  Do not tattoo your flesh, I am Hashem, do not cheat the convert, I am Hashem, do not use false weights and measures, I am Hashem.  And more.


What is striking here is the range of mitzvot where Hashem exhorts us to recognize that they are from Him. From spiritual laws like Shabbat observance, to interpersonal behaviors, to honest business practices, they are all from Hashem.


This brings to mind a fascinating statement in the book “Hayom Yom.”  This is a book of daily spiritual thoughts compiled by the Rebbe, quoting teachings of the previous Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Y. Schneerson.  “There are two sorts of statutes: a) [G-d goven Torah] statutes that create life, and b) statutes created by life. Human laws are created by life so they vary from land to land according to circumstances. The A-lmighty's Torah is a G-dly law that creates life. G-d's Torah is the Torah of truth, the same in all places, at all times. Torah is eternal.”


Judicial systems are set up by nations and societies to deal with conflicting rights and obligations.  The focus of the wonderful American system, for example, is to protect people’s rights.  I have a right to my property so you can’t steal it. I have a right to freedom and security so you have to respect that.  In other words, societal laws are set up to address the needs of the society, and as these needs change the laws may change.  Sometimes a law works, sometimes it causes more problems than it is supposed to solve, often in unforeseen ways.


The Torah’s laws are given by Hashem in order to create a just and kind society.  Torah is the blueprint for the world, and a world that runs according to Torah will bring goodness, holiness and light to our lives.  The Torah teaches us that we have an obligation to respect another person’s property and not to take what is not rightfully mine.  This is not just about another person’s rights.  It is about a code of conduct that raises me to a level of honesty and goodness that also brings light to the world.


If the focus of the law is to protect my rights, when there are two conflicting rights I will focus on mine and push for everything I can, even if that tramples on your rights.  If the law allows for a loophole, I may take what is not really rightfully mine.  But if I am focusing on my G-d given responsibility to improve the world and bring light and goodness to it, then I will do all I can to do what is right.


No matter what the current world view of ethical behavior is, or which direction the moral winds are blowing, we know that Hashem has given us a code of ethics that is enduring and never changes.  By following this code we are fulfilling our mission on earth and moving the world toward ultimate redemption.


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