Dear TBZ Community:
This week’s Torah portion, Kedoshim, begins with the call to be Holy, to live a holy life:
קְדֹשִׁים תִּהְיוּ כִּי קָדוֹשׁ אֲנִי יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם
You shall be holy, for I, the LORD your God, am holy.
This parasha also includes the call to love our neighbor as we love ourselves:
וְאָהַבְתָּ לְרֵעֲךָ כָּמוֹךָ
This kavanah, an intentionality, is one that we include in our prayers every day and every Shabbat at TBZ.
The concepts of holiness and of love might seem a bit abstract. What does it mean to be holy and what does it mean to love? Throughout the Torah, and specifically in parshat Kedoshim, we find several teachings of how this looks in our lives.
We read in Leviticus 19, verses 11-18:
לֹא תִּגְנֹבוּ וְלֹא־תְכַחֲשׁוּ וְלֹא־תְשַׁקְּרוּ אִישׁ בַּעֲמִיתוֹ
You shall not steal; you shall not deal deceitfully or falsely with one another.
וְלֹא־תִשָּׁבְעוּ בִשְׁמִי לַשָּׁקֶר וְחִלַּלְתָּ אֶת־שֵׁם אֱלֹהֶיךָ אֲנִי יְהֹוָה
You shall not swear falsely by My name, profaning the name of your God: I am the LORD.
לֹא־תַעֲשֹׁק אֶת־רֵעֲךָ וְלֹא תִגְזֹל לֹא־תָלִין פְּעֻלַּת שָׂכִיר אִתְּךָ עַד־בֹּקֶר
You shall not defraud your fellow. You shall not commit robbery. The wages of a laborer shall not remain with you until morning.
לֹא־תְקַלֵּל חֵרֵשׁ וְלִפְנֵי עִוֵּר לֹא תִתֵּן מִכְשֹׁל וְיָרֵאתָ מֵּאֱלֹהֶיךָ אֲנִי יְהֹוָה
You shall not insult the deaf, or place a stumbling block before the blind. You shall fear your God: I am the LORD.
לֹא־תַעֲשׂוּ עָוֶל בַּמִּשְׁפָּט לֹא־תִשָּׂא פְנֵי־דָל וְלֹא תֶהְדַּר פְּנֵי גָדוֹל בְּצֶדֶק תִּשְׁפֹּט עֲמִיתֶךָ
You shall not render an unfair decision: do not favor the poor or show deference to the rich; judge your kinsman fairly.
לֹא־תֵלֵךְ רָכִיל בְּעַמֶּיךָ לֹא תַעֲמֹד עַל־דַּם רֵעֶךָ אֲנִי יְהֹוָה
Do not deal basely with your countrymen. Do not profit by the blood of your fellow: I am the LORD.
לֹא־תִשְׂנָא אֶת־אָחִיךָ בִּלְבָבֶךָ הוֹכֵחַ תּוֹכִיחַ אֶת־עֲמִיתֶךָ וְלֹא־תִשָּׂא עָלָיו חֵטְא
You shall not hate your kinsfolk in your heart. Reprove your kinsman but incur no guilt because of him.
לֹא־תִקֹּם וְלֹא־תִטֹּר אֶת־בְּנֵי עַמֶּךָ וְאָהַבְתָּ לְרֵעֲךָ כָּמוֹךָ אֲנִי יְהֹוָה
You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against your countrymen. Love your fellow as yourself: I am the LORD.
Each of these speak to our commitment to fairness and justice. The call to holiness is a commitment to our fellow humans. It is a reminder that being a religious Jew is not just about fulfilling ritual mitzvot (commandments), but is about deeply understanding that living a life of holiness is bound in seeing the dignity in every person and treating all people justly.
Rabbeinu Bahya ben Asher explains Leviticus 19:15 – בְּצֶדֶק תִּשְׁפֹּט עֲמִיתֶךָ – in the following way:
“With righteousness you shall judge your fellow.” The verse speaks about the fairness to be applied in the judicial process. Justice must not be perverted. He who applies fair rules thereby strengthens the throne of the Almighty. It is said of God’s throne that “righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne” (Psalms 89:15); if someone perverts the judicial system he thereby undermines God’s throne. This is a demeaning of God’s glory.”
In this teaching, Rabbeinu Bahya links justice to God’s throne and God’s glory, powerfully suggesting that when we do not live a life that seeks justice, we are diminishing God’s presence.
In Deuteronomy 16:20 we read the well-known words:
צֶדֶק צֶדֶק תִּרְדֹּף
Tzedek, tzedek tirdof
Justice, justice shall you pursue
But the verse does not end there. The full verse is: “Justice, justice shall you pursue, that you may thrive and occupy the land that the LORD your God is giving you.”
Whether literally the land of Israel, or “the land” in the sense of every place in this world that we inhabit, pursuing justice conditions our capacity to live holy, meaningful, and full lives. Pursuing justice is not a choice; it is the condition of moving from surviving to thriving.
These are very difficult times, but the call to love, to pursue justice, to see the dignity in all humans must continue to guide us. It is easy to despair, to give up, but we can’t let that happen. I pray that we may have the audacity to build, to believe, to love, to forgive, to create, and to imagine a better world for all as we pursue justice and walk the path of holiness.
May this Shabbat bring blessings and consolation to all of you and your loved ones. May we find strength, courage, and patience, and open our hearts with generosity. May all those who are ill find healing.
And may the hostages soon be returned to their families and friends; may the Israeli and Palestinian peace workers in the land continue their sacred work and not be deterred or turn away from the vision of peace and dignity for all.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rav Claudia