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D'var: Parashat Behar-Bechukotai 5783 Commentary by Michael Goldstein Friday, May 12, 2023 |
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Behar Leviticus 25:1 — 26:2
Bechukotai Leviticus 26:3 — 27:34 |
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This week, we conclude Leviticus with a double reading, Behar (Leviticus 25:1 – 26:2), which means On the Mountain, and Bechukotai (Leviticus 26:3 – 27:34), which means In My Laws.
In Behar, God describes the laws surrounding resting the land and crops every seven years, as well as the Jubilee year every 50 years. God permits the use of slaves but provides stipulations including the obligation to eventually free them. Leviticus 25:3-5 You may sow your field for six years, and for six years you may prune your vineyard, and gather in its produce, But in the seventh year, the land shall have a complete rest, a Sabbath to the Lord; you shall not sow your field, nor shall you prune your vineyard. You shall not reap the after-growth of your harvest, and you shall not pick the grapes you had set aside for yourself, for it shall be a year of rest for the land. The Torah calls this a Sabbath for the land… a sabbatical. It is also known as the shmita… the year of renewal. In the shmita year, fields may not be plowed or sown. Crops may not be commercially harvested. Whatever food the earth produces unaided can be gathered by anyone, anywhere. Private property is suspended, for the land belongs to Me, God says in Leviticus 25:23. The year is one of relative leisure and plenty for the laborers and the poor, kind of a divine tzedakah. Shmita guarantees food for all and removes the profit motive from those who own land. It’s sort of a social equalizer. And, if by the end of the year any debts are not repaid, they are cancelled. The ancient rabbis added more detail. Foods that grew on their own were used to create communal food banks and were distributed free to each household during the shmita year. Since all food grown in that year was extra holy, the rabbis taught that it should be consumed with extra mindfulness of shmita’s meaning. Therefore, it must not be wasted, traded or sold as commodities, or used as anything but food. So what relevance if any, what message for us, does this have today? Even if we consider it meaningful in general, the shmita laws pertain only within the biblical borders of Israel and only to land owned by Jews, and even then, loopholes were created by more modern rabbis to permit agricultural work to continue. But to think it has no relevance for us misses a chance to reflect on an idea that is relevant to our times. Shmita is designed to slow down production; to redistribute resources; to cultivate generosity, planning, and communal sharing. It is certainly a utopian concept. It asks us to choose wisely what we consume and warns us that our choices have consequences. In Bechukotai, God tells the Israelites that if they follow His commandments, He will provide rain for their crops. He then describes a long list of punishments that will be inflicted on the Israelites if they do not follow His laws. If the sabbatical for the land is not observed, dire times and exile will follow. In Leviticus 26:34-36, God declares: And you I will scatter among the nations, and I will unsheath the sword against you. Your land shall become a desolation and your cities a ruin. Then shall the land make up for its Sabbath years throughout the time that it is desolate and you are in the land of your enemies; then shall the land rest and make up for its Sabbath years. Throughout the time that it is desolate, it shall observe the rest that it did not observe in your Sabbath years while you were dwelling upon it. So, that is the message we can take away: One way or another, our earth must have the rest it needs. Michael Goldstein |
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