THERE WERE FOUR MEN, LEPERS, OUTSIDE THE GATE. THEY

SAID TO ONE ANOTHER: "WHY SHOULD WE SIT HERE WAITING FOR DEATH?"

(Melakhim

Bet 7:1, Haftorah for Metzora)

"Always push away with the left hand

and draw near with the right"

The

Rabbis learned: Elisha suffered three bouts of ilness: One, when he enraged

bears against children, one when he pushed away Gehazi with both his hands, and

one that killed him, for it is said Elisha had been stricken with the

illness of which he was to die (Melakhim Bet 13: 14).

The Rabbi learned: Always push away with the left

hand and draw near with the right, not like Elisha who pushed off Gehazi with

both of his hands, and not like Yehoshua ben Perahya who pushed away one of his

students (according to some texts, Jesus of Nazareth) with both hands.

What

had Elisha done? It is written: Naaman said [to Gehazi], "Please take

two talents" (Melakhim

Bet 5:23)

and it is written, [Elisha accused Gehazi:] Did not my heart go along when a

and female slaves? (5:26) But did he

Rabbi

Yitzhak said: At that very hour Elisha was expounding the laws of the eight

impure swarming creatures. He [Elisha] told him [Gehazi]: Wicked-one, now the

time has come to receive your reward for the eight impure swarming creatures

leprosy of Naaman will cling to you and to your descendants forever (5:27).

There

were four men, lepers – Rabbi Yohanan said: They were Gehazi and his

three sons.

(Sotah

47a)

When You Enter the Land

Affliction Upon a House in the Land You Possess

Pinchas Leiser

Nega'ei ha'bayit [the "afflictions"

of houses] have caught the interest of bible commentators ever since the Sages

wondered about the phenomenon's strangeness. Rashi chose to interpret the

matter midrashically, and understood the nega'ei habayit to constitute a

kind of blessing. He wrote:

And I inflict an eruptive affliction – This was an

announcement to them that these plagues would come upon them, because the

Amorites concealed treasures of gold in the walls of their houses during the

whole 40 years the Israelites were in the wilderness, and in consequence of the

nega they would pull down the house and discover them [the treasures].

(Based on Silberman translation)

Hizkuni cites the words of the Tosafot which

claim that the nega'ei ha'bayit marked the houses in which idols had

been worshipped, so that the Israelites would know which buildings had to be

destroyed.

Sanhedrin 71a offers the most radical

interpretation in the course of a discussion of those mitzvot which appear in

the Torah, but which lack practical application – mitzvot meant to serve as

objects of purely theoretical interest to be "studied in order to receive

a reward [from heaven]." Regarding the nega'ei ha'bayit the Talmud

there states:

There never was

and never will be an afflicted house. And why is it written? Expound upon [it]

and receive a reward.

Indeed, the Gemara does present us with other

interpretations and even testimony supporting the existence of afflicted

houses, but the author of the discussion grants ample space to those who hold

that the ben soreir umoreh [disobedient child], the ir ha'nidahat

existed nor will ever exist in the future" and were mentioned in the Torah

only in order to afford people the opportunity to "expound upon [them] and

receive a reward."

What, then, is there to be expounded upon in

this matter?

We find two apparently contradictory approaches

regarding the possibility of houses in Jerusalem being afflicted:

The Gemara in Yoma 12a says that Jerusalem – and

certainly the area of the Temple – cannot suffer afflictions, since they are

not included in the category of your possessions, in accordance

with the view holding that "Jerusalem was not divided among the tribes."

Contrastingly, in Vayikra Rabbah 17:7, we read:

And I shall inflict an eruptive affliction upon

a house in the land you possess – This refers to the Temple, for it is

said, I am going to desecrate My Sanctuary, your pride and glory (Ezekiel 24:21).

Of course, it is possible to reconcile the

two statements by pointing out that the quote from Yoma is halakhic, while that

from Vayikra Rabbah is a midrash aggadah meant to express a theological idea. The

midrash even continues along the metaphorical thread that it had begun:

The owner of the house shall come (Vayikra 14:35) – That is the

Holy One Blessed be He, for it is said, because of My House which lies in ruins

(Haggai

1:9)

And tell the priest (Vayikra, loc cit) – That is

Jeremiah, for it is said [that he was one] of the priests that are in Anatot

(Jeremiah

1:1).

Something like an affliction has appeared upon

my house (Vayikra,

loc cit)

– That is the filth of idolatry. Some say: That is Menashe's idol.

It seems to me,

however, that both the midrash and the Talmudic statement may be read in a

different way since, in any event, this halakhah has no practical application,

and halakhah may also be interpreted on the philosophical level.

In his comments on the verse from Vayikra, Rabbi

S. R. Hirsch explains that on the one hand, the afflictions only occur in the

Land of Israel, while, on the other hand, they only occur in the land you

possess, i.e., in houses belonging to known individuals. Thus, at the ideal

level, Jerusalem and the Temple "cannot be made impure with afflictions."

The affliction is, therefore, a social

affliction connected with the consequences of the acquisitiveness that can

arise from private ownership.

If so, there is an essential contradiction

between ownership and holiness, the holy is set apart and cannot be included in

any kind of real estate holding or sovereignty.

However, the afflictions can damage the

Temple when the attitude towards it is acquisitive – an acquisitive attitude

necessarily defiles the holy. The remedy is in the emptying of the house, its

quarantine, removal of the affected stones (idolatry), their dispersal to an

unclean place, and their replacement with other stones.

I do not think there is need to write at length

in order to make understood the meaning of these ideas for today. The creation

of the State of Israel sets before us many important challenges. We can be

able, if we so wish, to build in our hearts and in our society a place for the

Temple, where our lives will be sanctified and our society built upon a solid

foundation of justice. No material stones are needed, but rather the

construction of a society that seeks peace, cares for the stranger, for the

orphan and for the widow. It may be that in order to achieve this we will have

to substitute afflicted stones with other stones, but in order to preserve the

house's future, we must expound upon the laws of nega'ei habayit, and

find a way to apply them.

May we all enjoy a happy Yom Ha'atzmaut.

Pinchas

Leiser, the editor of Shabbat Shalom, is a psychologist.

There never was and never will be an

afflicted house. And why is it written? Expound upon [it] and receive a reward.

(Sanhedrin

71a)

And I shall inflict an eruptive

affliction upon a house in the land you possess – This refers

to the Temple, for it is said, I am going to desecrate My Sanctuary, your

pride and glory (Ezekiel

24:21).

(Vayikra

Rabbah 17:7)

The

character of the most completely unsociable being as represented by the dror

bird at once springs to one's mind as the opposite contrast to what is

demanded for re-entrance into the social life of he community. It is the

contrast of the animals of the "field" to the humans of the "city."

The

demand which is made as the condition for the re-entry into the social life of

the community is that the priest shall slaughter one of the birds, i.e.,

the energetic subjection of the wild untrammeled animal life under the sharp

control of the morally strong human will.

(Rabbi

S.R. Hirsch on Vayikra 14:8, based on Isaac Levy translation)

Is ThereReligious Significance to

National Independence?

The

religious establishment has struggled to shape the religious character of Yom

Ha'atzmaut and Yom Yerushalayim, and this issue continues to engage various

sectors of the religious community. It cannot be solved without coming to an

understanding of the religious value of the historical events associated with

those holidays. Let it be said at the outset: We are not dealing here with the

significance of a "prophetic vision" or "messianic destiny"

involving "the Kingdom of Israel." Rather, we must investigate the

significance of the political creation of the actual State of Israel, which

came into existence in 1948, and the significance of the manner and conditions

of its creation, its wars and conquests. The religious attitudes towards these

days can only be based upon historical understanding, and not upon study of the

halakhic tradition, which never contemplated such situations…

It

is impossible to avoid a clear decision regarding Yom Ha'atzmaut. This day

cannot be given a partial evaluation. One view has it that it is not a holiday,

but rather a day of mourning: the day the Jewish People rebelled against the

Torah. Another view holds that it is particularly apt for us to say the berakha

of she'hehiyanu and to recite the Hallel and mark Yom Ha'atzmaut

as a holiday, for it is the day when the Jewish People opened the door to the

possibility of fulfilling the Torah – a gate that it may enter, if the people

decide to apply themselves to observance of the Torah. This view is not

subverted by the fact that the majority of the present generation does not seek

the Torah's observance.

(Y.

Leibowitz, Yahadut, Am Yehudi U'midinat Yisrael pp. 90, 91, 96, 97)

Certainly we view the State of Israel as a

healing process. I cannot imagine what would have happened to the Jewish People

if the state had not arisen. It was so necessary for the rehabilitation of the

survivors! When I think of the refugees from destruction, if they had to

continue wandering from shore to shore, not finding a safe-haven in the Land of

Israel, what would have happened to the Jewish People? In this sense, of course

there is a connection…

The

first expression of independence was "bringing home the individuals."

There is nothing greater than a home…not only individuals who came and found

a home after years spent in concentration camps and death camps.

(HaRav

Amital, as quoted in M. Miyah, Olam Banuy, Hareiv, U'Vanuy, pg. 68)

If you enjoy Shabbat Shalom, please consider

contributing towards its publication and distribution.

• Hebrew edition

  distributed in Israel $1000

• English edition

  distributed via email $ 100

Issues may be dedicated in honor of an event,

person, simcha, etc. Requests must be made 3-4 weeks in advance to appear in

the Hebrew, 10 days in advance to appear in the English email.

Tax exempt contributions to Oz VeShalom may be made

through the New Israel Fund or PEF.

Contributions should be marked as donor-advised to

OzVeShalom/Netivot Shalom, Shabbat Shalom project.

PLEASE NOTE THAT THE NEW ISRAEL FUND IS NO LONGER

ACCEPTING DONATIONS UNDER $50. FOR DONATIONS BETWEEN $50 AND $999 THEY ARE

CHARGING A $50 SERVICE CHARGE. DONATIONS ABOVE $1000 ARE CHARGED A 5% FEE.

New Israel Fund, POB 91588, Washington, DC

20090-1588, USA

New Israel Fund of Great Britain, 26 Enford Street,

London W1H 2DD, Great Britain

PEF will also channel donations and provide a

tax-exemptions. Donations should be sent to P.E.F. Israel Endowment Funds, Inc., 317

Madison Ave., Suite 607, New York, New York 10017 USA

About us:

Oz Veshalom-Netivot Shalom is a movement dedicated

to the advancement of a civil society in Israel. It is committed to promoting

the ideals of tolerance, pluralism, and justice, concepts which have always

been central to Jewish tradition and law.

Oz Veshalom-Netivot Shalom shares a deep attachment

to the land of Israel and it no less views peace as a central religious value.

It believes that Jews have both the religious and the national obligation to

support the pursuit of peace. It maintains that Jewish law clearly requires us

to create a fair and just society, and that co-existence between Jews and Arabs

is not an option but an imperative.

Oz Veshalom-Netivot Shalom's programs include both

educational and protest activities. Seminars, lectures, workshops, conferences

and weekend programs are held for students, educators and families, as well as

joint seminars for Jews, Israeli Arabs and Palestinians. Protest activities

focus on issues of human rights, co-existence between Jews and Arabs, and

responses to issues of particular religious relevance.

9,000 copies of a 4 page peace oriented commentary

on the weekly Torah reading are written and published by Oz VeShalom/Netivot

Shalom and they are distributed to over 350 synagogues in Israel and are sent

overseas via email. Our web site is www.netivot-shalom.org.il

Oz Veshalom-Netivot Shalom's educational forums

draw people of different backgrounds, secular and religious, who are keen to

deepen their Jewish knowledge and to hear an alternative religious standpoint

on the subjects of peace and social issues.

Oz Veshalom-Netivot Shalom fills an ideological

vacuum in Israel's society. Committed both to Jewish tradition and observance,

and to the furthering of peace and coexistence, the movement is in a unique

position to engage in dialogue with the secular left and the religious right,

with Israeli Arabs and with Palestinians.