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"And you shall proclaim freedom throughout the land for all its inhabitants ; it shall be a jubilee for you; each of you shall return to his holding and each of you shall return to his family"

According to the Kaballah: "Freedom" (dror) – linguistically related to "A generation goes and a generation comes" ("Dor holech v'dor ba") (Kohellet 1:4). And so "jubilee" (yovel) means that he will return to the spring (yuval) which nurtured his roots, and it shall be yours." (Ramban, Vayikra 25:10-11)

Every mitzvah which Israel was commanded to observe prior to their entrance into the Land is obligatory both in the Land and outside the Land. Mitzvot which were designated for observance after entering the Land are obligatory only within the Land – with the exception of release of debts and the freeing of slaves; even though these were listed among those to be kept after entering the land, they are in effect both within and outside the Land. Release of debts is an obligation upon the person; the release of slaves is an obligation upon the person. I might have said that since it is written "And you shall proclaim freedom throughout the land" – throughout the land, yes; outside the land, no, [to prevent this line of thought] Scripture teaches "It shall be a jubilee for you" – in any case. Why, then, does Scripture add "throughout the land"?

This is to teach us that whenever the 'freedom' [the return of land and the release of slaves] is in effect in the Land, it is also in effect outside the land; when it is not in effect in the Land, it is also not in effect outside the Land. (Bavli, Kiddushin 38b).

"It is a jubilee' – even if they did not let the land rest, even if they did not sound the shofar. Could it be [jubilee] even if they did not release slaves? Scripture teaches "It" [is still Shmitta], thus teaches Rabbi Yudah.

Rabbi Yosa said: "Jubilee" – even if they did not let the land lie fallow, even if they could not free the slaves. And even if they did not sound the shofar? Scripture teaches "It". (Yerushalmi, Rosh Hashanah, Chap. 3, Halacha 5)

Reward and Punishment

The Admonition [Tochaycha] in Parashat Behukotai (Chapter 26) is composed of two sections: the first begins with the words: If by my laws you walk, and my commands you keep, and observe them". The second begins with "But if you do not hearken to me, by not observing all these commandments."

In the first section, Israel, observing the word of God and carrying out his commandments, is promised reward. The second section details the punishment to be meted to Israel should they not observe the mitzvoth of the Torah.

The reward includes economic success, victory over foes, agricultural and human fertility – and above all — peace.

"I will give peace throughout the land" – Rashi explains: "Should you say 'Here is food and here is drink, but without peace there is nothing' – Scripture teaches us that after all these 'I will give peace throughout the land' – from here we see that peace outweighs all; and similarly he says (Isaiah 45) 'He makes peace and creates everything." All these lead to the nation's striking deep roots in its land, "And be settled in security in your land." The punishment is the exact opposite of the reward. The peak of its severity is expulsion of Israel from its land, its exile among the nations, and the desolation of the land — "And I shall make desolate the land, so that your enemies that settle in it will be appalled at the desolation in it. And you I will scatter among the nations."

The Admonition in Chapter 26 is spoken by The Holy One, Blessed Be He, whereas the second Admonition, in Parashat Ki Tavo, is voiced by Moshe. The reading of the Admonition instills fear in the hearts of the community, and therefore it is read softly. The doctrine of retribution, i.e., the belief that God rewards man for following His commandments and punishes man for his transgressions, is a basic tenet of our faith.

From the belief in one God it follows that the fate of the individual and the community depend upon the will of the omnipotent God. Happiness is the reward for good deeds, and adversity is the punishment for bad deeds which contravene the will of God.

Society has the responsibility of eradicating evil and evildoers from its midst, as is written "Rebuke, yes, rebuke your fellow" and "You shall eradicate the evil from your midst." If society does not punish the evil-doing individual, the Lord punishes the entire nation for the sins of the individual.

In numerous places, the direct relationship between man and God is described as a brit – a covenant. God, referring to Avraham, says:

In Isaiah, Chapter 3, we find explicit expression of the relationship between man's behavior and reward and punishment:

Freedom of Choice

Because man is free to choose between good and evil, he is also responsible for his behavior. The principle of freedom of choice, too, is to be found in Scripture:

In the Torah we do not find the notion of happiness as a gift of from God, an act of grace. As part of the covenant, God grants man reward for his meritorious actions:

Alongside reward for man's own behavior, we find good life and blessing bestowed thanks to the merits of the Patriarchs (z'chut avot). For example:

In like fashion, it is said with regard to the division of David's kingdom:

And so it is with regard to punishment; there are sources which indicate that the account is not entirely personal:

Our Sages chose to interpret this passage – which ostensibly contradicts other passages – as follows:

The prophet Yirmiyahu (31:28,29), on the other hand, promises:

This complex issue is also dealt with in Chapter 18 of Yehezkiel. The prophet declares that a son is not liable for the sins of his father; every man, should he so desire, can prevent evil, thus safeguarding himself from punishment. Yehezkiel preaches the principle of individual freedom:

Our Sages, too, sensed the tension existing between the text in Shmot, Chap. 20, and the words of Yehezkiel:

Moshe said: " . . . calling to account the iniquity of the fathers upon the sons"– came Yehezkiel and cancelled it, saying: "The person who sins, he alone shall die."

Daily realities, however, during the Biblical period, the Talmudic era, and our own times confront us with phenomena which are in the category of "A righteous person who suffers, the wicked person to whom life is good."

In the Book of Psalms we find the psalmist seeking to unravel this difficulty. On the one hand "Until when will the wicked, O Lord, until when will the wicked rejoice?!" On the other hand, "The arms of the wicked are broken, and God supports the righteous."

The psalmist assumes that the punishment of the wicked will come at the hands of God.

The entire Book of Job grapples with this perplexing and complicated issue: "It is all one; therefore I say, 'He destroys the blameless and the guilty," (Job 9:22). And, similarly, "The earth is handed over to the wicked one." (9:24)

Job's classic answer is, in effect, that God is great and powerful, and His ways are beyond human understanding. In my opinion, this answer, which says that we do not comprehend the ways of God, is the only possible answer to those who seek to understand the death of six million Jews during the Shoah.

The Book of Kohellet also presents many contradictions regarding our subject– and this is the source of our Sages' hesitation about including it in the Holy Writ. On the one hand: "For the same fate is in store for all; for the righteous, and for the wicked; for the good and pure, and for the impure; for him who sacrifices, and for him who does not" (9:2) — as if there were no connection between man's actions and his fate. On the other hand, Kohellet says that the sinner will be punished and that the righteous man will be rewarded "For although I am aware that 'It will be well with those who revere God since they revere Him, and it will not be well with scoundrel, and, like the shadow, he will not last long because he does not revere God' and also "O youth, enjoy yourself while you are young . . .but know well that God will call you to account for all such things." (Kohellet 11:9)

Rambam (Laws of Repentance, Chap. 8) determines, on the basis of Talmudic sources, that "The good set aside for the righteous is – the life in the next world . . . the righteous sitting with their wreaths upon their heads, delighting in the light of the Divine Presence."

The Torah does not explicitly promise life in the world to come as a reward for the righteous. Ibn Ezra explains this by saying that the Torah speaks in a language understood by all. "In my view, the Torah was given to all, not to one alone, and the subject of the world to come cannot be understood by one in a thousand, for it is deep." (Devarim 32:39)

Rambam enlightens us with his words in the Laws of Repentance (9:1):

In other words, the material reward mentioned in the Torah is not all of the promised reward. Actually, it is not the main reward; it is a removal of obstacles, and provision of conditions which facilitate observance of Torah. Despite our sins and bad actions, The Holy One, Blessed Be He, treats us with the measure of mercy. The amount of blessings with which The Holy One, Blessed Be He, blessed us is at least threefold greater than the number of curses.

The phrase "And you shall dwell securely in your land" – was homiletically explained by our Sages: "In your land you will dwell securely, but you will not dwell securely outside of your land." As long as Israel resides in exile, it is subject to spoliation; but when the Diaspora communities gather in Eretz Yisrael, they will dwell here securely, free of fear of enemy and oppressor.

May it be His will that just as this blessing has begun to be realized, so will it reach full culmination, in our time, as is stated in our parasha, "And I will give peace throughout the land."

One of the most serious problems regarding tradition is the distinction made between a practice established for all generations and one instituted temporarily.

Regarding the holiness of the Land, a distinction was drawn between "first sanctity sanctified [the land] for its time and for the future; the second sanctity sanctified it for its time, but not for the future." (Megilla 10a, and other sources).

Similarly, when Esther requested "Establish me for generations", she was told, "You arouse envy among the nations." (Bavli, Megilla 7b). The Hanukkah festival was initiated "a later year" for the purpose of praise and thanksgiving. (Shabbat 21b). That is to say, the holiday was established only after some time had passed, in order to allow deliberation on the significance of the miracle for future generations.

Rambam relates to the fast days:

And furthermore, in the Laws of Megilla and Hanukkah (2:18):

This question is relevant to the mutual relationship between the realities in which we live and the proper religious response to these realities. As a result of the brilliant military victory in the Six Day W, the State of Israel moved from a fear for its existence to a state of confidence. Sites with religious, national, historical, and emotional significance became accessible to us.

Many religious Zionists read this development as a continuation of 'Atchalta di'geula', the beginning of the Redemption. Others were not entirely convinced that we possess the means for evaluating the significance of these events.

We have no intention of issuing Halakhic rulings on this issue; we leave Halakhic issues to the poskim, and there are great Torah scholars who are dealing with this important topic. But we would like to offer a few points for consideration which may contribute to the discussion:

Yom Haatzmauth: The majority of the Jewish people consider this as a day on which, with God's help, we were presented with a precious gift. Almost no one entertains doubts about the standing of the Jewish nation and its possibilities today as compared with its standing before the establishment of the State.

Yom Yerushalayim: Despite the tremendous military victory and 'the Unification of Yerushalayim", this day did not "settle in the hearts" of the entire nation; rather it has become a sectarian holiday. It would not be an exaggeration to suggest that more people throughout the country celebrate the Mimuna than celebrate Yom Yerushalayim.

The municipal reality in Yerushalayim is far from indicating a united city; the hatred and enmity within it continue to grow. The "Temple Mount" is not "in our hands". Access to the Western Wall has to be secured by many security forces. The eastern section of the city is neglected in every respect (the argument that 'during the Jordanian occupation the situation was even worse' is irrelevant).

Therefore, just as it is not easy to say on Tisha B'Av the Nahem prayer – "the scorned and desolate city, mourning without her sons . . desolate without dwellers" – without feeling that we are spouting empty words before God, so is there good reason to weigh the proper religious reaction to Yom Yerushalyim and the events of the Six Day War. May it be His will that soon – even though the day may be delayed – we shall be able to see the complete structure, in "the city that is compact together" – in the city which makes Israel and all its inhabitants friends, a city which has a link between the Yerushalayim shel ma'alaha – 'The Celestial Yerushalayim' — and the Yerushalayim shel matah – 'Yerushalayim upon Earth'.

Pinchas Leiser – Editor

Editorial Board: Pinchas Leiser (Editor), Miriam Fine (Coordinator), Itzhak Frankenthal and Dr. Menachem Klein

Translation: Kadish Goldberg

This weekly publication was made possible by:

The New Israel Fund

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