Parashas Behar [& Bechukosai]
Shulchan Hashem – Living
With Gerim In The Land
Rabbi David Katz
In this week’s double Parasha of Behar and Bechukosai,
Hashem closes the Heart of the Torah, as Vayikra gives way to Bamidbar, and we
can now properly focus on coming into the Land, coinciding with the holiday
Shavuot. Yet as the famous analogy goes, a candle gives off its greatest light
just before it fires off its last sparks; in Behar that candle is the Ger and
the Light is his identity that shines forever. Again, the same as was with Emor, the Ger
is richest in his revolution of the Sinai revelation, with the most essential
Ger Torah pouring out before God, thus making the amount of Ger Torah in
concentration a rare opportunity to know him in these few Parshiot. Of the
essential elements, what stands out the most, each in a unique way would be the
following four issues of Gerim in the Land: The Sabbath in the Land, The Yovel
[in proximity of the Ger and the command to not taunt him], Jews in the Land,
and where the Land identifies the Ger.
In Vayikra 25:6 the verse educates about the Sabbath of the
Land where on a 7-year cycle, the seventh year is for Hashem, and the natural
fruits will be for [amongst others] the Gerim. Rashi and commentators point out
that the Ger reference can also suit workers of the Land, and the term “your
dweller” [your – תושב Toshav] can come to
include the Nachri who is doubly identified as a traveler – dweller. This bares
significant identification as to the nature of the Nachri, as previously he was
identified as a Ger Toshav under the quality of having rejected idolatry while
in the Land, eating non-kosher meat, and still yet not having accepted the
Seven Laws of Noach. This is hand in glove to the verse later on in the Torah that bases the Jewish – Ger
relationship to be based on Tzedakkah in
the form of giving non – kosher meat to the Ger [Toshav] and HAVING to SELL the
meat to a Nachri.
This week provides the source that if the Nachri [not quite removed
from idolatry abroad to qualify as a type of Ger] is on stay in the Land, he is
termed a Toshav, would be able to be given the meat [as opposed to being sold],
and he may enjoy Hashem’s fruits of the Land. Not only do we now have knowledge
of a “who is who” in the Ger World, but even more important, the words “Ger”
and “Toshav” have skyrocketed to ultra-complex! As we will see, the Land is
very dynamic [especially when a Temple is erect], and the general term for
people will be either Ger or Toshav or some combination. The task of the Torah
scholar [Ger or Jew] is to know these terms, identify with them, and educate
them, as the essence of the Oral Torah [within the Written Torah] is best
expressed in a pure form through the Torah of the Ger, as Moses commanded at
Sinai before Hashem spoke, in what was the purest expression of Torah, and
served as the platform of post-Sinai exegesis.
The Ger Toshav in his highest form, one where he is legally
a Ger in every sense, and all Torah Law concerning him is accepted [even to the
stringent opinions, i.e. in a time where the Rambam would say we accept him
(outright and not in a depressed state) as he enjoys full status] can only come
about if there is a Jubilee Year in operation. Aside from the fact that this is
a known halachic fact, the Torah gives clear definition of this reality by a
close proximity of the Jubilee law contained in key verses that highlight the
integrity of the Ger.
The closeness of the two topics show just how literally
they are both intertwined with each other. The current condition of the Ger
Toshav [of exile] and attempts to usher in redemption are both contingent on
the Jubilee, as it is this 50th year that serves as a common denominator that can produce an all-encompassing redemption for all peoples. As
fate would have it, ironically to focus on the true nature of the Ger Toshav is
to bring redemption under the rug called Jubilee, as the Ger Toshav technically
fits on either side of the Jubilee;
again showing just how mutually tight and
eternally impacting these two really are.
The Ger is sandwiched into the Jubilee verses also contains
a portion of the famous command to not taunt the Ger and your fellow man. The
Talmud even states that a Jew who is a Baal Teshuva [a returnee to Judaism] is
considered a Ger and to taunt him with his past is a violation of the Torah.
The Ger is specifically mentioned [in clear terms, demonstrating that this is
not always a Ger-Convert] in that one may not remind him [in regards of his
Torah learning] of his non-kosher eating [commanded] habits. And finally on
this point, the Torah compares a Jewish impoverished worker to a “Toshav” [yet
another definition of Toshav] and thus forbids one to taunt him, as one would taunt
the Ger [thus relating the Jew to a Ger]. One can easily see how broad and
encompassing the Ger is, and how far – reaching his Torah flows, and once
applied by association becomes a strong representative of the Oral Torah, even
in the Written.
Hashem makes it very clear in regards to the Land of Israel,
that the Land is HIS and not to anyone else, even the Jewish People. What
Hashem has decreed is that of the Gerim in the World, he has selected a Nation
to be stationed on His land [as all Gerim are stationed on the Lands of the
World, each being pulled after their prophetically given names, as King David
said, “Hashem places names in the land, not desolation.”], and their job is to
work it [i.e. the Land with a Temple on it for the peoples of the World to come
to], much like Adam, Noah, and Shem before them; hence Abraham had to come by
means of Lech Lecha [Go for you to the Land!]. The Jewish people for this
reason [and from this angle] are Jews, and Hashem allows them a portion in the
Seventh Year, as a way of uniting with the Creator vis a vis the Land.
In the Ger Torah commands such as don’t taunt him and even
this law of the Jews on the Land, a famous saying of King David is called upon
for context, when he says, “I am a Ger.” The interesting revelation of this
iconic statement from King David is that he is not being cute or overly
righteous, for as we have learned, King David is simply giving us Pshat, or the
simple meaning of Torah. It just so happens that King David is also showing us
just how deep Torah is, and the extent one must internalize it, to benefit from
its wisdom. David has mastered the art of bringing Torah to life, as he is able
to express on his own terms, real Torah concepts such as Jews in the Land that
belongs to Hashem, and its implications of reality.
The rest of the Ger associations of the Parsha are equally
monumental and illuminate the full scope of the Ger. Amongst the relatively
many verses and commentary in Behar, the Ger may be any of the following
scenarios that the verses detail.
The Sifsei Chachamim commentary gives the most authentic and
direct account that a Ger Toshav and Ger Tzedek can be of the same quality, in
contrast of the Ger Tzedek convert, and he explains the difference, and thus
how to distinguish between the two. We learn about “Toshavim” which may sound
like a [better] term of endearment to the Ger, but when investigated in Behar,
this illuminates the vast bow of the Ger in different places of context. As a
Toshav in the generic sense, he may be a Ger Tzedek, or [God Forbid] he may be
a bred slave, an asset of equity seen as a movable! The Torah permits it,
Toshav is the term, and now all the more so one must know which type of Toshav
the Torah is in reference of at any time. This is not to speak ill of the Ger,
quite the opposite, it comes to express the need to know him, in every way
possible, and to prevent out of context relationships with him, for the sake of
the Land and the People. The point to be taken from him is that he is a unique
person, truly made in the Image of God, as his Torah gives testimony of this;
one must Love the Ger.
The Parasha gives many proofs to lingering questions, such
as who is the Nachri, Ger Tzedek, Toshav, Ger, Ger Toshav [in all forms],
Jew-Ger, Jew-Toshav, etc. to the extent that if the Ger wasn’t physically at
Sinai [schism for the sake of repairing schism], he certainly was the center of
attention at any rate, based on the Parsha that implies Sinai [along with
Parashas Jethro for the same reasons]. An interesting way to summarize this
story, is that the only place in the Torah that spells out the word [to trust
(God)] [Bitachon] in letter after letter is found in Behar, and in the place
that it speaks of dwelling securely in the Land. I think Hashem’s message is
loud and clear and does need too much explanation: To dwell securely in a Land
that abandons its labor every seven years because it is God’s Land and thus one
must have faith in God, one must realize the Ger. The Parasha makes it
difficult with all of its pilpul of the Ger [such that Jews seemed to have
avoided it until today], yet the message of Sinai is, was, and will always be
clear: ladies and gentlemen, we need the Ger - all Ger, even the Jewish ones,
even the one’s outside the Land. For you were Gerim too, all of you, whoever
you are – urges Hashem.
Now is the time to start dwelling securely into what Hashem
is engineering in front of our eyes, leading us all to his Land, to His Zion,
to His Temple, to His Holy of Holies, in what will be the final transaction of
possessions between the two Gerim, two Kings even, David and Aravnah, who picked up
where Shem and Abraham left off, until the Moshiach will come and redeem the
Gerim, may it be soon in our days. Amen.
Don't Forget Audio Shiurim - Parasha Motzie Shabbat 10 P.M.
Wed 11 P.M. Torat Gerim / Noahide
