Ra'anana Community Kollel - Mishpatim 5764

The Crown and the Sword

Rabbi Binyomin Lipson

“If you find your enemy’s ox or his donkey astray,
you shall certainly return it to him . . .”

(Shemot 23:4)

The Ramban (Devarim 22:1) explains that even in a case in which an animal was discovered far away from its owner, it must still be returned despite the great time and effort which this will undoubtedly entail. The Chofetz Chaim remarked that if we see that the Torah placed such a great emphasis on returning lost property to its rightful owner, how much more so should we learn from this mitzvah the extent to which we should feel the obligation to assist our fellow Jews when they have lost their direction in life and have strayed from the path of the Torah. Just as the Gemara explains that the mitzvah of Hashavat Aveidah, returning a lost object, applies even if the same animal repeatedly wanders astray, so too should we take to heart the message that we are also obligated to try and try again to bring our lost Jewish brothers and sisters back to the flock.

This is especially true in our generation when the vast majority of non-observant Jews are totally ignorant of Torah philosophy and Jewish values. Whereas at one time in Jewish history those who separated themselves from the fold did so deliberately with ideological contempt for those who continued to cling to the ways of their forefathers, in modern times this movement has dwindled to near non-existence leaving in its wake a generation of lost Jews which in whose lives religious idealism plays little or no role whatsoever.

Even in Eretz Yisrael, the Jewish homeland which we have risked and continue to risk so much to maintain, the various forms of the media and the secular educational system in general are literally teeming with an anti-religious vibe which is shaping the consciousness of the next generation of Israeli youth. Not long ago, I was walking home when I decided to take a shortcut through a path which lead directly alongside a gan of five and six year-olds. When I came within sight of the children who were playing in the yard, one young boy alerted his friends to my presence; leading a group of about ten boys and girls in a jeering chant of “Da-ti! Da-ti! Da-ti! . . .” from the other side of the fence.Even children as young as preschool age are slowly induced into a coma of dissidence which can at best be described as a total ignorance of even the most basic Jewish concepts and at worst as ultra orthodox secular elitism.

It is in this week’s parshah that we find the famous dictum of “na’aseh ve’nishma”, with which the Jewish people accepted the commandments of the Torah as binding upon themselves irrespective of their personal level of understanding. The Midrash relates that when the Jewish people unanimously proclaimed “We will fulfill them, and we will (attempt to) understand them”, angels descended from heaven and placed crowns on their heads and swords in their hands. Why were they rewarded with these two items specifically? The Beit Halevi explained that while the crown symbolized each person’s own commitment to personally adhere to the Torah’s directives, the sword was given as a reminder that in addition to one’s own performance of the mitzvot, he must also do his share to ensure that the rest of the Jewish people are also fulfilling their obligations. This is in fact what the Jewish people intended when they answered in the plural “We will do . . .” Namely, that each individual thought not only of himself or herself, but also of the rest of the Jewish people.

Practically speaking, to what degree does this additional acceptance obligate us? The Gemara (Shabbat) explains that each person’s responsibility for the behavior of his or her comrades is directly commensurate with one’s personal level of influence in the community. If a person can influence his or her family, the person must do so. If the person can influence his or her city, the person must do so, and if the person can affect the whole world he or she must do so. In discussing the requirement that one refrain from doing any forbidden work on Shabbat even with one’s animal, the Mishnah (Shabbat 5:4) relates, “The cow of Rebbi Elazar ben Azarya would go out with an identifying strap tied between its horns” which the Mishnah previously prohibited. Can it be that Rebbi Elazar ben Azarya was so lax as to violate Shabbat? The Gemara explains that in fact, the cow to which the Mishnah refers belonged not to R’ Elazar himself but to his neighbor. However, because he saw this transgression being committed and did not protest, it was called on his name. We can only imagine the embarrassment that R’ Elazar felt when his name was inscribed in the Mishna for all eternity in such an unflattering context.

Imagine how you would feel if your transgression was written even in a one time publication like the New York Times! Let’s take a moment to remember that it is not only the job of the Rabbis to encourage others to increase their observance, rather, each and every one of us bears this responsibility in whatever ways we can. Just as R’ Elazar’s deed was written for all eternity, we can be sure that any positive steps that we take towards fostering Jewish observance will also be inscribed for us and all to see in an even greater fashion.