Ra'anana Community Kollel - Parshat Vayeitzei

                                           Going Up?

                                                      Rabbi Binyomin Lispon

     “If you will seek it like wealth . . . then you will understand fear of God . . .”(Mishlei)

The Chofetz Chaim put great emphasis on the important message that can be derived from this verse: If we would only seek to increase our level of Torah knowledge and religious commitment in the same way that we go about making a living we would undoubtedly be successful in attaining great heights. There are some people who claim that the reason that they refrain from engaging in regular Torah study is due to the fact that they did not receive a strong religious education when they were young. Learning Torah is challenging enough for those who were properly educated from a young age, is it reasonable to expect an adult with a weak Jewish education or perhaps even none at all to be able to make up so much lost time?

In response to this claim the Chofetz Chaim was wont to answer, “If a person grew up in a family that had very little money, and did not inherit any property whatsoever from his or her parents, will this stop the person from attempting to make a living and improve his or her situation when he or she gets older? Certainly not! Rather, even though the person has nothing, one tries with all of one’s abilities to break into the world of business and support one’s family in an honorable way. This is because it is absolutely clear to the person that without money to pay expenses the individual simply cannot survive. In the same way, one must realize that Torah and mitzvot are the only known currency which is transferable to the World to Come. If we want to live on a high standard in the World to Come, we must be sure to invest in those commodities which we will be able to take with us. If we can realize that Torah is something that we simply cannot survive without, the efforts that we make to attain it will be of a different nature entirely.

There are other people who exempt themselves from devoting time to leaning Torah because they see themselves already as learned people who are already quite knowledgeable in the general principles of Torah learning. They tell themselves that the level that they have already achieved is quite respectable and will certainly be sufficient in the World to Come. Thus, they free up their time to manage their various business holdings and gather material wealth.

Why are they not satisfied with their material situation in the same way that they are content with their spiritual one? The only possible explanation is that the less important something is to a person, the more the person considers the possibility of doing without it, or “making do” with a minimal amount. Thus, in the area of spiritual achievement one is willing to make do with what one has already achieved in one’s youth, whereas when it comes to the standard of his house, car, cell phone, and other unquestionably essential elements of daily life, he or she is always pushing ahead towards new levels of achievement. As the Gemara (Makkot 10a) informs us, “One who truly desires wealth will never be satisfied with his wealth.”

This exact same reasoning applies equally to the field of Torah and mitzvot. If we truly desire to fulfill the commandments of our Creator, then it will be impossible for us to become complacent with our current level of achievement we will always be searching for ways to grow more and more and more.

Likewise, a person must know that there simply is no such thing as maintaining one’s spiritual level without either growing or depreciating. This is alluded to by the prophetic vision of the ladder that Ya’akov saw in this week’s parshah. On a deeper level, the ladder alludes to the soul of every Jewish person, and like the angels which Ya’akov witnessed in his vision, every single one of them is either ascending or descending.

To be a Jew means to grow! To utilize every situation and every opportunity as a possible means of further accomplishment. How can we do this? How can we acquire this attitude? Only by taking the time to contemplate the words which we ourselves recite in the Ma’ariv service, “For they are our very life and the length of our days, and with them we will busy ourselves both day and night . . .”