Conviction and Camaraderie
Adapted by Channie Koplowitz Stein
Parshat Behar begins that Hashem spoke to Moshe at Har Sinai saying, "When you come to the land... the land shall observe a Shabbat rest for Hashem [You may work your fields for six years] but the seventh year shall be a complete rest for the land..." This law is most commonly know as Shemittah.
Rashi zt”l asks one of his most famous questions: "Eat is the connection of Shemittah to Mount Sinai? Weren't all the mitzvoth given at Sinai with all their generalizations and details?" But the question remains, why did Hashem choose the mitzvah of Shemittah aas the paradigm for all the mitzvoth? Rabbi Wolfson zt”l begins by reminding us that, unlike individual revelation claims by the founders of other religions, revelation at Sinai was to the entire nation. Every Jew, man, woman, and child was witness to Hashem's presence. Therefore, Bnei Yisroel can accept the promises Hashem makes them regardless of how illogical they seem. The promise of shemittah is one of these declarations that Bnei Yisroel, having born witness to Hashem Himself, could accept with complete faith in its fulfillment.
How could a farmer not work his field for a complete year, not plant, not plow, not reap, and still be able to survive for a total of three years, until he can plant crops the following year and wait for it to grow in the third year? Only Hashem can make such a promise.
Rabbi Bernstein brings a different perspective too this mitzvah. We can divide the mitzvoth into two categories, between Man and God, and between Man and his fellow Man. Interestingly, shemittah seems to be the only mitzvah that incorporates both categories. That we do not work the land, give it a Shabbat every seven years as we observe a Shabbat every seven days is a mitzvah between man and God; The bridge between this aspect and between man and man is that we do not claim ownership of whatever grows on this land during this time. During this year, anyone can come into the field and take whatever he wants, just as the owner himself can do. It is sharing at the highest level, for we are validating our belief that Hashem owns the land and we are His treasured nation, adds Rabbi Nissan Alpert.
In Pirkei Avos we say that Moshe received the Torah from Sinai. Actually, Moshe received the Torah from Hashem. But in Netivot Shalom, the Slonimer Rebbe zt”l writes that in order to receive the Torah and internalize the Torah, ir was necessary to go through the Sinai experience. That experience of encountering Hashem provided the intellectual, emotional and physical-visceral forces us to connect to Hashem in full faith. The details of the mitzvah reinforce emunah and our connection to Hashem.
When we prepared to leave Mitzrayim, we were commanded to take a sheep, a god pf Egypt, slaughter a it and paint the blood on our doorposts. This action was meant to "slaughter" any connection we might still feel to the god of Egypt. Similarly, Egypt was tied to gods of agriculture. The mitzvah of shemittah distances us further from the pantheistic culture of Egypt, writes the Tosher Rebbe. While the Pascal sacrifice in Egypt happened only once and was the example of Hashem's hashgacha pratis, Hashem's supervision over each of us individually, shemittah, by its seven year cycle, would be a constant reminder of Hashem's providence every day, writes the Tosher Rebbe zt"l. While we are obligated to put in effort for our sustenance, shemittah reminds us that it is truly Hashem Who controls our sustenance. There needs to be a balance between our effort and our emunah.
It is easy to see Hashem's providence over us when we witness open miracles, but we need to train ourselves to recognize Hashem in the daily events of our lives. In Ani Ma'amin, Rabbi Elias presents a metaphor to explain this concept. When watching a movie, the film seems to be one continuous stream. In actually, the film is made up of multiple individual cells that move so quickly that we perceive one continuous flow. So too is Hashem involved in every individual moment of the world and of our lives. We perceive this as nature, although it is the continuous flow of individual moments. Hashem prefers that we look for Him and find Him in nature rather than through open miracles. Through the hiddeness of Hashem, we have the possibility of free choice. With faith, we will understand that the challenges we face are customized for our success andgrowth through the challenges.
During sefirah, we are meant to work on our emunah so that we will be ready to receive the Torah. We try to emulate the angels who accept Hashem's Sovereingty and Oneness without question, who recite, as we do, "Shema Yisroel, Hashem our God, Hashem is One." He is the only power, Observing Shabbos helps us see, feel, and internalize that mantra, as Hashem's presence becomes palpable.
Judaism is not just a bunch of laws, of do's and don'ts. It is a way of life that helps us connect to Hashem, writes Rabbi Schorr in Halekach Vehalebuv. Nevertheless, we can make the connection only inasmuch as we put our heart in to doing the mitzvah. We cannot see the true picture of the world as we live in this physical world. We need to accept with love.
Every year on Shavuot Hashem reveals Himself again. What did we get at Har Sinai? Do we dedicate ourselves to this symbolic marriage between ourselves and Hakodosh Boruch Hu? Are we committed to serve Him with all our hearts as a spouse is dedicated to her mate? Hashem brought us to Sinai lehovi eschem eilai, to bring us to Him. That was the essence of the Sinai experience; the luchot were not brought down from Sinai until forty days had elapsed and Moshe descended from the mountain. Through Shemittah, we feel this connection constantly.
Hashem concludes the Ten Commandments by saying, "Elokhim spoke all these things/words saying, 'I am Hashem your God' " In other words, the purpose of all the mitzvoth is for us to build our faith in Hashem as our personal God. This reality is meant to infiltrate every aspect of our lives. When we eat it is to maintain our strength to do Hashem's will. When we cook, we are caring for our and Hashem's family. We need to work to support ourselves and our families. Find Hashem in all the mundane things we do all day long. "There should be no other gods before you;" don't let circumstances control you.
Shemittah brings us closer to Hashem as well as to other people. When someone asks to take produce from "our" field during shemittah, we answer, "Why are you asking me? It doesn't belong tome. In fact, I'll take some too." There is a camaraderie that develops, similar to the unity we achieved at Sinai when we campled as one, wit hone heart, writes Rabbi Bernstein. This bonding resulted on caring for each other and depending on each other, writes Rabbi Rogow zt”l. That feeling of "Veahavta lere'acha kamocha, love thy neighbor as yourself," comes from the Sinai experience.
Har Sinai was a humble mountain that impacted us with our own humility. It wa a moment of tranquility and peace. No one felt superior to anyone else, writes Rabbi Bick zt”l. Shemittah achieves the same feeling. we are equal. Everything belongs to Hashem. We care for each other, and we serve Hashem with full faith as we recognize His watchful eye over us at all times.