The pasuk we just discussed [Vayikra 26:13] is the end of “the good news.” Then begins the terrible Tochacha [Curse of (conditional) misfortune]: “But if you will not listen to Me and will not perform all of these commandments....” Then the Almighty says, “I will break the pride of your might...” [Vayikra 26:19] and the terrible things that we have witnessed unfortunately throughout Jewish history will come to pass.
The prevalent custom regarding the Tochacha is that the Baal Koreh or the Gabbai take the Aliya, and whichever one takes it makes the preceding and subsequent Brachos without being formally “called up” to the Torah. In Europe, the minhag was — as Rav Dovid Povarsky, zt”l, cites — that the Gabbai would seek out an impoverished individual who was in dire need of funds and pay him to accept the Aliyah. Nobody wanted the Aliyah so they actually had to financially pressure people to take it. He cites that the going rate was three rubles to take the Aliyah. In those days, three rubles was a lot of money.
[As a humorous aside, there is a famous Yiddishe joke that one time in shul they were up to the point where they needed to read the Tochacha and they had hired a poor person to come but the fellow had not shown up. The Baal Koreh was waiting and waiting. Finally, the person arrives and they ask to him, “Where were you?” He responds, “Do you think this is the only Tochacha that I get an Aliyah for? A person cannot make a decent living from a single Tochacha!”]
Rav Dovid Povarsky points out in his sefer that we see how in Europe, this really meant something to people. They were afraid to get the Aliyah. The content of these pesukim was real to them. They took it personally. The only way they could find someone to take the Aliyah was to hire someone who was desperate.
Even though this perhaps does not speak well of society – because they are taking advantage of a poor person – in positive terms, it does demonstrate how real the prophecies of the Torah were to them. Nowadays, unfortunately, we are too casual about the Tochacha. A person takes the Aliyah and thinks nothing of it. Ten minutes later, he goes down to the Kiddush, makes a Lechayim and does not give it a second thought.
Rav Dovid Povarsky writes further that the great Rav Yisrael Salanter, who was so meticulous about other people’s feelings, was not happy about the custom that the Kehillos would hire indigent individuals to take the Aliyah. He used to go around from shul to shul and take the Aliyah himself rather than subject poor people to the shame and humiliation that accepting this Aliyah implied. One time, Rav Yisrael got up and said “I want this Aliyah” and the Baal Koreh refused to read it because he did not want the curses to fall upon his revered leader. Rav Yisrael then moved the Baal Koreh to the side and read the Tochacha himself! These anecdotes point out how real the Tochacha was to prior generations.
I am reminded of a story with a similar lesson. Rav Yaakov Kamenetsky writes that he remembers an incident in Europe when he was a child. During recess, they played a game similar to “Jacks” called “Kugelach.” One child lost all his “Kugelach” while playing the game and was very upset about it. He said to another child, “I will sell you half my ‘Olam haBah‘ for three Kugelach.” Rav Yaakov wrote, “Of course, we understand what an embarrassment it is for anyone to sell his share in the World-to-Come, and a child is a child so he is willing to sell his Olam haBah, but it shows that for the people of that generation, Olam haBah was something real. It was a real commodity. It meant something.” This spoke to the Emunah that was prevalent in Europe in those times. Unfortunately, such Emunah is not as prevalent in our day and age.
