“And Hashem spoke to Moshe on Mount Sinai, saying. (Vayikra 25:1)
Parshas Behar begins with the laws of Shmita, the Sabbatical year when the land of Israel is not worked. The introductory posuk of the parsha tells us it was said at Har Sinai. We don’t find this by other mitzvos. You might ask, “What does one have to do with the other?” If you did, you’d be in good company, as Rashi asks, “What is the connection of Shmita to Sinai?” He explains that just as all the laws of Shmita, from general to specific, were said at Sinai, so were the minute details of all mitzvos Divinely ordained and given to Moshe there.
But why Shmita? Why choose this one from amongst all the mitzvos? The Torah could have said that Hashem spoke to Moshe at Har Sinai saying to wear Tefillin or lend money without interest. Why, specifically, was Shmita chosen?
One approach is to understand what Shmita is and what it isn’t. Leaving the land alone; letting it rest once in seven years, may sound like good advice. It gives the land the opportunity to regain nutrients. But if that were it, there are better ways to care for the land. Planting other crops can be beneficial, for example.
The fact is, Shmita isn’t about protecting the land. It’s about protecting our relationship with Hashem, and therefore, our right to live in the land. By giving up our hold on the land once in seven years, we’re recognizing that our sustenance comes not from our efforts, but from Hashem’s beneficent hand. During this free time, we are to study more Torah, work on our prayer, and recognize the true source of everything in our lives.
Part of the covenant at Sinai was that we would live and act as Hashem tells us to. Forgiving loans and allowing others access to our property shows we realize the world is His, not ours, and must be used as He directs. However, it’s not just the world. Eretz Yisrael is a more spiritual land than any other and it reacts to our behavior.
If we don’t remain holy and pure, and engage in improper relationships, the land will “vomit” us out. Shmita reinforces that if we wish to dwell in Eretz Yisrael, we must act like B’nai Yisrael. And that means being different than the nations of the world.
The Gemara in Shabbos (89a) tells us the source of Antisemitism. The world doesn’t hate the Jews because of anything we do, and there is no rational argument we can give them which will make them hate us less. So what is the source of this hatred? Har Sinai.
Har Sinai is called thus because it brought about “sinah,” hatred of the gentiles for us. Rashi there explains it’s because THEY didn’t accept the Torah there, and we did. They are jealous of the ability we have to rise above the physical world and cleave to Hashem. Shmita and its miracles are proof that we can, to some degree, live on a higher plane. THAT is what Shmita has to do with Har Sinai, and we should all look for opportunities to remind ourselves just how special we are.
A young man approached his Rosh Yeshiva. It had been several years since he’d married and moved away and he was excited to visit. “How is everything?” inquired the Dean. “Baruch Hashem, my job is good and my home is comfortable. But one thing bothers me. I don’t feel the “kedusha,” the spirituality, in my neighborhood, that I’d hoped for. It’s not like Yeshiva and I think people could be more spiritually sensitive.” He assumed the sage would tell him to find a new place to live. He was not ready for what his rebbi DID tell him: “So, YOU add kedusha to your neighborhood.” -- It was up to him. Why hadn’t he thought of that?
©2024 – J. Gewirtz
