ודע מה שתשיב לאפיקורס
This is the statute of the Torah, which Hashem has commanded, saying, “Speak to the Children of Israel, and they shall take to you a perfectly red cow, which has no blemish, upon which a yoke has not come. (19:2)
Rashi explains: ‘Because the accuser and the nations of the world complain against Israel by saying, ‘What is this mitzvah?’ and ‘What is the reason for it?’ therefore, the Torah wrote ‘it is a statute’ – It is a decree from before Me, you do not have the right to question it.
Rashi’s explanation raises an astounding question. The description that emerges from the beginning of his words, that the mitzvah of ‘Parah Adumah’ [Red Cow] is a statute without reason, and so the nations and the yetzer saw fit to ask for a reason knowing that we cannot give one, and this would give them an opening to make fun of the entire Torah. Following this, we get to the end, and having no choice, it is incumbent on us to give them a ‘forced’ answer, that there are mitzvos that are ‘statutes’ and we have no part in their mysteries. That is, there is no answer that will satisfy their question, and we are only left to ‘avoid them’ with an answer that has no purpose. And as any rational person knows, this answer is not enough to dissuade the nations and the yetzer from their plan to disparage the Torah.
However, after explaining all the posukim and details of the laws relevant to the Parah, he brings a nice reason for this reason from the treatise of Rebbe Moshe HaDarshan (Posuk 22), who explains it by way of a parable [mashal], this can be compared to the son of a maidservant who soiled the palace of a king (see there). We ask the question, if there is a valid answer to their question, then why did we try to avoid them? Why did we not silence them with this valid answer that there is a reason for this mitzvah?
By way of mussar, we can answer that the Torah is teaching us derech eretz, common courtesy, for someone who is not yet broadminded, and he is not able to answer a fool with his foolishness and how is he supposed to deal with those who threw off the yoke and the Torah haters who mistreat him and ask all kinds of questions about Judaism, in a situation such as this where they say they want to know but generally do not want to understand... their whole purpose is to cause embarrassment so they will have an opening to glorify their ‘emptiness’, saying they are right in their view that the person should be free of mitzvos Rachmana litzlan. To prove their words, they say that they even asked one steeped in mitzvos what the reason for their various laws is, and he does not know how to respond, and this is a sign that everything is futile.
And so, even if it happens that he has an answer to what his ears have heard, if he is not trained in how to bring those who are distant closer, he should not answer, he should dismiss them with brief answers. We do everything the Torah says with emunah and what we received as tradition [mesorah] from our fathers. There should be no fear in his heart for this, since as mentioned, they are looking for a way to glorify themselves, and this is for two reasons:
1 – Generally, when one wants to begin a conversation with people, they begin by asking questions that everyone can answer as this is a strategy to see if they are broadminded, and one is prepared to answer them and win them over, knowing that this will arouse the desire to lengthen the conversation in order to respond well according to his understanding... and if so, if one hesitates from responding at first, it will not bring them to boast, for in their inner hearts they know that he still has the answer for them.
2 - Even if there is a party whose refusal to answer them will already serve as a victory for them, this is no reason to answer them, perhaps they will eventually come to ask a question that he will not be able to answer. Then aside of it being a victory for them, perhaps it can cause doubt and confusion, and it would have been better if he had given up an hour ago...
For this reason, Rashi did not reveal the reason of Rebbe Moshe HaDarshan until he finished explaining all the laws of the Parah, as this is the completion of the brief answer that is appropriate to give to mistaken souls: Just as the Torah teaches its mitzvos without explaining its statutes, so must we keep them even if we have no concept of their reasons! Only after this did Rashi reveal the reason of Rebbe Moshe HaDarshan to further teach the appropriate answer to give them: ‘If you really want to learn ‘Judaism’ and your intent is not to provoke, turn to Rebbe Moshe HaDarshan, that is to the tzaddik of the generation called ‘Moshe’ – for every righteous man is called Moshe as brought down in the holy Zohar (Tikkunim 114a Tikkun 69) ‘There is a Moshe in every generation’ – and with his broadmindedness he will expound topics of Judaism without being harmed by this...
These things are said regarding the yetzer as well. Sometimes it also demands that the person knows the reasons of the mitzvos, and it also strives for the same goal, to present a case to the person and show him that ultimately, from the reasons of the mitzvos themselves in certain situations one can transgress the mitzvos Rachmana litzlan. Therefore, we are obligated to avoid responding to it, and through accepting the yoke of the kingdom of Heaven, the person should repeat to himself that HaKadosh Baruch Hu said, “I decreed a decree, I made a statute, you have no right to complain about it.” This will save him from the trap that the yetzer has set for him...
For this reason, there are several mitzvos that in the eyes of the person they are like statutes without reason. This is because Heaven felt that if the reasons were explained it would give the yetzer the opening to tell the person to transgress them, and the person will not have the wherewithal to stand against it... and from this the person can learn the principle of the mitzvos, that this is the way of the yetzer, and the way to be saved from its scheme is to not speak to it at all, rater just do the mitzvos with the original intent before the yetzer started with him...
Only after keeping the mitzvah properly can a person look for a reason, and only then can he attain the correct reason. As Rashi teaches us, at first say, “I decreed a decree, I made a statute” and teaches the person all the laws of the Parah without reasons, and only after this does he reveal the reason from the treatise of Rebbe Moshe HaDarshan. This teaches him that if the yetzer tries to argue with him to keep the mitzvah or not, he should not search for the reason for the mitzvah before he has actually kept it. For only them will he merit the true reason for it and the inner meaning.
Similarly, it is brought down in the holy sefer ‘Sefas Emes’, that after the person keeps a mitzvah with complete faith, without thinking about it, he merits to receive the reason for it.
