Later, the parsha mentions a very unique ceremony that occurred only once in the history of Klal Yisrael. When they came into Eretz Yisrael there were two adjacent mountains—Mt. Gerizim and Mt. Eval. Six Tribes stood on one mountain and six Tribes stood on the second mountain. A series of Blessings and Curses were recited, to which everyone needed to respond Amen.
The Torah mentions which tribes were to be positioned on each mountain, and then it proceeds to list the eleven “Curses” (Arurim) which were to be part of this recitation. These are eleven sins for which a person who transgressed them should be cursed. It was like a national Kabbalas Shevuah (acceptance of a binding oath) not to be in violation of these eleven transgressions.
The specific sins for which it was proclaimed “Accursed be he who...” include the following:
- Makes a graven image and places it in secret.
- Degrades his father or mother.
- Moves back the boundary of his fellow.
- Causes a blind person to go astray on the road.
- Perverts a judgment of a convert, orphan, or widow.
- Lies with the wife of his father.
- Lies with any animal.
- Lies with his sister.
- Lies with his mother-in-law.
- Strikes his fellow in secret.
- Takes a bribe to kill an innocent person.
Let me ask something: Are these eleven things the worst sins in the Torah? It does not say “Cursed be one who desecrates the Shabbos.” It does not say “Cursed be one who eats chametz on Pesach.” Some of the things mentioned do not involve the serious Kares penalty, nor even the less serious penalty of makkos (lashes). If we had to pick a list of “the worst eleven,” maybe we would have listed some of the eleven items, such as those involving Avodah Zarah or Arayos. But most of them do not seem to be “all that bad” that they should be worthy of this unique curse. So why were these eleven singled out?
The Sefer Darash Mordechai suggests a common denominator to all eleven items. These sins are all done behind closed doors in which a person can act hypocritically (Echad b’fnim, v’echad b’Chutz). A person can act as the biggest Tzadik out in public, and behind closed doors he can treat his parents with utter disrespect. “Cursed be he who encroaches on the boundary of his fellow man.” A person can promote himself as one of the most honest businessmen there are, and yet in the stealth of night he will move the boundary demarcation a couple of inches, and no one will know the difference.
“Cursed is he who leads the blind man astray on the road.” The commentaries dispute what this applies to, but according to Rambam this refers to giving bad advice. You tell a person “Listen, you invest in this deal and you will make a fortune!” when you are purposely giving him bad advice, for your own advantage. All of these things, a person can in fact externally promote himself as a most upstanding citizen, but in secret – behind closed doors – (v’sam ba’seiser) it is quite a different story.
Chazal say that in the times of Yoshiyahu haMelech, the king thought he succeeded in cleaning out all the Avodah Zarah that existed in Eretz Yisrael. The King had guards going to people’s houses searching for idols. The wicked people hid their idols on the back of their doors, so that when the doors were open the idols would be hidden. As soon as the guards closed the doors behind them, the idols reappeared. That is an instance of “and emplace it in secret” (V’sam ba’seiser) [Devorim 27:15].
So, what is this unique ceremony all about? It is about being fakers. That is why these are Arur (cursed behavior). A person needs to be “Tocho k’Baro“—the same on the inside as on the outside. A person must be who he is everywhere—in the privacy of his home and in the public arena. All these people here are acting behind closed doors, secretively. Such behavior is intolerable. The Ribono shel Olam cannot suffer such hypocrisy.
One of the themes of the Yomim Noraim is “V’Taher Leebeinu l’Avdecha b’Emes” (Purify our hearts to serve you in truth). We must be honest. We must act with integrity. What you see is what you get. What is apparent to people must be what you really are. When you are “one way with your mouth and one way with your heart” or “one way outside and one way inside” then you are a faker. This is what the Torah condemns as deserving the Arur curse. That is why these eleven things—although perhaps not the most egregious of Aveiros—nevertheless have this element of fakery which the Torah singles out for explicit condemnation.
