The Human Ingredient

Parshas Matos

Posted on July 31, 2024 (5784) By Rabbi Naftali Reich | Series: Legacy | Level: Beginner

Oaths and vows are very sacred things, so sacred that it is unthinkable that someone would violate them. In fact, no matter how skeptical and distrustful we may generally be, if we hear someone, anyone, make a solemn vow by all that is holy, we tend to believe it.

 

But what if the one making the vow could rescind it at will? Would a vow still have the same credibility? Obviously not. The force of a vow derives from its permanence and inviolability. And yet, the Torah laws regarding vows, about which we read in this week’s Torah portion, feature a mechanism by which one can be released from a vow. Surely then, this mechanism reveals a very fundamental flaw in the vow. What is the mechanism? And what is the flaw?

 

They are as follows. If the one making the vow encounters an unexpected situation in which the vow creates complications, it may be possible to obtain a release. For instance, a person vows not to eat a certain type of food and afterwards he discovers that just this food will be served at his son’s wedding. In retrospect, had he known he would not be able to eat at his own son’s wedding he would never have made that vow in the first place. In this case, he must present his argument to a rabbinical court, and if it is meets the specific criteria, the court can release him from his vow.

 

What is the basis for this release mechanism? The Talmud derives it from the verse, “Everything a person expresses in an oath.” It would have been sufficient to say, “Everything expressed in an oath.” Why the inclusion of the words “a person”? This seems to indicate that only someone considered “a person” can make binding oaths and vows. Oaths and vows that do not take future developments into consideration are not valid. Why? Because they were made without the human ingredient.

 

Let us reflect for a moment. What are we accustomed to thinking of as the human ingredient?

 

In what way does our society consider human beings superior to animals? It is in our creativity, our intelligence, our ability to think and reason. Homo sapiens. Thinking man. But the Torah uses an altogether different criterion. “A person,” according to the Torah, is someone who has foresight, who considers not only the instant gratification of the here and now like an animal but also the future ramifications of all his actions.

 

Why is this the ultimate human ingredient? Because what truly sets a human being apart from an animal is his soul, the indestructible spark of the divine that will continue to exist after the body perishes, that draws its sustenance from the spiritual world rather than the physical.. A person with foresight, therefore, realizes he cannot allow himself to be distracted by the immediate gratification of his physical impulses. He knows that he must use the short time allotted to him in this world to accumulate merit which will stand him in eternal good stead in the next world. This is the mark of a true human being.

 

A father was sitting on a park bench watching his young sons at play. Nearby sat an old man.

The boys were exceedingly rough in their play, pushing and grabbing things from each other, and the father looked on with concern.

 

“Are you worried about them?” asked the old man.

 

“A little,” replied the father. “But I have foresight. I came prepared with paraphernalia from my medicine cabinet in case they get hurt.”

 

The old man laughed. “That’s foresight? Thinking of bringing paraphernalia when you’re already standing at the door? If you really had foresight you would have started years ago by bringing them up to be more courteous and considerate of each other.”

 

In our own lives, we are all aware of the importance of preparing for the future. But for which future are we preparing, the temporary future we will encounter in a few years or the eternal future of our indestructible souls? It is all good and well to make financial investments that will secure our physical well-being when we grow old, but it even more important to make spiritual investments that will secure the well-being of our souls for all eternity.

 

Text Copyright © 2011 by Rabbi Naftali Reich and Torah.org.

 

A New Direction

Parshas Matos

Posted on July 16, 2009 (5769) By Rabbi Label Lam | Series: Dvar Torah| Level: Beginner

These are the journeys of the Children of Israel who went forth from the land of Egypt according to their legions, under the hand of Moshe and Aaron. Moshe wrote their goings forth according to their journeys at the bidding of HASHEM, and these were their journeys according to their goings forth… (Bamidbar 33:1-2)

 

Why does the Torah add a whole extra verse to inform us that Moshe wrote these journeys at the bidding of HASHEM? The entire Torah is according to the directives of HASHEM! What does that piece of information teach us? The Ohr HaChaim explains that Moshe had been commanded to maintain a continuous log of all the journeys as the events unfolded. This is only the final retrospective record. Great! Still, why is it important for us to know that Moshe had an on-going journal of the 40 year of journey of the Children of Israel?

 

Looking back, it was probably one of the best pieces of advice that I had ever gotten. I was starting a job teaching businessmen in the “big world” “out there”. I asked a senior colleague, “Exactly which periodicals or magazines should I be reading to ready myself for the task at hand?” I was a little concerned confronting these giant-men- of industry feeling ill-equipped. I was thinking that maybe a subscription to the Wall Street Journal or Forbes Magazine might be in order and I was ready to expend whatever was necessary for the tools of my new trade. This Rabbi looked up at me blithely and said, “Know your own story!” I asked him, “No newspaper or magazine in particular?!” He reaffirmed, “Just know your own story!”

 

How wise and helpful that has been for me for many reasons. I immediately got busy with the unending task of writing what I could recall from the farthest past to the illusive very present.

 

Whenever I would meet someone new the first thing I would tell them would be about me. “This is my story!” It becomes more clear to me and lucid as the process continues. Of course, there’s the abbreviated 30 second version and the intolerable feature length 1 hour version. So it is, everywhere we go people want to know your story and to know if you know your own story. If it’s a job interview or a shidduch, “How did you get from there to here? Where are you headed? Is it a positive and inspirational story or is it a tale of victimhood and woes? How is it that you understand and make real sense out of the events of your life?”

 

Rabbi Yisrael Slanter ztl. said that every person is a Musar Sefer-A book of lessons. That book for many still waits to written and lived to its fullness. The Piacezno Rebbe ztl. wrote in Tzav V’Zariz that a person should be able to write a book of principles that he or she learned from the rich experience of their life. I saw a keen phrase like this, “The successful person is not the one who makes the fewest mistakes but rather the person that learns the most from their mistakes.” One Rabbi had posted with a magnet on his refrigerator the statement, “Our definition of failure is not falling down but staying down.” Actually King Solomon had said it long ago, “The righteous one falls seven times and rises.” How important and valuable it is to chronicle and revisit the history of our lives, even the difficult and most challenging episodes.

 

A fellow who had once been in a failed marriage and was dating a young lady with the same life experience felt uncomfortable opening up the subject of her past relationship. He needed to know what went wrong but he didn’t want to make her feel uncomfortable. I advised that he ask her, “What did you learn from your first marriage?” If she says, “Nothing!” Move on! It’s not possible that somebody went through such a trauma and did not walk out with a pocket full of solid life lessons. If nothing new was learned then it’s probably a repeat cycle and that you don’t want.”

 

Knowing our personal history is not only an exercise in examining the past. It has immediate impact on matters moving forward! A few summers ago the Lam family went on a boating trip. I discovered in the “crash course” that a boat, unlike a car, a steers from behind. Turning the wheel on the deck tilts the rudder in the back of the boat and that’s what causes movement in a new direction.

 

DvarTorah, Copyright © 2007 by Rabbi Label Lam and Torah.org.