The ma’aser (tenth of a crop) tithe was brought each third year in the seven-year cycle for the poor. After this, the donor was to offer a prayer in which he declared that he had obeyed the commandment to set aside ma’aser for the Levite, orphan, and the widow.
Moses instructed the people to observe several solemn ceremonies once they had crossed over the Jordan River. First, they were to erect large stones on Mt. Eival, and clearly inscribe on them the words of the Law. Second, they were to build an altar of stones and sacrifice burnt offerings and peace offerings on it. The sacrificial meal was to be eaten with rejoicing. Third, the acceptance of the Law was to be ratified by the twelve tribes. This was to occur as follows: six tribes were to stand on top of Mt. Gerizim, representing the blessings. The remaining six tribes were to stand on top of Mt. Eival representing the curses. The Leviim were to stand in the valley midway between them and pronounce curses upon those who committed the following acts and blessings for those who avoided them:
a) idolatry b)
dishonoring ones’ parents c) removing a neighbor’s boundary
line
d) misleading the blind e) behaving unjustly toward the stranger f)
behaving in an immoral manner g) murdering someone in secret h) taking
a bribe to give false testimony in a case involving capital punishment
i) failing to observe the commandments in general.
Each member of
the tribe was to answer ‘amen” after each blessing and
curse. The people were once again reminded that if they follow the
commandments, then they would prosper in the new land. If they failed
to obey the commandments, then the land would be devastated by war,
and the nation would be conquered by a cruel people. Moses began his
third and final discourse by pleading with the people to remember
all the G-d had done for them by bringing them out of Egypt and leading
them to this point in time.
It is interesting that the law of setting aside ma’aser, a tenth
of one’s crop, is listed as a blessing. Of course, giving Tzedakah
and helping the poor are good deeds. The Torah is reminding us that,
“it is better to give than to receive.”
The mishnah, in tractate Peah (which means “corners”),
states that:
“These are the things which have no fixed measure: the corners
of the field, the first fruits, the three festival offerings brought
on appearing before the Lord, charity, and the study of Torah. These
are the things the fruits of which a person enjoys in this world and
stock of which remains for him in the world to come: honoring one’s
father and mother, charity, making peace between people; but the study
of Torah is equal to them all.”
The sages are reminding us that when giving of ourselves, there is
no maximum limit (unless it becomes a physical or financial hardship).
By helping others, we are in fact helping ourselves. We may one day
be in the same state of need! Notice that the first half of the mishnah
discusses things for which we can never bring too much of. Why is
the study of Torah included in this list? The answer is, that one
can never study enough Torah. As it says in Pirke Avos : “Turn
it, turn it, and turn it over again; for it contains everything”.
Thus, by studying Torah, we learn not only what G-d expects of us,
but what we expect from each other. More specifically, it places the
acts mentioned above on the same footing as Torah study. Thus, if
we are unable to fulfill one of these mitzvos, then by studying about
them, we can still earn some of the merit. This is what the sages
ruled concerning the korbanos, which are no longer offered. By studying
them in the Torah, we remember the rituals performed in honor of G-d,
by our ancestor in the Holy Temple.
The first fruits are known as “orlah”. A person was not allowed to eat the fruits of a new tree for the first three years. During the fourth year, the fruit (called orlah), was to be brought to the sanctuary as an offering to G-d. It had to be eaten there as well. This was a reminder that all of the produce of the land is a gift from G-d and we should offer our thanks for both the rain and the produce.
The second half of the mishnah discusses things which bring us joy in this world and a reward in the world to come. Notice that honoring one’s parents comes first, followed by charity, making peace between people, and then the study of Torah. Charity is repeated twice (in the first and second halves) and so is the study of Torah. Why should the sages have listed honoring one’s parents first? This is because from our parents we obtain life, sustenance, love, support, and education. Thus, by honoring our parents, we are honoring G-d and His Torah. You will remember that in the last parsha, there was the case of the rebellious son who, in theory, could be stoned for being too difficult to manage. In some sense, cursing your parents, is as much of a sin as murder, according to the sages. The same, recall, was true for the sin of loshen hara.
The list of actions for which one could be cursed is likewise interesting. There are nine of them (not ten as you might expect to counter the Ten Commandments). Let’s examine them more closely. The sin of idolatry is first, because this is denying the existence of G-d. The land of Canaan had to be cleansed of all traces of idolatry. Thus, this curse is a punishment for violating the first two commandments (denying G-d and placing false idols ahead of G-d). Dishonoring one’s parents ahs been discussed before. Removing the boundary line of your neighbor constitutes theft and dishonesty.
Misleading the
blind, the orphan, or the widow (“thou shalt not place a stumbling
block before the blind…”) all imply taking advantage of
them. This is also forbidden. Behaving in an immoral manner denies
the existence of G-d because we think that G-d cannot know what we
do in private. Murdering a person is bad enough. Committing the crime
in secret is similar to burglary since the assumption is that if there
are no witnesses, no crime has been committed. This again is an action,
which denies the existence of G-d.
Taking a bribe to give false testimony in a capital case puts a person’s
life on the line. Finally, violating all of the commandments is listed
last since it basically encompasses all the others. The laws go from
the specific, to the general.
The Torah speaks about all of the people standing before G-d, on an
equal footing, hearing all of these blessings and curses. The story
is told that on Rosh Hashannah, Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berdichev rose
to blow the shofar. He walked to the bima, the congregation recited
the prayers, and all waited silently for the blowing. Still, Rabbi
Levi Yitzchak paused for a long time and said nothing. The crowd grew
impatient, wondering why their Rabbi was not fulfilling his duty.
Finally he spoke:
“My friends. In the back of the synagogue, is a Jew who spent his entire life living amongst gentiles. He has come back to us today in an effort to pray to G-d to give him a long life and forgive his sins. He doesn’t know how to ray or to speak Hebrew. The only thing he remembers is the alef beis. Therefore, since this person’s heart is pure in his love for G-d, I paused in the service to allow his prayer, his recitation of the alef beis, to ascend to heaven before our prayers. I know now that his prayer was reached Heaven and now I know that when I blow the shofar, G-d will listen to it!”
When giving to
the poor, we must be careful not to embarrass them. The story is told
about Rabbi Eliyahu Chaim of Lodz. He opened his home to all visitors.
One evening, a tired traveler came to call on the Rav. Rabbi Eliyahu
went to the bedroom to check on the man and noticed that his shoes
were all tattered and torn. He waited until the man fell asleep and
quietly substituted his own shoes for those of the poor man. The next
morning, there was a heavy rain and the man hurriedly got up, thanked
the Rabbi for the room, and rushed off. He did not notice that he
was now wearing good shoes and they quickly became all muddy. A disciple
asked Rabbi Eliyahu if he was upset that the man hadn’t thanked
him for the new shoes. “Not at all”, said the Rav. “Wouldn’t
it be wonderful if he never found out! Then not only won’t he
have to suffer because of wearing worn out shoes, he also won’t
suffer that he had to accept charity!”
