By Rabbi Zalman Goldberg
Bitachon in Hashem is not a tool that merely assists a Yid in times of difficulty; rather it should affect every facet of a Yid’s life. For once one is imbued and permeated with the notion that Hashem is the primary existence and that the messages that the world gives us are only illusions, one’s weltanschauung will certainly be wholesomely altered.
One of the areas affected will be ahavas Yisroel and how one views of another Yid. Everyone knows that ahavas Yisroel is a כלל גדול בתורה-a main principal in the Torah, but when it comes to appreciating the true worth of another Yid and to actually acting on it, there are many distractions that can get in the way. One may look at a Yid very superficially and judge him based on his knowledge of Torah, origins, or behaviors. In truth, these are all externalities; beneath all ignorance and anti-social behavior is a pure neshama which is an expression of Hashem Himself.
How does one tap into that internal G-dliness that exists in his fellow Yid, especially when there are certain qualities which distract from the neshama reality?
As we mentioned earlier, when one adapts to the G-dly reality of the world around him, in spite of the materialistic notions which seem to contradict what the G-dly reality is portraying, this will cause one to have the same perspective on a fellow Yid, i.e., the neshama reality will overpower the external ‘reality’.
This concept is alluded to in this week’s parsha when the Torah states that the Kohen1 must be the one to pronounce the metzora impure. Although at times there needs to be a scholar present who is proficient in the laws of leprosy so that the ruling of the Kohen will be congruent with the laws of the Torah, the ruling itself must be handed out by the Kohen alone.
This2 seems peculiar, for what difference does it make who pronounces the status of the leper, as long as it is the correct ruling?
The truth, however, is that it is indeed crucial that the one handing down the ruling be a Kohen. With a situation of a potential metzora, we are dealing with expelling a Yid completely from the Jewish community, albeit temporarily. This is a very serious action, to send out a Yid from even the most external camp, causing him to have no social contact with any other Yid (not even with a fellow leper). This is a punishment for one who spoke badly of another, thus causing others to think negatively about a Yid and causing separation, but to actually mete out the punishment is a very serious action and one must be more than 100% positive that the punishment for the metzora is indeed the correct one.
For this reason it is specifically the Kohen who was put in charge of pronouncing the punishment. The Kohen is unique in the immense kindness which influences all his faculties. The Kohen is an איש החסד-a man of kindness, and is the only one whom Hashem commanded to bless all of the Yidden with אהבה, love. Only on a Kohen can the Torah rely to give the ruling for a potential leper. Only the Kohen really feels the full extent of what it means to expel a Yid from the community, and so the Kohen will do all in his power to find merits with which to save the Yid in question from leaving the Yiddishe camp.
If the Kohen does pronounce the leper impure, one can be sure that the leper is liable for the punishment, but the Kohen will simultaneously do all in his power to purify the leper as quickly as possible, in order to bring him back amongst other Yidden. This is the quality of truly appreciating a fellow Yid, and primarily seeing the neshama in him, and trying to prevent the negative from overpowering the neshama, heaven forbid.
In the times of the Baal Shem Tov and the Alter Rebbe, it was common amongst many scholars to look down upon the less learned and view their level of Jewishness based on their knowledge of Torah. What the Baal Shem Tov reintroduced to Judaism is that every Yid contains a neshama through which he can sincerely connect to Hashem, and because of which we are intrinsically one with our fellow Jew. Without a doubt, we should teach our fellow Yidden Torah and how to fulfill Mitzvos, because that’s part of being a Yid, but it doesn’t enhance or decrease our אהבת ישראל toward them.
A small anecdote in which we see that this perspective can be a part of one’s life took place with Rabbi Kehos Weiss ע’’ה, of Pittsburgh, PA. A former student remembers R’ Kehos fondly and related the following. The eighth grade in the Pittsburgh Yeshiva had an extra class with Reb Kehos at 3:30 p.m., after secular studies had ended. It so happened that during this class some of the students would secretly munch on some nosh from their desks, since it was the final lesson of the day. Instead of becoming infuriated at the boys for undermining him, R’ Kehos turned to the boys and exclaimed, “In the refrigerator there is a box full of sandwiches leftover from lunch. Let’s get the box, wash and eat like mentchen, bench, and then we will learn properly.”
And that is what took place every day for the remainder of the year. What’s remarkable is where his approach stemmed from. R’ Kehos viewed every one of his students as a pure neshama and never wanted to give them a bad experience. As a result, his approach was kind and inviting rather than rigorously harsh and penalizing.
Rabbi Zalman Goldberg is a well sought after speaker and lecturer on Chassidic thought. His writings and recordings on the topic of Bitachon can be accessed at http://www.gotbitachon.com. You can also receive his one minute daily Bitachon clip by sending a WhatsApp to: 347-581-3830 with the word “Bitachon.”
1) פירש”י פרשתנו י”ג ב’
2) לקו”ש חי”ז ע’ 88 ואילך