Eye for an Eye: Justice?

Emor

Leviticus 21:1 - 24:23

Précis: This parasha is divided into four sections. First, it reviews procedures for the Priests to use to remain ritually pure. Second, it outlines the festival and holiday calendar. Third, it explains the use of the olive oil and bread on display on the altar. Finally, there is a brief narrative about a blasphemer who is condemned to death.

Leviticus 24:19-20 “And if a man maims his neighbor, do as he has done to him: breach for breach, eye for eye, tooth for tooth; as he has maimed a man, so shall it be for him.”

Verse 20 is one of three places in the Bible where the phrase “eye for an eye” (“ayin tachat ayin”) appears (see also Exodus 21:23-25 and Deuteronomy 19:21). There is of course an obvious logical problem with the proposition. How can one obey the literal dictates of this commandment when the evil doer is already blind or toothless? Then there is the simple barbarity of the demand, as well as the fact that physical retribution is a kind of revenge we are repeatedly warned to avoid. The barbarity of striking out eyes or teeth or taking a life was just as palpable for the sages 2000 years ago as it is to our “modern” sensibilities.

There has been universal concurrence from the rabbis since Mishnaic times forward that this text cannot and never was taken literally. Through parsing of the texts, the Sages announced that this system was a call for a detailed system of monetary damages administered by the courts for wrongs done by one human being to another. The rabbis called their system of justice “midah k’neged midah” or “measure for measure.” They based this concept on their belief of how God administers justice on a more cosmic scale. Pharaoh, Amalek, and Haman are often cited as examples of individuals who were punished according to the magnitude of their crimes, and Joseph, Moses, and others are cited as receiving reward because of the mitzvot they performed.

Our experience in the “real world” suggests that all too often, the evil prosper while the righteous suffer. How can we come to terms with the Holocaust or with the results of natural disasters and continue to believe that God administers true justice? This is perhaps the ultimate dilemma which tests our faith. Some resolve it by saying that the balance is made in the world to come; others retreat behind the concept that God works in mysterious ways.

Nevertheless, the concept of a system of justice administered by human judges, with human plaintiffs and defendants, was guided by the principle of “measure for measure.” It was and remains an attempt to create a social mechanism which, despite its flaws, seeks justice for all. This system is one which we should be striving for in our private lives, congregations, and in our communities.

Love, Love, Love - All You Need is Love

Acharei Mot-Kedoshim

Leviticus  16:1-:20:27

Précis: Acharei Mot begins with Adonai speaking to Moses after the death (acharei mot) of Aaron’s sons. It describes the rituals for Yom Kippur, including the prescribed sacrifices. There are specific details about the purification of the Sanctuary, vessels, and the priests. Following this descriptions, rules for the slaughter of meat (including the prohibition against eating blood) are reiterated. The parasha concludes with a listing of prohibited marriages. 

      The opening words of Kedoshim are “You shall be holy” (kedoshim tihyu), and it continues with various descriptions of how the People are to strive for holiness. Included are fundamental laws, such as fearing one’s parents and observing Shabbat. Consideration of the poor through the commandments to leave the corners of fields for gleaners is included, as are mandates which complement the ethical principles of the Ten Commandments (being honest, avoiding vengeance). Specific bans against magicians, soothsaying, witchcraft and defiling the dead follow, as are reminders to avoid human sacrifice. This parasha is often viewed as the very core of moral teaching for the Jewish People.

Leviticus 19:18 – “You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against members of your people. Love your fellow as yourself: I am the Eternal.”

      Kedoshim marks a major change of trajectory in Leviticus. Up to now (and especially in the last several weeks), the focus has been on rituals and sacrifices. We now move to statements of individual actions, and a reiteration of portions of the Ten Commandments with a special focus on ethical and moral mandates. As Rabbi Hertz has noted, these disparate parts of Leviticus (ritual and ethics) are united by an underlying theme: both are explanations for how human beings are to achieve “holiness.” The verse cited here is an attempt to command “love” for one another.

Reversing the emphasis of this verse, Hillel famously stated, “What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor.” (Shabbat 31a). We see at the very center of Judaism an emphasis on avoiding harm to “the other.”

       The Torah text demands that we love one another. But how are we to learn to love the other? The sages over the centuries tried to illuminate this mandate. Maimonides suggests that we show our love through the fulfillment of other mitzvot: visiting the sick, comforting the mourner, clothing the naked, feeding the hungry. But do we achieve the emotional state the Torah demands through such actions?

       There is an old aphorism that states, “Actions speak louder than words.” We show love by acting as if we love. I would add, from personal experience, that when one engages in one of the actions suggested by Maimonides, one can experience true emotional satisfaction. Is this the kind of “love” the Torah demands? If it isn’t, it may just have to do.