This week, my d'var is in a slightly different format, since it's also heing published in the Washington Jewish Week.
Our reading this week, parashat Emor, is divided into a variety of sections: procedures for the Priests to use to remain ritually pure, an outline of the festival and holiday calendar, details about the bread and oil to be used on the Altar, and myriad commandments about a wide range of matters.
We find in the midst of this week’s reading (which contains almost 10% of the Torah’s enumerated mitzvot) the command to leave the corners of our fields for the poor. As is noted in Lev. 23:22 “And when you reap the harvest of your land, you will not wholly reap the corner of the field, and you will not gather the gleaning of your harvest; you will leave them for the poor, and for the stranger: I am Adonai your God.”
This verse is often cited as a proof text for the ethical basis of mitzvot relating to tzedakah (righteous giving) to the poor and to the stranger who dwells in the midst of our society. Yet just last week, the same command appeared, and here it is again, virtually word for word. We know that our tradition tells us that every word of Torah is valuable and has meaning, so why the repetition?
Nahama Leibowitz suggests that the harvest festivals, the calendar for which appear in this week’s reading, were times of great joy, during which it was easy to forget about those less fortunate than the successful farmer. She suggests that a good harvest could lead the farmer to believe that the bounty was a result of his own work, and not a blessing from God. The repetition therefore comes as a means of emphasis. It is a reminder that we must share God’s blessings with those less fortunate than ourselves.
Please note in the verse cited above, that within the phrase “your land,” the word “your” is in the plural form. Our text thereby implies that ownership of the land is also in the plural, or what we might call “common” land. When we read it that way, the gleaners are not getting charity from the farmer: they are instead sharing in what belongs to them, as a gift from God. To emphasize this point, our tradition states that even if the harvest is poor, the farmer still has the obligation to leave the corners for gleaners.
Today, we live in economically uncertain and demanding times. Recent analysis shows that there is a growing gap between the wealthy and the poor. Few of us are farmers, yet those of us who are blessed with the means to do so must share with those less fortunate. Even those whose “harvest” has been modest have an obligation to help those further down the economic ladder. (As an aside, there is also within our tradition a mandate to give sufficient alms to a beggar so that he, in turn, may help another.)
What this says about the state of our current political debate on taxes and spending is important. Whether one is a “rock-ribbed” conservative or a “wild-eyed” socialist, it is incumbent upon all of us to find the ways and means to help the least well-off in our society. How we might achieve that result is a matter of great debate, but we should agree on the goal which our tradition sets forth with such emphasis this week.
For discussion:
1) How does your family observe the mitzvah of tzedakah?
2) How can we teach our children about the importance of righteous giving?
Gary D. Simms is a faculty member of Shoresh Hebrew High School, and a former executive director of Reform, Orthodox, and Conservative congregations in the Washington D.C. area.
