B"H
Wednesday, Iyar 17, 5779 / May 22, 2019 (32nd day of the Omer)
This week’s Torah reading in the Diaspora is Parshat B’har. In Israel, Parshat Bechukotei will be read. With Parshat Bechukotei the third Book of the Torah, the Book of Leviticus (Vayikra), will be concluded.
Parshat B’har, which is read in the Diaspora, begins with the mitzvah of Shemitah – the Sabbatical Year. “G-d spoke to Moshe at Mount Sinai, saying, ‘When you come to the Land that I am giving you, the Land should rest a Shabbat to G-d. Six years you may sow your field and six years you may prune your vineyard and gather its produce. But on the seventh year the land shall have a complete rest - a Shabbat to G-d.’”
During the Shemitah year, the owners of the fields, and everyone else were equal. Everyone had the same rights to the produce of that year. The poor and needy can help themselves to whatever is in the field.
Q. Shemitah is every seven years. What applicable lesson does the mitzvah of Shemitah teach us all the time?
A. The Shemitah year teaches to better understand and appreciate the needs of the poorwho don't have their own fields and must continuously rely on the mercy and generosity of others for their basic needs.
During the Shemitah year, when everyone is equal, and the poor have the same right to the produce of the field as the field owners, it gives the wealthy abetter feeling and understanding of what the poor people go through all other years. This gives them a better understanding of the importance of helping those in need.
On an extremely cold night, the town Rabbi was collecting money to buy firewood for the poor. He went to the home of the wealthiest man in town and knocked on his door. When the rich man opened it and invited the rabbi in, the Rabbi didn't enter. Instead, he called the owner outside and started discussing with him about communal matters.
The rich man, who wasn’t dressed properly for the outdoors, soon became very cold and began shivering. Yet the Rabbi kept on talking and ignored his repeated requests to continue their conversation inside.
Finally, the Rabbi came to the point and told him the purpose of his visit, "I need money for firewood so that the needy can stay warm in their homes in this freezing weather."
"I will give you as much as you want!" answered the rich man. "But please come into the house. I'm freezing!" The Rabbi agreed, and followed the rich man into the house.
After the rich man made his generous contribution, he asked the rabbi, "Why didn't you come in the house when I first invited you in?" The Rabbi smiled and said, "I wanted you to feel the suffering of the poor and the urgency of this request. The longer we stood outside and the more you felt the cold, the more understanding you became!" This is the idea of Shemitah.
HAVE A VERY GOOD, HAPPY, HEALTHY & SUCCESSFUL DAY