RABBI AARON Editor, Torah Tidbits GOLDSCHEIDER
Safeguarding the Soul
E
ach year when we arrive at these parshiot we endeavor to find their meaning and relevance. After all, the laws of tzaraat are no longer applicable; the affliction itself simply does not exist in our day. The Chassidic master, Rebbe Yehudah Aryeh Leib Alter of Ger (1847-1905), also known by the title of his main work Sfat Emet, searched for a spiritual message embedded in these obscure laws. He offers two unique perspectives. It is well known that the Sages draw a straight line between the sin of lashon hara and the punishment tzara’at. The Sfat Emet emphasizes that the seriousness of the sin relates to the fact that the mouth of a Jew should be used to bring honor to God. He quotes as a prooftext the prophet Isaiah, “This people I formed for myself so that they proclaim my praise” (43:21). There is so much good that we can and must accomplish with our words. When we speak disparagingly, we are being disloyal to ourselves and to our Creator. The transgression of lashon hara is not 32
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just ‘another sin’. It cuts to the very core of what it means to be Jew. The mission of our people and of every individual is to testify and bring glory to God’s presence in the world. When we use our speech in a negative way, we undermine this very assignment. The Rebbe explains that although the soul is embedded deep within us, we need to reveal it. The thick layer of physicality that surrounds the soul can be penetrated. Although the soul is submerged, we activate its potency when we engage in acts of kindness,Torah study and tefilla. In a word, this is the tzelem elokim, ‘God’s image’ found within us. The more we actualize our spiritual potential, the less we are encumbered by physicality, and the core inner light shines. The Rebbe suggested the following: Take note of fact the tzaraat ailment appears on a person’s skin. The skin symbolizes the outer layer or covering of man. It is here that man interacts with others and the world around him. The tzaraat is another layer added to the skin. An additional barrier now covers the neshama. The moment a person speaks lashon hara or diverts from the right path, he causes his soul to be further submerged; it sinks to a place where it is
