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The Jewish Home | APRIL 28, 2022
From the Fire Parshas Acharei Mos
Our Lifeblood by rav Moshe Weinberger Adapted for publication by Binyomin Wolf
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OctOber 29, 2015 | the Jewish Home
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ashem tells us many times in the Torah, “I am Hashem,” but in this week’s parsha (Vayikra 18:5), He adds, with regard to the study of Torah and the fulfillment of the mitzvos, “And you shall live with them, I am Hashem.” The commentaries explain the meaning of the phrase, “And you shall live with them.” The Gemara (Sanhedrin 74a) explains that it means: “You shall live with them and not die through them.” In other words, if necessary, one must violate any mitzvah in the Torah in order to save a life, with the exception of the prohibitions against idolatry, murder, and immorality. Rashi, however, explains that it means: “And you shall live with them in the World to Come.” The pasuk teaches that if we fulfill the mitzvos we will live not only in this world, but in the Next World as well. The Netziv in Haemek Davar explains that when the Torah uses the word “chai, life,” it has two possible meanings. Sometimes it simply means “alive,” as opposed to dead. This is the sense of the word “chai, life,” in the pasuk “And you shall live with them,” according to Rashi and the Gemara. The mitzvos should not be a cause of death. In addition, by doing the mitzvos, we merit life in the Next World. But the word “chai, life,” has another meaning. The Netziv explains that the word for life also means to live a full, whole life that is not mired in small-mindedness. Therefore, he says, with regard to this pasuk, that it obligates us to live a life in which “one’s soul should experience spiritual delight in them [the mitzvos].” We can experience a taste of this in one of the mitzvos in the parsha which few of us have experienced: the mitzvah to cover the blood of fowl or wild
animals after slaughter (Vayikra 17:1314). The Torah tells us, “When one eats a wild animal or fowl, he shall shed its blood and cover it with dirt. Because the soul of all flesh is in its blood...” While the Torah does not usually offer reasons for the mitzvos, here, the Torah says that we cover the blood of a slaughtered bird or wild animal because the animal’s soul is in its blood. The Ohr Hachaim Hakadosh explains that the Torah tells us that it is only proper to cover the animal’s blood, because it contains the animal’s soul. He explains that this is similar to the reason why we honor the body of a deceased person, since it recently contained a living soul. The Torah commands us to show respect for the animal’s life by covering its blood. Rav Shmuel Berenbaum, zt”l, the Mirrer Rosh Yeshiva, uses this Ohr Hachaim to teach us a fundamental concept. When a Jew is about to slaughter a bird or animal, it is certainly a mitzvah and it is
justified so that the person can make a living and others can eat. But the act of slaughter nevertheless diminishes the value of life generally. At the time of slaughter of a chicken, for example, its life appears completely insignificant and inconsequential. Therefore, in order to counteract the diminished perception of the value of life which arises from the act of slaughter, Hashem commands us to show some honor and respect for the chicken’s life in order to restore the value and honor of life generally. When a person fulfills the mitzvah of covering the blood, he contemplates the fact that Hashem is so concerned about the value of life, even the life of a seemingly insignificant little bird, that He gave us a special mitzvah in order to instill a respect for the preciousness of life within us. We must understand the value of being alive. Rav Berenbaum takes the lesson to the next level by explaining that once a person contemplates the inherent value
of life, he will come to a deeper appreciation of the source of life: the Torah. As we say in Maariv, “Because they [the words of Torah] are our life and the length of our days.” The Torah’s infinite value is not only related to the fact that it comes from and is one with Hashem Himself. It is also the source of our lives. It is what we live for and long for. The Ran, quoting Rabbeinu Yona (on Nedarim 81a), explains the following statement in the Gemara: “Rav Yehuda says in the name of Rav: ‘What is the meaning of the pasuk “Who is wise who can understand this matter?”’ This matter [the reason for the destruction of the second Beis Hamikdash] was asked of the sages and the prophets, and they could not explain it until Hashem Himself explained it, as it says, ‘Because they abandoned my Torah,’ meaning that they did not listen to My voice, meaning that they did not go in the ways of [the Torah]. Rav Yehuda says in the name of Rav, ‘because they did not make the blessing over learning Torah before they began studying it.’” How could the Gemara say that the Jewish people did not say the blessing over learning Torah at the time of the destruction of the second Beis Hamikdash when even the simplest Jews say this blessing? In addition, how could the entire destruction and exile result from a failure to say one blessing!? Rabbeinu Yona, as quoted by the Ran, explains that while the Jewish people may have been studying Torah, they did not value the Torah. They may have said the blessing, but they did not have the right intentions when they did so. They viewed Torah as a source of intellectual stimulation, and they saw knowledge of Torah as a source of honor. Perhaps some studied Torah in order to obtain an ex-
