What is the Foundation Behind Behar-Behukotai’s Laws? The Solidarity of the Jewish People

Solidarity of the Jewish People is the foundation of Behar-Behukotai’s laws, Prof. David Frankel explains.

Shalom, this week’s parasha is parashat Behar – Behukotai. It concludes the book of Leviticus, the book of Vayikrah with a special set of laws which then follow into the blessings and curses of the end of Vayikrah.

The way that this conclusion can be understood is two-fold.

One can understand Behukotai, the statement which says if you follow the commands all will be good. If you do not follow the commands all will be not good. One can understand this as a reference to as to all the commands that were given before. However, another way of understanding this statement of Behukotai is that it refers basically to the laws of Behar.

That it refers specifically to the laws that appear in the first of the two parshot that we read this Shabbat. Which means that Behar-Behukotai is its own special unit given special laws and then saying that these are the laws that will determine your future as a nation.

Following this reading, we should ask what is special about the laws of Behar as opposed to all the other laws?

I believe that we can notice really some very important special qualities to the laws of Behar that make it stand out as a unique statement as to the future of the Jewish people and its wellbeing.

Behar speaks specifically of social laws such as shmitta and yovel, the sabbatical year and the fiftieth year. During those years the land is not worked. The land is left fallow for all: the weak and needy and the rich to gather together on the field and feed off of the field.

Yovel, the fiftieth Jubilee year, when all servants are returned to their ancestral inheritances and lands and the lands themselves are returned to them. One more important law that we find in Behar is the law against interest. One is to give loans and one is not allowed to make interest off all the loans that we lend. Rather, one is obligated to support the poor and the needy and “the stranger in your land.”

What do these laws all have in common?

I would say that they all have in common one theme: that is the theme of solidarity.

Instead of using your land, instead of using your money, instead of using the produce of your land as a way of taking advantage of the poor and the unfortunate, the Torah, in this portion, commands us to think about the true owner of the land, the true owner of the land is God.

The true owner of your produce is God. The true owner of your money is God. Therefore, you must leave your land fallow and share it with everyone. Therefore, you must return land that you’ve taken. You must return slaves that you’ve taken. Everyone starts again at an equal level because all of us are just sojourners and our ownership is only temporary.

The Torah tells us that solidarity with all and equality is what makes for the future of the Jewish People.

We live in a time when billionaires rule the world. We live in a world when billionaires make deals with billionaires and glorify them, forgetting that society includes everyone.

This, I believe the Torah teaches us, is what leads to the collapse of society and to the downfall of a people. The Torah teaches us, if we want a future, we must remember exploiting, using our money as a way of reaching a sense of dominance, this is what breaks our society and what eventually will lead to our doom.

It is our mission to build solidarity and this is what we need for our future and our success.

SHAVUA TOV FROM  SCHECHTER