פרשת כי תצא

I would like to begin this week with some introductory questions… These are intended to stimulate your mind, and get you thinking.  Just make a mental note of your answers:

• What are some of the things that you frequently lose?
• How do you get those items back?
• What if you find someone else’s lost object?
  • What do you do with it and why?

Now, let’s examine some text from the weekly פרשה/portion:

Chapter 22 1 If you see your fellow's ox or sheep gone astray, do not ignore it; you must take it back to your fellow. 2 If your fellow does not live near you or you do not know who he is, you shall bring it home and it shall remain with you until your fellow claims it; then you shall give it back to him. 3 You shall do the same with his ass; you shall do the same with his garment; and so too shall you do with anything that your fellow loses and you find: you must not remain indifferent. 4 If you see your fellow's ass or ox fallen on the road, do not ignore it; you must help him raise it. 5 A woman must not put on man's apparel, nor shall a man wear woman's clothing; for whoever does these things is abhorrent to the Lord your God. 6 If, along the road, you chance upon a bird's nest, in any tree or on the ground, with fledglings or eggs and the mother sitting over the fledglings or on the eggs, do not take the mother together with her young. 7 Let the mother go, and take only the young, in order that you may fare well and have a long life. 8 When you build a new house, you shall make a parapet for your roof, so that you do not bring bloodguilt on your house if anyone should fall from it. 9 You shall not sow your vineyard with a second kind of seed, else the crop — from the seed you have sown — and the yield of the vineyard may not be used. 10 You shall not plow with an ox and an ass together. 11 You shall not wear cloth combining wool and linen. 12 You shall make tassels on the four corners of the garment with which you cover yourself.

פרק כב א לֹֽא־תִרְאֶה אֶת־שׁוֹר אָחִיךָ אוֹ אֶת־שֵׂיוֹ נִדָּחִים וְהִתְעַלַּמְתָּ מֵהֶם הָשֵׁב תְּשִׁיבֵם לְאָחִֽיךָ ב וְאִם־לֹא קָרוֹב אָחִיךָ אֵלֶיךָ וְלֹא יְדַעְתּוֹ וַֽאֲסַפְתּוֹ אֶל־תּוֹךְ בֵּיתֶךָ וְהָיָה עִמְּךָ עַד דְּרֹשׁ אָחִיךָ אֹתוֹ וַֽהֲשֵֽׁבֹתוֹ לֽוֹ ג וְכֵן תַּֽעֲשֶׂה לַֽחֲמֹרוֹ וְכֵן תַּֽעֲשֶׂה לְשִׂמְלָתוֹ וְכֵן תַּֽעֲשֶׂה לְכָל־אֲבֵדַת אָחִיךָ אֲשֶׁר־תֹּאבַד מִמֶּנּוּ וּמְצָאתָהּ לֹא תוּכַל לְהִתְעַלֵּֽם: ס ד לֹֽא־תִרְאֶה אֶת־חֲמוֹר אָחִיךָ אוֹ שׁוֹרוֹ נֹֽפְלִים בַּדֶּרֶךְ וְהִתְעַלַּמְתָּ מֵהֶם הָקֵם תָּקִים עִמּֽוֹ: ס ה לֹא־יִֽהְיֶה כְלִי־גֶבֶר עַל־אִשָּׁה וְלֹֽא־יִלְבַּשׁ גֶּבֶר שִׂמְלַת אִשָּׁה כִּי תֽוֹעֲבַת יְהוָֹה אֱלֹהֶיךָ כָּל־עֹשֵׂה אֵֽלֶּה: פ ו כִּי יִקָּרֵא קַן־צִפּוֹר | לְפָנֶיךָ בַּדֶּרֶךְ בְּכָל־עֵץ | אוֹ עַל־הָאָרֶץ אֶפְרֹחִים אוֹ בֵיצִים וְהָאֵם רֹבֶצֶת עַל־הָאֶפְרֹחִים אוֹ עַל־הַבֵּיצִים לֹֽא־תִקַּח הָאֵם עַל־הַבָּנִֽים ז שַׁלֵּחַ תְּשַׁלַּח אֶת־הָאֵם וְאֶת־הַבָּנִים תִּֽקַּֽח־לָךְ לְמַעַן יִיטַב לָךְ וְהַֽאֲרַכְתָּ יָמִֽים: ס ח כִּי תִבְנֶה בַּיִת חָדָשׁ וְעָשִׂיתָ מַֽעֲקֶה לְגַגֶּךָ וְלֹֽא־תָשִׂים דָּמִים בְּבֵיתֶךָ כִּֽי־יִפֹּל הַנֹּפֵל מִמֶּֽנּוּ ט לֹֽא־תִזְרַע כַּרְמְךָ כִּלְאָיִם פֶּן־תִּקְדַּשׁ הַֽמְלֵאָה הַזֶּרַע אֲשֶׁר תִּזְרָע וּתְבוּאַת הַכָּֽרֶם: ס י לֹא־תַֽחֲרֹשׁ בְּשׁוֹר־וּבַֽחֲמֹר יַחְדָּֽ יא לֹא תִלְבַּשׁ שַֽׁעַטְנֵז צֶמֶר וּפִשְׁתִּים יַחְדָּֽו: ס יב גְּדִלִים תַּֽעֲשֶׂה־לָּךְ עַל־אַרְבַּע כַּנְפוֹת כְּסֽוּתְךָ אֲשֶׁר תְּכַסֶּה־בָּֽהּ

I would like to ask some more questions again, and this time why not consider sharing some of your answers in the response section at the end of this post:

• What are we responsible to do according to this?
  • Is any of this a little much?
• Are you able to categorize all of these laws or at least most of them?
• What types of objects are considered being lost in the first verse, the one that is in the bold print?
  • Is there anything else that could be included?

 

The תורה/Torah does not exist in a vacuum and needs to be examined through various lenses.  One way we do this is through looking at commentaries that our ancestors wrote.  Here are the thoughts of Rabbi Mordekhai Hacohen as found in Al Hatorah, Devarim.

(t' cf ohrcs) lhjtk ocha, cav ovn ,nkg,vu ohjsb uha ,t ut lhjt rua ,t vtr, tk

You shall not see your brother's ox or his sheep gone astray and hide yourself from seeing them, you shall surely return them to your brother (Deuteronomy 22:1)

vnf ,jt kg apbv ,sctc 'vru, vrhvzv if iunn ,sctc ot .hbzuen van hcr rnut

hgaupku hk vn rnt, tka /ovn ,nkg,vu ohjsb ohjt vtr, tk v,gn urnt /vnfu

/vcua,k orrugku orhgvk cujv kyun lhkg "ocha, cav" tkt'ukkv ktrah

Rabbi Moses of Koznitz states: "If in the case of losing money the Torah warned thus, how much more so does this apply to losing souls. You shall not see brothers gone astray and hide yourself from them. You should not say, 'Why should I care about these sinners of Israel', but 'you shall surely return them'--you are obliged to arouse them and appeal to them to repent."

 

So now that brings me to the major discussion that I would like to have here in cyberspace with all of you.  I have three questions for you to comment on:

1. How does the rabbi interpret the lost objects?
2. it fair to be responsible to help others find their souls?
3. Do we need to help them not lose them in the first place?

צא ולומד – Go and Learn…