5784/2024
In this week’s Parashah, Parashat Metzora, the Torah continues its discussion of the process that someone who contracts Tzara’at takes to purify themselves. There are a few perplexing questions that arise when someone reads the first few Pessukim of the Sedra. First, believe it or not, this is the first time that the word Metzora appears in the Torah, as it is not mentioned at all in Parashat Tazria. Why is this? After all, Tazria discusses Tzara’at just as much as Metzora. Furthermore, the first Passuk states: “זֹאת תִּֽהְיֶה תּוֹרַת הַמְּצֹרָע בּי֖וֹם טָהֳרָת֑וֹ,” “This shall be the ritual for a leper at the time of being purified” (VaYikra 14:2). Why does the Torah state this in the future tense of “תִּֽהְיֶה” rather than simply saying “זֹאת תּוֹרַת הַמְּצֹרָע”, these are the laws of a leper? Finally, as part of the Metzora’s purification process, he is commanded to take two birds but only Shecht one of them and set the other one free. This is a very strange command, so why does the Torah require him to do so?
Rav Bezalel Rudinsky explains that with every action a person takes there are two elements: 1. The action itself and 2. The consequences of that action. Sometimes a person may perform a small Mitzvah but it can have tremendous consequences on another individual. For example, someone may take a few extra minutes to learn after Davening, which is certainly a tremendous feat, but if people become inspired by that then it can be exponentially more rewarding. However, the same is true of the flipside: if a person violates an Aveira it can be detrimental to his Avodat Hashem, but if that transgression negatively affects others then the Issur can be innumerable. Chazal famously explain that the reason people contract Tzara’at is because they speak Lashon Hara. When someone speaks negatively about a person to someone else, there is no telling how much that can affect the aforementioned person. This tale can spread to anyone and everyone and could potentially ruin their life. This may affect their ability to get a job, a shidduch, make friends and more, and all you did was say a few words. Even if the action was minor, the impact is incomprehensible.
Tabc is learning Masechet Brachot this year and there is a Gemara (28b) that describes R’ Yochanan Ben Zakkai weeping as he was about to die. He explains that he is crying because he is scared for his Gezar Din and whether he will be sentenced to an eternity in Olam Haba or Gehinom. The Gemara says that R’ Yochanan was worried about both standing before Hashem and the path that would lead to either Olam haba or Gehinom. R’ Radisnky explains that R’ Yochanan’s first concern was his actions - what he did, what he didn’t do etc… But he was also concerned about the path that his actions led to. Who knows what ramifications have come from him that have yet to be seen? This could be both positive and negative effects but no one knows until they get to Shamayim what kind of impact they had on others. This is why R’ Yochanan was so nervous even though he was one of the Gedolei Hador because he truly had no idea how people have been influenced by his actions. Rabbi Aryeh Lebowitz tells the following Mashal: If someone were to take a bag of feathers, go to the top of the Empire State building and throw them off, it would be impossible to then go and collect all of them. So too, when someone tells Lashon Hara, it can get spread in all directions and there really is no way to fix it. Even if someone asks the one they hurt for Mechila, the effects are unattainable.
We can now use this idea to answer our previous few questions:
He is now called a Metzora because he can never fully take back what he did and therefore takes on the continual name of a Metzora, not simply someone who has Tzara’at.
The Passuk is in the future tense because this has future ramifications.
And finally, he sends the bird out to demonstrate that the Aveira is still out there even though he underwent this whole Teshuva process.
Similarly, Rabbi Elliot Schrier explained that the Seder is a time when lessons, memories and Torah get passed down in a night that will not be forgotten. Whatever you choose to relay to your family on Monday night will shape the way they continue to build families of their own, whether you have children, siblings or even parents. The Seder is a tremendous opportunity to forge relationships and memories that will live on forever, but this is a big responsibility because whatever happens cannot be undone. We should all take this Shabbos, Shabbos HaGadol, to adequately prepare for Pesach and the Seder ahead. This is precisely why the Shulchan Aruch requires us to read the Haggadah on Shabbos HaGadol, so that we can all transmit Torah that will last a lifetime.