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Current FeaturesThe Destruction of the Commandment Keepers Who Are We? Torah Commentaries |
Torah CommentaryParashat Shof'tim - Devarim (Deuteronomy) 16:18-21:9 This week's Torah portion deals with public officials that are found among a settled people- Kings, judges, priests and prophets. One particular theme permeates this entire Sidra- JUSTICE! In 16:20 HaShem commands that these officials- seek justice and only justice! צֶדֶק צֶדֶק תִּרְדֹּף לְמַעַן תִּחְיֶה וְיָרַשְׁתָּ אֶת–הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר–יְהוָֹה אֱלֹהֶיךָ נֹתֵן לָךְ The pursuit of justice is a necessary requisite, if Israel intends to live peaceably and flourish in the land of Israel. Ibn Ezra comments that justice is mentioned twice in order to emphasis it's importance. What is so central about justice that we can not thrive without it? Justice demands that every person, regardless of nationality, ethnicity, religion, righteous or wicked, rich or poor, class or status, be treated with fairness. We moderns have no problems with the concept of strict justice when it is to our advantage or works in our favor. A job applicant would agree that the most qualified person should be hired, but how does one discern the situation in which affirmative action has taken precedence, where two candidates may be equally qualified, yet the minority or female is given extra consideration? In this instance, the "just" decision might be to make allowances for past discriminatory practices (of course, if justice had always taken precedence then there would be no need for affirmative action). Justice does not always imply equality. The child in the judicial system is not judged by the same standards as an adult. The cases of inadvertent killing and intentional murder are handled differently in the Torah. We are admonished to be "fair" in our decision making. Fairness would imply that Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie and other celebrities receive the same treatment in the judicial system as anyone else. A Black man is four times as likely to receive jail time for minor offenses as a white man. There are more people from the African diaspora on death row than Caucasians, even though they may have been convicted of similar crimes. No sensible person would argue that the American judicial system is just or fair. Perhaps, as our Torah portion admonishes, this is why we do not live peaceably in our land (in the US and Israel) or thrive. Another of our sages suggest that the word justice is twice repeated to demonstrate that a just verdict benefits all parties. It prevents one from losing what is rightfully his and it prevents the other from the sin of possessing that to which he is not entitled. If you followed this Torah injunction to pursue justice, what would you lose in your life? What would you gain? There are only two Torah commands with the injunction to pursue them- Seek peace and pursue it- בַּקֵּשׁ שָׁלוֹם וְרָדְפֵהוּ and "Justice, justice shall you pursue. צֶדֶק צֶדֶק תִּרְדֹּף In any society, peace and justice are never self evident. To have a society of peace and justice, it takes work, a lot of work! This week's Torah portion makes it abundantly clear that everyone in a God centered, Torah centered society, must never שבת שלום ומברך Shabbat shalom u-mevorach. |