MUSSAR D’ORAISA
Parshas Shoftim 5764
ëé úöåø àì òéø éîéí øáéí ìäìçí òìéä ìúôùä ìà úùçéú àú òöä
ìðãç òìéå âøæï ëé îîðå úàëì åàúå ìà úëøú ëé äàãí òõ äùãä ìáåà îôðéê áîöåø.
(ãáøéí ë:é"è)
When you
besiege a city for many days to wage war against it to seize it, do not destroy
its trees by swinging an axe against them, for from it you will eat, and you
shall not cut it down; is the tree of the field a man that it should enter the
siege before you? (Devarim 20:19)
When the nations of the world go to war, they brazenly
destroy everything in their path, showing their strength and ability to
completely decimate anyone and everything that would stand in their way.
Nations pride themselves on their well-trained soldiers—merciless killing
machines whose warfare mentality derives from the basest animalistic instincts.
This is not what is expected of or commanded Jewish soldiers going to war. The Chinuch writes that in the midst of this parsha dealing with warfare, which, by definition, is destructive, the Torah demands that Jews remain conscious of the need to maintain their regard for others’ well-being and to cleave to their love of goodness. If people try to remain good even at times that call forth their base instincts, they will try not to destroy that which needs not be destroyed, and they will be able to perfect their character steadily.
A Jew must constantly be aware of the affects of his actions, conducting his life with restraint and guided by what Hashem demands of him. Even in a time of war, his obligation to be a good person and to think and act in accordance with the Torah does not desist. If this is true at a time when we are commanded to use destruction in order to do Hashem’s Will, how much more so when we are engaged in entirely constructive spiritual pursuits.
Elul zman has just begun and we welcome all the new bochurim who want to pursue success in limud haTorah and spiritual growth, as a part of Mishpochas Mir. Although we are all engaged in our own growth this Elul, we must keep in mind, as the Chinuch says, the need to maintain regard for the general welfare and to cleave to our love of goodness. If a new bochur is sitting in your seat, let him know in a nice way that will not make him feel uncomfortable or hurt.
As we are each busy with our own personal struggles for spiritual success, we have a choice to make regarding new (and not so new) bochurim in yeshiva—we can either regard them in a positive way, making them feel comfortable to pursue the same lofty goals, at the same time enabling us to steadily improve our character, as the Chinuch says. Or we can disregard them in the midst of our personal struggles, possibly destroying beneficial trees that have not yet had a chance to bloom.
Yitzchok Pinkus
Yeshivas Mir Yerushalayim