My Weekly Drash (a mini D'var Torah) - Tazria
Posted by Daniel M. Kimmel on April 4, 2008 | Tags: Tazria
“As for the person with a leprous affection, his clothes shall be rent, his head shall be left bare, and he shall cover over his upper lip; and shall call out, ‘Impure! Impure!” (Lev. 13:45). Parshah Tazria is not an easy text for modern readers, and this verse sounds like the goal is to humiliate lepers. However our commentaries suggest that quite the reverse was the goal. Besides warning people that the person in question was ritually “impure,” it was also a notice to the community that one of their own was inflicted and in need of support. That support might be prayer for recovery, or seeing to his other needs during his time of affliction. What we learn here is that a person in trouble should not follow the natural inclination of hiding or covering up his problem, but honestly admit it and ask for help. Too often people learn about such problems after the fact and say, “If only we had known.” Well, if someone is going around shouting, “Impure! Impure!” you can’t help but noticing.
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Daniel M. KimmelJoined: October 2, 2007 Daniel M. Kimmel is a Boston area film critic, lecturer and author. He does these weekly mini-lessons for the Mishkan Tefila Brotherhood's newsletter. You are free to use them for similar purposes. Divrei Torah (117) |
