Shabbat Behar: Why Homeland Matters
“God spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai and told him to tell the Children of Israel that when they come to the Land of Israel, they should give the land a rest (a Sabbatical)…every seventh year.”
Rashi quotes the Midrash that wonders why specifically the Torah mentions the 7th year release, the Shemitah as coming from Mount Sinai. When by tradition all the laws were given on Sinai. To which the Midrash replies that just as the law of Shmita with all its details and refinements was given on Sinai, so all the laws of the Torah were given in detail and with their ramifications on Mount Sinai.
That’s a nice idea. But more concerned with a theological issue than the practical one. The 7th year release and the jubilee after 49 years were important laws relating to agriculture except of course for much of Jewish history we have not been settled on our land and therefore the agricultural laws didn’t apply to most of us. Of course, this has changed since Jews were able to go back and settle and work the land.
But the Midrash is making two points. One is that any law needs to be explained and any law needs to be amplified. Look what a living lawyers make out of arguing about points of law. The issue is a universal one. That the letter of the law is never enough. That’s why in our tradition we have laws which are principles which are then developed and expanded to deal with all the various possibilities.
To give a very simple example. It’s all very well to say in the 10 commandments “don’t murder.” But we need to know what the difference is between murder, manslaughter, warfare, peace, intentional and unintentional.
Still the problem remains why specifically on the issue of Shmita does the Torah feel it necessary to emphasize its significance in relationship to Sinai? One possibility is that Sinai is a location, and these specific laws are tied to a specific location, the land of Israel. So, Sinai was a territorial stop on the way to the Promised Land. Another is that this is a way of saying that Torah law is predicated ideally on location. The importance of a land of one’s own is not just territorial but an idealistic dream. A place where one can live a life uninfluenced by alien or different cultures and religions. Which is why Nachmanides, Ramban, famously said that all the laws were meant to apply only in Israel, and we keep them in the Diaspora only in preparation for a return.
What is important is not just that there are laws relating to agriculture, but these laws are specifically aimed at those living on Jewish land and Sinai was a step along the long road to get there. Having a land of our own is not the same as having THE land of our own.
We were landless for so long. We were less inclined to regard land as crucial given that most Jews for most of their lives haven’t lived on the land. It has been a dream and an ideal. But the Torah also insists that the stranger, the guest, the non-Jewish resident are also involved and not excluded. Having a land of our own does not mean we have to exclude others or be intolerant of them or becoming part of us.
Much of the non-Jewish world looks at things only through their own national and cultural lenses. This is why so many of them cannot make sense of this passion that we have for our land which is not just, as they think nationalist, but it is religious and spiritual.
Rabbi Jeremy Rosen lives in New York. He was born in Manchester. His writings are concerned with religion, culture, history and current affairs – anything he finds interesting or relevant. They are designed to entertain and to stimulate. Disagreement is always welcome.
