Shabbat Re’eh
This week, we read “If a fellow Hebrew male or female is sold to you, they will serve you for six years. And in the seventh year they should go free but when you set them free do not let them go empty handed. Provide for them out of your flock, the threshing floor the wine vat, with everything the Lord your God has blessed you. Remember that you were slaves in the land of Egypt and the Lord redeemed you, therefore I command you this day”( Deuteronomy 15;12).
Of course, such laws were relevant only in those times past. But there are still important lessons to be learnt.
A Hebrew “slave” (really an indentured labourer) was someone convicted of a civil crime but unable to pay off the penalty. Or someone unable to support his family who worked in exchange for board and lodging for himself and his family. He or she would work for a maximum of six full years unless a redeemer bought their freedom before that. Their living conditions according to the Torah should be of exactly the same standard as their master’s. But if they refused to go free because they were happy in this state of servitude, they would be penalized by having their ears pierced and then they could stay. In explaining why the ear was pierced, Rashi quotes: “ Because the ear heard on Sinai that you should serve Me, not serve my servants.”
The comparison between serving God and serving other human beings makes the point that ideally, we should not willingly enslave ourselves, even if sometimes it might be necessary. But when this happens the master or mistress not only has to treat them as full free citizens and not lord it over them or humiliate them.
But then if the servant wants to stay on in servitude beyond the allotted time, this has to be discouraged. In other words, servitude even if accepted willingly is dependence and dependence is not the ideal. Human dignity has an important role in Biblical society. And to avoid this the Torah commanded that when releasing them, we have to make provisions and ensure they are not thrown back onto the streets but also to enable them to set up their own businesses and to provide for themselves. The proverbial fishing rod, not just the fish.
One of the great benefits that modern societies provide is welfare. But the trouble with welfare is that it can be abused. Here is an excerpt from a recent blog by Dr Emile Woolf, the best-selling author and expert in economics. It refers specifically to the UK economy but is equally relevant to all economies battling to balance caring, legitimate welfare, with economic burdens that in fact limit the capacity of welfare to meet crucial needs. And results in the need for massive immigration regardless of the challenges and consequences.
“The benefits system, including public sector pensions, has strayed beyond providing a safety net for the most vulnerable, and now costs taxpayers £300 billion p.a. Almost 4m people are receiving out-of-work benefits without even having to look for a job. Perhaps it’s worth adding that, as police and the courts are struggling with the rising number of violent attacks on our streets, we can no longer safely assume that the attacker is a “terrorist”. We increasingly hear instead is that “he is a mental-health patient”.
The percentage of working-age adults claiming disability benefits has trebled since 1992, and over half of all claimants cite mental illness as their disability. Discussion about neurodiversity attracts billions of hits on social media, focusing mainly on autism but also OCD, Tourette’s, bipolar disorder, dyslexia, anxiety and depression. So rapid and ubiquitous is the spread of the mental disability syndrome that no section of the community could possibly be immune.”
One might also apply this reliance and dependency on the refusal of many in Israel, both secular and Charedi who prefer to rely on government handouts. Those who excel in their studies, whether secular or religious, are entitled to help to continue their studies. But a whole generation of many who do not want to or cannot study is another form of dependency that in my opinion the Torah would not have approved of. As the Talmud says “ Many tried full time study and did not succeed. Many tried combining studying with earning a living and succeeded!
Deuteronomy Chapters 12;26-15;23.
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.
