Dear Friends;

I hope that you will enjoy the following Parsha summary followed by a Dvar Torah;

” Parsha in a Nutshell “

The Jewish People receive a series of civil laws concerning social justice. Topics include: Proper treatment of Jewish slaves/servants; a husband’s obligations to his wife; penalties for hitting people and for cursing parents; rules governing the conduct of judges and leaders; financial responsibilities for damaging people or their property; payments for theft; for not returning an object that one accepted responsibility to safeguard; the right to self-defense of a person being robbed.

Other topics include: Prohibitions against seduction; witchcraft, relationship with animals and sacrifices to idols. The Torah warns us to treat the convert, widow and orphan with dignity, and to avoid lying. Lending money to get interest is forbidden and the rights over collateral are limited. Payment of obligations to the Temple should not be delayed, and the Jewish People must be holy, even concerning food. The Torah teaches the proper conduct for judges in court proceedings. The commandments of Shabbat and the Sabbatical year are outlined. Three times a year — Pesach, Shavuot and Succot — we are to come to the Temple. The Torah concludes this listing of laws with a law of kashrut — not to mix milk and meat.

The people of Israel promise to do and listen to everything that G-d says. Moshe ascends the mountain to remain there for 40 days in order to receive the two Tablets of the Covenant.

“ Dvar Torah “

In this week’s parsha which is filled with commandments and laws concerning man and his fellow, we come across two unrelated commandments which are placed next to each other. The first one tells us about the laws of a non-kosher animal. The Torah says: “People of holiness shall you be to Me; you shall not eat flesh of an animal that was torn in the field; to the dog shall you throw it”.  The next verse tells us about carrying a false or evil reports, “Do not accept a false report, do not extend your hand with the wicked to be a venal witness”.

The Chachamim say that there is always a connection between the laws of the Torah when written in juxtaposition. But it’s very difficult to see the connection between these two. What does throwing non-kosher meat to a dog have to do with a gossip? The two seem totally unconnected.

Rabbi Kamenetsky says that the meat given to the dogs is a payback for keeping silence on the night of the Egyptian exodus. That night, despite the cries and wails of the Egyptians as their first-born were smitten, the dogs kept quiet. The Torah says: “Against all the Children of Israel, no dog shall whet its tongue, against neither man nor beast, so that you shall know that Hashem will have differentiated between Egypt and Israel”. Therefore they are rewarded with the meat that a Jew must refrain from eating. But how is their reward of reticence a lesson for Jews who slander?

The Chafetz Chaim explains the reason dogs were rewarded was because their nature is to yelp and bark at tragedy. Despite their instinct, they went against their nature and held back. They followed the command of the Almighty and held their tongues. The Torah rewarded their reserve with the spoils of our non-kosher meat. But when humans, who are supposed to control their tongues, lose control, there is no better method to learn how to mend the folly of their ways than through the very animals who mastered self-control in most trying times. How fitting is it that the two verses, one that rewards the canine for constraint be juxtaposed next to one which prohibits their mortal masters from evil talk and gossiping. We are the masters of our animals, but more so must be the masters of our desires and our tongues! Sometimes, instead of just teaching our dogs new tricks, we can learn a lesson as well.

I recently read the following story. Although amusing, yet it carries a moral lesson. I hope you like it too:  A man was going on vacation to Jamaica. He wanted a room for himself and his pet dog, and asked if the establishment, a hotel in Kingston, Jamaica, would allow an animal. A little while later he received the following reply to his email:

Dear Sir,

I’ve been in the hotel business for forty years and never had to eject a disorderly dog. Never has a dog set a mattress on fire while smoking in bed. Never has a dog stolen a towel or sneaked an unpaid guest into his room. Never has a dog acted disorderly, drunk or otherwise. Your dog is welcome. If he can vouch for you, then you can come along as well.

Sincerely;

Hotel Manager.

Shabbat Shalom & Regards;

Martin