Behar consists of a single chapter that, despite its brevity, had a transformative impact on the social structure of ancient Israel and provided a unique solution to the otherwise intractable conflict between two fundamental ideals: freedom and equality. Much of human history has illustrated the fact that you can have freedom without equality (laissez-faire economics), or equality without freedom (communism,…
…Margaret Thatcher in Britain, markets were liberalised, and by the end of the decade the Soviet Union had collapsed. But unfettered economic freedom produces its own discontents, and Picketty’s book is one of several warning signs. All of this makes the social legislation of parshat Behar a text for our time, because the Torah is profoundly concerned, not just with…
I argued in my Covenant and Conversation for parshat Kedoshim that Judaism is more than an ethnicity. It is a call to holiness. In one sense, however, there is an important ethnic dimension to Judaism. It is best captured in the 1980s joke about an advertising campaign in New York. Throughout the city there were giant posters with the slogan,…
…the “resident alien”, who had not adopted the religion of Israel but who lived in the land of Israel. Behar spells out the rights of such a person. Specifically: If any of your fellow Israelites become poor and are unable to support themselves among you, help them as you would a resident alien, so they can continue to live among…
…please head to the Education Companion section (directly below, in grey). Educational Companion Torah Trivia: this week’s answer In parshat Behar (Vayikra 25:8), when the mitzva of Yovel is commanded, it says: sheva shabbtot shanim sheva shanim sheva. All 6 words begin with the letter shin. In the story of the sons of Yaacov standing before their brother Yosef in…
The Parsha in a Nutshell Parshat Behar is just a single chapter, but it transformed the social structure of ancient Israel and provided a unique solution to the seemingly unsolvable conflict between two fundamental ideals: freedom and equality. Much of human history has illustrated the fact that you can have freedom without equality (capitalism/laissez-faire economics), or equality without freedom (communism,…
…had accepted all its commands and obligations. The other was the ger toshav, the “resident alien”, who had not adopted the religion of Israel but who lived in the land of Israel. From Behar we learn that there is an obligation to support and sustain a resident alien. Not only do they have the right to live in the Holy…
…careful reading of Behar reveals that the Torah’s approach to this question operates at three completely different levels. One is political, a second is psychological, and the third is theological. The first level is simple. Behar proposes two cycles of redistribution, Shemittah and Yovel, the seventh and fiftieth year. The intent here is to restore a level playing field through…
The Parsha in a Nutshell Behar is just a single chapter, but this short parsha has a very important message – it teaches us how to build a fair society where everyone is free but also equal. Sometimes you can have freedom without equality, such as in a country where everyone is free to do whatever job they wish, and…