Joy in Mitzvoth
Adapted from Rabbi Braun’s sermon in 5775
A student once approached Rabbi Yehuda Amital (my Rosh Yeshiva in Gush) and asked for his advice on how to teach a non-observant Jew, who is interested in exploring the world of observance.
Rav Amital shared with us what he thought was the right approach. He would tell anyone looking to come closer to observing halachah to begin with one mitzvah that they did not really get and another mitzvah that they really understood and would enjoy observing. His rationale was as follows: (a) choose the one you don’t get, because you must understand that the mitzvoth are commandments and you have to do them whether you like it or not; but also
(b) choose one you get, because you should enjoy your Judaism, which should bring you joy, fulfillment and meaning.
That message is (I believe) contained in the first two sections of this morning’s Torah reading.
The Parsha opens with the command of Bikkurim, the mitzvah to bring the first of your fruits to the kohen in the Temple and to make a recitation for those gifts. The recitation’s last line is:
דברים פרק כו
י) וְעַתָּ֗ה הִנֵּ֤ה הֵבֵ֙אתִי֙ אֶת־רֵאשִׁית֙ פְּרִ֣י הָאֲדָמָ֔ה אֲשֶׁר־נָתַ֥תָּה לִּ֖י יְקֹוָ֑ק וְהִנַּחְתּ֗וֹ לִפְנֵי֙ יְקֹוָ֣ק אֱלֹהֶ֔יךָ וְהִֽשְׁתַּחֲוִ֔יתָ לִפְנֵ֖י יְקֹוָ֥ק אֱלֹהֶֽיךָ
10. And now, behold, I have brought the first fruits of the land, which you, O Lord, have given me. And you shall set it before the Lord your God, and worship before the Lord your God;
At that point you leave the Temple with the fruits already taken by the kohen.
That scene however makes the next verse hard to understand. We read:
יא) וְשָׂמַחְתָּ֣ בְכָל־הַטּ֗וֹב אֲשֶׁ֧ר נָֽתַן־לְךָ֛ יְקֹוָ֥ק אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ וּלְבֵיתֶ֑ךָ אַתָּה֙ וְהַלֵּוִ֔י וְהַגֵּ֖ר אֲשֶׁ֥ר בְּקִרְבֶּֽךָ:
- And you shall rejoice in every good thing which the Lord your God has given to you, and to your house, you, and the Levite, and the stranger who is among you.
You are not rejoicing in the good? The kohen is rejoicing in the fruit that he may now consume, but we are not. Our good is at home, wherever home may be, it is not in the Temple in Jerusalem! So, how are we rejoicing in the good?
I found two answers to the question.
The first is suggested by two rabbis in 19th century Germany. Rabbi Yaakov Tzvi Mecklenberg (in his ha-ketav ve-hakabala) and Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch both suggest that this joy refers to the peace offerings that are brought in the Temple on Shavuot, which is also when the bikkurim are brought.
Although the Torah elsewhere does use the term “And you shall rejoice” to refer to the peace offerings (shelamim), their answer does not seem to work here textually or thematically.
The second answer was given centuries earlier by many of the commentators, Rashi chief amongst them. Rashi explains that “and you shall rejoice” does not refer to a specific action, rather it delineates the manner in which you may fulfill this mitzvah in its ideal form, i.e., in bringing the fruits and reciting the accompanying text.
You may only perform the mitzvah in full at a time when you are happy and joyous. When is that?
Rashi quotes the Mishna in Bikkurim (1/6) that teaches us that one may “bring the fruits and recite” from Shavuot until Sukkoth. During that time, the Jews in Israel are enjoying their harvest and happy; and it is only in that state of happiness that one may bring the bikkurim in the ideal manner. From Sukkoth until Chanukah you may bring the fruits, but you may not recite the text.
At the end of that Mishna, Rabbi Yehuda Ben Beteira argues and says that even from Sukkoth until Chanukah you may bring and recite. He rejects the proposed reading of the verse and rejects the idea that you must be happy to bring the bikkurim in their ideal state.
Truth be told, that is the intuitive position. This is a commandment and you perform a commandment because you are commanded. One could argue that you perform the commandment irrespective of whether you are happy or not, or whether you enjoy that particular activity. Is that not the principle which we are all taught?
There is no question: in general, that is true. But the Torah chooses to end with a mitzvah that (according to many) must be performed in a state of joy. According to Rashi and the first opinion in the Mishna, this mitzvah teaches us that: to approach God fully and ideally one must do so out of joy and happiness.
If the high holy days teach us to approach God out of fear and trepidation, bikkurim and Shavuot teach us how to approach God with joy and happiness.
The second mitzvah contained in our parsha teaches us the same thing. We are told that we may not eat certain tithes (maaser sheni) between the death and burial of a loved one for whom we should sit shiva. This is the Torah source for an Onen: one, who is between the death and burial of a loved one, is exempt from the performance of positive mitzvoth! Ostensibly, there is a state of sadness which precludes us from attaching ourselves to God; thus, the exemption from the positive Mitzvoth.
The message of bikkurim and aninut is that: Yes, there are now things that you have to do. And make no mistake about it: They are commandments and you are obligated.
But the existence of obligations does not mean that you then perform these acts begrudgingly. Hopefully, we enjoy performing mitzvoth and find real happiness in living our lives as Jews and drawing continually closer to Hashem.
