The Weekly Shtikle - Beha'alosecha

The Weekly Shtikle is dedicated le'iluy nishmas my dear Zadie and Bubbie, HaRav Chaim Yaakov ben Yitzchak and Yehudis bas Reuven Pinchas.

A special Mazal Tov dedication to my brother-in-law, Yisroel Yeres, for his aufruf this Shabbos and ensuing marriage to Hindy Meisels of Toronto next week. Mazal Tov to the ganse mishpacha!

    We are commanded to remember the episode with Miriam that appears in this week's parsha. Part of this remembrance is being careful not to speak Loshon Hora, which was why Miriam was punished. However, if we look at the pasuk, when HaShem rebukes Miriam and Aharon He says (12:8) "Madua lo yaraisem ledaber b'avdi beMoshe", How could you not be fearful of talking badly about my servant Moshe?! R' Yaakov Weinberg, zt"l, points out that this pasuk insinuates that the main issue with Miriam and Aharon was that they had spoken about Moshe, but if it were about someone else it would not have been so serious. But we know this not to be true for it is forbidden to say Lashon Hara about anyone.

 

    R' Weinberg explains that this gives us an important insight into what Lashon Hora is all about. The principal mistake that one makes when he speaks LH is that he fails to realize the virtues of the person about whom he is speaking. Miriam and Aharon's error was to a more grave degree. It was their failure to recognize Moshe's greatness that allowed them to speak badly about him. Had they realized the greatness of Moshe, they never would have done so. It is this specific aspect of their misjudgement that HaShem focussed on in His rebuke. Likewise, every Jew has his own inherent greatness. Anyone who speaks LH about his fellow Jew fails to realize the true greatness of that person, at whatever level it may be, and therefore speaks badly about them.

 

    I heard this from R' Weinberg at a kiddush for the aufruf of a cousin. It is at this auspicious time when the chosson and kallah embark on the starting of a new life together in which they will realize their true potential greatness together. It is our berachah that the chosson and kallah due indeed realize and actualize this potential together as they build their Bayis Ne'eman b(/l)'Yisroel.

 

Have a good Shabbos.

 

Eliezer Bulka
EzBulka@hotmail.com
3306A Clarks Ln
Baltimore, MD 21215
410-764-9115