Publication HEVRAT PINTO Under Aegis of RABBI DAVID HANANIA PINTO SHLITA 32, rue du Plateau - 75019 PARIS - FRANCE Tel: +331 48 03 53 89 - Fax +331 42 06 00 33 www.hevratpinto.org - [email protected] Responsable of publication : Hanania Soussan 343 CHELACH 23 SIVAN 5770 - 06/05/ 2010 DIFFERENT KINDS OF EFFORT (BY RABBI DAVID Pinto SHLITA) is written, “Send for yourself men, that they may as it is written: “My sons, present to Me an opening of on the natural effects of his efforts to be saved from his explore the land of Canaan that I give to the Chil- repentance no larger than the eye of a needle, and I will brother Esau, but solely on the Holy One, blessed be He. dren of Israel. One man, each from his father’s widen it into openings through which wagons and car- Such was the error committed by the Children of Israel tribe, shall you send; every one a leader among riages can pass” (Shir HaShirim Rabba 5:3). in the desert. Although G-d had promised them that Eretz them” (Bamidbar 13:2). Why does the verse start They Committed a Grave Error Israel was a land flowing with milk and honey, they still in the singular with shelach lecha (“send for yourself”), In any case, the Children of Israel committed a grave wanted to make an effort to minimize any miracles when but ends in the plural with tishlachu (“shall you send”)? We error here. Although it is a person’s duty to make an effort they entered the land. Hence they asked Moshe to send also need to ask why the Children of Israel wanted these in everything, he is still forbidden to rely on his efforts, men to spy out the land, to find routes leading into and out men to spy out the land, since the Holy One, blessed be as stated by our teacher Rabbi Menachem HaMeiri Zatzal of the land in order to conquer it in a natural way. He, had promised them that it was a good and spacious (Tehillim 128): “When making an effort to do something, This complicated matters, however, for the Children land. Can we even think that they did not believe Him? a person must always remember that he must not have of Israel placed their trust in their own efforts and in the After all, the Torah explicitly states, “The people believed” faith in his effort, even if he does everything that is spies, to the point of becoming evildoers and unbelievers. (Shemot 4:31) as well as: “They believed in Hashem and in required of him.” They even insulted Heaven by saying, “They are stronger His servant Moshe” (ibid. 14:31). than us” (Bamidbar 13:31). The Sages explain that by say- There are different ways of making an effort. We must The answer is that the Children of Israel thought that ing this, the spies were implying something much worse: always make an effort not to seek out miracles, and we although it is a mitzvah to have faith in Hashem – as it “Do not read mimenu [than us], but rather mimeno [than must always do what we can so that our livelihood comes is written: “Cast your burden upon Hashem and He will Him]” (Sotah 35a). That is, they meant that even the Holy to us through natural means. The Gemara recounts, “It sustain you” (Tehillim 55:23) – it is also a mitzvah to do One, blessed be He, could not defeat the peoples living once happened that a man’s wife died and left a child something for yourself. We obtain Hashem’s help at that in Eretz Israel. to be nursed, but he could not afford to pay for a wet- point, as the Sages have said: “ ‘For Hashem your G-d nurse. At that point a miracle was performed for him, Bad Intentions Behind Their Efforts has blessed you in all your handiwork’ [Devarim 2:7]. and his nipples opened like the two nipples of a woman, This is why the Sages said, “Just as the return [of the Could this occur even if one does nothing? It is written, and he nursed his son. Rabbi Yosef observed, ‘Come and spies] was with an evil intention, likewise the leaving [of ‘in all your handiwork’ – if a man does something, there see how great this man was, such that a miracle was the spies] was with an evil intention” (Sotah 35a). This is will be a blessing; otherwise there will not” (Midrash performed on his account!’ Said Abaye to him, ‘On the difficult to understand, for the spies were tzaddikim when Tehillim 23:3). contrary – how lowly was this man, that the order of they left, not evildoers! Yet since the Children of Israel The sea did not split for the Children of Israel until they Creation was changed on his account’ ” (Shabbat 53b). forgot Hashem by placing their trust solely in their own made an effort in that direction. Our Sages say, “Nachshon It also states, “A man should never stand in a place of efforts, they were in a negative state of mind, so much the son of Amminadav jumped in and descended into the danger and say that a miracle will be performed for him, so that they became evildoers. sea first…. At the time, Moshe was engaged in prayer for lest it is not. If a miracle is done for him, it is deducted Let us say that they only became evildoers because a long time, and so the Holy One, blessed be He, said to from his merits” (ibid. 32a). there were bad intentions behind their efforts. If they him: ‘My beloved ones are drowning in the sea, and you are That said, even if a person puts an effort into lessening had only put an effort into minimizing miracles, all while lingering in prayer before Me? … Speak to the Children of a miracle, he should not put his faith in his own deeds, but placing their trust in Hashem – just as Jacob had done Israel, that they go forward’ ” (Sotah 37a). This teaches us only in Hashem, as Jacob did. Although G-d said to him, “I – they would have succeeded. Since they failed to do so, that G-d directed Moshe to tell the Children of Israel to put will guard you wherever you go” (Bereshith 28:15), when they became corrupt. Our Sages say that Caleb distanced an effort into moving towards the sea, at which point He the angels told him, “We came to your brother, to Esau, himself from the views of the spies in order to pray by would open it for them. Since that is what they did, the sea and he is coming to meet you and 400 men are with him” the tomb of the Patriarchs. He said to them, “My fathers, immediately split before them. We find this idea mentioned (ibid. 32:7), he readied himself for three things: Prayer, pray on my behalf that I may be delivered from the plan in the Midrash: “Let their feet step forward from the dry gifts, and war. However he did not place his trust in gift- of the spies” (Sotah 34b). Why did Caleb go and pray by land into the sea, and you will see the miracles that I will giving and waging war, for he had faith in Hashem, as it the tomb of the Patriarchs? It is because the Patriarchs, perform for them” (Shemot Rabba 21:8). is written: “I am too small for all the mercies and all the even when they put an effort into doing something for The process is the same in regards to the relationship truth that You have done with Your servant…. Save me, themselves, still placed their complete trust in Hashem. between man and G-d. The Holy One, blessed be He, will please, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Caleb wanted to do the same, which is why he asked for only help a person once he himself takes the first step, Esau” (ibid. 32:11-12). This teaches us that he did not rely Divine mercy by their tomb. CONCERNING THE PARSHA Praying by the Graves of the Tzaddikim In the introduction to his book Anshei Emunah, he states the following: Concerning the statement found in this week’s parsha, “They ascended in the south and he “I remember that as a young boy in Morocco, I would always go to the cemetery in order arrived at Hebron” (Bamidbar 13:22), the Gemara states: “It should have read ‘They arrived.’ to pray by the graves of my holy ancestors. At the cemetery, I always saw many people who Raba said: This teaches that Caleb distanced himself from the plan of the spies and went and had come to pray by the graves of the tzaddikim and to light candles there. I never asked them prostrated himself on the graves of the Patriarchs, saying to them: ‘My fathers, pray on my what they were doing, and if as a boy I did not ask any questions, how much more today, as an behalf that I may be delivered from the plan of the spies’ ” (Sotah 34b). adult, do I refrain from asking why men and women go to pray by the graves of the tzaddikim Just as Caleb ben Yephuneh acted, likewise countless among the faithful go and pray by the and to present their requests, having faith that their prayers will be heard.