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Yom Yerushalayim
The opening commandments of our double Torah portion of Behar-Bechukotai concern the Shemittah, the once every seven years Sabbatical during which most agricultural activity was forbidden, and the Yovel, the Jubilee that was declared once every fifty years. During that Jubilee year, debts were forgiven, slaves were freed, and land that had been bought and sold was restored to its original, ancestral owners. According to our sages, these commandments reminded the people of their inherent equality to each other. Rich families knew that their wealth was always, on some level, ephemeral, and poor people knew there would always be a chance to make a fresh start.
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Parshat Behar-Bechukotai: Letting Go & Being Held
“וַעֲשִׂיתֶם, אֶת-חֻקֹּתַי, וְאֶת-מִשְׁפָּטַי תִּשְׁמְרוּ, וַעֲשִׂיתֶם אֹתָם–
וִישַׁבְתֶּם עַל-הָאָרֶץ, לָבֶטַח.”
“And when you do My statutes and keep My laws and do them;
and you shall dwell in the land securely.” (Leviticus 25:18)
Every time I come across this verse in the Torah, I am overwhelmed by its power. I just want to read it over and over again and wrap myself around it in a desperate attempt to internalize all that which is contained within these holy words.