Shabbos 33
“And I will send the beast of the field among you, which shall rob you of your children, and destroy your cattle, and make you few in number; and your ways shall become desolate.”
Today’s reading continues the theme of a demanding, harsh God who punishes us with illness and death for our transgressions, many of which do not seem proportionate to the consequences. We are provided with a litany of transgressions: desecration of God’s name, illicit sexual relations, failure to rotate our crops, pollution of our land, idol worship, vulgar speech.
We are told the story of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, who responds in utter disgust to a colleague’s praise of the society built by the Romans. Rabbi Yochai is an ascetic who finds everything the Romans built abhorrent: the marketplaces, bridges, bathhouses all exist for purpose of pleasure, or for collection of tax revenues. His vociferous criticism of Roman accomplishments, which many considered remarkable for their day, are repeated throughout his town until they are heard by the authorities who condemn the Rabbi to death. Free speech was not a fundamental right during the time of the Romans.
In order to escape the death sentence that resulted from his bold criticism of the Roman empire, Rabbi Yochai hides in a cave with his son for twelve years. It’s a strange aesthetic existence where if not his head, his body is covered in sand: “A miracle occurred and a carob tree was created for them as well as a spring of water. They would remove their clothes and sit covered in sand up to their necks. They would study Torah all day in that manner. At the time of prayer, they would dress, cover themselves, and pray, and they would again remove their clothes afterward so that they would not become tattered.”
What an odd vision of the Rabbi and his son covered in sand up to their necks while they study the Torah. They are told by Elijah the Prophet (Happy Passover!) that the emperor who had condemned him to death had died after this strange existence lasted for twelve years. When Rabbi Yochai emerges from the cave after this long period his eyes burned, and he had trouble reconciling himself with the world. It must have been what it is like after a long illness or imprisonment (or an extended quarantine) to re-enter the world and be overwhelmed by all the sights and sounds. The Rabbi and his son returned to the unnatural quiet of the cave for another twelve months where they were content to construct a world among them consisting of Torah study.
When the Rabbi emerged again, the first thing he saw was “an elderly man who was holding two bundles of myrtle branches and running at twilight.” When questioned by the Rabbi the man said he was rushing about in order to prepare his home for Shabbat. The Rabbi realized that there are many ways that people can demonstrate observance and reverence in the world, and he was prepared to finally accept the disorderliness of existence outside the cave for what it is.
Today’s discussion of how to live in the world and amongst the world, is especially relevant to our current shelter-in-place existence where most of what we have known is cancelled. What will life be like when we emerge from our caves and re-enter the world? How do we return to our lives in the world where we sit on subway trains and theaters and synagogues shoulder-to-shoulder with our fellow men and women? Can we attend conferences and concerts and weddings and birthday celebrations again and eat in restaurants and sit in coffee shops watching a crowd of Saturday shoppers hustling by and not worry about viral droplets in the air? What will our lives be after the pandemic?
The last two portions of the Torah have been rather dark, but these are dark days. My prayers go out to everyone on this Passover and may the virus pass over your homes.