‘Brought’  Parashat Tazria – Metzora 5785

The majority of the portions of Tazria and Metzora pertains to “tzara’at”, often mistranslated as “leprosy”. Tzara’at comes in the form of lesions that affect not only human skin but also clothing and buildings, pointing to a fungal source[1]. The reason that tzara’at cannot be equivalent to leprosy is that it is not a disease. Rather, it is the physical effect of a number of spiritual malaises, the most famous being evil speech[2]. Proof that tzara’at is not a disease is that it is neither diagnosed nor treated by a doctor. In cases of suspected tzara’at, the doctor’s place is taken by the priest (kohen) [Vayikra 13:2]: “If a man has [one of a number of types of lesions] on the skin of his flesh, and it forms a lesion of tzara’at on the skin of his flesh, he shall be brought to Aaron the kohen, or to one of his sons, the kohanim.” The kohen analyses the lesion, he diagnoses whether it is tzara’at or perhaps just a simple case of leprosy, and he manages the purification process.

Broadly speaking, the Portion of Tazria discusses the contraction of tzara’at and the Portion of Metzora discusses the purification process. Both portions begin with the same word. In the beginning of the Portion of Tazria, when a person discovers a lesion that might be tzara’at, “He shall be brought” to the kohen for further testing. Similarly, in the beginning of the Portion of Metzora, when a person finds that the signs of his tzara’at have finally disappeared [Vayikra 14:1] “He shall be brought” to the kohen who will administer the purification process. Why does scripture not simply state that the afflicted person should actively seek out the kohen rather than being passively “brought” before him?

The Ibn Ezra[3] explains that a person must go see a kohen “by his consent or against his will. for [another person] who sees one of these signs will force the afflicted to go to the kohen.” The afflicted person is brought to the kohen kicking and screaming and it is obvious why this is so. The ramifications of tzara’at are manifold. The sufferer is rendered ritually impure. He is ejected from the camp and from his family. He cannot wash his clothing. He cannot shave. People who see him point and shout derisively, “Impure! Impure!” There is much impetus for a person to cover up any indication of tzara’at. If a person notices that his friend has an icky sore on his arm that won’t go away, then he must drag his friend to the local kohen for diagnosis. For the same reason, the Torah prohibits cutting off any tell-tale signs of tzara’at, as if to say, “You have tzara’at for a reason. Accept your punishment and mend your ways”.

The reason that a person who has been cured of tzara’at is also “brought” to the kohen can be explained with an old joke: A guy goes to a supermarket the night before Passover to buy a couple more boxes of matzo, some Kosher for Passover soup nuts, and three bottles of grape juice he forgot to pick up the first time around. Needless to say, the supermarket is a madhouse. There is not one parking spot to be found in a ten-block radius. After circling the parking lot for nearly an hour, he looks skyward and says, “G-d, if you give me a parking space, I will kosher my house, keep the Shabbat, and come to synagogue regularly”. Suddenly, he sees a car beginning to pull out right before his eyes, leaving him a juicy parking spot directly in front of the store. He looks skyward and says, “Thanks, G-d, but it looks like I don’t need your help after all”. When a person is finally cured of his affliction, what he wants the most is for the whole thing to go away. The last thing he wants is more publicity. The purification process is mechanical and well defined. “I can do that myself!” thinks the erstwhile tzara’at sufferer. Not so, rules the Torah. The purification process must also be performed by a kohen. After that has been completed, the sufferer can return to anonymity.

While both the Portion of Tazria and the Portion of Metzora begin with a directive to bring the sufferer to the kohen, there is a small but significant difference between the two directives. One who is suspected of having contracted tzara’at is brought to “Aaron the kohen, or to one of his sons, the kohanim” while the person who is ready to be purified is brought to “the kohen”. Not to Aaron, not to his sons, just to some generic kohen. But as Aaron and his sons were the only kohanim in the world at the time, these two terms are equivalent. Further, noting that in every other instance that a kohen is mentioned in the context of tzara’at, he is simply called “the kohen”, why is it so important to mention Aaron and his sons? Rabbi David Zvi Hoffman[4] offers an intriguing explanation. Aaron was the High Priest (Kohen Gadol) while his sons were Ordinary Priests (Kohen Hedyot). As seen above, positive diagnosis of tzara’at has severe ramifications. The kohen who makes the diagnosis had better be a specialist in the subject matter. He should be intimately familiar with dermatology and with fungi. He should know the laws of tzara’at inside out. One might have expected that only the Kohen Gadol can adjudicate in these matters. The Torah teaches otherwise. Even a Kohen Hedyot can adjudicate. In fact, the Mishnah in Tractate Nega’im [3:1] states “All are eligible to examine [afflictions like tzara’at] but only a kohen may declare them impure or pure”. If the kohen lacks the proper expertise, that’s ok. The kohen can bring in a subject matter expert and all he needs to do is to sign at the bottom of the form. Pardon me, but this seems counterintuitive. The word kohen appears in the context of tzara’at one hundred and twenty (120!) times. Are we meant to believe that his participation is but a formality? The Seforno[5] suggests that the kohen, as a spiritual leader, is uniquely positioned to mediate between the Divine and human realms, making his declaration a necessary part of the process. The examination, however, is a technical act that does no require priestly status. While this answer is admittedly compelling, given our proximity to Israeli Independence Day (Yom Ha’Atzmaut), we will be taking a slightly different direction.

There is a difference between the task of the kohen in the in the diagnosis of tzara’at and his task in the purification from tzara’at. The diagnosis of tzara’at requires no physical action, no expense of energy. A subject matter expert makes the diagnosis, the kohen says the words “You are impure” and game over. The purification process, on the other hand, requires exertion. The kohen must sacrifice a bird. Then he must dip a live bird in the blood of the dead birds and sprinkle it on the subject. Seven days later, he sacrifices more animals and sprinkles their blood along with some olive oil on the subject’s earlobe, his thumb, and his big toe. After sprinkling more oil on the subject’s head, the kohen offers the sacrifices on the altar. Only after all of this has been completed can the subject return to normal.

Our leaders appear on the media with such regularity, spewing words written by professional speech-writers, that we automatically dismiss them as “full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.” Most of the time, they are not leaders, they are not even politicians. They are political commentators. But there comes a time in the life of a nation when leaders must lead, when they must make hard decisions, when they must move ahead, when they must take accountability. October 7 was one of those times. Our leaders failed us with their inaction. More than a year and a half later, Israel finds herself still embroiled in an existential war in which all roads lead to Iran. Israelis broadly agree that we cannot live side-by-side with a nuclear Iran and that the Iranians will not disarm by themselves. Our leaders must begin actively preparing the nation for war by forcing the people looking beyond what divides us and to concentrate on what we share: a land, a people, and a destiny. After October 7, there is no “normal” to return to. All that we have left is our future, a very bright one. Now, all together, full speed ahead. Follow the leader.

Ari Sacher, Moreshet, 5785

In memory of Yakir Levy, Naaran Eshchar, Daniel Toaff and Ori Borenstein, who fell in the line of duty since October 7. May their memories be a blessing.

[1] At a talk I heard in Toronto about 45 years ago, a well-known dermatologist made precisely this claim.

[2] The Talmud in Tractate Arachin [15-16] enumerates another six sins that can cause tzara’at.

[3] Rabbi Abraham Ibn Ezra, known as “The Ibn Ezra,” lived in Spain at the turn of the 12^th century.

[4] Rabbi David Zvi Hoffman lived in Berlin at the turn of the 20^th century.

[5] Rabbi Ovadia ben Jacob Seforno, known as “The Seforno,” lived in Italy at the turn of the 16^th century.