Page 31 - HaMizrachi Tisha BAv 2021 USA 4fb_Neat

TISHA B’AV READING

Rabbi Ari Kahn
Rebuilding

with Love

ust as the Beit HaMikdash was As far as “baseless love,” we are taught to episode of the spies, recounts: “You grum-
destroyed due to baseless love others even though they are unde- bled in your tents, and said, ‘G-d brought us
hatred, it will be rebuilt due to serving. But is this the case? Are we not out of the land of Egypt because He hated
“Jbaseless love” (Orot HaKodesh commanded to love our neighbor as our- us…’” (Devarim 1:27).
vol. 3, p. 324). While this oft-cited teach- selves? Our love for others is not “free” or
ing of Rav Kook sounds simple, it is in fact baseless; it is grounded in the knowledge Rashi observes what should be obvious to us:
highly nuanced, and deserves more serious that every person is created in the image of quite the opposite was the case. “He loved
consideration. G-d, and every Jew is a unique part of our you, but you hated Him…”
collective, a beautiful piece in the mosaic of Here we have the core of sinat chinam –
The image that comes to mind when we
hear the words sinat chinam is usually one of our peoplehood. baseless hatred. Lonely, frightened man,
rampant, wanton violence. The word chinam controlled by his own insecurity, is unable
is more accurately translated as “free of to feel G-d’s love. In a knee-jerk reaction, he
charge” or “at no cost” in a monetary sense. lashes out, with hatred that is both baseless
Rather than hatred for no reason whatso- and unearned, projecting this hatred back
ever, it implies hatred for which the price By what right do we imagine that onto G-d.
is somehow incongruous or out of balance. the love and support we should Humankind is a strange species, capable of
The problem is not that we dislike people for be giving is unwarranted or free? love yet afraid to love. We fail to consider the
no reason; generally, we all feel we have very true nature of love as our greatest natural
good reasons to dislike the people we do. We resource, which grows exponentially the
may have been hurt, insulted, or, worst of all, By what right do we imagine that the love more it is ‘used.’ Why are we so stingy in
ignored, and we develop a healthy animus and support we should be giving is unwar- sharing it with others?
toward the offender as we defend ourselves ranted or free? This other person is my
and our tattered egos. The problem is that brother, sister or cousin too-many-times
more often than not, our response is not removed. I am obligated by Jewish law to
proportional. We ‘overcharge’ for these real love and care for him, to worry about her
or perceived wrongs. The price is not right. and constantly consider how I can improve
We pay back with interest, and, as we all her life, to pray for each and every other Jew.
know, the Torah prohibits usury. They are me, and we are one.

If we were to be honest with ourselves, we And therein lies the rub. We have some-
would be forced to recognize that at times how learned to convince ourselves that the
our own insecurity and emotional fragility hatred we feel is well-deserved, while the
lead us to interpret the behavior or speech love we are obligated to feel and express
of others as malicious, even when no such is unearned and given to the undeserving.
malice was intended.
Judaism teaches us to see our world from
Here then is the dilemma: regarding the G-d’s perspective as well as our own. While
admonishment against baseless hatred, we justify our hatred of others by focusing
most of us can, with absolute honesty, cate- on the wrongs they have committed, from
gorically state we are innocent. On the other G-d’s higher vantage point, our hatred for
hand, when we reframe the question and others is sinat chinam – unearned, dispro-
ask instead if we have ever overreacted, if portionate, high-interest payback. While we
we are guilty of exaggerated responses to consider our acts of kindness or gestures Rabbi Ari Kahn is Director of the Overseas
real or perceived slights, I am afraid many of love free and unearned, we are, in fact, Student Program at Bar Ilan University,
of us can answer in the affirmative. We are fulfilling a very specific obligation to love where he is a senior lecturer in Jewish
quite guilty but blind to our own malevo- and care for them. Studies.
lence, simply because we think the other
person has earned every bit of it. Whatever This dual perspective is discernible in A member of the Mizrachi Speakers Bureau
hatred we have for them is not “free.” Parashat Devarim. Moshe, recalling the mizrachi.org/speakers

| 31