This week’s Torah portion includes the famous verse, “You shall proclaim liberty throughout the land” (Leviticus 24:10). The verse is more familiar as the words inscribed on the Liberty Bell, which celebrated the signing of the Declaration of Independence. It seems that the Founding Fathers were knowledgeable of their Bible verses, but not necessarily of their Biblical history.
In Biblical history, the Book of Leviticus doesn’t say anything about civil rights or national freedom. This portion in Leviticus teaches only about the Jubilee Year and the “Sabbath of the land.” Yet, the verses describe laws that could not have been fulfilled except under exceptional and rare conditions. According to Talmud, the law of release is in effect only when all the tribes of Israel are living in their respective territories.
Don’t be disappointed by the Founding Fathers’ knowledge of the Bible. In effect, the Founding Fathers acted as great interpreters of Biblical text. They kept relevant what had been for centuries only an ideal law. Now, in an autonomous nation, the roots of the new country’s ideals would stem from the very Bible itself, or as we like to call it, our Torah. In essence, the ideal of the Declaration of Independence is just like the ideal of Torah law: only under exceptional and rare conditions has the American dream become reality for all.
To be free means that we are liberated to become what we are meant to be. But, for some, freedom is rare. Freedom isn’t always true for children. Some parents are suspicious of freedom because it means they have to let their children go. It isn’t because they fear for their children’s safety (they let them drive); rather, they fear what they, themselves, will become without their children. It begins when their children start kindergarten and it becomes acute when they leave home for college. If they hold them very close then nothing has to change. Not true.
Spouses can be suspicious of freedom, too. Insecure life partners can’t bear their spouse’s independence. Where were you? Who were you with? What did you spend? Such questions reflect fear that their spouse’s freedom will leave them alone and vulnerable. However, personal strength has to begin on the inside; it can’t be another person held close like armor around the body.
The Founding Fathers dreamt of a nation of people who grasped their God-given rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Whatever that meant to them, we have translated their original verses to mean that we want to become the people we are intended to be. My hope and prayer is that we won’t have to wait for exceptional and rare conditions. Our Judaism teaches us that freedom began when we left Egypt, by God’s outstretched arm and mighty acts. It’s been part of our outlook ever since, and no one, not parents, spouses or friends should ever hold us back from reaching our human potential.
Remember that Shabbat is a day of release. What will you imagine when you think about personal freedom? What will you strive to accomplish when you think about spousal love? Who will you be when you feel free?
From my desk to yours, Shabbat Shalom.
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