Parashat Bo 5768

Prepared by Chaim Koritzinsky, KI Rabbinic Resident

How many mitzvoth do you think there are in this week's Torah Portion? Come on, take a guess!

According to the Sefer ha'Chinuch (the Book of Education) there are 20. Does this seem like a little or a lot? Consider the fact that in the entire book of Bereshit (Genesis) there are only three mitzvot. (By the way, can you guess which those three are? See the end to check yourself)

What struck me about the list of mitzvoth in the Sefer ha'Chinuch is that 8 of the 20 are mitzvoth that we still perform today. For example: sanctifying the new month, removing hametz from our homes during Passover, eating matzah, telling the Passover story (v'higaditah l'vincha, and you shall tell your son) and wearing tefillin.

But 12 out of the 20 are mitzvoth that we don't do today. For example:

• The mitzvah of ritually slaying the Passover offering (with the exception of the Samaritans who still do this today in Israel)
• The mitzvah not to leave any flesh of the Passover offering
• The mitzvah of redeeming the firstborn donkey

We can add to this list many of the mitzvoth that are listed in Va'Yikra (Leviticus) that have to do with the sacrifices we used to bring to the Temple in Jerusalem. Without the Temple standing, we cannot bring the sacrifices.

The sefer ha'chinuch counts the number of mitzvoth that are "in force at the present time" at 369 (the alleged author of the Book, Aaron Ha'Levi of Barcelona, actually hand marked them in his manuscript dated 1345 CE).

Ha'Levi also adds to this list of 369 mitzvot "which a man is never required to do, unless some special circumstance comes to hand. Thus we say that giving a hired man his pay at its proper time is one precept [of the 613]; but certainly a person is not duty-bound to hire workers in order to fulfill this precept." (Sefer Ha'Chinuch, Preface, p. 77)

So, my question is: How do we relate to these mitzvoth that are not "in force at the present time" or that do not relate to us? Are we supposed to simply disregard them? Do we simply wait until the moment we can do them? Do we reinterpret them?

It may help to look at the example of Temple sacrifices to gain insight. Maimonides viewed animal sacrifice as a compromise and a response to the idolatrous practices of pagan culture. He writes:

It is with the act [of killing these animals,] considered by pagans to be the ultimate sin, that we approach G-d With this act wrongheaded beliefs are remedied, for [pagan beliefs] are diseases of the soul and they are cured by doing the exact opposite [of what they dictate].

Guide for the Perplexed 3:46

Ramban on the other hand viewed sacrifices as a perfectly legitimate response to human moral failure. He writes:

It would be appropriate for one who has sinned before G-d with his body and soul to have his blood spilt and his body burnt. But the Creator, in His kindness, accepts a stand-in. By the blood of a sacrifice coming in place of the [sinner's] blood and its soul coming in place of the [sinner's] soul, atonement is achieved

Ramban, Commentary to Vayikra 1:9

In Sefer Ha'Chinuch, Ha'Levi offers another response, one that we still continue today in the morning service-through learning.

One of the mitzvoth, which is a main principle and foundation on which all the precepts rest, is the mitzvah of learning Torah (mitzvah #419). For by study, a man will know the precepts and will fulfill them. For this reason our Sages of blessed memory made it a rule for us to read one portion of the Torah scroll in a place where the people gather, i.e. the synagogue, to awaken a man's heart over the Torah's words and the precepts. (Sefer Ha'Chinuch,Preface, p. 77)

One writer on the web summarized it thus:

To solidify my vicarious participation in those Commandments, I study them. It is true that I cannot personally fulfill the Commandment of building a fence around my roof, since I have no accessible roof in my home, but when I study the Laws of this Commandment, and I have a strong desire to fulfill the Commandment, Hashem counts it as if I have fulfilled the Commandment. For the Talmud teaches, "A good intention that a person honestly tries to fulfill but is prevented or unable to fulfill Hashem counts as if it has been performed." Babylonian Talmud, Kiddushin 39b

Ha'Levi concludes his preface by highlighting his reasoning for writing the book in the first place:

Perhaps the reader will not give his attention to see how many precepts he has read in that week, and may not bestir his heart to become alert and zealous about them. Therefore have I seen fit to write the precepts according to the sidrot (the weekly portions) and in their sequence as they are written in the Torah, consecutively, in order to arouse the heart of my young son and the youngest who are his friends- every single week. (Sefer Ha'Chinuch, Preface, p. 79)

When you hear these mitzvoth read today from the Torah, think about whether you feel this is a way of fulfilling these commandments no longer "in force". And think about whether, in Ha'Levi's words, the mitzvoth in this week's parasha have become more "alert" or "zealous" in your heart.

ANSWER: The Three Mitzvot of Bereshit

1. Mitzvat Priya u'reviya (Be fruitful and multiply)
2. Mitzvat Mila (Circumcision)
3. Shelo le'echol gid ha'nasheh (Not to eat the sinew of the thigh vein)