We speak a lot about the importance of the Jewish community. But what is it exactly that makes being part of a community so important?
We will learn some of the Halachot and sources about being part of a Jewish community, and see why it is so important.
הִלֵּל אוֹמֵר, אַל תִּפְרֹשׁ מִן הַצִּבּוּר.
(4) Hillel said: do not separate yourself from the community.
What do you think is so important about being part of a Jewish community? Why does Hillel haZaken have to warn us not to separate ourselves from the community?
Think about it:
What things do we do as a community?
Coming Together as a Community
(8) And let them make Me a sanctuary that I may Dwell amongst them.
There is a Mitzvah to build a central place to bring the Jewish people together. At first, that was the משכן (the Tabernacle), and, later, the בית המקדש (the Holy Temple in Jerusalem).
The קרבנות (sacrifices) would be brought there, all the Jewish people would travel there for the חגים (holidays), and it was a general place of gathering for the Jewish people.
What place or places do we have that belong to all Jews?
Since the בית המקדש was destroyed, this obligation has shifted to the synagogue
(א) בנין ב"ה ושיהיה גבוה ובו ה סעיפים:
כופין בני העיר זה את זה לבנות ב"ה ולקנות להם תורה נביאים וכתובים (וע"ל סי' נ"ה סכ"ב אם כופין זה את זה לשכור להם מנין):
It is an obligation for each city to build a synagogue, buy a Sefer Torah, as well as books of Navi and Ketuvim.
(א) (א) כופין וכו' שיש בו י' מישראל צריך להכין לו בית שיכנסו בו לתפלה בכל עת תפלה ומקום זה נקרא ביהכ"נ.
Anywhere that there are ten Bar Mitzvah age Jews, they must prepare a place to gather for prayer to always be available .
Why do you think praying in a minyan is better than praying alone?
Taking Care of Each Other
Aside from being part of a community, we have an obligation to take care of our community members. The Jewish community has many services available to help each other. However, the real obligation is on every member of the community.
(ז) כִּֽי־יִהְיֶה֩ בְךָ֨ אֶבְי֜וֹן מֵאַחַ֤ד אַחֶ֙יךָ֙ בְּאַחַ֣ד שְׁעָרֶ֔יךָ בְּאַ֨רְצְךָ֔ אֲשֶׁר־יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ נֹתֵ֣ן לָ֑ךְ לֹ֧א תְאַמֵּ֣ץ אֶת־לְבָבְךָ֗ וְלֹ֤א תִקְפֹּץ֙ אֶת־יָ֣דְךָ֔ מֵאָחִ֖יךָ הָאֶבְיֽוֹן׃
כִּֽי־פָתֹ֧חַ תִּפְתַּ֛ח אֶת־יָדְךָ֖ ל֑וֹ וְהַעֲבֵט֙ תַּעֲבִיטֶ֔נּוּ דֵּ֚י מַחְסֹר֔וֹ אֲשֶׁ֥ר יֶחְסַ֖ר לֽוֹ׃
If, however, there is a needy person among you, one of your community in any of your settlements in the land that the Hashem your G-d is giving you, do not harden your heart and shut your hand against your needy. Open your hand and lend him sufficient for whatever he needs.
וּכְשֶׁהוּא אוֹכֵל וְשׁוֹתֶה חַיָּב לְהַאֲכִיל לַגֵּר לַיָּתוֹם וְלָאַלְמָנָה עִם שְׁאָר הָעֲנִיִּים הָאֻמְלָלִים. אֲבָל מִי שֶׁנּוֹעֵל דַּלְתוֹת חֲצֵרוֹ וְאוֹכֵל וְשׁוֹתֶה הוּא וּבָנָיו וְאִשְׁתּוֹ וְאֵינוֹ מַאֲכִיל וּמַשְׁקֶה לַעֲנִיִּים וּלְמָרֵי נֶפֶשׁ אֵין זוֹ שִׂמְחַת מִצְוָה אֶלָּא שִׂמְחַת כְּרֵסוֹ. וְעַל אֵלּוּ נֶאֱמַר (הושע ט ד) "זִבְחֵיהֶם כְּלֶחֶם אוֹנִים לָהֶם כָּל אֹכְלָיו יִטַּמָּאוּ כִּי לַחְמָם לְנַפְשָׁם". וְשִׂמְחָה כָּזוֹ קָלוֹן הִיא לָהֶם שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (מלאכי ב ג) "וְזֵרִיתִי פֶרֶשׁ עַל פְּנֵיכֶם פֶּרֶשׁ חַגֵּיכֶם":
While eating and drinking, one must feed the stranger, the orphan, the widow, and other poor unfortunates. Anyone, however, who locks the doors of his courtyard and eats and drinks along with his wife and children, without giving anything to eat and drink to the poor and the desperate, does not observe a religious celebration but indulges in the celebration of his stomach. And about such is it stated (Hosea 9:4), "their sacrifices are like the bread of mourners, all who eat it will be contaminated; for their bread is for their own appetites."
What are some ways we can make poor or lonely people feel included in our celebrations?
The Community Getting Along:
It is particularly important to Hashem that the community get along.
אבל מקדש שני, שהיו עוסקין בתורה ובמצות וגמילות חסדים, מפני מה חרב? מפני שהיתה בו שנאת חנם. ללמדך ששקולה שנאת חנם כנגד שלש עבירות ע"ז גלוי עריות ושפיכות דמים
However, considering that the people during the Second Temple period were engaged in Torah study, observance of mitzvot, and acts of kindness, and that they did not perform the sinful acts that were performed in the First Temple, why was the Second Temple destroyed? It was destroyed due to the fact that there was wanton hatred during that period. This comes to teach you that the sin of wanton hatred is equivalent to the three severe transgressions: Idol worship, forbidden relationships and murder.
That is why it was called Bavel, because there Hashem Confused the speech of the whole earth; and from there Hashem Scattered them over the face of the whole earth.
Which sin was greater: that of the generation of the Flood or that of the generation of the Dispersion? The former did not stretch forth their hands against God; the latter did stretch forth their hands against God to war against him (surely, then, the sin of the generation of the Dispersion was greater) and yet the former (the generation of the Flood) were drowned and these did not perish from the world! But the reason is that the generation of the Flood were violent robbers and there was strife among them, and therefore they were destroyed; but these conducted themselves in love and friendship, as it is said, “They were one people and had one language”. — You may learn from this how hateful to God is strife and how great is peace.
Why do you think the consequence of a community fighting is separating them more?
Connected to the Community
The Jewish people are not just a community. We are a family. That family is connected beyond just what we do together.
ספרא ויקרא כ"ו
כל ישראל ערבים זה בזה
Sifra Vayikra 26
All the Jewish people are connected or are guarantors for each other
מדרש רבה ויקרא ד:ו
תָּנֵי רַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן בַּר יוֹחָאי, מָשָׁל לִבְנֵי אָדָם שֶׁהָיוּ יוֹשְׁבִין בִּסְפִינָה נָטַל אֶחָד מֵהֶן מַקְדֵּחַ וְהִתְחִיל קוֹדֵחַ תַּחְתָּיו, אָמְרוּ לוֹ חֲבֵרָיו מַה אַתָּה יוֹשֵׁב וְעוֹשֶׂה, אָמַר לָהֶם מָה אִכְפַּת לָכֶם לֹא תַחְתִּי אֲנִי קוֹדֵחַ, אָמְרוּ לוֹ שֶׁהַמַּיִם עוֹלִין וּמְצִיפִין עָלֵינוּ אֶת הַסְּפִינָה.
Medrash Rabba Vayikra 4:6
Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai taught a parable: Men were on a ship. One of them took a drill and started drilling underneath him. The others said to him: What are sitting and doing?! He replied: What do you care. Is this not underneath my area that I am drilling?! They said to him: But the water will rise and flood us all on this ship.
ויקרא י"ט: י"ח
לֹֽא־תִקֹּ֤ם וְלֹֽא־תִטֹּר֙ אֶת־בְּנֵ֣י עַמֶּ֔ךָ וְאָֽהַבְתָּ֥ לְרֵעֲךָ֖ כָּמ֑וֹךָ אֲנִ֖י יְהוָֽה׃
Vayikra 19:18
You shall not take revenge or bear a grudge against your fellow. Love your fellow as yourself: I am the Hashem.
בית שמואל אחרון פרשת שמות
We are each expected to keep all 613 Mitzvot. The problem is, no individual person can! Some Mitzvot are only for a כהן Kohen; some Mitzvot are only for a ישראל. Some Mitzvot are for men, and some are for women. So how can we each keep all the Mitzvot?
The Beit Shmuel Acrhon (Rabbi Shmuel Fulknefeld) explains that by keeping the Mitzvah of loving another Jew and connecting to each other, we get credit for the Mitzvot that we cannot do ourselves. We get credit for the Mitzvot that we all do together, as a community.
ברכות סג ב
אין תורה נקנה אלא בחבורה
Berachot 63b
The Torah can only be acquired through study as a group
Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz z"l
One of the ideas that was shared was that Torah study “is only acquired through study in a group.” Furthermore, based on a passage in Sefer Yirmiyahu (50:6), the Gemara concludes that a curse was placed on scholars who sit alone and study Torah who ultimately grow foolish because of their solitary study.
In his Ein Ayah, Rabbi Avraham Yitzhak Kook explains that the Holy Torah is a Torah of life. It does not guide its followers towards a life of asceticism or a rejection of the wholesome pleasures of the world that can raise the spirits of an individual. Therefore, the Torah anticipates that those who walk in its path will be members of a community, whose support and encouragement will help facilitate their spiritual growth and development. Moreover, an essential aspect of a Torah scholar is the role that he plays in improving the world around him. To accomplish this, the scholar must develop an appreciation for opinions that are at variance with his own, both in the realm of halakhah and in the realm of ethics. That kind of openness comes about only by means of group study, in the course of which one becomes accustomed to hearing opinions that are different from his own. When one chooses to limit debate and to remain secluded within his own closed community, he is unable to learn the ideas and thoughts of his peers and will consequently be unwilling to accept dissenting positions. Isolation inevitably leads to intractable disagreements and, ultimately, to bitter fights and arguments.