Weekly Torah Study is Saturday morning at 9. We meet in the Room 202 of Temple Brith Kodesh (enter by Door A).  We decide year by year how we'll approach the weekly portion.  Last year we used the weekly d'var Torah from Rabbi Jonathan Sacks as a jumping off point.  This year, we're going to consider each parsha from a Mussar perspective.  Each week an email is sent out (usually on Thursday) to anyone who may be interested.  You're welcome on Saturday, whether or not you got the email or had time to read it.  Discussions are generally lively.

Parshat Ki Teitzei

Devarim 22:1-3
If you see your fellow's ox or sheep gone astray, do not ignore it; you must take it back to your fellow. If your fellow does not live near you or you do not know who he is, you shall bring it home and it shall remain with you until your fellow claims it; then you shall give it back to him. You shall do the same with his ass; you shall do the same with his garment; and so too shall you do with anything that your fellow loses and you find; you must not remain indifferent. If you see your fellow's ass or ox fallen on the road, do not ignore it; you must help him raise it.

What does this imply, beyond the literal meaning of returning lost property or a fallen donkey?

Shemot 23:5
When you see the ass of your enemy lying under its burden and would refrain from raising it, you must nevertheless raise it with him.

Why does the Torah specifically refer to helping a brother in one place, and an enemy in another place?

Sifrei Devarim 225:1
Whence do I derive (the same for) the ass of your foe? From Shemot 23:5. If so, why is it written in (Devarim) "your brother"? Torah in Shemot speaks against the evil inclination (i.e., Assist not only the ass of your brother, but even the ass of your foe -- against the protestations of your evil inclination.)

S. R. Hirsch, Nineteen Letters
Your mission, however, is not limited by the walls of your house; beyond their limits you must assist with every particle of your strength wherever it is necessary to save the life, the property, or the happiness of a human being ... or to help suffering creatures of the lower order wherever you can ... support the needy, clothe the naked, feed the hungry, console the mourning, heal the sick, care for the unprovided, advise those in need of counsel, teach the ignorant, reconcile those sundered by anger and quarrel -- in a word, to be a blessing whenever and wherever you can.

Rabbi Henach Leibowitz
The manner in which we act toward others is the ultimate manifestation of our religiosity and our love of Hashem. If how we act towards others is the "ultimate manifestation," what does this mean about observance of ritualistic mitzvot, or those regarding personal behavior (like kashrut)? How might the latter relate to our behavior towards others?

 

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