The Law of Communicating Vessels

"I paid the Reform rabbi to fast for me," shared a member of the Reform community with his wife. She was taken aback and exclaimed, "What, am I not (she almost said 'religious' but remembered she wasn't) a Jew? Don't I need to fast?! Go back to him and pay him to fast for me too!"

They innocently thought that by paying the Reform rabbi to fast for them on Yom Kippur, they could eat as they pleased. The rabbi, of course, charged a full fee for this fasting redemption.

The man returned to the rabbi on Yom Kippur eve, only to find him sitting at the table, thoroughly enjoying a good meal...

"What's this?" he demanded. "We paid you good money to fast for us."

The rabbi replied, "Don't worry, I'm fasting for you. I'm just eating for myself."

Why Was the Torah Given in the Desert?

The Shulchan Aruch writes: "And the portion 'In the Desert of Sinai' is always read before Shavuot (the holiday of the Giving of the Torah)." There are several reasons for this, and we'll explore one of them:

First, we need to understand why the Torah was given in the desert.

The Talmud in Tractate Eruvin (54a) states: "Rav Matna said, 'What is meant by the verse 'And from the desert to the gift'?' If a person makes himself like a desert that is available to everyone, his learning will be preserved. Otherwise, it will not." Meaning: Just as the desert is free and anyone can pass through it without needing permission, so too, one who makes himself humble like the desert will have Torah preserved within him.

This brings us to a burning question we might not have considered: If humility and lowliness are prerequisites for Torah, wouldn't it have been more fitting for the Torah to be given on a plain or in a valley? Why then was it given on a mount - Mount Sinai?

We'll start with a verse written by the wisest of all men, King Solomon, of blessed memory: "As in water, face reflects face, so is the heart of man to man." Just as one looking into water sees their reflection—whether smiling or sad—so too does the heart of a person reflect the feelings of the person facing them; love is met with love and vice versa.

Rabbi Shalom Rokach of Belz asked: Why did King Solomon choose the example of a person looking into water to see their reflection? Surely, looking in a mirror is better, and mirrors existed even in Moses' time, all the more so in Solomon's.

The righteous man answered that to see one's reflection in a mirror, one can stand straight and look directly, but to see one's reflection in water, one must bend down and humble oneself. In other words, if you wish to feel another's heart, you cannot do so with a straight back! Only if you humble yourself can you empathize with your friend's heart.

At the revelation at Mount Sinai, the people of Israel reached a state of perfect unity, "And Israel camped there opposite the mountain - like one person with one heart," all striving with a singular purpose and desire: to receive the Torah.

The Torah is likened to water, which naturally flows from a high place to a low place. Also, water can gather only in a unified vessel, but if there's a hole or crack, the water will spill out and not collect.

For these reasons, we read the portion "In the Desert," which reviews the entry of the Israelites into the Sinai desert, before Shavuot: For Torah, unity and humility are necessary. These two qualities are intertwined, as taught by the "Sar Shalom" of Belz through King Solomon's words.

The need for unity in receiving the Torah is because the Torah is made by all the people of Israel for all the people of Israel. As it is said, "All Israel is responsible for one another." Before performing the commandments, we say in the "L'Shem Yichud" intention, "I am performing this commandment in the name of all Israel." Famous is Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai's parable in the Midrash about a man who drilled a hole in the ship's cabin; he endangers all aboard. Likewise, one who sins endangers the entire world.

Why "Mount Sinai"? Why Not Given on a Plain?

It's true that one must humble themselves like a desert, but they shouldn't think this humility detracts from their worth. Typically, one climbs up the mountain from one side and descends the other, meaning one who initially lowers themselves will be elevated to the peak by Hashem, while one who raises themselves above their friends will slide from the peak to the depth.

Just as one cannot "eat for oneself" and at the same time fast for another, so too is the Torah not acquired unless one feels their fellow is truly like their own body.