Mishpatim. Of First Fruit, Coffins, and the beginning of Ethics

Jewish Buddhist teacher Jack Konfield wrote a book whose title seems to encapsulate the main message of Parashat Mishpatim: “after the ecstasy, the laundry.”

This is where we are at in the Biblical narrative: we just received the Revelation at Sinai.

And the first thing that happens, right after, is not blissful resting. Not sumptuous feasting or devotional ceremonies.

No, what happens right after is that we are given a list of mishpatim, or laws of justice.

 After the ecstasy of the Sinai Revelation, we receive a civil code.

And then, in the midst of a very ethical, pragmatic, parasha, we hear about a strange ritual: the offering of the Bikkurim, or first fruit.

“You shall bring the first of the first fruits of your land to the house of Hashem your God” (Shemot, 23:19)

רֵאשִׁ֗ית בִּכּוּרֵי֙ אַדְמָ֣תְךָ֔ תָּבִ֕יא בֵּ֖ית יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֑יךָ

Offering fruit to an altar may actually be the most common form of devotional ritual in many world religions.

Today, because Jews no longer have a Temple, we could think this ritual has become obsolete. Not so.

Why then, can the Bikurim offerings mean to us today, on a deeper level?

For the Mei Ha shiloach, it comes to “teach of the attribute of restraint”

מצוה זו מורה על מדת מתינות

“The Torah”, he pursues, “commanded to be self-restrained/moderate and not to eat it, but rather to bring it to the Cohen.”

ציותה התורה להיות מתון ולא לאכלה רק להוליכה לכהן. 

Moderation “metunut” is quality that seems to have disappeared from the surface of social life in the global world today since the development of social networks.

Over the last decade or so, it seems like people are rather unleashing their feelings, exposing their opinions, throwing their ideas, without any sense of restraint, modesty, mesure or moderation.

As a Jew and as an Israeli, I have observed it even more over the past fifteen years of war, since as early as October 7. 

Suddenly, it was as if those who hate Israel felt encouraged by Hamas’ attack to speak out, without any restraint, their contentment and malevolence. Suddenly Jew or Israel hatred was unleashed, suddenly there was no more restraint.

Moderation I haven’t seen any in Hamas’ power shows in the cynical ceremonies set up during the release of Israeli Hostages, dead or alive.

This may be the deep connection between the bikurim and the laws of justice in parashat mishpatim: one of the definitions of ethics could be restreint.

Being ethical becomes relevant when there is power imbalance.Ethical behavior means withholding from crushing someone when I could.

This was Levinas’ calling during World War II.

There lies the greatest human test: can we restrain ourselves and not abuse our power when we could?

Hamas and the other islamic terror groups who were proudly holding the black coffins over joyful Arab music and under a gigantic poster accusing Israel of having killed its own hostages seem to repeatedly fail the test.

Those who support them and bully Jews on social networks, in the streets or on campuses are doing just the same.

In Israel just a couple of days ago, although it was less commented, occurred the eleventh day of testimonies of the trial for corruption of Benjamin Netanyahu.

This is the sign of a healthy democracy: when a leader who does not withhold their power when they should have, will be tried for that. Restraint doesn’t mean withdrawal.

In fact this is the art of the spiritual life: how to show up completely, to the world as it is, to the truth of what is alive inside of us, but all the while restraining ourselves from abusing- ourselves, or bodies, or others, everytime we can.

This is the deeper teaching of the bikkurim: By committing to not take for myself the first fruit of my crops, and by so doing renouncing immediate gratification, I train myself to display restraint. This is one of the first midot (qualitites) required for ethical behavior: 

I could eat the first fruit but I won’t. I could do whatever I want to the planet but I won’t. I could abuse this person, but I won’t.

And in a healthy society, if some of us still do, they will be brought before Justice.

Mishpatim teaches about Ethics, and ethics are Judaism’s first offering to Humanity.

Now it is the task of each of us to embody this, today, no matter where we are.