A Word of Torah
D'var Torah: Those Not Present
Rabbi Andy Shapiro Katz, Conservative Yeshiva Director of Engagement
Following last week's parsha, which enumerated the blessings if Israel heeds God's word and the curses if they do not, Parashat Nitzavim begins with a statement that, despite our taking it for granted, is actually quite shocking/troubling. Moshe, speaking for God, says: "I make this covenant, with its sanctions, not with you alone, but both with those who are standing here with us this day before the LORD our God and with those who are not with us here this day." (Devarim 29:13-14) Given that Devarim 29:10 says, "You stand this day, all of you, before the LORD your God" this simply cannot be referring to Israelites who lagged behind, took a vacation, or called in sick. Thus many classical commentators (see Rashi on 29:14) explain that "those who are not here with us this day" refers to the future generations of Israelites.
But many commentators were also troubled by this answer. How can children be party to a covenant that they did not, themselves, agree to? How can parents sign a contract that obligates their children? Although our Torah is replete with notions of collective responsibility (see the Shema) and even inter-generational responsibility (Devarim 5:9-10 - "For I the LORD your God am an impassioned God, visiting the guilt of the parents upon the children..."), it also has strong notions of individual responsibility (Devarim 23:16 - "Parents shall not be put to death for children, nor children be put to death for parents: a person shall be put to death only for his own crime.") And over time, the notion of individual responsibility became an even more established tenet of "Jewish justice."
One answer, articulated by Rav Ashi in Talmud Shabbat 146a, is that in addition to all those standing there, the souls of all future Israelites, both descendants and converts alike, were also present. The "opening" for this interpretation is that Devarim 14 refers to those present as "those standing here with us" and those not present as "those who are not with us." Since "standing" is something that only bodies do, the verse hints that despite their bodies not being present, future Israelites were there, literally, in spirit.
The Malbim (Volhynia, 1809-1879) takes this idea further. He explains that there is no "connection" between the soul of a parent and the soul of a child - each individual soul is distinct and unique. Thus we must say that the souls of future Israelites were present, as one soul cannot be bound or obligated by another. But, he asks, if only their souls were present, how could the covenant's blessings and curses apply to both their soul and their body? If the covenant is only with the souls of future Israelites, the physical punishments tied to the covenant should not apply. To this he answers that although there is no connection between the souls of children and their parents, there is a connection between their bodies. Our souls are distinct, but our bodies are produced from the material of our parents' bodies. So not only were we there as disembodied souls, our bodies were also there in the bodies of our ancestors! We are indeed party to the covenant, body and soul.
Even without accepting the metaphysics, there is here a profound, timeless, and timely wrestling with the blurry lines between individual and group identity, privilege, and responsibility. Despite our awareness of ourselves as a singularity, we are the products of our parents' DNA and the particular history, circumstances, and decisions of our family, tribe, and nation. That we were born at all is itself a consequence of both our ancestors' choices and even forces beyond their control. So much is placed under our feet, and so much is placed on our shoulders, without our having a say in the matter. And yet, despite all of that, we are held responsible as individuals, experiencing the blessings and curses that flow from our own behavior. I find this both deeply true and deeply unsatisfying.
Perhaps this is why the Malbim brings a second justification. In Jewish law there is a principle that even though one cannot obligate someone, "one can accept a privilege for someone even if he is not present." According to the Malbim, we should understand the curses as merely being the "corrective communications" that return us to the path of blessing - the choice of life. It is a privilege to be a party to a covenant with God, so our ancestors decision is binding upon us!
May we, and all our descendants, merit to experience it this way!
