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Torah Portion -
masei
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Written by d fine
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Referring to some of the consequences of sinning in Eretz Yisrael, the final pasuk of perek 35 reads ‘do not make the Land in which you dwell impure…’ This is but one illustration of the special connection Klal Yisrael have to the Land of Israel - a unique relationship whereby what we do affects the Land itself. In this context it refers to our sinning causing the Land to degenerate into becoming impure, but there are other examples too. On a physical level, only when Klal Yisrael occupy Eretz Yisrael does the Land bloom. Across history the Land has become relatively infertile when occupied by other nations, but when we gradually came back to the Land from the 1900s onwards then our Land started to bloom again - crops were grown and the Land showed its fertileness. Similarly, on a spiritual note, our being in the Land seems to infuse the Land with an added dimension of kedusha which effects certain mitzvos which apply there. Thus, the mitzvos of Yovel and Shmittah (mide’oraisa) are dependent upon the majority of Jews living in Eretz Yisrael. In summary, note the special bond between Klal Yisrael and Eretz Yisrael.
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