Divrei Menachem

Divrei Menachem - Tazria-Metzora

The parshiyot of Tazri’a and M’tzora deal with the complex issue of spiritual impurity - particularly with the M’tzora, a person afflicted with an ailment akin to leprosy. The main cause of this disorder is Lashon Hara, the sinful habit of gossip, as understood from the breakdown of the Hebrew term into the expression, “Motzi Shem Ra” - ‘One who spreads a bad name.’

Although for years associated with medical illness, this affliction in its multifarious occurrences on skin, clothes and the walls of houses is clearly of a different nature from leprosy, as we know it. One of the indicants of this differentiation is that until the Kohen actually declares the state of M’tzora, the “disease” does not exist.

Consequently, when malignant signs first appeared on the walls of one’s home, the utensils could yet be removed from the house. And only after the affliction was deemed present would the walls confer impurity on the other items in the house. This procedure, of course, contradicts contemporary medical practice that would a priori quarantine the vessels in the building. Rashi comments on the Divine compassion here implied that would spare even the wicked prattler financial loss. From which we can deduce how much more so does Hashem have mercy on the righteous!

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