The Challenge of the Non-Conformist
And you shall proclaim with a shofar in the seventh month, on the tenth of the month.On Yom HaKippurim you shall proclaim with a shofar in all your land. (VaYikra 25:9)
A brief summary of the Jubilee Year observances
Parshat BeHar discusses the laws of Shemitah – the Sabbatical Year – and Yovel – the Jubilee Year. The Sabbatical Year occurs in the Land of Israel every seven years. During the Shemitah year, the land may not be worked. The produce that grows spontaneously is shared by all the inhabitants of the land.
Every fiftieth year the Yovel year – the Jubilee year – is observed in the Land of Israel. The Yovel marks the culmination of seven Sabbatical years. The Yovel shares many of the laws of the Sabbatical year. Among the shared laws is the restriction against farming the land. However, the Yovel year also has its own unique laws.
The first of these laws is the granting of freedom to Jewish bond-servants. Basically, there are two means by which a Jew may become a bond-servant. If a person steals from another and does not have the resources to repay the victim, then the court may sell the thief. The proceeds from the sale are given as restitution to the victim of the theft. A person may also voluntarily sell himself as a bond-servant. This is permitted only as a means of rescue from the most abject poverty. Also, there are very limited circumstances under which a Jewish girl can become a bond-servant. One of the laws of the Yovel year is that all bond-servants are granted freedom.
The second unique law of the Yovel is that all land in the Land of Israel is redistributed. When the Land of Israel was conquered, it was divided among the tribes of Bnai Yisrael. Each tribe divided its portion among its families and each family among its members. When a member passed away, his portion was inherited and divided among his sons. This process of inheritance and division continued generation after generation.
Of course, sometimes a person sold his portion in the Land of Israel. He might sell his portion to a member of another family of his tribe or to someone from another tribe. However, with the arrival of the Yovel all of the land was redistributed to its "rightful" owners. The land was restored to the descendants of the individual to whom the land was originally awarded. In short, any sale of land in Israel affected a change of ownership that lasted up to the Yovel. With the Yovel the land returned to the descendant of the individual to whom it was awarded in antiquity.
The third unique law of Yovel is described in the above passage. Our pasuk explains that the Yovel year must be declared by the sounding of the shofar. This is done on Yom Kippur of the Yovel year.
The Yovel shofar declares the freedom of all Jewish bond-servants
What is the purpose of the sounding of the shofar? Maimonides explains that the sounding of the shofar is an announcement. It proclaims that the time has arrived for granting freedom to all Jewish bond-servants.
This raises an interesting question. Why is this proclamation required? Maimonides explains that with the arrival of the Yovel year the term of servitude for any bond-servant is concluded and the servant regains his freedom., What is the function of this declaration? Sefer HaChinuch provides a very interesting response to this question. Before considering his answer, let us consider a related issue.
The Yovel shofar is sounded by the court and by every individual
Who is responsible for the sounding of the shofar on Yom Kippur of the Yovel year? Is this an obligation that is to be fulfilled by every individual? Must every individual sound a shofar on Yom Kippur of the Yovel? Alternatively, is this an obligation that is placed upon the courts? Do the courts of the land or the high court in Yerushalayim sound the shofar and with its declaration announce the liberation of all bond-servants?
Maimonides’ comments on this issue are ambiguous. He explains that the requirement to sound the shofar of Yovel is incumbent upon the court. He adds that bond-servants are freed when the court sounds the shofar. However, he explains that the obligation also extends to every individual. In other words, according to Maimonides, the court is obligated to sound the Yovel shofar. The court’s execution of its obligation proclaims the freedom of the bond-servants. However, each individual is also required to sound the Yovel shofar. The question is obvious. The court’s sounding of the shofar is adequate to pronounce the freedom of the servants. Why then is every individual required to sound the Yovel shofar?
The shofar blast is a proclamation and affirmation
Maimonides’ formulation suggests that although the court’s shofar blast proclaims the liberation of the bond-servants, every individual is required to affirm or second the declaration of the court. This is similar to the listener’s response of “amen” to the benediction recited by another individual. If a person recites a benediction within the earshot of others, those who hear the benediction are required to respond “amen”. Of course, the benediction and the response serve different functions. The person reciting the benediction is praising Hashem. The person who responds “amen” is obligated to affirm the praise that he hears. He accomplishes this with his response of “amen”. However, a question remains. Why does the court’s proclamation require the affirmation of the individuals of the nation? Now, let us return to the insight of Sefer HaChinuch.
Natural resistances to the law of Yovel
Sefer HaChinuch introduces his insight with an observation. He explains that the Torah anticipates that it will not be easy for every master to free his bond-servant. The master has become accustomed to his servant’s presence in his household. He has become dependent upon his service. Similarly, the servant may be reluctant to leave his master. He may have grown accustomed to his role and feel intimidated by the challenge of re-assuming complete responsibility for his own welfare. It is not unreasonable to assume that some masters will resist obeying the imperative to free their servants. In some instances, servants may even collude with their masters to circumvent the Torah’s directive. In other words, the Yovel’s lofty declaration of universal freedom is certainly inspiring. However, human nature may interfere with the actual execution of the law.
How can this anticipated resistance be overcome? Sefer HaChinuch suggests that this is the function of the Yovel shofar. Through sounding the shofar, every individual is declaring that the time has arrived for the freeing of bond-servants. Some masters will sound the shofar with reluctance. They will be gripped by ambivalence. Some servants will share these attitudes. However, the sounds of the shofar emerging from every person in the congregation will re-enforce the Torah’s directive. The community’s affirmation of the ideal of universal freedom will overwhelm the resistance of those who might otherwise disregard the Torah’s imperative. The community’s momentum will sweep away their resistance. In the words of Sefer HaChinch: Nothing inspires a person’s courage more than the actions of the community.
Now, Maimonides’ comments are easily explained. Why are the individuals of the nation required to affirm the court’s proclamation of freedom? This affirmation by every member of the community translates the proclamation of the court into practice. This universal affirmation subdues the resistance of those individuals who would oppose the Torah’s directive.
Recognizing and acting upon the human tendency toward conformity
These laws are not practiced in our times. We do not have bond-servants and we do not sound the shofar on Yovel. Nonetheless, the message of the shofar of Yovel is timeless. It reminds us of the enormous impact that our community has upon our attitudes and behaviors. The Torah encourages every person to act intelligently. We are encouraged to not be unduly influenced by popular notions and conventional wisdom. However, the Torah also recognizes our social nature and our need to be part of a community. The shofar blast of Yovel utilizes the natural tendency toward conformity for a positive end. The universal participation in the sounding of the shofar pressures the recalcitrant master and slave to conform to the expectation of the community.
The friends that we choose, the environment in which we work, and the community to which we commit ourselves intensely influence our attitudes and behaviors. This influence may prove very difficult to resist. However, we do have the capacity to choose friends, work, and our community. The message of the shofar of Yovel is that we should not assume that we will resist the influences of our social environment. Our values and behaviors will be strongly influenced by this environment. Instead, we should assume that we will seek to conform to the values and behaviors that are communicated by our social environment. Following the example of the shofar of Yovel we should strive to fashion for ourselves the environment that will re-enforce those values and behaviors we hope to