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At Mt. Sinai, God called upon
the Jewish people to be a holy people,
partners with God in creating a world
of justice for all.
In Parashat Shoftim, which means "Judges,"
they're now on the banks of the Jordan,
almost at the Promised Land,
when God tells the Israelites
to appoint judges and police officers
so they can begin to administer this justice.
God's final instruction to them is among
the Torah's most famous lines:
"Tzedek, tzedek, tirdof," or
"Justice, justice, shall you pursue."
Why "Justice, justice, shall you pursue?"
The second "Justice" must
have some meaning. Some say "justice"
is repeated for emphasis,
to teach that pursuing justice is among
the most important things a person can do.
Others say that it's repeated to teach that
we must be just in the way we go about
our pursuit of justice.
Here in Shoftim,
we learn about five kinds of justice.
First, God gives the Israelites a lengthy list
of instructions about what they can and can't
do when they worship.
They can't plant a tree or build a monument
near God's altar, and they aren't
allowed to sacrifice any animal
that has a blemish. Above all,
they're warned not to worship idols
or intentionally break God's law –
because the punishment is death.
Addressing the second form of justice,
God tells the Children of Israel that
when they arrive in the Promised Land,
if they really want, they can be
like other nations around them
and appoint a king.
Criteria for qualified royalty are pretty strict:
The king must be from their own nation
must not keep an excess of horses,
wives, silver or gold.
In addition, the king must write
his own Torah scroll and read it regularly,
to remind him to follow its laws,
and he must rule fairly,
treating all people alike,
no matter how rich or poor they are.
For the third form of justice,
God tells the Children of Israel
to create "cities of refuge"
in the Promised Land.
If a person accidentally kills someone,
he or she can flee to these cities
and be safe from relatives of the dead
who might seek revenge.
But if someone intentionally
commits *** and tries to escape
into the City of Refuge, the elders of that city
are to send him or her directly into the hands
of the vengeful family.
Carrying on with the theme of crime,
accidental or otherwise, the fourth part
of Parashat Shoftim covers
witnesses and testimony.
In order for testimony to be valid,
not one but two witnesses must
give the exact same testimony.
If it is discovered that two witnesses
got together to make up false testimony,
the Torah says to rid the city of that evil –
in this case, to kick out the false witnesses.
In another famous line,
the Israelites are told not to have
compassion for them – "a life for a life,
an eye for an eye," and so on, to scare
the daylights out of others
who might have been considering providing
false testimony of their own.
The fifth and final form of justice
is about rules of warfare.
God tries to comfort the Israelites,
telling them not be fearful or faint-hearted
when they go out to war
even outnumbered by their enemies.
Easier said than done!
But officers were also to protect
the lives of soldiers who had a lot to lose,
or a lot of living left to do.
By telling their armies,
"Whoever has built a new house
but hasn't lived in it yet, go home.
Whoever has planted a vineyard
and hasn't picked the fruit yet, you go home.
And whoever is engaged to a woman
but hasn't married her yet,
you can go home, too."
For three thousand years, the command
"Justice, justice, shall you pursue"
has defined who the Jewish people are
and what they're about. Especially today,
in the face of the critical need
to ensure justice on issues
like environmental devastation,
economic injustice, genocidal activity
around the globe, this call warns us:
We dare not wait for opportunities
to do justice but rather must act assertively
to address the great moral issues
of our time.
That is our heritage. May we prove worthy.
Producer: Sarah Lefton
Animation Director: Nick Fox-Gieg
Animation: Jeanne Stern
Editorial Director: Matthue Roth
Theme Music: Tim Cosgrove
Written and narrated by Rabbi David Saperstein
Sound Recording: Gabe Schwartz