Chanukah and Tznius
The Rambam, in the beginning of Hilchos Chanukah, describes the decrees and the crimes which the Syrian-Greeks perpetrated against the Jewish people. The Rambam writes, “u’pashtu yadam b’mamonam u’v'bnoseihem,” ‘and they laid hands on their property and their daughters.’ Rabbi Soloveitchik zt”l focused on the Rambam’s inclusion of “and their daughters.” He writes as follows[i].
This brings us to a basic principle in Judaism, namely, tzniut, sexual modesty and morality. No other moral norm is as central and as important in Judaism as that of sexual modesty. Judaism held the view that human dignity and majesty can be achieved only thorough protecting sexual morality. If the latter is abolished, then man, no matter how agreeable and creative, forfeits the extra existential dimension that the Almighty granted him. Moral laxity and looseness makes man retreat from the human to the natural kingdom, replacing a meaningful life with a mechanical pressure and push.
The Rav here is pointing out that the Syrian-Greeks were trying to undermine the basic principle of tznius in Yahadus. They were trying to destroy this sense of modesty. As the Rav points out, no other moral norm is as central and as important in Judaism as that of sexual modesty.
This emphasis on the importance of tznius is actually highlighted in the comments of the Kli Yakar, on Parshas Chayei Sarah. (Rabbi Willig shli”ta often points out these comments of the Kli Yakar.) Araham Avinu sends Eliezer to find a wife for Yitzchak. Eliezer davens to Hashem and asks that Hashem send him a sign that if the girl is a ba'las chesed, that will be a sign that she is the right one for Yitzchak. Most of us read the parsha and think that chesed is the main middah on which Eliezer was focused. However, the Kli Yakar points out, there seems to be another, more primary middah. The first word of Eliezer’s tefillah is “hakrei,” (Breishis 24,12). Hakrei means let it happen. Hakrei is from the root of mikreh, something which happens by chance, something unexpected. The Kli Yakar says as follows, Eliezer wanted to find a na’arah, a young girl, at the well. However, he did not want a young girl who was a yatzanis, who would always go out to the well. He wanted to find someone who was tzanua, and normally stayed at home. Therefore, he davened to Hashem, that b’mikreh, by chance, let it happen by hashgacha, that unexpectedly this particular girl will be out today. The Kli Yakar writes
She’amar yazmin lo Hashem na’arah chashuva, she’ein darkah latzeis klal, u’lfi sha’ah, b’mikreh, teitzei achshav l’fanai davka, k’dei she’lo tehei min hayatzanios.
So we fine that even before Eliezer gets to the middah of chesed, he is focused on the middah of tznius. The Kli Yakar continues to explain that this is another explanation of the phrase “v’ish lo y’da’ah” (24,16), which means “someone who no man had known.” The Kli Yakar says we should take the posuk literally, no one knew her, because she has never come out before except for this time[ii]. This was the only time Rivka had stepped out of the house to the well,
‘She’lo haya shum adam makirah, ki lo yatzas me’olam, ki im b’pa’am hazeh.’
This was the tefillah which Eliezer had, and it was fulfilled. The Kli Yakar continues that we find that Eliezer approaches Rivka and asks her directly ‘Who are you?’ “Vayomer, bas mi at?” (24,23). This seems to be a little bit too direct. Why didn’t Eliezer ask the other na’aros who the girl was? The Kli Yakar writes because no one knew who she was, they had never seen her before.
V’al kein hutzrach lish’ol es pi’hah, bas mi at, v’lama lo sha’al l’sha’ar na'aros shehayu shama? elah lefi she’ish lo y’da’ah, ratza lomar, lo hikirah.
Rivka was unknown. Rav Willig points out based on this Kli Yakar, that when one is looking for a spouse, even more important than the middah of chesed, is the middah of tznius.
And we see that when the Greeks were trying to undermine Yahadus, they knew to try to attack the Jewish home and try to attack the basic sense of morality. This is one of the themes we should be thinking about on Chanukah, working on the middah of tznius, working on this sense of morality and modesty. Tznius is not just about a way of dress. Tznius is about a way of life. The posuk writes “Hatzneah leches im Hashem Elokecha” ‘walk with tznius before Hashem.’ One is supposed to be a private person. One is not supposed to push to be in the limelight[iii]. A Jew’s fundamental job is between him and Hakadosh Baruch Hu[iv].
One theme of Chanukah is to emphasize the purity of the Jewish home and Jewish family. This is part of our response to the Syrian-Greeks’ attempt to undermine the home.
Chanukah Sameach,
B. Ginsburg
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[i] These comments of the Rav are taken from the book ‘Days of Deliverance’ p. 186-187.
[ii] Rashi there presents a different p’shat in the posuk.
[iii] Of course, one sometimes is forced to go out. One has to go to minyan, to yeshiva, to work, etc… But fundamentally, a person should view himself as a private individual. Rav Willig once said in a public shiur that from one angle, giving shiurim in public and being a shul Rabbi is not an ideal situation. One is supposed to be more private. However, since one’s intention is l’sheim shamayim, and one’s goal is the spread of Torah and mitzvos, therefore one is certainly allowed to be a shul Rabbi, to be a teacher, to be a more public individual. It is a great mitzvah and zechus to be involved in disseminating Torah. But people in those positions should be aware of this potential drawback. Teachers and shul Rabbis should work to keep their private, personal lives private
[iv] This is one reason, among others, why using Facebook is objectionable. The main yesod of Facebook is to share one’s personal, private life with many, many other people. This is not the Jewish way. If one wants to communicate, he can use email. Some people use Facebook for kiruv – that is different. But to use Facebook to announce a person’s every move and every social interaction with as large a group as possible, goes against the Torah’s basic message of tznius. Hatzne’ah leches im Hashem Elokecha