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Ruby's Dvar Torah

Ruby’s D’var Torah

Shabbat Shalom everyone!

This morning we are reading from Parashat Naso. Early in the Parashat, God tells Moses and Aaron that the Israelites must remove from the camp anyone with oozing sores or wounds, and anyone who has touched a dead body. This made me wonder: I mean, I can’t believe it! Why would God tell the Israelites to kick out the sick or impure people! How can a loving and caring God do that! It makes no sense!

The notes in the Etz Hayim Chumash explain that the camp was considered holy because God’s presence was there. People with certain conditions were seen as “ritually impure” and couldn’t stay in the camp until they became pure again. I understand this, because if the camp is holy, then it makes sense that people needed to be in a certain state to be close to God.

But still, it just FEELS WRONG to send them away just because they’re sick or perceived as impure or just because they were hurt or had been near a dead body. So.. I consulted with one of the great sages in all of Judaism, my father, and he thought maybe it also had to do with protecting the community from getting sick. And that made sense to me. It wasn’t just about the individual—it was about keeping everyone safe and healthy. It shows that God wanted the people to care about the whole community, not just themselves.

Rabbi Bradley Artson also gave another really great explanation. He said that the rabbis of the Midrash said God wanted the people who needed healing to be set apart so that angels could come and heal them. Rabbi Artson says we should try to be like those healing angels—to help people feel better and bring them back into the community.

This really made me think. Today, we still have people in our lives who are sick or healing. And later in the service this morning, we’ll say the Mi Sheberach prayer, a special prayer for healing. The people we’ll be saying this prayer for are not here with us this morning, just like the sick people who were temporarily outside the camp in this Torah portion. But our hope for them is the same: that they will heal and come back to be with us.

At first, it does seem harsh for God to tell Moses to remove them from the camp. But if your brother or sister has a cold and then they sneeze in your face, your reaction may be “Get away from me!!” – You also want to “remove” them from the space you’re in. You’re not being mean, you still love them (maybe), you just don’t want to get sick too.

In other parts of the Torah, when someone sins—like by breaking Shabbat or worshiping idols—God uses strong words like “cut off” or even commands the community to punish them. But here, in Parashat Naso, there’s no anger; there’s no judgment. The people who are sent outside the camp aren’t being punished—they’re being protected, and they’re protecting others. The Torah treats illness and ritual impurity with care and not with blame. That shows us how important it is to respond to each situation with the right balance of boundaries and with compassion.

I’ve learned from this Torah portion that even when people are going through hard times—whether they’re sick, sad, or hurt—we shouldn’t forget them. God wants us to care for others, to be kind, and to help bring everyone back into the community when they’re ready.