Editor's note: This year the eighth day of Passover, kept only in the Diaspora, fell on the Sabbath, so while Jews in Israel read Parshat Acharei Mot, the Sabbath Torah portion, Jews in the Diaspora were still celebrating Passover and read the Passover holiday reading. The result is that Jews outside Israel are reading Acharei Mot this week, but Jews in Israel are up to the next portion, Parashat Kedoshim. The Jewish people will be literally "on the same page" again once a double parsha reading in the Diaspora balanced by the reading of one parasha in Israel on the same Sabbath lets the Diaspora communities catch up. Until then, Arutz Sheva will bring Divrei Torah on both Torah portions.
“What’s the harm?”
“What’s the big deal?”
“My friends do this, so it can’t be wrong!”
These are common when refrains when faced with questions about an uncommon religious practice not rooted in Jewish law, yet in vogue within various communities. Even if the practice is shown to be the direct descendent of a pagan ritual or other idolatrous source, there is often resistance to abandoning it.
People will often acknowledge the practice is stupid yet claim it is relatively harmless. Some even offer a Pascal’s wager-type answer, as if to say that just in case there is some merit to such a practice, it is not worth leaving it. Sadly, adherence to these practices is in fact quite destructive, as we shall see from the writings of the Sefer HaChinuch.
The prohibition of “al tifnu” is spelled out as follows (Vayikra 19:4):
“You shall not turn to the idols, nor shall you make molten deities for yourselves. I am the Lord, your God.”
We already know there is a prohibition to worship idolatry. What is this “extra” prohibition of turning to idols adding to the existing structure?
Rashi sees the prohibition of “al tifnu” as being causal in nature:
“At first, they are just worthless idols. But if you turn after them, eventually, you will make them into deities.”
If someone engages in “al tifnu”, that will lead to outright idolatry.
The Chinuch (213) offers a much more expansive explanation of this prohibition. He quotes the same causal chain noted by Rashi. He then writes:
“In other words, if you occupy yourself with its concepts, i.e. to ponder on the nonsense that those who believe in it say – that this constellation of that star will achieve this-and-this effect through this kind of incense, or upon that kind of worship – or if you constantly study the images that its worshippers make in order to understand the nature of its worship – out of all this a motivation will form for you to be persuaded after it and worship it.”
He then adds one more dimension to the problem.
“R Judah said ‘Do not turn – to see them’. This is on account of the reason we have stated; that it becomes a cause of being misled by it; and so it is also in order that one should not waste any part of his time by occupying himself with those vapid matters of nonsense. For a man was created for nothing else but to busy himself with the worship of his Creator”
If we dissect the words of the Chinuch, a number of important concepts begin to emerge. He refers to two methods of violating this prohibition. The first involves ascribing some truth to an idolatrous practice, such as a star somehow bring about a specific result. This seems to be a fairly obvious problem. The second is the person who spends his time studying the images made in order to further understand the nature of the worship. What is the nature of this problem? It seems relatively harmless compared to the first. And what is he adding when he speaks about occupying oneself with the study of “nonsense”?
The Torah, through the commandment of “al tifnu”, is adding a protective commandment to the prohibition of outright idolatry. For the Torah to enact such a prohibition indicates how serious a problem idolatry is, and how man is constantly battling the temptations that draw him to this destructive practice. When it comes to idolatry, the act of worship itself is the objective demonstration of ascribing reality to that which is false – the idol of choice. However, speculating on the “power” of a star and its possible effect on one’s future lacks the strict structure of an act of worship. Thus, the Torah comes along and equates this “non-action” with normative idolatry.
What the Sefer HaChinuch is bringing to light has to do with the drives that lead someone to idolatry. In the example of turning to the stars for guidance, the problem lies in ascribing a force or power outside that of God. The Rambam, in the first chapter of his Laws of Idol Worship, details the evolution of idolatry, and emphasizes that its origins lie in this distortion.
A person naturally feels insecure in this world, unable to know what lies ahead in the future. He is subsumed by fear and anxiety, and refuses to place his security in God. He searches for that which will remove this insecurity, and he sees the answer in the belief that there is some type of causal relationship between the path of a star and one’s future. He creates this fantasy of power in the star, thereby violating the precept. Ultimately, giving a power to this star is a clear expression of idolatry.
The other example cited deals with the person who studies the idolaters’ creations. Why is this a problem? It could be that he is detailing another drive that leads man to idolatry. The Jewish religion demands a complete adherence to its system and method of worship. It allows for no pursuit of religious worship in some other type of venue, nor the introduction of a “new” way to approach God. Seeking out some alternate method of worship, allowing for man to choose on his own how he wishes to pursue God, has a tremendous appeal.
Why can’t I develop my own way of relating to God? Yet God laid out for us a precise road of worship, and any deviation is merely the misplaced need for man to place his individual stamp on how he should worship. A person becomes transfixed not by the creation of the idol per se; rather, it is the avenue to other religious worship that appeals to him.
However, the Sefer HaChinuch adds one more layer. The study of idolatry as a subject matter is the issue. If someone seeks out the concepts of idolatry solely for a greater understanding of this area, he is giving value to that which by definition cannot be of any worth at all. This does not mean one cannot study the ideologies of falsehood in order to create a greater contrast with the truth of Judaism. Many of our great Sages devoted time to this pursuit. However, to see an inherent intellectual value in the subject matter is problematic. Not only is there an inherent problem being drawn into these areas; the area of knowledge itself is bereft of any significance.
A religious practice that attributes power to anything other than God clearly fits under the prohibition as described by the Sefer HaChinuch. Ascribing an unsubstantiated causal relationship between two items, such as a star and one’s future, fits under the prohibition as described by the Sefer HaChinuch. Seeking out alternate religious practices fits under the prohibition as described by the Sefer HaChinuch. So, what do you think? Is that new popular custom harmful?