A couple months ago we had a problem with a leak in our house which damaged a few walls and also ruined a carpet. This week we finally got around to having the carpet ripped up to install something new, only to discover that we had Asbestos tiles underneath the carpet. Some of the tiles started to crack as they pulled it up, so we called in an Asbestos Removal Company to take care of the situation. By the next day workers in Hazmat Suits were hard at work for several hours removing every last trace of the Asbestos. Finally when they were done, it was inspected and a Hygienist came to inspect everything to make sure that it was totally clean and that the air quality was completely safe.
Ironically, the Torah portion this week tells us about a Hazmat situation which could appear on a person’s skin, clothing and even house. This was not Asbestos, as I don’t think they were using it back then during the pre-pollution days, rather it was a certain spiritual – physical condition known as Tzaraat which could occur to people and their possessions in the form of blotches of varying colors, surface deep or slightly deeper. The diagnosis was done by the Kohen (Priest) who was both an expert and also perhaps more importantly, a sensitive person, who could help the situation with his soft approach.
If the house had the problem then people had to stay outside the house until the problem was rectified. But if the person had it on their skin, they would have to leave the Jewish camp or city until they were healed and had gone through a purification process.
Maimonides describes this very interesting phenomenon as a miraculous occurrence which took place during biblical times, as a way of telling the person that they had erred with their speech. Specifically that they hadn’t been careful about how they spoke about others and in the process had maligned or slandered other people in a negative way. The purpose of these occurrences was to cause the person to spend time in reflection and work on improving their resolve in how they use the human gift of speech and how they need to be careful to refrain from talking negatively about other people.
There is a principle in Judaism, that the measure of good is always more powerful than the negative. In other words, if negative things have certain power, then certainly good has the equivalent force or greater. Similarly, by the Torah placing such great emphasis on being mindful of not speaking negative about other people as the damage is often far greater than one might realize, this is very telling in how important positive speech and conversation are to how we live and go about our lives.
We all have experienced the joy of receiving compliments, and we all have probably seen the beautiful effect of compliments on the behavior of children and adults. Words may just be words, but words can build lives and be cause for tremendous good and inspiration when we focus on using them in the right way.
A simple thank you or friendly good morning, can go so far in making a difference to someone’s life and certainly when we notice something we can give a compliment for.
I remember, once I was on a layover in Philadelphia Airport waiting for a flight to Israel, and I spent quite a bit of time walking around the airport with my children. At one point there was a lady who was pushing a garbage can around the airport and every so often she would bend down and pick up a piece of garbage or empty plastic cup from the floor. As we passed by her, I said to my children, “Let’s say thank you to her for keeping this place so clean and pleasant for all the travelers”. When we said thank you, the woman teared up and became emotional as she thanked us for noticing her and appreciating what she was doing, in a place where people are usually focused on catching their next flight.
To my children and myself this was a powerful lesson, about what a few positive words can do for someone, as this lady just like all of us, appreciated a meaningful compliment and a thank you.
The toxic Asbestos is gone from my house thank G-d, but the lesson about how much we need to stay clear of contaminated materials, was a powerful reminder of the message of this week’s portion that positive and constructive speech matters in a big way and perhaps far greater than we truly imagine.
Good Shabbos