The essence of the commandments
Hello Rabbi,
I wanted to ask you about the essence of God’s commandments.
In the Gemara, Tractate Berakhot 33:2, it is written:
Mishnah. He who says, “Your mercy will reach upon a bird’s nest, and Your name will be remembered for good,” gives thanks, gives thanks – he who establishes it.
Gemara. In Shlomo, we praise, we praise, he who establishes it – because of the two authorities, and for good your name will be remembered – which means for good and not for evil, and it is stated: A person is obliged to bless for evil just as he blesses for good. Rather, your mercy will reach a bird’s nest. For what reason? – Fly in it, Teri Amorai in the Maraba, Rabbi Yossi bar Avin and Rabbi Yossi bar Zveida; one said: because he casts envy in the act of creation, and another said: because he makes the measures of the Holy One, blessed be He, merciful, and are nothing but decrees.
But on the other hand, Maimonides writes in the laws of Shabbat:
When these things are done (desecration of the Sabbath for the purpose of saving life or doubting saving life), they are not done by Gentiles, nor by minors, nor by slaves, nor by women – so that the Sabbath would not be easy in their eyes; but by the great men of Israel and their sages. And women are not taught to do these things. And it is forbidden to delay in desecrating the Sabbath, for a sick person who is in danger, as it is said, “Which a man shall do and live in them” (Leviticus 18:5), and not to die in them. Have you learned that the laws of the Torah are not vengeance in the world, but mercy, kindness, and peace in the world. And those are the kinds of people who say that this is desecration and forbidden, about whom the Scripture says, “And I also gave them statutes that were not good; and statutes – they shall not live in them” (Ezekiel 20:25).
How can the contradiction be resolved, and beyond that, what is the real answer regarding the commandments (or at least some of them)? Are they decrees? Or mercy and kindness and peace in the world?
As far as I remember, Maimonides himself writes in the MN that sending the nest is mercy, and many pens have already been written about this.
In general, the commandments, from our perspective, should be perceived as decrees, meaning that our obligation to observe them is not conditional on anything. But it is clear that there are reasons behind them and they were not given to us for nothing. The reasons can be of all kinds, some of which may be mercy.
See here and in the references:
https://he.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D7%A9%D7%99%D7%9C%D7%95%D7%97_%D7%94%D7%A7%D7%9F
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