17th of Tammuz: The Breaking of the Tablets (Unfinished)

Here's the story. For better or for worse, I decided to begin writing this during the fast. Not only that, but I relied on the assumption that I'd figure it out as I went along (since I didn't get a chance to think it through on Shabbos, as I had originally planned). Unfortunately, I got a little light-headed late in the afternoon, and then my mind just stopped working around three hours before the fast ended. As I write this now, at 9:30pm, the fast still has around 30 minutes to go. Rather than eating and then frantically rushing to finish the post, I'd rather just leave it unfinished. I hope some of you will be able to work out the rest of the post. Who knows? Maybe I'll even be able to finish it later on in the Three Weeks!

17th of Tammuz: The Breaking of the Tablets

Introduction

The Rambam [1] begins his discussion of the national fast days by stating their common objective:

There are days on which all of Israel fasts because of the catastrophes that occurred on them, in order to awaken the hearts [of the people] and to open the paths of teshuvah (repentance). This will be a remembrance of our corrupt actions and the corrupt actions of our fathers that were like our actions today, which ultimately reached the point that [these corrupt actions] caused these catastrophes for them and for us. Through the remembrance of these things we will return to do good, as it stated, “they will confess their sins and the sins of their fathers” (Vayikra 26:40).

In other words, the primary purpose of these national fasts is to reflect on the national avonos (iniquities) which brought about these tragedies, and which are still present in the Jewish people today. By understanding these defects - their symptoms, their causes, and their consequences - we will be moved to do whatever we can to correct them, thereby preventing similar tragedies from happening in the future.

Today we are observing the taanis (fast) of the 17th of Tammuz to remember the five events that happened on this day [2]:

1. the breaking of the  Luchos (i.e. the stone tablets that Moshe Rabbeinu received at Sinai) 
2. the cessation of the tamid (i.e. the daily sacrifice) in the first Mikdash (Temple) 
3. the breaching of the city of Jerusalem prior to the destruction of the second Mikdash
4. the burning of a Torah scroll by Apostomos (a Greek official) during the second Mikdash era
5. the setting up of an idol in the Mikdash 

In this post we will examine the first of these events - the breaking of the Luchos - with the goal of gaining some insight into the avonos which led to it.

Facts and Questions

Moshe Rabbeinu had spent 40 days and 40 nights on Sinai receiving the Torah. On the last day the nation panicked, believing that Moshe would not return. This lead to a severe relapse into the darchei avodah zarah (the idolatrous ways of thinking), culminating in the forging and worship of the Eigel ha'Zahav (Golden Calf).

Hashem told Moshe what happened and stated His intent to destroy the entire nation. Moshe pleaded with Him, and He relented. Moshe descended from Sinai with the two Divinely-crafted Tablets in his hand. And that's when it all went down: 

It happened as he drew near the camp and saw the calf and the dances that Moshe's anger flared up. He threw down the Tablets from his hands and shattered them at the foot of the mountain. He took the calf that they had made and burned it in fire. He ground it to a fine powder and sprinkled it over the water. He made the Children of Israel drink (Shemos 32:19-20).

There are two major questions for us here: (1) Why did Moshe break the Luchos? (2) What insight(s) can we gain that might help us in our national teshuvah? 

I'm sure there are many interesting answers to these questions. This year, I found myself focusing on trying to understand the approaches of only two meforshim.

Rashi vs. Sforno

Rashi [3], citing the Gemara [4], explains that Moshe made a kal va'chomer argument from the Torah's prohibition against allowing an idolatrous apostate to partake of the Pesach-sacrifice:

[Moshe] said to himself: "If regarding the Pesach-sacrifice, which is a single mitzvah, the Torah says, 'no stranger (i.e. idolater) may partake of it' (ibid. 12:43), now that the entire Torah is here, and all of Israel are apostates, how can I give it to them?

Sforno takes a different approach, based on the words, "and he saw the calf and the dances, and Moshe's anger flared up." Sforno explains:

When [Moshe] saw that they rejoiced in their disgrace - similar to, "When you do evil then you rejoice" (Yirmiyahu 11:15) - this angered him and he despaired that he would be able to repair the crooked in a manner that they would return to their [former] perfection and be worthy [to receive] those tablets.

There appears to be a machlokess (disagreement) here between Rashi and the Sforno. According to Rashi, Moshe's breaking of the tablets had nothing to do with his assessment of Bnei Yisrael's ability or inability to do teshuvah. It would appear from Rashi that even if Bnei Yisrael were capable of doing teshuvah, their avodah zarah (idolatry) would have precluded them from receiving the Torah. 

In contrast, the Sforno focuses exclusively on how irreparably far Bnei Yisrael had gone in their sinfulness. He implies that if Bnei Yisrael had been capable of returning to their former state of perfection, then they might be worthy of receiving the tablets, but when Moshe saw that they "rejoiced in their disgrace," he knew that their waywardness was beyond rehabilitation.

I can't say I have succeeded in grasping the root of this machlokess, but I will do my best to expound a bit on each side.

Analysis of Rashi

Interesting is Rashi's emphasis on quantity: "if an apostate is excluded from the Pesach sacrifice, which is a single mitzvah, then certainly Bnei Yisrael should be excluded from the entire Torah." Obviously, one can't take this type of reasoning too literally without running into absurdities. The Baalei Tosfos on the Gemara [7] point out that this wasn't an actual kal va'chomer. Still, we need to understand what Rashi is getting at.

The key to Rashi's explanation lies in understanding the relationship between avodah zarah and the Torah system as a whole. According to Chazal [6], the entire purpose of Torah is to uproot avodah zarah. The Rambam [8] codifies this principle in the Mishneh Torah: 

The mitzvah [prohibition] against avodah zarah is equal to all of the mitzvos in their entirety, as it is stated, “And if you shall err and not do all of My mitzvos” (Bamidbar 15:2) – from the Oral Transmission we learn that the verse refers to avodah zarah. Hence, you have learned [from here] that anyone who affirms avodah zarah has denied the whole Torah in its entirety, and all of the prophets, and everything which has been commanded by the prophets from Adam to the end of the world, as it is stated, “From the day that Hashem has commanded you and onward, for your generations” (ibid.). And anyone who denies idolatry has affirmed the whole Torah in its entirety. The prohibition of avodah zarah is the root of all of the mitzvos in their entirety.

A Jew who worships avodah zarah is equal to a gentile in all matters, and is not treated [merely] as a Jew who violated a transgression punishable by stoning. [Likewise,] an apostate to avodah zarah is considered an apostate to the entire Torah.

An analogy might help to understand Rashi's approach. The purpose of the Environmental Protection Agency is "to protect human health and the environment." Let us say that the EPA was caught dumping chemical waste into a reservoir. Even if this action only violated a single law, that single violation reflects a complete undermining of the entire EPA's enterprise, and would philosophically be tantamount to violating every environmental ordinance. 

The same is true in the case of avodah zarah. To violate any mitzvah is bad, but to violate a mitzvah of avodah zarah is tantamount to going against the entire Torah. It doesn't matter whether that violation is the actual worship of avodah zarah, or allowing an apostate to partake of the Pesach sacrifice (whose entire identity is "the anti-avodah zarah sacrifice"), or worshipping the Golden Calf. All of these actions represent a fundamental subversion of the Torah's mission. 

We will revisit Rashi at the end of the post to complete our analysis. Now let's switch to Sforno.

Analysis of Sforno

[unwritten]

Concluding Thoughts

Judging by their difference in interpretation, it would seem that Rashi and Sforno would have different takes on what tragedy we are supposed to be contemplating on the 17th of Tammuz.

According to Rashi, the tragedy of the 17th of Tammuz is how 

[unwritten]

[1] Rabbeinu Moshe ben Maimon (Rambam / Maimonides), Mishneh Torah: Sefer Zmanim, Hilchos Taaniyos 5:1

[2] Talmud Bavli, Maseches Taanis, Chapter 4 Mishnah 6 (daf 26a)

[3] Rabbeinu Shlomo ben Yitzchak (Rashi), Commentary on Sefer Shemos 32:19

[4] Shabbos 87a. For the sake of ease, we will refer to this as "Rashi's interpretation" even though he got it from Chazal.

[5] Rabbeinu Ovadiah Sforno, Commentary on Sefer Shemos 32:19

[6] See Horiyos 8a; Sifrei Devarim 54

[7] Baalei Tosafos, Shabbos 87a d"h u'ma Pesach

[8] Rabbeinu Moshe ben Maimon (Rambam / Maimonides), Mishneh Torah: Sefer ha'Mada, Hilchos Avodah Zarah 2:4-5