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    PARASHAT HUKAT: SWEETENING THE BITTERNESS

    The opening section
    of Parashat Hukat
    introduces and discusses
    the Misva of Para
    Aduma, a special cow
    which was required for
    the process of purifying people or utensils
    who had become Tameh through contact with
    a human corpse. The cow would be burned,
    and its ashes would be mixed with water. This
    water would be sprinkled on people and objects
    that had become impure, and they would then
    become pure once again.
    Surprisingly, the Shulhan Aruch (Orah Haim
    685:7) brings a view (which appears first in
    Tosafot in Masechet Berachot 13a) that the
    annual reading of this section constitutes a
    Torah obligation.We read this section each year
    not only this Shabbat as part of the yearly Torah
    reading cycle, but also on a special Shabbat
    in between Purim and Pesach, which we call
    “Shabbat Para.” According to this view cited
    by the Shulhan Aruch, reading this Parasha
    each year is required on the level of Torah law,
    as opposed to virtually all other Torah readings,
    which are required Mi’de’rabbanan.
    The question naturally arises as to the source
    and reason of this requirement. There is no
    Biblical obligation to read about other Misvot.
    Why – and where – does the Torah require

    reading about the Para Aduma?
    Rav Yaakov Kamenetsky (1891-1986), in his
    Emet La’Yaakov (Parashat Ekeb) answers
    that the source of this obligation is a verse in
    Parashat Ekeb (Debarim 9:7), where the Torah
    commands us to remember “how you angered
    Hashem your G-d in the wilderness.” The
    Malbim (Rav Meir Leibush Weiser, 1809-
    1879), in his work Arsot Ha’haim, claims
    that this refers to the sin of the golden calf,
    but Rav Kamenetsky disagrees, noting that
    the golden calf is mentioned separately in
    the next verse (“U’b’Horeb Hiksaftem Et
    Hashem”). Therefore, Rav Kamenetsky
    suggests that this command refers to the events
    that transpired in Mara, shortly after Beneh
    Yisrael crossed the sea. As we read in Parashat
    Beshalah (Shemot 15:22-26), Beneh Yisrael
    found themselves without water until finally
    arriving in Mara, where they encountered a
    body of water, but the water was bitter and
    foul-tasting. They angrily complained to
    Moshe, demanding water. G-d responded by
    commanding Moshe to cast a piece of wood
    into the water, whereupon it miraculously
    transformed into sweet drinking water. After
    this miracle, G-d had Moshe present to the
    people “Hok U’mishpat,” which Rashi explains
    as referring to several Misvot, including the
    Misva of Para Aduma. Thus, Rav Kamenetsky

    writes, by reading the Misva of
    Para Aduma, which was first
    presented at Mara, we fulfill the
    Biblical command to remember
    Beneh Yisrael’s angry complaints
    at Mara, where they challenged
    Moshe rather than placing their
    trust in Hashem.
    Rav Kamenetsky explains further
    the connection between the Para
    Aduma and Beneh Yisrael’s sin
    at Mara. The Para Aduma shows
    that by following Hashem’s
    rules, an impure person can
    be transformed, and regain his
    purity. We do not and cannot
    understand how sprinkling the Para Aduma
    waters brings a person purity, but Hashem said
    that this is how purity is regained. Likewise,
    at Mara, Hashem determined that a piece
    of wood should transform bitter water into
    sweet water. According to natural law, there
    is no reason whatsoever for why this should
    happen. Wood does not change foul-tasting
    water into fresh drinking water. But Hashem
    has the power to change any “bitter” situation
    into “sweetness,” in ways which we can never
    expect or understand. This was the people’s
    mistake at Mara – failing to recognize that
    the bitter water can be made sweet. The Torah

    commands us to remember this incident in
    order that we strengthen our Emuna, our faith in
    G-d’s unlimited ability to “sweeten” any form
    of “bitterness,” so that instead of complaining
    and bemoaning our circumstances, like our
    ancestors did in Mara, we turn to Hashem and
    ask for help. We fulfill this Misva through the
    reading of Parashat Para, which reminds us
    that Hashem can bring purity to the impure in
    ways which we do not understand. Just as an
    impure person can regain his purity through the
    mysterious process of the Para Aduma waters,
    so can any “bitter” situation be transformed to
    “sweetness” through G-d’s unlimited power
    and capabilities.