In this week’s parsha of Mishpatim, it states (22:30) that “if you find a
kosher animal in the field that has been torn (and therefore is not kosher
because it wasn’t ritually slaughtered) you should throw it to the dogs.”
Why? Explains Rashi, the great biblical commentator, it’s because this is
its reward for not barking during the plague of the death of the firstborn.
The question presents itself: Why is it that dogs are rewarded for posterity
for not barking? Contrast that to the plague of the frogs. They exhibited an
even greater self-sacrifice when they croaked their way into everything –
including hot ovens – putting their lives in mortal danger, yet they are not
rewarded for years to come. Why the difference?
The answer given by the rabbis and masters of ethical thought is as follows.
Doing one act of great sacrifice, although difficult, is not comparable to
changing one’s nature. A dog’s whole essence is to bark. Not to do so denies
what he is. The frogs, on the other hand, performed a momentary act of
great sacrifice. The same is true for people. A single act of self-sacrifice may
be hard, but changing who you are is much more difficult. The takeaway
lesson here is that changing one’s character traits for the better exemplifies
what you’re really made of. As the great Rabbi Yisrael Salanter once said,
“The loudest sound in the universe is the breaking of a negative character trait.”
Wishing you an inspiring Shabbos,
Rabbi Moshe Gruenstein