One of my friends was once picking up a pizza at Sara’s Pizza when another man waiting there told him a D’var Torah. The Shabbos after this happened, my friend was eating by my house and told me this D’var Torah. Not only does Sara’s Pizza serve great food, but you also can hear some great Divrei Torah!!!!

In the beginning of last week’s parsha, Tazria, we explain the karbonos (offerings) a woman brings after she gives birth. It mentions (12:6-8) she should take a lamb, but if she is poor, she takes two turtledoves and two young pigeons. In this week’s parsha, Metzora, it talks about the karbonos the Metzora (a person afflicted with Tzaras, a spiritual disease that usually comes because a person spoke Lashon Hara) brings, but they are the exact opposite of what a woman is to bring. The Metzora (14:21-22) brings a lamb if he is poor and two turtledoves and two pigeons if he is wealthy. Which one is the correct one?

The answer is the woman’s are the correct way. A rich person should bring a lamb and a poor person should bring birds. So why is it opposite for the Metzora? The answer is that this is a lesson to the Metzora.

The Metzora comes to bring the Karbon and says that he is a poor man. We answer to him that if he was a poor man, then there is no reason why he should be speaking such high language as Lashon Hara. A lowly, poor person does not defame others the way that he did. A poor person does not look down on others that way. Therefore, we tell that poor person that he needs to bring the rich man’s offering because he acted like a rich man.

Let’s now say the opposite. The Metzora comes and says that he is a rich man. We answer to him that if he was a rich man, then there is no reason why he should be speaking such dirty language as Lashon Hara. Lashon Hara is not the way a rich man talks. It is like rolling oneself in filth and dirt. Therefore, although you state you are rich person, you need to bring a poor man’s offering.

Basically, what this is trying to teach us is that no one should be speaking Lashon Hara. We should all try our best to learn the proper laws of Lashon Hara and avoid it whenever we can.

One final thought about Lashon Hara. The Chofetz Chaim quotes the GRA saying that “Every moment that a person avoids speaking Lashon Hara, he or she merits a hidden light that the angels can not even understand!” It is certainly worth avoiding Lashon Hara.

Good Shabbos!

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