Tzarat Perspectives.

There is a saying in Hebrew that goes like this: whatever doesn’t kill you will make you stronger.

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In the Portion of Tazriah the Torah begins to teach the laws of the Tzarat that afflict the Human body, after which it teaches the Tzatras that afflicts garments.

The purification of the metzorah is discussed in the next portion, in Parshat Metzorah. After the purification of the metzorah the Torah returns to discus the laws of Tzarat, this time Tzarat that afflicts the home. Immediately after which the Torah teaches the laws of it’s purification.

In other words when we talk about Tzarat that afflicts the person, the tzarat and it’s purification are taught in two separate portions, when discussing Tzarat of the home, the purification is taught immediately after the Tzarat.

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Anybody who looks at life objectively can understand that any set back can be an opportunity for growth. Challenge has the potential to bring out the best in the human soul.

The one struggling has a very different perspective. To him there is nothing good about the struggle, nothing positive. Only pain and despair. Pain hurts it doesn’t build.

When he finds the strength to overcome the challenges, he fells as if he reached a “new” stage of being. there was a change from the prior challenge and pain.

He finaly finds the courage to turn around and begin a fresh start, only to realize that the person he became is very much a product of the previous challenges that he tried so hard to escape from.

When we are imersed in a chalinging situation all we can feel is pain, we can’t see any good resulting.

From our perspective the Tzarat affliction and it’s purification are written in two distinct portions, the purification is a new beginning.

From Hashem’s perspective however, the purpose of the challenge is only to lead us to greater heights. Although not always can we see it that way.

In describing the Tzarat that afflicts the home the Torah says “When you come to the land of Canaan, which I am giving you as a possession, and I place a lesion of tzara'ath upon a house in the land of your possession”. The medrash teaches that from the tone of the verse we hear that this is in fact good news. The good news was the discovery of treasures that the native Cananites hid in the walls of their homes. When the Tzarat would appear and some stones would have to be removed, the treasures were discovered.

That is the Tzarat from the perspective of Hashem. All we have to do is look beneath the impurity and we will discover the treasures of our soul.

keeping Hashem’s perspective in mind will give us the strength to survive all of the challenges that we face. It will help us grow and find the treasure in our most difficult hours.