In our last post, we discussed the Gemara’s claim that the punishment for false weights is greater than that for sexual immorality. As the Gemara explains, while one can do teshuva for sexual sins, one cannot do teshuva for dishonest weights and measurers.
The Gemara never explains why teshuva is possible for one but not the other. One might even argue the exact opposite. Is teshuva really possible after adultery? One cannot just wipe away the pain inflicted on others, no matter how hard one may try. One might be upset at one who cheats, but surely it is easier to forgive someone for a monetary wrong than for a violation of one’s person—which adultery surely is.
The Tosafists (Bava Batra 88b s.v. hatam), apparently sensitive to this question, do in fact limit the power of teshuva in cases of sexual sins to those cases where one does not create a mamzer. However, should one impregnate a married woman or father a child with a close relative, teshuva would not be possible. One can do teshuva from today until the day one dies, but it will not change the status of the mamzer. In such a scenario, we invoke the verse, “Something that is crooked cannot be straightened, and something that is missing cannot be counted” (Kohelet 1:10); there are some mistakes that just cannot be undone, try as we may (see Mishna Chagigah 1:6-7).
While Tosafot does not say so, presumably such an inability to do teshuva would extend to murder, and most likely murder’s spiritual partners, embarrassing another in public and lashon hara. Even if one retracts his slander, many who heard the original inappropriate words will never hear the retraction. And can that feeling of embarrassment ever be wiped away?
Teshuva, according to this analysis, is a function of the long-term impact of one’s action. The standard formulation of remorse, confession and a commitment to do better in the future can only do so much. Rav Soloveitchik notes that Yom Kippur is a day of judgment both for the living and the dead – the impact of one’s actions today may be felt for hundreds of years to come. This is both a powerfully inspiring[1] and powerfully frightening thought, where man is judged not so much by what type of person he is, but by his impact on others. It is this notion that is the basis for the recital of kaddish, where the parent becomes the inspiration and thus, gets credit for the children faithfully going to shul each and every day.
The Tosafists quote a second view that even in the case where one fathers a mamzer, teshuva is still possible. The Gemara’s claim that one can do teshuva in matters of arayot is universal. It may be true, Tosafot admits, that the results of one’s actions cannot be undone; yet teshuva is not dependent on undoing the results of sin – at least regarding sexual immorality, arayot. It’s too late to undo what has been done, and “all G-d can command” is sincere remorse. The Torah asks no more.
Yet sincere remorse is not enough when dealing with theft. Here, the Torah demands “that he shall return the stolen, that he stole”. Since this is next to impossible, teshuva is not possible. While one can express true remorse if one has violated Shabbat, eaten non-kosher, even spoken lashon hara or created a mamzer, when it comes to monetary wrong, remorse means little if the monies are not returned. Having cheated the public, it is next to impossible to do teshuva.
Why we don’t allow sincere remorse in the case of theft, as we do with fathering a mamzer, is never explained. The fact that it’s next to impossible to find and pay back all those who were cheated should be no worse, and much less of a sin, than bringing a mamzer into this world. After all, a mamzer is forbidden to marry another Jew and is stigmatized and embarrassed for life. For that we should allow teshuva, but not for stealing a few dollars?
One could argue – as we discussed in our last post – that theft is a worse sin than adultery. But the Gemara itself seems to reject such a notion, as it explains the reason that [heavenly] punishment for false weights is greater than that for sexual immorality (Bava Batra 88b) is because teshuva is not possible regarding theft. The sin of arayot is in fact worse – gilui arayot is one of the three cardinal sins for which one must sacrifice one’s life—however, since teshuva is possible, the punishment is less severe. But if the sin of arayot is worse than theft, then the question of why teshuva is not possible for theft is even more difficult.
One could also argue that while removing the stigma of a mamzer from someone is legally impossible, it is not actually impossible to pay back all those whom one has cheated. It may be very, very hard, but it is not impossible. One would need to examine each transaction, and contact each and every person who may have been cheated. This would be hard, expensive, time consuming, and unlikely to be undertaken. But since it’s theoretically possible, it is required to be undertaken, and thus, unless and until it’s done, teshuva is not possible[2]. When the Gemara claimed that teshuva is not possible for theft, that was a practical comment, not a theoretical one.
Perhaps we can suggest that as awful as adultery is, it is a sin of passion and one that may be the result of one stupid mistake. There are few who would argue that adultery is not a sin (though admittedly, that may not be the case for other Jewish violations of sexual ethics). Having dishonest weights and measures reflects cold, calculated and premeditated sinning on a daily basis. While each individual act may not rival adultery, the cumulative impact on so many makes it worse. Ironically, because the sin is not as great and may involve a minute amount of theft per transaction, one is more likely to justify the sin, or all too often, to claim it is not a sin at all. With such an attitude, teshuva really does become “impossible”.
Teshuva is a great gift from G-d, and G-d alone. A Jewish court cannot acquit someone because they did teshuva, nor can humans ever really know if one has truly attempted teshuva and whether that teshuva was accepted. “My thoughts are not your thoughts” (Yishayahu 55:8); we cannot really know how teshuva truly operates. What we do know is that it is best to act in a way so that the need for teshuva is kept to a minimum.
[1] I am reminded of the comment of the Tiferet Yisrael (19th century) in his commentary to the Mishna, that “beautiful is man, for he was created in the image of G-d” (Avot 3:14). He lists a number of non-Jews who, due to their wonderful contributions to the advancement of society, are to be regarded as the “righteous of the nations of the world.” They include Johannes Gutenberg (printing press), Edward Jenner (smallpox vaccine) and Francis Drake, who brought the potato to Europe, saving millions from hunger. There is no mention of their personal traits. The fact that they did so much good for mankind is enough to earn them a place in the World to Come. It is worth noting (see here) the rabbinic opposition to the invention of the printing press.
[2] While with the meticulous record keeping that is common today, such is possible, I am not certain that, even theoretically, this would have been possible in Talmudic times, when I imagine, record keeping was not as precise.
