Out of the Fire

The third aliyah in Tazria comes to teach us a fascinating point, the context of which seems to be often overlooked in the greater discussion of tza'raat, the skin condition about which we began reading in the first two aliyot of this parasha.  

Seemingly out of nowhere, in VaYikra 13:34, the Torah begins discussing the analysis of a skin mark which appears in the flesh of a healed burn mark.  This stands in opposition to the previously discussed skin marks which apparently do not have an impetus - as in, they just appear "out of nowhere" - we read about earlier.  

At first glance, it seems patently unfair - and perhaps wholly unrelated - that one could be both burned and have an instance of tza'raat in the skin - after all, isn't being burned already enough?  

But what if the two were, in fact, somehow related - that the burn had to have occurred so that the tza'raat could emerge and then be evaluated as such?  In other words, and in a context that some may find uncomfortable, that in the purification process related to the skin condition, a physical hurt had to be incurred first, then a spiritual condition to be discovered, then for the purification process to begin.

Nowadays, and in a thought I mean genuinely and seriously, we are not spiritually elevated to have tza'raat arise on our skin - to have a physical manifestation of a spiritual flaw so clearly present - objective and in view of all to see and for the kohen to evaluate.  But we certainly do still have physical ailments, whether it be, G-d forbid, a serious illness, a common cold, or a burn, as our Torah contemplates.  And if we take this logic to its extreme - that in Torah times, a burn could be a physical impetus to discovering tza'raat, a spiritual malady - then isn't it true that if we endure and suffer something like a burn today, that even without the accompanying and spiritual confirmation that is a skin condition, the burn is still indicative of something spiritually deeper?   

I hesitate to even wade into this territory given the ease of sliding into unfettered victim-blaming for physical ailments.  (I do not know the citation off the top of my head but I know that the Talmud doesn't have nearly this level of hesitation and demands that a person evaluate themselves, or their community, when they are sick.)  And that is surely not the intention of this discussion.  Rather, what if it was possible that every single moment, including physical experience, was utilized as an opportunity to draw us closer to G-d?  That nothing happens "by accident" and that, even without a kohen there to guide us objectively through the spiritual realm, we can still venture into this territory today - beginning with what happens to the bodies G-d gave us?  

The Torah comes here to teach us that a physical hurt like a burn can and was the starting point for discovering - and eventually purifying from - a spiritual wrongdoing.  I see no reason why, however cloudy or distant it may be, we cannot have the same mindset today.