B"H

Prozbul

This article will assume at least some familiarity with the practice
of Prozbul and will not explicate what it is or why it exists. For
this knowledge you may ask any Orthodox Rav, if need be.
Before going on please reread Devarim 15:1-11.

Like many Orthodox Jews we were encouraged to sign a form of Prozbul
allowing the Beit Din to collect whatever outstanding debts we may
have from Jews who must pay us back before sundown on the 29th day of
Elul this year.

The entire concept of Prozbul galls me and I discussed the issue with
my husband. He, in turn, consulted with Rabbis who told him that "in
our times it is impossible to manage without Prozbul". But my heart
pulled and I wanted to do the mitzvah of Sh'nat Shmitta d'Oreita, as
was done by our forebears until close to the end of the Second Temple
period. I didn't believe for one minute that HaShem could not find an
infinity of infinite ways to allow us to do this mitzvah. I also
believed in *us* to be able to accept HaShem's blessings.

We decided to do the mitzvah of Shmitta as is written in Torah and to
let whatever debts may (or may not) be owed to us to go, to be wiped
out. We took this decision Friday morning.

Directly thereafter my husband, tzaddik v'tamim yichieh, went to the
Old City to do errands for Shabbat. When he returned home he said:
"Here I want to show you something." Whereupon, he pulled the
largest and most beautiful cluster of white grapes from his
backpack. "Where did you get that!?", I asked in amazement. This is
a year of drought in Israel. It only rained a few times during the
winter, and those rains were little more than sprinklings. "How
could a cluster of grapes that large and beautiful be found in the
middle of August?", I wondered aloud. My husband said: "I went to the
Old City (of Tzfat). There I saw a man cutting clusters of grapes
from a vine heavy with clusters like these. He was giving the
clusters away in great joy to all passersby calling: "Here. Come
take. It's hefker!" My husband told me that he too excitedly
approached to do the mitzvah of eating hefker in Sh'nat Shmitta in
Eretz Yisrael - grapes, no less. Happily the man cut him the
cluster.

Thinking about it I understood and was overcome with awe, gratitude
and devotion to HaShem. We had done the mitzvah of Shmitta c'davar
HaShem and HaShem was doing the mitzvah for us c'd'varo! He was
saying to us. "Because you trusted Me, I will show you how
miraculously bountifully I provide for those who beleive in Me".
This and more: HaShem was telling us that His promise to us was both
for this world and for the World To Come as well, by providing grapes
davka. We learn that white grapes in their season and out of their
season are a sign that it will be well with us. Eating grapes is a
sign that one has their place in The World to Come promised to them,
and that they will drink the secrets of wine in the World to Come
because HaShem has hidden the wine in the grapes from Beraysheet.

There are those who keep the practice of giving nominal loans of very
small amounts to Jews before Sh'nat Shmitta in order to do the
'mitzvah' of letting the loan go. To these I say: Please, do not
make HaShem's words a travesty. Allow HaShem to bring, or not to
bring, those who need real loans to you and behave in accordance with
the various mitzvahs of lending to the Jews and to the Gentiles.

Achi V'achotai HaYakarim! Believe in HaShem and trust Him and love
Him with all your heart, with all your Soul and will all your might
(this last means your material goods). It is HaShem who gives us
life continuously and provides for us far better than we could ever
do for ourselves. We do not need to invent means for extorting money
from those Jews who cannot repay their loans in order to survive.
Trust HaShem. Do not turn to the Beit Din with a request that they
collect your debts for you from other Jews in Sh'nat Shmitta.
L'Hader this mitzvah as you would the mitzvot which you may find
easier to keep. Shmitta is one of the mitzvot that HaShem wants us to
go to the absolute observance level of observance of.

For those of you who are not in Israel: This mitzvah is incumbent
upon all Jews, male and female alike, in all places when we know when
the Sh'nat Yovel is. We do not remember when the Yovel is. But, if
you trust HaShem and let go all those Jews who are indebted to you,
*your debts to HaShem will be wiped out* and you too will merit to
drink the secrets of wine in the World to Come.

With blessings,
Doreen Dotan