Most people don’t like to play the waiting game. We don’t want to see how the Russia/Ukraine spat plays out. We want it over now. We don’t want to wait until a birthday or holiday for gifts. We want them now. We cannot bear to wait until Pesach is over to eat that first bite of chametz.
Nowadays we are able to avoid much of the waiting game. I recently saw a YouTube video in which a chef developed a way to peel apples in 3 seconds. Thanks to microwave ovens, instant messaging, Fedex and 3D printing – our wait time has gone down drastically. But so has our patience.
Instant results have become so much a part of our reality. And, in many ways, the shortened delays have brought marvelous benefits. Wait times at emergency rooms have been considerably reduced, thanks to technology and science. I am able to receive the latest Jewish books for my children in a day or two. I can access Jewish Educational Media’s (www.jemedia.org) video library instantly on my tablet or smartphone.
So what should I strive for – instant results or patience?
***
In this week’s parsha, Metzora, we learn about the purification process for a metzora (commonly mistranslated as “leper”) — a person afflicted by a spiritual malady which places him or her in a state of ritual impurity. Among other requirements, the metzora must wait for a period of seven days in middle of the formal purification ritual.
Why must a metzora pause in middle of the process?
***
A metzora is afflicted with tzaraas (skin maladies) as a consequence of speaking Lashon Hara (evil talk, gossip and slander). Often, in hindsight, we are not proud of speaking Lashon Hara. In fact, if we could we’d often retract those statements. But, in the spur of the moment, the words escape our lips.
The prime breeding grounds of the yetzer hara (evil inclination) is the small window of time when our impulses are fresh. Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi explain in Tanya that were a person to contemplate the same sin at a later time under calmer circumstances, he or she would likely never commit the sin. The primary reason we lapse is because we act spontaneously and instantly.
The longer the desire lingers the less likely one is to act upon it. If I bite my tongue for a few minutes (or even seconds) I will likely not sense as fierce a craving to speak gossip.
Since the metzora sinned by lacking patience – his antidote includes a fair dose of patience. Waiting is not a pause in the purification process. It is an integral component of his spiritual cleansing.
***
Instant gratification is very useful for matters that stem from or feed my divine soul. But when the urge comes from the yetzer hara, patience will likely nip it in the bud.