The first day of Tishrei begins the new year for many halachos. Yet, the laws of Yovel that appear in Parshas Behar do not begin until Yom Kippur of the Yovel year. Why is the beginning of Yovel delayed from Rosh Hashannah until Yom Kippur?
Many of the halachos that apply during Yovel are difficult to understand. A person who sold his land that was received as an inheritance has the land returned to him at the beginning of Yovel. According to the regular halachos that govern dinei mammonos (monetary law) this is incomprehensible. Once a sale of property occurs, it can never be revoked without the consent of the buyer. Yovel also frees slaves who previously had agreed to remain as slaves. After six years of servitude, the slave requested to remain in this state forever. Yet, when Yovel comes the owner is forced to free even such a slave. Following regular monetary practices, once a decision was willingly made to sell oneself to another, one should not be able to revoke that choice. Why is it that Yovel supersedes the standard rules of dinei mammonos?
Chazal teach us that when Hashem created the world, the theoretical plan was to create a world following the strict rules of justice. The name of Hashem that appears in the beginning of Sefer Bereishis is "Elokim" which is synonymous with middas ha'din - the attribute of justice. Ultimately, Hashem merged in middas ha'rachamim - the attribute of mercy - and created the world in such a manner because a world built on justice alone cannot endure. The description of creation, therefore, describes Hashem as "Hashem Ha'elokim" - the fusion of middas ha'din and middas ha'rachamim. In the musaf of Rosh Hashannah we say, "Ha'yom haras olam - today marks the creation of the world." As such, the reenactment of ma'aseh Bereishis begins with a time of justice. Rosh Hashanah is such a day. However, just as the original creation necessitated incorporating mercy and compasion to enable the world to exist, every year we relive that tempering of justice by mercy via our Yom Kippur observance. The very gift of teshuva which is the primary theme of Yom Kippur emanates from middas ha'rachamim. According to strict justice, there should be no way to rectify a sin. Yet, on the day of mercy, teshuva becomes a possibility.
In a world that would be governed by strict justice, there would be no place for Yovel. Fields that were sold and servitude that had been willingly entered into would remain so for eternity. Yet Hashem in His great mercy decreed that His world would also follow the dictates of compassions. Previous landowners who, sadly, had to sell their ancestral inheritance are miraculously given a second chance. Former slaves are granted their freedom even if they don't deserve it.
Hashem expects of us to act in a way that emulates His attribute of mercy. There is no more appropriate time to display middas ha'rachamim to our fellow man than on Yom Kippur. Rosh Hashanah as a day of justice is not the opportune time for the beginning of Yovel. When Yom Kippur arrives and we look to Hashem for mercy and compassion, the best way to attain this mercy is by showing mercy to others. We live in a time when Yovel does not apply for technical, halachik reasons. However, the lessons of Yovel, i.e. the need to show compassion to others and enable others to rectify previous errors, is a message that is a timeless one.
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