Everyone knows the famous midrash that details the symbolic meaning of the four species we take on the holiday of Sukkot. The etrog, which has a taste and a smell, symbolizes those who have the Torah and good deeds. The lulav, which has a taste in its fruit (tamar), symbolizes those who have the Torah. The myrtle, which has a smell, symbolizes those who have good deeds. And the willow, which has neither taste nor smell, symbolizes the Jews who have neither the Torah nor good deeds.
We all know this beautiful midrash, and even repeat it every year, but we don't always pay attention to its meaning.
The question begs here – why actually? Why do we need to include the willow, which has no virtue, no taste, no smell, no Torah, and no good deeds?
Don't be marginalized.
But in this Midrash, the depth of the meaning of Jewish unity is expressed. One can love a Jew because he has Torah and good deeds. One can appreciate a Jew because of his virtues, his wisdom, his good qualities. This is not true love of Israel.
Unity is tested when we come to the plains, to those who have no special virtues. The natural tendency is to distance ourselves from them, to push them to the margins of society. What can such people contribute to the public? The holiday of Sukkot teaches us that they too must be united with the other types of people in the Jewish people and included within Jewish unity.
Jewish unity is not measured in terms of virtues, knowledge of Torah, and the number of good deeds. Of course, every Jew should strive to be an etrog, and at least a lulav and a hadas. There is no doubt that one who has neither Torah nor good deeds does not deserve to be an arava. But this Jew is also part of the people of Israel.
A simple illustration of this is the love of parents for their children. Every father and mother strives for their child to be the smartest, most talented, and most successful, but is that what love for the child is conditional on? Even parents who have a son who is not smart, talented, or successful love him with all their heart. Why do they love such a child? Because the basic love between parents and their children does not depend at all on the degree of wisdom, talent, or success. He is their child!
To love because he is a brother
This is the meaning of Jewish unity. We love every Jew for the very fact that he is a Jew. A love that does not depend on his virtues, his knowledge of the Torah, and his good deeds. We must love him because he is a brother, a son of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
Of course, one cannot be satisfied with mere unity and connection. The model to emulate will always be the etrog, that Jew who possesses both Torah and good deeds. But even those who are still in the rank of avara are precious and beloved Jews, and should be embraced and loved.
This insight is not easy to internalize. We can achieve it as part of the general exaltation of the holiday of Sukkot. When we enter the Sukkah and take the four species into our hands, we are able to reach this profound truth, and from it we draw strength to treat every Jew correctly all year round.
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