While there is no explicit mitzvah to visit those who are ill in the Torah or rabbinic literature, the value and obligation are alluded to in numerous places. (We have cited Sota 14a, but also see Nedarim 39-b and Bava Metziah 30b.) While most commentaries see the actual performance of the mitzvah as rabbinic in origin, the fulfillment is part of a more general Torah obligation. (However, the Sefer Behag and Sefer Yereim both count this as one of the 613 mitzvot.) What are those Torah obligations? We will suggest three below.
(1) Imitateio Dei: Walking in God's Ways
ואמר רבי חמא ברבי חנינא מאי דכתיב (דברים יג, ה) אחרי יקוק אלקיכם תלכו וכי אפשר לו לאדם להלך אחר שכינה והלא כבר נאמר (דברים ד, כד) כי יקוק אלקיך אש אוכלה הוא אלא להלך אחר מדותיו של הקב"ה מה הוא מלביש ערומים דכתיב (בראשית ג, כא) ויעש יקוק אלקים לאדם ולאשתו כתנות עור וילבישם אף אתה הלבש ערומים הקב"ה ביקר חולים דכתיב (בראשית יח, א) וירא אליו יקוק באלוני ממרא אף אתה בקר חולים הקב"ה ניחם אבלים דכתיב (בראשית כה, יא) ויהי אחרי מות אברהם ויברך אלקים את יצחק בנו אף אתה נחם אבלים הקב"ה קבר מתים דכתיב (דברים לד, ו) ויקבר אותו בגיא אף אתה קבור מתים
And Rabbi Chama the son of Rabbi Chanina said, "What is the meaning of the verse, 'After the Lord, your God, shall you walk (Deuteronomy 13:5)'? Is it possible for a man to walk after the divine presence? And isn't it already stated, 'For Hashem your God is a consuming fire (Deuteronomy 4:24)'? Rather, To follow the character traits of God. "Just as he clothes the naked, as it is written, 'And the Lord God made for Adam and his wife cloaks of leather, and he clothed them (Genesis 3:21);' so too you shall clothe the naked. The Holy One, Blessed be He, visited the sick, as it is written, 'And he appeared in Ailonei Mamrei [while Abraam was in pain] (Genesis 18:1);' so too you shall visit the sick. The Holy One, Blessed be He, comforted mourners, as it is written, 'And it was, after the death of Abraham, and God blessed his son Isaac (Genesis 25:11);' so too you shall comfort mourners. The Holy One, Blessed be He, buried the dead, as it is written, 'And he buried him in the valley (Deuteronomy 34:6);' so too, you shall bury the dead."
-What are the attributes we are to imitate?
- When does God visit Abraham? (See below)
(1) And the LORD appeared unto him by the terebinths of Mamre, as he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day; (2) and he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood over against him; and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed down to the earth,
(א) וירא אליו לְבַקֵר אֶת הֵחוֹלֶה אָמַר רַבָּי חָמָא בַּר חַנִינָא, יוֹם שְׁלִישִׁי לְמִילָתוֹ הָיָה, וּבָא הַקָּבָּ"ה וְשָׁאַל בִּשְׁלוֹמוֹ (בבא מציעא פ"ו):
(1) וירא אליו AND THE LORD APPEARED UNTO HIM to visit the sick man. R. Hama the son of Hanina said: it was the third day after his circumcision and the Holy One, blessed be He, came and enquired after the state of his health (Bava Metsia 86b)
-Generally when God appears, God has a message. Here it says that God appears, but there was no message. Thus the only reason God 'came' was to provide a caring presence. [Note: you can read the text that God appeared to Abraham in a vision of three angels but the rabbis do not read the verse this way.]
(ד) רבי ברכיה בשם רבי לוי פתח ותתן לי מגן ישעך וימינך תסעדני וענותך תרבני (תהלים יח) כיון שנגלה עליו היה הקב"ה עומד ואברהם יושב שנאמר והוא יושב, ... בנוהג שבעולם כשהתלמיד חולה והרב הולך לבקרו התלמידים מהלכין תחלה ואומרים שליחות הרב לביתו של חולה לומר שהרב מבקש לבקרו. והקב"ה אינו כן כשמל אברהם והיה מצטער מן המילה אמר למלאכים לילך לבקרו, עד שהמלאכים הולכין קדמן הקדוש ברוך הוא שנאמר וירא אליו יקוק ואחר כך וישא עיניו וירא, יש עניו גדול מזה
Rabbi Brechia in the name of Rabbi Levi began his sermon thus, quoting the 18th Psalm."You make your saving help my shield, and your right hand sustains me. When God appeared to Abraham, God stood, and Abraham sat [as the verse states 'he was sitting in the doorway'.] It is the custom of the world than when a student is sick and the teacher goes to visit, others students go first and say, "There is a delegation of the to the house of the patient," meaning that the teacher wishes to visit the student. No so the Holy One. When Abraham was circumcised and was in pain from the circumcision, He tolf the messengers to go and visit. But before they arrived, God came in first, as the Torah says (Genesis 18:2), "And God appeared to him," and after that (Genesis 18:2) "And he lifted his eyes and saw three messengers."
- What does this midrash say about who should visit the sick?
- What do we learn from God coming before God's messengers?
- If you walk into the room, and want to bring in this idea that you are imitating God's way in your encounter with a fellow human being, how would you prepare yourself? How would your visit be different than any other friendly visit?
(2) Acts of Loving Kindness
(א) מִצְוַת עֲשֵׂה שֶׁל דִּבְרֵיהֶם לְבַקֵּר חוֹלִים. וּלְנַחֵם אֲבֵלִים. וּלְהוֹצִיא הַמֵּת. וּלְהַכְנִיס הַכַּלָּה. וּלְלַוּוֹת הָאוֹרְחִים. וּלְהִתְעַסֵּק בְּכָל צָרְכֵי הַקְּבוּרָה. לָשֵׂאת עַל הַכָּתֵף. וְלֵילֵךְ לְפָנָיו וְלִסְפֹּד וְלַחְפֹּר וְלִקְבֹּר. וְכֵן לְשַׂמֵּחַ הַכַּלָּה וְהֶחָתָן. וּלְסַעֲדָם בְּכָל צָרְכֵיהֶם. וְאֵלּוּ הֵן גְּמִילוּת חֲסָדִים שֶׁבְּגוּפוֹ שֶׁאֵין לָהֶם שִׁעוּר. אַף עַל פִּי שֶׁכָּל מִצְוֹת אֵלּוּ מִדִּבְרֵיהֶם הֲרֵי הֵן בִּכְלַל (ויקרא יט-יח) "וְאָהַבְתָּ לְרֵעֲךָ כָּמוֹךָ". כָּל הַדְּבָרִים שֶׁאַתָּה רוֹצֶה שֶׁיַּעֲשׂוּ אוֹתָם לְךָ אֲחֵרִים. עֲשֵׂה אַתָּה אוֹתָן לְאָחִיךְ בְּתוֹרָה וּבְמִצְוֹת:
(1) It is a positive commandment to visit the sick, comfort the mourning, to remove the dead, to bring in the bride, to escort guests, and to occupy oneself with all the needs of burial; carrying [the coffin] on one’s shoulder, to walk in front of him, to eulogize, to dig, and to bury. As well to make the bride and groom happy, and to take care of all their needs. And these are ‘Gemillut Chasadim’ (acts of loving kindness) that are done with one’s body, that have no measurement. Although all these are rabbinic laws they are included under "Love Your neighbor as yourself" (Leviticus 19:18), meaning that all things that you would like others to do for you, you should do for your brother.
Unlike the first way of formulating the mitzvah, which is more theological, how does Maimonides categorize the mitzvah?
What does it mean to love your neighbor AS YOURSELF? (see attached sourcesheet) How might this idea of loving AS YOURSELF shape the ethic for you when visiting those who are ill?
Rabbi Acha said in the name of Rabbi Hanina. One who visits a paitient takes away a sixtieth of his pain. Said the [rabbis] to him: Is so let sixty people visit him and restore him to heath. He replied: The sixtieth is ts as the tenth spoken of in the scool of Rabbi (Judah the Prince. This means that a sixtieth of what remains is taken away, so there is an infinite regression.] It also provides that the visitor was a ben gilo- born under the same stars
What is the significance of sixty in Jewish law?
Why would visiting take away illness? Doesn't medical intervention do that? How might you read this concept in a contemporary manner?
Why would visiting someone 'born under the same star' make a difference? How might we reread this line with a modern sensibility?
(3) Communal Responsibility: To Not Visit is Like a Shedder of Blood
רב חלבו חלש נפק אכריז רב כהנא רב חלבו באיש לא איכא דקא אתי אמר להו לא כך היה מעשה בתלמיד אחד מתלמידי ר' עקיבא שחלה לא נכנסו חכמים לבקרו ונכנס ר' עקיבא לבקרו ובשביל שכיבדו וריבצו לפניו חיה א"ל רבי החייתני יצא ר' עקיבא ודרש כל מי שאין מבקר חולים כאילו שופך דמים
Rabbi Helbo became ill. Rabbi Kahana proclaimed. "Rabbi Helbo is sick!" but no one came to visit. He rebuked the others as follows. Did it not happen that one of Rabbi Akiva's students took sick and none of the sages came to visit? But Rabbi Akiva himself entered to visit and because Rabbi Akiva swept and sprinkled the room before him, he recovered. "My master you have made me live," the student said. Following this Rabbi Akiva went to the beit midrash and taught, "Whosoever does not visit the sick is like a shedder of blood."
Unlike the other two sources which focus on a positive, here the failure to act is seen very harshly. In what way is the failure to visit like a 'shedder of blood'.
We have a biblical commandment to "not stand idly by the blood your friend". How is this comparable?
What was the nature of Rabbi Akiva's visit? What did he do? What does this tell us about the mitzvah of bikur cholim? Does every person need to visit? Are there other ways we might support those who are ill and the family?
Rabbi Israel Meir Kagan (Chofetz Chaim) Ahavat Chesed 3:3 (early 20th century)
Now people, because of our many sins, are lax in observing this mitzvah of bikkur cholim, especially when the sick person is poor. I do not know what justification they have. The obligation exists where the patient is rich- even more so, then, when he is poor. If the poor is not visited, his very life may be jeopardized. Usually he cannot afford the food he needs in his illness. He has no one to consult with concerning his condition. Sometimes he cannot even afford to call a doctor or to buy medicine. His sufferings are aggravated in the winter when the sever cold crushes his depressed spirit. His worries increase when he realizes that he has lain in bed for several days, and no one has opened his door to care for him or to revive him. All these factors weaken his resistance and reinforce his illness, and this might cause his death. How should we appraise this dreadful state of affairs? People have to confess and say" "Our hand has not shed this blood."
- The chofetz Chaim quotes Deuteronomy 21:7. Look at the context there. How does he apply it to our situation?
- What does it say about a community when it does not have a caring community program?
- Here bikur cholim includes patient advocacy and assessment of needs. In our modern society, these issues are still very relevant. How can a synagogue assist with meeting such basic needs?
An Instance of Bikkur Cholim