Rav Nissan Alpert (he was a talmid muvhak of Moshe Feinstein and he died young at 58 – 2 months after the death of Rav Moshe) comments on the beginning of the Sedra on the use of the word Odom.
He is stricken with leprosy and we know from the medrash and from Mishna Negaim (Seder Taharot) and from the Gemara in Erchin that it comes for 7 cardinal sins i.e. behaving miserly; theft; excessive pride, forbidden sexual intercourse, vain oath, murder; and lastly — loshon hora.
He is obviously a sinner!
However the Zohar HaKadosh points out that there are 4 names for man (Odom, Ish, Gever and Enosh) and the most exalted one is Odom.
So why is this menuval given such an elevated name and the whole section opens with this complimentary appellation?
Rav Nissan Alpert again explains.
We think the greatness of man depends on whether he has faults or not.
The great man has no faults and the average man has many faults.
That is a big mistake.
The difference between a great person and the average - is not that one has faults and one doesn't - as we say ki odom ein tzadik ba'aretz asher ya'aseh tov velo yechoto - everyone has faults.
The difference between the great man, and the man that is not great, is that the great man who has faults wants to improve himself. The man who is not great has faults, and is content to remain that way.
Odom - the outstanding personality who has Nega Tzara'at and sees that he has faults - vehuva el aharon hacohen - he voluntarily brings himself to the Cohen and says "How can I get better - how can I be a better person?"
It is not an indictment of an individual to be imperfect but it is an indictment of an individual to want to remain imperfect.
It is not an indictment of an individaul to be less than great but it is and indictment of an individual not to have an aspiration to want to be great.
So we see we are giving this Odom a chance to improve himself –
This classes Nega Tzaraat as a rehabilitation – not a punishment.
In Metzora we have the rules with regard to the NT that affects a house –
!It’s good news
Why is it good news? We are going to demolish your house? Why should this miscreant be rewarded with riches?
He has been chayav one of 7 things that a Nagua is supposed to have done.
Rav Leff focuses on Tzaris Ayin – a restricted (mean) eye.
He has been a skinflint and a cheapskate – we reward him with money? Why?
Rav Zev Leff explains –
Before the Kohen condemned the house and he announced tamei he commanded the owner to remove everything onto the street.
(anything left in there would become tamei with the house).
The medrash says a tzoris ayin person keeps their assets hidden – they don’t want the neighbours to know what they have.
We deliberately teach him a lesson by making him take all his stuff out.
The Msihna negaim says that Hashem is – chas al mamonam – he worries about the possessions of Jews – doesn’t like to see things go to waste.
One of the things he tells him to bring out is kli cheres.
Some kelim would become Tamei with the announcement and we could then metaher them later on. However klei cheres cannot be metaher.
So the whole reason we make him take out everything is because of klei cheres.
This are the cheapest type of utensil going - old time disposables!
How do kli cheres become tamei?
Not by touching the exterior.
A silver goblet is important because of its worth not its function so if a sheretz touched it on the outside it would become tamei – the Ikar is the silver content so that is the method through which it is metameh.
A kli cheres is worth nothing but its ikar component is it’s function as a kli to hold a substance.
If a sheretz touched it – it is not tamei. Put a sheretz inside it becomes tamei.
This is sending a message to the Nagua –
Money itself is not important its what you do with it!
He has been a mean person who didn’t do the right things with his money.
Now we are giving him a second chance. You are coming into some money - use it properly or else we will be back in this situation again and next time it will be your guf.