Lo tuchal l’his’alem. You cannot look away.

Stop looking away. That is not what we're commanded to do. There's a myth in this week's parsha that most people read right past. [music] The Torah says if you see your brother's ox or sheep go astray, lo to chala esalem, you cannot hide yourself. You cannot look away. You must stop what you're doing and return it. >> [music] >> But the Chofetz Chaim points out something extraordinary. The Torah doesn't just say return the lost object. It says first hashev teshiven, you shall surely return it. And then lo to chala esalem, you cannot hide yourself as if hiding yourself is the real sin, not the failure to act, the choice to pretend you didn't see. Because we're not really talking about a lost ox. [music] We're talking about a lost person. At Amudim, this is what we try to do every single day. The person who walks through our door in whatever state they're in, carrying whatever they're carrying, we do not look away. We do not wait for them to be ready. We move toward them because lo to chala esalem is not just a myth about lost objects. It is the most important instruction in the Torah about lost people. You see them, you cannot pretend you didn't. >> [music] >> And you do not get to walk away. And if you're watching this and you feel that there is someone who is lost who you can see, lo to chala esalem, you cannot hide yourself. Not anymore. Now you know. This is turning the wheel because [music] the road to healing isn't straight, but no one should have to travel it alone. Wishing you a wonderful Shabbos. >> I will leave [singing] the light on. >> [music]