Peace and blessings. We continue our study of Sefer Brit Shalom on the laws of bloodshed, and we’ve reached Halacha 28, which deals with a situation that can still be relevant today.
What happens when someone kills unintentionally? That is, he did not intend to murder. For example, imagine someone drives carelessly, and his vehicle causes an accident that results in someone’s death. Clearly, he did not intend to kill. Usually, in such cases, the authorities would revoke his driving license. But what does the Torah say?
In ancient Israel, there was a system called the Cities of Refuge. If a person killed another unintentionally, he had to leave his home and live in one of these special cities until the death of the High Priest.
Sometimes the High Priest was young, meaning the person might have to stay there a long time; other times, the High Priest was elderly, which could shorten the stay.
Although we no longer have Cities of Refuge today, there is still a lesson here. If someone unintentionally caused the death of another, they need to reflect deeply on their actions. In some cases, it might even be appropriate to move to a new place.
I know of someone who accidentally caused the death of a friend while working as a doctor. In order to atone for his actions, he changed his name and moved to a different city. This reflects the principle from the Torah: someone who kills unintentionally should remove themselves from their current place and live elsewhere during the time when the Cities of Refuge law applied.
Even though we don’t have Cities of Refuge today, in the time of Israel, this applied both to residents and to non-Israelites living among them. The Torah explicitly states that the Cities of Refuge were also intended for the ger toshav—a resident alien—meaning someone who is not part of Israel but lives among them.
