Special Features The Other Kind of Lesson The Gemara in SHABBAT says in the name of Rava b. M'chasya and Rav Chama b. Gurya, in the name of Rav: Never shall a person favor one child among his children, for because of two measures of cloth that Yaakov gave to Yosef more than his other sons, they became jealous of him, things snowballed, and our ancestors ended upin Egypt. Whatever Yaakov's reasons were for giving Yosef the KUTONET PASIM, the Gemara (and Rambam) says that by doing so, jealousy between Yosef and his brothers was kindled, and ultimately led to our enslavement and imprisonment in Egypt. Parents (and grandparents) must be super-sensitive to the potential tension they can inadvertently cause between siblings by their "playing favorites". And this does not mean that gifts have to be identical, etc. It means that each child should get an equal share of the parents' time, attention, and affection. And thatis much harder than making sure the material gifts are equivalent. This is the other kind of lesson we can learn from the Avot. It is not the "be hospitable like Avraham and Sara". It is "don't make the same mistake that Yaakov Avinu made." His actions resulted in devastating consequences for himself, his children, and all his descendants. The Gemara is saying that the jealousy causedby Yaakov brought about the sale of Yosef. And that brought us down to Egypt. Midrash P'li'a says: G-d said to the people of Israel - You sold Yosef into slavery!! I swear by your lives that every year you will say - we were slaves to Par'o in Egypt. Powerful lessons come in two flavors - pos. & neg. And we must learn from both. CHANUKA 5759 Halachic review... When in doubt or confused, consult your
Rav. The first part of this answer applies to nights other than Friday and Motzaei Shabbat. The rules of Shabbat affect the candle lighting of Friday and Motzaei Shabbat. The Gemara says that the mitzva of Chanuka candles is "from the setting of the sun until the foot leaves the marketplace." Is this talking about when to light or
the time period during which the Chanuka candles should be lit? When is the time referred
to as "the setting of the sun"? When does the foot leave the marketplace? These
questions are answered differently by poskim through the generations. According to most other opinions, and practiced by most communities around the world and in Israel, Chanuka candles are to be lit at TZEIT HAKOCHAVIM, stars-out. Here the meaning of the setting of the sun is when the light of the sun leaves the sky. Those who wait for Stars-Out can light from 5:00-ish, however Maariv should now preceed the lighting. People who have a fixed Maariv schedule later in the evening, will light Chanuka candles at the earlier time and wait until later to daven Maariv. Family or community custom often determines how an individual will act in these matters. Many individuals will find it difficult to light Chanuka candles "on time". Rule of thumb for this mitzva is "the sooner the better". The first part of the evening is preferred because of the Pirsumei Nisa issue. Publicizing the miracle is not just a detail of the mitzva, it is an integral, essential element of it. However,we generally consider it permissible to light Chanuka candles all night long, with brachot. The earliest time to light... PLAG MINCHA is 1¼ "halachic" hours before sunset. During Chanuka week this year, use 3:40pm as the earliest time to light. Lighting from Plag Mincha is acceptable, but far from ideal, since candlelight is not noticeable when the sun is up and therefore it is questionable whether PIRSUMEI NISA applies at that early hour. Nonetheless, there is halachic sanction for lighting - with brachot - from Plag Mincha onward. Lighting early should be used only in cases of need. It is generally agreed that Chanuka candles cannot be lit before Plag Mincha. In other words, DO NOT LIGHT CHANUKA CANDLES BEFORE 3:40pm, regardless of the circumstances. Most authorities hold that lighting before Plag Mincha is the same as not lighting - no mitzva is performed. Brachot recited before Plag would be in vain. Lighting from Plag Mincha is
acceptable, but far from ideal, since candle light is not noticeable when the sun is up
and therefore it is questionable whether PIRSUMEI NISA applies at that early hour.
Nonetheless, there is halachic sanction for lighting - with brachot - from Plag Mincha
onward. Lighting early should be usedonly in cases of need. The later one can light during
this pre-sunset period, the better. Some have the custom of preparing the
Chanukiya in the morning for the evening. This not only serves the practical purpose of
being ready to light on time without delaying to set up later, but it also commemorates
the practice in the Beit HaMikdash called Hatavat HaNeirot, whereby the Kohen (Gadol)
tended the Menora andprepared it in the morning for kindling in the late, late afternoon.
Since our lighting on Chanuka directly commemorates the lighting of the Menora in the Beit
HaMikdash, this suggestion pro vides a nice "added touch" to the mitzva and
sybolism of Chanuka lighting. The timing in the Gemara is quantified as a half-hour after dark. Therefore, the halachic ruling is that the candles should burn until at least a half-hour after stars-out; or for a minimum of a half-hour, if they were first lit after dark. Although we considered the earlier Stars-out time (5:00-ish) for the beginningof lighting, it is suggested (appropriate?) to use the later "Shabbat out" time of 5:20-ish in calculating the half-hour-after rule. In other words, if a person lights anytime from 4:45 (or earlier) to 5:20pm, there should be large enough candles or sufficient oil to last until at least 5:50pm. (a little longer is better) Practically speaking, someone who lights according to Minhag Yerushalayim would need sufficiently long candles or enough oil to last for at least 65-70 minutes. Those lighting earlier would need even longer candles. The colorful candles that we remember from our childhood, the ones in the box with the music for Ma'oz Tzur on it and an envelope for a needy and worthy charitable institution squeezed inside with the candles, are probably too small for Minhag Yerushalayim, and should not be used. There is an abundance of attractive, colorful, frosted, glazed, silver-plated, copper-plated, what-have-you candles of larger dimensions that areperfect for Minhag Yerushalayim and the increased time range for Pirsumei Nisa. And oil cups/glasses come in a wide range of sizes, as well. Anyone lighting past 5:20-ish needs the minimum half hour burning regardless of how late they light. In light of the fact, as mentioned
above, that Pirsumei Nisa in our time extends longer than the half-hour time limit, there
are authorities who recommend that we use slightly longer candles or a bit more oil in
order to extend the mitzva beyond the original time-limit. Notice that the suggestion is
"slightly" and "a bit more"; it is not necessary to exaggeratedly
extend the burning of the Chanuka candles. The original place for display of the
Chanukiya was outdoors at the entrance to one's courtyard or home. Many people who have come to live in Israel, still light inside, at the window, as they had lit for years in their home countries. But others have gone back to the original practice of lighting outdoors. It seems that this is the preferred method in Yerushalayim. If you are considering changing any
aspect of your Chanuka candle lighting routine, (candle to oil or vice versa, sunset to
stars-out or vice versa, indoors to outdoors or vice versa, window to door or vice versa,
each family member to one for the family or vice versa, etc.) it is advisable to consult a
Rav. The Gemara tells us that when Adam
HaRishon realized that the day getting shorter and shorter during the winter, he feared
that he had caused the diminishing of the day - due to his having eaten from the tree of
Knowledge of Good & Evil - which would continue until the world would be destroyed.
When the days began to get longer, he realized that the world was not being destroyed and
he celebrated with a Festival of Light. A forerunner of Chanuka, perhaps? Redemption of captives takes precedence over the giving of money and clothing to the needy. There is no mitzva as great as the redemption of captives. Any monies gathered for any other purpose or mitzva are to be transferred over to the purpose of redemption of captives. Even if monies were raised for the building of theBeit HaMikdash; even if wood and stones were brought and prepared for the building - which are generally forbidden to be used for any other mitzva or purpose - they are sold in order to redeem captives. - Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh Dei'ah 252:1 Because Vayeishev contains the episode of Yosef's captivity, Shabbat Parshat Vayeishev is marked by the Orthodox Union and its shuls, and by many other congregations, as an awareness Shabbat for Israel's missing soldiers, whose whereabouts and conditions are unknown for these past 12 to 16 years. In additon to the Call to Action in
this special Torah Tidbits section, we repeat our suggestion that we include prayers for
Ne'edarei Zahal in three different settings, namely, at candle lighting for Shabbat and
Yom Tov, when we bless our children on Leil Shabbat, and in shul on Shabbat and Chagimwith
a special MI SHE'BEIRACH. We have included in this section short pieces on our four
missing "boys" in the expectation that reading about them and their families
will bring the issue of Israel's missing soldiers closer to our hearts and consciousness,
and higher up on the national agenda and that of Jews everywhere. A Call to Action -- November '98 We have recently discovered that the United States goverment possesses hundreds of classified documents relating to Israel's missing soldiers. Miriam and Yona Baumel, American citizens and parents of missing Israeli soldier Zachary Baumel, have applied for the release of these documents as is their right under provisionsof the Freedom of Information Act. The State Department has thus far refused access to the material, citing privacy and national security concerns. There are however precedents for the careful and responsible release of classified materials and the Baumels have indicated their readiness to work out a compromise to avoid any potential damage to national securityand privacy. There is good reason to believe that these secret intelligence files contain vital information about the fate of Zachary Baumel, Zvi Feldman, Yehuda Katz, and Ron Arad. The Baumels need our assistance to gain access to these documents which could help secure the release of their son and the other Israeli prisoners. We can help by contacting the State Department and our elected officials. Let them know that this issue is important to us. • Write and call Special Middle East coordinator Dennis Ross at the U.S. Dept. of State, 2201 C Street NW, Washington DC 20520. Phone 1-202-647-3672 or 1-202-647-5151. • Call the White House Opinion Line 1-202-456-1111 to ask for the intervention of President Clinton. • Call and write to the President, Vice President Gore, Secretary of State Albright, your senator and congressional representative asking that they use their influence at the State Department and the intelligence community. The State Department, as a government
agency, should be working with and helping the Baumels rather than hindering their ongoing
search for their son. 6 Betzalel Street, P.O.B. 32380,
Jerusalem • tel. (02) 623-6083 • fax: (02) 623-3864 Pres. CLINTON is HERE; Demonstration on Sunday, December 13th,
4:00pm The demonstration is sponsored by the
Knesset lobby to free Pollard, the Counsel of Youth movements, and the Committee to Bring
Jonathan Home Clinton will be at the Jerusalem Hilton on Sat. & Sun. nights. Fax number 02-6211000 And at the Holiday Inn Ashkelon on Monday night. Fax number 07-6718822 TT the team! They did it again! Torah Tidbits, the American Touch Football in Israel (AFTI) team, scored an impressive 47 points, which was 47 more points than their opponents Versaware scored. TT's first FOUR touchdowns where beautifully run in by QB Usher S. Perhaps their defense finally figured it out, so he threw the following threeTDs. There were a few exciting interceptions and some overall good playing (on TT's side of the game), both on offense and defense. This just in - Big Blue defeated Rudman
13-12. We are scheduled to play Big Blue this coming Friday (Dec. 11) at 12:30pm at Ohalim
(off Bar Yochai Street, near Pat intersection). If we win that game, and there are no
suprises for the rest of the regular season, then there will be a three-way tie for the
top of the "late"division - Big Blue, Rudman, and Torah Tidbits. The Big Blue
game looks like it's going to be a good one, and an important one. How about coming down
and rooting for Torah Tidbits (the fellows in the red shirts). GO TTEAM GO Send a special Chanuka basket to
someone in Israel Inquiries and orders - call Your Presence in Israel, 972-2-5386064 [The VaYeishev Homepage] |
