Feature Tidbit SEE what G-d's Bracha is... The Book of D'varim takes place during a period of 37 days. It begins on Rosh Chodesh Shvat, after the Wandering, after the successful battles against Emori and Bashan, when Bnei Yisrael have arrived at their final place of encampment before crossing the Jordan River into Eretz Yisrael. It is on the Moav Plains that Moshe Rabeinu speaks to all the people about what has happened during the past 40 years, spoke to us of all the mitzvot that G-d has commanded us to follow, and has begun to explain the meaning and purpose of our Torah way of life. The period ends with Moshe's passing from this world on the 7th of Adar. For the first three sedras of D'varim, Moshe has been telling the people about the background, foundations, and basics of Judaism. This includes the highlights of the first forty years, both the good parts and the bad. The Aseret HaDibrot and thwe Shma (parts 1 & 2) set the foundation just right. And then we come to this week's sedra, and the two that follow it. R'ei, Sho'f'tim, and Ki Teitzei present us with 170 mitzvot of the 613 in the Torah. That's 27.7% of the mitzvot in 5.7% of the Torah. Very heavy in mitzvot (including one pasuk in R'ei with EIGHT mitzvot!). Picture Moshe Rabeinu saying to us after the introduction, "Okay, folks, TACHLIS. Roll up your sleeves, sharpen your pencils, and get ready to take notes." R'EI - SEE that G-d is offering you a choice between bracha and the opposite. This is not a nebulous idea, it is very down-to-earth, very specific. MITZVOT. Do them, and we receive G-d's blessings. If not... SEE it, says the Torah. It is as plain as day. One page earlier, the Torah gave us the same, simple formula. If we listen to G-d and His mitzvot... blessed rainfall and plentiful yield of produce. If not... a closed heavens and that which results from it. We recite this formula twice a day in the Shma. We affix it to our doorposts and bind it close to heart and mind. Why do we seem to have so much trouble SEEING this?
KOSHER KOLUMN Here are some further details about the OU labeling, that
was the topic of the OU's announcement in last week's TT. In the past, some companies have been allowed not to have
an OU on their packaging, although they were under OU supervision. It then
became known to the public that so-and-so company or products were under the OU
even without an OU on the label. This situation is disappearing. It is important to know the
different reasons. When a company gets the OU's certification and was previously
non-kosher, some old packages might be still around. The kosher consumer must be
able to tell the new kosher item from the old non-kosher one. Check the label
for an OU. That's the best way. The same company might have many products, not all under
the OU's hashgacha. To distinguish, check the label. Simple. And it works. The same product might be made in the States under the OU
and in Europe either without a hashgacha or a different one. How do we tell the
difference? Check the label. Last, before you contact the OU about a product that has OU
on the Hebrew importer's sticker but not on the original packaging, make sure
that the OU hasn't simply been covered over by the Hebrew sticker. It happens. Australia usually switches to daylight savings time at the end of October. This year, they are switching at the end of August... to accommodate the Olympics. How about that!? JTYLTK [The
R'ei Homepage]
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