Special Features Hasidic Wisdom from the book by Simcha Raz (Elkins/Elkins) You cannot really love money, because money cannot love you back. It just goes from one pocket to the next. People simply covet money, and that is why they are never satisfied. Tears open gates. Music demolishes walls. Talya the devoted wife and mother, sweet and soft spoken, deeply religious and instinctively kind – gunned down in cold blood. Binny – youngest of Rav Meir HY"D and Libby TIBADEIL L'CHAYIM ARUKIM concentrated all his strength to keep the fire of his father’s teachings burning for the past ten years; he too was extinguished. Talya and Binyamin: Together in life, together in death, together in the highest GAN EDEN – reserved for those killed in the sanctification of G-d’s name. My friends: A Our Sages compare one's table to the Altar. One may not cut the stones of the Mizbei'ach with an iron tool, since iron represents the shortening of life (sword) and the Mizbei'ach lengthen one's life. A It once happened that a person became so distraught when he reached BONEI YERUSHALAYIM and recalled the CHURBAN, that he picked up the knife and pierced his heart. Consequently the Sages instituted the custom of removing the knives. A The blessing for Eretz Yisrael in Birkat HaMazon is the bracha bestowed by Yitzchak on Yaakov. The knife (sword) was in Eisav's blessing. Knives are covered (or removed) to differentiate. Question: Answer: Practically, what should one do? The consensus of poskim follows the Magen Avraham 90:34 that a makom kavua extends 4 amot around one’s place. If one can find such a seat, there is no reason to ask someone to move. Furthermore, one can move from his makom kavuah for an important reason (Tur, O.C. 90; Aruch Hashulchan 90:23). Avoiding making others feel uncomfortable is reason enough (“students of Avraham Aveinu” should make hachnasat orchim a priority). Additionally, some explanations imply that the problem is only if one moves of his own accord. If someone is not that careful about always davening in one shul, coming on time, keeping quiet, and other central laws of tefilah, it’s strange to choose makom kavuah as his area of piety at the expense of others. Too many Jews have been “turned off” after weeks in a shul, concluding: “The only words anyone ever said to me were: ‘you’re in my seat.’” We must avoid pointing fingers at others but must also deal with the problem. The real claim for removing someone from their seat is ownership of the seat. But I wouldn’t suggest using such a claim against a one-time, unintentional user of one’s seat, especially when one comes before Hashem asking Him to overlook our imperfections (see Yoma 23a). From his perspective, a guest or newcomer should avoid sitting in another’s seat. He should realize that many people don’t like moving their seat, and they should be enabled to maximize their tefilah. It is wise for a shul to have some sort of a clear policy as to members’ rights (e.g. you can ask someone to move until “barchu”) and to have gabbaim greet newcomers and direct them to a safe haven. This “Ask the Rabbi” Q&A is part of this week’s Hemdat Yamim, the parasha sheet published by Eretz Hemdah. You can read this section or the entire Hemdat Yamim at www.ou.org or www.eretzhemdah.org. If you would like to receive Hemdat Yamim by email, on a weekly basis, please send an e-mail to lists@eretzhemdah.org with the message Join Hemdatya. Please leave the subject blank. The answer is that the Torah tests us – will we allow one of the 613 commandments to be obliviated, or not. Indeed, the Talmud speaks of the mitzva of Tzitzit as one which is "chaviv", dear and cherished by Am Yisrael. Thus we learn that the threat to our Torah is not essentially from outside sources like the Greeks or Romans, but from internal sources, the lack of personal motivation or commitment. Hashem wants us to love the Torah and go all out to fulfill His commandments. The mitzva of Tzitzit is unique in that the very obligation to perform it is left in our hands, and thus its’ reward is so great, since it is always performed out of love. This unique quality of the mitzva comes to expression in davening. Firstly, we adorn the Talit at the very start of praying. Then at Baruch She’Amar we take the fringes in our hands, just as we have taken the obligation upon ourselves, we have taken the matter into our own hands. Baruch She’Amar is made up of 87 words, the same as the gematria value of the word Gedilim (fringes) mentioned in the Torah, correlating to the 5 knots and 8 strings on each corner, and correlating to the 13 attributes of mercy which Hashem bestows on the world. When we take fringes from the right side and left side together, we have a combined value of 26, symbolising Hashem’s name (those that their custom is to take all 4 fringes have a total of 26 from the right and 26 from the left). The Midrash explains that Hashem himself passed before Moshe Rabenu wearing a Talit when He forgave our forefathers for the making of the Golden-Calf and when He revealed to Moshe his great secret of the 13 attributes of mercy. Our sages declared that one who says the chapters of Shema without wearing a Talit, gives false testimony on himself, or in other words, is a traitor, Boged, from the word Beged. So, we see the great test of Tzitzit. We at Neatzit hope to make the performance of the precept easy, comfortable and accesable to all Am Yisrael. - Prepared by the owners of NeaTzit. More to come. [The Va'y'chi Homepage]
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