MISC section - contents: Q: Do hard liquors require a hashgacha (rabbinical supervision) and why? A: There was a fascinating exchange of letters on the topic between Rav Moshe Feinstein and Rav Pinchas Teitz some 50 years ago (Igrot Moshe, YD I, 62-64). Rav Teitz gave a hashgacha on blended whiskey, which he felt was forbidden to drink without one. Rav Feinstein countered that whiskey did not require a hashgacha. His presentation reveals that he felt that it was important to substantiate the leniency because rabbis and religious laymen drank such whiskey regularly. Rav Feinstein wrote that he personally avoided drinking it because of halachic preferability, except when it looked like he was showing off if he refused to drink like others. He praised Rav Teitz’s hashgacha for the opportunity it gave to those who wanted to be extra-careful. (This story is typical of Rav Moshe.) Over the last 50 years, kashrut standards in America (and elsewhere) have risen. (Detractors call it the tendency toward stringency.) We do not know what Rav Feinstein would recommend today, and one should ask his personal/community rabbi whether and/or when to be strict. We note that the standard-bearer of the Orthodox community regarding kashrut, the OU, requires verification that liquors do not contain non-kosher ingredients (See “Hard Truths About Hard Liquor” on the “OUKosher” website). Differences exist between different types of liquor, and one can find lists of products that have been checked out even if they lack a kashrut symbol. We feel it is appropriate, in this forum, to only discuss certain of the issues that poskim have argued, rather than state our own opinion. Wine and grape juice that are not specially prepared are rabbinically not kosher. Pure whiskey and other grain- based alcoholic beverages are fundamentally permitted. However, American and other laws permit producers to include “blenders” from other ingredients up to the rate of 2%. This is above the standard rate (1/60th) at which a non-kosher ingredient is batel (null). Blenders are commonly used, and they can include products of animal origin such as glycerin and often non-kosher wine. Furthermore, scotch is often aged in casks used previously for sherry (a non-kosher wine). As it is impossible to determine how much taste is imparted, we assume the worst-case scenario (Shulchan Aruch, YD 98:5). Thus, there is room for concern. However, Rav Feinstein bases his leniency on the Shulchan Aruch’s (Yoreh Deah 134:5) ruling that non-kosher wine is batel in water at the rate of one to six. There is significant dispute as to whether this (not unanimous) leniency is particular to water (upon which that amount of wine impacts the taste negatively - Shach, ad loc.:21) or applies to all liquids (Taz, ad loc.:5). Rav Moshe accepts the lenient opinion; Rav Teitz and the OU accept the stringent one. There is also discussion whether the rules of bitul apply when one purposely puts a non-kosher additive into a product. There are two issues: 1) One should not purposely set up situations in which a non-kosher item becomes batel and if he does, bitul does not work (Shulchan Aruch, YD 99:5). 2) Ingredients with a pungent taste are not nullified even at 1/60th (Rama, YD 98:5). Rav Moshe rejects these claims in our case. The problem of purposely nullifying applies only when Jews do so for Jews. Here, even if Jews own a company, their actions relate to the majority of customers, who normally are non-Jewish. While pungent taste may be a factor if one puts wine in blander foods, Rav Moshe posits that it is not in hard liquor, which is at least as pungent as the wine. Rav Moshe says that the rationale for stringency is stronger according to those who forbid benefiting from non-kosher wine even in our days (see Shulchan Aruch, YD 123:1). Again, we have only scratched the surface and
leave the ruling to other forums. The Chatam Sofer comments that we, the Jewish people are indeed compared to stars because it is our task and privilege to illuminate what can sometimes be a very dark universe. Generally we see stars from a distance, hundreds, thousands or millions of light years away. That distance prevents us from viewing them as they really are - huge orbs of pulsating energy and light with a tremendous influence on other celestial bodies and the very space around them. In Egypt (the Diaspora) we too are a pale reflection of our potential power. Viewed from the right perspective and setting however, we are a blazing source of energy and light. Israel is the setting in which a Jewish soul can come to full expression of its potential power. Leaving Mitzrayim (Egypt) is not easy. The Lubavitcher Rebbe wrote that we all have our "meitzarim", narrow places that can keep us confined. Sometimes those narrow places can even take the form of a lovely home on five acres. But leave Mitzrayim we must, if we are to arrive at our true destiny. Aloh Naaleh! As sons and daughters of Israel, let
us shine forth as a beacon of faith, illuminating the world with the message
of "Shma Yisrael" from the holiest place in the universe, the Land of
Israel. The man couldn't believe what he had heard. When at last R' Shmelke emerged, he went over to him and said: "Excuse me for being so forward, Rebbe, but I heard you say to yourself: 'Good morning, Rav of Nikolsburg! Good morning, Rebbe. Please take a seat, distinguished rabbi.' Could you tell me what that was all about?" "Let me explain myself," said R' Shmelke. "I saw a
huge crowd of people coming to pay their respects, and I became afraid that
I might become conceited. I therefore took some time off and paid my
respects to myself. That sounded absolutely ludicrous. From now on, whenever
anyone pays his respects to me, I will let it affect me as the respect I
paid myself." 2) The Chofetz Chayim teaches that this displays the true greatness of these women. They feared that if they stepped aside, new midwives could arise who would heed Pharaoh's decree leading to the deaths of Jewish babies. While they could have simply avoided dealing with the situation and absolved themselves, they recognized that risking their lives could be the only hope for these babies. 3) The Kedushas Yom Tov points to the Midrash
which teaches that the Jewish people can only be saved from exile if they
have faith. Thus, Moshe concluded that since the Jewish people did not
believe, regardless of the reason, Par'o wouldn't listen. Salvation could
not possibly come without the impetus of the Jews? faith. Some commentators don't deal with this question. Either they feel that the burning bush was just a means to get Moshe's attention, or they feel that if there was some specific significance to the sign, it would be beyond our grasp (Avraham son of the Rambam). Nechama Leibowitz brings many other midrashim and commentators who have tried to find the symbolism in the vision. For example, Shmot Rabba and Chizkuni say that the vision came to answer Moshe's fear that maybe Israel would be totally lost in the Egyptian exile. The bush that burns and isn't devoured symbolizes that Egypt will never be able to completely destroy the children of Israel. This message is true for all the exiles. We can ask another question on this vision. Is the fact that Hashem chose a thorn bush and not a tree or other kind of shrub coming to teach us something as well? The lowly prickly thorn bush is hardly the likeliest object to be chosen for a Divine revelation. There must be some lesson to be learned from this choice. Some midrashim say the thorn bush teaches us about the bondage in Egypt. When a person inserts his hand into a thorn bush it doesn't hurt because the thorns are bent downwards, but when he tries to pull his hand out, the thorns catch it and he cannot pull it. The same with Egypt. At the beginning they welcomed Yosef's family but then they enslaved them and would not let them leave. There are other midrashim that show how we learn about Hashem's attributes by His choice of the thorn bush. R' Eliezer b. Arakh states in the Mechilta that Hashem prefers the lowly unassuming medium to a grandiose one. (We see this same idea when Hashem gave the Torah on the smallest mountain - Sinai). We should follow in Hashem's ways and shed some of our obsession with grandeur and outward appearances and be humble instead. In another Midrash, R' Yehoshua b. Karcha speaks of Hashem's presence in every place (even a thorn bush) and His nearness to man wherever he may be (Egypt). This is a message of comfort to us all. Hashem is always with us. Not only that - but in Shmot Rabba they explain Hashem's speaking from within the thorn bush as symbolizing Hashem's suffering when we suffer. Hashem is pictured as a father chastising His children for their good. Even when He chastises us he suffers along with us, as it says in T'hilim (91:15), "I will be with them in trouble". It is comforting to know that even in hard times Hashem is there with us. According to R' Arye Kaplan, the Sneh was probably
the black raspberry (rubus sanctus) which has berries that turn red and then
black. Variations on this theme include batter-dipping the hotdog rather than wrapping it in dough. Or spread a thin layer of mashed potato on the dough before wrapping it around the hotdog. As an added touch, serve Moshe BaTeiva covered with string beans or sprouts to simulate Moshe's basket being placed in the reeds near the shore of the Nile. Also, served with a sauce, that can represent the water of the river. If you use a tomato based sauce or ketchup, it can further represent the Nile, which will turn ketchup-color in next week's sedra. If you have a Yocheved at home, she should definitely be the one to prepare this dish. If you or a daughter is Miriam, you or she can watch through the oven window on Erev Shabbat when the Moshe BaTeiva are baking. And a Batya - if you have one - can serve them. Have fun. Be creative. The purpose of the "Portion of the Portion"
column, besides giving you a D'var Torah and a recipe appropriate for the
weekly sedra, is to demonstrate how the mundane can be elevated to a higher
spiritual level. Clearly, to endure and survive the enticing and unclean flesh pots of Egypt (the Hebrew name Mitzrayim itself indicates suffering), the Children of Israel were in need of a wellspring of inner strength and commitment, of which we can learn more from this opening sentence. The Meir Eynei Yesharim, invoking the priestly breastplate that contained the names of the tribes, reminds us that these names served as a reminder to G-d of the virtues of Bnei Yisrael, thus protecting them. The tribes are associated first with Yisrael, a name of grandeur, and then with Yaakov (which evokes lowliness), implying that the overriding quality of Jewish pride coupled with perseverance served as critical virtues that contributed to this goal. The Chafetz Chayim stresses that Yaakov's presence was a key factor. Perhaps he contributed to that continuous feeling of "coming" that motivated replenishment of ties with the old traditions and acted as a barrier to assimilation. For Rav Moti Alon the fact that the Children of Israel maintained their family units intact is the lesson to be learned. Surely we would do well to imbibe all these factors in our lives today. Shabbat Shalom, Menachem Persoff [The Parshat Sh'mot Homepage]
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