MISC section - contents: [1] Vebbe Rebbe [1] From the virtual desk of the OU VEBBE REBBE The Orthodox Union - via its website - fields questions of all types in areas of kashrut, Jewish law and values. Some of them are answered by Eretz Hemdah, the Institute for Advanced Jewish Studies, Jerusalem, headed by Rav Yosef Carmel and Rav Moshe Ehrenreich, founded by HaRav Shaul Yisraeli zt"l, to prepare rabbanim and dayanim to serve the National Religious community in Israel and abroad. Ask the Rabbi is a joint venture of the OU, Yerushalayim Network, Eretz Hemdah... and the Israel Center. The following is a Q&A from Eretz Hemdah... Q: May one serve as a chazan in shul if he hates one of the congregants for no good reason, especially if the congregant has great difficulty concentrating when he does so? Is it different regarding this person being the ba'al tokeiah (shofar blower) on Rosh Hashana? A: The Beit Yosef (Orach Chayim 53) cites the Maharik that since the prayers correspond to the T'midim (daily communal sacrifices), which must be brought from community funds, a chazan has to be acceptable to all individuals in the community. In this way, one does not have a shaliach (agent) against his will. Based on this, the Shulchan Aruch (OC 53:19) says that an individual's protest against a potential chazan prior to his appointment is accepted. The Rama (ad loc.) adds that this is talking about a case where the protestor can convince the communal leadership that he has sufficient cause and that, generally, hatred between people qualifies. Thus, your inclination to prevent the person in question has basis. However, Acharonim distinguish between the aforementioned sources and our most common modern applications. The Magen Avraham (53:20) and Mishna B'rura (53:53) say that the Maharik's logic applies when one needs to rely on the chazan to fulfill his prayer obligation, e.g., when people would listen to the chazan's repetition of Shemoneh Esrei instead of reciting their own. However, nowadays the chazan only leads the people and provides cantillation for parts of tefilla, whereas each person fully davens himself. Under such circumstances, we revert to the regular rule that the majority makes appointments to various tasks within the community without giving individuals veto power. Realize also that many of the qualifications for a chazan found in Orach Chayim 53 refer to the position of the shul's permanent chazan. Then the most appropriate person should be chosen, which may exclude one with any serious blemish. The Aruch HaShulchan (OC 53: 19-21) indicates that animosity is reason to invalidate only such a chazan, but not one who will be serving only sporadically. As he mentions, we cannot have disqualifications which have the potential of "having no end." While not everyone needs to have the special privilege of being the chazan, it is not a simple matter to embarrass and deprive one of the honor of occasionally being the chazan in shul, as almost all who are capable of leading services have. While he may be a flawed individual (which we cannot judge from here), many flawed people lead services. The matter of being unable to concentrate is not a significant factor. For any number of reasons an individual may be bothered by another's davening, and it is not feasible to have endless possibilities of objection. Regarding blowing shofar on Rosh Hashana, the matter is much less clear. In all elements that our case differs from the classic case, shofar resembles the classic one. The shofar blower enables others to fulfill their mitzva; not everyone receives the honor of being the ba'al tokeiah; one can also claim that each year is a new appointment (see Ha'elef Lecha Shlomo, OC 356). Therefore, if there are viable options to replace him with someone who is similarly capable but who gets along with all, it is possible to bring the matter before the local rabbi/leadership (ibid.). However, we cannot stress enough that it is much more appropriate to strive to reduce tension and defuse the issue than to try to remove the person and undoubtedly raise the conflict to new, more regrettable levels. [2] Candle by Day Sometimes in order to break through the shell of a new truth, we must backtrack through the old ones that we have succeeded in acquiring, and, with this head start, streak through them over the clear ground that they present to us. Under this full head of steam, crashing into the wall which would never buckle beneath an offensive originating in its own territory, we can breach it and storm mightily into the fortress of the new truth. From "A Candle by Day" by Rabbi Shraga Silverstein A Candle by Day - The Antidote - The World of Chazal by Rabbi Shraga Silverstein Now available at 054-209-9200 [3] Wisdom and Wit by Shmuel Himelstein A poor man, who had devoted his time to Torah study, came to R' Chaim Volozhiner with a serious problem. For many years, his brother, who was a wealthy man, had given him three rubles a week, and this had enabled him and his family to survive -- although barely -- while he devoted all his time to Torah study. Now his brother had changed his mind. He insisted that from now on he would only continue his support if the poor brother was willing to give half his reward for Torah study to him. The brother was very reluctant to do this, and was now turning to R' Chaim for his advice. "Firstly," said R' Chaim, "you should tell your brother that one who supports Torah study has a very great reward for doing so, and that should be enough for him. If, however, he insists that all of your reward for Torah study should be divided up between the two of you, you should accept that offer. He should know, though, that you have a singularly large reward for studying Torah the full time in spite of your precarious financial condition. That is one reward that he cannot take any part of.| ### If a person thinks that he will be treated with respect even though he does not treat others with respect, he is -- clearly mistaken. - R' Chaim Shmulevitz ### [Apparently, the "concept" of "Jewish time" has been around for a while and commented upon by a well-known rabbinic personality.] R' Yosef Chaim Sonnenfeld (1849-1932), the head of the Yishuv Hayashan in the Old City of Jerusalem, remarked in jest: "If a person makes up to meet at a certain specific time and he arrives at that exact time, I am afraid that he might have transgressed the prohibition against following in the ways of the unbelievers." Shmuel Himelstein has written a wonderful series for ArtScroll: Words of Wisdom, Words of Wit; A Touch of Wisdom, A Touch of Wit; and "Wisdom and Wit" - available at your local Jewish bookstore (or should be). Excerpted with permission [4] CHIZUK and IDUD for Olim & not-yet-Olim respectively The daily headlines supply new reasons to avoid aliya to Israel - the ongoing drama of the nuclear threat and the fact that even her closest friends seek to promote the interests of her most persistent enemies. However, our weekly parsha of Balak provides reassuring perspective, from the mouth of one of our greatest enemies, no less. The evil prophet Bil'am observed: "It (HEIN, rhymes with vein) is a nation that will dwell in solitude and not be reckoned among the nations" (Bamidbar 23:9). The Midrash (Sh'mot Rabba 15:8) asks: what is the meaning of the word HEIN (spelled HEI, NUN) in this verse? The answer is that it is an illustration and not really a word, per se. Hebrew letters are both letters and numbers. Nearly every one has a partner that completes it to a power of ten. For example: ALEF (one) and TET (nine) = 10, the first power of ten. LAMED (30) and AYUN (70) = 100, the second power of ten. However, two letters stand alone: HEI (5) and NUN (50). They have no "partners". But even those letters are not really alone - they share uniqueness -- just like the Land of Israel has the Nation of Israel. Bil'am realized that when these two merge, Am Yisrael B'Eretz Yisrael, they can never be annihilated and will, in fact, lead the world. (See, Rashi, Targum Onkeles). Baal Haturim notes that the gimatriya of "dwell in solitude" (L'VADAD YISHKON) is 420, the same as "in the days of Mashiach" (BIYMEI MASHI'ACH). May the events that we are witnessing truly be a portent of the prophecies of our parsha. Rabbi Steven Ettinger, Chashmona'im TORAH THOUGHTS as contributed by Aloh Naaleh members for publication in the Orthodox Union's 'Torah Insights', a weekly Torah publication on Parshat HaShavu'a [5] Parsha Points to Ponder - BALAK 1) Why does the Torah relate so many seemingly extraneous details about Bilaam including his father's name, the city where he was located, and information regarding where that city was located (22:8)? 2) Why was angry with Bilaam for going along with Balak's officers if He, Himself, told Bilaam that he could go if he wanted? (see 22:22 and 20) 3) Why did G-D choose to make the donkey speak, a miracle which doesn't seem to have been necessary (22:28)? Suggested Answers Ponder the questions first, then read here 1) The Ohr HaChayim answers that it was important for us to know that Balak was so intent on harming the Jews as quickly as possible that he, himself, related all of that information to his messengers to insure that they would have no problems locating Bil'am and could begin acting on his plan with alacrity. 2) The S'forno explains that, as the Torah emphasizes by stressing that HE went on the trip (KI HOLEICH HU), Bil'am did not go along with them as a follower. Rather, he took the lead and was intent on doing damage to the Jewish people against G-D's wishes. That led to G-D's anger. 3) The Kli Yakar teaches that there was a specific purpose to this miracle. G-D wanted to demonstrate to Bil'am that just like the donkey's nature is not to speak but G-D caused it to speak for the sake of the Jewish people, so, too, he was granted with prophecy at this time specifically for the sake of the Jewish people and not to any of his own credit. Parsha Points to Ponder is prepared by Rabbi Dov Lipman, who teaches at Reishit Yerushalayim, Tiferet, and Machon Maayan in Beit Shemesh and RBS and is the author of "DISCOVER: Answers for Teenagers (and adults) to Questions about the Jewish Faith",just re-published by Feldheim, ppp@ouisrael.org [6] Portion from the Portion by Rakel Berenbaum FEEDback to berenbau@actcom.net.il Psychological Warfare, Blessings and Curses When Balak, the king saw all that Israel did to Sichon the king of the Amorites and Og king of the Bashan, he became afraid of what they would do to his nation. Israel was camping in the western plains of Moav right near his land. The Midrash Tanchuma states that Balak had been one of Sichon's generals, and now that Sichon had been killed he was appointed king over Moav. He had been involved in the battles against Israel and knew that his nation alone had no chance against Israel. He was filled with fear. He felt that his only hope was non-conventional weapons. Since there was no atomic bomb in his day, he came up with another plan. He hired Bil'am, chief sorcerer of the nations, to curse the Jewish people. The nations of those days believed in divination and magic and so trusted in the power of spells and in the potency of a curse. But "No black magic can [be effective] against Yaakov, and no occult powers against Yisrael... (23:23)", to quote Bil'am. We don't believe in superstition or magical practices. And what value would we give to the curse of someone like Bil'am, who couldn't even see what his donkey was able to see? For that reason ABARBANEL asks why HASHEM prevented Bil'am from cursing Israel? We are blessed by HASHEM, the source of all blessing, so why would a curse from Bil'am have any effect? Why was it necessary to turn Bil'am's curse into blessing? ABARBANEL also has an answer. Bil'am's words, objectively speaking, had no effect. Everything depends on G-d, and the words of a sorcerer, no matter how renowned, would not override what G-d has planned for us. But subjectively, Bil'am's words could have a negative effect. Bil'am was a world famous sorcerer as we see from Balak's statement, "For I know he whom you bless is blessed, and he whom you curse is cursed" (22:6). A curse from Bil'am against Israel would have had an effect on the surrounding nations. It would have given them the courage to go to battle against Israel, the nation that everyone saw was protected by G-d. When the nations heard that G-d had turned the curses into blessings, they realized that it was hopeless to fight against the nation blessed by G-d. They would lose all their energy to fight. This is what Rachav says later to the spies in the book of Yehoshua (2:9). She says, "I know that Hashem has given you the land, and that your terror is fallen upon us." This she knew from Bil'am's prophetic blessings. This psychological fear of fighting against Israel is what is sorely lacking today. It is important that the nations around us feel that we are blessed and not cursed and that G-d is behind us, and that our cause is just. Above all, it is important for us to believe this. G-d is teaching us in this portion, by changing Bil'am's curses into blessings, how important a deterent this psychological war is against all our surrounding enemies. BIL'AM LIVED IN PETOR on the Euphrates River in the mountainous regions of Aram. According to some (R' Aryeh Kaplan z"l), this is in the vicinity of As Sukhnah or Dayr az Zawr, which is now central Syria. This week's recipe is for Syrian string cheese. Believe it or not, string cheese was not invented by Millers or HaOlam cheese companies. The first people to make string cheese were the Syrians. Here is a recipe to make your own string cheese - it's a bit more complicated then buying it pre-packaged in the store, but it is a fun summer project - LICHVOD SHABBAT to do with the kids. SYRIAN STRING CHEESE 1 teaspoon mahleb, Middle Eastern spice 1/2 kilo mozzarella cheese 1 tsp salt 1 tsp caraway seeds Melt cheese on low heat, thoroughly in a saucepan with mahleb, salt and caraway seeds. Remove from heat, drain excess water and cool a bit so you can handle it. Pick up hot cheese in a lump, and make a hole in the center to resemble a doughnut. With both hands, stretch and turn the cheese to form a large loop. Fold the cheese over and stretch again. Repeat stretching and looping several times. The more you stretch, the stringier the cheese becomes. Stretch one final time and twist the ends in opposite directions. Loop the two ends together like a braid. Place one end through the loop of the other to lock it. Place cheese in a dry area to set and dry. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate or freeze. To serve, open braid, cut one loop and pull cheese apart into thin strands. Serve with pita. [7] from Machon Puah Single Embryo Transfer Last week we spoke about the change in the medical community regarding the number of embryos that are transferred during an in-vitro fertilization procedure. When in the past, the logic was that the more embryos implanted the more likely are we to achieve a pregnancy, the more modern thinking, arrived at as a result of years of experience, is that there is a critical number of embryos that is practical to transfer. The norm in most countries is between two and three, two being the preference and three are only transferred in cases of great need, such as an older couple, or in cases where there were several previous IVF failures. In some countries it is the law that doctors can only transfer two embryos and they need a special dispensation to transfer three. Some years ago, there was a debate in the American Society of Reproductive Medicine, one of the largest fertility societies in the world, as to whether the society should advocate changing the law in the US as well, to limit the number of embryos transferred to two. In the end the ASRM decided not to lobby for such legislation but to suggest to all its members to hold by this practice, and this remains their guidelines. Therefore it is unusual today to hear of clinics that transfer more. The case of the Octomom is rare, and it is a good thing that this is no longer the norm. Since the exact details of the case are not known to me, I cannot comment on this specific case, but in general it is not considered good practice to transfer large numbers of embryos even when this is requested by the patient. Indeed, today many experts are advocating single embryo transfers, where one good embryo is developed and transferred. This often is done by giving minimal hormonal stimulation, which is healthier for the patients, and severely reduces the numbers of multi-fetal pregnancies. Interestingly, there are still rare occasions when one embryo is transferred and the woman still gives birth to twins, since the single embryo can divide into two. There was even a recent case where such a single embryo divided into three and the woman delivered healthy triplets, but this is extremely rare. So this seems to be the future of treatment, to get fewer embryos, of better quality and to have healthy singleton pregnancies. The Puah Institute for Fertility and Gynecology in Accordance with Halacha is based in Jerusalem and helps couples from all over the world who are experiencing fertility problems. Puah offers free counseling in five languages, halachic supervision, and educational programs. Puah has offices in New York, Los Angeles and Paris. To contact the Puah Institute please call 1-800-071111 in Israel or in the US 718-336-0603. website: www.puahonline.org [8] Pirkei Avot General Rabbi Chananya b. Akashya says, The Holy One, blessed be he, was pleased to make Israel worthy; wherefore he gave them a copious Torah and many commandments; as it is said, "It pleased the Lord, for his righteousness' sake to magnify the Torah and make it honourable." This is the last mishna in Masechet Makot. It was borrowed to be said at the conclusion of each chapter of Pirkei Avot. So too it is recited at the conclusion of many shiurim and leads into Kaddish d'Rabbanan. Why does Pirkei Avot specifically and any Torah learning in general, require this particular mishna, rather than ending your subject when the time is up? Perhaps, we can say this: Every time a person learns Torah, there is a potential of his being overwhelmed by the huge amount of Torah there is to learn and master, and the large number of mitzvot and halachot (not to mention the minhagim and various and sundry practices) that we still have to study and learn about. It can be paralyzing. We need to here the encouraging and comforting words of R' Chananya b. Akashya - that the immense volume of Torah and Mitzvot are given to us by G-d (and only to us) for our benefit. Then we can continue to function. [9] MicroUlpan Pyjamas or pajamas (both spellings are acceptable), a.k.a. PJs, jammies and in South Africa as night suits. Hebrew: PIJAMA or NAMNEMET ### cooler or ice chest in English; in Hebrew: TZEIDANIT [10] Guest Article by Rabbi Ephraim Sprecher, Dean of Students, Diaspora Yeshiva G-d Know our Needs - So why Pray? We are accustomed to regard prayer as either man's praising G-d or requesting something from Him. But G-d knows precisely and exactly what we require, and He doesn't need our praise. Thus, Rabbi Chaim of Volozhin, in his Nefesh HaChaim (Ch. 2), presents a profound and intriguing aspect of prayer. Given the special relationship between G-d and His people, when Israel is in pain, G-d suffers, too. As it says in Psalm 91:15 "I (G-d) am with him (Israel) in all suffering." That is why G-d first appeared to Moshe in a burning thorn bush to symbolize that He identifies with our pain. Prayer then assumes a most unique role in that man prays not only for the alleviation of his own suffering, but for that of G-d as well. The Mishna (Sanhedrin 46a) expresses this idea in the following dramatic way. Rabbi Meir taught that when a sinner is executed, G-d Himself complains that His head and arm hurt, as it were. The Mishna continues that if He suffers even when the wicked are punished, then how much more so does He feel the suffering of the righteous. What, however, is the meaning of His "head and arm hurt"? Reb Chaim of Volozhin explains that just as a Jew dons tefillin to express his appreciation of the fact that G-d has a loving relationship with Israel, similarly, the Talmud (Berachot 6a) teaches that G-d, as well, "dons" tefillin, as it were, to symbolize that He and Israel are bound together. This is the meaning of the statement in Brachot 7a that G-d showed Moshe the knot of His tefillin. The Talmud there teaches that the passages contained in G-d's tefillin speak of the greatness and uniqueness of the Jewish people. Just as the passages in our tefillin speak of the greatness and uniqueness of G-d. Thus, the concept of G-d's "tefillin" symbolizes His love for His people. The "knot of tefillin" that He showed Moshe symbolizes that He wishes to remain attached to Israel, and by showing it to Moshe, He signified His love for him. The "knot of the tefillin" represents the love knot that ties Israel and G-d together for all eternity. When this connection is broken by sin, G-d's "head and arm", the parts of the body upon which tefillin are worn, are where He feels pain. Prayer is thus man's expression of concern for G-d's suffering, and a prayer that His Name be sanctified. Thus, Shmuel Alef 1:10 states "Chana prayed AL (for) G-d, and not EL (to) G-d. Due to Chana's barrenness, G-d suffered along with her as He does with all of Am Yisrael. This is our greatest consolation in these troubled times. [11] Gimatriya Gimatriya Twins If you remember (or even if you don't), GTs are p'sukim (or solid partial p'sukim) that share the same gimatriya. These "finds" are not meant to prove anything new, but they do serve as pointers towards various ideas. Take, for example - BAMIDBAR 22:41 - And on the next morning day, Balak took Bil'am, and brought him up to the high places of Baal, that there he might see the utmost part of the people. His purpose, to curse the people of Israel. But we had been vaccinated (so to speak) by the Threefold Bracha, Birkat Kohanim. Y'VARECHECHA... YA'EIR... YISA... The gimatriya of these three p'sukim combined is 2718, the same as the pasuk quoted above. With a daily dose of this special bracha, the Bil'ams and Balaks of the world cannot harm us. [12] Dvar Torah from Rabbi Yaakov Moshe Poupko Rabbi Yaakov Moshe Poupko is a descendant of the Apter Rebbe, the Oheiv Yisrael. He told me this charming (for lack of a better word) VORT for Parshat Balak. The Oheiv Yisrael was known to be able to extract a lesson about proper behavior BEIN ADAM LACHAVEIRO, between a Jew and his fellow Jew. When Parshat Balak came around, his followers thought that he would have a hard time finding what to say. "Simple", he replied, "take the name of the sedra: BALAK (especially when the dagesh drops from the BET and we have VALAK) stands for V'AHAVTA L'REI'ACHA KAMOCHA, love they fellow as thyself." But Rebbi, the people objected, BALAK is spelled with a BET or VET, not a VAV. "Ah, you are missing my point. If you are so meticulous about every single letter, you will not be able to overlook minor flaws in your fellows and will not be able to fulfill the mitzva properly. [13] Divrei Menachem Parshat Balak opens by informing us that the Moabites were terribly scared of Bnei Yisrael after the latter had miraculously defeated Sichon, the King of the Amorites, in the course of their conquest of the Land. Of course, the Moabites should not have so feared, since Israel had previously been instructed not to stir up trouble with Moav. Yet Moav was terrified because, having been previously conquered by Sichon (as was Ammon), they feared that the edict imposed on Bnei Yisrael no longer applied. This explains the use of the metaphor describing Israel as, "an assembly that will lick up all that are around us, as the ox licks up the green herb of the field" (Bamidbar 22:4). Moshe grew up in Midian. So now it made sense for Moav to make its peace with the hated Midian in order to seek out the "source of Moshe's strength" and to fight Moshe's power of speech (prayer) with another, "whose power lies in his mouth", namely, the evil sorcerer Bil'am (cf. Tanchuma). The Kedushat Levi indicates that the mouth of the human being eats the meat of the ox that plucked the green herbs that no other animal would then eat. This mouth conquers all. And it is this "mouth" that causes the "green herb" to be raised to new levels of sanctity and to achieve its Tikun in this world. Shabbat Shalom, Menachem Persoff [The Parshat Balak Homepage]
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