MISC section - contents: [1] From the virtual desk of the OU VEBBE REBBE Q: I often see people getting aliyot who lean on the bima during their aliya. Isn't that a problem? Shouldn't I tell them to stop? A: The mishna (Megila 21a) says that one may read Megilat Esther standing or sitting. The gemara (ad loc.) says that, in contrast, Torah reading must be done standing. As support, the gemara cites the pasuk regarding the transmission of the Torah from Hashem to Moshe: "You [Moshe] stand here with Me" (D'varim 5:27). Just as, symbolically, Hashem was "standing," so too later transmitters of the Torah should do the same. Our questions are: what the nature and severity of this requirement are, whether leaning is considered like standing in this regard, and whom it applies to. The Tur (Orach Chayim 141) says that if one does not read the Torah standing, he has not fulfilled the mitzva, and thus the leining has to be repeated. He seems to understand the requirement as a fully derived requirement from the pasuk. The Yerushalmi (Megila 4:1) says that it is an element of honor, related to the idea that the Torah must be transmitted with an air of trepidation, not casualness. The Beit Yosef (OC 141) points out that Rashi views the requirement to stand as only l'chatchila, that it is proper to show respect in that way, but in case he does not do so, the reading is still valid. The matter may depend on the situation regarding Megila reading, as Torah reading is more stringent than it. If the Megilla should l'chatchila be read standing, then Torah, being a step further, is invalid b'di'avad if one did not stand. In any case, the Magen Avraham (141:1) rules that one does fulfill b'di'avad the mitzva without standing, as is evidence from the fact that we allow a king to read while seated. Mishna Berura (141:1) and most recent poskim take this lenient view. Despite our relative leniency on the matter of standing, the Shulchan Aruch (OC 141:1, based on a Yeruhsalmi, ibid.) says that, at least l'chatchila, one should stand without leaning on anything. This can be understood in two ways: 1) leaning is not considered standing; 2) since one must show proper regard to the Torah's transmission, standing that is not fully austere, i.e., leaning, is thereby wrong. The Magen Avraham (ad loc.:2) says that both issues are true, but in different cases. If one stands with a partial lean so that if the object one was leaning on were removed he would fall, this is not halachic standing. If he stands in a manner that he would not fall, this is generally considered standing but it is still not standing in awe. Therefore he reasons that the Mordechai's permission for an obese person to lean (Shulchan Aruch, ibid.) applies only to partial leaning, as, when his leaning is understandable, it is not a sign of disregard. However, full leaning simply does not fulfill the requirement to stand. The Shaarei Efrayim (3:11) says that it is also customary to allow some leaning when looking at the top lines of a long sefer Torah, which are far away from the readers. He reasons that crouching over in order to see well is not disrespectful to the Torah. In general, the laws governing Torah reading apply both to the ba'al korei and to the oleh (the one who receives the aliya), and this is no exception (see Shulchan Aruch and Rama, ibid.; Sha'arei Efrayim ibid.) The Sha'arei Efrayim (ibid.) and Mishna Berura (141:5) say that even the gabbai must stand. (Regarding the congregation, there is a major discussion - see Shulchan Aruch and Rama, OC 146:4). Like many other halachot in whose regard observance is not 100%, a rabbi should find opportunities to educate his congregants. Regarding partial leaning, which is likely not overly haughty and, according to the majority of opinions, does not affect the congregation's fulfillment of the mitzva, one should point out to the oleh only if he is confident it will be taken in the right away. If many people lean in the more severe way, it would be more worthwhile for one who can educate effectively to point out to the olim in a way that does not embarrass them. [2] Candle by Day You can't TELL a book by its cover -- but you can SELL one by it. From "A Candle by Day" by Rabbi Shraga Silverstein [3] Wisdom and Wit by Shmuel Himelstein Once, R' Yisrael Salanter visited Frankfurt-am-Main, where he was invited to the home of Baron Rothschild. Rothschild, who was extremely wealthy, had a magnificent home. As they walked through his home, Rothschild, a deeply religious Jew, pointed out to R' Yisrael all the care he had taken in ensuring that everything in his home was in total accordance with halacha. Ed. note: In the opening passage of Rosh Chodesh Benching, we ask for many things, including CHAYIM SHE-YEISH BAHEM YIR'AT SHAMA- YIM. Then we ask for a CHAYIM SHET'HEI VANU... YIR'AT SHAMAYIM. Fear of Heaven is the one thing we ask for twice! Why? 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 What was Yitzchak's tie to the Land of Israel? It was not his ancestral home. His parents had come from Ur. It was not economic. Egypt was far more prosperous and wasn't subject to periodic drought and famine. It was not security. We read of the harassment he suffered from the Philistines. So what was it? The answer is, G-d's command. We read in this week's parsha (B'reishit 26:1-3): There was a famine in the land, aside from the first famine that was in the days of Avraham; and Yitzchak went to Avimelech king of the Philistines to Gerar. Hashem appeared to him and said, "Do not descend to Egypt; dwell in the land that I shall indicate to you. Sojourn in this land and I will be with you and bless you; for to you and your offspring will I give all these lands, and establish the oath that I swore to Avraham your father." The Midrash (B'reshit 64:3) states: "Dwell in the land [implies] cultivate the land, be a sower, be a planter. Another interpretation of Dwell (Sh'chon) in the land is: cause the Sh'china to dwell in the land." Yitzchak was commanded not only to physically live in the land [sojourn] and not go to Egypt. He was also told to contribute to the development of the land, to sow and to plant. Furthermore, he was to conduct himself in a manner that would bring G-d's presence, His Sh'china, into the consciousness of all who came in contact with him. The message of the Midrash is that there are several aspects to our connection to the land of Israel. Not only are we bidden to make our homes here; we are also obligated to develop Israel materially and spiritually. Aliya is not a one time act. It is a continuous process of growth and development. We not only have to "go up" to Israel; we are challenged to be sowers, planters, builders of Israel; and finally, we are called upon to reach new heights in our spirituality. In this way, we will create a society in which G-d's presence is immanent. Rabbi Yosef Wolicki, Beit Shemesh 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 for TO-L'DOT 1) Why does the Torah say that Yitzchak took Rivka TO HIM AS A WIFE (25:20)? Parsha Points to Ponder is prepared by Rabbi Dov Lipman, who teaches at Reishit Yerushalayim and Machon Maayan in Beit Shemesh and is the author of "DISCOVER: Answers for Teenagers (and adults) to Questions about the Jewish Faith" (Feldheim) and "TIMEOUT: Sports Stories as a Game Plan for Spiritual Success" a recent release by Devora Publishing ppp@ouisrael.org Answers - Ponder the questions first and then look here 1) The Ohr HaChayim teaches that these words explain why Yitzchak did not get married at an earlier age. TO HIM indicates that Rivka was the only match for Yitzchak and, therefore, he had to wait until she was old enough to marry him. [6] Portion from the Portion by Rakel Berenbaum FEEDback to berenbau@actcom.net.il And they called him Eisav - He was given the name Edom Rivka had a very difficult pregnancy and is finally ready to give birth to her twin boys. After that the second brother emerged holding on to his brother's heel, and the verse tells us that VAYIKRA SH'MO YA'AKOV - He called him Yaakov (25:26) . Eisav was born covered in hair. The midrash says that he even had a beard. Everyone came to look at this strange baby and they all called him Eisav because he was finished ASU'I with his hair like an older person. He didn't look like a little baby. According to Rashi, Yaakov, on the other hand was named either by his father or by Hashem Himself. The Divrei Shalom says that the name Eisav actually points to his character trait. He looked at himself as a finished product. In his haughtiness he felt that he was perfect and didn't have to work to improve himself in any way. Later he is called EDOM which points to another character trait - his love for blood and killing. The Degel Machanei Efrayim makes an interesting observation related to the naming episode. He says that Eisav represents falsehood and unfortunately people tend to be attracted by that - that's why everyone was involved in naming him. Yaakov on the other hand, represents Truth as we say "TITEIN EMET L'YAAKOV" that's why it says, "He named him" in singular - because truth has fewer followers then falsehood. Only select individuals search out the truth. Since Eisav is called Edom - red - I am including this chicken soup recipe that has a lot of red/orange vegetables in it. This recipe was shared by the elder members of Melabev's new English- speaking center for people with cognitive decline. The group worked together during a therapeutic reminiscence activity and composed this recipe. The recipe was submitted to a recipe contest on the websites www.netonews.co.il/apage/61548.php and www.melabev.org/posts/156 (RED) CHICKEN SOUP WITH MEMORIES Fry onions till golden. Fill pot with water. Add chicken necks, bring to a boil. Add cut vegetables. Place parsley, nana, and cinnamon in a cloth, seal and add to soup. Cook on low flame for two hours. Remove cloth with herbs. Add noodles. Can be served with a bit of olive oil and nana leaves on top. TTreader Feedback Dear Editor, A search of the web seems to indicate that there are different sides to the raw egg issue. Nonetheless, since the issue is one of health, we must side with the cautious opinions on this topic. Here's what the "Ask the Doc" column of the Western Wahington University Health Services www.wwu.edu/chw/ask_the_doc A: The primary risk is exposure to salmonella, a bacteria common in chicken intestines, and eggs often are contaminated through microscopic imperfections in their shells. Adequate heating is the only way to kill the bacteria. Salmonella causes a nasty vomiting/diarrhea/fever syndrome and can be fatal in vulnerable populations -- the very young, very old, chronically ill and immune-suppressed. There is a lot of material on the web; interested readers should Google raw eggs and read their fill. [7] from Machon Puah Can He Really Have Two Mothers? For the past few weeks we have been reviewing the issues of parentage and yichus of a child born by a woman who is not his genetic parent. This is not a purely theoretical case, as we have seen in the case of Sean and Carolyn Savage. This religious christian couple underwent IVF in the USA, and through a lab error, received and was impregnated with the embryos of another couple. In the past weeks we have reviewed the debate and most commonly used sources of the debate, between those who contend that the birth mother is the halachic mother and those who contend that the genetic mother is the halachic mother. There are certainly valid arguments and recognized authorities on each side of this debate. There is an additional opinion, based on the fact that that the embryo is halachically considered to be the same as water or fluid until the fortieth day after conception. Therefore, the determining factor of motherhood is the location of the embryo on day 40 after conception, the day when it is no longer considered water - but rather an embryo. If the embryo was implanted on day 3 or 5 as is the case of standard IVF procedure, the embryo would be in the birth mother on day 40 and it is she who should be considered the halachic mother. This raises an interesting question regarding frozen embryos. When the embryo is in a frozen state on day 40 after conception, the cryopreservation freezer can obviously NOT be considered the halachic mother. This opinion holds that the freezing of the embryos from further growth, halachically freezes the 40 day counting as well. In a final approach to the motherhood question, Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach z"l, one of the greatest poskim of recent times, claimed that all of the above answers oversimplify the issue. He agrees that the sources seem to suggest that the birth mother is the mother of the child. Yet, he maintains that ultimately there is actually more than one halachic mother in this case and uses the following scenario to explain his reasoning. What if a woman were to conceive a child, yet suffer from morning sickness so severe that she decides to transfer the fetus growing in her womb to the womb of another woman? The second woman proceeds to carry the child for most of the pregnancy. The first woman, wanting to experience the birth of her child, has the child transferred back to her uterus for the final weeks of gestation and childbirth. In such a case, who is the mother? While it is true that this scenario is currently impossible, it may be possible in the future. Think about how far medical technologies have advanced in the past 100 years. Organ transplantation. IVF and other fertility treatments. The list of advancements is endless. Today, we routinely perform procedures that were considered to be impossible back then; who knows what the future will bring? Rav Auerbach's scenario may eventually be a reality. The mark of his genius as a posek, was his foresight to try to take into account all possibilities, no matter how impossible they may seem at the time. Rav Auerbach claimed that this potential scenario requires that we consider both mothers as being the halachic mother. Furthermore, if one of them was not Jewish - the child would need to be converted! It is clear from our review, that this is a complex issue. When circumstances require it, we have to choose one of the opinions and follow it. 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] Glimpses into the world of OU kashrut supervision no column this week [9] Hidden in the Sand no column this week [10] Person in the parsha by Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb for Parshat TO-L'DOT Disillusionment Disillusionment. I first learned about it on a park bench on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, where I attended high school. I learned about it from three old gentlemen, each affected differently by disillusionment, and each with a different lesson to teach. We frequented that park daily for a round or two of basketball. Few of us noted the shabby elderly trio, who joined each other on a park bench near where we played and engaged in heated conversation in Yiddish and in another language that we later learned was Russian. A friend and I decided one morning to inquire of these gentlemen as to who they were and as to the topic that so excited them. They told us that they were Mensheviks and expected that we were familiar with that term. We weren't, but they soon enough educated us about the Russian Revolution and about a group of early communists who split from Lenin and the Bolsheviks, and were known as the Mensheviks, the Russian word for minority. After the Russian Revolution in 1917, this minority found itself in grave danger. Many, including the park bench companions, emigrated from Russia in the early 1920s. These three settled in the United States, in New York City, on the Lower East Side. We listened for several weeks to their magnetic story of youthful dreams and grand plans for changing the world. They helped overthrow the Czar and looked forward to a new order of freedom, peace, and total economic equality. But they became disillusioned. Their youthful dreams came to naught, and the utopia they envisioned turned out to be nightmarish. One of them never gave up on the dream and told us that he was certain that the day would soon come when he could return to Russia and help lead the ultimate reform. Another, darkly depressed, had turned to alcohol and was only sober in the early morning. And the third abandoned his former beliefs and became, of all things, a Chassidic Jew. Each experienced disillusionment, and each dealt with it in his own unique way. Many years later, I became inspired by another story of disillusionment, the story of Rabbi Issachar Teichtal zt"l, martyred by the Nazis. This man was a disciple of one of the most virulently anti-Zionist pre-World War II Jewish leaders. He was raised to think that Zionism was equal to apostasy, and that participating in the creation of a Jewish State was a terrible sin. When World War II broke out, Rabbi Teichtal was witness to all the horrors of the Holocaust. He found himself questioning and eventually re-examining his earlier beliefs, and rejected them. Instead, he developed the contrary perspective; namely, that the failure to adopt Zionism and build a Jewish State was the root cause of the suffering of the Jewish people. Rabbi Teichtal's erudite treatise, Eim HaBanim S'meicha is a fascinating and rare example of a courageous retraction of an earlier held worldview, a public confession of disillusionment. In this week's Torah portion, Toldot, we learn of the disillusionment of none other than the Patriarch Yitzchak, who labored under the lifelong illusion that his son Eisav was righteous and good. He was ready to bestow his blessings upon Eisav and not upon Yaakov. Yaakov disguised as Eisav, ultimately received those blessings. When Eisav appears and asks for those blessings, Yitzchak realizes that the Divine Hand has intervened and that he has been wrong all along in considering Eisav to be the son who deserved those blessings. He is, quite literally, disillusioned. He is stunned to learn that he has been mistaken all along in his assessment of this son, and his shock is expressed in B'reishit 27:33 with these powerful words: "And Yitzchak trembled an exceedingly great trembling". The great trembling of a disillusioned father. How apt and poignant is Rashi's comment here: "He saw the gates of Hell open before him". It is indeed hellish to have one's dreams shattered and to have to re-examine the fundamental assumptions that one has made in life. Yet, in ways significant and trivial, we are all occasionally called upon to do so. Knowing that even Yitzchak was proven to be in error about the assumptions he made, and that he was dramatically confronted with his mistake, can be of some solace to us all. It is difficult and painful to garner the courage to turn our disillusionment to advantage and start life again under new assumptions. But it is a choice which we are inevitably called upon to make. [11] MicroUlpan Psychrometer and hygrometer are meteorological devices for measuring humidity in the air. In Hebrew, [12] Divrei Menachem In Parshat Toldot our forefather Yitzchak is confronted with a famine and he plans, like his father Avraham, to go down to plentiful Egypt. Indeed, he arrives at the border in Gerar when Hashem commands him, "Do not go down to Egypt - settle in the Land that I will tell you." There is an interesting contrast with Avraham. For Avraham was told: "Lech lecha... el Ha'aretz asher ar'ecka" - 'Go to the Land which I will show you.' In Avraham's case, this was the first of his many trials. Inductively, Avraham recognized Hashem's mastery of the world but now he was to follow several seemingly incomprehensible commands of his Maker. Initially, Yitzchak follows logic too. Yet he is told, "Sh'chon Baaretz" - to remain in Eretz Yisrael, despite the famine. Perhaps it is unfitting for one who has the mark of a holy sacrifice etched into his soul to leave Eretz Yisrael (cf. Rashi). But there is, perhaps, more to this injunction than meets the eye. For Yitzchak has to continue and enrich the legacy of Avraham. The term "Sh'chon" evokes the creation of neighborhoods, the establishment of a community, well by well, dunam by dunam. Following our rabbis it also implies that by thus building the Land Yitzchak will bring down the holy Shechina. What a beautiful legacy indeed! Shabbat Shalom, Menachem Persoff [The Parshat To-l'dot Homepage]
|
