That's the freedom I choose

Prof. Eliezer Diamond taught an exceptional webinar on the concept of freedom in the Haggadah and other relevant sources to us Conservative rabbis. Examining the sources carefully he sees three different kinds of freedom discussed. The first freedom is the freedom from human domination. We are servants (עבדים) of the Holy One Blessed be He and not slaves (עבדים) to Pharaoh. The second freedom is the freedom for self-determination. The third freedom is the freedom to hope for a better future even if in the present we are enslaved.

Concerning the third freedom, the Rabbinical Assembly’s Haggadah, The Feast of Freedom, makes explicit what the traditional Haggadah says implicitly.

“And God saw.” What did God see? That the people of Israel were compassionate towards one another. If one completed producing their quota of bricks, they will go help another to the same” (page 48)

“And our misery.” This refers to the drowning of the sons, for Pharaoh decreed, ‘Every boy that is born you shall throw into the Nile but you shall let every girl live.’ (Exodus 1:22) The Israelites would circumcise their sons in Egypt. The Egyptians would ask, ‘Why do you insist on circumcising them? In a little while we shall throw them into the river.’ The Israelites will respond, “Nevertheless we will circumcise them.” (page 50)

Even when we are not free we are still free to hope for freedom. Circumcision was a protest against the Egyptians and the Egyptian way of life. They had not lost hope. Circumcising the baby boys was the Israelites way of hoping for freedom. Their present situation will change because God has promised to redeem them out of Egypt. And while there were still enslaved, they could choose how they will respond. By being compassionate with one another they demonstrated that Pharaoh could not destroy their humanity despite the harsh labor.

The third freedom I think speaks to our particular situation today. To flatten out the curve many of us are self-sheltering. We are no longer free to do the things we love like going out to restaurants, movies, and the theater, but also all those things we take for granted like going shopping. We are depending on modern day heroes to deliver our groceries and everything else we buy online. Who knows when we’ll be able to escape the confines of our home? I do know that being in such close quarters with other people even with the ones we love can drive us crazy. Especially now we need to show compassion and understanding to those who are quarantined with us. The third freedom helps us remain hopeful that we will survive the coronavirus and be able to go outside and enjoy the fresh air once again. That’s the freedom I choose today.

Baby, you are a rich man TB Shabbat 25

Do you remember the Beatles’ song, “Baby, you’re a rich man”? Today’s daf TB Shabbat 25 discusses who is rich. Ben Zoma teaches “Who is rich, one who is happy with this portion.” (Avot 4:1) Rabbi Meir seems to agree with Ben Zoma. Nevertheless three tannaim share their opinion who is truly rich.

“Incidental to the discussion of prosperity, the Gemara mentions that on a similar topic, the Sages taught: Who is wealthy? Anyone who gets pleasure from his wealth, that is the statement of Rabbi Meir. The letters mem (Meir), tet (Tarfon), kuf (Akiva), samekh (Yosei) are a mnemonic for the tannaim who expressed opinions on this matter. Rabbi Tarfon says: A wealthy person is anyone who has one hundred vineyards, and one hundred fields, and one hundred slaves working in them. Rabbi Akiva says: Anyone who has a wife whose actions are pleasant. Rabbi Yosei says: Anyone who has a bathroom close to his table.” (Sefaria.org translation)

Rabbi Tarfon was a wealthy man. I don’t know whether he had a hundred vineyards and a hundred fields and a hundred slaves working them, but his wealth probably did color his decisions. In the Mishnah TB Shabbat 24 we learned: “And the Rabbis permit lighting with all oils for lamps as long as they burn properly; with sesame oil, with nut oil, with turnip oil, with fish oil, with gourd oil, with tar, and even with naphtha [neft]. Rabbi Tarfon says: One may light only with olive oil in deference to Shabbat, as it is the choicest and most pleasant of the oils.” (Sefaria.org translation) Rabbi Tarfon could easily afford the most expensive oil to light his Shabbat lamp and then perhaps mistakenly thought that everybody could afford olive oil for the purpose of kindling a Shabbat lamp.

Rabbi Akiva owes his scholarship to his wife Rachel. When Akiva married the daughter of Ben Kalba Sabua, a wealthy citizen of Jerusalem, Akiva was an uneducated shepherd in Ben Kalba Sabua's employ. When they married Ben Kalba Sabua disinherited her. They lived in dire poverty. Rachel stood loyally by her husband during the period of his late initiation into rabbinic studies after he was 40 years of age and in which Akiva dedicated himself to the study of Torah. When his father-in-law recognized him as one of the great sages of the generation, he gave him half his wealth. No wonder he believed a rich man was one who married a woman of valor. According to the tradition when Rabbi Akiva return home after 24 years of study in the yeshiva, he gave Rachel a piece of jewelry called “Jerusalem of gold.” Dr. Shalom Paul, one of my teachers, teaches that this piece of jewelry was like a Tierra.

Rabbi Yossi was one of Rabbi Akiva’s five disciples. “After having been ordained in violation of a Roman edict, Yossi fled to Asia Minor, where he stayed till the edict was abrogated. Later he settled at Usha, then the seat of the Sanhedrin. As he remained silent when his fellow pupil Rabbi Simeon bar Yohai once attacked the Roman government in his presence, he was forced by the Romans to return to Sepphoris, which he found in a decaying state. He established there a flourishing school; and it seems that he died there.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jose_ben_Halafta

As part of the leadership Institute for Hebrew school principals we visited Israel. Our tour took us to Sepphoris. We entered an excavation of a rich person’s home. It could have been a Roman house or a Jewish home who emulated Roman architecture. There was a bathroom off the dining room with a sign reading “Who is rich? Anyone who has a bathroom close to his table.”

By Rabbi Yossi’s I must be super rich standard because I have three bathrooms accessible from my dining room. I’m sure many of you are a rich person too.

“The Lord heard our voice… And He saw our suffering.”

“The Lord heard our voice… And He saw our suffering.”

Is there a significant difference between vayishma et koleinu, that “The Lord heard our voice,” and vayar et onyeinu, and “saw our suffering”? Is it not essentially the same idea?

Rabbi Soloveitchik suggests that the two are not the same. There are some pains and misfortunes that we respond to with a cry for help from God. However, there are other tragedies and heartaches that person will suffer in silence, not calling out in prayer. Rabbi Soloveitchik says that this was a time when the Jewish people felt overwhelmed and did not have the words or even a way to express their pain.

However, God, who is all-knowing, also knows the pain that is filled by a crushed heart. It is this kind of pain that the author of the Haggadah understands and describes, “And He saw her suffering.” Not only did God hear their voices, God also heard the silent, unarticulated cries rising from the depths of their hearts.

In a moving and beautiful prayer that is added to the liturgy during the High Holidays, we say to God, “The One who answered our forefather Abraham at Mount Moriah, He will answer you and listen to your cries today.”

Asks Rabbi Soloveitchik, if we search the story of the Binding of Isaac, we never once see Abraham praying to God! So at what point does God answer Abraham’s prayer on Mount Moriah? Says the Rav: God heard the prayers of an anguished heart-the torment of a father anticipating that he was about to lose his beloved child

God, who sees all affliction, saw Abraham’s inner turmoil and answered him even though Abraham did not utter a formal prayer.

Each day, in our prayer of the silent devotion of the Amidah, we ask God, “See our afflictions.” These words address this kind of prayer. They speak of the inner struggles, the troubles, and the suffering that we endure in silence. We are confident that God answers not only the prayers that we verbalize; he also answers prayers we don’t express but are solely within the chambers of our hearts. (The Night That not Unites, page 136)

Know that I keep you in my prayers daily, praying for health and healing. Be comforted knowing God also hears the prayers we don’t express but are solely within the chambers of our hearts during this difficult time.

Danger back tne and danger today TB Shabbat 24

Today’s daf TB Shabbat 24 concludes the discussion of the laws of Hanukkah. The Rabbi’s debate whether we need to add prayers like Al Hanisim for Hanukkah and Ya’aleh Veyavo for Rosh Hodesh in Grace after meals and in all the various Amidot (plural for Amidah). Even though the Gemara is inconclusive, universal tradition is to add Al Hanisim and Ya’aleh Veyavo to all our prayers.

Everybody who is a regular davener knows that we repeat the Amidah in our Shacharit (morning) and Mincha (afternoon) services, but not during Ma’ariv (evening) services. Nevertheless, on Friday night we do say something that the rabbis instituted that they considered to be like a repetition of the Amidah. We sing four short paragraphs that includes Magan Avot. During the week people found it difficult to attend services because many times the synagogue was on the outskirts of town and far away from their homes. Consequently, they davened on their own and in their own houses. But on Friday they would go to their local synagogue to welcome the Shabbat. The Gemara explains the reason why the added these prayers.

“Sages who instituted repetition of the prayer due to concern for potential danger.” (Sefaria.org translation) Rashi explains what the danger was. The Sages sought to slightly delay those leaving the synagogue to enable people who came late to leave together with the rest of the worshippers. This was necessary because synagogues were often located beyond the city limits, and it was dangerous to walk alone at night.

How different are the times today. Back then the parishioners might be in danger. Today I know if I elongate the service by adding extra prayers and readings I might be the one in danger from my congregants. J

A night of gratitude

People have asked me whether I’m selling the chametz this year. The answer is, of course, yes. If you want me to be your agent to sell your Chametz, please send me a call my office, 718-428-1580,  all the addresses where your chametz is found. Don’t forget to annul it erev Passover as well.

And now my email to of our Haggadah.

“Go and learn what Laban the Aramaean wanted to do to our father Jacob” (Deuteronomy 26:5)

Why did the sages choose the “Aramaean sought to destroy my father.”Aromi oved avi, selection from the Torah to tell the Passover story?

Rabbi Soloveitchik suggests that although the word “Haggadah” refers to the telling of the Passover story, there is an additional underlying meaning to the word Haggadah. The word also suggests giving praise and gratitude.

The Torah states in the portion of Aromi oved avi: ve’higaditi hayom l’Hashem Elocheicha, we see that the word ve’higaditi, from the word Haggadah, in this context means praise: “I offer praise to God.” As the ancient commentator, the Targum Yerushalmi, interprets this phrase “to give praise and thanks to God.”

Rabbi Soloveitchik suggests:

“This may be the reason why this passage in particular was chosen to be recited as the centerpiece of the Seder night as opposed to more explicit verses in the Torah that tell the Exodus story. Aromi oved avi, serves primarily as an expression of praise. These verses teach us that it is not merely a night about retelling our history but even more about giving thanks and offering praise. On the Seder night we are to thank God for the many blessings that he has showered upon us and continues to shower on us, blessings which we often take for granted.” (page 126)

Even in the dark circumstances of the coronavirus, we have much to be thankful for as we gather around the Seder table. For all of us who are healthy, we are grateful for our health. For those who have fallen ill, we are grateful for all the doctors, nurses, aides, and all the other people on the front lines who take care of them to the best of their ability. We are grateful for the technology that allows us to have a virtual Seder including all our friends and relatives who can’t physically be with us on the Seder night. We are grateful to all the wonderful chefs in our homes who still provide a delicious meal. And we are grateful to God who is the source of all these gifts.

Please share with me else are you grateful for.

A good way to live TB Shabbat 23

Today’s daf TB Shabbat 23 shows us a good way to live our lives. The Gemara suggests that we should live above suspicion.

 “Rav Huna said: A courtyard that has two entrances requires two lamps, one lamp at each entrance, so that it will be obvious that the residents of this courtyard light properly. And Rava said: We only said this in a case where the two entrances face two different directions. However, if they both face in the same direction one need not light at more than one entrance. The Gemara clarifies Rava’s statement: What is the reason for this? If you say that it is because those who see the entrance without a lamp burning will harbor suspicion lest he does not kindle the Hanukkah light, whose suspicion concerns us? If you say that the concern is with regard to the suspicion of people who do not live in the city and are unfamiliar with the courtyard’s tenants, even when both entrances face the same direction let them be required to light at both entrances because visitors are unaware that there are two entrances to that courtyard. And if the concern is with regard to the suspicion of the residents of that city, even when the two entrances face two different directions let them not be required to light at both entrances. The local residents know that only one person lives in the courtyard and will assume that if he did not light at one entrance he surely lit at the other. The Gemara answers: Actually, say that it is because of the suspicion of the residents of that city, and sometimes they pass this entrance and do not pass that one, and they say: Just as he did not light in this entrance, in that second entrance he also did not light. In order to avoid suspicion, it is preferable to light at both entrances. “Rav Huna said: A courtyard that has two entrances requires two lamps, one lamp at each entrance, so that it will be obvious that the residents of this courtyard light properly. And Rava said: We only said this in a case where the two entrances face two different directions. However, if they both face in the same direction one need not light at more than one entrance. The Gemara clarifies Rava’s statement: What is the reason for this? If you say that it is because those who see the entrance without a lamp burning will harbor suspicion lest he does not kindle the Hanukkah light, whose suspicion concerns us? If you say that the concern is with regard to the suspicion of people who do not live in the city and are unfamiliar with the courtyard’s tenants, even when both entrances face the same direction let them be required to light at both entrances because visitors are unaware that there are two entrances to that courtyard. And if the concern is with regard to the suspicion of the residents of that city, even when the two entrances face two different directions let them not be required to light at both entrances. The local residents know that only one person lives in the courtyard and will assume that if he did not light at one entrance he surely lit at the other. The Gemara answers: Actually, say that it is because of the suspicion of the residents of that city, and sometimes they pass this entrance and do not pass that one, and they say: Just as he did not light in this entrance, in that second entrance he also did not light. In order to avoid suspicion, it is preferable to light at both entrances.” (Sefaria.org translation)

When the news of Catholic Church’s scandal of protecting priests who abused children broke in Boston, I was a rabbi in Framingham, Massachusetts. Our regional United Synagogue office held a half-day seminar for rabbis, cantors, and youth directors on what are our responsibilities. Our first responsibility is to protect the children under our supervision. We are mandated reporters if we suspect child abuse. Our second responsibility is to protect ourselves from all suspicion. From that time on I instructed all my b’nai mitzvah tutors never to teach their students in a secluded spot. Whenever I tutor I make sure that the door of the room I am in is always open and anybody who pass by in the hallway can look in and see how I am teaching. I also always invite parents to stay throughout the session or to come in and out as they please for I have nothing to hide. Ben Franklin taught: “It takes many good deeds to build a good reputation, and only one bad one to lose it.” Even though I have nothing to fear, I always want to live above suspicion in order to keep my good reputation.

Location, location, location? TB Shabbat 22

A menorah is a seven branch candelabra that was lit in the Temple. A hanukiyah is an eight branch candelabra used during the eight days of Hanukkah. The purpose of lighting the hanukiyah is to publicized the miracle of the oil. What is the very essence of this mitzvah, the lighting or the placement of the hanukiyah?


Yesterday’s daf TB Shabbat suggests that the lighting of the hunukiyah is the answer to my question.


“The Sages taught in a baraita: The basic mitzva of Hanukkah is each day to have a light kindled by a person, the head of the household, for himself and his household. And the mehadrin, i.e., those who are meticulous in the performance of mitzvot, kindle a light for each and every one in the household. And the mehadrin min hamehadrin, who are even more meticulous, adjust the number of lights daily. Beit Shammai and Beit Hillel disagree as to the nature of that adjustment. Beit Shammai say: On the first day one kindles eight lights and, from there on, gradually decreases the number of lights until, on the last day of Hanukkah, he kindles one light. And Beit Hillel say: On the first day one kindles one light, and from there on, gradually increases the number of lights until, on the last day, he kindles eight lights.” (Sefaria.org translation)

As an aside does “the mehadrin min hamehadrin, who are even more meticulous, adjust the number of lights daily” refer to back to the basic mitzvah of lighting only one hanukiyah per household or “to those who are meticulous in the performance of mitzvot, kindle a light for each and every one in the household.” Tosephot says it refers to the basic mitzvah of lighting only one hanukiyah per household. That is the Sephardic custom of having one hanukiyah per household and add one candle each night as understood by Beit Hillel. Rambam rules that “the mehadrin min hamehadrin, who are even more meticulous, adjust the number of lights daily” refers to having each household member light his/her hanukiyah according to Beit Hillel’s understanding. That is the Ashkenazi tradition.


Now back to the question at hand. Today’s daf TB Shabbat 22 begins with placement of the Hanukiyah as the essence of the mitzvah to publicize the miracle of oil.

“With regard to the essence of the matter Rav Kahana said that Rav Natan bar Manyumi taught in the name of Rabbi Tanhum: A Hanukkah lamp that one placed above twenty cubits is invalid, just as a sukka whose roofing is more than twenty cubits high, and just as an alleyway whose beam, its symbolic fourth partition in order to place an eiruv, is more than twenty cubits high, are invalid. The reason is the same in all three cases: People do not usually raise their heads and see objects at a height above twenty cubits. As there is a requirement to see all of these, they are deemed invalid when placed above that height. (All authorities rule that this halacha doesn’t apply to people who live in tall buildings like high rise apartments for the obvious reason-GG)...

Rabba said: It is a mitzva to place the Hanukkah lamp within the handbreadth adjacent to the entrance. The Gemara asks: And where, on which side, does he place it? There is a difference of opinion: Rav Aha, son of Rava, said: On the right side of the entrance. Rav Shmuel from Difti said: On the left. And the halakha is to place it on the left so that the Hanukkah lamp will be on the left and the mezuza on the right. One who enters the house will be surrounded by mitzvot (ge’onim) (Sefaria.org translation) The hanukiyah is placed by the door so that everybody who passes by sees the light that publicizes the miracle.

Finally the Gemara asks our very question.

“After the issue of whether lighting accomplishes the mitzva or placing accomplishes the mitzva was raised in the context of the previous discussion, the Gemara cites the discussion in its entirety. As a dilemma was raised before the Sages: In the case of the Hanukkah light, does lighting accomplish the mitzva, and placing the lit lamp is simply a continuation of that action, or does placing the kindled lamp accomplish the mitzva, and lighting is simply a practical necessity that facilitates placing the lamp?” (Sefaria.org translation)

After several attempts to answer this question that were rejected, the Gemara gives us the answer we have been waiting for.

“From the fact that we recite the following blessing over the mitzva of kindling the Hanukkah light: Who has made us holy through His commandments and has commanded us to light the Hanukkah light, the Gemara suggests: Conclude from this that lighting accomplishes the mitzva, as it is over lighting that one recites the blessing. The Gemara concludes: Indeed, conclude from this.” (Sefaria.org translation)

Know that all men and women are obligated to fulfill this mitzvah. I would encourage every child have his/her hanukiyah and light as well.

We were slaves to Pharaoh

Good news everybody! High Holiday Cantor, Cantor Scott Eckers and I are working together so that we can share the Kabbalat service with you via the miracle of the Internet this Friday night at 5:30 PM. if I don’t have your email address and you send it to me, in a few days Good news everybody! High Holiday Cantor, Cantor Scott Eckers and I are working together so that we can share the Kabbalat service with you via the miracle of the Internet tonight night at 5:30 PM. Here is the link for tonight’s service:  https://zoom.us.j/2389285517.

Now my daily devar Haggadah.

Rabbi Soloveitchik was not only a great Talmudist, but also one of the great Jewish thinkers of the 20^th century. He struggled intensely with the issue of suffering. He taught that when we, as Jews, confront suffering we simply have no answer to the question, “why?” When we confront suffering we should not ask “why,” but are only question should be “what?” We do not asked the question “why?” because the response to why man suffers is always beyond our human comprehension.

However we do, and we should ask, “What can we learn from the experience of suffering?” When we consider the suffering that the Jewish people endured in Egypt, the Torah commands us that we learn an important lesson. It repeats time and again that we should be kind and merciful to those who are less fortunate, stating explicitly that this is because we experienced what it’s like to be “strangers in a strange land.” In other words, we have experienced what it’s like to be powerless and to be taken advantage of by those who are more powerful.

The fact that as slaves we Jews were exposed to such cruelty and pain has foster within us a sensitivity and emotional tenderness that will always remain unique quality of our people. Jews are infused with compassion and mercy. When the Torah teaches us to have sympathy for widows and orphans, we Jews are naturally inclined to show mercy because it is an experience that has been imprinted on our collective psyche.

This is the message that has not lost its relevance for us, and continues to reverberate in us every year as we celebrate the Seder. The Egyptian Exodus and the suffering we endured was an experience which promoted the moral quality of the Jewish people for all time.

What mitzvah is mentioned more than any other in the Torah?

In the Torah, one can find 36 verses which state that the stranger, orphan, and widow must be treated kindly. “You were once strangers in Egypt… you know what it’s like to be a stranger.” In other words, having experienced estrangement, oppression, and discrimination ourselves, we are expected to empathize with and respond to those who are less fortunate. (The Night That Unites Haggadah, page 86)

Thursday I participated in an ADL webinar entitled “Danger to minority groups to coronavirus-fueled xenophobia and violence.” We Jews are no stranger to anti-Semitism, hate, and scapegoating. Even before the coronavirus spread in our country, we recognized the anti-Semitism was on the rise. White supremacy groups along with anti-Semitic regimes in the Muslim world have spread conspiracy theories that Jews, Zionists, and/or Israelis created the virus and let it loose on the world.

Recently Americans of Chinese descent face the same prejudice, hatred, scapegoating, and violence. Chinese-Americans have been spat upon, stabbed, and beaten. In the last five weeks more than 1000 hate crimes against this community have been reported. I read in the New York Times that they are literally scared to be seen in public.

In the Latino community immigrants are highly vulnerable to the coronavirus which adds fuel to the fire to the already anti-Hispanic hatred in segments of our population. More than 37,000 undocumented immigrants are incarcerated and this is a health recipe for disaster. There is a complete lack of concern for them. Some immigrant courts don’t even have hand sanitizers.

We need to save the reputation of our fellow Americans by helping the minorities by doing these three action points:

1, When we hear this kind of hatred we need to speak out against it wherever it raises its ugly head, including in a zoom meeting or on Facebook, and from our elected officials. Write letters now while we are sheltered at home.

2, Share the facts. Don’t get emotional or partisan about hate. Everybody should be against it.

3, Show your strength by being an ally. Let’s not be interested only in fighting anti-Semitism. We need to be an upstanding and not a bystander whenever and wherever prejudice ugly head.

For facts and other strategies just go to the ADL website. It’s time for us to say Dayenu!

 

Celebrating Hanukkah in the middle of Shabbat TB Shabbat 21

Celebrating Hanukkah in the middle of Shabbat TB Shabbat 21

There is a Talmud tractate for all our holidays except for Hanukkah! 99% of the discussions on Hanukkah can be found in the second chapter of massechet Shabbat. There is a logical connection why. As long as were talking about Shabbat lights we might as well discuss the laws concerning Hanukkah lights. But that begs the question why there’s no dedicated tractate to Hanukkah. This is the answer I learned why there is no tractate Hanukkah. The rabbis hated the Maccabees. During the early second Temple period there were two major Jewish sects, the Pharisees and the Sadducees (the other famous sect was the Essenes or the Dead Sea sect). The Pharisees and Sadducees understood Jewish law completely differently. For the most part the Maccabees and their descendants the Hasmoneans were Sadducees and followed Sadduceean understanding of the law and the Pharisees hated them for that. Although they could not eliminate the holiday of Hanukkah, when the Pharisees rose to power they minimized it. Consequently, we don’t have a massechet Hanukkah.

Hiding on today’s daf TB Shabbat 21 is a major theological debate that you might not be aware of. The Gemara explains the reason why we celebrate Hanukkah for eight days. It’s the story of the miracle of the oil.

“The Gemara asks: What is Hanukkah, and why are lights kindled on Hanukkah? The Gemara answers: The Sages taught in Megillat Ta’anit: On the twenty-fifth of Kislev, the days of Hanukkah are

eight. One may not eulogize on them and one may not fast on them. What is the reason? When the Greeks entered the Sanctuary they defiled all the oils that were in the Sanctuary by touching them. And when the Hasmonean monarchy overcame them and emerged victorious over them, they searched and found only one cruse of oil that was placed with the seal of the High Priest, undisturbed by the Greeks. And there was sufficient oil there to light the candelabrum for only one day. A miracle occurred and they lit the candelabrum from it eight days. The next year the Sages instituted those days and made them holidays with recitation of hallel and special thanksgiving in prayer and blessings.” (Sefaria.org translation)

This Gemara isn’t the only historical source for the holiday of Hanukkah. I’m just going to share with you the other familiar source, the prayer Al Hanisim in our prayer book.

“In the days of Mattityahu, son of Yohanan, the High Priest, the Hasmonean, and his sons, the wicked Greek kingdom rose up against Your people Israel to make them forget your Torah and to force them to transgress the statues of Your will…You champion their cause, judged their claim, and avenged the wrong. You delivered the strong into the hands of the weak, the many into the hands of the few, the impure into the hands of the pure, the wicked into the hands of the righteous, and the arrogant into the hands of those who were engaged in the study of your Torah. You made for Yourself great

and holy renown in your world, and for Your people Israel you performed a great salvation and redemption as of this very day. Your children then enter the holiest part of your house, cleansed Your Temple, purified Your sanctuary, kindle lights in Your holy courts, and designated these eight days of Hanukkah for giving thanks and praise to Your great name.”

Notice in this prayer which we say three times a day in the Amidah as well as each time we say Grace after meals for the eight days of Hanukkah there is no mention of the miracle of oil! The miracle of Hanukkah was the military victory of a small band of Jews over the mighty Syrian Greek Empire.

This is the great theological debate that has ramifications for us today. Do we have the power to create new Jewish holidays in our calendar year? The Gemara says no. The only reason why we celebrate Hanukkah is because God caused a great miracle of the oil. Otherwise we wouldn’t be able to celebrate this holiday at all. The prayer Al Hanisim argues that we do have the power to create and observe new holidays.

Is Israel Independence Day a holiday? Do we recite hallel with a blessing, “Praised are You O Lord our God King of the universe who has commanded us to recite the blessing over the recitation of the hallel” for Israel Independence Day? The ultra-Orthodox following the Gemara’s understanding don’t observe Israel Independence Day at all because there was no miracle performed directly by God. I, on the other hand, believe we have the power to introduce new holidays. I celebrate Israel Independence Day as a holiday as important as Hanukkah and recite all the appropriate blessings.

What are you hungry for?

Good news everybody! High Holiday Cantor, Cantor Scott Eckers and I are working together so that we can share the Kabbalat service with you via the miracle of the Internet this Friday night at 5:30 PM. if I don’t have your email address and you send it to me, in a few days Good news everybody! High Holiday Cantor, Cantor Scott Eckers and I are working together so that we can share the Kabbalat service with you via the miracle of the Internet this Friday night at 5:30 PM. Here is the link for Friday night:  https://zoom.us.j/2389285517.

Now my daily devar Haggadah.

What are you hungry for?

We are hardwired to give. One of the worst feelings in the world is not been needed by others.

But a slave has nothing to offer. Drained of energy and time, the slave’s emotional and physical resources are depleted. With no ability to give, slaves lose their sense of humanity, feel empty and worthless, and incapable of generosity.

So we begin the Seder by proclaiming, “Anyone who is hungry should come and eat!” We are no longer slaves with nothing to give. No matter what our situation, we boldly declare that we have food in abundance and that we can’t wait to share with the world-a moment of exaggerated and piercing “largeness.”

This sentence-“Anyone who is hungry should come and eat. ”-should not be read. It should be screamed! Is announcing, “I am a giving person! I am overflowing with goodness and kindness! I have a full tank of giving to share with everyone!”

Cheryl moment when you either carried out witnessed a momentous act of extraordinary giving. (Hearing Your Own Voice Haggadah, page 24)

Most of us are used to joining large Seders with family and friends or at a congregational Seder. At my house we usually average 20 + people around our Seder table. Judy and our company prepares a feast that sometimes I think could feed the entire Israeli army. Because of the coronavirus we know why this night is different from all other nights. This year we will have the smallest Seder ever. 

I wonder if are not hungering for food, what else are we hungry for. We are hungry for cure of and healing for all those suffering the coronavirus. Some of us are hungry for companionship because we are lonely. Some of us are hungry for good leadership. Some of us are hungry for truth and justice. Some of us hunger for deeper and more meaningful Jewish life. I pray that these hungers motivates us to scream out, “I am part of the solution and will share it with you as I would with my own matzah!”

Who is wise? He learns from everybody TB Shabbat 20

Today we finish the first chapter of massechet Barachot and begin the second chapter with daf TB Shabbat 20! The second chapter, Bemeh Madlikin, is one of most well-known chapters in all the Talmud because there’s a tradition to recite it every Friday night during services dating back to the Tur, 1270-1340.  The Ashkenazim recite it between the end of the Kabbalat Shabbat service and the Barachu. The Sephardim recited it at the end of the entire service.

Ben Zoma teaches “Who is wise? He who learns from everyone.” (Avot 4:1) Several times in today’s daf the rabbis turned to the expertise of others to help explain things. The first person we meet is ben Drosai, the Jesse James of his era.

“MISHNA: This Mishna enumerates actions that may only be performed on Shabbat eve if the prohibited labor will be totally or mostly completed while it is still day. One may only roast meat, an onion, or an egg if there remains sufficient time so that they could be roasted while it is still day

The Gemara asks: And how much do they need to be roasted in order to be considered sufficient, so that it will be permitted to complete their cooking afterward? Rabbi Elazar said that Rav said: So that they will be roasted while it is still day like the food of ben Drosai, which was partially roasted. Ben Drosai was a robber and pursued by all. He could not wait for his food to roast completely, so he sufficed with a partial roasting”” (Sefaria.org translation)

I don’t know whether ben Drosai was always on the run from the law and couldn’t wait for the food to be fully cooked or he was just so impetuous he couldn’t wait for the food to be done to eat supper. Either way the rabbis turned to his example to explain how much does a person need to roast something in order to be considered sufficient that they will be permitted to complete their cooking afterward. Rashi and Rambam disagree how long ben Drosai cooked his food. Rashi says the food is 1/3 roasted and Rambam says it has to be ½ cooked through. For example, if it takes one hour to roast a piece of meat, Rashi says that after 20 minutes ben Drosai would eat it and Rambam says it needs to be roasted for 30 minutes before he would eat it.

The Mishna is written in Hebrew. The Babylonian Jewish community spoke Aramaic and were not native Hebrew speakers. The first Mishna in chapter 2 lists six different wicks and six different types of oil one may not use to light his Shabbat lamp (back in the day they did not have wax candles like we do). Consequently, they had to translate those terms into Aramaic. Sometimes the rabbis needed help with the term they did not completely understand. Here is an example where they turned to sailors concerning a wick.

“And we also learned in the Mishna that one may not light with kalakh. Shmuel said: I asked all seafarers, and they said to me that the present-day name of kalakh mentioned in the Mishna is kulka. Rav Yitzḥak bar Ze’ira said: Kalakh is the cocoon of the silkworm [gushkera].” (Sefaria.org translation)

My problem is that I am neither a native Hebrew nor Aramaic speaker so their translations don’t help me. I have to turn to my Jastrow dictionary.

The important message of Kiddush at the seder

Good news everybody! High Holiday Cantor, Cantor Scott Eckers and I are working together so that we can share the Kabbalat service with you via the miracle of the Internet this Friday night at 5:30 PM. if I don’t have your email address and you send it to me, in a few days Good news everybody! High Holiday Cantor, Cantor Scott Eckers and I are working together so that we can share the Kabbalat service with you via the miracle of the Internet this Friday night at 5:30 PM. Here is the link:  https://zoom.us.j/2389285517.

Now my daily devar Haggadah.

The important message of Kiddush at the Seder

Kiddush is recited each Shabbat and each holiday. Rabbi Soloveitchik presented a fabulous insight of his understanding of the role of Kiddush at the Seder. While the Kiddush on the night of the Seder parallels that of all the other holidays, it is also singularly related to Passover.

To be a slave is to have no control of one’s own time. A slave also loses all sense of time. Time is no longer his own when the slave is controlled by his master; he has no control over time or the ability to sanctify it.

When Jewish slaves were freed from Egypt, they became masters of their own time. Their use of time was in their hands.

Any time we recite Kiddush we are sanctifying the day. At the Seder, Kiddush takes on a special and unique meaning. Reciting Kiddush tonight is an expression of freedom from bondage. We are stating that our time no longer lies in the hands of others. The story of freedom begins with Kiddush, and expression of the ability to sanctify time. Kiddush is an integral part of the story said at the opening of the Seder since that is the time the Torah prescribes for accounting and celebrating the story of our transition from slavery to freedom. (The Night That Unites Haggadah, page 49)

I hope that you are staying home keeping yourself safe and flattening the curve. We all have more time on our hands than ever before because are not rushing from here to there. As certain sense we are freer now to do was really important like call a friend we haven’t spoken to for a long time or reading that good book that’s been sitting on a shelf, or studying some Torah at one of the many websites. You can even read my daily #dafyomi reflections on the Talmud at rabbigarygreene.blogspot.com.

Boating brings back fond memories TB Shabbat 19

I have really enjoyed studying the Talmud every day in the course of my daf yomi journey. Because of the pace of the study, we can’t go into any depth of any particular issue. We must be satisfied with the breath of study instead. This approach so different when I was a rabbinical student at JTS. We moved very slowly and dived deeply into the meaning of the sugiah, the topic at hand. Today’s daf TB Shabbat 19 brought back fond memories of my days at JTS. One of my favorite teachers was Dr. Israel Francus who taught me codes, Jewish law, one year. One of the topics we studied was when a person is allowed to enter boat before Shabbat.

“The Sages taught: One may not set sail on a ship fewer than three days before Shabbat, to avoid appearances that the Jew is performing a prohibited labor on Shabbat. In what case is this statement said? In a case where he set sail for a voluntary matter; however, if he sailed for a matter involving a mitzva, he may well do so. And, even then, he must stipulate with the gentile ship captain that this is on the condition that he rests, i.e., stops the ship, and even if the gentile does not rest. Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel says: He need not stipulate. And sailing on a ship that is traveling from Tyre to Sidon, a short journey by sea, is permitted even on Shabbat eve.” (Sefaria.org translation)

I’ll just give you a little taste of how we approached the text. ““The Sages taught: One may not set sail on a ship fewer than three days before Shabbat, to avoid appearances that the Jew is performing a prohibited labor on Shabbat.” That’s not a very clear statement. The Rishonim, rabbis from the 11^th-15^th century, argued with each other which day a person was allowed to enter the boat. If you begin with Shabbat as the first day, Friday is the second day, then Thursday is the day you’re allowed to go on a boat. If Friday is the first day, Thursday is the second day, then Wednesday is the day you’re allowed to go on about. But if you have to wait three full days that could mean that you may not enter the boat before Wednesday or before Tuesday or before Monday depending on how you count the days. To compound the issue even more, there were even some rabbis who decided that you can enter the boat right up to candle lighting time no matter how long the journey was. After we had covered all the different aspects of this law, we moved on to a completely different topic.

One day in the cafeteria we were sitting around the table eating lunch when one of our friends Maureen Richardson asked us a question. During the break, her parents had invited her on a cruise along the Danube River. I don’t remember exactly all the details but she asked us if she allowed to enter the boat on Shabbat. We were so excited to answer the question because we knew all the different ways all the different rabbis interpreted the law and could give her a detailed answer. The next day after class a group of us approached Dr. Francus and told him that all of the halachot he taught us that year the one about when a person is allowed to enter upon a boat was the most hypothetical and useless for our career in the rabbinate and that’s the one somebody davka asked us. He smiled at us and said, “Even if I would have known that, I still would have taught this topic!”

Discovering our place and purpose in the world.

Good news everybody! High Holiday Cantor, Cantor Scott Eckers and I are working together so that we can share the Kabbalat service with you via the miracle of the Internet this Friday night at 5:30 PM. if I don’t have your email address and you send it to me, in a few days I’ll send you the zoom platform link that will allow you to join our virtual congregation.

Now to our regularly scheduled devar Haggadah.

 The night before Seder there is a ritual called Bedikat Hametz, searching for the hametz (any leaven food or drink). After the house is cleaned and ready for Passover, we place a piece of bread in each of our rooms. We search for these pieces of bread with a candle, feather, and wooden spoon. We gather up all those pieces and place them in an envelope. In the morning of Passover there is a ritual of burning this hametz and annulling any other hametz that you own. My family calls this our search and destroy mission. All traditional Haggadot will contain instructions and the appropriate blessings to be said. Now for today’s commentary from one of my favorite Haggadot, The Night That Unites: Teachings, Stories, and Questions from Rabbi Kook, Rabbi Soloveitchick and Rabbi Carlebach by Aaron Goldscheider.

Searching with a candle

Reb Shlomo Carlebach cherished a particular love for the teachings of the great Ishbitz Hasidic rabbis. Reb Yaakov Leiner (1814-1878) of Ishbitz asks why the search for leaven has to take place at night. Why not the more obvious time to search for something-during the day? He also asked why we were instructed to use a candle or lamp?

For the Rebbe of Ishbitz, we are really doing more than just searching for hametz. We are searching for our place, our purpose in this world. In the state of exile, galut, that we are in, we often feel that we are in the dark and we cannot easily find our way. But in the future, the time will come when it will be revealed the even when it appeared dark and must we were really being guided by God.

In seeking out Leven with the candle at night, we are, both literally and figuratively providing a glimmer of light amidst the darkness for ourselves. The light reminds us that we have direction and that we have the candle.

It is during the holiday of Passover that person can discover more about who he or she is, and what his or her place is in the world. This is what brings us to experience the great joy of the festival. (page 34)

Our Passover Seder reminds us that to let our inner light to shine forth during these dark times of the pandemic coronavirus. We can share this light by helping other people. Sometimes it only takes a phone call. With God’s help, we can find our way out of all the challenges that face us and discover our place and purpose in the world.

Hot Cholent For Lunch TB Shabbat 18

With yesterday’s daf TB Shabbat 17b we finished for the time being all the discussions about carrying something from one domain to another. At the very bottom of the daf and continuing from today’s daf TB Shabbat 18 to the end of chapter 1, the discussion turns to what is permissible and forbidden to do erev Shabbat before candle lighting.

Everybody agrees that there are 39 forbidden malachot, types of creative work, that are forbidden on Shabbat and we shall learn about them in chapter 7. Shabbat is the fourth commandment in the Decalogue. “Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of the Lord your God: you should not do any work-you, your son or daughter, your male or female slave, or your cattle, or the stranger who is within your settlements.” (Exodus 20:8-10) As you can read not only all human beings in the Jewish orbit are forbidden to work, but also our animals must rest on the Sabbath.. You might notice what is missing that our sages picked up upon. What about tools? Of course we can actively use our tools to do any one of the 39 forbidden acts of work and Shabbat. Do our tools themselves also have to rest on Shabbat? That is the debate between Beit Hillel and Beit Shammai.

“MISHNA: In this mishna there is a fundamental dispute between Beit Hillel and Beit Shammai: Must one begin refraining from actions prohibited on Shabbat on Shabbat eve? Or, may one initiate an action prior to Shabbat, even if he knows that it will continue on its own on Shabbat itself? These are the details of that dispute: Beit Shammai say: One may only soak dry ink in water and dry plants, which produce dyes, in water and vetch for animal food to soften them in water on Shabbat eve, adjacent to Shabbat,if there is clearly sufficient time for them to soak for their designated purpose while it is still day, before Shabbat begins, and their continued soaking on Shabbat will have no effect. And Beit Hillel permit doing so. Beit Shammai say: One may only place bundles of combed flax inside the oven on Shabbat eve if there is sufficient time so that they will be heated while it is still day. And one may only place wool into the dyer’s kettle if there is sufficient time for the wool to absorb the dye while it is still day. And Beit Hillel permit doing so…

“Beit Shammai, and those, Beit Hillel, agree that, ab initio, one may load the beam of the olive press on the olives on Shabbat eve while it is still day, so that the oil will continue to be squeezed out of the olives on Shabbat. So too, one may load the circular wine press to accelerate the process of producing wine from the grapes.”(Sefaria.org translation)

Bet Shammai believes that even the passive use of tools on Shabbat is forbidden and Beit Hillel believes that you may use tools if one initiate the action prior to Shabbat, even if he knows that it will continue on his own on Shabbat itself. According to the Tosefta, the collection of tannaitic statements not included in the mishna, the disagreement is based on their understanding of two different versus. According to Beit Shammai the verse “Six days you shall labor and do all your work (כָּל־מְלַאכְתֶּֽךָ) teaches us that all your work must be completed before Shabbat. According to Bet Hillel the verse that uses a different Hebrew word for work “six days shall you do your work (מַֽעֲשֶׂ֔יךָ)” (Exodus 23: 12) means that on Shabbat no work may be done, but an action started before Shabbat even though it will continue passively without human intervention on Shabbat is permitted.

Our lives are much better because we follow the opinions of Beit Hillel. If we start erev Shabbat making cholent in a crockpot or on a stovetop with a bleich, we can have a hot Saturday afternoon lunch!

To Seder are not to Seder, that is the question

Passover begins April 8 in the evening with the first Seder. I’ve been reading online and hearing from some friends about postponing the Passover Seder this year because families and friends can’t gather due to the coronavirus. I’ve heard some people talk about holding the Seder on Pesach Sheni. Pesach Sheni means "Second Passover [Sacrifice]." It marks the day when someone who was unable to participate in the Passover offering in the proper time would observe the mitzvah exactly one month later. (See Numbers 9:6-9 for the origin of Pesach Sheni.) I appreciate why people might want to do that.

Nevertheless, I highly recommend that we do NOT postpone the Passover Seder this year nor wait until Pesach Sheni to celebrate Passover for several reasons. First of all, we have good reason to believe that we still will be self-isolating ourselves on Pesach Sheni, beginning May 7th and continuing through May 8th. Families and friends still will not be able to gather. Secondly, I believe there’s power in having a Seder when Jews all over the world are doing thing at the same time. We unite with our people, past, present, and future. Thirdly, I believe we need the Seder’s message of hope during these difficult times.

I appreciate how difficult it will be to run a Seder this year. Some seders will be intimate; others will use online platforms to gather people together. All I can say is just do your best. To help you, every day I’m going to share with you a commentary on the Haggadah that I have chosen specifically with the message helping deal us through this sad reality.

The first commentary comes from the Ayeka Haggadah: Hearing Your Own Voice by Aryeh ben David

The Exodus has given hope to generations-and this year, at our Seder, we need to give hope to ourselves.

Over 3000 years ago, a group of people, enslaved for generations, lost hope of ever being free. No slave had ever escaped from Egypt, and the Jewish slaves had given up calling out for help. When Moses promised them freedom, they couldn’t even listen. Yet, just one year later, this powerless group had awakened, challenged the world’s strongest leader, and emerge triumphant.

This outlandishly radical, and possible story of success is a paradigm of hope that has inspired people of all faiths and nationalities throughout the centuries.

Hope is the most precious gift that exists. The mystics would say that our soul is hardwired for hope. We certainly feel better about ourselves and others when hope fills our being. Yet hope withers easily in the face of disappointment and hardship. We are afraid that our dreams will lead to disappointment, and it is all too easy to become disillusioned toxic cynics who ridicule optimists and visionaries. The hopeless state drains the life of our eyes and the health of our bodies.

Then comes the Passover Seder, the antidote to hopelessness. The Exodus story is an overcoming of impossible odds, a triumph over all powerful enemies. Reliving the Exodus gives us the will and strength to hope once again, to discover our vision for a better world and a better “me.”

Hope is the gift Jews have given to the world, and hope is the most important gift we can give each other during our Seder. By reliving the Haggadah, we refill our hope-tanks with strong fuel from the deepest reservoirs….

Though we are no longer slaves, we each remain stuck in some part of our lives. The Passover Seder is a de-stuckifying experience.

This is not always easy. Getting unstuck-making changes- is scary and can overwhelm us. It makes us venture into the unknown and take risks. We may fail; we may wander for years in the desert. Toddlers don’t began walking without falling hard and often. But they don’t stay down; they get up and move forward.

Hope is the springboard for next steps. We need to replenish our personal hope-tanks, to bond with kindred supportive spirits, to embrace the challenge of change ourselves and the world. Hope has been the sole of the Jewish people for over 3000 years. Moses said to Pharaoh, “Let my People go!”  We have to ingest these words anew every year, in order to strengthen ourselves and to overcome the fear of the unknown, to march forward, slowly but defiantly for the Promised Land. (page 12)

During this pandemic the world and we need hope more than ever and that’s why think why we should hold our Passover Seder’s on-time in order to replenish our hope-tanks.

Arguments can get out of hand TB Shabbat 17

Today’s daf is dedicated in honor of my children’s, Hillel and Lily, anniversary.

I’ve been making phone calls to all my members to all my members to find out how are they faring during this period of self-isolation. Many of my members live in small apartments with not a lot of space to be alone. Families with children whether in a small apartment or house can easily get on each other’s nerves. Tensions can rise. The Gemara relates a time when tensions rose to a fever pitch between Hillel and Shammai in the study hall.

“And another of those (18) decrees is the matter of one who harvests grapes in order to take them to the press. Shammai says: It has become susceptible, and Hillel says: It has not become susceptible. Hillel said to Shammai: If so, for what purpose do they harvest grapes in purity, i.e., utilizing pure vessels, as in your opinion, since the grapes are susceptible to impurity by means of the juice that seeps from them, care must be taken to avoid impurity while gathering; and, however, they do not harvest olives in purity? According to your opinion that liquid that seeps out renders the fruit susceptible to impurity, why is there not a similar concern with regard to the liquid that seeps out of olives?

“Shammai said to him: If you provoke me and insist that there is no difference between gathering olives and grapes, then, in order not to contradict this, I will decree impurity on the gathering of olives as well. They related that since the dispute was so intense, they stuck a sword in the study hall, and they said: One who seeks to enter the study hall, let him enter, and one who seeks to leave may not leave, so that all of the Sages will be assembled to determine the halakha. That day Hillel was bowed and was sitting before Shammai like one of the students. The Gemara said: And that day was as difficult for Israel as the day the Golden Calf was made, as Hillel, who was the Nasi, was forced to sit in submission before Shammai, and the opinion of Beit Shammai prevailed in the vote conducted that day.” (Sefaria.com)

We all know how bad things were when the day the golden calf was made. The children of Israel worship an idol instead of Hashem, God. Moses broke the two tablets he was carrying down from Mount Sinai when he saw the Israelites dancing around the calf. The Levites slew there fellow Israelite who had given themselves over to idolatry. Moses ground the calf to powder, strewed it upon the water, and made the Israelites drink it. (Exodus 32) That indeed was a terrible bad day. Now can you imagine the tension and anger in that study hall when Hillel and Shammai disagreed? It was so thick you probably could have cut it with a knife. Eventually though things calmed down for we know from our previous study that the day after these 18 cases were discussed, a consensus was formed between Bet Hillel and Bet Shammai.

Perhaps you saw online or read in today’s Washington Post the viral rant of one Israeli mother stuck in the house with four children. Here’s a video link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=13&v=8U6zU4MXmnA&feature=emb_logo (it has subtitles ) and here is the link to the article where you can read her rant https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2020/03/22/if-we-dont-die-corona-well-die-distance-learning-israeli-mom-with-four-kids-home-loses-it-heres-her-rant/. Frustrated she says, “It’s only the second day. If we don’t die of corona, we’ll die of distance learning.” I recommend you watch her rant and see how her tone changes at the very end.

How many of us feel that way already? And we have weeks if not months ahead of us in a confinement. The best advice I can give you when arguing is escalating is to stop and take a deep breath. Take a timeout. When both of you are calmer and able to discuss whatever is bothering you rationally, that’s the time to discuss the issue. Don’t let it escalate to be a day that was as difficult for Israel as the day the golden calf was made.

Not all water is the same TB Shabbat 16

Before understanding today’s daf TB Shabbat 16, a person must have a basic understanding of the requirements of a mikvah, a ritual bath.

 “The traditional rules regarding the construction of a mikveh are based on those specified in classical rabbinical literature. According to these rules, a mikveh must be connected to a natural spring or well of naturally occurring water, and thus can be supplied by rivers and lakes which have natural springs as their source. A cistern filled by the rainwater is also permitted to act as a mikveh's water supply so long as the water is never collected in a vessel. Similarly snow, ice and hail are allowed to act as the supply of water to a mikveh no matter how they were transferred to the mikveh. A river that dries up upon occasion cannot be used because it is presumed to be rainwater and not spring water, which cannot purify while in a flowing state. Oceans and seas for the most part have the status of natural springs.

"A mikveh must, according to the classical regulations, contain enough water to cover the entire body of an average-sized person; based on a mikveh with the dimensions of 3 cubits deep, 1 cubit wide, and 1 cubit long, the necessary volume of water was estimated as being 40 seah of water. The exact volume referred to by a seah is debated, and classical rabbinical literature specifies only that it is enough to fit 144 eggs;  most Orthodox Jews use the stringent ruling of the Avrohom Yeshaya Karelitz, according to which one seah is 14.3 litres, and therefore, a mikveh must contain approximately 575 litres. This volume of water can later be topped up with water from any source, but if there were less than 40 seahs of water in the mikveh, then the addition of 3 or more pints of water that was at any time intentionally collected in any vessel or transferred by a human, would render the mikveh unfit for use, regardless of whether water from a natural source was then added to make up 40 seahs from a natural source; a mikveh rendered unfit for use in this way would need to be completely drained away and refilled from scratch in the prescribed way." (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mikveh)

Since the Rabbi’s prohibited the adding of drawn water to the mikvah, there is a need to define exactly what are the vessels considered vessels specifically for drawn water. Obviously any vessel that intentionally collects water and that water is added to the mikvah is considered a drawn water vessel. The Gemara goes on to clarify the status of the water when there is no intention for the water to be collected; nevertheless, the vessel collects water. May that water be added to the mikvah to reach the minimum of 40 seahs?

“To this point, several, but not all, of the eighteen decrees were enumerated. The Gemara asks: And what is the other decree? The Gemara answers: As we learned in a mishna in tractate Mikvaot: One who places vessels under the drain pipe in order to collect rainwater, the water collected in the vessels is considered drawn water. This is true both in the case of large vessels which, due to their size, do not become impure, and in the case of small vessels. And even if they were stone vessels and earth vessels and dung vessels, made from dry cattle dung, which are not considered vessels in terms of ritual impurity and do not become impure at all, this ruling applies. The water in the vessels is considered drawn water in all respects. If it leaked from those vessels and flowed into a ritual bath that had not yet reached its full measure, forty se’a, and filled it, the water invalidates the ritual bath. The Gemara adds that this halakha applies both in a case where one places the vessels beneath the drainpipe with premeditated intent to collect the water flowing through it as well as in a case where one forgets the vessels there and they are filled unintentionally; this is the statement of Beit Shammai. And Beit Hillel deem the ritual bath pure, i.e., fit to complete the full measure of the ritual bath, in a case where one forgets the vessels. Rabbi Meir said: They were counted in the attic of Ḥananya ben Ḥizkiya and Beit Shammai outnumbered Beit Hillel. And Rabbi Meir said that Beit Shammai agree with Beit Hillel that in a case where one forgets vessels in the courtyard and they fill with rainwater, the water is pure. Rabbi Yosei said: The dispute still remains in place, and Beit Shammai did not agree with Beit Hillel at all.

“Rav Mesharshiya said: The Sages of the school of Rav say: Everyone agrees that if he placed the vessels in the courtyard at the time of the massing of the clouds, a sign that it is about to rain, just before it began to rain, then the water in the vessels is impure, unfit, as he certainly intended that the water fill the vessels. If one placed the vessels at the time of the dispersal of the clouds, and then the clouds massed together, and then rain fell and the vessels filled with the rainwater, everyone agrees that the water is pure. It is fit to fill the ritual bath to its capacity because at the time that he placed the vessels under the drainpipe his intention was not that they fill with rainwater. They only disagreed in a case where he placed them at the time of the massing of the clouds, and the clouds dispersed, and rain did not fall then, and only later the clouds massed again, and rain fell and filled the vessels. In that case, this Sage, Beit Hillel, holds that because the clouds dispersed after he placed the vessels, his thought to fill the vessels with water was negated. The vessels remained in the courtyard due to his forgetfulness, and when they filled afterward it was not his intention that they fill. And this Sage, Beit Shammai, holds that his thought was not negated, as his original intention was ultimately fulfilled despite the delay in its fulfillment.” (Sefaria.org translation)

This is not an esoteric discussion with no practical usage. Many people still use the mikvah today. An observant woman will use the mikvah in order to have intimate relations with her husband (more about that we study massechet Nidah). A bride will go to the mikvah before her wedding. My friend David Goldstein went to the mikvah before his wedding just like his future wife. Men will go to the mikvah before Shabbat and holidays to prepare themselves spiritually to enter those holy days. Converts will immerse in a mikvah as part of the ritual conversion process. Traditionally observant Jews will immerse brand-new metal and glass utensils before using them.

My wife Judy was one of the founding mothers of the pluralistic mikvah Mayyim Hayyim in Boston. Mayyim Hayyim encourages men, women, children to use the mikvah for new, exciting, and spiritual ways. Judy is one of many people who have contributed many new rituals that people can take advantage of beyond the traditional ones listed above. Follow this link for a list of all these possibilities to add new Jewish path of spirituality in your life. https://www.mayyimhayyim.org/ceremonies/

Let them eat challah TB Shabbat 15

We learned yesterday that on 18 different issues Bet Shammai and Bet Hillel disagreed when visiting Hananya ben Hizkiya ben Garon in his attic.  At first glance the laws were decided to Bet Shammai because when the vote took place these students outnumbered the number of Bet Hillel’s students. Apparently that’s not exactly what happened. According to today’s daf TB Shabbat 15 they discussed these laws on the first day and came to a consensus the next.  If only the Republicans and Democrats in Congress could do the same.

The Gemara continues:

 “As to the matter itself that was mentioned above in passing, Rav Huna said: Shammai and Hillel disagreed in three places. The Gemara cites the disputes. One, Shammai says: From a kav of dough, one is required to separate challah, the portion of the dough given to a priest. From any less than that measure there is no obligation to separate challah, as that is not the measure alluded to in the verse: “The first of your dough” (Numbers 15:20), written with regard to the mitzva of separating challah. And Hillel says: One must separate challah only from two kav. And the Rabbis say: The halakha is neither in accordance with the statement of this one, who is stringent, nor in accordance with the statement of that one, who is lenient. Rather, one and a half kav is the measure from which one is obligated to separate challah. Once the measures increased and the Sages recalculated the volume of a kav to be greater, they said that based on the measure of the new kav, five quarters of a kav of flour is the measure from which one is obligated to separate challah. Rabbi Yosei says: Five quarters are exempt; only from dough the size of five quarters and a bit more is one obligated to separate challah.” (Sefaria.org translation)

Even though the same name describing the measurement remained constant, the actual measurement changed twice from the one our ancestors used in desert as described in the Torah. The first changed happened in Jerusalem while the Temple stood. The second change happened in city of Tzipori in the Galilee after the destruction of the 2nd Temple.

What does that mean for us today? According to the Spice and Spirit cookbook, purple edition published by the Lubavitch women, “do not separate challah when using flour less than 1230 grams or 2 lbs 11 oz. Separate challah without a blessing for flour weighing between 1230 grams and 1666.6 grams or between 1230 grams or 2 lbs 11 oz  and 3 lbs 11 oz. Separate challah with a blessing when using more than 3 lbs 11 oz.” (page 48)

Since most of us don’t weigh our flour when we bake the cookbook goes on and teaches:

“For white ‘unsifted’ flour do not separate challah with 7 or less cups. Separate the challah without a blessing for anything more than 7 cups but less than 12 cups of flour. (These measurements remove all doubt.) Anything 12 or more cups of flour separate the challah with a blessing.

“For white ‘sifted’ flour do not separate challah with 9 or less cups. Separate the challah without a blessing for anything more than 9 cups but less than 15 cups of flour. (These measurements remove all doubt.) Anything 15 or more cups of flour separate the challah with a blessing.” (page 49)

Don’t forget to say the blessing before removing the challah.
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָֽׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו, וְצִוָּֽנוּ לְהָפְרִישׁ חָלָה

“Today since we cannot give the challah to the kohanim (priests) and since we may not use it ourselves, the prevailing custom is to burn this piece separately (e.g. in a piece of aluminum foil) {at the same time the bread or all other food is in the oven GG}. (page 50) For more details please refer to Spice and Spirit or any other reliable source.

Making challah for Shabbat is such a great way of spending quality time with your family during this period of the coronavirus self-isolation.

The Torah is what?!!! TB Shabbat 14

Today's daf is in honor my son Doron's 35th birthday.

Usually we follow Bet Hillel’s interpretation of Jewish law. In yesterday’s Mishna we learned that Bet Shammai outvoted Bet Hillel 18 times in Hannaya ben Hizkiya ben Garon’s attic and decided halacha in their favor. Generally Bet Shammai represented the aristocratic class and was more stringent in Jewish law and Bet Hillel represented the more common folk and was more liberal in their interpretation of Jewish law. Today’s daf TB Shabbat 14 begins enumerating those 18 cases. These cases deal with tumah, ritual unreadiness, and tahara, ritual readiness. Teruma, the tithe given to the kohanim, priests, not only had to be eaten in a state of ritual readiness, but also had to be kept in a state of ritual readiness. Most of these laws are esoteric for us because they are no longer applicable since our holy Temple in Jerusalem has been destroyed. Today’s Gemara provides an exception.

When I was a rabbi at my very first congregation B’Nai Jacob I introduced the policy of calling women up to the Torah. One of the objections raised was that women who are nidot because of their menstrual flow were in a state of ritual unreadiness. How could you call somebody up to the holy Torah who was tamei? I taught them that the Torah scroll itself was tamei! These rabbis in Hannaya ben Hizkiya ben Garon’s attic ordained this rule for the following reason.

“The Gemara explains the next case in the mishna: And a Torah scroll; what is the reason the Sages decreed impurity upon it? Rav Mesharshiya said: Since at first, ignorant priests would conceal teruma foods alongside the Torah scroll, and they said in explaining that method of storage: This is sacred and that is sacred, and it is appropriate that they be stored together. Since the Sages saw that they were coming to ruin, as the mice who were attracted to the teruma foods would also gnaw at the Torah scrolls, the Sages decreed impurity upon it. Once they issued the decree of impurity on the Torah scroll, the priests no longer placed teruma near it.” (Srfaria.org translation)

Because the Torah imparts ritual unreadiness, both men and women still do not directly touch the scroll when they are called up for an Aliyah. The correct procedure is to take your tallit and touch the space between the columns closest where the reader will begin. One should not touch the words themselves less he rubs too hard and erases a letter. If a letter is erased the whole Torah scroll is ineligible for use; consequently, this extra precaution.