![]() Rabbi David Etengoff Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon HaKohane, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Gittel Malka bat Moshe, Alexander Leib ben Benyamin Yosef, the Kedoshimof Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world. The prohibition of eating blood is one of the best-known mitzvot in Parashat Acharei Mot. In his Commentary on the Torah, on Sefer Vayikra 17:10-11, the Ramban (1194-1270) notes that many of the verses that proscribe the consumption of blood employ the word, “nefesh,” as we see in the following examples: For the soul of the flesh is in the blood… For [regarding] the soul of all flesh, its blood is in its soul, and I said to the children of Israel: You shall not eat the blood of any flesh, for the soul of any flesh is its blood; all who eat it shall be cut off. However, be strong not to eat the blood, for the blood is the soul; and you shall not eat the soul with the flesh. (Sefer Vayikra 17:11, 14 and Sefer Devarim 12:23, all Bible translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach) This leads the Ramban (1194-1270) to a deeply insightful analysis of this mitzvah: … if a person eats the soul of all flesh (that is, blood), and joins it with his blood, they become united in his being; this results in an obdurate nature and arrogance in the soul of man. Moreover, he will enter into a [spiritual] state that is close to the animal soul that has been eaten… and the man’s soul will be combined with the blood of the animal. Therefore, the text states, “For [regarding] the soul of all flesh, its blood is in its soul…” (Sefer Vayikra 17:14) for in all the flesh of both man and the animals, the soul is to be found in the blood. [Moreover,] it is not fitting to mix the soul that has been cut off [that of the animal that has been killed] with the soul that continues to live [that of the man] … And this is the reason why I [Hashem] have said to the Jewish people [not to eat blood], since the blood is the soul, and it is not fitting for a soul to eat another soul. (Commentary on Sefer Vayikra 17:11-12, translation, underlining and brackets my own) The Ramban’s spiritually oriented interpretation of our mitzvah focuses on several major elements: Ingesting blood results in a thickness and arrogance in the soul of a person; eating blood will cause a person to enter a spiritual state that is similar in kind to that of the animal he/she has eaten; it is untoward to mix the soul that has been cut off with the soul that continues to live. In general, my rebbe and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), known as the “Rav” by his followers and disciples, championed the Ramban’s interpretation of ta’amei HaMitzvot—the “taste” of the mitzvot, such as the one we have discussed, over the Rambam’s (1135-1204) rationalistic and historical explanations, as found in the Moreh HaNavuchim (Guide for the Perplexed). The Rav based this position on, “the incontrovertible fact that such [rationalistic] explanations neither edify nor inspire the religious consciousness.” (Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, The Halakhic Mind: An Essay on Jewish Tradition and Modern Thought, page 92) What, then, are the hallmarks of the religious consciousness? The Rav provides a poetic answer: Man seeks God out of a thirst for the freedom of life, a desire to expand and deepen the universe. The search for God means liberation from the burden of tyrannical nature weighing heavily upon him, release from the blind forces besetting man’s life. Weary from the travail of dull life, man flees to the region of complete liberty and conjoins with God. Man desires peace of mind and seeks to wipe the tears of sorrow from his face. Out of the totality of spiritual experience that flows from the inner uniqueness and independence of the creative spirit that rises ever higher, the religious experience is revealed. (Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, And from There You Shall Seek, translation, Naomi Goldblum, pages 41-42) May we be zocheh to come ever closer to Hashem. V’chane yihi ratzon. Shabbat Shalom Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org. Please contact me at [email protected] to be added to my weekly email list. *** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd *** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link: The Rav
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![]() Rabbi David Etengoff Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon HaKohane, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Gittel Malka bat Moshe, Alexander Leib ben Benyamin Yosef, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world. The first time we are introduced to the mitzvah of brit milah is the 17th chapter of Sefer Bereshit: And Hashem said to Abraham, “And you shall keep My covenant, you and your seed after you throughout their generations. This is My covenant, which you shall observe between Me and between you and between your seed after you, that every male among you be circumcised. And you shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin, and it shall be as the sign of a covenant between Me and between you. And at the age of eight days, every male shall be circumcised to you throughout your generations…” (17:9-12, this and all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach) This mitzvah is found once again in the first of our parshiot, Parashat Tazria: “And on the eighth day, the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.” (Sefer Vayikra 12:3) This repetition creates a classic exegetical problem: if the Torah gave us this mitzvah in Sefer Bereshit, why is it reiterated in Sefer Vayikra? An approach to this problem is offered by a rhetorical question found in Talmud Yerushalmi, Moed Katan III:5: “L’maidin davar kodem l’Matan Torah?—Is it possible to learn normative halachic practice from a Torah passage that was stated prior to receiving the Torah?” Tosafot’s use of this question in Talmud Bavli, Moed Katan 20a, s.v. mah chag, strongly suggests that we cannot learn any halachic obligations from Torah portions that preceded Matan Torah. Therefore, in addition to Hashem’s charge to Avraham in Sefer Bereishit, we must have a post-Matan Torah repetition of the mitzvah of brit milah if it is to be a permanent obligation. The Rambam zatzal (1135-1204) further elaborates upon the non-binding character of a pre-Matan Torah mitzvah in the first halacha of Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Avel: It is a positive commandment to mourn the loss of a close relative (krovim). As the text states: “…But [if tragic events] like these had befallen me [Aharon, regarding the deaths of Nadav and Avihu], and if I had eaten a sin offering today, would it have pleased Hashem?” (Sefer Vayikra 10:19) Aveilut is a Torah obligation only on the first day, that is the day of death and the day of the burial [assuming they are the same]. The rest of the seven days are not a Torah obligation, even though the Torah states [regarding Yosef and Ya’akov]: “… and he made for his father a mourning of seven days.” (Sefer Bereishit 50:10), for once the Torah was given, and the halacha was stated anew, at that point Moshe Rabbeinu established the practice for them [the Jewish people] of seven days of Aveilut and seven days of rejoicing [for the bride and groom]. (Translation and brackets my own) The repetition of mitzvat brit milah post-Matan Torah is an indication of its singular halachic import. As such, what is its meaning? The anonymous author of the Sefer HaChinuch, one of the most celebrated works of mitzvot exploration, suggests that a physical sign is needed to distinguish klal Yisrael from the rest of mankind. In addition, he opines that brit milah symbolically represents the vast spiritual differences that obtain between the Jewish and non-Jewish worlds: One root reason for this precept is that the Eternal L-rd, be He blessed, wished to affix in the people that He set apart to be called by His name a permanent sign in their bodies to differentiate them from the other nations in their bodily form, just as they are differentiated in their spiritual form, their very “exits and entrances” [their purpose and way in the world] not being the same. (This and the following quotation, Sefer HaChinuch: The Book of Mitzvah Education, Commandment II, translation, Charles Wengrov, page 85) Basing himself upon a variety of midrashic sources, the Sefer HaChinuch notes that brit milah brings us to physical perfection, a mark of completion (hashlamah) that enables us to join Hashem as partners both in Ma’aseh Bereishit (the act of Creation) and the perfection of the world. As such, this mitzvah teaches us that just as a person can perfect their physical being, so, too, they can perfect their spiritual being. The Sefer HaChinuch concludes with an analytical tour de force: The Eternal L-rd (be He blessed) desired to perfect the [physical] character of the Chosen People; and He wished that man would effect this perfection. [Therefore,] He did not create him complete and perfect from the womb, in order to hint to him that just as the perfection of his physical form is by his own hand, so does it lie within his means and power to complete his spiritual form through the worthiness of his actions. With Hashem’s help and our fervent desire, may the worthiness of our actions bring us to greater spiritual heights as we strive to draw near to Hashem. V’chane yihi ratzon Shabbat Shalom Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org. Please contact me at [email protected] to be added to my weekly email list. *** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd *** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link: The Rav ![]() Rabbi David Etengoff Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon HaKohane, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Gittel Malka bat Moshe, Alexander Leib ben Benyamin Yosef, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world. Our parasha contains a biblical “Shulchan Aruch” of the laws of kashrut: “This is the law regarding animals, birds, all living creatures that move in water and all creatures that creep on the ground, to distinguish between the unclean (tamei) and the clean (tahor), and between the animal that may be eaten and the animal that may not be eaten.” (Sefer Vayikra 11:46-47, this and all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach) The Torah goes on to provide simanim (physical characteristics) that enable us to determine the tamei (non-kosher) and tahor (kosher) status of “animals…all living creatures that move in water and all creatures that creep on the ground.” This is not the case, however, regarding birds. Instead, we are presented with a catalog of 24 tamei species, leading to the logical inference that the remaining approximately 11,000 species of birds should be deemed tahor. However, Rabbi Ari Z. Zivotofsky Ph.D., in his article, “Is Turkey Kosher?” makes quite clear this is not the case, since: “… today when these [24 species] can no longer be accurately identified, things are quite a bit more complicated.” He also cites a well-known statement of the Minchat Chinuch concerning the matter: “In order to fully explain the identification of kosher birds [it] would take a small booklet of its own (Mitzvah 157).” (https://www.kashrut.com/articles/turk_part1) Moreover, works by the Chatam Sofer zatzal (Rav Moshe Schreiber, 1762-1839) and Rabbi Yonatan Eybeschutz zatzal (1690-1764), among others, have not met with universal acceptance due to the lack of consensus as to how to interpret the Mishnaic, Amoraic and Rishonic sources upon which these writings are based. In response to these concerns and following the Talmudic statement, “a kosher bird may be eaten based upon mesoret(accepted tradition),” [Talmud Bavli, Chulin 63b] Rashi zatzal (1040-1105) ruled: No bird is consumed by us unless there is a mesoret concerning this exact species that was given to us by our forebears attesting that it is tahor. [Consequently,] if no mesoret was given to us, we must question its status. [However,] we may fully rely upon the mesoret. (Talmud Bavli, Chulin 62b, s.v. chaziuah d’drasah v’achlah, translation and brackets my own) Rashi’s singular import led the most prominent Ashkenazi halachic authority of all time, Rabbi Moshe Isserles zatzal(Rema, 1530-1572), to conclude that the sole factor in determining the tahor or tamei status of a bird is mesoret: There are those that say that one may not rely even on this [the simanim presented by Rabbi Yosef Karo zatzal in the Shulchan Aruch], and that one may not eat any bird unless there is a mesoret that has been accepted that it is tahor. And this is the practice to which we are accustomed that must not be altered. (Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh Deah, 82:3, s.v. v’yash omrim, translation and brackets my own) Closer to our own time, the Rema’s p’sak was codified by both Rabbi Avraham Danzig zatzal (1748-1820) in Chachmat Adam 36:6, and by Rabbi Yechiel Michel Epstein zatzal (1829-1908) in Aruch HaShulchan, Yoreh Deah 82:29. As such, within the greater Ashkenazi Jewish community, the kashrut status of a particular bird species is determined by one criterion: the absence or presence of a reliable mesoret from klal Yisrael. Shabbat Shalom Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org. Please contact me at [email protected] to be added to my weekly email list. *** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd *** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link: The Rav ![]() Rabbi David Etengoff Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon HaKohane, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Gittel Malka bat Moshe, Alexander Leib ben Benyamin Yosef, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world. This week’s haftarah is focused on Yechezkel’s well-known nevuah (prophecy) of the “Dry Bones,” that begins: The hand of Hashem came upon me and carried me out in the spirit of Hashem and set me down in the midst of the valley, that was full of bones. And He made me pass by them round about and behold! they were exceedingly many on the surface of the valley and behold! they were exceedingly dry. Then He said to me; “Son of man, can these bones become alive?” And I answered, “O’ Hashem Elokim, You [alone] know.” (Sefer Yechezkel 37:1-3, this and all Tanach and translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach with my emendations) Hashem commands Yechezkel to prophesize over the dry bones and declare in His Name that they will live once again: And He said to me, “Prophesy over these bones, and say to them, O’ dry bones, hear the word of Hashem.” So says Hashem Elokim to these bones: “Behold, I will cause spirit to enter into you, and you shall live! And I will lay sinews upon you, and I will make flesh grow over you and cover you with skin and put breath into you, and you will live, and you will then know that I am Hashem.” (37:4-6) Yechezkel obeys the Almighty’s command, with the following miraculous outcome: “And I prophesied as He had commanded me, and the spirit came into them, and they lived and stood on their feet, a very great army, exceedingly so.” (37:10) Chazal differ in their understanding of the nature of this resurrection: This is as it is taught in a baraita, that Rabbi Eliezer says: “The dead that Yechezkel revived stood on their feet and recited song to G-d and died. And what song did they recite? Hashem kills with justice and gives life with mercy…” Rabbi Yehuda says: “Yechezkel’s depiction of the dry bones that came to life was truth and it was a parable (mashal).” Rabbi Nehemiah said to Rabbi Yehuda: “… In truth, it was a parable.” Rabbi Eliezer, son of Rabbi Yossi HaGelili, says: “Not only was it not a parable, the dead that Ezekiel revived ascended to Eretz Yisrael and married wives and fathered sons and daughters.” Rabbi Yehuda ben Beteira stood on his feet and said: “I am a descendant of their sons, and these are tefillin that my father’s father left me from them.” (Talmud Bavli, Sanhedrin 92b, Koren Talmud Bavli, translation, Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz zatzal with my emendations) Whether we accept the position that the dry bones actually came to life, or the perspective that this description is a mashal, we are left with the question, “Who were the members of this “very great army?” Hashem tells Yechezkel: “Son of man, these bones are all the house of Israel. Behold they say, ‘Our bones have become dried up, our hope is lost (avdah tikvatainu) ...’” (37:11) In response to the abject hopelessness of the phrase, “avdah tikvatainu,” Hashem comforts and promises: “Behold! I will open your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves as My people and bring you home to the Land of Israel. Then you shall know that I am Hashem when I open your graves and lead you up out of your graves as My people. And I will put My spirit into you, and you shall live, and I will set you on your land, and you shall know that I, Hashem, have spoken it and have performed it,” says Hashem. (37:12-14) May the time come soon, and in our days, when Yechezkel’s vision will be realized and we will witness the ultimate resurrection of the dead and the ingathering of the exiles to Eretz Yisrael. V’chane yihi ratzon. Shabbat Shalom and Chag Kasher v’Sameach Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org. Please contact me at [email protected] to be added to my weekly email list. *** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd *** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link: The Rav ![]() Rabbi David Etengoff Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon HaKohane, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Gittel Malka bat Moshe, Alexander Leib ben Benyamin Yosef, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world. The name, “Shabbat HaGadol,” has captured the imagination of Torah exegetes since time immemorial. The second Bobover Rebbe, HaRav Ben-Zion Halberstam zatzal (1874-1941), a member of this illustrious group, begins his analysis of this term by citing Tosafot’s explanation in Talmud Bavli, Shabbat 87b s.v. v’oto: The reason why we call the Shabbat before Passover, “Shabbat HaGadol,” is because of the great miracle (nes gadol) that took place on that day in accordance with the words of the Midrash: When the Jewish people took their paschal lambs on that very Shabbat, all of the first born sons of the nations of the world gathered together before the Jewish people and asked them: “Why are you doing this?” The Jewish people responded: “This is a Passover offering to Hashem Who will go forth and kill the first born of the Egyptians.” They [the first born of the Egyptians] went before their fathers and Pharaoh to ask them to send forth the Jewish people and they refused. As a result, the first born of the Egyptians started a war and killed many of them. Thus, the text states: “To Him Who smote the Egyptians with [by the hands of] their firstborn.” (Sefer Tehillim 136:10, this and all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach, brackets my own) Rav Halberstam now presents a classic question: “If this is the case [that we are commemorating this great miracle on this day], then this Shabbat should be called “Shabbat Nes HaGadol,” as such, why is it called “Shabbat HaGadol?” (Kedushat Tzion, Pesach, Shabbat HaGadol, new edition, page 57, translation and brackets my own). He answers this question with a quotation from Mechilta d’Rabbi Yishmael: “And I will be glorified through Pharaoh…” (Sefer Shemot 14:4) The text is telling us that when the Omnipresent One punishes the [evil] nations of the world, His Name becomes greater (shemo mitgadel) throughout the world. As it is said: “And I will place a sign upon them, and I will send from them refugees to the nations, Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, who draw the bow, to Tubal and Javan, the distant islands, who did not hear of My fame and did not see My glory, and they shall recount My glory among the nations.” (Sefer Yeshayahu 66:19) …” (Parashat Beshalach, Mesechta d’Vahayah, Parasha 1, translation and brackets my own) I believe Rav Halberstam is teaching us a powerful chidush (novel idea) regarding the name Shabbat HaGadol: Instead of translating it at face value as “the Great Shabbat,” we need to translate it as “the Shabbat of the Great One,” namely the special Shabbat of the Holy One blessed be He. As Rav Halberstam so beautifully explained: “According to this [that is, the Mechilta], it is completely proper to call this Shabbat, “Shabbat HaGadol,” since at that time, Hashem rendered judgment against the evil ones and thereby magnified [and sanctified] His Name, may it be blessed, in the Universe.” Truly, then, this Shabbat is “the Shabbat of the Great One.” Shabbat Shalom and Chag Kasher v’Sameach Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org. Please contact me at [email protected] to be added to my weekly email list. *** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd *** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link: The Rav ![]() Rabbi David Etengoff Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon HaKohane, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Gittel Malka bat Moshe, Alexander Leib ben Benyamin Yosef, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world. Why is “vayikra,” the first word of our parasha, and the namesake of Sefer Vayikra, written with a diminutive aleph as its final letter? In his commentary on the Torah entitled, Ba’al HaTurim, Rabbeinu Ya'akov ben Asher zatzal (1270-1340) provides an intriguing explanation: Moshe was [simultaneously] great and humble. Therefore, he did not want to write “vayikra” (and G-d called); rather, he desired to write “vayikar” (and G-d happened to appear), which is an expression of a purely accidental meeting. By using vayikar, it would be as if Hashem spoke to him in a trance or in a dream, as the Torah states regarding Bilam. [Hashem, however, ruled against this view] and explicitly commanded Moshe to write the aleph [in order to represent his true eminence to the world.] Moshe, however, responded to Hashem—based upon his thoroughgoing humility— and told Him that he would only consent to write a miniature aleph that would be smaller than any other aleph in the Torah; and so, he wrote it in this manner. (Translation and brackets my own) According to Rabbeinu Yaakov’s interpretation, there was palpable tension between Hashem and Moshe, as Hashem perceived Moshe in an entirely different manner than Moshe viewed himself. In the Almighty’s judgment, Moshe was truly great and ever His faithful servant, for we know that with Moshe alone did He: “… speak mouth to mouth; in a [direct] vision and not in riddles.” Moreover, only Moshe, of all the prophets, was able to see marot (visions) of Hashem. (Sefer Bamidbar 12:8, this and all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach) Clearly, Hashem sought to publicize Moshe’s unique nature by writing vayikra in its standard manner as the first word of our parasha. Moshe’s unparalleled anavah (humility), however, was at odds with this, and he therefore wrote “a miniature aleph that would be smaller than any other aleph in the Torah.” The Chasidic rebbe, Rav Simcha Bunim Bonhardt of Peshischa zatzal (1765-1827), is cited as having said a beautiful mashal (parable) that illustrates the depth of Moshe’s anavah and advances our understanding of the miniature aleph: Vayikra is written with a tiny aleph. The reason for this may be explained by the following mashal: There was a valiant man whom the king elevated to higher and higher levels [of power and authority] until he was raised above all his other officers. On one occasion, the king sought to ascertain if he [the intrepid individual] maintained the same level of awe toward him as he had in earlier times. He [the king], therefore called upon him to come to him. And this officer, being that he was truly humble in his self-perception, came before the king and presented himself in awe and fear in exactly the same manner as he had done in the past [prior to achieving his fame and glory]. The referent of this parable is Moshe, whom the Holy One blessed be He, raised up [above all others] and performed, through his agency, countless miracles and Matan Torah (the Giving of the Torah). Nonetheless, when He called to him [at the beginning of our parasha,] it was with a miniature aleph [at Moshe’s behest]. (Sefer Kol Simcha, Parashat Vayikra, translation and brackets my own) Anavah emerges as a constitutive element of Moshe’s very being. In contrast, most of us must work at developing this middah (ethical characteristic). We are fortunate that the Ramban (Nachmanides, 1194-1270) gives us ready guidance as to how to undertake this process: Speak gently at all times… with your heart focusing on Hashem… In all your actions, words, and thoughts, regard yourself as standing before Hashem, with His Schechinah [Divine Presence] above you, for His glory fills the whole world. Speak with fear and awe, as a servant standing before his master. Act with restraint in front of everyone. When someone calls you, don’t answer loudly, but gently and softly, as one who stands before his master. (Iggeret HaRamban, translation, with my emendations, http://www.pirchei.com/specials/ramban/ramban.htm, brackets my own) Two salient points emerge that guide us toward the attainment of anavah: Our encounters with others should embody respect and dignity, and we must focus upon Hashem, ever conscious that we stand before His Divine Presence. With the Almighty’s help, may our efforts to achieve these goals enable us to fulfill Moshe’s clarion call to the Jewish people: “And you shall do what is proper and good in the eyes of Hashem.” (Sefer Devarim 6:18). V’chane yihi ratzon. Shabbat Shalom Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org. Please contact me at [email protected] to be added to my weekly email list. *** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd *** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link: The Rav ![]() Rabbi David Etengoff Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon HaKohane, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Gittel Malka bat Moshe, Alexander Leib ben Benyamin Yosef, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world. The mitzvah of Rosh Chodesh, the focus of this week’s additional Torah reading, has been an essential link between Hashem and our people since we were commanded in its observance prior to the Exodus from Egypt: “Hashem spoke to Moshe and to Aharon in the land of Egypt, saying, ‘This month (hachodesh hazeh) shall be to you the head of the months; to you it shall be the first of the months of the year.’” (Sefer Shemot 12:1-2, this and all Tanach and Rashi translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach, with my emendations) In his Commentary on the Torah, Rashi (1040-1105) explains the expression, “hachodesh hazeh,” as referring to Chodesh Nissan: “Concerning the month of Nissan, He [Hashem] said to him [Moshe], ‘This shall be [to you, Leipzig manuscript] the first [month] of the order of the number of the months, so Iyar shall be called the second [month], and Sivan the third [month].’” In short, the first month of the year is Chodesh Nissan, a reading that is strongly supported by the concluding words of the pasuk, “to you it shall be the first of the months of the year.” The Ramban (Nachmanides, 1194-1270), in his Drasha l’Rosh HaShanah, raises a strong objection to Rashi’s approach: “And if it [the first day of Tishrei, the seventh month from Chodesh Nissan,] is Rosh HaShanah, its month is incontrovertibly the first month of the year. For this is an unbreakable [logical] connection [that is, axiom,] that the first month of the year must also be Rosh HaShanah, as the year is, by definition, the combination of the months.” (Kitvei Ramban, vol. I, Rabbi Dr. Charles B. Chavel editor, pages 214-215, translations, and brackets, my own) How, then, does the Ramban understand our pasuk? His explanation is an exegetical tour de force: That which is said in the Torah regarding Nissan, “this month shall be to you the head of the months; to you it shall be the first of the months of the year,” [must not be explained in a literal fashion,] that Nissan is the [first] and the head, rather, it means that it should be called, “first,” for us [the Jewish people]. That is, it [Nissan,] is the first month of our Redemption (rishon l’geulatainu), and that we count the months [of the chagim] based upon our Redemption from Egypt, as is the custom of the Torah to count the months and days regarding the mitzvot. In sum, for the Ramban, though Nissan is not calendrically the first month of the year, it is rishon l’geulatainu, and, therefore, it is fitting and proper “that we count the months [of the chagim] based upon our Redemption from Egypt, as is the custom of the Torah to count the months and days regarding the mitzvot.” As Rabbi Yehoshua declared so long ago: “b’Nissan nigalu; b’Nissan atidin liga’ale—in Nissan, we, the Jewish people, were redeemed from Egypt, and in Nissan in the future, we will be redeemed in the Ultimate Redemption (Geulah Shlaimah).” (Talmud Bavli, Rosh HaShanah 11a). With Hashem’s mercy and kindness, may this Nissan usher in the Geulah Shlaimah for all of klal Yisrael. V’chane yihi ratzon. Shabbat Shalom Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org. Please contact me at [email protected] to be added to my weekly email list. *** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd *** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link: The Rav ![]() Rabbi David Etengoff Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon HaKohane, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Gittel Malka bat Moshe, Alexander Leib ben Benyamin Yosef, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world. The mitzvah of the Parah Adumah (Red Heifer), the focus of this week’s additional Torah reading, is the best-known example of our inability to comprehend the underlying reasons for the mitzvot. We do, however, know that the outcome of this commandment is the halachic purification of an individual who has become tamei (ritually impure) due to contact with a corpse. Since the Parah Adumah purifies those who are tamei, while simultaneously rendering those who are tahor (ritually pure) tamei, it is intrinsically paradoxical and mystifying in nature. Even Shlomo HaMelech, blessed with the most prodigious intellect and insight in history, was stymied by the Red Heifer’s seemingly irreconcilable contradictions. As he plaintively declared: “All this I tested with wisdom; I said, ‘I will become wise,’ but it [that is, the Parah Adumah] was far from me.” (Sefer Kohelet 7:23, this and all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach) While many Rabbinic sources suggest that Shlomo HaMelech was successful in ascertaining the rationale inherent in all mitzvot other than the Parah Adumah, we are far from his level. What approach, then, can we follow to try to comprehend Hashem’s mitzvot? Rabbi Yehudah HaLevi (1080-1145) teaches in his Kuzari that humankind is, by definition, incapable of comprehending infinite Hashem and His works. Little wonder, then, that the Rambam (1135-1204) urges us to avoid the pitfalls of treating the mitzvot whose reasons escape us in a facile and flippant manner: A matter [mitzvah] wherein one does not find a reason and does not know its rationale should not become frivolous in his eyes and he should not burst forth against Hashem, lest He burst forth against him. Additionally, his thoughts in this matter ought not to be like his thoughts in profane matters. (Sefer Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Meilah 8:8, this and the following translations my own) The Rambam utilizes classic halachic reasoning to buttress his contention: Come and see how strict the Torah is in the Laws of Trespassing (Meilah): Just like wood, stones, dust, and ashes, once they are sanctified with the name of the Master of the Universe through words alone, and all who treat them in a profane manner commit a trespass will have to seek atonement, even if the act was done inadvertently, all the more so (kal v’chomer) in the case of mitzvot that the Holy One Blessed be He has commanded us, wherein man may not rebel against them simply because he does not understand their reasons. In addition, the Rambam warns against inventing ingenious, but specious, reasons for the mitzvot: “And he should not attribute (literally “pile on”) false rationalizations [for the mitzvot] against Hashem. He concludes his presentation by warning, “And one ought not to think concerning them [the mitzvot] in the manner in which he thinks about everyday profane matters.” In his incisive exegetical study, Beit Halevi, on Sefer Shemot 31, Rabbi Yosef Dov Halevi Soloveitchik zatzal (1820-1892) posits an exposition of the Parah Adumah that expands upon the Rambam’s approach. He notes that the phrase “This is the statute of the Torah that Hashem commanded, saying, ‘Speak to the children of Israel and have them take for you a perfectly red unblemished cow...’” (Sefer Bamidbar 19:2) is very unusual, since the Parah Adumah is singled out as being the “statute of the Torah.” Consequently, he asks: “At face value, the Parah Adumah is simply one of the [613] mitzvot of the Torah. Why, then, is it given the unusual label of the ‘statute of the Torah?’” His answer expresses some of his central beliefs concerning the search for the underlying rationale of the mitzvot: … for it is precisely from the Parah Adumah that it is revealed to man that he, in reality, does not know anything regarding [the true meaning inherent] in any mitzvah of the Torah, since [based upon this verse,] the entire Torah is a statute (chukah) [that eludes our understanding] And the explanation of this concept is the following, behold all of the mitzvot are inextricably attached to, and interwoven with, one another. Moreover, each one depends upon the other … [As a result,] it is impossible to comprehend even one of the mitzvot without understanding all of them. Therefore, when we encounter the Parah Adumah, and we do not understand its underlying principle, it is clear that we really know nothing at all [regarding the other mitzvot]. For the Beit HaLevi, since all the mitzvot are inextricably interwoven, if the Parah Adumah is incomprehensible, it is impossible to truly understand any other mitzvah of the Torah. As such, the Parah Adumah emerges as a protection against humankind’s potential intellectual arrogance: …the Parah Adumah is, therefore, a fence and a protective measure for man who utilizes his intellect (hamitbonane b’sichlo) to examine the reasons inherent in the mitzvot; to prevent him from erring in their regard if he were to [merely] follow his intellect and thereby burst forth [against the mitzvot] and declare: “I am the one who knows their rationale!” In this manner, one would be able to err and add or subtract [from the mitzvot]. The Beit HaLevi, therefore, concludes that there is only one way to demonstrate our acceptance of, the mitzvot: One must perform all of the mitzvot, with all of their specific details, according to what we have received from our Rabbis according to the overarching rules of the Torah and the established Halacha without any deviation whatsoever from the words of the Shulchan Aruch. This is the case, since, he himself, recognizes that he does not comprehend the depth of these matters… (Translations and brackets my own) Perhaps more than any other mitzvah, the Parah Adumah reminds us that Hashem is the measure of all things. With the Almighty’s help, and our fervent desire, may we be zocheh (merit) to serve Him with heartfelt devotion as we fulfill His holy Torah. V’chane yihi ratzon. Shabbat Shalom Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org. Please contact me at [email protected] to be added to my weekly email list. *** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd *** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link: The Rav ![]() Rabbi David Etengoff Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon HaKohane, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Gittel Malka bat Moshe, Alexander Leib ben Benyamin Yosef, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world. This Shabbat we read Parshiot Tetzaveh and Zachor. According to the Shulchan Aruch, Orech Chaim (146:2 and 685:7), the public reading of Parashat Zachor enables us to fulfill two of the three Taryag (613) commandments associated with Amalek. As cited by the Rambam (1135-1204) in his Sefer HaMitzvot, these are: “Zachor mah sh’asah lanu Amalek—Remember what Amalek did to us,” (Positive Commandment 189) and “Hizharnu mishchoach mahsh’asah lanu zerah Amalek—We are warned not to forget what ‘the seed’ of Amalek did to us” (Negative Commandment 59). Amalek exemplified malicious and unmitigated evil like no other ethnic group in history. As the Torah states: “v’lo yarah Elokim—and he did not fear G-d.” (Sefer Devarim 25:18) In other words, Amalek acted as if G-d did not exist, and there would be no response to his malevolent and sadistic behavior against our people. As such, there must ever be a: “…milchamah l’Hashem b’Amalek m’dor dor—a war of Hashem against Amalek throughout all the generations.” (Sefer Shemot 17:16) Chazal teach us that, with the exception of the Jewish people, King Sennacherib of Assyria (720-683 BCE) destroyed the ethnic cohesion of all the nations of his time. (Mishnah Yadaim 4:4) Since this is the case, why does the Torah give us three separate and eternal mitzvot regarding a tribal entity that no longer exists? My rebbi and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), known as “the Rav” by his students and followers, answers this question in his seminal essay of 1956 entitled: “Kol Dodi Dofek.” Therein, he presented a profound idea from his father, Rav Moshe Soloveitchik zatzal (1879-1941): Divine providence is testing us once again via the crisis that has overtaken the land of Israel. Let it be clearly stated: The matter does not just affect the political future of Israel. The designs of the Arabs are directed not just against the political sovereignty of the State of Israel but against the very existence of the Yishuv (settlement) in the land of Israel. They wish to destroy, heaven forbid, the entire community, “both men and women, infant and suckling, ox and sheep.” (1 Samuel 15:3) At a Mizrachi convention I cited the view expressed by my father and master (Rabbi Moses Soloveitchik) of blessed memory, that the proclamation, “The L-rd will have war with Amalek from generation to generation” (Exodus 17:16) does not only translate into the communal exercise of waging obligatory war against a specific race but includes as well the obligation to rise up as a community against any people or group that, filled with maniacal hatred, directs its enmity against Keneset Israel. When a people emblazons on its banner, “Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation: that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance,” (Psalms 83:5) it becomes, thereby, Amalek… (Fate and Destiny, translation, Rabbi Dr. Lawrence Kaplan, pages 65-66) According to Rav Moshe Soloveitchik zatzal, Amalek is not a tribe or an ethnic entity, but, rather, a state of mind. As such, Amalek has existed since time immemorial and will continue to exist until Mashiach Tzidkanu (the righteous Messiah) comes and destroys evil. (Rambam, Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Melachim 11:4) The Rav underscores this point in footnote 23, in the original Hebrew text of Kol Dodi Dofek: “…Amalek still exists in the world. Go and see what the Torah says: ‘a war of Hashem with Amalek throughout all of the generations.’ If so, it is impossible that Amalek will be destroyed from this world before the arrival of the Messiah.” (Translation my own) Therefore, the Rav writes: “In the 1930’s and 1940’s the Nazis, with Hitler at their head, filled this role. They were the Amalekites, the standard-bearers of insane hatred and enmity during the era just past.” We must make no mistake about it. The ever-changing persona of Amalek has one undeniable goal: to destroy each and every member of the Jewish people in order to, chas v’shalom, obliterate Hashem’s name from the world. The Torah therefore commands us “Zachor!—Remember!” In so doing, we will join the Almighty is His battle against the forces of evil. May Hashem grant us the strength to join Him in His righteous war against Amalek, and may we witness the time of Mashiach when the entire world will stand shoulder to shoulder in recognizing His truth and glory. Then, the words of Zechariah the prophet will finally be realized: “And Hashem shall become King over all the earth; on that day shall Hashem be one, and His name one.” (14:9) May this time come soon, and in our days. V’chane yihi ratzon. Shabbat Shalom Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org. Please contact me at [email protected] to be added to my weekly email list. *** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd *** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link: The Rav ![]() Rabbi David Etengoff Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon HaKohane, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Gittel Malka bat Moshe, Alexander Leib ben Benyamin Yosef, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world. Parashat Terumah focuses on the various raw materials necessary to construct the Mishkan (Portable Sanctuary) and its holy kalim (vessels). Therein, we find a well-known pasuk that speaks to the general mitzvah of building the Mishkan: “V'asu li mikdash v’shachanti b’tocham—And they shall make Me a sanctuary and I will dwell in their midst.” (Sefer Shemot 25:8, this and all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach). The very next pasuk, however, employs the word, “mishkan,” in place of mikdash: “According to all that I show you, the pattern of the Mishkan and the pattern of all its vessels; and so, shall you do.” Rabbi Chaim Ben Attar zatzal (1696-1743), known as the Or HaChaim Hakadosh after the name of his commentary on the Torah, addresses this change in terminology: … It appears to me that when the Torah says, “v’asu li mikdash,” it is referring to the general positive commandment that incorporates all times, whether [the Jewish people were in] the desert or when they entered the land [Eretz Yisrael], as well as the entire period the Jewish people would dwell therein throughout the generations. [Moreover,] the Jewish people were obligated to create a mikdash, even in the Diaspora (galiot), [but were prevented from so doing, since] we find that Hashem forbade all other places [outside of Eretz Yisrael] from the point in time of the construction of the Beit HaMikdash, as it says in the Torah: “For you have not yet come to the resting place or to the inheritance, which the L-rd, your G-d, is giving you.” (Sefer Devarim 12:9) This, then, is why the Torah does not declare, “v’asu li mishkan,” in order that we may understand that the creation of the mishkan was a mitzvah solely at that time… (Or HaChaim, Sefer Shemot 25:8, translation, brackets and paratheses my own) According to the Or HaChaim, the Torah first utilizes the term, mikdash, and then mishkan, to teach us a crucial lesson: the mitzvah of the mikdash is obligatory at all times in Eretz Yisrael. In contrast, the mitzvah of the mishkan was time-bound, that is, its construction was a commandment to the Dor HaMidbar (Generation of the Desert) to create a temporary stand-in for the yet to be built Beit HaMikdash. As such, the Torah commands us, “v’asu li mikdash,” rather than “v’asu li mishkan.” A different approach as to why the Mishkan was called mikdash is offered by Rabbeinu Bahya ben Asher ibn Halawa (1255–1340) in his Commentary on the Torah on our verse: “The Mishkan was called ‘mikdash’ because it was made holy through the indwelling of the Shechinah (b’shriat haShechinah). Then, too, it is possible to say that it was an earthly representation of the heavenly Beit HaMikdash.” (Translation my own) In sum, the Mishkan was a makom mekudash (holy place) and called, “mikdash,” because Hashem’s holy presence was manifest therein, and it was a human reflection of the Beit HaMikdash in Shamayim. My rebbe and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), known as the “Rav” by his followers and disciples, builds upon these ideas and notes that the ultimate purpose of the Mishkan, and, by extension, the Beit HaMikdash, was to reinstate the original relationship between the Almighty and Adam and Chava: God created the world to reside in it, rather than to reside in transcendence. Man could have continually experienced Him instead of trying to infer His Presence through examining nature. But in the wake of the original sin of Adam and Eve, He retreated. And they heard the voice of the Lord God going in the garden to the direction of the sun, and the man and his wife hid from the Lord God in the midst of the trees of the garden (Gen. 3:8). These “footsteps” were those of God leaving the garden and departing into infinity. Had they not sinned, God would always have been close. As a result of Adam’s hiding and fear of communicating with God in the wake of his sin, God removed His Divine Presence. The purpose of the tabernacle [Mishkan]was to restore the relationship between man and God. (Public lecture, Boston, 1979, cited in Chumash Mesoras HaRav, Sefer Shemot: with Commentary Based Upon the Teachings of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Dr. Arnold Lustiger, editor, page 226, underlining my own May the time come soon and, in our days, when the relationship between Hashem and the Jewish people is fully restored and His Shechinah once again dwells in the soon to be rebuilt Beit HaMikdash. V’chane yihi ratzon. Shabbat Shalom Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org. Please contact me at [email protected] to be added to my weekly email list. *** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd *** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link: The Rav |
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