Why was the rainbow chosen as a symbol of peace between G-d and mankind? |
Archive for August 2013
Somewhere Over the Rainbow
Why is it so Special to Eat Fish Friday Night?
From the lessons of Rabbi Isaac Oelbaum: Noach worked very hard in the ark, catering to the animals. For one year, he fed and took care of them. When Noach finally came out of the ark and was on dry land, G-d rewarded him and mankind for his devotion and hard work, by giving him the opportunity to eat meat (The George Foreman grill was now on the market!). Until that juncture in time, man was on an exclusive grain diet. How exciting that must have been. The question is asked, as gratitude for taking care of the animals, man had them for supper, however the fish weren’t part of the package. Noach didn’t take care of them. Was he allowed to eat them and if yes, why, and when? The fish did not partake in the degradation of the world. Therefore, they were led to a certain section of the ocean called Okinus where the waters were bearable and not boiling hot. The reason they were saved is that they were not, in any way, participants of the sin and therefore, they are the symbol of protection against the evil eye. They were under the radar gun, invisible. So what about eating fish? In many Jewish cultures, fish is a tremendous delicacy that people wait all week for. Interestingly, many commentaries say that Jews were not allowed to eat fish until MATAN TORAH – the receiving of the Torah. G-d rewarded the Jews to eat fish, a gifted species, not blemished by sin on that glorious day of MATAN TORAH. The receiving of the Torah happened to occur on Shabbat. So one should be honored to eat this gift on Friday night. Free from an evil eye, symbol of receiving the Torah – WOW!! It has tremendous spiritual benefits. Try it!! |
Everybody is Affected by Everybody
Rabbi Baruch Dopelt who quotes the Bet Halevi. We learned Noach was a Tzadik in his generation. What would Noach be, though, in comparison to our forefather, Avraham, a generation later? Since Noach’s Generation was so corrupt, maybe his status would have been considered an average Joe. Or, perhaps, he was a tzadik in such a degenerate society, then for sure he would have been angelic in the time of Avraham. We learn a fundamental concept from the Bet Halevi, that when one sins, it gives KOACH – strength – to the power of evil. It follows, then if one does a good deed, then he strengthens the power of good in the world. The question is asked, why were the animals destroyed by the flood? Why did they get punished? Did they sin? Animals don’t have freedom of choice; the poor cow. Perhaps, one can say they were no longer necessary once man is gone. They are here, as we know, to serve us, humans. Rav Yisrael Salantar adds, if someone in Queens is learning Torah, his learning triggers a guy in Paris, France to contemplate whether to keep Shabbat for the first time. In other words, my positive action affects the world for the better, and the opposite is true as well. The generation of the flood was so corrupt and evil, they were so immersed in sexual misconduct, that even the animals were effected, because the power of evil spreads. The animals’ natural tendencies gravitated to sexual misconduct as well. An Elephant was cross-breeding with a hippopotamus, etc. Noach, through divine intervention, picked the good animals; the ones that were not so affected in a negative way and congregated them all in the ark. The ark’s purpose was to shut off itself from the rest. A new world was formed in the ark. The KOACH HARAH – the evil powers – were diminished greatly in the ark. This was a new environment. This was a place to fix the damage caused by the generation. Noach catered to the animals day in and day out. One can say the ultimate form of CHESED – kindness – the exact opposite of the thievery that the world was famous for. They, the rest of the world, practiced that everything belongs to me. Here, Noach was the ultimate giver. Physical relations between the couples were forbidden for twelve months as long as they were in the teiva (ark). This was in contrast to the sexual circus, with no restraints, that was being conducted in the world. We are a product of our environment; that’s scary stuff. If someone in Honolulu gets depressed, it might be perhaps because a fellow in Brooklyn ate pork. Perhaps, we have to be more intuitive to what’s happening in the world and try to make it a better place because ultimately it affects us. |
Parshat Noach
| First Portion
* They must have been pretty bad, for G-d to say “THAT’S IT, I’VE HAD IT!! I’M DESTROYING THE WORLD!” * G-d gave Noach 120 years to build the ark to give people a chance to repent and join Him. * Why is the flood called MAY NOACH – the waters of Noach, the flood of Noach? In other words, why is his name attached to it? It was Noach that G-d empowered the gift and ability to sway others into repentance. Unfortunately, he didn’t step up to the plate. So he takes the responsibility for other’s misdeeds. It’s important to realize that we to have a responsibility for our brethren and not take the deaf-ear New York approach and mind my own business. Some of us have tremendous capabilities and could influence others. * G-d asked Noach to build the ark himself. Why weren’t others involved? Why didn’t he contract the work to the Mexicans?….cheaper labor. The Torah teaches a very important concept; when someone creates something himself, the creation is an embodiment of himself; his essence, his merits are found in the creation. He was the Tzadik in his generation and G-d found favor in Noach. That favor carries a lot of weight. Maybe now one can understand the controversy, in Israel, many years ago, with playing the music of the composer Wagner, a member of the Nazi German regime. Music is very penetrating and when listening to it, one absorbs the essence, character of the composer. One must be careful listening to some Rock n Roll songs composed by drugged out, suicidal, angry, depressed individuals. Maybe now, one can have a better understanding of copy-caters who mimic what the songs suggests. Another important note, we also find on Pesach; many eat MATZOH-SHMURAH baked by a Jew. There is no soul in machine matzohs. It is all circuits and wires. Matzoh has to be made by a Jew, and every Jew has the status of pure kedusha (holiness), no matter what level he is at. Matzoh is such an important commandment; it should be baked by a Jewish soul. Deep down, every Jew has a pure soul. * Stealing was common; swapping wives was the norm; they would have two wives, one for pleasure…..so what else is new? We see that in our society today. What do you think a mistress does, bake cakes? In addition to what we have mentioned, it would be quite common where they would perform marriages between humans and animals; cross breeding was the norm. That society would crave for any pleasure. There would be no rules, unlimited access.
Second Portion * Noach was 600 years old when entering the ark. He was joined by Na’ama, his wife, and his three sons and their wives. * Controversy whether Na’ama was the same person, who was the granddaughter of Kayin. Apparently, there are those that say all of mankind stems from the third son of Adam, Shet. * Na’ama was an innovator, creating voice singing. * Cham, one of the sons of Noach, breached the law of abstaining from cohabiting in the ark. The Torah hints, relationships were forbidden, by listing men and women separately. Cham’s wife gave birth to the giant Sichon while in the ark. In truth, Sichon had been fathered by Shamchazael (one of the angels who, before the mabul, descended to earth, to live there as human beings.) Cham came to his wife to save her face. For this deed, which was perpetrated in the dark, Cham was repaid measure for measure; he emerged from the ark dark skinned and all his descendants are also black forever. * Apparently, Noach only entered the ark when the waters were rising. Commentaries say this was the result lack of belief in G-d.
Third Portion * Why did the animals die? They didn’t have freedom of choice to do wrong. (See article) * Only the fish survived because they had not sinned like the other creatures. * G-d closed the fountain of the earth and sent a wind to disperse the water. Only three hot fountains continued flowing in memory of the flood. One of them is the well-known hot springs of Tiberias in Israel. * The raven and the dog were the others who cohabited in the ark.
Fourth Portion *The righteous Noach didn’t emerge from the ark until G-d gave him permission to do so. *A fundamental change which occurred after the flood was between man and beast. Before the flood, man was promised control over the animals. However, after the flood there was no longer that promise. Instead, the decree was, as long as man is true to his G-dly image, he will not be afraid of them. G-d also put fear of man in animals. Furthermore, as a reward for taking care of the animals, man was given permission to eat them.
Fifth Portion * A rainbow is a covenant that G-d will not destroy the world again. The rainbow didn’t appear in two generations. One of which was the time of Chizkiyahu where the Jewish nation was known to be righteous. So they didn’t need that protection.
Sixth portion * Why was Cham blamed for castrating Noach? It was his son, Cana’an, who actually performed the despicable act. Cham merely told his brothers about his father’s nakedness. Why was he at fault? Apparently it was the way he told his brothers. He told them in a derogatory fashion with the eyes rolling, a giggle, and a sly “hey, look at our drunken father”, while Cana’an heard their conversation from afar. The reaction by Cham triggered Cana’an to look down and lose total respect for his grandfather which permitted him to perform the audacity. Cham paved the way by ridiculing his father and figuratively put the knife in his hand.
Seventh Portion * Why did G-d disperse the unity of the tower of Bavel? Doesn’t he like unity more than anything? We know they plotted against G-d; however, UNITY IS SPECIAL!! Apparently, it wasn’t a sincere unity. They were united for the sake of the goal, for the sake of the organization. You had to be a company man. One has to sacrifice for the company. If a brick falls, they all mourn. However, if a fellow worker, company man slips, falls and gets killed, apparently, they didn’t care as long as he was replaced efficiently. |
Are We the Same Person When We Travel?
Do You Get Angry Often?
Anger is terrible; anger is horrifying! Our Sages described countless times in our holy scriptures the shortcomings and the consequences suffered by a person who becomes angry or enraged. Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz zt’l believes the most striking and eye-raising effect of anger is that one loses all of ones’ wisdom and spiritual stature, an example we find in this week’s parsha, where Moshe forgot the law as a result of being angry (bamidbar31,14). The Or Hachaim explains that Moshe had known the laws of mourning just minutes before he became angry, and then forgot them. This aspect of the effect of anger is puzzling. We can readily understand how anger affects a person so that after the fact he is of a lesser stature and wisdom then before. But how does anger make one’s previously acquired knowledge disappear? A minute ago he gave over a lesson teaching two plus two equals four, how can he now forget it? How does one lose wisdom which he already possesses?
The answer is that the mechanics of Torah wisdom works differently than other wisdoms. Other forms of wisdom do not relate to the personality or character of its possessor. A person may be wicked or obnoxious, and yet retain a storehouse of knowledge and wisdom. Not so with Torah wisdom. Torah is based on character development and it feeds the individual the sensitivity towards others and towards himself, hovering around the person until he internalizes it. Everyone hears the same message, but it doesn’t come through the pipes the same way to each. Apparently, the message received is tailor-made for that individual’s understanding and unique personality.
Dr. Goldman, the psychologist of Yeshiva Chafetz Chaim, says a fundamental aspect of life is intellectual growth; however not by feeding a computer. We are not some logical emotionless Vulcan circuit machine, like Mr. Spock, who will solve and rattle off any difficult equations backwards and forwards. Apparently, one should focus more on how to control his emotional nature and to be ready for every situation he’s confronted; this is a sign of strong character. By working on himself, a person’s internal vessel can hold and absorb the Torah with the proper character traits, which he developed through Torah study.
However, when there is a flaw in the personality, like anger, it chases away the Torah wisdom and spirituality. A person who becomes unfit to retain Torah, loses it; even the knowledge he already acquired leaves him. It’s not the knowledge itself that is affected but rather the individual that ceases to posses it.
Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz says, we can explain this further by drawing a parallel from the acquisition of prophesy to the acquisition of Torah. When Eliyahu, the prophet, ascended to the heavens in a fiery chariot, his disciples came to Elisha (who was very close to Eliyahu) and suggested that they search for the missing Eliyahu. Rashi (one of the mainstream commentaries) asks, ‘is it possible that these same prophets, who had foretold that Eliyahu would be taken, would forget as to his whereabouts? This teaches us that from the day Eliyahu was taken, spirituality left them. Rashi asks how did they forget that which they already knew? The answer is, a person must be a prophet in order to know these things. If he falls in stature, he no longer knows these facts of which he was aware only yesterday.
This is true of prophecy and it is true of Torah as well. It is the knowledge that must be integrated into itself into a person. But if a character becomes blemished, his Torah will vanish as well.
Man’s Word Should Be As Good As Gold
There was a man by the name of Palti ben Laish who was forced to marry the beautiful Michal, King Shaul’s daughter. One may say this is a dream come true, to marry the King of Israel’s daughter; he’s set for life. However, there was an underlying problem; the King tried to annul Michal’s first marriage to one named David ben Ishai whom Shaul despised.Now That’s Deli!
There was a period on Shabbat morning, where I used to pray at the Yeshiva Chafetz Chaim. It was a beautiful, quite inspiring service. I got to know and eventually became good friends with a Rabbinical student named Noam Abramchic. One Shabbat morning, our conversation centered around food. Perhaps the reason the conversation gravitated toward food was because it’s at the end of the prayer services and everybody is hungry. Or perhaps those who know me understand it’s a predictable part of my nature to talk about food. The topic was deli. “I know of the best delicatessen that would beat any of New York’s establishments”, he ranted. “There’s a place in Chicago called Romanian and it’s out of this world.” I did not take Noam seriously, considering I’ve been eating fine deli since I was in diapers. “Do you really think any place on earth will compare to a New York deli?” I said to him. Soon after visiting his parents for the holidays, he brought me packaged pastrami from Romanian Delicatessen. “Try this” he said proudly. So I came home and I tried it. WOW! It’s amazing! This is really, really good pastrami.
A few years ago a friend David Bodenhiem said he received Romanian’s famous hotdogs (there are four kinds) from a pal coming back from Chicago. David said numerous friends of his in the Five Towns get packages through friends from Romanian for their special occasions. It reminds me of a particular popular 1970’s TV episode of M*A*S*H. The show takes place in Korea during the war in the 1950’s. The characters are doctors in a medical unit. The main character, Hawkeye gets a craving for “Adams Ribs” located – out of all places – in Chicago, and throughout the half hour episode goes through a lot of red tape to get this anticipated delivery. Finally, the package arrives. He and his companions are in the mess tent anxiously and triumphal opening and smelling the aroma of the food. The final scene has Hawkeye nervously going through the delivery bags in frustration. “What’s wrong Hawkeye?” one of the colleagues asked. Hawkeye replied, “They forgot the coleslaw!”
If we appreciate what G-d has done for us and are committed in acknowledging Him before we eat, then we should do it right. We have to try to give the proper blessing. We know if we have pastrami on club or rye, the blessing is Hamotzi lechem min hararetz. Bread is the most significant blessing you can recite. But what about sandwich wraps? One should know, this too is the blessing of hamotzi as well. Even though content of some wraps is mezonot, since you have the intention of having a meal as opposed to a snack, one would require to wash and recite al netilat yadayim and then hamotzi.
Bread and mezonot are considered in the category of important foods. The Torah attributes significance to the mezonot grain, wheat, and barley (INCLUDED IN WHEAT IS SPELT, INCLUDED IN BARLEY IS OATS AND RYE). These grains have an intrinsic importance because of their role in sustaining human life. There are rare times where one would eat bread and not recite hamotzi. These examples require the understanding of the concept in Jewish law called Ikar-main food and Tofel–secondary. Let’s say I’m sampling a taste of hot chili, one eats a bit of bread for no reason other than to soothe the harsh taste in his throat. Since the bread was not eaten to satisfy his hunger nor for his enjoyable taste, he is not required to make a hamotzi on the bread. The bread is included in the ha’adama blessing made on the chili.
Another example is with ice cream. Most people eat ice cream cones to enhance the taste of the ice cream. Therefore, the ice cream would require a shehakol and the cone (even though it is tofel) will require a mezonot. However, if one were to use an ice cream cone merely in place of a cup rather than enjoy the flavor, the cone will not require a separate blessing.
The mechanics of ikar and tofel are: Even though the tofel is subordinate to the ikar, the tofel is not considered to be so insignificant as to not require a bracha. Rather, we consider the bracha made on the ikar to extend to ‘cover’ the tofel as well. According to this approach, when a blessing of the ikar cannot be applied to cover the tofel, a separate bracha on the tofel will be required.
There is an art in the preparation of certain deli meats. Who out there remembers Bernstein’s on the Lower East Side? I would always put sweet red peppers on my big shmulk which consisted of four different kinds of meats on club or rye and, in addition, potato salad and coleslaw as sides. We always had a certain pride going to Bernstein’s because it was named, one year by the New York Times, as the best deli in the city. New Yorkers as well as Chicagoans take their deli very seriously. |
The Charismatic Genius
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Bribing the Judge
Rava asked: What is the reason for the prohibition against taking bribes even if the judge is sincerely trying to render a fair judgment?
There were many notable rabbis who were vying for this position. However, one of the highly regarded and wealthy congregant who was on the board of directors took a strong liking toward the young Rabbi Halberstam and campaigned for him vigorously to win the position. The businessman was relentless in his quest to secure Rav Chaim to be” thee Rabbi” and eventually he succeeded.
However, after a few months the Rabbi was put in an awkward situation to say the least when someone approached him claiming that the same wealthy businessman who singled handily got him the position, owed him money. He intended on taking him to Bet Din-Jewish court.
It was Rav Chaim responsibility, since he was the chief Rabbi, to customarily send a messenger to the defendant and order him to court to face charges. Although the rich businessman helped him tremendously nevertheless Rav Chaim proceeded with the necessary protocol.
The messenger, though, returned and answered the Rav with a respond of “he is too busy to come”.
The Rav sent the messenger again and that he should insist that the businessman should come right away; it’s a matter of urgency!
However, once again the response from the businessman was “I do not have time to come, my apologies.”
Rav Chaim send the messenger again with a very stern message “I am following proper protocol and asking you for the third and last time; it is in your best interest to come. If you do not honor us with your presence I would have no choice but to put you in CHEREM-banishment.
The businessman realized that Rav Chaim was dead serious in his threats, had no choice but to came to court.
Rav Chaim asked both the accuser and the businessman to rise as he read the complaint. Rabbi Halberstam then suggested a fast day for himself the accuser and the defendant and each one should pray that the outcome should be a fair one. He then asked the businessman about the charges.
The response was “there are no charges. Everyone looked at each other. The people in the Judge’s chambers were bewildered by the businessman’s response. “I hired this man, the accuser to voice his grievance against me to see if you will honor the Torah and hold true to the court of law or perhaps you will be weak and be too embarrassed to act with me in the proper way, because you owed me a debt of gratitude. However, I see now that I was correct in pursuing you and insisting you to be the Rabbi. You held your grounds, were not impartial, and have proven to be the right choice.
