Tag Archive for Aharon Hacohen

Parshat Shemini

August 30, 2013 Highlights on the Weekly Parsha, Kashrut No comments

First Portion: * THE INAUGURATION!!! Much has been written in the Torah about  G-d’s  Temple, the sacrifices, the utensils, and the individuals who perform the heavenly work. In this week’s Parsha, the majestic temple will finally begin to operate; opening day at the Mishkan. It will be a liaison between G-d’s chosen people and their master. The Temple was a tremendous opportunity for the Jews to get close to G-d. No time in our history have we had a spiritual closeness than in the period of the Temple and its sacrifices. Apparently, one can logically assume, it’s a major source of celebration. However, the Parsha begins with the word ‘Vayehi’ – and it was; every time a sentence begins with that word, it signifies that trouble lies ahead.

 
* One of the punishments of Adam and Chava (Eve) for their sin for eating from the tree of knowledge, was that any happiness that mankind will incur will be marred by a percentage of bad. Perhaps this is one of the reasons we break the glass at the chupah at a wedding; we remind ourselves of the destruction of the Temple; one should have a little sad feeling at the celebration. We are hoping that by breaking the glass, representing the uneasy memory of the destruction of the Temple, will replace the possibility of a negative occurrence which might take place, and may be harsher. Unfortunately, here, we have one of the most spiritual celebrations of the Jewish people, and tragedy will occur.

 

Second Portion: * For the first time, the kohanim performed the task of presenting sacrifices to G-d; until now, the firstborn were in charge. However, after the sin of the golden calf, the firstborn, who were responsible as spiritual leaders, were stripped of this high position.

 
* Aharon, the high priest and Moshe’s brother, was a charismatic figure. Evidence of his charm is the fact he was the broker of peace to many. Whether it be between husbands and wives or businessmen trying to settle a dispute; he had a way with people; they sensed his sincerity and reacted favorably and did what he said. Aharon’s response to the people was always with enthusiasm. He was so excited to show his love to his nation on the day of the inauguration, that he instinctively raised his hands to bless the people. As a reward for the affection he had for the people, every kohen since, has the opportunity to bless the people daily (Ashkenazim three times a year). This ritual is started by the kohanim raising their hands as Aharon did that very first time. The kohanim mention Aharon and the word be’ahava – with love in their blessing as a tribute to the affection he had.

 

Third Portion: * Tragedy strikes the Israelites as Nadav and Avihu, Aharon’s two oldest sons and the heir – apparent to the leadership, are killed, consumed by fire from their unauthorized sacrifices which they performed. Many reasons are given why they perished. We will mention a few:

 
– They were not married; therefore, it was difficult to control ‘the fire within’ them. Therefore, they were not focused on their task.

 
– They performed their duties intoxicated. The celebration of the inauguration spilled over to a part of the day which being sober was a must. From here we learn, don’t pray drunk.

 
– They were a bit haughty; they couldn’t wait to take the position of leadership from Moshe and Aharon.

 
Rashi (main commentary on the Torah) says Moshe thought they were greater than he and his brother Aharon. A good number of commentaries say, on the contrary, there was no negativity attached to their sacrifice; they were on a mission to go where no man has entered which is as close to G-d as possible, and unfortunately they went beyond the point of return. Regardless, it was a tragic loss for the Jewish people.

 

Fourth Portion: * The kohanim have to observe special laws of purity which forbid them to touch a corpse. However, there are exceptions such as a death of a close relative for whom a kohen has to mourn and whose burial he has to attend. A high priest, on the other hand, is never permitted to leave the avoda (Kohen’s task) even if his own parents die. On the eighth day of the inauguration, G-d applied the laws of the high priest not just to the kohen gadol Aharon, but to his remaining sons. They were forbidden to exhibit any signs of mourning for their brother’s death, but were commanded to continue the service. Interruption of the services of the mishkan would spoil the joy of the newly constructed tabernacle.

 

Fifth Portion: * Moshe gets angry. Our sages teach us a general rule: A Torah scholar, who displays anger or arrogance, loses his wisdom; a prophet loses his prophecy. Apparently, Moshe erred and forgot the law as a result of getting angry.

 

Sixth Portion: * G-d taught Moshe which species of beasts, birds, and fish a Jew may eat and which are forbidden to him. Why did G-d allow the nations of the world to eat any food they desire while he imposed restrictions on us? The reason is that we possess pure souls and therefore we are negatively affected by the consumption of non-kosher foods.

 
* The Torah describes the signs by which a permitted animal can be distinguished from a forbidden one.

 
– Beasts – only an animal possessing two of the following characteristics is kosher: 1) Its hooves must be split throughout. Some animals possessing hooves which are partially split but join at the bottom are not kosher; the hooves must be comprised of 2 distinct parts; possessing two nails 2) It is ruminant, that is having swallowed its food, it regurgitates it once again in order to chew it.

 
– Fish – A fish must possess fins and scales. However, as long as we find scales on the fish, we may consider it kosher since every fish which has scales possesses fins too.

 
– Birds – The Torah lists 21 non-kosher birds. These are listed instead of the kosher birds; they are fewer in number than the kosher ones.

 
– Insects – Some locusts are permitted. Nevertheless, since we do not have a reliable tradition, they are all prohibited.

 

Seventh Portion: * Sheretz \creeping animals – It is forbidden to eat any creeping animals on dry land or in water. The reason for the stringency is because of the snake which belongs in this category. Because of the memory of the snake being instrumental in the sin of mankind, any creeping animals similar to it is forbidden. That’s how much G-d is repulsed by the snake for what he did.

The Power of Love

August 30, 2013 Jewish Values No comments

 

          The “gold standard” with regard to making peace and loving your fellow man was epitomized by Aharon HaCohen, second in command over the Jews when they left Egypt camped in the desert. He was also Moshe’s brother. Aharon loved his fellow Jew like no other. Rav Eliyahu Dessler, one of the leading contemporary rabbinical figures, expounds on this concept using a parable. World War II and the accompanying Holocaust was witness to one particular, amongst many others, family consisting of a mother, father and son, being torn apart. Neither member of the family knew if the other was alive and all were feverishly searching for each other. Miraculously, five years later, they were reunited. The son, now eight and living with his father after the war ended, receives a very emotional hug and kiss from his mother, as his father tearfully looks on.
          The question was asked- who loves the son more at this juncture of time, the mother or the father?
          One may argue and say a mother’s nurturing and natural love for her children is supreme and cannot be matched. Plus, the yearning and anticipation of the reuniting surely caused the mother and son to be highly emotional. Nevertheless, the fact that the father raised him, alone, all these years- he changed his diaper, did homework with him etc., places him in position to love him more.
          Rav Dessler’s concept of “the more you give the more you love” is one of great importance in our relationships with our spouses, children, family members and friends.
           Aharon HaCohen  was constantly giving of his time in making peace between couples and any broken relationships which were presented to him. His gesture of love towards the people as he blessed the congregation is copied by every Kohen today as they bless the people (see highlight section).
          A reminder of loving your fellow Jew, as Aharon did, is brought out in this obituary article of Rabbi Herchel Shachter, which I think is worthwhile to read:

Rabbi Herschel Schacter Is Dead at 95; Cried to the Jews of Buchenwald: ‘You Are Free’

 

By MARGALIT FOX

Published: March 27, 2013

 

The smoke was still rising as Rabbi Herschel Schacter rode through the gates of Buchenwald.

 

It was April 11, 1945, and Gen. George S. Patton’s Third Army had liberated the concentration camp scarcely an hour before. Rabbi Schacter, who was attached to the Third Army’s VIII Corps, was the first Jewish chaplain to enter in its wake.

 

That morning, after learning that Patton’s forward tanks had arrived at the camp, Rabbi Schacter, who died in the Riverdale section of the Bronx on Thursday at 95 after a career as one of the most prominent Modern Orthodox rabbis in the United States, commandeered a jeep and driver. He left headquarters and sped toward Buchenwald.

 

By late afternoon, when the rabbi drove through the gates, Allied tanks had breached the camp. He remembered, he later said, the sting of smoke in his eyes, the smell of burning flesh and the hundreds of bodies strewn everywhere.

 

He would remain at Buchenwald for months, tending to survivors, leading religious services in a former Nazi recreation hall and eventually helping to resettle thousands of Jews.

 

For his work, Rabbi Schacter was singled out by name on Friday by Yisrael Meir Lau, the former Ashkenazi chief rabbi of Israel, in a meeting with President Obama at Yad Vashem, Israel’s Holocaust memorial.

 

In Buchenwald that April day, Rabbi Schacter said afterward, it seemed as though there was no one left alive. In the camp, he encountered a young American lieutenant who knew his way around.

 

“Are there any Jews alive here?” the rabbi asked him.

 

He was led to the Kleine Lager, or Little Camp, a smaller camp within the larger one. There, in filthy barracks, men lay on raw wooden planks stacked from floor to ceiling. They stared down at the rabbi, in his unfamiliar military uniform, with unmistakable fright.

 

“Shalom Aleichem, Yidden,” Rabbi Schacter cried in Yiddish, “ihr zint frei!” – “Peace be upon you, Jews, you are free!” He ran from barracks to barracks, repeating those words. He was joined by those Jews who could walk, until a stream of people swelled behind him.

 

As he passed a mound of corpses, Rabbi Schacter spied a flicker of movement. Drawing closer, he saw a small boy, Prisoner 17030, hiding in terror behind the mound.

 

“I was afraid of him,” the child would recall long afterward in an interview with The New York Times. “I knew all the uniforms of SS and Gestapo and Wehrmacht, and all of a sudden, a new kind of uniform. I thought, ‘A new kind of enemy.’ ”

 

With tears streaming down his face, Rabbi Schacter picked the boy up. “What’s your name, my child?” he asked in Yiddish.

 

“Lulek,” the child replied.

 

“How old are you?” the rabbi asked.

 

“What difference does it make?” Lulek, who was 7, said. “I’m older than you, anyway.”

 

“Why do you think you’re older?” Rabbi Schacter asked, smiling.

 

“Because you cry and laugh like a child,” Lulek replied. “I haven’t laughed in a long time, and I don’t even cry anymore. So which one of us is older?”

 

Rabbi Schacter discovered nearly a thousand orphaned children in Buchenwald. He and a colleague, Rabbi Robert Marcus, helped arrange for their transport to France – a convoy that included Lulek and the teenage Elie Wiesel – as well as to Switzerland, a group personally conveyed by Rabbi Schacter, and to Palestine.

 

For decades afterward, Rabbi Schacter said, he remained haunted by his time in Buchenwald, and by the question survivors put to him as he raced through the camp that first day.

 

“They were asking me, over and over, ‘Does the world know what happened to us?’ ” Rabbi Schacter told The Associated Press in 1981. “And I was thinking, ‘If my own father had not caught the boat on time, I would have been there, too.’ ”

 

Herschel Schacter was born in the Brownsville section of Brooklyn on Oct. 10, 1917, the youngest of 10 children of parents who had come from Poland. His father, Pincus, was a seventh-generation shochet, or ritual slaughterer; his mother, the former Miriam Schimmelman, was a real estate manager.

 

Mr. Schacter earned a bachelor’s degree from Yeshiva University in New York in 1938; in 1941, he received ordination at Yeshiva from Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, a founder of the Modern Orthodox movement.

 

He spent about a year as a pulpit rabbi in Stamford, Conn., before enlisting in the Army as a chaplain in 1942.

 

After Buchenwald was liberated, he spent every day there distributing matzo (liberation had come just a week after Passover); leading services for Shavuot, which celebrates the revelation of the Torah to Moses at Mount Sinai, and which fell that year in May; and conducting Friday night services.

 

At one of those services, Lulek and his older brother, Naftali, were able to say Kaddish for their parents, Polish Jews who had been killed by the Nazis.

 

Discharged from the Army with the rank of captain, Rabbi Schacter became the spiritual leader of the Mosholu Jewish Center, an Orthodox synagogue on Hull Avenue in the north Bronx. He presided there from 1947 until it closed in 1999.

 

He was a leader of many national Jewish groups, including the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations, of which he was a past chairman. He was most recently the director of rabbinic services at Yeshiva.

 

Rabbi Schacter, who in 1956 went to the Soviet Union with an American rabbinic delegation, was an outspoken advocate for the rights of Soviet Jews and an adviser on the subject to President Richard M. Nixon.

 

A resident of the Riverdale section of the Bronx, Rabbi Schacter is survived by his wife, the former Pnina Gewirtz, whom he married in 1948; a son, Rabbi Jacob J. Schacter, who confirmed his father’s death; a daughter, Miriam Schacter; four grandchildren; and eight great-grandchildren.

 

And what of Lulek, the orphan Rabbi Schacter rescued from Buchenwald that day? Lulek, who eventually settled in Palestine, grew up to be Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau.

 

Rabbi Lau, who recounted his childhood exchange with Rabbi Schacter in a memoir, published in English in 2011 as “Out of the Depths,” was the Ashkenazi chief rabbi of Israel from 1993 to 2003 and is now the chief rabbi of Tel Aviv.

 

On Friday, when Rabbi Lau told Mr. Obama of his rescue by Rabbi Schacter – he thanked the American people for delivering Buchenwald survivors “not from slavery to freedom, but from death to life” – he had not yet learned of Rabbi Schacter’s death the day before.

 

“For me, he was alive,” Rabbi Lau said in an interview with The Times on Monday. “I speak about him with tears in my eyes.”
Correction: March 26, 2013, Tuesday

 

This article has been revised to reflect the following correction: A photo caption with an earlier version of this article misspelled the given name of Rabbi Herschel Schacter as Hershel.

 

Aharon HaCohen’s life long work was to show love toward his fellow Jew. He was known as one who made SHALOM. He was a man of peace and therefore died in peace. His death was considered a MITA NESHIKA-a kiss of death. For the most part, every person from the beginning of creation, goes through an extreme amount of pain during the death process. The exception was Aharon. G-d showed and reciprocated His love to Aharon, as did Aharon to his fellow Jew, and therefor “kissed” him and he died in peace-SHALOM, without pain

Around the Shabbat Table- Parshat B’haalotcha

August 4, 2013 Kid's Section No comments

 by Rabbi Gedalia Fogel – Pre 1A – Yeshiva Ketana of Queens

 

Hi! This is Rebbe speaking:

This week’s parsha, Parshas B’haalotcha, speaks about the avodah, the work that Aharon Hakohen, the High Priest, did in the Beis Hamidkash, (the Holy Temple).  It says that Aharon Hakohen did what Hashem commanded of him and he didn’t change. He lit the Menorah every day.

The head of each Shevet (tribe) brought Karbanot right after the Mishkan was built. Aharon felt bad that his Shevet, Shevet Levi, did not partake in this Avodah of bringing Karbanot. But he was appeased when Hashem told him that his Avodah was to light the Menorah daily.

Just like Aharon Hakohen lit the Menorah every day so too, our Avodah is to do Mitzvot, pray and to learn Torah daily. The more this becomes a habit the greater the reward will be. When one plants a seed he must work the field every day. He will not see results immediately but eventually he will enjoy the fruits of his labor. One who prays daily may not always see the results of his prayers, but one day he will see that every word of prayer was significant.  Rabbi Nachman of Breslov compares this to a king who had a tree in his garden that took 100 years to bear fruit. For one hundred years the king’s gardeners toiled and only then did they see results.

When one works on himself spiritually he will reap greater and greater reward. With each consecutive day that he learns, prays and does Mitzvot he will get more satisfaction and compensation. Rabbi Akiva saw a rock that had a hole in it. How can this be? Rabbi Akiva noticed that a drop of water dripped on this rock continuously and eventually the drops bore a hole. One may find it hard to pray and learn Torah on a daily basis but with consistency it will get easier and will have far reaching effects.

The first question asked when one reaches the heavenly court is whether he set aside time each day for Torah learning. One must learn for a period of time each day. He must make sure that this becomes a daily ritual and one he would never miss. If one keeps to this commitment it will become second nature and they will not feel as if it is a burden.

Rabbi Avigdor Miller taught us this lesson with doing Chesed, a kind deed. He stated that one must make sure to do at least one Chesed each day. The Torah stands on three pillars: Torah, Avodah and Gemillat Chasadim. Torah is making sure that one sets aside a time for learning Torah each day. Avodah is prayer and Gemillat Chasadim means doing Chesed, kindness.

There were no time restrictions when it came to see Reb Shmuel Salant, the Rav of Yerushalayim. He was getting older and his family wanted to set a certain time of day when Reb Shmuel would answer Halachic questions. But the Rav refused. He said, “One must always copy the ways of Hashem. He does not restrict our communication with Him. Hashem does not have hours. His doors are open at all times for prayer and repentance. So too, my Chesed, my door to others will always be open.

A Talmid, a disciple, asked the Chazon Ish, “Why give so much of your time to others? It is hard for you to always be available. Your time is so precious. You can spend more time learning Torah.” The Chazon Ish answered, “If I had a lot of money I would give Tzedaka regularly. But since I do not, the least I can do is listen to others at all times without limits.

Dear children, we learned about the importance of doing something daily without stopping. We can easily achieve this. There is great power to doing something on a constant basis. Let us try to make sure that a day does not pass without Chesed, prayer and Torah learning.

What have we learned today?

What is the significance of lighting the Menorah each day?

It teaches us the importance of doing something daily.

What three pillars does the world stand on?

Torah, Avodah and Gemillat Chasadim. One should set aside time for each of these three things daily. He should make sure to learn Torah, pray and do Chesed each day.