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Dear Naaleh Friend,
This week, Rebbetzin Heller gives a fascinating shiur in Sefer Yechezkel which is very relevant to our times. The class, entitled 'The Trap of Consumerism', is available by clicking the image below. There are more featured classes below, including a class on Asara B'Tevet by Rabbi Hershel Reichman and a class on Parshat Vayechi by Shira Smiles. This weeks's Torat Imecha is available below, click here for the printable version.
Batya Shira bat Chasida is B'H improving, though her situation remains serious. It is your prayers on her behalf which are bringing her healing. Please continue to daven and do mitzvot in her zechut, and please continue to daven for Tzuriel ben Naomi and Chaim Yissachar ben Chaya Mishkit.
Looking forward to sharing many hours of Torah!
Ashley Klapper and the Naaleh Crew |
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Dedicated in memory of Rachel Leah bat R' Chaim Tzvi
Torat Imecha- Women's Torah
Volume 2 Number 38
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Contemporary Halacha-Meat & Fish #18
Based on a Naaleh.com shiur by Rabbi Michael Taubes
 Rav Kana taught that if one bakes bread in an oven with roasted meat, one cannot eat this bread with dairy. Further on the Gemara in Pesachim writes that Rava B'Parziska prohibited consuming fish that had been roasted in an oven with meat, together with dairy. Mar B'rav Ashi adds that one should not even eat the fish itself because it causes bad breath and tzoraat.
The Shulchan Aruch develops this halacha further and writes that not only may one not eat fish roasted in an oven with meat, but one should refrain from eating fish and meat altogether. The Rema notes that b'dieved if one already cooked fish and meat together it is permitted. This is corroborated by the Shach. The Beer Sheva disagrees and rules that even b'dieved one may not eat it since this is a question of danger. The Chasam Sofer notes that the Rambam did not cite this din at all. He postulates that the case mentioned in Gemara may have referred to a particular fish, or that human nature has changed since ancient times and the danger referred to no longer exists. Nevertheless the Chasam Sofer rules that "Minhag avoseinu k'din"-the customs of our forefathers are like law and therefore we do not mix fish with meat. However we cannot say that the laws of meat and fish are stricter than the laws of meat and dairy.
The Shulchan Aruch writes further that one should wash ones hands and eat something to wash out ones mouth between fish and meat because it can lead to tzoraat, and "Sakanta chamura m'issura"-Matters of danger are more stringent than prohibitions. The Magen Avraham disagrees and notes that we find many examples in Gemara where Chazal tells us about dangers which are not found today. This is because our natures have changed and we dwell in different lands. Therefore there is room to be more lenient here. The Mishna Berura rules that we follow the Rema who holds that one does not need to wash ones hands between fish and meat. The Rema writes that fish and meat are only a problem when they are cooked together however it is still better to eat or drink something in between courses. The widespread practice in Klal Yisrael during the Shabbat meal is to drink liquor between fish and meat.
Chazal categorized poultry the same way as meat with regard to the laws of meat and dairy. Therefore the halacha would be the same in regard to fish and meat too. Some Sefardic Poskim prohibit consuming fish with dairy. Rav Akiva Eiger notes that there is a practice to refrain from drinking water after fish because that too is a danger. Indeed as noted, the custom is to drink schnapps. Perhaps the minhag to say L'chaim after drinking an alcoholic beverage stems from this idea.
Living a Torah life means living a measured, focused, existence. There is meaning and purpose behind everything we do. May our studying and knowing the halachot well help us reach our ultimate purpose.
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The sefer, Tomer Devora, is based on a verse in Micha, "Mi Kel komocha.."-Who is like you Hashem. It describes how man should adopt Hashem's Thirteen Attributes of Mercy, transforming himself from a mere human to a G-dly individual. This class focuses on the middah of chesed as expounded further in the verse, "Ki chofetz chesed hu.."-Hashem desires chesed.
In the heavens above, there are angels whose sole purpose is to receive and present the chesed of the Jewish people to Hashem, particularly in a time when they are not following the Torah. This chesed intercedes for them and sweetens the judgment. Even terrible sins punishable by death, merit forgiveness through chesed. Why is chesed so significant in the eyes of Hashem?
The Michtav M'Eliyahu writes that giving is the foundation of all mussar and machasava. It is a prerequisite for emunah and avodat Hashem. Chesed is a form of giving. When a person gives of himself, he indicates that he is investing in something spiritual and eternal. The Jewish nation distinguish themselves as being merciful, modest, and kind. We do not pride ourselves on our physical prowess or intelligence. The Torah tells us "Vahavata l'reicha komocha..." Ahava comes from the root word "hav"-to give. We indicate our love by giving of ourselves. Our goal should be to give without expecting anything in return. Even those who hurt us, should be the recipients of our chesed. This is how Hashem acts with us and this is our basis for emunah.
The text in Micha reads further, "Yashav yerachameihu.."-Hashem is merciful to those who return. When one person sins against another, the level of love and respect for the other person can never be the same. In contrast, when a person does teshuva, he becomes even closer to Hashem. This is the level we should strive to achieve with those who wrong us. While a tzaddik can have a relationship with Hashem, a baal teshuva is in the category of a servant who is even closer to his Master.
The Midrash asks, why is Magen Avraham called Avraham's bracha? Does it not say Elokei Avraham? Avraham brought Hashem's existence into the world with his actions. Similarly, when we emulate Hashem's middot, our divine like aspect comes to the fore. We glorify Hashem with our righteous actions and bring His presence into the world. May our efforts to perfect our inner selves sanctify Hashem's name and bring atonement for all of Klal Yisrael.
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Parshat Vayechi and The Tenth of Tevet
Based on a Naaleh.com shiur by Mrs. Shira Smiles
Parshat Vayechi is unique in that it is a parsha stuma, a closed parsha. There are no extra spaces between it and the preceding parsha. Rashi explains that this teaches us that the hearts of Yaakov's children were closed in expectation of the suffering that awaited them with the impending bondage. What does this Rashi really mean?
There are three consecutive fast days in Tevet. The eighth day of Tevet commemorates the day that the Torah was translated to Greek, the ninth day memorializes the death of Ezra and Nechemia, and the tenth day is a communal fast to mark the day that Nevuchadnetzar began the siege of Jerusalem. Rav Krem asks, why do we fast on Asarah B'tevet, which occurred three and half years before the Churban? Is it not adequate for us to fast when the destruction actually occurred? The Avudraham notes that in a way Asara B'tevet is even more significant than Tisha B'av in that if it would ever fall out on Shabbat it would not be pushed off like Tisha B'av. Why?
The Rambam writes that the primary purpose of a fast is not grief and mourning, but a call for us to repent in the very areas that caused the tragedies to occur. Rav Krem points out that Asara B'tevet can be explained on three levels. The first level clarifies the link between Vayechi and Asara B'tevet. When Hashem brings punishment upon an individual or nation, He doesn't do it all at once. At first, he sends warning signs and if the person has a sense of obligation, he takes it to heart and tries to ferret out the deeper reason behind it.
Asara B'tevet was the seed that was supposed to arouse the Jews to repent. Had they taken these warning signs appropriately they could've prevented the Churban. We are not fasting so much for what occurred, but rather to rectify the coldness and apathy that settled upon the Jews and caused the destruction. This is reflected in Parshat Vayechi. There is no space for contemplation. Chazal say that the Jews were exiled because they denied Hashem and Malchut Beit David.
Malchut Beit David is the idea of hashgacha pratit. When Natan Hanavi came to reprove David, he immediately admitted his error and looked to correct his ways. When suffering comes upon us, our focus should not be on the stick that hit us. The stick is just an agent, a sign from above, and we must attempt to look beyond it to rectify our evil deeds that caused it. Today, when we no longer have prophecy, we must pray to Hashem to open our eyes to rectify that which we need to. When Hashem sees us responding correctly, our suffering is reduced.
The second level of Asara B'tevet is the connection between the eighth, ninth, and tenth days. These three days of mourning commemorate the tragedy of the weakening of Torah. When the Greeks ordered the Torah to be translated, they caused darkness to descend upon the world. The Torah is like a rock that can be splintered in many directions. It contains layers of depth and meaning that can be interpreted in many ways. When the Torah was translated, it lost its beauty, multiplicity, and full essence.
Ezra was on the level of Moshe in that he promulgated the study of Torah in its original Hebrew. With Targum Hashivim, Ezra's work was weakened and the inner aspect of Torah was lost. This is what we need to rectify on Asara B'tevet. The Leket V'halibuv writes that it is not enough to know the factual ideas of Torah. One must bring a spirit of simcha, enjoyment, and passion into our home with the mitzvot. As parents, our obligation should be to make Judaism a meaningful experience for our children. We need to kindle our homes with the inner light of Torah so that our children feel the joy and beauty of Judaism.
The Churban came due to baseless hatred. We can rectify this by working on feeling more responsibility for our fellow Jews. Shevet Dan is related to the month of Tevet. Dan was the ma'asef, he collected the stragglers. Our purpose too, is to emulate Dan and reach out to all the lost souls that never merited to know Torah.
The third level of Asara B'tevet connects the messages of the ninth and tenth of Tevet. When Ezra Hasofer passed away, the people did not realize what they had lost. Similarly, one of the purposes of Asara B'tevet is to awaken ourselves to the immense loss we experienced with the destruction of the Temple. We need to feel the pain of the Shechina over our exile. The Chatam Sofer writes that on Asara B'tevet the heavenly courts decided that this would be the beginning of the end. In the same vein, every year there is a judgment whether the Beit Hamikdash will be rebuilt again that year. Tisha B'av already happened, but Asara B'tevet has the ability to affect the future. May our heartfelt teshuva and tefillot on this pivotal day be answered for good.
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Rebbetzin's Perspective III: Class #2
Excerpted from Rebbetzin Tziporah Heller's Question and Answer series on Naaleh.com
Question:
Sometimes I see people who are somewhat close to me, dressed in a manner that is way beneath their level in other areas. Should I just daven that they overcome this challenge themselves or should I say something?
Answer:
The first step is to ask yourself if you have a positive relationship with the person. If you don't, your comments may just make the other person defensive. The next step is to honestly consider why you want to correct the person. If it is because she doesn't make the family look good or it undermines your own honor somewhat, then it won't work. However, if this is not where the person herself wants to be either, then you can give it a shot.
The best way to approach her would be to talk about yourself. You can say, "You know after I had my third baby, nothing fit me either. I had to replace everything." Or, "I'm going shopping on Tuesday. Do you want to come along?" If it's a practical problem, try to come up with a solution. You can say, "I know this seamstress who is great at fixing. The skirt I just bought is too short and I'm taking it over to her today. Do you want me to take yours too?"
The idea is for your reproof to come from a place of companionability, caring, and honesty. If you're close to the person you can talk to her about the issue. If the person in question is young, I would recommend you read the book, "Six Diaries" by Aliza Goldin, about a teacher who had her students keep journals about tzniut, which were later discussed. You may get some very good ideas there.
Trust yourself. If you say what you need to, with warmth and respect, you can end up changing things for the better.
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