Parashat Shavua

Hemdat Yamim Parashat beshalach

Hemdat Yamim Parshat B'shalach *********************************************************************** This edition of Hemdat Yamim is dedicated to the memory of R' Meir ben Yechezkel Shraga Brachfeld o.b.m. *********************************************************************** **************************************************************************** ** The 4th volume of B'Mareh Habazak, Eretz Hemdah's responsa to Diaspora rabbis, has just been published. Copies are available at our office or can be sent by mail. Call our office for details. **************************************************************************** ** Don't Judge a Food by its Cover Harav Yosef Carmel Our parasha tells of the "food of angels" which Hashem provided us when we followed him in the desert. "Bnei Yisrael called its name, man; it was white, it was like coriander seed and it tasted like a cake fried in honey" (Shemot 16:31). The Torah continues by putting the matter in historical perspective, stating: "Bnei Yisrael ate the man for forty years until they came to an inhabited land; they ate the man until they came to the edge of Eretz C'naan" (ibid.:35). We need to understand why, after the initial excitement and continued satisfaction with the miraculous present of the man, we find that, after 40 years, Bnei Yisrael complained bitterly about it. "Why did you take us out of Egypt to die in the desert? ...and our soul is disgusted with the insubstantial food" (Bamidbar 21:5). We also should try to understand the double chronological demarcation, mentioned above: "until they came to an inhabited land...until they came to the edge of Eretz C'naan." We can present one approach which answers both questions. Chazal, in a few places, try to show that the benefit of the man lasted longer than we might think. One opinion says that although the man stopped falling when Moshe died, they continued eating the leftovers until the second day of Pesach. Another opinion argues that if so, then Bnei Yisrael ate man for less than the 40 years mentioned by the Torah (it started 30 days after the Exodus). To solve this problem, the gemara (Kiddushin 38a) posits that the food Bnei Yisrael took from Egypt had the taste of man. There are also opinions that they ate man for 70 days or even another 14 years after Moshe's death (Mechilta D'Rashbi 16:35). Chazal try to explain Bnei Yisrael's dissatisfaction with the man by pointing out that despite its special, versatile tastes, it did not bring complete pleasure because of its ordinary appearance (Yalkut Shimoni, Eikev 850). We can suggest that the various dates to which the Torah alludes as to when consumption of the man stopped represent a period of gradual stopping. When they came to an inhabited land, namely to the border of the Edomites (Bamidbar 20), the local people started offering Bnei Yisrael "human food" which not only tasted good but was also presented in a way which aroused their appetites. The generation born in the desert, never having experienced normal food, was shocked. In fact, they had never made full use of the man's adaptability to any taste, because they weren't familiar with different foods to have in mind, as they had not lived in Egypt. The previous generation had enjoyed the man more, but the younger people, who enjoyed less and were enthralled by the alternatives, complained. Some people stopped eating the man right away, while others continued eating it for significantly longer. **************************************************************************** *** P'ninat Mishpat - Kiddushin (Jewish Marriage) - Witnesses - I The mesader kiddushin is the most visible and active participant in the marriage ceremony and is needed to ensure it is run according to halacha, but we must note that his is not the most halachically indispensable function. That distinction belongs to the two kosher witnesses (eidim), without whom kiddushin is impossible (Kiddushin 65a). The requirement of two witnesses regarding matters of marital status is learned from a g'zeirah shava from monetary matters (Sota 3b). However, there is a major difference. Monetary transactions can take place without actual witnesses. The witnesses are needed only after the fact, within court proceedings, to clarify matters and are called eidei birur (witnesses for clarification). In contrast, kiddushin and gittin require eidei kiyum, (witnesses to enable), without which the halachic process is meaningless. The reasoning behind this distinction is a famous topic in yeshivot (see K'tzot Hachoshen 241:1). Some have the misconception that being an eid at a wedding is a second-rate honor. Since questions about the validity of witnesses are the greatest threat to the validity of the kiddushin, being chosen as an eid should be a sign that the person is held in the highest possible esteem regarding reliability and righteousness **************************************************************************** ** Moreshet Shaul (from the works of Hagaon Harav Shaul Yisraeli zt"l) "He Planted an Eshel in Be'er Sheva" (In honor of Tu Bishvat) Avraham, the first of the forefathers of our nation, showed his connection to the Land by planting. "He planted an eshel in Be'er Sheva," (Bereishit 21:33). When Avraham settled the Land, he felt that he needed to do an action to strengthen his connection to it. It was not enough to breathe the air of the land or make use of that which was on its surface. Rather, he wanted to connect himself to the land through something living and growing whose nourishment was from the land. Thus, he planted the first tree of the first "Hebrew" in his land. Indeed, planting is a sign that one is an inhabitant of an area on a more than transient basis. When Yirmiyah prophesied about an extended exile in Bavel, he said: "Plant orchards and eat their fruit" (Yirmiyah 29:5). In other words, you will be there long enough that you should set down roots. In the past, when we were in Chutz La'aretz, we symbolized our connection to the land by eating its fruits. Even in our blessings after eating, we connect our return to the Land to the eating of its fruit. We say: "Bring us up to its [Israel's] midst, and we shall eat its fruit and be satiated by its bounty, and we will bless you for it." Baruch Hashem, we made it here, and we put down strong stakes. We have glorious houses and courtyards and have filled the breadth of the Land with vegetation. We have thanked Hashem for this and we can continue to plant with the hope that we will be blessed to eat the future fruit and be satiated by them. How great is the blessing, the holiness, and the purity which should uplift our spirits in times like this. Yet, there is also another side to the coin. While one explanation of eshel is an orchard, another is an inn, with eshel serving as an acronym for eating, drinking, and escorting. The flourishing of the Land and its capture from foreign control is not a present just for us and our children. When we plant today we must think of the thousands of our Jewish brethren who are "in troubles and captivity." These are people whose eyes are turned toward this Land, tens of thousands of hungry people, affected horribly by disgrace, poverty, and suffering. We should remember that we are just the pioneer group whose job it is to prepare the area for the rest of the nation to follow. **************************************************************************** **** Ask the Rabbi Question: After baking a challah for Shabbat, I like to wrap it in aluminum foil so it stays warm. Is that okay? Could I leave it in an oven which is turned off but still warm, where the process would be even more effective? Answer: The problem of wrapping, which you refer to, is called hatmana (insulation). We cannot get into all the details (most of which are found in Orach Chayim 257), but we will touch on some major points, especially as they affect your cases. The gemara (Shabbat 34a-b) forbids two basic types of hatmana. One may not wrap food on Shabbat to keep in its heat. This is a rabbinic prohibition out of fear that one who is so concerned about keeping the food hot might actually come to heat up the food before he wraps it. A second rabbinic prohibition is not to do hatmana in a situation where heat is being added to the insulated food (mosif hevel) even if this is done before Shabbat. This ruling is out of fear that the heat-adding insulation might be done with remetz, a mixture of sand and coal, in which case one might come to stoke the coals at some later point. However, in your case, you have the best of both worlds. You do the hatmana before Shabbat in a simple insulation of aluminum foil, which does not add heat. Thus, it is permitted. Your further suggestion is much more complicated. The gemara, referring to hatmana which is mosif hevel (adds heat), discusses insulating materials which themselves add heat. Aluminum foil does not add heat itself, but it serves as a conduit for the heat of the oven. There is a machloket among the rishonim as to whether such a situation is considered mosif hevel and forbidden or not. The Shulchan Aruch (257:5) is stringent on the matter, while the Magen Avraham (257:18) and Mishna Berura (ibid.:43) report a minhag to be lenient. Logic suggests that in a case where one shuts the oven so that no new heat is added to the system, and one is showing that he is not so concerned that it stay hot over a long period of time (like in classic mosif hevel), it might be more lenient. It would seem that if the oven will not even be yad soledet bo (approximately 113° F) when Shabbat begins, and it is continuously cooling off further, then it is permitted. However, if you would leave your oven on, even on a very low setting, then you should not wrap the challah for the purpose of insulation, as the system is designed to continuously add new heat, similar to remetz. 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