OU Israel Center Torah Tidbits - Parshat Acharei Mot-Kedoshim 5785

ISSUE 1611

‫ב"ה‬

United We Stand Sense of Freshness While Fulfilling Tradition

Rabbi Shalom Rosner Page 30

MAY 10TH 2025 ▪ ‫י״ב אייר תשפ"ה‬

Kedushah in the Kitchen: Parshat Kedoshim

Rebbetzin Zemira Ozarowski Page 56

‫ קדשים‬- ‫פרשת אחרי מות‬

PARSHAT ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM PIRKEI AVOT 3

‫כ״ג‬:‫ויקרא י״ט‬

‫וכי־תבאו אל־הארץ‬

YERUSHALAYIM SHABBAT ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM ZMANIM CANDLES 6:49 PM • EARLY 5:59 PM • HAVDALA 8:06 PM • RABBEINU TAM 8:43 PM OU ISRAEL 02-560-9100

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Table of Contents

04 Rabbi Avi Berman Tears and Joy 08 Rabbi Moshe Hauer Aliya-by-Aliya Sedra Summary 12 Rabbi Reuven Tradburks “Sinners Cause 16 Cosmic Consequences” Dear Torah Tidbits Family

22 26 30 32 36 38 40

Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb Love is Not Enough Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks zt"l Probing the Prophets Rabbi Nachman Winkler Sense of Freshness While Fulfilling Tradition Rabbi Shalom Rosner Causality of Curses Rebbetzin Shira Smiles Mutual Dedication Rabbi Judah Mischel Simchat Shmuel Rabbi Sam Shor Schedule OU Israel

50 Rabbi Moshe Taragin The Strength of a Sukkah 54 Rebbetzin Dr. Adina Shmidman Kedushah in the Kitchen: Parshat Kedoshim 56 Rebbetzin Zemira Ozarowski Birkat Hamazon and Gratitude for the Land 60 Rabbi Aaron Goldscheider Selecting Things to Use Later on Shabbat 64 Rabbi Daniel Mann The Reward for Doing Mitzvot 66 Dr. Meni Koslowsky Light Through the Darkness: 68 A Lag BaOmer Reflection Show Them The Way

70 72 74

for Challenging Times Rabbi Jonathan Cohen Why Are We So Happy?

Sivan Rahav-Meir The Right Mindset Aleeza Ben Shalom - Shagririm Balev The Y-Files Comic Netanel Epstein

76 Meira Shapiro // Shimon Lev Messer Torah 4 Teens by Teens

IMPORTANT REMINDERS Kiddush Levana

Last Opportunity to Say Kiddush Levana until: 14 Iyar/ Sun. night May 11 Lag BaOmer is celebrated Thursday night May 15 and Friday May 16

COVER IMAGE Photographed by Ian Friedman

We made aliyah from Johannesburg, South Africa in 1994. Since 1997 we have been living in Kfar Adumim. This photo was taken near the visitor center of Mitzpe Ramon. Despite the difficult times we are living through, the picture summarizes for me what it means to live in Eretz Yisrael. That we are all required, each day, to take that “leap of faith” knowing that Hashem will be there to protect us.

2 TORAH TIDBITS 1611 / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM

candle lighting CANDLE LIGHTING

other OTHER z'manim Z'MANIM

AND HAVDALA TIMES AND HAVDALA TIMES

ACHAREI MOT/KEDOSHIM

EMOR

Candles

Early

6:49 7:06 Beit Shemesh/RBS 7:08 Alon Shvut 7:05 Raanana/Tel Mond/Herzliya/K.Saba 7:07 Modiin/Chashmonaim 7:05 Netanya 7:07 Be’er Sheva 7:05 Rehovot 7:06 Petach Tikva 6:49 Ginot Shomron 7:06 Haifa / Zichron 6:57 Gush Shiloh 7:05 Tel Aviv / Givat Shmuel 7:07 Givat Zeev 7:09 Chevron / Kiryat Arba 7:04 Ashkelon 7:07 Yad Binyamin 7:06 Tzfat / Bikat HaYarden 7:00 Golan 7:05 Nahariya/Maalot 7:06 Afula 7:06 Yerushalayim/Maale Adumim Aza Area (Netivot, Sderot et al)

Early

5:59 6:02 6:00 6:00 6:02 6:01 6:02 6:01 6:01 6:01 6:01 6:02 6:00 6:01 6:00 6:00 6:02 6:01 6:00 5:59 6:02 6:01

Havdala Candles

8:06 6:54 6:03 8:08 7:11 6:06 8:07 7:13 6:04 8:06 7:09 6:04 8:08 7:11 6:06 8:07 7:10 6:04 8:09 7:12 6:06 8:06 7:10 6:04 8:08 7:11 6:05 8:08 6:54 6:05 8:07 7:11 6:05 8:09 7:02 6:06 8:06 7:09 6:04 8:08 7:12 6:06 8:06 7:14 6:04 8:06 7:09 6:04 8:08 7:12 6:06 8:07 7:11 6:05 8:08 7:05 6:04 8:06 7:10 6:03 8:09 7:12 6:06 8:08 7:11 6:05

Havdala

8:11 8:13 8:12 8:11 8:14 8:12 8:14 8:12 8:13 8:13 8:13 8:15 8:12 8:14 8:12 8:11 8:14 8:13 8:13 8:12 8:15 8:13

Rabbeinu Tam (Jerusalem): Acharei Mot - Kedoshim 8:43 PM • Emor 8:47 PM

AllAllTimes Sunsetininmost mostCities; Cities; TimesAccording AccordingtotoMyZmanim MyZmanim (20 (20 mins before Sunset 4040mins mins in inTzfat Tzfatand andHaifa) Haifa) minsininYerushalyim Yerushalyimand andPetach Petach Tikva; 30 mins Daf Yomi: Shevuos 9 OU Kashrut  NCSY  Jewish Action  JLIC  NJCD / Yachad / Our Way  OU West Coast  OU Press  Synagogue/Community Services  OU Advocacy  OU Israel MITCHEL R. AEDER, PRESIDENT OF THE ORTHODOX UNION Yehuda Neuberger, Chairman of the Board, Orthodox Union | Dr. Josh Penn, OU Kashrus Commission RABBI MOSHE HAUER, EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT | RABBI JOSHUA M. JOSEPH, ED.D. EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT & CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb, Exec. V.P. Emeritus OU KOSHER: Rabbi Menachem Genack, CEO/Rabbinic Administrator OU Kosher | Rabbi Moshe Elefant, COO/Executive Rabbinic Coordinator ISRAEL: Rabbi Yissachar Dov Krakowski, Rabbinic Administrator | Rabbi Ezra Friedman, The Gustave and Carol Jacobs Center for Kashrut Education/ Deputy Rabbinic Administrator Headquarters: 40 Rector St. 4th floor, New York, NY 10006  212-563-4000  website: www.ou.org

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JERUSALEM JERUSALEM Ranges 11 days Wednesday - Shabbat Ranges May 7 - 1711/ 9days - 19 Wed–Shabbat Iyar Oct x–x / x–x Cheshvan Earliest EarliestTallit Tallitand andTefillin Tefillin Sunrise Sunrise Sof SofZman ZmanKriat KriatShema Shema MagenAvraham Avraham Magen SofZman ZmanTefila Tefila Sof

4:53-4:44 x:xx–x:xx 5:48-5:41 x:xx–x:xx 9:12-9:08 x:xx–x:xx x:xx–x:xx 8:32-8:27 x:xx-x:xx 10:20-10:17

Chatzot(Halachic (HalachicNoon) Noon) Chatzot MinchaGedola Gedola(Earliest (EarliestMincha) Mincha) Mincha PlagMincha Mincha Plag Sunset(Including (IncludingElevation) Elevation) Sunset

x:xx–x:xx 12:35 x:xx–x:xx 1:09-1:10 x:xx–x:xx 5:58-6:03 x:xx–x:xx 7:27-7:34

(Accordingtotothe theGra Graand andBaal BaalHaTanya) HaTanya) (According

Seymour J. Abrams • Orthodox Union Jerusalem World Center • Avrom Silver Jerusalem College for Adults • Wolinetz Family Shul • Makom BaLev • Birthright • Yachad • NCSY in Israel • JLIC in Israel • Camp Dror • Pearl & Harold M. Jacobs ZULA Outreach Center • The Jack Gindi Oraita Program • OU Israel Kashrut STUART HERSHKOWITZ, PRESIDENT OU ISRAEL Zvi Sand / Yitzchak Fund: Former Presidents, OU Israel | Rabbi Emanuel Quint z”l, Senior Vice President | Prof. Meni Koslowsky, Vice President VAAD MEMBERS: Michael Elman | Jonathan Eltes | Yonatan Frankel | Yitzchak Fund | Daniella Hellerstein | Stuart Hershkowitz | Jeremy Lustman | Yigal Marcus | Meir Raskas | Atara Reichel | Zvi Sand | Norman Schmutter | Mark Schneider | Esther Williams RABBI AVI BERMAN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, OU ISRAEL David Katz, CFO, OU Israel | Natan Kandler, COO, OU Israel | Chaim Pelzner, Director of Programs, OU Israel | Rabbi Sam Shor, Director, Torah Initiatives, OU Israel | Rabbi Sholom Gold zt"l, Dean, Avrom Silver Jerusalem College for Adults 7 Hartum Street, Jerusalem, 9777507 phone: (02) 560 9100 | fax: (02) 561-7432 email: office@ouisrael.org website: www.ouisrael.org Founders and initial benefactors of the OU Israel Center: George and Ilse Falk a"h Torah Tidbits and many of the projects of OU Israel are assisted by grants from THE JERUSALEM MUNICIPALITY OU Israel, Torah Tidbits does not endorse the political or halachic positions of its editor, columnists or advertisers, nor guarantee the quality of advertised services or products. Nor do we endorse the kashrut of hotels, restaurants, caterers or food products that are advertised in TT (except, of course, those under OU-Israel hashgacha). Any "promises" made in ads are the sole responsibility of the advertisers and not that of OU Israel, the OU Israel Center , Torah Tidbits.

OU ISRAEL CENTER 3

DEAR TORAH TIDBITS FAMILY

RABBI AVI BERMAN Rabbi Avi Berman EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, OU ISRAEL Executive Director, OU Israel ABERMAN@OUISRAEL.ORG This past week, I had the tremendous honor and pleasure to take another OU mission from North America (New York and South Florida) around Israel to show them various inspiring things that are happening across the country, as well as the many challenges that Klal Yisrael is dealing with during these times. We attended a Yom HaZikaron event at Binyanei HaUmah, headed by World Mizrachi and the World Zionist Organization, alongside thousands of participants. It was such a meaningful experience, with five families describing life both before and after their loved ones sacrificed their lives for the Jewish People.

Hearing these families take such tragedy and use it towards inspiring others was truly emotional, and you could look around and see everybody in tears.

The next morning, we took the mission to Har Herzl to hear from the parents of Maoz Morell Hy”d, Eitan & Varda, about their

The OU Israel Family sends hearfelt condolences to Mrs. Esther Benovitz and to Rabbi Moshe Benovitz (NCSY Kollel) and family on the passing of their husband/father

Rabbi David Benovitz z”l

‫המקום ינחם אתכם בתוך שאר אבלי ציון וירושלים‬ 4 TORAH TIDBITS 1611 / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM

incredible son and the dedication that he had to the Jewish People and how many lives he saved in the IDF. Standing on Har Herzl for the ceremony, hearing the siren, talking to the families, seeing the tens, if not hundreds of thousands of people gathered on the sacred mountain to show their respects, and listening to the official ceremony of the State of Israel, was all very emotional for us. Yet, it’s what happened afterwards that showed me that something new is happening in Klal Yisrael.

The official ceremony ends with the singing of Hatikvah. Right as the last note of Hatikvah finished, the entire crowd seamlessly began to sing Ani Ma’amin, and they sang the whole song together, as one. With great trepidation and great emunah, the entire mountain sang and demonstrated that they understood in their hearts the great purpose of the State of Israel. One of the people on our mission turned to me and asked why they didn’t announce that they were going to sing Ani Ma’amin after Hatikvah. I informed him that it’s because the Ani Ma’amin is not part of the official ceremony; Ani Ma’amin is what the people are feeling. We are all yearning for Mashiach. Yearning for much greater days for the Jewish People.

As Ani Ma’amin ended, once again seamlessly, the entire sacred mountain started singing Acheinu Kol Beit Yisrael hanetunim batzara uvashivya, for our people, our brothers and sisters that are hostage in Gaza. Without a doubt, the singing of Ani Ma’amin and Acheinu after Hatikvah showed me the real

inner desire of this nation. This isn’t the first time I’ve seen it either, but it solidified for me that a trend is happening here in Israel.

This same trend follows through on Yom HaAtzamaut as well. How many minyanim are there now with beautiful, long, singing Hallels that go long into the night of Yom Haatzmaut? I remember well how we weren’t sure how big the crowd would be the first year OU Israel began our Yom Haatzmaut night tefillah in the Tachana Rishona eight years ago. I remember saying that if we get 500 people, it’ll be a major success. We ended up getting approximately 800 people. The amount of positive feedback that we received was just remarkable. It was clear to us that we were going to do it the next year and the next year. Aside from the one year of COVID that we weren’t allowed to have it, Baruch Hashem we’ve done it every year since.

This year, as I was sitting with the mission in Miriam Peretz’s garden on Yom HaZikaron day, gaining so much inspiration from her, I could feel the winds picking up. I could tell that this was not the fair-weathered Yom Ha’atzmaut we normally have. I started getting questions from the production team putting together the event whether or not we should still do the davening, because everything that they were putting up was flying off. Whether fences, posters, you name it, the wind was blowing them away. They couldn’t even put up the speakers since they were so afraid of them falling down.

The decision was such an intense one.

5,000 people are waiting to come. How can

I let them down? However, when at around 4:20pm the police announced that it is forbidden to do the event because of the dangerous fires picked up by the winds near Yerushalayim, we right away got on a conference call with our incredible CFO, David Katz and the DanielPro production team to try to figure out what we should do. We suggested the Ramada Hotel, which has such an incredible relationship with the OU. We’ve done conventions and Torah Yerushalayim events with them and partnered with them for many years, and they are under our hechsher as well.

When we called the Ramada they said that their largest hall (which I believe is also the largest hotel hall in all of Yerushalayim), is available. They said, please, come on over.

Regardless of how last minute this was, they said we had to do it. The davening is so

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important. The only thing was, they didn’t have the staff available to set up such an event. I said, no problem. I’ll come with my sons to start setting up, and we’ll find volunteers as well.

By 4:49pm, my team had already notified the public that the event was moving from Gan HaPaamon to the Ramada. When I arrived at the hotel at 5:15pm, the entire MMY seminary was there in full force, moving the chairs, putting up mechitzot, helping decorate, putting out the siddurim, and organizing the entire place together with the incredible OU Israel volunteers and staff. By the time I walked in with my boys, they had left us very little to do. By 6:45pm we were ready and started Mincha. Almost 1,500 people attended the Tefila. It was literally standing room only.

This, too, is an expression of that desire of the Jewish People in Israel. People yearn for a meaningful davening, especially on Yom Ha’atzmaut. So many Yeshivot and Midrashot came and joined us. Yeshivat Eretz HaTzvi, Yeshivat Orayta, Rabbi Aharon Assaraf came from Miami Beach with his school, so many joined.

The atmosphere was electrifying. My good friend, Rav Doron Perez, Executive Director of World Mizrachi, spoke and inspired all of us in the transition from Yom HaZikaron to Yom HaAtzmaut. But my son asked me a simple question. He said “Abba, if you were able to pull off this event in two hours, why do you plan this event every year for months?”

Obviously we all laughed.

Many people, including Rabbi Yehoshua Fass of Nefesh B’nefesh, were unable to join due to the fires spreading around Yerushalyim.

We apologize to those people who couldn’t make it to Yerushalayim and join us.

6 TORAH TIDBITS 1611 / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM

Yet, the reality is that when you have a very dedicated and loving body of staff, volunteers and participants, you really have everything that you need in order to pull off a great event. But, the fact that we were able to mobilize in less than two hours to take an event of almost 1,500 people from one location on one side of the city to the other side of the city, when the weather is insane outside and so many are stuck in their houses is no less than a miracle. So I wanted to thank HaKadosh Baruch Hu publicly and the DanielPro production team as well as all the volunteers and staff that worked so hard to make it happen. Kol hakavod to all of you!

At the end of every mission we bring to Israel, we always sit together with the group to hear their feedback and reactions to everything they saw on the mission. Something we have heard a lot, from many different groups, is the question why our activities in Israel, as important and incredible as they are, are not known to so many people. Honestly, I don’t have an answer for them. One way I try to tell people, is in these pages, but I know that as we, b’ezrat Hashem continue to do great things for Klal Yisrael, whether helping thousands of teens-at-risk in Israel, or through our shiurim, davenings, and religious programming for the English-Speaking public, we will tap into these trends that we can see plainly before our eyes and move the Jewish People closer to the desires of those singing Ani Maamin and Acheinu - the coming of Mashiach and the return of our brothers and sisters in captivity.

Wishing you all an uplifting and inspiring Shabbat, Rabbi Avi Berman Executive Director, OU Israel

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Tears and Joy We are blessed to live in a remarkable period of our history.

Years ago, on a Thursday morning at the kotel, I chose to join a minyan where a bar mitzvah was being celebrated. Beginning with the Torah reading, the family and friends of the young man engaged in the boisterous singing and dancing that is typical of the bar mitzvah festivities occurring there every Monday and Thursday. A grandfather of the young man, an older man with a long white beard, was standing off to the side, observing it all somewhat pensively. I approached him to wish him mazal tov, and he shared his thoughts. “I used to come here decades ago, pre-1948. This was known as the Kotel Hadma’ot, the Wailing Wall, because we came to this sacred place to cry. Now, we come here to sing and dance.”

These exact words could have been expressed as an enthusiastic commentary on the positively transformational events of our time. Instead, the elderly man was sharing them as an expression of concern that the

‫לעילוי נשמת‬

CHANA WADE a”h who passed away on

‫שבת פרשת תזריע מצרע‬ ‫תנצב”ה‬ 8 TORAH TIDBITS 1611 / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM

giddy celebration was carrying on as if oblivious to the past, to the long and difficult road traveled to get there. Hazorim b’dima b’rina yiktzoru (Tehillim 126). “Those who plant with tears, joyfully will harvest.” A classic Hasidic commentary suggests that both the planting and the harvesting must be accompanied by a blend of tears and joy. We have the strength to endure the difficult and tearful periods only because we anticipate the joy that will come at the end, while when that joyful end arrives, we must remain mindful of the painful investment that produced it. B’dima b’rina.

This combination of tears and joy is present in the Yom Hazikaron lead-in to Yom HaAtzmaut, that - rather than producing an emotional roller coaster - ensures that the losses of the more than 25,000 young men and women remembered on the first of those days are borne with a deep and mature appreciation of what they gave their lives for, and that the celebration that follows recognizes that Israel is not a gift but an acquisition gained at a very steep price. B’dima b’rina.

This attitude also underlies the opening of Acharei Mot, describing the Temple service on the holiest and happiest of days, Yom Kippur.

The presentation is made in the shadow of the deaths of Nadav and Avihu during the celebratory dedication of the mishkan (tabernacle), “acharei mot shnei bnei aharon.” Their deaths at that joyous moment ensured that our delight in the mishkan would never be separated from a mature appreciation of its profound sanctity (v’nikdash b’chvodi: Shemot

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29:43, Rashi). Similarly, the incomparable blessings that Hashem grants us on Yom Kippur, both His embrace of forgiveness and the intimate access we are given via the kohein gadol to His presence in the physical holy of holies, are experienced and appreciated not as gifts that arrive out of nowhere but as the product of the investment of the pain and tears of the fasting and prayer that yield those results and opportunities. B’dima b’rina.

So many bitter tears of loss continue to be shed by the families of the gibborei Yisrael who have given everything to bring us the singular privilege of our time, the rebirth of our people in our homeland from the ashes of the Holocaust and from millennia of homelessness. Our mindfulness of those tears will be critical to arriving at a more joyous future.

B’dima b’rina.

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Aliya-by-Aliya Sedra Summary ALIYA-BY-ALIYA SEDRA SUMMARY

RABBI TRADBURKS Rabbi REUVEN Reuven Tradburks

RCA Israel Region RCA ISRAEL REGION

In memory of Evelyn Rivers a”h

‫חוה פעסא בת אהרן זלמן הכהן ע״ה‬ Mother of Reuven Tradburks

ACHAREI MOT-KEDOSHIM 1ST ALIYA (VAYIKRA 16:1-24) After the death of his 2 sons, Aaron is instructed to enter the Holy of Holies only through an elaborate process of offerings. He is to bring a private sin offering. And a communal sin offering of 2 identical goats, one as an offering, one sent to the wilderness, determined by lottery. The blood of both his offering and the communal shall be brought into the Holy of Holies, accompanied by incense. The smoke of the incense fills the Holy of Holies. The (scape) goat is sent to the wilderness. The people gain kapara, atonement.

The Torah outlines an elaborate ceremony of unique offerings in order for Aaron to enter the Holy of Holies, including the scapegoat ceremony and the incense offered in the Holy of Holies. And it is all performed by the Kohen Gadol.

However, the first verse indicates this was after the death of Aaron’s 2 sons. But that was

Condolences to Dr. Harvey Woolf and family on the passing of his

FATHER z”l

‫המקום ינחם אתכם בתוך שאר אבלי ציון וירושלים‬ 12 TORAH TIDBITS 1611 / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM

3 parshiot ago, in Shemini. Why is there a break after their death for the sections of the laws of Kashrut and then the very detailed laws of Tuma of Tzaraat that took up the parshiot of Tazria and Metzora – and then indicate that this section is after their death?

What is the thematic flow of these sections?

The central theme of the book of Vayikra is Kedusha, holiness. Holiness is the reach for the beyond, the reach for the Divine. The book begins with the reach for the Divine through sacrifices because those are the most supercharged way of drawing near to G-d.

They are brought in the place of G-d’s dwelling, in the Mishkan. The bringing of sacrifices in the Mishkan is man approaching G-d in His Abode, a supercharged manner and place of expressing a desire to be near to Him. Nadav and Avihu wanted to achieve an even higher pinnacle of approach to G-d; incense, the smoke symbol of G-d’s Presence.

Problem is, they were unauthorized.

The Torah needs to immediately respond and outline the drawing of parameters of how to draw near in this supercharged Mishkan..

So, it immediately outlines the complicated rules of Tuma, which restrict entry to the Mishkan.

And if the Mishkan is a supercharged place of approaching G-d, certainly the Holy of Holies is the pinnacle of nearness to G-d.

So, after outlining the rules and regulations for regular approach to G-d, the Torah outlines the even more elaborate rules and

regulations for the approach to G-d in the Holy of Holies.

2ND ALIYA (16:25-17:7) This entire ceremony is done once a year on Yom Kippur, to gain atonement and purity. Tell the entire people: all sacrifices are to be brought to the Mikdash. The Kohen is to offer them, so they are pleasing. We are to no longer offer sacrifices to spirits.

Only at the end of the entire description of how one is to enter the Holy of Holies does the Torah tell us that this is to be done on Yom Kippur. That is a powerful double layering of holiness; the holiest place and the holiest time.

3RD ALIYA (17:8-8:21) Blood is not to be consumed, for the life is in the blood. I have given it to you to use for atonement on the altar, not to consume. The blood of an undomesticated animal or bird that is killed for consumption, that blood is to be covered with earth. Do not do what the Egyptians or Canaanites do. Do My commands; and live. Sexual relations with relatives are forbidden: including spouses of parents, half siblings, grandchildren, step-siblings, aunts, in-laws. In addition, marrying 2 women who are closely related. Or a married woman.

The subject of entry into the Mikdash gives way now to the listing of forbidden marital relationships. These laws are entirely unrelated to the Mikdash.

But, as pointed out to me by my mechutan, Marty Lockshin, these forbidden relationships are described as causing Tuma, familiar topic, and may result in the land spitting you out. That is a parallel to the Mishkan. One who is Tamei may not enter the Mikdash. And

one who defiles himself by forbidden sexual activity may not enter the Land of Israel. Well, it doesn’t say it that way – it says the Land will not tolerate you, will vomit you out. In a word; the holiness of place demands purity.

The holiness of the Mikdash. And the holiness of the Land of Israel.

And in this the Torah presents a radical notion; that holiness inheres not only in the holy place, the Mikdash. And not only in the holy time of Shabbat and holidays. But in the holiness of our relationships. Holiness is the central theme of Vayikra. Played out in the Mikdash, in offerings, in Tuma and its restrictions of entry into the holy place. But as well in the holiness of private life. Holiness is both public and private, ritual and personal, related to the Holy One and to our fellow man. And this is the perfect segue to Parshat Kedoshim; holiness is daily life.

4TH ALIYA (8:22-19:14) A man shall not lie with a man.

Sexual relations with an animal are forbidden. These things (all the above) defile the Land: it will spit you out. (Parshat Kedoshim) Be Holy, as I, G-d, your G-d is holy.

Revere parents, keep Shabbat. Do not turn to idols or make graven gods. A shlamim offering may only be eaten for 2 days. Help the poor and stranger when harvesting a field by leaving dropped or forgotten produce or grapes. Don’t steal, lie or swear falsely. Don’t cheat; or tarry paying wages til the morning.

Don’t curse the deaf, trip up the blind.

This aliya begins Parshat Kedoshim, the best parsha in the Torah. Or at least Rashi says so on the first verse: most topics of the Torah are contained here. There are 51 mitzvot in 64 verses. We have left the topic of holiness of the Mikdash and focus on holiness in OU ISRAEL CENTER 13

our behavior. These are the greatest themes of ethical behavior; helping the poor with dignity, honesty, care for employees, care for the deaf and blind. In just these few verses, our every moment of human interaction becomes meaningful; every step we take and thought we think needs vigilance. To be true. And kind. And give dignity to others. This parsha is the fullest expression of how holiness need inhere in our everyday treatment of others.

5TH ALIYA (19:15-32) Do not pervert justice by favoring either poor or powerful. Don’t spread gossip, nor stand by your brother’s blood. Don’t hate. Don’t take revenge; love your neighbor as yourself. Do not interbreed animal, seeds, or wear wool and linen. In the Land, fruit is forbidden for the first 3 years of growth, 4th year holy, 5th year permissible.

Do not use divination. Nor round the corners of your face or use a straight razor on your beard. Nor tattoo. Nor seek sorcery. Rise before the aged, glorify the wizened.

The mention of justice is a foil: in court, we pursue justice. But not on the streets. It is not our place to be judges; judges cannot favor one person over another. But we certainly can. And must. We must favor and help the victim. And revenge; we are not judges to mete out just revenge. If he didn’t lend you, forget about it - you still should do the right thing and lend to him.

6TH ALIYA (19:33-20:7) Love the convert. Employ accurate weights and measures. One who gives their child to Molech shall be put to death. And if you don’t do it, I will. The one who turns and follows sorcery, I will deal with them. Be holy; for I am Holy.

The convert may feel out of place, different, 14 TORAH TIDBITS 1611 / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM

self conscious, without family, not part of the crowd. Be extra sensitive to those who feel left out.

Accurate weights and measures would seem obvious. But the Torah is emphasizing that even when you can get away with it, don’t. Like cursing the deaf. Who will ever know?

7TH ALIYA (20:8-27) The following receive the death penalty: cursing parents, the long list of forbidden sexual relationships listed above. Observing these laws and not those of the nations will prevent the Land from spitting you out, as it has done to those nations.

Since I have distinguished you, it is you who shall possess the Land, the land flowing with milk and honey. And you shall distinguish between animals to be eaten and those not.

Be holy to Me and I will distinguish you to be My people.

The Jewish idea of ethical monotheism is on full display in Kedoshim. Holiness wanders seamlessly in the parsha from taking care of the poor, to laws of sacrifices, to honesty, to sexual prohibitions, to loving your neighbor, not hating; all under the rubric of holiness.

Finding a pattern to the list of mitzvot in the parsha is challenging. But that is the point.

There is no pattern. Because holiness wanders throughout our life, touching on the myriad pursuits of our day-to-day existence.

It’s all holy.

And we express this in the blessing we make over mitzvot – asher kidshanu b’mitzvotav. G-d makes us holy through His mitzvot.

The mitzvot make us holy.

The parsha concludes: We are to be holy so that the Land does not spit us out.

These words must give us pause, those of us

privileged to walk the streets of our Land.

The Land could spit us out. All these mitzvot are not simply our own personal religious life. We, we who live in our Land, we particularly need to be extra vigilant in all these holy things, ritual, interpersonal, speech, care, love; for our success in this Land rests upon it.

STATS A.M.

K.

AM&K

of 54 Sedras

29th

30th

-

of 10 in Vayikra

th

6

th

7

-

Lines in a Torah

154

109

263

Rank (Among the 54)

th

44

49

-

HAFTORAH - AMOS 9:7-15

Parshiyot

15

4

19

Ptuchot

3

3

6

This week’s haftorah foretells the exiles and punishments that will befall the Jews because of their behavior— behavior that this week’s Torah reading proscribes.

The prophet Amos delivers Hashem’s message, reminding the people of Hashem’s kindness to them — taking them out of Egypt and singling them out as His chosen nation. Nevertheless, because of their misdeeds, Hashem will destroy the Northern Kingdom of Israel; but will not completely destroy the Jewish people. The Jews will be scattered amongst the nations, but eventually they will return to their Land — on the day of the redemption.

Hashem will then reinstall the House of David to its former glory and there shall be peace and abundance upon the Land.

Stumot

12

1

13

A SHORT VORT

th

Pesukim

80

64

144

Rank (Torah/Vayikra)

45/6

49/9

-

Words

1170

868

2038

Rank (Torah/Vayikra)

43/6

49/9

-

Letters

4294

3229

7523

Rank (Torah/Vayikra)

45/6

49/9

-

MITZVOT A.M.

K.

AM&K

Positive

2

13

15

Prohibitions

26

38

64

Total

28

51

79

BY RABBI CHANOCH YERES RAV, BEIT KNESSET BEIT YISRAEL, YEMIN MOSHE

“For in the cloud I appear upon the ark-covering.” (16:2) - )‫ב‬:‫כי בענן אראה על הכפורת (טז‬ Why the need for G-d to reveal that He appears in the pillar of “cloud”?

Rashi explains it as a warning that Moshe should be careful not to get into the habit of entering the holy place because G-d will appear in the cloud, even without being seen. Only with your prepared “cloud” of incense on Yom Kippur will you be allowed to enter the Holy of Holies.

Rabbi Meir Shapiro from Lublin (1887-1933) uses this verse as a message that even the most devout servant of G-d can experience troubles and challenges. The Torah is relating to those who find themselves in cloudy murky situations in life. Do not fall into despair, G-d announces, “I will appear in the cloud”. Even during cloudy challenging times, there is hope and from within these clouds can be found rays of faith and belief. This is a strong message for us to be able to weather any storm.

- Shabbat Shalom OU ISRAEL CENTER 15

THE PERSON in the parsha THE PERSON IN THE PARSHA BYBY RABBI DR.DR. TZVITZVI HERSH WEINREB RABBI HERSH WEINREB OUOU EXECUTIVE VICEVICE PRESIDENT, EMERITUS EXECUTIVE PRESIDENT, EMERITUS

“Sinners Cause Cosmic Consequences” It is no secret that many liberals and progressives are permissive regarding biblical proscriptions. This is especially true in the case of the recent weekly Torah portions in which a wide variety of intimate relationships are forbidden but are viewed in many sectors of modern society as archaic and no longer relevant.

This week, we combine two weekly readings, Acharei Mot and Kedoshim (Leviticus 16:1-20:27). Toward the very end of this dual and, therefore, quite lengthy parsha,

In loving memory of our beloved mother and bubby

Evelyn Weindling a”h May the Torah learning from this issue be ‫לעילוי נשמת‬

‫חוה עתל בת אברהם משה ע”ה‬ on her 10th yahrtzeit - ‫ט”ז אייר‬ Greatly missed by her children and grandchildren Marsha, Melissa, and Becky Pottash Steven & Lizzie Weindling, and Nan Abbot Shoshanah-Ruth, Naftalia Maya, and Yaira Rachel Weindling and Lee DiTullio 16 TORAH TIDBITS 1611 / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM

we encounter a forbidden behavior which even the most lenient progressive ethicist would not permit. Indeed, he would find it unforgiveable and even heinous.

I am referring to the primitive mode of worship which involved sacrificing one’s children to the pagan deity known as Molekh. I am quite certain that even in current permissive times, there is a universal consensus that casting one’s own children upon the fiery altars of some reprehensible, and incomprehensible, “god” would be condemned as abhorrent, evil, and intolerable.

Let us examine the text of the passage describing the prohibition against “worshipping” Molekh and the punishment for doing so. I will italicize selected phrases which have special import. The entire text appears in Leviticus 20:1-5: The Lord spoke to Moshe: “Tell the Israelites: Any person—any one among the Israelites—or among the strangers residing in Israel—who sacrifices any of his children to Molekh shall be put to death. The people of the land shall stone him, and I Myself will set My face against that person; I will sever him from his people because, in sacrificing his children to Molekh, he defiles My Mikdash; he desecrates My holy name. If the people of

the land should shut their eyes to that man as he sacrifices his children to Molekh—if they do not put him to death … I will sever him from his people…”

Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman, Ramban, has much to say about this entire passage. For one thing, he quotes his famous predecessor, Rashi, in translating the word Mikdash in the text above. That word is often translated as “sanctuary,” implying that the Molekh worshipper has somehow defiled the Mishkan, Tabernacle, or perhaps the Beit HaMikdash, Holy Temple.

But does an idolatrous act practiced elsewhere defile the Sanctuary? Definitely not!

Therefore, both Rashi and Ramban insist that in this case, Mikdash refers to the Almighty’s holy people, Knesset Yisrael, the Community of Israel. Of all the titles that are applied to the Jewish people, I firmly believe that Knesset Yisrael is the most inclusive of all.

Ramban notes that the Molekh worshipper defiles not just himself and those who emulate his horrendous mode of worship but somehow defiles us all! This, continues Ramban, is also stressed in our text which repetitively refers to “the people of the land,” asserting that in some manner, all the people of the land, the am Haaretz, are affected by one person’s sin and must act in unison to rid themselves of the Molekh worshipper.

Ramban takes this as an indication of the power of the individual to corrupt others, whether those others are close friends or family of the idolator or are total strangers dwelling in far-flung corners of the planet, thousands of miles away.

Ramban extends his message of the power of one individual to affect others to claim

that he can even affect the cosmos itself. The sinner causes cosmic consequences.

To broaden his case, Ramban reminds us of another “prohibition,” much less severe than casting one’s offspring into the furnaces of Molekh, but one which is much more commonly violated. He alludes to a passage in the Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Berakhot 35b. It reads in part: He who derives pleasure from this world and does not recite the appropriate blessing beforehand has “stolen” from the Holy One Blessed Be He and from Knesset Yisrael,” the “Community of Israel” … He is a “colleague” of the evil king Jeroboam ben Nevat, who sinned and caused many others to sin as well.

Ramban offers this passage as a parallel to our Molekh worshipper. He acted alone, and his dastardly act affected the entire world community of Israel. So too did the person who neglectfully failed to recite the blessing “… borei pri ha’adama” impact all of Israel.

How can one equate overlooking a beracha with sacrificing his own offspring?

In response, Ramban eloquently explains, and I paraphrase: The Almighty’s purpose in Creation was to have mankind express blessing to His great name and thereby contribute to the maintenance of the Universe. And if we fail to do so, the Shechina, God’s presence, will abandon us. If this is true of one who neglects to recite a beracha, a relatively minor infraction, then it is certainly true of one who sacrifices his “fruit” to Molekh.

Such a vile individual blasphemes the “pride of Jacob” and His dwelling place.”

Ramban, as he often does, concludes this powerful teaching with reference to OU ISRAEL CENTER 17

Kabbalistic sources which convey this message: Individuals influence others, even the entire human race, and in some mystical sense even the cosmos itself.

Many will find these exceptional teachings difficult to accept. But they reflect a basic teaching: “One should say to himself: the world was created for me,” (Talmud Bavli Sanhedrin 37a) Is that a prescription for grandiosity and arrogance? The answer is, “No!” Rather, it is advice that we all must take to heart.

Each of us as individuals, no matter our status, no matter our material means or our intellectual capacities, has the ability to influence others. We can do so intentionally, by serving as models of proper behavior for others to emulate. Or we can act neglectfully, or knowingly, in ways which are, if not reprehensible like the Molekh worshipper, are missed opportunities to inspire other people to recognize the Master of the Universe, His omnipotence and omniscience, and His charge to all of us to “turn away from evil and do good.”

The sinner may cause cosmic consequences, yes. But each one of us, as individuals, can cause compassion and kindness, helpfulness and sensitivity, unity and friendship, and a world at peace.

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and our next step will be to plant a fruit tree. I never thought of myself as being the agricultural type, but the feeling of settling and planting a portion of Eretz Yisrael, has been truly euphoric. Iy”H, when we plant our tree, and eat the fruits that will grow one day, I think we will be able to truly appreciate that unique Kedusha found in the fruit of Eretz Yisrael!

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Covenant & Conversation COVENANT & CONVERSATION

THOUGHTS ThoughtsON onTHE the WEEKLY Weekly PARSHA Parsha

RABBI LORD JONATHAN SACKS ZT"L ZT"L RABBI LORD JONATHAN SACKS

FORMER CHIEF RABBI OF THE HEBREW FORMER CHIEF RABBI OFUNITED THE UNITED HECONGREGATIONS OF THE COMMONWEALTH BREW CONGREGATIONS OF THE COMMONWEALTH

May the learning of these Divrei Torah be ‫לעילוי נשמת‬ HaRav Ya'akov Zvi ben David Arieh zt"l

‫לעילוי נשמות‬ ‫פנחס בן יעקב אשר וגולדה בת ישראל דוד אייז ע״ה ועזריאל בן אריה לייב ומעניה בת יצחק שרטר ע״ה‬

Love is Not Enough The opening chapter of Kedoshim contains two of the most powerful of all commands: to love your neighbour and to love the stranger. I am the Lord” goes the first.

“When a stranger comes to live in your land, do not mistreat him,” goes the second, and continues, “Treat the stranger the way you treat your native-born. Love him as yourself, for you were strangers in Egypt. I am the Lord your God (Lev. 19:33-34).1 The first is often called the “Golden Rule” and held to be universal to all cultures. This is a mistake. The Golden Rule is different. In its positive formulation it states, “Act toward others as you would wish them to act toward you,” or in its negative formulation, given

by Hillel, “What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbour.” These rules are not 1. Note that some read these two verses as referring specifically to a ger tzedek, that is, a convert to Judaism. That, however, is to miss the point of the command, which is: do not allow ethnic differences (that is, between a born Jew and a convert) to influence your emotions. Judaism must be race- and colour-blind.

22 TORAH TIDBITS 1611 / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM

about love. They are about justice, or more precisely, what evolutionary psychologists call reciprocal altruism. The Torah does not say, “Be nice or kind to your neighbour, because you would wish him to be nice or kind to you.” It says, “Love your neighbour.” That is something different and far stronger.

The second command is more radical still. Most people in most societies in most ages have feared, hated, and in many cases harmed the stranger. There is a word for this: xenophobia. How often have you heard the opposite word: xenophilia? My guess is, never. People don’t usually love strangers.

That is why, almost always when the Torah states this command – which it does, according to the Sages, 36 times – it adds an explanation: “because you were strangers in Egypt.”

I know of no other nation that was born as a nation in slavery and exile. We know what it feels like to be a vulnerable minority. That is why love of the stranger is so central to Judaism and so marginal to most other systems of ethics.2 But here too, the Torah does not use the word “justice.” There is a command of justice toward strangers, but that is a different law: “You shall not wrong a stranger 2. Had it existed in Europe, there would not have been a thousand years of persecution of the Jews, followed by the birth of racial antisemitism, followed by the Holocaust.

or oppress him” (Ex. 22:20). Here the Torah speaks not of justice but of love.

These two commands define Judaism as a religion of love – not just of God (“with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your might”), but of humanity also. That was and is a world-changing idea.

But what calls for deep reflection is where these commands appear. They do so in Parshat Kedoshim in what, to contemporary eyes, must seem one of the strangest passages in the Torah.

Leviticus 19 (which appears in Kedoshim) brings side-by-side laws of seemingly quite different kinds. Some belong to the moral life: don’t gossip, don’t hate, don’t take revenge, don’t bear a grudge. Some are about social justice: leave parts of the harvest for the poor; don’t pervert justice; don’t withhold wages; don’t use false weights and measures. Others have a different feel altogether: don’t crossbreed livestock; don’t plant a field with mixed seeds; don’t wear a garment of mixed wool and linen; don’t eat the fruit of any fruit tree for the first three years they yield; don’t eat blood; don’t practice divination; don’t lacerate yourself.

At first glance these laws have nothing to do with one another: some are about conscience, some about politics and economics, and others about purity and taboo. Clearly, though, the Torah is telling us otherwise.

They do have something in common. They are all about order, limits, boundaries. They are telling us that reality has a certain underlying structure whose integrity must be honoured. If you hate or take revenge you destroy relationships. If you commit injustice, you undermine the trust on which society depends. If you fail to respect the integrity of nature (different seeds, species, and so on),

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you take the first step down a path that ends in environmental disaster.

There is an order to the universe, part moral, part political, part ecological. When that order is violated, eventually there is chaos. When that order is observed and preserved, we become co-creators of the sacred harmony and integrated diversity that the Torah calls “holy.”

Why then is it specifically in this chapter that the two great commands – love of the neighbour and the stranger – appear? The answer is profound and very far from obvious. Because this is where love belongs – in an ordered universe.

Jordan Peterson, the Canadian psychologist, has recently become one of the most prominent public intellectuals of our time. His recent book, Twelve Rules for Life, has been a massive best-seller in Britain and America.3 He has had the courage to be a contrarian, challenging the fashionable fallacies of the contemporary West. Particularly striking in the book is Rule 5: “Do not let your children do anything that makes you dislike them.”

His point is more subtle than it sounds. A significant number of parents today, he says, fail to socialise their children. They indulge them. They do not teach them rules. There are, he argues, complex reasons for this.

Some of it has to do with lack of attention.

Parents are busier than ever, and don’t have time for the demanding task of teaching discipline. Some of it has to do with Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s influential but misleading idea that children are naturally good, and are made bad by society and its rules. So the best way to raise happy, creative children is to let 3. Jordan Peterson, 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos, Allen Lane, 2018.

24 TORAH TIDBITS 1611 / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM

them choose for themselves.

Partly, though, he says it is because “modern parents are simply paralysed by the fear that they will no longer be liked, or even loved by their children if they chastise them for any reason.” They are afraid to damage their relationship by saying ‘No’. They fear the loss of their children’s love.

The result is that they leave their children dangerously unprepared for a world that will not indulge their wishes or desire for attention; a world that can be tough, demanding and sometimes cruel. Without rules, social skills, self-restraints and a capacity to defer gratification, children grow up without an apprenticeship in reality. His conclusion is powerful: Clear rules make for secure children and calm, rational parents. Clear principles of discipline and punishment balance mercy and justice so that social development and psychological maturity can be optimally promoted. Clear rules and proper discipline help the child, and the family, and society, establish, maintain and expand order. That is all that protects us from chaos.4 That is what the opening chapter of Kedoshim is about: clear rules that create and sustain a social order. That is where real love – not the sentimental, self-deceiving substitute – belongs. Without order, love merely adds to the chaos. Misplaced love can lead to parental neglect, producing spoiled children with a sense of entitlement who are destined for an unhappy, unsuccessful, unfulfilled adult life.

Peterson’s book, whose subtitle is “An Antidote to Chaos,” is not just about children. It is about the mess the West has made since the Beatles sang (in 1967), “All You Need is Love”. As a clinical psychologist, Peterson has 4. Ibid., p. 113-44.

seen the emotional cost of a society without a shared moral code. People, he writes, need ordering principles, without which there is chaos. We require “rules, standards, values – alone and together. We require routine and tradition. That’s order.” Too much order can be bad, but too little can be worse. Life is best lived, he says, on the dividing line between them. It’s there, he says, that “we find the meaning that justifies life and its inevitable suffering.” Perhaps if we lived properly, he adds, “we could withstand the knowledge of our own fragility and mortality, without the sense of aggrieved victimhood that produces, first, resentment, then envy, and then the desire for vengeance and destruction.”5 That is as acute an explanation as I have ever heard for the unique structure of Leviticus 19. Its combination of moral, political, economic and environmental laws is a supreme statement of a universe of (Divinely-created) order of which we are the custodians. But the chapter is not just about order.

It is about humanising that order through love – the love of neighbour and stranger.

And when the Torah says, don’t hate, don’t take revenge and don’t bear a grudge, it is an uncanny anticipation of Peterson’s remarks about resentment, envy, and the desire for vengeance and destruction.

Hence the life-changing idea that we have forgotten for far too long: Love is not enough.

Relationships need rules.

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5. Ibid., p. xxxiv.

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“Asher Bahchar Bahnu Mikol Ha’ammim” Whenever one is honored with an Aliyah to the Torah, that person stands before the scroll and, after opening the Sefer Torah, recites the bracha, thanking Hashem for having chosen the nation of Israel above other nations: “asher bachar banu mikol ha’ammim.” This blessing is offered each morning, allowing us to articulate words of Torah that day.

This “choice” of Israel was established by G-d Himself at Har Sinai when He promised that Israel would be a “goy kadosh,”, a holy nation for Him. Furthermore, this guarantee is found in many places throughout the Tanach, including in the Torah [see D’varim 7:6; 14:2], the Sifrei Nevi’im [see Sefer Yishayahu 44:1-2 and elsewhere], as well as in the Ketuvim [see Psalms 33:12; 135:4].

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this week’s haftarah: “Hahlo chiv’nei chushiyim atem li…” – “Behold you are no different to me than the nation of Cush…” – in other words, in Hashem’s eyes, we are the same as other nations. And so, we wonder: What happened to the “chosenness” we were promised from G-d? What about the guarantee “asher banu mikol ha’amim”? And what, therefore, is the import of the bracha at all??

The harsh condemnation of Israel by the prophet Amos seems to erase the special and unique relationship Hashem promised to establish with His people and is, therefore, particularly difficult for us to understand.

Which is why we must look back to the book’s opening chapters that help us better understand the prophet’s message. It is in those opening chapters that we find Amos berating the evil and the vice of Israel’s neighboring states, decrying their immoral behavior and deeds that has G-d refusing to ignore.

But the navi goes on to include the corruption of Samaria as well, comparing them to their sinful neighbors. And, in doing so, Amos declares G-d’s determination to punish Israel as well, stating: “I have singled out you alone of all the families of the earth—That is why I will call you to account for all your iniquities! ” Yes! Hashem’s choice of His

nation does not free us from any reprimand for disobedience but condemns us to punishment and chastisement for any corrupt ways – even more than he might castigate the “non-chosen” nations.

How powerfully does Rav Yissachar Ya’akovson contend how the opening of our haftarah was meant to be a “wake up call”, urging each Israelite to understand that the special choice granted to our nation places additional responsibility on each member to harken to G-d’s opening words of the (second) parasha : “Kedoshim Ti’hiyu”. HKB”H expects every individual to attain, and retain, the state of kedusha -sanctity – a state that depends upon more than following ritual practice or retaining a state of purity.

Those mitzvot that follow G-d’s call of “Kedoshim Ti’hiyu” are replete in commands of how to treat the poor, how to care for the unfortunate and, essentially, how to build an ethical and moral society.

Painfully, perhaps, Hashem might reluctantly be “forced” to regard us no differently than he does other peoples. But that is precisely why He reminds us “Kedoshim Ti’hiyu”!

And that is also why “bachar banu mikol ha’ammim”, we alone were charged with the responsibility to act and model Kedusha.

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RAV KEHILLA, NOFEI HASHEMESH MAGGID SHIUR, DAF YOMI, OU.ORG ROSH BAIS MEDRASH ENGLISH SPEAKING PROGRAM MACHON LEV

Sense of Freshness While Fulfilling Tradition ‫ת־ִּבְגְ ֵ​ֵדי ַ​ַה ָ �ָּבד‬ � ִ ‫ּוָּפ � ַ​ַׁשט ֶ​ֶא‬ ָ ‫ָּוָּבא ַ​ַא ֲ​ֲהֹרֹן ֶ​ֶאל־ֹא ֶֶֹהל מֹוֹ ֵ​ֵעד‬ ‫ (ויקרא‬:‫ל־ַה �ֹּק ֶֶֹדׁשׁ ְוְ ִ​ִה ִ�ִּנ ָיָחם � ֽ​ָֽׁשם‬ ַ ‫ֲ​ֲא � ֶ​ֶׁשר ָלָ ַ​ַבׁשׁ ְ �ְּבֹבֹאֹוֹ ֶ​ֶא‬ )‫כג‬:‫טז‬ Aaron must enter Ohel Moed and remove the linen garments that he wore when he entered the Holy of Holies, and leave them there. (Vayikra 16: 23) In this week’s parsha we are informed of the Yom Kippur service in great detail.

There are several warnings that any deviation from the prescribed ritual is a disaster, that any change is a calamity. Each year the manner in which the Yom Kippur service is to be performed in the Mikdash has to be exactly as it is described. Yet, there is one aspect that changes from year to year.

The Torah tells us, as cited above, that certain garments adorned by the Kohen Gadol

30 TORAH TIDBITS 1611 / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM

are to be discarded and new garments are to be prepared each year. These were very costly linen garments (see Mishna Yoma 3:7).

Why not just place them aside, clean them and reuse them the following year. Typically, Hazal are weary of wasting money as is stated in Yoma (39a) ‫התורה חסה על ממון של‬.

– ‫ ישראל‬What message is the Torah seeking to convey by demanding that the four linen garments require sequestering or burial?

Rabbi Norman Lamm in Drashot L’Dorot cites Rabbi Mordechai Hacohen who offers an insightful explanation. The Torah wants us to avoid the danger of routine. Following tradition is of utmost importance. Consistency in religious practice is paramount.

Nothing may differ in the performance of the Yom Kippur service. Yet, the Kohen Gadol must change his garments every Yom Kippur in the hope that the outward novelty will inspire and evoke from within a sense of freshness and enthusiasm.

This concept is applicable to both our spiritual and mundane pursuits. Each year we participate in the Seder, following the same exact text in the Haggadah. Yet, we are to enhance the discussion with new ideas and interesting divrei Torah to create a certain freshness to the evening.

is reluctant to send Yishmael away and is to emphasize that the Torah is not as Yitzchak seeks reconciliation with Yish- interested in the history of power as in \Each day we wrap ourselves in tefillin mael and seeks to bless Esav. the history of the covenant of G-d with the and we recite the same amida prayer three Jewish people. And that will be told at great 6thbe Aliya (25:1-11) Avraham martimes. It can a recipe for boredom, and we ries Keturah; they 6 sons.

All length. can fall victim to routine.

Wehave need to create Avraham has goes Yitzchak; a balancethat between adhering totoour tradiHAFTORAH CHAYEI SARAH these are sent eastward with gifts.

Avraham tion without deviation, while experiencing 1 KINGS 1: 1-31 dies at age 175; he is buried

by Yitzchak and excitement.

Perhaps if we better understood Yishmael in Ma’arat Hamachpelah. why we engage in these traditions, Yitzchak it would The theme of this week’s haftorah is blessed G-d: he livesenthusiasm. in Beer L’chai Roi. infuse ourby actions with echoes the theme inIf our parsha which menYou: The transition from relationships Avraham to We often take our closest

Work remotely or own an Israeli tions both the death of Sarah and Avraham.

Yitzchak is complete.

While has for been for granted.

It behooves usG-d to stop a business King David was an older man and a a silent partner thisand parsha, here our He moment every so in often appreciate Have assets (trusts, woman wasUS assigned to him to serve him completes the generational transfer – He spouse, parents and children.

As Dovid inheritance, pensions, IRAs, warmth.

Hamelech requested: ‫ה׳ כל‬people ‫שבתי בבית‬ blesses Yitzchak.

The‫ימי‬ Jewish will and provide 401(k)s) Adoniyahu, one ofUS-Israeli King David’s ‫בהיכלו‬ ‫ולבקר‬and ‫בנעם ה׳‬ ‫לחזות‬..‫חיי‬. Dovid had Have significant passivesons, be Yitzchak not Yishmael. to prepare for 10-year ascension to his or reached Aliyah one request, I would like to dwell in the began income 7th Aliya (25:12-18) The generafather’s throne.

This was despite the fact expiration House of Hashem. But then, he asks to visit tions of Yishmael are

Need estate planning or manage the Temple ‫ בהכלו לבקר‬. Does he want to that King David expressed his wishes that enumerated. Yishmael dies. His US-based parents' finances dwell in the Temple or just visit? Perhaps his son Shlomo succeed him. descendants dwell from Egypt to Assyria. youtwo very signifAdoniyahu Then convinces his intention is to dwell there but that each Yishmael’s story is brief. He has numericant personalities the High Priest and moment he is present in the Temple he will NEED MASAMERICA's ous and powerful offspring. The brevity feel the same enthusiasm and excitement the commander of King David’s armies - to world class tax experts as a first time visitor!

BY RABBI CHANOCH YERES The Kohen Gadol had to fulfill the Temple UnlikeYemin basicMoshe tax preparers, Rav, Beit Knesset Beit Yisrael, MASAMERICA's US/Israeli CPAs and service on Yom Kippur without any slight tax lawyers can reduce your deviation.

Tradition is to be adhered to in When Avraham addresses the people of Cheit, trying to acquire a burial spot for his wife, hetaxes says and prevent future problems.

“Ger V’Toshav Anochi Eimachem” “A Stranger and a Resident am I with you” a most precise manner.

Yet, he is(23:4) required This seems to be a contradiction. If one is a stranger than he is not a resident, if he is a resident than he to change his clothes each year. The new is no longer a stranger. What did Avraham mean?

Call 073-769-0600 garments would infuse a certain of The Magid of Dubno (Jacob ben Wolf sense Kranz 1741-1804) explains that Avraham watched how he spoke in for a free consultation this tense situation in order to, both, state his truth and be able to keep the15-minute peace -Shalom Bayit. Avraham freshness into this repetitive service. May said, on the one hand, “I am a Resident’ due to G-d’s promise to receiveinfo@masamerica.co.il this Land and on the other hand, I still we need be able to establish the proper balance your agreement to purchase a plot. In other words, Avraham implied “I am the resident” and you are the in our lives between to our tradi“strangers”, while they adhering understood him as saying that “they” are the residents and Avraham is the stranger.

The peace was kept,aand Avraham remained true to his ideals. tion while instilling sense of excitement Shabbat Shalom and enthusiasm.

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Causality of Curses “Lo tekalel cheresh – Do not curse [even] a deaf person.” (Vayikra 19:14) We would think that such a curse would have little effect since the deaf person is unable to hear it, nonetheless, it is still prohibited. What are some lessons that we can learn from this?

Sefer Hachinuch explores the power of speech and the impact that words carry. The unique mark of humans is our “nefesh chaya,” the Divinely inspired life force expressed in our ability to speak, to share our thoughts and feelings in words. Clearly, the greater one is, the greater power his words carry. Yet even a simple person must be careful with what he says as the impact of his words reverberate beyond the moment.

The flip side holds true as well, notes the Ohel Moshe. Chazal teach us that positive action and speech is five hundred times more powerful than negative ones. The aforementioned injunction not to curse one who is deaf suggests the considerable power of such a curse, imagine the repercussion of blessings that one can give! Indeed, we can habituate ourselves to emulate Hashem by blessing people and wishing them an abundance of goodness. As the recipient, one should answer “Amen!” making himself a conduit to receive goodness and grace.

32 TORAH TIDBITS 1611 / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM

Faculty, OU Israel Center

When we wish others, “good morning” or “good day” it should be more than a social nicety, we can say the words with intent, truly invoking kindliness and generosity for the other. If we are the recipient of such a heartfelt wish, we ought to not only answer “Amen!” but reciprocate with an even greater blessing, “may you have an amazing day as well!” or “May you have a day filled with blessing!” This is particularly applicable at a simcha. When someone wishes another, “mazal tov!” it should be said with warmth, wishing the other ‘good mazal’ with this simcha. The appropriate response before saying “thank you” is “amen,” and to respond with a blessing such as, “bruchim t’hiyu, may you blessed!”

It is told that the Saba of Slabodka would say “good morning” as he passed the homes of the local Rabbanim. Although they may not have been home at the time, the houses reminded him of their residents and he was inspired to offer them a brachah. Think about the many opportunities we have to offer others blessings as we pass the homes of people who are sick or need some type of yeshuah, some kind of salvation. Even if the person is not present to hear the blessing, like the deaf person who can’t hear a curse, the blessing has profound power.

Let us learn to use our words constructively, irrespective of whether others can hear us or not, and generate positivity, generosity of spirit and encouragement to everyone around us.

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EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CAMP HASC AUTHOR OF BADERECH SERIES

Mutual Dedication Rav Chaim of Volozhin was one of the important contributors to the development of Jewish thought and Torah study at the turn of the nineteenth century. One of the primary talmidim and progenitors of the Vilna Gaon, Rav Chaim transmitted the sacred mesorah to generations of students. He founded the great Yeshivah of Volozhin, renowned as the Eim haYeshivos, “the Mother of All Yeshivos”, where engagement in the analytical methodology of the Gr’a awakened a revolution in Torah study. Known for his classic and groundbreaking sefer, Nefesh haChayim, Rav Chaim cemented the intellectual and spiritual path of his Rebbe, the Vilna Gaon.

During the confusing and tense period of ‘the Enlightenment’ of the eighteenth century, when countless Jews were drawn away from their faith and practice, Rav Chaim was asked if those who leave the fold and become ‘maskilim’ ought to be excommunicated. The sage replied by citing three consecutive pesukim in our sedrah: one instructing us to be holy, the next to respect our parents, and the third pasuk, forbidding us to turn to other ‘gods’ in idolatry. Each of the pesukim ends with, ‫אני ה׳ אלוקיכם‬, “I am Hashem your God.” (19:2-4).

36 TORAH TIDBITS 1611 / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM

Rav Chaim explained: “These pesukim are an allusion to three kinds of Jews. There are those among us who aspire to keep all of Torah and mitzvos with our whole heart and to the letter of the law. To these who have an understanding of the need to actualize our covenant with the Ribbono shel Olam, the Torah demands, ‫דִׁשים ִ�ִּת ְ​ְהיּוּ ִ �ִּכי ָ​ָקדֹוֹ ׁשׁ ֲ​ֲאִנִ י‬ ִ � ‫ְ​ְק‬ ‫ה׳ ֱ​ֱאֹל ֹקיֶכֶ ם‬, ‘Dedicate every aspect of your life to kedushah — for I, Hashem your God, am Kadosh.’

“To the second group, Jews who keep mitzvos out of a sense of basic connection to their ancestors and their religious identity but are not particularly careful with all of the ins and outs of spiritual life, Hashem says, ׁ‫ִ​ִאיׁש‬

‫ת־ַׁש ְ �ְּבֹת ַַֹתי ִ�ִּת � ְ​ְׁשֹמֹרּוּ ֲ​ֲאִנִ י ה׳ ֱ​ֱאֹל ֹ־‬ ַ � ‫ִ​ִאּמֹּוֹ ְוְ ָ​ָא ִ​ִביו ִ�ִּת ָיָראּוּ ְוְ ֶ​ֶא‬ ‫קיֶכֶ ם‬, ‘Each of you shall revere your mother

and your father and keep My sabbaths: I, Hashem, am your God.’ This means you are called to observe Shabbos in the same way that you respect and fear your parents — for Hashem is your God.’ “And finally, there is a third group of Jews, those who do not actively keep mitzvos, and consider themselves to be ‘enlightened’ and free of these obligations. To them, the Torah says, ‫ל־ָה ֱ​ֱאִלִ יִלִ ם ֵוֵ אֹל ֵֵֹהי ַ​ַמ �ֵ​ֵּסָכָ ה‬ ָ ‫ל־ִּת ְ​ְפנּוּ ֶ​ֶא‬ �ִ ‫ַ​ַא‬ ‫ֹל ֹא ַ​ַת ֲ​ֲעׂשּׂוּ ָלָ ֶכֶ ם ֲ​ֲאִנִי ה׳ ֱ​ֱאֹל ֵֵֹקיֶכֶ ם‬, ‘Do not turn your thoughts toward worshiping idols, in order that you not come to believe in them and make them molten deities for yourselves.’

To these maskilim we say, ‘Whatever it is that you are doing or not doing, at least do not convert to another religion; please just

remain a Yid — for Hashem is your God!’”

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One of the great teachers of Torah at RIETS and the rosh yeshivah of Brisk-Chicago, Rav Ahron Soloveichik, zt’l, notes that our sedra begins with the general commandment of ‫קדושים תהיו‬, “You shall be holy, ki kadosh Ani, Because I am holy.” But this mitzvah is followed by a series of commandments dealing with paying workers on time, brotherly love, fair treatment of strangers, as if to say ‘Because this is the way in which I, God, am Holy — belong to Me by doing what I do.’

What is kedushah? Kedushah means belonging to something or someone. Hekdesh, from the word kedushah, is something that has been given to God, sanctified to God — it belongs to God. A Jew is kadosh when he or she is overwhelmed by the feeling of belonging to God. Yet, kedushah cannot be attained by ‘belonging to God’ in a vacuum or by isolating oneself from the world. Kedushah can be obtained only by mingling with people and fulfilling the social and humanitarian obligations that are enumerated in the parshah of Kedoshim: extending gifts to the poor, paying workers on time, showing brotherly love and remaining committed to ethical interpersonal behavior, and so on.

(Logic of the Heart, Logic of the Mind, p.150) Parshas Kedoshim calls us to access, activate and dedicate ourselves to a life of Torah, mitzvos, ethics and active ahavas Yisrael — to the full extent of our current ability. And on whatever rung of commitment we may find ourselves, Hashem is right there for us, warmly meeting us and introducing Himself, “I am Hashem your God,” encouraging us to stretch ourselves and grow further. The

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more we respond with added dedication, the more our sense of peoplehood and identity with holiness will expand, and the more we will understand Hashem’s own ahavas Yisrael and dedication to every one of us: ‫ֲ​ֲאִנִ י‬ ‫ה׳ ֱ​ֱאֹל ֹקיֶכֶ ם‬, ‘I am always here for you — I am forever your Holy One, and you, Am Yisrael, are forever My holy people!

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SIMCHAT simchat shmuel SHMUEL

BY RABBI SAM SHOR

BY RABBI SAMINITIATIVES, SHOR DIRECTOR, TORAH OU ISRAEL Director, OU Israel Center Program

This coming Monday we will commemorate Pesach Sheini, literally the second Pesach.

The Torah instructs us in Parshat BeHaalotcha, regarding this second opportunity for those who were unable to offer the Korban Pesach at its proper time to be able to participate and fulfill this mitzvah.

Since there were some men who were unclean, having come in contact with a corpse and could not offer the Korban Pesach on that day. Appearing that same day before Moshe and Ahron, those men said to them, “Unclean though we are by reason of a corpse, why must we be prevented from presenting Hashem with an offering at its set time with the rest of the Jewish People?” Moshe said to them, “Imdu- Stand by, and let me hear what instructions Hashem gives for you.” Hashem spoke to Moshe, saying: Speak to the Jewish people, and say: When any of you or of your posterity who are defiled by a corpse or are on a long journey would be unable to offer the

Religious

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38 TORAH TIDBITS 1611 / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM

Korban Pesach to Hashem, they shall offer it in the second month, on the fourteenth day of the month, at twilight. They shall eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs, and they shall not leave any of it over until morning.

They shall not break a bone of it. They shall offer it in strict accord with the law of the Korban Pesach...”

The Chidushei HaRim, the first Gerer Rebbe zy’a, explains that the word Imdu does not mean to stand by and wait,rather it means Imdu stand up, even though you may have been unable to perform the mitzva initially, don’t fall into despair.

Imdu- stand up- Hashem gives us the opportunity for a second chance!

So too in our days, in the absence of the Korban Pesach, there is an eternal message of chizuk, inherent in these verses, and represented by this sacred day of Pesach Sheini. Imdu- Stand up! Each of us can stand upright once again before HaKadosh Baruch Hu through teshuva and tefila. It is never too late!

This important idea is similarly reflected and developed even further in a powerful teaching from Rebbe Naftali Tzvi of Ropschitz,zy’a. The Ropschitzer taught that a person might think that as a result of their many mistakes or flaws, that there is no hope for them, that it is impossible for them to turn their lives around, to improve their circumstances. Giving up,selling oneself short, explains the Ropschitzer, is not

only counterproductive, but is also an act of great heresy! Teshuva, the opportunity for growth and change,the opportunity to move forward, and leave our mistakes or missed opportunities in the past, is a great gift from Hashem! One who feels that they are not capable of teshuva,explains the Rebbe, is not simply selling himself short, but rather denying the endless kindness, compassion and love that the Ribono Shel Olam has for each and every member of Klal Yisrael.

We see this idea summed up succinctly in a beautiful short teaching from the great Reb Tzadok HaKohein Milublin, zy’a:

‫כשם שצריך אדם להאמין בהש”י כך צריך‬ .‫אח”כ להאמין בעצמו‬ Just as a person is required to believe in Hashem, so too one is subsequently required to believe in one’s self.

Hakadosh Baruch Hu endows each of us with incredible innate strengths,talents and potential. Just as we must believe that Hashem is there to see us through life’s challenges, we must also believe that we are deserving of opportunities to re-calibrate and recuperate, and move forward with the confidence and spiritual fortitude to bounce back from those challenges, and reach heights we previously never imagined we could achieve.

The message of Pesach Sheini, is precisely this idea, to leave behind those past mistakes or missed opportunities, and move forward and embrace the potential for growth and success, to embrace the gift of teshuva, to tap into our innate strength that Hashem has endowed each of us with, and in so doing transform ourselves and the entire world.

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Urgent appeal! Please help a handicapped mother with two special-needs children in danger of eviction for lack of funds. Thank you.

Website: www.yeshezra.org Bank Transfer: Mercantile (17), Branch 642, A/C 79747843 Send Asmachta for receipt

Checks: “Yesh Ezra,” POB 31476, Romema, Jerusalem Credit Card: Sara – 077-820-0196 / 058-530-9161 Sun-Wed (10:00am-14.30 pm) Donate with: Tax benefit for donations as per section 46a of the Israeli tax code

Inquiries: Menachem Persoff 050-570-1067 | menpmp@gmail.com

48 TORAH TIDBITS 1611 / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM

SHIUR SPONSORS

RABBI GOLDSHIEDER’S SHIUR WED. MAY 7TH

TO SPONSOR A SHIUR CONTACT

Chana Spivack - 050-229-4951 or donate online: https://www.ouisrael.org/donate/ou-israel-center/

RABBI BREITOWITZ SHIUR - TUE. MAY 6TH

Dedicated in memory of Ethel Morrow a”h

by Yaacov & Abbey Lerner and Dovid & Miriam Shapiro Etel bat Yosef Chaim v’shayna Taibe a”h.

Ethel was the long time administrative assistant of the OU’s kashrut dept

SHIRA SMILES SHIUR - TUE. MAY 6TH

Sponsored by Rachel Epstein in memory of her sister Pnina Yaffa bas Chaim a”h whose yahrzeit was 8 Iyar May her neshama have an Aliyah in the zechus of the Torah that we learn today

RABBI AARON ADLER’S SHIUR - WED. MAY 7TH

Sponsored by Rosina Fisher for an aliyah of the neshamot of her husband Mordechai Avigdor ben Peretz z”l and for her parents Chia Esther bat Yerachmiel Yissachar HaCohen a”h and Yitzchak ben Yehuda z”l - may their memories be for a blessing

RABBI MANNING’S SHIUR - WED. MAY 7

TH

Sponsored in loving memory of Mrs. Sally Brauer - ‫שרה רבקה בת מאיר ע”ה‬ of Chicago, yahrzeit is 9 Iyar, by her family

A group of women have been maintaining a list of injured soldiers to daven for. There are hundreds of soldiers on the list, so we have been sending people lists of names to daven for so that all the soldiers' names are mentioned in people's tfilot (the default is 10 names, but you can ask for however many you want).

If you are interested in signing up for names, send an email to: tehillim4soldiers@gmail.com together with your name and the number of soldiers' names you want to daven for.

You will get automatic updates when there are changes to your list.

Tizku l'mitzvot and besorot tovot!

Sponsored by Reva Schertz in memory of Esther Sylvetsky a”h ‫אסתר בת שמעון יעקב הלוי ע”ה‬

MRS. JEN AIRLEY’S SHIUR - MON. MAY 12TH

“Living with Shaar HaBitachon” is sponsored by Avigayil Dir in memory of her mother, Dora bat Louise a”h on her 4th yahrzeit

RABBI BREITOWITZ’S SHIUR

Dedicated anonymously for the refuah shleima of Oksana bat Bluma and Evelina bat Galina

RABBI MANNING’S SHIUR

Sponsored for the 2025 academic year ‫לעילוי נשמת‬ ‫ברנה בת ברנדית ע’’ה וזליג בן קלמן ז’’ל‬

RABBI GOLDSCHEIDER’S SHIUR

Sponsored for the 2025 academic year ‫לעילו נשמת‬ ‫מרים בת אברהם ע’’ה ושם טוב בן שלמה ז’’ל‬

RABBI ADLER’S SHIUR

Sponsored for this academic year by the Frist family in memory of their beloved daughter and sister Elisheva Frist a”h – ‫אלישבע סימא בת זלמן ע”ה‬

RABBI SHAI FINKELSTEIN’S SHIUR

Sponsored for the 2024-2025 academic year by the Sondhelm and Wertenteil Families in memory of Mel & Sylvia David z”l ‫מנחם מנדל בן אברהם מאיר וטויבא רבקה ז”ל‬ ‫וצביה חיה בת אריה לב וחוה אידל ע”ה‬

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GEULAS GEULAS YISRAEL YISRAEL

RABBI MOSHE TARAGIN

RAM YESHIVAT HAR ETZION MAGGID SHIUR ALL PARSHA AND ALL DAF, OU.ORG

Show Them The Way A famous conversation between Rebbe Meir and his learned wife, Bruriah (Berachot 10a), centers around a group of troublemakers who were harassing Rebbe Meir. Frustrated by their sinful behavior, he prayed to Hashem that they be eliminated. Bruriah rebuked him for this harsh response, citing the pasuk in Ashrei — “‫ — ”יתמו חטאים מן הארץ‬which calls for the end of sins (chata’im), not sinners (chot’im). Her sensitivity, and her compassion even for the morally wayward, echoes Avraham’s concern for the sinners of Sedom.

But an implicit question remained: If davening for the destruction of sinners was wrong, what should he daven for? Bruriah advised her husband that he should pray that they return through teshuvah.

Though the main thrust of this story is its

moral lesson about caring even for sinners, it also conveys a deeper theological message.

We usually turn to Hashem in prayer to remove external threats — to heal an illness, to resolve financial strain, or to lift us from a crisis whose solution lies beyond human control. Tefillah seeks divine help where human hands cannot reach.

Bruriah taught her husband a different form of tefillah- a plea not for changed circumstances, but for changed hearts. Her instruction to pray for sinners to perform teshuvah was not entirely intuitive from a logical standpoint.

Hashem gifted humanity with complete freedom of conscience and decision-making.

As the Rambam (Hilchot Teshuvah perek 5) teaches,

‫ אם רצה להטות עצמו‬.‫רשות לכל אדם נתונה‬ ‫לדרך טובה ולהיות צדיק—הרשות בידו; ואם רצה‬ ‫להטות עצמו לדרך רעה ולהיות רשע—הרשות‬ .‫בידו‬ ‫אל יעבור במחשבתך דבר זה שאומרים טיפשי‬ ‫ שהקדוש‬:‫אומות העולם ורוב גולמי בני ישראל‬ ‫ברוך הוא גוזר על האדם מתחילת בריאתו להיות‬ ‫ אלא כל אדם ראוי לו‬.‫צדיק או רשע—אין הדבר כן‬ ‫—אין‬....,‫ או רשע כירבעם‬,‫להיות צדיק כמשה רבנו‬ ‫לו מי שיכפהו ולא גוזר עליו ולא מי שמושכו‬ ‫ אלא הוא מעצמו ומדעתו‬,‫לאחד משני הדרכים‬ .‫נוטה לאי זו דרך שירצה‬ “Permission is granted to every person.

If one desires to incline themselves toward the good path and be righteous — the choice is theirs. And if one wishes to incline themselves toward the bad path and be wicked

50 TORAH TIDBITS 1611 / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM

— the choice is theirs.

Let not this thought cross your mind…that the Holy One, Blessed be He, decrees upon a person from the beginning of their creation whether they will be righteous or wicked.

It is not so. Rather, every person is capable of being as righteous as Moshe Rabbeinu, or as wicked as Yerovam... There is no one who compels them, no decree upon them, and no one pulling them in either direction.

Rather, it is they themselves — of their own volition and understanding — who incline in whichever direction they choose” Hashem granted us unlimited free will; as fully autonomous beings, we alone decide whether or not to perform teshuvah. Given that the decision for teshuvah lies entirely within human hands, is it even appropriate to daven to Hashem for something that rests beyond His control?

Bruriah’s lesson to her husband answers this question: yes, we should pray for others to make the right choices. Here’s a smoother revision: “Though Hakadosh Baruch Hu grants complete freedom of choice, He can still guide a person toward a better path through subtle incentives, timely awakenings, or inner stirrings He places in our hearts.”

Though the ultimate decision remains entirely human, Hashem can help make that decision more accessible. Bruriah encouraged her husband to daven for something that might seem like an independent human decision, yet is also shaped by Hashem’s influence.

PRAYING FOR AN INNOCENT VERDICT A similar theme emerges from the Gemara in Makkot, which discusses a negligent murderer — the rotzei’ach b’shogeg — who

must seek refuge in a city of sanctuary, an ir miklat. He remains there in exile until the death of the Kohen Gadol, whose passing atones for the accidental killing.

As the gemara asserts, the Kohen Gadol bears a degree of responsibility for the tragedy. He should have prayed that such acts of negligent murder never occur. That he did not — or that his prayers were insufficient — implies a subtle failure. Upon his death, that guilt is lifted, and with it, the sentence of gallut for the actual negligent murderer.

After citing the base halacha, the Mishnah (11b) describes an intriguing “special” case involving a Kohen Gadol who was appointed after the act of negligent murder, during the course of the judicial proceedings of beit din. In this scenario an indicted negligent murderer is released upon the death of the Kohen Gadol who assumed office during OU ISRAEL CENTER 51

his trial — even though that Kohen Gadol was not yet serving when the actual murder occurred.

The Gemara challenges this ruling: Why should this Kohen Gadol bear any responsibility? He was not yet in his role when the tragedy took place. Why is his death considered atonement for a murder that preceded his appointment?

The Gemara responds that the Kohen Gadol should have prayed more fervently that beit din would reach a verdict of innocence — and that the unintentional murder would not result in a sentence of galut. Since he failed to do so, and beit din ultimately rendered a guilty verdict, the Kohen Gadol bears partial responsibility for the galut. His tefillah could have shifted the outcome of beit din.

Once again, we witness davening not merely for a tragedy — such as a murder — to be averted, but for beit din to reach a verdict of innocence. Though human beingsin this instance beit din- are endowed with free will, Hashem can still influence the decision-making process.

Likewise, throughout Tehillim, Dovid Hamelech repeatedly invites Hashem into his inner world and his innermost heart, asking for divine influence over his

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decisions:

‫הט לבי אל עדותך ואל אל בצע‬ “Bend my heart toward Your sacred truths, and not toward the lure of profit” Dovid Hamelech never abrogates free will but desires guidance without surrendering personal responsibility.

Of course, the most well-known example of Hashem affecting a person’s decision, is the hardening and stiffening of Pharaoh’s heart in Egypt. In that case, divine intervention intensified Pharaoh’s defiance, highlighting the delicate interplay between human choice and divine will.

Humans make free decisions, yet Hashem can influence them. Praying to Hashem to guide human decision-making is an integral part of the legacy of prayer.

SHOW THEM THE WAY We are currently divided badly along many ideological lines. Our people have very different views about how Israeli democracy should be crafted, how the war should be advanced and how Torah study should be balanced with army service. As Jews, we are often supremely confident in our opinions. That deep conviction runs through our Jewish identity—part of what makes us both wonderfully stubborn and remarkably successful. It also helps explain why life in the modern State of Israel can feel so raucous and fractious.

But too often, our response to those who think differently is hatred or outright dismissal.

Most of us know that hate is insidious and corrosive—it never leads to solutions. Repeating our positions, louder or more emphatically, rarely shifts the views of those who disagree with us. It only deepens the divide.

A different response to this stalemate is

to daven. We can begin by praying for the strength to achieve unity amidst the strife.

We should pray for the vision and wisdom to recognize that unity is more sacred than any single decision or policy we believe to be absolutely right.

And then we can pray for the humility to hold our convictions with strength while still allowing space for the possibility that our truth is not the only truth. We can continue praying that others, too, may carry pieces of a larger picture.

Finally, in addition to these tefillot—for vision and humility- we can daven to Hashem that those who disagree with us “see the light and the reason” behind the views we deeply believe to be true. Instead of fuming with hate, why not channel your disappointment into prayer? This feels like a more hopeful and holy response to the real issues that divide us and continue to cause us pain.

There is nothing wrong with strong conviction in the truth of our beliefs. If we feel passionately that we are right, we should pray to Hashem that other Jews—members of our family and partners in our shared destiny—will come to see Hashem in the way we do, and embrace what we believe to be the correct way to serve Him. It is perfectly legitimate to ask Hashem to “show them the way.” That may be a better solution than endless condemnation of approaches we believe to be wrong.

Rabbi Taragin’s newest sefer entitled “To be Holy but Human: Reflections upon my Rebbe, Rav Yehuda Amital (Kodesh) is now available at: mtaraginbooks.com and in bookstores

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OU ISRAEL CENTER 53

REBBETZIN DR. ADINA HAFTORAH BYSHMIDMAN INSIGHTS DIRECTOR, OU WOMEN’S INITIATIVE

The Strength of a Sukkah ‫ת־ֻס ַ�ַּכת ָּד�ָ ִוִ יד ַ​ַה �ֹּנ ֶֶֹפֶלֶ ת ְוְ ָגָ ַ​ַד ְ​ְר ִ�ִּתי‬ ֻ ‫ַ �ַּבּיֹּוֹ ם ַ​ַההּוּא ָ​ָא ִ​ִקים ֶ​ֶא‬ ‫ִנִיִת ָיָה ִ�ִּכ ֵיֵמי עֹוֹ ָלָ ם׃‬ ִ ‫ת־ִּפ ְ​ְר ֵ​ֵצ ֶיֶהן ַוַ ֲ​ֲה ִ​ִרֹס ָָֹתיו ָ​ָא ִ​ִקים ְּוְּב‬ ִ � ‫ֶ​ֶא‬ “On that day, I will raise up the fallen booth of David; I will repair their breaches and raise up its ruins, and I will build it up as in the days of old.” (Amos 9:11) The closing words of Sefer Amos offer a vision of restoration and hope—a time when the broken remnants of Jewish sovereignty will be rebuilt. Yet the imagery is striking: the Navi refers not to a palace or fortress, but to a sukkah—a fragile, temporary structure.

Why this unusual metaphor?

The Maharal of Prague (Netzach Yisrael 35) explains that kingdoms are often compared to houses - structures that imply strength, permanence, and security. As long as a royal house stands, its rule endures. But once that house falls, even if a new one rises, it is no longer the same. The continuity is broken.

A sukkah, however, is different. By definition, it is not built to last. It is erected seasonally, exposed to the elements, taken down, and rebuilt again.

And yet, that is precisely what gives the sukkah its unique power. It doesn’t pretend to be indestructible. It survives not by resisting change, but by returning again and again.

This, says the Maharal, is the metaphor for the Jewish people. While other nations 54 TORAH TIDBITS 1611 / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM

may appear solid and enduring, when they collapse, they vanish from history. The Jewish people, by contrast, endure. We may fall, but we rise. We are built not for immovability, but for resilience.

The Midrash connects this idea to the verse in Micha (7:8): ‫“— ִ �ִּכי ָנָ ַ​ַפְלְ ִ�ִּתי ָ​ָק ְ​ְמ ִ�ִּתי‬Though I have fallen, I rise again.” This is our national refrain. Exile, destruction, and persecution have visited our people throughout the generations, but never finality. We bend, but do not break. We fall, but never fail.

The Navi Amos continues his prophecy with a powerful vision of return: ‫ְוְ � ַ​ַׁש ְ​ְב ִ�ִּתי ֶ​ֶאת־‬ ַ � ‫ִיְִׂש� ָ​ָר ֵ​ֵאל ָּוָּבנּוּ ָ​ָע ִ​ִרים‬ ְ ‫ � ְ​ְׁשבּוּת ַ​ַע �ִ​ִּמי‬- I will ּ‫ְנְַׁשּמֹּוֹ ת ְוְ ָי � ָ​ָ​ָׁשבּו‬ return the captivity of My people Israel, and they will rebuild desolate cities and settle them.” These words speak directly to the modern miracle of Jewish return and restoration. After centuries of wandering, we have witnessed with our own eyes the rebuilding of the sukkah—the return to our land, the revival of our language, the replanting of our fields, the defense of our people.

But this prophecy is not only about physical return. It is also about spiritual renewal. The sukkah of David is a symbol not just of political sovereignty, but of the values, Torah, and connection to Hashem that give us our identity.

To rebuild it is to reaffirm who we are.

The sukkah may appear fragile—but in its simplicity lies its strength. It reminds us that even in vulnerability, there is endurance.

Even in exile, there is return. And even when the winds blow, the sukkah stands.

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OU ISRAEL CENTER 55

REBBETZIN ZEMIRA OZAROWSKI DIRECTOR OF OU ISRAEL WOMEN’S DIVISION

Kedushah in the Kitchen: Parshat Kedoshim I remember vividly my first Yom Kippur as a mother. My son was nearly a year old, and I was determined: motherhood would not interfere with my spiritual aspirations.

After much effort, I arranged for a babysitter to meet me at shul so I could immerse myself fully in tefillah, undistracted on the holiest day of the year. I packed a bag full of toys and snacks and headed out, ready to spend the day connecting with Hashem.

But things didn’t go as planned—the babysitter never showed up.

Instead of standing before Hashem in shul, I found myself changing diapers, wiping sticky fingers, and pacing the hallway trying ‫בס"ד‬

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to keep my son content. I was crushed. I had prepared so carefully, hoped so deeply—but to no avail. My Yom Kippur felt ruined. I had lost my chance to connect with the Kedushah of the holiest day of the year.

But Parshat Kedoshim teaches us that my understanding of Kedushah was flawed from the start.

At the very beginning of the parsha, we are given the command to live a life of Kedusha:

‫�ְּהיּוּ ּ�ִּכי ָ​ָקדֹוֹ ׁשׁ ֲ​ֲאִנִי ה’ ֱ​ֱאֹל ֵֵֹקיֶכֶ ם‬ ְ ‫ְ​ְקֹד � ִֹׁׁשים ִּת‬ “You shall be holy, for I, Hashem your God, am holy.” (Vayikra 19:2) At first glance, this mitzvah feels overwhelming. How can we possibly emulate the Kedushah of Hashem? How are we humans meant to achieve such a level at all times?

We often associate holiness with the Beit HaMikdash, the Kohanim, or spiritual rituals. But instead of focusing on those Mitzvot, Parshat Kedoshim proceeds to list dozens of everyday mitzvot: honoring parents, leaving food for the poor, paying workers on time, avoiding gossip, rising before the elderly, and loving your neighbor. These aren’t lofty mystical ideals. They are practical, daily actions that reflect living a life infused with spiritual meaning. This teaches us that holiness is found not only in sacred spaces but in everyday

life—in how we speak, how we eat, how we treat others, and how we conduct ourselves in our everyday lives. Kedusha is found not only in the sanctuary, but in the kitchen, the office, the checkout line, and the playground.

In his 1854 essay Religion Allied to Progress, Rav Samson Raphael Hirsch describes what a life of Kedusha looks like: To be a Jew is not a mere part, it is the sum total of our task in life. To be a Jew in the synagogue and in the kitchen, in the field and in the warehouse, in the office and the pulpit, as father and mother, as servant and master, as man and as citizen, with one’s thoughts, in word and in deed, in enjoyment and privation, with the needle and the engraving tool, with the pen and the chisel -- that is what it means to be a Jew. An entire life supported by the Divine Idea and lived and brought to fulfillment according to the Divine Will.

In other words: holiness isn’t about retreating from the world—it’s about elevating it.

The Torah reinforces this message by weaving mitzvot into every area of life. It doesn’t separate the spiritual from the practical.

Rather, it teaches that Kedushah is created precisely through the way we act at home, at work, and in the community.

Rav Hirsch’s insight is especially powerful for parents. We often believe that spiritual growth has to look a certain way— quiet Tefillah, deep Kavanah, uninterrupted Torah learning. But sometimes, the holiest acts are the ones no one sees: the midnight feedings, the third round of cleaning up spilled juice, the deep breath before responding to a tantrum with patience. Parenting, in this light, becomes a full-time Kedushah workshop.

Looking back at that first Yom Kippur, I now understand. I stood before Hashem—not

in shul, but in service. Not with long Vidui recitations, but with baby wipes and cheerios. I had entered a new chapter of Avodat Hashem, one shaped not by siddur pages, but by the selflessness of parenting. That first Yom Kippur as a mother taught me something lasting: sometimes, being exactly where you are is the holiest place to be.

This week, in the spirit of Kedoshim Tihiyu, may we find holiness not only in our Shabbat candles but in our Tuesday mornings, our messy kitchens, our car conversations—and in the quiet, sacred acts that define what it truly means to be a Jewish parent.

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RABBI AARON GOLDSCHEIDER

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EDITOR, TORAH TIDBITS Editor, Tidbits SHUL RAV, THETorah JERUSALEM BAKA, JERUSALEM

Birkat Hamazon and Gratitude for the Land GRATITUDE FOR THE LAND etc.). Although Birkat Hamazon is required The Torah obligates that words of gratito be recited following a meal anywhere we tude be offered to God after eating a meal. may be in the world, the Torah is emphasizIt is interesting to note that this is the only ing that the food consumed in the Land of blessing which is commanded to be recited Israel is of the highest spiritual caliber and by the Torah. Also striking is that the Torah is thus most fitting for the Jew. SETTING OUR SIGHTS HIGH prescribes that when reciting this blessing Rav Avraham Yitzchak we must include gratitude for HaKohen Kook zt”l offered the Land of Israel: “And you an exquisite insight as to shall eat and be satisfied and why the Torah attaches the bless God for the good Land blessing after a meal with a that He gave you.” blessing for the Land of Israel.

The Ramban explains that He suggested that when one the Torah is teaching that at sits down to a meal, a person the same time that one offers is susceptible to being lowered thanks for a meal one must to a place of coarseness and offer gratitude for the gift of surrendering to physical cravEretz Yisrael. Why does the Rav Aharon Lichtenstein zt”l ings. A Jew seeks to elevate Torah instruct that the blessthemselves from something purely physical. ing after a meal must be coupled with the Thus, as the meal comes to a close we must blessing of the Land of Israel? immediately be cognizant that our eating Perhaps one answer is that the Torah is be utilized to energize us to achieve great calling attention to the abundance of mitzvot things. that pertains especially to agriculture in the Rav Kook takes note of the Talmudic pasLand of Israel. Fruits, vegetables and wheat sage that outlines the authorship of each for bread that grow in the soil of Israel have paragraph of Birkat Hamazon: a unique status and are governed by distinc“Moshe instituted the beracha of Hazan tive halachic directives (such as terumah, (on sustenance - the first beracha of Birkat maaser, leket, shechicha, peah, shemita, yovel 60 TORAH TIDBITS 1611 / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM

Hamazon) when the manna fell; Yehoshua instituted the beracha of Ha’aretz (for the Land of Israel) when Israel entered the Land. Kings David and Shlomo instituted Boneh Yerushalayim (Builder of Jerusalem).

Hatov V’hameitiv (‘He is good and does good’) was instituted in Yavneh in reference to those who were killed in Beitar, for the fact that the corpses did not decay and that it became possible to bury them.” (Berachot 48, Ein Aya, Berachot 7:31) Rav Kook argues that the text of Birkat Hamazon maps out the most noble aspirations of the Jew. The opening paragraph was composed by Moshe when he saw the manna falling from heaven each day. Thus he articulated the first stage of thanks - we offer gratitude for the food we need for survival and sustenance.

However there is an even loftier goal than our personal subsistence. We seek the sustenance and flourishing of the nation as whole. When the Jewish people settle in their Homeland they thrive both physically and spiritually. Thus, Yeshoshua, upon entering the Land, instituted the beracha of Ha’aretz (for the Land).

A further step is the development of Israel’s spiritual capacity which is strengthened and blossoms in the sacred city of Jerusalem. It is King David, therefore, who adds this component to the Birkat Hamazon with the blessing of Boneh Yerushalayim (Builder of Jerusalem).

Shlomo, who finally builds the Beit Hamikdash, adds another dimension to Birkat Hamazon, which highlights the peak of Jewish people’s purpose in the world. Namely impacting all mankind. The additional words Shlomo added to Birkat Hamazon, “the great and holy house,” allude to the

ultimate goal of Israel serving to uplift all humanity (see Malachim 1, 8;60).

A fourth blessing was added to the three essential blessings. This passage, known as Hatov Ve’hamtiv, was appended in commemoration of the miracle of the bodies in Beitar that did not decay and were finally buried with honor. Rav Kook taught that this passage is meant to provide solace and a sense of hopefulness. The message of this paragraph is that Hashem will help insure the dignity of the Jewish nation even in exile and ultimately will bless the Jewish people with a wondrous revival in the Land of Israel. A resurrection of the dead and a rebirth of our nation will take place in the future.

A BLESSING ON ALIYAH? Born in Jerusalem, Rav Chaim Shraga Fievel Frank, was the nephew of Rav Zvi Pesach Frank and a dayan of Rav Zvi Pesach Frank’s Beis Din. After the 1948 War of Independence, Rav Chaim Shraga Fievel became the Rav of the Yemin Moshe neighborhood.

He asks why the sages did not establish that a blessing be recited when one settles in the Land of Israel. After all, it is undoubtedly a Torah obligation (according to the Ramban and others) and should be no different than other mitzvot which require a blessing.

He suggested that the blessing can indeed be found in Birkat Hamazon when reciting the words first written by Yehoshua when he entered the Land: “We thank the Lord our God, for having granted as a heritage to our ancestors a desirable, good and spacious Land…

Blessed are You, Lord, for the Land and for the food.” (Second blessing of Birkat Hamazon) Rav Frank suggested that this is a blessing to have in mind when arriving on aliyah and furthermore since living in Israel is an OU ISRAEL CENTER 61

ongoing mitzvah this blessing has special meaning every time it is recited by one living in the Land who is continually fulfilling the mitzvah of residing in the Holy Land. (“Toldot Ze’ev,”Shabbat 1-2, p.67, quoted in “Shalal Rav,” Rosenthal, p. 166)

RAV AHARON LICHTENSTEIN’S FIRST VISIT TO ISRAEL The eminent Rosh Yeshiva of Har Etzion, Rav Aharon Lichtenstein zt”l once shared an episode that took place on his first visit to the Land of Israel in the summer of 1962.

His beloved Rebbe, Rav Yitzchak Hutner zt”l was also visiting Israel at that time. Rav Aharon made a point to see his rebbe and spend time with him. He knew of his rebbe’s special connection to Israel; as a young man he had studied in the Chevron Yeshiva while it was still in Chevron.

They met and spoke with one another. Rav Hutner began asking his student Rav Aharon what were his impressions and feelings about being here in Israel. “I discussed with him the vitality of Jewish life and the sense of total community, as opposed to the Diaspora, where one’s life is more fragmented,” said Rav Aharon. Rav Hutner responded that one can feel wholeness and vitality in Jewish communities outside of Israel as well.

62 TORAH TIDBITS 1611 / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM

“Then I said that there is a broad range of applications of Halacha in Israel…one feels the resonance of Halacha in more areas of life.” To this he also responded that one can experience this feeling outside the Land.

Finally Rav Aharon asked his rebbe to explain to him what it was that he was trying to convey to him. Rav Hutner exclaimed: “Why don’t you mention the uniqueness of being in Eretz Yisrael? The sages taught (Ketubot 112a) that Aharon and Moshe did not merit to enter the Land, and yet, here we are in the Land today!” (On Aliyah: The Uniqueness of Living in Eretz Yisrael, vbm, online) Apparently Rav Hutner wished to convey to his prized pupil that beyond the technical halachic reasons for living in the Land, there is a deeper component which cannot be defined in legalistic terms. It cuts to the very heart of a Jew. The yearning and love that our forefathers had for the Land is ingrained in every Jew and should be felt and experienced in our bond with Eretz Hakodesh.

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OU ISRAEL CENTER 63

From the Virtual Desk of the ERETZ HEMDAH ASK OU THE RABBI SERVICE VEBBE REBBE RAV DANIEL MANN

Rav Daniel Mann

Selecting Things to Use Later on Shabbat ‫לעילוי נשמת‬ ‫יואל אפרים בן אברהם עוזיאל זלצמן ז"ל‬ Question: Before leaving the house on Shabbat, may I select a hat from a box of hats in case I will be cold on the way home, or is that a borer problem, because the selection is not for immediate use?

Answer: The three requirements (each required by Torah law) of permitted borer (selection), when separating two things that are “mixed together” (ta’arovet) are: 1. One takes what he wants from what he does not want; 2. He does not use a special separating utensil; 3. The separated item will be used “immediately” (l’altar) (Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim 319:1-2). You ask about whether one who does not plan to wear the hat for quite a while but is leaving the house now is considered l’altar. At first glance, if

64 TORAH TIDBITS 1611 / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM

you will not use the hat anytime soon, it is not l’altar and is therefore forbidden (how long is a good question – see Rama ad loc.).

Possible arguments that it is still l’altar are: A. Since you do not have an opportunity to do it later, the last possible time might be I’altar; B. Maybe leaving the house “properly equipped” is considered a use as you leave.

Are these arguments correct?

Shemirat Shabbat K’hilchata (3:(190)) posits that the fact that this is the last opportunity to select does not turn the selection into l’altar. As far as leaving the house equipped, he cites (3:(185)) Rav SZ Auerbach as saying something similar (not all agree): If one selects something to lend to a friend, it is fine if he selects soon before giving it even if the friend will use it only later because, from the lender’s perspective, his use (giving to his friend) is done right away. In your case, though, you are not thinking of “helping yourself” but about being ready if you are cold later, and this is not l’altar.

There are, however, other reasons that might permit taking the hat, in certain cases.

While the gemara talks about separating good and bad (pesolet), Rishonim apply it also to separating two things that are both

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good (but one is wanted now), if the two items are of different minim (types) (Terumat Hadeshen I;57; Rama, Orach Chayim 319:3).

Two different species of fish are two minim (ibid.); one species of fish but one is cooked and one is fried are two minim (Chayei Adam II, 16:5; Mishna Berura 319:15); if the difference between the pieces is size, it is one min (ibid.).

If the contents of the box are all interchangeably usable hats (women are often more discerning), they are likely to be one min and there will be no borer. Poskim say that if one wants to choose a specific book or article of clothing, borer does apply (Shemirat Shabbat K’hilchata 3:68-69). It is unclear where to draw the line on the question of how different the hats are from each other and how thought out your preference of one is (e.g., color match, quality, appropriate for Shabbat). If you cannot determine there is one min, if you are willing to take the first one that comes to hand without choosing (and without repeating until you are satisfied), it is not borer (see ibid. 78).

While we assume there can be a ta’arovet of relatively large objects (see Terumat Hadeshen ibid.), borer is less likely with large objects (see Shevitat Hashabbat, Borer 11). It is possible, then, that if the hats are arranged in an orderly manner, there is no ta’arovet (see Orchot Shabbat 3:23).

There are two possible ways to solve an existing borer problem. According to Rav Moshe Feinstein (Igrot Moshe, OC IV 74),

one can undo the ta’arovet by randomly throwing its contents in a manner that the items become clearly distinct, and then there are no requirements. Not all agree to this “divide and conquer” approach (see Orchot Shabbat III:119).

Another suggestion is to “create” an immediate use, by wearing the hat you choose for a short time. It can be a contrived use (see Shemirat Shabbat K’hilchata 3:69), like the Be’ur Halacha’s (to 319:4) idea for one removing bones from meat to lick them before discarding them. A prominent rabbi told me that you would not need to enjoy wearing the hat at all, but there might be some bar to reach (see Piskei Teshuvot 319:12).

Having a dispute?

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OU ISRAEL CENTER 65

DR. MENI KOSLOWSKY VICE PRESIDENT, OU ISRAEL

GUEST DVAR TORAH

The Reward for Doing Mitzvot One of the topics discussed in this week’s Parsha (‫ כ”ד‬,‫ )ויקרא י”ח‬is why we are not told the reward associated with performing each Mitzvah and, with this knowledge, we would know which are the more important ones for us to obey. The Ohr Hachayim deals with this issue in detail and argues rationally that if we knew the reward for doing a Mitzvah we would probably decide to keep the more significant ones and pay less attention to the others. But this is not what the Almighty wants. Rather, He would like each one of us to heed and perform, as much as we can, all the commandments with equal fervor.

The Ohr Hachayim follows this up with two major advantages for not trying to rank the importance level of each Mitzvah. Firstly, he argues that the rewards for two Mitzvot may not be equal, yet, for a particular individual at a specific moment in time, the lesser reward is exactly what the person needs. Secondly, the Mitzvot are not only part of a reward system but a way of identifying as a Jew and by performing certain acts you are showing yourself and the world that you are part of a particular group, the Jewish people.

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Rabbi Eliyahu Dessler argues that the “rewards” or “blessings” that one receives for keeping the commandments are not the rewards for the actual Mitzva as such, but a means for that person to continue to follow the Torah. Simply put, one must keep all the Torah’s commandments, but people also need to eat – so if people are learning and following the Torah, the rain will come at the right time and water the crops nicely so that people can spend less time in the fields and more time learning. As such, by keeping the Mitzvot, one may have an indirect effect on the individual and those around him.

Finally, there is another psychological perspective concerning the mitzvot that is derived from Maimonides. He writes that a father has a responsibility to cajole his son to learn Torah by rewarding him so that he will go happily to the Beit Midrash to study.

When he is young, the father should give him nuts, honey, and dates. When he grows older and rejects these small gifts, the father should give him fine clothes, and when he grows yet older and rejects these, the father should give him gifts of money. How does one reconcile Maimonides’s teaching to do Mitzvot without expecting extrinsic rewards? The resolution comes from a statement in the Talmud itself: “One should always learn Torah, even if it is for ulterior motives because from learning for ulterior motives, one comes to learn it for its own sake” (Pesachim 50b). The Rabbis seem to assure us of an inevitable transition from the stage where one learns because

th ot, ay, ral erat to ar ys ve he nen th ng on er

a

of incentives to the next level where one learns for its own sake. The psychologist would argue that after learning because of the desire to get external rewards, the inner satisfaction that is obtained will become a part of the human and he/she will want to stay on the same path performing the Mitzvot at every opportunity, even if a clear reward is not in sight.

Dr. Meni Koslowsky is a Professor in the department of Psychology at Ariel University and Bar-Ilan University (emeritus).

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RABBI JONATHAN COHEN DIRECTOR OF PROFESSIONAL RECRUITMENT AT NCSY ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF ADMISSIONS AT YESHIVA UNIVERSITY

Light Through the Darkness: A Lag BaOmer Reflection for Challenging Times Lag BaOmer, the 33rd day of the Omer count, stands as a unique oasis of joy during a season of mourning. It commemorates the end of a plague that claimed the lives of Rabbi Akiva’s 24,000 students, and it marks the yahrtzeit of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, the great sage and mystic who revealed the secrets of the Zohar, the foundational text of Kabbalah. Rabbi Shimon asked that the day of his passing be celebrated—not mourned—because, in his view, death was not a conclusion but a gateway to greater spiritual light.

This message holds deep relevance for those walking through the fire of illness— especially something as daunting as stage 4 melanoma. A cancer diagnosis of that severity shakes the foundations of one’s

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world. It brings fear, pain, and uncertainty.

But Lag BaOmer teaches us that even in times of darkness, there is light waiting to be discovered.

Rabbi Akiva’s life itself is a profound example of resilience. After losing thousands of his students, he did not collapse into despair. Instead, he began again with just five students, among them Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai. From unimaginable loss, he replanted hope. This is a powerful metaphor for anyone navigating the emotional and physical toll of advanced illness: when life strips things away, we can still start anew—emotionally, spiritually, or in small, meaningful ways.

Rabbi Shimon’s own journey included years of hiding in a cave with his son, fleeing Roman persecution. There, sustained only by a carob tree and a spring, he delved into the depths of Torah. What seemed like isolation and suffering became a source of profound transformation. Likewise, serious illness often isolates. But in that solitude, there can also be growth—new perspectives, deepened relationships, and spiritual insights that would never have emerged in easier times.

Lag BaOmer is marked by

bonfires—symbolic of Rabbi Shimon’s spiritual fire. Fire is paradoxical: it can destroy, but it also purifies, warms, and illuminates.

Facing illness is like walking through fire.

But it can also burn away superficiality, leaving only what truly matters—faith, love, courage, and a connection to something eternal.

To stay positive in the face of a devastating diagnosis is not to deny reality—it is to insist that we are more than our suffering.

Judaism gives us permission to grieve, to wrestle, and to cry out. But it also calls us to kindle light—to affirm life and dignity, even in struggle. As King David wrote, “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me.”

Lag BaOmer reminds us: light is not the absence of darkness. It is the decision to light a flame anyway. For those facing illness, and those walking beside them, may this day be a beacon of hope, a reminder that even in the cave, even in the fire, the soul can shine.

Rabbi Jonathan Cohen, Director of Professional Recruitment at NCSY and Assistant Director of Admissions at Yeshiva University, is deeply committed to Jewish leadership and education. He is currently battling stage 4 melanoma with strength, resilience, and faith.

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SIVAN RAHAV-MEIR RAHAV-MEIR THE THEDAILY DAILYBY BYSIVAN PORTION PORTION are embracing life—literally—by bringing thethe firstfirst time?' time?'

Yet Yet I simply I simply forgot forgot it. Ideep-seated it. thought I thought new children into the world.

This afterwards afterwards that HaShem HaShem caused meme to to forget resilience, athat refusal tocaused surrender toforget despair, thethe answer answer in order in order to remind to remind me me that that I doI do is woven into the national fabric. notnot know know everything, everything, that that I am I am human human andand 2. LIVING TRADITION notnot perfect."

A perfect." staggering 96% of Israelis recently par"The more more you learn," Neta Neta said, said, "the"the easier easier ticipated in you alearn," Passover Seder—the oldest “Why Are Israelis So Happy?” That’s the "The it gets.

When When you you learn learn a lot a of lotTanach ofin Tanach (Bible) continually observed ritual the(Bible) Western title of a recent piece by former Soviet it gets. simply simply see how how everything everything connects world.

Forsee Jews, tradition is not aconnects relic of the refusenik Natan Sharansky and historian youyou to your life.life. truly I truly felt felt thatthat what what I learned IPassover learned past but aI living inheritance.

The Gil Troy, published in Tablet magazine. In to your accompanied me wherever wherever I went. went.

It made It made Much excitement hashas surrounded surrounded EmuEmu- accompanied story is notme remembered; itI is re-lived.

As it, Much theexcitement authors explore a surprising finding: my my heart heart feel feel good." good." nah nah Cohen Cohen and and Neta Neta Lax, Lax, the the two two fresh fresh Sharansky and Troy note, “Prayers, songs, According to the newly released 2025 World In closing, Neta Neta declared: declared: twotwo ofrituals us of us winners winners of the ofReport, the annual annual International International Bible Bible In closing, food, "The and"The other Happiness Israel will will continue continue to study to study the the Tanach.

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Yesterday Yesterday I interviewed I interviewed them them and and invite Jews to see themranks eighth among the were were parts parts of the of the Tanach Tanach thatthat were notnot in the in the heard heard their their story. story. in the selves aswere having been happiest countries material covered covered by the bypersonally the quiz, quiz, andand it's importit's importItworld. turns It turns outout thatthat they they studied studied long long hours hours material redeemed.” for for us to uslearn to learn them them too." too."deep political together together and were were confident confident they they would would antant Despite This and would be remarkAnd Emunah Emunah hadhad this this recommendation: recommendation: be able be thethe leading competitors.

"We "We planned planned And rifts, Israelis remain inleading any competitors. year—but "Study thethe Bible Bible forfor 5bound minutes 5 minutes every day. day. on especially on winning winning together," together," Emunah Emunah revealed. revealed. "Study by aevery shared story now.

In the Not Not for for school, school, not not for for the the Bible Bible quiz, quiz, but but just just "We "We thought thought both both of us of would us would answer answer every every and a collective mission: wake of a devastating how how much much funfun it will ittowill be." be." question question correctly correctly so that so that wewe would would both both be be for for pass that story on. war that has claimed the champions, champions, tied tied for for first first place. place.

3.

MEANING AND HOPE lives of over 1,800 people, Sivan Sivan Rahav-Meir Rahav-Meir is a is media a media personality personality andand But But in the in the end end Emunah Emunah won. won.

"They "They made made While in Israel has still managed lecturer. lecturer.

Married Married to Yedidya, to Yedidya, the youth the mother mother of many of a big a big deal deal about about ourour bigbig hug hug after after I lost," I lost," Neta Neta Western nations struggle five.five.

LivesLives in Jerusalem, in Jerusalem, andand formerly formerly served served to outpace countries like as the as an the World World Mizrachi Mizrachi Shlicha Shlicha to North to North AmerAmersaid. said.

"But "But it was itStates was thethe easiest easiest thing thing to and share to share in in with epidemic of despair—losing pride the United (ranked 23rd) Britain ica. ica.

Sivan Sivan lectures lectures in Israel in Israel andand overseas overseas her(24th), her happiness. happiness.

Besides, we we were were just just relieved in their countries and Zionism stories—Israeli chilwhileBesides, war-torn Ukraine sits at relieved 111 and about about the the media, media, Judaism, Judaism, Zionism andand newnew thatLebanon that thethe competition competition was finally finally over." over." dren are in meaning.

Schoolchildren media. media.

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by Globes newspaper newspaper near thewas bottom at 145.

Even more as most as most popular popular female female media media personality personality in in In the In the course course ofof the ofIsraelis the entire entire contest, contest, Emunah Emunah conduct shorashim (roots) projects, exploring striking: 91% surveyed said they Israel Israel andand by the by the Jerusalem Jerusalem PostPost as one as one of the of the made made only only oneone error. error.

"Itheir knew "I knew thethe answer answer to to their family history.

Mourning rituals for were satisfied with lives.

50 most 50 most influential influential JewsJews in the in the world. world. thethe question: question: 'When 'When did did King King David David cry cry for for fallen soldiers and terror victims are public, So, what’s the secret? Sharansky and Troy communal, and deeply moving. Thousands offer three key explanations: NETANYA NETANYA 4 ROOM 4 ROOM APT. APT. RENTAL, RENTAL, turn out to comfort bereaved families—often 1.

AFFIRMING LIFE Nitza Nitza Blvd, Blvd, 1 month 1 month min.min.

Amazing Amazing sea sea view, view, kosher, kosher, furnished: furnished: May, May, June, June, July July 2023 2023 strangers—and the grieving respond by buildIn the shadow of tragedy, Israel has experifrom from September September 2023 2023 short short or long or long term term ing “living monuments” that carry their loved enced a baby boom. While birth rates in most APTNETANYA@GMAIL.COM APTNETANYA@GMAIL.COM ones’ values forward. Inspirational quotes Western countries continue to decline, Israelis

International International Why Are We Bible Bible Quiz So Quiz Happy?

Champions Champions Speak Speak

70 TORAH TIDBITS 1611 / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM

OU OU ISRAEL ISRAEL CENTER CENTER63 63

from the fallen are printed on bumper stickers and shared across the country, offering daily reminders of courage and purpose.

For Sharansky, this national clarity of identity, peoplehood, and history echoes the values that sustained him during his imprisonment in the Soviet Gulag. He concludes with a message for the West: Learn from Israel. Strengthen your sense of community, of connectedness, of historical pride.

In short—learn to love your country.

Sivan Rahav-Meir is a media personality and lecturer. Married to Yedidya, the mother of five.

Lives in Jerusalem, and formerly served as the World Mizrachi Shlicha to North America. Sivan lectures in Israel and overseas about the media, Judaism, Zionism and new media. She was voted by Globes newspaper as most popular female media personality in Israel and by the Jerusalem Post as one of the 50 most influential Jews in the world.

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OU ISRAEL CENTER 71

The Right Mindset Yonina asks: What would you say is the best approach for a first date with someone your candidate isn’t 100% sure about - what’s the best mindset to show up with?

Aleeza answers: Great question - and such an important one. Many people think the hardest part of dating is finding the right person. But I’d argue that one of the biggest challenges is showing up with the right mindset, especially when you’re not 100% sure about the person in front of you.

Let’s start here: uncertainty is normal.

In fact, most people don’t feel sure before a first date. You’ve probably seen a resume, maybe a photo, and heard a few good things - but at the end of the day, a shidduch isn’t a spreadsheet. It’s two people, trying to see if

they can build something real together.

So what’s the best mindset?

1.CURIOSITY OVER JUDGMENT Instead of showing up to see if they’re right for you, show up to get to know a person.

Think: “What’s interesting about them?”

“What can I learn from their journey?” This simple shift opens your heart and lowers your pressure.

2.NEUTRAL IS NORMAL People often think they need to feel immediate excitement or connection. But let’s be honest - how often does immediate excitement lead to no connection? Pretty often.

Feeling neutral doesn’t mean it’s a no. It just means you’re not excited. And not only is that okay I prefer lower excitement. Less room for disappointment and more room for positive connections to surprise you.

3.BE PRESENT, NOT PREDICTIVE Don’t date while mentally jumping to wedding invitations or break-up texts. Just be present. Can I enjoy this person’s company for an hour or two? That’s it. That’s the whole job of the first date.

4.GIVE THE GIFT OF YOUR BEST SELF Even if you’re not sure about the match, you can always bring your best self: warm, gracious, open. If nothing else, you’ll leave a person feeling respected and seen- and that’s a win in itself.

I’ve seen so many couples where one—or both—weren’t “sold” on date one. But they gave it a chance. They stayed curious. And one date became two, then four, then forever.

72 TORAH TIDBITS 1611 / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM

So if you’re not 100% sure? That’s not a red flag at all—it’s just real life.

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TORAH 4 TEENS

BY TEENS NCSY ISRAEL MEIRA SHAPIRO

MADRICHA & EDUCATION ASSOCIATE

LIVING AN ETERNAL LIFESTYLE This week, our second parsha is framed by the same powerful phrase: “You shall be holy, for I, Hashem (YKVK), am holy” (Vayikra 19:2 and 20:26). The name YKVK—Hashem’s most sacred Name—is deeply connected to His eternal nature, representing Hayah, Hoveh, V’Yihyeh (Was, Is, and Will Be). When we combine this with the verse, “And I will separate you from among the nations to be

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Mine”, we uncover a profound idea.

One of the most remarkable ways we as Jews emulate God and distinguish ourselves from other nations is through our awareness of, and connection to, both the distant past and the future. Hashem exists beyond time, and we strive to live with that same eternal perspective.

In today’s world, attention spans are shrinking—if a video on social media lasts more than a minute, most people won’t finish it.

But that’s not who we are. We mourn events like the sin of the spies, the destruction of the Beit Hamikdash, the deaths of Rabbi Akiva’s students, and centuries of Jewish suffering.

We are a people deeply connected to our history.

But memory isn’t just nostalgia—it’s our foundation for the future. We make Aliyah to correct the sin of the spies. We remember the Beit Hamikdash to stay committed to rebuilding it. Though we lost so many scholars in Rabbi Akiva’s time, Torah learning remains a top priority. While others may not understand our focus on the past, we know it drives our future. We are a holy nation, living with a sense of eternity.

As we journey through Sefirat HaOmer, reflecting on Yom HaShoah and Yom HaZikaron, and looking ahead to Yom Yerushalayim and Shavuot, may this eternal perspective give us strength to push through today’s struggles—and help us greet the Geulah, b’mheirah b’yameinu.

SHIMON LEV MESSER 10TH GRADE NEVE DANIEL

THE CHOSEN PEOPLE

‫ה ָוָ ַ​ַא ְ​ְבִּד�ִ ל‬-ְ‫ִיֶתם ִלִ י ְ​ְקֹד � ִִֹׁשים ִ�ִּכי ָ​ָקדֹוֹ ׁשׁ ֲ​ֲאִנִי ְי‬ ֶ ‫ִוִ ְ​ְהִי‬ ‫ן־ָה ַ​ַע �ִ​ִּמים ִלִ ְ​ְהיֹוֹ ת ִלִ י׃‬ ָ ‫ֶ​ֶא ְ​ְתֶכֶ ם ִ​ִמ‬ “You shall be holy to Me, for I, Hashem, am holy, and I have set you apart from other peoples to be Mine.” (Vayikra 20:26) This is very interesting—what does it mean that God has separated us from the other nations?

Rashi explains that if we stay separate from the other nations and live differently, then we truly belong to Hashem. But if not—if we choose to follow the ways of other nations and become influenced by leaders like Nevuchadnezzar—we will face serious consequences.

‫ר־ֲאִנִי ְ​ְמ � ַ​ַׁש ֵ�ֵּל ַ​ַח ִ​ִמ � ְ​ְּפֵנֵיֶכֶ ם‬ ֲ ‫ְוְ ֹל ֹא ֵ​ֵתְלְ כּוּ ְ �ְּב ֻ​ֻח �ֹּקֹת ַ​ַהּגֹּוֹ י ֲ​ֲא � ֶ​ֶׁש‬ ‫ל־ֵא ֶ�ֶּלה ָ​ָעׂשּׂוּ ָוָ ָ​ָא ֻ​ֻקץ ָ �ָּבם׃‬ ֵ ּ‫ִ�ִּכי ֶ​ֶאת־ּכ‬ “You shall not follow the practices of the nations that I am driving out before you, for it is because they did all these things that I abhorred them.” (Vayikra 20:23) This teaches us that if we stay apart from the other nations and don’t copy their negative ways, we stay connected to Hashem.

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‫ת־ַא ְ​ְד ָ​ָמ ָ​ָתם ַוַ ֲ​ֲאִנִי ֶ​ֶא ְ�ְּתֶנֶ �ָּנָה‬ ַ ‫ָוָ ֹא ַַֹמר ָלָ ֶכֶ ם ַ​ַא ֶ�ֶּתם ִ�ִּת ְיְרׁשּׁוּ ֶ​ֶא‬ ‫ָלָ ֶכֶ ם ָלָ ֶ​ֶר � ֶ​ֶׁשת ֹא ָָֹתּהּ ֶ​ֶא ֶ​ֶרץ ָזָ ַ​ַבת ָ​ָחָלָ ב ְּוְּד ָ​ָבׁשׁ ֲ​ֲאִנִי ה׳‬ ‫ן־ָה ַ​ַע �ִ​ִּמים׃‬ ָ ‫ר־ִה ְ​ְבַּד�ַ ְלְ ִ�ִּתי ֶ​ֶא ְ​ְתֶכֶ ם ִ​ִמ‬ ִ ‫ֱ​ֱאֹל ֵֵֹקיֶכֶ ם ֲ​ֲא � ֶ​ֶׁש‬ “And I said to you: You shall possess their land, for I will give it to you to inherit - a land flowing with milk and honey. I am Hashem your God, who has set you apart from other peoples.” (Vayikra 20:24) In conclusion, Hashem promises us a land flowing with milk and honey—and if you look out your window, you can see it: the beautiful land of Israel that we get to call our own!

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‫כשר למהדרין מועצה דתית‬ ‫אזורית גליל תחתון‬

Barmitzvah Bris Sheva Brachos Siyum

‫בס״ד‬ Maim Haim Women’s Retreat From Revelation to Redemption

Awakening, Healing & Growth

ird Early b until th May 15 CHAYA LESTER Kabalistic Dream Work

AVIGAYIL SAPIR Sacred Self Care

REVA EMUNAH Holotropic Breathwork

SARA LEAH (SUSAN) EKLOVE Sound Healing

Register Now!

DALIA ORLEV Meditation & Aleph Bet Movement

JODI SUGAR Arts & Vision UNITING & HEALING ISRAEL

maimhaim.org/womensretreat 053 450 6927 | info@maimhaim.org OU ISRAEL CENTER 79