OU Israel Center Torah Tidbits - Parshat Emor 5785

ISSUE 1612

‫ב"ה‬

United We Stand OU KASHRUT The Laws of Chadash – Timing

Rabbi Ezra Friedman

BY RABBI EZRA FRIEDMA The Gustave & Carol Ja Page 36 PAGE Director, for Kashrut Education

MAY 17TH 2025 ▪ ‫י״ט אייר תשפ"ה‬

‫פרשת אמור‬ PARSHAT EMOR PIRKEI AVOT 4

Dating in Israel: A Guide that the dec for the Newly Landedmaintain issue of closeness to

Introduction toPage 70 Aleeza Ben Shalom Bishul Akum The prohibition According to Biblical law, food that is completely kosher and cooked by a nonJew is permitted. However, our Sages decreed that such food, even when cooked in kosher utensils, is prohibited for consumption. This prohibition is known as bishul akum. In the coming weeks we will discuss the parameters of this rabbinic prohibition, including the reasons behind the decree, when it applies, and the practical halacha for modern industrial kashrut.

Food is a very connecting element in every society. That is the basis behind the decree of bishul akum. Our Sages were very concerned about close relationships with non-Jews since intermarriage is a very severe transgression. The prohibition effectively limits Jews and gentiles dining with each other, although there is no specific prohibition against dining with a non-Jew per se. (See Rashi on Avodah Zara 31:b.)

Forbidding the non-Jew’s cooking would be enough to create an emotional distance such that families wouldn’t marry into each other.

Rabbeinu Tam (Tosfot Avodah Zara 38:a) and Rambam (Ma’achalot Asurot 17:9) 52

‫כ״ז‬:‫ויקרא כב‬

lead to intermarriage; most early authorities others attribute a diffe prohibition of bishul non-Jews might mix ents into the kosher fo we will discuss wheth bishul akum are based sons or just one. How numerous sources tha marriage is the main prohibition (See Torat The decree is bindi reason Since the transgre riage was the primary Sages’ decree, their go discourage the possi emotional connectio could lead to interm that generation or th early authorities di prohibition of bishu even in situations w is not technically pos Rashba, in his respon the case of food cooke that Catholic priests d they have children w marry, is it permitted by a priest even tho bishul akum seeming

TORAH TIDBITS 1516 / BAMIDBAR

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Table of Contents

04 Rabbi Avi Berman Sefirat HaOmer - Building 08 the Foundation of Trust Dear Torah Tidbits Family

12 16 20 24 28 30 32 36 38 40 48

Rabbi Moshe Hauer Aliya-by-Aliya Sedra Summary Rabbi Reuven Tradburks “Becoming a Kohen” Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb Eternity and Mortality Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks zt"l Probing the Prophets Rabbi Nachman Winkler The Calling of the Moadim Rabbi Shalom Rosner Viewing Vitality Rebbetzin Shira Smiles The Meaning of Greatness Rabbi Judah Mischel The Laws of Chadash – Timing Rabbi Ezra Friedman Simchat Shmuel Rabbi Sam Shor Schedule OU Israel Kiddush Hashem and the False Mirror of Martyrdom Rabbi Moshe Taragin

52 Rebbetzin Dr. Adina Shmidman Saying the Shema Like Rav Kook 58 Rabbi Aaron Goldscheider Finishing to Eat but Continuing to Drink 62 Rabbi Daniel Mann Transitioning Through Tehillim 68 Mrs. Leah Feinberg Dating in Israel: A Guide 70 for the Newly Landed Called to Serve

74

Aleeza Ben Shalom - Shagririm Balev The Y-Files Comic Netanel Epstein

76 Allison Davidson // Daniella Weiss Torah 4 Teens by Teens

Torah Tidbits is proud to share a photo each week on the cover from our readers!

It is an honor to showcase the immense talent from across the country.

Send us your best photos and give us the opportunity to highlight your story.

Everyone is invited to submit! (amateurs and professionals alike) Please email to aarong@ouisrael.org

IMPORTANT REMINDERS Lag BaOmer is celebrated Thursday night May 15 and Friday May 16

COVER IMAGE Photographed by Zev Rothkoff

This photo is of an Eland, not native to Israel. There are sheep in the background. My parents brought me on Aliyah as a child 52 years ago.

I now live in Efrat. The photo is from the the North western Negev near Gaza. There are many scenic sights in Israel.

2 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

candle lighting CANDLE LIGHTING

other OTHER z'manim Z'MANIM

AND HAVDALA TIMES AND HAVDALA TIMES

EMOR Candles

6:54 7:11 Beit Shemesh/RBS 7:13 Alon Shvut 7:09 Raanana/Tel Mond/Herzliya/K.Saba 7:11 Modiin/Chashmonaim 7:10 Netanya 7:12 Be’er Sheva 7:10 Rehovot 7:11 Petach Tikva 6:54 Ginot Shomron 7:11 Haifa / Zichron 7:02 Gush Shiloh 7:09 Tel Aviv / Givat Shmuel 7:12 Givat Zeev 7:14 Chevron / Kiryat Arba 7:09 Ashkelon 7:12 Yad Binyamin 7:11 Tzfat / Bikat HaYarden 7:05 Golan 7:10 Nahariya/Maalot 7:12 Afula 7:11 Yerushalayim/Maale Adumim Aza Area (Netivot, Sderot et al)

Early

6:03 6:06 6:04 6:04 6:06 6:04 6:06 6:04 6:05 6:05 6:05 6:06 6:04 6:06 6:04 6:04 6:06 6:05 6:04 6:03 6:06 6:05

BEHAR-BECHUKOTAI Havdala Candles

Early

8:11 6:58 6:07 8:13 7:16 6:09 8:12 7:17 6:08 8:11 7:14 6:07 8:14 7:16 6:09 8:12 7:15 6:08 8:14 7:17 6:10 8:12 7:14 6:08 8:13 7:16 6:09 8:13 6:58 6:09 8:13 7:15 6:08 8:15 7:07 6:10 8:12 7:14 6:07 8:14 7:16 6:10 8:12 7:19 6:07 8:11 7:14 6:07 8:14 7:16 6:10 8:13 7:16 6:09 8:13 7:10 6:08 8:12 7:14 6:07 8:15 7:16 6:10 8:13 7:15 6:08

Havdala

8:17 8:18 8:17 8:17 8:19 8:18 8:20 8:17 8:19 8:19 8:18 8:21 8:17 8:19 8:17 8:16 8:19 8:18 8:19 8:18 8:21 8:19

Rabbeinu Tam (Jerusalem): Emor 8:47 PM • Behar-Bechukotai 8:52 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 16 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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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.

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DEAR TORAH TIDBITS FAMILY

RABBI AVI BERMAN Rabbi Avi Berman EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, OU ISRAEL Executive Director, OU Israel ABERMAN@OUISRAEL.ORG This summer, approximately 2,500 North American teenagers will be in Israel on NCSY Summer programs. Think of that. Thousands of teenagers, many of whom have never been to Israel before, getting inspired every day by the unique Jewish experience NCSY provides.

I remember really learning about NCSY for the first time 24 years ago. Back then, my wife and I were the parents of three wonderful boys, the oldest being three. At the time, we were living in the yishuv of Shilo. I was in Kollel there and working with overseas students that came to Yeshivat Shilo. I was blessed that my parents had made aliyah when I was nine, and with the ability to connect to both worlds of Israel and North America, I could share this unique perspective on Torat Eretz Yisrael with those who came to Israel.

As I did this, I found a certain passion growing in me to give this Torah over to my brothers and sisters in North America.

I started to attend a shlichut program called Shaal (which unfortunately no longer exists).

At some point, Rabbi Dovid Kaminetzky, z”tl,

In loving memory of and ‫לע”נ‬

Elaine J. Mittman a”h

‫אסתר איטא בת ברוך וסימא ע”ה‬ On her 5th yahrzeit - ‫כד אייר‬ Cherished mother, grandmother and great-grandmother Arlene Anteby Bobbie & Heshy Brooks

4 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

who was then the Director of NCSY, came to speak to my shlichut program. When he spoke about NCSY, the fire, the passion that he spoke with, combined with the fact that I was always an informal educator at heart, woke me up.

To be quite honest, I did not really know anything about NCSY at the time, including that it was the youth organization of the OU. The only thing I knew about NCSY was that they had a bencher we’d use in my parents’ house. I also knew that when Rabbi Glenn Black, now CEO of NCSY Canada, came to visit Israel there was a real excitement amongst the students in the Yeshiva from Toronto. Other than that, it was a different world to me.

So, to cut a long story short, my wife and I went on shlichut to Vancouver, and we Baruch Hashem, had the tremendous zechut of working with the most remarkable teenagers in the world. These teenagers came from just about every background, and they were such pure, beautiful Jews.

There are so many stories I can write about this time in my life, and I’ve already written some of them in these pages. Yet, one particular NCSY experience stands out to me beyond everything else they do that is so incredible.

Anyone who has attended an NCSY Shabbaton has learned that NCSY approaches the last moments of Shabbat in a unique way. As the sun begins to set on Shabbat afternoon, NCSY begins what is called “ebbing.” We sit in circles upon circles, arms around our friends, swaying to say goodbye to Shabbat in the most

beautiful way possible with singing and inspirational stories. By connecting to the Ribono Shel Olam in a way that fills a person up with pride and passion. When Shabbat ended, havdalah was a slow and heartfelt plea to HaKadosh Baruch Hu in song to let the light of Shabbat spill over into the week.

This is part of NCSY’s unique vision that is so important to experience, and the NCSY Summer programs are unparalleled in this. So, for five years while we were in Vancouver, we worked extremely hard to bring as many teenagers as possible on these NCSY Summer programs and to give them the uplifting experience of Am Yisrael and Eretz Yisrael with Torat Yisrael. Baruch Hashem, these summer programs have grown exponentially since that time.

Not just programs like NCSY Kollel or Michlelet, but really every kind of program you can think of is now being offered through NCSY. We have volunteering programs and touring programs, programs for religious teens, programs for secular teens, programs for those that want to train in Hatzalah; you name it, NCSY probably runs it. NCSY Israel runs Chai Summer, an inspirational threeweek summer camp for teenagers whose families have made aliyah (separate campuses for boys and girls in Hispin).

This past Shabbat, I had the tremendous honor of going back to an NCSY Shabbaton, my first in many years. The Shabbaton was part of the staff preparations and training for NCSY Summer programs staff. It took place in Stamford, Connecticut with the senior leadership of the OU, both lay and professional, including the International Director of NCSY, Rabbi

Micah Greenland. I spent Shabbat speaking with the remarkably dedicated staff and saw the amount of time and effort that they put in, and will continue to invest, to make NCSY Summer the best possible experience for the teenagers. Davening Kabbalat Shabbat together with this Shabbaton, and doing the ebbing with them, it really brought me back and reminded me why NCSY is so special.

As many of you know, OU Israel runs Camp Dror, mainly for children who live in Israel, but also for many campers whose families are planning aliyah and those who want their children to integrate and make Israeli friends.

If you’re not signed up yet, this is the time to register. It’s a three-week remarkable program in Hispin, on two different campuses for boys and for girls. I encourage each and every one of you, if you have a child or a OU ISRAEL CENTER 5

grandchild that is the age of Camp Dror, to look into this incredible opportunity to have three weeks of inspiration with a remarkable team that works tirelessly to make sure that every single camper in Camp Dror has the experience of their lifetime. Be part of a family of Camp Dror participants that stick with each other, stand with each other and make lifelong friends.

If you are reading this article, you most likely understand the importance of these summer programs and the impact that they have on a young person’s entire future. If you want to help sponsor a camper and contribute to our scholarship fund so that no young person should be left out because his/her family can’t afford this transformative summer experience, then please help us out at the following links: summer.ncsy.org/ donate or campdror.com/donate.

Another thing to keep in mind is that these teenagers, especially those coming from North America, come into contact with us and often judge the friendliness of Israel and Israelis through us. I’m sure that many of you are going to be hosting these thousands of teenagers for their free Shabbatot in Israel, and you’re going to see their buses traveling all over the country. You’re going to see them at the Kotel or at the mall or on hikes. I urge all of you to show them how friendly our country is to them and welcome them with open arms. Show them the most beautiful feeling of Am Yisrael in Eretz Yisrael according to Torat Yisrael.

Wishing you all an uplifting and inspiring Shabbat, Rabbi Avi Berman Executive Director, OU Israel 6 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

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Sefirat HaOmer - Building the Foundation of Trust “Our Father, our King! For the sake of our forefathers who trusted in You, and whom You taught statutes of life, so too, be gracious to us and teach us.” (Birchot Kriat Shma, Aahava Rabba) Trust is critical to all relationships, and trust in God is a key prerequisite to our engagement with Torah learning and observance.

This is made clear in the classic Talmudic story (Shabbat 88a-b), where Rava was confronted by a Sadducee who derided the Jewish people’s “hasty” acceptance of the Torah, putting our mouths before our ears, committing to action – naaseh – before hearing the details – nishma. Rava responded by proudly affirming the trust in G-d that informed how we as a nation unconditionally

In loving memory of our dear mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, on her 15th Yarzheit

‫ הוד שבהוד‬- ‫ ל”ג בעומר‬- ‫י’ח אייר‬

Blossom Reutlinger (Nitza) a”h

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8 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

accepted whatever Hashem would ask of us.

“We proceeded with G-d with a trusting heart characteristic of those who act with love, relying on Him not to burden us with something we could not bear (Rashi to Shabbat 88b).”

It is therefore understood why the Exodus was the first step towards Sinai and our embrace of Torah (Shemot 3:12) and that it had to be specifically invoked in G-d’s proposal to us (Shemot 19:3-5). “You have seen what I did to Egypt and how I carried you on the wings of eagles and brought you to Me.” That miraculous event was a trust builder, demonstrating G-d’s love of and commitment to the Jewish people, setting the stage for our unconditional acceptance of His Torah.

It may also be the basis for our Parsha introducing the counting of ‘the Omer’ as the way we move towards Sinai (Vayikra 23:9-16). ‘The Omer’ was an omer-sized barley flour offering made on the second day of Pesach from the new season’s harvest, acknowledging G-d’s daily gifts to us. The midrash (Vayikra Rabba 28:2) notes that this offering was known by its size as it is to be associated with the daily gift of an omer of manna that sustained each of us daily (Shemot 16:16-18). “Rav Berechya taught, “G-d said to Moshe, tell the Jewish people that I used to give an omer of the manna

daily to each one of them. Now that they are giving me the omer, I receive only one omer of barley from all of them together.” While our sustenance today grows from the earth and requires a significant investment of human effort, we are compelled to recognize that the success of that effort depends on the same source that brought us the manna directly from the heavens.

This is part of the trust-building exercise that brings us to Sinai. We left Egypt and traveled into the arid desert carrying only the matzoh, the meichla d’mhemnuta, the foodstuff of faith (see Zohar II 183b). That matzoh was the symbol of our faith and it was infused with the heavenly taste of the manna (Kiddushin 38a). Thirty days later, on the fifteenth of Iyar, we ran out of matzoh and G-d informed us that the next day we would begin to receive the manna bread from the heavens (Shemot 16:1, 16:4). Those days of visible divine love and support built our faith and enabled us to unreservedly accept the Torah, “our forefathers who trusted in You and whom You taught statutes of life,” such that when we reentered a more natural way of life in Israel with the barley harvest, we offered the omer to remind ourselves that G-d’s continued faithfulness remains critical to the success of our material efforts for our sustenance. We count the omer, building that awareness further, remembering G-d’s heavenly bread of faith through his earthly gifts.

Now, as then, we need to build our faith in G-d to arrive at Sinai. Counting the omer allows us to consider G-d’s hidden role in all that we work now to attain, moving us to recall His visible role in bringing us the omer of manna, sustaining us and building the trust in Him that is essential to oir embracing His Torah.

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

‫וספרתם לכם ממחרת השבת מיום הביאכם את עמר התנופה שבע שבתות תמימה תהיינה‬ )‫טו‬:‫(כג‬

“And you shall count for yourselves from the day after the day of rest, from the day that you brought the sheaves of wave-offering; there shall be seven full weeks.”

(23:15) Why the need to emphasize that you shall count for yourselves, the command “And you shall count” should be sufficient for this Mitzvah of Sefirat HaOmer?

The Ketav Sofer (Rabbi Avrahm Sofer 1815-1872, Pressburg) answers by relating to the Rashi at the beginning of Parshat Lech Lecha (12:1). Rashi explains the need for the word “Lecah-For You” that Avraham was traveling to Canaan “for himself” – “Go for your own welfare and benefit. So too here by the fifty-day counting period. This counting is for the well-being of your soul to develop and become perfect. As seen in the Book of Iyov (14:16) “But now, you count my steps”. Iyov was not requesting that his steps just be counted, but also to be judged and examined to justify his steps taken. Therefore, the Mitzvah of the Counting between Pesach and Shavuot is also for us to evaluate consider in detail our behavior and actions to guarantee that we are correctly on track towards the Receiving of the Torah.

Shabbat Shalom OU ISRAEL CENTER 11

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

PARSHAT EMOR The central theme of the book of Vayikra is holiness. Holiness comes in all shapes and sizes. In an attempt to give a framework for the laws of our parsha as well as the laws leading to it, including the laws of sacrifices, of tuma, of kashrut and forbidden relationships and of the plethora of mitzvot in Kedoshim that leads to our parsha, let me offer a theory of Kedusha, of holiness.

Kedusha inheres in that which is elevated, the aspects of the human condition that rise above the mere physical, that rise above what we share with animals.

Man is not a fancy animal. Man is unique.

Majestic. Elevated. Where man’s uniqueness, his majesty, his elevated status is expressed, there you will find holiness.

Man shares certain basic features with animals: a physical body, food, procreation, illness and death. But by virtue of being created in the image of G-d, man rises above the animal. And this image of G-d expresses itself in the unique aspects of the human condition; free will and self-control, communication and human interaction, and the desire to express our elevated status by approach to G-d.

It is in these unique, majestic aspects of our lives that holiness inheres. When man expresses his free will and self-control, when 12 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

he lives in society recognizing the elevated status of the other, and when he aspires, elevates himself, drawing near to his Creator, he is engaging in holiness. Holiness lies in those areas of the uniqueness of mankind over the animals: discipline, society and the reach for the Divine.

The Torah regulates, through mitzvot in all 3 of these areas. Firstly, in those things shared with animals, there are regulations: in food and in the permitted and forbidden marital relationships. The unique human aspect of discipline in the things we share with animals expresses our holiness.

The many and varied mitzvot of society, like generosity and care for others in the beautiful parsha of Kedoshim is man expressing himself as a social being, showing regard for others who are created in G-d’s image.

These mitzvot express the elevated nature of man’s behavior in society, another expression of his holiness.

Holiness in its most robust form is found in man’s reach for G-d, his desire to approach G-d. For that desire of approach to G-d has no parallel in the animal world. Approach to G-d is truly unique to man. And in that, it is the most dramatic expression of holiness.

Hence the laws of sacrifice and of tuma and tahara, the when and how of approach to G-d are regulated with a great number of laws.

Our parsha continues the discussion of holiness. The details of korbanot already discussed in Sefer Vayikra are the “how” of Divine Service. The details of Tuma are the

“who” of Divine Service. And in our parsha, once we already know the how and the who of Divine Service, we focus on the “conduits” of Divine service, the Kohen and the offerings themselves. And then holiness in time.

1ST ALIYA (VAYIKRA 21:1-15) Kohanim may not come in contact with the dead except for their nuclear family. Nor may they adopt non-Jewish mourning practices such as balding their head and beard or cutting their flesh.

Kohanim shall be holy to G-d, for they serve Him. A Kohen may not marry a divorcee. You are to sanctify them. The Kohen Gadol may never become tamei, for he is anointed. He may not marry a divorcee or widow.

The Kohen is the conduit of service of G-d, the most elevated of human endeavors. As such he is regulated with different laws. His marriage, an area we have noted is emblematic of holiness is regulated. So too the Kohen Gadol, who approaches G-d in an ever more rarified form has even more demanding regulations of marriage.

Each level of kedusha has its own laws.

Kedushat Kehuna, the holiness inherent in Kohanim, is different from Kedushat Yisrael, the holiness of the Jewish people. And each level of kedusha has its own expressions through mitzvot.

All of these details are to express the theme of man’s regal station in life. Human beings are elevated as they are created in G-d’s Image.

Jews are elevated as we have the Divine Covenant. Serving G-d is a further elevation, as we express our rarified station in seeking an even closer moment with the Divine.

And each of these have details. Holiness and its rule is the expression of human uniqueness.

2ND ALIYA (21:16-22:16) A Kohen who has a blemish may not serve in the Mikdash.

This includes blind, lame, broken limbs, eye conditions and others. He may consume holy items but not perform the service. A Kohen may not serve while Tamei, as this desecrates the holy. While a non-Kohen may not consume the holy (teruma), those who are a part of the Kohen’s home may. His daughter, before marriage or after if childless, is part of his home and may consume the holy. The holy is profaned when consumed by others.

The Kohen serves in the Mikdash. And he also receives certain benefits, like Teruma (2% of produce grown in the Land of Israel).

If he has certain quite dramatic blemishes, he may not serve. But that does not mean he may not enjoy the benefits, like Teruma.

His Kedushat Kehuna, his status as a Kohen is unaffected by blemishes.

Perhaps this is to convey to the Kohen: a blemish limits what you may do, but not who you are. You are a Kohen with a blemish but a Kohen you remain. And this message resonates not only for the Kohen. We all could use this reminder: we are created in His Image.

Some with greater abilities some with less.

And over time, our abilities wither and we aren’t what we used to be; can’t do what we used to do. Time limits what we do, but not who we are. Created in His Image we remain.

3RD ALIYA (22:17-33) An animal offering may not have a blemish. This includes blind, broken limbs, eye conditions and others. This applies to a non-Jew’s offering as well. An animal with a blemish is not pleasing. An offering must be at least 8 days old. A mother and offspring may not be slaughtered on the OU ISRAEL CENTER 13

same day. An offering may not be eaten after the 2nd day. Do not profane My Name, rather sanctify Me in your midst.

The conclusion of this section states the mitzvah of Kiddush Hashem and Hillul Hashem. Actions done by little ole me can cause G-d’s Name to be desecrated, Hillul Hashem. Or sanctified, Kiddush Hashem. The Holiness of G-d’s Name hovers over our every action. Our care and kindness, the gentle manner of our speech, the pleasantness of our demeanor can be a Kiddush Hashem, unbeknownst and unintended by us. What a weighty responsibility. And a wonderful opportunity.

4TH ALIYA (23:1-22) These are the holy days: 6 days work, 7th day is Shabbat. Pesach is on the 14th of the 1st month; for 7 days eat matza. The first day is holy, no melacha should be done, as is the 7th day. The Omer offering of freshly harvested barley is brought the day after the first holiday day of Pesach. It permits consumption of the new grain. Count 7 full weeks and on the 50th day bring an offering of new wheat as baked chametz. That day (Shavuot) shall be a holy day on which no melacha shall be done. When harvesting, leave the corners and the dropped items to the poor and stranger.

The Torah here introduces us to a new theme of Kedusha: holiness in time. The holiness of proximity to G-d has been expressed in holiness in space, the Mishkan.

And through food and relationships, we are holy. And Kohanim have holiness. Now, time too. Shabbat and holidays are a rendezvous with G-d, not only in a particular place but in a particular time.

For there is no parallel to the regulation of 14 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

time in the animal kingdom. Time is recognized and regulated only by human beings.

5TH ALIYA (23:23-32) The first day of the 7th month (Rosh Hashana) is a truah remembrance. No work shall be done. The 10th day (Yom Kippur) is a holy day on which to afflict your soul, for it is a day of atonement. No work shall be done. From evening til evening.

The brevity of the Torah’s description of Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur belie their drama in our lives. But their description, remembrance and atonement – those are resonant words. These are not historically rich like Pesach. But relationally rich; G-d noting us. And granting us atonement.

6TH ALIYA (23:33-44) The 15th of the 7th month begins a 7-day holiday of Sukkot. The first day is holy, no work shall be done. The 8th day is holy, no work shall be done. These are the holy days each with its offerings, besides the offerings of Shabbat and voluntary ones.

And also, on the 15th of the 7th month take a Lulav and Etrog and rejoice before G-d for 7 days. Dwell in Sukkot so you shall know that I had the Jews dwell in Sukkot upon the Exodus.

In the Torah, Sukkot is the end of the year.

For the holidays. And so, we have extra joy and appreciation for the holiday cycle that began with Pesach. People need rhythm in life. Something to look forward to. To anticipate. To expect. Every culture has its special days. Our special days are holy, uplifted, change of routine, change of locale (in going to Jerusalem). And for that we are blessed.

And appreciative.

7TH ALIYA (24:1-23) Bring oil for a permanent light in the Menorah, set outside the Holy

of Holies. Bake 12 loaves to be placed in 2 groups of 6 on the Shulchan every Shabbat.

The Kohanim shall eat this holy bread in the Mikdash.

2 men fought. The Jewish man cursed G-d. He was held until his sentence would be determined by G-d. He shall be stoned. These crimes are punishable by death: cursing G-d, murder. Others have financial penalties: property damage and bodily assault.

Oil, flour and wine figure prominently in the Mikdash. Oil in the Menorah. Bread on the Shulchan. Wine, though not mentioned here, is brought with the animal sacrifices.

It is noteworthy that each of these 3 is processed. Grain is the natural item; the bread is processed by people. Olives, natural; olive oil processed. Grapes, natural; wine processed.

None of these occur naturally; they are all processed by people.

Perhaps this too is to serve G-d specifically with items that express the uniqueness of mankind, our ability to take the natural and be creative. We serve Him with our creativity, our ingenuity, the unique qualities of mankind.

Holiness and its laws are expressions of the elevated and noble station of man.

HAFTORAH YECHEZKEL 44:15-31 This week’s haftorah echoes the parsha, in that it discusses various laws pertaining to the kohanim.

We are privy in this memorable section to learn about the service of the kohanim in the third Holy Temple through the elevated prophecy of Yechezkel. The realities he describes will come to fruition at the time

of the Final Redemption.

As part of his vision, we learn about the unique vestments worn by the priests, laws of who they can marry, and the laws regarding coming in contact with a dead body.

There is also a call to the kohanim to serve as teachers and leaders of the nation of Israel.

Being that the kohanim are to serve solely as the emissaries of the Almighty, they do not receive a portion of the Land of Israel but are given the meat of the sacrifices and tithes which support their holy work.

STATS 31st of 54 sedras; 8th of 10 in Vayikra.

Written on 215 lines (rank: 20th).

17 parshiyot; 11 open, 6 closed.

124 pesukim, rank: 15; 1st in Vayikra.

1614 words, rank: 22; 2nd in Vayikra 6106 letters, rank: 23; 2nd in Vayikra.

Relatively short pesukim account for its drop in ranking for words & letters.

1558 wordsMITZVOT - ranks 24th.

63 of 613 mitzvot; 24 positive 39 prohibitions.

Emor has more than one mitzvah per two pesukim, five times the Torah’s average. Only Ki Teitzei (with 74) has more mitzvot than Emor.

Mazal Tov to

Stefan & Rochelle Somogyi and family on the birth of a great grandson 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

“Becoming a Kohen” In every group, there is one person who stands out as special. In childhood, it is often the kid with the greatest athletic prowess.

Later in life, different attributes begin to qualify a person to become the group’s star.

In my post-high school peer group, many years ago on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, we had one such towering figure. I use the word “towering” literally, because he was well over six feet tall. He had jet-black hair, which turned the heads of all the young ladies who passed him by. He had an outstanding academic record and seemed to earn his grades effortlessly.

As our group began to disperse with each of us going off to different colleges and yeshivot, he announced that he was accepted into a very prestigious university across the country. He was so distinctive and distinguished that, although he was not born into the priestly tribe, we called him “the Kohen”.

In this week’s Torah portion, Emor, we learn about the priests, or kohanim, and their special role in the Jewish nation. This is certainly not the first time that we have encountered them in our Torah readings. We already know that they stem from the tribe of Levi and descend from Aaron, brother 16 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

of Moses. We have learned that they were charged with the performance of the sacrificial rites and other Temple practices. But this week, for the first time, we learn about the restrictions that are imposed upon them, especially with regard to their permission to come into contact with the dead.

We also learn that the rest of us, not born into the kohen’s tribe, are required to “sanctify” them, and to treat them deferentially.

“And you must treat them as holy…” (Leviticus 21:8) “To be first in every way, and to offer the first blessing at the meal.” (Rashi, ibid.) They are to receive the honor of being first in many activities, especially in the ceremonies of leading Birkat HaMazon (Grace After Meals), and being called to the Torah.

Sociologists distinguish between two kinds of roles in society; those which are “ascribed” to us by others, and those which we “achieve” ourselves by virtue of our own efforts and accomplishments. The kohen’s role is clearly an ascribed one. Once a kohen, always a kohen, and unless he is guilty of truly egregious behaviors, he does not lose his status or forfeit his privileges.

One of the most remarkable features of our people is that we still have kohanim.

So proud were the kohanim over all the generations that the “kohanic” identity has been passed from father to son for millennia.

Indeed, genetic evidence seems to confirm the validity of this verbal communication down the ages by isolating a “kohen gene”.

But Judaism also recognizes other paths to

and our next step will be to plant a fruit privileged status that depend upon personal tree. I never thought of myself as being the achievements and hard work, and are not agricultural type, but the feeling of settling ascribed at birth. These are statuses that and planting a portion of Eretz Yisrael, has must be earned and are not determined been truly euphoric. Iy”H, when we plant by one’s genetic endowment. Indeed, the our tree, and eat the fruits that will grow Talmud recognizes the equality, if not one day, I think we will be able to truly superiority, of the talmid chacham to the appreciate that unique Kedusha found in Kohen Gadol. Greater respect is shown for the fruit of Eretz Yisrael! the person whose piety and erudition earned To conclude, when buywho yourgained Tu B'shvat him his status thanyou to one the fruit this year, don’t search for those dried role of High Priest by virtue of his genealogy. apricots banana imported from Duringand recent times,chips we have been anticTurkey.

Rather, head over theking fresh ipating the coronation of a to new of produce and buy yourself some nice juicy England; a perfect example of how promKedusha-filled Jaffa and thank inence, grandeur, andoranges glory redound to an Hashem for bringing you to this land in individual whose position is “ascribed” by ‫ולשבע‬ ‫לאכול‬, order to be and ablenot to ‫מטובה‬ his lineage, achieved by‫מפריה‬ his accomimbibing that Kedusha in that every bite plishments.

It would seem even inthat our you take!! day and age, we are captivated by those who

are born to their positions.

But how much more deserving of our reverence and respect is the “low-born” person who has achieved his prominence by virtue of his hard work. In this sense, all of us are potentially kohanim, even if our genealogy is not comprised of ancestors from the tribe of Levi and who are not descendent from Moses or Aaron.

As is often the case, it was Maimonides who said it best: “Not just the tribe of Levi, but every inhabitant of the world whose inspiration and intellect guide him to stand before the Almighty, to serve Him and to know Him… is elevated to sanctity and holiness… and deserves the same material privileges as the kohanim…” (Mishneh Torah, Laws of the Sabbatical Year and Jubilee, 13:13)

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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

Eternity and Mortality Our Parsha begins with a restriction on the people for whom a kohen may become tamei, a word usually translated as defiled, impure, ceremonially unclean. A priest may not touch or be under the same roof as a dead body. He must remain aloof from close contact with the dead (with the exception of a close relative, defined in our Parsha as his wife, a parent, a child, a brother, or an unmarried sister). The law for the Kohen Gadol (High Priest) is stricter still. He may not allow himself to become ceremonially unclean even for a close relative, although both he and an ordinary priest may do so for a meit mitzvah, that is, one who has no one else to attend to their funeral. In such a case, the basic requirement of human dignity overrides the priestly imperative of purity.

These laws, together with many others in Vayikra and Bamidbar – especially the rite of the Red Heifer, used to cleanse those who had come into contact with the dead – are hard for us to understand nowadays. They already were in the days of the Sages. Rabban 20 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

Yochanan ben Zakkai is famous for saying to his students, “It is not that death defiles nor that the waters [of the Red Heifer] purify.

Rather, God says, I have ordained a statute and issued a decree, and you have no permission to transgress it.” The implication seems to be that the rules have no logic. They are simply Divine commands.

These laws are indeed perplexing. Death defiles. But so does childbirth (Lev. 12).

The strange cluster of phenomena known as tzara’at, usually translated as leprosy, coincides with no known illness since it is a condition that can affect not only a person but also garments and the walls of a house (Lev.13-14). We know of no medical condition to which this corresponds.

Then, in our Parsha, there is the exclusion from service in the Sanctuary of a kohen who had a physical blemish – someone who was blind or lame, had a deformed nose or misshapen limb, a hunched back or dwarfism (Lev. 21:16-21). Why so? Such an exclusion seems to fly in the face of the following principle: “The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

(1 Sam. 16:7) Why should outward appearance affect

whether you may or may not serve as a priest in the house of God? Yet these decrees do have an underlying logic. To understand them we have first to understand the concept of the holy. God is beyond space and time, yet God created space and time as well as the physical entities that occupy space and time. God is therefore “concealed.” The Hebrew word for universe, olam, comes from the same Hebrew root as ne’elam, “hidden.” As the mystics put it: creation involved tzimtzum, Divine self-effacement, for without it neither the universe nor we could exist. At every point, the infinite would obliterate the finite.

Yet if God was completely and permanently hidden from the physical world, it would be as if He were absent. From a human perspective there would be no difference between an unknowable God and a non-existent God. Therefore God established the holy as the point at which the Eternal enters time and the Infinite enters space. Holy time is Shabbat.

Holy space was the Tabernacle, and later, the Temple.

God’s eternity stands in the sharpest possible contrast to our mortality. All that lives will one day die. All that is physical will one day erode and cease to be. Even the sun, and the universe itself, will eventually become extinct. Hence the extreme delicacy and danger of the Tabernacle or Temple, the point at which That-which-is-beyond-timeand-space enters time and space. Like matter and antimatter, the combination of the purely spiritual and the unmistakably physical is explosive and must be guarded against. Just as a highly sensitive experiment should be conducted without the slightest contamination, so the holy space had to be kept free of

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conditions that bespoke mortality.

Tumah should therefore not be thought of as “defilement,” as if there were something wrong or sinful about it. Tumah is about mortality. Death bespeaks mortality, but so too does birth. A skin disease like tzara’at makes us vividly aware of the body. So does an unusual physical attribute like a misshapen limb. Even mould on a garment or the wall of a house is a symptom of physical decay.

There is nothing ethically wrong about any of these things, but they focus our attention on the physical and are therefore incompatible with the holy space of the Tabernacle, dedicated to the presence of the non-physical, the Eternal Infinite that never dies or decays.

There is a graphic example of this at the beginning of the book of Job. In a series of devastating blows, Job loses everything: his flocks, his herds, his children. Yet his faith remains intact. Satan then proposes subjecting Job to an even greater trial, covering his body with sores.1 The logic of this seems absurd. How can a skin disease be a greater trial of faith than losing your children?

It isn’t. But what the book is saying is that when your body is afflicted, it can be hard, even impossible, to focus on spirituality. This has nothing to do with ultimate truth and everything to do with the human mind. As Maimonides said, you cannot give your mind to meditating on truth when you are hungry or thirsty, homeless or sick.2 The biblical scholar James Kugel recently published a book, In the Valley of the Shadow, about his experience of cancer. Told by the doctors that, in all probability, he had no more than two years of life left (thankfully,

he was in fact cured), he describes the experience of suddenly learning of the imminence of death. He says, “the background music stopped.” By “background music” he meant the sense of being part of the flow of life.

We all know we will one day die, but for the most part we feel part of life and of time that will go on for ever (Plato famously described time as a moving image of eternity). It is consciousness of death that detaches us from this sense, separating us from the rest of life as if by a screen.

Kugel also writes, “Most people, when they see someone ravaged by chemotherapy, just tend to keep their distance.” He quotes Psalm 38:12: “My friends and companions stand back at the sight of my affliction; even those closest to me keep their distance.” (Psalm 38:12) Although the physical reactions to chemotherapy are quite different from a skin disease or a bodily abnormality, they tend to generate the same feeling in others, part of which has to do with the thought “This could happen to me.” They remind us of the “thousand natural shocks that flesh is heir to.”3 This is the logic – if logic is the right word – of tumah. It has nothing to do with rationality and everything to do with emotion (Recall Pascal’s remark that “the heart has its reasons of which reason knows nothing”). Tumah does not mean defilement. It means that which distracts from eternity and infinity by making us forcibly aware of mortality, of the fact that we are physical beings in a physical world.

What the Tabernacle represented in space and Shabbat in time was quite radical. It was not rare in the ancient world, nor in some

1. See Job 1-2.

2. Guide for the Perplexed III:27.

3. From William Shakespeare’s famous soliloquy in Hamlet, Act III, Scene I.

22 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

religions today, to believe that here on earth everything is mortal. Only in Heaven or the afterlife will we encounter immortality. This is why so many religions in both East and West have been other-worldly.

In Judaism, holiness exists within this world, despite the fact that it is bounded by space and time. But holiness, like antimatter, must be carefully insulated. Hence the stringency of the laws of Shabbat on the one hand, the Temple and its priesthood on the other. The holy is the point at which heaven and earth meet, where, by intense focus and a complete absence of earthly concerns, we open up space and time to the sensed presence of God who is beyond space and time.

It is an intimation of eternity in the midst of life, allowing us at our holiest moments to feel part of something that does not die. The holy is the space within which we redeem our existence from mere contingency and know that we are held within the “everlasting arms”4 of God.

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4. Deut 33:27

These weekly teachings from Rabbi Sacks zt”l are part of his ‘Covenant & Conversation’ series on the weekly Torah teaching. With thanks to the Schimmel Family for their generous sponsorship, dedicated in loving memory of Harry (Chaim) Schimmel. Visit www.RabbiSacks.org for more.

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PROBING THE PROPHETS

BY RABBI NACHMAN (NEIL) WINKLER FACULTY, OU ISRAEL CENTER

Being “Holy” Parashat Emor that we read this Shabbat begins by enumerating many of the laws of kedusha, sanctity, as they apply to the kohanim. The obligations that the Torah places upon the “priestly class” are meant to ensure that these attendants of Hashem will retain a level of sanctity – one that demands an even higher level than what was expected of the holy nation itself. It is, therefore, especially fitting on this Shabbat to define the very concept of “sanctity or “holiness.”

Perhaps of the best-known disagreement in defining “sacred” behavior or “a spark of godliness” is the difference in the views the two towering parshanim, Rashi and the Ramban (Nachmanides). In the opening of last week’s parasha of Kedoshim, Rashi explains Hashem’s demand “Kedoshim t’hiyu as one’s obligation to “distance from sin and immorality”. In effect, the great commentator argues that reaching the state of

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holiness requires an avoidance of any sinful behavior, of corruption or depravity. On the other hand, the great parashan of the thirteenth century, however, posits that the mere circumventing of sin does not make one a “holy” person. He argues that one could actually avoid all of the sins mentioned in the Torah and yet still be a “nahval br’shut HaTorah,” a degenerate who remains within the parameters set forth by the Torah.

The Ramban gives the example of one who uses foul language or a glutton who spends his day gorging himself at a table. None of these acts are forbidden by the Torah-but they certainly would not be the acts of one who would be considered “holy.” Reaching the state of holiness, he says, requires a proactive approach to mitzvah fulfillment, finding opportunities to go beyond what the Torah demands.

In truth, the term ‘kedusha” cannot be simply defined or described. It certainly includes the understandings of both Rashi and the Ramban. Yet, we may also find that its definition can change with the time and the place, and depending on the accepted behavior of that specific generation and the mores of that specific region. But what IS clear is that kedusha is attained through behavior that the people of that generation consider proper, acceptable and admirable; behavior that goes far above the kindnesses, generosity and patience which people normally expect from each other. And, in the time of the third Temple, our final geula, holiness may take on

higher standards than they had before then, just as Yechezkel describes.

It is with this understanding that I share with you the story of the saintly Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach, zt”l, who was approached by a student during the month of Elul. Although he hoped to travel to Tzfat to pray at the graves of the Kedoshim, the holy Rabbis of the past, the student feared that such a long trip would take much time away from his studies. The young man asked his venerable Rebbe whether it would be permissible for him to cancel his time of Torah study in order to travel to Tzfat. The Rav was quoted as having said to him: “You are not permitted to lose so much time from your Torah study by traveling all the way from Yerushalayim to Tzfat. But why not do as I do? Why not go to Har Herzl here in Yerushalayim and pray by the graves of our holy soldiers….just as I do?”

Kedusha takes on different meanings at different times.

Yechezkel HaNavi understood this.

So did Rav Shlomo Zalman.

But…do we?

Rabbi Winkler’s popular Jewish History lectures can be viewed by visiting the OU Israel Video archive: htt p s : / / w w w. o u i s ra e l . o rg / v i d e o - l i b ra r y

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

The Calling of the Moadim ’‫ְׂש ָ​ָר ֵ​ֵאל ְוְ ָֽאֽ ַ​ַמ ְ​ְר ָ�ָּת ֲ​ֲאֵלֵ ֶ​ֶהם מֹוֹ ֲ​ֲע ֵ​ֵדי ה‬ � ְ ‫ל־ְּבֵנֵי ִ​ִי‬ � ְ ‫ַּד�ַ ֵ �ֵּבר ֶ​ֶא‬ :‫ר־ִּת ְ​ְק ְ​ְראּוּ ֹאָֹ֖ת� ֖ ם ִ​ִמ ְ​ְק ָ​ָר ֵ​ֵאי ֹק ֶֶֹד ׁ​ׁש ֵ​ֵא ֶ�ֶּלה ֵ​ֵהם מֹוֹ ֲ​ֲע ָ​ָדי‬ �ִ ֶ �‫ֲ​ֲאֶׁש‬ )‫ב‬:‫(ויקרא כג‬ Speak to Bnei Yisrael and say to them: ‘With regard to God’s appointed holy days, it is only about the ones that you will designate as designated holy occasions that God will say, “These are My appointed holy days.” (Vayikra 23:2)

‫ר־ִּת ְ​ְק ְ​ְראּוּ ֹא ָָֹתם‬ �ִ ֶ �‫ֵ​ֵא ֶ�ֶּלה מֹוֹ ֲ​ֲע ֵ​ֵדי ה’ ִ​ִמ ְ​ְק ָ​ָר ֵ​ֵאי ֹק ֶֶֹד ׁ​ׁש ֲ​ֲאֶׁש‬ )‫ד‬:‫ (ויקרא כג‬:‫ְ �ְּבמֹוֹ ֲ​ֲע ָ​ָדם‬ The following are God’s appointed holy days, i.e., the designated holy occasions that you will designate to be such in their appointed time: (Vayikra 23:4) Why is it that in pasuk 4 above we are told that these are the holidays that we are “to designate” or “call out” ‫– אתם אשר תקראו‬ after we are informed two pesukim earlier of their designation ‫?אשר תקראו אתם‬

28 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

Rabbi Efraim Twerski in his sefer Sarei Alafim offers a creative explanation. There are three main categories of challenges that most people experience throughout life.

Physical and Mental Anguish The first category relates to physical and mental hardship. At times, people encounter physical illness or ailments and psychological or emotional pain. These hardships can impact once demeanor and overall attitude.

Financial Hardship The second category relates to financial hardship. When confronted with monetary issues, strain can be placed on relationships and often unfortunately, people enter into despair based on their economic stature.

Spiritual Challenges The third category relates to spiritual challenges. Man is tempted to indulge in the many restricted pleasures that surround him.

At times, bad things happen to good people and it is difficult to “justify” or comprehend God’s ways.

It is our duty to be able to overcome the three cardinal challenges outlined above: (i) physical and mental anguish, (ii) financial hardship, and (iii) spiritual challenges and to be able to strengthen our Emunah and Bitachon (faith and belief) irrespective of the trials and tribulations that we confront.

Perhaps the Shalosh Regallim can help us strengthen our faith and be able to tackle these difficult experiences. Each of them counters one of these challenges.

Pesach – we celebrate a redemption from

physical and mental bondage. What we experienced in Mitzrayim and the manner in which we were emancipated from that oppression serves as a reminder that we can persevere and overcome difficult physical and mental challenges.

Succot – is a time when we leave the comfort of our homes to highlight that our sustenance is granted from the one Above. It is He who protects us and He who provides us with our food.

Shavuot – is when we received the Torah.

We are to feel as if we experience the acceptance of the Torah on a daily basis, notwithstanding the issues we may face that challenge our faith.

The reason why we are told to designate or call out the Moadim, is so that each of them can serve as a constant reminder and to strengthen our ability to confront difficulties we may encounter physically, economically or spiritually.

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REBBETZIN SHIRA SHIRA SMILES FACULTY, OU ISRAEL CENTER SMILES

Viewing Vitality “Emor el haKohanim benei Aharon ve’amarta aleihem le’nefesh lo yitama be’amav – Speak the following to Aron’s descendants, the kohanim: Let no [kohen] defile himself [by contact with] the dead among his people.” (Vayikra 21:1) Our parashah begins by presenting a set of laws exclusive to kohanim, opening with the prohibition for a kohen to come in contact with a corpse. The added word ‘be’amav’ indicates that the prohibition excludes a case in which a corpse is found where there is no one to attend to the burial, then, even a Kohen Gadol must become ritually impure to engage in this important mitzvah. The commentators learn several profound lessons from this verse employing remez and derash, exegetical means of analysis.

Rav Elya Lopian zt”l in Lev Eliyahu sees a message here for every individual, focusing on an appreciation for the soul-body relationship. Every person possesses a chelek Elokah me’ma’al, a neshamah of Divine origin that infuses the body with kedushah, Divine holiness. Thus, one who has passed away is worthy of being tended to with respect, how much more so when one is alive! Let us appreciate the profound power we each possess to generate kedushah in the world with each mitzvah and good deed that we do.

30 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

Faculty, OU Israel Center

The Tosher Rebbe zt”l in Avodat Avodah interprets this verse by way of ‘derush.’

Each person has an innate spark of holiness enabling him to perform mitzvot. One who is careful to direct his thoughts, words and actions toward living with purity, can harness this exalted energy to serve Hashem with passion and excitement. However, one who subverts his heart, mind and speech for his own personal benefit, will diminish his Divine spark.

The Tosher Rebbe compares this dull service of Hashem to nearly extinguished coals, lacking passion and connection. “Ve’nefesh lo yitama,” a soul should not ‘impurify’ itself, if it does, “be’amav” it will become dim, related to the word ‘im-um.’ The Torah is warning us against serving Hashem from a place of coldness and distance. Rashi thus notes the double expression of “Emor… ve’amartem,” teaching us that the elders should instruct the younger ones in a way that will stimulate their natural inner fervor ensuring that it will remain vibrant as they mature and grow.

The parashah continues with a discussion of Shabbat and the festivals, both G-d given opportunities and beautiful mediums with which we can serve Hashem with warmth and spirit, stoking our inner passion to connect with our Source.

As we count sefirat ha’Omer each evening, we can pause and allow ourselves to feel the anticipation and excitement leading us to Matan Torah, the ultimate experience of connecting to Hashem.

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BADERECH Executive Director, Camp HASC of Baderech: Along the Path RABBI JUDAHof Author Teshuva (Mosaica 2021) RABBI JUDAH MISCHEL Mischel

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CAMP HASC AUTHOR OF BADERECH SERIES

discuss various medical shailos. Once, when Dr. Zelefsky came to MTJ to discuss a new breakthrough in cardiac surgery, Reb Moshe offered Dr. Zelefsky a unique opportunity: “I have just completed a thorough response to a similar inquiry and wrote a teshuvah Rav Moshe Feinstein, zt’l, the beloved detailing all of the various elements of the rosh yeshivah of Mesivta Tifereth Jerusaquestion. Accompany me home and I will lem on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, gladly share it with you so that you can make was considered the poseik ha-dor, the leada copy and have it for yourself.” ing halachic authority of his generation.

They arrived at the high-rise apartRevered for his unmatched ment complex where Reb genius and hasmada, conMoshe lived and walked stant engagement in Taltoward the elevators in mud Torah, he authored the main lobby and Dr Igros Moshe, a nine volume Zelefsky pressed the “up” series of responsa that button. When the elevator includes thousands of his door opened, Reb Moshe brilliant teshuvos, plus an made no move to enter. index which fills an addiThe doors closed and the tional volume, entitled Yad elevator began its ascent Rav Moshe Feinstein zt"l Moshe. Reb Moshe’s wise without them. Dr. Zelefsky counsel and psak were eagerly sought by was confused, but chose not to question Jews worldwide; countless people of all the Rosh Yeshiva. Perhaps Reb Moshe was stripes turned to the tzadik with questions lost in thought; either way, he pressed the and quandaries large and small. Most sigelevator’s ‘up button’ a second time. When nificantly perhaps, Reb Moshe was adored the elevator arrived, the gadol’s curious for his compassion, sensitivity and midos behavior repeated itself, and once again, tovos — his humble care and respect for Reb Moshe did not enter. other human beings.

Reb Moshe subtly motioned toward the Dr. Melvin Zelefsky, chair of radiology other end of the lobby. A little girl, who did at Jacobi Medical Center and professor not appear to be Jewish, sat on the floor, of radiology at Albert Einstein College alone. Reb Moshe turned to Dr. Zelefsky of Medicine was a talmid of Reb Moshe, and said, “That child is too young to be left and would often visit the Rosh Yeshiva to alone. I don’t want to leave until the person

The Meaning of Greatness

32 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

responsible for her returns.”

The Gadol haDor and his respected visitor then waited patiently together. Some time later, the door of the apartment building’s rental office opened and a frazzled looking woman, obviously the little girl’s mother appeared. Slightly embarrassed, the woman took hold of her daughter’s hand and quickly continued on her way.

When Reb Moshe entered the elevator, he remarked gently to Dr. Zelefsky, A klein kind darf hoben shemirah, “A young child requires protection.”

‫ויאמר ה׳ אל משה אמר אל הכהנים בני אהרן‬ …‫ואמרת אליהם‬ “Speak the kohanim, the sons of Aharon, and tell them…” (21:1) Rashi points out a seemingly unnecessary repetition in this sentence in the words ‫אמר‬, emor, “speak to”, and ‫ואמרת‬, v’amarta, “and say to them”. This phenomenon, he says, teaches us that ‫להזהיר גדולים על הקטנים‬, “the adults (gedolim’) should l’hazir, ‘warn’ the young.” In other words, in addition to the kohanim learning from Aharon how to observe the laws of purity, the kohanim should, in turn, ‘warn’ their children to observe these commandments, so that they will not make themselves impure. The young kohanim, too, should avoid contact with the dead so as not to be rendered tameh l’nefesh, ritually impure.

Here, we generally translate Rashi’s term gedolim, as “adults”, and this is the peshat and basic intent of the commentary.

However, the term gadol, ‘great’, is also used to describe great rabbis, leaders and sages. What, precisely, is a ‘great’ person?

Automatically labelling brilliant roshei

is reluctant to send Yishmael away and is Yitzchak seeks reconciliation with Yish- in yeshivah, Talmudic decisors or people of mael and seeks to bless Esav. th spiritual influence as gedolim can in fact th 6 Aliya Avrahamgreatmar- Jew be inaccurate.

One (25:1-11) who has acquired ries Keturah; they have All len ness in intellectual knowledge is 6ofsons. course Avraham has goes to does Yitzchak; worthy ofthat respect, but that alone not these are sent eastward with gifts.

Avraham qualify them as a gadol b’Yisrael, a ‘great dies at age 175;Yisrael. he is buried

by Yitzchak and leader’ in Am Providing guidance Yishmael in Ma’arat Hamachpelah.

Yitzchak and support for one’s community, yeshivah, is blessedorbyconstituency G-d: he livesisinmeaningful Beer L’chaiand Roi. network The oftransition from Avraham to ec worthy much appreciation, but this too Yitzchak is complete.

While G-db’Yisrael’. has been tio does not qualify them as a ‘gadol ‘big people’, those who a Gedolim, silent partner in thisare parsha, here see He the big picture and do something completes the — generational transferabout – He w it.

Anecdotes of Reb broad and blesses Yitzchak.

TheMoshe’s Jewish people will an deep vision,and his not humanity, his universal be Yitzchak Yishmael. be care and concern for others, are instructive 7th Aliya (25:12-18) The generafa to all of us. Truly ‘big people’, leaders of the tions of Yishmael are th nation, are those who take responsibility for enumerated. Yishmael dies. His hi others, including those beyond the memdescendants dwell from Egypt to Assyria. bers of their group, worldview, location or Yishmael’s story is brief. He has numerica society. Great people, leaders with global ous and powerful offspring. The brevity th vision, are those who heed the call of Emor, and can see across the lobby.

BY RABBI May we hear and implement the Ribbono Rav, Beit Kne shel Olam’s call to be a mamleches kohanim, a nation ofAvraham priests, lovingly and compasWhen addresses the people of Cheit, trying to “Ger V’Toshav Anochi (23:4) “A Stranger an sionately warning the Eimachem” young, and taking This seems to be a contradiction. If one is a stranger tha responsibility for each other, for the future, is no longer a stranger. What did Avraham mean? the whole world and every soul inKranz need1741-1804) of The Magid of Dubno (Jacob ben Wolf this tensewisdom situation inor order to, both, state his truth and be resources, protection.

A SHORT VORT

said, on the one hand, “I am a Resident’ due to G-d’s promis need your agreement to purchase a plot. In other words, Av while they Rabbi understood him as saying that “the To “strangers”, find out more about Mischel’s peace was kept, and visit: Avraham remained true to his bookThe ‘Baderech Haggadah’, Shabbat Shalom www.judahmischel.com/baderech-book

12

ISRAEL TORAH TIDBITS 1440 / CHAYEIOU SARA 5782CENTER 33

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OU ISRAEL CENTER 35

OU KASHRUT RABBI EZRA FRIEDMAN PAGE BY Director, TheGustave Gustave & Carol Jacobs Center Director, The & Carol Jacobs for Kashrut Education Center for Kashrut Education

ThetoLaws of Introduction – Timing BishulChadash Akum According to the Torah, any of the five The prohibition major grains—barley, oats, rye, spelt, and According Biblical law,after foodPesach that is wheat—thattoare planted completely kosher and cooked by a even non(Passover) may not be consumed or Jew is permitted.

However, our Sages harvested until the Omer offering has been decreed such food, when brought.that During the timeeven of the Beit cooked HaMikin kosher utensils, is prohibited forwould condash (Holy Temple), the Jewish people sumption.

Thissacrifice prohibition issecond knownday as offer the Omer on the bishul akum.

In the coming weeks we of Pesach (the 16th of Nissan), using barley will the parameters of this thisofferrabfromdiscuss the previous season. Once binic prohibition, the reasons ing was brought, allincluding newly grown crops— behind the decree, when it applies, and referred to as Chadash (“new”)—became the practical halacha for modern induspermitted for consumption. From that point trial kashrut. onward, all grains, whether already ripe or Food is a were very considered connectingYoshon element in still growing, (“old”) every society.toThat is the basis behind the and allowed be eaten. decree of bishul akum.

Our been Sagespermitted were very Once a yearly crop has concerned about close relationships through the Omer offering, it remainswith pernon-Jews since intermarriage is a very missible indefinitely, even if stored for many severe transgression.

The effecyears. The prohibition ofprohibition Chadash applies tively limits Jews and gentiles dining with specifically to grain that was planted after each other, although there is no specific the Omer offering and harvested before the prohibition against dining with a non-Jew following year’s offering. This restriction per se. (See Rashi ongrains Avodah Zara 31:b.) extends not only to the themselves but Forbidding the non-Jew’s cooking would also to all products derived from them—such be enoughpasta, to create an emotional as bread, crackers, and evendistance candy. such that families wouldn’t marry Moreover, Chadash is treated withinto the each sameother. severity as non-kosher food. For Rabbeinuutensils Tam (Tosfot Avodahequipment Zara 38:a) instance, or cooking and Rambam (Ma’achalot Asurot 17:9) that came into contact with Chadash must be 36 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 52 TORAH TIDBITS 1516/ /EMOR BAMIDBAR

maintain that the decree is based on this issue of closeness to non-Jews that could lead to intermarriage; this is the opinion of most early authorities. However, Rashi and others attribute a different reasoning to the kashered, similar to how one would kasher prohibition of bishul akum, which is that equipment used with non-kosher meat or non-Jews might mix non-kosher ingredifor switching between meat and dairy. ents into the kosher food. future articles A UNIQUE ASPECT OFInCHADASH weAwill discuss whether the parameters of particularly interesting element of bishul akum based on both of these Chadash is itsare time-bound nature.

Oncereathe sons or just one.

However, it is clear from Omer offering has been brought, the entire numerous sources that the danger of intercrop becomes retroactively permitted.

This marriage is the main reason behind the differs from the laws of Chametz on Pesach, prohibition (See Torat Habayit 3:7). which—though also subject to a seasonal The decree is binding regardless the prohibition—become forbidden againof every reason year. In contrast, once a crop has been perSinceafter the the transgression of it intermarmitted Omer offering, remains riage was the primary concern behind our permitted forever.

Sages’ goal was to powerfully This decree, unique their quality also applies to utendiscourage the possibility developing sils and products made with of Chadash.

Once emotional connections to non-Jews that the time of the offering has passed, all grain could lead to intermarriage either in products worldwide are permitted. Therethat or the next.

Accordingly, fore,generation one may purchase items that were early authorities discuss whether the previously considered Chadash, even if they prohibition of bishul akum still applies were produced using equipment that had even in situations absorbed Chadash. where intermarriage is A not technically possible.

For this example, well-known story illustrates point: Rashba, his responsa (1:248), examines the Vilnain Gaon would bake matzot on Chol the case of food cooked by a priest.

Being HaMoed Pesach using freshly harvested that Catholic priests do not marry nor do flour and would eat them immediately. they have children with whom to interThis practice demonstrated that consuming marry, is it permitted to eat food cooked Yoshon flour is permissible right after the by a priest even though the reason for Omer offering. Notably, he did not kasher bishul akumbeforehand, seemingly does not applythe to the utensils underscoring

The OU Israel Gustave & Carol Jacobs Center for Kashrut Education was created to raise awareness and educate the public in all areas of kashrut. Rabbi Ezra Friedman, Deputy Rabbinic Administrator for OU Kosher Israel is the Center's director.

permissibility once the grain is considered him?

Rashba answers that we have a rule Yoshon. regarding rabbinic decrees: even when THE TIME PERIOD OF CHADASH the reason does not apply, the prohibition In our modern age of global food producstill This iswhen a necessary element tion,stands. determining to be concerned in every rabbinic prohibition.

Otherwise, about Chadash is complex—especially for Rashba explains, people could those who are stringent and rationalize avoid conand findproduce reasonsthat why any be decree should suming might classified as not apply in their particular situation.

Chadash, whether from Israel or abroad.

Accordingly, Rashba concludes even Immediately after Pesach, therethat is generfood cooked by for a Catholic priest has ally no concern several months, as the the prohibition of bishul akum.

A similar Omer offering permits all grain products. ruling is made

by Ramban Zara Additionally, it takes time for (Avodah newly planted 35:a) regarding non-Jewish royalty who, grain to be harvested, processed, and disbecause of their are it prohibited tributed. Even afterstature, this period, is difficult from marrying He maintains that to pinpoint whenJews.

Chadash products begin the fact that the non-Jews are royalty is appearing in supermarkets. For example, irrelevant, and that the decree of bishul pretzel and pasta factories may store both akum stands regardless of the reason raw Yoshon flour and ready-made Yoshon behind it.

Taz (YD 112:1) , Shach (YD products, making it challenging to know 112:4) Megadim (YD 112:1) cite when aand shiftPri to Chadash occurs. these rulings as axioms thegone lawsinto of Although much researchofhas bishul akum. tracking these issues across the global kosher Other itexamples market, remains difficult to monitor preLater authorities cisely. However, it isdiscuss widely similar acceptedcases that where the logic behind bishul akum may until the end of August, it is highly unlikely not apply.Chadash Responsaproducts Shevet Kehati for fresh to be (6:273) on the rules that even food cooked by a non-Jewmarket. Manufactured goods may take even ish child considered bishul(In akum, despite longer toisreach consumers. some cases, the fact that the chances of marriage one can check the product’s productionseem date remote.

The same is true for food cooked for guidance.) inIn a faraway where cannot general, itcountry is advisable to Jews consult with travel -bishul akum still applies. a competent authority in kashrut regarding In summary: specific products. Most major kashrut orgaOur Sages prohibited food cooked nizations, including the OU, publish listsby of

Yoshon products and provide guidance on gentiles, even the ingredients and utencutoff dates forifvarious categories. sils are kosher.

The reason cited by most authorities is the risk of intermarriage.

Even in cases with virtually no risk of intermarriage, the food is still prohibited, including non-Jewish royalty, priests, young children, and non-Jews from distant lands.

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OU ISRAEL CENTER OU ISRAEL CENTER 53 37

SIMCHAT simchat shmuel SHMUEL

BY RABBI SAM SHOR

BY RABBI SAMINITIATIVES, SHOR DIRECTOR, TORAH OU ISRAEL Director, OU Israel Center Program Parshat Emor introduces us to one of the most mysterious practices in the Beit Hamikdash. The Torah instructs us that we are to prepare and bake the lechem hapanim- twelve loaves that are to be placed on each of the twelve drawers of the Shulchan, and are to remain there constantly, each week new bread is placed for Shabbat, simultaneous to the removal of the previous week’s loaves.

(Vayikra 24:5-8).

The Sefat Emet, the Gerer Rebbe zy’a explains that the significance of the lechem hapanim being constantly “lifnei Hashem” (before G-d) teaches that a Jew must feel constantly in Hashem’s presence, and that every material aspect of life (like bread) can be elevated to Divine service. The lechem Hapanim are meant to remind each of us that indeed Hashem is present in every aspect of our lives, and to channel all our kochot,resources and capacities to divine service.

Rav Chaim Vital zy’a wrote that the practice of the Arizal was to have twelve loaves of bread at every Seudat Shabbat to parallel the twelve loaves of the lechem hapanim.

The Gemara in Chagiga(26b) tells us that Reish Lakish explained that these twelve loaves were displayed before all those who came to the Temple for each of the three pilgrimage festivals, and that it was stated before them- ‘See how much Hashem loves the Jewish People, the loaves are as fresh(from the previous week) now as we remove them, as they were when they were placed! ‘ Rebbe Yehoshua ben Levi stated that a great miracle occurred with the 38 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

lechem hapanim loaves, they stayed fresh from week to week, they remained as warm as they were when they were placed.’

Reb Tzadok HaKohein of Lublin zy’a explains our Gemara as teaching a profound eternal message. The twelve loaves of the lechem hapanim represent the twelve tribes of the Jewish People.The miracle of the twelve loaves of the lechem hapanim staying fresh and warm demonstrated that Hashem’s love and warmth is equally bestowed on each of the twelve tribes of the Jewish People. This miracle also is meant to teach us an eternal lesson, that if Hashem loves each and every Jewish tribe equally, then we too must strive to feel warmth and love for each and every member of Klal Yisrael.

May we merit to internalize these beautiful teachings- that just as HaKadosh Baruch Hu is ever present in each of our lives, and truly loves each and every member of Klal Yisrael, so too may we learn to see the beauty within one another, and to express our love for every single Jew.

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GEULAS GEULAS YISRAEL YISRAEL

RABBI MOSHE TARAGIN

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

Kiddush Hashem and the False Mirror of Martyrdom The mitzvah of Kiddush Hashem—of sanctifying Hashem’s name, even through martyrdom—lies at the heart of Jewish identity. From the dawn of Jewish history, Avraham embedded this value deep within our national identity. His readiness to sacrifice Yitzchak empowered the Jewish heart to face the challenge of Kiddush Hashem with strength and clarity. Our commitment to Hashem must be total and uncompromising. If called upon, we are commanded to sacrifice our lives to preserve His presence in our world and to fulfill His will on this earth.

Historically, Jewish martyrdom has been vital to our survival, especially throughout the long and painful years of exile. Without this inner strength and courage, we would not have endured or resisted the many attempts to wipe out Judaism. Our faith could not have withstood the avalanche of violence had we not been willing to defend Hashem’s presence—even at the cost of our lives.

SEAMS OF HISTORY At crucial junctures of Jewish history, individuals were moser nefesh al Kiddush Hashem, shaping Jewish history through their courage and inner faith. During our first galut, it seemed as though Hashem had vanished from history—or perhaps had 48 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

turned away from us and directed His interest elsewhere. How else could we understand the devastation of the Mikdash and the exile of our people from Eretz Yisrael?

At this crucial historical moment, three heroes rose to uphold Hashem’s presence and remind the world that we remained His chosen people. Chananya, Misha’el, and Azarya defied Nevuchadnezzar, an indomitable tyrant who ruled the entire world.

Flung into a fiery furnace of death, they were miraculously spared—even their garments remained untouched by the flames. Their defiant stand for Hashem steadied our faith as we descended into the darkness of exile.

Seven hundred years later, at another pivotal moment in history, Rebbe Akiva once again placed mesirat nefesh at the heart of Jewish survival. He lived through one of the bleakest chapters of our past, facing relentless Roman persecution and brutality. His entire generation—known as dor hashemad—was forced to resist Rome’s attempt to erase Judaism, often paying the price with their lives.

Eventually, Rebbe Akiva himself was summoned to this fearsome moment. When his talmidim begged him to make sense of the tragedy, he did not flinch: “All my life I

wondered if I would be called to this challenge—and now that the moment has arrived, I will not turn away.” (Berachot 61b).

Thousands of years have passed since Rebbe Akiva’s final stand. It is hard to imagine Judaism surviving without our enduring willingness to give our lives for something greater—the presence of HaKadosh Baruch Hu in this world.

As history enters its final stage, and we once again find ourselves at a turning point, we are called to face it with courage and quiet defiance. Tragically, many have lost their lives defending our presence in this Land and upholding Hashem’s promise and prophecy.

SHAHIDS Today, our enemies also claim religious devotion. Their commitment, however, takes a radically different form.

In our current battle to defend Hashem’s presence our opponents are religious fundamentalist Islamists who view us as intruders upon their sacred lands. They see us as infidels and are fiercely devoted to their religious ideology—so much so that they are willing to die for it.

This encounter forces a deeply uncomfortable question: what is the difference between our value of Kiddush Hashem and, l’havdil, their warped concept of religious martyrdom? After all, in both cases, individuals are fiercely committed to their faith and willing to die for what they believe is the will of God. What, then, separates a shahid from someone who dies al Kiddush Hashem?

LIFESTYLE, NOT DEATHWISH There are two distinct pesukim that address the mitzvah of sacrificing one’s life when called upon. One appears in Parshat Emor:

‫ ְוְ ִנִ ְ​ְקַּד�ַ ְׁש� ְ ִ�ִּתי ְ �ְּבתֹוֹ ְ​ְך ְ �ְּבֵנֵ י‬,‫״ְוְ ֹל ֹא ְ​ְת ַ​ַח ְ�ְּללּוּ ֶ​ֶאת ֵׁש� ֵ ם ָ​ָק ְ​ְדִׁש� ִ י‬

“‫ְׂש ָ​ָר ֵ​ֵאל‬ � ְ ִ‫ִי‬ This pasuk doesn’t speak to the individual but rather to the collective destiny of Am Yisrael. Our national journey is inseparable from Hashem’s presence in the world. When our national condition is strong, His presence expands. When we falter, His presence recedes. Collectively, the Jewish people, as ambassadors of Hashem, are charged with safeguarding His presence in this world.

Notably, this pasuk makes no mention of death. Its focus is entirely on the imperative to advance Kiddush Hashem and to avoid the desecration of His name. It does not explicitly command martyrdom but rather demands that our lives—both personal and national— reflect Hashem’s greatness and glory.

The second source obligating mesirat nefesh is drawn from a derasha of Rebbe Akiva (Berachot 61b). In the section of OU ISRAEL CENTER 49

Shema, the Torah commands:

ָ ‫״ְוְ ָ​ָא ַ​ַה ְ​ְב ּ�ָּת ֵ​ֵאת ה’ ֱ​ֱאֹל ֶֶֹק ָיָך ְּב�ָּכָ ל ְלְ ָ​ָב ְ​ְב ָ​ָך ְּוְּבָכָ ל ַנַ ְ​ְפ‬ ‫ְׁש�ָׁך‬ “‫ְּוְּבָכָ ל ְ​ְמֹא ֶֶֹד ָ​ָך‬

We are called to love Hashem with all our heart, soul, and resources. Rebbe Akiva famously interpreted the phrase “‫בכל‬ ‫—”נפשך‬even with your soul—as a reference to kiddush Hashem: “‫“—”אפילו נוטל את נשמתך‬Even if He takes your soul.”

This interpretation introduces the possibility of death, but death is not the ideal or the goal; the pasuk doesn’t explicitly mention death. The primary mitzvah- Ahavat Hashem - is to love Him with full heart and full soul and to live a life reflecting that passion.

Ideally, mesirat nefesh means living a life of unwavering loyalty to His will and deep commitment to Torah and mitzvot.

However, our loyalty must be so complete that we are willing to sacrifice our lives- if forced to choose between personal survival and Hashem’s name. If we flinch at that moment, it reveals that our own life and interests take precedence over Hashem’s presence in this world. Kiddush Hashem begins with how we live—but it may demand how we die.

But death is never the objective—life is.

Death is only the most extreme form of mesirat nefesh, which we are sometimes called to embrace.

The willingness to love Hashem even to the point of death gives our lives meaning and properly orients our priorities. Even a person who doesn’t die al kiddush Hashem but lives a passionate life of kiddush Hashem has fulfilled the mitzvah—though not in its most extreme form. Mesirat nefesh al kiddush Hashem means delivering your essence 50 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

to Hashem and prioritizing a life of avodat Hashem. It can be fulfilled through a lifetime of Torah and mitzvot, even if it doesn’t end in martyrdom.

Judaism harbors no death wish. We cherish this world, embrace life, and strive to infuse it with divine meaning. But for that meaning to animate our lives, it must take precedence over comfort and self-interest.

If we truly value Hashem more than ourselves—if our lives are guided by a higher calling—then, when tested, we must be willing to give our lives al kiddush Hashem.

It is precisely in this regard that Kiddush Hashem differs from Shahidism. That culture pursues death as an ideal. There is no inherent value to being a shahid aside from the act of dying. Shahidism only celebrates death but offers no vision for life and makes no demand on how to live. It has no meaning unless it ends in death.

Shahidism is rooted in a broader culture that glorifies death rather than cherishing life. Islamic fundamentalism rarely uplifts the human spirit; instead, it often suppresses it. In these societies, life is not revered or enriched—it is frequently devalued and drained of its sacred worth. Human beings are reduced to instruments in a machinery of sacrifice, where purpose is found only in the readiness to die, not in the drive to live meaningfully. This mindset leaves little room for dignity, growth, or the unfolding of human potential. It is a vision not of life fulfilled, but of life extinguished.

SELFLESS, OR SELFISH? There is another crucial difference between Kiddush Hashem and Shahidism.

A shahid views death as a springboard— an escape from this world in pursuit of

imagined pleasures in the next. His death doesn’t elevate life or reflect a noble moral calling. It feeds a narrow and self-serving dream of physical reward. This isn’t an act of selfless spiritual devotion but a calculated move for personal reward and individual gain. It reflects not moral courage, but a tragic distortion of faith.

The motivations could not be more different. Where Kiddush Hashem is rooted in love and submission, Shahidism is often driven by personal reward and escapism.

RAV ELCHANAN’S SPEECH Thousands of years after Rebbe Akiva spoke to his students about his pending mesirat nefesh, Rav Elchanan Wasserman zt”l offered his own voice, echoing the higher calling of Kiddush Hashem. As the Nazis closed in on the loft where he hid and delivered shiur to a small group of talmidim, it became clear that the end was imminent. With no avenue of escape, Rav Elchanan delivered a final sicha, suffused with clarity and emunah‫ץ‬ He explained that they had evidently been chosen by Hashem as korbanot. Their deaths were not meaningless, but part of a larger divine plan. This sacrifice, he insisted, would reverberate through Jewish history, planting seeds of merit and redemption. He urged his

talmidim to ready their hearts and intentions—so that, like a korban offered on the mizbeach, their sacrifice would be received with favor in Heaven.

His final words echoed the idealism and selflessness voiced by Rebbe Akiva centuries earlier. Like Rebbe Akiva’s comments to his talmidim, Rav Elchanan’s message carried a quiet clarity and unwavering conviction.

Rebbe Akiva had spoken of boundless Ahavat Hashem as the sole force behind his sacrifice—not personal gain or glory. Rav Elchanan spoke not of death but of destiny, of the historical ripple effect their mesirat nefesh would create for Am Yisrael.

Both reminded us that kiddush Hashem is never the goal—it is the outer edge of devotion, the final threshold we must be prepared to cross if called. Above all, they taught us that true Kiddush Hashem serves no self-interest. It exists only to elevate Hashem, to magnify His presence, and to advance the eternal mission of His people.

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

OU ISRAEL CENTER 51

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

Called to Serve The haftarah for Parshat Emor, drawn from Yechezkel, paints a vision of spiritual renewal.

The scene is set in the future Beit HaMikdash, where Hashem designates a select group of Kohanim — the descendants of Tzadok — for the sacred task of serving. Unlike other priests who deviated from their role during times of national betrayal, the Kohanim bnei Tzadok remained steadfast. For that loyalty, they are given the privilege of return: “They shall stand before Me to offer Me fat and blood — declares the Lord G-d — they shall enter My Sanctuary and approach My table to serve Me (‫)ְלְ ָׁש� ָ ְ​ְר ֵ​ֵתִנִ י‬.”

(Yechezkel 44:15) The phrase ‫ — ְלְ ָׁש� ָ ְ​ְר ֵ​ֵתִנִ י‬to serve Me — appears twice in these two verses, and nowhere else in all of Tanach. While many verses describe the service of Kohanim and

Leviim using words like l’sharet or avodah, this intensely personal expression — to serve Me — is unique.

Why repeat it? And why use such rare language?

The answer lies in the contrast Yechezkel is drawing. The generation of failure, in which the majority of the Kohanim led the people astray, is not forgotten — but it is not the end of the story. The faithful few who kept their integrity are granted the opportunity not merely to return to the Beit HaMikdash, but to return to closeness with Hashem.

Rav Samson Raphael Hirsch explains that the word avodah, commonly translated as “service,” means more than performance. It implies purpose, direction, and intentionality.

The Kohanim bnei Tzadok are praised not for their ceremonial precision, but for their unwavering fidelity to Hashem. They served Me — not the crowd, not the moment, not convenience — Me. That’s what makes this language so powerful. These verses are not about function, they are about faithfulness. In a time of communal failure, they didn’t chase approval or follow the masses. They kept showing up for Hashem. Quietly. Consistently. Without applause.

And in return, Hashem says: ‫ֹבאּוּ ֶ​ֶאל־‬ ֹ ‫ֵ​ֵהם ָ​ָי‬

‫ָׁש�ְׁמרּוּ ֶ​ֶאת־‬ ְ ְ‫ָׁש�ְׁר ֵ​ֵתִנִי ְו‬ ְ ְ‫ִ​ִמ ְ​ְקָּד�ָ ִׁש�ׁ י ְוְ ֵ​ֵהם ְִיְִק ְ​ְרבּוּ ֶ​ֶאל־ֻׁש� ׁ ְלְ ָ​ָחִנִי ְל‬ ‫ְׁש�ַׁמ ְ​ְר ּ�ִּתי׃‬ ‫ִמ‬ They shall enter My Sanctuary, and ַ ִ

they shall approach My table, to serve Me, and they shall keep My charge. The image of the table — shulchani — evokes more than ritual.

52 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

It signifies sustenance, and belonging. In the Mikdash, the table held the lechem hapanim, the showbread, a symbol of Hashem’s ongoing relationship with His people. To be invited to Hashem’s table is to be welcomed into a unique space of closeness.

This vision is not limited to Kohanim or prophets. It offers a blueprint for all of us.

There are moments when it’s easier to conform, to compromise our values, to serve what is popular rather than what is true.

But the haftarah reminds us that Hashem honors those who remain steadfast, who live with conviction and clarity even amidst pressure. Yechezkel’s words direct us to live with purpose, serve with integrity and be prepared to serve.The charge of ‫ — ְלְ ָׁש� ָ ְ​ְר ֵ​ֵתִנִי‬to serve Me — is not about the role. It is about the relationship.

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

Saying the Shema Like Rav Kook SHEMA: A GATHERING OF THE NATION A Jew recites the Shema as a daily pronouncement of faith in one God. In Rav Kook’s writings regarding the Shema, he emphasized that reciting the Shema is as an act that brings the nation of Israel together.

When we recite the words Shema Yisrael, we are calling out to each other, “listen my fellow Jew” and express a shared commitment to one God. Rav Kook noted the following Talmudic passage:“Rav Mani said: Reading Kriat Shema at its proper time is greater than being occupied in Torah study” (Berachot 10b, Ain Aya Berachot 1:156). Torah study often outweighs every other commandment.

Why then does reciting the Shema take precedence over Torah study?

Rav Kook suggested that one who studies Torah is engaged primarily in acquiring shleimut (spiritual perfection) for himself.

Undoubtedly, this is a noble pursuit. However, even loftier is the goal of pursuing perfection and wholeness for the collective. The most sublime form of shleimut is where there is concern for the welfare for the nation as a whole.

58 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

Rav Kook emphasized that interestingly this Talmudic passage specifies that the Shema be recited “at its proper time.” When all of Klal Yisrael utters in unison the words of the Shema, every individual in the nation, no matter their stature or level of knowledge, unite.

The Shema symbolizing a spiritual fortification of the nation can be traced back to a celebrated midrash which relates the very first time the Shema was said: “Yaakov wished to reveal to his sons the end of days, but the Holy Spirit withdrew from him. He said, “Perhaps, Heaven forbid, there is a defect in my bed (i.e. my offsprings)…” His sons said to him: “Hear O Israel, the Lord is God, the Lord is One. Just as there is only One in your heart, so there is only One in our hearts.” Then did our father Yaakov recite, “Blessed is the Name of the Glory of His kingdom forever” (Pesachim 56a).

In the tradition passed down by this teaching, the first recorded recitation of the Shema occurred when the family of Yaakov had gathered around their father’s deathbed. In a unified voice the children of Israel declared their solemn faith, and their holy father Yaakov responded in kind by proclaiming his supreme praise to the Almighty.

THE SHEMA: OUR PLACE IN GOD’S PLAN The Talmud instructs us to elongate the word echad when reciting the opening verse of the Shema. The Talmud states: “Sumchus

says: Whoever elongates the word Rav Kook with Rav Moshe Mordechai Epstein and Rav Avraham Dov Ber Kahana ‘echad’ (‘one,’ within Shema) has his days and his years lengthened.” (Berachot 13b) It seems that this passage cannot simply mean that one is rewarded with long days for merely elongating a word. Rav Kook proposed a more profound understanding. A person who places special emphasis on the word echad recognizes that Hashem is the these foods to her “quietly” (be’chashai) ruler of the world and all that He has created (Pesachim 56a). is part of a unified plan. With this in mind, Rav Kook exquisitely elucidates this the person reciting the Shema also comes obscure passage. We Jews are that princess. to grasp that he or she is part of a divine Our true station in life, our true understandplan. One is placed on this earth to fulfill a ing of the divinity is summed up in the credo goal and a mission that is an integral part Shema Yisrael. of God’s master plan. One surely needs long The Lord is one, absolutely, unequivocally. days and years to fulfill their unique task “Ein od milvado,” There is no other besides on this earth.

Him (Devarim 4:35). This is the most approThus, the daily recitation of the Shema is priate way to articulate the existence of God. not only a testament to God’s existence but a And yet, this notion is abstract and difficult testament that every individual’s existence to grasp. We should not stoop to the level of on this earth has immense importance. inferior food - Baruch shem, which speaks of (Berachot Ain Aya, Chapter 2: 3, p. 71) God’s malachut, “His Kingdom”,His mighty SAYING BARUCH SHEM KEVOD relationship and interactions with the world.

IN A WHISPER But what can we do? We are drawn to this The Talmud compares the reciting the simpler conception of God. However, we phrase of Baruch Shem Kevod after the openrecite this phrase quietly as a reminder that ing line of the Shema to partaking in eating this represents a deficient way of describing common stew (tsikei kederah). It tells the God and our belief in Him. (Olat Re’iyah, vol. parable of a princess who was fond of eating 1, p. 249, also see Rav Kook Koren Siddur, these “cheap foods” which were beneath her Naor, p.154) station in life. The king’s servants were in SHEMA: SERVING WITH quandary. On the one hand, it was unbecomEVERY ASPECT OF LIFE ing for a princess to eat such lowly food. On The Talmud (Berachot 14b) states that the other hand, she had gotten a whiff of this saying the morning Shema without wearlow-end food and was drawn to eat them. ing tefillin is like offering a sacrifice without So what did the servants do? They brought the necessary accompanying offerings. The OU ISRAEL CENTER 59

Talmud specifies: It is compared to one leaving out the mincha (flour and oil offering) and nesachim (wine libations) that accompany the animal sacrifice.

Rav Kook brilliantly explains that the Talmud is expressing the notion that a Jew serves God with every facet and domain in life. The mincha and nesachim are taken from vegetation (wheat, grapes, oil). The altar upon which it is offered is made from the earth.

One who recites the Shema with only words fails to appreciate that the physical aspects of life are also part and parcel of pursuing holiness.

We serve God by taking the physical world and elevating it to higher purposes and goals. Indeed, the tefillin themselves are made of the hide of animals and strapped to our body as a symbol that we elevate the physical by directing it heavenward, towards elevated goals and in service to God. Rav Kook quoted the Talmud (Nedarim 32b) that the transition from Avram to Avraham (with the additional letter heh which equals 5) expanded from the numerical value of 243 (Avram) to 248. This symbolized that Avraham was able to direct every organ of his body to the service of Hashem. The most physical components of life can also be elevated and be sacred. (Ain Aya Berachot vol. 1, p. 72, #9)

THE SHEMA’S UNIVERSAL MESSAGE What is the precise kavanah needed when reciting the Shema?

Rashi teaches that one should focus on a universal idea. Namely, the Shema is not only a declaration of our belief in God but the faith that in the end all mankind will recognize God’s oneness. “The Lord who is 60 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

‘our God’ now, and not the God of the other nations, He will be in the future ‘one Lord’ (Hashem echad).” (Rashi, Devarim 6:4).

Rav Kook placed special emphasis on the universal message of the Shema in his opening comments on Talmud Berachot. The very first subject matter addressed in the Talmud is the mitzvah of reciting the Shema both at night and at the beginning of the day. The Mishna (Berachot 1:1) delineates the appropriate time to recite the nighttime Shema with the same hour that the kohen enters his home to eat the sacred food of Terumah. This exclusive eating is likened to the Shema’s focus on the Jew being focused inward and bolstering the faith of the nation.

However, there is a second obligation to say the Shema - each morning when the sun rises. The morning Shema represents that the awareness of God’s existence will ultimately be recognized by all humankind. In Rashi’s comment on the Shema cited above, he cites the prophecy that describes an ideal future reality: “On that day shall the Lord be One, and His name One” (Zecharia 14:9) - a time when all of humanity will believe in one God. Rav Kook, no doubt inspired by Rashi’s comment, suggested that when we say the Shema we not only declare our people’s faithfulness but envision in our mind’s eye the grand Messianic ideal when all mankind will also exclaim God’s existence. (Ain Aya Berachot, chapter 1 #2) Rabbi Goldscheider’s most recent OU Press Publication, “Torah United” on the weekly Parsha, can be ordered directly from Rabbi Goldscheider at aarong@ouisrael.org at a special price for Torah Tidbits readers.

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

Rav Daniel Mann

Finishing to Eat but Continuing to Drink ‫לעילוי נשמת‬ ‫יואל אפרים בן אברהם עוזיאל זלצמן ז"ל‬ Question: During the course of my work day, I drink many times. I was taught to make one Shehakol for all the drinking. How is this system impacted by lunch or snacks I may have?

Answer: The key to your fine system is that when one plans to eat intermittently, a beracha can continue even for a whole day (Rambam, Berachot 4:7), if he does not leave his place (Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim 178:1). If one takes breaks of more than several minutes, this system faces some challenges: A. After no more than 72 minutes, but for drinking, more like a half hour (see Living the Halachic Process, II, B-4), the ability to fulfill the obligation of a beracha acharona (=br ach) lapses, when the

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food is considered “digested.” B. After the above amount of time, there is a machloket whether the efficacy of the beracha rishona (=br rsh) also ceases (Magen Avraham 184:9) or whether it remains as long as one plans to continue eating/drinking (Even Ha’ozer ad loc.).

Due to a lack of consensus of poskim (see Mishna Berura 184:17), we recommend that if one drinks a revi’it (approx. 90 ml. or 3 fl. oz.) at one time (slower is a machloket – see below) and is likely to break for at least half an hour, that he recite Borei Nefashot on the previous drinking. This solves problem A (missing the br ach). This situation brings us to another machloket – does a br ach end the first eating period in regards to needing a new br rsh before the next eating in a case that at the time of the br ach he was planning to continue relatively soon (see Be’ur Halacha to 190:2). We posit that one should make a new br rsh (see Minchat Yitzchak V:102), but that before starting the original drinking, should intend that the br rsh’s efficacy end with the br ach (see V’zot Haberacha p. 52, ftnt. 6).

Whether you sip frequently or follow different halachic guidance (both are fine), since you do not make a new br rsh on the

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new drinks, you raise a good question. You cannot avoid a br ach on the food you eat (see Har Tzvi, OC I:96, that continuing drinking does not allow for an indefinite stay of the ber ach at the end of the snack). The situation depends on the br ach you recite.

If it is Birkat Hamazon, you can assume the entire eating/drinking experience is completed, and you require a new br rsh when eating/drinking again (see Magen Avraham 190:1; V’zot Haberacha, Birur Halacha 37).

If you eat something whose br ach is Me’ein Shalosh (e.g., Al Hamichya), that br ach will not impact the unrelated berachot on drinks.

The question is if the br ach you need to make is Borei Nefashot. Do we say that the Borei Nefashot will apply to the drinks as well as the Borei Nefashot foods? If it does apply to the drinks, the situation will be as above, for one who needs to make a br ach before too long goes by. The Har Tzvi (ibid.) recommends that when making the br ach, he should intend that it should not relate to the drinks, and then he will not need a new br rsh. However, some argue that it is not possible to exclude foods that could be included in the br ach (Pri Megadim, intro. to Hilchot Berachot). While one can exclude some foods from a br rsh, this is because before eating them, there is no existing obligation to make a beracha, so the beracha can be focused on what one wants. In contrast, when one has eaten and has an existing Borei Nefashot obligation, some say that it will apply to everything that it can.

An alternative suggestion is to make the br ach on both the food and drink. This has an added advantage in cases in which that which is drunk may not be covered by any ber ach, which is regrettable especially because according to some (see Mishna Berura 210:1), moderately paced drinking of a revi’it requires a br ach. To make the new beracha on drinking more clearly justified, there are a few ideas: 1. Limit the scope of the intention during the first beracha (see above). 2. Step outside before resuming drinking (see above). 3. Wait a half hour before resumption (V’zot Haberacha, p.

53). We recommend the second approach for people who will remember when to do what.

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Book now and stay Motzei Chag for no extra charge! (limited time offer) | OU Glatt For Reservations: 02-6599950 | www.jerusalemramadahotel.com | reservations@ramadajerusalem.com 66 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

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OU ISRAEL CENTER 67

MRS. LEAH FEINBERG OU ISRAEL FACULTY

Transitioning Through Tehillim ‫בס”ד‬ As we enter the month of Iyar ,we are engaged in two parallel transformational processes :The counting of the Omer ,and the annual marking of the transition from Shoah to Tekumah ,from the devastation of the Holocaust to the establishment of the State of Israel and the subsequent reunification of Jerusalem nineteen years later .As we count the Omer ,we mark our ascent from the depths of the impurity and hardship of Egyptian slavery to the spiritual pinnacle of receiving the Torah at Mount Sinai .Similarly ,as we commemorate the suffering so bravely endured in recent times and the losses we continue to sustain ,we contemplate our own role in the unfolding drama of the dawning of redemption.

Against this backdrop ,we in our study of

Nach Yomi find ourselves in a similar state of transition .We have moved from the soul stirring psalms of David HaMelech to a series of songs written by other authors ,whose words were selected by David for inclusion in Sefer Tehillim .A prominent theme in these perakim is that of divine justice and retribution .Several of these were addressed to the people who had assembled in the Mikdash ,reminding them of the divine system of Reward and Punishment ,which will only be fully realized in the World to Come ,while others address Hashem in gratitude or supplication .Especially noteworthy are those psalms which seem to question the ways of Hashem .Psalm ,89 in particular ,was so disturbing to one of the Spanish sages that he refused to recite it or even to hear it!1 In his opening statement ,Eitan HaEzrachi proclaims his intention to forever sing of Hashem’s kindness ,to speak of Hashem’s faithfulness from generation to generation .Yet later in the mizmor ,the meshorer gives voice to those who express doubt in Hashem’s faithfulness ,since the kingdom of David has not endured as promised ,and the exile is unending .How can we reconcile this apparent contradiction ,and understand

‫ב‬:‫ אבן עזרא לתהלים פט‬.1 68 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

the inclusion of such a sentiment in Sefer Tehillim?

Both Radak and Abarbanel explain that we are not intended to take these as literal complaints ,rather as “It seems as if Hashem’s promise to David has been broken and as if the exile is everlasting” .Rav Kook explains that there are people who achieve spiritual perfection in their apprehension of Hashem’s conduct in this world ,who have a perfect understanding of the system of Free Will ,Reward and Punishment ,and Divine Justice .These holy tzaddikim ,who see things so clearly ,are saddened by the perception of injustice that many people experience when confronted with historical realities that seem to contradict divine promises .This anguish may allow their emotional devotion to overtake their intellectual understanding, and they then burst forth with longing for the time when these systems will be openly recognized2. This is the case with Eitan HaEzrachi in our mizmor ,and with the sons of Korach in psalm 44 who seem to“ blame” Hashem for the struggles we experience .It is interesting that both of these mizmorim are introduced with the term “Maskil” ,from the root .”‫ “שכל‬We might posit that the composers began with an intellectual exposition of the divine coordination of Jewish history and became overcome ,as described by Rav Kook ,with emotional longing ,leading to an outburst of painful yearning ,the yearning that we all experience as we await the complete redemption.

The Maharal teaches that the Beit Hamikdash is the fullest expression of human perfection, providing a space for the divine within the human sphere. The mikdash is

‫ עין אי”ה ברכות פרק ה סימן לט‬.2

the heart of the nation. The Torah represents the intellect of the nation. When we recite the “Yehi Ratzon” asking that it might be Hashem’s will that the Beit Hamikdash be rebuilt and the Temple service restored, we follow that request with ‫ותן חלקנו בתורתך‬, and give us our portion in Your Torah. The two requests seem unrelated, but the Maharal explains that they are really two sides of the same coin - the unity of the heart and mind in serving Hashem, thereby animating the entire world.3 It is the longing for this unity that is expressed in Sefer Tehillim, and throughout this period as we work on our spiritual growth leading to Kabbalat HaTorah and the ultimate redemption.

’‫ גבורות ה’ פרק ח‬.3 Mrs. Leah Feinberg is a master educator who taught at the SKA High School for Girls in Hewlett for twenty-one years, also serving as Tanach Department chairperson and New Teacher Mentor. Leah is currently on the faculty of the OU Israel Center and has taught in all three cycles of the OU Women’s Initiative Nach Yomi program In the OU Women’s Initiative Nach Yomi series, currently in its third cycle, women scholars deliver a daily shiur on the books of Prophets (Neviim) and Writings (Ketuvim) at the pace of a chapter a day. Shiurim are geared toward learners of all levels who would like to participate in the twoyear Nach Yomi study cycle. Visit the OU Women’s Initiative to register for additional content.

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Dating in Israel: A Guide for the Newly Landed David asks: Hi Aleeza! What advice would you give someone new to the Israeli dating scene?

Aleeza answers: Welcome to the wild, beautiful, passionate world of Israeli dating! If you’ve just landed, whether from a plane or from a mindset shift, get ready for an experience that’s fastpaced, intense, and unlike anywhere else in the world.

1.BE READY FOR DIRECTNESS Israelis are famously blunt, and dating is no exception. You may be used to easing into conversations where people ask the questions like: “Do you want kids?” “What’s your hashkafa?” “Where do you see your life going in five years?” But here they’re likely to also ask things like, “how much do you earn?” That’s not rude, it’s Israeli. Don’t

be intimidated. See it as an invitation to be honest and real. And yes it’s also normal to answer this question.

2.UNDERSTAND THE CULTURAL LAYERS In Israel, you’re not just dating a person, you’re dating their background, hashkafa, family, and sometimes even their army experience. Whether they’re dati leumi, yeshivish, baal teshuva, or somewhere in between, each label holds weight here. Try to understand the nuances, and don’t be afraid to ask respectful questions to get a better picture of where someone is coming from.

3.PACE YOURSELF Israeli dating can move quickly. It’s not uncommon to see people engaged within a few months. That doesn’t mean you need to rush, but you do need to be emotionally ready. If you’re coming from a more casual or slow-paced dating culture, prepare to shift gears. Dates are often purposeful and focused. If someone is dating with intention, they’re usually dating to marry.

4.BUILD A SUPPORT NETWORK Don’t do it alone. Whether you’re using a shadchan, trusted friend, or joining a network like Shagririm Balev that walks you through the dating and matchmaking process, having support is essential. There are cultural 70 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

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TEACHING BY LIVING

In this week’s Parsha, Emor, we learn about a lot of the halachot pertaining to the Korbanot and the Kohanim. We learn that when a regular Kohen is an Onein (after an immediate relative passes away but before their burial), he is not allowed to bring Korbanot. We also learn that a Kohen Gadol must still bring the Korbanot when he is an Onein. How come?

When a person has just gone through the emotional experience of losing a close relative and loved one, it is very challenging to try and focus on doing something else. The person is usually consumed by the pain of the loss and therefore incapable of doing other things.

However, the Kohen Gadol has a special role and responsibility. As it says in the parsha, ”‫ָּד�ּׁש ֹל ֹא ֵי ֵ​ֵ​ֵצא‬ ׁ ‫�ְּק‬ ַ ‫“ּוִּמ‬ ִ — he should not ְ ‫ן־ַהִּמ‬ leave the sanctuary. The Kohen Gadol needs to remain the role model for everyone. Even in his extreme time of pain and grief, he has to remain fully committed to his communal role. Despite all of his personal struggles, his responsibility is to serve Hashem for the community.

Earlier it says, “‫ֱ​ֱאֹמֹר ֶ​ֶאל ַ​ַהֹּכ� ֲֲּהִנִ ים ְּב�ֵּנֵ י ַ​ַא ֲ​ֲהֹרֹן‬ ‫ְוְ ָ​ָא ַ​ַמ ְ​ְר ּ�ָּת ֲ​ֲאֵלֵ ֶ​ֶהם‬.” Why does it say “to say” and “to tell them”?

Rav Moshe Feinstein explained this as follows: the Torah needs to be taught in two ways — one through teaching, and one 76 TORAH TIDBITS 1612 / EMOR

through demonstrating and acting. When parents and teachers teach their children and students, they need to remember this.

Our children are watching us. That is the best way for us to show them the beauty of Torah.

If we live a life of pure love and appreciation for Hashem’s Torah and mitzvot, that is what will be ingrained into our children.

By watching the Kohen Gadol continue with the service, even when he is an Onein, he is demonstrating for us what it means to be an Eved Hashem — that even in the most painful and challenging time in his life, he was able to remain fully committed to his role.

We need to remember that we are role models for someone. Someone is watching and learning from us. We need to learn from the Kohen Gadol that even when we might feel very challenged and uncomfortable, we have a role that we need to play.

Have a beautiful Shabbos!

10TH GRADE, KIRYAT YEARIM

CARRYING THE ROLE

This parshah talks a lot about the Kohanim—for example, who they can marry and how they should live their lives. But why are the Kohanim talked about so much, like they pretty much have their own Sefer?

According to Hashem, they have a special status.

The first lesson we can learn from this is that not everything in life is always going to

feel fair. But on the other hand, just because someone is born a Kohen doesn’t mean they’re automatically a better person—they still have to live up to the title.

In Yiddishkeit, there are different levels and different statuses, and not everybody can do everything—and that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

Kohanim specifically have to measure up to their role. The more power someone has, the greater their yetzer hara—because they have the potential to overcome it.

So we have to understand that when someone is placed on a higher level—as amazing as that sounds—it’s never going to be easy. It’s up to them to make the most of that responsibility. We can even see this in our own lives. If two people do the same sin—one on a higher level and one on a lower level—who gets the bigger punishment? The one on the higher level, the one we expected more from.

That’s something we can learn from the Kohanim, even if we aren’t Kohanim ourselves. Whether it’s in school, work, shul, or anywhere else—whatever role we play is important. Even if it doesn’t seem big, we still have to fulfill it. And if it is big, we have to work hard to maintain it.

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