Yom HaShoah – Too Many Yissurin

Yom HaShoah is coming and I wanted to mention a powerful idea by the Esh Kodesh. In Parshat Chaye Sarah (1940), the Esh Kodesh discusses the death of Sarah Imenu. He starts with Rashi’s comment that explains that the fact that Sarah’s death is recorded next to the Akeidah teaches us that Sarah died when she heard that Avraham was taking Yitzchak to Har HaMoriah.

The Esh Kodesh expands on this idea to teach us about the concept of Yissurin – difficult events. Chazal often talks about Yissurin shel Ahavah, that there are difficult events that come from a place of love in order to make us better people. However, the Esh Kodesh explains that there can also be too many Yissurin that can damage a person.

Yissurin can be compared to salt and food. Just as a small amount of salt enhances the flavor of food; so too, a small amount of Yissurin enhances a person. And just as too much salt ruins the flavor of food; so too, too many Yissurin can ruin a person. The Esh Kodesh concludes that if Sarah, who according to Chazal lived a life without sins, can die because of the overwhelming Yissurin that were connected with the Akeidah. Then certainly we can be damaged by too much suffering. For me, this is an appropriate message for Yom HaShoah.

Chol HaMoed in Israel and Talmudic Ovens

I am really sorry to keep going on and on about how wonderful it is to live in Israel, but I had another wonderful experience today and I feel forced to share it with the blogosphere. (I will also mention that making Aliyah is the single most difficult experience in my life, and that includes studying Biblical Hebrew. So I do not want any of you to get the impression that every moment here is flowing with milk and honey.) Today the family went on a tiyul in Naot Kedumim, which is a large park filled with Biblical fauna and flora.

It was a great hike, and I really enjoy getting to see a range of Israelis out and about on Chol HaMoed. There were examples of exciting Biblical plants like hyssop (אזוב), which was the plant that was used to sprinkle blood on the doorposts in Mitrayim. And there were loads of pesukim from Shir HaShirim next to the appropriate flora. But I was bubbling over with excitement when I saw a great example of Talmudic ovens.

Anyone who has learned the halakhot of Bishul on Shabbat, or even Mishnayot Shabbat with the fancy picture book – has surely struggled to understand what exactly these different Talmudic ovens looked like. There was an archeological village that contained some examples of some of these ovens.

Here is a picture of the famous “double oven” (כירה).

The fire would have been below and the cooking pots would have been placed on the holes on top.

Here is a picture of the “bread oven” (תנור).

This oven was used to bake bread, and the dough would be on a pole and stuck on the inside wall of the oven to bake.

So if you are visiting Israel, make sure to add Naot Kedumim to your itinerary.

Moadim L’Simchah

Pesach Seder - Israeli Style

I am trying hard not to be too smug about the fact that I do not have a three day Yom Tov, and we went on a tiyul today instead of recovering from our second Pesach Seder. Ironically, the children were complaining about the fact that they only got one Seder at Pesach this year! I guess they were not the ones working their fingers to the bone to get ready for Pesach.

I discovered yet another wonderful aspect about living in Israel (WARNING - Shameless Zionist Plug), we used wine that was Kedushat Shevi'it at the Seder. That meant that it was assur to spill drops of wine for the makkot. I love it when halakhah wins out over minhag!

Achilah Gassah - The Halakhot of Eating

Achilah Gassah which can be translated as, "disgusting eating," is a halakhik concept that is defined by the legal parameters of eating. There is a question if Achilah Gassah saitisfies the halakhik requirements of eating. Now I hope that at least one of my loyal reasers is saying, "What in the world is a halakhik requirement of eating? It's really not that complicated - either I am eating or I am not!" Then I would have the opportunity to respond and say, "Wow that is a great question. But you should know by now that nothing is simple in the wide world of halakhah."

One of the interesting qualities of the halakhik system is that even simple actions like eating and drinking require precise legal definitions. Many of you may be familiar with the annual challenge to consume an olive's amount of matzah so fast that you might actually travel backwards in time. The reason for the need to quickly eat an unusually large amount of matzah is that people are trying to fulfill the legal requirements of eating. Most people would agree that eating a crumb of matzah would not accomplish the mitzvah of eating matzah. Thus it is reasonable to asy that there should be a minimum amount of matzah that you must eat at the seder. The only question in how much do you need to eat?

Chazal tell us that there is a halakhah l'Moshe m'Sinain (a very old halakhah) that in general, the minimum volume for eating is the volume of an olive. (כזית) I can hear your hearty laugh reverberating through cyberspace, "That is such a small amount of matzah, I have nothing to worry about on Seder night." Alas my poor friend, as I mentioned earlier - nothing is simple in the world of halakhah. The truth is that you must eat an olive's worth of lfour, which could be anywhere from a half a machine made matzah, to an entire box. Check with your LKR (Local Kabbalistic Rabbi) for specific guidelines. 

All of this brings us back to the topic of Achilah Gassah. The Gemara tells us that you cannot fulfill a mitzvah of eating with Achilah Gassah. So make sure that you are still a alittle hungry for the afikomen at the end of the seder. You don't want to finish your night of matzot and mitzvot with an act of Achilah Gassah.

LKR - Local Kabbalistic Rabbi

Now is probably the busiest time of year for Rabbis - Barcuch HaShem that they don't charge by the sha'aylah. I want all of us to think of the following idea - don't just use your LOR (Local Orthodox {or Ordinary} Rabbi). Let us take this time of renewal and rebirth to try something a little different. Let us try and find an LKR (Local Kabbalistic Rabbi) to ask  sha'aylah. (By the way - if you find a good one, please let me know.) 

If you are feeling really brave, then you should ask the LKR an appropriate question like: How can I elevate my neshamah this Pesach? Think about it.

Chag Sameach