The Weekly Shtikle - Chayei Sarah

The Weekly Shtikle is dedicated le'iluy nishmas my father, Reuven Pinchas ben Chaim Yaakov, a"h.

 

The Weekly Shtikle is dedicated le'iluy nishmas my Oma, Chaya Sara bas Zecharia Chaim, a"h.

 

One need not look too far to find a connection between this week's parsha and haftarah. The very first words of the haftarah, (incidentally the first words of sefer Melachim) VehaMelech David zakein ba bayamim, are almost an exact copy of the words in the parsha (24:1), veAvraham zakein ba bayamim. Just as our parsha deals with Avraham reaching his later years and the happenings that ensued, the haftarah deals with David reaching old age, albeit a much younger old age, and a number of events that took place then. The saga is continued in the haftarah of Vayechi when David HaMelech actually passes away, in correspondence with Yaakov Avinu's passing in that parsha.

 

However, most of the haftarah goes on to deal with the story of the rebellion of Adoniahu, one of David's sons who stages a coup to seize the throne, despite the fact that David HaMelech swore that Shelomoh would be his successor. David HaMelech confirms that Shelomoh will be the next king and Adoniahu's campaign comes to an end, (although his ultimate demise is not yet discussed.) This does not seem to be directly connected to any part of this week's parsha. It seems, however, that this story is strongly connected to one in last week's parsha which is indirectly referred to in this week's parsha. Before passing away, Avraham Avinu grants all his possessions to his son Yitzchak (25:5). This one-sided generosity is a direct result of the episode in last week's parsha (21:9-14) when Yitzchak and Yishmael do not seem to be getting along. Sarah insists that Yishmael be banished for he will not inherit with Yitzchak. HaShem gives His stamp of approval on this statement affirming with Avraham (21:12) that Yitzchak is to be considered his seed. Rashi (21:10) infers that the disagreements between Yitzchak and Yishmael were, in fact, on the issue of inheritance. Then it is decided that Yitzchak will be the sole inheritor. Avraham brings this decree into fruition with the doling out of his possessions to Yitzchak in this week's parsha. This is in parallel with David HaMelech's granting of the throne to Shelomoh and Shelomoh only.

 

Additionally, we find that Avraham was not fully aware of Yishmael's misdeeds or at least unaware of their severity and threat to Yitzchak. It was Sarah Imeinu who stepped in with her motherly instincts to make things right. The same situation is found in the case of Adoniahu's rebellion which was unbeknownst to David HaMelech. Once again, it was the mother, Bas-Sheva, who heroically intervened to save her son from his half-brother.

 

Adoniahu showed tremendous defiance in seizing the throne. He knew full well what his father had decreed but ignored it nevertheless. Perhaps the parallel to this aspect of the story came much later on in history. The descendants of Yishmael knew full well what was written in the Torah. However, it was not to their liking. With no other choice, they simply changed it. Much of the Islamic belief system is based on a character swap of Yitzchak and Yishmael. They believe it was Yishmael who was bound on the altar and further, Yishmael who inherited Avraham's assets. I am unsure how the chain of lies continues from there. History has shown that just as Adoniahu spurned his father's edict and made a run at the throne which he did not deserve, the descendants of Yishmael have rejected the authentic ancient text which affords them no portion of the physical and spiritual riches bestowed upon Avraham with fabricated lies based on a completely inaccurate text.

Have a good Shabbos.

Eliezer Bulka
WeeklyShtikle@weeklyshtikle.com

Shtikle Blog Weekly Roundup:
Dikdukian: Different Forms of Yirash

Dikdukian: My Master's Brother(s)

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The Weekly Shtikle - Vayeira

This week's shtikle is dedicated le'ilui nishmas my brother Efrayim Yechezkel ben Avi Mori Reuven Pinchas, whose 45^th yahrtzeit is Sunday, the 18th of Cheshvan.

 

The Weekly Shtikle is dedicated le'iluy nishmas my father, Reuven Pinchas ben Chaim Yaakov, a"h.

 

The Weekly Shtikle is dedicated le'iluy nishmas my Oma, Chaya Sara bas Zecharia Chaim, a"h.

 

Rashi on 19:24 notes that the destruction of Sedom happened at daybreak, when the sun and moon were in the sky at the same time. This was because they used to worship the sun and moon. Therefore, HaShem brought the destruction when both were out as a proof to all the sun and moon worshipers that the sun and moon are powerless. Had the destruction taken place when they were not in the sky, one could have argued that they were not "there" to save them. This is a rather simple statement by Rashi but there is an interesting astronomical support for it.

 

We naturally associate the sun with the day and the moon with the night. But the moon's time above the horizon actually changes every day throughout the month. The moon rises and sets approximately 49 minutes later each day. This is a result of the moon orbiting the earth. Just as the moon's position is reset at the end of every month, so are its rising and setting times. (The math is as follows: Every full moon cycle (month), moonrise and moonset make a full circle of 24 hours such that the times are as they were precisely one month previous. The figure of 49 minutes is achieved by dividing 24 hours by the duration of the lunar cycle, known as the synodic period: 29.5 days, 44 minutes, 3⅓ seconds. More precisely, the figure is 48 minutes, 45.5 seconds.)

 

At the beginning of the month, the moon follows a very similar schedule to the sun. The moon rises at the beginning of the day and sets at sundown. As the month progresses, the moon rises and sets later and later. At the middle of the month, the moon has virtually the opposite schedule to the sun. It rises when the sun sets and sets when the sun rises. As we enter the second half of the month, the moon begins to rise later in the night and thus, becomes visible at the beginning of the day.

 

The midrash (Bereishis Rabba 50) teaches that Sedom was destroyed on the 16th of Nissan. As explained above, at that time of the month, the moon would have risen shortly after sunset and set very shortly after sunrise. Therefore, the only time in the entire day that both the sun and moon were in the sky at the same time was very early in the morning and that is why the destruction took place specifically at the very beginning of the day.

Have a good Shabbos.

Eliezer Bulka
WeeklyShtikle@weeklyshtikle.com

Shtikle Blog Weekly Roundup:

AstroTorah: A Scratch on the Wall

AstroTorah: Witnesses to Sedom's Destruction

AstroTorah: The Mysterious Midrash by R' Ari Storch

AstroTorah: Lot's Twilight Escape by R' Ari Storch

AstroTorah: I Can't Believe it's not Fresh by R' Ari Storch

Dikdukian: Different Forms of Yirash

Dikdukian: Be'er Shava

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The Weekly Shtikle - Lech Lecha

The Weekly Shtikle is dedicated le'iluy nishmas my father, Reuven Pinchas ben Chaim Yaakov, a"h.

 

The Weekly Shtikle is dedicated le'iluy nishmas my Oma, Chaya Sara bas Zecharia Chaim, a"h.

 

When Avraham and Sarah, then Avram and Sarai, come to Mitzrayim, Avraham asks her to tell the Mitzri'im that she is his sister "l'ma'an yitav li ba'avureich, v'chaysa nafshi biglaleich" (12:13), so that they will do good to me and I will live because of you. Rashi comments on "l'ma'an yitav li," that they will give him presents. The obvious question that many ask is why Avraham seems to be so interested in gifts. We know from later in the parsha that Avraham was not one to desire gifts in the least. Why is this different? Another question to be asked is why the receiving of presents is put before survival? Surely receiving presents was not more important than coming out alive.

The Ta"Z, in his sefer on Rashi, Divrei David, answers the first question beautifully. When they came down to Mitzrayim, they had a dilemma. Surely, they did not want the Egyptians to think they were married. That would be the worst-case scenario. But for them to come into Mitzrayim and for Sarah to blurt out, unprovoked, "he's my brother," would also have seemed very suspicious. But if they never asked, and she never told, they ran the risk of the assumption that they were indeed husband and wife. So, they needed a plan to tell them that they were brother and sister with a pretense. This was their plan: Sarah would come to Mitzrayim with Avraham and say "This is my brother, a very poor man. Please give him some money." By doing this, there is a very legitimate reason for her to say that he is her brother. This would invoke a feeling of pity and the Mitzri'im would be likely to give gifts. If she had just come in with any beggar off the street, they might not be inclined to give him. With this crafty plan, they have informed the Mitzri'im that they are brother and sister without looking suspicious. And the Mitzri'im will give gifts to Avraham because of Sarah.

This answer may be used to alleviate the second difficulty as well. Only "v'chaysa nafshi..." is really what Avraham wanted to get out of the whole deal. The phrase "l'ma'an yitav li" is not as much a statement of what Avraham wanted, but more of what he wanted Sarah to say, that they should give her brother presents as the Ta"Z explains.

I propose another suggestion, though, exclusive of the Ta"Z's explanation. The two results of the situation are not put in order of what was important to Avraham, but more of an order of events from the Mitzri'im's perspective. If they were husband and wife, surely, they would know they have no chance with Sarah and they would kill Avraham right away. But now that they are brother and sister, they will simply give Avraham gifts to convince them to let them have Sarah. But if this does not convince him, then they will still have to kill him. So, the Mitzri'im had the mindset, "If he accepts the gifts, we will let him live." That is why the order in the pasuk is "they will give me gifts, and they will let me live" because it is the accepting of the gifts on which his survival relies.

Have a good Shabbos.

Eliezer Bulka
WeeklyShtikle@weeklyshtikle.com

Shtikle Blog Weekly Roundup:
AstroTorah: The Uncountable Stars

Dikdukian: King #5

Dikdukian: Koyei or Kovei?

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The Weekly Shtikle - Noach

The Weekly Shtikle is dedicated le'iluy nishmas my father, Reuven Pinchas ben Chaim Yaakov, a"h (who is also quoted below.)

 

The Weekly Shtikle is dedicated le'iluy nishmas my Oma, Chaya Sara bas Zecharia Chaim, a"h.

 

When Noach is instructed to bring a sampling of the entire animal kingdom with him into the teiva, there is an interesting nuance with regards to the animals. The pairs are referred to (7:2) as ish ve'ishto, man and his wife. This is certainly an anomalous phrase to use with regards to animals as they do not marry and thus, there are no husbands and wives. To add to the intrigue, the very next pasuk discusses the birds and refers to them only as zachar unkeivah, male and female. Why is this special term used only with regards to the animals?

 

Another intriguing twist to this discrepancy is the fact that there are various species of birds (such as the albatross) that are completely monogamous and will have only one mate in a lifetime. This would seem to make the ish ve'ishto label more appropriate to birds.

 

Rabbeinu Bachye explains that the gestation of animal offspring is similar to that of humans and that's why ish ve'ishto is used. Birds, on the contrary, lay eggs that are hatched and so they are not similar enough to humans to be referred to in the same way.

 

Panei'ach Raza offers another approach. The animals were possibly subject to acts of bestiality. Therefore, not all animals were eligible to enter the teiva – only those that were not involved in such loathsome acts. Since this is not possible with birds, any males or females would suffice.

 

Maharil Diskin writes yet another novel suggestion. The term ish ve'ishto is not meant to refer to actual marriage, per se. Rather, it is used to indicate that the animals would be similar in size "as if" they could be husband and wife. We do find the term ishah el achosah used in a similar vein (Shemos 26:6.) The reason for this is because animals are subject to the prohibition of oso ve'es beno – that a parent and child may not be slaughtered on the same day. If the animals brought onto the teiva were of different sizes, it is possible that a parent and child might be in the mix which would present a problem when they are slaughtered. (This is only applicable for the kosher animals but is extended to the non-kosher animals, as well.)

 

Birds are not subject to the prohibition of oso ve'es beno. Therefore, it was sufficient to take all sorts of males and females, regardless of their size.

 

***

 

On the lighter side (since, as illustrated below, the teiva was quite heavy): A good friend of mine and noted author, Mordechai Bodek, wrote a humourous book called Extracts From Noah's Diary. Check it out!

Have a good Shabbos.

Eliezer Bulka
WeeklyShtikle@weeklyshtikle.com

Shtikle Blog Weekly Roundup:

Al Pi Cheshbon: The Weight of the Teiva and The Constant Rate of Recession 
AstroTorah: Sailing the Friendly Skies by R' Ari Storch

AstroTorah: The World's First Boat?

AstroTorah: Interesting Calendrical Facts About the Mabul

Dikdukian: Noach's Three Sons

Dikdukian: Different Ways to Wake Up

Please visit the new portal for all Shtikle-related sites, www.weeklyshtikle.com

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Eliezer Bulka
WeeklyShtikle@weeklyshtikle.com

Shtikle Blog Weekly Roundup:

 

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Re: The Weekly Shtikle - Bereishis

Title: I figured it would be cute to follow up on my Simchas Torah shtikle: May You Be Blessed, Part II

On Fri, Oct 1, 2021 at 5:45 PM Weekly Shtikle <weeklyshtikle@weeklyshtikle.com> wrote:

This coming Monday, 28 Tishrei, is the 20th yahrtzeit of my dear friend, Daniel Scarowsky, z"l. This week's shtikle is dedicated leiluy nishmaso, Daniel Moshe Eliyahu ben Yitzchak.

 

The Weekly Shtikle is dedicated le'iluy nishmas my father, Reuven Pinchas ben Chaim Yaakov, a"h (who is also quoted below.)

 

The Weekly Shtikle is dedicated le'iluy nishmas my Oma, Chaya Sara bas Zecharia Chaim, a"h.

 

A number of times throughout the gemara )Pesachim 92b, Eruvin 29b, etc) and in later seforim (Shulchan Aruch OC 318:9, 640:8, etc.) as well, with regards to a chumrah, we find the term tavo alav berachah, a blessing shall be bestowed on him. It is often stated that a certain action is not necessary but if one takes on a special stringency and does it anyway, he should be blessed.

 

My father, a"h, suggests an interesting source and explanation for this particular wording. After all, we do sometimes see other terms used such as harei zeh meshubach, this is praiseworthy, with regards to other noble deeds. Why is the adoption of a chumrah given this specific blessing? Very early on in history, in this week's parsha, we are exposed to the first ever chumrah. Chavah, in her discussion with the snake, mentions (3:2) that they were forbidden to eat from or touch the Eitz HaDa'as. Of course, they were only commanded not to eat from it and nothing was said about touching it. This error in judgement is used by the gemara as a source for the gravity of the prohibition of bal tosif, not adding to the mitzvos. Indeed, this chumrah led to a serious series of curses on all of humanity - certainly not a great start.

 

Chavah's assertion lacked the proper context. She did not tell the snake, "You know HaShem told us not to eat from this tree but we are trying to be extra careful and we are not even touching the tree." Rather, she quite falsely declared that HaShem had commanded them not to touch the tree. When someone is aware of the true halachah and aware that certain things might be permissible but nevertheless takes it upon himself to be extra careful, to be more stringent, they are correcting the error made by Chavah. For this reason, we declare that in contrast to the curse that was bestowed upon Chavah, one who takes upon himself an altruistic chumrah should be bestowed a great blessing.

 

Have a good Shabbos.

Eliezer Bulka
WeeklyShtikle@weeklyshtikle.com

Shtikle Blog Weekly Roundup:

Dikdukian:Do you Sea what I Sea?

Dikdukian: And the Days Was

AstroTorah: Emunah in Time and Space

AstroTorah: The Two Luminaries

Please visit the new portal for all Shtikle-related sites, www.weeklyshtikle.com

The Weekly Shtikle and related content are now featured on BaltimoreJewishLife.com

 

 

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Have a good Shabbos.

Eliezer Bulka
WeeklyShtikle@weeklyshtikle.com

Shtikle Blog Weekly Roundup:

Please visit the new portal for all Shtikle-related sites, www.weeklyshtikle.com

The Weekly Shtikle and related content are now featured on BaltimoreJewishLife.com

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The Weekly Shtikle - Bereishis

This coming Monday, 28 Tishrei, is the 20th yahrtzeit of my dear friend, Daniel Scarowsky, z"l. This week's shtikle is dedicated leiluy nishmaso, Daniel Moshe Eliyahu ben Yitzchak.

 

The Weekly Shtikle is dedicated le'iluy nishmas my father, Reuven Pinchas ben Chaim Yaakov, a"h (who is also quoted below.)

 

The Weekly Shtikle is dedicated le'iluy nishmas my Oma, Chaya Sara bas Zecharia Chaim, a"h.

 

A number of times throughout the gemara )Pesachim 92b, Eruvin 29b, etc) and in later seforim (Shulchan Aruch OC 318:9, 640:8, etc.) as well, with regards to a chumrah, we find the term tavo alav berachah, a blessing shall be bestowed on him. It is often stated that a certain action is not necessary but if one takes on a special stringency and does it anyway, he should be blessed.

 

My father, a"h, suggests an interesting source and explanation for this particular wording. After all, we do sometimes see other terms used such as harei zeh meshubach, this is praiseworthy, with regards to other noble deeds. Why is the adoption of a chumrah given this specific blessing? Very early on in history, in this week's parsha, we are exposed to the first ever chumrah. Chavah, in her discussion with the snake, mentions (3:2) that they were forbidden to eat from or touch the Eitz HaDa'as. Of course, they were only commanded not to eat from it and nothing was said about touching it. This error in judgement is used by the gemara as a source for the gravity of the prohibition of bal tosif, not adding to the mitzvos. Indeed, this chumrah led to a serious series of curses on all of humanity - certainly not a great start.

 

Chavah's assertion lacked the proper context. She did not tell the snake, "You know HaShem told us not to eat from this tree but we are trying to be extra careful and we are not even touching the tree." Rather, she quite falsely declared that HaShem had commanded them not to touch the tree. When someone is aware of the true halachah and aware that certain things might be permissible but nevertheless takes it upon himself to be extra careful, to be more stringent, they are correcting the error made by Chavah. For this reason, we declare that in contrast to the curse that was bestowed upon Chavah, one who takes upon himself an altruistic chumrah should be bestowed a great blessing.

 

Have a good Shabbos.

Eliezer Bulka
WeeklyShtikle@weeklyshtikle.com

Shtikle Blog Weekly Roundup:

Dikdukian:Do you Sea what I Sea?

Dikdukian: And the Days Was

AstroTorah: Emunah in Time and Space

AstroTorah: The Two Luminaries

Please visit the new portal for all Shtikle-related sites, www.weeklyshtikle.com

The Weekly Shtikle and related content are now featured on BaltimoreJewishLife.com

 

 

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