The Weekly Shtikle - Purim

By now I'm sure most of you have seen or read all sorts of inspiring thoughts making the obvious connection between the events of the day and the story of the megillah. (One clever observation I saw from Noam Jacobson highlighted the fact that the Iranian regime was the epitome of a Haman, more so than any of the numerous individuals and nations who sought to obliterate us over the generations. They all had elaborate schemes which would certainly take years to carry out.  Only the Iranians, with their nuclear ambitions, sought to carry out an instantaneous genocide – beyom echad – as Haman did.)

This morning, I noticed a much different historical context in the story of Purim. As is well-known and much discussed, there is a deep connection, albeit ironic, between Purim and Yom HaKippurim. It begins with the similarity of the name and goes off in many different directions. On Yom Kippur, we read the story of Yonah who was commanded to inform the great city of Nineveh that they were to be destroyed for their wicked deeds. One of the common understandings of Yonah's reluctance to deliver this prophecy is that he was afraid that if the gentile city of Nineveh were to repent – as they, in fact, did – it would reflect drastically upon the Jews of the time who seemed resistant to the many rebukes from the prophets.

Perhaps Yonah's reasoning was virtuous and even justified, if looked at merely in the context of the present day. But a line in the selichos for Taanis Esther reveals what the flaw in his approach might have been in the greater context of Jewish history. In the first selichah, as we poetically retell the story of Purim, we recount that they learned the lesson from Nineveh that through teshuvah and tefillah, we can annul a most devastating decree.

Even if the teshuvah of Nineveh had negative consequences for the Jews of the time, it served as a blueprint for future generations to inspire them to never lose hope to achieve salvation through prayer and repentance. And the inclusion in the selichos is surely a call to all further generations – including our own – to never lose hope in the most trying times and to always have faith in the power of our deeds and our words to bring deliverance to our nation.

Have a  Purim sameiach!
Mishenichnas Adar marbim be'simchah

Eliezer Bulka
WeeklyShtikle@weeklyshtikle.com

Please see my Purim archives for some more insightful (hopefully not inciteful) thoughts on Purim. 

Shtikle Blog Weekly Roundup:

Dikdukian: Dikdukian Posts on Megillas Esther                                                                                                                                              

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The Weekly Shtikle - Tetzaveh / Purim

Last Thursday, 2 Adar, was the 20^th yahrtzeit of my Zadie, Rabbi Yaakov Bulka. The shtikle is dedicated le'iluy nishmaso, Chaim Yaakov ben Yitzchak, z"l.

As part of the process of producing the priestly vestments, pasuk 28:40 commands, "Velivnei Aharon ta'ase chutanos", and for the sons of Aharon you shall make tunics. This can be interpreted in two ways - one tunic for each kohein or many tunics for each kohein. This is the subject of a dispute in the Yerushalmi (Yoma 3:6). Rabanan are of the opinion that it was two tunics for each kohein while the position of R' Yose is one tunic for each kohein suffices. 

In the gemara (Megillah 7a) Rav Yosef learns that when it says in Megillas Esther matanos la'evyonim, it means 2 total matanos for 2 evyonim - only one for each poor person. Turei Even in Chagiga and Avnei Shoham in Megilla (same author) comment that this gemara goes like R' Yose in the Yerushalmi who holds one tunic for each kohein. However, asks Mitzpeh Eisan in Megillah, from Tosafos (Chagiga 3a) we see that the halachah in regards to the dispute in the Yerushalmi is like the Rabanan - two tunics for each kohein. If Rav Yosef in Megilla is going only according to R' Yose then it is not in accordance with halachah. But his ruling is uncontested.

Mitzpeh Eisan answers from Pri Chadash (Orach Chaim 694) who writes that if the pasuk had written "vela'evyonim matanos" then it would have implied two to each but now that it says it the other way around it only means one to each. Therefore, the rule is that if the subject is written before the object then it may imply that to these plural subjects you will give plural objects to each. That then is the subject of dispute in Yerushalmi where the pasuk in question is "Velivnei Aharon ta'ase chutanos", the subject coming before the object. However, with matanos la'evyonim where the object comes first, it means that these objects shall be distributed amongst the following subjects and everyone will agree that it is one per person. [This also explains why the gemara in Yoma entertains the possibility that there were two lots on each goat in the Yom Kippur procedure because the pasuk states, "al shnei hase'irim goralos," the subject before the object.]

Have a good Shabbos. 

Mishenichnas Adar Marbim beSimchah!

 

Eliezer Bulka
WeeklyShtikle@weeklyshtikle.com

Shtikle Blog Weekly Roundup:

Dikdukian: Dikdukian Posts on Megillas Esther

Dikdukian: Ner Tamid

Dikdukian: Of Plurals and Singulars

Dikdukian: The Lord and the Rings

Dikdukian: Tarshsih veShoham

Dikdukian: Sham and Shamah

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The Weekly Shtikle - Mishpatim

This past Tuesday, 23 Shevat, marked the 5^th yahrtzeit of my Oma Jakobovits. The shtikle is dedicated le'iluy nishmasah, Chayah Sarah bas Zechariah Chaim, z"l.

This coming Sunday, 28 Shevat, marks the 13^th yahrtzeit of my wife's grandfather, R' Yitzchak Yeres. The shtikle is dedicated le'iluy nishmaso, Yitzchak Chaim ben Moshe Yosef HaLevi, z"l.

In this week's parsha, we are commanded to come to the aid of our fellow Jew whose donkey is crouching under his burden and needs help to load it on. The Torah chooses a rather interesting way of delivering this mitzvah. The pasuk reads simply (23:5) "If you shall see the donkey of someone you hate crouching beneath his burden and you refrain from aiding him, you shall surely aid him."

The first point to consider is that the Torah presents the case of a donkey belonging to one who is hated, rather than just anyone. We learn from here that if we are faced with two such situations, one involving a friend and one involving an enemy, the Torah commands us to help out the one whom you hate first in order to suppress your instinctual enmity and force a friendship to be made.

The second puzzling part of the pasuk is the seemingly gratuitous phrase "vechadalta mei'azov lo," and you will refrain from helping him. What does the Torah mean by this phrase? The gemara learns from here that there are times when you are in fact expected not to help out. For instance, if one is elderly and it is not respectful or if he is a kohein and the donkey is in a cemetery. However, this does not seem to fit as the simple reading of the pasuk. Rashi writes that it is a rhetorical question, "should you refrain from helping him?!" However, it is also difficult to understand the pasuk in this way.

R' Chaim Kanievsky writes in Ta'ama D'kra that the purpose of this phrase is connected to the initial lesson learned from the pasuk. The Torah tells you to help out your enemy in order to break your hatred. This would therefore only apply if under normal circumstances you would not have helped him. Thus, the pasuk is understood as follows: When you see your enemy's donkey and, under normal circumstances you would have neglected to help him, then and only then do you help him before your friend. If you would have helped him anyway then there is no reason he should take precedence over your friend.

Have a good Shabbos.

Eliezer Bulka
WeeklyShtikle@weeklyshtikle.com

Shtikle Blog Weekly Roundup

Dikdukian: Tricky Vowels

Dikdukian: Answer vs. Torture
Dikdukian: Give it to me
Dikdukian: Ha'isha viladeha

Dikdukian: Jewish Milk

Dikdukian: Three Strikes and you're out

Dikdukian: The Ox and his Friend

Al Pi Cheshbon: 10,000 Kikars

 

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The Weekly Shtikle - Yisro

As Matan Torah approaches, HaShem ensures Moshe (19:9) that with this great event, B'nei Yisrael "will believe in you forever." The difficulty with this promise is that we have already seen that with the splitting of the sea (14:31) "they believed in HaShem and in Moshe his servant." Why does Moshe need to be assured once again of B'nei Yisrael's trust?

Ramban here and Rambam (Hilchos Yesodei HaTorah 8) explain along similar lines that the mere witnessing of great miracles still did not accomplish complete belief in Moshe's prophecy for there was still room to suspect witchcraft of some sort. They had never actually witnessed the actual procedure of prophecy. The events at Har Sinai showed not only Moshe heeding HaShem's word but HaShem actually commanding Moshe directly, to which all of B'nei Yisroel were witness. Now there was certainly no room for any doubt whatsoever in the authenticity of Moshe's prophecy.

One of the most prevalent proofs offered by common kiruv organizations as to the authenticity of Judaism over other religions is based on these events. Many religions feature a figure who claimed to have been in contact with God. Their religion is based largely on these prophecies.

The Rosh HaYeshiva of Ner Yisroel, HaRav Yaakov Weinberg zt"l offered a famous joke found in an old Hebrew joke book as a parable to prove the futility of this belief:

A certain Rabbi passed away and left two sons who argued over which was to be their father's successor. One day one of the sons gathered all the elders of the community and proclaimed that his father had come to him in a dream and told him that he wants him to be his successor. The elders, rather impressed by this revelation, were just about to appoint him rabbi when one man objected from the back, "Excuse me, but if your father really wanted us to appoint you rabbi, then he would have come to us in our dream!"

All the other religions choose to believe in the prophecy of one man. But why? So-and-so says he spoke to God. Why should you believe him? Only the Jews are different. Every single Jew stood at the foot of Har Sinai and witnessed HaShem talking to Moshe with their very own eyes and ears. This is a level of belief that is irrefutable. Also, due to its foundation upon nationwide testimony, it is a claim that could not possibly be fabricated. This explains why none of the other religions have ever dared make such a claim.

With this we can understand that the promise given here to Moshe was not about whether or not B'nei Yisrael believed in his prophecy. This was already established earlier. Rather it was a promise of the longevity and perseverance of this belief – "vegam becha ya'aminu le'olam." A prophet who performs miracles may convince his generation to believe in him, but who will believe it in the generations to come? With the awesome events at Har Sinai, the belief in Moshe Rabbeinu's supreme prophecy became one that is sure to be everlasting and could never be challenged.

Have a good Shabbos.

 

Eliezer Bulka

WeeklyShtikle@weeklyshtikle.com

Shtikle Blog Weekly Roundup:

Dikdukian: By the Thousands

Dikdukian: Many Who Fear God

Dikdukian: Letzais

Dikdukian: On top of Old Smokey

Dikdukian: Ram veNisa by Eliyahu Levin

 

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The Weekly Shtikle - Beshalach

As the Egyptians realized they were doomed when their chariots began to collapse in the middle of Yam Suf, they proclaimed (14:25) "Let us flee from the Israelites for HaShem is fighting for them in Egypt!" At least, this is the simple literal understanding of what they said. But the last phrase is very puzzling. They were not in Egypt. HaShem wasn't fighting their battle in Egypt. Rashi starts by interpreting the word beMitzrayim as really meaning baMitzriyim, not in Egypt but with the Egyptians. That solves the problem rather simply.

He then brings another, less direct approach from the Mechilta. Just as those who in the sea were being smitten, so too those who remained in Egypt were being simultaneously smitten.

However, the Targum Onkelos on this pasuk is rather intriguing. He writes that the Egyptians were declaring that this was the same Strong Hand of God that fought B'nei Yisrael's battles in Egypt. A polytheistic belief system, such as that to which the Egyptians subscribed, is forced to attribute boundaries to their deities by some sort of criteria such as location, time or specific strength. As much as the Egyptians recognized HaShem's Hand in the meting out of the ten plagues, they still did not appreciate our monotheistic beliefs. It would seem from this pasuk that they believed that HaShem's powers were somehow confined to Egypt. They chased B'nei Yisrael with the belief that His Mighty Hand would not reach them outside of those boundaries. When they witnessed the miraculous collapse of their chariots, they finally began to realize their error. They recognized that the God who brought their nation to its knees on its home turf knows no boundaries and was now bringing them to their ultimate demise.

(I'm not 100% sure I have accurately understood the tense of the targum. But I believe the idea is valid independently, as well.)

Have a good Shabbos.

Eliezer Bulka
WeeklyShtikle@weeklyshtikle.com

Shtikle Blog Weekly Roundup:

Happy 19th Birthday, Dikdukian!

Dikdukian: Ba'al Tzefon

Dikdukian: Exceptions Ahoy

Dikdukian: Midash, HaShem...

Dikdukian: Leave us Alone

Al Pi Cheshbon: Chamushim

AstroTorah: The Gemara's Aliens? by R' Ari Storch

 

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The Weekly Shtikle - Bo

This week's shtikle is dedicated le'iluy nishmas Dovid Pesach ben Tzvi Hirsh HaLevi whose 6^th yahrtzeit is this coming tomorrow, 6 Shevat.

I wrote the following 7 years ago as an observation regarding a raging political battle related to illegal immigration. Not a lot has changed since then:

Without getting too deep in the political weeds, one way to understand the dispute is a disagreement as to whether or not certain individuals are desired as residents of this country. Shall we build a wall to keep out all but those who wish to enter through fully legal means? Or is it proper to let anyone in who wants to enter? What shall be done with those who have already managed to enter illegally? Every nation needs to devote significant thought to the issue of whom they want to let in and at times, even consider those who are already there and whether they should remain.

There were certainly many facets to the subjugation in Mitzrayim and the subsequent redemption. This national issue was very much part of the story line. At the very beginning of Shemos, we learn about Paroah's convention to decide what to do about their "Jewish problem." One must assume that expulsion was an option that was on the table, in theory. Many nations throughout history have certainly had no qualms about that course of action. It seems from the dialog that "ve'alah min ha'aretz," mass emigration was not a desirable result. This strategy dates back even further to Paroah's clear apprehensions with the journey to bury Yaakov Avinu in Eretz Yisrael. And so, it was decided that the best strategy – not unlike that of the Soviet Union  –  was to keep, contain and subjugate them.

As the mission towards deliverance begins, the dialogue consists primarily of Moshe trying to convince Paroah to let B'nei Yisrael leave for B'nei Yisrael's sake, not the sake of Paroah or Mitzrayim. However, after the attrition of the initial seven plagues, at the beginning of this week's parsha, we begin to see a shift. After Paroah stubbornly ignores Moshe's warning about the locusts, his closest courtiers have had enough and insist (10:7) that he let them go. We all know how that turned out.

Later, in the preamble to the ultimate plague of makas bechoros, Moshe foretells (11:8) that these servants would give up on convincing their ruler and come to Moshe on their own and beg him to leave. Sure enough, as the events played out, Paroah himself came to Moshe and Aharon and the entire nation eventually came to the realization that under no circumstances could the nation sustain B'nei Yisrael remaining in their midst. Finally, we were given the one expulsion in our history that we were actually longing for.

Have a good Shabbos.

 

Eliezer Bulka
WeeklyShtikle@weeklyshtikle.com

 

Shtikle Blog Weekly Roundup:
Dikdukian: Talented Locusts

Dikdukian: Better not Butcher This One

AstroTorah: Korban Pesach in the Sky by R' Ari Storch

AstroTorah: The Death Star (Ra'ah) the classic by R' Ari Storch

 

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The Weekly Shtikle - Va'eira

In this week's parsha, the story is briefly paused for a condensed review of the generations leading from the sons of Yaakov to the main players in the story. The pesukim review the children of Reuven and Shimon and then the progeny of Levi in order to reach Aharon and Moshe. One of the subtle differences between the review of Reuven and Shimon and that of Levi is that the former are introduced with (6:14) "The sons of…" Levi, however, is introduced with (6:16) "These are the names of the sons…"

I recently heard a shiur from Rabbi Frand in which he quotes the Shelah (Shenei Luchos HaBeris) who addresses this nuance. He writes that Levi saw with ruach hakodesh that the nation would be enslaved by Egypt but his descendants would not be subjected to the harsh subjugation like the rest of the people. He wanted to ensure that his offspring did not lack the sensitivity to commiserate with the rest of the nation. He therefore gave them names that would serve as a constant reminder of their predicament. Gershon is named for the fact that they were strangers in the land. Kehas is derived from the word indicating that their teeth were blunted and Merari's name was reminiscent of the bitter conditions.

Rabbi Frand goes on to explain that Levi's mission was surely accomplished. When he is tending the flock of Yisro, he is captivated by the burning bush and comes closer to observe. Traditionally, based on the midrash, the bush symbolized the Jewish people. As much as they were mistreated and persecuted, they are still never consumed. This is what caught Moshe's attention. It is unclear at what age Moshe left Egypt but by all accounts, this was over 60 years after he had fled. Still, after all these years, his people were top of mind.

Have a good Shabbos.

Eliezer Bulka
WeeklyShtikle@weeklyshtikle.com

 

Shtikle Blog Weekly Roundup:

Dikdukian: Plurals and Singulars

Dikdukian: Netziv and the Missing Yud

Dikdukian: The Strange thing about Frogs

Dikdukian: Dikdukei Va'eira by Eliyahu Levin

Dikdukian: Leshon Yachid veRabbim by Eliayhu Levin

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