Today's Learning Sponsored by Bikkurim 1:3-4 Alan & Paula Goldman Kitzur 177:12-178:1 in memory of Sam W. Goldman zt'zl Kiddushin 77 Yerushalmi-- Shabbat 49 PARASHAT TETZAVEH / ZACHOR Vol. VIII, No. 20 (355), 8 Adar 5754, Feb. 19, 1994 R' Chaim Yishayahu Hadari, shlita, writes: In this week's parasha, we read of the mitzvah of the menorah. Chazal note that Hashem does not need the light of the menorah. In addition, writes R' S.R. Hirsch, the Torah never says that we are to light the menorah. All we are commanded to do is to arrange the wicks and to apply the flame. If Hashem desires our service, then He will make the flames burn, as a gift to us. The shemittah is also a gift from Hashem, writes the Sefat Emet. To earn the gift of the menorah's flame, we must follow the Torah's procedures for preparing it. What must we do to obtain the gift of shemittah? We must know that we are strangers in the Land and that the Land is Hashem's. The upcoming holiday of Purim is associated with gifts and giving as well. One explanation for the custom of drinking on Purim is to symbolize that we do not provide for our own needs. Even in our drunken stupor, Hashem is giving us His gifts. On Purim, we give freely to others, to reciprocate, so-to-speak, for Hashem's gifts to us. (Shabbat uMo'ed baShevi'it) ************************************ "You shall command Bnei Yisrael and they shall bring to you pure olive oil, to raise an eternal light." (27:20) The Ba'al haTurim notes: The gematria of "v'ata tetzaveh" ("You shall command") equals the gematria of "nashim tetzaveh" ("Command the women"). This is the Torah's hint that women should light Shabbat candles. [Note also that the gematria of "ner tamid" ("eternal light") equals the gematria of "Shabbat."] ************************************ In this week's parasha, we read of the twelve stones that were placed in the kohen gadol's breastplate, each one symbolizing one of the twelve tribes. The stone of the tribe of Binyamin was a "yashfeh" (possibly a jasper). Mori v'Rabi R' Moshe Zuriel, shlita, explained that this stone symbolizes Binyamin's ability to keep a secret. Specifically, "yashfeh" is short for "yesh peh"--"there is a mouth." Binyamin knew prophetically that his brothers had sold Yosef, yet despite having the ability to reveal this secret to Yaakov, he did not do so. Why? Because a prophet may not reveal his prophecy unless commanded to do so. [Ed. note: Binyamin inherited the trait of discretion from his mother and passed in on to his descendants, as the Gemara notes (Megillah 13b). Thus Rachel did not reveal Lavan's plot to exchange her for Leah, Shaul did not prematurely reveal the fact that he had been crowned king of Israel, and Esther did not reveal her origin until Mordechai instructed her to.] The idea that a prophet may not speak unless commanded to do so explains certain seemingly incomprehensible stories in the Torah, R' Moshe Zuriel noted. When the angels revealed that Sarah would give birth, Sarah laughed. Was this the first time that she had heard these tidings? Certainly Avraham had been told earlier, but he had never been given permission to reveal his prophecy to Sarah, and he did not do so. Similarly, Rivka was told by the prophet that her son Esav would grow up to be a rasha, yet she never told Yitzchak. Although (according to many commentaries) Yitzchak was fooled by Esav's pretense of mitzvah observance, Rivkah was never given permission to reveal the prophecy that had been shared with her. ************************************ On the verse in Megilat Esther (4:10), "And Esther said to Hatach, and she commanded him to (go to) Mordechai," the Targum says, "Hatach was commanded to tell Mordechai not to start-up with Haman because the battle with him is part of the ancient battle with Esav." Says R' Shlomo Alkabetz: This is shocking! Did she think that Mordechai was battling Haman over some personal matter like the inheritance of a field or vineyard? It is a mitzvah to hate those who hate Hashem! Esther's question, says R' Alkabetz, was why Mordechai was going out of his way to see Haman. If Mordechai chose not to bow down to Haman, why did he intentionally stand on a street corner where Haman would pass by? Why did he? Chazal say that Haman wore an idol around his neck and considered himself to be a god. Mordechai knew that a decree had been made against the Jews because they had bowed down to Nevuchadnezar's golden calf, and Mordechai's intention was to atone for all of the Jewish people through his sacrifice. [The Gemara says that bowing down to Nevuchadnezar's idol was one of the causes of the decree that the Jews be destroyed in Haman's time. Since they were saved, Mordechai's ploy apparently succeeded.] (Manot haLevi) ************************************ Chazal say that if Bnei Yisrael had properly observed one Shabbat, no nation would ever have gained the upper hand over them. We learn this from the juxtaposition of the story of Amalek's invasion to the Torah's account of the Jews who went into the fields on Shabbat to look for mahn. (Sh'mot, chapters 16-17). The gematria of Amalek, notes R' Chaim Meir Hager (the Vizhnitzer Rebbe) zt'zl, is 240, which is equal to the gematria of "ram"--"haughty." Shabbat, on the other hand, is the symbol of humility, for by resting on Shabbat we acknowledge G-d's ownership of everything and our dependence on Him. The midrash says that Haman complained to Achashveirosh that the Jews kept Shabbat and Pesach. Haman was from Amalek; Pesach, like Shabbat, represents humility, the trait which is antithetical to Amalek. (Matzah is a "humble" version of bread; the Torah (vaYikra 23:11) calls Pesach, "Shabbat.") Note that the gematria of "tzar v'oyev Haman hara hazeh" (Esther 7:6) equals 702, the gematria of "Shabbat," while the gematria of the words "ra hazeh" (from the same verse) equals 287, the gematria of the Haggadah's reference to matzah: "Ha lachma ania di achalu" ("This is the humble bread which [our ancestors] ate"). (Imrei Chaim, Parashat Zachor) ************************************ One of the eight garments of the kohen gadol was the tzitz, a band that he wore on his forehead, and which bore the words, "Kodesh l'Hashem"--"sanctified unto G-d." The Torah says that those words were engraved like on a signet ring (Sh'mot 28:36). What does this symbolize? R' Menachem Mendel Hager (the Vishuver Rebbe; older brother of the above) explains: A signet ring bears a backwards picture or signature; only when the impression is made does it appear in a legible form. Similarly, a person must be exceedingly humble, but a leader (such as a kohen gadol) must often exhibit traces of haughtiness in order to make the proper impression upon his constituents. The tzitz which the kohen gadol wore reminded of this; it stated that he was "sanctified onto G-d," but, like a signet ring, it was legible only to those standing opposite him. From his own perspective, it was not legible. (She'eirit Menachem I) ************************************ Reb MORDECHAI MEISEL born 5288 (1528) - died 9 Adar 5361 (1601) Reb Mordechai Meisel was not the Rabbi of a community, nor was he a prolific writer on Torah subjects. Rather, he was one of the most celebrated lay leaders ("parnassim") in Jewish history. He was born and grew up in Prague, and he suffered the expulsions of the Jews from Moravia in 1542 and 1561. Upon returning to Prague in 1562, he began amassing what became a huge fortune. From his own pocket, he built a shul and mikavaot in Prague, and he dressed the poor, married-off orphans, and gave them dowries. When the cities of Cracow and Posen both suffered devastating fires in 1590, he lent them money to rebuild. His philanthropy extended as far away as Eretz Yisrael. In 1593, Reb Mordechai was named to the Emperor's cabinet, and he was given the right to sign documents in the Emperor's name. During his years in the royal court, there were no pogroms in the realm, and Jews lived in peace. Thus, his tombstone reads: A prince of G-d, The breath of our nostrils, The head and the officer of all the people of the Diaspora, His kindness greatly overwhelmed us, He did charity with every body and soul.... The crown of a good name is upon him in all gates (i.e., towns), Unique in his generation... When Reb Mordechai felt that his days were numbered, he called the Maharal of Prague to his bedside and bequeathed fortunes to charities, Torah scholars, synagogues and yeshiva buildings, and similar causes. He was eulogized in numerous communities, and rabbis and princes stood side-by-side at his funeral. ************************************ 12 Adar -- The Day of Turyanus On the 12th of Adar, Turyanus (Trajan?) sought to kill two Jews by the names of Pappus (aka Shemayah) and Lulianus (aka Achiyah). He asked them, "Will G-d save you as He saved Chananiah, Mishael, and Azaryah from the furnace of Nevuchadnezar?" They answered, "Chananiah, Mishael, and Azaryah were perfectly righteous, and deserved such a miracle. We do not. Furthermore, Nevuchadnezar was important enough to be the instrument of such a miracle. You are not. If you don't kill us, G-d has many agents who can; He chose you only so that He can take His revenge upon you." Nevertheless, Turyanus killed the two brothers. It is said that he did not leave that spot, before he too was murdered. Some say that Caesar's daughter was found dead, and the Jews were suspected. Pappus and Lulianus "admitted" to committing the crime in order to save the community at large. About them it says, "They are the martyrs of Lod, and no one can stand in their section of Gan Eden." (Melizei Esh; see Ta'anit 18b) ************************************ DONATIONS TO HAMAAYAN ARE TAX DEDUCTIBLE