Hamaayan / The Torah Spring Edited by Shlomo Katz "The Powers of the Sages" Volume 24, No. 35 7 Tammuz 5770 June 19, 2010 Sponsored by Dr. and Mrs. Irving Katz on the yahrzeit of his mother Sarah bat Yitzchak Hakohen z"l Martin and Michelle Swartz in memory of Martin's grandfather John Hofmann a"h Today's Learning: Nach: Tehilim 119 (letter "peh") - 120 Yadayim 4:7-8 O.C. 498:7-9 Daf Yomi (Bavli): Makkot 15 Daf Yomi (Yerushalmi): Kilayim 19 The Midrash Rabbah on this week's parashah states that there were three things that Moshe Rabbeinu "taught" Hashem, so-to-speak. First, after the sin of the golden calf, Moshe argued that Hashem could not punish Bnei Yisrael because He had given the Aseret Ha'dibrot in singular ("Anochi Hashem Elokecha"), as if to Moshe alone. Hashem agreed, but thereafter He always said "Ani Hashem Elokeichem" in plural form (see, for example Bemidbar 15:41). [The midrash continues and describes the two other instances.] What does this mean? Obviously Hashem has nothing to learn from a mortal! R' Yitzchak Ze'ev Yadler z"l (1843-1917; Yerushalayim) explains: There are three circumstances in which the Sages have the power to (seemingly) deviate from the Torah. First, if the Sages would interpret the Torah one way based on the accepted hermeneutic principles ("midot she'ha'Torah nidreshet bahen") and a bat kol / Heavenly proclamation would declare that they had erred, they would not heed that proclamation. Rather, the derashah of the Sages takes precedence. Second, they have the right to refrain from carrying out the halachah. For example, the Gemara (Shabbat 15a) relates that the Sanhedrin stopped carrying out capital punishment at a certain point in history. Third, the Sages can "uproot" a mitzvah from the Torah, for example, by decreeing that the shofar will not be blown when Rosh Hashanah falls on Shabbat. Three times Moshe appeared to "get the better" of Hashem in an argument and thereby to "teach" Hashem. R' Yadler explains that Hashem made this happen in order to create three precedents for the three powers of the Sages mentioned above. (Tiferet Zion) ******** "Miriam died there and she was buried there. There was no water for the assembly, and they gathered against Moshe and Aharon." (Bemidbar 20:1-2) R' Shlomo Ephraim of Lunschitz z"l (rabbi of Prague; died 1619) writes in his commentary Kli Yakar that the lack of water was a punishment for Bnei Yisrael's failure to mourn Miriam adequately. In contrast to Moshe and Aharon's deaths, the verse does not say that Bnei Yisrael cried over her death. Rather, the verse implies, she was "buried there" and forgotten. Accordingly, Bnei Yisrael had to be shown that the spring that had traveled through the desert with them had been in Miriam's merit. R' Ben Zion Rabinowitz shlita (the Biala Rebbe in Yerushalayim) teaches that we must learn a practical lesson from the Kli Yakar's comment: When one receives a gift in the merit of a second person, then the recipient is obligated to show gratitude to the person in whose merit the gift was given. He observes further: We have a tendency to not show proper gratitude to our mothers and wives. King David extols the tzniut / discrete nature of Jewish woman in the verse (Tehilim 45:14), "All of the honor of the king's daughter is inward" - the consequence, however, is that the low- key, behind the scenes contributions of mothers and wives go unnoticed. When this happens, the "spring runs dry," as in our verses. (Mevaser Tov: B'zchut Nashim Tzidkaniyot p.292) ******** "Moshe and Aharon gathered the congregation before the rock and he said to them, `Listen now, you morim / rebels, shall we bring forth water for you from this rock?'" (20:10) Rabbeinu Nissim z"l ("Ran"; Spain; 1290-1380) writes: Moshe Rabbeinu was punished for these words (by not being allowed to enter Eretz Yisrael) because he generalized in criticizing Bnei Yisrael. It is true that the individual Jews whom he was addressing were "morim" / "rebels." However, our Sages say that one should be in awe of any tzibbur / assembly of Jews. Jews as a group can never be labeled by a derogatory term, for even if the individuals in the group lack redeeming qualities that others in the group possess, the group as a whole is always greater than the sum of its parts. Even if one is an intentional sinner in his own right, if he is part of a gathering that is serving Hashem, the group is enhanced because that sinner is part of it. How so? Our Sages find a precedent in the ketoret / incense in the Temple, which had one foul-smelling spice in it--the chelbenah. The Ran says that this spice served to "awaken" the fragrance of the other spices [presumably through a chemical reaction]. Similarly, when people with different strengths and weaknesses get together, they awaken previously dormant positive traits in each other. However, the Ran continues, this is true only if the group is not made up entirely of like-minded resha'im / wicked people. If all the members of the group have exactly the same bad traits, then they merely strengthen each other's wickedness. (Derashot HaRan: Drush No. 1) Although verse 10 (above) relates that Moshe Rabbeinu lost his temper, that is not why he was punished, writes R' Yehuda Loewe z"l (Maharal of Prague; died 1609). Rather, losing one's temper indicates a breach in one's emunah / faith, for emunah causes one to be happy and to sing. (Gevurot Hashem ch.7) ******** "Hashem said to Moshe and to Aharon, `Because you did not believe in Me to sanctify Me in the eyes of Bnei Yisrael, therefore you will not bring this congregation to the Land that I have given them." (20:12) R' David Halevi z"l (Taz; 1586-1667) writes: Many ask: Didn't Hashem previously tell Moshe that he would not enter Eretz Yisrael because he questioned how Hashem was going about redeeming Bnei Yisrael from Egypt? (See Rashi to Shmot 6:1) He answers: Moshe's sin in Egypt was committed privately. Therefore, his punishment was annulled when all of Bnei Yisrael were sentenced to die in the desert, lest it appear that he was no better than they. Now, when Moshe sinned again in a very public fashion, he was punished anew. (Divrei David) R' Yehuda He'chassid z"l (Germany; died 1217) asks: Hashem has many ways of punishing one who sins. Why did Moshe Rabbeinu have to die for this particular act? He answers: It is noteworthy that Moshe's downfall came about through the very same implement that he used to perform so many miracles -- the staff. This is meant to serve as a lesson to us that Hashem does not show favoritism. Despite all the good that Moshe did, he too was punished severely for his sin. Also, this teaches that, although Moshe Rabbeinu said (Devarim 30:20) that clinging to Hashem is "your life and the length of your days," he meant this to refer to Olam Haba, not to This World. Thus, if a tzaddik dies young--Moshe Rabbeinu died at a younger age than any of his ancestors going all the way back to Adam Ha'rishon--no one should think that the Torah's promise was not kept. (Sefer Ha'chassidim No.355) ******** "They are the waters of strife, where Bnei Yisrael contended with Hashem, and He was sanctified through them." (Bemidbar 20:13) Rashi z"l comments: "These are they that were alluded to, though unwittingly, on another occasion. It was these waters [which caused Moshe's death] that Pharaoh's astrologers foresaw, saying that Israel's deliverer would be punished through water. For that reason they had decreed (Shmot 1:22) `Every son that is born shall you cast into the river'." R' Menachem Ben-Zion Zaks z"l (rosh yeshiva in Chicago) observes: The evil Pharaoh could not kill Moshe. Indeed, Pharaoh's own daughter made a mockery of his decree by raising Moshe in the royal palace. But the "waters of strife" -- the infighting of the Jewish People -- were able to kill Moshe. This, writes R' Zaks, is a recurring problem in our history. Whereas our enemies fail to destroy us and to implant seeds of impurity within us, we manage to inflict these wounds on ourselves. This is true in particular when we attack our own leaders, actions which have far-reaching consequences and which cause lingering hatred. This characteristic of our People was noted long ago by the prophet Yeshayah (49:18), "Those who cause your ruin, and your destroyers, are from you." We read in Tehilim (81:8), "I will test you at the waters of strife, selah." This is the ultimate test that G-d places before us constantly: Can we overcome that failing which led to the "waters of strife" and killed Moshe and Aharon? (Menachem Zion) ******** Tosefet Shabbat R' Avigdor Nebenzahl shlita (rabbi of the Old City of Yerushalayim) writes: According to the letter of the law, Shabbat begins at shekiat ha'chamah (loosely translated, "sunset"). [The definition of "sunset" is itself a complex halachic question. Today, most if not all Jewish communities refrain from melachah / forbidden labors on Friday evening from the time referred to in English as "sunset," i.e., when the sun has passed below the horizon.] However, it is a mitzvah--according to some authorities, a Torah obligation--to add to Shabbat, meaning, to accept Shabbat at least several minutes before shekiat ha'chamah. This additional time is called "Tosefet Shabbat" / "the addition to Shabbat." The earliest time when one may accept Shabbat is "plag ha'minchah" (literally, "the midpoint of minchah"), which is 1 1/4 seasonal hours before sunset. [A "seasonal hour" is 1/12 of the time between sunrise and sunset. This is referred to on many calendars as the "Earliest time for candle-lighting." For example, plag ha'minchah in Silver Spring, Maryland this Friday is 7:04 p.m.] The Talmud Yerushalmi states that Tosefet Shabbat should be two hours long. R' Shlomo Zalman Auerbach z"l stated that this means two hours before "tzait ha'kochavim" / "nightfall." ["Nightfall" is a later time than sunset and corresponds to the time when Shabbat ends. For example, "nightfall" in Silver Spring, Maryland this week is anywhere between 9:16 and 9:48 p.m. depending on the formula used. Thus, the ideal time to accept Shabbat according to this view would be between 7:16 and 7:48 p.m.] The mishnah in Pirkei Avot states that Hashem created ten things during the waning minutes of Friday afternoon. Why did Hashem not observe the mitzvah of Tosefet Shabbat? Rashi z"l writes that the purpose of Tosefet Shabbat is to prevent the accidental transgression of Shabbat, but Hashem never makes mistakes, so Tosefet Shabbat is unnecessary for Him. Alternatively, R' Nebenzahl writes, there was no possibility of Tosefet Shabbat on that very first Friday, because Shabbat itself had not yet been created. (Yerushalayim B'mo'adeha: Shabbat Vol. II, p.47)