Book Review - "The Neshamah Should Have an Aliyah" by Rabbi Tzvi Hebel

When I started this blog, I was approached by a good friend, Rabbi Moshe Haikins, the founder and director of the Chevrah Lomdei Mishnah - The Society for the Mishnah Study, with the request that I read and review a book that they had published (in cooperation with Judaica Press). Of course, there is a danger in accepting such a request from a friend, as it entails the risk of having to inform your friend of your true opinion of the book. This is especially daunting when the book is already in print and your criticism can no longer serve any constructive purpose.

Thankfully, I was not faced with this difficulty in this case. In The Neshamah Should Have an Aliyah, Rabbi Tzvi Hebel has succeeded in producing an outstanding work that will probably become a standard text in the English speaking Jewish world. The work deals with an issue that everyone is eventually faced with; how to properly memorialize a deceased loved one according to Jewish tradition.

The book begins with a general overview of the different concepts that underlie the various traditional Jewish practices for memorializing the departed. All of these concepts are based upon the basic principle that the departed do not cease to exist at death, and that even after death, it is possible for the living to continue to contribute to the welfare of our loved ones who have passed on. Most significantly, the departed continue to gain merit through the good deeds of their children and family. Moreover, good deeds done with the intent to bring merit upon the deceased, are themselves raised to higher level, for in addition to the good deed itself, such acts also include the elements of chessed (kindness) and kibbud av v'eim (honor of parents).

However, the real strength and uniqueness of this work is in the next section, which makes up the bulk of the work, titled, "What You Can Do - A Practical Guide." This is a comprehensive, and very practical, guide to the many different traditional practices used to memorialize and gain merit for the deceased.

The only way to really appreciate how comprehensive this work is to look over the table of contents. The topics covered include Torah study (both during the period of mourning and afterwards), charity and chessed, prayer (covering the recitation of kaddish, yizkor, and other such practices), the tombstone, visiting the grave, naming children after the deceased, the yahrtzeit (yearly anniversary of the deceased's passing), and so on.

All of these are accompanied by highly practical advice and information. Thus, in reference to the practice of studying mishnayos during the shivah (first seven days of mourning) based upon the name of the deceased (in which each mishnah begins with a letter from the Hebrew name of the deceased), the publishers included an appendix to the book that has a mishnah with translation for each letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

Similarly, when discussing charity and chessed, the author includes an introduction to setting up a gemach - a fund for free loans of money or other acts of kindness - which can be an outstanding source of merit for both the deceased and the living. This book even includes names and phone numbers of organizations and experienced individuals who are willing to help you set up a gemach.

And, in connection to the practice of visiting the grave site, the book includes a separate pamphlet, printed on glossy card-stock, with the traditional prayers that are recited at the cemetery. The book also includes a CD with a presentation, both in audio (for a conventional CD player) and video, titled, "Providing Eternal Merit" by the world-famous speakers, Rabbi Yissocher Frand and Rabbi Paysach Krohn. (Obviously, these items are not included in the Kindle edition.)

The book even includes a sample agenda for a family meeting for discussing what the family can do to memorialize their departed loved ones.

Yet despite the comprehensive and practical nature of this work, Rabbi Hebel has succeeded in producing  a book that is of a reasonable size (well under 200 pages) and which is written in clear, accessible language. The book includes an index and glossary, and the longer sections are followed by bulleted summaries. 

In short, with this work, Rabbi Hebel has performed an extraordinary service for the Jewish community. He has provided us with a user-friendly guide to a topic that we are often first confronted with at a time of great stress. I highly recommend this work for every Jewish home.

---

Rabbi Hebel and the Chevrah Lomdei Mishnah have also published Mishnas Chayim, a collection of insights on the weekly Torah portion from the Mishnah originally published in their popular weekly parsha sheet.

---

Elul – The Lion Roars

“The lion roars! Who is not afraid?” – Amos 3:8

The commentaries (של"ה הקדוש, מס' ר"ה, נר מצוה בשם הקדמונים) tell us that the word אריה - lion – is an acronym for אלול - Elul, ראש השנה - Rosh HaShana, יום כיפור - Yom Kippur, and הושענה רבה - Hoshana Raba. This period of time, beginning with the month of Elul until Hoshana Raba, the seventh day of the festival of Succos, is a time for introspection and repentance. During this time, Jewish tradition teaches, the gates of teshuva – return – are opened.

The Chayei Adam (Rabbi Avraham Danzig, d.1820) writes (138:1):

Out of the love of the Holy One, blessed be He, towards His people Israel, He has done abundant good for us, and He has commanded us to return to Him anytime we have sinned. And, while teshuva is beneficial at all times, nevertheless, the month of Elul is particularly chosen and prepared beyond the other days of the year for the acceptance of teshuva.

For these days have been days of favor from the moment that we were chosen to be a nation. For after Israel sinned with the golden calf and the Tablets were broken on the seventeenth of Tamuz, Moses went up on the mountain and prayed, and the Holy One, blessed be He, said to him (Exodus 34:1), “Carve for yourself [two stone tablets like the first ones]”, and He found favor to give him a second set of tablets.

Moses then went [back] up on the first of Elul and remained there [for forty days] until Yom Kippur, which is the completion of the atonement. And it states in [the midrash] Tana D’Vei Eliyahu:

“For all these days the people of Israel engaged in fasting, and on the final day – the tenth of Tishrei – they decreed a fast day and they fasted overnight. Therefore, this day – which is Yom Kippur – was established for eternity for atonement.”

And because these [forty] days [from the beginning of Elul until Yom Kippur] were days of favor at that time, therefore every year mercy is again aroused above [during this time] and they are days of favor.

Elul is a time of great opportunity. However, like every true opportunity, it is also a great responsibility. For if God has granted us the opportunity to change and improve and we do not make use of that opportunity, then we effectively compound our guilt.

In previous generations the significance of Elul was better appreciated. The story is told of the marketplace of Kelm, Lithuania – the little town that was home to the famous Talmud Torah of Kelm – where a Gentile was attempting to bargain with a Jewish merchant, and he wasn’t getting anywhere. Finally, another Gentile approached him and asked him why he was trying to bargain. "What?" responded the bargainer, "Of course, I’m trying to bargain! Everyone knows that the initial asking price is always just a bluff!" To which the second Gentile responded, "Don’t you know? It's Elul! The Jews don't bluff during Elul!”

As we enter into this period, and approach the days of judgment on Rosh HaShana and Yom Kippur, it behooves us to think over the past year and the events that have taken place and to remind ourselves that happened in the past year was decreed in the previous Rosh HaShana and Yom Kippur.

I heard many times from my rebbe, Rabbi Yitzchok Knobel שליט"א, that it is very easy for us to get discouraged about truly changing our behavior at this time of year. After all, every year we go through the motions and afterwards we quickly revert to our prior behavior. He used to advise us to choose one concrete act, even if it was fairly minor, to improve and to make a solid commitment in that one area. God doesn't expect us to change overnight, He only wants us to make progress, and if we can show concrete progress we have a far better chance of a positive decision on these days of judgment.

So, let us look over our lives. Let us pick something – one thing – that we can truly commit to change, even if only for a specified period of time. Let it be a decision to recite a daily prayer, to attend a Torah class or to study Torah with a partner, to help another person, to speak gently to our spouse, or any similar positive act.

And may God grant us a sweet new year!

---

From Av to Elul – From Tragedy to Repentance

We are currently in the Jewish month of Av, the month devoted to mourning the destruction of the Holy Temples in Jerusalem – which culminates in the fast of Tisha B’Av – and to our faith that God will eventually comfort us – as expressed in the seven haftaros read each Shabbos between Tisha B’Av and Rosh HaShana. The month of Av is followed by Elul, the month devoted to teshuva (repentance) in preparation for Rosh HaShana and Yom Kippur.

What is the meaning of this sudden shift from the month of tragedy and mourning to the month of penitence and rapprochement between Man and God? To understand this we need to gain a deeper insight into the basic message of Av.

The Midrash (Eicha Raba 1:1) states:

Three [prophets] prophesied using the term “eicha”: Moses, Isaiah, and Jeremiah. Moses said, “How (Eicha) can I bear this people alone…” (Deut. 1:12). Isaiah said, “How (Eicha) has the faithful city become a harlot…” (Isaiah 1:21). Jeremiah said, “Alas! (Eicha) She sits in solitude…” (Lamentations 1:1).

R’ Levi said, “This is analogous to a noble-woman that had three servants, one saw her when she was in comfort, one saw her in her licentiousness, and one saw her in her disgrace. Similarly, Moses saw Israel in their honor and comfort and said, “How can I bear this people alone…”, Isaiah saw them in their licentiousness and said, “How has the faithful city become a harlot…”, and Jeremiah saw them in their disgrace and said, “Alas! She sits alone…”

These verses of Eicha are all read in the month of Av – the verses in Deuteronomy and Isaiah are read on the Shabbos before Tisha B’Av and the book of Lamentations is read on Tisha B’Av – and, taken together, they give us a key to the basic message of Av. The Elef HaMagen (Commentary on the Torah by Rav Eliezer Papo, d. 1824, author of the Pele Yo'etz) draws a connection between these three verses of Eicha and a passage in the Talmud (Yoma 35b):

A poor man, a wealthy man, and a wicked man are brought before [the heavenly court for] judgment. They say to the poor man, “Why didn't you study Torah?” If he responds that he was too poor and was preoccupied with his livelihood, they say to him, “Were you more impoverished than Hillel?” [Hillel the Elder, one of the greatest sages of the Talmud, was also an extremely poor man.] … 

They say to the wealthy man, “Why didn't you study Torah?” If he responds that he was wealthy and was preoccupied with his financial obligations, they say to him, “Were you more wealthy than Elazar ben Charsom?” [Rabbi Elazar ben Charsom was a prominent sage who was also extremely wealthy.]…

They say to the wicked man, “Why didn't you study Torah?” If he responds that he was very good-looking and was [therefore] preoccupied by his desires, they say to him, “Were you more beautiful than Joseph HaTzadik (the Righteous)?” [Joseph, the son of Jacob, was extremely beautiful and was severely challenged in this regard when he lived in the home of Potiphar in Egypt.]…

Thus we find that Hillel obligates the poor, Rabbi Elazar ben Charsom obligates the wealthy, and Joseph HaTzadik obligates the wicked.

The Talmud gives three categories of rationalizations – the excuses of poverty, wealth, and temptation – that people rely upon to deny their responsibility for their moral failures. Almost every excuse that we make for ourselves falls into one of these three categories. These three excuses are paralleled in the three verses of Eicha. Moses spoke of the Jewish people in their time of success, paralleling the challenge of wealth; Isaiah spoke of the Jewish people in their time of sin, paralleling the challenge of temptation; and Jeremiah spoke of the Jewish people in their time of suffering, paralleling the challenge of poverty.

Rav Avigdor Miller

The Midrash (Eicha Raba 1:1) points out the connection between the word Eicha and the word Ayeka (both words are spelled identically) in Genesis 3:8, when, after the sin of eating from the Tree of Knowledge, God calls out to Man, “Ayeka?" - "Where are you?” What exactly was God asking? God certainly knew exactly where Adam and Eve were hiding! Rav Avigdor Miller explains:

Every sinner hides from Hashem… behind self-justifications and self-deceptions. ...all sinners are actually hiding from Him behind their barricades of self-deception and self-justification. ... Hashem calls to the Man: “Where are you?” meaning: Reveal yourself to Me, by removing the barricades of self-justification and false reasoning behind which you attempt to hide from Me.

The cry of Eicha – How can it be! – alludes to that original call of Ayeka – Where are you? – in which God calls us to stop deceiving ourselves and return to Him. The tragedies we mourn in the month of Av are repetitions of that call, intended to shake us out of our complacency and force us to accept responsibility for our actions. The message of Av is precisely this, that it was our failures – failures that we continue to repeat – that brought about these tragedies, and that we must recognize this and acknowledge our own power to change our behavior. We are not slaves to our circumstances; as human beings we are fundamentally free to control our actions, and we therefore bear the responsibility to do so.

Maimonides

Maimonides devotes two full chapters of his laws of repentance to the topic of free-will (Hil. Teshuva 5:1-3):

Free-will is given to every human being. If he wishes to turn himself to the good path and to be righteous, he has the ability to do so, and if he chooses to turn himself to the bad path, and be wicked, he has the power to do so....

Do not think... that God decrees upon a person at the beginning of his existence whether he will be righteous or wicked. It is not so! Rather, every single human being has the ability to be as righteous as Moses our Teacher, or as wicked as Jeroboam....

This concept is a major principle and the pillar of the Torah and the Commandment, as it says (Deuteronomy 30:15), "See, I have placed before you today life and good, and death and evil." And it is written (ibid. 11:26), "See, I have placed before you today blessing and curse."

Maimonides concludes his discussion of free-will stating (Hil. Teshuva 7:1):

Since, as we have explained, every human being has free-will, a man should strive to repent and to cleanse his hands of his sins, so that he should die as a penitent and merit to the life of the world to come.

The recognition of our free-will and responsibility is of fundamental importance as we enter the month of Elul – the month of teshuva (repentance). As long as we deceive ourselves into thinking that our actions are not within our control, teshuva is impossible. It is only after we accept responsibility for our deeds that we can begin the process of teshuva.

---

Eikev - The Sin of Aaron

In Parshas Eikev, Moses recounts his dialogue with God in the aftermath of the sin of the golden calf and his efforts to intercede on the behalf of the Jewish people. In the course of his account, Moses mentions that God was angry not just with the Jewish people as a whole, but also with Aaron the priest (Deuteronomy 9:20), "And with Aaron God became very angry to destroy him, and I prayed for Aaron as well at that time."

This appears to be a clear statement that Aaron sinned in his actions at the time of the sin of the golden calf (as told in Exodus 32). However, this needs clarification because in Exodus there is no clear indication that God condemned Aaron's actions, and the Sages generally understand Aaron's apparent concessions at that time as an attempt to restrain and limit the sinful actions of the people who were demanding that Aaron construct a "god" for them to replace Moses.

These questions are raised by Rabbeinu Bachya (d.1340) in his commentary on this verse. He answers that God is judging Aaron is being judged according to a very high standard:

והתשובה בזה כי הקב"ה מדקדק עם הצדיקים אפילו כחוט השערה... ואע"פ שכוונתו היתה לשמים, מכל מקום המעשה לאהרן בידים היה חילול השם, ואע"פ שהוא לא חטא בו הנה החטיא את ישראל שלא בכוונה

The answer to this question is that God is demanding with the righteous to a hair's-breadth... and therefore, even though [Aaron's] intent was for the sake of Heaven, nevertheless Aaron's physical act was a desecration of the name of God, and while [Aaron] himself did not sin with [the calf], he unintentionally caused the Jewish people to sin.

So we find that Aaron is both praised and condemned for his actions at the time of the sin of the golden calf, and his actions are interpreted as both righteous and sinful. This dual perspective is reflected in the debate found in the commentaries on a somewhat vague passage in the Talmud (Sanhedrin 6b-7a). The Talmud is discussing the issue of a judge arbitrating a compromise:

רבי אליעזר בנו של רבי יוסי הגלילי אומר: אסור לבצוע, וכל הבוצע ־ הרי זה חוטא, וכל המברך את הבוצע ־ הרי זה מנאץ, ועל זה נאמר, "בצע ברך נאץ ה'"ץ אלא יקוב הדין את ההר, שנאמר, "כי המשפט לאלהים הוא", וכן משה היה אומר יקוב הדין את ההר. אבל אהרן אוהב שלום ורודף שלום, ומשים שלום בין אדם לחבירו, שנאמר, "תורת אמת היתה בפיהו ועולה לא נמצא בשפתיו בשלום ובמישור הלך אתי ורבים השיב מעון."

Rabbi Eliezer the son of R' Yosi HaGalili says: It is forbidden [for a judge] to compromise, and he who compromises sins, and anyone who blesses a compromiser blasphemes, for on this it is said (Psalms 10:3), "He who blesses a compromiser blasphemes against God."  Rather, let the law puncture through the mountain, as it says (Deuteronomy 1:17), "For the judgment is God's." And so Moses would say: "Let the law puncture through the mountain." But Aaron [who was not a judge, but a private citizen] loved peace and pursued peace and made peace between man and his fellow, as it says (Malachi 2:6), "The law of truth was in his mouth, injustice was not found in his lips, he walked with Me in peace and equity and he turned many away from sin."

While the exact ramifications of this discussion in legal terms is beyond the scope of this discussion, we find in this passage that while the Talmud condemns the encouragement of compromise by a sitting judge, it praises the pursuit of compromise outside the courtroom, as exemplified by Aaron. The Talmud continues discussing the propriety of compromise in a court setting and then concludes:

אמר רבי תנחום בר חנילאי: לא נאמר מקרא זה אלא כנגד מעשה העגל, שנאמר, "וירא אהרן ויבן מזבח לפניו." מה ראה? אמר רבי בנימין בר יפת אמר רבי אלעזר: ראה חור שזבוח לפניו, אמר: אי לא שמענא להו השתא עבדו לי כדעבדו בחור, ומיקיים בי "אם יהרג במקדש ה' כהן ונביא", ולא הויא להו תקנתא לעולם. מוטב דליעבדו לעגל, אפשר הויא להו תקנתא בתשובה.

R' Tanchum bar Chanilai said: This verse was said only with regard to the story of the [golden] calf, as it says (Exodus 32:5), "And Aaron saw and he built an altar before it."  What did he see? — R' Binyamin bar Yaphes said in the name of R' Elazar: He saw that Chur was slaughtered before him. [Aaron] said, If I do not listen to them, they will now do to me as they did to Chur, and through me (i.e. my death) will be fulfilled [the verse] (Lamentations 2:20), "if a priest and a prophet will be killed in the Sanctuary of God" and there will be no rectification for them forever! It is better that they serve the calf, for which a rectification through repentance is possible.

Here we find an explanation of why Aaron decided it was better to cooperate with the sin of the golden calf rather than directly oppose it. However, there is a significant ambiguity in the discussion. When R' Tanchum bar Chanilai says, "this verse", what verse is he actually referring to?

Rashi understands R' Tanchum bar Chanilai to be referring to the verse from Psalms cited in the earlier passage, "He who blesses a compromiser blasphemes against God." According to Rashi, R' Tanchum bar Chanilai is criticizing Aaron's action, saying that, while Aaron certainly had good intentions, he ultimately engaged in an illicit compromise.

Tosafos, however, understands R' Tanchum bar Chanilai to be referring to the verse from Malachi cited earlier with regards to Aaron, "The law of truth was in his mouth, injustice was not found in his lips, he walked with Me in peace and equity and he turned many away from sin." According to Tosafos, R' Tanchum bar Chanilai is actually defending, and even praising, Aaron, saying that through his actions at the time of the sin of the golden calf "he turned many away from sin."

It appears that Tosafos' understanding is generally accepted as the dominant opinion in this debate. This may be because it reflects a sentiment found in many other midrashic sources that discuss Aaron's role in the sin of the golden calf. For example, the medrash (Vayikra Rabba 10:3) states that is what because of his actions at the time of the sin of the golden calf, and his willingness to shift the burden of guilt from the Jewish people to himself, that Aaron was chosen to be the first, and ancestor of, the kohanim (priests).

How then, however, are we to understand the clear condemnation of Aaron's actions here in Parshas Eikev?

One possible answer is given by the Taz (R' Dovid HaLevi, d.1667) in his commentary on Rashi on this verse (בספרו דברי דוד), who suggests that perhaps the sin of Aaron was that, although his primary motivation was certainly for the sake of Heaven, because of his fear for his life, Aaron failed to pray for God to inspire the sinners to turn away from their sinful actions.

However, it would seem that the primary answer is more basic, and is found in the commentary of Rabbeinu Bachya that we quoted at the beginning of this discussion. It is certainly true that Aaron had good intentions, and that, in the big picture, his act was not truly a sin at all but an act of righteousness and self-sacrifice which, ultimately, saved many people from sin. Nevertheless, when all is said and done, there remains an inescapable element of chillul Hashem (desecration of God's name) in the fact that Aaron, one of the most righteous men of all time, not only failed to openly oppose the worshipers of the golden calf, but was actually the one who made the calf for them!

Just as justice required that God recognize and reward Aaron's good intentions, it also demanded that Aaron atone for the element of chillul Hashem in his actions. As we know, chillul Hashem is considered one of the worst possible sins. Chazal tell us that, unlike other sins, one is held liable for an unintentional chillul Hashem in a manner similar to an intentional sin (Avos 4:4) and that even repentance, Yom Kippur, and suffering cannot atone for the sin of chillul Hashem and full atonement for chillul Hashem can only be achieved through death (Yoma 86a).

For a person who had reached the heights of perfection that Aaron had achieved, this flaw was all the more glaring and significant. Thus, there is no real contradiction between the various sources that praise Aaron for his actions and those that condemn his actions.

---

Hespeidim for my Father

My father with one of my daughters in 2004.

Today is the second yartzheit of my father, R' Dovid Aharon ben Avraham zichrono l'vracha.

I am uploading a recording of the hespeidim (eulogies) said at his funeral in Cleveland on 21 Av 5771 - Aug. 1, 2010, before he was transported to Israel for burial. (Unfortunately, there is no recording of the hespeidim given in Israel.)

The speakers are, in order:

• Rav Boruch Hirschfeld שליט"א
• Myself 
• Dr. Roth (a friend and student of my father)

The Keil Malei at the end was said by Rav Sholom Shapiro שליט"א.

Hespedim for my father

TECHNICAL NOTE

This is the first time I have attempted to embed a sound file and I can't guarantee that the file will play.
I am using the Yahoo Media Player, and it is currently working on my computer.

If the file doesn't run, you should be able to just download it.

---

Va'eschanan - The Mitzva of Reciting the Shema

The Torah (Deuteronomy 6:7) tells us, "and you shall speak of them... when you lie down and when you get up." This is the mitzva of krias Shema - reciting the Shema. The essential idea of the Shema is kabbalas ol malchus Shamaim - accepting the yoke of the kingdom of Heaven, and the mitzva obligates us to do so twice a day at specific times , once in the morning and once at night.

The Noam HaMitzvos (R' Naftali Hertz, d.1912) explains (Mitzva 420) that the obligation to recite the Shema both by day and by night is intended to convey the message that commitment to the service of God and the observance of His commandments applies to us in all times and all circumstances. Whether in good times, symbolized by day, or bad times, symbolized by night, whether we are rich or poor, free or oppressed, we remain equally obligated to obey the commandments of God.

---

Tu B'Av - The Fifteenth of Av

One of the minor holidays of the Jewish calendar is Tu B'Av - the fifteenth of Av. The Talmud (Taanis 4:8) tells us that on this day (as well as on Yom Kippur) "the daughters of Jerusalem would go out in borrowed white garments" and "dance in circles in the vineyards" saying, ""Young man! Lift up your eyes and see, what will you choose for yourself? Do not look for beauty, [rather] look for family! 'Charm is false and beauty is empty; a God-fearing wife, she is to be praised.' (Proverbs 31:30) and it says, 'Give to her from the fruits of her hands, and her deeds shall praise her in the gates.' (ibid. 31:31)"

The Talmud tells us that several significant events took place on Tu B'Av:

1. The temporary prohibition of intermarriage between female heirs and members of other tribes  (Numbers 36) ended on this day.
2. The prohibition against allowing men from the tribe of Benjamin from marrying women from the other tribes (Judges 21) ended on this date.
3. After the sin of the spies, a portion of the Jewish population in the wilderness would pass away each year on the ninth of Av. In the fortieth year in the wilderness, no one died on the 9th. At first, the Jews thought that they may have erred in the calculation of the date, but when the fifteenth of Av arrived and still no one had died, they realized that the decree was no longer in effect.
4. On this date the king, Hoshea ben Elah, of the northern kingdom of Israel, removed the guards that had been set by Jeroboam to prevent the people from going to Jerusalem for the festivals.
5. On this date the dead of Beitar were permitted to be buried.
6. Every year, the harvesting of wood to fuel the Temple altar ended on this day.

Of these reasons, two of them have particular relevance to the custom associating shidduchim - finding a match for marriage - with Tu B'Av. However this needs to be explained. Why should the date of Tu B'Av have this special association?

To explain this connection, Rav Tzvi Elimelech of Dinov (d.1841), in his work Bnei Yissaschar (מאמרי תמוז-אב ד:ב) cites the famous teaching that God created the world for the purpose of Yisrael (the Jewish people) and the Torah (see Rashi on Genesis 1:1). In other words, the reason for creation is the relationship between the Jewish people and God (by means of the Torah). The relationship between man and wife is frequently used to describe the relationship between God and the Jewish people. Thus, the creation of the world can be seen as the beginning of the shidduch process between God and Yisrael.

Rosh Hashana, the first day of the month of Tishrei, is the anniversary of the creation of Adam, which took place on the sixth day of creation. This means that the first day of creation took place on the equivalent of the  25th of Elul, forty days after the fifteenth of Av.

The Sages tell us (Talmud Sotah 2a) that forty days before the formation of a child a heavenly voice declares, "The daughter of so-and-so is for so-and-so." In other words, in some sense, the process of shidduchim begins even before birth. Similarly, the day of Tu B'Av marks, in some sense, the beginning of the shidduch between God and Israel. It is therefore an appropriate time for human beings to be involved in their own shidduchim, for human marriage is an emulation of and a model for our relationship with God.

---

"Jerusalem has Sinned a Sin..." (Eicha 1:8)

In Megilas Eicha (the Book of Lamentations) we read (1:8):

חטא חטאה ירושלים על כן לנידה היתה וכו'

"Jerusalem has sinned a sin, therefore she has become a wanderer..."

(The translation of נידה as "wanderer" follows Rashi and Targum. Homiletically, it can also be understood as referring to a "niddah" - a menstruant woman, who is forbidden to her husband until she undergoes ritual purification.)

Many commentaries note the repetitious language of the opening words in the verse, "חטא חטאה ירושלים" - "Jerusalem has sinned a sin" - and a wide range of homiletic interpretations are given for this language.

The Chida

The Chida (Rav Chaim Yosef David Azulai, d.1806), in his commentary Nachal Eshkol, gives nine interesting and illuminating explanations for the repetitious language of the verse. In most of these commentaries (the exceptions being the last two), the Chida interprets the double language either as indicating a "double sin", or as indicating that, despite some argument to minimize their guilt, nevertheless, their act was indeed a sin. It should be noted that some of explanations rely on rather obscure Kabbalistic concepts:

1. While, with regard to most sins, one is only held liable for the actual sinful act, with regard to the sin of idolatry one is held liable even for the thought of sin. Thus, when the Jewish people committed the sin of idolatry, they were held liable for a "double sin" - a sin of thought and a sin of deed.
2. The guilt of one who commits a crime in the palace of the king is far greater than that of one who commits a crime outside the immediate presence of the king. Jerusalem is the "palace of the king", and a sin committed within Jerusalem carries a double burden of guilt.
3. The Shechina (Divine Presence) rests in Jerusalem, and the land itself is holy. These factors should have a powerful influence on us to help us avoid sin and to serve God properly. To sin in such a environment therefore carries a double portion of guilt.
4. Rav Chaim Vital (d.1620) taught that saying that one does not wish to give tzedaka (charity) is considered a sinful act. Thus, the Jewish people indeed sinned by saying that they did not want to give tzedaka. (The Chida's intent here seems to be as follows. One of the sins that led to the churban (destruction) was the failure to give charity (Targum on Eicha 1:3). However, in of itself, the failure to give tzedaka is simply a failure to fulfill a positive obligation and should not be sufficient to bring about such a punishment. However, from Rav Chaim Vital we learn that if one explicitly states that he does not wish to give charity, this is considered a sinful act akin to idolatry. Thus, they indeed actively "sinned a sin.")
5. The Sages comment on this verse (Eicha Rabba 1:35):

   חטא חטאה ירושלים - אומות העולם אינן חוטאים? אלא אע"פ שחוטאין אינן כלום, אבל ישראל חטאו ולקו 

   "Jerusalem has sinned a sin" - [And] the [other] nations of the word don't sin? Rather, even though they sin, it is insignificant, whereas [when the people of] Israel sin, they are punished.

   What is the justice in this? Why are the sins of the Jewish people considered so much worse than the sins of the nations? The answer is because God took us out of Egypt, gave us His Torah, performed great signs and wonders for us, and gave us the land of Israel, all for the purpose that we should obey His laws. Thus, the Jewish people are held to a higher standard and their sins, even those that would be of no significance with regard to the other nations, are indeed sins.
6. Alternatively, we can understand this medrash based upon a concept found in the work Chesed L'Avraham (a major Kabbalistic work written by the Chida's ancestor, Rav Avraham Azulai, d.1643) that, from the generation of the dispersal (resulting from the Tower of Babel), the sins of the non-Jewish nations only damage the "prince" (i.e. angel) assigned to that nation, whereas the sins of the Jewish people cause damage to the highest "attributes." Thus, the sins of Jewish people bear of double portion of guilt. At the same time, however, the fact that the sins of the Jewish people cause damage on such a high level also means that they can be rectified (the Chida does not explain exactly why this is so). Thus, "Jerusalem has sinned a sin" (i.e. the sins of the Jewish people are considered significant) "therefore she has become a niddah" - a menstruant woman - whose separation from her husband is temporary.
7. If a person sins unintentionally twice, it is no longer considered an unintentional sin. (The Chida states that we learn this from the second perek of Beitza, presumably referring to Beitza 16b, where we learn that one who twice forgets to make an eruv tavshilin is considered a poshea (negligent) and cannot rely on the eruv of the local rabbi.) Thus, the verse says that even if Jerusalem sinned unintentionally, because of repetition the unintentional sin bore the full weight of guilt of an intentional sin; it was indeed a sin.
8. The prophet Micah (4:6) said about the time of redemption:

   ביום ההוא נאום ה' אספה הצלעה והנדחה אקבצה ואשר הרעותי. 

   "On that day, says God, I will bring in the lame one, and the one who was driven away I shall gather, and the one I have harmed.

   On this verse the Sages comment (Shemos Rabba 46:4), מהו 'אשר הרעותי'? זה יצר הרע - "What is the meaning of, 'the one I have harmed'? [What harm does this refer to?] This refers to the yetzer hara - the evil inclination." God placed the yetzer hara within every human being to tempt him to sin. Thus, so to speak, on a certain level, God acknowledges that the sin of Jerusalem is His "fault". Thus, we can read the verse, "חטא" - "Sin," i.e. the yetzer hara (the term חטא can be understood to refer to the yetzer hara, as we see in Genesis 4:7), "חטאה ירושלים" - "caused Jerusalem to sin." This reduces their guilt,  "therefore she has become a niddah" and will be purified and return to her Husband.
9. The intentional sins of a צבור - community - are considered as unintentional. (כמ"ש הרב כתנות אור פרשת נצבים) Thus, the sins of Jerusalem are to be considered unintentional sins. (While the term  "חטא" is a generic term for sin, in some contexts - such as when used in combination with other terms for sin - it can have the specific connotation of unintentional sin. In this commentary, the Chida apparently interprets the double language to indicate an emphasis on the specific language of  "חטא" with its connotation of unintentional sin.) Thus the verse says, "Jerusalem has sinned an unintentional sin, therefore she has become a niddah" and will be purified and return to her Husband.

---

Devarim - The Rebuke of Moses

Sefer Devarim is primarily made up of speeches given by Moses in the last several weeks of his life in which he admonishes and rebukes the Jewish people in preparation for their entry into the land of Israel. Rashi (Devarim 1:3), citing Sifrei, points out that Moses "did not admonish Israel" until shortly before his death, a practice he learned from Jacob, who rebuked his sons shortly before his death. The Sages gave several reasons why it is proper to reserve the rebuke of others until shortly before one's death:

1. So that a person will not rebuke a person more than once for the same sin.
2. So that the person who will received the rebuke will not meet his rebuker again and be embarrassed.
3. So that the person receiving the rebuke will not bear a grudge against his rebuker.
4. So that they will part in peace.

At first glance, it might seem that the last two reasons contradict each other. Moreover, with regard to the third reason, why does delaying rebuke until shortly before death ensure that the recipient of the rebuke will not hold a grudge? However, it would seem that the experience of receiving rebuke from a person who is soon to depart from this world, especially from one who is deeply beloved to you (as was Moses to the Jewish people and Jacob to his sons), is profoundly different from ordinary rebuke. The knowledge that the rebuker will soon depart from this world creates an openness to rebuke, and a desire to clear the air of all past issues, that enables to the recipient to receive his rebuke without resentment. Thus, not only does the person receiving the rebuke not resent it, but rebuke at this point can actually accomplish a reconciliation that would have been impossible beforehand.

The Ben Ish Chai

The Ben Ish Chai (Rav Yosef Chaim of Baghdad, d.1904), in his Sefer Malach haBris (on Parshas Devarim), raises a far more basic question. The Torah commands us to rebuke our fellow Jews, as it says (Leviticus 19:17), "הוכיח תוכיח את עמיתך" - "You shall rebuke your fellow," and the Sages (Talmud, Bava Metzia 31a) tell us that this obligation applies "even a hundred times"! How then can we say that rebuke should be reserved to a once-in-a-lifetime event, shortly before death?

The Ben Ish Chai answers that there are two forms of rebuke and admonishment. One form is the rebuke given to a specific individual for a specific sin, in which the sinner is directly confronted with his guilt. The other form is a general admonishment on the importance of doing good and avoiding evil, in which the speaker arouses the listener to repentance by discussing the evil of a variety of wicked deeds without specifying any particular culpability on the part of the listener.

The difference between the two approaches is that the latter avoids causing any embarrassment or resentment on the part of the recipient. It is with regard to such rebuke that the Sages say that it should be repeated "even a hundred times." 

In our context here in Devarim, however, we are discussing rebuke of the first category, in which Moses directly confronted the Jewish people with their sins. It is only with regard to such rebuke that the Sages says that one should reserve rebuke until shortly before death.

Of course, it should go without saying that even under these circumstances, rebuke must be given appropriately and correctly, with a deep concern for the dignity of the listeners. Thus, the Ben Ish Chai continues, even here, when Moses directly rebuked the people for their past sins, he only spoke in the presence of "all Israel," even though only a small minority had actually been guilty in any given sin.

---

Tisha B'Av - The Purpose of Fasting

On the Ninth of Av (Tisha B'Av) it was decreed on our ancestors that they would not enter the Land (of Israel), the Temple was destroyed the first and second time, Beitar [the stronghold of the Bar Kochba rebellion] was captured, and the city (of Jerusalem) was plowed under. Talmud Taanis 4

As the anniversary of the most tragic events in Jewish history, the ninth of Av is the most important day of mourning in the Jewish year. Like all fast days, the basic purpose of Tisha B'Av is for us to meditate upon the tragedies that have come about through our sins and to commit to rectifying those errors. As Maimonides writes (Hil. Taanios 5:1):

There are days when all Israel fasts because of the troubles that occurred on them, in order to arouse the hearts to begin the ways of repentance and to be a reminder of our evil deeds and the deeds of our ancestors that were like our deeds today which brought them and us these troubles. For by remembering these things we are brought to return to the good, as it says (Leviticus 26:40), "And they shall confess their sin and the sin of their ancestors."

The sources enumerate a number of different sins that were the root causes of the destruction, and which should be the primary focus of repentance on these days. These include:

• Unjustified hatred of our fellow Jews (sinas chinam). We must work to feel love towards our fellow Jews, and also for all human beings.
• Murder. We should work on ourselves to respect our fellow man and see in him the image of God that exists in every person. Even publicly shaming another person is likened to murder.
• Idolatry. We must recognize that only God is the cause of good and bad. No person or thing can hurt you or help you unless it is the will of God. Nothing else has any real power in the world. We should focus on developing our relationship with HaShem and to realize that He cares about each and every one of us and hears our prayers.
• Immorality. Not only must we avoid outright acts of immorality, but we must also train ourselves to avoid circumstances and situations that can lead us in that direction.
• Neglect of Torah study. We must recognize that the Torah is God's direct revelation to us. As such, it is fundamentally different from all other forms of knowledge. From the Torah we learn what our purpose is in this world and how to achieve that purpose. Our attitude towards the Torah must express this recognition. We must not treat the study of Torah like any other form of study.

---

Note: Part of this post is a repeat of material from a previous post: Asara b'Teves - Mourning the Loss of the Temple

---