Shabbat B'reishit (m'vorchim/machar chodesh) October 16-17, '09 - 29 Tishrei 5770 This Shabbat is the 29th day (of 355), 5th Shabbat (of 51) of 5770 KO'ACH MA'ASAV HIGID L'AMO LATEIT LAHEM NACHLAT GOYIM: (T'hilim 111:6, quoted by Rashi) Orthodox Union OU Kashrut • NCSY • Jewish Action • NJCD / Yachad / Our Way • IPA • Synagogue Support Services • OURadio.org • Young Leadership • Project Areivim • OU West Coast Stephen Savitsky, President, Orthodox Union Harvey Blitz, Chairman of the Board, Orthodox Union Rabbi Steven Weil, Executive Vice President Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb, Exec. V.P. Emeritus Headquarters: 11 Broadway, New York, NY 10004 212-563-4000 • website: www.ou.org OU ISRAEL Seymour J. Abrams • Orthodox Union • Jerusalem World Center Founders and initial benefactors of the Israel Center: George z"l and Ilse Falk OU Israel Center programs • Makom BaLev • Lev Yehudi • Pearl & Harold M. Jacobs ZULA Center • Machon Maayan • NESTO • The Jack Gindi Oraita Program • Mashiv HaRuach • OU Kashrut Israel Yitzchak Fund, President, OU Israel Rabbi Emanuel Quint, Senior Vice President Prof. Meni Koslowsky, Vice President Stuart Hershkowitz, Vaad member Moshe Kempinski, Vaad member Sandy Kestenbaum, Vaad member Zvi Sand, Vaad member Harvey Wolinetz, Vaad member Rabbi Avi Berman, Director-General, OU Israel David Katz, CFO, OU Israel Menachem Persoff, Director of Programs, Israel Center Phil Chernofsky, Educational Director and TT editor 22 Keren HaYesod • POB 37015 • Jerusalem 91370 phone: (02) 560 9100 • fax: (02) 566-0156 email: office@ouisrael.org • website: www.ouisrael.org Torah Tidbits and many of the projects of OU Israel are assisted by grants from The Jewish Agency for Israel Founders and initial benefactors of the Israel Center: George z”l and Ilse Falk Torah Tidbits Phil Chernofsky, editor • tt@ouisrael.org • (02) 560-9100 ext. 124 Advertising: Ita Rochel • ttads@ouisrael.org • (02) 560-9100 ext. 125 Torah Tidbits is produced, printed*, collated, and folded in-house at the Israel Center TT Distribution • ttdist@ouisrael.org • 0505-772-111 website: www.ou.org/torah/tt Ranges are 10 days, WED-FRI 26 Tishrei - 5 Cheshvan (Oct 14-23) Earliest Talit & T'filin 4:52-4:58am Sunrise 5:42-5:49am Sof Z'man K' Sh'ma 8:33-8:35am (Magen Avraham: 7:48-7:51am) Sof Z'man T'fila 9:30-9:31am (Magen Avraham: 9:00-9:01am) Chatzot 11:25-11:23½am (halachic noon) Mincha Gedola 11:56-11:54am (earliest Mincha) Plag Mincha 3:56½-3:48Όpm Sunset 5:12-5:02pm (based on sea level: 5:07-4:57pm) Candle lighting & Havdala times (Israel Standard time) TT 879 - Rabbeinu Tam (J'm) - 6:17pm 4:30pm Yerushalayim 5:42pm 4:48pm S'derot 5:44pm 4:46pm Gush Etzion 5:42pm 4:46pm Raanana 5:43pm 4:46pm Beit Shemesh 5:43pm 4:47pm Rehovot 5:43pm 4:46pm Netanya 5:43pm 4:45pm Be'er Sheva 5:44pm 4:46pm Modi'in 5:42pm 4:30pm Petach Tikva 5:43pm 4:30pm Maale Adumim 5:41pm 4:45pm Ginot Shomron 5:42pm 4:45pm Gush Shiloh 5:41pm 4:46pm K4 & Hevron 5:42pm 4:45pm Giv'at Ze'ev 5:42pm 4:47pm Yad Binyamin 5:43pm 4:48pm Ashkelon 5:44pm 4:33pm Tzfat 5:40pm NOTES: Note about Candle Lighting and Havdala times. Candle lighting times are rounded down to the minute, in other words, seconds are ignored. Havdala times, on the other hand, are round up to the next minute. Further explanations and notes on Z'manim are available on the website www.ou.org/torah/tt - click on Halachic times * Important clarifications concerning the Candle Lighting times Petach Tikva officially accepts upon itself to light Shabbat candles according to the Jerusalem custom. (This is due to the fact that the Ashkenazi community of PT was founded by people from Jerusalem who brought their customs with them.) Up until this week, we understood that to mean that in PT one lights candles 40 minutes before sunset, just like we do in Jerusalem. We contacted the Religious Council in PT and found out that the official candle lighting time for PT is the same as Jerusalem's (not 40 min. before sunset, but the same time as J'lem). Petach Tikvians (or whatever they are called) must realize that their sunset is earlier than Jerusalem's and therefore they do NOT have 40 minutes after the posted time until sunset - more like 30-35. So too for Maale Adumim. They light candles at the same time as J'lem too. Sunset is also earlier in Maalei Adumim. One of the rabbis from Ascent of Safed (that's Tzfat) told us that there are differing opinions concerning when Candle Lighting is there. All say 30 min. before sunset, but some say the sunset that does not take into account the elevation of Tzfat, and some say to use the sunset time that does take elevation into account. We print the earlier time, in case. Halachic Zmanim and Shabbat times in Torah Tidbits are calculated by CHAZON SHAMAYIM, a computer program by R' Eitan Zakuni of Netivot. The latest version (beta), called HAZON NET is available as a free download on www.sky-view.co.il WORD OF THE MONTH A weekly feature of Torah Tidbits to help clarify practical and conceptual aspects of the Jewish Calendar, thereby better fulfilling the mitzva of HaChodesh HaZeh Lachem... Don't forget to pull out (download) the POP on Rosh Chodesh benching and save it for use throughout the year. With the molad of Tishrei late on Sunday night, three full days later (the earliest and best opportunity for Kiddush L'vana according to Minhag Yerushalayim) would be on Wednesday night after 11:00pm. Too late - the Moon will have already set (at a little after 8:00pm). Therefore, the first op for KL is Thursday night, Oct. 22. But back to this week. Rosh Chodesh Benching. Rosh Chodesh is Sunday and Monday. ROSH CHODESH MARCHESHVAN YIHYEH MACHAR B'YOM RISHON UVYOM SHEINI HABA ALEINU V'AL KOL YISRA'EL L'TOVA: See the POP for molad and other details and R"Ch benching texts. Interesting "trivia" point. Only one sedra is always read on Shabbat M'vorchim - B'REISHIT. For all other months (besides Cheshvan), there are at least two possible sedras for the R"Ch benching Shabbat. One would be the more common; the other less so. But only B'reishit is always m'vorchim. TTreader Feedback and the Calendar YA emailed about an error in computation that led to an erroneous statement a couple of weeks ago, that knowing the day of the week (D/W) of Rosh HaShana and the following Pesach can determine all the details of the given year. Not so. Let's review the situation in a different way, to set the record straight and to get a better picture about how our fixed calendar works. As we've mentioned on occasion, knowledge of the workings of the Jewish Calendar is in the spirit of the mitzva of Kidush HaChodesh, the first mitzva commanded to Bnei Yisrael - even before we left Egypt. It is the mitzva that the very first Rashi in the Torah states should have been what the Torah began with. This calendar review, then, has two connections to Shabbat B'reishit - the Rashi just mentioned and the fact that B'reishit is the ONLY sedra that is always on Shabbat M'vorchim. Some of the following is a repeat; some is new. Since the D/W of Sukkot is the same as RH, we'll uses Sukkot in this presentation. And rather than using Rosh Chodesh, we'll talk of the 15th of the month, since we'll be talking of Sukkot and Pesach. When D/W of Sukkot or Pesach is mentioned, we are referring to the first day of each Chag. Let's step back. If a Jewish month had only 28 days, then the D/W of the 15th of every month would be the same. So too for any day of the month. If the second of Sh'vat is a Tuesday, then four weeks later - to the day - the 2nd of Adar would also be Tuesday. So would the second of Nissan, etc. That is, if each month had only 28 days. But no month has only 28 days. Jewish calendar months have either 29 days or 30 days. A 29-day month advances the D/W of any day by one day each month. A 30-day month advances the D/W two days. Let's start with Pesach. LO B'DU means that D/W of Pesach can be SUN, TUE, THU, and Shabbat. Let's take THU (Seder on Wednesday night). 15th Nissan on THU. Nissan has 30 days, so 15 Iyar is Shabbat. Iyar has 29 days, so 15 Sivan is Sunday. Sivan has 30 days; 15 Tammuz is Tuesday. Tammuz has 29 days; 15 Av is Wednesday. Av has 30 days; 15 Elul is Friday. Elul has 29 days; 15 Tishrei is Shabbat. Pesach 5769 was THU. Sukkot 5770 was Shabbat. D/W of Sukkot is always 2 days later than D/W of the previous Pesach. This is always so because there are no variables in the calendar from Pesach to Sukkot. But, from Sukkot to Pesach there are variables. Three of them, to be specific. So there is no saying ALWAYS with the D/W of Sukkot and the following Pesach. The previous one, yes; the coming one, no. The three variables present 6 different situations. Let's actually go through them. The 6 different situations do not all actually occur with the different D/W of Sukkot (or RH, remember). Let's try tables for the four D/W that RH and Sukkot can be (Shabbat first): The 15th of - 0 + - 0 + Tishrei Sh Sh Sh Sh Sh Sh Cheshvan M M M M M M Kislev Tu Tu W Tu Tu W Tevet W Th F W Th F Sh'vat Th F Sh Th F Sh first Adar Sh Su M (second) Adar Sh Su M M Tu W Nissan Su M Tu Tu W Th next Tishrei Tu W Th Th F Sh - X - - X - The column headed "-" is CHASEIR, Cheshvan and Kislev both have 29 days. "0" indicates K'SEIDER, Cheshvan with 29 days and Kislev with 30. "+" is for SHALEIM, both Cheshvan and Kislev have 30 days. The first three columns are 12-month years; hence, the boxes for first Adar are empty. The Xed situations cannot occur because they include the following RH on a SUN, WED or FRI, which cannot be. Included in the above table are 4 possible year types: mem zayin shin; mem zayin chet; pei zayin shin; pei zayin chet First character of a year-code is PEI (p'shuta) or MEM (m'uberet). Second character is D/W of RH (BET, GIMEL, HEI, or ZAYIN). Third character is CHET (chaseir), KAF (k'seder) or SHIN (shaleim). Following are the tables for years that begin on MON, TUE, and THU. The 15th of - 0 + - 0 + Tishrei M M M M M M Cheshvan W W W W W W Kislev Th Th F Th Th F Tevet F Sh Su F Sh Su Sh'vat Sh Su M Sh Su M first Adar M Tu W (second) Adar M Tu W W Th F Nissan Tu W Th Th F Sh next Tishrei Th F Sh Sh Su M - x - - x - PBC PBS MBC MBS The 15th of - 0 + - 0 + Tishrei Tu Tu Tu Tu Tu Tu Cheshvan Th Th Th Th Th Th Kislev F F Sh F F Sh Tevet Sh Su M Sh Su M Sh'vat Su M Tu Su M Tu first Adar Tu W Th (second) Adar Tu W Th Th F Sh Nissan W Th F F Sh Su next Tishrei F Sh Su Su M Tu x - x x - (x) PGC MGC The 15th of - 0 + - 0 + Tishrei Th Th Th Th Th Th Cheshvan Sh Sh Sh Sh Sh Sh Kislev Su Su M Su Su M Tevet M Tu W M Tu W Sh'vat Tu W Th Tu W Th first Adar Th F Sh (second) Adar Th F Sh Sh Su M Nissan F Sh Su Su M Tu next Tishrei Su M Tu Tu W Th x - - - x - PHC PHS MHC MHS Of the 24 theoretical year-type, combining the two lengths of a year (12 or 13 months), the 4 possible D/Ws for RH, and the three possible statuses of Cheshvan and Kislev, there are 9 year- types to eliminate because of the violation of LO ADU that results for the following RH. The one marked ((x) cannot happen because of "computational" reasons. Cop-out answer, but we'll leave it.) So, thanks again to YA for pointing out a previous error which allowed this calendar review on Shabbat M'vorchim MarCheshvan. As we can now see from the tables above, an advance in 1 or 2 days in the D/W from RH (or Sukkot) to Pesach indicates a 12-month year, and an advance of 4 or 5 days in D/W indicates a 13-month year. But an advance of 3 days in D/W can mean either a full 12-month year or a deficient 13-month year. And so, knowing the D/W of a year's RH and Pesach is NOT always sufficient to know whether the year is 12 or 13 months long. We haven't "benched" Rosh Chedesh since before Elul - a long time ago with lots that happened since. With Cheshvan approaching, we're back to some semblance of normal calendar time. And hopefully, we know more about it than previously. 30 days hath September, April, June, and November - and L'HAVDIL, Tishrei, sometimes Cheshvan and Kislev, Sh'vat, Adar Alef, Nissan, Sivan, and Av... Three Phases of Creation Phase One is B'reishit. Specifically, the first two p'sukim of the Torah. In the beginning, originally, G-d created the Heavens and the Earth. "Before" (can't really use this word) B'REISHIT, there was nothing besides G-d. Nothing. And B'reishit, He created something from nothing - YEISH MEI'AYIN. Not just something, but everything. All matter, all energy, all time... EVERYTHING. Phase One. And after Phase One - before Phase Two, what was there? TOHU VAVOHU, void and chaos, a primordial mixture of everything... without shape and form, yet. This is what the first two p'sukim cryptically tell us. How long ago did this happen? This Creatio Ex Nihilo? Indeterminable. How long did it take? Indeterminable. And meaningless for us to even speculate. Then what? Phase Two. Beginning with the third pasuk of the Torah, we are told - still cryptically - that G-d said, Let there be light. This was the beginning of Creation of something from something. This was the beginning of G-d's forming, shaping, organizing the world, the universe. Phase two began a little more than 5770 years ago. Or a lot more than 5770 years ago if you insist that the days of Creation were "G-d's days", rather than ours. By the way, "insist" is the wrong word in the previous sentence. If one would rather accept an alternate understanding of the Six Days of Creation, fine. But to insist that they couldn't be "regular" length days, is to limit the power of G-d. Problem. Discrepancies in the age of different elements of nature can be explained by the indeterminable periods of B'reishit, of the days of Creation, of the pre-Flood years, of the Flood itself. None of those "times" behave in a "normal", "natural" way. We'll leave this particular topic for another time. For now, we are up to the end of Phase two - The Shabbat, right before which, G-d created many special things that would be put to use in the future (see Avot 5). The Shabbat upon which G-d "rested" from the "labors" of Creation. The Shabbat that He taught us about Phase three of Creation. It actually goes back a day to Yom HaShishi, on which G-d not only created man and woman, but endowed all beings with the ability to continue creating and procreating - generation after generation, for all time. And He commanded us, with the first of the 613 mitzvot, to use that creative power. The final word of the account of Creation, tells us about Phase three. LA'ASOT! B'reishit STATS First of the 54 sedras; first of 12 sedras in B'reishit Written on 241 lines in a Sefer Torah, ranks 9th 23 Parshiyot; 10 open, 13 closed, ranks 6th 146 p'sukim - ranks 8th (5th in B'reishit), same as Mikeitz; but Miketz is longer in lines, words, letters 1931 words - ranks 8th (5th in B'reishit) 7235 letters - ranks 11th (5th in B'reishit) MITZVOT One (positive) mitzva in B'reishit (Be fruitful...) Aliya-by-Aliya Sedra Summary Numbers in [square brackets] are the Mitzva-count of Sefer HaChinuch AND Rambam's Sefer HaMitzvot. A=ASEI (positive mitzva); L=LAV (prohibition). X:Y is the perek and pasuk from which the mitzva comes. [P> X:Y (Z)] and [S> X:Y (Z)] indicate start of a parsha p'tucha or s'tuma respectively. X:Y is Perek:Pasuk of the beginning of the parsha; (Z) is the number of p'sukim in the parsha. Kohen - First Aliya - 34 p'sukim - 1:1-2:3 This Aliya contains the first account of Creation. [P>1:1 (5)] The first parsha contains the "summary" statement of Creation (or the first phase of Creation - see Lead Tidbit) and the account of Day One. SDT: Baal HaTurim points out that the Gimatriya of B'REISHIT BARA is 1116, as is the numeric value of the phrase: B'ROSH HASHANA NIV'RA - on RH it (the world) was created. Furthermore, the letters of B'reishit rearrange to spell ALEF B'TISHREI, the first of the month of Tishrei (or B'ALEF TISHREI - on the first of Tishrei - same thing), "confirming" the opinion that the world was created in Tishrei (R. Eliezer), rather than in Nissan, as the other opinion holds (R. Yehoshua). If we could prove things with Gimatriyas and anagrams, then R. Eliezer would "win" the dispute, but as it is, the dispute as to when the world was created remains a dispute - and halachically, it leans towards Nissan. "In the beginning, G-d created the Heavens and the Earth. And the Earth..." Did that happen on day 1 of Creation? Or is something before Day 1 being described? Here is one possible answer. The first two p'sukim of B'reishit describe the totally, exclusively Divine aspect of Creation of Something from Nothing - YEISH MEI'AYIN. Before "B'reishit", perhaps nothing existed - except G-d. With the Divine Command of B'reishit, everything that now exists came into existence for the first time. All matter, all energy, thoughts, concepts, time - everything (sort of like a BIG BANG!). According to this point of view, SHAMAYIM and ARETZ mean everything in the universe. The first form that all of Creation had was TOHU VAVOHU, chaos. That's the second pasuk. And, this stage of Creation occurred BEFORE Day One. Not on the first day - before Day One. And not a day before, not an instant before nor an eon before. It is pointless speculation to attempt to give a timeframe for the first two p'sukim, because TIME has meaning only in the context of the ordered world that began to take shape on Day 1. No wonder we are not supposed to concern ourselves with what had happened before the world was created! "And G-d said: Let there be light..." Thus begins the Torah's description of Days 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. And what happened on those days? G-d put everything in order, distinguished one thing from another. It was creation of Something from Something. YEISH MI'YEISH. Forming, shaping. The kind of Creation that we emulate in our lives. And how long was one of these days of Creation? Maybe they each were a thousand years long. Or an eon. Or maybe they each were 24 hours long. Either that Torah talks "our language" or not. Take your pick. Either way fits. Shabbat B'reishit is a time of rediscovery and re-creation. Just like on Pesach and Shavuot when we read of the events of Egyptian slavery and the Exodus on the one and the events of Matan Torah on the other, and we try to put ourselves into the events, to make them fresh, as if today we came out of Egypt, as if the Torah were given today, so too should we enthusiastically read and hear the description of Creation and put ourselves into the position of discovering G-d through the world and nature that He brought into existence for us. Don't just see things as "once upon a time..." -- get excited, because G-d "renews with His Goodness, every day and always, the Acts of B'reishit." Without going into detail, here is a breakdown of the first Aliya for your consideration. 2 p'sukim, as mentioned above, for the first phase of creation. Notwithstanding the argument above that broke these two p'sukim off of the description of the first day (so to speak), they are part of the first PARSHA, together with the creation of Light, etc. Which might support other "understandings" of the "process" of Creation. 3 p'sukim for Day 1, the creation of light, the separation of light and darkness, and their being identified as day and night. One KI TOV. The day is called YOM ECHAD (cardinal number) rather than RISHON (ordinal number), because RISHON has meaning only if there is a SHENI, which there wasn't yet. [P>1:6 (3)] The next parsha is for the Second Day of Creation. The creation of the Heavens and the separation of the Upper and Lower waters. (Some say that angels and various forces were created on the 2nd day too.) [P>1:9 (5)] The next parsha contains the Third day of Creation which consists of two "sections" First, two p'sukim for the "gathering of the lower waters" into different areas and the formation of dry land. And the "naming" of Land and Seas. KI TOV. And then the Divine command to the Land to spring forth with vegetation. 3 p'sukim with another KI TOV introduce us to the Plant Kingdom. [P>1:14 (6)] Next we find the account of Creation on the fourth day. The Sun, Moon and stars (and other "heavenly bodies are placed in their appointed positions and orbits. KI TOV. [P>1:20 (4)] Next comes the Fifth Day, with its account of Animal Kingdom, part one. Swarming insects, fish, birds. KI TOV. And P'RU URVU. [P>1:24 (8)] Next comes the largest parsha yet, with the formation of Animal Kingdom, part two. Land animals (most mammals). "Creepy things" probably includes most reptiles as well. Fifth day creatures and sixth day creatures do not necessarily divide along modern biology's taxonomic guidelines. For example, dolphins and bears are both mammals (and NFL teams), but aquatic mammals were (probably) created on the fifth day. The bat, although a mammal, (probably) preceded the mouse by a day. What about flightless birds? And mammals that spend much time in the water, but do come onto land at times? Good questions (not necessarily practical ones, but...). One KI TOV. Then comes the formation of human beings, first as a single being both male and female and then separated into two different beings, male and female (but with some "crossing" of characteristics). P'RU URVU [1,A212 1:28]. Which will combine them once again (in a sense). TOV ME'OD. THE sixth day. YOM HASHISHI. [P>2:1 (3)] This relatively long first Aliya concludes with the 3-pasuk parsha introducing us to Shabbat B'reishit, the day that G-d blessed and sanctified because He "rested" from Creation. We say this parsha in the Friday night Amida, right after the Friday night Amida, and at the Friday night table as the first part of Kiddush. This should tell us how important it is that we learn well (as best as we can) the Torah's account of Creation. And that's without going into detail. Levi - Second Aliya - 16 p'sukim - 2:4-19 [P>2:4 (37)] Now we have a restatement of Creation, focusing on Gan Eden, the formation of Adam, Adam's dominance over Nature, and his first prohibition - eating from the Tree of Knowledge of Good & Evil. "It is not good that man shall be alone" is explained in different ways, including that only G-d is singular. Man needs to know that as great as he can become, as much as he can accomplish, he is not a god. All creatures were brought before Adam as "candidates" for partner- to-Adam. None was found suitable, but Adam named them all (as people have done throughout the ages). In the first account of Creation, Man was the final act of Creation, but not so much the purpose and focus of creation. In this second account, Man is presented as the focus of creation. We must see things both ways in order to maintain a healthy perspective on this world, our role in it, and our responsibilities towards it and all elements of nature. To paraphrase a famous saying: A person should write the following on two pieces of paper, fold each one, and put one in his left pocket and one in his right pocket. One should say: A mosquito was created before I was. The other should say: For me the whole world was created. Shlishi - Third Aliya - 27 p'sukim - 2:20-3:21 The Torah's wording implies that Adam was first created as a combined male-female being, then (still on Day Six) he was physically separated as Adam and Chava, with the command and challenge of recombining spiritually, emotionally, and physically - "and they shall become one flesh". Next the Torah tells us cryptically of the episodes of the Serpent's enticement of Chava, the eating from the Tree, the punishments for the Serpent, Chava, and finally, Adam. The sin(s) of Adam and Chava are not just personal sins, but more significantly, they help us define and understand (some of) human nature. It's almost like asking, "How could they have done what they did!?! And the answer is, "that's how humans behave." Yes, it was a sin, but for us it's more and different. [S>3:16 (1)] This 1-pasuk parsha consists of G-d's "punishment" (call it "redefining") of Chava (womankind). [S>3:17 (5)] And this parsha consists of Adam's "punishment" (same other possibility) and G-d's act of Chesed, in clothing the naked. This act is one of the many pointed to in our challenge to emulate the qualities of G-d. It is interesting to note that the "story" parts of Shlishi and most of R'vi'i are part of one large parsha, but G-d's statements to Adam and Chava, and His kindness to them are slightly isolated in the form of two parshiyot S'tumot, thus calling specific attention to them and the lessons we learn from them. R'VI'I - Fourth Aliya - 21 p'sukim - 3:22-4:18 [p>3:22 (3)] This Aliya begins with the expulsion from Gan Eden, which is also seen as a metaphor for a re-definition of the role of humans in this world and of their (our) relationship with G-d. [S>4:1 (26)] The Torah continues with the "births" of Kayin and Hevel and Kayin's killing of Hevel following the attempt of each to make an offering before G-d. Kayin's response to G-d's query as to where Hevel was, echoes in our collective Jewish Experience through all the generations: HASHOMEIR ACHI ANOCHI? Am I my brother's keeper? Kayin said it to shirk his responsibility for his brother. We are constantly challenged to be the kind of human and Jew who knows very well that we ARE responsible for each other. Kayin's punishment and fate is presented, as is his lineage. It is possible that Kayin sired different species of humanoids. This is how some want to explain the evidence of the existence of pre- historic man. Kayin's whole line was destroyed in the Flood. (Almost, that is. See below) Chamishi - 5th Aliya - 8 p'sukim - 4:19-26 This portion contains the story of Lemech, the great-great-great- grandson of Kayin and his accidental killer. Lemech's two wives were Ada and Tzila. The Torah mentions more descendants of Kayin and their roles as the "firsts" in various fields of human activity. Yaval (son of Lemech and Ada) was the "first" tent-dwelling animal raiser. His brother Yuval was a musician. Tuval-Kayin (son of Tzila) worked with iron and copper. His sister was Na'ama. Rashi (quoting B'reishit Rabba) says that she was the wife of No'ach. What is significant about that is that Kayin's line was not completely severed by the Flood. Although we refer to all of mankind as Bnei No'ach, who descended from Adam through Sheit, on the mother's side there is Na'ama and before her, Kayin. This portion also contains Lemech's lament for having killed Kayin. (Rashi adds that Lemech also killed his son Tuval-Kayin (accidentally, in his grief), because he (TK) directed the blind Lemech's hands with bow and arrow to kill what he thought was an animal, and turned out to be Kayin. By the way, in case your Chumash does not have the same Aliya breakdown as is presented here, don't worry. There are different versions. Shishi - Sixth Aliya - 24 p'sukim - 5:1-24 The lineage from Adam through Sheit (Seth) to No'ach (into the next Aliya) is set down, with the age of the father at the birth of the son, and each person's age at his death. These numbers help us construct the first part of our timeline. Although many sons and daughters are born to this list of patriarchs of the world, only one representative of each generation is named. Some say that only the named individual had the longevity that is recorded; the "average man and woman in the street" lived much shorter lives. Others say that the lifespan of the human was generally much longer before the Flood. [S>5:1 (5)] This is the Book of the Chronicles of Mankind... Adam and Chava were created. Adam was 130 years old when Sheit was born. He lived another 800 years after Sheit was born, during which time he fathered many sons and daughters. He lived 930 years and then he died. The wording seems strange, but is repeated with each generation. [S>5:6 (3)] Sheit was 105 when Enosh was born. He lived another 807 years for a total of 912. Sons and daughters. And he died. [S>5:9 (3)] Enosh, 90, Keinan + 815 = 905... [S>5:12 (3)] Keinan, 70, Mahala- l'eil, + 840 = 910... [S>5:15 (3)] Mahalal'eil, 65, Yered, + 830 = 895... [S>5:18 (3)] Yered, 162, Chanoch, + 800 = 962... (Yered is the Avis, K2, Buzz Aldrin... of longevity.) [S>5:21 (4)] Chanoch, 65, M'tushelach, + 300 = 365... Shishi concludes with mention of Chanoch, who was taken from this world (possibly not by death) at the relatively young age of 365. Sh'VII - Seventh Aliya - 16 p'sukim - 5:25-6:8 [S>5:25 (3)] M'tushelach, 187, Lemech, + 782 = 969, the oldest age recorded in the Tanach. According to Tradition, he died immediately prior to the Flood, which was held up for 7 days of mourning for him. [S>5:28 (4)] Lemech 182, a son. He named him No'ach (note the different wording for the birth of No'ach)... + 595 = 777. [S>5:32 (5)] No'ach, 500 (note how much older than previous generations), Sheim, Cham, Yefet. The Torah now describes the deterioration of society... [P>6:5 (4)] and G-d's "regret" for having created Man, His decision to destroy the world (almost). No'ach alone found favor in G-d's eyes. Stay tuned for the continuation, next week. This last 4-pasuk parsha is reread for the Maftir. Haftara - 25 p'sukim Shmuel Alef - 20:18-42 The 29th of a Jewish month is always Erev Rosh Chodesh - sometimes, the next day is the 30th of the same month (i.e. the first of two days R"Ch) and sometimes, the next day is the first of the new month. Either way, when the 29th of a month is Shabbat, we have a MACHAR CHODESH situation. Not all months, can their 29th be Shabbat. Tishrei's and Cheshvan's can; Kislev's and Tevet's cannot. Yes for Shvat, Adar (and Adar Alef and Bet), Nissan, Iyar; no for Sivan and Tammuz. 29 Av can fall on Shabbat; 29 Elul cannot (since LO ADU ROSH). On most, but not all, 29th of the month on Shabbat, do we read the special MACHAR CHODESH haftara. It is pre- empted by Sh'kalim and HaChodesh, and on Erev Rosh Chodesh Elul (because of the 7 Haftarot of Consolation). One year type has no MACHAR CHODESH haftara, 10 year-types have 1, two have 2, and one has 3. 5770 has one - this Shabbat. The connection between the Haftara and Erev Rosh Chodesh is obvious. The opening words are: And Yonatan said to him, tomorrow is Rosh Chodesh... The real question is why the Sages decided on a special Haftara for Erev R"Ch in the first place. No other "erev" gets a special reading. Perhaps it is because R"Ch is so understated and often ignored. This became a way - in addition to Rosh Chodesh benching - to say: Hear ye hear ye, tomorrow is Rosh Chodesh. Yom Tov, on the other hand, needs no extra reminder. From this reading we see that Rosh Chodesh was celebrated with a special meal... Many have the custom today of marking Rosh Chodesh today with a special meal - or at least, a special food item, dessert, ice cream... (be creative). The Haftara also serves as a source of the minhag of abstaining or reducing one's work on R"Ch... With Israel's history resembling the waxing and waning of the Moon, we see Machar Chodesh as a hope-filled message of a brighter tomorrow. The cycle continues until the Complete Redemption, when the Moon (and Klal Yisrael) will be completely restored. THE JERUSALEM INSTITUTE OF JEWISH LAW, Rabbi Emanuel Quint, Dean Lesson # 495 Betrothal of a minor cont. We have been discussing the betrothal of a minor girl, less than 12 years old. After leaving the state of minor she becomes a NA'ARA for a half year. If during this six month period of being a NA'ARA her father betrothed her without her consent and knowledge, and she became betrothed without her father's consent and knowledge, and she is found to be physically mature, she is doubtfully betrothed to each and requires a Get from each man. The result would be the same if only her father had betrothed her without her consent or if she only became betrothed without his consent. She would require a Get from the person who betrothed her. There is also an opinion that if during this age period her father betrothed her without her consent she would be betrothed at the conclusion of her NAARA period. Just as a father can betroth his minor daughter, he may engage an agent to do this on his behalf. He can appoint his daughter to be his agent and tell her to accept betrothal. There is a strong dissent that holds that he may not appoint his minor daughter to be his agent to accept betrothal for herself. However, if he is present when the betrothal takes place it is the same as if he accepted the betrothal on her behalf. Many authorities hold that it is best that if he accepts betrothal on her behalf then she should be present and give her consent. In this instance the man should say to her "You are betrothed unto me" If while the father and daughter are both present if the man said "Your daughter is betrothed unto me" it is valid. If the betrothal is to be effected with a document, the document will state: "Your daughter is betrothed unto me" The Shulhan Aruch states that the exact words stated here need not be used, but words that will evidence the intent of the parties is sufficient. All what has been said about the appointment of an agent to accept betrothal assumes that the agent has been appointed in the presence of two witnesses. He may, by his actions, evidence his appointment of her as his agent by preparing a wedding canopy. It is not necessary for her appointment as his agent to be in the presence of two witnesses. This holds true whether she is now a minor or a NA'ARA. After stating many of these laws, the author of the Shulhan Aruch states that it is praiseworthy not to betroth his daughter while she is a minor but should wait to when she achieves her majority and can state that she wants to be married to that person. Rama (1520-1572, Poland) adds in his emendations to the Shulhan Aruch, that it is usual in our times to betroth our minor daughters, since we are in exile, and do not have the opportunity to provide a dowry and since we are a small community there will not always be an opportunity to marry off our daughters, we do it as soon as the opportunity arises. Assume that a father appointed an agent to accept betrothal from Mr. A on behalf of his daughter, and in the interim the father betrothed her to Mr. B, the one who gave the betrothal first is the one she is betrothed to. If it is not known which was first she is not permitted to marry either of them, and requires a Get from both of them. If the father appointed an agent to accept betrothal on behalf of his minor daughter and the agent went to do this, and in the interim the father betrothed her to someone else, whichever was first is the valid betrothal. If it is not known which came first, she is prohibited to both of them and requires a Get from both of them. If her father, after having appointed one agent to accept betrothal on behalf of his daughter and without voiding the first agency, then appointed a second agent to receive betrothal for his daughter and each agent accepted betrothal on her behalf, she requires a Get from both of them. A minor girl or a NA'ARA who on her own accepted betrothal without the consent of her father or got married without her father's consent the act is a nullity and she does not even have to disavow her actions. This holds true even if her father engaged her to the person she accepted betrothal from or married, her acts are a nullity. (Engagement in this sense is not a legal binding concept, it is know as shiduchin, and means that there is an understanding that they will become betrothed.) There is an opinion that if the father hears of her actions and he says that he accepts them then she is betrothed from the moment he hears of her actions and shows his consent. This holds true even if at the time he hears of it he says nothing but later on he consents that she is betrothed from the time he first heard of her actions. This holds true even if the money that the groom gave to her for the betrothal has been spent by her. There is also an opinion that if the money has been spent before the father heard of the betrothal or marriage it is all a nullity. If the girl or her father do not want the betrothal and so declares, it is all a nullity and she is not betrothed or married. There is an opinion that when the father hears of her actions and remains silent it is a sign of assent to her actions If a girl became betrothed to a man who the father indicated he wanted her to marry there is the assumption that the father consented. If a minor girl became betrothed to someone her father consented to, but without the father's consent she married the man, the marriage is a nullity since she needs her father's consent to get married. If she died, the man is not her heir (a husband is generally the heir of his wife), but in this situation she became married to him without her father's consent. There are in the Shulhan Aruch and the commentaries many, many laws dealing with the betrothal of minor girls. I have shown a few of them. If a real life problem should arise, a Rabbi who is well versed in these laws should be consulted. Sometimes problems arise when youngsters have mock marriages and the problems can carry through for the rest of their lives. Spiritual and Ethical Issues in the Bamidbar Stories by Dr. Meir Tamari: Korach & Co. [8] "You have killed the people of the Lord" (Bamidbar 17:6). The people thought that it was the incense that the 250 first-born had offered, that had caused their death as it had done to Nadav and Avihu. They justified the punishment meted out to Korach, Datan and Aviram since they openly revolted against the teaching of G-d, however, they maintained that the first-born had a legitimate role to play as priestly functionaries and so did not deserve death. So they murmured against Moshe and Aharon, saying that that it was only their advice regarding the offering of the incense that caused the deaths of the first-born. However, the incense was not some sort of poison that caused death but rather the sin of revolt of the elders against Torat Moshe, and their murmuring thus became part of the same revolt. The reaction to their revolt was swift: "G-d said to Moshe and Aharon, 'separate yourselves from this congregation that I may consume them in a moment'. They interceded on Israel's behalf asking: "Shall one man sin and will Your anger be with the whole congregation"? "But what is so unusual in such communal punishment? Surely not everybody sinned at the Calf, yet all Israel suffered from that sin? Even though only Achan trespassed (Yehoshua 6), divine anger fell on the whole congregation. The individual is part of society like the limbs are all part of the human body and just as the whole body feels the illness even if only one part is afflicted, so the community shares the blame for the misdeeds of the individuals. The community shares blame since they did not disassociate themselves from the evil acts but also because they did not warn or educate the evildoer against them. But when the community removes itself from the sinners and takes issue with them, then we remove any responsibility for sin from the community" (Akeidat Yitschak). All our confessions, the vidui of Ashamnu and that of Al Cheit, are expressed in the plural as we bear some mutual responsibility even for the sins and wrongs done by other individuals. With regard to an unidentified corpse found in the fields, the elders of the nearest city, in the presence of the elders of Israel, the Kohanim and the Sanhedrin, after washing their hands, made the following confession: "Our hands have not shed this blood, and our eyes have not seen him" (D'varim 21:5-7). "Did we imagine that the elders of that Beit Din were shedders of blood? Rather they declared that the dead man had never approached them for help and they had not turned him away without food, nor had they neglected to give him suitable protection when he went out of the town" (Sotah 48b). Apart from the idea of 'Kol Yisrael Areivim', sometimes we simply acquiesce and condone the crime, sometimes we cause it by our neglect either of the transgressor or of the victim, and at other times we cannot decide what is right or wrong. For all those reasons we bear some responsibility for the wrongdoing and sinning of others, just as all Israel shared responsibility for the rebellion of Korach and his congregation. "At the beginning, all the people supported Moshe and Aharon, but when they saw Korach and his congregation gathered in front of the Ohel Moed together with Moshe and Aharon with the fire pans for the ketoret, they believed that perhaps G-d had restored the priesthood to the first-born. By this they merited destruction for they had repudiated the teaching of Moshe which is the same as rebelling against the Divine Presence" (Ramban). "The wrath of G-d on Israel was caused by the very fact of their standing close by to the wicked congregation of Korach. Thereby they showed that they condoned, either implicitly or deliberately, their evil way. They had rather to show that they did not agree with their views or that they were willing to reject them" (Malbim). "And Moshe said to Aharon, 'take a censer and put fire from the Mizbei'ach in it, place ketoret and go quickly into the congregation and achieve atonement for them, for the anger of G-d has gone forth and the deadly plague has begun" (Bamidbar 17:11). "Moshe saw that the Angel of Death was going out against Israel and that the plague had begun, so he told Aharon to go quickly out among the congregation and atone for them; 'and Aharon stood between the dying and the living and the plague was stopped'. From here we learn that the Leviyim prevent suffering and trouble" (Bamidbar Rabba 5:7). A parallel may be seen in the Yom Kippur Avoda of the Kohen Gadol that involved ketoret in the Kodesh HaKodashim, and brought atonement for Israel. "Why was the atonement for the sin of Israel at the controversy of Korach, through the ketoret? They sinned through lashon hara when they said to Moshe and Aharon, 'you have killed the people of G-d'. Now let the ketoret that is ephemeral and the essence of secrecy, atone for lashon hara that sins in secret" (Yoma 44a). "There were 3 things that Israel saw as bringing suffering and destruction and they were, Aron HaBrit, death and the Ketoret. The Aron HaBrit, as in the cases of the people of Beit Shemesh who gazed on the Aron (Shmuel Alef 6) and of Uzziah (Shmuel Bet 6) who merely sought to steady the Aron when David took it to Yerushalyim. They saw the Ketoret as bringing death as in the cases of Nadav and Avihu and of the 250 elders. Yet all three of them bring atonement. Here Moshe commanded Aharon to take ketoret, save the people from the plague and atone for them" (Bamidbar Rabba 4:20). "Does the Copper Snake [that Moshe was commanded to make for those bitten during the plague after Israel complained about the Manna (Bamidbar 21:5-9)] kill or cause people to live? Rather, when Israel raises their eyes to Heaven in prayer and subject their hearts to their Father In Heaven, then they are cured" (Rosh HaShana 3:8). "Israel murmured that the ketoret was poison and that the Aron killed all that came close to it, so Moshe commanded Aharon to atone for them with ketoret, to teach them that is not the incense nor the Aron that cause death, but that it is sin that is the killer (Midrash Aggada). MISC section - contents: [1] Vebbe Rebbe [2] Candle by Day [3] Wisdom and Wit [4] From Aloh Naaleh [5] Parsha Points to Ponder [6] Portion from the Portion [7] From Machon Puah [8] A Look Back at Sukkot... [9] Guest Article [10] Gimatriya [11] Person in the Parsha [12] Divrei Menachem [1] From the virtual desk of the OU VEBBE REBBE The Orthodox Union - via its website - fields questions of all types in areas of kashrut, Jewish law and values. Some of them are answered by Eretz Hemdah, the Institute for Advanced Jewish Studies, Jerusalem, headed by Rav Yosef Carmel and Rav Moshe Ehrenreich, founded by HaRav Shaul Yisraeli zt"l, to prepare rabbanim and dayanim to serve the National Religious community in Israel and abroad. Ask the Rabbi is a joint venture of the OU, Yerushalayim Network, Eretz Hemdah... and the Israel Center. The following is a Q&A from Eretz Hemdah... Q: With concern about "swine flu" so high, many would consider it hygienically prudent to wash their hands with soap and water before doing netilat yadayim [N"Y] with a jointly used washing cup and eating. Is it possible to do N"Y with a b'racha when you know that your hands are clean already? If one can, should he dry his hands before doing N"Y? A: The Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 165:1) deals with the problem of one who has just left the bathroom and is ready to eat. If he does N"Y once for both needs, he will have a problem of whether he should first make the b'racha of Asher Yatzar for doing his needs, or first make the b'racha on the N"Y followed by Hamotzi and only afterward recite Asher Yatzar. Either way, there are issues of hefsek (improper break) between the time the second b'racha became necessary and when it was recited. Therefore, the Shulchan Aruch says to wash two times, the first to be followed by ASHER YATZAR, and the second one by AL NETILAT YADAYIM. So we see that the fact that the hands were just washed does not preclude doing another formal washing for eating bread. Does that mean that a second N"Y is a mitzva that requires a b'racha even if it adds nothing practical, except that now it is done for a bread meal? That seems to be the subject of a machloket. The Beit Yosef (OC 158) understands from Tosafot's statement (Pesachim 116b) regarding the two washings that we do on Seder night that if one does a lower level obligation N"Y for non-breads dipped in liquids and then needs to do one for bread, the latter N"Y is a full obligation. However, the Darkei Moshe (as the author rules in the Rama, OC 158:7) says that this is so only when a while passed in between washings so that we can assume that he took his mind off his hands. Otherwise, one would not make a b'racha on the second N"Y. Similarly, in the former context, the Mishna B'rura (165:2) cites Acharonim that the first washing done to enable reciting Asher Yatzar should be a washing of cleanliness, not one of a valid halachic nature. One way to do this is to not use a washing cup (and preferably not use the first spurt of water from the faucet - see Tzitz Eliezer VIII 7), which is a requirement for N"Y. If one touched a covered part of the body or some other "dirty" thing that makes N"Y necessary between the washings, then N"Y would be necessary (I imagine that this would undo much of the hygienic gains you want to accomplish). This leaves the matter of whether one should dry his hands between the hygienic cleaning and the N"Y. There is a similar case that is discussed by the poskim. The Shulchan Aruch (OC 162:2) talks about pouring some of the N"Y water on the hands to remove dirt prior to the main netila. The Bi'ur Halacha (ad loc.) says that there is no mention of a need to dry the hands after doing this, which could be necessary if we said that the water becomes tamei (impure) in the process and would ruin the netila. He says that this is either because this pre-washing is part of the N"Y process, whereby water can become tamei and be removed by the second washing, or, to the contrary, that other than regarding poorly executed netila, water that gets on the hands is not considered tamei (based on the Magen Avraham 162:10). While the Yalkut Yosef (OC 159:1) agrees with this approach, there are significant poskim, both Ashkenazi and Sephardi, who disagree (Ben Ish Chai, Shemini 11; Chazon Ish 24:20; K'tzot HaShulchan 33:4). They say that in that case, one should dry the hands from the questionable water before commencing the real N"Y. Without getting into the intricacies, it would seem that our case is more lenient than the one these poskim discuss, and thus it would seem that drying the hands that were washed for hygienic reasons is not necessary. [Ed. note: We called the Vebbe Rebbe to ask about the permissibility of washing with soap & water for hygienic purposes AFTER a ritual N"Y. Would this constitute a hefsek or be otherwise problematic. We''ll share his answer with you.] [2] Candle by Day Men are generally happy when they are working because they become pretty much what they are working at and that small receptacle is easily filled by the work they are doing, whereas an unoccupied man is a gaping void of unfulfilled potentialities. From "A Candle by Day" by Rabbi Shraga Silverstein A Candle by Day - The Antidote - The World of Chazal by Rabbi Shraga Silverstein Now available at 054-209-9200 [3] Wisdom and Wit by Shmuel Himelstein No column this week Shmuel Himelstein has written a wonderful series for ArtScroll: Words of Wisdom, Words of Wit; A Touch of Wisdom, A Touch of Wit; and "Wisdom and Wit" - available at your local Jewish bookstore (or should be). Excerpted with permission [4] CHIZUK and IDUD for Olim & not-yet-Olim respectively The parsha teaches us that it is incumbent on Man "to replenish the earth and to subdue it" (B'reishit 1:28). The purpose of this obligation was to establish the earth in its entirety as a sanctuary for the Divine presence, similar to what the Jewish People would subsequently build in the desert. The earth would be ruled by Man and through him by those G-dly attributes that give Man his identity as he who was created in G-d's image. "Rabbi Shmuel bar Abba said: G-d yearned for a home on earth just as he has one in the Heavens. For so he told Adam: 'if you succeed, just as I am king in the Heavens I will make you king down below'". Adam sinned thus failing in his task. This task was transferred to the Jewish People upon their redemption from Egypt: "you have left Egypt for the purpose of building me a sanctuary that I may rest my Divine Presence among you" (Tanhuma B'chukotai 5). As Rambam makes clear, the world is not subdued by individuals but rather by nations. "Man is naturally a social/political being; by virtue of his nature he seeks to form communities" (Guide to the Perplexed II 40). It is the leadership of these national communities that legislates values binding the individual members despite their disparate natures. These communities, characterized by the values that obligate each of them, form civilizations. Only these civilize and "subdue" the territories of the world. Thus the all-encompassing aim of Avraham, Yitzchak, Yaakov, and Moshe throughout their lives was to create a nation that would know G-d and that would serve Him (Guide III 51). Only a nation - not the Patriarchs themselves - could "subdue the earth" under the reign of a national civilization committed to those ideals that make Man "tzelem Elokim", created in G-d's image. To achieve its goal, writes Rav Kook, this nation needs "a political state... so that it will be known that not just wise and exceptional individuals... can be sustained by the light of the Divine ideal, but entire nations - that include all strata of human society" (Orot p.104). Jews in the Land of Israel participate in a national Jewish life that cannot exist in the exile. This national aspect of Jewish life enables Man to work toward meeting his obligation of making the earth a sanctuary for the Divine presence. Rabbi Jonathan Blass, Neve Tzuf TORAH THOUGHTS as contributed by Aloh Naaleh members for publication in the Orthodox Union's 'Torah Insights', a weekly Torah publication on Parshat HaShavu'a [5] Parsha Points to Ponder for B'reishit 1) At the end of each stage of creation the Torah records that G-D SAW IT AND IT WAS GOOD. What, then, is added by the statement at the end of creation that G-D SAW ALL THAT HE DID AND IT WAS VERY GOOD (1:31)? 2) Adam names his wife CHAVA right after the punishments for their sin are declared clearly establishing a connection between the sin and the name (3:20). What is that connection? 3) Why does the Torah report that specifically daughters were born to Mankind considering that sons were obviously born as well? (6:1) Parsha Points to Ponder is prepared by Rabbi Dov Lipman, who teaches at Reishit Yerushalayim and Machon Maayan in Beit Shemesh and is the author of "DISCOVER: Answers for Teenagers (and adults) to Questions about the Jewish Faith" (Feldheim) and "TIMEOUT: Sports Stories as a Game Plan for Spiritual Success" a recent release by Devora Publishing ppp@ouisrael.org Answers - Ponder the questions first and then look here 1) The Meshech Chochma explains that all of the things which G-D created could not fulfill their ultimate functions until Man was created. So, they might have been GOOD after they were created but they were then elevated to VERY GOOD once G-D formed Adam and they could serve Man. 2) The Chatam Sofer answers based on the teaching of our Sages that had they not sinned the world would have reached perfection and there would not have been any further offspring. Thus, as a result of the sin, Chava became THE MOTHER OF ALL LIFE referring to the generations which would now be born as a result of the sin. 3) The Netziv teaches that these words answer a basic question - considering that men married more than one wife, why didn't it reach a point where there were men who could not find women to marry. The Torah addresses this question by reporting that DAUGHTERS WERE BORN TO THEM, meaning that more girls were born than boys thereby preventing that problem. [6] Portion from the Portion by Rakel Berenbaum FEEDback to berenbau@actcom.net.il RIBISOMES AND B'RESHIT This past week, Israeli Chemist Ada Yonath received word that she was one of the winners of the Nobel prize in Chemistry. For 25 years she has been studying the processes related to the translation of the genetic code into proteins. In 2000, teams headed by Yonath at Weizmann Institute in Rehovot and the Max Planck Institute in Hamburg, Germany solved, for the first time, the complete three-dimensional structure of both subunits of a bacterial ribosome, the organelle that functions as the cellular proteins' manufacturing nursery. This achievement was counted by Science magazine among the ten most important scientific developments of that year. The next year, Yonath's teams revealed exactly how certain antibiotics are able to eliminate pathogenic bacteria by binding to their ribosomes, preventing them from producing crucial proteins. She has revealed in detail how the genetic information is decoded, how the ribosome's inherent flexibility contributes to antibiotic selectivity and the secrets of cross- resistance to various antibiotic families. This discovery will hopefully also help in the struggle against antibiotic- resistant bacteria, a problem recognized as one of the most central medical challenges of the 21st century. "These models are now used by scientists in order to develop new antibiotics, directly assisting the saving of lives and decreasing humanity's suffering," the academy said in its announcement. Prof. Yonath's research is driven by curiosity and ambition to better understand the world and our place within it. This fits in with our study of this week's portion, the first chapters in the book of B'reishit that describe the creation of the world. We all want to understand how G-d created life and how this life works? How do these chapters fit into modern knowledge of science and evolution and what is G-d trying to teach us by sharing this information with us? This is a hot topic that has been debated profusely. We can't possibly do it justice in this short column, but we will just say a few words. It is clear that the Torah describes the creation of the universe as the willful act of HASHEM and describes creation as having unfolded in stages. Darwin's theory (a theory, not a fact) of Evolution left no place for G-d. There was no Divine plan. Does that mean that we have to throw out the whole theory? Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, wrote that while he did not endorse the idea of common descent (that all life developed from one common organism), even if it was ever proven by science to be true he didn't think it was a threat to a G-d fearing person's beliefs. On the contrary, he felt that Evolution, if ever proven, could instead cause one to be more reverent of God by understanding His wonders (a master plan for the universe). As he writes in (Collected Writings, vol. 7 pp. 263-264) "Judaism in that case would call upon its adherents to give even greater reverence than ever before to the one, sole G-d, Who, in His boundless creative wisdom and eternal omnipotence, needed to bring into existence no more than one single, amorphous nucleus and one single law of "adaptation and heredity" in order to bring forth, from what seemed chaos but was in fact a very definite order, the infinite variety of species we know today, each with its unique characteristics that sets it apart from all other creatures." As Rav Kook explains: The Torah was not given as a science textbook. We don't need to spend our time trying to reconcile the verses of the Torah with the latest scientific theory but rather it is more important to find the moral and theological messages of the verses. According to Rav Kook, these verses teach us so much about G-d. G-d created the world, G-d is interested in the world and rules over it, the heavens and the earth are not gods, G-d is not subservient to the rules of nature. All this we learn from the first verse of our portion - BERESHIT BARA ELOKIM... in the beginning G-d created." We must use scientific advances to help us make the world a better place - but we must always remember the first verse of the Torah - G-d created the world and He is our master. Since Prof. Yonath's prize was for studying bacterial ribisomes this weeks recipe is using an ingredient that is made using bacteria. Sauerkraut is made using the bacteria on the cabbage leaves. Also, this combination of chocolate and sauerkraut is an invention almost as amazing as Prof. Yonath's. Chocolate Sauerkraut Cake 2 1/4 cups flour 1/2 tsp. baking soda 1/2 tsp. baking powder 1/4 tsp. salt 1 cup sugar 1/2 cup shortening 3 eggs 1/2 cup well drained chopped sauerkraut 1/2 cup chopped nuts 1/2 cup cocoa 1/2 cup brown sugar 1 1/4 tsp. vanilla 1 cup water Mix together dry ingredients - flour, salt, baking powder, soda and cocoa. Cream sugars and shortening until light and fluffy. Blend in vanilla. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each. Add dry ingredients alternately with water, beating until smooth. Add nuts and sauerkraut. Mix and pour into greased 9 x 11 inch pan. Bake at 350Ffor 35 minutes. [7] from Machon Puah A Horrible Mistake In a story ripped from recent headlines... Sean & Carolyn Savage, a non-Jewish couple living in Ohio struggling with fertility issues endured 10 long years of waiting for that special moment. A moment that all fertility-challenged couples face. The moment when they hear the news, "Congratulations, you are going to have a baby." Like many other couples who turn to IVF (in vitro fertilization) to have children, the Savages had secondary infertility. Because of medical complications following the birth of their second son, their dream of building a large family together slowly withered until they realized that IVF was their last chance to grow their family. And it worked. After the successful birth of their first daughter in 2008, the Savage's still had 5 viable embryos in cryogenic storage and they had to decide what to do with them. Due to their religious beliefs, they could not destroy the embryos. Rather than destroy the embryos, they decided to undergo a final round of embryo implantation in the hopes that Carolyn would conceive and bear a younger brother or sister for their newborn daughter. Ten days after the implantation, they got that special phone call; the call that IVF patients wait so desperately for; the call to tell them that the implantation was successful and that they were going to have a baby. For the Savage's, this call was a disaster. In a story that has been reported throughout the world, the Savage's were told that not only was Carolyn pregnant, but that she had been accidentally implanted with embryos from another couple. In short, she was carrying a baby that was not genetically hers. The Savage's next decision is what makes the story so compelling. Adhering to their religious beliefs, they decided that they could not ethically or morally make the decision to terminate the pregnancy. Furthermore, with the same conviction of conscience, they decided that upon birth, the baby would be given to his genetic parents - no strings attached. Their courage, both in standing by their convictions and doing what they have determined is the "right" thing to do as well as the proud and unashamed manner in which they are informing the public of their plight, is inspirational. Their plight and generosity has touched the hearts of millions. As the story continued to develop, a possible explanation for the mix up began to emerge. Apparently, the embryos in question were the property of a couple who were also seeking to have their second IVF baby. The wife's maiden name, the name listed on her voter registration records, is Savage. It began to seem possible that a mistake was made by an unknown embryologist in a lab who simply grabbed a container labeled "Savage", not realizing that there could be two families with similar names. While it is certainly regrettable, distressing and utterly inexcusable, we can understand the nature of this error. After all, we all make mistakes. These were unusual circumstances, ones that should never have come about - but sometimes mistakes happen. After all, there have been other cases of IVF errors in the media lately. A woman in Japan recently aborted her pregnancy that was the result of a similar error. Couples have fought incredibly public battles over custody and visitation of children born under similar circumstances. Surely there are also more cases that have not gone public because of embarrassment or a desire to spare a child the stigma of such notoriety. Isn't this just one of the risks of IVF? The sad answer is that it does not have to be. The reason why - next week... The Puah Institute for Fertility and Gynecology in Accordance with Halacha is based in Jerusalem and helps couples from all over the world who are experiencing fertility problems. Puah offers free counseling in five languages, halachic supervision, and educational programs. Puah has offices in New York, Los Angeles and Paris. To contact the Puah Institute please call 1-800-071111 in Israel or in the US 718-336-0603. website: www.puahonline.org [8] A LOOK BACK at Sukkot & TT878 No excuses; just telling it like it is - or like it was, over the last number of weeks. A couple of apologies. Okay, more than a couple. The USHPIZIN page came out left to right rather than right to left, which would have made a much nicer presentation. And, the word YOM was left out of Kiddush for the first night of Sukkot. It should have been ET YOM HASHABAT HAZEH V'ET YOM CHAG HASUKOT HAZEH. At least it wouldn't invalidate the Kiddush, which we did a number of years ago with a regrettable oversight in the Simchat Torah Kiddush (which was not put into this issue). A more significant apology is hereby extended to the advertisers that got bumped from the Sukkot issue. When we hit 20 sheets of paper (which is a whopping 80 pages when folded by our dauntless team of folders - a tremendous "Yasher Ko'ach" to them all for the time and work they put in for the Sukkot issue in particular - for the Rosh HaShana and Yom Kippur issues, also in particular - and week-in, week-out for every issue of Torah Tidbits, in general) we had to make some cuts. Our collating towers hold only 20 sheets between them. As it was, one tray didn't function properly and the folders worked extra-hard by having to insert a page by hand to each collated batch. As long as we are expressing our appreciation... Thank you to all the wonderful people who transport and distributed TT each week. A pack of ten TTs for the Sukkot issue weighed in at 1 kilo (not counting the rubberband). Here's a personal thought to share with you about the weather on the first day. How hot it was in a particular Sukka depended upon location of said Sukka - both the city, town, yishuv, etc. as well as the amount of exposure to direct sunlight. What made sitting, eating, snoozing, learning, etc. in a hot Sukka more bearable, was reflecting upon who was the Ushpizin of the day. Avraham Avinu sat at the entrance to his tent K'CHOM HAYOM, in the heat of the day (which we are taught was exceedingly hot). This, not to mention the fiery furnace (oops, we did mention it). In honor of that first of exhalted guests in our Sukka, what's a hot after- noon? That thought led to others in anticipation (hopes and prayers to the contrary) of other hot days on Sukkot. Yitzchak was bound on the Mizbei'ach with the fire already in place. And Yaakov suffered many days of blistering heat (as well as bitterly cold nights) working for Lavan. Must have been hot for Moshe Rabeinu to approach the S'NEH and to ascend Har Sinai that was afire. (Note that for the Bush and Har Sinai, the same term is used - BO'EIR BA'EISH.) We leave it to the TTreader who is so inclined, to portray the other Ushpizin in hot circumstances. The above was a thought, not any kind of halachic suggestion. Just as rain exempts one from Sukka, so does extreme heat, extreme cold, more bees than just the occasional visitor... [9] Can Evolution and the Torah's Account of Creation Coexist?; Guest article by Rabbi Ephraim Sprecher Dean of Students, Diaspora Yeshiva There are remarkable similarities between the account of the creation as given in B'reishit and the Theory of Evolution. First, light was created, then the firmament, followed by sea, land and vegetation. The creation of the heavenly bodies was followed by fish and birds, and then by land animals. Only finally, as the culmination of G-d's work, was Man created. Indeed, the Torah's description of the creation in a natural progression points to its divine origin because no mortal at the time of Moshe Rabeinu could have known that modern geologists also agree that plants and water-based animals were the first to exist. The Ramban on B'reishit 2:7, writes about the guided evolution of life, from inert matter to Adam. The Ramban also says the six "days" of Creation in the Biblical account were six periods or stages of creation. In any case, the length of the first three days before the creation of the sun must have been different in length from our measurement of time by the sun. [Ed. Not necessarily.] A thousand or even a million years are in G-d's eyes as only one day (T'hilim 90:4). What is suggested by the six "days" is that the time of creation, however long in itself, was insignificant to the Eternal. Once the principle of Divine Creation is accepted, Judaism allows much latitude in belief as to how the creation was effected. According to Rav Kook, there is no Torah objection to the acceptance of the theory of` evolution provided it is agreed that each stage in the evolutionary process was brought about by G-d. Rav Kook explains in his book Orot HaKodesh that just as the nation of Israel evolved spiritually from 49 levels of impurity to 49 levels of purity, so too did G-d use evolution in the physical process of creation. Because our physical world is only a reflection and manifestation of the spiritual world. The gematria, numerical value of the word for nature, HATEVA (86) in Hebrew, equals G-d (ELOKIM). R' Ovadia Sforno states that the creation of Adam was the end of a long process that began with an animal that gradually evolved until this creature was given the G-dly soul and received the image of G-d. Rav Yehuda HaLevi, in his philosophical work, the Kuzari, explains that G-d designed evolution to bring forth the highest essence of the human being. In his opinion, the evolution of man can be observed in the Yom Kippur prayer UVCHEIN TEIN PACHD'CHA (and You, G-d, place your Awe) which mentions first AL KOL MA'ASECHA (on all of Your handiwork), then L'AMCHA (to Your nation), and finally TZADIKIM (the righteous), who represent the purest and most exalted essence of humanity. The traditional Jewish method of reckoning years from the creation of the world appears at first sight to be a difficulty. No scientist would accept that the world was created only 5770 years ago. However, if the Hebrew date is reckoned from the end of creation of the sixth day when fully developed man was created, the difficulty disappears. Science would agree that fully intelligent man as we know him is not older than some six thousand years. There is no conflict between science and Torah. Science reveals a world charged with G-d's splendor and greatness. The more our scientific knowledge increases the more we will be able to appreciate the marvels and wonders of G-d's creation. [10] Hidden in the Sand Sometimes, in searching for gimatriya -matches between p'sukim of the weekly sedra and elsewhere in Torah and Tanach, we find something that seems to say something, but we're not sure what. Here's a GM we leave for you to build upon. VAYIVRA ELOKIM ET HA'ADAM B'TZALMO B'TZELEM ELOKIM BARA OTO ZACHAR U'N'KEIVA BARA OTAM: This pasuk matches one other in the Torah: U'SEIR IZIM ECHAT LCHATAT LAHASHEM AL OLAT HATAMID YA'ASEH V'NISKO: Perhaps... we were created - we exist - to do T'shuva (represented by the communal Chatat korban) and to serve G-d always (represented by the daily T'midim). [11] Person in the parsha by Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb for Parshat B'reishit God's Beginning, Man's Beginnings "In the beginning, the Almighty created the heavens and the earth" (B'reishit 1:1). How is this beginning different from all other beginnings? This week's Torah portion, the very first of the yearly cycle, tells of the beginning of the cosmos and prompts us to reflect upon other beginnings, human beginnings, more familiar to us. When we contemplate those other beginnings, with which we are much better acquainted, we cannot help but wonder whether there even is such a thing as a true beginning, of a process which really begins from "ground zero", without a past or history which precedes it. Is there such a thing as a new chapter in life which is utterly new and not influenced and strongly connected to some pre-beginning past? Do we ever really start anything totally fresh, purely new? I don't think we ever do, and I submit that a quick survey of the beginnings we know, from the trivial to the very meaningful, will support my contention. Is the beginning of a new baseball season really a new beginning? Or does each athlete bring to the season many of the skills perfected in past years along with the marks of old injuries? A new college semester is exciting and feels fresh and new. But every student comes equipped with past learnings and ingrained study habits, and rare indeed is the professor who doesn't recycle at least some of his old lectures. History is rife with examples of revolutions heralding complete change and innovative reforms. But history has also demonstrated how often, at the first moment of challenge and crisis, the new regime falls back upon the same old and tired techniques of government. The French Revolution, which promised so much in the way of a new beginning, eventually reverted to the same abuses it fought to replace. Even the birth of a new human life is not a totally new beginning. Each newborn boy or girl carries the genetic code of generations gone by. The old conception that each of us begins life as a tabula rasa, a blank slate, has long been abandoned as naive and fallacious. We are built on ancient foundations. And so it is in the entire realm of human experience There are no totally new beginnings. There are only new chapters, subtly but profoundly shaped by what has come before. This is the human condition. None of us is truly autonomous. No man is an island. We are all little more than a composite of the forces of our past and the pressures of our present. We are contingent beings, dependent upon so much that is external to us. How different is the beginning of which we read this week! It is a beginning out of nowhere, out of nothing, ex nihilo. YEISH MEI'AYIN. Something out of nothing. A "big bang" if you will, with absolutely no precursor. "In the beginning..." With these opening Biblical words the Torah lays down the fundamentals of Jewish theology and Jewish anthropology. Jewish theology: There is a Creator who created a totally new world, a world without precedent and without earlier stages, at a moment in time freely chosen by Him. And a Jewish anthropology: Man is incapable of creating that type of beginning. God is truly autonomous. Man, not at all. He is a contingent creature. Rambam puts it well when he describes the Almighty as independent of the world, but the world as dependent upon Him. God is the Creator and Man the Creature. From this insight it is a logical next step to the German theologian Schleiermacher's definition of perfect worship as a feeling of "creatureness", of "kreatur-gefuhl". This beginning lesson in theology will stand us in good stead as we progress through the yearly cycle of the Torah and encounter this Higher Power again and again in so many and varied ways. And it should stand us in good stead as we cope with our own private existential struggles. As we read in the book of Kohelet just a short while ago: "For God is on high and you are down below, therefore let your words be few..." Indeed, God's beginning is very different from our beginnings. How exciting is the prospect now before us as we begin the yearly Torah cycle. How exciting to observe this world newly created YEISH MEI'AYIN, out of nothing", as it not only becomes something, but develops into a something of dazzling complexity, infinite wonder, and perpetual surprise. So stay with us as we continue our journey, week by adventurous week. [12] Divrei Menachem The first six days of creation are clouded in mystery. Yet, in the same vein, Shabbat - the day by which Hashem had completed His work and abstained from all His work that He had done (B'reishit 2:2) - is pregnant with paradox. For we are told in the following verse that, "G-d blessed the seventh day and sanctified it because He abstained from all His work which G-d created to make." How do we understand this last phrase, "created to make", which seems to imply that on Shabbat there was yet something accomplished (Artscroll)? A simple solution is to say that the novelty bestowed to us on Shabbat by Hashem was, in fact, the very notion that we can desist from creative work in a competitive world that we have been commanded to fill and subdue (ibid 1:28). Perhaps, following the Vilna Gaon we might understand the concept of Hashem's abstaining from work as a form of interruption, something adjourned, as it were. The implication is that despite the cessation of creative work, the completion of the mission of Creation still needs to be actualized. Indeed, what Hashem did "do" on Shabbat was to bless and sanctify this holy day. One instance of this blessing is the renewal of procreative strength (Ibn Ezra). Thus, on Shabbat Hashem offered us a singular opportunity not only to fulfill our mission of being fruitful but also to partner with Him in the ongoing universal process of populating ("making") this world (cf. Radak). Shabbat Shalom, Menachem Persoff Towards Better Davening and Torah Reading Report Two of the oldest topics to appear in this column are AMEIN CHATUFA and the correct pronunciation of the name of G-d that ends in a PATACHed MAPIK HEI (eLO-ak, not eLO-ka). The AMEIN CHATUFA is the answer of AMEIN before the chazan (or whoever is saying a bracha) finishes. Throughout the years, we have warned about waiting until the end of the bracha NO MATTER HOW stretched out a chazan makes it. The style of davening on RH & YK as well as Yom Tov often "invites" the kahal to begin their AMEIN while the chazan finishes his bracha, rather than waiting until the bracha is actually completed. A premature AMEIN is no AMEIN, leaving the bracha unanswered and possibly L'VATALA in the case of the repetition of the Amida. We are pleased to report a significant improvement over the years in the kahal's waiting and in the chazan's help towards a proper AMEIN by ending the bracha abruptly before the careless members of the congregation start their AMEIN. Similarly, we have seem an increased awareness concerning the MAPIK HEI with a PATACH under it (at the end of a word. Said letter/vowel combination is pronounced exactly as the CHET with a PATACH at the end of a word. Apple is ta-PU-ach, not ta-PU-cha. This we all know. High is ga-VO-ahhh, not ga-VO-ha. And G-d's name is eLO-ahhh (not eLO-ha). Parsha Pix No explanations this week TTRIDDLES... are Torah Tidbits-style riddles on Parshat HaShavua (sometimes on the calendar). They are found in the hard-copy of TT scattered throughout, usually at the bottom of different columns. In the electronic versions of TT, they are found all together at the end of the ParshaPix-TTriddles section. The best solution set submitted each week (there isn't always a best) wins a double prize a CD from Noam Productions and/or a gift (game, puzzle, book, etc.) from Big Deal Last issue's (SUKKOT) TTriddles: [1] Inside White House maid Margaret Rogers Margaret 'Maggie' Rogers was a maid at the White House who served for 30 years (1909-1939), during the administrations of Taft, Wilson, Harding, Coolidge, Hoover, and part of FDR's, eventually rising to head housemaid. Her years of service were memorialized in the book My Thirty Years Backstairs at the White House by her daughter, Lillian Rogers Parks, who worked as a seamstress, also in the White House. The story was later produced as a TV miniseries. All of which is interesting trivia (if you are into trivia) but is useless information for this TTriddle. We are interested only in the last two letters of her first name and the first three letters of her last name. This will give us the word ETROG, which is what is "inside" Margaret Rogers. [2] What's in Honolulu lava? This is the same kind of TTriddle as [1]. Taking the last letters of the first word and the first letters of the second word, we find LULAV is what is inside Honolulu lava. FYI, the dormant volcano, Mauna Kea is one of five volcanoes which together form the island of Hawaii. Mauna Kea means "white mountain" in the Hawaiian language, a reference to its summit being regularly covered by snow in winter... peak is 4207m above mean sea level but 10,203m above its base on the floor of the Pacific Ocean. It is the world's tallest mountain by this measure, taller than Mount Everest, which is the highest mountain above sea level. [3] CHAF top; HEI the whole thing If you take a SAMACH and a KAF, and add a CHAF (SOFIT) to it, you get S'CHACH, the top covering of a Sukka. If you add a HEI to the SAMACH-KAF, you get SUKKA, the whole thing. [4] Koshe helicopter etiquette Similar to [1] and [2], but this time, you take the first letters of each word (2, 3, and 2) and spell the name of the Megila that we usually read on Shabbat Chol HaMoed Sukkot, but this year - without a Shabbat Chol HaMoed - we read on the first day of Sukkot and our Chutz LaAretz brothers and sisters read on Shmini Atzeret (probably at the same time on the clock that we were busy doing Hakafot). [5] Danny T's wife's outer garment This one was for those who know Danny T and his wife - or at least, her name. Her name is Susan, or Sue (even if no one calls her that). Her outer garment - like all of ours - is a coat. In her case: SUE COAT (Sukkot). [6] Also: Israeli fruit, Binyamin, and a bundle of hyssop The command to take the Lulav & Etrog (with Hadasim and Aravot) begins with the word ULKACHTEM, and you shall take. That word occurs three other times in the Torah. Once, when Moshe Rabeinu gives instructions to the Meragilm to take samples of fruit in the Land. Earlier, when Yaakov Avinu is refusing to release Binyamin to be taken down to Egypt in fulfillment of the demand of its second in command (Yosef), he says, and if you will take him too... And, part of the mitzvot of Pesach Mitzrayim (not part of the mitzva of Korban Pesach throughout the generations), waqs to take a bundle of hyssop, dip it in the blood of the KP and smear the blood on the doorposts and lintel of the homes of the Jews in Egypt. The word appears two more times in Tanach and refers to taking the ARON and putting it on a wagon to help its being returned to Jerusalem. (Mistake.) And to the ban on taking from the CHEIREM, the forbidden spoils of war of Yericho, for personal use. [7] Mary had a little lamb... How many were required throughout to the Chag? We're talking about the full 8 days of Sukkot. On each day of the seven, 14 lambs were part of the Musaf offerings. That's 98. On Shimin Atzeret, there were 7. 105 so far. Two daily sacrifices adds another 16. 121. At least one Shabbat will add two more for the Musaf of Shabbat. Two Shabbatot will add another two. Answer to this question (not really a TTriddle) is 123 or 125 lambs. This week's TTriddles: [1] When did they do this in 1977 - Indians (13) & Redsox (6)? [2] The anagram kings are m'chutanim [3] Adam, Mahalaleil, Avraham, Yaakov [4] Initial preview of Name switch [5] 7, 3, 3, 3 or 5, 7 - What? Israel Center Miscellany See website for the "standard" entries of this file. Help young couples (evacuees and children of evacuees) from Gush Katif and N. Shomron get ready for the arrival of their babies - Tzedaka - Matan B’Seter; The money collected will be used to buy carriages, cribs, layettes... Make checks out to the Israel Center. Write on the envelope: Gush Katif - Baby Fund, Also collecting good second-hand baby items, For more info. call Sara 0505-444-397 Chesed Fund - Did you resolve to give more Tzedaka this year? Consider helping us help those who turn to us for help. Make checks out to "Chesed Fund" and send to: Chesed Fund, Israel Center att. Menachem Persoff POB 37015 / Jerusalem 91370 VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY - NESTO, the OU's English speaking teen program, is looking for male madrichim to volunteer a few hours a week working with English-speaking teens in Jerusalem or Efrat Post high-school; Comfortable in English Interested in informal education Energetic, Outgoing, & Friendly Ready to make a difference in teens lives Please contact Sarra Horwitz 054-659-2257 or shorwitz@ouisrael.org Sponsor a Shiur or a morning or a whole day's learning; Sponsorship can be in memory of a loved one...or in celebration of a birth, Bar/Bat mitzva, engagement, marriage, anniversary, special birthday, Aliya of family or friends...The dedication will be included in Torah Tidbits, will be announced at the beginning of the shiur, and will be posted at the entrance to the room. Obviously, we need advance notice to properly process your sponsorship. Call us for further details: (02) 560-9100 MEMBERSHIP CAMPAIGN - ELUL 5769 & TISHREI 5770 NOW is the time to (re)join the Israel Center Family 250NISor a couple (even if only one of you frequents the Center) 90NIS for a single Life membership: $500 or shekel equivalent 10% discount for new olim (those who made Aliya during 5769) Note: Membership fees are going up as of Sunday, 7 Cheshvan (Oct. 25) Ask at the Reception Desk for further details (membership benefits, drawing for prizes, etc.) (you can also check on your current membership status) Membership gets you a discount at shiurim, classes, lectures, special programs, tiyulim, Shabbatonim... Membership gets you a subscription to the OU's Jewish Action quarterly magazine. Membership gets you a discount at Hertz Rent-a-Car Membership makes you part of OU Israel and the Israel Center Dear TTreader, (that's Torah Tidbits reader -- that's YOU!) It's true - there are benefits to being a member of the OU Israel Center. But we feel that there is even a greater reason for you to join the family than the 5NIS here, the 10NIS there, and the 20NIS here & there. (it adds up) There is what you become part of. The Torah that we teach, the love of Eretz Yisrael and Am Yisrael that we strive to convey, the work we do with unaffiliated adults and youth throughout the country, the special projects we run in many segments of the population in Israel -- and much more! ALL THIS IS WORTH BEING A PART OF. And we'd like to feel that even just in appreciation of Torah Tidbits, our readers should be members of OU Israel and the Israel Center. Not that you can't read TT without being a member. But membership just feels right. We hope you agree and will join the Israel Center Family (or renew your membership, if it has lapsed). You can become a member in person, by phone, by fax, by email... even by "snail mail" (that's regular postal service mail). Please fill out the form below and bring it in (22 Keren HaYesod) or fax it to us (561-7432), email us (member@ouisrael.org), or mail it to OU Israel Center / POB 37015 / Jerusalem 91370. Membership Form name: _______________________ phone: _________________ cell number: __________________ email: __________________ credit card # __________________________ exp. date: _______ (If you do not want to send this information, come in or call us) amt. ___________ category of membership _________________ comment: Travel Desk - DIRECT LINE: 560-9110 or 050-725-8392 THE TRAVEL DESK is for making reservations and receiving info about Israel Center tiyulim. Please note that ALL Israel Center tiyulim require advance registration. Please note new hours At your service SUN 12:00-5:00pm - MON 11:00am-4:00pm THU 11:00am-3:00pm - Other times, leave message at 560-9110 Call Naomi at the OU Israel Center Travel Desk, 560-9110 or 050-725-8392; fax: 566-0156; email: tiyul@ouisrael.org - Outside Travel Desk hours, please leave a message... Call Shulamit Neaman at 050-593-7932 on the day of a tiyul or the evening preceeding it. Also, if you are running late for a tiyul or for last minute cancelation. CANCELLATION POLICIES: We reserve the right to charge a cancellation fee in case of last-minute cancellations. Also... Price of tiyul is based on a minimum number of participants, meaning that we can cancel a tiyul with too low registration BOOKED? When a tiyul is listed as BOOKED - you can call to be wait-listed; you will be called back if there is a cancellation, if we add a bus, or when we fix a new date for the tiyul. STUDENTS FROM ABROAD: Parents visiting you this year? If so, speak to us! (560-9110) to check out our tiyulim or Shabbatonim (call Ita Rochel 560-9125) that might interest them. KASHRUT POLICY: Food for Israel Center In-House programs is supervised by u-Israel Mehadrin. Israel Center sponsored trips and programs are Mehadrin. Hotels, restaurants, and tiyulim advertised by outside parties are not necessarily Mehadrin and are not endorsed by the OU or the Israel Center. Calls from abroad: Due to time differences, we recommend that people from abroad, email tiyul@ouisrael.org or fax 972-2-5660156 for attention of OU Israel Travel Desk Please be sure to include email or fax number for reply, in addition to phone number. Israel Center tiyulim are partially subsidized by the Jewish Agency for Israel LAST CALL for the Shabbat B'reishit SHABBATON with Rabbi Tzvi Hersh Weinreb - Call 560-9125 to sign up Settlement in the Negev from the Era of the Avot to the Present Times - An exciting day with the erudite tour guide Gidon Abramowitz Sunday, Oct. 25th '09 - 7 Cheshvan - 8:00am to 7:00pm approx. We shall be visiting: Shomria - re-settlement of Gush Katif residents. We shall see a new regional school for 450 children, including separate boys' and girls' studies and a beautiful Beit Midrash. This new community embodies the zeal, Emunah and fortitude which drives the young people to rebuild once again, 4 years after their expulsion from Gush Katif. Tel Sheva - The ancient Tel, near the new city of Be'er Sheva, which dates back to the time of the First Beit HaMikdash - another link in the historic chain of Jewish settlement in the southern part of our country, from the era of Avraham and Yitzchak to modern day Israel. Nir Am - Jewish settlement started in the 1940s in order to secure the land and water sources in the Negev, featuring a reservoir and walk-through cistern, and a museum which tells the story of finding, retrieving and holding on to the water in the Western Negev. K'far Maimon - "In Ora's Orchard" we will see and hear about 80 exotic fruits grown only in this enchanting garden where we will be treated to homemade liquors as well as orchard-grown flavored tea. Nahal Gerar - where Yitzchak Avinu confronted the Philistines and settled Maon Synagogue - see the remnants of its beautiful, artistic mosaic floor from the time of the Talmud, which reflects the religious and cultural spirit of the era. Special Price: 200/220NIS Register with Naomi at the Travel Desk - 560-9110 or 050-725-8392, Shulamit's tiyulim are always a treat; Come! You will enjoy her delicious sweets! See the world-famous BELZ Synagogue - Rosh Chodesh, TUE Nov. 17th, 3:00pm For Men & Boys only 25NIS per person - Mincha at end of tour - Advance registration and payment required - Meeting place details upon registration Sign up with the Travel Desk (02) 560-9110 or 050-725-8392 Herzl Museum - Sunday, November 1st 10:00am to 2:00pm - A state-of-the-art experiential Center, an audio visual encounter with Theodore Binyamin Ze'ev Herzl - learn about his outlook on the connection of the Jewish people to the Land of Israel and the character of the Jewish State. Followed by a visit to Yad Sarah, the the world famous center for lending all types of medical equipment, which may be borrowed rather than purchased by anyone. A section of the building is set up as an apartment, where the rooms enable people with various limitations to function with the aid of many clever and helpful gadgets and items, which allow people to continue living at home. Dignitaries from all over the world have come to visit Yad Sarah to learn how to emulate this amazing organization, which is staffed almost completely by volunteers in its branches all over Israel. The visit includes a dairy mehadrin lunch. 60NIS/members/70NIS non-members Call Naomi at the Travel Desk 560-9110 or 050-725-8392 - Shulamit's tiyulim are always a treat; Come! You will enjoy her delicious sweets! Jerusalem Biblical Zoo - WED November 11th, 24 Cheshvan 2:00-5:00pm As part of our visit to the zoo, we will IY"H take the zoo-train ride to Noah's Ark (The MABUL - Flood - began on 17 Cheshvan and ends on the 27th) where we will also be treated to a fascinating presentation, called "Bugs" - whose effects affect our various senses to make us feel we are in a jungle. 36NIS per person - Call Naomi at the Travel Desk 560-9110 or 050-725-8392 - Shulamit's tiyulim are always a treat; Come! You will enjoy her delicious sweets! Tour & Dine in (and near) Kikar Safra on Rosh Chodesh Kislev - WED November 18th 11:00am to 3:30pm approx. Celebrate Rosh Chodesh a guided tour of our modern City Hall at Safra Square and see an almost view of our Magnificent City (just outside the mayor's office on the top floor) You will hear about Jerusalem's history and the exciting plans for its future. We will also see a very large scale model of Our Jerusalem in miniature. (Maybe you will find your house and neighborhood) This will be followed by an elegant and delicious meal at the dairy OU Mehadrin supervised Italian Restaurant Pera e Mela known for its superb unique cusine We will then walk around the corner to the Basha Art Gallery, where we will be introduced to their artwork and enjoy a piano recital 85NIS per person, Call Naomi at the Travel Desk 560-9110 or 050-725-8392, Shulamit's tiyulim are always a treat; Come! You will enjoy her delicious sweets! Save the Date - Sunday, November 22nd / 5 Kislev 5770 - Tiyul to Cholon - See with the Blind; Hear with the Deaf and visit the kennel with seeing eye dogs The Back Page of TT879 The Avrom Silver Jerusalem College for Adults - Dean, Rabbi Sholom Gold, is the educational component of the Seymour J. Abrams Orthodox Union Jerusalem World Center and incorporates all the classes & lectures of the OU Israel Center. "Regular" IC classes & lectures - Life members - free, 25NIS members, 30NIS non-members No one will be turned away for inability to pay. Membership 250NIS couple, 180NIS single. Programs of the Center are partially funded by the Jewish Agency for Israel Schedule for WED 26 Tishrei (Oct. 14) to Friday, 5 Cheshvan (Oct 23) Wednesday, 26 Tishrei - October 14th 9:20am Contemporary Halachic Issues Rabbi Macy Gordon 10:45am Parshat HaShavua R' Yosef Wolicki Dr. Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg on Parshat HaShavua - Mondays at 7:30pm and Wednesdays at 11:00am various MINI-Shiur/Divrei Torah while you fold 12:30pm VIDEO SCREENING in the LIBRARY - Rabbi David Epstein - "Yehoshua, Leader of a New Generation" 12:30pm Medical Chi Kong Practice with Avi Hirsch (one hour session) Call for further details: 050-767-1722 2:30pm Women's Beit Midrash - Pearl Borow First hour: the KUZARI; Second hour on Chumash with Rashi 7:30pm Rabbi Chaim Eisen's shiur - "Truth Will Sprout from the Earth" Thursday, 27 Tishrei - October 15th 11:00am Torah Secrets on Emunah with Dr. Hayim Abramson various MINI-Shiur/Divrei Torah while you fold Students and Young Adults - Start a new Parsha in your life! Featuring Rabbi Moshe Taragin, Senior Maggid Shiur, Yeshivat Har Etzion on Parsha and Machshava - Weekly at the OU Israel Center - Thursdays at 8:00pm beginning Thursday, October 15th, 25NIS, Men and Women invited, Refreshments Friday 28 Tishrei/ Oct. 16th 9:00am Aggadah - Rabbi Chaim Eisen 11:00am RCA Daf Yomi SHABBATON Leil Shabbat 29 Tishrei / Oct. 16th 4:40pm MINCHA (candle lighting at 4:30pm) Kabbalat Shabbat, Dvar Torah, Maariv 8:30pm (approx.) Shiur by Rabbi Tzvi Hersh Weinreb - Did G-d give up on the human race? - Oneg Shabbat Shabbat day 29 Tishrei / Oct. 17th 7:30am Pre-daven mini-shiur by Phil 8:00am Shacharit... Drasha by Rabbi Weinreb: The Perfect Marriage 11:30am Shiur by Phil Chernofsky: Creation, Torah & Science, Sherlock Hemlock 3:30pm Shiur by Rabbi Weinreb: How NOT to teach a child - Reflections on Educational Psychology on the occasion of the 400th yahrzeit of the Maharal MiPrague 4:30pm MINCHA (Shabbaton participants will have davened Mincha Gedola) 5:30pm MAARIV (Shabbat out - 5:42pm), Havdala Shavua Tov - Chodesh Tov MovieTime NO CHARGE for Shabbaton participants (others invited too) Motza'ei Shabbat B'reishit, October 17th, 6:15pm - NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM Comedy about the new night watchman at NYC's American Museum of Natural History who discovers that the exhibits, animated by a magical Egyptian artifact, come to life at night...With Ben Stiller, Robin Williams, Dick Van Dyke, Mickey Rooney... Motza"Sh 30 Tishrei / Oct. 17th 8:30pm In honor of Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan...The Ins and Outs of the Jewish Calendar - Shiur & workshop with Phil Chernofsky Sun-Thu in the Ganchrow Beis Medrash (first floor) 10:00am Rabbi Jeff Bienenfeld - Perek "Arvei P'sachim" - Yes on Oct. 15; not on 18,20,22,25; back IY"H for Oct. 27 11:15am RCA Daf Yomi by Rotation (and Fri. at 11:00am) 1:20pm Mincha (this time stays the same throughout the year) 3:15pm Hilchot Shabbat - Rabbi Chaim Sendic (052-668-0312) - Monday and Tuesday Now studying: DOSH (including use of BabyWipes...) 4:30pm Masechet K'tuvot with Rabbi Hillel Ruvell 5:30pm Maariv (this time stays until Shabbat Shira) Sunday 30 Tishrei/ Oct. 18th xxx Let's Learn Chumash - Tonia Frohwein women Resumes IY"H next Sunday (October 25th) 10:30am Mystical Insights - Golda Warhaftig women Aharon Romm will resume IY"H on Sunday, November 1st 12:30pm Hebrew for Beginners Learn to read and converse in Hebrew and feel more comfortable when you daven - Given by expert pedagogue Haya Graus 10NIS per session 2:00pm Rabbi Ephraim Sprecher (October 18th) - Cherubs of Gan Eden: Heavenly Angels or Hell's Angels 7:30pm Ramban's Commentary on the Torah and Its Wellsprings with Rabbi Chaim Eisen Financial Freedom Seminars - Independent Financial Planning with the Israel Resource Network Sunday, October 18th at 7:30pm Preparing for Tomorrow: 10 critical financial planning mistakes and how to avoid them Three key elements your portfolio must have to lower your risk. Three common mistakes that olim and expatriates make in Israel. Four essential, but often overlooked financial planning strategies. Baruch Labinsky and Mark van Gelderen, Financial Planners These seminars are designed especially for those with a large financial responsibility, who were never explained or trained to manage their finances - Donation to Israel Center: 20NIS per class Call the Israel Resource Network (IsReNet) for details: (02) 622-3065, 052-762-6830, 077-933-2329 The Israel Center is not responsible for the content or any outcome of these seminars Monday R"Ch Cheshvan / Oct. 19th N'SHEI LIBRARY: 10:00-12:30 9:15am Excursions into the Book of Melachim Pearl Borow 10:30am Rambam's 13 Principles - Rabbi Zev Leff 11:35am Fit Forever: Look & Feel your Best! Exercise for women of all ages - Call Sura Faecher 993-2524 11:35am (Oct. 19) Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan - Dr. Yisrael Grafstein, specialist in Family Medicine, on "The Art of Healing Through Chesed" 12:30pm VIDEO SCREENING in the LIBRARY - MON Oct 19 - Rabbi Berel Wein - "Lessons From the Book of B'reishit" Women's Beit Midrash 2:00pm "Bring on the Blessings" - Pearl Borow 3:00pm Mishna, Mitzvot, and More - Phil Chernofsky 5:20pm Pri Chadash Women's Writing Workshop 2 hrs. Contact: Ruth Fogelman (628-7359) and Judy Caspi (054-569-0410) 7:30pm Dr. Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg on Parshat HaShavua 7:30pm Financial Freedom Seminar Monday, October 19th at 7:30pm Trusts in Israel, in N. America and Offshore, plus Managing Foreign Inheritances The revised Israeli law on domestic and foreign trusts. What constitutes an Israeli Trust? Tax consequences for Israeli residents inheriting assets from abroad Preservation of wealth today and its successful transfer to the next generation. Succession issues - communicating essential information between generations to ensure that family affairs don't fall apart. Mark van Gelderen, with a local CPA 8:30pm Rabbi Dr. Elie Assis a senior lecturer of Tanach at Bar Ilan: Now studying SHMUEL (in Hebrew) Details? Sam Finkel 052-469-1263 MASK - J'lem Chapter at the Israel Center maskjerusalem.cjb.net - 050 7542717, NEXT MEETING: Monday, Oct. 26, 7:30-9:30pm with Dr. Judy Belsky Tuesday 2 Cheshvan / Oct. 20th The Israel Center and the Old City Free Loan Association - 21st year - well over 5500 loans granted Gemach - Free Loan Society to provide interest-free loans for people in financial distress (living in the Jerusalem area). Interviews at the Center on Tuesdays from 10:00-12:00 and 19:00-20:30 Please bring ID 9:00am The Torah of Eretz Yisrael - A NEW series with Rabbi Aharon Adler 10:15am Parshat HaShavua - Rabbi Sholom Gold 11:30am Jewish History, 2nd Temple Period - Dr. Henry Goldblum - Queen Shlomzion 76-67BCE: The Surpising Leading Lady 11:20am Inspirational Workshop for women with Esther Sutton 1:00pm (to 2:30pm) The Artist's Way with Esther Sutton. A course in discovering and nurturing our innate creativity - Further details and to register, please call Esther at 534-1922 12:30pm VIDEO in the LIBRARY - TUE Oct 20, An Evening of Memories of Ilan Ramon z"l Israel's first astronaut, with reflections from his widow, Rona 7:30pm Financial Freedom Seminar Tuesday, October 20th at 7:30pm Investing with experts, to succeed despite the chaos! 5 types of investments that continue to perform exceptionally well. What to do with assets that have lost significant value. Meet one of Israel's most seasoned investment managers. Learn and hear how he is responding to the chaos. Baruch Labinsky and Mark van Gelderen with Portfolio manager Moshe Jonas 8:00pm "Would you name your son Nimrod?" A shiur for Parshat No'ach based on commentaries by Rabbi Yonatan Kolatch Wednesday 3 Cheshvan / Oct. 21st 9:20am Contemporary Halachic Issues - Rabbi Macy Gordon 10:45am Parshat HaShavua - R' Yosef Wolicki 11:00am Dr. Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg on Parshat HaShavua various MINI-Shiur/Divrei Torah while you fold 12:30pm VIDEO in the LIBRARY - WED Oct 21 - Rabbi David Aaron - "Understanding the Spiritual Foundations of the Book of B'reishit" 12:30pm Medical Chi Kong Practice with Avi Hirsch 2:30pm Women's Beit Midrash - Pearl Borow 7:30pm Rabbi Chaim Eisen's shiur - "Truth Will Sprout from the Earth" Thursday 4 Cheshvan / Oct. 22nd 11:00am Torah Secrets on Emunah Dr. Hayim Abramson various MINI-Shiur/Divrei Torah while you fold Students & Young Adults - Start a new PARSHA in your life! Featuring Rabbi Moshe Taragin, Senior Maggid Shiur, Yeshivat Har Etzion On Parsha and Machashava - Weekly at the OU Israel Center - Thursdays at 8.00pm beginning Thursday, October 15 - Men & Women invited, Refreshments Friday 5 Cheshvan (HBY) / Oct. 23rd 9:00am Aggadah - Rabbi Chaim Eisen 11:00am RCA Daf Yomi Upcoming: Shabbat Parshat No'ach, October 24th, 3:15pm - Mincha at 4:15pm - Shiur by Rabbi Yaakov Moshe Poupko FOR MEMBERS ONLY - With our Elul-Tishrei Membership Campaign coming to an end, we take pleasure in inviting our NEW MEMBERS, old members, and LIFE members to a Motza"Sh Happening, Motza'ei Shabbat Parshat No'ach, October 24th - the eve of 7 Cheshvan - 8:30pm at the Israel Center (no charge); Kumzits with Rabbi Shimshon Nadel, Refreshments, Drawing for prizes - New members and recent renewals are eligible; attendance not required. This enjoyable & inspiring program is for current members of the Israel Center (including Life members, paid-up yearly members, whether or not you joined during the campaign) This is the last opportunity to join the Center at the current fees. Beginning Sunday, October 25th, yearly membership will be 360NIS (and 275NIS) and Life Membership will be the equivalent of $750 Once a Month 10 Day course presented by the OU Israel Center and Lander Institute, Sundays 9-5, "Jewish Jerusalem Eclipsed" - Call - 073 2204216 for more information Save the date for an Extraordinary Yom Iyun in English on PRENUPTIAL AGREEMENTS and Marriage Education - MON, Nov. 16 at the Israel Center - 4:30pm - registration, 5:00-9:00pm Program (FREE) For kallah and chatan teachers, parents and grandparents, rabbis, chatanim and kallot, newly married couples A community service provided by: The Givat Sharett Chesed Committee (of Beit Shemesh) Simcha Gemach in memory of Feigel bat Tuvia Nisan, Choices of the Heart, The Council of Young Israel Rabbis in Israel (CYIR) with the support of the Jewish Agency, OU-Israel, Rabbinical Council of America - Israel Mother-Daughter Bat Mitzva Workshop with Pearl Borow in formation - Call 671-3567 Note: There is a pdf file for Rosh Chodesh bentching for 5770 - www.ttidbits.com/5770.pdf - check it out!