Shabbat Parshat To-l'dot - M'vorchim November 5-6, '10 - 29 Marcheshvan 5771 www.ttidbits.com for PDF files of TT (whole, lite, XL), ParshaPix, text file, Palm version, Torah Tidbits Audio mp3 files... and more! Mazal Tov to the San Francisco Giants and their faithful fans Thank you to all those who called, SMS-ed, emailed and spoke their good wishes Orthodox Union OU Kashrut <> NCSY <> Jewish Action <> NJCD / Yachad / Our Way <> IPA <> JLIC <> 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. 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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 Dr. Simcha Heller, Vaad member Stuart Hershkowitz, Vaad member Moshe Kempinski, Vaad member Sandy Kestenbaum, Vaad member Zvi Sand, Vaad member Ben Weiner, 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 Z'manim (correct for Jerusalem) Ranges are 10 days, WED-FRI 26 Marcheshvan - 5 Kislev (Nov 3-12) Earliest Talit & T'filin 5:06-5:12am Sunrise 5:58-6:05am Sof Z'man K' Sh'ma 8:39-8:43am (Magen Avraham: 8:03-8:06am) Sof Z'man T'fila 9:34-9:36am (Magen Avraham: 9:03-9:06am) Chatzot 11:22.75-11:23.25am (halachic noon) Mincha Gedola 11:53-11:54am (earliest Mincha) Plag Mincha 3:40.25-3:35pm Sunset 4:52-4:46pm (based on sea level: 4:47-4:41pm) Candle lighting & Havdala times - Israel Standard Time Candles TO-L'DOT Havdala next week 4:11pm Yerushalayim 5:24pm 4:06 / 5:19 4:29pm S'derot 5:27pm 4:24 / 5:22 4:26pm Gush Etzion 5:24pm 4:21 / 5:20 4:27pm Raanana 5:25pm 4:22 / 5:20 4:27pm Beit Shemesh-RBS 5:25pm 4:22 / 5:20 4:26pm Netanya 5:25pm 4:21 / 5:20 4:27pm Rehovot 5:25pm 4:22 / 5:21 4:26pm Be'er Sheva (& Otniel) 5:26pm 4:22 / 5:22 4:27pm Modi'in - Chashmona'im 5:24pm 4:22 / 5:20 4:11pm Petach Tikva 5:25pm 4:06 / 5:20 4:11pm Maale Adumim 5:23pm 4:06 / 5:19 4:26pm Ginot Shomron 5:24pm 4:21 / 5:20 4:25pm Gush Shiloh 5:23pm 4:20 / 5:19 4:27pm K4 & Hevron 5:25pm 4:22 / 5:20 4:26pm Giv'at Ze'ev 5:24pm 4:21 / 5:20 4:27pm Yad Binyamin 5:25pm 4:23 / 5:21 4:29pm Ashkelon 5:27pm 4:24 / 5:22 4:13pm Tzfat 5:21pm 4:08 / 5:17 4:26pm Zichron Yaakov 5:24pm 4:21 / 5:19 Rabbeinu Tam Havdala - TO-L'DOT - 6:00pm 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 Ashdkenazi 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... We bench Rosh Chodesh Kislev this Shabbat. R"Ch will be on Sunday and Monday, which means that this Shabbat, the haftara is Machar Chodesh. ROSH CHODESH KISLEV YI-HEH MACHAR B'YOM RISHON U'V'YOM SHENI HABBA ALEINU V'AL KOL YISRAEL L'TOVA: The molad is Motza'ei Shabbat (Nov. 6th), 21h 4m 3p (8:43pm IST) HAMOLAD YI-HEH LEIL RISHON, ARBA DAKOT U'SHLOSHA CHALAKIM ACHAREI TEISHA. Rambam notation: SUN 3:75 - Actual molad: Shabbat 6:52am ### FYI: R"Ch Kislev is unique. 30 Marcheshvan can only fall on Sun, Tue, Thu. 1 Kislev can be any day of the week except Shabbat. LEAD TIDBIT: ...from the field, and he was exhausted Yaakov simmered a stew, and Eisav came from the field, and he was exhausted. That's what the Torah says. Rashi quotes the Gemara and tells us the details. This episode happened on the day that Avraham Avinu died and that Eisav, who until that day, had nor veered from the proper path, and now as guilty of five very serious sins, including a rape and a murder. Furthermore, the Gemara tells us that the words in the pasuk "support" these details. SADEH, a field (or, perhaps, a forrest) is associated with rape - this based on p'sukim elsewhere in the Torah. And that AYEIF, exhausted, is associated with murder - this also based on p'sukim elsewhere. Wait a minute! SADEH can also mean - and usually does - a field. At the end of Chayei Sara, Yitzchak Avinu goes into the field towards evening to commune with G-d - to daven the first Mincha, so to speak. What deep meaning does Yitzchak's having gone into the SADEH have? No connotation and certainly no negative association. Why could it not have been a regular field from which David was coming. Why could not Eisav have been just simply very tired? Why attribute six very serious sins to "dear uncle Eisav" who spent a tiring number of hours working hard in the field. Why do we brand Eisav a murderer, a rapist, and a denier of fundamental aspects of our belief. Especially when it doesn't say those things in the Torah. The Torah does not say that Eisav was a wicked individual. Ah, but it DOES say those things. Not in the written words of the Torah, but in the other part of the Torah, so to speak - in Torah sheb'al peh, the Oral Torah, the Oral Law, the Oral Tradition. The Torah does not write that Eisav was wicked, but it most definitely SAYS so. And that's the point of this Lead Tidbit. Our Sages were not doing a hatchet job on Eisav. They were telling us "how it is" - which they didn't make up; they received it as a Tradition handed down from generation to generation. We see this same idea in halachic contexts - not just drash of a story. Ask anyone to take put the tip of his finger right between his eyes. It is almost certain that the person's fingertip will end up on the bridge of his nose. But when the Torah commands us to put the T'filin (yes, the singular of T'filin is T'fila, but that word would puzzle some readers more than this word will bother the purist among the TTreadership) of the head, BEIN EINECHA, between your eyes, it did not mean to put it on the bridge of the nose, literally between the eyes. Put it there and the mitzva is not fulfilled. At all. The Written Word says BEIN EINECHA and the Oral Law explains what that means and teaches us where to position the Shel Rosh. Make your own definition of BEIN EINECHA and you're not doing the mitzva properly. Think Eisav was an okay guy who was repeatedly deceived by his cunning brother - you'd be wrong, again. There are so many examples of this idea in all aspects of the Torah. An eye for an eye does NOT mean that one loses his eye if he caused that kind of injury to another. But that's what it says in the Torah. No, that's the literal meaning of the words in the Written Torah. They may not be understood without the Oral Law. Why is it written in the Torah, an eye for an eye? Why does the Torah write that one shouldn't cook a baby goat in its mother's milk when it means for more than that? Why does the Torah write about keeping one's vow and doing everything that one says, when there is the halachic procedure of Hatarat Nedarim that allows one to have a vow voided - this not being written in the Torah at all. There are answers to all of these questions - some are easy for us to understand and others that puzzle and mystify us. But we believe that the Written Word and Oral Law combine to show us what G-d wants of us. And this does not mean that there is only one way to understand certain things we find in the Torah. In a couple of weeks we will read of the brief reunion of Yaakov and Eisav. And we will read of Eisav's kissing of Yaakov. And the word, and he kissed him, will be written in a Sefer Torah with dots above each letter, and our Sages will disagree on exactly what the Torah is trying to say to us. And when differences of opinion exist in halachic contexts, we have the very important process of P'sak Halacha to teach us how to act. It's kind of complicated, but it is important for us to always remember the role of the Oral Law and of those who transmit it to us through the generations. To-l'dot Stats 6th of the 54 sedras; 6th of 12 in B'reishit Written on 172.7 lines in a Torah, ranks 36 4 Parshiyot; 2 open, 2 closed 106 p'sukim, ranks 29th (9th in B'reishit) Tied with Vayigash and Bo; shorter than each in words & letters and length 1432 words, ranks 34th (10th in B'reishit) 5426 letters, ranks 33rd (10th in B'reishit) Its p'sukim are below average in length MITZVOT none of the 613 mitzvot are in To-l'dot Aliya-by-Aliya Sedra Summary [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 21 p'sukim - 25:19-26:5 [P> 25:19 (16)] This is the history of Yitzchak b. Avraham; Avraham fathered Yitzchak. SDT: Rashi quotes the Gemara that tells that when Yitzchak was born, scoffers said that Avraham and Sara, who were childless for so long, had found a baby and claimed it as their own. Avraham invited the leaders of the nations, their wives and infants, and Sara miraculously was able to wet-nurse all the babies. (The Gemara points to the plural "banim" in 21:7.) Then the scoffers accepted that Sara bore Yitzchak, but chided Avraham that Avimelech was the father (since Yitzchak's birth followed Sara's abduction). A miracle occurred and baby Yitzchak was the very image of his father Avraham, until the scoffers proclaimed, "Avraham sired Yitzchak". SDT: Earlier, the Torah tells us of the generations of Yishmael b. Avraham. That seems to be in balance with the beginning of this sedra, which speaks of Yitzchak, except: [1] the Torah makes a point that Yishmael is the son of Hagar the Egyptian, the maidservant of Sara. In other words, Yishmael was NOT the real To'l'dot of Avraham; and [2] To'l'dot (in the Yishmael context) is spelled without a VAV, implying that something was missing. To'l'dot of Yitzchak b. Avraham; it was Avraham who fathered Yitzchak. And the word To'l'dot is spelled with its VAV. Yitzchak is 40 years old when he marries Rivka (3 years after the Akeida). The Torah emphasizes Rivka's family background. Safe to say that most of us learned from way back that Rivka was 3 years old when she married Yitzchak. This notion is based on the Torah's telling us of the birth of Rivka right after the portion of the Akeida. Yitzchak was 37 at the time of the Akeida and the death of Sara Imeinu. He married at 40, hence Rivka was 3 at the time. However, Chizkuni (an early commentary of Torah and of Rashi) argues that if Rivka was only 3, there would be a discrepany in the chronology of the rest of her life. We have sources that indicate she was 133 at the time of her death. Working backwards with various events, we find that she was 14 when she married Yitzchak. The account of Nachor's family - including Rivka, does not necessarily mean that she was just born at the time of the Akeida. The Torah is just introducing us to Rivka in order to bring her into the picture, so to speak, as Yitzchak is about to take over the mantle of Partiarchhood from Avraham Avinu. After 20 years of childlessness (10 until Rivka was of child-bearing age - based on the 3 year old opinion - plus an additional 10 years without a child), Yitzchak and Rivka pray to G-d. G-d hears their (actually his) prayer and Rivka becomes pregnant. She is having a "rough time" and goes to Shem b. No'ach (who outlived Avraham, by the way) who tells her G-d's message, that she will give birth to twins who will go in very different ways and become great adversarial nations. SDT: Commentaries say that Rivka was unaware that she was carrying twins; she thought the turmoil within her existed in a single baby - THIS had her very upset; she was somewhat calmed by the Divine message of her carrying twins. Another commentator suggests that Rivka knew she'd have twins but did not see the benefit of bringing a Yaakov into this world if it meant also having an Eisav. Part of the reply to her question "why do I need this", is that her conclusion was wrong. Take a look at Rashi. Two great nations - these are Antoninus and Rabbi (Yehuda HaNasi)... It can be suggested that the Divine message to Rivka, was that even though there will great tension and friction between the descendants of the twins she was carrying, Yaakov and Eisav, there will be an example of a Roman (from Eisav) and a Jew who will truly get along and that is the hope for the future when the nations of the world will all recognize Israel's role in the world and their special relationship with the One G-d Who will then be universally recognized. Eisav and Yaakov are born, Yaakov clutching the heel of Eisav. The boys grow and develop different personalities - Eisav is the hunter and outdoors- man; Yaakov, the mild, studious "tent-dweller". Yitzchak loves Eisav; Rivka loves Yaakov. SDT: There are many different commentaries on these relationships. Note that Yitzchak's love is based on Eisav's providing food for him (or deceiving him - based on various drashot). Rivka's love is unconditional. Pirkei Avot says that only an unconditional love will endure forever. Yaakov is preparing a lentil stew for his father. (The Gemara tell us that this was the day of Avraham's death; Yaakov was preparing the traditional mourner's meal for Yitzchak.) Eisav returns from the field in a state of exhaustion. He asks Yaakov for some of the food. In exchange for the food, Yaakov acquires the birthright, which is insignificant in Eisav's eyes, but meaningful to Yaakov. [P> 26:1 (33)] A famine hits the Land (like the one in Avraham's time - this is one of the many similarities between the lives of Avraham and Yitzchak) and Yitzchak goes to Avimelech in Gerar. G-d appears to Yitzchak and reminds him that he must not leave the Land. G-d also repeats his promises of the Land and of the large nation that will descend from him. Levi - Second Aliya 7 p'sukim - 26:6-12 Yitzchak dwells in Gerar. (This is one of the three-word p'sukim in the Torah. There are 13 or so such p'sukim, and they are occasionally a focus of attention.) Yitzchak and Rivka pose as brother and sister (as did Avraham and Sara, and for the same two reasons). After a while, Avimelech discovers that they are actually husband and wife and complains to Yitzchak about the deception. Avimelech orders his people to leave Yitzchak and Rivka alone. Yitzchak and family flourish in Gerar and G-d blesses them. SDT: In last week's TT we referred to the dispute as to whether Sara and Avraham had a daughter or not. S'fat Emet suggests that something in this week's sedra seems to say that they had a daughter. Yitzchak and Rivka "pose" as brother and sister. Avraham was well known. Especially to the people and king of Gerar. He would know if Avraham had a daughter or not. Since Avimelech seems to accepted Yitzchak and Rivka as brother and sister, until he discovered otherwise, it seems reasonable to support the opinion that Avraham (and Sara) were indeed blessed with a daughter. TAKE A LOOK... The first famine that drove Avraham and Sara to Egypt, when Par'o discovers their true relationship, he sends them away. The second time, when they went to Gerar and said they were brother and sister, and then they were "found out," Avimelech gives them many things and invites them to stay. (Par'o had given Avraham great wealth, but it was before he knew about their real relationship.) Yitzchak and Rivka also say they are siblings, but no one takes Rivka. When they are "found out", they stick around. Shlishi - Third Aliya 10 p'sukim - 26:13-22 Yitzchak thrives in Gerar, which creates jealousy among the locals who fill in the wells that Yitzchak has dug. (There is great symbolism in the Torah's account of the wells, their names, their failures, and then their successes.) Yitzchak is driven away from Gerar. A new well that Yitzchak digs (Eisek) is taken over by the shepherds of Gerar, as is yet another well (Sitna). Only the third well (Rehovot) permits Yitzchak to live in relative peace. (Some see this as a hidden reference to the 1st and 2nd Beit HaMikdash, which fell, and the 3rd which will stand forever. May we see it soon in our time.) SDT: Brachot 56: Rabbi Chanina said, he who sees a well in a dream, he will see peace... Yitzchak's servants dug and found a live spring, B'EIR MAYIM CHAYIM. This is immediately followed by the peace treaty between Avimelech and Yitzchak. Rabbi Natan continues in the same Gemara. He who sees a well in his dream has found Torah, as it says in Mishlei: He who finds Me, finds life... an equation is made between G-d, Torah, and Life. R' Yehoshua b. Levi adds that one should verbalize the words B'eir Mayim Chayim before he encounters the words from Yirmiyahu 6:7 - K'HAKIR BIYA MEI- MEHA... "As a well keeps its water fresh, so she keeps fresh her wickedness; violence and destruction, grief and wounds..." Verbalizing a dream's interpretation is considered significant; an unexpressed dream is often open to opposite meanings and what is expressed first gives the dream its substance and direction. This is the tip of the iceberg of Dream Interpretation as presented by the Torah T'mima. Don't read too much into the comment here - it is meant only as a brief comment. R'vi'i - Fourth Aliya 7 p'sukim - 26:23-29 Yitzchak sets himself up in Be'er Sheva. G-d appears to him and reiterates the promises for prosperity made to Avraham. Yitzchak builds an altar to G-d and continues to prosper. Avimelech, realizing that his own prosperity was due to the presence of Yitzchak, comes with a delegation to Yitzchak in order to enter into a covenant with him. Not a rare experience through the generations - Jews are expelled from a country, which subsequently regrets its actions because of the decline they experienced without their. And we, somehow, kept going back. Chamishi 5th Aliya 33 p'sukim - 26:30-27:27 Yitzchak and Avimelech partake of a meal and exchange oaths. Be'er Sheva is reaffirmed as "the city of the Avot" by Yitzchak's actions. Another example of the similarity between Yitzchak's life and Avraham's. [S> 26:34 (2)] Eisav marries at 40 years of age - a (sub)conscious attempt to emulate his father. However wicked Eisav is, he is genuinely respectful and loving of his father. On the other hand, Eisav's choice of a wife disgusts both Yitzchak and Rivka. [S> 27:1 (55)] Yitzchak is old and blind and calls Eisav to prepare for him a special meal and then receive a special blessing. While Eisav is in the fields doing his father's bidding, Rivka prepares Yaakov to receive the blessing instead of Eisav. She tells Yaakov to bring her two goats and she would prepare the dishes that Yitzchak loved. Yaakov hesitates for fear that Yitzchak will feel his smooth skin and realize that Yaakov has come to deceive him. Rivka dresses Yaakov in Eisav's garments and places a goat-skin on his neck to give it a rough feel. She gives Yaakov the food to bring to his father. It seems obvious that Yaakov was punished measure for measure for his deception of Yitzchak. The Brothers not only deceived Yaakov concerning the fate of Yosef, but they used a goat and a garment (exactly the two items that Yaakov used to deceive his father) to bring about their deception. If we accept the idea that Yaakov was supposed to get the bracha that Yitzchak was going to give to Eisav, that it was G-d's will, and even G-d's command according to Onkeles, to Rivka to "set it up," then why was Yaakov punished so severely? An answer might be suggested in the form of an analogy. When one has to take drastic, life-saving treatments - "serious" medication, radiation, etc., what is done might be absolutely necessary, but there are often harsh side-effects. Continuing the analogy, was there not a "safer" way for Yaakov to get the b'racha? Apparently not. If there is a medication that is effective and with- out serious side effects, why would a person take the medicine that has serious side effects? For whatever reason(s), the way it went is how it was meant to go. SDT: When the Torah tells us that Yaakov gave his father wine to drink, the TROP note under the word LO (to him) is a MEIRCHA CH'FULA, double meircha. This rare note, suggests the Meshech Chochma, reminds us of the proper way to drink a cup of wine - not gulping it down in one shot, but rather finishing it in two "installments". Shishi - Sixth Aliya 23 p'sukim - 27:28-28:4 The blessing invoked by Yitzchak upon Yaakov, for bountiful produce and respected status among nations, has been borrowed by us to be recited on Motza'ei Shabbat - V'YITEN L'CHA HA-ELOKIM... 'May G-d grant you the dew of heaven and the fat of the earth, much grain and wine. Nations will serve you; governments will bow down to you. You shall be like a lord over your brother; your mother's children will prostrate themselves to you. Those who curse you are cursed, and those who bless you are blessed.' As Yitzchak finishes blessing Yaakov, Eisav returns from the hunt. He prepares food for his father and presents it with a request (demand) of the blessing. Yitzchak trembles when he realizes that the bracha went to Yaakov. When Yitzchak explains to Eisav that Yaakov received (and rightly so) the blessing, Eisav bitterly cries out and asks his father for a blessing too. Yitzchak gives Eisav a blessing (not as exalted as Yaakov's). Eisav decides to kill Yaakov for this, the second time he has taken something away from him. Rivka hears (how? Ru'ach HaKodesh, perhaps?) of Eisav's plans and encourages Yaakov to flee to Rivka's hometown until Eisav's wrath subsides. Rivka suggests to Yitzchak that he send Yaakov away to find a proper wife. Note that Rivka did NOT tell Yitzchak that Eisav wanted to kill Yaakov. Perhaps she felt that it would pain him too much to learn of Eisav's true character. Perhaps, Yitzchak would have refused to believe that his Eisav would contemplate such a thing. Instead, Rivka expresses another concern (legitimate) as her reason for wanting Yitzchak to send Yaakov away. Yitzchak calls for Yaakov and gives him another blessing and sends him off to Padan Aram to find a wife from Rivka's family. He gives Yaakov "the blessing of Avraham", thus providing for the continuity of the Chain that becomes The Jewish People. Sh'VII - Seventh Aliya 5 p'sukim - 28:5-9 Yitzchak sends Yaakov off to Padan Aram to Lavan b. B'tu'el, the brother of Rivka who is the mother of Yaakov and Eisav. (Unusual ID.) Eisav sees that their father has sent Yaakov to find a wife, because he does not want him to take a Canaanite wife. Yaakov goes on his way and Eisav takes as another wife, the daughter of Yishmael, Machalat b. Yishmael... Talmud Yerushalmi exclaims that this is Bos'mat, and asks why her name was changed. The astonishing answer is that all Eisav's sins were forgiven when he took a wife intended to please his parents. The Talmud generalizes and gives this as the source that the sins of a CHATAN (and KALLA) are forgiven when they marry. Strange source for a significant concept. Haftara 25 p'sukim Shmuel Alef - 20:18-42 - Stats 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 have their 29th on Shabbat. Tishrei and Marcheshvan can; Kislev and Tevet 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). Let's look at Shabbatot that are the 29th of a Jewish month. Type A is one on which we say the Machar Chodesh haftara. Type B is one on which Machar Chodesh is pre-empted. Among the 14 year-types we have, four have only one A, and another year-type has only one B. Two year- types have two As; three have one A and one B (5771 is this kind of a year-type). Three year-types have one A and two Bs, and one year-type has three As. Erev Rosh Chodesh is Shabbat one-three times a year (this year twice). Machar Chodesh is read on from zero to three times a year (this year, once). 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 # 538 (part one) Lifnim MiShurat HaDin I was recently asked to once again explain the concept of Lifnim MiShurat HaDin. In the past, I have written several lessons in which this concept was discussed in passing. Since it is an important concept in man's conduct to his fellow human beings, the Torah places emphasis on this concept. I will now expand on this somewhat so that the reader will be able to familiarize herself or himself with the concept. The Talmud relates an incident where the Lord of the Universe met insignificant man and a startling conversation took place, perhaps the most startling in the history of mankind. It took place in a room into which only one particular man may enter on only one day in the year. The Kohein Gadol R' Yishmael ben Elisha entered into the Holy of Holies to offer incense on Yom Kippur and saw a vision of the Glory of Hashem and the vision said to him: "Yishmael, My son, bless Me." (Talmud Brachot 7a) Whereupon R' Yishmael answered, "May it be Thy will that Thy mercy may suppress Thy anger; Thy mercy may dominate over Thine other attributes so that Thou mayest deal with Thy children according to the attribute of mercy and deal with them lifnim mishurat hadin. (I am not certain if this was a request which R' Yishmael could have refused to perform without being in violation of a command of Hashem, or whether this was a direct command to R' Yishmael which he could not refuse to perform.) The import of this phrase lifnim mishurat hadin in this context seems to be that the attribute of mercy shall prevail over the attribute of strict justice, for man cannot measure up to the demands of strict justice. I shall now set forth several unrelated Talmudic passages and then a few post-Talmudic sources to see if there can emerge a more precise idea of what is meant by the commonly used term lifnim mishurat hadin. If one is to pray in private on Rosh haShana, the Talmud advises that he should pray the additional prayer (Musaf) after the first three hours of the day. (T. Avoda Zara 4b) After some discussion the reason given is that during the first three hours, Hashem judges man according to the strict attribute of justice, while during the next three hours He judges man lifnim mishurat hadin. Once again it can be seen that the phrase lifnim mishurat hadin as it refers to Hashem indicates the attribute of mercy taking precedence over the attribute of strict justice. No doubt the Talmud intended a lesson for mankind in relating these two distinct incidents where lifnim mishurat hadin is employed as an attribute of Hashem. That man can learn from the anthropomorphic attributes is seen in the Talmudic passage which quotes the sage Abba Shaul who, in commenting on the verse "This is my G-d and I will glorify Him" said, "Be thou like Him. Just as He is gracious and compassionate so be thou gracious and compassionate" (T. Shabbat 133b). I believe that Imitatio Dei, the imitation of Hashem extends to lifnim mishurat hadin. IYH in the next lessons we shall examine a few passages in various tractates of the Talmud where actions involving persons are termed lifnim mishurat hadin. "BOTH A LENDER AND A BORROWER BE" (part five) - THE CHALLENGE OF MONEY by Dr. Meir Tamari There are an almost inexhaustible number of transactions in the market place in which we confront issues of avak ribit. In all of them, while there is not an actual loan as such, there is often an element of hamtanat ma'ot and the creditor receives more than he originally extended. This makes them issues of rabbinic interest that require a heter iska if we are to participate in them. The heter iska is not a certificate of kashrut nor is it a cameo nor a talisman but simply a document that formalizes the business venture as such, removing thereby any element of ribit. In principle, based on the Mishna, (Bava Metzia 5:4), the heter iska perceives a form of investment in which the active partner, the debtor is a trustee for half the sum while the rest is considered to be a loan. The debtor has to receive a benefit or the chance thereof, from the deposit part of the investment and the inactive partner a share in the risk involved. The debtor may agree to pay a fee instead of his oath, witnesses and reports regarding the extent and veracity of losses or profits. Throughout, there must be an actual business venture, otherwise there is spiritual fraud. For example, a bank loan for the purpose of making a bar mitzva would entail ribit and where that is the sole relationship with the borrower, no heter iska would help. However, a student loan is actually a venture in which both the student and the bank are investing in the economic future of the student. In this case a heter iska is required and is truly legitimate to eliminate any element of ribit d'oraita. The heter iska is a halakhic description of what in fact actually exists in many modern business practices. For instance, modern banks, in contrast to money lenders, behave as a firm's part- ner. They have to approve the purpose of the loan, evaluate its viability and demand financial statements of the firm; in the case of major debtors, they approve directors and accountants appointments, sometimes even demanding representation on the directorate. This partnership aspect has been shown to be a major reason for small and medium firms avoiding or minimizing bank loans. The following examples may help heighten awareness of some areas in which such issues arise. A common feature of all economies is buying and selling on credit. In some cases this takes the form of buying according to a hire-purchase agreement, in other cases, one simply pays for one's purchases at the end of a given period. In all such transactions involving an interest rate, while there is no formal loan, payment is made for the use of a credit facility and so the issue of ribit d'rabbanan arises. The default rate on consumer credit in all economies is very high while the security held by the extender of credit is not very great [compared to mortgages or bank loans]; in effect consumer credit is an un-secured loan. There exists a real business partnership between the buyer and seller, including elements of loan, risk and profit, requiring and validating a heter iska. Mortgage payments, though they are such a common feature of our lives, still have to be examined in the light of halakhic rules. Reuven buys a house and borrows the major part of the purchase price on the security of a lien, a mortgage on the house. The nature of a mortgage seems like a straight loan for a specified period of time and rate of interest, ribit d'oraita which is being paid for hamtanat ma'ot. However, it can be shown that there actually is a business venture making a heter iska possible. The lender is exposed, as is happening in many economies following 2008, of having to repossess properties whose market value is lower than that of the mortgage. The borrower is party to a venture in which he profits by saving rent [income tax used to be levied on homeowners for rent saved, both in the U.K. and Israel]. In addition, he may have capital gains and in those countries where mortgage payments are tax deductible, he earns a further profit. In view of these elements in mortgages, HaRav Moshe Feinstein ruled that the heter iska would apply, but that they required a special format to obviate the problem of ribit. 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] Person in the Parsha [9] Praying with Passion [10] Towards Better Kashrut Awareness [11] MicroUlpan [12] Maharal on the Sedra [13] Oz Latorah [14] from The Jerusalem Culinary Institute [15] 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... Question: If a Jew owns a restaurant that is run by non-Jews (the Jewish owner walks in only occasionally) and is in a non-Jewish area, must he affix mezuzot to its doorposts? Answer: At first glance, he should affix mezuzot, as the major component of the obligation of mezuza is ownership (see Chulin 135b). It is true that if one Jew rents out a home to another Jew, it is the tenant who is obligated in mezuza (Bava Metzia 101b). However, that might be because a renter has a semi-ownership that is most pertinent to the obligation of mezuza (see Aruch Hashulchan, Yoreh Deah 286:3). Also, according to many opinions, that halacha is only rabbinic because the renter benefits from the mezuza's protection or because he looks like the owner (see Tosafot, Menachot 44a; Shut R. Akiva Eiger I, 66). Yet, there are possible grounds to exempt our Jewish owner. There is strong basis to say that the landlord is exempt when he rents out because inhabitation of the place is a necessary component of an obligation in mezuza (Ritva, Bav Metzia 101b). In our case, the Jewish owner does not frequent the restaurant in such a manner. This claim seems to be the subject of a machloket. The Aruch HaShulchan (YD 286:4) says that even an area of one's home that is frequented only by non-Jewish workers needs a mezuza because they function there on behalf of the Jewish owners. Rav Moshe Feinstein (Igrot Moshe, YD II, 141, explaining Rashi) extends this logic. He says that a landlord would have been obligated in mezuza because he rents it out for his own profit and certainly if he keeps his furnishings there and is exempt only because he lacks full access. Our owner, then, would be obligated. This matter is related to that of a hospital. Many poskim exempt a Jewish patient who will stay in one hospital room for a long time from mezuza in his room because he has no legal connection to the room. Shevet Halevi II, YD 156 (among others) says that in Israeli hospitals, the Jewish owners need to affix mezuzot even though they do not live in the rooms because the usage is an extension of their ownership. However, he also mentions that numerous Jewish staff members come in and out of these rooms. It is not clear what he would say about a Jewish-owned hospital occupied predominantly by non-Jews, which is parallel to your case. Pitchei Mezuzot (286:123) demonstrates that there is a machloket whether or not it is important who comes and goes. Part of the relevance of the actual users of the place finds expression in the Rashba (Chulin 135b), who says that the Torah requires a mezuza in a building owned jointly with a non-Jew because the Jew needs the mezuzas protection. According to this under- standing of the mitzva, if the owner rarely frequents the place and thus does not need particular protection there, he would be exempt. On the other hand, we find that one is obligated in mezuza in a storage room for wine or oil (Shulchan Aruch, YD 286:1), presumably even if he goes there infrequently. (One might claim that this is in a case where it is an extension of his home.) It is unclear whether mezuzot are required in commercial settings, even if a Jew works long hours there (see Living the Halachic Process, vol. I, G-3). The standard p'sak is to affix one without a b'racha, out of doubt. This doubt provides another reason for exemption in our case. Finally, safety is another factor for leniency. Although a renter may not remove the mezuza he affixed upon vacating a house, he should remove it if the next renter is a non-Jew (Bava Metzia 102a) because of concern the latter might mistreat it. Some talk of a similar concern of non-Jewish reaction regarding jointly owned property (Shach, YD 286:6). This could conceivably be an issue in our case even if a Jew is the only business owner. Combining indications, there are enough reasons for leniency not to affix a mezuza to the building of a Jewish owned business that is not mainly frequented by Jews, and this seems to be the minhag. It would be laudable to affix mezuzot without a b'racha if there is not a high chance of their being disgraced. Ed. note: The issue of whether the restaurant is kosher or not was not factored into this response - nor was the location, Israel or Chutz LaAretz. [2] Candle by Day He lifted up his eyes to heaven, And opened up his lips to pray, And struck with his Divine devotion, Forgot what he had to say. 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 Every Rosh Yeshiva accumulates a number of shiurim - Torah lectures - over the years. When R' Baruch Ber Leibowitz became the Rosh Yeshiva of the Knesses Beis Yitzchak Yeshiva in Slobodka, he made a point of beginning with his easier shiurim - the less remarkable ones. Only later did he deliver shiurim that showed his true brilliance in Torah study. He explained the reason for his action as follows: "If I had started with my complex shiurim and only later switched to the simple ones, I might have been guilty of deceiving the students at the outset, because they would have thought that all my shiurim are on that level. By beginning with easier shiurim, I ensured that no one would be deceived as to the quality of the shiurim I give." ### During World War I, the Chafetz Chayim had almost no money, and he and his family barely survived. When a wealthy supporter heard of the Chafetz Chayim's plight, he arranged to send him three hundred rubles - an enormous amount of money at that time. Upon receiving the envelope with the money, the Chafetz Chayim told the first student he found to help him return the money. "But why, Rebbe?" asked the student. "It's because it would be theft on my part if I took the money," replied the Chafetz Chaim. "Here, look at the letter which accompanied the money. Look at all the terms by which the sender refers to me," the Rav, Gaon, etc. "I am but a simple Jew, and obviously the sender mistook me for a Torah authority. For me to accept the money would be taking it under false pretenses, and that borders on theft." ### R' Menachem Mendl of Kotzk said... We are told by our Sages, "Just as people's appearances are not the same, people's views are not the same." Just as it does not disturb us that other people look different from us, so we should not be upset that people think differently from us. [4] CHIZUK and IDUD for Olim & not-yet-Olim respectively BEHIND THE BROTHERS' BLESSING BATTLE The battle royale between Yaakov and Eisav - and, by extension, the conflict between the Jewish and non-Jewish world - is epitomized by the blessing over which the twin sons compete in our Sedra. This "bechora" or birthright, represents not only father Yitzchak's aspirations for each son, but also the essence and primary motivation which will guide the respective nations throughout history. Yaakov and Eisav plot, scheme, argue and take with deadly seriousness the pronouncement which will come from their father, for they know that, in actuality, it is a Divine blessing with cosmic consequences. And yet, lo and behold, when the smoke clears, and both sons have been given their respective blessings, we see that each receives the same exact gifts! Both are blessed with "tal hashamayim, the dew of Heaven" - which is a metaphor for spiritual greatness - and "sh'manei ha'aretz, the fat of the land", which stands for material success. So if, in the end, they will get the same rewards, what is all the fuss about? While it is indeed true that Yaakov and Eisav end up with the same blessing and mandate, there is a subtle difference sublimely secreted in the text: the order of the blessings! For the initial, primary bracha lists spiritual supremacy first, and only then material wealth. The second has the exact opposite order. Yaakov recognized that while it is no sin to be rich - indeed, the pious and the righteous need not be ashamed of their wealth, for it, too, is a gift from G-d - the most important value is to excel in matters of the spirit, to come closer to Hashem, to absorb and become drenched in the "Heavenly dew" that drips from above. And so Yaakov fought long and hard for that birthright. The clear message to us is that we must get our priorities right. We must set our sights on perfecting our souls before our shares, putting our spiritual house in order before making a killing in the real estate market. Though life in Israel can be extremely rewarding in the material sense - our shekel is the world's strongest currency, our stock market is at an all-time high, Baruch Hashem - our most valuable stock in trade is the amazing opportunity for spiritual growth that exists here. The flourishing religious life which Israel offers - at a level not seen since the days of the Beit HaMikdash - is the truest manifestation of Yaakov's blessing. It is only up to us to claim our rightful birthright in its natural habitat. Rabbi Stewart Weiss, Raanana 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 - TO-L'DOT 1) Why does Yaakov tell Eisav to sell him the birthright AS THIS DAY, KAYOM (25:31)? Of course he wanted the sale to be effective right then! 2) Why does G-D first instruct Avraham to DWELL IN THE LAND WHICH I WILL TELL YOU (26:2) implying that at some point further in time He would instruct him and then immediately say LIVE IN THIS LAND (26:3)? What was the point, then, of that first command? 3) Why does the Torah identify Lavan with so many details (28:5)? Don't we already know that Lavan is the BROTHER OF RIVKA, and even more so that Rivka is the MOTHER OF YAAKOV AND EISAV? Parsha Points to Ponder by Rabbi Dov Lipman, teacher at Reishit Yerushalayim and Machon Maayan in Beit Shemesh; author of "DISCOVER: Answers for Teenagers (and Adults) to Questions about the Jewish Faith" (Feldheim); "TIMEOUT: Sports Stories as a Game Plan for Spiritual Success" (Devora);"SEDER SAVVY" (Targum) - ppp@ouisrael.org Ponder the Qs first, then... Suggested answers 1) The Seforno explains that AS THIS DAY was Yaakov's explanation to Eisav regarding why he should sell the birthright. He told Eisav to look at how busy he is that very day which demonstrates that he does not have the time or energy to deal with spiritual matters related to the birthright. 2) The Kli Yakar teaches that when G-D tells Yitzchak to live in the land ASHER OMAR EILECHA, which we translated as WHICH I WILL TELL YOU, really means IN WHICH I CAN SPEAK TO YOU. G-D will only communicate directly with Yitzchak in the Land of Israel, as He clarifies by saying LIVE IN THIS LAND. 3) The Ohr HaChayim answers that the Torah was anticipating people asking how Yitzchak could send Yaakov to the home of an evil person like Lavan to find a wife from his daughters. The answer is that Betuel had a son like Lavan, who was also the brother of Rivka, and that Rivka was the mother of a Yaakov. Meaning, while there is certainly a risk, good people have come from that family as well. [6] Portion from the Portion by Rakel Berenbaum FEEDback to berenbau@actcom.net.il In the Field In the portion of Lech Lecha, I brought a text from the Talmud that associated each one of our fore- fathers with a different location - Avraham with the mountain, Yitzchak with a field, and Yaakov with a house. Below is the text to refresh our memories. This it what Rabbi Elazar tries to teach us in the Talmud (Pesachim 58.) when he explains the verse in Yeshayahu (2:3) that says, "To the House of the G-d of Yaakov - EL BEIT ELOKEI YAAKOV". He wants to know why it is called the house - BEIT of the G-d of Yaakov - why specifically a house and why specifically Yaakov - why not one of the other fathers? There he says the verse in Yeshayahu refers to the house of Yaakov because house signifies Yaakov's character. It doesn't say to the House of the G-d of Avraham because Avraham is more associated with the word mountain as the verse in B'reshit (22:14) says that Avraham called the place "Hashem Yir-eh in the mountain of Hashem Yeira-eh", and the verse in Yeshayahu didn't say to the house of Yitzchak because Yitzchak is more associated with a field as we see from the verse, "Yitzchak went out to meditate in the field - VAYEITZEI YAAKOV LASU'- ACH BASADEH (24:63), but the verse said the house of the G-d of Yaakov cause Yaakov is mentioned with a house as the verse in B'reishit says "he called the name of the place the house of G-d, BEIT-EL" (28:19). In Lech Lecha we discussed Chanan Porat's explanation, found in his commentary on Bereshit - M'AT MIN HA'OR of the significance of Avraham being related to a mountain. Now I will share his explanation on the connection of Yitchak with the SADEH, the field. Avraham was the one who "saw the light", recognized G-d, and followed Him up the mountain. Yitchak follows that burst of inspiration along the straight path of the field. Yitchak is the one who never leaves the land of Israel. In our portion he is told by Hashem not to leave the land (as Avraham did) even though there is a famine, but rather he should SH'CHON BAARETZ HAZOT - dwell in this land (26:2). With immense faith in G-d, Yitzchak follows this command and even succeeds in farming during the famine and reaping 100 times - ME'AH SHE'ARIM what he sowed (26:12). One of Yitzchak's strengths was that he was a farmer, a man of the field, who had the faith to plant even during a famine. But the field isn't only a place of hard work, and material reward for Yitzchak, it is also the site of his spiritual connection to Hashem. It is in the field that Yitzchak goes to pray to G-d. It is also the place where he meets his wife and where she sees his true spiritual qualities as she sees him coming toward her with his hands raised to Heaven in prayer. (24: 64-65) Unfortunately this connection to the field is also the source for Yitchak's mistake in his preference of his son Eisav over his son Yaakov. He feels that Eisav, as an ISH SADEH, man of the field (25:27) is the one following in his own footsteps - not Yaakov who dwells in his tent. What he doesn't realize is that for Eisav, the field has a different meaning than for Yitzchak. For Yitzchak, the field is a way to connect to G-d as a farmer who must trust in G-d for his produce and as a place where he prays. But for Eisav the field is a place of his fall - it is where he gives in to his need for instant gratification and he commits many sins (murder, adultery) and becomes so tired, AYEIF, that he even is willing to sell his birthright for a bowl of soup. May we all be able to be inspired by the holy fields of Israel to connect to Hashem and follow the path of our father Yitzchak. THIS RECIPE with ingredients found in the field is from my cousin, Sima Navon, healer and vegan cooking teacher. Check out her website justaddflax.com for more recipes and for upcoming cooking workshops in Jerusalem and Efrat. Acorn Squash Stuffed with Chestnuts and Mushrooms 6 acorn squash Filling: 1 package button mushrooms 1 clove garlic, chopped 1 onion, chopped 1/2 package of tofu 1 package chestnuts (100 gr), peeled and roasted 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts salt pepper allpice (optional) cranberries for garnish Halve the squash and remove the seeds. Bake in a preheated oven at 180C (350F) for about 30 minutes till slightly soft but not overcooked. Puree remaining ingredients except the cranberries. Fill the baked squash with the puree mixture and return to the oven and bake for another 20 minutes or until the filling has a slight crust on top. Serve warm. [7] from Machon Puah - for Fertility and Gynecology in Accordance with Halacha Is there an obligation to undergo PGD? Last week we asked whether a couple is permitted to undergo a procedure called pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) to assess their embryos during in-vitro fertilization (IVF), in order to make sure that their children are not affected with the BRCA mutation that is linked to certain types of cancer. We concluded that most poskim do ALLOW the procedure since the end result is a healthy child who might otherwise not have been born. A natural extension to this question is the following: Is a couple therefore OBLIGATED to undergo PGD in order to ensure having healthy children? Might we come to the conclusion that it is forbidden to risk having non-healthy offspring if it is possible to have healthy children? We asked several poskim this question and received varied responses. Some said that when there is even the slightest possibility that a child might develop a preventable life-threatening disease, it is a parent's obligation to ensure that this not happen. And if the only way to do so is to undergo IVF with PGD they would allow it, despite the halachic questions and concerns that would inevitably arise. The birth of a healthy child is paramount and overcomes other halachic considerations; therefore the couple must undergo PGD. Others take a different stance: They claim that IVF and PGD may be permitted in order to have healthy children, but can only be an obligation when fulfilling the commandment of "be fruitful and multiply." The mitzva of procreation is fulfilled by having children who themselves will have children; the fact that the child may later become ill does not detract from the fulfillment of the mitzva of having children. This mitzva is considered fulfilled by having a child, even one born with the BRCA mutation. Therefore, while we can permit IVF and PGD to eradicate the BRCA mutation, we cannot make it obligatory. Still other poskim claim that PGD is permitted but cannot be an obligation since we cannot force couples to undergo fertility treatment in order to have children. A couple that is infertile and unable to have children in any other way is in a different category. But a couple that considers reproductive technology for reasons other than fertility cannot be obliged to undergo such treatment. These two latter opinions view assisted reproduction as a permitted procedure - but not as an obligation - especially in cases where the motivation is not fertility per se. As always, each individual case needs to be examined on its own merit in order to receive a halachic decision appropriate to the particular circumstances. [8] Person in the Parsha by Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb No column this week [9] Praying with Passion - V'ani Tefillah Foundation - Praying with Fire KORBANOT Bringing us closer to HaShem Translation: G-d said to Moshe, "Command the Israelites and tell them: "Be careful to offer to Me at the appointed time My food-offering consumed by fire, as an aroma pleasing to Me... against the altar on all sides." Theme: An essential concept of the prayer Prayers in lieu of Sacrifices In the same manner as the sacrifices kept our connection to G-d in good repair during the times of the Beit HaMikdash, in our times, our prayers are able to perform the same essential function. Insight: Deeper meanings... Bringing G-d our words An individual's spiritual flourishing depends on his constant quest for closeness to Hashem. This is a quest that transcends all times and circumstances. To reach out to Hashem in prayer and forge the closest possible personal connection to Him is to open the channel of unlimited spiritual purpose and achievement, no matter what one's day-to-day activities entail. The Prophet Hoshea (14:3) declares, "...And let our lips compensate for bulls. Take words with yourselves and return to Hashem. Say, "You shall forgive all iniquity and teach us the good way. And let us render [for] bulls [the offering of] our lips." What does the Prophet mean when he instructs the people to "take words with yourselves?" The Pesikta Rabbasi (Meir Ayim [ed], 198b) explains that he is telling them how to please G-d: "Hashem said to Israel: "My children, I accept from you neither burnt offerings, sin offerings, guilt offerings, nor meal offerings, but that you placate Me with prayer, with supplications, and with the intention of the heart... only with confession, with supplications and with tears. The verse therefore states, "Take words with yourselves...." Our prayers to Hashem are modeled after the sacrifices in the Beit HaMikdash, with the foundation of all offerings being the tamid, which began and ended the daily service of the altar (see Bamidbar 28). Rav Shamshon Raphael Hirsch (The Hirsch Chumash, Vayikra 6:5) explains that the KORBAN OLAT TAMID represents unceasing consecration of the nation's actions. It expresses the purpose of every Jewish day: to continuously devote our powers and talents toward accomplishing the Torah's ideals. In this way, we will satisfy G-d, and G-d's Presence will dwell on earth. Visualize: Images that bring the prayer to life The Joy of Connection Miriam and Moshe are approaching their 30th anniversary. Their children arrange a vacation for them in a country cottage far from the city. As they set off for their destination, they each harbor the same fear: "What will we talk about? What will we do for a week together?" Sadly, they each realize that in the hectic rush of their busy lives, they have drifted apart. But somehow, in the quiet of the country, with nothing to distract them, a miracle occurs. They take a walk, and begin to talk. They reminisce, express their thanks for the wonderful years G-d had given them together, and for all each of them has done for the family. Their spirits reconnect. A numb, dark space inside each of their hearts fills up with light and warmth. The purpose of their years of work and sacrifice becomes as clear as the blue sky above. People yearn to feel connected. Yet this feeling, fulfilling as it is, is just a glint of the radiance one can experience from the greatest connection of all - a connection with Hashem. In those moments of true connection during prayer, one is filled to overflowing with a deep, intrinsic sense of purpose and of bonding with G-d. That is because in those meaningful moments, one is fulfilling the purpose for which he was created, which is to build a relationship with G-d. Word to the Wise: Meaning within the meaning The word KORBANI comes from the word KORBAN which means to bring close. The ultimate purpose of the sacrificial service was to bring the Jewish people closer to G-d. By submitting our resources, and symbolically, our lives, to Hashem, we were able to cleave to Him as completely as possible. We were able to fully atone for our sins and thereby clear any obstructions between ourselves and G-d. But what happened once the Beit HaMikdash was destroyed? The Gemara (Taanit 27b, Megila 31b) relates that Avraham Avinu asked G-d how Israel would achieve forgiveness once the Holy Temple was laying in ruins. G-d replied, "I have already established for them the Scriptural section of offerings. Whenever they read from them before Me, I will consider it as if they had brought the offerings before me and I will forgive their sins" (Mishna Berura 48:1). [10] Towards Better Kashrut Awareness - Excerpted from an article in the OU's "Behind the Union Symbol" Something's Fishy Here: Omega-3 can be derived from algae by Rabbi Menachem Adler Without going into the details of the nutritional importance and benefits of DHA and ARA oils in infant development and growth and actually its nutritional value for all age groups, let us just mention that DHA is a long chain omega-3 fatty acid and ARA is an omega 6 fatty acid. Many people mistakenly think that these fatty acids can only be derived from fish. In fact, what prompted this little piece is a prior article in this magazine, which may have given the impression that all DHA and ARA fatty acids are seafood-derived. Fish is of course a category of food which is kosher-sensitive, as only fish which have fins and scales are kosher. Thus, in order for fish-derived DHA and ARA oil to be accepted as kosher, we need to know that they were derived from a kosher fish source. Compounding that concern is that even if the DHA and ARA oils were derived from a kosher fish source, there may be shared equipment concerns in some of the processing plants. Of course, kosher fish-derived DHA and ARA oil is available with the appropriate kosher controls. However, as we began, there is a significant amount of kosher DHA and ARA oil available that is manufactured through fermentation which can provide the nutritional value of these important oils through a process that uses no fish-derived ingredients. It involves a fermentation process that uses an algae source. The process starts with inoculating the algae microorganism into approximately a one-liter flask containing media, which in this case means a liquid solution of nutrients that are consumed by the algae microorganism. After a period of growth in the initial flask, a seed fermentor is made up also with media, sterilized and cooled and then inoculated with the contents of the first flask. Again, after a period of growth, a main fermentor (which is a much bigger vessel) is prepared by the same method as the seed fermentor and inoculated with the contents of the seed fermentor. When the growth is completed in the main fermentor, the process moves to recovery and eventual drying followed by extraction and then refining, bleaching and deodorizing. Kosher requirements are that all ingredients used to make up the nutrients used in the media are kosher. Of course, all steps in the process are kosher- controlled to ensure that only kosher ingredients are used in the media, any processing aids, antifoams, etc., and that all equipment is in kosher status. When completed, we have a completely kosher DHA and ARA oil product that contains all the benefits of the product derived from marine sources, without the use of any fish-derived ingredients. Thanks to the technology of companies like Martek and in cooperation with the OU Kosher, one can get the complete nutritional benefits of DHA and ARA oils - kosher certified and no fish needed. Rabbi Menachem Adler studied at the Chofetz Chaim Yeshiva in Jerusalem and at Ner Israel Rabbinical College in Baltimore, where he was awarded the Bachelor of Talmudic Law degree and also received rabbinical ordination. He also earned a B.S. degree with a major in computer science from the University of Maryland Baltimore County. Rabbi Adler joined OU Kosher in 1992 as rabbinic coordinator specializing in enzymes, biotechnology companies, as well as companies in the emulsifier, vegetable oil, dairy and coffee creamer industries. His learned series of Kosher Tidbits on kashrut issues in the area of enzymes and biotechnology have elicited much interest. (A link to a Kosher Tidbit presentation on enzymes is found below.) www.ouradio.org/index.php/ouradio/channel/C301/P80/ Ed. note: We have included the "bio" of the author of this brief article in order to show you how complicated the field of kashrut supervision has become in recent years. Knowing halacha is only part of the topic in these times. We must be thankful and appreciative of the OU and other kashrut organizations for "keeping up with the times" and taking a tremendous burden from our shoulders in the area of kashrut supervision. Food manufacture is a complex science, and its kashrut supervision needs to be in the secure hands of knowledgeable, highly trained, sharp-minded and sensitive kashrut supervisors and rabbinic field representatives. [11] MicroUlpan For Olim, it depends upon how long you've been in the country and how much attention you pay to your children. Let's choose for it, odds or evens ZUG OH PERET [12] Maharal on the Sedra - Column prepared by Dr. Moshe Kuhr Rivka's Special Gift B'reishit 28:5 - And Yitzchak sent Yaakov who went to Padan Aram, to Lavan the son of Betuel the Aramean, the brother of Rivka, the mother of Yaakov and Esav. Rashi: I don't know what "the mother of Yaakov and Esav" [a seemingly redundant description of Rivka] comes to teach us. Gur Arye: Yitzchak understood that one of his sons needed to be free of defect in his offspring, to have a "completed bed" [Torat Kohanim, Vayikra 26:42]. Consider that Avraham's trait was kindness, and contrariwise, Yitzchak's trait was justice, and both of these greats produced defective offspring. Yaakov steered the middle course - his trait was truth, for truth does not incline to left or right. Yitzchak knew Yaakov would incorporate his own trait with those of his father and grandfather, and the result would be a "complete bed." Rivka was the one who first experienced during her pregnancy the struggle of the opposing forces of her twins, and was able to differentiate the fine from the dross. Yitzchak now conceded by this statement that Rivka and, by extension, her family, could remove that which was defective and extract the purified product. This was the hope of Yitzchak - that Yaakov would marry Lavan's daughters and produce the blessed, purified seed. The description of Rivka as "mother of Yaakov and Eisav" teaches us that by recognizing the evil nature of her son Eisav, she purified the Jewish People. This family trait would aid in its survival. Also, "the mother of Yaakov and Esav" is a reference to the "two nations" [25"23] in her womb - the house of Betuel is capable of producing nations. For these reasons, Lavan was fit to be, in spite of his wickedness, a grandfather of the nation of Israel. [13] From "OzTorah" by Rabbi Dr Raymond Apple AO RFD, Emeritus Rabbi of the Great Synagogue, Sydney www.oztorah.com Why did he sell the birthright? Every year when we read this sidra, we wonder why Eisav was so nonchalant about parting with his birthright. "You want my birthright?" he more or less says to his brother. "It's useless to me. What can I do with a birthright when I'm so hungry and would rather have a good bowl of soup than a mere title?" Other families, other generations, other places, placed high value on the status of B'CHOR, but not Eisav. Was it that Eisav was nothing more than a rough, primitive creature whose priorities were limited to today without thought of the morrow? The answer that Ibn Ezra gives is rather different. In most cases the birthright brought property rights with it, but, says Ibn Ezra, this was not so with Eisav. Why? Because Yitzchak, despite a solid inheritance from his father, could not manage money and in old age he was reduced to penury. He had hardly anything to give his older son, and Eisav knew it. "What am I going to get?" Eisav asked himself. "A title but nothing else. Yaakov wants the title, does he? He's welcome. It's an empty privilege. I'd rather have a bowl of soup." Many a sermon could be preached about the birthright story. Probably most would remark that having a birthright was a key to destiny. Yaakov understood better than Eisav that it isn't your estates that really matter, but your spiritual values. Parents can give their children dignity even if they have no houses, no blocks of flats, no rolls of money to leave them. Yaakov certainly gave the Children of Israel dignity and destiny... and it was all thanks to a bowl of soup! Q&A from OzTorah Q. A friend told me that Judaism doesn't allow a child who is a doctor to operate on or give an injection to his or her parents. Is this true? A. The Torah lays down that it is a capital offence if a child strikes his or her parent (Sh'mot 21:15). According to the Talmud this applies if the child causes a wound (Sanhedrin 84b). The rabbis discuss what happens if the child's action is for the parent's benefit, e.g. letting blood, which used to be a recognized medical procedure. In theory this is allowed, though there is a preference for it to be done by someone else. The Shulchan Aruch does not permit a child even to remove a splinter from the parent's hand (YD 241:1), but it is allowed if no-one else is available to do it. A number of rabbinic responsa are lenient especially if the parent asks the child to treat him/her. There is a psychological aspect to the problem in that the child may be scared to operate on a parent, but if the doctor is an expert at the particular procedure and is the best one available he/she is unlikely to carry out the task inefficiently. [14] From The Jerusalem Culinary Institute The announcement this Shabbat of Rosh Chodesh Kislev, brings to all our minds, the approaching Festival of Chanuka. If one were to play "association" with Chanuka, one item that is sure to come up is OLIVE OIL. We therefore present for your "enlightenment", an article and recipe that appeared in an OU publication two years ago, written by the Founder of The Jerusalem Culinary Institute, Chef Yochanan Lambiase "And you (Moshe) shall instruct the children of Israel and they shall take olive oil to you" for the kindling of the menorah in the Sanctuary. But Aharon was the one charged to light the menorah; why must we take our olive oil to Moshe? Olives are a metaphor for the Jewish people. In the words of our Sages, just as oil is extracted when the olive is compressed so does the Jew reveal his oil when he is oppressed. Oil refers to the inner resolve of our neshama (soul) that emerges in times of challenge. The Wick and the Flame However, oil alone cannot produce light, it requires a wick and a flame. The wick is the Jew and the flame is Torah. Moshe, as the source of Torah, is able to touch the flame to the oil and wick. This is why we, the wick, are instructed to bring our inner resolve, the oil, to Moshe, the source of Torah. We are a stubborn nation. When our position is challenged we tend to cling tenaciously. We produce plenty of oil; but without a flame the oil is useless. Our resolve must be inspired by Torah, our fight must be directed by Torah and our loyalty must be exclusively to Torah. Yochanan - www.jerusalemculinaryinstitute.com Italian Tapenade of Green and Black Olives A classic tapenade. For a delicious variation, blend in finely chopped roasted red radicchio. 1 cup pitted green olives 1 cup pitted black olives 1 small orange's zest 1 small lemon's zest 2 anchovy filets 2 garlic cloves, minced 6 sprigs Italian parsley 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil salt and pepper Fresh rosemary or thyme (optional) Chop the olives finely and put in a bowl. Chop the zest and add to olives. In a mortar and pestle mash the anchovy filets and garlic and add to olives. Add the parsley and olive oil. Let sit for 1 hour. Taste and adjust seasoning. Makes about 2 cups. [15] Divrei Menachem Parshat Toldot brings us into direct confrontation with the dilemmas facing Yitzchak and Rivka regarding Yitzchak's blessings to his children before his passing from this world. The import of this pressing passage, however, is the rabbinical insistence that the blessings would have irrevocable consequences for the recipients and determine the ongoing future relation- ship between the descendants of Yaakov and Eisav. The point, of course, is that the firstborn blessing was superior to the blessing conferred upon the second son. Indeed the younger Yaakov's blessing, obtained through a deception, incorporated the declaration that, "Peoples will serve you". And the tricked firstborn Eisav heard his father announce that, "By the sword you shall live, but your brother you shall serve." From the first stirrings in the womb and from the moment of their birth, the two brothers were conflicted. Our rabbis even crafted an axiom that, "Eisav hates Yaakov", implying that the twin's rivalry, symbolizing godliness vs. wickedness in this world, is an existential and irreconcilable truth. And perhaps what gives us more food for thought is the Talmudic observation that when one of the two nations rises, the other must fall (Megila 6a). Let us take solace, however, in Hashem's promise that ultimately, "The might shall pass from one regime to the other; and that the elder shall serve the younger" (B'reishit 25:23). Shabbat Shalom, Menachem Persoff We would greatly appreciate your feedback on the new features (and old ones) in Torah Tidbits [Please send to tt@ou.org] Towards Better Davening and Torah Reading Fine Tuning - va-ya-K'VEI-ni Eisav complains that Yaakov has truly lived up to his name twice. By taking the birthright and the blessing... Look at the word above. The SH'VA under the AYIN is NACH. The first two syllables of the word are VA-YA with an AYIN catch in the throat for S'faradim and a silent AYIN for Ashkenazim. Continue: The SH'VA under the KUF is NA, which attaches the KUF to the following syllable, K'VEI. Accent on the K'VEI. Finish the word with NI. va-ya-K'VEI-ni (not VAYA- AK-VEINI, which seems to be the commonly mistaken way to read it). Parsha Pix Top-left is Yaakov with his lentil stew. Next to him is one of Yitzchak's workers on a break from digging wells. Or, perhaps, it is Eisav coming in from the field exhausted. Continuing across the top, we come to a Seder plate. Rashi tells us that it was the first night of (the future) Pesach that Yaakov presented himself to Yitzchak for the bracha. Rivka told Yaakov to bring her two goats. Just to feed Yitzchak, you need two goats? Rashi answers that one was for the main dish and the other for Korban Pesach. Similarly, commentaries mention the wine that Yaakov gave to Yitzchak as being part of a "Seder", and that his cleverness (mentioned in Rashi) was feeding Yitzchak Korban Pesach, so he could not eat Eisav's food also. Realize that these ideas exist on a different level of Torah from the P'SHAT, the plain meaning. To the right of the Seder plate is a king on his father's back. The finger is pointing to the father, who would be AVI-MELECH. This is not the only pun in this week's Parsha- Pix, as you will see. The rain cloud is part of the bracha that Yaakov received. And part of what we fervently pray for now. The sword is part of the bracha to Eisav. The lion cub on the map of Israel is another pun - GUR BAARETZ HAZOT. Actually, live in this Land... What G-d said to Yitzchak and what G-d says to every Jew. The tow truck is another pun - Yitzchak lived in GERAR. Above the truck is the emblem of NAHAL, part of the Israeli army. Combined with the truck it reads NACHAL GERAR, the place where Yitzchak settled after Avimelech kicked him out of Gerar. The passport is for Yaakov who is being sent abroad by both Yitzchak and Rivka. Yitzchak never needed a passport, but Yaakov did. The bottle of wine labeled A DRY. In French - as is used on wines and other spirits, DRY is SEC. A-SEK was the name of the first well that Yitzchak dug. The teddy bear is holding aloft the number 7 in one paw and an upraised hand in the other. There are two meanings to the name Be'er Sheva. One is from the seven sheep that Avraham gave Avimelech as a token of the covenant between them, and the other is for the oath(s) that were taken in that agreement. SHEVA has both connotations. Towards the bottom is the Davka Judaica Graphic of Yaakov, the studious ISH TAM, dweller in the tent of Torah study, and Eisav, the ISH SADEH, the man of the field, the hunter. Straus and Keren HaYesod are the streets on which the Israel Center was and is. They are Rechovot, as in the name of third well that Yitzchak dug and the one that was not contested by Avimelech's crowd. C is 100 in Roman numerals. With a gate inside the C, you get ME'AH SHE'ARIM. That Yitzchak estab- lished Me'ah She'arim is consistent with the fact that he is recorded as being the first Charedi, as in VAYE- CHERAD YITZCHAK CHARADA G'DOLA AD M'OD - he was very charedi. From the back of the tow truck is an arrow pointing to the computer icon for a DOS prompt. Together it gives the Ashkenazic pronunciation of the sedra, TOW-L' (as in "to", that's the arrow) DOS. The emblem of Ben Gurion University stands Be'er Sheva, the city in which it is located. Next to it is the emblem of the city of Rehovot - with microscope, book, and orange - is for the well of the same name. To its right is a photo of a hand holding a Pygmy Marmoset, the smallest of all monkeys... (it is not the smallest primate - that distinction goes to the Mouse Lemur, which weighs less than the Torah Tidbits you are holding at this moment - assuming you are reading these words from a hard-copy) represents the small KUF (monkey is KOF - KUF/KOF, get it?) in the word kATZTI, that Rivka said in expressing her disgust if Yaakov were to marry a local K'naanit. At the bottom of the PP is a secretary bird, a large African raptor (Sagittarius serpentarius), the only living bird of prey that hunts on foot. Its Latin name suggests the Mazal of Kislev. Or it can represent the same thing the three arrows do - namely, the haftara for Machar Chodesh which preempts the regular haftara of Toldot. In Machar Chodesh, we read of to sign that David and Yonatan had arranged, using three arrows and the direction in which they were shot to indicate whether it was safe for David to come out of hiding or not. Upper-right is an artistic version of the Zodiac sign Gemini. Although it is the mazal of Sivan, it fits in with Toldot because of the twinship of Yaakov and Eisav. Below that is the lentil plant And below that is a water drill, which stands for the attention paid in the sedra to Yitzchak's digging water wells that Avraham had dug. 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 (CHAYEI SARA) TTriddles: [1] the king, his prophet, sedra opener The king (from the haftara) is David HaMelech. His prophet was Natan. The sedra opener is the first word in Parshat Chayei Sara - VAYIHYU (pronounced VA-YIH with the HEI sounded like a MAPIK-HEI; the SH'VA under it is NACH, as are ALL SH'VAs under HEIs) and then YU. David, Natan, and VAYIHYU (in Hebrew) are all palindromes - i.e. they read the same backward and forward. NATAN is a palindrome in English too; the other two are not. [2] Nachor, Yishmael, Yaakov, the Galbreths We read at the end of Vayeira of the birth of Rivka. This, in the context of the Torah telling us of the 12 sons of Nachor (one of whom was B'tuel, Rivka's father). At the end of Chayei Sara, we read about Yishmael's 12 sons. In Vayeitzei and Vayishlach, we will read about Yaakov's 12 sons (and one daughter). Having 12 children brings to mind (some minds, TTriddle-oriented minds) the biographical book that was made into a movie in 1950 - Cheaper by the Dozen - and then remade in 2003 (the original movie received higher ratings than the remake). The book and movies are based on the true life stories of the Galbreth family (early 20th century). [3] The fourth Mersenne prime and the first nice Friedman number Mersenne numbers are in the form of 2p-1 (with p being a positive whole number). The first 10 Mersenne numbers are 1, 3, 7, 15, 31, 63, 127, 255, 511, 1023. Note that Mersenne numbers are one less than the powers of 2. It has been proven that if a Mersenne number is prime (divisible only by one and itself), then p (in the form of the number) will be prime. (p being prime does not necessarily produce a Mersenne Prime, but all Mersenne Primes have a prime p.) The first Mersenne Primes are 3, 7, 31, 127, 8191, 131071. These are produced by p=2, 3, 5, 7, 13, 17. Note that prime number 11 produces a Mersenne number 2047, which is NOT prime (23x89=2047). So far, mathematicians have found only 44 Mersenne Primes, the largest of which has almost 10 million digits. But for this TTriddle, we were interested in the 4th Mersenne Prime, 127, as in the length of Chayei Sara (not the sedra, the life of Sara Imeinu in years). Friedman numbers might be more fun for the casual TTreader (if you got this far). A Friedman number is one whose digits can be arranged with the 4 basic operators (+, -, x, /) and exponentiation to form an expression equal to the number. For example, since 25 = 5 squared then 25 is a Friedman number. 289 = (8+9) squared so 289 is a Friedman number. 121=11 squared, 121 is a Friedman number. One more: 736 = 7+3^6. 736 is not only a Friedman number, it is called a "nice Friedman number" because the expression that equals it can be written with the digits in the same order as the number. 127 is the first nice Friedman number, -1+2^7. [4] Just about the only one in the Torah Just about is a translation of KIM-AT. The word occurs 18 times in Tanach, but only once in the Torah, in Parshat Vayeira. So why is it a TTriddle for Parshat Chayei Sara? We goofed (for a change). Sorry. [5] Chayei Sara has more than 35% of all what in Tanach? The word G'MALIM (camels), with or without a prefix, occurs 31 times in Tanach. In Chayei Sara, we find it 11 times. Chayei Sara has more than 35% of all camels in Tanach. If we search for the sequence GIMEL-MEM- LAMED in the same word in all of Tanach, we get 102 results, 48 of which are not camel-related. That leaves 54 camel-words in Tanach, 18 of which are in Chayei Sara. That's a third of the occurrences in all of Tanach. That's a lot of mentions of camels! [6] How much of a full connection between Sarah and Yechezkeil The "regular" gimatriya of SARA is 300+200+5=505. And the gimatriya of YECHEZKEIL is 10+8+7+100+1+30 = 156. No connection. But there are other types of gimatriya. One of them is called MILUI, and assigns a value to each letter equal to the spelling of its name. ALEF, then, is the total of ALEF, LAMED, and FEI, 1+30+80=111. BET is BET+YUD+TAV = 412. Let's calcu- late the full gimatriya of SARA. SHIN = 300+10+50=360. REISH = 200+10+ 300 = 510. HEI is spelled HEI-ALEF and equals 6. SARA then totals 876. YECHEZKEIL = 20+418+67+186+ 111+74 = 876. How much is the FULL connection between Sarah and Yechezkeil? Answer: 876. No, we didn't expect anyone to get this one. That's not always the goal of a TTriddle. Sometimes it is used as the "excuse" to introduce a topic of interest in the following week's TTriddles Report. [7] shekels, entourage, pomegranates The number of silver shekels that Avraham paid to Efron, the number of men in the entourage of Eisav as Yaakov was about to encounter his twin brother after years of separation, the number of decorative pome- granates in the Beit HaMikdash... 400. [8] Unexplaineds from the ParshaPix There were three of them. H2O with the O done up like an eye is for EIN HAMAYIM, mentioned in the sedra. It means a well or fountain or spring of water. Literally, which lent itself to the graphic image, it is the eye of the water. The phrase occurs three times in all of Tanach. Once in Lech L'cha, where an angel found Hagar after she ran away from her mistress Sara(i). And twice in Chayei Sara, where Eliezer found Rivka. The colorful markers in Hebrew are TUSHIM. With the L' you get L'TUSHIM, descendant(s) of Avraham from Ketura. The logo of a company with its name removed is that of LALINE, a successful chain of stores featuring cosmetics, soaps, lotions, and other beauty products. In the sedra, Eliezer asks if there place LALIN, to sleep. This week's TTriddles: [1] Twin tzadiks, yet not [2] Grissom, Antonelli, Gomez, Liddie Lincecum (2), Cain, Bumgarner [3] The pitcher who wasn't a pitcher [4] If "B'DAMAYICH CHAYI B'DAMAYICH CHAYI" was said at the first Jewish 8-day Brit, then it had an "additional" significance [5] He was Eliyahu. Yitzchak too? [6] bread and lentils; lentils as an ingredient in bread [7] Kishmo kein hu - not her [8] A sedra to study "with all your heart" [9] The four members of the Biblical Bina club [10] Beis Yisroel (Ashdod), Imrei Emes (Bnei Braq), Sfas Emes Yeshiva (Jerusalem)... [11] Last week, three of Yishmael's sons; this week, just Yitzchak 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 Our giving of Tzedaka for the needy is accompanied by a silent prayer that we should be able to give and that we should never need to be on the receiving end. 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Please note that ALL Israel Center tiyulim require advance registration. Please note Travel Desk 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. KASHRUT POLICY: Food for Israel Center In-House programs is supervised by OU-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 Travel Deal Israel in cooperation with the Israel Center NOW offers you a dedicated phone number, (02) 999-6035 with daily service: Sunday 9am - 6pm, Monday-Thursday, 9am - 11pm and Friday, 9am until noon When our offices are closed, callers will be able to leave messages that will be recorded as being via the Travel Desk of the Israel Center. TRAVEL DEAL - www.traveldealisrael.com Shabbaton - Shabbat Parshat Vayeishev - Nov 26-27 -(the Shabbat before Chanuka) Our Two Special Shabbat Guests; Rabbi Jeff Bienenfeld and Rabbi Chanoch Yeres Registration is already in full swing- don't miss out - Contact Ita Rochel at 560-9125 or drop by Return to the Rova - Wednesday, NOV 10th from 2:00pm Wheelchair Tour of the Jewish Quarter with tour guide Reb. Feiga Kahana Among the places we'll be touring are the Cardo, Rothschild Plaza, the Broad Wall and the plaza of the Churva Synagogue - Limited to 5 participants in wheelchairs - Each one may bring along a caregiver or other assistant 30nis, Please call Shulamit Neaman (02) 58-220-58 TOUR OF JEWISH AKKO with the extraordinary teacher of guides Dr. Hagi Amitzur Tuesday, November 23rd 8:00am - 7:00pm Have you been to Akko? Did you ever hear anything besides the stories about Crusaders and Moslems? Come with us to learn about the Jewish history of Akko. We will visit the Caucasian Synagogue and the monumental magnificent Tunisian Synagogue which is the only one like it in the world. We will walk in the alleys of Akko in the footsteps of Rabban Shimon Ben Gamliel, Rabbi Yehuda HaLevi, Rambam and Ramban, Ramhal and Rabbi Yehuda Elharizi. We will visit Yeshivat Baalei HaTosafot who came to Israel 800 years ago, and became the biggest spiritual center in the land of Israel. We will study the history of Haim Farhi, R. Nachman of Braslav and others. We will daven in the Synagogue where the Ramhal sat and studied and wrote some of his books. We will also learn about the heroes - the freedom fighters who fought against the British, and some of whom were executed on the gallows in the Central prison in Akko. 165NIS members 180NIS non-members Register now with Naomi at the Travel Desk (02) 560-9110 or 050-725-8392 Shulamit's tiyulim are always treats; come! you will surely enjoy her delicious sweets BOOKED WITH A WAITING LIST Jerusalem of Gold, Jerusalem of Colors - Join us for an exciting neighborhood tour of the Bukharian Quarter with historian and guide Gabriella Licsko Come with us and explore one of Jerusalem's old neighborhoods and its unique architecture established in 1891 by wealthy Sephardic Jews from Bukhara (in Uzbekistan). Get to know more about their unusually rich Jewish religious heritage, history and culture from the beginnings until today. We will visit the world famous Musaioff Shul complex, a fascinating building called Armon or the Mashiach palace. We will take a walk in the Bukharian shuk and have a wonderful experience seeing the baking of the world famous flat bread whose recipe they brought from the "old country" Sunday, November 14th 2:00-4:00pm, 25NIS members / 36NIS non-members, Limit: 20 people - For reservations, call Naomi at the Travel Desk 560-9110 or 050-725-8392 Come join us for a Wonderful Winter Vacation at The Dan Panorama in Eilat SUN-THU, January 23-27, '11 - 5 marvelous days, 4 fabulous nights With our own distinguished Scholar-in-Residence Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb at the luxurious hotel with beautiful rooms, superb meals, sport facilities, a health club, sauna, Jacuzzi, heated pool, separate swimming all day, free entrance to Spa, musical programs, evening entertainment, audio visual presentations - all with outstanding personalities. The entire Hotel is Mehadrin with all products either Eida Haredit or Rabbi Landau Hashgacha. Each meal is a sumptuous gourmet feast. Every afternoon a cake and dessert extravaganza is available for your indulgence. Hot and cold drinks are provided all day long. On the day of arrival a delicious luncheon will be served. The remainder of your vacation is half board. 425nis per night per person - double occupancy, 4th night - only 345nis per person, Single supplement available, Children 2-12: 212NIS per night The above is the early bird rate until Chanuka, Transportation to and from Eilat at additional cost Bonus: guided tour in English to Timna Park for only 30nis per person Register immediately to reserve your room - Last year the rooms were sold out very quickly - You can imagine why! Call Naomi at the Travel Desk: (02) 560-9110 or 050-725-8392 - Shulamit's tiyulim are always treats; Come! You will enjoy her delicious sweets! Israel Museum Golden Experience - ReNEWed Museum Wednesday, November 17th, 10:00am to 1:00pm An excellent guided tour of some sections of the new museum followed by coffee and cake 50nis members 60nis non-members Call Naomi at the Travel Desk 560-9110 or 050-725-8392 Shulamit's tiyulim are always treats; come! you will surely enjoy her delicious sweets Private showing of a magnificent Judaica Collection - Chanukiyot and many more treasured works of art lovingly gathered from all over the world during a period of many years Hear the fascinating and intriguing stories behind this amazing collection Sunday, November 28, Limit: 25 participants Donation 75NIS - Coffee & Cake Proceeds of the evening will go towards the purchase of Tefillin for needy Bar Mitzva boys connected with the OU Israel Center Projects Shulamit will lead the participants on a short walk to our special secret destination CHANUKA ON BUS 99 guided with exclusive Jewish content by our charming Ruth Cohn Monday, December 6th, From 11:00am 1:00pm Join us on a double decker bus (we have the whole bus to ourselves) to circle our city of Jerusalem We will cruise around more than 25 historical, educational, beautiful, and inspiring sites in our eternal holy city with breathtaking views, fascinating architecture, and a great diversity of neighborhoods like nowhere in the world. Because we have the whole bus, we will also have one off-the-bus visit Adults: 55NIS, Children 2-12: 45NIS Register ASAP with Naomi at the Travel Desk (02) 560-9110 or 050-725-8392 Shulamit's tiyulim are always treats; Come! You will enjoy her delicious sweets! Travel Deal Israel Specials - exclusively thru Travel Deal Mamilla Jerusalem: For min. nights stay ( Jan-Mar) choose complimentary Shabbat meal or 30% off on the 3rd night! Leonardo Plaza J'lem: (January + February) 4 nights consecutive - FREE midweek meal per adult and discounted rates Inbal Jerusalem: Advance Purchase rate 20% off Nov. 28th to Dec. 21st Kibbutz Lavi: Weekend of Dec. 17-18, Special rates available King Solomon J'lem: Student free in parents room (November) (02) 999-6035 res@traveldealisrael.com Check out our web site and BOOK NOW for discounted rates! www.traveldealisrael.com Call NOW for Chanuka deals throughout the country! The Back Page of TT929 The Avrom Silver Jerusalem College for Adults and OU Israel's Project YEDID are the educational components of the Seymour J. Abrams Orthodox Union Jerusalem World Center and include the classes & lectures of the OU Israel Center - Rabbi Sholom Gold, Dean - Phil Chernofsky, Educational director "Regular" IC classes & lectures - 25nis members, 30nis non-members. 5nis maintenance fee for life members. Special rates for mornings with two or more shiurim: 40nis members, 50nis non-members. 10nis for life members. Yearly membership 360NIS couple, 275NIS single. Life membership, call us. Programs of the Center are partially funded by the Jewish Agency for Israel, No one will be turned away for inability to pay. Yom R'vi'i 26 Marcheshvan - WED November 3rd 9:00am Sefer bamidbar Dr. Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg 9:20am Contemporary Halachic Issues Rabbi Macy Gordon - Topic: Pluralism in Orthodoxy 9:45am Parshat To-l'dot with Reuven Wolfeld - Topic: "Roots: The Eisav connection" 10:45am Parshat HaShavua R' Yosef Wolicki 12:30pm Dr. Maurice E. Joseph Jewish Video Resource Center presents... VIDEO in the LIBRARY: Rabbi Zev Leff - "The Essence of Spirituality" various MINI-Shiur/Divrei Torah while you fold 12:45pm TaiChi for Health with Avi Hirsch 1:30pm Medical Chi Kong with Avi Hirsch 050-7671-722 2:30pm Women's Beit Midrash - Pearl Borow First hour: the KUZARI; Second hour on Chumash with Rashi L'ayla Learning program for women: (Sun. AM, Tue. evening) and WED 8:00pm Learning in Chavrusos, pairing stronger and beginning learners 9:00pm How You can change the World - Mrs. Rivka Segal 7:30pm Dr. Maurice E. Joseph Jewish Video Resource Center presents... VIDEO RERUN in the LIBRARY DUE TO POPULAR DEMAND..."America and the Holocaust" Reactions to last week's showings were so strong that we decided to show this powerful documentary again. Yom Chamishi 27 Marcheshvan - THU November 4th Exercise Class for Women Thursdays, 9:00-10:00am - Focus on balance, correct posture, back and abdominal strengthening Given by DR TOVA GOLDFINE Chiropractor/Rehabilitation - FOR WOMEN OF ALL AGES AND EXERCISE FITNESS LEVEL - Contact Dr Tova 052-420-1201 chirodivine@gmail.com 10:30am (to 12:30) Jewish Women, the Matriarchs, and the Tanach - Dr. Hayim Abramson various MINI-Shiur/Divrei Torah while you fold Verna's knitting group will resume IY"H in a few weeks - watch for details Bonyhad, Hungary - Time Capsule of a Destroyed Jewish Community Thursday, November 4th at the Israel Center - Program mostly in Hungarian 5:00pm Reception 5:30pm Jewish life in the Hungarian countryside before and after the Shoah brief introductory talk by Ms. Gabriella Licsko 5:40pm Music - Ms. Talia Erdal, cello 5:50pm The life of Bonyhad's Jews Before, During and After the Shoah with segments of interview videos - Ms. Eva Illes, high school teacher in Bonyhad Hungary. Followed by discussion - Admission NIS 30 Yom Shishi 28 Marcheshvan - FRI November 5th 8:30am (to 9:45am) Kollel Yom Shishi - OU Israel Center and Yeshiva University's RIETS Israel Kollel presents an in-depth shiur B'iyun in Masechet Makkot by HaRav Eliav Silverman, Shoel U'meishiv of the RIETS Israel Kollel - Friday mornings - Coffee and cake will be served (for further details contact Menachem Persoff (02) 560-9105, menp@017.net.il 9:00am Thirty days hath September, April, June, and September... but what's the story with the Jewish months? Glimpses into different aspects of our Calendar, and a review of "The Case of the third Shabbat meal that continues into the eve of Rosh Chodesh" - Phil Chernofsky Here's the QUESTION for part of the shiur this Friday morning at 9:00am Senario: Seuda Sh'lishit on Shabbat that is Erev Rosh Chodesh. The meal extends into the night and you have neither davened Maariv yet or said Havdala. When you bench after the meal, do you say R'TZEI because the meal began on Shabbat and for you it is still Shabbat? Or do you say Yaaleh v'Yavo for Rosh Chodesh which it is now (even though you haven't davened yet)? Or do you say both, becuase of overlapping sanctities of Shabbat and Rosh Chodesh? 11:00am RCA Daf Yomi Shabbat Parshat Toldot - November 6th Please note well the starting times for the shiur and for Mincha 3:15pm Special guest shiur by Dr. Meir Tamari in memory of his sister Rivka bat Avraham a"h Topic: Yaakov & Eisav 4:00pm Mincha Motza'ei Shabbat Parshat Toldot - November 6th 8:00pm regular fees "Singing in the Rain" Why is Rain greater than Revival of the Dead; Shiur by Rabbi Ephraim Sprecher Sun-Thu in the Ganchrow Beis Medrash (first floor) 10:00am SUN/TUE/THU Rabbi Jeff Bienenfeld - Brachot - 4th perek 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) Tu/W Hilchot Shabbat - Rabbi Chaim Sendic 4:30pm Gemara Kesuvos with Rabbi Hillel Ruvell not TUE 5:30pm Maariv following Rabbi Ruvell's shiur. Cheshvan, Kislev, Tevet, Sh'vat Yom Rishon 30 Marcheshvan - SUN November 7th L'ayla - Learning program for women: (Tue. & Wed. evenings) and SUN 9:15am Refreshments 9:30am Living T'hilim - Mrs. Rivka Segal 10:30am Themes from Sefer Mishlei - Rabbi Yitzchak Breitowitz 11:40am Highlights of Bilvavi Mishkan Evneh - Mrs. Rochel Silber 9:30am Let's Study Chumash - Tonia Frohwein (for women) 10:30am 'While on my journey I told a story'... Rabbi Nachman's Stories - New series with Golda Warhaftig women Sunday, November 7th AMIT LUNCH & LEARN; Guest speaker: GILLA ROSEN - Lunch at 11:45am - Lecture at 12:30pm 40NIS 12:00pm Hebrew for Beginners Learn to read and converse in Hebrew and feel more comfortable when you daven. Starting anew Given by Haya Graus with Cecily Davis 10nis per session 12:30pm Life: A fantastic adventure - Alan Romm 2:00pm Rabbi Ephraim Sprecher - Sara's Tent: Mini-Mishkan or Heaven on Earth? 5:20pm Pri Chadash Women's Writing Workshop (2 hrs) - Contact: Ruth Fogelman (628-7359) and Judy Caspi (054-569-0410) 7:30pm The Book of Nechemya with Rabbi Mordechai Machlis 8:30pm Shmuel Alef (ch.21) - Rabbi Dr. Joseph C. Klausner/Yedidyahu Topic: Assistants, advisors/counselors/consultants in Biblical courts Question to ponder: The role of the talmidim of HaRav Soloveitchik and the shluchim of the Lubavitch Rebbe. Special homage to Rabbi Aharon Rakeffet and Rabbi Shlomo Riskin November 7th 8:00pm Nutrition and Diabetes - What the Latest Medical Research Shows - Eli Greenspan Yom Sheini Rosh Chodesh Kislev - MON November 8th N'SHEI LIBRARY: 10:00-12:30 MOMMY & BABY MUSIC CLASSES with Jackie - Mondays at the Israel Center 9:30am for 6-18 months - 10:30am for 1-3 year olds Call Jackie to register for classes: 999-5524 / 054-533-9305 9:15am Candle & Mystery a "Chanuka is coming" shiur by Rabbi Jeff Bienenfeld Pearl Borow will resume IY"H next week, November 15th 10:30am Taamei HaMitzvot - How necessary are they? shiur by Rabbi Aharon Ziegler Rabbi Leff will resume IY"H next week, November 15th 11:35am Fit Forever: Look & Feel your Best! Exercise for women of all ages - Call Sura Faecher 993-2524 11:35am Monday, November 8th - New monthly lecture series with Gabriella Licsko Exploring Sephardi and Mizrachi Jewish culture, lifestyle and minhagim part one: "From Granada till Addis Ababa" A crash course on Sephardic and Oriental Jewish history and communities. Interactive lecture with lots of pictures and mehadrin kosher food tasting! 12:30pm Dr. Maurice E. Joseph Jewish Video Resource Center presents... VIDEO in the LIBRARY: Rabbi Mendel Kessin - "Ahavat Yisrael and the Geula" Women's Beit Midrash Pearl Borow will resume IY"H next week, November 15t 3:00pm Mishna, Mitzvot, and More - Phil Chernofsky 7:30pm Sefer bamidbar Dr. Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg 7:30pm NEW CLASS with Rabbi Francis Nataf: - Lesser known Tanach personalities (Special deal for both Rabbi Nataf's and Rabbi Assis's classes: 35/40nis) 8:30pm Rabbi Dr. Elie Assis, a senior lecturer of Tanach at Bar Ilan: The Book of Melachim (in Hebrew) Contact Sam Finkel 052-469-1263 MASK - J'lem Chapter at the Israel Center - maskjerusalem.cjb.net 050 754 2717 NEXT MEETING: Monday, Nov. 15, 7:30-9:30pm with Dr. Judy Belsky Yom Sh'lishi 2 Kislev - TUE November 9th 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 Rabbi Aharon Adler - Torah of Eretz Yisrael 10:15am Rabbi Sholom Gold - Parshat HaShavua Tuesdays 10:30-12:30 beginning November 9th regular fees Physical and Mental Independence - Ongoing Course with Discussion at the Israel Center Presented by the Senior Social Worker from Anglo Agency Doreen Winter, M.S.W with over 23 years experience For more information, call (02) 625-4328 11:20am Esther Sutton's new inspirational series for women - Becoming Non-Mechanical Jews 11:30am Jewish History, 2nd Temple Period - Dr. Henry Goldblum - The Revival at Yavne: The Age of Rabban Gamliel (cont) 12:30pm Dr. Maurice E. Joseph Jewish Video Resource Center presents...VIDEO in the LIBRARY: Special, first-time showing at the Center: Dramatization of the life of the World War II heroine, Hannah Szenes (Chana Senesh, HY"D). Talented writer, poet, Zionist, at the age of 18, she left her native Hungary for Eretz Yisrael. In 1943, Hannah joined the British Army and volunteered to be parachuted behind Nazi lines. She was captured when she returned to Hungary to help the Jews who were being rounded up and deported... Over several months of merciless torture, Hannah divulged no secrets. She was executed at the age of 23. After the war, her remains were brought to Israel and were buries on Har Herzl. Hannah's diary and poetry as well as her memory have survived... a symbol of idealism and self-sacrifice. Powerful, moving film, the story of this special woman (2.5 hrs) 1:00pm Writing as self-discovery (women only) Exploring the stories of your life - Esther Sutton Gabriella Licsko's new series: "Exploring Israeli culture, history, and society" will resume IY"H next week, November 16th l"L'ayla Learning program for women: (Sun AM, Wed. evenings) and TUE 7:15pm A deeper study of Ramban on Torah - Rabbi Meir Triebitz 8:30pm Parsha through the Eyes of the Meforshim: An analysis and comparison of Parshanei HaMikra - Rabbi Yonatan Kolatch Tuesday, November 9th 8:00pm - "Shanghai - My Miraculous Life" Come and hear the fascinating story of international speaker Leah Jacob Garrick, Fourth generation of her family to live in Shanghai... Until she left after the Japanese occupation following the 2nd World War, Leah had lived a classic colonial life with an observant Sephardic Jewish lifestyle. Yom R'vi'i 3 Kislev - WED November 10th 9:00am Sefer bamidbar Dr. Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg 9:20am Contemporary Halachic Issues Rabbi Macy Gordon - Topic: Pluralism in Orthodoxy 9:45am Parshat Vayeitzei with Reuven Wolfeld Topic: "Getting Stoned" 10:45am Parshat HaShavua R' Yosef Wolicki 12:30pm Dr. Maurice E. Joseph Jewish Video Resource Center presents... VIDEO in the LIBRARY: Rabbi Ephraim Sprecher "Why is Living in Chutz L'Aretz a Form of Idolatry?" various MINI-Shiur/Divrei Torah while you fold 12:45pm TaiChi for Health with Avi Hirsch 1:30pm Medical Chi Kong with Avi Hirsch 050-7671-722 Women's Beit Midrash resumes IY"H next week Wednesday, November 10th 8:00pm - What will happen when the first American advisor to the PLO armed forces is killed in action? How to work with the new US Congress to stop US military aid to the PLO armed forces, US aid to PLO incitement education, US aid to UNRWA policies that reinforce "the right of return" Discussant: David Bedein, www.IsraelBehindTheNews.com 9:00pm - Screening: "For the Sake of Nakba", filmed in the UNRWA Palestinian Arab refugee camps in May, followed by UNRWA's angry reaction to the film and filmaker David Bedein's rebuttal to UNRWA on Israel TV L'ayla Learning program for women: (Sun. AM, Tue. evening) and WED 8:00pm Learning in Chavrusos, pairing stronger and beginning learners Yom Chamishi 4 Kislev - THU November 11th 9:00am Exercise Class for Women 10:30am (to 12:30) Jewish Women, the Matriarchs, and the Tanach - Dr. Hayim Abramson various MINI-Shiur/Divrei Torah while you fold Verna's knitting group will resume IY"H in a few weeks - watch for details 7:30pm Dr. Maurice E. Joseph Jewish Video Resource Center presents...VIDEO in the LIBRARY: "Hanna's War" - For those who can't come to the Center in the afternoon. Yom Shishi 5 Kislev - FRI November 12th 8:30am (to 9:45am) Kollel Yom Shishi 9:00am Guest Presenter 11:00am RCA Daf Yomi UPCOMING... Tuesday, November 16th 8:00pm - Exploring Israeli culture, history, and society: The last 250 years in the history of the Land of Israel The most important facts that you "must" know about Israel A new lecture series with Gabriella Licsko Sunday, November 21st 11:30am - The Big D (Dementia) Learn about one of the fastest growing Illness - for the over 70 years of age Aaron Rabin, MD, PhD Fellow, American Academy of Neurology; Fellow, College of Physicians - "Life's Transitions - End of Life Decisions" Alan Deutch, CPA Masters in Finance and Taxation; member of American CPAs; Society of Trust and Estate Planners; Tax Reform Action Committee Ohad Raz - Private Account Manager, Bank Mizrachi Defining: Apotropus (guardianship); Power of Attorney; Joint bank account ramifications, if one develops dementia Mimi F. Teplow, Coordinator - chairperson; Q & A Program in English 15/20NIS In loving honor to Netanel Avraham ben Gittel New lecture series on Thursday mornings, 10:00am, Starting IY"H on November 18th Rabbi Aharon Ziegler will be exploring the world of Rabbinic Responsa with a special focus on the halachic decisions and practices of HaRav Yosef Dov Soloveitchik zt"l Attendees are invited to join the Torah Tidbits folders before and/or after Rabbi Ziegler's shiur Mother-Daughter Bat Mitzva Class at the Israel Center Now forming - Call Pearl Borow for more details (02) 671-3567 PRE-CHANUKA GIFTS FAIR Sunday before Chanuka - November 28th 0:00am to 6:00pm Vendors interested in selling their wares should call 560-9125 for details and to register for a table. Books, gift items, food, jewelry, toys... BOOKED WITH A WAITING LIST - You are cordially invited to the RCA-Israel's Melava Malka honoring Phil Chernofsky, Educational Director of the OU Israel Center and editor of Torah Tidbits, Motza"Sh, Dec. 11, 7:30pm at the OU Israel Center Cost: 90nis per person - Reservations with payment ONLY, on a first come first serve basis Contact Rabbi Bienenfeld: jdbnfeld@aol.com 054 221 0748, Rabbi Borow: aborow@zahav.net.il 054-671-5466) or Rabbi Karzen: jkarzen@netvision.net.il 052 383 3835 Make checks payable to the RCA-Israel Region and either mail to the RCA-Israel Region, POB 7854, Jerusalem, 91077 or dropped off in a sealed envelope at the Israel Center, attention: Ita Rochel Remember that all reservations become active only upon payment N.B. The Israel Center has limited space and as we are anticipating a sell-out crowd, so please get your reservations in early. Deadline: Tuesday, Nov. 30th In honor of Phil, we hope to distribute a Birkon at the Melava Malka. You may have your name printed on the Birkon for a contribution of 180NIS. Contact Rabbi Phil Goldman 050-637-0841 philipheg@012.net.il to have your name included.