Insights and Inspiration
from the
Holy Land
from
Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz
"Your friend in Karmiel"
April 24th 2020 -Volume 10
Issue 27 30th Nissan 5780
Parshat Tazria / Metzora
Remember When
Do you remember when we would make fun of those silly Asians we
would see walking around with those facemasks all over the place? On the buses,
the trains, the planes…Who's laughing now? How about those germaphobes that
used to Purell all the time or the ones that got all nervous when you double
dip with your pita in the techina or with your French fries in their ketchup. I
remember I had tourists, more than once, that would not sleep on hotel sheets
and would always travel with their own sheets and pillow cases. Weird, right?
Maybe not anymore.
How about when we would look down on those guys that never showed
up in Shul. Or when we looked pitifully at those people who didn't have jobs
and provide for their families and just sat at home (or Kollel…shhhh?) all day
and asked the government for handouts? Or how those "in-towners (NY'ers)"
couldn't understand how anyone could live in a city where there were not a selection
of restaurants that one could eat out at all the time or avenues with stores of
all kinds one could shop in. "Real" cities, they said, have minyan
factories, hundreds of shiurim and classes and mikvas for every
preference and a good shvitz to boot. Well guess what? They're shopping
at the same two stores and getting deliveries and are not eating out and are
learning all their Torah online just like the guy in Birmingham Alabama is.
Let's not forget how we once looked at simchas. Remember how
we thought so many people were doing these extravagant showy bar mitzvas,
weddings, vorts and even upsherins. What an ayin hara, we
thought. How show-offy! Or on the other hand how some other people just did it
so cheap and simple not even bakvodik? Like those Israeli wedding
factories with a piece of schnitzel and some leftover salatim from
Shabbos. How we looked at them as well as affairs that really didn't provide
the proper respect due to the special occasion. Maybe it was good for them, but
c'mon it's getting a little carried away. It seems nobody knew how to make a
real "bata'aamteh" simcha like we did. Well guess what? Now
we're all doing it the same way. And everyone thinks its very bat'aamte.
For someone else at least...
We are living in a world where the NY'ers are like out-of towners,
where the minyan and shiur-goers are like the guys who never showed, and where
we all walk around outside like germaphobic Asians waiting for our government
check like the Kollel guy as we're marrying our children in our backyard for a
buck fifty and keep the change. Welcome to our 2020/5780 Corona world. We sit
at home. We hit the fridge. We try to entertain and maybe even educate our
kids. (Remember when we thought Rebbeim and teachers had easy cop-out jobs
because they didn't want to get "real" ones?) Learn a little, daven a
little, socialize a little on zoom. My bedroom slippers are getting worn out.
They're Crocs. They're not supposed to wear out. I've had them for five years.
Slippers don't wear out. I very rarely wore slippers (much to my superstitious
mother's consternation who felt that walking around in socks is a bad sign, as
that's what mourners do). But now they are getting holes in the bottom. It
feels like we are in some type of Science Fiction movie from a bizarre
apocalyptical future. Or perhaps it is maybe out of some biblical plague-filled
past.
The siren went off this past week for Yom Hashoah- Israel's
Holocaust Memorial day. Normally when the siren goes off it is jarring, because
it snaps everyone out of their busy daze. Traffic comes to halt. Buses stop. People stand in one spot and hold
a moment of silence or recite psalms. It's like the whole world has been put on
a pause for that moment. And then it goes back to normal. This year the world
has been on pause for two months already. The siren actually did just the
opposite. Rather than cut through all the noise it broke through the already
deafening silent streets. It pierced everyone's home, everyone's loneliness and
isolation. It was like that shofar blast on Rosh Hashana when everyone is
already silent and waiting and the Shofar moves us to the next level. To the
deepest depths of oneself. That's where
we are meant to be finding ourselves.
This week's Torah portion is one that couldn't get more relevant in
its description of that personal plague filled existence. It describes the metzora,
the person who has been put into isolation because of a physical manifestation
in the form of a blemish for a spiritual malady that he is suffering from. The
Metzora kind of looks like a lot of us do these past few months. He is unkempt
and not shaving, wearing ripped clothing or pajamas, he rarely goes out except
for his important purchases and when he does he has to wear a face mask that
covers his mouth. The reason though is not necessarily because his tzora'as
is contagious. It isn't. It is though, the commentaries suggest, because his
spiritual sickness is. In fact, it's toxic.
See tzora'as comes because our metzora was someone that engaged in lashon
hara- speaking badly about others. According to our sages in the Talmud (Bava
Basra 165.), most people are guilty of some type of gezel- thievery or
financial impropriety and there are a minority of people that fall into
prohibited illicit relationships. But everyone is guilt of some form of Lashon
Hara. Everyone. It is the most toxic of all sins. The most contagious. As
well it is the most damaging. And it has its start right from the beginning of
the world when the snake convinced Eve to eat from the tree by bad-mouthing God
who is trying to keep it all for Himself. Interestingly enough Adam and Eve
were then sent to isolation from Hashem being thrown "out of the
camp" as a result of that sin.
That sin reflects itself in the form of blemishes that pop out on
one's own body. There is a message in that. The Metzora has been busy trying to
find or spread blemishes in or about others. Take a look at your own. A long
hard look, while in isolation, where all you can see are your own. The verse
tells us
Vayikra (13:44-45) He is a man afflicted with tzara'ath;
he is unclean. The kohen shall pronounce him tamey -impure; his nega-blemish
is on his head. And the person with tzara'ath, in whom there is the blemish,
his garments shall be torn, his head shall be unshorn, he shall cover himself
down to his mustache and call out, "Tamey Tamey -Impure! Impure!".
All the days the blemish is upon him, he shall remain unclean. He is unclean;
he shall dwell isolated; his dwelling shall be outside the camp.
The Klei Yakar notes that the laws of tearing his garments, not
cutting his hair, covering his face and being put in quarantine lockdown, is
applicable to a metzora who has a blemish on any part of his body. Yet for some
reason the Torah connects it to the specific law of tzara'as of the
head. As well if he's in isolation, what is this calling out and saying "tamey
tamey". Who's he talking to? One last question and strange thing about
these laws is that unlike any other form of tum'ah impurity. The metzora
is only impure and tamey when the Kohen sees it and declares it thus. If
no one sees it… he ain't tamey. Why is that?
The answer and message
perhaps is, that the blemish and tzora'as that he sees on himself is
really a result of him seeing the bad and blemishes in others. We have a rule kol
ha'posel b'mumo posel- he who finds fault and see imperfection in others
it's because it is really a projection of a flaw that is within himself. Do you
know where the source of all blemishes is from? The head. It's all in the way
we think about the world, about others. The way we judge them and the way we
look at them. Just because someone is different, behaves differently, acts in
ways you might feel are inappropriate, irresponsible, cheap, show-offy,
immature… I don't know…Whatever way you (I) looked at others negatively.
Guess what? We are creating something toxic- a nega- if you will, in our
head. The Metzora calls out "tamey tamey"- he is talking to
himself. He is saying I am tamey because I saw others as tamey.
That is the week or two-week long conversation he is having with himself during
his personal pandemic.
We all have blemishes, flaws, contradictions, sins but somehow we
don't see them or judge them. We may even avoid dealing with them because we
say to ourselves "but we're not as bad as he/she is". The more
and the more we do that, the more and more toxic and contagious we become. The
more we need a Kohen to come and tell us that the blemish is really in our own
head. We are the metzoras. The blemishes only come out when they are
seen by another. When someone looks at someone else. That is the lesson the
Torah is teaching us. The Kohen takes a long hard look at us. And we then are
meant to take a long hard look at all the blemishes we found in others and see
them in ourselves. It's the reason Hashem hits him with the plague. It's the
purpose of why one goes into isolation.
There is nobody in the entire world that the Corona virus hasn't
said Shalom Aleychem to, in one form or another. It could be in the most
tragic of ways; with sickness or death of a loved one. It could be by hitting
our income, it could be by simply inconveniencing our plans and lifestyle our
simchas and our shuls and social gatherings. We have all been put into
isolation in some form of another and we can all remember how we used to look
at people and the world before this plague hit us. The metzora comes out of his
room and is pronounced tahor- pure once again only when the Kohen sees
him and pronounces him such. Becoming pure means being able to look at someone
who had the worst spiritual blemishes and stating that he is pure. I don't see
any of that old stuff. I don't see any negativity. In the famous words of the
letter of the Chasidic master Reb Elimelech of Lizensk "shnire'h kol
echad ma'alas chavareinu"- we see the greatness in one another v'lo
chesronum- and not their flaws or their lacking. It is the work we are
meant to be doing in this period of the counting of Omer when the students of
Rabbi Akiva died because they couldn't find that honor in their friends.
Hashem has given all of us a lot of time to do that incredibly
challenging work. There is a siren piercing our silence and isolation.We are so
programmed in our information, shmutz, scandal and negativity finding
world we are all metzoras. Even in this isolation there are people we
are looking out at and judging and blaming for the spread of the crisis. We are
calling them tamey and failing to see the tumah within ourselves.
The toxicity level, as far as I see, hasn't tapered off at all. Am I prepared
to look at all those people I judge and think about and find their beauty? Can
I stop seeing their flaws? Is the nega still in my head? Or will I still
remember them the same disparaging way that I did before all of this started?
The month of Iyar that we welcome this Shabbos our sages tell us can be read as
an acronym for the verse Ani Hashem Rofecha- I am Hashem your healer.
May Hashem this month bring us that Kohen Gadol who will declare finally that
all of us have finally been purified.
Have a purely
peaceful Shabbos and a healing Chodesh Iyar
Rabbi Ephraim
Schwartz
********************************
RABBI SCHWARTZ’S FAVORITE YIDDISH PROVERB OF THE WEEK
" Az
oif dem hartsen iz bitter, helft nit in moil kain tsuker."-. If
there’s bitterness in the heart, sugar in the mouth won’t make it sweeter.
RABBI SCHWARTZ’S COOL VIDEO OF THE WEEK
https://youtu.be/GX9EKy6DZE0 - Good old classic Tear drop on
the floor Corona edition original Moshe Yess Megama. Great!
https://youtu.be/ab0ltBkrl4k - Motty Illowitz moving Yiddish
video and song Vanitza'ak inspiring.
https://youtu.be/Uy51veQyDEA –
Beautiful singing Yishai Ribo Natan Goshen Achakeh Lo a beautiful acapella
https://youtu.be/4rvu8qHiEEM – in honor of Yom Ha'atzamaut Israel's
72nd birthday Home by Maccabeats!
RABBI
SCHWARTZ'S TOUR GUIDE EXAM QUESTION OF THE WEEK
answer below at end of Email
24) The founder
of Havat HaAlamot (“the maidens’ farm”) was:
A.
Rachel the poetess (Rachel ha’meshoreret)
- Golda Meirson
- Manya Shochat
- Hana Meisel
RABBI
SCHWARTZ'S PARSHA/MITZVA CONNECTION OF THE WEEK
Parshat Tazria/Metzora-V'Huva
el Ha'Kohen– Metzora today?-The parshiyos this week discuss perhaps one of the
more seemingly esoteric mitzvos of the Torah; the laws of the Metzora. In a
nutshell tzora'as is some form of a spiritual generated blemish or growth-
resembling a form of leprosy-that can form on a person, one's clothing or
house. It comes in many colors and the Torah elaborates on its descriptions. In
order for the tzora'as to be declared impure and thus making the person or
object impure or tamey it must be viewed or seen by a Kohen who declares
it thus.
If it falls on
a person he is sent out of the camp for a period of at least week up till the
time it clears up, if it's uncertain he is quarantined until a second
examination takes place. The metzora outside of the camp is not allowed to be
in contact with others. He is like a mourner who allows his hair to grow and
rips his clothing and he covers his face with a mask (sound familiar) and has
to declare to all that his is tamei.
When it clears
up and the Kohen declares that he has been cured, he undergoes a purification
process. The process has much symbolism and heebeejeebee type of stuff to it,
which I'm not going to get into here. Look it up on your own if you wish to
find out about it. But this is what it is. All of the metzora's bodily hair is
shaved and his clothes cleaned. We take two birds and slaughter one and pour
its blood and poured into a earthenware vessel. That mixture of blood was then
sprinkled using cedarwood (a tall tree) hyssop (a lowly bush-today's zaatar
comes from it) and a red string (called tolaat shani) and sprinkled on
the Metzora. The other bird was dipped into the mixture as well and set free. The
Metzora would then wait another 7 days, shave off whatever hair grew purify
himself and bring offerings in the temple where the blood of the offerings
would be sprinkled on parts of his body as well. Yeah… I told you strange
estoric stuff that seemingly isn't relative to us today…. Or is it?
See the Rambam
who counts at least 6 mitzvos having to do with Metzora quotes early sources
and rules that the laws of Metzora are applicable for all times even without
out the Temple and even- get this- outside of Israel! In fact, the Talmud tells
us stories post Temple where they had Kohanim that purified metzoras. Now sure
we cannot bring the offerings that a Metzora needs to bring for total
purification without a Temple. But seemingly the rest of laws should all apply.
In fact, the great Tifferes Yisrael in the 1800's notes that he asked Rebbi
Akiva Eiger one of the leading halachi authorities of his time, this very
question and Rabbi Akiva Eiger said he himself was not sure why the laws would
not apply today.
Now there are a
few laws that this would be relevant to and a few approaches to why it is not
in force. The first is there seems to be a mitzva to go to the Kohen. In fact
the Chinuch even lists this as biblical mitzva. He suggests that perhaps it is
not practiced because there are no Kohanim or tradition that is possessed by
them as to how to properly identify what is and isn't tzora’as. But that in
itself seems to be problematic. We are a people that passed down our laws and
traditions about everything. If this is something that is for all times why
wasn't it passed down?
So the Tifferes
Yisrael suggests that the reason it is not in practice is because the law is
that part of the purification process would be that the metzora's entire
bodily hair is meant to be shaved with a razor. This is despite the fact that
normally it is prohibited to shave with a razor ones facial hair biblically
(electric shavers that are not right up to the skin are fine according to most
authorities). This is a special dispensation and mitzva of a positive
commandment (for the metzora to shave) knocking out the negative commandment
(to shave with a razor) called asey doche lo sa'aseh. This can only be
done if have a Kohen who we are positive of his kohanic lineage. Since
today we're not so sure therefore the law fell out of use and was forgotten.
Seemingly that
logic would only apply to purifying the metzora. However there would still seem
to be an obligation even today to bring him to a Kohen and to establish him as
a Metzora and why should that have been lost and stopped. As well what about
the blemishes on one's house or clothing where the law is that they have to be
purified or destroyed shouldn't those laws have still been kept and in force.
So there are those that suggest that perhaps since we cannot make him pure than
we no longer have the ability to make him impure either. The Ohr Samayach
suggests that once we did not any longer know what was the tola'at shani-
red string specifically so than as well it became impossible to purify and thus
we no longer made one tamey.
On a more
mystical level I have heard it said that Hashem only brings tzora'as which is a
reflection of a spiritual malady when it serves as a purpose to lift one up.
One has to be on a higher spiritual level than we are today for that to work.
Today due to our sins and the level of tuma'ah we are in Hashem has made
it that our bodies are no longer sensitive to our spiritual infractions. We're
not at the level that it would inspire us anymore for teshuva. Thus mystically
Hashem no longer uses that method to awaken us to turn to him. Sadly and
tragically we undergo many other worse wake up calls. Hopefully we will not
need anymore.
RABBI SCHWARTZ'S ERA’S AND THEIR PLACES AND PEOPLE IN
ISRAEL OF THE WEEK
Shmuel/ Samuel 931-879
BC
– The book of Shmuel begins with the story of his birth and
his mother Chana's prayers on his behalf. We are introduced to his father
Elkana and his two wives Penina and Chana who live in the village called Ramatayim
Tzofim. Where exactly
is the place has been a subject of discussion for centuries if not longer.
Another related question seems to be if this the same place that is called Rama
where Shmuel is buried. If that is the case then it certainly is not in the
place called Nebi Samuel or the Tomb of Shmuel Hanavi today, as
that is clearly in the portion of Binyamin and not as our verses tell us
in the portion of the tribe of Ephraim which would be in the Shomron.
However even if the burial place is different than the one in mt. Ephraim and
in the portion of Binyamin It wouldn't be where the tomb is. In fact the area
of the tomb of Shmuel as being such really has its roots in the Crusaders in
the 11th century who upon first seeing Jerusalem which they would
conquer from there sought to give it some biblical significance.
So where is
Rama in Mt. Ephraim? In early times there were those that placed it
near, Ramla, Ramalla, Tzuba all which have been pretty much debunked.
The most probable location is right outside of the yishuv Karnei Shomron
not far from Shiloh or alternatively near the yishuv called Neve Tzuf
not far from ancient Beit El.
Ok so now that
we got the location what's the story? So we are told that Elkana would go to
the Mishkan which was in Shilo at the time- which can today be visited
at Tel Shilo in the Shomron (well not actually today because of Corona, but you
get what a mean…) To bring sacrifices to Hashem and to pray for his wife Chana
to have children. See wife number two Penina had lots of kids. Chana was
infertile. The offerings Elkana would bring were Peace offerings in which the
offering was shared by the Kohen who at the time were the children of Eli, and
the person bringing the offering, and part would be brought on the altar of
Hashem. Elkana would give Penina and her children all to share one portion
while Chana would get one all to herself. It was Elkana's way of consoling her.
But it didn't help. It probably even made it worse. Here she is eating alone…
Penina felt
that Chana wasn't davening enough and she would harass her… We all know women
like that. They think they are doing something for your good, but really they
are just being insensitive and hurting them with their great ideas of things
you should do better to fix your problem. It's a very Jewish and certainly
Israeli nosy thing to do. But Chana was devastated she comes to the Mishkan to
pray and she is so distraught she speaks to Hashem and makes an oath promising
that if Hashem will give her a son she will dedicate him entirely to God and he
will be a Nazir.
Next week we
will talk about the impact and fulfillment of the lessons of Chana's prayer
where we learn many laws of prayer from.
RABBI SCHWARTZ’S AND EVEN MORE TERRIBLE CORONA JOKES OF
THE WEEK
FUNNIEST MEME's of the WEEK
Napping tip of
the week: if you want to nap during the week while the kids are home, just say
"Wake me up in 30 minutes so we can clean the house". They will then
literally do anything so as not to wake you up.
What surprises
me the most about this Corona virus is that it has accomplished something that
women have been trying to do for ages. Cancel all sports, shut down all bars
and keep men at home.
Calculate your
next travel destination
1) Pick a number
between 1-9
2) Multiply it by
3
3) Add 3 to it
4) Multiply it by
3 again
5) Add the two
digit numbers together
6) The number you
get is where you will be traveling
1) Singapore
2) Spain
3) Africa
4) Israel
5) Russia
6) Australia
7) Thailand
8) England
9) Your living
room
10) Yosemite
11) France
12) Alaska
13) Greece
I was talking
to my Israeli dietician the other day and she asked me if I want to talk about
the "elephant in the room". I told her that I didn't know they had
that expression in Hebrew as well. She asked me what expression…
After listening
Linda, his human complain for 12 days as she complained for hours Sparky
realized he was not cut out to be an emotional support dog.
My lockdown
routine
Wake up – eat
Shower- eat
Read- eat
Nap- eat
Surf on my
computer- eat
Shower- eat
Sleep- eat
Rep-eat
Taking your
temperature when you go into the Supermarket is really exaggerated. Have you
ever seen a man with 101 degree temperature go out and do some shopping.
I'm not sure
what to do this summer… Do I look in the closet and try to find my shorts and
see if they still fit or should I just cut the legs off my pajamas
A month and
some into the quarantine and my son asked me why I'm talking to myself. I told
him that I am in parent teacher conferences with his teacher…
As Israel
celebrates its 72nd birthday it's traditional Yom Ha'atzmaut
celebrations has been canceled because at 72 years old it is in the at risk age
group
Asking for a
friend if my car is parked is there a point on putting an Israeli flag on it
for Yom Ha'atzmaut?
I was pulled
over by a cop the other day he told me that my breath smelled of alcohol. I
told him that it was because he was not watching his social distance
Can some please
explain me why there is no vaccine yet for a virus that can be killed with
alcohol and soap gell?
**********************************
Answer is D– OK I'm doing well. This one I
found pretty easy. Chana Meisel was famous for starting this farm right outside
of Tiverya to train women to be farmers. Rachel Hameshoreret was there as well.
Golda Meirson AKA Golda Meir and Manya Shochat were both involved in Kibuutz
work although I don't think either trained there. It's definitely an
interesting place to visit and interesting story that really had a big part in
the early chalutzim pioneer kibbutz movement, although I don't think I ever
brought tourists there. Maybe one day when this whole thing clears up. So the
score now stands at Schwartz 15 and 9 for MOT (Ministry of Tourism) on this
exam. I still don't have a passing score yet on this exam but I'm getting
closer…
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