As regular readers of this blog are aware, the Monday post is usually devoted to sports with highlights and analysis of the Max Kellerman show which formerly aired on 1050 ESPN Radio. Although Max has resigned from 1050 and has not yet resurfaced on the NY area airwaves, I have decided to continue the tradition of linking sports to Torah which I believe was an undercurrent of the Max Kellerman show.
As anyone with electricity is aware, the country is in the midst of March Madness, when average Joes and Jills with no connection to the 65 colleges in the NCAA Tournament will suddenly develop an affinity for various schools which they did not attend. For me, I can recall many a March night watching or listening to the NCAA broadcast, hoping to see the St. John's Redmen (now Redstorm) advance in the dance. While the program has declined in recent years, I still root hard for them when they are in the Big East Tournament, hoping against hope that they would earn the automatic bid and punch a ticket to the dance. Much like my hockey years in my youth, I am left disappointed when the Johnies don't make it to the NCAA tournament. At least this year they played with some fire despite massive injuries and had some wins against quality opponents down the stretch. Still, the season did end with a loss to the Richmond Spiders in a third rate tourney.
Speaking of the season ending with a loss, I heard an interesting statement during the TV broadcast of the end of the Oklahoma game yesterday. The commentator said that it was sad that Blake Griffin's college career would end with a loss. However, when you make the NCAA Tournament, every team's season ends in a loss with the exception of the National Champion. This is in stark contrast to the end of the NCAA football season when thirty some odd teams are crowned bowl winners as reward for winning their "last game" of the season. [While some would have you believe that there is only one national champion in NCAA football, the BCS process is severely flawed and there simply is no true champion].
The comment about how close teams get, yet only one succeeds reminded me of a question that my 9 year old daughter Yael asked me on Shabbos - why does the dayeinu song say that it would have been enough for Hashem to bring us to Har Sinai and not give us the Torah? Had we actually gotten so close to the goal of receiving the ultimate book of knowledge, why would it have been enough for us?
I saw two completely different answers to the question which I would like to repeat in this post.
The Adir B'Melucha haggadah quoting the Yismach Yehudah compares the situation to a baby. A baby does not need to be taught to nurse as it instinctively knows how to get sustenance. The Torah and its mitzvos similarly sustain us, yet because of our historical actions we have deteriorated and cannot instinctively sustain ourselves from the Torah. Indeed, the Gemara in Yoma (28b) teaches that the Avos kept the Torah without having received it, because they knew what was to be done. The Gemara in Shabbos (146a) teaches that when the Jews reached Har Sinai their impurities were gone and they could say na'aseh v'nishma because they now instinctively knew the Torah before being told what was written therein.
Since the Jews were on such a high level when they arrived at Har Sinai that they instinctively knew the Torah laws without having yet received the written text, they could sincerely say that even had they only gotten to Har Sinai and not received the written Torah, it would have been enough, because they had returned to the level of instinctively knowing the Torah.
The other answer I would like to repeat is from the Chassam Sofer as quoted in the Chassam Sofer haggadah. He explains that the word nesinah as used in the line in dayeinu is very telling. The root nassan is generally used to describe the giving of a present. We see that Moshe was given Torah as a present from Hashem in the Gemara in Nedarim 28a which writes that the verse in Shemos 31:18 "Moshe was given when he finished talking to Him" teaches that Moshe kept forgetting the Torah he had learned until it was given to him as a gift.
This is the meaning of the dayeinu. Had Hashem brought us to Har Sinai and not given us the Torah as a present it would have been enough for us, because by all rights we should have been made to earn the Torah. However, since it was given to the Jews as a gift, we say an extra special thank you by mentioning it in dayeinu.
If you have seen this post being carried on another site such as JBlog, please feel free to click here to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!
As anyone with electricity is aware, the country is in the midst of March Madness, when average Joes and Jills with no connection to the 65 colleges in the NCAA Tournament will suddenly develop an affinity for various schools which they did not attend. For me, I can recall many a March night watching or listening to the NCAA broadcast, hoping to see the St. John's Redmen (now Redstorm) advance in the dance. While the program has declined in recent years, I still root hard for them when they are in the Big East Tournament, hoping against hope that they would earn the automatic bid and punch a ticket to the dance. Much like my hockey years in my youth, I am left disappointed when the Johnies don't make it to the NCAA tournament. At least this year they played with some fire despite massive injuries and had some wins against quality opponents down the stretch. Still, the season did end with a loss to the Richmond Spiders in a third rate tourney.
Speaking of the season ending with a loss, I heard an interesting statement during the TV broadcast of the end of the Oklahoma game yesterday. The commentator said that it was sad that Blake Griffin's college career would end with a loss. However, when you make the NCAA Tournament, every team's season ends in a loss with the exception of the National Champion. This is in stark contrast to the end of the NCAA football season when thirty some odd teams are crowned bowl winners as reward for winning their "last game" of the season. [While some would have you believe that there is only one national champion in NCAA football, the BCS process is severely flawed and there simply is no true champion].
The comment about how close teams get, yet only one succeeds reminded me of a question that my 9 year old daughter Yael asked me on Shabbos - why does the dayeinu song say that it would have been enough for Hashem to bring us to Har Sinai and not give us the Torah? Had we actually gotten so close to the goal of receiving the ultimate book of knowledge, why would it have been enough for us?
I saw two completely different answers to the question which I would like to repeat in this post.
The Adir B'Melucha haggadah quoting the Yismach Yehudah compares the situation to a baby. A baby does not need to be taught to nurse as it instinctively knows how to get sustenance. The Torah and its mitzvos similarly sustain us, yet because of our historical actions we have deteriorated and cannot instinctively sustain ourselves from the Torah. Indeed, the Gemara in Yoma (28b) teaches that the Avos kept the Torah without having received it, because they knew what was to be done. The Gemara in Shabbos (146a) teaches that when the Jews reached Har Sinai their impurities were gone and they could say na'aseh v'nishma because they now instinctively knew the Torah before being told what was written therein.
Since the Jews were on such a high level when they arrived at Har Sinai that they instinctively knew the Torah laws without having yet received the written text, they could sincerely say that even had they only gotten to Har Sinai and not received the written Torah, it would have been enough, because they had returned to the level of instinctively knowing the Torah.
The other answer I would like to repeat is from the Chassam Sofer as quoted in the Chassam Sofer haggadah. He explains that the word nesinah as used in the line in dayeinu is very telling. The root nassan is generally used to describe the giving of a present. We see that Moshe was given Torah as a present from Hashem in the Gemara in Nedarim 28a which writes that the verse in Shemos 31:18 "Moshe was given when he finished talking to Him" teaches that Moshe kept forgetting the Torah he had learned until it was given to him as a gift.
This is the meaning of the dayeinu. Had Hashem brought us to Har Sinai and not given us the Torah as a present it would have been enough for us, because by all rights we should have been made to earn the Torah. However, since it was given to the Jews as a gift, we say an extra special thank you by mentioning it in dayeinu.
If you have seen this post being carried on another site such as JBlog, please feel free to click here to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!
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