Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Shelach

The following is a brief summary of thoughts said over by R' Frand on the parsha this evening. I have attempted to reproduce these vorts to the best of my ability. Any perceived inconsistency is the result of my efforts to transcribe the shiur and should not be attributed to R' Frand.

Parshas Shelach contains the well known story of the meraglim - the twelve spies who were sent on a reconnaissance mission to Israel. R' Frand noted that within the story, the Torah states in Bamidbar 13:22 "Va'yalu BaNegev Vayavo Ad Chevron" - they went up in the south and he arrived at Hevron. 

R' Frand noted the use of the mixed plural and singular terms and cited to Rashi's explanation (quoting the Gemara in Sotah 34b) that Calev left the other meraglim and went on his own to Chevron in order to seek a blessing. The Gemara explains that Calev asked the Avos to pray to Hashem that he not be influenced by the meraglim. The Gemara further explains that Yehoshua did not seek similar assistance as Moshe had already given him a beracha.

R' Frand next quoted R' Shlomo Wolbe who asked why did Calev go to Chevron to ask for help in resisting the meraglim? When a person does not know what to do, it is understandable that he would ask for assistance in making the right decision. But Calev knew that the meraglim's plot was wrong and that he should not join in their defaming of Israel. If he knew what the right way was to act, why did he need the beracha?

R' Frand answered that we learn from Calev that even when a person knows what the right decision should be, a person should seek to avoid being in a situation where he might come to act improperly. Because even when you know what the right decision is, when you put yourself in the way of temptation, you may wind up going the wrong way.

R' Frand gave an example of a person who is on a diet, but is invited to a wedding. The person knows that there will be tables full of temptation. The person may say to himself, I will avoid the foods which are bad for me ... but then find himself at the table anyway. The person needs to take steps to avoid temptation, like loading up on vegetables and healthy food before he comes to the wedding. That way, when the person finally gets to the shmorg, he will be too stuffed to eat. (I wish!).

R' Frand quoted R' Yisroel Salanter who gives another example from earlier in the Torah. In Bereishis 31:1-13, the Torah discusses how Ya'akov leaves Lavan. In 31:3, Hashem tells Ya'akov that he should leave Lavan. The following morning, Ya'akov does not immediately tell his wives that Hashem had told him that he should leave. Instead, Ya'akov talks to them about how Lavan is not acting nicely towards them and the Torah relates his conversation with the wives which spans nine pesukim. Only at 31:13 does he finally say - Hashem told me that now is the time to leave. Why does he wait so long to say that he heard from Hashem to do this?

R' Frand answered that Yaakov added all the fuel to the fire to psych them up so that they knew that they needed to leave. He put it all out so that it would be a slam dunk that they would have to agree with him to leave Lavan. Only at the end did he add that Hashem told him to do so.

We see from this how far a person must go to make sure that he has the assistance needed to make even the most logical "right" decision.

R' Frand closed the shiur by telling a story about a recent speech that Malcolm Hoenlein gave to an Evangelical group. The speech apparently took place this week, as Mr. Hoenlein began his address by saying that this week's Torah portion is Shelach, which discusses the spies. He then asked the audience - who are the only two spies who spoke positively about the land of Israel? As the people were familiar with the Bible he received a rousing - Caleb and Joshua as an answer.

Mr. Hoenlein then said to the group - and can you tell me the names of any of the ten spies who spoke negatively about the land of Israel? Not a single person answered.

Mr. Hoenlein said to them - you see from this that a person who speaks positively about Israel will be remembered forever. But a person who speaks negatively about Israel will be forgotten.

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Sunday Night Suds - Shiner FM 966 Farmhouse Ale

This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at Shiner FM 966 Farmhouse Ale.

No this is not a radio station (despite Mrs KB's kibbitzing). Its one of the newest offerings by Shiner, a Texas Brewery which as of last month has finally made its way to New York.

For years, Shiner has been one of those Western/Midwest breweries with one well known quality product (Shiner Bock - reviewed here kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2009/05/sunday-night-suds-shiner-bock.html) that people go out of their way to find, but which has not made its way to New York. I have picked up Shiner in Illinois, Florida, Pennsylvania and I have heard that it was available in New Jersey, but they never distributed in my home state. A few months ago, my go to beer guy (Beverage Barn on Jericho Turnpike in Garden City Park, NY) told me that Shiner was coming to New York. I was somewhat skeptical, but now its finally here!

The Shiner FM 966 Farmhouse Ale is characterized as a Saison which is defined by the experts at BA as:

sturdy farmhouse ale that was traditionally brewed in the winter, to be consumed throughout the summer months. Not so long ago it was close to being an endangered style, but over recent years there's been a massive revival; especially in the US. 

This is a very complex style; many are very fruity in the aroma and flavor. Look for earthy yeast tones, mild to moderate tartness. Lots of spice and with a medium bitterness. They tend to be semi-dry with many only having touch of sweetness.

For all my years of BeerEducation, I have only had one other Saison - the Samuel Adams Rustic Saison (reviewed here kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2011/06/sunday-night-suds-samuel-adams-rustic.html ) and I can't say that it was a good experience. However, this Farmhouse Ale is much more drinkable as there is a bit of almost apple tartness in the beer which then melds with some malt and phenols to make this a refreshing, almost fruity (although without any flavorings added) beer. 

I could see having this beer on a warm day after work, or with poultry dishes. More correlation is required!

Shiner FM 966 Farmhouse Ale is under the Kosher Supervision of the Va'ad of Detroit although there is no symbol on the the bottle. To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about Shiner Farmhouse Ale, please follow this link beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/143/88294.

As always, please remember to drink responsibly and to never waste good beer unless there is no designated driver. If you've tried this beer or any others which have been reviewed on the kosher beers site, please feel free to post your comments (anonymous comments are acceptable).

If you have seen this post being carried on another site, please feel free to click www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com/ to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Friday's Bonus Parsha Vort - Parshas Beha'aloscha

In yesterday's post, I presented a summary of some of the thoughts said over by R' Frand on the parsha on Thursday evening. As I was unable to complete the summary last evening, I have attempted to reproduce it in this post. As usual, any perceived inconsistency is the result of my efforts to transcribe the shiur and should not be attributed to R' Frand.

As an introduction to the Tollner Rebbe's addition to the vort, R' Frand made two observations. The first observation was that Moshe's message was that these people should be praised because they had been selected. Why is this something to be praised for?

Additionally, Rabbi Frand noted that the Rashi on these pesukim (Bamidbar 11:16-17) states that the people were praised because they had been chosen in the past as parnasim for the people. However, Rashi on an earlier pasuk in the Parsha uses a different tense to describe those who are selected to serve.

In Bamidbar 8:6, Moshe was told to take the Levi'im to serve. Rashi on this pasuk states that Moshe was told take the Lev'im with words - cajole them that they have been chosen to serve the community. R' Frand noted that the words in the selection of the Levi'im showed that they had been selected to serve in the future. This is in contrast to the Sanhedrin where it states that they were chosen in the past. 

R' Frand answered these questions by observing that these people were called parnasim of the tzibur. The gemara in Berachos 28 recites a conversation between two Rabbis where R' Gamliel sees that the walls of R' Yehoshua's house were black and says - you must be a blacksmith. R' Yehoshua responds to R' Gamliel - woe to our generation that you are the parnas for our people because you are oblivious to the people. You don't see the walls are black because the talmidei chachamim are destitute.

R' Yehoshua uses this word because a parnas is supposed to take care of the people and help them and be aware of their needs. R' Frand observed that this is the reason that the Sanhedrin were praised for being the parnasim of the people in Egypt. You understood the Jews and their troubles and helped them and were beaten for assisting them. You have been well prepared for the role of Sandhedrin, because you have the capacity to understand the people and take care of them. You are not just one who gives speeches, you are aware of the people and their needs and you will provide for them.

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Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Beha'aloscha

The following is a brief summary of thoughts said over by R' Frand on the parsha this evening. I have attempted to reproduce these vorts to the best of my ability. Any perceived inconsistency is the result of my efforts to transcribe the shiur and should not be attributed to R' Frand.

This week's parsha contains Hashem's command to Moshe to assemble the Sanhedrin. In these pesukim (Bamidbar 11:16-17), Hashem tells Moshe "Asfah Li" (take for me) these seventy men. Rashi explains that Hashem told Moshe that he will recognize these seventy men as they were previously chosen to be the policemen in Egypt. These men were set in charge of the Jews by the Egyptians and were tasked with assuring that the Jews met their quota. However, (unlike the kapos in the Holocaust) Rashi explains that these policemen were merciful to their fellow Jew and the policemen were made to absorb punishment when the Jews did not make their quota of bricks. Now, these men would receive their reward for being in pain when they were in Egypt.

Rabbi Frand asked - why is that these men received this form of reward? After all, a Judge is supposed to be more than just a supremely nice guy. No doubt, these men were merciful and brave, but how does that qualify them to be Judges in the Sanhedrin, the highest mortal court?

Rabbi Frand answered by quoting R' Moshe Shmuel Shapiro, who explained that we see from here that a person who takes on troubles for another, or who cries with and tries to understand another person's troubles, is rewarded with great wisdom and the ability to understand far more than the average person.

Rabbi Frand then tied this vort into a shiur said in the name of the Tolner Rebbi that R' Frand received via e-mail this afternoon. I will b'n try to summarize that vort in a post tomorrow, but I would like to add my own twist to R' Frand's answer.

Years ago, we had some family medical issues involving two different members of our family. At the time, I asked my shul Rav whether I should see a mikubal. My Rav told me - "don't go to a mikubal, go to a Rebbe. A Rebbe will sit with you and listen to you and cry with you and offer you advice and a beracha." 

I then went for the first time to New Square and met with the Rebbe. It was an unforgettable experience as the Rebbe had feet in both worlds and knew the questions to ask and made certain suggestions. I returned a few times later over the following years to speak with him about other matters and every time he had good advice and brachos. I was struck each time by how this saintly man had knowledge of the medical, professional, legal and business worlds as well as the world of Torah.

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Monday's Musings on Sports - Do Eddie LeBec, Matt Harvey & Yosef HaTzadik Have Anything In Common?

In last week's USA Today Sports Weekly, the Leading Off feature on the inside cover discussed the topic of jinxes in sports. The main focus of the article was the Matt Harvey "no hit" bid from the week before and the Mets' "history" of no hitters.

I use the term "history" in quotes because any loyal Mets fan would be able to tell you that prior to last year, no Mets pitcher had thrown a no-hitter or perfect game in their forty plus year history. Even last year's no-hitter which was thrown by Johan Santana had some tragedy built in as it required a game saving catch which landed Mike Baxter on the DL for nearly two months. Oh, and it might also have spelled the end of Johan Santana's career.

Back to the story, in the USA Today Sports Weekly, the article discussed how people who are observing a no-hitter will do anything not to jinx it. The archetype taboo act is to talk about the fact that there is a potential no hitter in progress, even though the pitcher can't hear you and certainly will not feel added pressure because the fan at home or even the broadcaster is aware that a no-hitter is in progress.

I can't resist not reproducing one of the best lines in the article wherein Will Leitch observed:

Every sports fan who is not an infant knows nothing he or she does during a sporting event is going to affect the outcome of that event. If you are able to walk across the street without getting lost or able to write your name in the dirt with a stick, you are aware of this. But that does not mean you should act that way.

The article made me think about a Cheers episode from when I was in high school. When Bruins (fictional) goalie Eddie LeBec came into the bar to order a drink before his game, Carla hit on him. LeBec invited Carla to the game and the Bruins won. This was LeBec's fifth win in a row and the fans were high on him. The night before the next game, LeBec came into the bar again and order the exact same drink that he had been having before each of his five wins - club soda with no ice and a lime. But LeBec varied his pregame ritual by spending time with Carla before leaving the bar. LeBec lost that game and the next seven in a row. Carla was inconsolable and she publicly dumped LeBec. LeBec knew that he dumped her because she thought she was a jinx and told her to stop being silly, but she would not take him back.

That night, LeBec won his first game and broke the losing streak. The Cheers episode continued with LeBec coming back to the bar some weeks later and ordering the same drink. When he finished his drink, Carla again publicly dumped him. A bar patron asked - didn't she just do that a few weeks ago? Everyone winked at the bar patron and LeBec left and won another game for the Bruins.

While I can rationalize and understand Leitch's point about how my rooting for a no-hitter or the announcer's omission of mentioning the no hitter will not have an impact on the game being played, there is some truth to the concept of jinx (which we know to be ayin hara). Unless the person being jinxed comes from Yosef HaTzadik. The gemara in Sotah 36b recounts a conversation between Yehoshua and the descendants of Yosef. When Yehoshua told them that they should hide so that they would not be affected by the ayin hara, they said that they are descendants of Yosef and exempt from the influence.

The gemara then recites that based on Bereshis 49: 22, Rabbi Abahu said that the children of Yosef are olei ayin, i.e., higher than and not affected by the ayin hara. Rabbi Yosi chimes in that the source is from here Bereishis 48:16 which states that Yosef's children will multiply like fish in the midst of the land. Just as fish in the sea are covered by water and the eye cannot dominate them, so, too Yosef's children cannot be dominated by the eye."

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Sunday Night Suds - New Belgium Dig Pale Ale

This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at New Belgium's Dig Pale Ale.

Although we have not had much of a spring this year, there is no reason to skip reviewing the beer of the season.

Spring Ales are usually high in their hop content, often with spice or citrus additives. The New Belgium Dig is also strong in its hop flavor, but without any added spice or fruit. Instead, the flavors in the Dig Pale Ale come from an interesting mix of Sorachi Ace, Nelson Sauvin and Cascade hops. The result is a beer with a strong lemon-like aftertaste but a little bit of pepper bite as well.

I would recommend this beer for beer purists who are looking for a Pale Ale with a little extra complexity in the flavor profile. The beer would go well with chinese food or even fish dishes.

New Belgium Dig Pale Ale is under the Kosher Supervision of the Scroll-K of Colorado. Although the beer does not bear the kosher symbol on the label, it can usually be found on the bottom of the six pack holder. Please note that not every brew produced by New Belgium is under kosher supervision. For a list of the New Belgium brews currently under supervision, please click on the link on the left side of my home page for my latest Kosher Beer List.

To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about New Belgium Dig Pale Ale, please follow this link beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/192/77480. As always, please remember to drink responsibly and to never waste good beer unless there is no designated driver.

If you've tried this beer or any others which have been reviewed on the kosher beers site, please feel free to post your comments (anonymous comments are acceptable).

Finally, if you have seen this post being carried on another site, please feel free to click www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Monday's Musings on Sports - Ruth, Pink Bats and Brophy, a Mother's Day Love Story

When the NHL playoffs are in full swing, I return to my childhood infatuation with hockey. While I am always interested in knowing what my beloved Rangers are doing, its the playoffs that draw my attention to the greater hockey world. This infatuation with hockey manifests itself in my religiously reading the Ranger blogs after the game and listening to NHL radio (XM Channel 92) when I am in the car.

Yesterday, I was driving my son to little league when I heard an interview with former coach John Brophy. Brophy talked about how when his kids were young, Brophy was coaching (I can't remember where) and the radio broadcast of the game mentioned that he had been giving someone a hard time. I don't remember where Brophy said that his wife was, but the story he told was that Brophy's mother had been watching his kids for at least part of the game.

Apparently, Brophy's actions were quite egregious, because when Brophy returned home there was a note left for him on his kitchen table from his mom. The note read "You're a Jerk, Love Mom." Only hockey players/coaches can tell stories like that.

While hockey had a humorous, if not uplifting story on Mother's Day, baseball had yet another public relations black eye. A number of years ago, major league baseball started a tradition of allowing the players to use pink bats on Mother's Day. The bats were tied to donations which were made to the Susan G. Komen - breast cancer foundation.

This year, Baltimore outfielder Nick Markakis and Minnesota third baseman Trevor Plouffe (who are reportedly both sons of breast cancer survivors) received special bats from manufacturer MaxBat. However, major league baseball banned them from using the bats because Louisville Slugger had made a donation to the Komen foundation in exchange for the exclusive rights to distribute pink bats with their logo on Mother's Day.

The actions of MLB in commercializing what should have been a nice gesture of honor and respect is hard to stomach. Major league ballplayers are not restricted to only using Louisville Slugger bats during the regular season. It is only on Mother's Day that players are told that the only pink bats they can use are Louisville Sluggers or those with no logo on them at all.

For a great piece on the controversy click here - http://sports.yahoo.com/news/mlb-whiffs-by-banning-competitors--pink-bats-on-mother-s-day-013725273.html.

During the same week as Mother's Day we will also read about the woman who showed great respect for her Mother (in law) and how she received a great reward. Ruth was the daughter in law of Naomi for a short period of time before her husband died. When Naomi chose to leave Moab, Ruth (who was a princess in her own right) pleaded that she wanted to stay with Naomi, rather than stay in Moab with Orpah, Ruth's other daughter in law. As a result of Ruth's desire to stay with and take care of Naomi, Ruth met with and married Boaz. Many years later, she saw her great grandson David become King of the Jews.

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Sunday Night Suds - Blue Moon Blackberry Tart Ale

This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at Blue Moon's new limited release - Blackberry Tart Ale.

Continuing their recent trend of bringing new beer straight from R&D to the public, Blue Moon has released three new beers in this season's Brewmasters Sampler Box. Unlike past mix boxes which have contained three or four different beers, the Summer 2013 Brewmasters Sampler Box contains five different beers: Blue Moon Belgian White (reviewed here kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2008/07/sunday-night-suds-blue-moon-belgian.html); Rounder Belgian Style Pale Ale; Short Straw Farmhouse Style Red Ale; Agave Pale Ale (reviewed here kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2012/05/sunday-night-suds-blue-moon-agave.html) and the Blackberry Tart Ale.

But while Blue Moon gives with one hand it takes away with the other. My absolute favorite Blue Moon product, the Summer Honey Wheat Ale (f/k/a Honey Moon) has been retired. And according to the Blue Moon website there are even odder sounding seasonals and limited editions on the horizon including Raspberry Cream Ale and Peanut Butter Ale.

The Blackberry Tart Ale is mellow in flavor and the added blackberries although tart, do not overwhelm the palate. This is not the Samuel Adams Blackberry Witbier (reviewed here kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2009/08/sunday-night-suds-samuel-adams.html) which hits you over the head with fruit and drowns every sip with sweetness. Instead, the Blue Moon Blackberry Tart Ale gives a little fruit at the end of each sip and provides just a little tartness. The result is a beer which can be enjoyed with meals such as rich beef dishes.

Blue Moon Blackberry Tart Ale is certified kosher by the Orthodox Union. For the experts take on the Blackberry Tart Ale, please click here beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/306/92402.

As always, please remember to drink responsibly and to never waste good beer unless there is no designated driver.

If you've tried this beer or any others which have been reviewed on the kosher beers site, please feel free to post your comments (anonymous comments are acceptable).

If you have seen this post being carried on another site, please feel free to click www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Bamidbar

The following is a brief summary of thoughts said over by R' Frand on the parsha this evening. I have attempted to reproduce these vorts to the best of my ability. Any perceived inconsistency is the result of my efforts to transcribe the shiur and should not be attributed to R' Frand. 

In this week's parsha, the Torah recites that the total number of Levi'im were 22,000. This number was derived by counting all male Lev'im who were more than thirty days old. However, the number itself is quite small when compared with the rest of the tribes. The Ramban observes that the smallest other tribe had double the number of Levi'im, despite the fact that the census taken of the other tribes only considered those people who were at least 20 years old! Why were there so few Levi'im? 

The Ramban answered his question with the observation that the small number of Levi'im was proof to the Medrash about how the oppression in Egypt caused a population explosion. In Parshas Shemos (1:12) the Torah states that as much as the Egyptians would afflict the Jews, they would grow larger in number. The Ramban stated that since the Levi'im were not among those who were enslaved, they did not benefit from the same population explosion. 

R' Frand next quoted the Ohr Hachayim Hakadosh who answered the question differently. He cited to a later pasuk in Shemos (2:1) which states "Vayelech Ish M'Beis Levi Vayikach Es Bas Levi" - a man from the house of Levi went and took the daughter of Levi. The Gemara in Sotah teaches that Amram had divorced Yocheved because of Pharaoh's decree. Amram's logic was that since the male children who would be born were going to be drowned in the river, why have children at all? However, Amram recanted his position when he was confronted by his daughter Miriam, who said to him - you are worse than Pharaoh. Pharaoh's decree was only against the male babies, but you are preventing all babies from being born. 

When the other men of Levi saw that Amram divorced Yocheved, they also divorced their wives. However, although Amram took Yocheved back, the other men of Levi did not do so and as such there were a much smaller number of Levi'im when the Jews left Egypt. 

The Ohr Hachayim Hakadosh explains that the reason that the Levi'im did not remarry their wives was because their lives were so comfortable. The Levi'im saw how horrible conditions were in Egypt and they felt that it would be better not to bring children into that environment. However, the members of the other tribes did not have it so easy and they did not have ideological problems with more children being born and subjected to Egyptian tyranny. 

R' Frand next quoted a Ba'al Haturim who stated that the words of Vayelech Ish occur only in one other place in Tanach - Megillas Ruth. The first pasuk of the Megillah states Vayelech Ish M'Beis Lechem Yehuda - that Elimelech went from Bethlehem to Moab. But what is the connection between the two pesukim? 

The Ba'al Haturim answers that Elimelech did not go to Moab to flee from the Jews. He was aware that the Moshiach would come from lineage that included a Moabite woman as his ancestor. At the time, the popular thought was that Moabite women (like Moabite men) should not be allowed to convert to Judaism. So Elimelech went to Moab to bring back Moabite women so that in the end there could be a Moshiach. 

This is the connection between the two pesukim. When Amram bucked popular thought to remarry Yocheved, the end result was Moshe - the first person to lead the Jews out of exile. When Elimelech went to bring back Moabite women, the end result was that Ruth became the ancestor of Moshiach. 

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Monday's Musings on Sports - One Minute, Just One Minute

I am not that much of a basketball fan and I can't say that I have more than a passing interest in the  NBA, but I heard an anecdote this morning which really struck a chord with me.

One of the best players on the Chicago Bulls' roster is Derrick Rose. Last year, Rose suffered a significant knee injury during a playoff game against the Philadelphia 76ers. Rose underwent surgery to repair his torn ACL in May 2012. An athlete who undergoes this kind of surgery can generally be out of the lineup from eight to twelve months.

Although the Bulls were without one of their best players, they managed to make the playoffs and secure the 5th seed. In the first round of this year's NBA playoffs, the Bulls squeaked by the 4th seeded Brooklyn Nets in seven games. In surviving the series, the Bulls lost other players to injury and the roster was even more depleted.

As the season wore on, the rumors began to percolate that Rose would return for the end of the season or perhaps for the playoffs. Rose himself fueled these rumors by stating that he would not rule out returning for the playoffs. Now that the Bulls have advanced to the second round, speculation has been growing stronger that Rose may actually return. However, the question on everyone's mind is what is holding Derrick Rose back from playing? Is he sitting out because the knee is not completely healed and there is a danger of doing further damage? Or is Rose sitting out because he does not feel 100% and is worried that he will not be able to play to his usual level of greatness?

The anecdote which caught my attention was told by Jeff Van Gundy. He said that when he was an assistant to Pat Riley there was a player who had been injured and came to the game in a suit, rather than the team uniform. During the pregame meeting, Riley asked the player why he was wearing a suit. The player responded that he was injured and could not play. Riley then asked the player - if I needed you for one minute in the game, could you give me one minute of play? The player responded that he could.  Riley then said to the player - so why are you wearing a suit?

The Riley story made me think about the concept of learning Torah and those who put it off because they have other things to do which they believe are more important. If you were to ask someone if they learned today, you may get a response that the person is too busy. But if you ask the person if he had five minutes in the day that could be used for learning, you would probably get an answer of yes. However, that answer would soon be followed by - what could five minutes of learning do for me? 

The answer to the responsive question is that the five minutes of learning IS important. It is understandable that people work long hours to support their families. Although the gemara talks about splitting ones time into thirds in order to learn and work and take care of personal needs, today's economy and environment make that impractical. But the five minutes of Torah learning has a value all of its own, both in spiritual growth and in helping a person to understand more about religion and why we do the things that we do. The only challenge is convincing yourself to give the five minutes that you know are available.

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Sunday Night Suds - Pacifico Clara

This week's Sunday Night Suds takes a seasonal turn and reviews Pacifico Clara.

Every year around Cinco De Mayo, I try to review a kosher certified Mexican beer in honor of the national holiday. Hey after all, if turkey on Thanksgiving is (almost) universally accepted, why not Mexican beer on the anniversary of one of Mexico's key victories over the French Army on May 5, 1862.

This year we went all out for Cinco De Mayo in the KB household. Every Sunday Night we try to have a theme dinner. These can vary from Chinese or BBQ or Make Your Own Salad or Breakfast Night or Shabbos Food (especially if we were away for Shabbos) or Make Your Own Pizza or Israeli Night or as the case was this week - Mexican Night.

Its actually a great way to have a family dinner on a budget. Instead of going out to eat we make a special dinner which the kids look forward to. Afterwards we will try to watch a video together but this can be a little more challenging due to the ages of the kids. 

So this week our Mexican Night consisted of chili, fajitas, brown rice, salad, wraps and spicy guacamole. I washed this feast down with La Cerveza del Pacifico's Pacifico Clara. The beer is essentially a lager with not much in the way of carbonation and a little adjunct flavor. I would not drink this on its own, but it did not clash with the spicy flavors of the meal and they in turn helped me look past the Rolling Rock/Heineken adjunct like flavors.

Pacifico Clara is certified kosher by the OK, as are many other beers produced by Compania Cervcera Del Tropico S.A. de CV. To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about Pacifico Clara, please click here.

As always, please remember to drink responsibly and to never waste good beer unless there is no designated driver.If you've tried this beer or any others which have been reviewed on the kosher beers site, please feel free to post your comments (anonymous comments are acceptable).

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Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshios Behar - Bechukosai

The following is a brief summary of thoughts said over by R' Frand on the parshios this evening. I have attempted to reproduce these vorts to the best of my ability. Any perceived inconsistency is the result of my efforts to transcribe the shiur and should not be attributed to R' Frand. 

R' Frand quoted a Medrash which explains the pasuk in Tehillim of the "Giborei Koach" is speaking about those who keep shmitta. R' Yitzchak states that a person performs a mitzva a few times over the course of a few days. But the farmers who keep shmitta are stronger because they do the mitzva day after day by not farming their land. From the farmer's perspective this is quite difficult. Day after day, the farmer sees his field lying fallow, but he does not act or work the field. 

R' Frand asked - why are these people called the strong ones? We know that Hashem gives the farmers double produce in the sixth year so that they will not want for anything in the seventh year. So why are they the strong ones? They are sitting with all their money? 

R' Frand answered by quoting R' Aharon Kotler. R' Aharon explains that a person who sees a windfall in the sixth year thinks to himself - if only I work the seventh year, how much more money could I have in the bank. The produce of the sixth year is tantalizing to the farmer and promises even greater return if he will work the seventh year. Thus the farmers truly are strong because they are not tempted. 

R' Frand closed that vort with the following analogy. A person buys Apple stock for $100 a share. He sees that the stock is at $400 but he does not sell. The stock hits $600 and he still does not sell, as he says - it will go higher. When Apple hits $700 he looks like a genius...and when it falls back to $400 he looks like a fool. But when a person sees that he can make money on something, he will want more. R' Frand next told a vort about the issur of ribis - charging interest. The Medrash states that a person who charges interest will not come back to life at Techiyas Hameisim. 

R' Frand asked - why is this issur given such a drastic punishment? There are 365 negative commandments and this one is not a commandment which has a punishment of kares or death. So why does the lender not come back? 

R' Frand answered by quoting R' Yosef Chaim Zonnenfeld, who connects the mitzva to the positive commandment of shiluach haken - chasing away the mother bird before taking the eggs. Why does the Torah command us to keep the mitzva? Because generally it is impossible to catch a bird. The only time the bird will allow itself to be caught is when it wants to protect its young. Therefore the Torah says, don't take the mother bird when it is vulnerable. The same concept applies to the law of ribis. A person comes to borrow money when he really needs help. At that point he is at his most vulnerable. If he is asked to pay interest he will do so because he has no choice. It is for this reason that the punishment is so severe. 

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