Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshios Acharei Mos - Kedoshim

The following is a brief summary of some 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 Vayikra 16:18, the Torah states וְיָצָ֗א אֶל־הַמִּזְבֵּ֛חַ אֲשֶׁ֥ר לִפְנֵֽי־יְהוָֹ֖ה וְכִפֶּ֣ר עָלָ֑י . Rabbi Frand quoted Rashi who states that this is part of the ceremony that the Kohain must do various acts. However the Targum Yonasan Ben Uziel says that the Kohain does the kapparah with his words by saying his tefillah when he left the Kodesh HaKodashim. But what does this mean?

R' Frand noted that the Rambam discusses that the Kohain Gadol said a tefillah kitzara when he leaves, but the Mishneh L'Melech does not know the source for the tefillah.

R' Frand quoted the Gemara in Yoma 53 that the prayer itself is that the Jews would not be under the sovereignty of other nations. Another opinion is that the Jews should need charity one from the other and should be able to support themselves. Another opinion is that the prayers of the travelers should not be accepted. Why? Because the travelers hate rain and they pray that there should not be any rain to make their travels difficult.

R' Frand quoted the sefer Bei Chiya by the son in law of the Novominsker zt'l who asks why the prayer not to listen to the tefilla of the travelers is listed here? How often did it even rain there that the travelers would even give this prayer? He explains that the problem is much broader. He links this to a limud in Divrei Yechezkel about a pasuk in Tehillim "rochok m'yishuasi divrei sha'agasi" - we often pray for things that would not be good for us. We think that it may be a good deal, but not know the other guy is a crook. We ask for help getting something, but don't know that the item we pine for may not be good for us.

The traveler is similarly short sighted. He prays that it should not rain, not thinking about how important the rain is for the crops, or the water supply. He prays for what he thinks is good for him now.

Thus the Kohain Gadol's prayer that the traveler's tefillah not be answered is symbolic in nature. The message is that when we daven, we should daven for the big picture and not be short sighted and only look at the immediate.

R' Frand quoted a Ramban in Kedoshim on וְאָֽהַבְתָּ֥ לְרֵֽעֲךָ֖ כָּמ֑וֹךָ who writes that the pasuk cannot be understood simplistically. If this was true, then the Gemara which discusses two people travelling in the desert with one jug of water should require the person to give it away and not to drink it to preserve his own life.

R' Frand explained that וְאָֽהַבְתָּ֥ לְרֵֽעֲךָ֖ כָּמ֑וֹךָ is a lesson in how we should treat others and want good things to happen to others. A person should do for others and want for them as much as he wants for himself. A person can want his neighbor to have money or a nice house, "but I want my kids to be better than his" or "I want to be smarter." The Ramban explains that there is no carve out, a person should not want his friend to have it as good as him, except for...

R' Frand then mentioned that Mishpacha magazine had asked him his advice for people making the seder for the first time and he told them - teach your kids the songs at the end of the seder, the traditional niggunim of your family. R' Frand then stated that as he did not keep some of his father's minhagim - his father stood for all of kiddush, he sits at the bracha. His father stood for havdallah, he sits as they do in yeshiva. But he has his father's niggunim for the end of the seder as a mesorah. And he taught those to his children and they use them at their sedarim.

R' Frand next quoted a story from R' Fishel Gross about being sensitive for a neighbor's needs and wanting the best for them. A woman had lost her husband a few years prior, but she always had her children for the seder, so she was never alone. But this year as an older woman, she was home by herself for the seder. But her neighbors were sensitive to her plight - they moved their dining room table next to the window and told her to do the same. She was able to listen and participate in their seder, even though they were not in the same house.

After the Chag ended, her children called and asked how her sedarim were. Fantastic, she responded,  I was able to sing with the neighbors in their seder and they even sang the niggunim like daddy used to! I had a seder like we used to, when daddy was alive. But she did not know that the neighbor had called the children of the woman and recorded their niggunim and practiced them with the family so that they could sing them with her. This is being concerned for others and וְאָֽהַבְתָּ֥ לְרֵֽעֲךָ֖ כָּמ֑וֹךָ.

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Sunday Night Suds - Saranac Pollinator Pils

This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at Saranac Pollinator Pils.

The Saranac Pollinator Pils is one of the four brews contained in the 12 Beers of Spring mix box. This also included the new Ruby Red Ale (reviewed here http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2020/03/sunday-night-suds-saranac-ruby-red-ale.html), Bee Catcher Honey Ale (reviewed here http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2020/03/sunday-night-suds-saranac-bee-catcher.html) and last year's Polar Haze IPA (reviewed here https://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2019/03/sunday-night-suds-saranac-polar-haze-ipa.html).

The Pollinator Pils is a traditional German Pilsner and not an American Macro masquerading as a German Pilsner. It is not an overly sweet beer, but was not intended to be. The beer poured a golden yellow with some lacing and completely clear. There was more pine and grapefruit than I was expecting and it is something that I would want to try again. At 5.5% abv its a bit high for Pislner, but that's really based on comparison with American macros.

I have not seen this beer sold in anything but the 12 Beers of Spring Box and I am unaware of this beer being sold in six or twelve packs, so if you want this beer you need to pick up the mix box.

The Pollinator Pils is under the Kosher Supervision of the Va'ad of Detroit as is every other beer produced at the Matt Brewery plant in Utica, NY. Keep in mind, Saranac brews some varieties off site, so check the cans/bottles for kosher certification from the Va'ad of Detroit.

To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about the brew, please follow this link https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/99/468577.

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).

Lastly, 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 - Parshios Tazria-Metzorah

The following is a brief summary of some 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.

R' Frand prefaced his parsha vorts by saying that they were originally said by R' Baruch Sorotzkin. 

The first vort related to the showing of negai'm to the Kohain Gadol. If the Kohain Gadol did not understand what he was looking at, the Toras Kohanim writes that he would have the negah shown to a Chacham who would tell the Kohain HaShoteh (literally an idiot) to say Tahor or Tameh, even though he does not know what he is looking at.

R' Frand said in the name of R' Ruderman that the lesson of the Kohain Gadol saying the one word - Tahor or Tameh, teaches that the person who gets the negah for saying Loshon Hara that one word can make all the difference.

But why is he called a Shoteh instead of an Am Ha'Aretz? R' Frand answered by quoting R' Baruch who in turn quoted his father who noted that the Mechilta teaches that the Kohanim were given the special power to learn and understand Torah.  Why? Because most people have to go out and learn a living and don't have the time to devote to learning. We don't have the time and ability to learn all day. But the Kohanim were given the 24 matnos kehunah so that they can sit and learn and they are relieved of the responsibility of earning a living.

Similarly, the people who were in the midbar did not need to earn a living and even their clothes did not wear out. These people, the Manna eaters, says the Mechilta, were also given the special power to learn.

But back to the Kohain Gadol - he is called a Shoteh because he had all the time to learn, but does not know Negai'm because he did not bother to learn. The Am Ha'Aretz is out in the field and does not have time to spend all day learning, but he is not a Shoteh.

R' Frand then remarked that the people who are furloughed or unemployed should put their time to good use and take advantage of the resources to learn while they are home, rather than reading the paper over and over.

R' Frand also quoted the Ramban who stated that clothes and homes don't normally get negaim. People get blemishes, but homes and clothes? The Ramban then quotes the Gemara in Arachin which discusses why negaim come and that they get closer to the person, from house to clothes and finally to him. This is why when the Kohain is told about the house, it states in Vayikra 14:35 וּבָא֙ אֲשֶׁר־ל֣וֹ הַבַּ֔יִת - the person who owns the house must come and tell the Kohain, so the Kohain can look at him and his deeds and tell him what he had done wrong.

R' Frand then linked this to the Haftorah which discusses how the general Na'aman comes to ask about his tzara'as. Elisha then sends his assistant to look at Na'aman and tell him what to do - that Gechazi should dip in the Jordan River. But why does Elisha not personally go and talk to him, is he anti-social? 

R' Frand answered that Elisha knew that Na'aman is a Ba'al Gavah - he is arrogant and haughty. And he wants Na'aman to work on that problem, so he sends his assistant out so that Na'aman can work on his problem of arrogance.

R' Frand again linked this to today. We wish, if only we had a prophet to tell us about what we could do to cure ourselves of the machalah. Yes, there is more Torah then ever and there is more chessed. But clearly there is something wrong and we wish that there could be a Navi to tell us what we need to do in order to merit a speedy redemption from the ills which are gripping the world.

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Sunday's Post Seder Sermon aka R' Zev Cohen's "Shabbos HaGadol" Derasha

For as long Mrs KB and I have been married, I have been a chassid of Rabbi Zev Cohen of Congregation Adas Yeshurun in Chicago. He has such a powerful and positive way of speaking which I find inspiring and I try to make his replay of his derashas for Shabbos Shuva (given on Hoshana Rabbah night) and Shabbos HaGadol (given on the motzei Shabbos of Chol HaMoed) every year. This year due to the public health crisis, the actual Shabbos HaGadol derasha was given on the Thursday night before Yom Tov and the following week it became available on line at www.adasyeshurun.com.  The shiur had some wonderful insights on the Seder Night and the health crisis gripping the world. Same rules as usual apply, although I have not attempted to summarize the entire shiur,  I have tried 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' Cohen.

R' Cohen prefaced the shiur by stating that it relates to an issue on matza which has bothered him for many years. He began with a quote from Shemos 12 which has a commandment from Hashem to take the sheep for the Karban Pesach and to eat it with matza and marror. The first reference to matza takes place in 12:8 where the pasuk states that the Karban Pesach should be eaten צְלִי־אֵ֣שׁ וּמַצּ֔וֹת עַל־מְרֹרִ֖ים יֹאכְלֻֽהוּ  - this is the first command to eat matza.

Then in 12:18 the Torah specifically commands to eat matza at night, stating בָּֽרִאשֹׁ֡ן בְּאַרְבָּעָה֩ עָשָׂ֨ר י֤וֹם לַחֹ֨דֶשׁ֙ בָּעֶ֔רֶב תֹּֽאכְל֖וּ מַצֹּ֑ת . Rashi on this pasuk states - this is the obligation for us to eat matza. The first pasuk 12:8 was only for that generation in Egypt, but this reference in 12:18 is the ongoing commandment.

Following this in 12:28 the Torah states וַיֵּֽלְכ֥וּ וַיַּֽעֲשׂ֖וּ בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל כַּֽאֲשֶׁ֨ר צִוָּ֧ה יְהֹוָ֛ה אֶת־משֶׁ֥ה וְאַֽהֲרֹ֖ן כֵּ֥ן עָשֽׂוּ . Rashi explains that this is to praise the Jewish people that they did everything that Moshe & Aharon commanded them to do. Rabbi Cohen said that this implies that they ate the matza, although there is nothing stating that the Jews ate matza in Egypt.

Rabbi Cohen then cited to Shemos 12:34 wherein it states וַיִּשָּׂ֥א הָעָ֛ם אֶת־בְּצֵק֖וֹ טֶ֣רֶם יֶחְמָ֑ץ - the nation carried their dough before it became leavened. R' Cohen said that this pasuk has bothered him for more than 40 years. Why did they carry dough instead of baking the matza? Rashi said that the Egyptians did not allow the Jews to wait for it to become matza.

The pasuk continues to say that they also carried מִשְׁאֲרֹתָ֛ם - their leftovers. Rashi explains that this was their leftover matza and marror from Egypt. So they ate matza and marror in Egypt that night in Egypt and took their leftovers with them...but they also carried out dough and put it on their shoulders.

But why are they carrying dough? They were commanded to make and eat matza which they did, because they carried out the leftovers. So where is the command that they make dough which had no time to leaven? 

In Shemos 12:39 the Torah tells us וַיֹּאפ֨וּ אֶת־הַבָּצֵ֜ק אֲשֶׁ֨ר הוֹצִ֧יאוּ מִמִּצְרַ֛יִם עֻגֹ֥ת מַצּ֖וֹת כִּ֣י לֹ֣א חָמֵ֑ץ כִּי־גֹֽרְשׁ֣וּ מִמִּצְרַ֗יִם וְלֹ֤א יָֽכְלוּ֙ לְהִתְמַהְמֵ֔הַּ וְגַם־צֵדָ֖ה לֹֽא־עָשׂ֥וּ לָהֶֽם  - the Jews baked the dough that they took from Egypt. But why did they do this in the first place?

R' Cohen quoted the mishna in Pesachim 116b which is recited in the Haggada which states that anyone who does not recite Pesach, Matza and Marror did not fulfill their obligation at the seder. The mishna specifically mentions in connection with the matza  - because they were redeemed. This is repeated in the Rambam 7:5 in the general sense of matza. However in the next chapter the Rambam says that it is because the dough did not rise before Hashem redeemed us from Egypt.

R' Cohen then asked - if you look at the seder plate and saw the head of a goat on it, you would understand the geula reference. But what about the matza is geulah? Its what they ate in Egypt.

R' Cohen then proved this from the Ha Lachma Anya piyut at the seder where we say - this is the bread of affliction that we ate in Egypt. If we wanted to show redemption, we should have brought a walking stick!

R' Cohen quoted the Abudraham who asks the basic question - if the command to eat matza is not because the dough did not become chometz and the pasuk previously had a command to eat matza before we even left (12:18). He answered in the name of R' Yosef Kimchi that the commandment was given because of what would happen in the future - they would want to have the matza and Hashem commanded in advance to do so.

However, this still does not explain the concept of the dough. 

R' Cohen next quoted the Rambam in 6:10 which states that there is a commandment from the Torah to eat matza because of the pasuk in 12:8. But the Rambam says that its because of the dough in chapter 8!

R' Cohen quoted the Brisk Hagadda which asks - if we are already fulfilling the obligation to remember the redemption of Egypt by praying Maariv, why are we doing this again at the seder? He answers that Maariv fulfills the obligation to remember the leaving of Egypt, but the seder has an obligation to explain the leaving of Egypt.

R' Cohen extrapolated from this - there is an obligation to eat matza which was the poor man's bread that we ate in Egypt. But we also have an obligation at the end of Maggid to eat matza, because of the way that we left Egypt with the dough.

R' Cohen then quoted the pasuk in Devarim 16:3 where the Torah states לֹֽא־תֹאכַ֤ל עָלָיו֙ חָמֵ֔ץ שִׁבְעַ֥ת יָמִ֛ים תֹּֽאכַל־עָלָ֥יו מַצּ֖וֹת לֶ֣חֶם עֹ֑נִי כִּ֣י בְחִפָּז֗וֹן יָצָ֨אתָ֙ מֵאֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרַ֔יִם לְמַ֣עַן תִּזְכֹּ֗ר אֶת־י֤וֹם צֵֽאתְךָ֙ מֵאֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרַ֔יִם כֹּ֖ל יְמֵ֥י חַיֶּֽיךָ . Rashi explains that the first half the pasuk explains that the matza we eat is because of the slavery in Egypt and then there is a separate matza obligation which is of the geulah, symbolized by the dough.

R' Cohen then said - what does the matza on the seder plate represent to you? Its a tasteless gastrological issue - no one is going to say (like a bagel) - what a good matza this is! So why is it there?

R' Cohen then quoted a Maharsha who explains that if the reason that we eat the matza is because of the dough that was carried - we should eat the matza after chatzos - since this was carried out of Egypt after chatzos! Yet, we don't eat matza after chatzos.

R' Cohen quoted a gemara in Berachos that says that we left Egypt at night. Rashi states that this means that the Egyptians gave them permission to leave. R' Cohen said that this is seen in the pasuk in Shemos 12:33 which states - וַתֶּֽחֱזַ֤ק מִצְרַ֨יִם֙ עַל־הָעָ֔ם לְמַהֵ֖ר לְשַׁלְּחָ֣ם מִן־הָאָ֑רֶץ כִּ֥י אָֽמְר֖וּ כֻּלָּ֥נוּ מֵתִֽים - the Egyptians took hold of the Jews and essentially said - "please leave!" This is what the Maharsha means - the Egyptians saw that their first born children were dying and they said to the Jews go - but we did not actually go with the dough until after chatzos - so why don't we eat the matza after chatzos?

[R Cohen then digressed to tell a story that this gemara was what he prepared with his father on the farm for his bechina for Mesivta of Long Beach. They drove in on Chol HaMoed Pesach eating oranges and he passed his bechina].

R' Cohen then quoted another question from the Maharsha - why did they take the dough? Who told them to take the dough? This is not about the future.

He quoted the Abarbanel who said - there was already a command in Egypt to eat matza. Where did this concept of the dough come from, if they were commanded to eat matza in Egypt! The Abarbanel answers that there was a command to eat matza in Egypt, but when they left Egypt with dough on their own and a miracle occurred, they accepted on themselves to eat matza and this became an "addendum" to the mitzva of matza.

R' Cohen remarked that this is all well and good to explain why there was a mitzva after the fact to eat the matza in addition to the command to eat matza that was given in Egypt. But why did they take the dough in the first place?

R' Cohen said that there was no command to take the dough and bake the matza - they chose to do it on their own. He quoted R' Schwalb who stated that when Hashem revealed himself to the Jews on seder night, time stopped, the world stopped and nothing became chametz, which is why even though they traveled more than a mil (which we use as our barometer - the 18 minutes is the time that it takes to walk a mil) the dough did not become chametz.

So when the Jews were in Egypt they ate the matza, which was slave bread and the Egyptians made us eat it because it is hard flat bread that fills us up. Now that the Jews were leaving, they said - now we will eat real bread - we will take dough so that we can bake real bread. However Hashem responded, My dear children - you will not eat real bread, you will still eat slave bread. Why? Because before you ate the slave bread as slaves of Egypt, but now you will be My slaves and I will make a miracle so that the dough does not become chametz. Before you ate the Egyptian bread as slaves to Egypt, but now you are My slaves and its My matza which is the bread of freedom. This is because My matza will free you.

R' Cohen a mishna in Pirkei Avos which says make My will your will. They left Egypt with the thought of eating real bread, but Hashem said I wont let it rise because I want you to do what I want, and if you do, then you will be free.

R' Cohen then asked - do we want to be out of our houses? Of course we do! Do we want to be in shul? Of course we do! We want to have guests at our seder and not just be home with the limited members of our household. We want our parents and/or grandchildren to be with us.

But we need to ask - do we want to have these people at our seder because that is what we want, or because its what Hashem wants? Do we want to have bread because its what we want, or because its what Hashem wants? The Jews said - we want bread because we are free. And Hashem said - My dear wonderful children, I don't want you to have bread, I want you to have matza, My matza.

R' Cohen then said that he is not trying to explain why the world is in the crisis that it is, but we need to ask why do we want to go to shul? Is it because we want to be in shul with our people? Because we want to see other people? Because we can't concentrate at home? But whose will is that? Is it bread or matza?

R' Cohen asked - if the Jews were on such a high level, why was their first thought that they wanted to bake bread?

R' Cohen went back to the Rashi on 12:34 and specifically the words "מִשְׁאֲרֹתָ֛ם צְרֻרֹ֥ת בְּשִׂמְלֹתָ֖ם עַל־שִׁכְמָֽם". Rashi explains that when they left they had pack animals, yet they carried these leftovers on their shoulders because they were in love with the matza. 

R' Cohen then gave his punchline - this was the first mitzva that the Jews did in uniformity - Pesach, Matza & Marror. The Egyptians then came in and said "Get Out!" But we love this mitzva and we cherish our leftovers. So what do we want to do? LETS MAKE MORE MATZA! However, they had to take the dough with them before it was ready. And they took the dough with them and traveled to various cities. At that point the dough should have become chametz. The Jews thought about it and said Hashem is not letting us do the mitzva. We want more matza! Its our first mitzva and we are in love with it, but Hashem is continuing to make us move. And the Jews took the dough off their heads and looked at it and the dough remained dough, it did not become chametz!

R' Cohen observed that there were Siyum HaShas all over the world, from MetLife stadium to multiple other locations, through the Agudah and through Dirshu. More people learned Meseches Berachos the first sixty days after the Siyum HaShas then probably at any point in history. But Hashem is asking do you want to do these things for Me or for you?

R' Cohen then read from the Chofetz Chaim's haggada with a story about after WWI when quiet was restored and a wheat merchant came and asked for a beracha. He asked - now that the good times returned and you are still in business why do you need a beracha? The merchant responded - when times are tough and product is scarce, people but what I have and they are not particular about the merchandise. But now, the prices are down, people poke through the produce, ask for a bargain and then buy on credit. 

The Chofetz Chaim took that mashal and applied it to mitzvos. When times are good, in Shamayim they look at every mitzva and they look to see if it was done with proper intentions and fully and completely. But when times are tough and the quality of learning has decreased and the G-d fearing are diminished - now is the time to amass a fortune. Hashem is saying - my wonderful children - how do you learn when its not so easy? How do you daven when its not so easy? How do you live when its not so easy?

R' Cohen said that one of the first questions that came to the Choshen Mishpat Kollel when the virus struck was - can you gauge for supplies? The Chofetz Chaim says now is the time to corner the market on mitzvos - how will you do when its tough. And the Jews thought the dough they took out was going to be chometz, but it was still matza and then Hashem said OK - show Me that you can still eat more matza. Show Me that you can daven without a minyan, just like you can when there is a minyan to support you. Show Me that you can have a seder even when there are not 20-30 people at your table. We say that we can't daven on our own, but show Me that you can. And even if you can't learn because the kids are all on top of you, show Me that you can teach the kids by making Berachos out loud.

R' Cohen said that there will be a time that we are all back together and we will enjoy, but we need to show that we are doing this for Him and not for us. When we pick up the matza at the beginning of the seder its servitude. But at the end of the seder we pick up the matza for freedom and for Hashem. 

R' Cohen closed by saying that Hashem has the power to end this now and for every person to get out of the hospital and recuperate. He can bring us all to Jerusalem instantaneously. But if we show that we are doing this because He wants us to do it, then maybe He will do this for us because this is what we want.

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 Matza Crumbs and Manna

In full disclosure, R' Mansour did not say this vort this week, it actually was his shiur on Parshas Terumah which I listened to in late February and then again on Sunday while cleaning my wife's car for Pesach. The shiur had some wonderful insights on the Hagaddah and it addressed a "joke" that I have been making for years at the Seder. Same rules as usual apply, although I have not attempted to summarize the entire shiur,  I have tried 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' Mansour.

In the Dayenu song which is sung as part of Maggid, there are references to the Manna which the Jews ate while travelling in the desert. Specifically, the Dayenu song states "Ilu Heachilanu es Haman" which can be translated as - "if Hashem had only given us the Manna to eat" this would have been enough for us.

So the joke that I have been making for years is to "boo" the word Haman as if it were the villain in the Esther story as opposed to the Manna that the Jews were fed in the desert.

From listening to this shiur, it appears that R' Mansour has been making the same "joke" at his seder. Although he does not "boo" Haman, he said that he always asks his guests - why is Haman being mentioned in the Hagaddah? He said that he often gets a response from guests who try to link Haman and Pharaoh based on both being evil, but he tells them its just the way that he is pronouncing the word and its not Haman.

But this year he actually found a link, which is why I am blogging the vort as it validates my "minhag  taos."

By way of introduction, the gemara asks - where is Haman found in the Torah? The gemara answers based on the pasuk in Bereishis 3:11 "הֲמִן־הָעֵ֗ץ אֲשֶׁ֧ר צִוִּיתִ֛יךָ לְבִלְתִּ֥י אֲכָל־מִמֶּ֖נּוּ אָכָֽלְתָּ" - Hashem asks whether Adam and Chava ate from the Etz HaDa'as.

However R' Mansour found a different version of the gemara in a vort in the Sefer L'Horot Natan. He quotes the Sefer HaTishbi which writes where is Haman in the Torah? It is from the pasuk in Devarim 8:3 "וַיַּֽאֲכִֽלְךָ֤ אֶת־הַמָּן֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר לֹֽא־יָדַ֔עְתָּ" - Hashem fed you the Manna which you did not know. So here we have it - Haman is linked to the Manna!

This is also seen in Yehosua where it states that they began to eat from the food of the Land of Israel, the following day (the 16th of Nissan) and it says "Vayishbot Haman" - the Manna stopped. R' Mansour remarked that this is also the date that Haman died and this is why the Ashkenazim have a seudat Esther HaMalkah on the 16th (my mother serves nonte - a purim candy on the 2nd day of Pesach). So Vayishbot (from the language of Tashbitu - get rid of) Haman on the 16th of Nissan.

R' Mansour then quoted the Sefer Manot HaLevi which was written by R' Shlomo Alkebetz and delivered as Shalach Manos. He quoted in the sefer from the Ba'al HaRokeach who counted 166 pesukim in Megillas Esther. Similarly the number of words in the Vayavo Amalek read on Purim are 119 and the number of words in Parshas Zachor are 47 - also 166 in total. Finally he states that there are 166 words in Hallel HaGadol (Tehillim 136).

R' Mansour then theorized - there must be an overt Purim reference. But where is it? The words Vayifrikeinu Mitzareinu and then Nosen Lechem L'Kol Basar - we were saved from our enemies and then Hashem gave food to all. But what is this connection?

R' Mansour spoke about a gemara in Pesachim 118 which discusses why it is called Hallel HaGadol? Because Hashem sits up high, but he supports all creatures. This pasuk reminds us that Hashem is not only Ram - he is also Gadol - he supports all. And in Parnasah there are always stories about it coming from unplanned or previously unknown sources. 

R' Mansour then told a personal story - 28 years ago he was in the Kollel and getting a small stipend. He said to his wife, maybe we should go into a side business to support ourselves. They read about a small business expo at the Javits Center and they decided to go. He started to drive and then started falling asleep at the wheel. He said - OK we're going home. They got to the house and his father in law was sitting outside. He said - I knew you were not going to do this - but I know someone in beds - you can start a business selling beds...and 28 years later his wife is still in the business.

R' Mansour also quoted the Abudraham who said that its called Hallel HaGadol because there are 26 verses - for the gematria of Hashem's name.

Looking back at the Hallel HaGadol and the final lines - we see the connection. Our enemy Amalek says that Hashem is in the heavens, but is not involved in the day to day life. We however see Hashem's hand in giving parnasah (Nosain Lechem L'Kol Basar). Upon being aware of this - we can say Hodo L'Keil HaShamayim.

So now we can go back to the language of the Sefer HaTishbi - where is Haman in the Torah? Haman says that Hashem is in the heavens, but not supporting the world - but then how does a nation of 3,000,000 travelling in a desert live? They receive the Manna from the heavens, proving that Hashem is involved in the world.

But the connection is greater than the 166 words in Hallel HaGadol and the 166 in the Amalek readings. The Gemara in Megillah asks - why don't we read the Hallel on Purim? Because the reading of the Megilla is the Hallel. But if he has no megillah what does he read? The Chiddah says that he should read the Hallel. But the sefer Minchat Yitzchak quotes the Meiri who says that if a person has no Megillah he should read Hallel HaGadol. Why? Because this teaches us the lesson that Haman was trying to uproot. So if Hashem would have given us the Manna it would have been enough, because we would have seen that Hashem was in charge and supporting us.

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Thursday's Thoughts on the Situation

The following is a brief summary of some of thoughts said over by R' Frand this evening. The thoughts were not on the parsha as R' Frand stated that he wanted to discuss the situation we are dealing with. 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 pasuk in Bereishis where the brothers asked each other, trembling - what has Hashem done to us? Why has he done this to us?

R' Frand remarked that the Jewish world and anyone who believes in a G-d would ask this question.

R' Frand again stated that there are no answers to this as we don't have prophecy. But we can see how this impacted on us as we cannot go to shul to daven and we can't learn in groups. 

The second impact is that we have to be home and for lack of better terminology we are stuck at home and we spend twenty-four/seven with our spouses and our families.

R' Frand quoted the Tolner Rebbi from Yerushalaim who had an observation about this phenomenon. He began by quoting the Chidushei HaRim on Devarim 1:15 where Moshe states וָֽאֶקַּ֞ח אֶת־רָאשֵׁ֣י שִׁבְטֵיכֶ֗ם אֲנָשִׁ֤ים חֲכָמִים֙ וִֽידֻעִ֔ים - I took the heads of your tribes, wise men who are known. The Sifri explains that this is a request for Judges who must be known to you. The person may come looking like a Tzaddik and wrapped in a Talis and in awe and trembling. But what is he like when he goes home? But these people are known to you. If you want to know what a person is like, you need to live with that person.

R' Frand remarked that there is an expression - no man is a hero to his valet. The valet sees him in all of his ways - a person can be the nicest person in public, but at home he may not be the nicest guy - he may be a tyrant. 

R' Frand said that maybe we have this requirement to be home as a lesson that we need to be different at home - when we are around a person constantly we need to be more patient and compassionate and maybe this is what Hashem wants us to work on.

R' Frand said that a zechus for a person besides davening is to work on his middos and improving himself as a person. The necessity to change one's temperament and how one acts and speaks with others. R' Frand quoted R' Yisrael Salanter who said that its harder to change a middah than to learn shas.

R' Frand noted that the pasuk in Shemos 12:3 וְיִקְח֣וּ לָהֶ֗ם אִ֛ישׁ שֶׂ֥ה לְבֵֽית־אָבֹ֖ת שֶׂ֥ה לַבָּֽיִת - there was a requirement to have a seh for the house - everyone in his own home.

R' Frand closed by quoting the Gemara in Eruvin 54 which says that the world is like a wedding. He quoted R' Bunim who explained that there are a lot of things going on at a wedding - the food, the music, the flowers. But there is only one thing that counts - the groom gives the bride a ring in front of two witnesses. And it does not matter if the food is off or the flowers are wilting - what matters is the Chassan states the specific words based on the language and the witnesses witness it. And the rest is just a distraction. 

This is the lesson that we are learning - what is important is what is going on in our homes and with our own families. Everything else is just a distraction.

R' Frand remarked that we see weddings take place in driveways and neighbors are standing on their porches and taking videos with their phones while the bride walks with her gown in the street. R' Frand said that his wife said - I don't know if I can say this about my daughter- but isn't this what it is all about? He found his bashert - she is walking down to greet him and be married and there is nothing else that matters.

R' Frand said that this is the message of matza as well, its just flour and water. There is no salt or spice or leavening agent - this is it and this is all that counts. Just keep an eye on the flour and water - that's all that matters.

R' Frand noted that this is the first time in his life that he will not be in a seder with the larger family - his parents and then once he was married, with his parents or in-laws. And then once he had children and grandchildren with them.

But this year he will just be with his wife and they will fulfill the Gemara in Pesachim that says that if there are not children, the wife asks the Mah Nishtana. He will not be with his children or grandchildren. And R' Frand said that for those who are by themselves they can take solace from the Lubavitcher Rebbi, who did not have children. Every year he had the seder just with his wife and no others. When his wife passed, his chassidim begged him to join them and he insisted that he would have the seder alone. People stayed outside and watched and they saw him open the door and step out for Shfoch Chamascha and he waved and went back inside. 

R' Frand remarked - we will do that this year because this is what Hashem wants from us. And iyh next year or even this year as it is still before Pesach, we will be able to eat from zevachim and pesachim togther.

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