Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Vayikra + A Seder Vort

The following is a brief summary of some of thoughts on the parsha and the seder that R' Frand spoke about in his shiur tonight. 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 Parshas Vayikra there are three different discussions of sacrifices brought to atone for mistakes made by Jewish leaders. In Vayikra 4:3 the Torah states אִ֣ם הַכֹּהֵ֧ן הַמָּשִׁ֛יחַ יֶֽחֱטָ֖א לְאַשְׁמַ֣ת הָעָ֑ם - if the anointed Kohain sins, bringing guilt to the people. In Vayikra 4:13 the Torah states וְאִ֨ם כָּל־עֲדַ֤ת יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ יִשְׁגּ֔וּ וְנֶעְלַ֣ם דָּבָ֔ר מֵֽעֵינֵ֖י הַקָּהָ֑ל - if the entire Jewish people sin because the Sanhedrin makes an improper ruling. Finally in Vayikra 4:22 the Torah states - אֲשֶׁ֥ר נָשִׂ֖יא יֶֽחֱטָ֑א.

The language by the Nasi is different than the Kohain Gadol and the Sanhedrin as Rabbeinu Bachya explains that the Torah's use of the word אֲשֶׁ֥ר can be interpreted as "if" or also as "when." If the word is to be understood as when, it would be indicative of the nature of a King vs the Kohain Gadol or the Sanhedrin. The Kohain Gadol is scrupulous to avoid sin, because the eyes of all the people are on him constantly. Similarly, the Sanhedrin are protected from sin as they have Ruach HaKodesh when they are determining halachic rulings. However the Nasi has ga'ava, as the phrase goes - absolute power corrupts absolutely.

R' Frand remarked that although we dont have a King, we do have Gedolim and they are humble and protected from the perils of ga'ava. He told a story about a boy who was once walking in Jerusalem at 3 in the morning and saw R' Chaim Kanievsky feeding a cat. He was going to take a picture with his camera and R' Chaim asked him not to. He did not listen and took the picture anyway. R' Chaim then asked him not to develop the picture and the boy reluctantly agreed.

Twenty-five years later, he returned to Israel with his own son who was doing a trip for his bar mitzva. He took his son to R' Chaim for a beracha and when they walked in, R' Chaim looked at him intently before saying - I've been waiting for you for 25 years so that I can ask you mechila for requesting you not develop the picture.

R' Frand said that this shows the true humility of a Gadol - R' Chaim remembered his action and the face of the young man and retained it, so that he could correct what he felt was an improper request.

R' Frand also said a vort from the Seder in connection with the language at the beginning of the hagadah - hashata hacha which talks about how we want to be in Israel and how we are now free men. Towards the end of the hagadah there is also a request that we be in Jerusalem next year. But why aren't we now? It is known that we are in galus because of sinas chinam. Furthermore, the connection between seder night and tisha b'av is well known as they are always on the same night of the week and we eat an egg on the night of the seder to remember the churban.

R' Frand quoted the Ben Ish Chai who asks why there is no hint to sinas chinam in the hagadah? He answers that there is - we dip twice, once to remember Yosef's coat which was dipped in blood and once to remember the blood which was applied to the doorposts with a bunch of hyssop. He further explains that the reason we dip twice is remember that the only way to escape from sinas chinam is being an agudah - a group acting together to serve Hashem.

R' Frand closed the shiur by quoting a story about R' Kook. Once during one of his shiurim he was heckled by a man who did not agree with his views. Months later, R Kook was parceling out funds for people who needed kimcha d'psicha. His assistant saw that man on the list and asked - why are you allocating funds to him, he was so rude to you? He answered - what is the opposite of sinas chinam? The assistant replied - ahavas chinam. R' Kook then said to him - doing good for someone who you dont know is not ahavas chinam - its just chessed. But doing good for someone who has treated you badly is the essence of ahavas chinam.

R' Frand opined that perhaps the story took place specifically around Pesach was because R' Kook was trying to teach a lesson about ahavas chinam ahead of the seder.

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Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshios Vayakhel-Pikudei

The following is a brief summary of some of thoughts on the parshios that R' Frand spoke about in his shiur tonight. 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 Shemos 35:30, Moshe again introduces Betzalel to the Jewish people saying רְא֛וּ קָרָ֥א יְהֹוָ֖ה בְּשֵׁ֑ם בְּצַלְאֵ֛ל בֶּן־אוּרִ֥י בֶן־ח֖וּר לְמַטֵּ֥ה יְהוּדָֽה . R' Frand noted that each time that Betzalel is referred to in Chumash he is called by his father and grandfather's name and this very uncommon. So he asked as his first question - why is Betzalel always referred to with his father and grandfather?

R' Frand also noted that Rashi comments about Chur that he was the son of Miriam. But this is not the first time that Rashi mentions this. In fact, this is the third time in Sefer Shemos that Rashi states that Chur was the son of Miriam. So why does he stress this?

R' Frand answered his first question by quoting the Medrash Rabbah which states that Chur is mentioned in conjunction with Betzalel because of Chur's actions at the Egel. When the Jews wanted to worship the Egel, Chur stood up to the mob and was killed in the process. Hashem then said that he would repay Chur for his selflessness. The Medrash gave a mashal about a king whose general staves off a coup, but is killed in the process. The king then says - if I borrowed money from him, would I not have to repay him? Since he gave his life to prevent a rebellion, I will ensure that his children are given noble positions and they will be called by his name.

R' Frand said as an aside that there are times that a boy will come to yeshiva without a strong background and perhaps with parents that are not Shomer Shabbos, yet he will excel and become a great Torah scholar. Why? Because somewhere back in his lineage was a grandfather who did great things and this is the way that Hashem is repaying him for his efforts.

But the question can be asked - certainly Chur knew that the situation was hopeless when he stood up against the mob. Why did he give up his life to try to prevent something which he knew he could not stop?

R' Frand answered that this is a lesson that the end result is not necessarily indicative of whether the action was worth taking. There are times that a person may not succeed, but making the effort is more important than the end result. R' Frand quoted an expression from R' Yisrael Salanter which rhymed in Yiddish and then translated it into English. In life a person needs to do, not to imitate others, or to just make an effort for the sake of saying I tried, or even to succeed, he just needs to act. (Again, the expression in Yiddish seemed more powerful).

So why does Rashi keep emphasizing the connection with Miriam? Because Miriam acted even though she knew that she did not have a chance of succeeding. When she went to her father and told him that it was not right to divorce her mother, she knew that he had already held a rabbinical meeting and decided that this was the proper course of conduct. But she knew that she had to act, that she had to try. This was a quality replicated in her son Chur.

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Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Ki Sissa

The following is a brief summary of some of thoughts on the parsha that R' Frand spoke about in his shiur tonight. 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 Shemos 33:7, the Torah states וּמשֶׁה֩ יִקַּ֨ח אֶת־הָאֹ֜הֶל וְנָֽטָה־ל֣וֹ | מִח֣וּץ לַמַּֽחֲנֶ֗ה הַרְחֵק֙ מִן־הַמַּֽחֲנֶ֔ה וְקָ֥רָא ל֖וֹ אֹ֣הֶל מוֹעֵ֑ד וְהָיָה֙ כָּל־מְבַקֵּ֣שׁ יְהֹוָ֔ה יֵצֵא֙ אֶל־אֹ֣הֶל מוֹעֵ֔ד אֲשֶׁ֖ר מִח֥וּץ לַמַּֽחֲנֶֽה  - that Moshe took the Ohel Moed and pitched it outside the encampment and called it the Ohel Moed and it was whomever wanted to seek out Hashem would go out to the Ohel Moed that was outside the encampment.

The Targum Yonasan Ben Uziel said that the words כָּל־מְבַקֵּ֣שׁ יְהֹוָ֔ה  refer to those people who needed to do Teshuva for the Egel.

R' Frand quoted R' Tzadok HaCohen M'Lublin who mentioned the concept of Teshuvas HaMishkal. The people at Har Sinai knew the entire Torah and thought that they did not need a leader like Moshe. Instead they fashioned the Egel which was not a manhig because they did not think they needed a Rav. In order to do Teshuva for their actions, they needed to make the effort to leave the camp to find Moshe at the Ohel Moed.

This is why afterwards everyone was afraid of the shining countenance of Moshe Rabbeinu, because you need a Rav that instills fear and awe in others.

R' Frand then quoted the Sefer Be'arah Shel Torah which mentioned a letter that R' Hutner had written to a community which had chosen a great Rabbi to be their Rav. He wrote that cities have a city clock which sits atop of a high tower and everyone looks up to the clock to set their watches. This was not done merely so that it would be visible to all. Rather, if the clock was lower down, people could reset the city clock if they felt their watches were correct. 

So too said R' Hutner, there are cities where people want their Rav to follow the kehilla's dictates instead of his own view. Therefore this city should be congratulated for choosing a great man who they will look up to.

R' Frand closed this part of the vort by quoting the Meiri on Pirkei Avos, who explains that Aseh L'cha Rav means that even if a person is already a great Rav and perhaps even a greater Talmid Chacham then the Rav of the shul, it is still important to have a Rav for the community and to look up to him.

R' Frand said a second vort on the pasuk in Shemos 34:3 - וְאִישׁ֙ לֹא־יַֽעֲלֶ֣ה עִמָּ֔ךְ - that when Moshe went to get the second luchos there was not the same fireworks and ceremony as when he received the first luchos as no one went up with him.

Rashi explains that when the first luchos were received, there were great sounds and celebration, but it created an ayin hara which culminated with the breaking of the luchos. However the second luchos were received without the same ceremony and these luchos remained intact, because there is no greater middah than tznius.

R' Frand told a story about R' Meir Shapiro and his Yeshivas Chacmei Lublin. When the building was going to be dedicated, R' Meir went to his Rebbi and asked whether he should make a large ceremony. His Rebbi said - no, this was the reason the first luchos were broken, because the ayin hara was sholet on them.

However R' Meir Shapiro disagreed. I will prove it to you - when Moshe broke the luchos there was a concept of shichka haTorah - people forgot their learning and if they had not been broken that would never have happened. Yet, Hashem still made a great ceremony because the greatness of the Torah required it. 

R' Meir Shapio continued - the yeshiva bochrim were looked down upon in the community and they needed a great ceremony for the dedication of the yeshiva so that their status would be elevated in the eyes of the community. R' Meir said that he accepted upon himself if there would be an ayin hara and they had 100,000 people at the ceremony.

R' Meir Shapiro passed away as a young man at the age of 38. At his funeral, R' Zalman Sorotskin said that he died because of ayin hara, but he accepted it upon himself, because the bnei yeshiva needed to be elevated. Much the way Hashem made the first luchos public, despite the fact that there would be an ayin hara, because the greatness of the Torah required it, so too said R' Sorotskin, R' Meir Shapiro made the great ceremony for the dedication of the yeshiva, because the yeshiva bochrim needed it.

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