Thursday's Thoughts on Purim

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 quoted the Rambam who explains the reason that when we read the Megillah, the ten sons of Haman are read in one breath. The Rambam explains that even though they were all hung at one time, their last breath collectively came at the same time. And in order to publicize the miracle, their names are read in one breath.

R' Frand said that this is a lesson of the concept that the Yeshuah of Hashem can come in the blink of an eye, which is the theme of Purim and a life lesson. Often through the course of life, things seem desperate and the person wonders, how can things change. And the lesson which is often easier said than done, is that the Yeshua can come in a blink, but we see that they all died in an instant and the Purim story changed in an instant.

R' Frand remarked that within the last year, the threat of Iran was neutralized in a matter of hours. Iran was days away from having a nuclear weapon and Israel did not have the weapons to destroy the sites. But Hashem arranged that the US would get involved and the sites would be destroyed - this occurred in an instant and is a take home lesson from Purim.

R' Frand said an additional vort on Purim related to the Shoshanas Ya'akov. The Halacha is that everyone must say out loud "Shekol Koyvecha Lo Yevoshu" - that the miracle was to let us know that those who have faith in Hashem will not be embarassed.

R' Frand said that we can see this from the perek where Mordechai tells Esther through a messenger about the decree and Esther pushes back saying that she has not been called and that if she went in without being summoned, she could be killed. 

R' Frand mused - if you were Mordechai how would you react? R' Frand said that if it were him, he would have said to Esther - don't you know everyone will be killed if you don't go to see Achasverosh? He would push the panic button and scream it as loud as he could.

But the pesukim don't show this reaction from Mordechai. Instead he famously tells her in Esther 4:14 -  כִּ֣י אִם־הַֽחֲרֵ֣שׁ תַּֽחֲרִ֘ישִׁי֘ בָּעֵ֣ת הַזֹּאת֒ רֶ֣וַח וְהַצָּלָ֞ה יַֽעֲמ֤וֹד לַיְּהוּדִים֙ מִמָּק֣וֹם אַחֵ֔ר וְאַ֥תְּ וּבֵֽית־אָבִ֖יךְ תֹּאבֵ֑דוּ וּמִ֣י יוֹדֵ֔עַ אִם־לְעֵ֣ת כָּזֹ֔את הִגַּ֖עַתְּ לַמַּלְכֽוּת. Mordechai tells her - if its not you that do this, Hashem will make it happen through someone else. It will be Megillas someone else, because Hashem won't let this happen.

This is an emblematic of the concept that anyone who has faith will not be embarrassed - Hashem will save us and if you put your faith in Hashem, He will come through.

R' Frand closed with stories involving doctors. One story was about R' Belsky who was rushed to Maimonides Hospital and was diagnosed with a ruptured abdominal aorta. They found him the surgeon on duty at Maimonides who was going to perform the surgery. But then, the askanim of Boro Park decided that he could be better treated at NYU and they located the best cardiothoracic surgeon to do the surgery. When they told R' Belsky he was being transferred he adamantly opposed to being transferred. He said that it was an issue of kavod habrios and they could not make this Jewish surgeon feel insufficient. As long as he had a competent surgeon -- that together with kavod habrios would be good enough because you don't embarrass another person. Because if Hashem wants him to live, it will be though this surgeon, and if not, it wont come through a different surgeon. But you put your faith in Hashem.

R' Frand told a personal story about his passing out right before Yom Kippur a number of years ago after he passed out. His family took him to Sinai Hospital and they recommended that he have a pacemaker implanted. The hospital asked him - who is your cardiologist and he responded that he did not have one, because who needs one until you need one? The hospital gave him a cardiologist - AJ Soodan, who implanted a pacemaker. R' Frand said that he considered afterwards changing cardiologists and he decided not to because Hashem got him this cardiologist. And every six months he goes to see Dr Soodan and Dr Soodan gives him a mussar shmooze that he does not need about needing to change his diet. But he is going to stay with Dr Soodan, because this is who Hashem gave him. 

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Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Terumah

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 first observed that the description of the construction of the articles of the Mishkan are meant to be Mussar. By example, the measurements of the Aron are in half measures, which are meant to teach that a Talmid Chacham should be humble.

R' Frand then referenced the Keruvim which were on top of the Aron and which were fashioned to look like children. Why was this the image chosen and not of a sage? R' Frand said that some Mefarshim explain that the message is that we are to approach the Torah like children with their hallmark of enthusiasm and curiosity. When one views children learning, they have exuberance and they want to know more and grow. R' Frand quoted a Pasuk from Navi [I am unfamiliar with the citation] that Hashem says that the Jews are like a Child that and I love them.

R' Frand quoted a story in the Sefer Arzei HaParsha involving R' Elya Feinstein and his grandson, Aaron Soloveichik (who would later become the great R' Aaron). He noticed that his grandson during the Yamin Noraim was not saying the specific line in Shma Koleinu - Al Tashlichenu L'Es Zikna with much fervor. He asked him why and young Aaron explained - because I am seven years old. R' Elya responded that the meaning is not don't cast me aside when I am old - it means don't make me a like an old person when I am young. I don't want to lose my enthusiasm and curiosity.

R' Frand also quoted R' Zalman Leff who observed that if you call a Doctor a Medical Student, he will be insulted. But a sage is called a Talmid Chacham, because if you want to be a Chacham you need to be a Talmid - you need to have the excitement.

R' Frand's second vort related to the Atzei Shittim which were used in the Mishkan. The Medrash states that the world did not require the creation of cedar wood and the only reason cedar was created was so that they could be used in the Mishkan. He quoted a pasuk in Tehillim that uses the term Arzei HaLevanon - the cedar was created for the Beis HaMikdash which is called Levanon.

R' Frand quoted the Sefer Menachem Tzion who observes that cedar is strong, but Hashem does not want us to be like a cedar. He cited the Gemara in Ta'anis which states that a person should be pliable like a reed and not like cedar. However the Beis HaMikdash should be like a cedar. Why the difference? Because a person should be flexible on personal issues, but by matters of Kedushah and Torah, a person needs to stand his ground.

R' Frand quoted R' Avraham Bukspan of Miami who notes that Rashi explains that Ya'akov saw with Ruach HaKodesh that the Jews would eventually be travelling in the desert and would need the Atzei Shittim to build the Mishkan. So Ya'akov took the cedar trees to Egypt and commanded his children that when they leave Egypt they should take the trees with them.

But this did not start with Ya'akov, instead it began with Avraham who planted the trees in Be'er Sheva. R' Frand explained that Avraham Avinu planted the cedars because his message was that you need to be inflexible like a cedar on matters of Keudshah. Avraham was Avraham HaIvri because the entire world was on one side and he was on the other. R' Frand observed that Avraham was an iconoclast and stood separate from the rest of the world when he was the first to separate from idol worship and created the concept of monotheism. Avraham was unflinching and straight like a cedar and would not allow for polytheism. Ya'akov saw this and incorporated it into his thinking and the Jewish DNA. 

R' Frand closed the vort by telling a story about the Bikur Cholim shul in Seattle which was founded in 1891 and has been an Orthodox shul since its founding. R' Frand said that there was a prominent family in Seattle called the Genauers and the patriarch was R' Moshe Genauer who went from being a peddler to the owner of a famous clothing store. He had seven sons, including one named Ben Genauer who was involved in all community events including the Mikva and the day school. He also gave a gemara shiur to adults and learned with children.

Mr. Genauer told him a story that took place on Yom Kippur in the early part of the 20th century. The President stood up on a packed Yom Kippur night and said - times are a changing and we need to change with them. We need to get rid of the spitoons and we need to have mixed seating. His father stood up and yelled - Shegitz - get off the Bimah. Ben Genauer said that he wanted to crawl into the floor when he heard that. But the shul did not change, although another Orthodox shul did become Conservative. Because when it comes to Divrei Kedushah, one needs to be like cedar. 

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Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Mishpatim

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.

The first vort R' Frand said this evening related to the first pasuk of the Parsha - וְאֵ֨לֶּה֙ הַמִּשְׁפָּטִ֔ים אֲשֶׁ֥ר תָּשִׂ֖ים לִפְנֵיהֶֽם. He quoted the Ba'al HaTurim who teaches that the word הַמִּשְׁפָּטִ֔ים is an acronym - HaDayan Metzuveh Sheya'aseh Peshara Terem Ya'aseh Mishpat - (loosely translated as the Judge is commanded to make a compromise before making judgment). 

The value of compromise is seen in the Shulchan Aruch which instructs in the beginning of Choshen Mishpat that it is a Mitzva for the Judge to say the litigants before hearing a case - do you want judgment or compromise. Any any court which makes compromises is praiseworthy.

R' Frand quoted the Satmar Rav who notes that Mishpatim follows immediately after Parshas Yisro and that it contains many Mitzvos which are found in Choshen Mishpat. But why then does the Shulchan Aruch not start with Choshen Mishpat? [R' Frand quipped that if he would answer the question, he would say it starts with Aruch Chaim because you need to know what to do when you get up in the morning]. The Satmar Rav answers that Choshen Mishpat values compromise and you cannot start a book of law which contains Mitzvos like eating Matza or the rules of Kashrus, with a discussion of compromise.

R' Frand's second vort was also based on the first pasuk of the Parsha. He quoted Rashi who states that וְאֵ֨לֶּה֙ comes to join a concept to what came before it. Just as the Mitzvos in Yisro and specifically the Aseres HaDibros came from Hashem, so too do the Mitzvos in this week's Parsha.

R' Frand quoted the Rav M'Bartenura's introduction to Pirkei Avos wherein he states that all the Mesechtos of Shas are about Halacha, but Pirkei Avos is about how to treat one's fellow man. And while we are not the only society to create rules of interpersonal relationships, Pirkei Avos underscores that our rules are divine and that is why Pirkei Avos begins by stating that Moshe received the Torah from Sinai.

R' Frand linked to this to a story about a Mr Denker who was Chiloni columnist in Israel who was sent to interview R' Shach. When he got to Ponevich and asked for R' Shach, he was told that R' Shach was unavailable. So he wandered the Beis Medrash and was amazed - but not by the decibel level. R' Frand observed that secular people study in a library where one MUST keep quiet. But this was not what impressed him. Instead it was the notes on the bulletin board - "found three shirt buttons" or "found Bic pen." When Mr Denker returned to Tel Aviv, he wrote about the bulletin board, stating that when he was in university, no one would pick up a Bic pen, let alone try to return it to the owner. But this is Torah, just like the Gemara in Bava Metzia which instructs a person that if he sees his friend and his enemy struggling to unload a donkey, you help your enemy. This is what is meant by the statement that the Middos in Pirkei Avos are divine.

R' Frand's final vort was about the end of the Parsha where Moshe goes up on the mountain and the Jews say to him in Shemos 24:7 -  וַיֹּ֣אמְר֔וּ כֹּ֛ל אֲשֶׁר־דִּבֶּ֥ר יְהֹוָ֖ה נַֽעֲשֶׂ֥ה וְנִשְׁמָֽע. This seemingly does not belong here and Rashi explains that this takes place before Matan Torah in Parshas Yisro. R' Frand then referred to the Gemara in Avodah Zarah which states that Hashem went to all the nations of the world and asked whether they wanted the Torah and they in turn asked what was stated in the Torah. When each nation heard, they rejected the Torah.

The Vilna Gaon asks - but don't you think that there must have been some members of the nations who did want the Torah? He answers that that yes there were some - and those people became converts. The Chida supports this, noting that the Gemara refers to a Ger Sheba L'Hisgayer - a convert who comes to convert. Grammatically, it should read - an Akum who comes to convert. The reason it does not is because he was already a Ger, he just needed to convert. 

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Friday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Yisro

The following is a brief summary of some of thoughts said over by R' Frand on the parsha yesterday [as we were at a beautiful simcha last night, I was unable to see the shiur live]. 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.

When Yisro comes to visit Moshe in the beginning of the Parsha, the Torah states in 18:7 וַיֵּצֵ֨א משֶׁ֜ה לִקְרַ֣את  חֹֽתְנ֗וֹ. Rashi explains that this was a great honor for Yisro, because not only did Moshe come out to greet him, but so did Aharon, Nadav & Avihu. And because Moshe & Aharon went out, everyone came as well. 

Later in the same pasuk it states וַיִּשְׁתַּ֨חוּ֙ וַיִּשַּׁק־ל֔וֹ וַיִּשְׁאֲל֥וּ אִֽישׁ־לְרֵעֵ֖הוּ לְשָׁל֑וֹם. Rashi asks - who bowed down to who? It must be that Moshe bowed because it uses the term אִֽישׁ and Moshe is referred to in Bamidbar 12:3 -וְהָאִ֥ישׁ משֶׁ֖ה עָנָ֣יו using that term.

The Nesivos asks - why did Rashi use this Gezera Shava to learn that this was Moshe? In Shemos 2:21 the Torah states וַיּ֥וֹאֶל משֶׁ֖ה לָשֶׁ֣בֶת אֶת־הָאִ֑ישׁ and there, Yisro was the אִֽישׁ? R' Frand also quotes the Chasam Sofer who asks why Rashi quoted from Beha'alosecha and not from Shemos 32:1 where the Torah recounts that the Jews stated כִּי־זֶ֣ה | משֶׁ֣ה הָאִ֗ישׁ.

Rabbi Frand quoted the Sefer Arzei HaParsha who cited the Sefer Shir Ma'on (written by the grandson of the Chasam Sofer) who explains that the reference to Moshe in Beha'alosecha is not an invented Gezera Shava. Its an explanation of who Moshe was -וְהָאִ֥ישׁ משֶׁ֖ה עָנָ֣יו - Moshe was the most humble person on Earth and this explains who bowed down to who.

R' Frand said a second vort related to the fact that the Parsha is named Yisro, which Rashi states is due to Yisro's addition of a Parsha to the Torah - וְאַתָּ֣ה תֶֽחֱזֶ֣ה מִכָּל־הָ֠עָ֠ם אַנְשֵׁי־חַ֜יִל. In so doing, Yisro advises Moshe about setting up a court system in which there are a series of judges to assist Moshe with the work load. But Yisro also says to Moshe as a prelude in Shemos 18:20 וְהִזְהַרְתָּ֣ה אֶתְהֶ֔ם אֶת־הַֽחֻקִּ֖ים וְאֶת־הַתּוֹרֹ֑ת וְהֽוֹדַעְתָּ֣ לָהֶ֗ם אֶת־הַדֶּ֨רֶךְ֙ יֵ֣לְכוּ בָ֔הּ וְאֶת־הַמַּֽעֲשֶׂ֖ה אֲשֶׁ֥ר יַֽעֲשֽׂוּן. Why did Yisro need to tell Moshe that he should teach these things - he is already doing that?

R' Frand cited R' Bukspan who quoted the Chofetz Chaim which based on the Gemara explains that each of these terms has a special meaning. And the last term  אֲשֶׁ֥ר יַֽעֲשֽׂוּן - means to act Lifnim Meshuras HaDin - act above the letter of the law. There is an opinion in the Gemara that Yerushalayim was destroyed because people did not act Lifnim Meshuras HaDin - they were quick to run to court instead of trying to make a Peshara - a compromise.

R' Frand remarked that the United States is a litigious society and that this seems to have rubbed off on the Jews of this country as well as people will run to Beis Din instead of trying to work things out. 

Yisro's final advice to Moshe was that people should try to work things out and compromise as this will reduce the number of cases that are heard and that if people practiced Lifnim Meshuras HaDin it would cut down on the number of cases.

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