TORAH

Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary 

Yeshiva University Center for the Jewish Future 

THE BENJAMIN AND ROSE BERGER 

TORAH TO-GO® 

Established by Rabbi Hyman and Ann Arbesfeld 

April 2016 • Pesach-Yom Haatzmaut 5776 

Dedicated in memory of 

Cantor Jerome L. Simons 

Featuring Divrei Torah from 

Rabbi Benjamin Blech • Rabbi Reuven Brand 

Rabbi Daniel Z. Feldman • Rabbi Aaron Goldscheider 

Rabbi Yona Reiss • Mrs. Shoshana Schechter • Rabbi Mordechai Torczyner 

Ilana Turetsky, Ed.D • Rabbi Daniel Yolkut 

Insights on the Pesach Seder from the Rabbinic Alumni Committee of 

the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary 

Rabbi Binyamin Blau • Rabbi Eliezer Muskin • Rabbi Moshe Neiss 

Rabbi Shmuel Silber • Rabbi Eliezer Zwickler 

Insights on Yom Haatzmaut from 

Rabbi Nissim Abrin • Rabbi David Bigman • Mrs. Dina Blank 

Rabbi Jesse Horn • Rabbi Shaya Karlinsky • Rabbi Moshe Lichtman 

Rabbi Chaim Pollock • Rabbi Azriel Rosner • Rabbi Ari Shvat 

1 

Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary • The Benjamin and Rose Berger CJF Torah To-Go Series • Pesach 5776

We thank the following synagogues who have pledged to be 

Pillars of the Torah To-Go® project 

Congregation Ahavas 

Achim 

Highland Park, NJ 

Congregation Ahavath 

Torah 

Englewood, NJ 

Congregation Beth 

Shalom 

Rochester, NY 

Congregation 

Shaarei Tefillah 

Newton Centre, MA 

The Jewish Center 

New York, NY 

Young Israel of Beth El in 

Boro Park 

Brooklyn, NY 

Young Israel of 

Century City 

Los Angeles, CA 


New Hyde Park 

New Hyde Park, NY 


West Hempstead 

West Hempstead, NY 

Richard M. Joel, President and Bravmann Family University Professor, Yeshiva University 

Rabbi Kenneth Brander, Vice President for University and Community Life, Yeshiva University 

Rabbi Yaakov Glasser, David Mitzner Dean, Center for the Jewish Future 

Rabbi Menachem Penner, Max and Marion Grill Dean, Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary 

Rabbi Robert Shur, Series Editor 

Rabbi Joshua Flug, General Editor 

Rabbi Michael Dubitsky, Editor 

Andrea Kahn, Copy Editor 

Copyright © 2016 All rights reserved by Yeshiva University 

Yeshiva University Center for the Jewish Future 

500 West 185th Street, Suite 419, New York, NY 10033 • office@yutorah.org • 212.960.0074 

This publication contains words of Torah. Please treat it with appropriate respect. 

For sponsorship opportunities, please contact Paul Glasser at 212.960.5852 or paul.glasser@yu.edu. 

2 


Table of Contents 

Pesach—Yom Haatzmaut 2016/5776 

Dedicated in memory of Cantor Jerome L. Simons 

The Seder of the Seder 

Rabbi Benjamin Blech . . . . . .. . ..................................................................... Page 5 

Defining Mesorah 

Rabbi Reuven Brand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................................................................... Page 8 

In Time, Out of Time, or Beyond Time? Women and Sefiras HaOmer 

Rabbi Daniel Z. Feldman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ......................................................... Page 13 

The Giving Jew: Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik on Yachatz and Hachnasat 

Orchim 

Rabbi Aaron Goldscheider . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................................................................. Page 17 

Understanding an Unfriendly Minhag: Not Eating Out on Pesach 

Rabbi Yona Reiss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............................................................................ Page 21 

Freedom To…Not Freedom From: Pesach and the Road to Redemption 

Mrs. Shoshana Schechter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................................................................. Page 26 

When Iyov Left Egypt 

Rabbi Mordechai Torczyner . . . . . . . . . . . . ................................................................. Page 30 

How do We Transmit Emunah? Maximizing the Pesach Seder 

Ilana Turetsky, Ed.D. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................................................................. Page 33 

The Original Birthright: Seder Night in Jerusalem 

Rabbi Daniel Yolkut . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................................................................. Page 37 

Insights to the Pesach Seder 

From the Rabbinic Alumni Committee of the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary . . . . . . . Page 39 

Yom Haatzmaut: An Introduction 

Mrs. Stephanie Strauss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................................................................. Page 45 

Eretz Yisroel: The Prism of God 

Rabbi Nissim Abrin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................................................................. Page 48 

The Meaning of the Establishment of the State of Israel 

Rabbi David Bigman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................................................................. Page 50 

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Yom Ha’atzmaut: Heeding the Call 

Mrs. Dina Blank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................................................................. Page 52 

Eretz Yisrael and the First 61 Chapters of the Torah 

Rabbi Jesse Horn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................................................................. Page 54 

Kedushat Eretz Yisrael 

Rabbi Shaya Karlinsky . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................................................................. Page 56 

Simchah Shel Mitzvah 

Rabbi Moshe Lichtman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................................................................. Page 58 

A Torah Approach to Medinat Yisrael 

Rabbi Chaim Pollock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................................................................. Page 60 

Three Days before Aliyah 

Rabbi Azriel Rosner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................................................................. Page 62 

What’s So Important About Eretz Yisrael?! 

Rabbi Ari Shvat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................................................................. Page 64 

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Introduction 

For some families, it is the odors 

of charred metal mixing with 

the fresh scents of new plastic 

counter coverings. For others, it is 

the neatly piled clothing next to the 

suitcases being filled to capacity. But 

for all, the hullabaloo of the night 

preceding the Pesach seder is broken 

by the family gathering to fulfill the 

mitzvah of bedikas chametz. Searching 

for chametz is a process that begins 

long before we begin negotiating 

who will hold the candle, feather, 

spoon, and bag for our formal bedikas 

chametz. Our homes are essentially 

chametz-free when we commence this 

sacred obligation, and the chametz 

not located can be rendered ownerless 

by the process of bitul (nullification). 

Moreover, our custom (see Rama, 

OC 432:2) is to distribute 10 pieces 

of bread throughout the house in 

order to ensure that the effort results 

in some form of productive outcome. 

How are we to understand this 

entire experience? On the one hand, 

searching for chametz is one of the 

most central elements of preparing 

for Pesach, yet the mitzvah of bedikas 

chametz — as is practiced today in 

homes that are already free of chametz 

— seems to be a manufactured ritual 

that is devoid of any true purpose, 

with an artificial outcome. 

The answer is that Pesach is about 

more than just celebrating the 

redemption of the Jewish people. 

Recalling the narrative of our Exodus 

from Egypt is an obligation that is 

incumbent upon us every single 

day. The distinguishing dynamic 

of the Pesach seder is that we care 

about more than just the outcome 

of redemption — we care about the 

process that anticipates it as well. On 

the seder night, we are obligated to 

evoke the curiosity of our children 

and each other. Beyond providing 

essays and answers that depict 

the miraculous journey of yetzias 

Mitzrayim, we are also seeking to 

inspire the Jewish people to aspire and 

reach for the world of redemption as 

well. Indeed, to question and to search 

is part of the journey of redemption 

as well. We engage in many rituals 

that solicit the questioning of the next 

generation because redemption must 

be built upon a foundation of desire 

and aspiration. 

We may all be aware that the search for chametz 

will likely produce very limited unanticipated 

results. Yet there is inherent and deep value to 

the experience of “searching” in general. 

Rabbi Yaakov Glasser 

David Mitzner Dean, YU Center for the Jewish Future 

Rabbi, Young Israel of Passaic-Clifton 

We may all be aware that the search 

for chametz will likely produce very 

limited unanticipated results. Yet 

there is inherent and deep value to the 

experience of “searching” in general. 

As we walk through our homes, 

and through our lives, we begin to 

appreciate where the exile has taken 

hold, and left our lives incomplete, 

where our “questions” have been left 

unanswered by G-d’s hidden presence, 

and how redemption would bring 

seder, order, to our personal, familial, 

and national lives. 

We are living in a generation of deep 

confusion. On the one hand, our 

home is so well prepared for Pesach, 

our world so primed for redemption. 

We enjoy countless synagogues, 

schools, outreach organizations, and 

a homeland to which we can return. 

On the other hand, redemption seems 

so elusive as uncertainty and terror 

grip so many nations, including our 

precious State of Israel. It is our role 

to continue to aspire, to continue to 

question, to continue to search, until 

we discover the ultimate redemption 

and can once again celebrate Pesach 

together in Yerushalayim Ir Hakodesh. 

5 


The Seder of the Seder 

The word seder means order — 

and yet the order of the seder 

seems very strange. 

The ritual of Passover night is divided 

into three distinct parts. The first is 

comprised of all the readings from the 

Haggadah until the section known 

as shulchan orech, the prepared table. 

At this point we pause to eat our 

festive meal. Then we return to the 

text to conclude the readings and final 

portions of the holiday text. 

Simply put, it is pray, eat, and pray 

again. 

Somehow that begs for an 

explanation. With regard to our 

morning prayers, Jewish law is quite 

clear. We must first take care of our 

spiritual obligations to God before we 

are permitted to satisfy our physical 

wants. We have to complete our 

prayers before we are allowed to sit 

down for our morning meal. 

Yet at the seder, Jewish law seems 

unable to make up its mind about 

proper priorities. Yes, prayers to God 

do come first. We spend considerable 

time until we get to our food. But in 

what would appear to be “the middle 

of the book,” we halt our God-talk to 

placate our hunger. We recline and 

leisurely eat until we are satiated and 

then our slowly closing eyes are pulled 

back open to conclude the closing 

unit of the Haggadah. 

Is this simply a concession to human 

frailty, an acknowledgment that it 

would be too difficult to continue 

reading from a text without some 

sustenance? Is the placement of 

the meal in the middle no more 

meaningful than an intermission made 

necessary by a Rabbinic recognition 

that people couldn’t be expected to 

pray for so long a time without a break 

for nourishment? 

Or is there in fact some greater 

meaning, some profound order, to the 

seder of the seder? 

The answer becomes clear when we 

take note of the exact placement 

of the meal in the context of 

the entire Haggadah. Hallel is a 

magnificent selection of Psalms that 

are customarily recited on holidays. 

It consists of a number of chapters 

that together form a self-contained 

unit. When recited in the synagogue, 

the Hallel begins with a blessing 

and closes with a blessing — a clear 

indication that it is meant to be 

uninterrupted, an organic whole with 

a clearly defined structure. 

How remarkable then that at the 

seder, we read but the first two 

chapters of Hallel, chapters 113 and 

114 of the Book of Psalms, and then 

move on to the meal only to return to 

the concluding portion, chapters 115- 

118, after we have eaten our fill. 

Our original question becomes even 

stronger. If we feel that it is only 

right, just as with our daily morning 

practice, to fulfill the spiritual 

Rabbi Benjamin Blech 

Faculty, IBC Jewish Studies Program, 

Yeshiva University 

obligation of praise to God before 

tending to our physical needs and 

we therefore recite the beginning of 

Hallel, why not at the very least finish 

it? Would it really be so hard to delay 

eating for just a little bit longer? And 

if indeed a complete Hallel is out of 

place because of its length and the 

rabbis felt that the seder participants 

were entitled at long last to start the 

meal, couldn’t they have deferred 

the first two paragraphs to the aftermeal 

location accorded to the major 

portion of the prayer? 

Surely the exact place where we make 

the break in Hallel has a great deal of 

significance. And once we identify 

the thematic difference between the 

first two chapters of Hallel and the 

remainder, we will have the key to 

understanding the reason for the 

remarkable sequence we’ve identified 

as pray-eat-pray. 

The seder consists of three main units 

because it is on Passover night that we 

as a people first came to accept and 

understand God. 

The English word God is a contraction 

of good. It conveys only one aspect of 

His being: His goodness. In Hebrew, 

the four letter name of God, the 

Tetragrammaton, is a combination 

of three words that express the three 

6 


categories of time: Hoyah means was; 

Hoveh means is; Yihyeh means will be. 

These three words combined together 

are the most powerful way we refer 

to the Almighty. By using this name, 

we acknowledge God’s presence for 

all time. God was in the past, the allpowerful 

Creator of the world Who 

revealed Himself to our ancestors. He 

is in the present as the ongoing source 

of all of our daily blessings. And He 

will continue to be in the future, 

fulfilling all the promises He made as 

part of our covenantal relationship. 

To believe in a God who is limited 

to a presence that fails to encompass 

all three aspects of time is to make 

a mockery of His greatness. And 

so every year on the first night of 

Passover we conduct a seder divided 

into three acts: 

• The first is devoted to explaining the 

role of God in the past. 

• The second emphasizes His 

closeness to us in the present. 

• The last stresses our firm belief that 

just as He redeemed us long ago from 

the slavery of Egypt, He will finally 

bring about the promised messianic 

redemption in the future. 

Look carefully at the prayers and the 

rituals before the meal and you will 

see that their intent is to elaborate on 

God’s role in the past. The response to 

the young children’s four questions, 

the Mah Nishtanah, about the 

meaning of this night, begins with 

the paragraph that recounts how 

“we were slaves to Pharaoh in Egypt 

and the Lord our God took us out 

from there with a strong hand and an 

outstretched arm.” We go back to the 

time when our ancestors at first were 

idolaters and then the Lord drew us 

near to His service. We talk about 

Laban, the wandering Aramean, and 

how we ended up in Egypt. We recite 

the 10 plagues and, with Dayenu, 

express our gratitude for all the things 

that God did for us, each one of which 

alone would have warranted gratitude. 

That, we then sum up, is why we have 

the Paschal lamb, the matzoh, and the 

bitter herbs. 

And that is why we then recite only 

the two chapters from the Book 

What’s on the 

Seder Plate? 

Although the history of the Seder goes back 

thousands of years, each item on the Seder 

Plate still has deep significance to our 

personal lives today. 

EGG 

Reminds us to mourn that we can no 

longer offer the Korban Chagigah 

(Holiday sacrifice) since we no longer have 

the Temple. An egg is a sign of mourning 

because it is round, symbolizing the cycle 

of life from birth to death. 

We yearn for God to redeem us 

from our present exile so 

that we will be able to serve 

God in the most optimal way. 

LETTUCE 

A form of Marror. 

Lettuce is not 

always bitter, but it 

can become hard 

and bitter if left in the 

ground for too long 

before being harvested. 

This hardening process 

parallels the transformation 

in attitude that the Egyptians 

had toward the Jews: Just as 

lettuce starts out soft and ends up 

hard and bitter, so too, the Egyptians 

originally welcomed Jacob and the Jewish 

people to Egypt with open arms, but later turned 

their backs on the Jewish people and subjected 

them to backbreaking labor. 

The lettuce reminds us to remain loyal 

and appreciative toward the people who 

help us. We should not be like the 

Egyptians and the lettuce, which are soft 

at first but later become hard and bitter. 

of Psalms out of the larger prayer 

commonly recited as Hallel, chapters 

113 and 114. 

These chapters share this emphasis 

on praise for past kindnesses. We 

who were once slaves to Pharaoh 

are now servants of the Lord (Psalm 

113). God intervened on our behalf 

with great miracles, with the splitting 

of the sea and the trembling of the 

ROASTED BONE 

Reminds us of the Korban Pesach (Paschal Lamb) that was eaten at the 

seder in the times of the Temple. Since we no longer have our Temple, we 

can’t offer the Korban Pesach any more, and we don’t eat this meat, either. 

The Korban Pesach was roasted because roasted meat is considered 

something eaten only by royals; poor people are more likely to just boil 

their meat. The Korban Pesach reminds us to celebrate that God elevated 

us from a nation of slaves to a holy nation of royalty. We are not 

just regular people, we are children of the King! 

HORSERADISH 

Reminds us of the bitter 

enslavement of our forefathers in 

Egypt. Many people eat LETTUCE 

(see above) for Marror instead of 

horseradish. 

CHAROSET 

A mixture of apples, cinnamon, 

nuts, and wine. Its 

appearance reminds us of 

the bricks and mortar 

the Jews used in Egypt. 

We dip the bitter Marror 

into the Charoset to 

sweeten the bitterness of 

the Marror. This is a 

reminder that we can 

always find a spark of 

goodness and something 

to appreciate within every 

challenge we face in life. 

Every dark cloud has a silver 

lining. 

KARPAS 

A vegetable like celery or a potato. We 

dip the Karpas into saltwater to remind 

us of the salty tears the Jews shed from 

the backbreaking labor in Egypt. 

When God saw the Jews’ tears and heard 

their cries, God‘s mercy was aroused 

and He brought the Jews out of Egypt. 

The salty tears therefore remind us of 

God’s tremendous mercy, and 

the power of prayer to 

save us from even the 

most difficult of 

circumstances. 

We dip the Karpas 

into saltwater 

Infographic by Rachel First, Educational Designer for NCSY Education. 

For more educational infographics and materials from NCSY, please visit: education.ncsy.org 

7 


mountains (Psalm 114). We go no 

further at this point because we 

have not yet shifted our attention 

to the second major way in which 

we understand God’s role in time as 

expressed by His very name — Hoveh 

— He Is. 

An anonymous author put it very well 

when he said, “The past is history. The 

future is mystery. The here and now 

is a precious gift from God — and 

that’s why we call it the present.” We 

could not survive even for a moment 

without God’s providential care. The 

most powerful way in which this 

is expressed is by way of our daily 

bread. Manna may no longer descend 

from heaven as it miraculously did 

for our ancestors in the desert, but 

we are spiritually sensitive enough to 

recognize that without the Almighty, 

we wouldn’t be blessed with the most 

basic requirements for our continued 

existence. To eat our food is to know 

God in the present. Shulchan orech, 

the section of the seder in which we 

partake of our meal, is to absorb in 

both a literal and metaphorical way 

the reality of God’s nearness. He feeds 

us — so we know that He loves us. 

The meal portion of the seder is not 

an intermission. It is another moment 

of awareness, different and elevated. 

It moves us from the Hoyah to the 

Hoveh. It makes the concept of the 

God of the past developed in the 

first section much more meaningful, 

something that is relevant for us 

today. In this second section, the God 

of the present is personal. We sit at 

His table and we know that just like 

a concerned parent, God nudges us, 

“Eat my child, eat.” 

We express all of this every time we 

recite the Grace After Meals: 

ברוך אתה ה’,‏ א-לוקינו מלך העולם,‏ הזן את 

העולם כולו בטובו,‏ בחן בחסד וברחמים,‏ הוא 

נותן לחם לכל בשר,‏ כי לעולם חסדו ... כי הוא 

א-ל זן ומפרנס לכל ומטיב לכל,‏ ומכין מזון 

לכל בריותיו אשר ברא.‏ 

Blessed are you, Hashem (the one whose 

name includes a relationship with us 

in the present) our God, King of the 

universe, who nourishes (present tense) 

the entire world in his goodness, with 

grace, with kindness, and with mercy. 

He provides (present tense) food to all 

flesh, for his kindness is eternal ... He 

is God who nourishes (present tense) 

and sustains (present tense) all, and He 

prepares (present tense) food for all of 

His creatures which He has created. 

The seder has brought us from the 

past to the present. But it is still not 

enough. The seder still cannot be 

over. We need to move on to the final 

and most complete understanding 

of God’s relationship with us. After 

the meal we at last turn to tzofun, the 

Hebrew word for hidden. It represents 

the matzoh we set aside at the 

beginning of the meal to be “saved for 

later.” It is not the matzoh of the past 

but the matzoh of the future. It is not 

the matzoh of memory that recalls the 

Exodus from Egypt. It is the matzoh 

of hope for a not as yet fulfilled 

redemption from the bitterness of the 

exile and the diaspora. It is the matzoh 

that was wrapped up for the children 

in the firm belief that they will enjoy 

a long awaited future of messianic joy. 

Tzofun serves as a bridge to the third 

part of the seder when we move from 

gratitude for what is to even greater 

anticipation of what will be. 

It is the third part of the seder that 

captures the real significance of the 

Passover festival. This is not meant to 

be a holiday designated primarily as 

a trip down memory lane, a nostalgic 

reminder of an ancient story that 

has no realistic relevance to us. The 

conclusion of the seder comes to 

affirm that what happened before 

will happen again. The first ge’ulah 

(redemption) was but a preview 

of coming attractions. There will 

assuredly be a ge’ulah sh’lemah — a 

final and complete redemption. 

And so we open the door for Elijah, 

the prophet Jewish tradition identifies 

as the one who comes to announce 

the arrival of the Messiah. Better yet, 

we ask our children to perform this 

task. After all, it is a ritual that relates 

to the future and it is the young who 

will most benefit from its fulfillment. 

We ask God to pour forth his wrath 

upon the nations who so viciously 

abused us. We recite those passages 

of Hallel rooted in our hopes for the 

future that we did not yet say in the 

first section of the seder concentrating 

on the past. We pray for the return to 

Jerusalem, not just the city but the 

rebuilt city, the city of King David’s 

dreams and King Solomon’s Temple. 

We close with the nirtzah, in which 

we express the hope that soon and 

speedily God “will redeem us to Zion 

with glad song,” and Passover will at 

last fulfill its full promise. 

Pray, eat, and then pray again. The 

seder captures the three tenses of 

God’s name. It incorporates all of 

time. And that is what makes the seder 

timeless. 

8 


Defining Mesorah 

Every year, on the night of 

Pesach, Jewish people around 

the world convene at their 

seder tables and collectively, we share 

our story with the next generation. 

This transmission of our heritage, its 

laws and values, ensures the continuity 

of our Jewish community and creates 

a bond of tradition we call mesorah — 

tradition. The full import and meaning 

of this Hebrew term is lacking 

somewhat in the English translation. 

Beyond “tradition,” the overarching 

character of mesorah connotes a 

connection to a narrative, movement, 

and mission that transcends 

generational boundaries. Mesorah is 

expressed in the transmission of living 

teachings, character, and profiles of a 

Torah community, and is an essential 

component of Judaism. Hence, while 

mesorah has seventy faces, its basic 

and universal qualities transcend all 

boundaries and unite all segments of 

the Torah community. 

Yet over the generations we struggle 

with the question: how do we define 

our mesorah? What are its features 

and parameters? Which practices fit 

within its broad parameters and how 

do we apply it in every generation? 

Surely, there are notable differences 

between various specific practices at 

the seder that vary from community 

to community and from time to time, 

so how are we to determine what 

developments fall within our mesorah? 

It is fascinating that the Hagadah can 

be a helpful guide in addressing these 

issues. The Hagadah is not only a 

traditional text — it is a paradigmatic 

text of tradition including elements 

that, as we study it, give us insight 

into the nature, character and key 

components of mesorah. Although 

these reflections are not ironclad 

proofs to a full definition of mesorah, 

we can still gain insight into this crucial 

concept. 1 With the Hagadah as our 

guide, we can learn timeless lessons. 

The concept of mesorah, which 

reflects and represents continuity of 

generations, is primarily focused on 

the Oral tradition. The Written Torah 

— the Tanach — is the backbone of 

our relationship with Hashem, while 

the Oral Torah provides spirit, depth, 

context, and meaning. At Sinai, Hashem 

instructed that we interpret the Written 

Torah through the Oral Torah, to guide 

how our Jewish lives take shape and 

form. It is this oral transmission that is 

the shared covenantal bond between us 

and Hashem. 2 

Our Hagadah dedicates its largest 

section — Tzei Ul’mad — to the 

midrashic interpretation of the story 

of yetziat Mitzrayim. It is because 

this is the primary expression of 

mesorah — the Oral tradition and 

its transmission of the methodology 

Rabbi Reuven Brand 

Rosh Kollel, YU Torah Mitzion Kollel of Chicago 

and understanding of Torah analysis 

from teacher to student and parent to 

child in each generation. The Hagadah 

is teaching that our mesorah and our 

collective story is built on the internal 

logic of the halachic system taught 

to us by our sages, expressed in this 

selection of midrash. 

Perhaps this is also the reason why the 

selection in Devarim was chosen as the 

Biblical text for discussion at the seder. 

As opposed to verses in Shemot, these 

four verses in Devarim lend themselves 

to deep midrashic explication, while 

the narrative in Shemot is understood 

on its primary, pshat level. 

We can also understand why the seder 

includes many Rabbinic mitzvot. The 

Rambam, in the introduction to his 

commentary on the Mishna, explains 

that our Torah Sheba’al Peh includes 

both the exegetical interpretations 

of Torah, which are binding on a 

Biblical level, and the Rabbinic 

aspects of Jewish life including 

Rabbinic mitzvot, enactments, and 

restrictions. Hence our seder includes 

many Rabbinic requirements that play 

a prominent role, such as drinking 

four cups and leaning in a luxurious 

manner, which express this dimension 

of our mesorah of Torah Sheba’al Peh. 

Many thanks to Mrs. Ora Lee Kanner, Rabbi Dr. Leonard Matanky, Professor Leslie Newman 

and Rabbi Dr. Jacob J. Schacter for their assistance with this article. 

9 


However, it is not only the legal, 

learning aspects of Torah that 

comprise mesorah. There is a second, 

core aspect of mesorah. It transmits the 

behaviors and practices of generations 

over time, reflecting the contours 

of the Torah community. Rabbi 

Joseph B. Soloveitchik developed this 

notion at length in a Yahrzeit shiur in 

memory of his father: 

שתי מסורות ישנן:‏ א(‏ מסורה אחת המתיחסת 

כולה למסורה של לימוד,‏ ויכוח,‏ משא ומתן 

והוראה שכלית,‏ זה אומר כך וזה אומר כך,‏ זה 

נותן טעם לדבריו וזה נותן טעם לדבריו,‏ ועומדין 

למנין,‏ כמו שהתורה מציירת לנו בפרשת זקן 

ממרא.‏ ב(‏ מסורת מעשית של הנהגת כלל 

ישראל בקיום מצוות וזו מיסדת על הפסוק 

‏"שאל אביך ויגדך זקניך ויאמרו לך."‏ 

שיעורים לזכר אבא מרי ז"ל חלק א'‏ עמ'‏ רמ"ט 

There are two types of mesorah: 1) One 

type of mesorah that wholly relates to 

learning: the debate, the exchange and 

the logical instruction; one says this and 

one says that; one provides his reasoning 

and the other provides his reasoning 

and they come to a consensus as the 

Torah describes in the section about the 

rebellious elder. 2) There is a mesorah 

based on the [actual] practices of the 

Jewish people and this is based on the 

verse “Ask your father and he will relate it 

to you, the elders and they will tell you.” 

Shiurim L’Zecher Abba Mari z”l 

Vol. I pg. 249 

Therefore, our seder includes not only 

paragraphs of limud and Rabbinic 

requirements derived through limud, it 

also shares a vision of the way a seder 

should take shape. These traditions 

of mesorah include various minhagim 

— customs. Some customs are the 

mesorah of a particular community 

that develop over time, such as which 

specific vegetables to use for dipping 

and how to arrange the seder plate. 

Other traditions are universal and 

remain unmoved. One example is the 

practice of leaning as an expression 

of freedom. The overwhelming 

tradition is to maintain our fealty to 

the Talmudic practice of reclining 

even though its rationale is no longer 

operative today. 3 

The Hagadah also teaches by example 

that the sages of the generation — the 

chachmei hamesorah, in the words 

of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, 

are crucial to defining mesorah. In 

his brief introduction to the Mishne 

Torah, the Rambam enumerates the 

names of forty sages who transmitted 

the tradition from Moshe at Sinai to 

Rav Ashi at the close of the Talmud. 

This list is not merely a historical 

record; it serves to identify the 

stewards of the mesorah over the 

generations. Mesorah is not only 

transmitted by communal practice — 

it is shepherded and defined by the 

Rabbinic stewards of each generation. 

Rabbi Soloveitchik discussed this idea 

in a talk he delivered on June 19, 1975 

to the RIETS Rabbinic alumni: 4 

The truth in talmud Torah can 

be achieved through singular 

halachic Torah thinking, and Torah 

understanding. The truth is attained 

from within, in accord with the 

methodology given to Moses and passed 

on from generation to generation. The 

truth can be discovered only through 

joining the ranks of the chachmei 

hamesorah. 

This idea was expressed by Rabbi 

There are two types 

of mesorah, one that 

wholly relates to 

learning: the debate, the 

exchange and the logical 

instruction and there is 

a mesorah based on the 

[actual] practices of the 

Jewish people. 

10 


Soloveitchik more than thirty years 

earlier based on conversations and 

teachings that he received from his 

own father: 5 

פעמים רבות הרצתי לפני אבא מרי הגאון 

החסיד,‏ זצ”ל,‏ והוא שבח את הדברים מאד 

וגם חזר עליהם בשיעוריו,‏ כי מדברי הרמב”ם 

מוכח,‏ שמסורה מהוה חלות שם בפ”ע בנוגע 

לתורה שבע”פ,‏ ואינה רק דין נאמנות וברור.‏ 

ונראה,‏ דבעיקר של אמתת תורה שבע”פ 

נאמרו שתי הלכות מיוחדות:‏ א(‏ דחכמי 

המסורה ממשה ואילך נאמנים למסר את 

התורה שקבלו מסיני,‏ ותורה שבע”פ,‏ המצויה 

עכשיו בידינו,‏ היא,‏ היא,‏ אותה התורה,‏ 

שנתנה למשה מפי הגבורה;‏ ב(‏ דעצם הקבלה 

אינה רק מעשה בירור בעלמא,‏ אלא מהוה 

חלות שם בפ”ע של מסורה וקבלה,‏ דתורה 

שבע”פ נתנת להמסר כמו תורה שבכתב,‏ 

שנתנה להכתב,‏ ועצמה של תורה שבע”פ 

נתפס במסורה כמו זו שבכתב — בכתיבה.‏ 

Many times I presented this idea to my 

father, the pious scholar, zt”l, and he 

greatly praised this idea and presented it 

in his lectures — that from the language of 

Rambam, it is clear that the mesorah has 

its own unique status when it comes to the 

Oral Tradition. It is not merely a means 

of verifying the information. It seems 

that there are two distinct laws regarding 

the verification of the Oral Tradition. 1) 

The scholars of the mesorah from Moshe 

Rabbeinu and on are the authorities to 

transmit the Torah that was received from 

Sinai and the Oral Tradition that is now 

in our hands is the same Torah that was 

given to Moshe by the Almighty. 2) The 

actual transmission is not just a means 

of verification but has an independent 

status of mesorah. The Oral Tradition 

was intended to be transmitted the same 

way that the Written Torah was intended 

to be written. The actual Oral Tradition 

achieves its status through mesorah just 

as the Written Torah achieves its status 

through writing it. 

We now appreciate why our Hagadah 

introduces the story of the Exodus 

with the story of five Tanaim (rabbis 

of the Mishna) in Bnei Brak, who 

discussed yetziat Mitzrayim all night. 

We open our seder with this anecdote 

not just to show the extent to which 

we should aspire to perform this great 

mitzvah, but also to frame it in the 

context of our chachmei hamesorah. 

We recognize that there are great 

sages, people who devote themselves 

so fully to Torah that their study 

would continue unabated had they not 

been interrupted by their students, 

to whom we look for direction when 

shaping our story of vehigad’ta levincha 

— you shall tell your children. 

This story also alludes to the 

community’s role in guiding the 

mesorah. While the Rabbinic 

luminaries of each generation are 

the arbiters of mesorah, they do so 

with sensitivity to and in concert 

with the community. Hence it was 

the students, the populace, who 

reminded the sages that it was time 

for Shacharit, and the Bnei Brak seder 

then ended. The Rabbis’ students, 

who comprise and are immersed in 

the general population, reflect the 

realities and needs of the people 

of that time so that the sages can 

lead in a way that meets the needs 

of the specific time and place. 6 In 

addition, the students’ presence 

was also important to establish a 

communal precedent that sippur 

yetziat Mitzrayim may be fulfilled all 

night, in accordance with the view of 

Rabbi Akiva. It is up to the chachmei 

hamesorah to determine normative 

practice, and it is the community 

that carries the responsibility to 

maintain the mesorah and continue 

its practice. It is precisely due to this 

fealty, that the chachmei hamesorah 

give significant weight to the practices 

of the community as they reflect 

the mesorah. 7 Therefore, even Hillel 

the elder, when faced with a Pesachrelated 

question about which he was 

unsure, instructed his questioners to 

inquire how people practice to clarify 

what the ruling should be: 

אמר להן הלכה זו שמעתי ושכחתי אלא הנח 

להן לישראל אם אין נביאים הן בני נביאים 

הן למחר מי שפסחו טלה תוחבו בצמרו מי 

שפסחו גדי תוחבו בין קרניו ראה מעשה ונזכר 

הלכה ואמר כך מקובלני מפי שמעיה ואבטליון.‏ 

פסחים סו.‏ 

“I have heard this law,” he answered, 

“but have forgotten it. But leave it to 

Israel: if they are not prophets, yet they 

are the children of prophets!” On the 

morrow, he whose Passover was a lamb 

stuck it [the knife] in its wool; he whose 

Passover was a goat stuck it between 

its horns. He saw the incident and 

recollected the halachah and said, “Thus 

have I received the tradition from the 

mouth[s] of Shemaiah and Abtalyon.” 

Pesachim 66a (Soncino 

Translation) 

We learn an additional lesson from 

the next section of the Hagadah: 

that an individual rabbi alone does 

not establish mesorah. The Hagadah 

relates that although Rabbi Elazar 

ben Azaryah viewed himself as a 

sage of seventy, he did not merit to 

teach the obligation of reciting yetziat 

Mitzrayim at night until Ben Zoma 

taught it. Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya was 

convinced of his view in the halacha 

and knew he was a great scholar. Yet 

it wasn’t until his idea was recognized 

and accepted by the great Rabbinic 

authority of the generation (Ben 

Zoma was the senior Darshan, see 

Sotah 15) that it became normative 

mesorah. 8 When a question regarding 

a significant change in practice or 

approach in mesorah is raised, only a 

Rabbinic luminary, who is recognized 

by the Torah community as a giant 

of the generation, can establish a 

precedent for the mesorah. It is then 

that the practice becomes an accepted 

mesorah by the community. 

11 


Simultaneously, the great sages of 

the generation do not shape the 

contours of mesorah through the 

exercise of power or authority, rather 

though the weight and merit of their 

views. Perhaps this is why Rabban 

Gamliel, who was the most senior 

Rabbinic personality during the 

Yavneh period, is noticeably absent 

from the aforementioned seder of the 

five sages; according to the Tosefta, 

he was celebrating the seder in Lod. 

The seder scene we describe likely 

occurred while Rabban Gamliel was 

removed from his role as Nasi of 

the Beit Din due to his overly harsh 

imposition of authority over his 

disciple, Rabbi Yehoshua. The Gemara 

(Berachot 27) relates that the Rabbinic 

community removed Rabban Gamliel 

from his post and replaced him with 

Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya. For this 

reason, Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya is 

seated at the head of the table in Bnei 

Brak, in the center of the Rabbis. 9 We 

learn that no matter how great a sage 

one may be, the halacha and mesorah 

cannot be determined by force, only 

by consensus of sages. 10 

In closing, we can readily understand 

why mesorah plays such a central role 

in the seder and the Hagadah, since 

its focus — the mitzvah of sippur 

yetziat Mitzrayim— is primarily an 

educational one. Ideally, it entails 

sharing our story with the next 

generation. It is precisely through 

a fealty to mesorah that we have a 

connection that transcends generations 

and a collective story to share. 

Without the mesorah of learning, 

with its internal logic and intellectual 

rigor, and the mesorah of practice, 

A Personal Account of The Rav on Mesorah 

The old Rebbe walks into the classroom crowded with students who are young enough to be his grandchildren. 

He enters as an old man with wrinkled face, his eyes reflecting the fatigue and sadness of old age. You have to be 

old to experience this sadness. It is the melancholy that results from an awareness of people and things which have 

disappeared and linger only in memory. I sit down; opposite me are rows of young beaming faces with clear eyes 

radiating the joy of being young. For a moment, the Rebbe is gripped with pessimism, with tremors of uncertainly. 

He asks himself: Can there be a dialogue between an old teacher and young students, between a Rebbe in his Indian 

summer and students enjoying the spring of their lives? The Rebbe starts his shiur, uncertain as to how it will proceed. 

Suddenly the door opens and an old man, much older than the Rebbe, enters. He is the grandfather of the Rebbe, 

Reb Chaim Brisker. It would be most difficult to study Talmud with students who are trained in the sciences and 

mathematics, were it not for his method, which is very modern and equals, if not surpasses, most contemporary 

forms of logic, metaphysics or philosophy. The door opens again and another old man comes in. He is older than Reb 

Chaim, for he lived in the 17th century. His name is Reb Shabtai Cohen, known as the Shach, who must be present 

when dinai mamonot (civil law) is discussed. Many more visitors arrive, some from the 11th, 12th and 13th centuries, 

and others harking back to antiquity – Rabbeinu Tam, Rashi, Rambam, Raavad, Rashba, Rabbi Akiva and others. 

These scholarly giants of the past are bidden to take their seats. The Rebbe introduces the guests to his pupils, and 

the dialogue commences. The Rambam states a halacha; the Raavad disagrees sharply, as is his wont. Some students 

interrupt to defend the Rambam, and they express themselves harshly against the Raavad, as young people are apt to 

do. The Rebbe softly corrects the students and suggest more restrained tones. The Rashba smiles gently. The Rebbe 

tries to analyze what the students meant, and other students intercede. Rabeinu Tam is called upon to express his 

opinion, and suddenly, a symposium of generations comes into existence. Young students debate earlier generations 

with an air of daring familiarity, and a crescendo of discussion ensues. 

All speak one language; all pursue one goal; all are committed to a common vision; and all operate with the same 

categories. A Mesorah collegiality is achieved, a friendship, a comradeship of old and young, spanning antiquity, 

the Middle Ages and modern times. This joining of the generations, this march of centuries, this dialogue and 

conversation between antiquity and the present will finally bring about the redemption of the Jewish people. 

After a two or three hour shiur, the Rebbe emerges from the chamber young and rejuvenated. He has defeated age. The 

students look exhausted. In the Mesorah experience, years play no role. Hands, however parchment-dry and wrinkled, 

embrace warm and supple hands in commonality, bridging the gap with separates the generations. Thus, the “old ones” 

of the past continue their great dialogue of the generations, ensuring an enduring commitment to the Mesorah. 

Reflections of the Rav Vol. II pp. 22-23 

12 


with its traditional values and profile, 

Judaism would have no future. It is 

precisely due to our commitment to 

mesorah that enables each of our seder 

stories to unite as one eternal story of 

Knesset Yisrael. 

Addendum 

Perhaps the role of mesorah in the 

Hagadah explains an overarching 

peculiarity about the Hagadah. The 

mitzvah of sippur yetziat Mitzrayim— 

retelling the Exodus from Egypt — is 

derived from the verse (Shemot 

בעבור זה עשה ה'‏ לי בצאתי (13:8 

— Because of this, God did ממצרים 

this for me when I left Egypt. The 

Mishna (Pesachim 116b) takes notice 

of the first-person language of the 

verse and requires each one of us to 

personalize the story. The Hagadah 

itself emphasizes this point when it 

cites the aforementioned verse toward 

the culmination of maggid charging us 

with the responsibility that we must 

see ourselves as if we personally and 

individually had left Egypt. 

It is, therefore, interesting that the 

main text of the Hagadah — the 

means by which we tell this story 

itself — is fixed and rigid. While 

seder tables vary widely in their 

style, character, and experience, the 

traditional core text of the Hagadah 

remains standard throughout the 

Torah world and has attracted more 

commentaries than perhaps any other 

Torah work. Why would a mitzvah 

which is supposedly so individual and 

personal be limited to a specific text? 

How can it be that the core of each 

and every person’s story at the seder is 

the same the world over? 

In light of our understanding of the 

role of mesorah in the Hagadah, we 

can appreciate this as well. Without a 

unifying mesorah text, each generation 

would be a standalone unit, disjointed 

from previous and subsequent eras, 

and every individual would be merely 

an individual, without a connection to 

the greater Knesset Yisrael. 11 If every 

person at their seder table would fulfill 

the mitzvah of sippur yetziat Mitzrayim 

by creating their own text, then their 

story would be personal and unique, 

but it would be theirs alone. By sharing 

a mesorah text, the story that I share 

in my unique way at my unique seder 

table is not only my story, but it is part 

of a larger story of the entire Jewish 

people. 12 Yes, every person’s retelling of 

the Exodus is unique, in fulfillment of 

— כל המרבה הרי זה משובח the principle 

which encourages an individual to add 

their personal touch to the story. At the 

same time, through a shared mesorah, 

my personal story is transformed into a 

transcendent, eternal story of the ages. 

Notes 

1. See Ramban’s introduction to his 

commentary Milchamot Hashem regarding the 

difficulty of creating an irrefutable proof. 

2. See Talmud Bavli, Gittin 59b. 

3. See the Rama, O.C. 472:4 who notes that 

women did not have the practice to recline 

because they relied on the opinion that since 

today reclining does not reflect freedom it 

should not be done at all. 

4. The full audio of the shiur is available at: 

http://www.yutorah.org/lectures/lecture. 

cfm/767722/. 

5. This talk was delivered at the Anshei 

Brisk synagogue in Brooklyn, New York on 

Shabbat Parshat Behaalotecha 5703. It was 

transcribed by Rabbi Shmuel Aharon Pardes 

and published in Hapardes no. 17. Vol. 11. 

6. For this reason, the Rambam (Hilchot 

Mamrim, Perek 2) places clear limits on 

the ability of the sages to exact rules on the 

community unilaterally. The sages may not 

enact a decree that majority of the community 

cannot follow and if they do enact such a 

decree, it is not binding. 

7. There is a symbiotic relationship between 

the communal practice and Rabbinic 

leadership that establishes mesorah. In some 

cases, it is unclear which came first, the 

communal practice or Rabbinic enactment, 

such as the practice of Jewish women to 

observe seven clean days (see Ritva and Meiri, 

Berachot 31a). 

8. This explanation is similar to those of the 

Ri ben Yakar, Siddur Rashi and Meyuchas 

LiRashi commentaries on the Hagadah, in the 

Toras Chaim edition of the Hagadah. 

9. Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya also refers to 

himself as being “like seventy years old,” 

which Ritva and many other Hagadah 

commentaries in the Rishonim understand 

as a reference to the Talmud’s tradition that 

he grew a hoary beard once appointed as the 

new Chief Rabbi. See also Hagadah of Rabbi 

Jonathan Sacks. 

10 . The Talmud (Shabbat 59b) suggests that 

even a heavenly voice and Divine intervention 

do not establish normative communal practice 

without consensus of the sages, as occurred 

in the dispute between Rabbi Eliezer and 

the sages. This concept was taught by Akavia 

ben Mahalalel to his son in his final hours, as 

described by the Mishna in Eduyot chapter 5. 

11 . This concept is true of other core mesorah 

texts, such as the Talmud Bavli, whose 

words and pages have survived and thrived 

for centuries and it connects all those who 

have studied it throughout the generations. 

Obviously, the text of the Hagadah developed 

over generations, much like the Talmud; 

the uniformity and ubiquity of the text that 

coalesced matched the increasing need for 

stronger mesorah with increased dispersion. 

12 . This suggestion was offered by Rabbi Dr. 

Avi Oppenheimer. 

Find more shiurim and articles from Rabbi Reuven Brand at 

http://www.yutorah.org/Rabbi-Reuven-Brand 

13 


In Time, Out of Time, or 

Beyond Time? Women and 

Sefiras HaOmer 

It is a well-known and oft-discussed 

feature of Jewish law that women 

are exempt from certain mitzvos, 

identified by the categorical name 

of mitzos asei she-ha-zman gramman, 

roughly translatable as “positive 

commandments that are caused by 

time,” or more loosely as “time-bound 

positive commandments.” 1 Many 

of these commandments and their 

applicability to women have been the 

subject of extensive discussion and 

debate. However, one mitzvah that is 

often overlooked in the debate, and 

perhaps forgotten, is the very mitzvah 

we most worry about forgetting: 

sefiras ha-omer. 

At first glance, there should be 

nothing to talk about: sefiras ha-omer 

is clearly a time-bound mitzvah, if 

there ever was one. It is applicable 

only seven weeks a year. During that 

time, it is performed once a day, and 

that performance can only take place 

on that specific day of the omer. 

Further, according to some Rishonim, 

the obligation can only be fulfilled 

at night. 2 Aside from the technical 

details, sefiras ha-omer is uniquely 

pressured from a time perspective: 

as alluded to above, it brings with 

it the constant anxiety that if it is 

not accomplished within a certain 

window, there will be consequences 

for the entire year’s omer cycle, in the 

loss of a berachah and perhaps the 

mitzvah itself, in whole or in part. It 

would seem that there is more than 

enough reason to safely place this 

mitzvah in the time-bound category. 

Indeed, this is the position held by 

Rishonim such as the Rambam 3 and 

the Sefer HaChinuch. 4 

And yet here, as is so often the case, 

we are surprised by the words of the 

Ramban. The Talmud, in a source that 

could be considered “zman gerama” 

due to its recent appearance in the 

Daf Yomi, 5 provides a list of mitzvos 

that are obligatory upon women, 

as they are non-time dependent. 

Commenting on this list, the Ramban 

observes that it is not exhaustive. 

There are mitzvos that are obligatory 

for women, and yet are not included, 

such as for example, kibbud av v’eim, 

mora av v’eim, and ... sefiras ha’omer. 

The Ramban’s words demand 

attention both in terms of analysis 

and application. Regarding the latter, 

normative halachah appears to claim 

Rabbi Daniel Z. Feldman 

Rosh Yeshiva, RIETS 

Rabbi, Congregation Ohr Sadya, Teaneck, NJ 

that women are exempt from sefiras 

ha-omer as a time-bound mitzvah, but 

the matter does not end there. 

Many of the Ashkenazic Rishonim 6 

are of the view that women are 

permitted to volunteer to perform 

the mitzvos that exempt them, and to 

do so with a berachah. Thus, it would 

seem that sefiras ha-omer, with a 

berachah, should be allowed, as the 

Arukh HaShulchan in fact maintains. 

Further, the Magen Avraham asserts 

that women have accepted upon 

themselves sefiras ha-omer as an 

obligation. 7 Some 8 compare this 

notion to the contemporary attitude 

toward the Ma’ariv prayer: despite the 

fact that the Talmud identifies it as a 

“reshut,” many Rishonim assert that it 

is now accepted as obligatory. While 

the position of the Ramban does not 

seem to dictate the halachah, it might 

be influencing practice nonetheless; 

it could be argued that this mitzvah, 

from among those that are timebound, 

should be singled out for 

14 


voluntary acceptance in deference to 

his view, as sefiras ha-omer is unique 

among time-bound mitzvos due to 

the existence of a major authority who 

believes it is incumbent upon women. 

However, the Mishnah Berurah 9 asserts 

that the practice as he encounters it is 

against the Magen Avraham, and that 

women have no obligation in sefiras 

ha-omer, voluntary or otherwise. In 

addition, he asserts that the mitzvah 

should be differentiated from other 

mitzvos shehzman gramman in the 

other direction, in that women should 

not make a berachah, despite the 

view of the Ashkenazic authorities to 

allow such recitation. This view, which 

is attributed to the sefer Shulchan 

Shlomo, is explained by a concern that 

the woman in question will “certainly 

omit [at least] one day.” 

This appears to be a reference to the 

view of Rishonim, adopted by the 

Shulchan Arukh, 10 that one does not 

continue counting the omer with a 

berachah if one misses a complete 

day. The implication is that sefiras 

ha-omer is one integrated mitzvah of 

49 counted days, and thus any omitted 

day invalidates the whole mitzvah, 

rendering a berachah unjustified. 

If that is true of the days after the 

omitted day, then it should also be 

true retroactively: all the earlier 

berachos were also unwarranted. 11 

One who is obligated in the mitzvah 

has no choice but to assume this 

risk. However, if one is not obligated, 

perhaps this is not an appropriate 

candidate for volunteering, given the 

risk of multiple unjustified berachos. 

However, it is possible to take a 

different view for a number of reasons. 

One possibility is the position of some 

authorities that there is no such thing 

as a retroactive berachah le-vatalah; 

any berachah that was justified at the 

time of its recital is valid, regardless of 

anything that happens later to cast the 

relevant mitzvah into doubt. 12 

Further, there are those, such as Rav 

Soloveitchik, who understood the 

discontinuation of a berachah when 

a day is omitted in a fundamentally 

different way. In this understanding, 

the berachah is discontinued not 

because the mitzvah is one unit, but 

rather because counting cannot exist 

without building on a continuous 

preceding process. If so, the berachah 

is only problematic prospectively; 

there is no impact on any earlier day, 

and thus no reason to hesitate starting 

the count with a berachah, even if one 

knew that it was likely or even definite 

that a day will be missed down the 

line. 

R. Yisrael David Harfenes 13 was not 

worried about the Mishneh Berurah’s 

concerns, suggesting that it is possible 

to set up a system of reminders to 

mitigate the likelihood of forgetting 

a day. Further, after noting the 

possibilities mentioned above that 

there is no such thing as a retroactive 

berachah levatalah, or that sefiras 

ha-omer itself does not pose this 

issue, he observes that the Mishneh 

Berurah’s source, the Shulchan Shlomo, 

is itself not actually concerned about a 

retroactive berachah levatalah. Rather, 

examining that source in the original, 

it becomes clear that the fear was 

that the woman in question would 

miss a day, and would then continue 

counting with a berachah, unaware 

that it is against the accepted halachah. 

To this, R. Harfenes asserts, there is 

an easy remedy: teach the halachah 

in its totality, so she can count in 

confidence, and know what to do if a 

day is indeed omitted. 14 

Aside from the question of 

practice, there remains the task of 

understanding the foundation of the 

Ramban’s position: why, after all is 

said and done, should sefiras ha-omer 

be classified as a non-time-bound 

mitzvah? Attempting to answer this 

question could yield insights about 

sefiras ha-omer, about mitzvos aseh 

shehazman gramman, or both. 

The bluntest approach to the Ramban 

is that of the Shut Divrei Malkiel 

(V, 65), who simply declares the 

statement to be a typographical error, 

a taus sofer. However, even a sweeping 

theory such as that needs to provide 

an alternative for what the text should 

have said, and thus we are given two 

possibilities: either it should have 

been included among the exemptions, 

rather than the obligations; or the 

text should have instead referred to 

the bringing of the omer, which, as a 

sacrificial offering, presumably applies 

to women as well. 15 

Others point to the majority view 

among the Rishonim (against that of 

the Rambam) that sefiras ha-omer is a 

Rabbinic mitzvah in the modern era, 

and that its original Torah mandate 

does not apply in the absence of the 

Beis HaMikdash. This fact may have 

both specific and general reasons for 

relevance. From a general perspective, 

some Rishonim maintain that only 

Torah mitzvos that are time-bound 

exempt women; this exemption 

does not apply to Rabbinic mitzvos, 

even if they are time-bound. 16 This 

view is interesting, because one 

would have expected the rabbis to 

continue the Torah’s policy in this 

area, as they generally pattern their 

enactments after Torah law. To draw 

a distinction in this way is to suggest 

that the Torah did not exempt timebound 

obligations because of the 

fact of being time-bound, but rather 

exempted a small number of mitzvos 

15 


for other reasons, and they happen to 

be identifiable through the common 

feature of being time-bound. 

A more specific relevance might 

be if the Rabbinic mitzvah is 

fundamentally different than the 

Torah mitzvah. Perhaps the rabbis 

The word tamim has multiple 

connotations. In the context 

of temimot for sefirat 

ha’omer, it means whole. In 

the context of tamim tihiyeh, 

it means innocent or pure. 

R. Aharon Kotler, Mishnat 

Rabbi Aharon Al HaTorah, 

Mishpatim, notes that 

innocence and purity were 

key components of accepting 

the Torah. The Gemara, 

Shabbat 88a, records a 

conversation between a 

Tzduki (Sadducee) and 

Rava. The Tzduki criticizes 

Rava’s nation for being 

foolish for accepting the 

Torah before listening to 

what was in it. What if the 

Torah would have been too 

hard to keep? Rava responds 

that we walk with temimut 

and lovingly accept the fact 

that God won’t demand 

of us anything we can’t 

fulfill. R. Kotler notes that 

Rava’s attitude toward the 

acceptance of the Torah is 

the attitude that the Torah 

expects from all us as part of 

the mitzvah of tamim tihiyeh. 

Torah To Go Editors 

did not simply continue the Torah 

obligation despite the lack of the Beis 

HaMikdash; rather, they mandated 

counting as part of a different, broader 

obligation to remember the Beis 

HaMikdash, a mitzvah that may not in 

its totality be time dependent. 

Another avenue to pursue is the 

possibility that sefiras ha-omer has the 

properties of a time-bound mitzvah, 

but is nonetheless somehow imposed 

upon women by textual declaration 

(as is the case with Kiddush and 

matzah on Pesach night). To this end, 

attention is drawn to the verse 17 that 

obligates both the counting of the 

omer and the bringing of the omer: 

these are to happen on the second 

day of Pesach, identified in the Torah 

as mimacharas haShabbos. R Eliyahu 

Shlesinger 18 notes that the Torah does 

not use a numerical date to place the 

obligation, distancing the mitzvah 

from a time period linguistically if 

not practically. The Avnei Nezer 19 

suggests that the linking to Pesach 

attaches the mitzvah of sefirah to the 

obligations of Pesach; as women are 

obligated in those, perhaps they also 

are included in sefirah. R. Avraham 

David Horowitz 20 suggests that since 

the bringing of the omer permits the 

eating of chadash, which is otherwise 

a prohibition, the whole package can 

be considered a negative mitzvah 

rather than a positive one, and women 

should be obligated for that reason. 

Others suggest that the general 

exemption of time-bound 

commandments does indeed stem 

from the character of being timebound 

(rather than that of being 

simply an identifying element, as 

suggested above), and within that 

perspective find reason to differentiate 

here. For example, the position of the 

Abudraham and the Kol Bo is that the 

exemption is due to the concern that 

mitzvos that demand attention at a 

certain time will detract from family 

responsibilities. If so, some suggest, 

a mitzvah such as sefiras ha-omer, 

which is performed quickly with a 

simple verbal declaration, might be 

excluded from this category, or at 

least be an appropriate candidate for 

voluntary performance. 21 

Many of the above approaches 

share a fundamental difficulty. The 

Ramban, whose words provoke the 

entire discussion, does not say that 

sefiras ha-omer is an exception, but 

that it is simply not a mitzvas aseh 

shezman grama. Accordingly, the most 

fitting explanation would be one that 

addresses that element directly. The 

Turei Even 22 provides a prominent 

example of this kind of approach. 

Building on the related example of 

bikkurim, he asserts that a mitzvah is 

only in this category when it could 

have by its nature been performed 

at any time, but the Torah imposed 

a limited timeframe. However, if 

the limitation is a response to a 

temporal reality, that is not called 

zman gerama. In this case, one can 

only count the days of the omer when 

they are actually happening (which 

is itself prompted by the bringing of 

the omer). Similarly, the Sridei Eish 23 

expresses it by stating that the timing 

here is not the timeframe for the 

mitzvah, but rather the mitzvah itself. 

This notion may have particular 

relevance to the mitzvah of sefiras 

ha-omer. It is possible to argue 

that the entire mitzvah of counting 

the omer is to take the existing 

calendar and superimpose upon it 

a new framework, one that doesn’t 

mark time by any of the standard 

milestones, but rather by the 

perspective of anticipating the giving 

16 


of the Torah. 24 Thus, this mitzvah 

does not happen within time; rather, 

it transforms the nature of time 

itself. A specific day is no longer 

just a Tuesday, or a date in Iyar, but 

is identified as a step toward the 

receiving of the Torah. It becomes, 

in essence, a new vantage point from 

which all else can be perceived. The 

mitzvah is, in essence, not to let time 

define us, but for us to define the time. 

Within that context, it is worth noting 

that a crucial word in the Torah’s 

commandment of sefiras ha-omer 

is “temimos,” meaning perfect or 

complete, a word that has had major 

impact on the practical application 

of this mitzvah. This word, in other 

forms, appears elsewhere in the 

Torah as well. It appears as a mitzvah, 

“Tamim tihyeh im Hashem Elokekha,” 25 

which prohibits, among other 

things, consulting fortune tellers. 26 

It is used to describe Hashem’s 

instructions to Avraham Avinu, 27 and 

the Rabbinic literature also applies it 

to his wife Sarah. When Sarah dies, 

she is described as having lived “one 

hundred years and twenty years and 

seven years,” and Rashi comments 

that they were all equally good. He is 

paraphrasing his Rabbinic source, 28 

which in the original attaches the 

verse 29 “Yodea Hashem yemei temimim.” 

The message seems to be that temimus 

means taking control of time, rather 

than letting time control you. One 

who is tamim does not go to a fortune 

teller to ask “what will tomorrow 

do to me”; rather, he or she leads a 

consistently productive life because 

a meaningful structure has been 

imposed on top of the cycle of time. 

R. Yehoshua Menachem Ehrenberg, in 

his Shut Dvar Yehoshua, 30 suggests that 

the inclusion of women in the mitzvah 

of sefiras ha-omer is a function of 

its purpose. As the Sefer HaChinuch 

teaches, the reasoning behind 

counting the omer is to focus us on 

preparing for the receiving of the 

Torah. As the Torah was given to both 

men and women, 31 the commandment 

to imbue our consciousness with this 

awareness should be performed by 

both men and women. Our encounter 

with the dvar Hashem is reflective of 

the preparation that we bring to it; 

it is our profound hope that we are 

able to use our time effectively and 

proactively so that when the moment 

comes, it will be all that it can be. 

Notes 

1. Kiddushin 29a. 

2. See Harerei Kodesh to Mikraei Kodesh, 

Pesach 67:2, who dismisses this point because 

of the view of the Rambam and others that 

sefirah can be performed during the day; 

however, the question can be raised as to 

whether that is the actual fulfillment of the 

mitzvah. 

3. See Hilchos Temidin U’Mussafin 7:24 and 

Kessef Mishneh. 

4. Mitzvah 603. 

5. Kiddushin 34b. 

6. See Rama, OC 589:6. 

7. OC 489:1; see also Shut Shem MiShimon, II, 

OC 4, pp. 11-14. 

8. See Eishel Avraham to Magen Avraham; 

the Minchas Chinuch, 306, rejects this 

comparison, and finds the position of the 

Magen Avraham inexplicable. See also Shut 

Devar Yehoshua V:12. 

9. OC 489:3. 

10. OC 489:8. 

11. This is the position of the Chida. 

12 . See, for example, Shut Chasam Sofer, YD 

320. 

13 . Shut Mekadesh Yisrael, Hilchos Sefiras 

HaOmer, 3. 

14 . He further notes that this concern is not 

so great in the first place, because even if she 

did continue counting with a berachah, many 

Rishonim allow that in any event. 

15 . However, see R. Simcha Elberg, Shalmei 

Simchah II, 63, who questions this premise, 

after initially including it as part of a complex 

approach to explaining the words of the 

Ramban that also builds upon the view of 

Rabbenu Yerucham that sefiras ha-omer is 

comprised of two distinct mitzvos, one to 

count the days and one to count the weeks 

(and then positing that women are only 

obligated in one of the two). 

16 . See also R. Shlomo Wahrman, She’eris 

Yosef I, 17, and Oros HaPesach, 79. 

17 . Vayikra 23:15. 

18 . Shut Shoalin U’Dorshin I, 30. 

19 . Shut Avnei Nezer O.C. 384. 

20 . Shut Kinyan Torah B’Halachah V, 44. 

21 . See Shut Dvar Yehoshua, V, 12; see also 

Shut Siach Yitzchak (#222) who notes further 

the custom recorded by the Tur and the 

Shulchan Aruch (OC 493:4) that women did 

not do other labor during the time of sefiras 

ha-omer. 

22 . Megillah 20b. 

23 . II, 90, inyan sheini. See also Divrei 

Yechezkel 45:4. 

See also other approaches in Shut Perach 

Shoshanah, 80; Shut Beit Avi, V, 20 and 23; 

Marpei L’Nefesh V, 28:11-14; the journal Ohr 

Torah (Kol Aryeh, II, 80 and 89); R. Moshe 

Tzvi Goldberg, in the journal HaPardes, IL, 

3:20. 

24 . A suggestion along these lines can be 

found in R. Shmuel Deutch, Sefer Birkas 

Kohen al haTorah, # 139, building on another 

comment of the Ramban. 

25 . Devarim 18:13. 

26 . Pesachim 113b. 

27 . Bereishit 17:1. 

28 . Bereishit Rabbah 58:1. 

29 . Tehillim 37:18. 

30 . V, 17. 

31. See Shemos 18:3, with Rashi. 

17 


The Giving Jew: 

Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik on 

Yachatz and Hachnasat Orchim 

At the Pesach seder we engage 

in the curious custom of 

yachatz, breaking the matzah 

into two parts. 

Why is this one of the fifteen steps to 

freedom? 

One well-known explanation is 

offered in the Talmud (Pesachim 

115b): “Mah darko shel ani beprusa 

... — just as a poor person eats a 

broken piece of a loaf, so too matzah 

must be eaten as a broken piece.” The 

poor slave would break the flat crusty 

bread and hide away a piece for later, 

not knowing where his next meal 

would come from. The breaking of the 

matzah at the seder symbolizes the 

way we first ate matzah as slaves. 1 

Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik zt”l 

suggested an inspiring insight 

regarding this custom: 

Although when we think of the 

enslavement of the Jewish people 

in Egypt, we usually think that all 

the Jews must have been equally 

burdened by it, in truth this was not 

so. There were various degrees of 

slavery. Some Jews lived under bitter 

conditions, some worse. According to 

our sages, one tribe, the tribe of Levi, 

was never enslaved. What this means 

is that some had access to food and 

some did not. 

Those that did, claims Rabbi 

Soloveitchik, broke their bread and 

shared it with other Jews who had less. 

Even the Jews who were enslaved in 

Egypt, but may have been better off, 

would split their piece of matzah and 

share it with those who suffered and 

needed it more than they did, hence 

the term “poor man’s bread.” 

When we break the matzah and 

perform yachatz as our forefathers 

did, it is a symbol of the chesed, the 

loving-kindness and solidarity of Jew 

toward their fellow Jew, even under 

the harshest conditions. 2 

Bearing in mind this unique 

explanation, the flow of the seder, 

Rabbi Aaron Goldscheider 

RIETS Rabbinic Outreach Training Program 

Coordinator, Gruss, Jerusalem Israel 

which transitions from the breaking 

of the matzah to the invitation “kol 

dichfin yese veyechol” — all who are in 

need are invited to join in the Pesach 

meal, is poignant. 

Inviting those who are in need 

activates a key virtue that permeates 

the Jewish heart: namely, chesed 

expressed through the mitzvah of 

hachnasat orchim, hospitality. 

The mitzvah of hospitality is most 

precious to the Jew. 3 It is rooted in our 

collective souls from the beginning of 

our history, as early as Abraham and 

Sarah who distinguished themselves 

in opening their homes to strangers. 

Rabbi Soloveitchik highlights five 

aspects of the mitzvah of hachnasat 

orchim that imbue it with special 

significance: 

Gratitude to my rebbe, Rabbi Aharon Rakeffet shlita, for reviewing this article and for opening up 

the world of the Rabbi Soloveitchik z’tl for me and for literally thousands of others. 

18 


1. It is Difficult and 

Uncomfortable 

When we allow a stranger into 

our home we may find that the 

mannerisms of our guest are odd. 

He intrudes on our privacy, both in 

a physical sense and emotionally as 

well. At times, having a guest means 

that we sacrifice a part of our own 

comfort or our own privacy, which is 

not always easy to give up. 4 

In this same vein, there is another 

challenge when we open our homes 

to guests. Namely, we may find that 

the guest’s opinions may be different 

from ours. The Rav taught that the 

quality of welcoming strangers into 

one’s home reflects a spiritually noble 

attitude toward others. It reflects 

humility; that a Jew feels far from 

perfection, and that others can teach 

him something new. There is an 

openness to learning from others. 

When a Jew is convinced of his own 

righteousness, of his own scholarship 

and wisdom, he will be hesitant to 

perform the mitzvah of welcoming 

guests, for in his mind he is convinced 

that a guest has nothing more to teach 

him. 5 

2. Lightening the Burden of 

Others 

Abraham, from whom we learn this 

mitzvah, experienced in his own life 

what it felt like not to have a home. He 

was a wanderer for many years of his 

life. He knew what it was like to come 

to the end of the day not knowing his 

next destination. He knew firsthand 

the feeling of sleeping on the ground 

on a freezing cold night; to be lost in a 

strange land. This intense experience 

taught Abraham and his descendants 

to feel for the stranger and to have 

compassion for those who are in need. 

The Jew says, “I will open my home 

for those who need a warm meal and 

comfortable bed.” 

This teaching of empathy is a critical 

lesson that we learned from our 

enslavement in Egypt. We as a 

people felt the pain of being strangers 

and being homeless, and therefore 

knowing what this pain feels like, we 

will share in the distress of others. We 

will lighten the burden of others who 

suffer as much as we possibly can. 6 

One commandment is repeated in 

various formulations 36 times in the 

Torah. It is mentioned more often 

than any other mitzvah. “You shall 

not oppress the stranger, since you 

yourself know the feeling of being a 

stranger, for you were strangers in the 

land of Egypt” (Exodus 23:9). The 

Rav suggested that we, the Jewish 

people, had to experience 210 years 

of slavery because it was critical in 

molding our national personality into 

one of compassion and concern for 

our fellow man. 

3.“My Home is My Castle” 

Rabbi Soloveitchik argued for 

the supremacy of the mitzvah of 

hospitality based on the fact that the 

Torah rejects the doctrine of “my 

home is my castle.” This doctrine 

conveys two illusory ideas: first that 

the home gives ample protection 

and shields us in times of crisis. We 

know that this is not the case. Second, 

that our home is our property and 

that no one else can claim a share in 

it. This assertion is also false. Man 

is vulnerable. One is never fully 

protected. Man neither has a home 

nor a castle. When man shares his 

home with others he expresses the 

awareness that he is just a “tenant”; his 

home is his to be used for good and to 

Rabbi Zonnenfeld’s 

Paid Pesach Guests 

A few American tourists 

knocked on the door of R. 

Yosef Chaim Zonnenfeld 

(1848-1932), a prominent 

rabbi in Jerusalem, asking 

if the rabbi would host 

them for the Pesach seder. 

They explained that they 

were supposed to eat in a 

hotel and their plans fell 

through and they insisted on 

paying hundreds of dollars 

for the hospitality. Rabbi 

Zonnenfeld graciously 

hosted them for the seder. 

On Chol HaMoed, Rabbi 

Zonnenfeld visited them 

and returned the money. 

The guests asked quizzically, 

“Why did you take the 

money from us knowing 

that you would return it?” 

Rabbi Zonnefeld explained 

that he would never want to 

take money to perform the 

mitzvah of inviting guests. 

However, he knew that if he 

didn’t take the money, the 

guests would feel as if they 

were imposing and wouldn’t 

be able to fully enjoy the 

seder. Therefore, he accepted 

the money and allowed the 

guests to fully enjoy the 

seder. Now that the seder is 

over, he is returning it. 

Ma’aseh Sheyaha pg. 98 

19 


help provide for others who may be 

in need. 

When the Jewish people partook 

of the paschal lamb in Egypt, a new 

fellowship was formed. In contrast 

to the selfish and survival mode 

that they embodied as slaves, they 

began to share their lives with one 

another: “... then he and his neighbor 

who is nearest to his house shall 

take one according to the number 

of people …” (Exodus 12:4). The 

Rav writes, “The slave spontaneously 

did something he would never have 

believed he was capable of doing: he 

knocked on the door of his neighbor, 

whom he had never noticed, inviting 

him to share the lamb with him and 

eat together. No wonder our seder 

commences with the declaration 

Ha Lachma Anya.” 7 In Egypt the 

Jewish people entered the chesed 

community; we are to do the same 

on seder night. 

4. The Dignity of Every 

Person 

Every individual is endowed with 

tzelem Elokim, the Divine image. 

The importance of hachnasat orchim 

is emphasized because it reflects 

appreciating each individual not only 

as a fellow human, but as a unique 

being before God. 

The Rav commented that the name 

of the Book of Shemot, literally, 

“Names,” is significant as it suggests 

the importance of every individual. A 

name signifies uniqueness. 

Rashi, in the opening verse of Exodus 

(1:1), compares the counting of 

the children of Israel to the stars in 

the sky and quotes the verse, “He 

brings out and counts His heavenly 

hosts” (Isaiah 40:26). Each star is 

part of a universe, yet each star is 

numbered, named, and accounted 

for individually by God. Similarly, 

we also need to view each individual 

as a singular “star,” recognizing each 

person’s uniqueness, Divine spark, 

and eternal value. 8 

Strikingly, the Ten Commandments 

were addressed not in the plural but 

in the singular, to emphasize that 

God relates not only to the collective 

but to the individual as well. 

To open one’s home to another is 

to be conscious of kavod habriyot 

— human dignity; it is a reflection 

that one is aware of the dignity and 

Divine essence found within every 

human being. 

5. The Almighty is the Great 

Machnis Orchim 

Rabbi Soloveitchik taught that it 

is God’s hospitality that allows the 

world to come into being and allow 

for humanity to exist. The Almighty, 

like Abraham, invites people to 

partake of His boundless existence. 

Creation is an act of hachnasat 

orchim; God invites us to share this 

world with Him. 

The Jewish mystics asked: Why did 

God create the world? Does God, the 

Almighty, infinite, eternal, omniscient 

and transcendent, need a frail, finite, 

transient world? Yes, they said, He 

needs the world in order to have 

another on whom to bestow kindness 

and mercy. To let someone share in 

the great “I” awareness of being; to 

give love and bestow chesed. 9 

The Rav referred to the Kabbalistic 

notion of tzimtzum — contraction. 

God practices “self-limitation” and 

“self-control.” By limiting the infinite 

in the process of creation, God 

makes room for the world to come 

into being. “By creating the world 

Using Milk for the Four 

Cups 

The Beis Halevi, Rabbi Joseph 

Baer Soloveitchik (1820–1892), 

the illustrious great-grandfather 

of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik is 

the subject of this touching Pesach 

story. 

A poor man came to the home of 

Rabbi Joseph Baer. The man said 

that he had come to ask a question 

regarding Pesach. He had a halachic 

question to ask. He told the rabbi 

that he could not afford to buy 

wine, so he wished to know if he 

could fulfill the obligation to drink 

the four cups of wine during the 

seder by drinking four cups of milk. 

Rabbi Joseph Baer said to him that 

one cannot not fulfill this important 

command by drinking milk and 

then proceeded to give the man 25 

rubles with which to buy wine. 

After the man had gone, the Rabbi 

Yosef Baer’s wife approached her 

husband with this question: “Why, 

when wine costs two or three 

rubles, did you give him twenty– 

five?” 

Rabbi Joseph Baer smiled and said, 

“If he is so poor that he cannot 

afford wine for the seder, I doubt 

that he has the money to buy 

chicken and matzah for the seder 

nights. And you know something, 

if he is asking about drinking milk, 

that means he has no meat or 

chicken because he would not be 

mixing it with milk! I want to give 

him enough money so that he can 

buy the proper food that he needs 

to fully enjoy the yontif of Pesach.” 

From ‘The Night That Unites’ 

Haggadah by R. Goldscheider 

20 


in general, and man in particular, 

God surrendered His aloneness and 

allowed a physical universe to share 

in His infinite being ... He allowed 

something else to share with him what 

had been exclusively His own.” 10 

The Almighty is the great Machnis 

Orchim. When we open our homes 

to others, we participate in an act 

that resembles God’s ways; the Jew 

emulates God and also practices 

tzimtzum. 

A central motif in Judaism may be 

best captured in two words: vehalachta 

bidrachav (Devarim 28:2), to walk 

in His ways. This means that we are 

summoned to live our lives emulating 

God’s attributes and conduct. 11 When 

we discipline ourselves to withdraw 

and share our space with others, this is 

an essential part of our service of the 

Almighty. 12 In practicing compassion 

and kindness we come close to our 

most Godly selves. 

A Great Nation 

The Torah teaches that the Israelites in 

Egypt became a “goy gadol” — a large 

nation, we became large in number; 

the Torah counts over 600,000 

men alone. However, the Pesach 

Haggadah is not satisfied merely with 

this definition of gadol. Gadol, also 

has the connotation of metzuyanim, 

which means distinct or to excel. Our 

greatness, the Rav taught, was not 

based on our increased population. 

Rather, we became great because we 

distinguished ourselves in the area of 

righteousness. Gadlut (greatness) for 

a Jew consists in excelling in the areas 

of kindness, selflessness, charity, and 

hospitality. 13 

This remains the spiritual yardstick 

by which we measure our nobility — 

both as individuals and as a nation. If 

we wish to lay claim to our greatness 

we must assess our progress regarding 

our fairness, kindness, and mercy. 

Sharing is an essential lesson that we 

endeavor to pass on to children on 

seder night. The Rav declared, “The 

mitzvah of sippur yetziat Mitzrayim 

means inscribing one’s entire 

religious consciousness on the next 

generation.” 14 We fulfill the beloved 

mitzvah of “vihigadeta levincha” — 

and you shall teach your children, in 

the fullest sense, when we inculcate 

in their hearts and souls mitzvot that 

reflect selflessness and sensitivity. 

Notes 

1. Numerous other insights have been 

suggested for the symbolism of yachatz, for 

example see: Da’at Zekeinim Al HaTorah 

(Shemot 12:8). 

2. The Night That Unites Haggadah, p.64. 

3. Talmud, Shabbat 127a. 

4. Lustiger, Chumash Mesoras HaRav, 

Bereshit, 2012 p.169. 

5. Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Five Addresses, 

p.159. 

6. The Night That Unites Haggadah, p. 95 ; 

Lustiger, Chumash Mesoras HaRav, Shmot, 

2014,p. 59. 

7. Ibid, p.87. 

8. Ibid, 2014, p. 3. 


Bereshit, 2012, p.225. 

10. Clark, Wolowelsky, and Ziegler, ed. Days 

of Deliverance, 2007 p. 109. 

11. Rakeffet, The Rav, 1991 p. 7-9 ; 

Schachter, Nefesh Harav, 1994, p. 72. 


Bereshit, 2012, p.203. 

13. Ibid, 2012, p.338. 

14. Lustiger, Chumash Mesoras HaRav, Shmot, 

2014, p.77. 

21 


Understanding an Unfriendly 

Minhag: Not Eating Out on Pesach 

Pesach is a time of great 

exultation and exuberance. It 

is both a festival of freedom 

commemorating the Exodus from 

Egypt, and a springtime celebration 

that brings together families and 

communities for a renewal of bonds 

and revitalization of relationships. It 

is also, however, a time of heightened 

“chumrah” — of exceptional 

stringency — based on the severe 

Torah prohibition against eating or 

owning chametz (leavened foods from 

wheat, rye, barley, oats, or spelt), and 

the principle that even the slightest bit 

of chametz does not become nullified 

in any mixture of food. 

The halakhic imperative to eradicate 

all chametz ushers in a season of 

intense cleaning and searching for any 

traces of chametz, culminating with 

the night of bedikat chametz on the eve 

of the 14 th of Nissan. The rabbonim 

of each community balance their 

responsibility to instruct congregants 

about the detailed kashering and 

food preparation requirements for 

Pesach, with the need to warn the 

most punctilious practitioners of faith 

not to lapse into obsessive-compulsive 

behavior in the process. It is often 

necessary to emphasize that the 

religious responsibilities of the holiday 

are not intended to supersede the 

Biblical mandate of simchat ha’chag — 

rejoicing in the festival. 

The tension between being joyous 

and being scrupulous about avoiding 

Rabbi Yona Reiss 

Rosh Yeshiva, RIETS 

Av Beit Din, Chicago Rabbinical Council 

chametz is perhaps best captured in 

the standard holiday wish for Pesach. 

Unlike the other shalosh regalim 

festivals of Sukkot and Shavuot, in 

which community members typically 

greet each other by saying “chag 

sameach” — have a joyous holiday — 

on Pesach the greeting is “chag kasher 

ve’sameach” — have a kosher and 

joyous holiday. The clear implication 

is that the simcha is secondary and 

subordinate to the scrupulous and 

amplified observances of kashrus 

during this time period. 

In fact, many practices have emerged 

over the years to reflect the special 

stringency of chametz, including the 

Ashkenazic practice of not eating 

kitniyot (legumes) and the practice 

of refraining from gebrochts (matzah 

soaked in water). The Chayei Adam 

(klal 127) devotes an entire chapter of 

his book to special Pesach stringencies 

and the nature of their binding force 

according to halakha. 

But perhaps the most intriguing of 

Pesach stringencies is the widespread 

minhag not to eat anyone else’s food 

during the Pesach holiday, even if the 

other person keeps their chumros. 

At first glance, this custom appears 

not merely strict, but downright 

unfriendly. 

By contrast, the Yerushalmi (Chagigah 

3:6; see also TB Chagigah 26a) 

derives from the verse k’ir shechubrah 

lah yachdav (Tehillim 122:3) that 

Jerusalem became the central and 

unifying place of gathering for the 

entirety of the Jewish people during 

the holidays because even an “am 

ha’aretz” (someone not generally 

presumed to be careful about ritual 

matters) was treated like a “chaver” 

(reliable person and literally “friend”) 

in terms of being trusted to prepare 

his food with the requisite purity 

during the holiday period. The 

Maharitz Chiyus (Nida 34a, s.v. 

“Hakatuv”), commenting on this 

passage, quotes from the Rambam 

in the Moreh Nevuchim (3:43) that 

the purpose of this spirit of trust 

was to increase social gatherings 

and brotherly love among all Jews 

during the holidays, and notes that 

the ultimate sharing of common 

bonds is through eating together, 

based on the principle of gedolah 

22 


legimah shemekarevet et harechokim 

— breaking bread draws disparate 

people closer (Sanhedrin 103b). By 

contrast, he notes that the opposite 

— גדול הפירוד במה שאדם is also true 

— מונע עצמו לאכול אצל ישראל חבירו 

that the refusal of one Jew to eat from 

another Jew’s food creates a terrible 

schism between them. He cites a 

parallel passage in the Yerushalmi 

(Bava Kamma 7:7), which similarly 

derives from the same verse in Tehillim 

that Jerusalem unites the hearts of 

the Jewish people (mechaberet et 

Yisrael zeh lazeh), a statement that 

he understands to allude as well to 

the heightened spirit of trust and 

togetherness during the holiday 

season. Based on this increased trust, 

all Jews will be able to eat together in 

friendship — veyitchabru halevavot zeh 

lazeh — resulting in a unity of heart 

and spirit among all Jews. Accordingly, 

it would appear that on Pesach, as well 

as the other holidays, there should 

ideally be a greater degree of trust for 

the kashrus standards of others. 

Where then does this seemingly 

unfriendly practice come from? 

Interestingly, it is mentioned in a 

variety of places, mostly of Chassidic 

origin, based upon both Rabbinic 

and Biblical sources. One source is a 

Talmudic passage in Pesachim and the 

second source is based on scriptural 

verses in Devorim. 

The Gemora in Pesachim (30a), 

quotes Rava as recounting that when 

he and his colleagues visited with 

Rav Nachman, after the seventh day 

of Pesach Rav Nachman instructed 

them to go out and purchase chametz 

from the local non-Jewish soldiers. 

The Rashash (ad locum) points out 

that this passage is difficult. Even after 

seven days, there is an eighth day of 

Pesach that is observed outside of 

Israel where Rava and Rav Nachman 

lived, and surely Rav Nachman would 

not have authorized the purchase of 

chametz on the eighth day of Pesach. 

Therefore, the Rashash suggests that 

the reference to the timing of the 

ruling of Rav Nachman is inexact, 

since it more likely took place after 

the eighth day when both chametz and 

commerce would have been permitted. 

However Rav Yisocher Dov Babad, 

the Av Beth Din of Buska (see 

Nitei Gavriel, Pesach 3:117-118), 

suggests that perhaps the reference 

to Rava’s visit following the seventh 

day is quite deliberate. According 

to his interpretation of the Gemora 

(according to which the comma in 

the first sentence of the preceding 

paragraph would belong after the 

word “Pesach” rather than after the 

word “Nachman”), Rava did not visit 

Rav Nachman altogether until after 

the first seven days of Pesach were 

over. Thus the Gemora is emphasizing 

that Rava did not want to eat in Rav 

Nachman’s home until the eighth 

day, which is only Rabbinic in nature. 

Until that time, Rava observed the 

practice of not eating in anyone’s 

home, including Rav Nachman, who 

was actually his Rebbe. However, 

according to this explanation, the 

extra level of leniency for the eighth 

day requires further elucidation. 

Rav Naftoli Zvi Horowitz (Zera 

Kodesh, volume 2, Le’acharon Shel 

Pesach, s.v. “Yom Tov Ha’acharon”) 

explains that the stringent practice 

not to eat in the home of others 

does not include the eighth day 

of Pesach because the final day of 

Pesach epitomizes the unity of the 

Jewish people, and therefore is a 

day in which all stringencies are set 

aside. This would also help explain 

the common practice for people who 

eat gebrochts to relax that stringency 

on the last day of Pesach (see Pri 

Hasadeh 3:31). While some have 

questioned this practice as internally 

inconsistent or disrespectful to the 

holiness of the second day of Yom 

Tov (see, e.g., Pri Chadash O”C siman 

447:5, s.v. “U’mah shekatav aval b’yom 

tov”), there does appear to be a basis 

in terms of enabling all Jews to eat at 

each other’s homes on the final day 

of Pesach in fulfillment of the notion 

of asa’an kulan chaveirim (Chagigah 

26a) — of all Jews uniting together at 

least at some point during the festival, 

in accordance with the words of the 

Maharitz Chiyus. 

The late Belzer Rebbe (Rav Aharon 

Rokeach zt”l) brings a different 

source for the custom of not eating 

in others’ homes on Pesach, noting 

that only with respect to Shavuot 

and Sukkot does the Torah mention 

the notion of rejoicing together with 

others (Devorim 16:11, 16:14), but 

not with respect to Pesach. Therefore 

the scriptural implication is that on 

Pesach there may be a basis for parties 

to refrain from joining each other for 

their meals. 

However, while these sources have 

merit, it would appear that there is 

a strong argument for a contrary 

approach. First, the seder feast, 

which is the most prominent Pesach 

meal, is predicated upon different 

individuals joining together to form a 

chaburah — an organic group — for 

purposes of partaking in the Pesach 

sacrifice. In fact, while the original 

Pesach was focused upon familial 

units joining in the bringing of the 

Pesach sacrifice (Shmot 12:3- seh l’veit 

avot seh labayit), Rashi notes (Shmot 

12:47) that for all subsequent Pesach 

observances, the group unit was 

expanded beyond the family to enable 

23 


different families to join with each 

other for the seder night. It is difficult 

to account for a minhag to eat with 

others only on the seder night, the 

most important meal of the Pesach 

holiday, but not for any other meals. 

Second, while the eighth day may 

stand for the notion of unity, surely as 

the Maharitz Chiyus noted, the first 

seven days of Pesach exemplify the 

exact same notion. If a desire to bring 

together the hearts of the people is 

emphasized on the eighth day, which 

is only Rabbinic in nature, surely it 

should be manifested during the other 

seven days of the holiday, which is the 

main time of kulan chaveirim — of 

togetherness and unity. 

Nevertheless, it is possible that one 

objection answers the other. The 

ideal aspiration of being in Jerusalem 

for Pesach as one unified nation 

presupposes that the Beit Hamikdash 

is in existence and that everyone 

fulfills the obligation to purify oneself 

for the holidays (Rosh Hashanah 16b) 

in order to partake in the kodshim 

— the holy offerings brought in the 

Beit Hamikdash. This would also be 

true with respect to bringing together 

disparate individuals to partake in a 

communal Pesach offering. However 

nowadays, when we are not privileged 

to have a Beit Hamikdash, the custom 

of abstaining from the food of others 

makes more sense as an additional 

Pesach stringency, particularly given 

that many families observe different 

stringencies, whether in terms of 

gebrochts or other special restrictions 

for Pesach. 

In fact, in this light, it is 

understandable why the eighth day 

of Pesach would justify a departure 

from this minhag. The eighth day is 

considered, according to Chassidic 

tradition, the Yom Tov of Mashiach 

(see Sefer Hasichot beLashon Hakodesh 

5700, pp. 75-76), the day that is set 

aside in eager anticipation for the 

Mashiach’s imminent arrival. On such 

a day, it is appropriate to have the 

mindset of the Messianic era, which 

will usher in the building of the Beit 

Hamikdash and the need for everyone 

to purify themselves and therefore 

be on an equal footing of kosher 

trustworthiness during the holiday 

period. Accordingly, even though the 

strict halakhic requirements of the 

Pesach holiday would normally justify 

the higher level of stringency in terms 

of kosher circumspection, the eighth 

day, which is both Rabbinic and also 

evocative of Messianic times, calls 

Even though the strict halakhic requirements 

of the Pesach holiday would normally justify 

the higher level of stringency in terms of 

kosher circumspection, the eighth day, which is 

both rabbinic and also evocative of Messianic 

times, calls for a relaxation of any heightened 

stringencies which would create a distance 

between fellow Jews. 

for a relaxation of any heightened 

stringencies which would create a 

distance between fellow Jews. 

This may also explain why, according to 

Rav Babad’s innovative understanding 

of the Gemora, Rava waited until 

the eighth day to visit his Rebbe, Rav 

Nachman (see Mo’ed Katan 28a). 

There is after all a mitzvah for a person 

to visit his Rebbe during the holidays 

(Sukkah 27b). However, the Noda 

B’Yehuda (M”T O”C 94) rules that this 

requirement is only applicable when 

the Beit Hamikdash is in existence and 

the Jewish people are commanded to 

perform aliyah l’regel — the mitzvah 

of making a pilgrimage to the Holy 

Temple in order to visit the central 

place of the Shekhinah and offer 

sacrifices to the Almighty. When there 

is no possibility of making such a 

pilgrimage because the Beit Hamikdash 

has not yet been rebuilt, it would be 

an insult to the Divine presence to 

demand greater respect toward human 

beings. Hence, the obligation of visiting 

one’s Rebbe becomes inapplicable in 

the modern age. 

Rava’s practice could thus be 

marshalled as support for the position 

of this ruling of the Noda B’Yehuda. 

Perhaps Rava did not feel that there 

was an obligation to visit his Rebbe 

during the rest of the holiday, and 

accordingly did not view the notion of 

such a visit as sufficient to override the 

stringency of not eating at anyone else’s 

home during Pesach. However, on the 

last day of Pesach, which represents 

a time of anticipating the Mashiach 

(assuming that Rava subscribed to 

this notion) and the renewal of the 

obligation of visiting the Shekhinah in 

the Beit Hamikdash during the three 

annual festivals, he felt that it was 

appropriate to fulfill the precept of 

visiting his Rebbe at that time as well. 

24 


Of course, the question still lingers 

regarding the anti-social nature 

of such a minhag, especially in 

light of the spirit of togetherness 

that is supposed to reign supreme 

in the fulfillment of the Pesach 

holiday during the time of the Beit 

Hamikdash. Perhaps, however, this 

is precisely why Rava was careful to 

observe this minhag (according to Rav 

Babad’s interpretation of the Gemora) 

even with respect to his own Rebbe 

who surely could be trusted, in order 

to ensure that nobody else be insulted 

that he did not visit their homes 

during Pesach. At the same time, he 

was also careful not to visit his Rebbe’s 

home at a time during Pesach when he 

would have been inclined to refuse his 

Rebbe’s food, thus avoiding any direct 

disrespect to his Rebbe (see Halikhot 

Shlomo – Minhagei Pesach, p. 90, that 

the minhag of not eating in others’ 

homes on Pesach does not supersede 

a person’s obligation to act with derekh 

eretz — proper manners — toward his 

Rebbe or others). 

In a similar vein, the second 

Lubavitcher Rebbe (the “Mitteler 

Rebbe”), Rav DovBer Shneuri, stated 

that on Pesach it is a proper minhag 

not to hand guests food or drink but 

to simply make a repast available for 

them (Sefer Haminhagim – Chabad, 

page 42, s.v. “Pa-am” and Hayom Yom, 

page 47). In this fashion, a host is 

spared embarrassment in the event 

that his or her guest wishes to observe 

the stringency of not eating from 

others, while at the same time the 

guest is properly honored through 

the host’s furnishing of food. Others 

are lenient with respect to providing 

guests with clearly unproblematic 

products, such as fresh fruits. Along 

these lines, Rav Shlomo Zalman 

Auerbach zt”l once chastised a 

student who observed the minhag 

of not eating in others’ homes for 

refusing Rav Auerbach’s offer of wine 

during Pesach from a wine bottle 

that the student would have surely 

consumed in his own home (Halikhot 

Shlomo id). 

Nowadays, this minhag does not 

appear to be ubiquitously observed. 

While it is standard practice, and 

perhaps even consistent with the 

spirit of the minhag, for extended 

members of the same family to join 

each other for Pesach and especially 

for the sedarim, it is also the practice 

of many families to join together with 

other families for the seder and other 

Yom Tov meals. It would seem that 

at least in many quarters, the minhag 

attributed to Rava is not consistently 

followed. In particular, the 

phenomenon of many families taking 

advantage of Pesach hotels is a further 

indication of the non-observance of 

this practice. For those who would 

otherwise observe the stringency of 

not eating in other’s homes, it would 

not seem that the hashgacha of a 

kashrus agency should be given any 

greater reliability than was accorded 

by Rava to Rav Nachman. The Nitei 

Gavriel (Hilkhot Pesach 2:218) even 

questions the practice of those who 

purport to keep the custom of not 

eating out and yet buy items with 

kosher certification from stores, 

since in his opinion the minhag 

should logically extend to refraining 

from even buying items with kosher 

certification during Pesach. 

Accordingly, it would seem that in 

the spirit of the Pesach holiday, one 

of two different approaches can be 

justified as a matter of proper minhag. 

One may observe the stringency, 

particularly if it is the inherited family 

custom, of not eating from anyone 

else’s food (at least for the first seven 

R. Yaakov Yitzchak Horowitz 

(c. 1745-1815), known 

as the Chozeh of Lublin, 

was very particular about 

the matzah that he used 

for the seder. He followed 

numerous stringencies 

to ensure that not even 

the smallest amount of 

flour had any concern for 

chametz. While he was at 

the synagogue on the first 

night of Pesach, a poor 

person came to the Chozeh’s 

house asking for matzah. The 

Chozeh’s wife gave him some 

matzah not realizing that 

she gave him the Chozeh’s 

special matzah. When 

the Chozeh came home 

and discovered what had 

happened, he commented: 

משהו חמץ דרבנן,‏ משהו כעס 

— If a miniscule דאורייתא 

amount of chametz is mixed 

in, the prohibition against 

eating it is Rabbinical in 

nature, but even the smallest 

amount of anger is a Biblical 

prohibition. 

HaChozeh MiLublin pg. 220 

days of Pesach) as a way of observing 

the special “chag kasher ve-sameach” 

Pesach stringency. Alternatively, 

one may adopt the optimistic 

viewpoint (if sufficiently warranted) 

that the neighbors in our observant 

communities can be sufficiently 

trusted throughout the entire Pesach 

holiday even in the modern age, in 

which case the spirit of togetherness 

25 


for the holiday would dictate that 

we not distinguish between the 

trustworthiness of different neighbors 

(or at least not more so than the rest 

of the year) who observe the same 

Pesach chumros that we ourselves 

observe. In fact, a number of poskim 

are even lenient to allow a guest to 

attend a meal at the home of someone 

who does not observe certain of 

the guest’s stringencies and not to 

worry about food absorptions in the 

dishes that are served (see Zera Emes 

3:48 regarding kitniyot, and Chazon 

Ovadiah, Pesach, p. 116, n.35 regarding 

sugar). However, to differentiate 

between different members of one’s 

shared community, specifically with 

respect to eating out on Pesach, would 

appear to be potentially problematic 

according to either approach. 

Similarly, there does not appear to 

be an obvious basis according to this 

minhag for drawing distinctions with 

respect to which prepared food items 

are subject to reliance or suspicion. 

If one is comfortable eating from the 

meat dishes prepared by an observant 

neighbor on their utensils, presumably 

one should be similarly comfortable 

eating from the neighbor’s matzah. 

While matzah is more susceptible 

to being chametz than most other 

foods, it would be difficult to justify 

placing trust in the food preparation 

of a host whom the guest otherwise 

suspects of eating outright chametz. 

There is admittedly a practice of 

guests eating their own matzah on the 

seder night based on the requirement 

of mishelachem — namely, that the 

matzah set aside for the mitzvah of 

eating matzah on the seder night 

should belong to the person fulfilling 

the mitzvah (see Sefas Emes, Sukkah 

35a, s.v. “Atya lechem lechem,” but see 

Mikroei Kodesh, Pesach 2:45(2)). 

However, there is no such mitzvah 

obligation on the other days of Pesach. 

Even according to the Vilna Gaon, 

who held that there is a mitzvah 

kiyumit — an additional mitzvah 

dimension — to eat matzah during 

the duration of Pesach (Ma’aseh 

Rav, paragraph 185), that additional 

dimension of mitzvah fulfillment 

would not seem to dictate that the 

matzah specifically belong to the 

person eating it. 

Perhaps the more trusting practice 

of eating at other people’s homes 

(who share the same high level of 

observance) provides a basis for an 

alternative greeting during the Pesach 

season. The late Jewish educator 

par excellence, Dr. Alvin Schiff z”l, 

once related to this author that he 

preferred the formulation of “chag 

sameach ve’khasher.” His reasoning 

was that since the term chag sameach 

is expressed on all of the other yomim 

tovim, it should come first based on 

תדיר ושאינו תדיר תדיר the principle of 

(e.g., Berachot 51b) — that when קודם 

confronted with two observances, the 

more frequent observance comes first. 

[As a grammarian, he further noted 

that after the letter “vav” connecting 

“sameach ve’khasher,” the “kaf” of 

“kasher” should be without a dagesh 

based on the rules of dikduk, and 

therefore should be pronounced “vekhasher” 

as opposed to “ve-kasher.”] 

For those who are prepared to eat 

in other people’s homes who share 

their same observance level, perhaps 

there is a different reason for the word 

“sameach” to come first, because the 

message is that part of the joyousness 

of the holiday is expressed through 

a reliance upon the high kashrus 

standards of others (whether it be 

an observant neighbor or a Pesach 

caterer under reliable hashgacha). 

Whichever practice is adopted, it is 

important to respect and appreciate 

the legitimacy and authenticity 

of minhagei Yisrael — of long 

established practices and stringencies 

accompanying the Pesach holiday. 

Families should not be insulted if 

friends follow the practice of not 

eating out for Pesach, and should 

not feel inhibited from maintaining 

such a practice themselves, although 

they should be careful to apply their 

practice consistently to all individuals. 

Similarly, hotels and other hosts who 

are being relied upon by guests to 

follow Pesach laws and stringencies 

must recognize the awesome 

responsibility that rests upon them to 

ensure the highest kashrus standards 

of the food that they serve. 

Ultimately, the goal for all Jews on 

Pesach, whether eating in their own 

homes or eating out, should be to 

strive for impeccable observance 

of all of the kashrus laws of Pesach 

as well as a sense of joyousness on 

both a familial and communal level 

that will pave the path for all Jews to 

join together in the future in group 

offerings of the Pesach sacrifice, and 

the friendly sharing of meals in the 

rebuilt Jerusalem. 

Find more shiurim and articles from Rabbi Yona Reiss at 

http://www.yutorah.org/Rabbi-Yona-Reiss 

26 


Freedom To…Not Freedom 

From: Pesach and the Road 

to Redemption 

A 

recent survey 1 taken as 

the holiday of Pesach 

approached, showed that 

99 percent of a sample of assimilated 

Jews were planning to participate 

in Passover activities, 82 percent 

reported that they would eat matza, 

and 72 percent said they would 

tell over the story of the Exodus 

from Egypt. A possible reason for 

the popularity of this holiday may 

be because it is the holiday that 

celebrates freedom, commemorating 

the day of our national redemption 

from Egypt — the day we were freed 

from slavery. 

We cannot celebrate fully, however, 

until we have asked ourselves the 

following questions: What is it 

about Pesach that is so fundamental 

to Jewish existence? How does the 

freedom we attained in Egypt define 

us as Jews? What powerful idea 

lies within this historical event that 

compels us to recall the story of our 

redemption from Egypt on a daily 

basis and to retell it in depth year after 

year? 

In order to understand what lies at 

the core of our existence, we must 

study the opening chapters of Sefer 

Shemot, in which the Jewish people 

emerge as a nation for the first time. 

Unlike Sefer Bereishit, Shemot does 

not focus on the individuals, but 

rather on the nation as a whole. In the 

first two chapters we are told about 

the suffering of a nation that Pharoah 

referred to as “am bnei Yisrael” — 

the nation of the children of Israel 

(Shemot 1:9). When Moshe is born in 

the second chapter, he and his parents 

remain nameless, de-emphasizing the 

individuals and focusing fully on the 

beleaguered nation. 

The climax of these opening chapters 

occurs at the end of the second 

chapter, when the Torah states that 

Hashem heard their suffering, and 

that he would now intervene: 

Mrs. Shoshana Schechter 

Director of Mechina Pathways and Assistant 

Professor of Bible, Stern College for Women 

וישמע א-לקים את נאקתם ויזכר א-לקים את 

בריתו את אברהם את יצחק ואת יעקב.‏ וירא 

א-לקים את בני ישראל וידע א-לקים.‏ 

And G-d heard their moaning and 

G-d remembered His covenant with 

Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. And G-d saw 

the children of Israel and G-d knew. 

Shemot 2:24-25 

Hashem’s plan had been set in motion, 

and thus begins the story of our 

redemption. 

From the start, when Hashem first 

appeared to Moshe at the burning 

bush and relayed to him his mission, 

He told Moshe (Shemot 3:12), 

בהוציאך את העם ממצרים תעבדון את“‏ 

“when you ‏—”הא-לקים על ההר הזה 

take this nation out of Egypt they will 

serve me on this mountain.” 

The underlying purpose of the 

redemption and the meaning of the 

freedom we were about to attain is 

clearly defined. Hashem is granting 

our freedom from our Egyptian 

taskmasters for the purpose of 

becoming avadim (servants) to Him. 

Our freedom was conditional, and the 

Jewish slaves had to learn this before 

they could merit redemption. 

With this in mind, Hashem gave 

them the mitzvah of korban Pesach 

to teach them how to serve Hashem. 

Through this mitzvah, Bnei Yisrael 

could demonstrate their devotion 

27 


to Hashem while simultaneously 

denouncing the idolatry that they 

worshiped in Egypt, the sheep. 

Hashem (Shemot 12:3) commanded 

Bnei Yisrael to “take for yourselves a 

ויקחו להם איש שה לבית אבות“‏ sheep,” 

echoing‏”שה the command to לבית 

One of the ways we answer 

the child’s Mah Nishtana 

מתחילה saying: questions is by 

עובדי עבודה זרה היו אבותינו 

‏,ועכשיו קרבנו המקום לעבודתו 

originally, our forefathers 

were idol worshippers and 

now the Omnipresent has 

brought us closer to His 

service. How does that 

answer relate to the story 

of the Exodus? R. Chaim 

Yosef David Azulai (Chida) 

in Simchat HaRegel explains 

based on the principle found 

in the Gemara, Yevamot 66b, 

On ‏.הקדש מפקיע מידי שעבוד 

a literal level, this means 

that when something is 

consecrated, all existing liens 

on the item are removed. 

Chida offers another level of 

interpretation: consecration 

can take us out of bondage. 

We were supposed to be 

enslaved for 400 years, but 

because we were brought 

closer to His service, our 

slavery was truncated. When 

we were transformed into 

servants of God, it removed 

our shackles of bondage. 


Avraham at Brit Bein Habetarim (the 

Covenenat of the Pieces), where 

Avraham was told (Breishit 15:9) 

k’cha li, take for me. Avraham, the first 

person to recognize Hashem and serve 

Him, and the first one to call God his 

Master, his Adon 2 demonstrated his 

devotion by “taking” an animal, thus 

entering a covenant with G-d. During 

this covenant, G-d told Avraham of 

the future enslavement in Egypt and 

subsequent redemption which would 

be sealed with a covenant with Him. 

It is significant to note that his future 

descendants, who G-d told Avraham 

about then, would similarly “take” an 

animal as the first step toward entering 

their own covenant with G-d. It is also 

noteworthy to point out that when 

Moshe relays to the Jews Hashem’s 

instructions pertaining to korban 

Pesach, he adds the word mishchu and 

tells them: 

ויקרא משה לכל זקני ישראל ויאמר אלהם 

משכו וקחו לכם צאן למשפחותיכם ושחטו 

הפסח.‏ 

And Moshe called to the elders of Israel 

and he said to them: Draw forth and 

buy for yourselves sheep for your families 

so that you can slaughter the Pesach 

offering. 

Shemot 12:21 

Rashi, quoting the Mechilta, explains 

that Moshe is instructing Bnei Yisrael 

to withdraw from idolatry and take on 

the mitzvah of the sheep: 

משכו ידיכם מאלילים וקחו לכם צאן של 

מצוה.‏ 

Remove your hands from idolatry and 

buy for yourselves sheep to perform a 

mitzvah. 

Rashi, Shemot 12:6 3 

Abandoning their idolatrous beliefs 

and changing their loyalties by 

devoting themselves to G-d was a 

prerequisite for redemption. 

To further prove their newfound 

dedication to G-d, after designating 

the sheep, Bnei Yisrael were told to 

slaughter it and smear its blood on the 

doorposts and doorframes of their 

homes as a sign: 

והיה הדם לכם לאות על הבתים אשר אתם 

שם וראיתי את הדם ופסחתי עליכם ולא יהיה 

בכם נגף למשחית בהכתי בארץ מצרים.‏ 

And the blood shall be a sign for you on 

the houses that you are in. And I will see 

the blood and pass over them ... 

Shemot 12:13 

Many commentaries agree 4 that the 

sign was both for the Jews and for 

G-d. They explain that Bnei Yisrael 

would see the blood and understand 

the significance of their public 

renunciation of Egyptian gods and 

their newfound belief in G-d, while 

at the same time, G-d would see the 

blood as a sign of their devotion 

and servitude to Him. The Mechilta 

(Shemot 7:48) suggests that the 

blood that G-d sees on the doorposts 

harkens us back to akeidat Yitzchak 

and “reminds” G-d of the blood of 

the ram that Avraham offered in place 

of Yitzchak, which symbolized the 

dedication and sacrifice to his master, 

his Adon. Only after Bnei Yisrael 

followed in Avraham’s footsteps, 

demonstrating their devotion to G-d 

and their willingness to serve Him 

through the mitzvah of korban Pesach, 

did they merit their redemption. 

That devotion to G-d and the 

willingness to serve Him is the 

underlying meaning of yetziat 

Mitzrayim. Through the redemption 

from Egypt we learn the underlying 

goal of Judaism — to serve G-d. 

We learn that freedom does not 

mean freedom from all work and 

responsibility, but rather freedom 

from serving human masters in order 

to serve G-d. 

28 


We are commanded to eat matzah, poor man’s 

bread, to remind us that we did not bring about 

our own redemption, but rather, we left as 

slaves, solely through the Hand of G-d. 

The Rambam 5 uses this idea to 

explain why we have an obligation to 

remember the Exodus from Egypt 

on a daily basis, in our prayers, in 

mezuzot, and in tefillin. The story of 

the redemption from Egypt reminds 

us to serve Hashem and undertake the 

yoke of mitzvot. The more constant 

reminders we have, the more we 

realize that serving G-d is the ultimate 

purpose of our daily existence. 

Rav Shamshon Raphael Hirsch (to 

Shemot 13:16) elaborates on this idea 

and explains why G-d commanded us 

to place the story of yetziat Mitzrayim 

that is found inside tefillin on our 

arms and between our eyes. 6 Our 

arms represent our actions, and the 

space between our eyes represents 

our thoughts. We must constantly 

remember our obligation to serve G-d 

with both our actions and with our 

minds, with both our physical and 

spiritual beings. 

Rav Kook, in Olat Ra’ayah (Vol. I, 

pg. 39), expands on this concept 

and explains the significance of 

re-experiencing yetziat Mitzrayim 

every year — b’chol dor vador. Yetziat 

Mitzrayim was not an isolated historic 

event that occurred years ago, he 

writes, but it is a task confronting 

every individual in every generation, 

representing the triumph of the 

spiritual over the physical. The same 

way that Bnei Yisrael abandoned the 

physical avodah of Egypt in order 

to embrace the spiritual avodah of 

G-d, we too must enable our spiritual 

avodah to triumph in our physical 

surroundings. 

In the Haggada, when the wicked son 

asks, “Mah ha’avodah hazot lachem?” 

— What is this service to you? — our 

response to him is “ba’avur zeh asah 

Hashem li b’tzeiti MiMitzrayim — it 

is because of this that G-d took me 

out of Egypt.” Zeh — these, are the 

mitzvot of korban Pesach, matzah 

and maror. If you were there, we 

tell the Rasha, you would not have 

accepted these mitzvot and, therefore, 

you would not have been redeemed. 

Only through the performance of the 

combination of these mitzvot were we 

worthy of being redeemed. 

The korban Pesach represents our 

freedom from Egypt, marked by 

the renunciation of that which the 

Egyptians worshipped, while the 

matzah acts as a reminder, not only 

that we were avadim, but that we 

left, not through our own strength 

but through the “Hand of Hashem,” 

with the ultimate goal of becoming 

avadim to Hashem. It is for this reason 

that among the presentation of the 

commandments obligated on Pesach, 

the same verse states two seemingly 

disjointed ideas: 

זכור את היום הזה אשר יצאתם ממצרים 

מבית עבדים כי בחזק יד הוציא ה’‏ אתכם מזה 

ולא יאכל חמץ.‏ 

Remember today that Hashem took you 

out of Egypt from the house of slavery ... 

29 


and don’t eat chametz. 

Shemot 13:3 

What is the connection between the 

eating of chametz and G-d taking us 

out? Though chametz and matzah 

are made up of basically the same 

ingredients, chametz is different from 

matzah in that it is full of hot air, thus 

representing our ego. On Pesach 

there is no room for ego. We are 

commanded to eat matzah, poor man’s 

bread, to remind us that we did not 

bring about our own redemption, but 

Why do we recite Pesach, 

matzah and maror in that 

order? Maror represents the 

difficult times that preceded 

the redemption represented 

by Pesach and matzah. Why 

don’t we mention maror first? 

R. Yaakov of Lisa (1760- 

1832), Ma’aseh Nissim, 

explains that if we mentioned 

maror first, it would give us 

the impression that the main 

aspect of our redemption 

is our freedom from being 

servants. In reality, however, 

the main aspect of our 

redemption is becoming 

servants of God. If Pharoah 

would have voluntarily freed 

us and allowed us to remain 

noble citizens in Egypt, we 

would have missed the main 

purpose of our redemption 

— to become servants of 

God. Therefore, when we 

fulfill the mitzvot of the night, 

we mention maror last. 


rather, we left as slaves, solely through 

the Hand of G-d. 

The eating of matzah together with the 

korban Pesach connects the aspects of 

avdut and cheirut, slavery and freedom, 

demonstrating the underlying 

purpose of our cheirut — serving 

Hashem. The punishment for one 

who transgresses this mitzvah and eats 

chametz on Pesach is kareit, being cut 

off from the Jewish people, because 

by eating chametz, one refuses to 

acknowledge the role of G-d in one’s 

freedom and the obligation of avodat 

Hashem, thus denying the underlying 

purpose of the Jewish people. 

The Netziv (Introduction to Sefer 

Shemot) refers to the Book of Shemot 

as the “Second Book,” since it is 

essentially a continuation of the Book 

of Bereishit. The story of the creation 

of the world concludes only once the 

purpose of creation has been fulfilled, 

which occured when Bnei Yisrael 

accepted the Torah in Sefer Shemot. 

The world is thus incomplete until 

the goal of avodat Hashem has been 

achieved. 

Similarly, Reb Leible Eiger 7 explains 

why it is that an egg is used as a 

remembrance of the korban chagigah. 

Why not meat? An egg can be 

compared to the Jews at the time of 

yetziat Mitzrayim. An egg is not the 

finished product, but rather a stage of 

its evolution to its ultimate purpose. 

So too, the Jews leaving Egypt were 

not complete until they reached Har 

Sinai and received the Torah. The 

purpose of their redemption was to 

serve Hashem through Torah and 

mitzvot. 

What does all this mean to us in 

practical terms? It urges us to view 

the holiday of Pesach not just as 

an independence day, celebrating 

freedom from slavery, but rather as 

a day celebrating our freedom to 

embrace G-d. On Pesach we have the 

opportunity to express our deepest 

values and mission — a life of serving 

Hakadosh Baruch Hu. 

In this light, we understand that the 

greatest freedom is reserved for those 

who toil in service of G-d, specifically 

in the area of Torah learning. The 

Mishna (Avot 6:2) says “Ein l’cha ben 

chorin ela mi she’osek batorah,” — the 

only free person is one who toils in 

Torah. The most profound freedom is 

not the breaking away from bondage 

but of bonding to one’s greatest 

purpose and destiny. 

Notes 

1. http://www.interfaithfamily.com/files/ 

pdf/2014_Passover_Easter_Survey_Report. 

pdf. 

2. Brachos 7b, “Rav Yochanan stated in the 

name of Rav Shimon bar Yochai: ‘From the 

day the Holy One Blessed be He created the 

world, there was no person who called Him 

Adon (Master) until Avraham came and did 

so.’” 

3. The same idea is presented in Shemot 

Rabbah 16:2. The Mechilta, the source that 

Rashi quotes, uses a slightly different wording, 

משכו ידיכם מעבודה זרה וקחו והידבקו“‏ stating 

remove your hands from idolatry ‏”,במצוות 

and take and cling to mitzvot. The Rambam 

in Moreh Nevuchim 3:41, explains further that 

the slaughtering of the sheep, an act that had 

previously been punishable by death, would 

instead now be the key to their salvation. 

4. Rashi, Ibn Ezra, Chizkuni on 12:13. 

5. Rambam, Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Tefillin 

6:13 and Hilchot Mezuzah 4:25. 

6. Shemot 13:9. This is similar to the L’shem 

Yichud prayer focusing one’s intent before 

fulfilling the mitzvah of tefillin which states 

that the tefillin are placed on the arm and on 

the head so that all of one’s senses and actions 

are directed towards service of Hashem. 

7. This was told to my husband by his greatuncle 

Nachum Genachowskii, a talmid of the 

Chofetz Chaim. 

30 


When Iyov Left Egypt 

In foretelling the fate of the Jewish 

people, Hashem pledged to 

Avraham that after generations of 

slavery, they would emerge with great 

wealth. 1 Commentators 2 explain that 

the windfall of Egyptian bounty was 

a form of restitution for centuries of 

slave labor. However, this great wealth 

did not restore the lives of Jews who 

had died in slavery, and it did not 

reverse their physical and emotional 

pain. In what sense were the Jews 

made whole by gold and silver? 

The same problem presents at the end 

of the Book of Iyov. The protagonist 

endures the death of his children, 

the destruction of his fortune, 

abandonment by his friends, and an 

eruption of boils across his body. 

Then, at the end of his Book, “Hashem 

restored that which had been captured 

from Iyov.” 3 This restoration includes 

doubling the wealth he had possessed 

before, and giving him seven sons and 

three daughters, matching his number 

of children from the start of the story. 

However, it appears that these were 

not his original children, 4 and this 

certainly did not repeal his experience 

of physical and emotional pain. How, 

then, has Iyov been restored? 

Iyov and the Jewish Slaves: A 

Linguistic Association 

As students in day school, long 

before most of us ever know Iyov’s 

name, much less open his book, we 

are taught to associate him with the 

enslavement of the Jews in Egypt. As 

taught by Rabbi Simai: 5 

שלשה היו באותה עצה בלעם ואיוב ויתרו 

בלעם שיעץ נהרג איוב ששתק נידון ביסורין 

יתרו שברח זכו מבני בניו שישבו בלשכת 

הגזית.‏ 

There were three counselors [in Pharaoh’s 

plot to drown baby boys]: Bilam, Iyov, 

and Yitro. Bilam counseled [to proceed 

with it], and was killed. Iyov was silent, 

and was punished with suffering. Yitro 

fled, and some of his descendants merited 

to sit in the Lishkat haGazit [as part of 

the Sanhedrin]. 

Rabbi Simai’s association of these 

three figures with the counsel given to 

Pharaoh seems to be purely linguistic, 

based on the word עצה (counsel): 

שמע בקולי Moshe, • Yitro advised 

“Listen to my voice, and I will ‏,איעצך 

counsel you.” 6 

‏,לכה איצעך Balak, • Bilam declared to 

“Let me give you counsel.” 7 

• Iyov is introduced as living in “the 

land of ‏”,עוץ a location that defies 

identification. 8 Rambam explains the 

word עוץ as a reference to counsel. 9 

Beyond language, though, there are 

meaningful parallels between Iyov’s 

arc and the arc of the Jews in Egypt. 

Perhaps we might use the story of 

Iyov’s restored plenty to shed light on 

the purpose of the wealth with which 

we left Egypt. 

Rabbi Mordechai Torczyner 

Rosh Beit Midrash, Yeshiva University Torah 

MiTzion Beit Midrash Zichron Dov 

Iyov’s Arc: From Riches to 

Rags to Riches 

Rabbi Simai’s aforementioned 

contention notwithstanding, nearly all 

commentators understand that Iyov’s 

misery was not inflicted as retributory 

justice. 10 Iyov is described by Hashem 

at the outset of his story as, “unlike 

anyone else in the land: unblemished, 

righteous, revering Hashem, and 

avoiding evil.” 11 In fact, Iyov is slated 

to suffer specifically because of his 

great righteousness. He loses children, 

wealth, allies, and health in the name 

of a trial to determine the durability of 

human reverence for Hashem. 

Not knowing the Divine plan, 

Iyov’s visitors interpret his suffering 

as evidence of his guilt. In their 

worldview, and despite the superlative 

greatness for which Iyov is known, 12 

to them it is axiomatic that one who 

suffers must have failed to live up to 

Divine expectations. 13 

This indictment devastates Iyov. At 

the start of his travails Iyov expresses 

grief for his losses, but that quickly 

gives way to mourning for the loss of 

the esteem in which he had once been 

held. Iyov catalogues at length the 

shame he now experiences. 14 Further, 

Iyov complains that Hashem is now 

unreachably aloof, and will never 

31 


deign to respond to Iyov’s allegations 

of injustice. Iyov’s strongest 

complaints are reserved not for his 

filial, physical, and financial losses, but 

rather for his decline in the eyes of 

his world, and his inability to gain an 

audience before Hashem. 

At the end of Iyov’s saga, Hashem 

at last responds, delivering a multichapter 

lecture on the vast differences 

between Hashem and human beings. 

At the end, Iyov retracts his initial 

complaints, saying, “I had heard of 

You with my ear before; now, my eye 

has seen You. Therefore I reject and 

regret [my words], as [I am] dust 

and ash.” 15 Hashem then defends 

Iyov before his visitors, “raising the 

face of Iyov.” 16 Seeing a possibility 

for connection with Hashem, Iyov 

abandons his hostility and reaches 

out — and in the moment when he 

prays to Hashem, he is given wealth, 

he is blessed with children, and his 

community responds to him with new 

support. 17 Iyov’s standing as a Man of 

G-d is fully restored. 

In light of this arc, perhaps we may 

understand Iyov’s newfound plenty 

as something other than material 

restitution. Wealth and family convey 

a message of Divine approval to Iyov’s 

world. This is no longer a man who 

is rejected by Hashem; rather, Iyov 

is indeed the outstandingly worthy 

individual described in the beginning, 

“unblemished, righteous, revering 

Hashem, and avoiding evil.” 

The Jews in Egypt: From 

Riches to Rags to Riches 

Like Iyov, the Jewish people begin 

their painful sojourn in wealth, glory, 

and an aura of connection with 

Hashem. Three generations of good 

fortune sent by Hashem have been 

kind to them, and Yosef ’s role as 

the savior of Egypt brings him and 

his family the respect of Egyptian 

society. 18 Moreover, they have a multigeneration 

reputation as protected 

representatives of Hashem, 19 a role 

cemented by Yosef when he credits 

Hashem for his success in Egypt. 20 

In another generation, the Jews’ 

success and Divine protection 

dissipate — and as with Iyov’s 

experience, this does not appear to be 

a response to sin. Several Talmudic 

sages do suggest that Hashem may 

have been punishing Avraham, 21 but 

the Biblical revelation to Avraham 22 

states simply that the Jews must 

descend to Egypt as a step along a 

preordained path that is their destiny, 

regardless of their conduct. 

Suffering creates that same sundering 

of the Divine relationship that 

Iyov experienced. The Jews endure 

generations of slavery without even 

crying out to Hashem; according to 

Yehoshua 23 and Yechezkel, 24 they even 

participate in Egyptian idolatry. 25 

As was true for Iyov, the moment of 

reunion with Hashem is what brings 

the Jews’ suffering in Egypt to a close. 

Throughout slavery, the campaign 

to have midwives kill baby boys, and 

the casting of baby boys into the Nile, 

Hashem does not intervene. Only 

with our national appeal to Hashem 

does Hashem call to mind our 

ancestral covenant. 26 

At this stage, Hashem restores our 

status as a special nation, emphasizing 

repeatedly to Pharaoh that the Jewish 

people should not be viewed as a 

spiritually worthless tribe of slaves. 

Hashem calls them “My nation,” 27 

“My son” and “My firstborn,” 28 

identifying them as a people unique 

in its connection with the Divine. 

Perhaps, then, as with Iyov, Hashem 

makes a point of awarding the Jews 

wealth as a demonstration that their 

relationship is still whole: they are still 

My firstborn children. 

The Prosperity School 

In 2006, Time Magazine ran a cover 

story asking, “Does God want you 

to be rich?” 29 The stories of Iyov and 

the Jews in Egypt might lead to the 

conclusions of Prosperity Theology, 

which contends that wealth is a sign 

Why was Iyov, who 

remained silent, punished 

specifically with suffering? 

R. Chaim Shmulevitz 

(1902-1979), Sichot Mussar 

5733 no. 5, explains that 

the instinct of someone 

who is suffering is to 

scream even though he 

knows that screaming is not 

going to help the suffering. 

Iyov knew that screaming 

at Pharaoh wasn’t going 

to help, but if he would 

have truly felt the suffering 

of the Jewish people he 

should have done so 

anyway or made some 

other statement of protest, 

similar to what Yitro did. 

Therefore, he was punished 

specifically with suffering 

so that he would realize 

the importance of being 

sensitive to the suffering of 

others. 


32 


of Divine favor. On the other hand, 

remember that Iyov was loyal to 

Hashem when his children and wealth 

were taken, and the Jews in Egypt 

were as worthy at the start of their 

descent into slavery as they were at the 

end; clearly, net worth does not always 

match spiritual worth. 

A more important question may be 

this: What are we to do when we 

are rich? Beyond restoring former 

fortunes, and beyond broadcasting a 

message of Divine favor, these gifts 

afford the newly recovered Iyov and 

the newly freed Jews the opportunity 

to apply their blessing for the benefit 

of others. The challenge for the Jew 

who is redeemed is to translate his 

personal good fortune into communal 

blessing. With this merit, the Exodus 

from Egypt can lead to receipt of the 

Torah at Sinai, and entry into Eretz 

Yisrael. 

Notes 

1. Bereishit 15:14. 

2. Radak ibid., for example. 

3. Iyov 42:10. 

4. Daat Mikra to Iyov 42, footnote 108, cites a 

midrash which does contend that these were 

his original children, who had not actually 

died, but this is difficult to understand in 

light of Iyov 1:19, “The wind struck the four 

corners of the house, and it fell on the youths 

and they died.” See Ibn Ezra and Malbim to 

Iyov 42:10, too. 

5. Sotah 11a. 

6. Shemot 18:19. 

7. Bamidbar 24:14. 

8. See Bava Batra 15a, Yerushalmi Sotah 5:6, 

and Rashi and Ibn Ezra to Iyov 1:1. 

9. Moreh haNevuchim 3:22. 

10. See Rava on Bava Batra 16a, and Rabbi 

Yehoshua on Sotah 27b, for assignment of 

some level of guilt to Iyov. 

11. Iyov 1:8. 

12. See Iyov Chapter 29 and 31. 

13. Certain commentators read Bildad’s 

metaphor of the tree in chapter 8 as a 

statement that apparent suffering might be a 

necessary prelude to improved circumstances, 

but the overwhelming majority of the visitors’ 

speeches emphasize suffering as punishment. 

14. See Malbim to Iyov 16:8 and Metzudat 

David to Iyov 19:13, for example. 

15. Iyov 42:5-6. 

16. Iyov 42:7-9. 

17. Iyov 42:10-15. 

18. Bereishit 47:5-6. 

19. Ibid. 23:6 (Avraham); ibid. 26:29 

(Yitzchak); ibid. 35:5 (Yaakov). 

20. Ibid. 40:8 and 41:16, leading to 41:38. 

21. Nedarim 32a. 

22. Bereishit 15. Note that Rashi to Avot 5 

includes this as one of Avraham’s ten trials, 

adding another layer to the parallel with Iyov 

and the suffering that constituted his trial. 

23. Yehoshua 24:14. 

24. Yechezkel 20:7-9. 

25. And see Shemot Rabbah 3:21, Mechilta 

to Shemot 12:6, Yalkut Vaetchanan 828. See 

as well Rashi to Yechezkel 20:7, Ramban 

to Shemot 12:42, Abarbanel to Shemot 12, 

Seforno’s Introduction to Torah, and Kli Yakar 

to Vayikra 18:3, among others. 

26. Shemot 2:23-25. 

27. Ibid. 5:1. 

28. Ibid. 4:22-23. 

29. http://content.time.com/time/magazine/ 

article/0,9171,1533448,00.html. 

The Gemara, Berachot 9a, 

states that the reason why 

the Jewish people asked for 

silver and gold utensils was 

so that Avraham wouldn’t 

be able to say that God 

fulfilled His promise to 

enslave the Jews but didn’t 

fulfill His promise that 

they would leave with great 

wealth. The commentators 

ask a very basic question: 

Does God not fulfill His 

promises? If not for the 

complaint of Avraham, God 

would have let them leave 

empty handed? R. Yehuda 

Tzedakah, Kol Yehuda, 

Pesach pg. 32, suggests 

that when God promised 

that the Jews would leave 

with great wealth, He was 

referring to the Torah. To 

that end, God fulfilled 

His promise. However, 

Avraham had an additional 

claim: If the Jews suffered 

physically while enslaved, 

don’t they also deserve 

a physical form of great 

wealth? For this reason, 

God rewarded the Jews 

with physical wealth. 


Find more shiurim and articles from Rabbi Mordechai Torczyner 

at http://www.yutorah.org/Rabbi-Mordechai-Torczyner/ 

33 


How do We Transmit Emunah? 

Maximizing the Pesach Seder 

Few things are as important 

in Judaism as faith in G-d. 

Our religion is not only 

one of behavior but also of belief. 

Though there exist extensive debates 

surrounding the status and particulars 

of specific elements of our faith, all 

Rishonim affirm the critical role and 

value of emunah. 1 

While faith in G-d is clearly of utmost 

importance all year long, it may have 

increased value on Pesach night, 

the anniversary of our Exodus from 

Egypt. Indeed, the Torah (Shemot 

20:2) links belief in Hashem to 

leaving Mitzrayim, and a variety of 

Rishonim offer suggestions as to why 

our leaving Mitzrayim is so significant 

in shaping our emunah. 

Ramban (Shemot 13:16) explains 

that so many of our mitzvot are 

intended to remind us of Hashem’s 

active involvement in this world. 

The mitzvot help crystalize for us 

Hashem’s continued role in impacting 

world events — rejecting the 

erroneous belief that Hashem created 

the world, but has now abandoned 

it and left it to run on its own. Sefer 

HaChinuch (mitzvah 25) similarly 

writes that the Exodus from Egypt 

demonstrates G-d’s providence, 

clarifying that certain events did not 

occur as happenstance but as intended 

results of G-d’s actions. 2 

An alternate explanation for the 

critical role of yetziat Mitzrayim is 

offered by Rabbi Yehuda HaLevi 

(Sefer HaKuzari 1:25-27). He suggests 

that while creation of the world is 

obviously fundamental to our faith, 

it is the public miracles surrounding 

our leaving Egypt that serve as more 

concrete testimony to the validity and 

accuracy of our faith. Rabbi Yehuda 

HaLevi maintains that our belief in 

G-d is, in part, predicated upon the 

public miracles performed in front 

of an entire nation while we were in 

Egypt and then the desert, ultimately 

culminating in the receiving of the 

Torah. 

With this background in mind, we 

turn to an important question. Pesach 

night is one in which Jewish education 

plays a primary role. So many of 

the activities that take place during 

the seder revolve around engaging 

the next generation, ensuring 

their continued connection to our 

wonderful tradition. How does one 

transmit faith to the next generation? 

Pesach may be the holiday that, in 

a certain sense, is most intrinsically 

linked with the cultivation of 

emunah. How can emunah in Hashem 

be effectively transmitted to our 

children? 

What follows are three general ideas 

regarding fostering emunah in the next 

Ilana Turetsky, Ed.D. 

Faculty, Azrieli Graduate School 

generation, all based on insights into 

the unique experience of seder night. 

Approach # 1: Value 

Questions 

Much of the content discussed on 

Pesach night is acquired through 

questions and answers. A highlight 

of the Pesach seder is certainly the 

Mah Nishtanah, the four questions 

asked by a child at the beginning 

of the seder. The seder could have 

easily been structured in a way that 

proactively provides answers to these 

questions, eliminating the need to 

even raise the questions. That Chazal 

chose to have children ask the initial 

question reflects an understanding 

that questions are often a critical 

educational tool. Questions directly 

engage the minds of students and 

help them feel more invested. In 

structuring the seder around children’s 

questions, Chazal help ensure that the 

children realize that their questions 

have value and that their voice will be 

included in the seder. 

A similar concept is found slightly 

later on in the Haggadah when we 

relate to the four sons. The fourth 

son is the “she’aino yode’ah lishol,” 

34 


the son unable to even ask his own 

question. Our response is very telling. 

We do not satisfy ourselves by merely 

informing him of the most critical 

facts relevant to yetziat Mitzrayim, 

offering a crash course to ensure that 

he has acquired, at minimum, the 

basic pieces of information. Instead, 

we are told “at petach lo,” that our 

responsibility toward him is to open 

him up. We are instructed to do our 

best to engage him and make him an 

active learner, to ensure that he, too, is 

seeking, questioning, and uncovering 

to the best of his ability. 

Indeed, many elements of the Pesach 

night experience have the explicit 

goal of prompting the children to 

ask questions. Chazal (Pesachim 

114) explain that we eat karpas at 

the beginning of the seder so that the 

children will ask about this unusual 

practice. According to R’ Moshe 

Soloveitchik, the custom for certain 

people to wear a kittel at the seder is, 

likewise, for the sake of piquing the 

children’s curiosity. 

Both the explicit questions in the 

text of the Haggadah, as well as the 

practices that implicitly attempt to 

prompt the children to articulate 

questions, clearly point toward a very 

specific goal. During the night of 

Pesach, when we are trying to transmit 

our faith to the next generation, we 

are taught to make sure the children 

are active participants in exploring 

and understanding our traditions. 

When children’s questions become a 

focal point of the seder, we convey our 

confidence that we are transmitting 

something of value, that we are 

not scared of a close examination 

of our tradition, and that we value 

and cherish our children’s cognitive 

engagement in the religious sphere. 

Approach # 2: Commitment 

and Behaviors 

Recent research on education has 

revealed a fascinating and possibly 

counterintuitive perspective on how 

beliefs are transmitted from parents 

to children. One might have expected 

that children’s beliefs would likely 

correlate with those of their parents. 

Yet recent research 3 has shown that 

the relationship between parents’ 

and children’s beliefs is not that 

straightforward. Rather than beliefs 

being transmitted from parent to 

child in a linear fashion, children 

view their parents’ behaviors and 

intuit their parents’ beliefs based on 

the actions that they witness. It is 

those perceived parental beliefs that 

correlate most strongly with the creed 

of the children. In other words, the 

ultimate influence on the children’s 

beliefs is not what the parents actually 

believe, but what children perceive 

their parents as believing based on 

parental actions. In essence, what best 

predicts the degree to which children 

internalize principles of faith is less 

what their parents believe, and more 

how their parents behave. 

It is possible that this insight is 

reflected in the manner in which we 

structure the Pesach seder. True, a 

primary goal of the seder is to impart 

messages onto the next generation, to 

share with them our most cherished 

ideals and our collective history. Yet, 

the seder bears little resemblance to 

the typical classroom. We certainly 

impart information, and, as noted 

above, questions and answers are 

explored. However, many of the 

most impactful parts of the seder 

involve behaviors, rather than explicit 

statements of beliefs. From the 

eating of the matzah to the drinking 

of the four cups, much of the seder 

involves adults performing mitzvot. 

We understand that to impart 

values to the next generation, more 

important than talking about faith is 

living faith; more fundamental than 

complex theological discussions may 

be the simple acts of careful ritual 

observance. 

It is possible to extend this idea 

further. Rabbi Jonathan Sacks offers 

a beautiful and critically important 

insight into the observance of Pesach, 

one that highlights the specific form 

of behaviors found on Pesach and 

one that clarifies for us a common 

misconception about transmitting our 

tradition to the next generation: 4 

Throughout a century of reflection 

on how to sustain Jewish identity in 

an open, secular society, the case has 

often been made that we need to make 

Judaism easier. Why make the barriers 

so high, the demands so steep, the laws 

so rigorous and demanding? So, one by 

one, the demands were lowered. Shabbat, 

kashrut and conversion were all made 

easier. As for the laws of taharat hamishpacha, 

in many circles outside 

Orthodoxy they fell into abeyance 

altogether. The assumption was that the 

less demanding Judaism is to keep, the 

more Jews will stay Jewish. 

To show that this is a fallacy, I once 

asked a mixed group of observant and 

non-observant Jews to list the festivals 

in order of difficulty. Everyone agreed 

that Pesach was the hardest, Shavuot 

the easiest, and Sukkot somewhere in 

between. I then asked, which festivals 

are kept by the greatest number of Jews. 

Again, everyone agreed: Pesach was 

kept by most, Shavuot by the least, with 

Sukkot in between. There was a pause 

as the group slowly realised what it had 

just said. It was counterintuitive but 

undeniable: the harder a festival is, the 

more people will keep it. The proof is 

35 


Yom Kippur, by far the most demanding 

day of all, and by far the best attended in 

synagogue. 

We do not try to ensure our beliefs 

are passed on to the next generation 

by lowering standards or by expecting 

less. Instead, we expose our children 

to the challenges of ritual observance, 

to the need to sacrifice for our 

tradition. Ultimately, it is those 

communities that have continued 

to be ambitious and meticulous in 

their mitzvah observance that have 

found more success in transmitting 

their religious values. Indeed, Ritva 

(Sukkah 2b) writes that the mitzvah 

of chinuch, of educating our children, 

demands that children perform 

mitzvot in a halachically acceptable 

way. We do not educate children 

by having them pretend to observe 

mitzvot, but by having them actually 

engage in proper and authentic 

mitzvah observance, modeling our 

uncompromising ambition with 

regard to mitzvah performance. 

Pesach is a time when children not 

only witness their parents’ ritual 

observance. They also see the 

commitment, the dedication, and at 

times, the challenges surrounding 

the observance of the holiday. 

However, perhaps our children’s 

internalization of our system of belief 

happens because of, rather than 

in spite of, parents’ ambitious and 

uncompromising commitment to the 

details of religious observance. 

The first two approaches highlight 

different pathways for transmitting 

faith. The first addresses the role of 

questions, while the second speaks 

of exposure to figures who model 

commitment and high levels of 

observance. 

Rav Aharon Lichtenstein, in his own 

unique way, relates to both of the 

aforementioned ideas in an important 

article about his own faith: 5 

What I received from all my mentors, 

at home or in yeshiva, was the key to 

confronting life, particularly modern 

life, in all its complexity: the recognition 

that it was not so necessary to have all 

the answers as to learn to live with the 

questions. Regardless of what issues — 

moral, theological, textual or historical 

— vexed me, I was confident that they 

had been raised by masters far sharper 

and wiser than myself; and if they had 

remained impregnably steadfast in their 

commitment, so should and could I. I 

intuited that, his categorical formulations 

and imperial certitude notwithstanding, 

Rav Hutner had surely confronted 

whatever questions occurred to me. Later, 

I felt virtually certain the Rav had, so that 

the depth and intensity of their service of 

G-d was doubly reassuring. 

The coupling of the willingness 

to confront questions, with the 

presence of positive, supportive, and 

honest role models who themselves 

exhibit unwavering commitment can 

play a critical role in empowering 

our children to feel confident and 

comfortable adopting the doctrines of 

our tradition. 

Approach # 3: Build 

Relationships 

As noted above, exposure to parental 

beliefs can play an important role in 

the transmission of faith from one 

generation to the next. An additional 

component to the transmission of 

belief focuses less on questions and 

behavior, and more on emotional 

connectedness. Recent research has 

highlighted the critical role of warm 

and positive relationships between 

parents and children, specifically as it 

relates to transmission of values. When 

children perceive their relationship 

with their parents as warm and caring, 

their religious beliefs are more likely 

to be aligned with those of their 

parents (Barni, Ranieri, Scabini, 

Rosnati, 2011; 6 Okagaki & Bevis, 

1999 7 ). Humans are social beings, and 

the role of the social context in the 

process of learning and development 

is quite significant. Though seemingly 

distinct from the cognitive realm, close 

relationships are incredibly effective 

vehicles for transmitting values and 

beliefs to others. 

The Biblical requirement of korban 

Pesach, the sacrifice that is to be 

eaten on Pesach night, underscores 

this value. In general, two kinds of 

sacrifices exist. There are sacrifices 

We understand that to impart values to the next 

generation, more important than talking about 

faith is living faith; more fundamental than 

complex theological discussions may be the 

simple acts of careful ritual observance. 

36 


offered by individuals, be it for 

atonement or other reasons. A second 

kind of sacrifice is offered on behalf 

of the entire nation, such as the twice 

daily tamid offering. Korban Pesach, 

however, appears to be unique. It is 

not offered by individuals nor by the 

collective nation. Indeed, a degree 

of ambiguity exists regarding the 

best way to categorize this korban. It 

seems that korban Pesach is the only 

sacrifice that is offered by a unit that is 

somewhere in between the individual 

and the nation, namely by family 

members who join together to offer 

the korban. 

Pesach celebrates the birth of our 

nation, and it may offer us the key to 

its continued survival. The korban 

Pesach, the first sacrifice offered as 

a nation, underscores the need to 

create and nurture close familial 

relationships. Faith exists in the 

intellectual realm, but it comes alive 

in community, when families unite 

around common causes. Perhaps that 

is why one of the most important 

things families can do on Pesach 

night, both when the actual korban 

Pesach was offered as well as in our 

contemporary model of Pesach seder, 

is come together. 

It is important, though, to offer a 

qualification. It is true that faith is 

often established through community, 

through positive and supportive 

relationships. However, those 

relationships are not meant to be 

exclusive. We begin the seder by 

inviting all those who are alone to 

come join us at our table. We are not 

looking to establish relationships in 

which some are in and some are out. 

Instead, we want to build inclusive 

communities where all are afforded 

the opportunity to benefit from the 

incredible value of relationships. 

Conclusion 

The transmission of faith from one 

generation to the next can be a 

significant challenge, but it is also of 

paramount importance. The Pesach 

seder offers a number of deep and 

insightful strategies for effectively 

transmitting our belief system to 

the next generation. Whether by 

celebrating our children’s questions 

and intellectual curiosity, modeling 

unwavering commitment, or 

nurturing warm and supportive 

family relationships, we hope and 

pray that our children will appreciate 

the depth of our care for them and 

the authenticity of our commitment 

to our tradition. With the help of 

G-d, may our efforts yield the next 

link in the chain of “ma’aminim bnei 

ma’aminim,” — Believers who are the 

children of believers. 

Notes 

1. See, for example, Rambam (Sefer 

HaMitzvot, Pos. Mitzvah no. 1) and Ramban 

(ad loc). 

2. For more on the impact of yetziat 

Mitzrayim, see Maharal, Netzach Yisrael Chap. 

30. 

3. Gniewosz, B., & Noack, P. (2012). 

What you see is what you get: The role 

of early adolescents’ perceptions in the 

intergenerational transmission of academic 

values. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 

37(1), 70-79. 

4. Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, “What does this 

Avodah Mean to you?,” Torah To Go, Pesach 

5774, available at http://download.yutorah. 

org/2014/1053/Pesach_To_Go_-_5774_ 

Rabbi_Sacks.pdf. 

5. Rav Aharon Lichtenstein, “The Source of 

Faith is Faith Itself.” The Jewish Action Reader- 

Volume 1. 

6. Barni, D., Ranieri, S., Scabini, E., & Rosnati, 

R. (2011). Value transmission in the family: 

Do adolescents accept the values their parents 

want to transmit? Journal of Moral Education, 

(40)1, 105-121. 

7. Okagaki, L. & Bevis, C. (1999). 

Transmission of religious values: Relations 

between parents’ and daughters’ beliefs. The 

Journal of Genetic Psychology: Research and 

Theory on Human Development. 160(3), 303- 

318. 

In the introduction to the 

section about the Four 

Sons, we use the name 

Makom, the Omnipresent, 

to refer to God — Baruch 

HaMakom. Why do we use 

this specific name? Rabbi 

Yosef Dov Soloveitchik 

suggests that we use the 

name Makom to indicate 

that God transcends time 

and space. He is present and 

ready to help us even when 

we might think otherwise. 

This is why we invoke 

HaMakom when greeting a 

mourner. We indicate to the 

mourner that even in times 

of suffering and loss, God is 

really with us. Similarly, at 

the seder, as we are about to 

introduce the Four Sons, we 

might think that it is only 

possible to properly convey 

the message of the seder to 

the Wise Son. Therefore, we 

invoke HaMakom to indicate 

that God will help transmit 

the story and values of the 

seder to all of our children, 

regardless of their intellect or 

disposition. 

Harerei Kedem Vol. II pg. 215 

37 


The Original Birthright: 

Seder Night in Jerusalem 

It is no secret that the seder is 

designed to transport us across 

space and time. In the famous 

words of the Haggadah: 

בְּ‏ כָ‏ ל־דּוֹר וָ‏ דוֹר חַ‏ יָּב אָ‏ דָ‏ ם לִ‏ רְ‏ אוֹת אֶ‏ ת־עַ‏ צְ‏ מוֹ,‏ 

כְּ‏ אִ‏ לּוּ הוּא יָ‏ צָ‏ א מִ‏ מִּ‏ צְ‏ רָ‏ ֽ יִם.‏ 

In every generation, each person is 

obligated to view himself as if he went 

out of Egypt. 

On the night of Pesach we are 

obligated to see ourselves as if we 

ourselves had endured the bondage 

of Egypt 1 and we ourselves had 

been redeemed, and this theme 

manifests itself in a variety of practices 

throughout the evening. 

At the same time, the Netziv 2 taught 

that hidden in plain sight there is an 

additional motif to our seder as well: 

to try to recreate the observance 

of Pesach at the time of the Beit 

haMikdash in Jerusalem. We cannot 

fail to notice this element when it 

comes to korech, where we proclaim 

aloud: 

זֵכֶ‏ ר לְ‏ מִ‏ קְ‏ דָּ‏ שׁ כְּ‏ הִ‏ לֵּ‏ ל:‏ כֵּ‏ ן עָ‏ שָׂ‏ ה הִ‏ לֵּ‏ ל בִּ‏ זְמַ‏ ן שֶׁ‏ בֵּ‏ ית 

הַ‏ מִּ‏ קְ‏ דָּ‏ שׁ הָ‏ יָה קַ‏ יָּ‏ ם ... 

We are remembering the Mikdash, 

according to Hillel, and doing as he did 

in the time that the Beit haMikdash 

stood. 

And indeed, this is explicit in the 

Gemara (Pesachim 115a) when it 

comes to korech, to reenacting Hillel’s 

approach, and doing as he did at the 

time of the Beit haMikdash, namely 

eating matzah and maror together. 3 

But korech is just one example. Based 

on this approach of the Netziv, it is 

fascinating to see how reverberations 

of the Beit haMikdash echo through 

the ages throughout the seder night. 

Hallel in Shul 

Many communities recite Hallel in 

shul on the evening of Pesach before 

returning home to the seder, which 

is the only occasion during the year 

that Hallel is recited at night. The Sefer 

haMichtam 4 (Pesachim 116b) suggests 

that it is a way of remembering 

the chanting of Hallel in the Beit 

haMikdash during the slaughter of the 

korban Pesach. 

Kittel 

The Netziv suggests that the reason 

for wearing a kittel at the seder is to 

recreate the atmosphere of eating 

sacrificial meat in Jerusalem. Since 

Rabbi Daniel Yolkut 

Rabbi, Congregation Poale Zedeck, Pittsburgh, PA 

eating a korban is tantamount to 

sharing a meal with Hashem, and 

hence conducted with the greatest 

gravitas, it surely included wearing 

special garments. By wearing a 

kittel, we attempt to recapture that 

atmosphere. 

Seder Plate 

The Talmud (Pesachim 114b) 

tells us that we need to have two 

cooked foods at the seder, one to 

commemorate the korban Pesach 

and one to commemorate the korban 

chagigah. The korban chagigah 

brought on erev Pesach was not 

brought on the first Pesach in Egypt, 

but is a later, Rabbinic mitzvah, and 

hence the egg is another way we 

remember Pesach in Jerusalem on the 

seder night. 

The Gra 5 suggests that this is the 

underlying reason for the custom to 

eat eggs at the beginning of the meal; 

that, like the egg on the seder plate, 

they represent eating the korban 

chagigah. 

As this volume is dedicated to Cantor Jerome L. Simons, it is fitting that Rabbi Yolkut, 

who has close connections to the Simons family, write this article in his memory. 

38 


Urchatz 

On Pesach, we wash before eating 

the karpas, which is not our standard 

procedure. Typically we wash only 

for bread. During the time of the 

Beit haMikdash, the requirement 

to wash one’s hands for food was 

much broader. The Netziv suggests 

that holding ourselves to a higher 

standard of the laws of ritual impurity 

is another way that we try to recreate 

the atmosphere at the time of the Beit 

haMikdash. 

Kol Ditzrich 

Many commentators on the Haggadah 

are puzzled by the opening passage 

in maggid that seems to invite guests 

after the seder has already begun. In 

his commentary on the Haggadah, the 

Shibbolei haLeket 6 suggests that the 

invitation originated in the process of 

assembling chaburot (groups) in the 

time of the Beit haMikdash. While 

the actual invitation occurred before 

the korban Pesach was offered, we 

have retained a vestige of that practice 

at the beginning of the seder as an 

additional way of remembering the 

Beit haMikdash. 

Maror 

Technically speaking, the biblical 

mitzvah of maror is only obligatory 

when eating the korban Pesach, 7 but 

Chazal created a Rabbinic obligation 

to continue to eat maror at the 

seder. This could be explained as a 

way of perpetuating as much of the 

experience of the korban Pesach as 

DOUBLE DARE - TEN PLAGUES 

A seder activity for kids 

Split the participants into two teams. 

For each round, call up a volunteer 

from each team. Ask a question to 

volunteer A, if he does not know 

the answer, he can either: dare the 

other team to answer, which means 

volunteer B can now answer the 

question, (if B answers the question, 

he gets the point and it is now team 

B’s turn again) or double dare - 

which means they perform a ‘dare’ 

against each other. 

Whoever answers the question gets 

a point. Whoever wins the double 

dare, gets two points. 

The double dares are as follows. 

Dam: Prepare two pans of red jello 

filled with about 10-15 jelly fish. The 

two volunteers have to take the fish 

out with their mouths only, the one 

to finish all the fish first - wins. 

During the plague of blood, all of 

the water in the sea turned to blood, 

causing the death of all the fish 

Tzfardeah: A good ‘ol game of 

leapfrog 

Kinim: fill up a spoon of 

marshmallow fluff, and stick in 

around 15-20 mini chocolate chips, 

the volunteers have to guess how 

many chips there are, (this only 

works if you put in a lot of chips, 

otherwise it’s not that funny). 

Chocolate chips kind of look like lice, 

and marshmallow fluff kind of looks 

like skin 

Arov: Fill up a plate of around 

10 gummy bears and have the 

volunteers eat them with chopsticks 

only. First one to finish wins. 

Dever: This is a relay race, have the 

volunteers hold onto their ankles 

and run across them room, if they 

fall they have to start over. 

The animals died and fell over. 

Shchin: Have each volunteer put an 

‘after-8’ chocolate on their forehead, 

(or something of that size and 

shape). They need to get it from their 

forehead to their mouth without 

using their hands. (the trick is to get 

it over the eye) 

Barad: Buy two bags of 

marshmallow, mini or large and have 

the volunteers stuff their mouth, 

whoever fills the most, wins. 

Arbeh: Buy a package of Passover 

candy that comes in long strands. 

There are two variations of the game. 

1) You tie two separate ropes of about 

5 strands of candy tied together, 

the volunteers have to eat the ropes 

with their hands behind their back, 

whoever finishes first wins. 

2) You make one long rope of about 

10 strands of candy, and they each put 

one end in their mouth, whoever gets 

to the middle first, wins. 

The locust ate all of the crops 

Choshech: For this game, you need 

2 volunteers. have one blindfolded 

and the other sitting, the blindfolded 

one has to feed the other one 

applesauce, whoever finishes the 

bowl first, wins. 

Makat Bechorot: You have to try 

and get the volunteers to laugh, the 

first one to laugh is out. 

Activity by Gaby Scarowski, Executive Director of Ottawa NCSY 

For more educational infographics and materials from NCSY, please visit: education.ncsy.org 

39 


possible. In fact, R’ Shneur Zalman 

of Liadi 8 refers to our contemporary 

mitzvah as zecher le-Mikdash — a 

remembrance of the Beit haMikdash. 

Afikoman 

There is a consensus among Rishonim 

that the final piece of matzah 

consumed at the seder recalls the 

eating of the korban Pesach. 9 

R’ Chaim Soloveitchik 10 is reported 

to have taken this representation so 

seriously that he insisted on keeping 

the afikoman under his watch the 

entire seder, based on the idea that a 

korban becomes disqualified by hesech 

ha-da’at (inattention.) 

Opening the Door 

Many suggestions have been made 

for the reason to open the door after 

Birkat haMazon. This may be another 

manifestation of the desire to recreate 

the setting of ancient Jerusalem. Since 

the korban Pesach needed to be eaten 

on the ground level, the group that ate 

the korban was confined to a limited 

space to eat the korban, and would 

not leave out of fear of transgressing 

the prohibition of taking the meat of 

the korban out of the home where 

it was eaten. Once the korban was 

complete, the people would go up to 

the rooftops to complete Hallel, in 

chorus with the other hundreds of 

thousands of Jews in Jerusalem, in the 

cool evening air. Our opening of the 

door, then, would suggest that ancient 

change of venue. 11 

The ultimate denouement of the 

process of the Exodus was the 

building of the Beit haMikdash 

in Jerusalem. The shirah sung on 

the shores of the Red Sea ended 

with a vision of Hashem’s Temple, 

and the final Divine kindness 

celebrated in Dayyenu is the Beit 

HaMikdash. Interestingly though, 

there is a midrash that on the very first 

Pesach, the Jews were mysteriously 

transported to Jerusalem to eat the 

korban Pesach and then returned 

to Egypt for the Exodus. 12 The old 

practice of German Jews was to greet 

each other on the night of the seder 

with the words “Bau Gutt,” 13 meaning 

“build well,” an allusion to the prayer 

expressed in Adir Hu 14 that Hashem 

quickly build the Mikdash. Part of the 

unique magic of the seder night is the 

ability to somehow, like our ancestors 

in Egypt, find ourselves transcending 

our surroundings and building the 

Mikdash in Jerusalem even as we sit at 

home. 

Notes 

1. The Rambam emphasizes that “as if he left 

Egypt” includes being able to see ourselves as 

having been slaves as well: In each and every 

generation, a person must present himself as if 

he, himself, has now left the slavery of Egypt, as 

[Devarim 6:23] states: “He took us out from 

there.” Regarding this manner, God commanded 

in the Torah: “Remember that you were a slave 

[Devarim 5:15]” — i.e., as if you, yourself, 

were a slave and went out to freedom and were 

redeemed. (Chametz u’Matzah 7:6) 

2. R’ Naftali Zvi Yehuda Berlin, 1816-1893, 

Volozhin. References to the Netziv is this 

essay are drawn from his introduction to 

Haggadah Imrei Shefer. 

3. What exactly Hillel’s practice was is subject 

to some debate. Some feel that his “sandwich” 

included the korban Pesach itself (Rashi 

and Rashbam, Pesachim 115a), while others 

maintain that even during the time of the Beit 

haMikdash itself, Hillel only ate matzah and 

maror together (Rambam, Chametz u’Matzah 

6:7). This debate is reflected in varying texts 

of the Haggadah that read either “he wrapped 

matzah, and maror and ate them together,” 

(the more common text) or “he wrapped 

Pesach, matzah and maror and ate them 

together” (Taz OC 475:9). 

4. R’ David ben Levi, 13th century Narbonne. 

5. R’ Eliyahu, the Gaon of Vilna (1720-1797), 

Orach Chayim 476:2. 

6. R’ Tzidkiyah ben Avraham Anav, 13th c. 

Italy. 

7. The linkage of the Biblical obligation of 

maror to the korban Pesach may support 

the idea that bitter herbs were served as a 

condiment or complement to the meat of the 

korban, and hence were superfluous without 

the korban Pesach. (cf. Or haChaim, Shemot 

12:8) 

8. 1745-1812 (Shulchan Aruch haRav, OC 

475:15). 

9. How exactly is a matter of some debate. 

Rashi (Pesachim 119b) maintains that the 

afikoman recalls the matzah that accompanied 

the korban Pesach, while the Rosh (Pesachim 

10:34) and others believe that it is a symbol of 

the korban Pesach itself. The Mishneh Berurah 

(477:1) suggests, based on the Bach and other 

Acharonim, that one should eat two kezeitim 

of matzah in order to fulfil both approaches. 

10. 1853-1918, Brisk. Quoted in the name of 

his grandson, Rabbi Joseph B Soloveitchik, in 

An Exalted Evening p. 124. 

11. Quoted by R’ Moshe Harari (Mikraei 

Kodesh- Hilkot Leil haSeder chapter 10, note 

5) in the name of R’ Shmuel Rozvosky, and 

by R’ Michel Shurkin (Harerei Kedem vol. 2, 

p. 229) in the name of R’ Shlomo Zalman 

Auerbach. 

12. Targum Yonatan to Shemot 19:4. 

13. http://www.moreshesashkenaz.org/mm/ 

מדריך למנהג אשכנז publications/Madrich.pdf 

המובהק 

14. More specifically, a reference to 

Almechteger Gott, a German-Yiddish version 

of Adir Hu, the lyrics of which can be found 

at http://www.hebrewbooks.org/pagefeed/ 

hebrewbooks_org_10693_104.pdf. 

(Whether the original song was Hebrew or 

Yiddish is discussed in R’ Menachem Mendel 

Kasher, Haggadah Sheleimah, p. 190, footnote 

13.) 

40 


Insights to the Pesach Seder 

From the Rabbinic Alumni Committee of the 

Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary 

Arba Kosos 

Rabbi Moshe Neiss 

Attorney in Private Practice, 

Bronx, NY 

A 

number 

of different reasons 

are given for the arba kosos 

used on seder night. One 

reason given is because the word 

“kos” appears four times in Parshas 

Va-yaishev during the discourse in 

prison between Yosef and the Sar 

Ha-Mashkim (butler), as the Sar Ha- 

Mashkim relates his dream to Yosef. 

Interestingly, the term “mishtay hayayin” 

(feast of wine) appears four 

times in Megillas Esther (Chapters 

5,7), and yet , that is not offered as a 

reason for us to have arba kosos at the 

seder, even though the Purim miracle 

and the downfall of Haman occurred 

on Pesach! This would certainly seem 

to be a valid reason for us to drink four 

cups of wine at the seder. 

Perhaps the reason for embracing the 

cups of wine mentioned in Parshas 

Vayaishev as the basis for our drinking 

four cups is because Pesach marks the 

celebration of freedom for Am Yisrael, 

a veritable birth of a nation. The 

Purim story, as related in the Megilla, 

occurred during a nadir in Jewish 

history, at a time of golus. 

Mordechai impressed upon Esther 

not to reveal her identity or to divulge 

her origins. Yosef, on the other hand, 

even while in the dangerous depths of 

dungeon incarceration, proudly, and 

without fear, advertised his origins 

as an “Ivri,” a Jew. Therefore, it is 

only fitting that on the night marking 

our geula and independence and 

formation into the Chosen Nation, we 

model our seder activities upon the 

events of Yosef Ha-Tzadik. 

Karpas 

Rabbi Eliezer Muskin 

Rabbi, Young Israel of Century 

City, Los Angeles, CA 

The Karpas Connection 

At the very end of Rabbi Aaron 

Rakeffet’s lecture, “The 

Eulogy for Joe DiMaggio,” 

he recounts an amazing story that 

happened over thirty years ago at 

Maimonides Day School in Brookline, 

Massachusetts. 

One evening, after Mincha, while 

waiting to start the Maariv service, 

the late Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, 

the Rav, asked one of the members of 

the minyan for a special favor. “Moe,” 

the Rav said, “we have thirty minutes 

before we are going to daven Maariv. 

Can you do me a favor and teach me 

all the rules of baseball? I want to 

know how the game is played.” 

Although shocked by this unusual 

request, Moe gave the Rav a thirtyminute 

crash course on the minutiae 

of baseball: three strikes you’re 

out, four balls and you walk to first, 

stealing a base, and other arcane 

particulars. At the end of the thirtyminute 

tutorial, Moe mustered 

enough courage to ask the Rav why he 

wanted to know how to play baseball. 

The Rav replied, “My grandchildren 

are visiting and I want to be able to 

talk to them about what interests 

them.” 

One of the greatest Talmudic scholars 

of the 20th century knew what few 

teachers remember — always begin a 

class or lecture by first engaging your 

audience with that which interests 

them. Once you have gained their 

attention, you can continue teaching 

any lesson you wish. 

If this is true in the classroom, how 

much more important it is at the 

Passover seder when we are Biblically 

commanded to be teachers, recalling 

and reenacting the story of Exodus. 

To assist us, our sages devised the 

Haggadah, a teacher’s manual and 

text, created to stimulate thought and 

discussion. A problem, however, arises 

with the very first ceremony right after 

Kiddush. 

According to tradition, we wash our 

hands and dip a vegetable into salt 

water. If the purpose of the Haggadah 

is to arouse stimulating discussion, 

partaking of an hors d’oeuvre seems to 

fail the test. Could karpas, which can 

41 


hardly fill the stomach, feed the mind? 

In a setting where all ceremonies 

are meant to challenge and intrigue 

us, why did the rabbis select such 

an innocuous ritual to engage their 

audience? 

Perhaps we can find our answer 

in an explanation taught to me by 

the late Rabbi Isaac Bernstein of 

London. Rabbi Bernstein noted that 

a Talmudic passage at the end of 

Pesachim (65b) describes how the 

pascal lamb was carried home after 

it was slaughtered and sacrificed in 

the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. The 

Talmud states, “A Baraisa taught: 

Each and every one put his pascal 

lamb in its skin and swung it behind 

him. Rabbi Illish said like Arabian 

merchants.” 

Why, however, would Jews carry their 

pascal lamb home to their Pesach 

seder looking like Arabian merchants? 

What could this possibly mean? In 

attempting to answer this question, 

the 19th century scholar, Rabbi 

Shlomo Kluger, in his commentary to 

the Haggadah, Yeriot Shlomo (printed 

in Rabbi Yaakov Emden’s Siddur Beit 

Yaakov), detects what appears to be 

a major deficiency in the Haggadah’s 

narrative of the Passover story. 

True, Rabbi Kluger notes, we recount 

how Pharaoh persecuted our people 

and how God redeemed us from 

slavery with great miracles. But the 

beginning of the story is missing. 

Nowhere do we discuss what caused 

us to go to Egypt in the first place. 

Doesn’t the story really begin when 

his ten brothers sold Joseph to 

Arabian merchants? Therefore, when 

we take our pascal lamb home from 

the Temple, we act like Arabian 

merchants because Joseph’s sale led to 

the arrival of our ancestors in the land 

of Egypt. 

If this is correct, where do we find 

this message at the seder? A great 

medieval scholar, Rav Manoach, in 

his commentary to Maimonides’ 

code, Hilchot Chametz U’Matzah 

8:5, resolves our dilemma. Rav 

Manoach states, “And we have the 

custom of karpas as a remembrance 

of the coat of wool that Jacob made 

for Joseph which caused the entire 

episode of ‘and our forefathers went 

down to Egypt.’” According to Rav 

Manoach, we dip the karpas in salt 

water at the very start of the seder 

because it reminds us of how the 

brothers dipped Joseph’s coat of wool 

into blood and brought it back to 

Jacob. Karpas follows immediately 

after Kiddush, even before we break 

the matzot and begin reciting the 

Haggadah’s text, because it symbolizes 

the very first act that led to slavery and 

redemption. 

And yet we must wonder why this act 

is called karpas. Rashi, the classical 

Biblical commentator, interprets the 

Hebrew word for Joseph’s coat, Pasim 

(Gen. 37:3), as a garment of fine wool, 

as it says in Megillat Esther (1.6) 

“karpas and techelet.” 

Karpas therefore represents the 

story of Joseph’s coat. The Holocaust 

martyr, Rabbi Elchanan Wasserman 

z”l, once noted that throughout 

Jewish history, blood libels seemed to 

flare up around Pesach time. Perhaps, 

argued Rabbi Wasserman, it is no 

coincidence; rather it is payback for 

what we did to Joseph at the dawn of 

our people’s history. 

Just as Rabbi Soloveitchik 

z”l, engaged the minds of his 

grandchildren as an educational 

device, so too our rabbis of old 

compiled the Haggadah with 

the engaging device of karpas. 

It connects us to the Haggadah 

by stimulating our minds and 

motivating our souls to learn the 

real lesson of Pesach right at the 

beginning of the seder, before we 

even begin reciting any text. 

Yachatz 

Rabbi Eliezer Zwickler 

Rabbi, Congregation Ahawas 

Achim B’nai Jacob & David 

West Orange, NJ 

The fourth part to the order 

of the seder is yachatz, in 

which we split the middle 

matzah into two pieces. One piece 

remains for the eating of matza and 

the other part is tzafun, “hidden 

away,” as the afikoman to be eaten 

later. The Chasam Sofer explains 

that the symbolism of yachatz is 

that the seder night is divided into 

two parts. The first part focuses on 

that which happened in Mitzrayim 

and the redemption that resulted. 

The second part of the night, 

which is represented by the hidden 

matzah, corresponds to the future 

redemption, the nature of which 

remains hidden to us at this time. 

The focus of the seder night should 

be about the tradition that we are 

passing to the next generation. It 

is about the tradition of a people 

who have experienced a redemption 

from slavery, yet who await to be 

redeemed once again. May we merit 

to see the fulfillment of the promised 

redemption in our time before our 

very eyes. 

42 


Maggid 

Rabbi Binyamin Blau 

Rabbi, Green Road Synagogue 

Beachwood, OH 

Putting the Seder in 

Perspective 

One of the sections in the 

Haggadah that I have 

always found perplexing 

is the paragraph that begins “V’hi 

She’amda.” While there is no 

disputing the sobering, yet also 

uplifting, message it contains — 

namely that throughout our history 

there have been nations that have 

tried to annihilate us and it is only 

with the help of the Almighty that we 

have survived — the placement of 

the section remains puzzling. We are 

at the start of the seder and have just 

begun to tell the story of our Exodus 

from Egypt, and then we seem to 

veer off course before returning to 

our narrative. 

Moreover, even the acts that 

accompany the recitation of this 

paragraph highlight its uniqueness. 

One of the key facets of the manner 

in which we engage in sippur yetziat 

Mitzrayim is that we tell the story over 

the uncovered matzot. Whether they 

are the bread of affliction or the bread 

of freedom, the matzot powerfully 

symbolize critical components of our 

experience in Egypt, and their visible 

presence is crucial to our recounting 

of the story. Surprisingly, when we 

get to the section of “V’hi She’amda,” 

we cover the matzot and instead lift 

our cups of wine. What has changed? 

Is this paragraph not part of the 

Haggadah? 

Perhaps we may suggest that indeed 

this section is not part of the 

Haggadah in the classic sense, but 

rather it is the message that we are to 

take away from the seder experience. 

Undoubtedly, it is important for us 

to relive the events that occurred in 

Egypt, for they form the foundation 

of our existence. It was through our 

servitude and subsequent freedom 

that our identity as Am Yisrael was 

forged, and therefore it is incumbent 

upon each one of us to tell the story 

to our children and make sure that 

they continue the chain for future 

generations. 

At the same time, however, it is 

imperative for us to acknowledge that 

our relationship with the Almighty 

is ongoing; it is not just a part of our 

past but it also defines our present 

and shapes our future. This is the 

message of “V’hi She’amda.” While 

there is much more to the seder 

night (both in terms of the narrative 

and the experiential components 

of the evening), at this point in the 

Haggadah, we have outlined the 

basic story of yetziat Mitzrayim, and 

therefore we need to step away for a 

moment and realize this larger lesson. 

We cover the matzot precisely to 

illustrate that at this instant we are not 

telling the tale of our Exodus but are 

instead recognizing the relationship 

that it formed. 

We hope and pray each year for the 

fulfillment of the words of our sages 

that בניסן נגאלו ובניסן עתידן לגאל — in 

Nissan we were redeemed, and we will 

once again be redeemed in Nissan. 

Perhaps if we truly appreciate the 

nature of our bond with the Almighty, 

then this Pesach we will merit 

witnessing that guarantee become a 

reality. 

Maggid 

Rabbi Shmuel Silber 

Rabbi, Suburban Orthodox Toras 

Chaim, Baltimore, MD 

Beginnings & Endings 

At first glance, the Haggadah 

appears to be a random 

collection of verses, 

stories, and statements. However, 

upon further reflection we come 

to understand the intentional, yet 

nuanced structure of this ancient 

script. The Talmud (Pesachim 

115) explains: maschil b’genus 

u’misayem b’shevach — we begin with 

degradation and conclude with praise. 

We begin the seder by discussing the 

“low points” or disparaging chapters 

of our national existence. The sages 

disagree as to which “low point” we 

should begin with. Shmuel explains 

that we begin with, “Avadim hayinu,” 

— we were slaves. We acknowledge 

that we did not begin as a nation of 

free men and women. We were slaves 

who served a human master. Rav 

states, “Mitchila ovdei avoda zara hayu 

avoseinu,” — in the beginning our 

forefathers were idolaters. We were 

not always monotheists, we did not 

always pledge our allegiance to God, 

we served and paid homage to other 

gods. According to Shmuel, over the 

course of the Pesach seder, we work 

our way to celebrating our physical 

freedom. According to Rav, the seder 

is the opportunity to celebrate our 

newfound spiritual emancipation. 

Rav and Shmuel may disagree on the 

specific beginning and end points, but 

do agree on the overall structure of 

the seder night. 

What is the meaning of this Rabbinic 

framework? Why must we start with 

the negative or disparaging chapters 

of our national existence? Why not 

43 


egin and end with our freedom, 

emancipation, and positive identity as 

the nation of God? 

The commentaries on the Haggadah 

share many approaches and answers. 

First, the Malbim (Rabbi Meir 

Leibush, 1809-1879) explains that 

the best way to make a dramatic 

point is through contrast. Only when 

we remember our past can we truly 

appreciate our future. 

Second, the great Maggid of Kozhnitz 

(Rav Yisroel Hopstein, 1737-1814) 

explains that the greatest danger 

we face is believing we are beyond 

salvation. A person may think to 

himself, “I have done so many terrible 

things, I have tarnished my soul, I have 

sullied my reputation, I have failed to 

actualize my potential; what hope is 

there for me?” Maschil b’genus, even if 

the beginning is degrading, even if the 

beginning is stunted and handicapped, 

misayem b’shevach, I choose how the 

story ends, I can change, I can live 

better, do better, and create a beautiful 

future. 

Perhaps there is a third lesson as well. 

Life requires patience. Events occur 

and we search for answers. Situations 

unfold and we try desperately to 

understand their deeper meaning. 

We want insight and clarity and we 

want it now. Clarity will come but it 

requires the passage of time. Maschil 

b’genus u’misayem b’shevach — the 

difficult life situations will have a 

positive resolution (not necessarily 

the resolution we desire, but positive 

nevertheless). However, just as it takes 

time to reach the shevach (praise) 

contained within the Haggadah, it 

takes time to see our personal praise 

and resolution as well. It will come — 

we just have to be patient. 

Maschil b’genus u’misayem b’shevach — 

the rabbis were not simply giving us 

a format for the Haggadah, they were 

providing us with a format for life. To 

actualize our freedom and maximize 

our ability to shape our personal and 

national destiny, we must internalize 

the messages of the Haggadah. We 

must remember that while building 

our future, we must reflect on the 

events and messages of our past. No 

matter how far we have wandered, no 

matter how estranged we have become 

from God, ourselves and one another 

— no person is beyond salvation. We 

must bear in mind that resolution, 

understanding, and happiness will 

come to those who are patient enough 

to wait. 

A Message to Our Children 

The Torah (Exodus 

13:8) describes the 

Pesach experience as 

an intergenerational teaching 

opportunity. Parents must transmit 

to their children the experiences and 

lessons of our ancestors and how 

they shape, inform and influence 

our lives to this very day. However, 

the Torah does not want parents to 

simply lecture or convey information. 

We attempt to pique the curiosity 

of the child. We want the child to 

initiate the questions, we want the 

child to yearn for answers and so we 

do many things over the course of 

the seder that look different and out 

of place — all in order to create an 

atmosphere of spiritual exploration. 

Perhaps the most well-known (and 

scripted) set of questions at the seder 

is the Mah Nishtana. The child asks 

the same four questions about the 

unusual practices of the seder year 

44 


after year in order to initiate the 

parent-child dialogue. This is the 

hallmark of the sacred seder night. 

Then something strange occurs. We 

recite the paragraph of Avadim hayinu 

— We were slaves to Pharaoh in 

Egypt. One would have thought that 

after the child asks these legitimate 

and good questions, the parent would 

immediately answer. However, we 

don’t address any of these questions 

and instead we give a history lesson 

on the Exodus narrative. Why not 

answer the child directly? Explain to 

him why we eat the matzah. Tell her 

the symbolism of the maror. Explain 

the behavioral freedom of reclining. 

The Mah Nishtana questions are solid 

and the answers to them serve as the 

foundation of our Pesach experience. 

Why not answer the questions directly 

and immediately? 

Rabbi Nachman of Breslov (1772- 

1810) provides a magnificent insight. 

We have many mitzvos — some of 

which have a readily understandable 

reason and some which do not. Some 

mitzvos appeal to our intellect, others 

speak to our heart, and still others 

seemingly defy comprehension. 

However, upon further reflection it 

becomes clear that even the things 

we think we understand, we don’t 

truly comprehend. The ways of God 

are magnificent and mysterious. 

The actions of God confound and 

amaze. The decisions of God can 

both gladden and break the heart of 

man. So why serve a God we can’t 

understand or comprehend? The 

answer is contained in one word: 

belief. We believe in God and we 

believe that He believes in us. We 

believe that we are part of a master 

plan and that every step we take is 

necessary and meaningful in the 

actualization of that plan. We believe 

that our life challenges and difficulties 

are not an ends but rather a means to 

achieve completion, fulfillment, and 

self-actualization. We believe that God 

loves us more than any human mind 

could ever comprehend. We believe 

that God cherishes His relationship 

with us. We believe that God 

celebrates our accomplishments and 

mourns our losses. We believe. 

This is how we answer our children 

on the seder night. My child asks 

me thoughtful, meaningful, and 

significant questions. Why do we do 

this and that? Why do we observe? 

What is the meaning of these 

practices? I can give my child a whole 

list of technical answers and reasons. 

I can give my child multiple opinions 

and levels of understanding as to 

the symbolic and ritual meaning of 

everything we do. But instead I do 

something simpler, yet much more 

profound. My dear child, I do what 

I do because I believe. God took me 

out because He loves me and because 

He realizes that I have something 

important to contribute. My dear 

child, if there is something I want 

to convey to you tonight — it is my 

sense of belief. I want to pass on to 

you the strong belief I received from 

my father and he from his. I want to 

give you this emunah (belief) because 

if you have it and if you nurture it, 

you will feel the warm embrace of the 

Divine. As parents it is our obligation 

to teach our children how to practice 

and observe the Torah and its mitzvos. 

But tonight, we teach our children 

how to believe. 

Tonight is not the night for 

complicated intellectual analyses, it is 

not the night for detailed discussions 

regarding Jewish Law. Tonight is the 

night to teach our children simple, 

beautiful, and genuine faith. How do 

you teach belief? You model it. When 

my child looks to me at the seder, I 

will try my best to convey to him how 

privileged I feel to be a Jew. When my 

child looks at me, I want her to see the 

joy I have in serving my God. When 

my children look at me, I want them 

to feel the privilege they have to be 

part of a magnificent nation with a 

holy destiny. 

Motzi Matzah 

Rabbi Eliezer Zwickler 

Rabbi, Congregation Ahawas 

Achim B’nai Jacob & David 


Every Jewish child knows that 

the reason we eat matzah on 

Pesach is that there was not 

ample time for their dough to rise as 

our ancestors were fleeing Mitzrayim. 

While this may be the manifestation 

on a physical level, Rav Avigdor 

Nebenzahl Shlit”a explains that there 

is an additional reason that we eat 

matza on a spiritual level. While the 

physical dough may not have become 

chametz, their spiritual “dough” 

almost became chametz. This refers 

to the fact that the Jewish nation fell 

to the depths of impurity and were 

saved just in time, avoiding spiritual 

extinction. For us, throughout the 

year, we are challenged by all of the 

impurity that surrounds us and that 

has penetrated into our mindsets. 

Pesach is the time when we celebrate 

our freedom. Just as Hashem saved us 

physically and spiritually in Egypt, it 

is our hope that we will be saved from 

the chametz that has permeated from 

society into our lives. Eating matza 

can therefore be an intensely spiritual 

experience. 

45 


Reflections on 

Yom Haatzmaut 

from the YU S. Daniel Abraham Israel Program 

participating Yeshivot and Seminaries in Israel 

46 


and weigh at least 110 pounds to be able to donate blood 

Yeshiva University S. Daniel Abraham Israel Program 

40 Duvdevani St, Jerusalem 96428 • 02.531.3020 • sdaip@yu.edu 

Yom Haatzmaut: An Introduction 

Tehillim chapter 126 begins 

שיר המעלות“‏ verse: with the 

בשוב ה’‏ את שיבת ציון היינו 

— When God will return us ‏”כחולמים 

to Zion, we will be like dreamers. 

How might we explain the phrase “we 

will be like dreamers”? Among several 

answers offered by our commentaries, 

the Rada”k suggests the following: 

So great is our joy at the prospect of 

redemption and of returning to the 

Land of Israel that the burdens and 

challenges of our time in exile will be 

like a fleeting dream (kachalom ya’uf). 

There is no shortage of challenges 

facing the Jewish nation in general 

and our young men and women in 

particular. Yet Baruch Hashem, our 

students are returning to Israel in large 

numbers, whether to study Torah for 

a year or more, to serve in the IDF or 

sherut leumi, or to join the thousands 

of YU alumni who have made aliyah. 

Their commitment to strengthening 

Am Yisrael in Eretz Yisrael is often 

an outgrowth of the Torat Yisrael 

and rich experiences they have been 

introduced to at one of the many 

yeshivot and seminaries on the S. 

Daniel Abraham Israel program. 

The program is a formal arrangement 

between Yeshiva University and more 

than 40 learning institutions for men 

and women in Israel, enabling the 

hundreds of students enrolled in our 

program to learn firsthand about 

Israel’s land, people, history, and 

culture. 

The Israel year is a pivotal and 

transformative moment in a student’s 

life. Our Israel staff strives to nurture 

and enrich that experience by 

providing students with support and 

guidance throughout their year(s) in 

Israel. 

At Yeshiva University in New York, 

a student can continue on his or her 

path of Torah growth while at the 

same time studying at one of the 

premier research universities in the 

world. Our top-notch roshei yeshiva 

and excellent college faculty combine 

to offer students opportunities 

that are available only at Yeshiva 

University. Nowhere but here can 

a young man or woman participate 

with hundreds of fellow students in 

Mrs. Stephanie Strauss 

Director, Yeshiva University in Israel, 

Director, S. Daniel Abraham Israel Program 

chessed and service learning missions 

across the United States and around 

the world. Nowhere but here can he 

or she receive the training to excel in 

careers from medicine to business, 

politics to academia, the rabbinate 

to finance; and only at YU do they 

have university-wide support and 

encouragement to meet the challenges 

facing the Jewish people while 

fulfilling their roles in bringing about 

the redemption. 

The faculty at our member yeshivot 

and seminaries play a vital role in 

educating our students. It is with great 

pride that we present a collection of 

articles from our Israeli community 

of teachers. These articles provide us 

with a glimpse into the scholarship 

that our students are exposed to. 

Furthermore, they provide us with the 

unique flavor of Torat Eretz Yisrael, 

which we hope will deepen and enrich 

your celebration of Yom Haatzmaut 

and your connection to Eretz Yisrael. 

Yeshiva University Invites you to the 6 th annual 

3 on 3 

Basketball 

Tournament 

Date: Thursday, September 24 th 

Gan Hapaamon, Jerusalem 

With the participation of Tamir 

Goodman of Hapoel Jerusalem 

• Great fun 

• Steep competition 

• No cost 

To register, go to 

www.tinyurl.com/YU-3on3-2015 

Register by September 20 

For more info contact 

Rabbi Jonathan Cohen 

Yeshiva University 

Admissions Coordinator 

054-227-2850 

Jonathan.cohen@yu.edu 

MAGEN DAVID 

ADOM 

IN ISRAEL 

SPRING 2016 

DRIVE 

Monday, February 1 

Men’s Hours 2:30-6:00PM • Women’s Hours 6:30PM-10:30PM 

Yeshiva University in Israel 

You must bring a valid form of ID (Drivers license or passport, student id’s are not valid) 

THE YESHIVA UNIVERSITY 

S. DANIEL ABRAHAM ISRAEL PROGRAM 

and KEDMA STUDENT ORGANIZATION 

INVITES ALL SEMINARY STUDENTS TO 

Songs of Hope 

Women's Choir Competition 

Benefiting Underprivileged 

Women in Israel 

January 23, 2016 

Motz"sh Parshat Beshalach 

Doors open at 7:30pm 

Presented by Yeshiva University and Kedma 

at the Ramada Hotel Jerusalem 

For more information contact Nikki: 

058-543-4690, nikki@kedma.org 

Students - 45 NIS by Jan. 19th, 60 NIS after 

Choir Members, Madrichot - 25 NIS , Non students - 70 NIS 

47 


Eretz Yisroel: The Prism of God 

Eretz Yisroel is undeniably 

beautiful, yet its beauty is 

difficult to pinpoint. It has 

mountains, valleys, beautiful beaches, 

bodies of water, and a sun-dried 

desert; but what makes it uniquely 

beautiful remains a mystery. The Swiss 

Alps, the Great Barrier Reef, and the 

Amazon Jungle all possess beauty that 

rivals that of tiny Eretz Yisroel, but 

when compared aesthetically to other 

notable places, somehow Eretz Yisroel 

stands apart. What is the secret to the 

unmatched beauty of Eretz Yisroel? 

The secret of Eretz Yisroel’s beauty is 

encrypted in the name “Tzion,” one 

of the monikers used by the Prophets 

to describe it. The numerical value 

of “Tzion” is 156, which is the same 

numerical value as “Yosef.” Numerical 

value, or “gematria,” is a classic form of 

“remez,” and hints to a commonality 

between words whose letter value 

amount to the same total. The 

implication of “Tzion” equaling “Yosef ” 

is that they are similar in some way, 

and the parallel is for us to decipher. 

Because Yosef is described as beautiful, 

perhaps a deeper look into his beauty 

will help us pinpoint what is uniquely 

beautiful about Eretz Yisroel. 

A vivid description of Yosef ’s beauty 

is found in the context of Potiphar’s 

wife’s attempt to seduce him, 1 and 

the subsequent false accusation that 

she leveled against him. But she isn’t 

the only one who appreciated Yosef ’s 

appearance; Yaakov also praised his son 

for his looks and charm. 2 That Yosef ’s 

appearance garnered praise from both 

Potiphar’s vain wife and his holy father 

underscores the complexity and duality 

of his beauty. What emerges is that 

beauty was both a challenge and an 

asset for Yosef, and that it could either 

cause his downfall or be employed in 

his service of Hashem. 

The ambivalence of Yosef ’s external 

beauty accentuates two distinct 

attitudes toward beauty in general. 

External attractiveness is often used 

as a means for the pursuit of vanity, 

and can serve as a distraction from the 

meaningful interior that lies within. A 

contrasting attitude, prevalent among 

the morally upright, sees external 

beauty as a prism that projects inner 

meaning through an attractive exterior. 

Those blessed with aesthetic beauty 

must choose to either utilize it to 

project their inner virtue or follow it to 

the abyss of materialistic narcissism. 

For the sake of clarity, let us examine 

two types of beautiful paintings. Some 

artists are content with a beautiful 

color scheme and design, but beyond 

the colors and shapes there is little 

depth; it is attractive on the surface 

but empty beneath it. A truly talented 

artist, on the other hand, knows how 

to utilize the beauty of the colors 

and shapes to express profound 

wisdom and emotion; his art has both 

allure and substance. Beautiful art is 

superior to art that is not attractive 

because without attractiveness it is 

appreciated only by elite thinkers and 

Rabbi Nissim Abrin 

Rebbe, Yeshivat Ohr Yerushalayim 

connoisseurs. Its message is wasted on 

the masses if beauty is not utilized as a 

tool of allure. 

Yosef possessed external beauty, and 

to ensure that his beauty wouldn’t 

lead him astray, Yaakov made Yosef ’s 

unique mission clear to him early 

in his development. The Torah 

relates that Yaakov had a special 

love for Yosef, because he imparted 

to Yosef the Torah that he learned 

at the Yeshiva of Shem and Ever. 

Because of this love, Yaakov made 

Yosef an exquisitely beautiful coat, a 

“Technicolor Dreamcoat” if you will. 3 

Why did Yaakov reward his wisest son 

with something as vain as a garment? 

Yaakov’s message to Yosef was that his 

external beauty is not to be eschewed, 

and certainly not to be used for vanity, 

but utilized to convey the qualities 

possessed within. To assist Yosef in 

projecting his inner self, Yaakov gave 

him a beautiful coat, highlighting the 

harmony of depth and allure. 

The two contrasting approaches to 

beauty are on display during Yosef ’s 

encounter with Potiphar’s wife. 

Potiphar’s wife clearly saw Yosef ’s 

attractiveness as a vehicle for vanity, 

and if just for a moment, Yosef seemed 

to be unsure himself. She was not 

alone in her shallow worldview, and 

the Torah therefore warns of the 

materialism and immorality rampant 

48 


in the country of Egypt and beyond. 4 

To remind him again of the role 

that his beauty played in his life’s 

mission, Yosef was shown his father’s 

countenance. The Gemara says that 

the beautiful countenance of Yaakov 

is a portion of the beauty of Adam 

HaRishon, 5 the man who embodied 

the ultimate “Image of Hashem.” 

The “Image of Hashem” is expressed 

in a glowing countenance, because 

in one’s face his soul shines forth. 6 

Yaakov’s beauty was comparable to 

that of Adam HaRishon, because he 

too embodied the “Image of Hashem,” 

inasmuch as his soul shone forth 

through his countenance. Yosef had a 

striking resemblance to his father, and 

when enticed by the wife of Potiphar, 

was shown the true value of beauty 

in the form of his father’s shining 

face. This served as a vivid reminder 

that his beauty was not to be used for 

vanity, but for projecting his soul. 

Let us now apply what we have 

learned about Yosef to the beauty of 

Eretz Yisroel. As mentioned above, 

the numerical value of Yosef is 

identical to that of “Tzion,” indicating 

that Yosef shares a commonality with 

Eretz Yisroel. Eretz Yisroel is beautiful 

and Yosef is beautiful, but what 

connects them is their ability to utilize 

beauty in order to express a depth 

and meaning way beyond external 

attractiveness. 7 

This understanding of Eretz Yisroel’s 

beauty is alluded to in Sefer Tehillim 

(50:2): “From Tzion will emerge the 

perfect beauty, G-d appeared.” The 

beauty of Eretz Yisroel is extolled not 

because of its surface attractiveness 

but because of its ability to act as a 

prism in projecting Hashem’s presence 

— “G-d appeared.” Eretz Yisroel is 

Hashem’s home, and it is there that 

He is closest to us. Hashem gave it a 

special allure and charm to attract us 

to its endless depth. 

There are many beautiful places in 

the world and some may even be 

externally more attractive than Eretz 

Yisroel, but what makes Eretz Yisroel 

so unique is that its beauty is truly 

a window that allows us a glimpse 

into a realm much deeper than hills 

and valleys. There are the Swiss Alps 

and the Grand Canyon, but there is 

only one place in the world where 

breathtaking beauty connects a person 

to a Divine reality that permeates the 

landscape. 

It is imperative that we take the time to 

appreciate Eretz Yisroel’s beauty and 

search for the Divine presence that 

saturates its facade. The proper attitude 

toward external allure will help us 

shun the vanity of external beauty and 

appreciate the Godliness in all of us. 

Notes 

1. Breishis 39:6. 

2. Breishis 49:22. 

3. Breishis 37:3, Rashi and Targum Unkolos 

there. The idea that Yaakov taught Yosef the 

Torah of the Yeshiva of Shem and Ever is 

developed by R. Yaakov Kamenetsky in his 

Emes L’Yaakov. 

4. Vayikra 18:3. 

5. Bava Metzia 84a, see Rashi. 

6. See MaHaRaL, Gur Aryeh, Breishis 37:2. 

See also Devarim 21:23 and Rashi there. 

7. Perhaps this is why Yosef had a special 

affinity for Eretz Yisroel (see Devarim Rabbah 

2:8). 

There are the Swiss Alps and the Grand Canyon, but there is 

only one place in the world where breathtaking beauty connects 

a person to a Divine reality that permeates the landscape. 

49 


The Meaning of the Establishment 

of the State of Israel 

For many Religious Zionist 

thinkers, the meaning of the 

modern State of Israel is tied 

to an assertion that its establishment 

is a manifestation of the miraculous 

Divine hand in history. The historical 

events leading up to and following the 

State’s establishment are understood in 

light of classical Biblical and Talmudic 

passages. In this approach, the State 

of Israel is significant because it is the 

embodiment of a supernatural process 

of Biblical redemption. This outlook 

has two significant drawbacks. First, 

in this approach, the State itself is 

ancillary (if not worse) in significance 

to the supernatural processes that led 

to its establishment. This allows us to 

ignore the tremendous religious value 

that the democratic process the State 

of Israel embodies irrespective of any 

miraculous dimension. Second, the 

attempt to equate modern Israel with 

the Messianic visions of our sacred 

texts doesn’t always flow. Often, linking 

these texts to Israel’s reality rings 

hollow. Therefore, I would like to share 

an alternative perspective that calls 

upon us to appreciate the State itself, 

independent of prophetic visions and 

miraculous interventions that the State 

may or may not reflect. 

The encounter between man 

and God’s creation often arouses 

extraordinary feelings. The 

magnificent beauty of nature — a 

majestic waterfall or a meadow 

filled with spring blossoms — has 

the capacity to sweep us away. 

Like nature, human ingenuity 

expressed in works of art, literature, 

and music can similarly arouse 

powerful feelings. Though one might 

distinguish between appreciation 

for God’s Divine creation and man’s 

earthly creativity, from the Torah’s 

perspective, such a distinction is 

artificial. Scripture charges us to 

“remember the Lord your God, who 

gives you the power to achieve” 

(Deuteronomy 8:18). In this light, we 

turn to evaluate the achievement of 

the human endeavor that has built the 

modern State of Israel. 

The democratic nation state is the 

culmination of a 200-year process 

of human organizational and social 

experimentation. Its achievement 

is worthy of recognition. Biblical 

notions of equity, social justice, and 

fairness are embodied in the modern 

democratic nation state. Moreover, 

it allows individuals and groups to 

accept responsibility for their destiny. 

It is befitting for a ben Torah to 

recognize the spirit of the prophets 

that drives this new political entity, 

even if this model of a national polity 

diverges from the one described in 

Maimonides’ Laws of Kings. 

Rabbi David Bigman 

Rosh Yeshivat Maale Gilboa 

What has been noted here is true for 

any of the healthy modern democratic 

states. Yet when it comes to the State 

of Israel, our appreciation reaches 

another level altogether. For 2,000 

years, Jews lived as a minority group 

with limited political and civil 

rights, our lot largely contingent on 

a dominant host community. Is it 

possible to ignore the excitement 

that beats in our hearts over our 

success in establishing, with God’s 

help, a political framework that allows 

the Jewish people to improve and 

take responsibility for its destiny 

after nearly 2,000 years of exile and 

destruction? Against the darkness of 

the culmination of this long exile in 

the Shoah, the light of Israel appears 

all the brighter. 

This appreciation for the State does 

not mean that we are blind to it faults. 

While inspired by the prophet call for 

justice, Israel has not yet established 

full equality for all of its citizens. 

The tensions created by our tenuous 

security situation have interfered with 

our ability to fulfill the Biblical charge 

to love the stranger. As in days of old, 

we still struggle with corruption in 

the government and the religious 

50 


establishment. Social and economic justice have not been 

fully achieved. And yet, despite its imperfections, Israel’s 

achievements are awe-inspiring. 

How are we to express this awe? Appreciation for 

the encounter with the Divine presence in the world, 

whether through the beauty of nature or human genius, 

has always given rise to a need to thank the Creator. 

Therefore, religious poetry throughout the ages, from 

the Biblical Psalms to contemporary piyyutim, has an 

important role. 

Yet it is crucial to remember that this poetry is not a 

replacement for the unmediated encounter between 

man and the creation. When one meditates upon nature 

and looks for a medium of expression, the verse “How 

numerous are your deeds oh God, you have created all 

of them in wisdom” (Tehillim 104:24), can partially 

give voice to the experience. However, when language 

becomes routine or when it loses resonance with the 

spirit of the people, instead of serving as an expression 

of sensitivity, it stifles it. A religious verse can become 

a trite slogan and then it loses its charm and turns 

vacuous. 

As our generation searches for the words to express the 

intense appreciation in our hearts for the establishment 

of the State of Israel, we must admit that we cannot 

fully understand the events that our people have 

experienced in the past few decades and those that we 

are in the midst of living through now. Can the vision 

of the prophetic redemption or the Talmudic passages 

concerning the End of Days express it?! One thing is 

clear: when religious language belittles the religious 

experience it should not be used. Therefore, the attempt 

to judge our State by the measure of the vision of the 

redemption may be inappropriate. We need to strive 

to find the appropriate expression of gratitude for the 

wonderful gift and responsibility bestowed upon our 

generation. So too, we must continue to strive for a 

world of justice where “the earth is full of knowledge of 

the Lord as the water covers the sea.” 

The future is 

in your hands. 

Meet Shlomo Anapolle of Edison, New Jersey. When 

it comes to a love of Israel, few college students can 

match the Sabra passion of this Yeshiva University 

junior. A pre-med, biology major with plans to attend 

an Israeli medical school, Shlomo balances his time 

between neo-natal diagnostic research, intensive 

shiurim and a commitment to Israel advocacy. 

Whether it’s planning lobbying missions to Washington, 

D.C. with YUPAC or teaching English to teens in 

the Negev through Counterpoint Israel, Shlomo 

brings to bear his leadership skills for the sake of 

the Jewish people and homeland. He is proud to 

invite Israeli diplomats to YU to help his peers 

contextualize current events. Shlomo chose YU because, 

to him, Torah Umadda isn’t merely the convergence of 

science and our mesorah¬at Yeshiva University, it is the 

formula for a values-driven preparation for life. This is 

the essence of Torah Umadda and what sets YU apart. 

Picture yourself at YU. #NowhereButHere 

www.yu.edu | 212.960.5277 | yuadmit@yu.edu 

www.yu.edu/enroll 

51 


Yom Ha’atzmaut: 

Heeding the Call 

Following on the solemn heels 

of Yom Hazikaron, Yom 

Haatzmaut evokes a variety 

of contradictory feelings: joy and 

sorrow, remembrance, pride, and 

hope. Even more powerful for us, as 

parents and as educators, is a sense 

of awe. On the 5 th of Iyar we stand in 

awe of our young men and women, 

some mere teenagers, whose bravery 

and dedication played a key role in the 

establishment of the State of Israel and 

shaped the course of Jewish history. 

A visit to Har Herzl brings this home: 

walking through the rows of graves 

highlights the sacrifice of our young 

patriots who gave their lives for the 

Jewish homeland. Consider the 

story of David Shalti, a 20-year-old 

Jerusalemite, who was wounded in 

the battle for Atarot. Two days later, 

with only one functioning arm, he 

jumped out of his sickbed to join the 

reinforcements heading south to Gush 

Etzion. Despite his heroic efforts, 

he and 150 other defenders of the 

Gush were massacred after trying to 

negotiate a surrender. The following 

day, Ben Gurion read the Declaration 

of Independence and Shalti’s young 

wife gave birth to a son. 

Shalti was but one of tens of 

thousands of our youth who 

heeded the call of their people, who 

recognized that they were in a position 

to contribute to our collective future, 

and seized the opportunity without a 

moment’s hesitation. What motivated 

Mrs. Dina Blank 

these young men and women? 

Moreover, on Yom Haatzmaut, what 

lessons can we glean from their 

dedication and sacrifice? 

Our young heroes, knowingly or not, 

consciously or otherwise, embraced 

the age-old Jewish values of hard 

work, self-reliance, and resolve, or 

what John Kotter from the Harvard 

Business School calls a “sense of 

urgency.” These guidelines for Jewish 

living are at the core of our faith and 

were promoted by Chazal in Pirkei 

Avot when they taught: 

Faculty, Machon Maayan and Shaalvim for Women 

אם אין אני לי מי לי,‏ וכשאני לעצמי מה אני,‏ 

ואם לא עכשיו אימתי.‏ 

If I am not for myself, who is for me, and 

if I am for myself, what am I, and if not 

now, when? 

Avot 1:14 

היום קצר והמלאכה מרובה והפועלים 

עצלים והשכר הרבה ובעל הבית דוחק.‏ 

The day is short, the work is plenty, the 

workers are lazy, the reward is great, and 

the Master of the house is demanding. 

Avot 2:20 

This focus on hard work and urgency 

is fundamental to Torah observance 

and learning. Indeed, the ethic of amel, 

toil, is famously highlighted in Torat 

Kohanim as the essential component 

for receiving the Divine blessing: Im 

bechukotai telechu: shetihiyu ameilim 

BaTorah — If you walk in my ways: 

[meaning that] you shall toil in the 

Torah. 

Similarly, the Piaseczner Rav, Rav 

Kalonymus Kalman Shapira, instructs 

us in Chovat Hatalmidim: 

‏“כל עבודה לפי ערך הדבר הנקנה נמדדת,‏ 

דברים זולים ושטותים כמעט בלי עבודה 

נקנים,‏ ודברים יקרים מהם ביותר עבודה 

קונים אותם,‏ וללמוד תורה ולחסות בצל 

קדשו רק בעבודה קשה יכולים להגיע.‏ לא 

בעבודה שהיא קשה וגדולה מן יכולת האדם,‏ 

כי ה'‏ יתברך לא נתן לנו עבודה למעלה 

מכוחותינו ויכלתינו,‏ רק שצריכים להתאמץ 

ולהתחזק בה,‏ לא לעבוד בלבד בשעה שבאה 

עבודה לידו,‏ רק להיות איש עובד בעצם ולא 

מתרפה.”‏ 

חובת התלמידים עמ'‏ כב-כג 

The amount of labor necessary to acquire 

an object should be equal to the value 

of that which is being obtained. Objects 

that have little worth may be acquired 

without much labor, while one must 

work hard in order to obtain something 

that is very precious. Strenuous labor is 

needed to be really able to learn Torah 

and to dwell in the holy presence of God. 

The labor is difficult, but not beyond 

52 


human capacity, for God never gives 

us tasks that transcend our powers and 

abilities. It is necessary, however, that we 

make an effort to work and serve God 

not only when we are faced with specific 

tasks. Our identity as a worker must 

become part of our essential self. 

A Student’s Obligation (Aronson) 

pg. 38 

In this passage, Rav Shapira enjoins 

the youth, the talmidim, to embrace 

the notion of hard work, and to 

recognize that all precious things in 

life require the investment of time 

and labor. While this is certainly 

true in the world of Torah learning, 

it is equally true in the world of 

Jewish communal life. And though 

achievements in Torah and in 

community development do not 

come easily, one does not have the 

luxury of abdicating responsibility. 

Instead, the Piaseczner insists that 

while our Torah obligations require 

great effort and hard work, God did 

not assign us responsibilities beyond 

our capacity to perform. As Chazal 

implied in the famous midrash 

regarding the outstretched arm of 

Par’oh’s daughter as she grabbed for 

Moshe, many things that seem out of 

reach are actually within our grasp if 

one makes the effort. 

These values help us understand 

what roused our young Jewish heroes 

of the 20th century. They were 

swept up by a sense of urgency, an 

understanding that nobody else would 

rise to the challenge. More important 

perhaps, they understood that simply 

hoping, yearning, and wishing from 

the sidelines would no longer be 

sufficient. To achieve statehood, they 

needed to act. And so they did. On 

Yom Haatzmaut, we celebrate them as 

much as we celebrate these timeless 

Jewish values, values that have 

motivated Jews throughout history. 

In 1965, in an inspiring Sukkot 

morning sermon, Rabbi Norman 

Lamm exhorted his Jewish Center 

congregants to adopt these principles 

of action, toil, and commitment: 

Without labor and struggle, without 

exertion of the intellect and long hours of 

patient plodding, one can neither master 

the intricacies of any profession, nor can 

achieve great and satisfying success in 

any business. It is true about children — 

if we over-protect them, if we train them 

to accept easy triumphs, the shortcuts to 

success, then they will grow up without 

backbones, nurtured on the infantile 

conception that a wishbone is enough. 

Such people can never fly, they can only 

flutter. Their vision never soars, their 

dreams remain myopic, their conceptions 

petty . . . To be a Jew means never to look 

only for the easy way. It means never 

to sacrifice conviction for convenience, 

although convenience in and of itself 

is no sin. It means always to search for 

the road of the greatest meaning and 

duty. Rabbi Israel Salanter, the great 

founder of the Musar movement, put it 

this way: “I have never asked myself if I 

can do something, only if I ought to. And 

if I ought to, then I always knew that I 

would be able to.” This is the language of 

the Jew. 

What Rabbi Lamm terms the 

“language of the Jew” is the message 

of Yom Haatzmaut. Herzl’s “If you will 

it, it is no dream” was piggy-backing 

on centuries of Jewish wisdom and 

deep-rooted tradition and at a time 

of national crisis, when it counted 

most, the youth stood up to wave the 

proverbial flag. 

In 2012, Cheryl Halpern, a member of 

the United States Holocaust Memorial 

and Museum Council, wrote an op-ed 

for JTA that focused on one simple 

question: Where have all the student 

activists gone? Halperin, a former 

volunteer for the Student Struggle for 

Soviet Jewry (SSSJ), reminisced about 

the rallies, the signs, and the letter 

writing campaigns that were led by 

young activists and wondered aloud: 

Where are today’s Jewish students? . . . I 

wonder whether an SSSJ movement as 

existed in the 1960s and 1970s could be 

created today. Would we see the students 

of today marching and protesting outside 

Russian embassies and consulates or 

across from the United Nations? Or 

would their choice of activity be limited 

to blogging and tweeting without a 

visible, united physical presence to be 

noted? 

Halpern’s question should haunt us 

on this Yom Haatzmaut. Are today’s 

teens, the children of those who 

marched to the White House chanting 

“Let Our People Go,” prepared to 

go to the barricades as did their 

predecessors? 

Our community must ensure that 

our children heed the message of 

Yom Haatzmaut. We must encourage 

them to recognize the centrality and 

importance of effort, of toil, of labor. 

We must expose them to stories of 

youthful heroism and teach them 

that each one of them has a unique 

mission to fulfill and that the urgent 

needs of the Jewish people outweigh 

transient goals. We must raise children 

with backbones, and give them 

ample opportunities to exercise those 

muscles so that when the time comes, 

they too will heed the Yom Haatzmaut 

call, im lo achshav eimatai — if not 

now, when?, and speak “the language 

of the Jew.” 

53 


Eretz Yisrael and the First 61 

Chapters of the Torah 

The first Rashi in Chumash, 

although greatly important, 

is equally puzzling, at least at 

first glance: 

אמר רבי יצחק לא היה צריך להתחיל ‏]את[‏ 

התורה אלא ‏)שמות יב ב(‏ מהחודש הזה לכם,‏ 

שהיא מצוה ראשונה שנצטווה ‏]בה[‏ ישראל,‏ 

ומה טעם פתח בבראשית,‏ משום ‏)תהלים קיא 

ו(‏ כח מעשיו הגיד לעמו לתת להם נחלת גוים,‏ 

שאם יאמרו אומות העולם לישראל לסטים 

אתם,‏ שכבשתם ארצות שבעה גוים,‏ הם 

אומרים להם כל הארץ של הקב”ה היא,‏ הוא 

בראה ונתנה לאשר ישר בעיניו,‏ ברצונו נתנה 

להם וברצונו נטלה מהם ונתנה לנו:‏ 

Rabbi Yitzhak said “It was not necessary 

to start the Torah before ‘HaChodesh 

HaZeh Lachem’ (Shemot 12:2) which is 

the first commandment that Bnei Yisrael 

were commanded. And for what reason 

did He begin with ‘Bereshit’? 1 Because 

of ‘The strength of His works He told to 

His people, to give them the inheritance 

of the nations’ (Tehillim 111:6). For if 

the nations of the world challenge Bnei 

Yisrael saying, ‘You are thieves who 

conquered the lands of the seven nations 

(of Canaan),’ they will reply, ‘The entire 

world belongs to HaKodesh Baruch Hu; 

He created it and gave it to whomever 

He deemed appropriate. When He 

wanted, He gave it to them, and when 

He wanted, He took it away from them 

and gave it to us.’” 

There are three powerful questions 

begging to be asked. First, Rashi’s 

question is strange for it assumes that 

the Torah should have begun with the 

first mitzvah, Rosh Chodesh. Why 

would that have been a better place 

Rabbi Jesse Horn 

Ram, Yeshivat Hakotel 

to start? Rashi’s question does not 

seem to suggest removing all Biblical 

narrative in order to leave Chumash as 

a book strictly of laws. 2 Many stories 

appear after the mitzvah of Rosh 

Chodesh; for example, the golden calf, 

the spies and Korach. These stories 

are considered an integral part of the 

Torah. What then was the idea behind 

Rashi’s question? 

Second, Rashi’s answer does not 

seem to substantially address the 

question. Rashi wonders why the first 

61 chapters (50 in Bereshit and 11 in 

Shemot) are found in the Chumash, 

yet only answers why the first verse 

(or first few verses) is necessary. 

Understandably, the Torah wanted to 

inform us that Hashem created the 

world and can therefore justifiably give 

different lands to different nations. 

However, on this account, there 

seems to be a significant amount of 

unnecessary information included in 

the first 61 chapters of Chumash. 

The Ramban (Bereshit 1:1) 

explains that the first 11 chapters — 

everything until Avraham — establish 

the concept of sin and exile. After each 

sin there was exile. Adam and Chava 

were expelled from Gan Eden, Cain 

was sent to “be a wanderer” (Bereshit 

4:14), all of Noach’s generation was 

removed from the world and the Dor 

HaHaflaga were scattered, also a form 

of relocating them. Still, what about 

the other 50 chapters? 

Third, did the Chumash accomplish 

its goal? Does the world recognize 

that Israel belongs to the Jews because 

of the Chumash’s testimony? Can 

we expect them to accept the Torah’s 

claim? 3 

An insight into the selection process 

of what stories and laws, in general, 

were included in Chumash is of 

paramount importance. Presumably 

it depends on the answer to a 

fundamental question. What is 

the goal of Chumash? Only after 

answering that can one begin to 

hypothesize as to why certain stories 

were selected. 

Perhaps Chumash is a book for the 

Chosen People designed to instruct 

and educate them in how to act 

as a chosen nation. Based on this 

hypothesis, Rashi’s opening question 

can now be readdressed. If the Torah 

is designed to teach the Chosen 

Nation how to act chosen, then 

perhaps it should begin with the first 

mitzvah given to the Chosen Nation 

as a nation. 

54 


In attempting to deal with Rashi’s 

question, it pays to first ask, what 

would have been missing from 

Chumash if it had begun with the 

mitzvah of Rosh Chodesh? Seemingly 

the answer to two significant 

questions would be missing. First, 

why would Hashem choose one 

nation as a chosen nation? Does that 

not seem unfair? Second, why choose 

this particular nation? Even if one can 

develop reasons for choosing a nation, 

why did Hashem select Bnei Yisrael? 

What did they do to deserve it? 

Perhaps these questions are exactly 

what the first 61 chapters of 

Chumash come to answer. The first 

11 chapters of Bereshit include four 

stories of failure, sin, and exile, and 

the subsequent storyline, the rest of 

Bereshit, is a response. After the world 

repeatedly fails, Avraham emerges 4 

as a teacher and preacher who 

successfully begins to enlighten the 

world with the values of Hashem. 

Chumash illustrates Avraham’s 

immense affection for people and his 

passion to help by welcoming guests 

on a hot day 5 immediately after his 

brit milah (Bereshit 18). Chumash 

also depicts Avraham’s unwavering 

dedication to Hashem’s word with the 

story of the Akeida. This synthesis of 

love and commitment are the proper 

building blocks of our religion and the 

character traits Avraham had, which 

made him the right man to start and 

represent Bnei Yisrael. 

Yitzhak, Yaakov, and the twelve 

brothers follow along these lines 

as the Chumash records their 

transformation from individuals 

into a family and ultimately a nation 

dedicated to this important mission. 

These 61 chapters capture both why a 

specific nation was needed to lead as 

well as why Bnei Yisrael were selected 

as that nation. Without a role-model 

nation, the world was doomed for 

failure as seen in the first 11 chapters 

of the Chumash. Bnei Yisrael, led by 

the Avot, embody the ideals and values 

Hashem needed to accomplish His 

purpose for this world. 

Even if this hypothesis is correct, 

one can ask, is it what Rashi meant? 

Perhaps. Perhaps saying that Hashem 

can give the Land of Israel to anyone 

He chooses captures more than a 

justification of giving the land to 

any random nation He decided to. 

Perhaps Hashem gave Bnei Yisrael 

the Holy Land because they are the 

Chosen Nation. The first 61 chapters 

explain why Hashem chose them and 

removed the other nations from Israel 

in order to make room for them. 6 

Last, perhaps, at least on some level, 

the world did and does recognize that 

Israel is the homeland for the Jewish 

People. In 1948 the UN voted to 

recognize Israel, not Uganda, as the 

home of the Jewish People. Perhaps 

that decision reflects the recognition, 

dating back to Chumash, that the Jews 

do belong in Israel because Hashem 

desired it so. 

Yom Ha’atzmaut is the day we 

celebrate our independence in our 

national homeland, the land Hashem 

gave us to serve as the Chosen People 

following the guidelines of the Torah. 

Beyond our historical connection 

to Israel is a theologically greater 

connection. Bnei Yisrael living and 

inhabiting Israel is part of Hashem’s 

Divine plan. 

Notes 

1. The Ramban (Bereshit 1:1) explains 

that the Torah did not start with Bereshit 

in order to reveal a deep philosophy about 

Hashem’s creation, because the Chumash 

does not reveal such information. Those 

secrets are found in Kabalah. Accordingly, 

Chumash is not a philosophy book. After 

all, very little of the Chumash deals with 

philosophical issues, and the small sections 

that do are often philosophically misleading 

(See Raavad, Hilchot Teshuva 3:7), including 

anthropomorphism of Hashem, for example, 

which we assume is categorically rejected 

(Rambam, Hilchot Teshuva 3:7). 

2. Although the Gur Aryeh (Bereshit 1:1) 

seems to interpret the question as such. 

Interestingly, some assume that the first 

61 chapters would not have been left out, 

but would have made up a separate sefer 

(Mizrachi and Siftai Chachamim both on 

Bereshit 1:1) or would have been relocated 

elsewhere in Chumash (Be’er HaTorah, 

Bereshit 1:1). 

3. One may suggest that the Chumash’s 

message is designed for Bnei Yisrael and it is 

irrelevant whether the world accepts it. This is 

further implied by the verse that Rashi quotes 

focusing on “He told to His people.” Still, we 

will suggest an additional answer. 

4. We are assuming that Avraham was not 

born destined to lead but rather developed 

himself into someone capable of doing so. 

This is implied by the Midrash (Bereshit 

Rabbah 39:1), which describes Avraham 

as the only one to stop and notice the 

bira doleket (fortress burning) and by the 

Rambam (Avodat Kochavim 1:3) and Rav 

Hirsch (Nineteen Letters, letter 8), where they 

describe how Avraham, alone, searched and 

discovered monotheism in a polytheistic 

world. 

Alternatively, one may suggest (See Kuzari 

1:95) that Avraham was born with an inherent 

advantage and was therefore selected. 

5. It is uncommon for the Chumash to record 

the weather as it does here (Bereshit 18:1). 

Perhaps including the extreme heat highlights 

Avraham’s commitment to his work even 

when he has justified reason to rest. 

6. Hashem waited to bring back Bnei Yisrael 

to Eretz Yisrael until Emori sinned to the 

point where they deserved to be exiled 

(Bereshit 15:16). 

55 


Kedushat Eretz Yisrael 

וְ‏ אַ‏ ‏ּתֶ‏ ם ‏ּתִ‏ הְ‏ יוּ לִ‏ י מַ‏ מְ‏ לֶ‏ כֶ‏ ת כֹּהֲ‏ נִ‏ ים וְ‏ גוֹי קָ‏ דוֹשׁ...:‏ 

שמות יט:ו 

You shall be to Me a kingdom of priests 

and a holy nation... 

Shemot 19:6 

This is the essence of the Jewish 

nation, its “mission statement.” 

What is the meaning of a goy kadosh, 

a holy and sanctified nation? And 

how does it define the quality of our 

Judaism? 

The Maharal 1 gives an explanation 

of the special nature of Eretz Yisrael, 

which can enrich our understanding 

of our relationship with our land 

as a “holy land.” Connecting this 

understanding to other areas that are 

identified with kedusha, sanctity, will 

highlight why Eretz Yisrael is such a 

central element in Judaism. 

תניא רשב”י אומר שלש מתנות נתן הקדוש 

ברוך הוא לישראל וכולם לא נתנו אלא על 

ידי יסורים ואלו הן התורה ארץ ישראל ועולם 

הבא...‏ וביאור דבר זה מה שאלו שלשה 

דברים נתנו על ידי יסורים,‏ מפני שכל אלו 

ג’‏ דברים הם קדושים,‏ כי ארץ ישראל היא 

הארץ הקדושה אשר הארץ הזאת היא נבדלת 

יש בה השכל יותר משאר ארצות,‏ ואם לא 

כן שהיה לארץ ישראל מעלה זאת לא היה 

אוירא דארץ ישראל מחכים ביותר משאר 

ארצות ולא היה בארץ ישראל דוקא הנבואה 

... ומפני זה נקראו אלו ג’‏ דברים מתנות 

כי המתנה היא מה שאינו שייך לאדם מצד 

עצמו ונתן לו מזולתו וכן האדם היא בעל גוף 

חמרי ואין מצדו הדברים האלו שהם דברים 

נבדלים א-לקיים,‏ ולכך לא נתנו רק על ידי 

היסורים שהם ממעטים את החומר וגוף האדם 

ומסלקים את פחיתתו עד שהאדם ראוי אליו 

דברים הא-לקיים...‏ 

Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai teaches: “G-d 

gave the Jewish people three presents, 

and each of them was only given 

accompanied with ‘yisurim’ (physical 

sacrifice and difficulty). The three 

presents are Torah, the Land of Israel, 

and The World to Come….” 2 The reason 

why these things were given specifically 

accompanied with difficulty is that 

each of these is sanctified (kedoshim). 

The Land of Israel is holy and unique, 

having in it more spiritual intelligence 

than any other land, as evidenced by 

the fact that “the atmosphere in Israel 

makes one wise,” 3 as well as the fact 

that prophecy occurs only in Israel… 

It is for this reason that these are called 

matanot, gifts. A “gift” is something given 

to a person for which he has no access 

on his own, coming from an independent 

source. Since man is [basically] a 

physical body, and he has no direct 

access to things that are Divine and 

transcendent, they must be given to man 

through physical sacrifice and difficulty, 

which diminishes the physical dimension 

of man and enables man to assimilate 

these holy and Divine presents. 

This explanation sheds light on the 

difficulties constantly encountered 

by people trying to make aliya. From 

the pioneers in the late 19th century, 

undergoing constant life-threatening 

situations, through the early years 

of the State, with its weak economy 

and food shortages, to the frustrating 

Rabbi Shaya Karlinsky 

Dean, Shapell’s/Darche Noam 

cultural norms that made aliyah 

so difficult for Western olim post 

Six Day War, and up to the present 

security dangers we face on a daily 

basis — there are always exceptional 

difficulties that must be overcome if 

one is committed to assimilating the 

unique, holy nature of Eretz Yisrael. 

A Jew’s true connection to Eretz 

Yisrael can’t be built on a materialistic 

quest. That connection requires one 

to transcend standard materialistic 

dependencies, enabling him to access 

kedusha. 

The covenant between G-d and 

Avraham, which included the 

promise of the Land of Israel to 

his descendants, revealed the 

transcendent nature of that land. That 

promise was inseparably linked to brit 

milah, 4 representing man’s ability to 

transcend his physical instincts and 

dependencies, fashioning a life of 

kedusha, sanctity. 

The consequences of contaminating 

that kedusha are demonstrated by the 

special standards of moral behavior 

placed on the inhabitants of Eretz 

Yisrael. After detailed and strict 

warnings against immoral behavior, 

the Torah concludes: 

אַ‏ ל ‏ּתִ‏ ‏ּטַ‏ מְּ‏ אוּ בְּ‏ כָ‏ ל אֵ‏ לֶּ‏ ה כִּ‏ י בְ‏ כָ‏ ל אֵ‏ לֶּ‏ ה נִ‏ טְ‏ מְ‏ אוּ 

הַ‏ ‏ּגוֹיִם אֲ‏ שֶׁ‏ ר אֲ‏ נִ‏ י מְ‏ שַׁ‏ לֵּ‏ חַ‏ מִ‏ ‏ּפְ‏ נֵיכֶ‏ ם:‏ וַ‏ ‏ּתִ‏ טְ‏ מָ‏ א הָ‏ אָ‏ רֶ‏ ץ 

וָ‏ אֶ‏ פְ‏ קֹד עֲ‏ וֹנָּה עָ‏ לֶ‏ יהָ‏ וַ‏ ‏ּתָ‏ קִ‏ א הָ‏ אָ‏ רֶ‏ ץ אֶ‏ ת ישְׁ‏ בֶ‏ יהָ‏ ... 

56 


וְ‏ לֹא תָ‏ קִ‏ יא הָ‏ אָ‏ רֶ‏ ץ אֶ‏ תְ‏ כֶ‏ ם בְּ‏ טַ‏ מַּ‏ אֲ‏ כֶ‏ ם אֹתָ‏ ‏ּה כַּ‏ אֲ‏ שֶׁ‏ ר 

קָ‏ אָ‏ ה אֶ‏ ת הַ‏ ‏ּגוֹי אֲ‏ שֶׁ‏ ר לִ‏ פְ‏ נֵיכֶ‏ ם:‏ 

Do not become defiled through any of 

these [immoralities], for through these 

the nations who are being expelled (from 

Eretz Yisrael) became defiled. The land 

became defiled, and I recalled its sin, and 

the land disgorged its inhabitants… 

And the land should not disgorge you, by 

your defiling it, the way it disgorged the 

nations that preceded you. 

Vayikra 18:24, 25, 28 

The Ramban 5 explains this spiritual 

sensitivity as the result of the unique 

and direct connection G-d has with 

Eretz Yisrael, and with the Jewish 

people as recipients of that land. 

Despite the commandments of 

moral behaviors being applicable 

to Jews worldwide, not part of the 

“land dependent” commandments, 

their violation in the Land of Israel 

is viewed as a particularly serious 

violation of our special relationship 

with G-d. 6 

Another commandment that the 

Torah connects to kedusha numerous 

times is Shabbat. 7 This can help clarify 

how and why kedusha is manifest in 

Eretz Yisrael. 

Shabbat is a mini-representation of 

Olam Habah, the World to Come, 

one of the three presents given 

to us through a minimization of 

our physicality. The kedusha with 

which Shabbat is endowed, the 

intimate connection with G-d that 

can exist during Shabbat, elevates 

physical activities to spiritual ones. 

Indulgences that could border on the 

hedonistic during the week become 

“oneg Shabbat” pleasures undertaken 

for the honor of Shabbat. 

The Gaon of Vilna, based on the verse 

ויהי בשלם סוכו ומעונתו in Tehillim 8 

connects sitting in the sukkah ‏,בציון 

with living in Israel. Both of these 

commandments are done with no 

special rituals, but simply by living 

normally, whether in the sukkah or 

in the Land of Israel. Every mundane 

action is imbued with spirituality. 

There is a Chassidic saying: “Sukkah 

is the only mitzvah in which a person 

enters with muddy boots.” We can add 

that Eretz Yisrael is one, too. 

Kedusha demands the ability to 

minimize the control of the physical, 

creating great challenges, but also 

offering unparalleled opportunities. 

Physical activities done in an 

environment of kedusha, whether that 

environment is one of time (Shabbat) 

or place (Eretz Yisrael), with proper 

motivation, become elevated, holy 

acts, bringing us closer to G-d. 

This is the potential inherent in 

Eretz Yisrael. We should appreciate 

it, as we fulfill the mitzvah of yishuv 

Eretz Yisrael, unlocking the kedusha 

available in every activity. 

Notes 

1. Introduction to Derech Chaim, commentary 

on Pirkei Avot. 

2. T.B. Brachot 5a. 

3. T. B. Bava Batra 158b. 

4. See Breishit 17:7-11; Breishit Rabba 46:9. 

5. Ramban, Vayikra 18:25. 

6. It is in this context that the Ramban 

continues with his famous statement, based 

כי עיקר כל המצות ליושבים on Sifrei Eikev ,43 that 

the root of all commandments is for ‏,בארץ ה 

those living in the land of G-d (Israel). 

7. Breishit 2:3, which is the first time the 

word is mentioned in the Torah; Shemot 

16:23; 20:8,11; 31:14,15; 35:2; Vayikra 23:3; 

Devarim 5:12. 

8. Tehillim 76:3. 

Simply by living normally, whether in the sukkah or in the Land 

of Israel, every mundane action is imbued with spirituality. 

57 


Simchah Shel Mitzvah 

Why exactly do we 

celebrate Yom 

HaAtzmaut? 

Is it because of the physical salvation 

that the establishment of the State 

brought to the survivors of the 

Holocaust (and world Jewry as a 

whole)? Undoubtedly, that is a good 

reason to celebrate. In fact, Chazal 

indicate that escaping death is one of 

the most compelling reasons to sing 

praise to God: 

ומה מעבדות לחירות אמרי’‏ שירה ממיתה 

לחיים לא כל שכן.‏ 

If we sing praise for going from slavery 

to freedom [on Passover, which 

commemorates the Exodus from Egypt], 

isn’t it obvious [that we should do so 

when we were saved] from death to life 

[on Purim, which marks our escape 

from Haman’s decree to destroy, kill, and 

annihilate all the Jews (Esther 3:13)]?!” 

Megillah 14a 

Definitely a good reason, but is that 

all? 

Perhaps we celebrate because on the 

fifth of Iyar, 5708, the Jewish people 

regained sovereignty over their 

ancestral homeland after 2,000 years 

of exile and oppression? Definitely 

a legitimate reason to rejoice! After 

all, the Rambam states: “The days of 

Mashiach are [part of] ‘this world,’ 

and [during that period] the world 

will function normally. The only 

[difference is] that Jewish sovereignty 

will be restored, as the earlier sages 

said, ‘There is no difference between 

this world and the days of Mashiach 

other than [Israel’s] subjugation to the 

kingdoms’ (Sanhedrin 99a)” (Hilchot 

Teshuvah 9:2). To no longer have to 

worry what the ruling gentiles might 

do to us, on a whim, is quite liberating. 

To be able to decide our own destiny 

(even if we don’t always make the best 

decisions) is something to thank God 

for. In addition, being independent is 

the way things are supposed to be, as 

the Maharal writes: 

כי מקומם הראוי להם לפי סדר המציאות 

להיותם בארץ ישראל ברשות עצמם,‏ ולא 

ברשות אחר.‏ כמו כל דבר ודבר מן הנמצאים 

הטבעים יש להם לכל אחד מקום בפני עצמו.‏ 

The place that suits the Jews according 

to the order of existence is for them to 

be in Eretz Yisrael under their own rule, 

independent of others, like every natural 

being that has its own place. 

Netzach Yisrael 1 

Another great reason, but is that it? 

Maybe we are celebrating the 

beginning of the ultimate redemption, 

for which we have waited so long? 

That is definitely one of the main 

reasons we rejoice on this day. In the 

words of Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan zt”l: 

Other generations have expected the 

Messiah’s imminent appearance on the 

basis of the forced interpretation of one 

or two prophecies, whereas we are living 

through the entire range of Messianic 

tradition, often coming to pass with 

uncanny literalness. If you keep your eyes 

Rabbi Moshe Lichtman 

Rebbe, Yeshivat Torat Shraga 

open, you can almost see every headline 

bringing us a step closer to this goal. 

The Real Messiah, p. 96 

Just think about it: the Land of Israel, 

which was desolate throughout our 

exile, awoke from its slumber when 

its children came back to till its soil, 

exactly as the Torah and Chazal 

predicted (see VaYikra 26:32; Sifra, 

ibid.; Sanhedrin 98a). Moreover, the 

ingathering of the exiles, which is 

probably the most important phase 

of redemption, is clearly underway. 

Around half the Jewish people 

currently live here, thanks almost 

entirely to the establishment of the 

State of Israel. 

All of these reasons are nice, but 

I believe our celebration should 

primarily be a simchah shel mitzvah 

(mitzvah-related joy). After all, 

whenever we celebrate something in 

Judaism, it is related to the fulfillment 

of a mitzvah. Think brit milah, pidyon 

ha-ben, bat/bar mitzvah, a marriage 

ceremony, simchat yom tov, etc. 

So what mitzvah are we celebrating 

on Yom HaAtzmaut? Well, first 

and foremost there is the actual 

mitzvah of settling the Land of Israel 

(yishuv HaAretz), a mitzvah that was 

essentially out of reach for most Jews 

for close to 2,000 years. Imagine if a 

certain community couldn’t obtain 

58 


the four species (lulav, etrog…) for 

several decades, and then, finally, one 

year, they got their hands on a set. 

How joyous would they be when they 

held those branches in their hands 

on Sukkot? I remember how excited I 

was, a few years back, when we recited 

the once-in-28-years blessing of Birkat 

HaChamah, even though it’s only a 

Rabbinic precept. All the more so, we 

should rejoice over the opportunity 

to fulfill the mitzvah of settling the 

Land, about which Chazal say (three 

times!) that it is equal to all the other 

mitzvot in the Torah combined. And 

even though regarding most other 

mitzvot, our joy would not warrant 

the establishment of a yearly holiday, 

yishuv HaAretz is different, because 

it relates to our ultimate redemption 

and is a constant, all-encompassing 

mitzvah. 

Living in Israel is a special mitzvah in 

many other ways, as well. It is one of 

the few mitzvot that are fulfilled with 

one’s entire body (Vilna Gaon). In 

addition, one who lives here fulfills 

the mitzvah 24/7, just by being here 

and contributing to the country’s 

development (Chatam Sofer, Sukkah 

36a). Furthermore, Eretz Yisrael is 

the only place where all of the mitzvot 

can be kept (at least theoretically). R. 

Yechezkel Abramsky points out that 

approximately one-third of the 613 

mitzvot cannot be fulfilled anywhere 

but in the Holy Land (Eretz Yisrael 

Nachalat Am Yisrael, note 61). 

Most important, though, living in 

Israel elevates every mitzvah we do 

— even those that are independent of 

the Land — to a much higher level. 

So much so that Chazal use the term 

“practice” when referring to mitzvah 

performance in Chutz LaAretz. On 

some level, it is practice for when we 

return to the Land (see Sifrei, Eikev 7). 

Or as the Ramban (Vayikra 18:25) 

puts it, “The main fulfillment of all 

the mitzvot is for those who dwell in 

God’s Land.” Rav Aharon Lichtenstein 

zt”l relates how his rebbe, Rav 

Yitzchak Hutner zt”l, would put on 

tefillin upon arriving in Eretz Yisrael, 

even though he had already prayed on 

the airplane. Rav Hutner explained: 

“Beforehand, I put on Chutz-LaAretz 

tefillin; now I am putting on Eretz 

Yisrael tefillin.” 

As a direct result of the establishment 

of the State of Israel, every Jew can 

now perform the mitzvot of HaShem 

as and where they were meant to be 

kept. We no longer have to practice; 

we can do the real thing. Is this not 

reason enough to celebrate? 

One last point: I mentioned above 

that one of the main reasons we 

celebrate Yom HaAtzmaut is because 

the establishment of the State marked 

the beginning of the redemption. This, 

too, is included in the simchah shel 

mitzvah aspect of our celebration. The 

Talmud states in Berachot 31a: 

ת”ר אין עומדין להתפלל לא מתוך עצבות 

ולא מתוך עצלות ולא מתוך שחוק ולא מתוך 

שיחה ולא מתוך קלות ראש ולא מתוך דברים 

בטלים אלא מתוך שמחה של מצוה.‏ 

Our Rabbis taught [in a beraita]: One 

may not stand up to pray amidst [a 

state of] sadness, laziness, laughter, 

[mundane] chatter, lightheadedness, or 

idle talk. Rather, [one must pray amidst 

a state of] simchah shel mitzvah. 

At face value, it sounds like one should 

go out right before davening and find 

a joyous mitzvah to perform. Rashi, 

however, explains Chazal’s intention 

very differently (and it is based on the 

continuation of the Gemara): 

אלא מתוך שמחה.‏ כגון דברי תנחומים של 

תורה כגון סמוך לגאולת מצרים או סמוך 

לתהלה לדוד שהוא של שבח ותנחומין כגון 

רצון יראיו יעשה שומר ה’‏ את כל אוהביו 

וכגון מקראות הסדורות בתפלת ערבית כי לא 

יטוש ה’‏ את עמו וכיוצא בהן 

Rather, amidst simchah shel mitzvah — 

like words of consolation from the Bible. 

For example, [we recite Shemoneh Esrei] 

immediately following [the mention of] 

the redemption from Egypt; or right 

after [we say] Tehillah LeDavid [i.e., 

Ashrei], which is [filled with] praise 

and consolation, like He will do the will 

of those who fear Him, and The Lord 

guards all who love Him (Tehillim 

145:19-20). Another example: the 

verses that are arranged in the evening 

service, like The Lord will not abandon 

His nation. 

In other words, Rashi defines simchah 

shel mitzvah as the joy one gets from 

knowing that God is on our side and 

that He has and will console and 

redeem us. 

We, who have been privileged to see 

the fulfillment of so many prophecies 

of redemption and consolation, 

certainly have an obligation to give 

thanks to God and rejoice in this 

simchah shel mitzvah. 

59 


A Torah Approach 

to Medinat Yisrael 

My original connection 

with Medinat Yisrael was 

emotional. Having become 

active in a leadership role in B’nei 

Akiva in my post-high school years, I 

was enveloped by the strong feelings, 

dedication, and idealism of my peers. 

Thus I was greatly impacted by a 

point made by my Rebbe, Rav Aharon 

Soloveichik zt”l in his weekly hashkafa 

shiur, Erev Shabbos Ki Tetze, 1971. 

Rav Soloveichik discussed the mitzvah 

presented in that parsha: 

לֹא תִ‏ הְ‏ יֶה קְ‏ דֵ‏ שָׁ‏ ה מִ‏ בְּ‏ נוֹת יִ‏ שְׂ‏ רָ‏ אֵ‏ ל וְ‏ לֹא יִהְ‏ יֶה קָ‏ דֵ‏ שׁ 

מִ‏ בְּ‏ נֵ‏ ייִ‏ שְׂ‏ רָ‏ אֵ‏ ל 

There shall not be a (female) harlot 

among the daughters of Israel and there 

shall not be a (male) harlot among the 

sons of Israel. (D’vorim 23:18) 

In that context, he mentioned that 

there are Rishonim who hold that 

common-law marriages are a violation 

of this mitzvah (viz. Mishneh Torah, 

Hilchot I’shut 1:4). The statement that 

he then made is fresh in my mind even 

45 years later: 

“That marriages in the State of Israel 

must be according to halachah and 

civil marriages are not allowed is in 

itself a justification for the existence of 

the State.” 

I was stunned. Rav Aharon Soloveichik 

was a dedicated Zionist. He saw 

the State of Israel as having utmost 

significance. He saw the establishment 

of the State of Israel as a miraculous 

event and thus recited Hallel (without 

a b’rachah) on Yom HaAtzmaut. 

The State needed a justification for its 

existence? 

It was that moment that I understood 

that emotional ties were insufficient. 

Emotional ties are significant when 

they are based on a solid intellectual 

foundation. Emotional attachment is 

significant when the Torah teaches us 

the inherent value of that attachment. 

This principle may be learned from 

the teaching of Rambam regarding 

the mitzvah of ahavat Hashem, loving 

G-d. He writes (Yesodei HaTorah 2:2): 

Rabbi Chaim Pollock 

Senior Consultant, Michlala 

והיאך היא הדרך לאהבתו ויראתו,‏ בשעה 

שיתבונן האדם במעשיו וברואיו הנפלאים 

הגדולים ויראה מהן חכמתו שאין לה ערך ולא 

קץ מיד הוא אוהב ומשבח ומפאר ומתאוה 

תאוה גדולה לידע השם...‏ 

How does one come to love and fear 

G-d? When one contemplates G-d’s 

actions and His wondrous and great 

creations and perceives in them His 

infinite and immeasurable wisdom, he 

immediately loves and praises and has a 

great desire to know Hashem. 

Does this mean that a person should 

not create emotional attachments 

without having first a firm Torah 

foundation? The answer is that a 

Torah foundation is not a prerequisite 

for emotional attachments. The 

mitzvah of kibbud av va’eim, honoring 

one’s parents, is, perhaps, the most 

powerful evidence. A child loves his 

parents. That is part of the nature of 

our beings. That love is wonderful 

and must be nurtured as the child 

grows. However, if the Torah Jew’s 

relationship with her parents is based 

only on emotion, and without a 

foundation of the mitzvah of kibbud av 

va’eim, then that love, as sincere as it 

may be, will be expressed incorrectly. 

Rashi points this out in Parshas 

Kedoshim (Vayikra 19:3), where he 

discusses the differing order in which 

the Torah places father and mother in 

the mitzvos of honoring and fearing 

one’s parents. The different emotional 

ties that one may feel to this parent 

or the other are not related to the 

obligation of honoring or fearing 

them. The feelings may be natural, but 

they do not override the status that is 

conferred upon them by the mitzvah. 

What then should be an appropriate 

way of understanding our connection, 

our concern, and our love of 

Medinat Yisrael? We can learn the 

appropriate progression from feelings 

to understanding from a verse in 

Tehillim (34:9): 

60 


טַ‏ עֲ‏ מוּ וּרְ‏ אוּ כִּ‏ י טוֹב ה’‏ אַ‏ שְׁ‏ רֵ‏ י הַ‏ ‏ּגֶ‏ בֶ‏ ר יֶחֱ‏ סֶ‏ ה בּוֹ:‏ 

Taste and see that G-d is good; happy is the man who takes 

refuge in Him. 

“Taste,” as explained by Malbim, refers to one’s individual 

perception. “See,” as used throughout Tanach, means 

understanding. The fledgling relationship with G-d as it 

develops in a child is one of emotion. Hashem is shown 

in His goodness, His kindness, and His salvation to a 

child whose worldview is simplistic. However, that is not 

the goal. The goal is to understand that it is worthwhile 

to take refuge in G-d and that such a choice is the most 

rational one that could be undertaken. 

Without Torah-based knowledge, our appreciation of the 

gift of Medinat Yisrael will fall far short of the level that it 

should be. Without Torah-based knowledge, our ability 

to justify Medinat Yisrael to those who wish to deny its 

significance and to combat those who wish to bring it 

harm and grievous destruction will fall short of its goal. 

But Torah knowledge alone is insufficient when dealing 

with matters that are part of history. In his commentary to 

Mishlei (22:12), the Vilna Gaon instructs the judge: 

הדיין צריך לשני דברים...שיהיה בקי בתורה ‏]ו[שיהיה בקי בישובו 

של עולם...‏ 

The judge requires two things. He must be an expert in Torah 

and an expert in the happenings of the world. 

However, the purpose of our Torah knowledge is not only 

to defend Israel against its enemies. Torah knowledge 

allows us to identify what is right and what is wrong in 

Medinat Yisrael, that which requires our support and that 

which requires our opposition. 

If we espouse the view that the State of Israel is a gift, then 

we must do our best to deserve and preserve that gift. If 

we espouse a view that Medinat Yisrael belongs to the 

Jewish People, then we must do our part to express our 

proprietary rights for its benefit and for ours. 

Maharal writes in many places (viz. Netzach Yisrael 31) 

that our exile is not an inherent necessity. It is a mikreh, an 

event that is not part of our destiny. The reason that our 

golus continues is because of continued sin. But, Maharal 

continues, sin itself is not an inherent necessity; it, too, is 

a mikreh. 

Our accumulation of Torah knowledge will allow us the 

insight to know what to correct in ourselves and in all that 

ויקבץ נדחינו מארבע is precious to us so that we will merit 

the ingathering of the entire Jewish People and ‏,כנפות הארץ 

the ultimate fulfillment of the dream of the State of Israel. 

The future is 

in your hands. 

Meet Rachel Mirsky from White Plains, New York. A 

biology major on a pre-med track, and captain of the YU 

softball and basketball teams, Rachel chose YU to allow her 

to explore and develop her unique talents and interests. 

Rachel loves YU because it enables her to engage in her 

extracurricular passions and prepare for her career 

while remaining true to her religious commitments. An 

exceptional athlete, Rachel was recently named to the 

Capital One Academic All-District team. Whether in an 

Israeli laboratory conducting research on the properties 

of red blood cells, or authoring a medical ethics paper on 

eating disorders and the Biblical matriarchs, Rachel can 

find the perfect balance at YU. This is the essence of Torah 

Umadda and what sets YU apart. 




61 


Three Days before Aliyah 

From the time of Avraham 

Avinu, the act of moving to 

Eretz Yisrael has been one 

that is fraught with challenges. 

An important perspective on the 

challenges involved comes from the 

eighth chapter of Sefer Ezra, in which 

Ezra prepares to bring a large group of 

exiles from Bavel back to Eretz Yisrael. 

ואקבצם אל הנהר הבא אל אהוא ונחנה שם 

ימים שלשה ואבינה בעם ובכהנים ומבני לוי 

לא מצאתי שם.‏ 

עזרא ח:‏ טו 

I assembled them at the flowing river, at 

the Ahava, and we encamped there three 

days, and I scrutinized the people and 

the kohanim, but I could find no Levites 

there. 

Ezra 8: 15 

Ezra was concerned that the group 

moving to Eretz Yisrael should also 

include Leviim, and after noticing 

their absence, he recruited two 

families of Leviim to come along with 

him. But before that, Ezra camped on 

the outskirts of Bavel for three days. 

Why did he do so and what can we 

learn from this? 

The Gemara in Eruvin gives one 

explanation for the three-day delay. 

אמר רבי אלעזר הבא מן הדרך אל יתפלל 

שלשה ימים שנאמר ואקבצם אל הנהר הבא 

אל אהוא ונחנה שם ימים שלשה ... 

עירובין ס”ה.‏ 

Rabbi Elazar said: After arriving from 

traveling, one should not pray for three 

days, as it says “And I assembled them at 

the flowing river, at the Ahava...” 

Eruvin 65a 

Rabbi Azriel Rosner 

Rosh Midrasha, Tiferet 

Rashi explains that for the first three 

days after traveling, one’s mind is 

unsettled because of the difficulties of 

the road, and therefore, Rabbi Elazar 

assumes that one does not have the 

kavana (intent) necessary to daven. 

According to this reading, Ezra waited 

three days because he apparently had 

already traveled a while to get to the 

Ahava, and he wanted his mind to be 

clear before doing a full accounting of 

the lineage of his followers. 

This is an important statement 

about the necessity of kavana during 

davening — that it is so central that 

without it, Rabbi Elazar held that one 

should not daven. Nowadays though, 

based on the Rashba in Eruvin, ad 

loc., we assume that we do not have 

adequate kavana in any situation, and 

therefore do not cancel davening after 

a journey. 

A different perspective on the threeday 

break is found in Bereishit Raba on 

Parashat Vayera: 

כתיב יחיינו מיומיים ביום השלישי יקימנו 

ונחיה לפניו.‏ ביום השלישי של שבטים כתיב 

ויאמר אליהם יוסף ביום שלישי.‏ ביום שלישי 

של מתן תורה ויהי ביום השלישי בהיות הבקר.‏ 

ביום השלישי של מרגלים שנאמר ונחבתם 

שמה שלשת ימים.‏ ביום שלישי של יונה ויהי 

יונה במעי הדג שלשה ימים.‏ ביום שלישי של 

עולי גולה ונחנה שם ימים שלשה.‏ 

בראשית רבה.‏ פרשת וירא.‏ פרשה נו 

It is written, After two days He will 

revive us, on the third day He will raise 

us up, that we may live in His presence. 

E.g. on the third day of the tribal 

ancestors: And Joseph said unto them the 

third day: This do, and live; on the third 

day of Revelation: And it came to pass 

on the third day, when it was morning; 

on the third day of the spies: And hide 

yourselves there three days; on the third 

day of Jonah: And Jonah was in the belly 

of the fish three days and three nights; on 

the third day of those returning from the 

Exile: And we abode there three days. 

Bereishit Rabbah Vayera 56 

(Soncino Translation) 

The midrash links together five 

episodes from Tanach that all 

happened after a three-day delay. 

According to the commentators 

on the midrash, the common 

denominator between the various 

events is that G-d would not allow 

tzadikim to suffer for more than three 

days. Therefore, for example, the spies 

who were being chased by the people 

of Yericho only had to hide for three 

days, and Yona only remained in the 

fish’s belly for three days. 

Applying that to Sefer Ezra, the 

midrash is then explaining that the 

three days on the banks of the Ahava 

were days of distress from which G-d 

saved them. It is unclear from the 

verses what that distress was. In his 

62 


commentary on Bereishit Raba, Rav 

Zev Volf Einhorn suggests that the 

distress was their fear of the upcoming 

journey to Eretz Yisrael, and their 

salvation was a promise from G-d that 

they would be safe. 

In a different vein, the Eitz Yosef on 

the midrash writes that the distress of 

Bnei Yisrael on the banks of the Ahava 

was due to the lack of yishuv hadaat 

(tranquility) at this time, which 

rendered them unable to discern 

the absence of Leviim among them. 

According to this explanation, the 

salvation was the return of their yishuv 

hadaat after three days had passed. 

But perhaps we can suggest another 

meaning for these three days, based 

on the paradigm of Matan Torah. In 

Sefer Shmot, when Hakadosh Baruch 

Hu tells Moshe about the upcoming 

event on Har Sinai, it is clear from the 

psukim that the three days preceding 

Matan Torah are to be seen primarily 

as days of preparation for that aweinspiring 

religious event. 

לך אל העם וקדשתם היום ומחר וכבסו 

שמלתם.‏ והיו נכנים ליום השלישי כי ביום 

השלשי ירד ה’‏ לעיני כל העם על הר סיני.‏ 

שמות יט:‏ י – יא 

Go to the people and sanctify them today 

and tomorrow and they shall wash their 

clothes. Let them be prepared for the 

third day, because on the third day G-d 

will descend in the sight of the entire 

people on Har Sinai. 

Shmot 19: 10 – 11 

Similarly, at the beginning of 

Sefer Yehoshua, Bnei Yisrael are 

commanded to prepare for three days 

before they cross the Yarden. 

הכינו לכם צדה כי בעוד שלשת ימים אתם 

עברים את הירדן הזה לבוא לרשת את הארץ 

אשר ה’‏ א-לקיכם נתן לכם לרשתה.‏ 

יהושע א:‏ יא 

Prepare provisions for yourselves 

because in another three days, you will 

be crossing this Yarden to come to take 

possession of the land that G-d is giving 

you to inherit. 

Yehoshua 1: 11 

Three days can be interpreted as a 

standard time for preparation for a 

monumental religious event — in 

the above cases, Matan Torah and 

the crossing of the Yarden into Eretz 

Yisrael. Perhaps similarly, the three 

days of encampment in Bavel had an 

additional level of significance. Ezra 

had his followers wait for three days 

because the journey to Eretz Yisrael 

was so important that a preparatory 

period was in order. 

But if so, then Ezra is making an 

essential but subtle statement. The 

three days mandated here do not 

directly precede the entry into 

Eretz Yisrael as in Sefer Yehoshua. 

Instead, the Jews in the time of Ezra 

waited three days before they even 

began their journey. This would 

indicate that Ezra did not just view 

living in Eretz Yisrael as an act of 

religious significance; the journey 

from Bavel toward Eretz Yisrael was 

itself meaningful. The travel back to 

Eretz Yisrael was not just a means 

to an end, a way to get back to living 

in Eretz Yisrael — the journey was 

momentous in and of itself. 

This concept of the religious 

significance of the journey can be 

confirmed by the continuation of the 

perek, which explains why Ezra was 

especially nervous at this time: 

כי בשתי לשאול מן המלך חיל ופרשים לעזרנו 

מאויב בדרך כי אמרנו למלך לאמר יד אלקינו 

על כל מבקשיו לטובה ועזו ואפו על כל עזביו.‏ 

עזרא ח:‏ כב 

For I was embarrassed to request troops 

and horsemen of the king to assist us 

against an adversary along the way, since 

we had told the king that the hand of 

G-d is benevolent for all who seek Him, 

and His might and anger befall all who 

forsake Him. 

Ezra 8: 22 

The Malbim writes that “even though 

it is not proper to rely on a miracle … 

and they should have requested an 

army escort from the king, they were 

unable to do so since they had already 

said that they are accompanied by the 

providence of G-d in a miraculous 

way.” Ezra had already told the Persian 

king that this journey would be safe, 

protected by G-d, and therefore Ezra 

could not afterward make a request 

that would contradict his claim. 

Again, we see that the success of the 

journey back to Eretz Yisrael was 

not just a practical matter, not just a 

means to an end. It would prove to the 

Persian king — and to themselves — 

that Ezra’s claim of G-d’s watchfulness 

over their mission was indeed correct. 

Their safe arrival would be a statement 

that the return to Eretz Yisrael during 

this time period was indeed being 

guided and assisted by G-d. 

In our time, too, we should view the 

preparation for aliyah in the same way. 

Not only is living in Eretz Yisrael an 

important religious act, but even the 

preparations, even the travel, have 

tremendous significance. Ezra’s three 

days of solemn preparation teach us 

that every step we take in the right 

direction, every step we take back to 

Eretz Yisrael, is itself an independent 

mitzvah. 

63 


What’s So Important 

About Eretz Yisrael?! 

People often ask why religious 

Zionism and/or Rav Kook 

make such a “big deal” about 

Eretz Yisrael? We’ll answer concisely: 

1. Just as the Chafetz Chaim explains 

why he dedicated a significant part of 

his life to revive the neglected mitzvah 

of lashon harah, for a meit mitzvah 

(neglected corpse) supersedes other 

mitzvot because nobody else can do it, 

so too a forgotten mitzvah that others 

aren’t fulfilling should take priority. 1 

For 2,000 years aliya wasn’t practical 

and accordingly, was not on the 

agenda for many observant Jews. 

2. Chazal declare indisputably that 

“Living in Eretz Yisrael is equated 

with all of the other mitzvot 

combined!” 2 This clear Tannaic oral 

tradition from the Sifre, the Tannaitic 

midrash halacha, is explicitly referring 

to all periods, even when there is no 

Beit HaMikdash. 3 As such, the issue 

of whether living in Eretz Yisrael 

is officially counted as one of the 

613 mitzvot (Bamidbar 33, 53) or 

whether it is included in another 

mitzvah, or if its importance stems 

from its kedusha, 4 is academic. 5 This 

uniquely places aliya in the category 

of “super” actions, like Talmud Torah 

and Shabbat. 6 It is superior to most 

other mitzvot, and there are many 

ramifications to her unique halachic 

status. 7 How much more so should we 

publicize this issue, when there is an 

opportunity to increase observance of 

this super-mitzvah. 

Rabbi Ari Shvat 

Faculty, Midreshet Lindenbaum 

Faculty Michlelet Orot Israel College 

Director, Rav Kook’s archives in Beit HaRav 

3. The Rambam writes about the 

obligation to live in a Jewish State. 8 

Indeed, everyone is influenced by 

his environment, and therefore must 

decide by who he is going to be 

influenced by — Jews, Judaism, her 

values and culture — or by gentiles. 

There is no doubt that religiously, 

Israel today is the Torah center of 

the world — whatever gauge you 

use — whether it is quality (the 

caliber of communities that provide 

a Torah environment) or quantity 

(the number of religious Jews living in 

Israel). 

4. Rav Ya’akov Moshe Charlap, 

predecessor of Rav Shlomo Zalman 

Auerbach as rav of Sha’arei Chessed 

in Y’rushalayim, recalls the tradition 

that every historical period has its 

special mitzva. We can identify it by 

what the gentiles try to prevent us 

from fulfilling (e.g. in certain periods 

they prohibited teaching Torah, 

circumcision, kiddush hachodesh), 

for they’re “sent” to help us focus 

on what is “The” mitzvah of our 

generation. 9 Today, even in Russia or 

Iran, there is freedom of religion and 

no persecution against teaching Torah 

or laying tefillin. The only mitzvah 

that they and many nations (even the 

U.N.) wish to deny us today is the 

return of the nation of Israel to resettle 

Eretz Yisrael and Y’rushalayim. 

Accordingly, in our historic period 

of kibbutz galuyot (ingathering of 

the exiles), Israel is “The Mitzva” of 

our generation and requires special 

attention. 10 

The question remains: “Why” is 

this mitzvah equal to all the others 

combined, and “why” does the Holy 

Land’s revival and kibbutz galuyot 

begin the redemption? 11 

A. The Torah T’mima likens aliya to 

learning Torah, that both are equated 

with the rest of the mitzvot because 

they enable you to perform additional 

mitzvot. 12 Just as Torah knowledge 

facilitates observing the other mitzvot, 

similarly living in Israel significantly 

increases the quantity of mitzvot one 

can observe, whether agricultural, 

national (e.g. serving in the army, 

speaking Hebrew); going to work is a 

mitzvah, and surprisingly even “every 

moment and second that you are in 

Eretz Yisrael one fulfills this mitzvah 

(of settling the Land)”. 13 Additionally, 

64 


the many interactions with each 

and every person in the street, any 

operator on the phone, and everyone 

waiting in line at the bank provide 

opportunities to connect us with 

other Jews. These interactions often 

take on religious significance as we 

fulfill many interpersonal mitzvot or 

share Torah thoughts. 14 Even my 

all-too-high taxes in Israel fulfill the 

mitzvah of tzedakah, paying for the 

medical, educational, health, security, 

religious, social, and economic needs 

of our fellow Jews. 15 

B. Chazal explain that in addition to 

the greater quantity of mitzvot here, 

their quality is also much greater, for 

the Torah and mitzvot were given to 

be observed in Israel. 16 As is often 

the case, the rabbis here are not 

innovating but rather embellishing 

explicit verses: 

ראה למדתי אתכם חוקים ומשפטים...‏ 

לעשות כן בקרב הארץ אשר אתם באים שמה 

לרשתה.‏ 

Behold, I have taught you 

commandments ...to do in the Land 

where you are going to possess. 17 

The Chafetz Chaim figures that the 

very same mitzvah when done in 

Israel brings 2,000 percent more 

reward. 18 

C. The Chatam Sofer extols living in 

Israel not only because of the mitzva, 

but because here we are living in 

kedusha (holiness). 19 It is clear from 

the Torah that living in Eretz Yisrael 

provides holiness in all aspects of life. 

Not only are your neighbors holy 

(Yisrael goy kadosh), but your language 

(lashon hakodesh), army (tziv’ot 

Hashem), 20 coin (shekel hakodesh), and 

even fruit, mud and rocks 21 should be 

holy as well. Similarly the Vilna Gaon 

says that only regarding two mitzvot 

is a Jew 100 percent totally immersed: 

Sukka and living in Eretz Yisrael. 22 

D. The Rivash 23 explains that the 

superior halachic status of settling in 

Israel 24 is because it is not a short-term 

mitzvah for the individual (e.g. I shake 

a lulav and then put it down), but 

rather an eternal and national mitzvah 

for all of Israel in your generation and 

for all future generations. When we 

chose to move our family tree to its 

final destination, it’s one of the few 

resolutions in life where our decision 

has everlasting ramifications, even 

5,000 years from now. When we 

decided to settle in the Shomron and 

serve in Tzahal, we are helping define, 

enlarge, and defend the borders of 

Israel, not as individuals, but for all 

Am Yisrael, both present and future. 

This adds special significance today. 

E. Growing up in America, Judaism 

was my religion, but in Israel my 

Judaism has doubled, for it’s also my 

nationality, giving significance to 

the mundane and harmonizing the 

fragmented. 

May I warmly suggest seriously 

considering what I think most olim 

regard as the most significant and 

greatest decision of their lives. Not 

only for religious, but for national, 

historic, and more spiritual priorities 

as well, come benefit and contribute 

and be part of the future of Am 

Yisrael. 

It’s time to come home. 

Notes 

1. Shmirat HaLashon, Epilogue, ch. 3, 

cites the Sefer Charedim, but it may be a 

typographical error for the idea is found 400 

years beforehand in Sefer Chasidim, 105, and 

beforehand in Midrash Tanchuma, Shmot 16. 

2. Sifre on Dvarim 12 and Tosefta Av.Z. 5,2, 

cited by the Pitchei Tshuva Ev.H. 75,6. 

3. The narrative of the Sifre occurred about 

60 years after the destruction of the Beit 

Hamikdash and nevertheless ends off with 

those Tannaim turning around and returning 

to Eretz Yisrael. Similarly, the Tosefta, ibid, 

demonstrates that aliya is equal to the other 

mitzvot combined even during galut, when 

one must live there among gentile idolaters. 

How much more so today, when Israel is the 

world Torah center. 

4. As the Chatam Sofer explains in the 

Rambam, see note 19. 

5. The Vilna Gaon, Ma’alot Hatora, Jerusalem 

5751, p. 66, says that there are more than 2,000 

mitzvot d’oraita, and there is no significance 

whether a mitzvah is officially listed as “one of 

the 613” or not. The Rambam’s statement, Hil. 

M’lachim 5, 12, “A person should always live in 

the Land of Israel,” clarifies any doubt that the 

Rambam may be minimizing the importance 

of aliya, see A. Shvat, “Frequent Questions 

about Mitzvat Yishuv Eretz Yisrael,” http:// 

www.yeshiva.co/midrash/shiur.asp?id=20085 

that various Achronim suggest six possibilities 

under which mitzvah the Rambam may count 

it. 

6. Also equated with the rest of the mitzvot 

combined, Peah 1, 1, Y’rushalmi Brachot 1, 1 

respectively, as are avodah zara- Horayot 8a, 

milah- N’darim 32a, tzitzit- N’darim 25a, and 

tzedaka- Baba Batra 9a. 

7. See Rivash, note 23, e.g., Gittin 8b and 

Rambam, Shabbat 6, 11, that only for yishuv 

Eretz Yisrael is one allowed to ask a gentile to 

do a m’lacha d’oraita on Shabbat; Shulchan 

Aruch, Even HaEzer 75, 3, one of the few cases 

where a woman can force a get is if her spouse 

doesn’t want to make aliya; ibid and Tosefta 

(above note 2), one should surprisingly 

prefer to live among gentile idolaters in Israel 

rather than among religious Jews outside of 

Israel; Resp. Mishpat Kohen 327 citing Minchat 

Chinuch, 425, the only mitzvah where one 

charges a cannon and doesn’t try to avoid 

giving his life is to conquer Eretz Yisrael. See 

A. Shvat, “Defining the Excuse of Parnassa 

(Livelihood) to Exempt from Aliya,” Tchumin 

22, pp. 355-368, that the Achronim agree that 

accordingly, aliya is not bound by Takanat 

Usha, which limits the expense to fulfill 

mitzvot to 10 percent of your possessions, 

Y’rushalmi Peah 1, 1. 

8. Ma’amar Kiddush Hashem, Igrot 

HaRambam, Jerusalem 5741, p. 64. See also 

R. Chasdai ibn Shiprut, cited in introduction 

to Kuzari, Vilna 5665, p. 3, who wants to 

ascertain the rumor that the Kazars have a 

65 


Jewish State, for if so, all Jews should move there. Theoretically, this 

may also apply to a Jewish State in Uganda, but Baruch Hashem, 

the only Jewish State today is in Israel, so we don’t have to choose 

between the Jewish Land and the Jewish State. 

9. R. Sh. N. Barazofsky (the Slonimer Rebbe), Netivot Shalom, 

Shmot p. 152. See next footnote. 

10. R. Y. M. Charlap, Mimaynei HaY’shua, p.196. 

11. Megilla 17a, explains that the order of the brachot of Shmoneh- 

Esreh, from the ninth bracha on, were arranged according to the 

process of ge’ula, first the revival of the Land (Barech Aleinu), than 

the exile ingathering (T’ka b’Shofar). 

12. Torah Temima, Dvarim 12, 114. 

13. Sefer HaCharedim, ch. 59. 

14. It should be noted that this is the answer to the oft-asked 

question, why the moral obligations in the Torah are directed 

toward Jews alone. The reason is that the natural situation to which 

the Torah is addressed is to Jews, living among Jews, in the Jewish 

State, in the Jewish Land. Similarly, the directions of the world 

as found in the Torah, ימה,‏ קדמה,‏ צפונה ונגבה (Breishit 28, 14) are 

only logical when read in Eretz Yisrael where the sea ‏(ימה)‏ is in the 

west, and the desert or Yemen נגבה)‏ or sometimes ‏(תימנה are in the 

south. Even in Egypt, where the Mediterranean Sea is in the north, 

a western wind is still referred to as ים“‏ ‏”רוח (Rashi Shmot 10, 19), 

because the reader is meant to be located in Israel. So too, the term 

“the other side of the Jordan,” refers to the east bank, even עבר הירדן,‏ 

when the speaker in the Tanach is located on the east bank (e.g. 

Dvarim 1, 1-5; 3, 8), because the reader is meant to be in Israel, 

on the west bank. For more examples see A. Shvat, “Everyone 

Serves in the Obligatory Wars - On the Conflict Between Loyalty 

to Family and to Israel,” Minchat Sapir- In Honor of Dr. Yitzchak 

Sapir, pp. 633-653. 

15. Resp. Tzitz Eliezer IX, 1,5,(2). 

16. Sifre, Rashi, Ramban, and R. B’chaye on Dvarim 11, 18. It 

should be stressed that this idea is often mistakenly attributed to 

the Ramban, while the true source, as mentioned above, is in the 

Torah itself, and in the Oral Law of Chazal, in the Midrash Halacha 

(Sifre). See also the Netziv, Ha’amek Davar, Shmot 20:12, that even 

non-agricultural related mitzvot, e.g. honoring one’s parents, are 

especially unique when practiced in Israel. 

17. Dvarim 4, 5. See similarly Dvarim 4, 14; 5, 28; 6, 1. 

18. L’Ntivot Yisrael, p.202. 

19. Resp. Chatam Sofer II, Y.D. 234. 

20. Shmot 12,41, Shmuel I 10, 17 and 26. 

21. Rambam, Hil. Milachim 5, 10, the generally rational Rambam, 

uncharacteristically cites in his halachic Mishneh Torah, that the 

greatest sages would kiss her borders and her rocks, and roll in her 

dust, based upon Tehilim 102, 15 and Ktuvot 112b. 

22. Cited in Kol HaTor, Jerusalem 5730, p. 470. Mikveh isn’t 

mentioned because purification is only upon leaving the mikveh. 

23. Resp. Rivash, 101. 

24. See note 7. 

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Yeshiva University’s Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education and Administration offers degree programs for 

those entering the field and those seeking to advance their learning, position, or leadership in Jewish education. 

Master’s Programs for prospective and current Jewish educators: 

• One-Year Intensive Program is ideal for those able to commit full-time to coursework and student 

teaching. Significant scholarships and fellowships available. 

• Evening Program provides working educators with evening classes and allows student teaching 

in employment positions. 

• Fully On-line Program offers access to Azrieli’s renowned faculty and degree from anywhere in the world. 

Coursework is at the student’s pace and student teaching at student’s location. 

• NEW—Master’s level on-line courses available to all Jewish educators, including non-matriculated students. 

Doctoral Programs for prospective and current leaders in Jewish education: 

• Executive Model EdD Program trains developing leaders in the field who attend five residencies annually and 

complete additional coursework and dissertation studies on-line. 

• PhD in Jewish Education creates the future generation of researchers and policy makers in full-time, 

New York based program with coursework and research apprenticeships. 

Generous scholarships are available for all programs. 

Applications are currently being accepted. 

For an application or more information, 

Call 212.960.0186 or visit www.yu.edu/azrieli 

2016_8.375x10.875_AzrieliAdv.indd 1 

2/16/16 11:50 AM 

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Shavuos 

SPEND 

WITH YESHIVA 

2016 • 5776 

at our annual 

RIETS Yarchei Kallah 

With our President, 

Roshei Yeshiva, Rebbeim 

& Faculty 

President 

Richard M. Joel 

Rabbi 

menachem penner 

Rabbi 

elchanan adler 

Rabbi 

yosef bronstein 

Rabbi 

michael Rosensweig 

Rabbi 

HERSHEL SCHACHTER 

Rabbi 

moshe tzvi weinberg 

Rabbi 

netanel wiederblank 

Rabbi 

JOSH joseph 

dr. 

Julie joseph 

MRS.. 

michal horowitz 

Rabbi 

DR. DANIEL LERNER 

Dr. 

DAVID pelcovitz 

MRs. 

Nechama price 

mrs. 

rabbi 

smadar Rosensweig dani zuckerman 

June 10-June 13 | Westchester Hilton, Rye Brook, NY 

with Elegant Dining, Tea Room & Kiddush 

Families Welcome! 

Day Camp and Babysitting | Excellent Teen Program 

Programming for Singles WITH YUConnects Shadchan 

One-on-One Meetings with 

Roshei Yeshiva, Faculty and President Joel 

Sponsor a shiur or Tikkun Leil Shavuos 

in memory or in honor of a loved one. 

To learn more about this opportunity, 

call 212-960-0852 or email paul.glasser@yu.edU 

For information, rates and registration: 

regonline.com/shavuos | shavuosyk@yu.edu | 646.592.4021 

68 


We thank the following synagogues and schools for partnering with Yeshiva University to 

help distribute printed copies of the Benjamin and Rose Berger Torah To-Go® series. 

If you would like to begin receiving printed copies please contact shur@yu.edu 

Adas Israel 

Hamilton, ON 

Adas Torah 


Adath Israel Cong. 

San Francisco, CA 

Adath Israel Poale Zedek 

Hampstead, QC 

Agudath Shalom 

Stamford, CT 

Ahavas Israel 

Passaic, NJ 

Ahavas Torah: The Scottsdale 

Torah Center 

Scottsdale, AZ 

Ahavas Yisrael of Edison 

Edison, NJ 

Ahavas Yisroel 

Flushing, NY 

Ahavat Achim Orthodox 

Cong. of Fair Lawn 

Fair Lawn, NJ 

Anshe Sholom B’nai Israel 

Chicago, IL 

Anshei Chesed Cong. 

Boynton Beach, FL 

Avenue N Sephardic Cong. 

Brooklyn, NY 

Ayin L’Tzion 

Thornhill, ON 

BACH Jewish Center 

Long Beach, NY 

Bais Abraham 

St Louis, MO 

Bais Hamedrash Oneg 

Shabbos 

Montréal, QC 

Baron Hirsch Synagogue 

Memphis, TN 

Bais Chaim Dovid 

Lincolnwood, IL 

Beis Medrash of Harborview 

Lawrence, NY 

Beis Midrash of Bergenfield 

Bergenfield, NJ 

Beis Midrash of Woodmere 

Woodmere, NY 

Beis Yosef D’ulem 

Flushing, NY 

Beit Chaverim Synagogue 

Westport, CT 

Beit David Highland Lakes 

Synagogue 

Aventura, FL 

Beit Knesset Emek Refaim 

Jerusalem , Israel 

Beit Kneset Mercazi 

Yad Binyamin, Israel 

Beit Knesset Feigenson 

Beit Shemesh, Israel 

Beit Knesset Mitzpeh Ramot 


Beit Knesset of North 

Woodmere 

North Woodmere, NY 

Beit Midrash Kol BeRamah 

Santa Fe, NM 

Bet Kneset Shimon Hatzadik 

Jerusalem, Israel 

Bet Knesset Emek Refaim 


Bet Knesset Hanassi 


Bet Midrash Torani Leumi 

Bet Shemesh , Israel 

Beth Avraham Yoseph Of 

Toronto Cong. 

Thornhill, ON 

Beth David Synagogue 

West Hartford, CT 

Beth David Synagogue 

Binghamton, NY 

Beth Hamidrash Cong. 

Vancouver, BC 

Beth Israel Synagogue 

Omaha, NE 

Beth Israel Synagogue 

Edmonton, AB 

Beth Jacob Cong. Of 

Kitchener-Waterloo 

Kitchener, ON 

Beth Jacob Cong. 

Atlanta, GA 


Irvine, CA 


Oakland, CA 


Beverly Hills, CA 

Beth Joseph Cong. 

Phoenix, AZ 

Beth Ora 

St. Laurent, QC 

Beth Shalom 

Rochester, NY 

Beth Shalom Congregation 

Scranton, PA 

Beth Tikva 

Dollard Des Ormeaux, QC 

Beth Zion Cong. 

Cote-St-Luc, QC 

Bikur Cholim Machzikay 

Hadath 

Seattle, WA 

Blake Street Hebrew Cong. 

Melbourne, Australia 

B’nai David-Judea Cong. 


Bnai Torah 

Toronto, ON 

Boca Raton Synagogue 

Boca Raton, FL 

Boca Raton Synagogue West 


Calabassas Shul 

Calabasas, CA 

Center for Jewish Life 

Princeton, NJ 

Chabad of Richmond 

Richmod, VA 

Chabad Of Richmond 

Richmond, BC 

Clanton Park Synagogue 

Toronto, ON 

Community Synagogue of 

Monsey 

Monsey, NY 

Cong. AABJ&D 


Cong. Adas Israel 

Passaic , NJ 

Cong. Adat Yeshurun 

La Jolla, CA 

Cong. Adas Yeshurun 

Chicago, IL 

Cong. Adath Israel 

Elizabeth, NJ 

Cong. Adereth El 

New York, NY 

Cong. Agudath Achim 

Bradley Beach, NJ 

Cong. Ahavas Achim 


Cong. Ahavat Achim 

Portland, OR 

Cong. Ahavat Shalom 

Teaneck, NJ 

Cong. Ahavath Torah 

Englewood, NJ 

Cong. Aitz Chaim 

West Palm Beach, FL 

Cong. Anshe Sfard Kehillat 

Torah 

Glendale, WI 

Cong. Anshei Chesed 

Woodmere, NY 

Cong. Bais Efraim Yitzchok 

Woodmere, NY 

Cong. Bais Torah 

Suffern, NY 

Cong. Beit Tikvah 

Nepean, ON 

Cong. Beth Aaron 

Teaneck, NJ 

Cong. Beth Abraham 

Bergenfield, NJ 

Cong. Beth Abraham-Jacob 

Albany, NY 

Cong. Beth El Atereth Israel 

Newton, MA 

Cong. Beth Hamedrosh 

Wynnewood, PA 

Cong. Beth Israel 

Berkeley, CA 

Cong. Beth Israel 

Metairie, LA 

Cong. Beth Sholom 

Lawrence, NY 

Cong. Beth Sholom 

Providence, RI 

Cong. Beth Yitzchok 

Chicago, IL 

Cong. BIAV 

Overland Park, KS 

Cong. Bnai Brith Jacob 

Savannah, GA 

Cong. Bnai Israel 

Brooklyn, NY 

Cong. B’nai Torah 

Springfield, MA 

Cong. Brothers of Israel 

Long Branch, NJ 

Cong. Darchei Noam 

Fair Lawn, NJ 

Cong. Dor Tikvah 

Charleston , SC 

Cong. Eitz Chaim 

Flushing, NY 

Cong. Emek Beracha 

Palo Alto, CA 

Cong. Ezras Israel 

Chicago, IL 

Cong. Israel of Springfield 

Springfield, NJ 

Cong. Kadimah-Toras Moshe 

Brighton, MA 

Cong. KBY 

Suffern, NY 

Cong. Kehillath Jacob Beth 

Samuel 

Peterson Park, IL 

Cong. Kehilath Jeshurun 

New York, NY 

Cong. Keter Torah 

Teaneck, NJ 

Cong. K.I.N.S. 

Chicago, IL 

Cong. Kol Israel Brooklyn, NY 

Cong. Machzikei Hadas 

Ottawa, ON 

Cong. Magen David of West 

Deal 

Ocean, NJ 

Cong. Mogen David 


Cong. Ohab Zedek 

New York, NY 

Cong. Ohav Emeth 


Cong. Ohav Sholom 

Merrick, NY 

Cong. Ohr Hatorah 

Phoenix, AZ 

Cong. Ohr Saadya 

Teaneck, NJ 

Cong. Ohr Torah 


Cong. Or Torah 

Skokie, IL 

Cong. Rinat Yisrael 

Teaneck, NJ 

Cong. Rodfei Sholom 

San Antonio, TX 

Cong. Schomre Israel 

Poughkeepsie, NY 

Cong. Shaar Hashomayim 

Westmount, QC 

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Cong. Shaaray Tefila 

Lawrence, NY 

Fifth Avenue Synagogue 

New York, NY 

Kemp Mill Synagogue 

Silver Spring, MD 

New Toco Shul 

Atlanta, GA 

Shalhevet High School 


Cong. Shaare Tefilla 

Dallas, TX 

Cong. Shaare Tzedek 

Englewood, NJ 

Cong. Shaarei Tefillah 

Newton Centre, MA 

Cong. Sha’arei Tzedek 

Mishkan Yair 

Chicago, IL 

Cong. Sha’arei Torah 

Cincinnati, OH 

Cong. Sherith Israel 

Nashville, TN 

Cong. Shevet Achim 

Mercer Island, WA 

Cong. Shomrei Emunah 

Baltimore, MD 

Cong. Shomrei Shabbos 

Far Rockaway, NY 

Cong. Shomrim Laboker 

Montréal, QC 

Cong. Shomrei Torah Fair 

Lawn, NJ 

Cong. Sons of Israel 

Allentown, PA 

Cong. Sons of Israel 

Cherry Hill , NJ 

Cong. Tifereth Beth David 

Jerusalem 

Cote St. Luc, QC 

Cong. Torah Ohr 


Cong. Torat Emet 

Phoenix, AZ 

Cong. Zichron Yisroel 

Thornhill, ON 

Darchei Noam Cong. 

St Louis Park, MN 

DAT Minyan 

Denver, CO 

Daughters of Israel 


Darchei Noam of Glenbrook 

Northbrook, IL 

DRS High School for Boys 

Woodmere, NY 

EDOS 

Denver, CO 

Eitz Chayim of Dogwood Park 


Elmora Hills Minyan 

Union, NJ 

Eretz Chemda 

Katamon, Israel 

Etz Chaim 


Ezra Bessaroth 

Seattle , WA 

Fleetwood Synagogue 

Mount Vernon, NY 

Forest Hill Jewish Centre 

Toronto, ON 

Golf Manor Synagogue 

Cincinnati, OH 

Great Neck Synagogue 

Great Neck, NY 

Green Road Synagogue 

Beachwood, OH 

HAFTR 

Lawrence, NY 

Hebrew Institute of Riverdale 

- The Bayit 

Bronx, NY 

Hebrew Institute of White 

Plains 

White Plains, NY 

Heichal Shiloh 

Rosh Ha’Ayin, Israel 

Heichal Shlomo 


Herzlia - Adas Yeshurun 

Winnipeg, MB 

Hildesheimer Shul 


Hillel at Brandeis 

Waltham, MA 

Hoshen Modiin 

Modiin , Israel 

The Jewish Educational Center 

Elizabeth, NJ 

JLI - The Johns Hopkins 

University 

Baltimore, MD 

JLIC at Queens College Hillel 

Queens, NY 

Joint Distibution Committee 


Kehilat Zichron Yosef 


Kehillas Bais Yehudah Tzvi 

Cedarhurst, NY 

Kehillat Ahavat Tzion 

Ramat Beit Shemesh, Israel 

Kehilat Chovevei Tzion 

Skokie, IL 

Kehillat New Hemsptead 

Spring Valley, NY 

Kehillat Ohel Ephraim 

Ariel, Israel 

Kehillat Shaareei Torah Of 

Toronto 

Toronto, ON 

Kehillat Shaarei Yonah 

Menachem 


Kenesseth Israel Cong. 

St Louis Park, MN 

Kesher Israel Cong. 

Harrisburg, PA 

Kesher Israel 

Washington, DC 

Kew Gardens Synagogue 

Kew Gardens, NY 

Kingsway Jewish Center 

Brooklyn, NY 

Knesset Beth Israel 

Richmond, VA 

Knesseth Israel Cong. 

Birmingham, AL 

Kohelet Yeshiva High School 

Bala Cynwyd, PA 

Koschitzky Minyan 

North York, ON 

KSY 


Lechu Neranana 

Ra’anana, Israel 

Lido Beach Synagogue 

Lido Beach, NY 

Lincoln Square Synagogue 

New York, NY 

Lower Merion Synagogue 

Bala Cynwyd, PA 

Ma’ayanot Yeshiva High 

School 

Teaneck, NJ 

Magen David Sephardic 

Wykagyl, NY 

Margolin Hebrew Academy 

Memphis, TN 

Marlee Shul 

Toronto, ON 

Meitar Merkazi 

Be’er Sheva, Israel 

Menorat Hamaor 

Ramat Beit Shemesh, Israel 

Merkaz Modiin 


Mishkan Shilo 

Beit Shemesh , Israel 

Mizrachi Bayit 

Toronto, ON 

MJE 

New York, NY 

Moledet 


Moriah Shul 


Moses Montefiore Anshe 

Emunah 

Baltimore, MD 

Ner Tamid Cong. 

Baltimore, MD 

North Shore University 

Hospital 

Manhasset, NY 

Nusach Hari Bnai Zion 

St Louis, MO 

NY Hospital - Queens 

Flushing, NY 

Ohab Zedek 

Belle Harbor, NY 

Oheb Zedek Cedar Sinai 

Synagogue 

Lyndhurst, OH 

Ohev Sholom Cong. 

Williamsport, PA 

Ohr Shalom 

Bet Shemesh , Israel 

Or Chaim 

Toronto, ON 

Orot Hacarmel 

San Diego, CA 

Orthodox Union 

New York, NY 

Petah Tikva 

Toronto, ON 

Queens Jewish Center 

Forest Hills, NY 

Rambam Mesivta 

Lawrence, NY 

Rambam Shul 


Riverdale Jewish Center 

Riverdale, NY 

SAR High School 

Riverdale, NY 

SCY High 

San Diego, CA 

Sephardic Bikur Holim 

Seattle, WA 

Sephardic Institute Synagogue 

Brooklyn, NY 

Sephardic Kehila Centre 

Synagogue 

Thornhill, ON 

Shaare Zedek Cong. 

Winnipeg, MB 

Shaarei Shomayim Cong. 

Toronto, ON 

Shaarei Tefilla 

Las Vegas, NV 

Shaarei Tefillah Cong. 

Toronto, ON 

Shaarei Torah Orthodox Cong. 

of Syracuse 

Dewitt, NY 

Shaarey Yerushalayim 

Valley Village, CA 

Shaarey Zedek 

Valley Village, CA 

Shivtei Yisrael 


Shomrai Shabbos 

Toronto, ON 

SKA High School for Girls 

Hewlett Bay Park, NY 

South Fallsburg Hebrew 

Association 

South Fallsburg, NY 

Spanish & Portuguese 

Synagogue Of Montreal 

Montréal, QC 

Suburban Orthodox 

Synagogue Toras Chaim 

Baltimore, MD 

Synagogue of the Suburban 

Torah Center 

Livingston, NJ 

The Beachwood Kehillah 

Beachwood, OH 

The Frisch School 

Paramus, NJ 

The Jewish Center 

New York, NY 

The Jewish Center of Atlantic 

Beach 

Atlantic Beach, NY 

The Jewish Learning Initiative 

On Campus 

Toronto, ON 

The Kipa 


The Roslyn Synagogue 

Roslyn Heights, NY 

The Village Shul 

Toronto, ON 

Thornhill Community Shul 

Thornhill, ON 

Tiferet Israel 

Toronto, ON 

Torat Emet 

Columbus, OH 

Touro Synagogue 

Newport , RI 

Ulpanat Orot 

Downsview, ON 

United Orthodox Synagogues 

Houston, TX 

University of Massachusets 

JLIC Hillel 

Amherst, MA 

University of Pennsylvania 

Hillel 

Philadelphia, PA 

Viewmount 

Toronto, ON 

West Coast Torah Center 


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Westville Synagogue 

New Haven, CT 

Young Israel of Forest Hills 

Forest Hills, NY 

Young Israel of New Hyde Park 

New Hyde Park, NY 

Young Israel of Sharon 

Sharon , MA 

Woodside Synagogue Ahavas Torah 


Young Israel of Fort Lee 

Fort Lee, NJ 

Young Israel of New Rochelle 

New Rochelle, NY 

Young Israel of Skokie 

Skokie, IL 

Yagdil Torah 


Young Israel of Hewlett 

Hewlett, NY 

Young Israel of North Woodmere 

North Woodmere, NY 

Young Israel of Southfield 

Southfield, MI 

Yavneh Academy 

Paramus, NJ 

Young Israel of Hillcrest 

Flushing, NY 

Young Israel of Northridge 

Northridge, CA 

Young Israel of St. Louis 

St Louis, MO 

JLIC at Yale University Hillel 

New Haven, CT 

Young Israel of Holliswood 

Jamaica, NY 

Young Israel of Oak Park 

Oak Park, MI 

Young Israel of Staten Island 

Staten Island, NY 

Yeshiva University Torah Mitzion 

Kollel of Chicago 

Young Israel Of Baychester Traditional 

Synagogue 

Bronx, NY 

Young Israel of Brookline 

Brookline, MA 

Young Israel of Canarsie 

Brooklyn, NY 

Young Israel of Century City 


Young Israel Of Chomedy 

Chomedy, QC 

Young Israel of Deerfield Beach 

Deerfield Beach, FL 

Young Israel of Flatbush 

Brooklyn, NY 

Young Israel of Hollywood-Ft. 

Lauderdale 

Fort Lauderdale, FL 

Young Israel of Houston 

Houston, TX 

Young Israel of Jamaica Estates 

Jamaica, NY 

Young Israel of Lawrence-Cedarhurst 

Cedarhurst, NY 

Young Israel of Long Beach 

Long Beach, NY 

Young Israel of Memphis 

Memphis, TN 

Young Israel Of Montreal 

Montréal, QC 

Young Israel of Neve Aliza 

Karnei Shomron, Israel 

Young Israel of Oceanside 

Oceanside, NY 

Young Israel Of Orange County 

Irvine, CA 

Young Israel Of Ottawa 

Ottawa, ON 

Young Israel Of Passaic-Clifton 

Passaic, NJ 

Young Israel of Plainview 

Plainview, NY 

Young Israel of Queens Valley 

Flushing, NY 

Young Israel of Riverdale 

Bronx, NY 

Young Israel of Scarsdale 

Scarsdale, NY 

Young Israel of Toco Hills 

Atlanta, GA 

Young Israel of West Hartford 

West Hartford, CT 

Young Israel of West Hempstead 


Young Israel of West Rogers Park 

Chicago, IL 

Young Israel Ohab Zedek of North 

Riverdale 

Yonkers, NY 

Young Israel Shomrei Emunah 


YU High School for Girls 

Hollis, NY 

SUMMER 

CLASSES 

In New York City and Online 

REGISTER NOW | Get closer to your degree. 

yu.edu/summer 

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Adler, Dana Adler, Rabbi Yitzchok Adlerstein, AlHaTorah.org, Judy Alkoby, Rabbi Jason Allen, Rabbi Nisson Lippa Alpert, Shiri Alpert, Rabbi William Altshul, Alon Amar, Rabbi Shlomo Amar, Professor Zohar Amar, Joshua Amaru, Claudia Esther Amzallag, Rabbi Hayyim An 

Ansel, Shira Apfel, Rabbi Howard Apfel, Dr. Stuart Apfel, Pamela Apfel, Dr. Maryln Applebaum, Rabbi Yaakov Ariel, Rabbi Yosef Leib Arnest, Various Artists, Dr. Adrienne Asch, Sam Ash, Rabbi Pinchas Ashen, Rabbi Dovid Asher, Dr. Shawn Zelig Aster, Shayna Aster, Abigail A 

Atzmon, Rabbi Kenneth Auman, Rabbi Avrohom Ausband, Professor Nathan Aviezer, Rabbi Shlomo Aviner, Chaim Axelrod, Dr. Harvey Babich, Rabbi Elisha Bacon, Dr. Joshua Bacon, Dean Karen Bacon, Rabbi Asher Balanson, Rabbi Hanan Balk, Rabbi Yehuda Balsam, Ra 

Balsim, Rabbi Moshe Bamberger, Rabbi Natan Bar-Haim, Yonah Bardos, Dalia Barenboim, Rabbi Noah Baron, Dr. Sara Barris, Rabbi Simon Basalely, Rabbi Tzvi Basch, Rabbi Shalom Baum, Dr. Steven Bayme, Rabbi Mordechai Becher, Rabbi Yosef Gavriel Bechhofer, Katie Bec 

ssaf Bednarsh, Cantor Bernard Beer, Yitzchak Editor Beis, Rabbi Binyomin Beiser, Rabbi Eli Belizon, Mrs. Rebecca Belizon, Rabbi Shmuel Belkin, Gurion Prime Minister David Ben, Rabbi Eliyahu Ben-Chaim, Geulah Ben-David, Eitan Ben-David, Rabbi Hanan Benayahu, Rebe 

hnazar, Diana Benmergui, Rabbi Moshe Benovitz, Mr. Ronald Benun, Rabbi Simon Benzaquen, Dr. Michael Berger, Rabbi David Berger, Ari Berger, Rabbi Gedalia Berger, Dovi Bergman, Rabbi Moshe Bergman, Rabbi Ozer Bergman, Rabbi Ari Bergmann, Retter Aliza Berk, Neta 

Dr. Jay R. Berkovitz, Rachel Berley, Cantor Moshe Berlove, Rabbi Todd Berman, Rabbi Etan Moshe Berman, Rabbi Ari Berman, Rabbi Saul Berman, Reuven Berman, Rabbi Dr. Joshua Berman, Rabbi Julius Berman, Sara Bermish, Dr. Moshe Bernstein, Ayelet Bersson, Rabbi Yedi 

, Rabbi Azarya Berzon, Rabbi Chananya Berzon, Rabbi Abraham Besdin, Mrs. Rachel Besser, Rabbi Donny Besser, Rabbi Joseph Beyda, Rabbi Ezra Bick, Rabbi Jack Bieler, Rabbi Richard Bieler, Rabbi Jonathan Bienenfeld, Rabbi Marvin Bienenfeld, Amanda Bier, Rabbi Avi Bi 

abbi Elchanan Bin, Nun Rabbi Yoel Bin, Mrs. Malke Bina, Rabbi Aaron Bina, Rabbi Gidon Binyamin, Pnina Birman, Kaganoff Mrs. Miriam Birnbaum, Rabbi Elichai Bitter, Rabbi Mendel Blachman, Rabbi Josh Blass, Rabbi Yitzchak Blau, Rabbi Binyamin Blau, Rabbi Yonason B 

kah Blau, Rabbi Yosef Blau, Rabbi Benjamin Blech, Rabbi Dr. J. David Bleich, Dr. Judith Bleich, Rabbi Moshe Bleich, Rabbi Michael Bleicher, Professor Gerald J. Blidstein, Rachel Blinick, Rabbi Akiva Block, Mrs. Dena Block, Elli Bloom, Dr. Norman Blumenthal, Chaim Blument 

odoff, Faygie Bomzer, Rabbi Herbert Bomzer, Rabbi Yehuda Dovid Borenstein, Dr. Abba Borowich, Yitzchak Brand, Ms. Miryam Brand, Rabbi Reuven Brand, Rabbi Kenneth Brander, Rabbi Asher Brander, Tehilla Brander, Hilda Brandwein, Rabbi Baruch Dov Braun, Rabbi Shm 

Professor Marshall J. Breger, Rabbi Yitzchak Breitowitz, Rabbi Mendel Breitstein, Edward Breuer, Rabbi Alan Brill, Rabbi Dov Aaron Brisman, Rabbi Shlomo Brody, Dr. Baruch A. Brody, Rabbi David Brofsky, Mrs. Mali Brofsky, Rabbi Avrohom Bromberg, Rabbi Moshe Bromb 

bba Bronspeigel, Rabbi Yosef Bronstein, Rabbi Chaim Brovender, Dr. Jeremy Brown, Rabbi Moshe Brown, Dr. Erica Brown, Rabbi Michael Broyde, Rabbi Eli Brudny, Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald, Rabbi Reuven Buckler, Rabbi Ephraim A. Buckwold, Irving Bunim, Rabbi Ah 

Burack, Fay Burekhovich, Rabbi Steven Burg, Rabbi Mordechai Burg, Robin Burger, Dr. Edward Burns, Esther Burns, Rabbi Menachem Burshtien, Rabbi Yaakov Busel, Rabbi Asher Bush, Rabbi Dr. Nathan Lopes Cardozo, Rabbi Yosef Carmel, Rabbi Shalom Carmy, Rabbi Y 

ush, Rabbi Nachum Chaimowitz, Rabbi Yoni Chambre, Professor Jerome Chanes, Rabbi Zevulun Charlop, Rabbi Yaacov Moshe Charlop, Rabbi Alexander Charlop, Rabbi Yechiel Michel Charlop, Rabbi Leon Charney, Isaac Chavel, Magazine Journal: Chavrusa, Rabbi Yu 

w, Allan Chernikoff, Mrs. Sarah Cheses, Yehuda Chinskey, Nechama Citrin, Rabbi Nachman Cohen, Rabbi Dovid Cohen, Rabbi Shear-Yashuv Cohen, Rabbi Mordechai Cohen, Rabbi Aaron Cohen, Michal Cohen, Rabbi Zev Cohen, Rabbi Aryeh Cohen, Stuart A. Cohen, Ra 

k Cohen, Rabbi Yehoshua Cohen, Rabbi Chaim Cohen, Rabbi Tanchum Cohen, Rabbi Jonathan Cohen, Ariella Cohen, Rabbi Alfred Cohen, Mrs. Suzanne Cohen, Cohen, Mrs. Shulamith Cohn, Rabbi Menachem Copperman, Rabbi Eytan Coren, Mrs. Miriam Coren, Ron 

rd, Rabbi Ari Cutler, Dr. Gabriel Cwillich, Rabbi Shlomo Cynamon, Dr. Michael Dalezman, Yakov Danishefsky, Rabbi Yaacov Darmoni, Dr. Jonathan Dauber, Rabbi Avishai David, Rabbi Aharon David, Rabbi Chanoch Davidman, Rabbi Michael Davies, Rebbetzin Meira Davis, 

nd Ms. Margy-Ruth Davis, Rabbi Edward Davis, Rabbi Dr Hillel Davis, Mrs. Yocheved Debow, Aryeh Deinstag, Jennifer Deluty, Professor Aaron Demsky, HaTevah Editor Derech, Naftali Derovan, Rabbi Eliyahu Deutsch, Segni Chief Rabbi Riccardo Di, Ariel Diamond, Prof. Ja 

g, Chanie Dinerman, Rabbi Herbert Dobrinsky, Rabbi Mark Dratch, Rabbi Yaacov Drillman, Rabbi Solomon Drillman, Rabbi Yisroel Meir Druck, Rabbi Chaim Druckman, Rabbi Joseph Dweck, Olga Dynina, Rabbi Dovid Ebner, Rabbi Usher Eckstein, Batya Edelman, Chro 

Shema Koleinu Editor, K’tones Yosef Editor, Rabbi Etan Ehrenfeld, Yaakov Ehrenkrantz, Rabbi Yisroel Ehrlich, Rabbi Ally Ehrman, Professor Barry Eichler, L’Torah Editor Einayim, Rabbi Shlomo Einhorn, Rabbi Moshe Einstadter, Mrs Atara Eis, Rabbi Chaim Eisen, Mrs. Mi 

an, Rabbi Chaim Eisenstein, Rabbi Benny Eisner, Zev Eleff, Dr. G.E. Elinson, Rabbi Hagay Elitzur, Rav haRoshi Mordechai Eliyahu, Mrs. Adina Ellis, Rabbi Mickey Ellman, Rabbi Gil Elmaleh, Rabbi Ya’akov Elman, Rabbi Yonatan Emmett, Rabbi Zvi Engel, Shayna English, Sa 

, Mrs. Cheryl Epstein, Tamar Epstein, Rabbi Ephraim Epstein, Rabbi Moshe Erlbaum, Rollhaus Sarah Medved, Esty, Bracha Etengoff, Rabbi Uri Etigson, Dr. Immanuel Etkes, Rabbi Yitzchak Etshalom, Special Events, Deborah Farber, Natan Farber, Rabbi Seth Farber, Rabbi Mo 

itz, Rabbi Yehoshua Fass, Jennifer Fathy, Esti Feder, Ari Federgrun, Jessica Feig, Rabbi Aaron Feigenbaum, Mrs. Aviva Feiner, Rabbi Eytan Feiner, Rabbi Moshe Feinstein, Rabbi Reuven Feinstein, Dr. Carl Feit, Rabbi Yaacov Feit, Rabbi Meir Simcha Feldblum, Rabbi Yitzc 

im, Rabbi Shaul Feldman, Rabbi Daniel Z. Feldman, Rabbi Jonathan Feldman, Rebecca Feldman, Dr. Louis Feldman, Dr. Adam Ferziger, Rabbi Chaim Feuerman, Rabbi Rafi Feurstein, Professor Steven Fine, Rabbi Daniel Fine, Rabbi Reuven Fink, Rabbi Mordechai Finkelman, 

nkelman, Rabbi Michael Finkelstein, Rabbi Jason Finkelstein, Rabbi Joel Finkelstein, Eitan Fiorino, Meira Fireman, Aliza Fireman, Bernard J. Firestone, Jesse Fischbein, Rabbi Dovi Fischer, Esther Fischer, Rabbi Chonoch Henoch Fishman, Professor Sylvia Barack Fishman, Secu 

aphna Fishman, Professor David Flatto, Rabbi Tzvi Flaum, Ms. Elana Flaumenhaft, Rabbi Neil Fleischman, Rabbi Yosef Fleischman, Yishai Fleisher, Rabbi Aaron Fleksher, Rabbi Josh Flug, Rabbi David Fohrman, Rabbi Yoni Fox, Daniel Fox, Dr. Steven D. Fraade, Rabbi Neta 

nthal, Ilana Frankiel, Rabbi Ezra Frazer, Esther Frederick, Rabbi Avidan Freedman, Rabbi Lavey Freedman, Rabbi Binny Freedman, Rabbi Zev Freidman, Rabbi Barry Freundel, Daniel Fridman, Frida Fridman, Rabbi Pesachya Fried, Rabbi Yosef Friedenson, Michelle Friedm 

riedman, Rabbi Asher Friedman, Rabbi David Friedman, Rabbi Gavriel Friedman, Dr. Michelle Friedman, Rabbi Mordy Friedman, Dr. Richard Friedman, Sarah Friedman, Josh Friedman, Rabbi Moshe Aharon Friedman, Adam Friedmann, Dr. Michael Frogel, Michael Fruch 

ossi Fuchs, Yechiel Fuchs, Rabbi Ari Fuld, Rabbi Dovid Fuld, Rabbi Meir Fulda, Rabbi Yaakov Furman, Rabbi Milton Furst, Rabbi Mallen Galinsky, Dr. Judah Galinsky, Rabbi Moshe Ganz, Rabbi Naftali Ganzvi, Rabbi Noah Gardenschwartz, Reuven Garret, Tova Gavrilova, 

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