Hello all
Yesterday I had the opportunity to watch a lovely shiur on you tube given by Rabbi Trugman. It was on Devarim, and it seems it combined both parsha and chassidut Parshas Devarim, is the link if you want t read the summary.
I also continued to listen to the mishna shiur.... and this is where the internet is BAD. What I thought was a really wonderful website (which it probably is), it is run by a man that is not so wonderful and based on what I read, and what people have told me, I am not inclined to listen, to share or to speak about it again.
I am sorry for not doing due diligence prior to my posting, or telling others to use it.
I am at this point looking for audio or video shiurim in Mishna that I can learn along with. I have Sefaria, which is a great tool to use to read in both English and Hebrew and allows me to see the commentary on the particular Mishna that I am reading... I also found that YU Torah has Mishna Yomi, and it is fine, but he reads the Mishna and explains it in English.no additional commentary. -- suggestions are requested.
I will keep you informed of todays activities...
Wednesday, August 10, 2016
Monday, August 8, 2016
Learning - Day 1
So I am going to attempt to write what I learned today.
I began with Mishna.
I am using the website Master Torah, I downloaded the audio files of Mishna Brachos and began there.
so the Mishna starts with when do we say shema at night. It is referring to the words from Devarim which we say in Shema ושכבך ובקומך. So since the phrase begins with ושכבך, that is likely why the mishna begins with the evening part too. The definition of the word ושכבך is in question in this.. does it mean when you are sleeping, when you lie down, before you sleep etc.. so we will see what the Mishna says.
The Mishna will also discuss, when we say it, how to say it and under what circumstances. So the Mishna goes on to say you can say it from the time that the Kohanim are able to eat the Teruma. This refers to the evening how do we know, well we know that the Kohen went to the Mikva during the day and would have to wait until the sun went down to go and eat the Terumah. So from there they get the rule that it is said at night. The next question, until when? Well there will be three opinions. 1- Rabbi Eliezer says until the end of the first watch. (divide the night into three), and according to him, the end of the first portion of the night is the last time you can say shema. He likely said that because the first third of the night is when people likely went to sleep. So his interpretation of ושכבך is when you lie down to sleep.
2 - the חכמים say until חצות-- it seems that they take the view that ושכבך is when people go to sleep, but they seem to think people go to sleep a bit later. The other option is that they interpret ושכבך as while you are sleeping (during the hours that you are sleeping)
3- Raban Gamliel says until morning- he takes the opinion that ושכבך is during the time that people are sleeping.
There is the story of the sons of Raban Gamliel, they came home from a party probably after חצות, and they did not say Kriyat Shema. They wanted to know what the חכמים would say in this case. He said to them, if the sun has not risen yet, you can say it. So the question remains, why did the חכמים say until חצות if you can say it all night. The answer goes back to the הקטר חלבים, it is suppose to burn all night, and you can eat it until morning. He said that whenever, the חכמים use the phrase עד חצות it really means until morning. (like all the offerings that are brought they say can be eaten until morning), but why do they say until chatzot? כדי להרחיק אדם מן העבירה. So that you dont miss your opportunity and fall asleep accidentally.
So we talked about beginning and ending evening shema, what about the second part of the verse.. ובקומך, Unlike ושכבך, there is no question as to what this means. All agree it means not when you are standing, but when you wake up. Upon arising from sleep. So when do people get up. Well it says you can begin when it is light outside, when you can tell the difference between the blue and white in your tzitizs, but Rav Eliezer says no that is still to dark, when you can tell the difference between your tzizis and כרתי (green), or other colors., and you must finish by the time the sun rises (a really small window.) Rabi Yehoshua says until the third hour into the day (dividing the day by 12), and what is his rationale? Because it is the way of kings, they would wake up at the end of the first three hours and we are considered sons of kings. If you missed the time, then you wont get credit for saying shema in the morning, but you do not lose out, because you get credit for reading the torah on that day.
I know that was a short class, but I wanted to listen and repeat.. it took about 30 minutes to listen and to take down notes on both pesukim.
some comments I have:
interesting how the mishna (and I think its the first book), begins with Shema. If it is truly the first book, then it provides strength to what we learned at Nishmat regarding Shema. It is is essential, perhaps the essential thing that we need to do as a people.
After the Mishna I continued with the Parsha (devarim)
some questions in devarim from the getgo...
moshe says in pasuk 10: that Gd has multiplied them and they are today as numerous as the stars...but that is not exactly true... you can not count the stars in the sky, and yet just a few weeks ago, we just counted bnei yisroel
here is a nice line from 1:16 in Devarim: וָאֲצַוֶּה֙ אֶת־שֹׁ֣פְטֵיכֶ֔ם בָּעֵ֥ת הַהִ֖וא לֵאמֹ֑ר שָׁמֹ֤עַ בֵּין־אֲחֵיכֶם֙ וּשְׁפַטְתֶּ֣ם צֶ֔דֶק בֵּֽין־אִ֥ישׁ וּבֵין־אָחִ֖יו וּבֵ֥ין גֵּרֽוֹ׃. Why do I like this? Because so far, Moshe can be talking to Bnei Yisroel back then, or it could be Moshe talking to all future generations..in which case, our leaders need to to be just leaders and they need to look at the judgment between man and his brother, or between a foreigner. In the Pasukim that follows it talks only about being fair to one another, it does not talk about Gd, or how to serve Gd.
interesting in pasuk 25, the story of the spies, came back good.... and it was the bnei yisroel who chose to complain, but the first perek ends that Bnei Yisroel will be going into Canaan, but they can not take Esau land. I tried to read several mefarshim on this... for instance why Moshe said that because of the sin of the spies he will not be going into Israel... I have to admit, it was and is still difficult, although I am understanding a bit more as the days go on.
Anyway, this was my day today...
I began with Mishna.
I am using the website Master Torah, I downloaded the audio files of Mishna Brachos and began there.
so the Mishna starts with when do we say shema at night. It is referring to the words from Devarim which we say in Shema ושכבך ובקומך. So since the phrase begins with ושכבך, that is likely why the mishna begins with the evening part too. The definition of the word ושכבך is in question in this.. does it mean when you are sleeping, when you lie down, before you sleep etc.. so we will see what the Mishna says.
The Mishna will also discuss, when we say it, how to say it and under what circumstances. So the Mishna goes on to say you can say it from the time that the Kohanim are able to eat the Teruma. This refers to the evening how do we know, well we know that the Kohen went to the Mikva during the day and would have to wait until the sun went down to go and eat the Terumah. So from there they get the rule that it is said at night. The next question, until when? Well there will be three opinions. 1- Rabbi Eliezer says until the end of the first watch. (divide the night into three), and according to him, the end of the first portion of the night is the last time you can say shema. He likely said that because the first third of the night is when people likely went to sleep. So his interpretation of ושכבך is when you lie down to sleep.
2 - the חכמים say until חצות-- it seems that they take the view that ושכבך is when people go to sleep, but they seem to think people go to sleep a bit later. The other option is that they interpret ושכבך as while you are sleeping (during the hours that you are sleeping)
3- Raban Gamliel says until morning- he takes the opinion that ושכבך is during the time that people are sleeping.
There is the story of the sons of Raban Gamliel, they came home from a party probably after חצות, and they did not say Kriyat Shema. They wanted to know what the חכמים would say in this case. He said to them, if the sun has not risen yet, you can say it. So the question remains, why did the חכמים say until חצות if you can say it all night. The answer goes back to the הקטר חלבים, it is suppose to burn all night, and you can eat it until morning. He said that whenever, the חכמים use the phrase עד חצות it really means until morning. (like all the offerings that are brought they say can be eaten until morning), but why do they say until chatzot? כדי להרחיק אדם מן העבירה. So that you dont miss your opportunity and fall asleep accidentally.
So we talked about beginning and ending evening shema, what about the second part of the verse.. ובקומך, Unlike ושכבך, there is no question as to what this means. All agree it means not when you are standing, but when you wake up. Upon arising from sleep. So when do people get up. Well it says you can begin when it is light outside, when you can tell the difference between the blue and white in your tzitizs, but Rav Eliezer says no that is still to dark, when you can tell the difference between your tzizis and כרתי (green), or other colors., and you must finish by the time the sun rises (a really small window.) Rabi Yehoshua says until the third hour into the day (dividing the day by 12), and what is his rationale? Because it is the way of kings, they would wake up at the end of the first three hours and we are considered sons of kings. If you missed the time, then you wont get credit for saying shema in the morning, but you do not lose out, because you get credit for reading the torah on that day.
I know that was a short class, but I wanted to listen and repeat.. it took about 30 minutes to listen and to take down notes on both pesukim.
some comments I have:
interesting how the mishna (and I think its the first book), begins with Shema. If it is truly the first book, then it provides strength to what we learned at Nishmat regarding Shema. It is is essential, perhaps the essential thing that we need to do as a people.
After the Mishna I continued with the Parsha (devarim)
some questions in devarim from the getgo...
moshe says in pasuk 10: that Gd has multiplied them and they are today as numerous as the stars...but that is not exactly true... you can not count the stars in the sky, and yet just a few weeks ago, we just counted bnei yisroel
here is a nice line from 1:16 in Devarim: וָאֲצַוֶּה֙ אֶת־שֹׁ֣פְטֵיכֶ֔ם בָּעֵ֥ת הַהִ֖וא לֵאמֹ֑ר שָׁמֹ֤עַ בֵּין־אֲחֵיכֶם֙ וּשְׁפַטְתֶּ֣ם צֶ֔דֶק בֵּֽין־אִ֥ישׁ וּבֵין־אָחִ֖יו וּבֵ֥ין גֵּרֽוֹ׃. Why do I like this? Because so far, Moshe can be talking to Bnei Yisroel back then, or it could be Moshe talking to all future generations..in which case, our leaders need to to be just leaders and they need to look at the judgment between man and his brother, or between a foreigner. In the Pasukim that follows it talks only about being fair to one another, it does not talk about Gd, or how to serve Gd.
interesting in pasuk 25, the story of the spies, came back good.... and it was the bnei yisroel who chose to complain, but the first perek ends that Bnei Yisroel will be going into Canaan, but they can not take Esau land. I tried to read several mefarshim on this... for instance why Moshe said that because of the sin of the spies he will not be going into Israel... I have to admit, it was and is still difficult, although I am understanding a bit more as the days go on.
Anyway, this was my day today...
Sunday, August 7, 2016
Devarim and relating to Tisha B'av
Today we had a Yom Iyun at our shul. It was special, it was actually a partnership Yom Iyun of two Lower East Side shuls. The Rabbi from one of the shuls spoke first, about what caused the Churban, and then an expert on Israel, gave a presentation on the song Jerusalem of Gold, and how it was composed. Both presentations were fascinating. The first part presented presented the various texts of our Torah, and provided a unique perspective on how to view the Churban back then as well as now, and the second part was an interpretation of a hebrew secular song(poem), written about Jerusalem, with what seems clear indications that the author used the tanach, and the Torah Shebaal Peh as her basis. What marred what would have been a beautiful day, was the vitriol that I received from other people in my neighborhood about the program, who was part of it and whether or not we can consider the Rabbi an orthodox Rabbi or not. This question always bothered me. What does it mean to be an orthodox Rabbi in the 21st century? Why are there such fights amongst the jewish leadership on this issue. So please excuse my naivete, and my lack of knowledge and understanding of all of halacha, when I try and work through this.
Part of the direction we received at Nishmat was to study the parsha each day. So that is what I did. I started with the Parsha, and before I got very far, I read Devarim 1:12-1:16. So here in Devarim Moshe is about to give his last speech to Am Yisroel before they go into Yisroel. He is reminding them that they have become too big for him, and he appointed leaders for each tribe. In fact, in Devarim 1:12 his first word is איכה, to me very coincidental considering the week we are in, and wht we will be reading in less than a week. In the prior sefer we learned about how each tribe will be split up in the land. Meaning, that they will not be all together, as they were in the desert, and they will have to rely on their leaders to lead them. One can imagine that given the distance, there may be times when the leader of one tribe will provide a different insight into a situation than a leader of a different tribe, however, when Moshe ordained Yeshoshua and the 70 Shoftim, I am guessing he knew this too. This is likely the reason when the תורה שבעל פה was written down, there may have been questions on exactly what was meant.. and why there are constant conflicts that occur throughout the Gemara.
In my quest I found several what I can call words of wisdom regarding loving your fellow man, and loshen harah (by chofetz chaim, and daat zekainim) which of course provided me with no insight as to why someone would say something about a fellow jew in public, but certainly helped me understand that loshon hara, and that we are all created with hashems likeness, are essential to who we are as a jewish community and a human people.
Since I was having problems finding an answer, I figured I would find out about what exactly constitues semicha... First, as I mentioned above, I found that the first ordination would be from Moshe to Yehoshua and then to the 70 shoftim., and they in turn ordained their followers. The history of "classic semicha" went on until I believe after the Jews were expelled from Spain. When some Rabbayim tried to bring it back, it was rejected by others and after that semicha became a different process and can be very specific or can be diverse, regarding the parameters of an individual receiving semicha. Interestingly enough I found a question posed to Rav Sperling on Yeshiva.Org, where someone asked what constitutes a valid ordination... and his answer was pretty simple... of course the Rabbi in question from what I understand holds a highly respected ordination, and of course this furthered my question on why someone or some people feel it is appropriate to behave in the way that they do. (As I am quoting a question, I want to add that Rav Sperling did mention to the individual who asked that if there was some impetus to the question, perhaps it should be asked separately, or offline-- his was a general response to the question)
The more I researched, the more I found that there was no true answer to any of the questions.
We were at shul for a day of learning. The people in question, have firm beliefs in the halachic process, in both תורה שבכתב and תורה שבעל פה, there are just some debate on how to handle sensitive questions on halacha, which as a matter of jewish history and jewish halacha has been the norm for the longest time. I think in the age of technology, and the age in which we live, the question of community is the all encompassing issue. Community for the longest time, was always subjugated to a location, if you live in Spain, you follow the Rabbi of Spain etc.... Now, the definition of community is not about where you live, but to whom you belong...I believe this, is the crux of the issues here on the Lower East Side. Many people here identify community as we live here and follow the Rabbayim that live here, and others, identify community in a more global perspective. However you interpret the word community in the sense of the specific leader you follow, we are all part of the whole "jewish community", and that is different than individual communities.. as a jewish community there are basic values, and beliefs that we all share. Unfortunately we do not live in a time that Gd is going to come down and tell us what to do... as a community it seems there are many answers to specific questions and depending on which specific faction you are part of and who is your leader..In the end though, its gotta be about serving hashem and respecting our fellow man...Sinas Chinum and Lashon Horah have no part in that, and now, as we are coming upon Tisha B'av that is gotta be the theme and the thought throughout the week Bein Adam L'chavero
Part of the direction we received at Nishmat was to study the parsha each day. So that is what I did. I started with the Parsha, and before I got very far, I read Devarim 1:12-1:16. So here in Devarim Moshe is about to give his last speech to Am Yisroel before they go into Yisroel. He is reminding them that they have become too big for him, and he appointed leaders for each tribe. In fact, in Devarim 1:12 his first word is איכה, to me very coincidental considering the week we are in, and wht we will be reading in less than a week. In the prior sefer we learned about how each tribe will be split up in the land. Meaning, that they will not be all together, as they were in the desert, and they will have to rely on their leaders to lead them. One can imagine that given the distance, there may be times when the leader of one tribe will provide a different insight into a situation than a leader of a different tribe, however, when Moshe ordained Yeshoshua and the 70 Shoftim, I am guessing he knew this too. This is likely the reason when the תורה שבעל פה was written down, there may have been questions on exactly what was meant.. and why there are constant conflicts that occur throughout the Gemara.
In my quest I found several what I can call words of wisdom regarding loving your fellow man, and loshen harah (by chofetz chaim, and daat zekainim) which of course provided me with no insight as to why someone would say something about a fellow jew in public, but certainly helped me understand that loshon hara, and that we are all created with hashems likeness, are essential to who we are as a jewish community and a human people.
Since I was having problems finding an answer, I figured I would find out about what exactly constitues semicha... First, as I mentioned above, I found that the first ordination would be from Moshe to Yehoshua and then to the 70 shoftim., and they in turn ordained their followers. The history of "classic semicha" went on until I believe after the Jews were expelled from Spain. When some Rabbayim tried to bring it back, it was rejected by others and after that semicha became a different process and can be very specific or can be diverse, regarding the parameters of an individual receiving semicha. Interestingly enough I found a question posed to Rav Sperling on Yeshiva.Org, where someone asked what constitutes a valid ordination... and his answer was pretty simple... of course the Rabbi in question from what I understand holds a highly respected ordination, and of course this furthered my question on why someone or some people feel it is appropriate to behave in the way that they do. (As I am quoting a question, I want to add that Rav Sperling did mention to the individual who asked that if there was some impetus to the question, perhaps it should be asked separately, or offline-- his was a general response to the question)
The more I researched, the more I found that there was no true answer to any of the questions.
We were at shul for a day of learning. The people in question, have firm beliefs in the halachic process, in both תורה שבכתב and תורה שבעל פה, there are just some debate on how to handle sensitive questions on halacha, which as a matter of jewish history and jewish halacha has been the norm for the longest time. I think in the age of technology, and the age in which we live, the question of community is the all encompassing issue. Community for the longest time, was always subjugated to a location, if you live in Spain, you follow the Rabbi of Spain etc.... Now, the definition of community is not about where you live, but to whom you belong...I believe this, is the crux of the issues here on the Lower East Side. Many people here identify community as we live here and follow the Rabbayim that live here, and others, identify community in a more global perspective. However you interpret the word community in the sense of the specific leader you follow, we are all part of the whole "jewish community", and that is different than individual communities.. as a jewish community there are basic values, and beliefs that we all share. Unfortunately we do not live in a time that Gd is going to come down and tell us what to do... as a community it seems there are many answers to specific questions and depending on which specific faction you are part of and who is your leader..In the end though, its gotta be about serving hashem and respecting our fellow man...Sinas Chinum and Lashon Horah have no part in that, and now, as we are coming upon Tisha B'av that is gotta be the theme and the thought throughout the week Bein Adam L'chavero
Thursday, August 4, 2016
My Summer at Nishmat
August 4, 2016
Summer is usually the time when you relax, go on vacation....however, over the past few years I have been consistently taking classes in Torah study, (mostly Tanach, philosophy, and some halacha). My friends who spend their summers in Israel suggested that I join them for three weeks at a Torah study seminary in Jerusalem. I kept thinking.... is it worth it? I, who live in NYC have been very satisfied taking classes here, and was torn as to whether I should take three weeks, alone, and go to Israel to study full time. As it happened, several small things inspired me to say yes.. I will do it... and not only will I go and study there, I will dorm there too, FULL immersion. I was extremely nervous, aside from my few friends, (who were not dorming), I pictured myself as an older woman among a group of 20 somethings, I figured I would feel left out and isolated, but I also figured I would learn a great deal. Instead, what I came to realize was that it did not matter how old I was, how young they were, nor did it matter what our backgrounds were, we all were there for the same purpose and that purpose broke any barrier that may have been in the way. The women who attended were caring, educated, and in many ways I was no different than any of them. We were there with a common purpose, to study Torah, to engage in the texts, to be excited about breaking through a difficult concept and to be humbled that with all we had learned throughout our lives there was so much that we did not know. That in itself was a learning experience for me.
The Nishmat teachers were smart, engaging, caring, funny, but most of all they were true to themselves and to us in every way, and they showed us how we can be true to ourselves in our way, using the Torah as our guide. They taught me the basics, they taught me to ask questions, and they taught me to trust a system that I sometimes came to doubt. With every class I took I felt the love that the instructor had for the material and for teaching. Each teacher brought with them a passion that added excitement and personality to a class, even if the class was at 8:00pm.
The three weeks went by too fast and of course there was never enough time for anything. For me, it was clear why some boys and girls love studying for a year or more in Israel... or just studying in general... The learning was like an addiction, I found myself wanting to learn after the class, I would sometimes get caught up while in the Beit Midrash and realize it was after midnight, sometime I couldn't sleep because I was thinking of a discussion we had that day or a problem I was trying to solve... I wanted it to go on. The experience was stimulating and I am just now trying to figure out how to ensure that I get my daily dose.
In addition to the learning, Nishmat offered us wonderful opportunities to bond and to do other things... we made beautiful paper cutouts and visited the Israel Museaum. The highlight for me was our Shabbaton in the north, we took a morning tiyul and then went to a yishuv to see how technology has made simple things like milking a cow more efficient and productive. Shabbat however was incredibly special.. To spend it with women who sang, danced and who helped make Shabbat feel like kadusha was the most inspirational shabbat I have spent in many years. I am so happy that I had the opportunity to experience the full three weeks, night and day. If I have the opportunity to return I absolutely will, until then, I am using this as my attempt to give myself, and anyone else a daily dose of something... (at least I will try)
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