Third Commandment: You shall not “carry” the name of God in vain.

In Jewish tradition the third commandment “LO TISA” refers to the prohibition of swearing in the name of God in vain or unnecessarily (shebu’at shav). Following Maimonides, it also extends to the prohibition of reciting a blessing in vain.  Why? Ashebu’a is basically a statement, an affirmation of a belief or a fact.  In a blessing we are also making a statement. We assert an idea or a belief about God, while pronouncing His name. For example, when I say the blessing “bore feri ha’ets” I’m not saying “Thank You God for this fruit”  but literally: “Blessed are You, HASHEM our God, King of the universe, who is the Creator of the fruit of the tree”. In other words: I’m stating and acknowledging that You -HASHEM- are the Creator of this fruit.   Therefore, if I pronounce this or a similar statement unnecessarily I would be transgressing the third commandment.  This is the source of the halakhic principle: “safeq berakhot lehaqel“. Which indicates that in a situation where I’m not sure if I should or should not say a berakha I should abstain, lest I recite an unnecessary berakha (lebatala) and transgress LO TISA.  
 
The former Chief rabbi of Israel , Rabbi Shelomo ‘Amar, explains that this commandment also extends to a different area. The words LO TISA which are commonly translated as “You shall not take…” literally mean: “You shall not ‘carry’ the name of God in vain”. He sees LO TISA also as a warning against showing-off religiosity or piety.  Rabbi ‘Amar denounces the unfortunate practice of some people who would disguise themselves as pious, adopting publicly extra restrictions, performing eccentric movements while praying, or carrying out religious acts in unusual ways with the intention of impressing people and making them believe that he is a pious Jew.  This behavior will be an example of “carrying God’s name in vain”. Pretending that one does something with God in mind when in reality is doing it for his or her own interest.
 
Rabbi ‘Amar explains that contrary to those who display religious zeal in public to impress others, a real pious Jew is first of all humble, and his piety is observed privately and discreetly.    
 

You can read the full article of Rabbi ‘Amar  here  (Hebrew).



 

 



Maran Rabbi Yosef Caro (1488-1575)

 Rabbi Yosef Caro (also Karo or Qaro) was born in Toledo, Spain in 1488. In 1492, at the age of four, he and his family were forced to leave Toledo due to the expulsion of the Jews from Spain. His family settled in Portugal. In 1497 the Jews were also expelled from Portugal. The Jews were invited to establish themselves in the Ottoman empire. The Caro family settled in the city of Constantinople.  His father Epharim Caro was his first and most important teacher.    Rabbi Yosef Caro’s earliest work was the Kesef Mishne a commentary of Maimonide’s Mihsne Torah, where he shows the Talmudic sources and the logic behind Maimonides rulings.  His most famous book is the Shulhan ‘arukh, considered the main Code of Jewish Law (see here) 
 
In 1535 Rabbi Yosef Caro arrived to Tsefat (Safed, Israel). There he met Rabbi Ya’aqob Berab who planned to reinstitute the semikha, i.e., the formal rabbinical ordination that will enable Rabbis to legislate in all subjects and for all the Jewish people. The intention of Rabbi Berab was to establish a Bet-Din in Tsefat that will be the undisputed Halakhic voice, coming from Israel, for all Jews in the world. Solving thus the current situation in which each Jewish community had its particular and separate Halahkhic practice and customs.  
Rabbi Berab ordained four Rabbis, one of the was Rabbi Yosef Caro. According to the Hida, rabbi Yosef Caro was ordained in addition by 200 rabbis from Erets Israel and the diaspora (The title Sephardic Jews have reserved for Rabbi Yosef Caro is “MARAN” which in Hebrew stands for: ממאתים רבנים נסמך = “The one ordained by 200 Rabbis”). The Hida explained that when one follows the Shulhan ‘Arukh is not following the opinion of one rabbi but of 200 Rabbis. At that time, 200 Rabbis represented the majority of the rabbis of the world.  This is the source of the extraordinary authority given to Rabbi Yosef Caro, and the main reason why the Shulhan ‘arukh was accepted by all Jews as final and conclusive. 
 
Maran Rabbi Yosef Caro died in Tsefat in 1575. 
 
 
Some of his books are 
  • Kesef Mishne (כסף משנה) a commentary to Maimonides Mishne Tora
  • Bet Yosef (בית יוסף), a monumental commentary on the Arba’a Turim from Rabbi Ya’aqob ben haRosh. This book was aimed to systematize the laws and customs of Judaism. 
  • Shulhan ‘Arukh (שולחן ערוך).  Although it is a brief and practical summary of the Bet Yosef it is considered the unquestioned authority of the whole Jewish world.
  • Bedeq ha-Bayit (בדק הבית) additions and corrections to Beth Yosef.
  • Kelalei ha-Talmud (כללי התלמוד) a book on the methodology of the Talmud.

 

 
Click here to download the first edition of the Shulhan ‘Arukh, Venezia, 1565


What you might not know about the shulhan ‘arukh.

The shulhan ‘arukh is known to be “the Code of Jewish Law”, and “the most authoritative legal code of Judaism”. 
Here is what most people don’t know about the shulhan ‘arukh.
A SUMMARY OF BET YOSEF
The shulhan ‘arukh, written by rabbi Yosef Caro (1488-1575) is NOT an independent book. It is a summary of the monumental book written previously by rabbi Yosef Caro himself, the Bet Yosef .  In the Bet Yosef (it took him 32 years to write this book) rabbi Caro examines and analyses Jewish Law from the Talmud through the interpretation and commentaries of the most important Rabbinical authorities up to his own time.  In the theshulhan ‘arukh rabbi Caro wrote the halakhic conclusions of the Bet Yosef.  Rabbi Yosef Caro wrote the shulhan ‘arukh for the sake of Tora scholars who need to have an accessible brief halakhic guide. He also states in his introduction that he writes this short book (in terms of its  text, the shulhan ‘arukh is perhaps 3% of the Bet Yosef) to be memorized by the young students. He also divided the shulhan ‘arukh in 30 sections so it can be reviewed once a month. All this implies that before reading the shulhan ‘arukh one must read the Bet Yosef.  The shulhan ‘arukh cannot be properly understood, let alone, used as a source of law, without studying first the Bet Yosef. 
FOR SEPHARDIM and ASHKENAZIM
The Bet Yosef/shulhan ‘arukh was written explicitly as an attempt to bridge the gaps between Sephardim and Ashkenazim.  In his introduction to the Bet Yosef, Rabbi Caro sates that in his days the Tora became like multiple Torot. He identified mainly three traditions. The Spanish communities who followed Maimonides, the Franco-German tradition who followed the Rosh, and the North african communities who followed the Rif. Rabbi Caro based his Bet Yosef on the book who follows the Rosh (The “TUR”, written by the Rosh’s son), and as a rule, to establish the final Halakha he followed the opinion of the majority of these three Rabbis. In this way, he hoped, Sephardim and Ashkenazim, would compromise some of their previous customs and all Jews would follow and adopt one single set of Laws.  
(To be continued…) 
   

MUST WATCH



Teshuba and Jiminy the cricket

Our conscience is an integral part of the makeup of our Neshama (human soul). Like Pinocchio’s cricket, Jiminy, its mission is to warn us whenever we are about to do something wrong. Conscience, moral awareness, is the most effective mental mechanism which protect us from bad behavior. For instance: If we are about to say something negative about someone else (lashon haRa) ideally, our conscience will scream from within and demand us to stop: ‘Don’t do it! This is very wrong!’ .

But, what happens when we don’t listen to the first alert-call of our conscienceand we still do it? How many times our conscience will keep warning us?
As a rule, our conscience would shout very loudly the first time or two. But then, if we keep doing the wrong thing, the conscience’s voice becomes weaker and lower. To the point that, if we persist, our conscience turns virtually mute.
Maimonides describes very vividly this passive moral-state as ‘the lethargy of our conscience’.


The Torah’s cure for the sleeping conscience is the Shofar. The Shofar is the alarm-clock of our consciences. The Shofar has a shocking positive effect on us.Its loud voice represents and helps us to retrieve the original loud voice of our dormant consciences.
In the words of Maimonides (3:4) the Shofar of Rosh haShana carries a strong message :
‘Wake up you sleepy ones from your lethargy, and you who slumber, wake up! Inspect your deeds, repent and remember your Creator…Look at your souls. Improve your ways and actions, and abandon your evil paths and bad thoughts’
 
 
 


The fast of Gedalia

Today is the fast of Gedalia, a fast-day instituted by the Rabbis to remember the assassination of Gedalia Ben Ahiqam, the governor of Israel during the days of Nebukhadnetzar, King of Babylonia.  The fast is observed on the 3rd of Tishri, the day after Rosh haShana. This year, because Rosh haShana was followed by Shabbat, we fast today, the 4th of Tishri.
When Nebukhadnetzar destroyed the Temple (586 BCE) and exiled the Jews to Babylonia, he allowed a few Jews (mainly poor farmers)  to remain in Israel and work the land.  He appointed Gedalia Ben Ahiqam as their governor. Many of the exiled Jews were planning to return shortly from Babylon to Israel to work the land under the auspices of the king of Babylonia, hoping that eventually the Babylonian King (or his successor) would allow all the Jews to reestablish again in their land.
A Jew from Davidic descendant, Yishma’el Ben Netania, was opposed to the appointment of Gedalia because he did not belong to the Davidic dynasty. And he conspired to assassinate him. Simultaneously, Ba’alis, the King of Amon (=today Jordan) knew that a Babylonian appointed governor, Gedalia, would mean an easier access for the Babylonian to conquer Amon. Ba’alis then encouraged Yishma’el Ben Netania to assassinate Gedalia. In the seventh month (Tishri) Yishma’el and a group of men came to Gedalia in the town of Mitzpa where they were cordially welcomed with the honors due to descendent of Davidic dynasty. Gedalia had been warned of his guests murderous intent, but he refused to believe his informants, convinced that a Jew would never kill another Jew and compromise their hopes for redemption.  However, Yishma’el and his men murdered Gedalia together with the Jews who had joined him in Mitzpa and numbers of Babylonians whom Nebukhadnetzar had left with Gedalia. Fearing the vengeance of the Babylonian king, the few Jews that were left in Israel to work the land fled to Egypt. And Israel remained virtually without Jews. Thus, the exile of the people of Israel from its land reached its highest peak.  And the hopes for returning to the land vanished. 
In remembrance of this tragedy our Sages instituted the Fast of Gedalia.
The fast is observed today from daybreak till nightfall ( 7.37 pm , NYT).
Who is exempted from fasting today?
  
Minors: boys under 13 and girls under 12 years old are completely exempt from fasting.
Nursing women: According to the Sephardic Minhag, after giving birth women are exempted from fasting for 24 months, even if they are not actually nursing their baby.
Pregnant women are exempt from fasting today.
A person who feels ill, or who experiences symptoms of flu or fever, or a person with a chronic disease, such as diabetes, should not fast today.
Elders should consult with their physicians if the fast will not affect their health. If it will, they are exempted (and in some cases, prohibited) from fasting

 



HILKHOT TESHUBA 4:2 When the King repents

Maimonides explains the difficulties of admitting to ourselves that we have sinned. Taking charge of our misdeeds -hakarat haHet- is probably the hardest step in the process of Teshuba. In the days before Rosh haShana we are expected to act as our own judges evaluating objectively our past actions. “Objectivity” is not an easy state of mind. It goes against our normal mental behavior. We naturally tend to justify our actions. Everything we have done becomes right in our own eyes.
David haMelekh committed a terrible sin. He took bat-sheba, a married woman, and sent her husband, a soldier, to a sure death in the battlefront. David did not repent by the call of his own conscience. Natan the prophet was sent by God to admonish the King and help him realize the seriousness of the sins he committed. Natan came to the court of King David (back then, the King was also the supreme Judge) and presented him with a fictitious case to judge: A rich man owned thousands of animals. His poor neighbor had only one lamb. One day the rich man had an important guest coming to his house. In order to spare one of his own animals the rich man decided to slaughter his neighbor’s lamb, which he dearly loved.  As Natan expected the King reacted angrily toward this injustice. King David said: “That man (=the rich guy) deserves to die!” Natan the prophet then turned to David and said: atta ha-ish…. “You are that man!”.  Faced now with the objective facts and having issued the harsh sentence against himself King David recognized his wrongdoing. He repented and humbly confessed: ‘hattati laHashem…’ , ‘I have sinned against God’. 
Due to the irreparable damage caused by these transgressions, David was not permitted to build the bet-haMiqdash. But God accepted his repentance.
Natan opened the King’s eyes. And helped him realize the gravity of his actions objectively. By presenting him a fictitious case he forced the King to play the role of an impartial judge. Allowing him to “watch at himself from the balcony”. Freeing him from the psychological mechanisms of self-defense. Which often represent the biggest obstacle in the way to repentance.

 



HILKHOT TESHUBA 4:1-2. Obstacles in the way of Teshuba

In Chapter 4 of Hilkhot Teshuba Maimonides enumerates twenty-four actions, personality patterns or attitudes which prevent or make very difficult for a person to begin or undergo the process of repentance.
Three illustrations.
DOMINO EFFECT (4:1)
Those who because of their teachings or their bad example…. induce or influence other people to sin. Sometimes, if we have taught or inspire other people to act in the wrong way, we have triggered a negative domino effect which eventually gets out of our hand. In this case repentance is virtually impossible. Why? Because part of the process of repentance consists in repairing what I have done wrong. So, even if I personally repent from my wrong actions,  how could I be able to repair the damage other people have caused because of my wrong teachings or bad example? In this
 scenario, I’m virtually beyond redemption. Because despite my own personal repentance my example is still exerting a negative influence in other people to an unknown extent. 
CALCULATED TESHUBA (4:1) Sinning with the intention of repenting later. Maimonides refers here to a situation in which I’m about to commit a sin and before I do it I say to myself :  “I will sin now and repent for this sin later on.” Or I say to myself: “Since Yom Kippur is the day of forgiveness, I will sin now and God will forgive me for this sin in Yom Kippur”. In these conditions Teshuba is unacceptable. Because Teshuba is welcomed by the Creator when it comes from a sincere remorse, not when it is part of a calculated game-plan.
DEFENSIVE PERSONALITY (4:2) Someone who refuses to be corrected or criticized. Imagine a person incapable of accepting a minimal dose of positive criticism, even when coming from those who care for his or her well being. Many times, this type of personality-disfunction is a consequence of a low self esteem or other psychological issues which prevent a person to cope with any criticism.   This person, Maimonides concludes, will likely continue with his or her bad habits because is incapable of seeing himself as other people perceive him.
MAKE UP YOUR MIND
Great minds talk about ideas. 
Average minds talk about things. 
Small minds talk about people. 

Eleanor Roosevelt

 



HILKHOT TESHUBA 3:14 Maimonides on Bullying

 In the third chapter of Hilkhot Teshuba, Halakha 5,  Maimonides asserts that the Jews, and the righteous among the gentiles (haside ummot ha’olam), will be granted a share in ‘olam habba, the afterlife.
Then Maimonides writes about the exceptions to the above-mentioned rule. Those individuals who are excluded from the world to come because of the severity of their sins (unless they repair the damage they have caused and repent during their lifetime).  Maimonides enumerates twenty-four categories of sins. These include heretical statements-such as denying the existence of God, and sins with irreparable effects, like committing national treason (moredim, moserim) killing, and slandering (ba’ale leshon hara’).
Toward the end of the chapter (3:14) Maimonides refers to eight cases, seemingly of a lesser severity, which were also mentioned by the Rabbis as sins for which one would lose his or her part in the world to come.
Four of these cases could be translated in modern term as “bullying” (nicknaming, verbal abuse, etc.). Bullying is a verbal offense which can cause as much damage as physical violence. Unlike physical violence, though, bullying is usually not penalized by secular law and could go unseen for a long time. Victims of bullying, especially if they suffer from low self esteem, usually do not denounce the perpetrators (and low self-esteem is an effect of bullying-do you see the vicious cycle here?). Because of this, abusive bullying tends to continue with devastating emotional effects for long periods of time.
Unfortunately, in our days bullying has become epidemic. In some cases the classroom or bus is divided into three groups: the bullies, the victim/s of bullying and those who watch and do nothing.
As parents, we need to be alert and detect the symptoms of bullying.  We should educate our children in the following ways: First, to identify and denounce bullying if they are victims of it.  Second, to not be passive bystanders when they witness acts of bullying. Third and most importantly, to respect the dignity of every human being and keep away from this hideous behavior.

 

 



HILKHOT TESHUBA 2:1: Forgiveness and quality of life

Yesterday we explained that when somebody apologizes for an offense or for a wrong thing he or she did to us, we should be willing to forgive and also forget. After all, we are asking from God to forgive us. And by taking the fist step forgiving others, we certainly become more deserving of God’s forgiveness .
Question: Can we forgive others on our own, or should we wait for their request for forgiveness?
There is a fundamental difference between asking forgiveness and granting forgiveness. Granting forgiveness can be done unilaterally. Obviously, it is nicer and more appropriate when the offender comes and apologizes. But sometimes people are too shy or have too many psychological barriers or pride (=low self esteem) which impairs them from the possibility of taking charge of their wrongdoings and apologize.
And still, we can forgive.
In the Talmud, Megila 28a, we read that the elder R. Nehunya ben haQane was asked by his disciples: “In virtue of what have you reached such a good old age? He quoted the verse. ‘Never thecurse of my fellow man came up to my bed with me’. This was explained [=exemplified] by Mor Zutra who every night when going to bed would say: ‘I forgive all those who have offended me'”.
In other words: Every night before going to sleep Rabbi Nehunya practiced forgiveness of his own initiative. This unilateral exoneration freed Rabbi Nehunya from the curse of hatred and resentment, and impacted positively in the length (and probably also on the quality) of his life.
There is a beautiful prayer, inspired by the example of Rabbi Nehunya found in every prayer book in the section of Qeriyat Shema’ ‘al haMita. The following is an excerpt of that prayer “RIBBONO SHE OLAM, HARENI MOHEL VESOLEAH…” to be said before we go to sleep. 
  
“Master of the Universe! Behold, I forgive anyone who has angered or offended me. Whether it was directed toward my person or my money or my honor or anything which pertains to me. [I forgive them], whether his or her actions were performed by total accident or willingly; through negligence or premeditation; whether it was done through speech or physical action. [I forgive them and I request from You]: may no person be punished because of me…”
I must clarify once again that in this Halakha I’m referring particularly to forgiveness in the context of social and personal minor offenses, when a friend, a family member, a colleague, a neighbor, etc. did or said something wrong to us. Forgiveness for criminal or major offenses belong to a different category and can not be addressed in these brief lines. 

 



HILKHOT TESHUBA 1:1: to be or not to be specific?

Maimonides explains that the commandment of Teshuba is fulfilled when we recite the Viduy.  Viduy is the verbal confession of our transgressions, while feeling regret and shame for the wrong things we have done.
The Viduy/confession is done privately. We do not disclose our sins in front of other people or a minister, but only in front of God. Whispering the confession to ourselves.
There is a discussion in the Talmud (Rabbi Yehuda ben Baba vs. Rabbi Aqiba) if one needs to specify his or her wrongdoings or one can just state in general terms that he has acted wrongly. It is similar to the situation we would face when we want to apologize to someone we have offended: should we apologize mentioning the specifics of our wrongdoing or should we just say a general “I’m sorry for what I have done to you “?
According to the Shulhan Arukh it is not necessary to mention every specific sin that one has committed. This leniency aims specifically at not discouraging a person who wants to repent. Since he might not be capable –or courageous enough– to recalling the particulars of his wrong behavior. A general confession facilitates the process of Teshuba.
Maimonides, however, rules like the first opinion and indicates that one should mention in his private confession everything wrong he has done. Teshuba 1:1, “and then one shall confess, I have done so and so…”.
If we wish to follow Maimonides opinion we need to apply ourselves to a deep process of introspection. Exercising our memory and struggling against our impulses of denial and self advocacy. While reviewing our past actions it might help to write down all misdeeds we can remember. Including obviously, unpaid debts and apologies we owe to our peers.
In the context of Maimonides opinion the text of the Viduy –the one we say for Selihot, for example– should be seen as a reminder of the points we should recall, repent for, and hopefully correct.
This challenging spiritual/ethical/intellectual activity cannot be done overnight. We dedicate to it forty days, from the beginning of Elul until Yom Kippur: the day we devote ourselves entirely and exclusively to the exercise of Teshuba/Viduy.