Shema Israel, word by word

And you shall love, HaShem your God, with all your heart… (Debarim 6:5)
Loving, in the Hebrew mind, is voluntary. Otherwise, it would not have been mandatory (You “shall” love…). Love is not the spontaneous feeling of affection that is there or disappears at the will of cupid or a magic potion, but the product of a series of elective actions and thoughts.   “Loving someone” at the most basic level means “thinking about someone”. This thought is then translated into “Taking care of…”, “Looking out for…”, “Doing for…” etc.  We know we love a person when we have that person in our mind.  If we are indifferent to that person, chances are that we might like or even need that person, but we might not love him or her. 
When we really love someone with passion (our spouse, our children) we can’t stop thinking about them. The best proof we love ourselves so much (and so passionately) is that we are constantly thinking about ourselves! 
Loving God means, bringing ourselves to think about God. Reminding ourselves of Him, of His presence, of His kindness, of His constant care for us. The more we bring God to our mind, the more we love God, and vice versa.  
This is how Maimonides (H. Teshuba, 10:5) explains our verse: Loving God with all our heart means loving Him with passion (ahaba ‘aza ‘ad me-od). Ideally, a Jew should be in-love with God, which means, thinking about Him constantly (veshoge bah tamid). 
Maimonides also explains there that we should not serve God for a reward (that would be another way of loving “ourselves”) and not even for yir-a or fear of a punishment (that will be a way of “looking out” for ourselves) but for pure love of Him.  
Excellent presentation on Lashon haRa!!!


Pidyon haBen: The ceremony

 

Pidyon haBen is the ceremony by which the father redeems his first born son from the Cohen. The Pidyon takes place after 30 days from the day of birth. As we have explained, there are certain conditions that need to be met in order to perform the Pidyon ( see here).

If possible, one should arrange to have a Minyan for the Pidyon.
The parents dress themselves and their son as they would do for a holiday.
The father brings 5 sheqels of silver.
The Cohen asks the mother if her son is the bekhor. If the mother says “yes”, the Cohen proceeds to recite a text (ze haben bekhor hu…) where he quotes the Mitzva of redeeming the first born and asserts that, indeed, the parents have expressed their will to redeem him (veabikha veimekha mebaqeshim lifdotekha...).
The Cohen then asks the parents:  “Which would you rather have-your firstborn son, or the five coins which you are obligated to give me for the redemption of this your firstborn son?”
To which the father answers:  “I want, my firstborn son, and here you have five coins which are required of me for the redemption”.
Then the father says the blessings: …‘al pidyon haben. and … shehecheyanu.…   And he places in front of the Cohen the 5 shequels.
The Cohen takes the coins and says: “I’ve received the 5 silver coins for the redemption of your son. He is now redeemed according to the law of Moshe and Israel (kedat moshe veIsrael)”.  The Cohen blesses the child, placing his hands over his head.  At the end of that blessing the Cohen also blesses the parents and wish them to merit to fulfill all the Mitzvot of the Tora.
The Cohen can keep for himself the 5 shequels, or give it back to the parents, if the Cohen wishes to do so.
Hebrew text of the Ceremony of Pidyon haBen (Sephardic)

Video of a Ceremony of Pidyon haBen in Manchester, England (Ashkenazi)

 

 



Organ donation: the heart or the brain?

As we explained last week, the issue of cadaveric organ donation in Jewish Law depends directly on the criteria applied to define death. First of all, as we said, there is a practical issue. Vital organs like the heart cannot be removed for transplant unless the heart is beating. And according to certain Rabbinical criteria, while the heart is beating, the patient is still alive, even if he is brain dead (see for example here).  The Biblical source for this opinion is that when man was created the Torah describes that God insufflated in Adam’s innert earthly body a “breathing of life” (nishmat chayim), which indicates that life is determined by breathing.
Because of the complexity of this issue and its repercussions in Israeli society (hospitals, army, etc.), the Chief rabbinate of Israel issued a ruling a few years ago, indicating that in their opinion irreversible brain-death should be considered death, even if the patient is still attached to a ventilator, and his heart is still active.  They explained that although there seem to us that the patient is still breathing, once the brain-stem death is determined, the control-center of autonomous breathing is irreversibly deactivated and it has lost forever its control over the heart. They based their opinion on the same source in Bereshit: life is “breathing”, meaning: autonomous breathing, i.e. the capacity to breathe. A patient with a dead brain who still breathes is not really ‘breathing’. It is as if a decapitated body would be, somehow, connected to a ventilator: the heart would still beat because the hearth is an autonomous muscle and it could be kept functioning “mechanically” even when it is not controlled anymore by the brain-stem.  But, since there is no possibility for an autonomous breathing anymore, the patient is considered dead and under certain conditions, his organs might be removed for transplant. 
  
(to be continued…)

  



God is one. Understanding monotheism.

 

The second principle of our faith is that God is One. Last week we explained that monotheism, is not just an arithmetic reduction of the numbers of gods.  It is, above all, a moral declaration. If only one God exist, then there is only one clear and exclusive set of moral values. The existence of numerous gods, on the other hand, justifies, or requires, moral relativism (see here).
Monotheism also protected the Jewish people against extinction.
In ancient times, assimilation did not mean social intermarriage. Civilizations clashed with each other, conquered and submitted to each other. When civilization A conquered civilization B, A would force B to accept A’s gods. Still, it was not necessary for B to get rid completely of their own gods. From now on B, would adopt and worship the gods of A alongside its own gods.
When two civilizations would somehow, live in peace with each other, one would graciously add the gods of the other to its own sanctuary. It was actually considered an act of politeness accepting and worshiping other gods. It showed that you were open minded and sophisticated. Needless to say, the constant wars and even alliances between civilizations were fatal for the original identity of those civilizations.  Once A and B became AB, it was just a matter of time until they will also adopt C or D’s gods. Thus, the original identity, culture and values of A or B completely disappeared.   That is how all ancient civilizations: A, B, C, D, etc. diluted from the face of the earth….
This phenomenon is known as ‘syncretism’, and it prevailed among ALL peoples of antiquity except for the Jews. Only the God of Israel demanded ‘exclusivity’: YOU SHALL NOT HAVE OTHER GODS, OTHER THAN ME…says the second of the Ten commandments.
(to be continued….)


Rabbi Abraham de Sola (London 1825- NY 1882)

 

Abraham de Sola (1825-1882) was a Canadian Rabbi, an orientalist and a scientist.

De Sola was recognized as one of the most influential leaders of Orthodox Judaism in America during the second half of the nineteenth century, at a time when the struggle between the Orthodox and Reform wings of the community was at an acute stage.
His father was rabbi David Aaron de Sola, and his mother the daughter of rabbi Raphael Meldola.
In 1847 de Sola arrived to Montreal, Canada and there he served as the rabbi of  She-erit Israel, the Spanish and Portuguese community.
Rabbi de Sola soon established himself at the centre of Montreal’s English-speaking intellectual community. An eloquent, popular, and prolific lecturer and a man of broad interests. He frequently addressed the Montreal Mercantile Library Association, the Montreal Literary Club, the Numismatic and Antiquarian Society of Montreal (of which he was elected an honorary member), the Montreal Mechanics’ Institute, and the Natural History Society (which he served as president in 1867-68), as well as several organizations associated with McGill College.
In 1848, De Sola was appointed lecturer, and in 1853 professor, of Hebrew and Oriental literature at Mac Gill University in Montreal, and he eventually became the senior professor of its faculty of arts.
In 1873, by invitation of President Ulysses S. Grant De Sola opened the United States Congress with a prayer.
He wrote on the history of Jews in England, Persia, Poland, and France; reported on cosmography and Sinaitic inscriptions; examined botanical and zoological references in the Scriptures. De Sola also wrote medical studies, on the rabbinical dietary laws and the use of anesthetics, which appeared in major medical journals and were reprinted as pamphlets. His chief works include: Behemoth haTemeoth, a 16-page pamphlet published by John Lovell containing an annotated catalogue of the animals pronounced unclean by the book of Leviticus.

For a more detailed biography of this exceptional Rabbi and for an impressive list of his articles and publications see here.

Some of his writing:

  • 1848. Scripture Zoology
  • 1852. The Mosaic Cosmogony.
  • 1852. The  Cosmography of Peritsol.
  • 1852. A Commentary on Shemuel haNagid  Introduction to the Talmud .
  • 1853. Behemoth Hatemeoth.
  • 1854. The Jewish Calendar System (conjointly with Rev. J.J. Lyons).
  • 1857. Philological Studies in  Hebrew and Aramaic .
  • 1858. Scripture Botany.
  • 1860. The Employment of Anæsthetics in Connection with Jewish Law.
  • 1861. The Sanatory Institutions of the Hebrews.
  • 1864. Biography of  David Aaron de Sola.
  • 1869. Life of  Shabettai Tsevi.
  • 1870. History of the Jews of Poland. 
  • 1871. History of the Jews of France.
  • 1874. Hebrew Numismatics.
  • 1878. New Edition of the Forms of Prayer of the Spanish and Portuguese  Jews, with English translation, based on the versions of    David Aaron de Sola and Isaac Lesser.
  • 1880. Life of Saadiah Gaon.
  • Abraham de Sola also contributed actively to the Jewish press, a large number of articles by him appearing in “The Voice of Jacob,” “The Asmonean,” “The British-American Journal,” and other contemporary Jewish journals. His articles on william Sawson’s “Archaia,” “Dawn of Life,” and “Origin of the World” are specially noteworthy. He also edited and republished English’s “Grounds of Christianity ” and a number of educational works.


Barukh Shem Kebod Malkhuto le’Olam va’Ed

After we say the first pasuq “HaShem is our God, HaShem is one”, we read a sentence which is not part of the Biblical text of the Shema Israel:  “barukh shem kebod malkhuto le’olam va’ed”.  “May the Glorious Name of His Kingship be blessed forever”.  We dare to utter God’s Name, in the same way we pronounce any name. That is why we disclaim by this phrase that the understanding of His Name lies beyond our human capacity.  This phrase is considered a very high form of praise, where we praise God, by praising the glory (=the ineffability) of God’s Name.  
The rabbis in the Talmud tells us that this phrase was first said by Yaacob Abinu: In his deathbed he gathered all his children to find out if all of them were following his footsteps. When they said: “HaShem is our God, HaShem is one”, he replied:  “barukh shem kebod…” as an expression of gratitude, peace of mind  and praise to HaShem knowing that  all his children were following his ways. 
In the times of the Bet-haMiqdash, this phrase was said by the whole community of Israel gathered there for Yom Kippur, when the Cohen Gadol (High Priest) pronounced the ineffable name of God of four letters.  Besides being one of the highest expressions of praising to His name, barukh shem kebod…  also served to hide the Name of God, by saying it out-loud by all, while the Name of God was pronounced by the Cohen Gadol.   
Every day when we say the Shema Israel we read barukh shem kebod silently, whispering it. To signal that it does not belong to the original Biblical text. Except for one day in the year. On Yom Kippur we say barukh shem kebod malkhuto out-loud in remembrance of what took place in the Bet-haMiqdash. 


Pidyon haBen: when does it take place?

Previously, we explained the Mitzva of Pidyon haBen (redeeming the first born male) and in which circumstances is done.
Today we will discuss when does the ceremony of Pidyon takes place?
In the Tora says: (Numbers 18:16) ufduyav miben chodesh tifde... ( from a month old, you shall redeem them…), which means that the Pidyon is done only after the baby is one-month old.  The Pidyon is celebrated on the thirty-one day from birth.
The ceremony is done at night, when the day thirty-one begins. According to some opinions the Pidyon should be made specifically during the day (Shakh). In Sephardic communities, however, the Pidyon is done normally at night.
To establish the day thirty-one, we consider as day number one, the day of birth.
It is essential to know, therefore, the exact time the baby was born to determine what was the day of the week the baby was born.   The date of the Pidyon would always fall four weeks and two days after the day of birth. If the baby was born on a Monday morning, for example, the Pidyon will take place on Tuesday night, since for the Jewish calendar Tuesday night is considered Wednesday. (As it is well known, the new day in the Hebrew calendar begins after the sundown of the previous day).
Because all these considerations and other technical details, it is highly recommended to speak with a Rabbi to set the exact day of the Pidyon ceremony.


Organ Donation: the definition of death.

Last week we explained organ donation. We started from the situation in which the donor is alive. This type of organ donation includes bone marrow, blood transfusion and kidney transplant (see here ).
The most common form of organ donation, however, and the most controversial one is the cadaveric organ donation, i.e. donating the organs after one’s death. This is the organ donation which is alluded to in the driver licenses where one authorizes or not to remove his organs for donation.

As we previously explained there is a wide consensus among rabbis about the permission to donate an organ or a segment of an organ while the donor is alive, especially since in our days the risks for the donors have diminished dramatically.

But with cadaveric donation there is a crucial point, which needs to be defined. That is: the definition of “death”. Let me explain: some organs, like the heart for example, cannot be transplanted after they stops functioning. The heart must be removed from the body of the donor while it is still beating.

Up to the 1970s, this operation was impossible because irreversible cardiopulmonary failure was the only standard for determining death. But, later on, scientists developed ventilators and respirators which would maintain the breathing, avoiding the heart from stoping. In a situation known as ‘irreversible stem brain death’, the brain might completely stop its activity, while the patient is still breathing and his heart still beating. The question is: is this patient considered dead because his brain is dead, or is he considered to be still alive, because his heart is still functioning?

The answer to this question would determine the Halakhic status of after life organ donation.
(to be continued…)
Shabbat Shalom!

Understanding brain death, an educational video by HODS
For a comprehensive analysis of all the Rabbinical opinions on this matter and for one of the best available resources about organ donation in Jewish Law, visit: www.hods.org


The 13 principles of the Jewish Faith. # 2. God is One

Last week we explained the First Principle: God’s existence.

The second principle of Jewish faith asserts that “God is One”.

Maimonides explains: “He is not “one”, like a species (=category) which comprises many individual”, as when we say “one” book.

“He is not like a physical thing, which can be divided into parts and dimensions”, like a book, which is comprised of pages, cover, ink, etc. “He is one with a kind of Unity which is unique, exclusive of God”.

ALL other nations and civilizations in antiquity, conceived the existence and coexistence of several gods, because they saw in nature forces that evidently oppose each other. Life and death, good and evil, light and darkness, etc. Their reasoning was that multiple gods must be responsible for the diversity and opposite powers of ‘natural ‘ forces.

We Jews believe that there are no other powers independent from, or beyond God’s control. Rabi Yehuda haLevi explains in the Kuzari that this is why the word “Elokim” (Almighty) is written in the Plural: to express that all powers in the universe, all forces, depend on One source: God Almighty.

Abraham Abinu’s idea of ONE (and “invisible”) God, revolutionized humanity in many ways. Not just as an arithmetic reduction of gods, but mainly because of the moral implications of it.

Let me explain: Conceiving the existence of more than one God, represents an open invitation for moral relativism. One God is worshiped by waging war, the other, by peace. One by love, the other by murder. One by drunkenness, the other by sobriety, etc. Nothing is morally right or wrong in itself. The morality of one’s actions depends on the god one would worship today.

“One” God, means, among other things, moral clarity. There is ONE and ABSOLUTE set of moral behavior, coming from ONE God.

Monotheism, leaves no room for moral blurriness.

(to be continued…)

 

 

“Fundamentals and Faith: Insights into the Rambam’s 13 Principles” by Rabbi Mordechai Blumenfeld. From Aish

 



Rabbi Raphael Meldola (Livorno 1754- London 1828)

Raphael Meldola (1754-1828), was the son of Moses Hezekiah Meldola (1725-1791), professor of Oriental languages in Paris. Raphael was born in Leghorn (Livorno), Italy in 1754. He received a thorough university training, both in theological and in secular branches, and displayed such remarkable talents that when only fifteen years old he was permitted to take his seat in the rabbinical college and received his rabbinical ordination from the famous Chida (Rabbi Chayim Yosef David Azulai, z”l).

In 1804 he was appointed as Chakham of the Sephardi community in London. Rabbi Meldola possessed of a remarkably virile mind, he was a dominant factor in the British Jewry of his generation. His scholarship attracted around him a circle in which were many of the most distinguished men of his day, including Benjamin Disraeli (first Jewish-born British Primer Minister) and Isaac Disraeli and it is noteworthy that he opposed the policy which produced the famous rupture between the later and the mahamad (the lay leaders of the Spanish and Portuguese community in London). He maintained a literary correspondence with many of the most prominent Christian clergymen and scholars of his time; and his acquaintance with the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Canon ofWindsor led to his being received by King George III. He wrote the book Chuppat Chatanim (1797), on the laws of marital life. He also published sermons and memorial poems. His book Derekh Emunah (The Way of Faith) appeared with his English translation after his death. His son David Meldola (1797-1853), succeeded him as presiding rabbi though not as Chakham of the Sephardi community in London.

In the following Rabbinical Responsa, rabbi Meldola criticizes all those who are not careful to read the Tora or the Tefila, without knowing and without applying the laws of Hebrew grammar (diqduq). In the Hebrew section of the Responsa, he also criticizes those who pretend that correct Hebrew reading pertain to the area of Minhagim, and therefore, don’t see the correct reading of the Tora as absolutely mandatory. It is a worth reading text for all those interested in Hebrew grammar and its application in Jewish Liturgy.

“it is incontrovertible evident that the Torah or Divine Law, which is read in every Synagogue in the world throughout tho year, as also our Forms of Prayers which we address to God must be read correctly and distinctly according to the principles of Grammar, vowel points, &c, as the Prophet Nehemiah expresses, chap. viii., v. 8,” So they read in the book in the law of God, distinctly, and gave the sense and caused them to understand the reading.” Agreeably to the greatest Authorities, both, ancient; and modern,’as Talmud, Maimonides, Shulchanaruhk, or the Code of our holy Laws, &c. and ‘which has been strictly observed by all our fathers from the lime of our great Lawgiver to the present day….”