Maimonides (Rambam) affirms in Hilkhot De’ot that we’re all driven by habits. These habits are part of our personalities, either because of a natural (today we would call it: ‘genetic’) tendency toward a specific behavior or because we have acquired this habit, imitating our peers, family members, etc. With time habits -good and bad habits- become a second nature.

By being more conscious of how habits are formed and how they become part of our character, we might be able to control them.

Illustration:

What is more significant in terms of character formation? To give a big amount of money to charity at once or to give one dollar at a time? (We are not examining here the merits of the different charities, just the impact of this habit on our character)

Maimonides says:

“positive behavior characteristics are not acquired by doing (a one time) great positive act but rather through the repetition of many positive acts. For example, giving one thousand gold coins to one charity will not accustom a person to the habit of ‘generosity’, whereas giving one gold coin to a thousand charities will do so. By repeating an act many times, an established behavior or emotional pattern is formed. In contrast, one great act might represent a one time arousal to good, after which that motivation might disappear”.

Over time, one simple act repeated several times -a string of small experiences- can accumulate to become strong enough to overwhelm even a major experience.

Honoring our parents includes obeying them and pleasing their wishes, especially when dealing with something they wish for their own benefit.

But, what if the parents ask their son or daughter something which will be detrimental for them? For example: What should a son do if his father asks him to bring for him liquor, and the son knows the father will become intoxicated. Does the son still needs to obey his dad and bring the liquor, following blindly his father’s order or should he refuse the order?

Most rabbis agree that in this case the son should refuse to buy or get the liquor for his father, but he should do so with utmost respect, trying to dissuade his father reasoning with him. The son is not allowed to fight, yell at or disrespect his father in any way, even when the son is right.
The rabbis bring a few other common cases. If the parent is diabetic and asks his son to bring him a sweet food or when a father ask his son or daughter to bring cigarettes or anything that would cause a ‘significant’ damage to the father’s or mother’s health, i.e. anything the physician will forbid them to have.

The rabbis agree that the son or daughter should refuse the order, but they insist that in all these cases, it is critical to maintain a respectful approach and avoid, God forbid, to offend or humiliate one’s parents while trying to protect them from harm. (Yalkut Yosef, Kibbud Ab va-Em, Bet, 46-60)

Today, the 10th of Tebet, is one of the four fast days in which we remember the destruction of our first Temple, Bet haMikdash (586 BCE). On the 10th of Tebet the enemy started the siege of Jerusalem which provoked untold starvation, epidemic , etc . The Babylonians made a first breach in the wall on the 17th of Tamuz. Three weeks later, on the 9th of Ab, the Bet haMikdash was destroyed and most of the Jewish people were taken captives to Babylonia. A small remnant remained in Israel but a few years later, they attempted to rebel against the Babylonians killing Gedaliah ben Achikam on the 3rd of Tishri. The consequences were tragic: the small Jewish
population that had remained form the destruction of the Temple was also exiled.

These four dates 10 of Tebet, 17 of Tamuz, 9 of Ab and 3 of Tishri were established by our Rabbis as fast days inviting us to remember the destruction of the Bet haMikdash causing us to introspect and repent.

Not always have we fasted during these 4 days . After 70 years in Babylonia we came back to Israel and built the Second Bet haMikdash. The prophet Zekharia (see chapter 8, v.19) and Anshe Keneset haGedola canceled these fast days and turned them into days of celebration.

When the second bet haMikdash was destroyed, in the year 68 ACE we started to fast again.

May haShem Almighty turn once again these days of fast into days of celebration biMhera beYamenu Amen.

Shabbat Shalom!

Candle lighting in NYC: 4:11 PM
Shabbat Ends: 5:20 PM

Approximately in the year 300 BCE, on the 8th of Tebet, King Ptolemy of Egypt forced 70 Jewish scholars to translate the Hebrew Bible into Greek. The Talmud relates that this project was blessed with a miracle: the 70 scholars were all placed in separate rooms and yet they all translated the Biblical text the same exact way. Still, the rabbis of the time considered this event as a tragedy. Why? Because the Greek Bible -known as the Septuagint- advanced the agenda of the Hellenist Jews to bring Greek culture into Jewish life and eventually paved the way to create a new Judeo-Christian religion, ‘based on our Torah’, who would claim, “Anu Israel!”
“WE are now the NEW Israel!”

The 9th day of Tebet commemorates the death of Ezra the Scribe (5th Century BCE). Ezra led the return of the Jews to Jerusalem from their Babylonian exile. It was under his direction and inspiration, together with the help of the court Jew, Nechemiah, that the Second Temple was built.

The main tragedy happened on the 10th of Tebet: the onset of the siege of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar, the King of Babylonia, which ultimately ended with the destruction of Jerusalem and the Bet haMikdash in the year 586 BCE, and sent tens of thousands of Jews into the 70-year Babylonian Exile. The date of the Tenth of Tebet was recorded for us by the prophet Yechezkel, who himself was part of the first group of Jews exiled by Nebuchadnezzar.

(Adapted from rabbi Berel Wein)

In most Sephardic families, children pay a special tribute to their grandparents and parents on the occasion of the Kiddush. The children would come to be blessed by their father and mother on Friday night, even when they are older. The parents or grandparents blesses the child with the Priestly benediction (yebarekhekha haShem veYishmerekha… Many parents would also say: yesimekha/yesimekh Elokim ) and any additional prayer that he wants to offer to see his desires for his child fulfilled. Immediately after that, the children will kiss the hand of the grandparents and parents as a signal of filial love and devotion.

When a grandparent or father is called for a Aliya la Torah, all the members of the family will rise at their seats in the synagogue in order to express respect for their elder. This recognition is accorded by children, younger brothers, and sometimes nephews of the elder, who has been called to the Sefer Torah. As he returns to his seat, his grandchildren and children express their reverence for him kissing the back of his hand.

When an older patriarch of the community is called to the Torah it is not uncommon to find dozens of people rising in his honor. This is a major symbolic public expression of the deep and abiding respect for family which has preserved the ‘congregational family’ as well.

(Adapted from ‘A treasury of Sephardic Laws and Customs’ by Rabbi H. Dobrinsky)

3rd day of Tebet, 5771

Can I walk past a motion sensitive light on Shabbat?

In order to respond this simple question we must first clarify a few Halakhic principles.

When one performs a permitted action and inevitably a forbidden action or melakha will result from it (this category is called pesik resheh) he is forbidden to proceed with the permitted action, even when he had not intent.

For example: dragging of a heavy chair over soft earth on Shabbat, will inevitably result in the production of furrows which constitute a melakha (activity forbidden on Shabbat, which in this case is Deoraita!).

When as a result of a permitted action (‘walking’) a forbidden melakha (‘turning on the light’) will be unintentionally and automatically generated, if I don’t care or need the product that results from it, and it is not Deoraita, I’m allowed to perform the permitted action.

When I’m walking in the street, I don’t need those lights (lo nicha leh), since the lights are shut off by themselves (not permanent, not Deoraita) so, I’m allowed to walk past that street even if the lights will be automatically activated.

Similarly, I’m allowed to walk by a surveillance system, even though little lights are turn on and off, or by a video cameras, as long as I don’t do this intentionally or for my beenfit.

Passing by an optical eye which opens automatically a door I have to pass, iwould be forbidden because I care for that door to open, I need the door open.

NOTE: For those who want to understand better this Halakha I wrote a short explanation in the link below.

Candle lighting in NYC: 4:00 PM
Shabbat ends: 5:18 PM

Shabbat Shalom!

 

Today is the 5th day of Chanuka
29th day of Kislev, 5771

On Shemini Atzeret, we started reciting “Mashib HaRuach U’Morid HaGeshem” instead of “Morid HaTal” during the Amida prayers, praising HaShem for giving us rain, but we did not start asking Him to bring the rains yet.

In Israel, Jews start praying for rain in the Amida two weeks after Shemini Atzeret, on the evening of the seventh of Cheshvan (Sepharadic Jews do this by switching to ‘Barekh Alenu’ on the weekdays Amida, while Ashkenazi Jews add ‘veTen Tal uMatar’).

This was because they wanted to give time to the travelers who had made the pilgrimage to Jerusalem to get back home before praying for rain.

Diaspora Jews of the time, who mainly lived in Babylonia, did not need the rains to start so early, so the Rabbis ruled that in Babylonia the Jews would start praying for rain on the 60th day of Tekufat Tishrei (season of Tishrei) or approximately sixty days after the beginning of Autumn.

The Rabbis gave an easy to calculate round number for determining the beginning of each cycle (season). Each cycle is to be calculated at exactly 91 days 7 hours and 30 minutes. This makes each seasonal year exactly 365 days and 6 hours long, about 11 minutes longer than the actual astronomical calculation of a Solar year.

When it comes to calendar matters, Jews who live outside of Israel follow the practice of the Jews of Babylonia. Therefore, it has become tradition for all Jews who live in the Diaspora to start asking for rain in their prayers as the Babylonian Jews did.

Based on this calculation, this year, 2010, we switched to ‘Barekh Alenu’ in our prayers on the evening of December 4th.

(Thanks to Mr. Mehran Etessami, expert in Hebrew calendar calculations, for his help with this HOTD)

19th day of Kislev, 5771

Fishing and Commercial websites

In previous halakhot we explained that the rabbis of the Mishna (200 CE) discussed the status of self activated devices on Shabbat, programmed before Shabbat begins. The rabbis authorized for example, to set fishing nets on a river on Friday,knowing that fish will be caught during Shabbat. The caught fish, obviously, must be removed after Shabbat (See link)

We learn from the case of the fish nets, that a profit generated during Shabbat, if no human action was involved,it does not represent a Shabbat problem. For this reason you can have stocks or money in a savings account, although it will generate a profit on Shabbat.

Can we apply the same logic to a commercial web site, and authorize a Jew to keep his web site ‘operating’automatically during Shabbat?

Modern rabbis are divided in the interpretation of the web site case, vis-a-vis the fishing nets of the Mishna. Some rabbis (Shebet Halevy, 10,57) would not authorize a web site because, unlike the case of the fishing nets, there is a principle of ‘trade’ involved in the website. This is apparently the opinion followed by some companies like www.bhphotovideo.com whose website remains available 24/7/365, but orders are not ‘accepted’until Shabbat ends.

It seems, however, that the majority of modern orthodox rabbis authorize to have a commercial website self operating on Shabbat, with 2 conditions

1. That the majority of potential customers are not Jewish customers. This will exclude for example, an Israeli/Hebrew site or a Judaica store website, etc. (See link)

2. The orders are ‘processed’after Shabbat. In other words, the whole money charging process (checking credit, charging the credit card) takes place during Shabbat in a completely automatized way but human intervention begins only afterShabbat, with the shipping process.

In these terms, most rabbis, including our own rabbi Ben Hayim, would authorize keeping a commercial web site active during Shabbat.

Shabbat Shalom!!!

In previous halakhot we explained that the rabbis of the Mishna (200 CE) discussed the status of self activated devices on Shabbat, programmed before Shabbat begins.

The rabbis authorized for example, to set fishing nets on a river on Friday, knowing that fish will be caught during Shabbat. The caught fish, obviously, must be removed after Shabbat (See link)

We learn from the case of the fish nets, that a profit generated during Shabbat, if no human action was involved, it does not represent a Shabbat problem. For this reason you can have stocks or money in a savings account, although it will generate a profit on Shabbat.

Can we apply the same logic to a commercial web site, and authorize a Jew to keep his web site ‘operating’ automatically during Shabbat?

Modern rabbis are divided in the interpretation of the web site case, vis-a-vis the fishing nets of the Mishna. Some rabbis (Shebet Halevy, 10,57) would not authorize a web site because, unlike the case of the fishing nets, there is a principle of ‘trade’ involved in the website. This is apparently the opinion followed by some companies like www.bhphotovideo.com whose website remains available 24/7/365, but orders are not ‘accepted’ until Shabbat ends.

It seems, however, that the majority of modern orthodox rabbis authorize to have a commercial website self operating on Shabbat, with 2 conditions

1. That the majority of potential customers are not Jewish customers. This will exclude for example, an Israeli/Hebrew site or a Judaica store website, etc. (See link)

2. The orders are ‘processed’ after Shabbat. In other words, the whole money charging process (checking credit, charging the credit card) takes place during Shabbat in a completely automatized way but human intervention begins only after Shabbat, with the shipping process.

In these terms, most rabbis, including our own rabbi Ben Hayim, would authorize keeping a commercial web site active during Shabbat.

Shabbat Shalom!!!