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Home -> 5785 -> Tazria

והובא אל אהרן הכהן או אל אחד מדוין הכהנים

Sruly Schnair
In Tazria, 5785

“He shall be brought to Aharon HaKohen, or to one of his sons, the Kohanim.” (13:2)

The Torah authorizes only the Kohen to pronounce a plague as Tzaraas. Only the Kohen can render a plague tamei, spiritually impure. Chazal (Mishnah Negaim 3:1) teach that all are fit to view or diagnose a nega. Only a Kohen can make the pronouncement of tamei or tahor. If a Kohen is (sadly) not knowledgeable in the laws pertaining to Tzaraas, we seek a talmid chacham, Torah scholar, who is proficient in recognizing the purity or impurity of a given plague, and he instructs the Kohen concerning what pronouncement to make. The Tolna Rebbe, Shlita, quoted his grandfather Horav David,…

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Home -> 5784 -> Tazria

בדד ישב מחוץ למחנה מושבו

Sruly Schnair
In Tazria, 5784

He shall dwell in isolation; his dwelling shall be outside the camp. (13:46)

Alone means completely alone – not simply as the result of his impure state. If that would have been the case, he would have been able to congregate in a “metzora colony” where everyone like him was tamei, ritually impure. Indeed, Rashi says that he should be secluded from other metzoraim as well. The reason for this is quite simple. The slanderer is supposed to spend quality time introspecting his own faults, rather than focusing on those of others. When a group of negative people get together, they only see the faults of others, never of themselves. They create an…

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Home -> 5784 -> Tazria

ובמלאות ימי טהרה ... תביא כבש בן שנתו לעולה ובן יונה או תור לחטאת

Sruly Schnair
In Tazria, 5784

Upon the completion of the days of her purity… she shall bring a sheep within its first year for an elevation/burnt offering, and a young dove or a turtledove for a sin-offering. (12:6)

The Baal HaTurim notes that, throughout the Torah, turim, young doves, are mentioned before bnei yonah, turtledoves, except for the korban of the yoledes, postpartum sacrifice, when bnei yonah precede turim. He explains that the korban which the woman brings at the end of her yemei taharah, days of purification, consists of a single bird – either a tor or a ben yonah. The nature of the turtledove (which also goes by the name mourning dove) is that, when it is separated from its mate, it mourns it and refuses to mate with another. Therefore, it is more appropriate to…

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Home -> 5784 -> Tazria

וביום השמיני ימול בשר ערלתו

Sruly Schnair
In Tazria, 5784

On the eighth day, his foreskin shall be circumcised. (12:3)

Chazal (Midrash Tanchuma) teach that Bris Milah is so beloved to Hashem that the Almighty promised Avraham Avinu that anyone who is mahul, circumcised, will not descend to Gehinom, Purgatory. While this idea in and of itself is incredible, it becomes more compelling when we take into consideration that it grants a free pass to even the most profligate sinner. Horav Shalom Schwadron, zl, explains this based on the conclusion of the Midrash, “Come and see how much Klal Yisrael love the mitzvos. They spend (large amounts of) money to celebrate and fulfill the mitzvos with great joy – even…

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Home -> 5783 -> Tazria

נגע צרעת כי תהיה באדם והובא אל הכהן

Sruly Schnair
In Tazria, 5783

If a tzaraas affliction will be in a person, he shall be brought to the Kohen. (13:9)

The Talmud Bava Metzia (59a) relates that David Hamelech bemoaned to Hashem that, following the incident with Bas Sheva, certain men were humiliating him. He added, “Even when they are engaged in (studying) Negaim (Mishnayos discussing various plagues) and Ohalos (Mishnayos dealing with tumah, ritual contamination, in a closed area such as a tent), they come to me and ask, ‘David, what form of execution does bais din give to one who has an immoral liaison with a married woman?’” They were alluding to David’s relationship with Bas Sheva which was legally permissible, but this did not prevent their tongues…

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Home -> 5783 -> Tazria

וביום השמיני ימול בשר ערלתו

Sruly Schnair
In Tazria, 5783

On the eighth day, the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. (12:3)

The custom among Jews is to wish the father of the newly-circumcised infant, K’sheim she’nichnas l’bris, kein yikanes l’Torah, u’lechuppah, u’lmaasim tovim, “As the infant enters into the covenant of Bris Milah, so, too, should he enter into Torah, chuppah/marriage and the performance of good deeds.” Many commentators have offered interpretations of this statement by Chazal (Shabbos 137b) – each one intimating an important lesson. I will share but a few. Tochachas Chaim explains the concept behind k’sheim she’nichnas, “As the (infant) enters into the Bris”: When a father brings his newborn son into the covenant of Avraham Avinu, it…

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Home -> 5782 -> Tazria

וראה הכהן אחרי הכבס את הנגע והנה לא הפך הנגע את עינו

Sruly Schnair
In Tazria, 5782

The Kohen shall look after the affliction has been washed and behold! The affliction has not changed its color. (13:55)

The Zohar Hakadosh notes that the words nega and oneg are comprised of the same Hebrew letters, but in different sequence: nun, gimmel, ayin – nega; ayin, nun, gimmel – oneg. The difference between them is where the ayin is placed – at the beginning of the word (as in oneg, pleasure) or the end of the word (nega, affliction). The metzora is to derive a powerful lesson therein. If he expiates his hurtful speech and changes his life, he transforms his present state of nega to oneg. As long as he is afflicted, however, it indicates that he has…

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Home -> 5782 -> Tazria

וטמא טמא יקרא ... בדד שב מחוץ למחנה משבו

Sruly Schnair
In Tazria, 5782

He is to call out: “Contaminated, contaminated” … He shall dwell in isolation; his dwelling shall be outside the camp. (13:45,46)

Shlomo Hamelech writes (Sefer Mishlei 18:21), Maves v’chaim b’yad lashon; “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.” We can understand that slander defames a person; it can be viewed as character assassination, but murder? The victim that has been disgraced, slandered, is alive and well. Why is the act of speaking evil considered tantamount to murder? The Baalei Mussar, Ethicists, make a powerful statement, one which we rarely think about. When one is slandered, when one is the subject of lashon hora, he is no longer viewed in the same manner – even if it is a…

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Home -> 5782 -> Tazria

נגע צרעת כי תהיה באדם

Sruly Schnair
In Tazria, 5782

If a tzaraas affliction will be in a person. (13:9)

Tzaraas, spiritual leprosy, is visited upon a person who fails to curb his tongue. Lashon hora, slanderous speech, is the rubric under which sins of verbal expression fall. Veritably, it does not have to be verbal; it may be a non-verbal expression, such as a turn of the nose, a “hrrumph” negatively dispatched with enough venom behind it to destroy a person: all this falls under the lashon hora classification. We also recognize such a phenomenon as lashon tov, good, complimentary speech, words that soothe, embrace, empower, ennoble and show that someone respects and cares about you. Sadly, the negative…

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Home -> 5782 -> Tazria

והובא אל אהרן הכהן או אל אחד מבניו הכהנים

Sruly Schnair
In Tazria, 5782

He shall be brought to Aharon the Kohen, or to one of his sons the Kohanim. (13:2)

Aharon HaKohen was destined to live another forty years at the most. The chances are that in the future the metzora will present himself to one of Aharon’s descendants. Why is Aharon mentioned here for posterity, when, in fact, his tenure was short? The Tiferes Shlomo explains that the achievements of tzaddikim inspire for generations to come – long after they have left this world. He relates an incident that occurred concerning the Arizal, one time when he was sitting surrounded by his students. In came Horav Shmuel DiOzida, zl, author of the Midrash Shmuel, who was a young man…

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