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Home -> 5780 -> Re'eh

וזה אשר לא תאכלו ... והחסידה

Sruly Schnair
In Re'eh, 5780

This is what you shall not eat…the chasidah. (14:12,18)

As the designated Banim atem la’Hashem Elokeichem, “Children to Hashem, your G-d” (ibid 14:1), we must act in accordance with our special status. It should serve as a source of pride and obligation. The Torah enjoins us with certain prohibitions which are entirely acceptable to the gentile world, but, to Hashem’s children, are an anathema. Among these prohibitions are the Jewish dietary laws which prohibit us from consuming certain animals, fowl and fish. Among the fowl, the Torah lists specific fowl which are considered unkosher due to their “character” which, of course, only the Creator Who created them knows. Among…

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Home -> Bamidbar -> 5780

וידבר ד' אל משה במדבר סיני

Sruly Schnair
In 5780, Bamidbar

Hashem spoke to Moshe in the wilderness of Sinai. (1:1)

The Midrash teaches, “The Torah was given through three media: fire, water and wilderness.” The defining characteristic of Klal Yisrael throughout the ages has been their extraordinary ability to be moser nefesh, to self-sacrifice, for the Torah and their faith. Our People went to the executioner’s scaffold, the fires of the auto de fe, and the gas chambers with their faith and commitment intact. Whenever the tyrants gave them the choice of their religion or their life, the decision was always their religion. This unique power of commitment was highlighted during these – and other – challenging incidents in the…

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Home -> Bamidbar -> 5780

כל יצאי צבא בישראל תפקדו אתם לצבאתם

Sruly Schnair
In 5780, Bamidbar

Everyone who goes out to the legion in Yisrael – you shall count them according to their legions. (1:3)

The men appeared to have been counted as soldiers. The minimum age to serve as a soldier in the army (Jewish) – the legion – was twenty years old, since people achieve their physical maturity by then. Men older than sixty were no longer counted; they were past the age of military service. The Ohr HaChaim HaKadosh teaches that (miraculously) every Jew between the ages of twenty to sixty was physically able to serve as a soldier. The Kli Yakar says that each Jew was not only physically fit for Army service, but he was also spiritually fit to serve…

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Home -> Vayikra -> 5780

אדם כי יקריב מכם קרבן

Sruly Schnair
In 5780, Vayikra

When a man among you brings an offering. (1:2)

The word korban is derived from karov, close/near.  A korban brings us closer to Hashem.  The Navi Hoshea (6:6) states, “For I (Hashem) wanted chesed, acts of lovingkindness, and not a korban.”  Chesed is being presented as being on par with korbanos, but also as being better than korbanos.  Chesed brings about atonement, but chesed has an advantage that exceeds the korban effect.  Maharal (Nesivos Olam/Nesiv Gemilus Chassadim) explains that chesed elevates a person, granting him a higher level of spirituality, while a korban does not.  As Horav Tzvi Kushelevsky, Shlita, puts it: “Chesed elevates a person above his natural…

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Home -> Ki Sisa -> 5780

זה יתנו כל העובר על הפקודים

Sruly Schnair
In 5780, Ki Sisa

This shall they give – everyone who passes through the census. (30:13)

The mitzvah of giving machatzis ha’shekel, a half-shekel, each year applies equally to all Jews (men, twenty years old and up), regardless of their financial circumstances. All Jews are the same with regard to the donation that supports the daily korbanos, communal offerings, and other communal rituals in the Bais HaMikdash. As the Sefer HaChinuch explains the shoresh, root, of this mitzvah, Hashem wanted – for the good and merit of Klal Yisrael – that all Jews be equal with regard to the sacrifices (equal representation) that they brought regularly before Him. Shavim b’mitzvah, equal in the mitzvah, because all…

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Home -> 5780 -> Mishpatim

לא תהיה לו כנושה

Sruly Schnair
In Mishpatim, 5780

Do not act toward him as a creditor. (22:24)

Hashem’s act of creating the world was an act of altruism. The Almighty needs nothing. He simply wants to do good, to benefit others. To this end, he expects His People to emulate His ways by identifying with the needs of others and looking for ways to alleviate their travail. It is important to underscore that travail comes in all forms and sizes. Just because an issue does not bother me does not mean that it would not bother anyone else. Our barometer for success is measured by what we do for others – not by what we do for…

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Home -> 5780 -> Vayeira

וירא אליו ד' באלני ממרא והוא ישב פתח האהל כחם היום

Sruly Schnair
In Vayeira, 5780

Hashem appeared to him in the plains of Mamre, while he was sitting at the entrance of the tent in the heat of the day. (18:1)

It was three days after Avraham Avinu’s bris milah, circumcision. The third day is the most painful. Yet, our Patriarch was sitting at the entrance of his tent during an unusually warm time of the day. Chazal teach that Hashem removed the sun from its protective casing in order to make it more powerful (and hotter), so that wayfarers would not travel. Thus, they would not inconvenience Avraham (by not creating an opportunity for him to serve them). When Hashem saw that Avraham was actually pained by not having the opportunity to fulfill the mitzvah of hachnosas orchim, welcoming guests,…

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Home -> 5780 -> Vayeira

וישא עיניו וירא והנה שלשה אנשים נצבים עליו

Sruly Schnair
In Vayeira, 5780

He lifted his eyes and saw: And behold! Three men were standing over him. (18:2)

Rashi explains that it was necessary to send three angels in the image of men because an angel performs only one mission. Thus, one angel came to heal Avraham Avinu; the second came to inform Sarah Imeinu of the impending birth of her son; the third came to destroy Sodom. Raphael, the angel who healed Avraham, went on to Sodom to save Lot form the conflagration that would destroy the city. The question is obvious: If an angel performs only one mission (at a time), and Rapahel had gone on to destroy Sodom to save Lot, would it not have been…

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Home -> 5780 -> Vayeira

כי ידעתיו למען אשר יצוה את בניו ואת ביתו אחריו ושמרו דרך ד'

Sruly Schnair
In Vayeira, 5780

For I have loved him, because he commands his children and his household after him that they keep the way of Hashem. (18:19)

The literal translation of yedaativ (reference to knowledge) is, “I know him.” Understandably, when one loves and cares for someone, he seeks to bring him close and know him better. Hashem loved Avraham because he did not keep His teachings to himself. When one believes in something, he wants to shout it from the rooftops, to reach out to whomever he can, so that he can share these verities with him. Interestingly, Avraham Avinu performed many mitzvos for which he achieved singular distinction. In addition, he kept the entire Torah even prior to its being given to Klal Yisrael. Yet,…

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Home -> Mikeitz -> 5780

יעשה פרעה ויפקד פקדים על הרארץ וחמש את ארץ מצרים בשבע שני השבע

Sruly Schnair
In 5780, Mikeitz

Let Pharaoh proceed and let him appoint overseers on the land, and he shall prepare the land of Egypt during the seven years of abundance. (41:34)

Yosef gave Pharaoh sound advice: Prepare during the seven years of abundance for a time in which food would be nothing more than a dream (or a nightmare). We do not focus on the periods of adversity when we are surrounded by plenty. We are unable to imagine what it means to be hungry while we are eating a succulent piece of meat. That is human nature. A chacham, wise person, has the vision to transcend his natural proclivity and see another time, another circumstance, when all will not be good, when every morsel of food will be considered a…

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