Derech Eretz – Page 14 – Peninim on the Torah

וידבר אל קרח ואל כל עדתו

He (Moshe Rabbeinu) spoke to Korach and to his entire assembly. (16:5)

Either debated, dissenting opinions or the fire of controversy can characterize disagreements based in Torah. Chazal (Pirkei Avos 5:17) label the controversy of Korach v’adaso, and his congregation, as a machlokes she’lo l’shem Shomayim, controversy not for the sake of Heaven. It is a disagreement which undermines the very underpinnings of Torah Judaism. Korach v’adaso stand in contrast with the two classic debaters of the Mishnah, Hillel and Shammai, who debated l’shem Shomayim. Interestingly, concerning Hillel and Shammai, both disputants are named, while in the controversy that surrounded Korach and Moshe, it is called the machlokes of Korach v’adaso –…

Home -> 5782 -> Korach

וידעתם כי נאצו האנשים האלה את ד'

Sruly Schnair In Korach, 5782

Then you shall know that these men provoked Hashem. (16:30)

The best way to extricate oneself from machlokes is to circumvent it. When a person suffers an indignity, or when someone whom we respect and love suffers an indignity or is slandered, our knee-jerk reaction is to put the other fellow in his place. We want to teach him a lesson, so that he would never again be cavalier with another’s emotions. That, in and of itself, is the beginning of machlokes. The best way to stop a machlokes is to prevent it from starting. The following two stories are about individuals, both holy, both whom I had the z’chus…

Home -> 5782 -> Beha'alosecha

תסגר שבעת ימים מחוץ למחנה ואחר תאסף

Sruly Schnair In Beha'alosecha, 5782

Let her be quarantined outside the camp for seven days, and then she may be brought in. (12:14)

Miriam HaNeviyah partnered with her two illustrious brothers in leading Klal Yisrael out of Egypt and through their forty-year journey through the wilderness. The Torah relates that Miriam misspoke concerning Moshe Rabbeinu, making a comment that was considered lashon hora, slanderous speech. As a result, she was struck with tzaraas, spiritual leprosy. The metzora must be quarantined for seven days. During Miriam’s seven-day isolation, the entire Klal Yisrael waited and did not journey to their next encampment. While this was considered a punishment to her, Klal Yisrael’s remaining in place for the duration of her quarantine is a tribute to…

Home -> 5782 -> Naso

ואם לא נטמאה האשה וטהורה היא ונקתה ונזרע זרע

Sruly Schnair In Naso, 5782

But if the woman had not become defiled and she is pure, then she shall be proven innocent and she shall bear seed. (5:28)

Unquestionably, the suspected sotah had gone through a harrowing ordeal. At the end, her claims of innocence were miraculously proven correct. She had not committed adultery. As a result, she will be blessed. Chazal (Sotah 26a) teach that she will bear children more easily. If she had heretofore suffered difficult labor, she will now experience an easy birth. If her babies had been dark-skinned, they will now be fair. If she had previously been barren, Hashem will give her a child to compensate for her ordeal. A wonderful reward for what? This woman had acted in a manner that provoked…

Home -> Bamidbar -> 5782

שאו את ראש כל עדת בני ישראל למשפחתם לבית אבותם

Sruly Schnair In 5782, Bamidbar

Take a census of the entire assembly of Bnei Yisrael according to their families, according to their father’s household. (1:2)

The census of Klal Yisrael which was carried out individually for each shevet, tribe, in accordance to their pedigree i.e. their father’s yichus, lineage, carries a powerful connotation for the Jew. Knowing and acknowledging our past is critical. Understanding, appreciating, or, at times, coming to terms with our roots is part of our Jewish responsibility. Whether one hails from an illustrious lineage or from less-than-ordinary pedigree, he is part of Klal Yisrael. Thus, he is charged with the mission of spreading and glorifying Hashem’s Name in the world. A fascinating Chazal (Yalkut Shemoni 684) addresses Klal Yisrael’s lineage and its…

Home -> Bechukosai -> 5782

וזכרתי את בריתי יעקב ואף את בריתי יצחק ואף את בריתי אברהם אזכר

Sruly Schnair In 5782, Bechukosai

I will remember My covenant with Yaakov, and also My covenant with Yitzchak, and also My covenant with Avraham will I remember. (26:42)

Rashi observes that zechirah, remembering, is mentioned concerning Avraham Avinu and Yaakov Avinu – but not in connection with Yitzchak Avinu. He explains that Yitzchak’s “ashes” (His ashes are considered to be as they would have been if the Akeidah had occurred, and Avraham had offered his son, Yitzchak, on the altar as a korban, sacrifice, to Hashem) are piled up on the Mizbayach. Remembering applies to something which is no longer extant. Yitzchak’s ashes are present. Thus, the term “remembering” does not apply concerning him. Anyone reading this should immediately wonder how the concept of forgetting applies to Hashem….

Home -> Bechukosai -> 5782

והיה ערכך חמשים שקל כסף

Sruly Schnair In 5782, Bechukosai

The valuation shall be fifty silver shekels. (27:3)

Chazal (Megillah 23b) distinguish between arachin, valuations, which are a set amount established by the Torah, and damim, money/assessments, which are based upon a person’s worth (on the slave market). Horav Moshe Feinstein, zl, posits that the Torah is teaching us that two variant circumstances, conditions, determine how to view a person. First is a person’s established level – as expected of him, based on standards. This is similar to an established expectancy that at (for example) age 20, an individual should be proficient in various disciplines. At age thirty, he should have progressed beyond this to a different level….

Home -> Behar -> 5782

ולא תונו איש את עמיתו ויראת מאלקיך

Sruly Schnair In 5782, Behar

Each of you shall not aggrieve his fellow, and you shall fear your G-d. (25:17)

The Torah admonishes us concerning onaas devarim, which means (in short) using speech that may be hurtful to – or might catalyze negative emotions in – the listener. Evoking memories of someone’s negative, troubling past; attributing the onus of one’s problems to his past sinful behavior; reminding a convert about his prior life as a gentile: these are examples of onaas devarim. Clearly, one who acts in such a manner is himself a sick person, and, as such, the prohibition may not deter him from acting inconsiderately of others. Sadly, the only fulfillment in this person’s life is the pain…

Home -> 5782 -> Emor

אמור אל הכהנים בני אהרן ואמרת אליהם

Sruly Schnair In Emor, 5782

Say to the Kohanim, the sons of Aharon, and tell them. (21:1)

Emor, say; v’amarta, and tell them, is an apparent redundancy. Rashi explains emor, v’amarta as an enjoinment, l’hazhir gedolim al ha’ketanim, that the Kohanim convey this teaching to others; More specifically, adult Kohanim were cautioned (l’hazhir) regarding the children, the young Kohanim, for adults are not permitted to cause children to become contaminated. The commentators, each in his own inimitable manner, explain the idea of l’hazhir gedolim al ha’ketanim. If I may use my writer’s license, I would suggest that l’hazhir, which also means illuminated and cause to shine, is an enjoinment to parents to make their children’s positive achievements…

Home -> 5782 -> Emor

ובת איש כהן כי תחל לזנות את אביה היא מחללת באש תשרף

Sruly Schnair In Emor, 5782

If the daughter of a Kohen will be desecrated through adultery, she desecrates her father – she shall be consumed by fire. (21:9)

The less than savory activities of one’s offspring – whether intended or not – will affect his parents’ reputation. People like to talk. It is a disease that affects many of us, and, when someone’s child acts in an uncomplimentary manner, people have reason to talk – and they do. This is especially true when the children are products of an illustrious lineage. This adds fuel to the fire. The bas kohen that desecrated herself receives an unusual punishment which is not consistent with the sin of adultery. Rightfully, an adulteress is stoned for her contemptible behavior. The bas kohen…

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וידבר אל קרח ואל כל עדתו

He (Moshe Rabbeinu) spoke to Korach and to his entire assembly. (16:5)

וידעתם כי נאצו האנשים האלה את ד'

Then you shall know that these men provoked Hashem. (16:30)

תסגר שבעת ימים מחוץ למחנה ואחר תאסף

Let her be quarantined outside the camp for seven days, and then she may be brought in. (12:14)

ואם לא נטמאה האשה וטהורה היא ונקתה ונזרע זרע

But if the woman had not become defiled and she is pure, then she shall be proven innocent and she shall bear seed. (5:28)

שאו את ראש כל עדת בני ישראל למשפחתם לבית אבותם

Take a census of the entire assembly of Bnei Yisrael according to their families, according to their father’s household. (1:2)

וזכרתי את בריתי יעקב ואף את בריתי יצחק ואף את בריתי אברהם אזכר

I will remember My covenant with Yaakov, and also My covenant with Yitzchak, and also My covenant with Avraham will I remember. (26:42)

והיה ערכך חמשים שקל כסף

The valuation shall be fifty silver shekels. (27:3)

ולא תונו איש את עמיתו ויראת מאלקיך

Each of you shall not aggrieve his fellow, and you shall fear your G-d. (25:17)

אמור אל הכהנים בני אהרן ואמרת אליהם

Say to the Kohanim, the sons of Aharon, and tell them. (21:1)

ובת איש כהן כי תחל לזנות את אביה היא מחללת באש תשרף

If the daughter of a Kohen will be desecrated through adultery, she desecrates her father – she shall be consumed by fire. (21:9)

YEARS

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