Derech Eretz – Page 33 – Peninim on the Torah

You shall surely send away the mother…so that it will be good for you and you will prolong your days. (22:7)

Hashem grants success and longevity in response to the performance of the mitzvah of Shiluach Ha’kein, sending away the mother bird. Only the mitzvah of honoring one’s parents effects comparable reward. Why does the Torah single out these two mitzvos for such a significant reward? Also, what is the relationship between these two seemingly disparate mitzvos? Honoring one’s parents is a difficult mitzvah to perform correctly, while Shiluach Ha’kein is a simple task. Horav Zalmen Sorotzkin, zl, comments that actually a strong parallel exists between these mitzvos which accounts for the similarity of the reward. One must set the mother…

Home -> 5757 -> Kedoshim

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Kedoshim, 5757

Every man, his father and mother shall you revere and My Sabbaths shall you observe. (19:3)

One might think that the respect one owes his parents overrides the observance of Shabbos. The Torah teaches us that the mitzvah of Shabbos or, in other words, listening to the command of Hashem takes precedence. We may suggest a novel idea. The Torah tells us that to desecrate Shabbos in order to fulfill a parent’s request does not really constitute respect. The definition of respect for one’s parents is the performance of activity that is in accordance with the will of Hashem. An action that runs counter to Hashem’s Torah, albeit upon instruction from one’s parents, is not considered…

Home -> 5757 -> Emor

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Emor, 5757

They shall be holy to their G-d and they shall not desecrate the Name of their G-d. (21:6)

It seems strange to present two extremes, holiness and desecration, in such close proximity. After all, is holiness not diametrically in opposition to desecration? It is like saying, “Be honest, do good, so not to be a bank robber! Is there not some compromise between kedushah and chillul? In addressing this question, Horav Shlomo Breuer, zl, claims that Hashem is very exact with His close/pious ones. He judges those closest to Him in a very strict manner, because a tzaddik’s “insignificant” error can have a strong effect upon the average Jew., The good performed by the righteous rarely causes a…

Home -> Devarim -> 5757

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5757, Devarim

All of you approached me and said, “Let us send men ahead of us and let them spy out the land. (1:22)

Chazal view the word, “all of you”, as the cause of the tragic outcome of their mission to spy out Eretz Yisrael. The people came forward in an unbecoming manner. They were demanding and disrespectful. The young pushed aside their elders, and the older people pushed ahead of their leaders. This was in sharp contrast to their behavior at Kabalas HaTorah when the entire nation came forth with a request, but in a respectable and orderly manner; the young encouraged their elders to go forward, while the elders displayed the proper respect to their leadership. Why is it necessary to…

Home -> Devarim -> 5757

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5757, Devarim

Provide for yourselves distinguished men, who are wise, understanding, and well known to your tribes, and I shall appoint them as your heads. (1:13)

In a play on the word “onhatu” , “and I will appoint them,” the Midrash changes the “sin” to a “shin”, transforming the word “onhatu” to “and I shall hold them guilty”. The Midrash is teaching us the importance of listening to our spiritual leaders. If they lead properly and the common people still do not respond with respect, the people are liable. They cite an interesting analogy. Once a snake was sliding along its path, when the tail began complaining to the head, “Why are you always in the front with me dragging along behind? I want to lead,…

Home -> Devarim -> 5757

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5757, Devarim

These are the words that Moshe spoke to all Yisrael. (1:1)

Rebuking Klal Yisrael prior to his death, Moshe Rabbeinu recounted their past sins, so that they would learn from their errors. Rashi tells us that out of respect for Klal Yisrael, Moshe did not elaborate their sins. Rather, he mentioned them b’remez, alluding to them through the names of their encampments. These names refer to the various sins committed in these places. The Maharal questions this statement, since apparently Moshe did delineate Klal Yisrael‘s most outstanding sins. Furthermore, the Shach asks why Moshe rebuked the people who were about to enter Eretz Yisrael. After all, they were not the sinners; …

Home -> 5757 -> Chukas

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Chukas, 5757

And they wept for Aharon thirty days, all the House of Yisrael. (20:29)

Aharon’s special relationship with all people earned him the love of everyone. When he passed away, every Jewish man, woman, and child grieved. The quintessent Ohaiv Shalom, he extended himself to promote harmony among his fellow man and between husband and wife. The vacuum caused by his death was acutely felt by everyone. We see that Moshe Rabbeinu, the Rabbon shel kol Yisrael, the teacher who devoted his life to educating Klal Yisrael, was not as universally mourned. As the Yalkut explains, Moshe’s responsibility was to judge and admonish, a function that was not always accepted by everyone. Thus, the…

Home -> 5757 -> Chayei Sarah

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Chayei Sarah, 5757

“And she went down to the well and filled her pitcher and came up. And the servant ran to meet her and said, ‘Let me, please, gulp a little water out of your pitcher.'” (24:16,17)

When one studies the narrative of the entire encounter between Eliezer and Rivkah, he assumes that the length of the text emphasizes Rivkah’s kindness. Eliezer devised a system of testing this young girl to determine if she was worthy to be the wife of Yitzchak, to take her place as the second Matriarch of Klal Yisrael. Yet, one wonders why, after Eliezer saw that the water “rose up” to “greet” Rivkah, he still felt driven to test her. Does the water rise up for every individual? Did he need any greater indication that this was no ordinary young woman? How…

Home -> 5757 -> Chayei Sarah

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Chayei Sarah, 5757

“And the maiden was very fair to look upon, a virgin and no man was on familiar terms with her.” (24:16)

This pasuk is the basis of the Torah’s characterization of the modesty appropriate for a Jewish daughter. Horav S.R. Hirsch, zl, notes that Torah does not say aht vgsh tku “A man does not know her,” as it states in other places, but rather vgsh tk ahtu, a term which does not occur in any other place. This seems to imply that not only was she a virgin in the usual sense, that no man knew her, but she was also so uncommonly modest that no man had dared to become intimately familiar with her. Rivkah’s standard of tznius, modesty,…

Home -> 5757 -> Bereishis

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Bereishis, 5757

“And Hashem, Elokim, fashioned the side that He had taken from the man into a woman.” (2:22)

The Midrash teaches us that Hashem “deliberated” before He created the first woman. Everything is influenced by the source from which it is created. Consequently, Hashem arranged it so that woman would not be created from any part of the body which would have an adverse affect upon her. He said, “If I create her from the head, she might become lightheaded. If I create her from the eyes, she might be overly curious, looking where she should not. If I create her from the ears, she might be predisposed to listen to gossip. If I create her from the…

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You shall surely send away the mother…so that it will be good for you and you will prolong your days. (22:7)

Every man, his father and mother shall you revere and My Sabbaths shall you observe. (19:3)

They shall be holy to their G-d and they shall not desecrate the Name of their G-d. (21:6)

All of you approached me and said, “Let us send men ahead of us and let them spy out the land. (1:22)

Provide for yourselves distinguished men, who are wise, understanding, and well known to your tribes, and I shall appoint them as your heads. (1:13)

These are the words that Moshe spoke to all Yisrael. (1:1)

And they wept for Aharon thirty days, all the House of Yisrael. (20:29)

“And she went down to the well and filled her pitcher and came up. And the servant ran to meet her and said, ‘Let me, please, gulp a little water out of your pitcher.'” (24:16,17)

“And the maiden was very fair to look upon, a virgin and no man was on familiar terms with her.” (24:16)

“And Hashem, Elokim, fashioned the side that He had taken from the man into a woman.” (2:22)

YEARS

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