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בס"ד
לשכנו תדרשו
Seeking the Holy Presence in Our Holy Land
"יין ושכר אל תשת"
"Blessed are You HaShem... who creates the fruit of the vine... May she who was barren (Zion) be exceeding glad and exult, when her children are gathered within her in joy. Blessed are You HaShem who gladdens Zion with her children." (Sheva Brachos)
In almost every special occasion Judaism requires that we commemorate with a blessing over wine. This practice is especially highlighted in context of Purim and Pesah which, interestingly enough, coincide (leap year and regular year respectively) with this week's parsha Shemini, which prohibits the intake of wine or alcohol on the cohanim in the service of the Mishkan or Bait HaMikdash. According to some of our Sages this prohibition on wine-intake is juxtaposed to the story of the death of Nadav and Avihu to explain that the reason for Nadav and Avihu's death was based on that they drunk wine before offering their 'strange fire' in the Mishkan. This said, how can we reconcile the apparent contradiction in our sources in regard to wine-intake? Is wine-intake good or bad?
According to the Zohar the cohanim serve in what we may call 'the secret service'. Out of all Israel they are singled out to enter the holiest locations of the Holy Presence, and just as the matters that are dearest to us must be kept secret and hidden, so too our holiest locations must be held in a form of 'secret service'. The Zohar continues by saying that wine-intake has the opposite effect of secrecy, for it reveals secrets, and therefore is unfit for the service of the cohanim. However, in other respects, when the aspect of 'revealing' is called for, as in expressing joy on festivals and the like, wine is not only accepted, but obligated.
Generally speaking, even when wine is obligated our Sages stress that one should not drink in excess. The only definitive exception to this rule is Purim (Pesah is limited to 4 cups and they can be grape-juice according to most poskim), when all agree that one (poskim - men) should drink at least 'more than one is accustomed' (with the limitation that one not cause harm, etc.). Based on the Zohar we just learned, we can conclude that Purim has a strong emphasis on revealing the hidden, indicative of the great 'revelation' of the future redemption, when what seems to us today mundane and hidden from God's Presence will glow from the Holy Presence, to such an extent that even 'on the hooves of the horse will be written 'holy unto HaShem'. This revelation will come when the world is purified and prepared for the revelation of these secrets. Indeed, Purim is unique in its being reminiscent of the future redemption, as we learn that "all books of the Prophets and Writings will become obsolete (as the previous troubles on which they speak will have ceased) in the time of MaShiah except for Megilat Ester... as it says 'and the days of Purim shall not depart from among the Jews and their memory shall not cease from their descendants.'"
It is Hebron which combines both the hidden and revealed aspects in relating to HaShem. Maarat HaMachpela, by definition a cave, represents the aspect of 'the depths of Hebron', the depths and secrets that lie hidden with our Avot and the souls that arise to Heaven via this spot. On the other hand, Hebron is the capital city of Judah where David first ruled (Jerusalem is inter-tribal). It is Judah's portion which is singled out from among the tribes as being praised for the produce of its wine, the 'revealer of secrets', and in turn it is Judah which will take dominant role in revealing the future redemption: "Yet it may be heard in the cities of Judah and the courtyards of Jerusalem, the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the groom and the voice of the bride."
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Sources: Tanhuma Shemini, 11, Zohar 3, 39a, Orah Haim 695, 2 Rama, Zecharia 14, 20, Rambam Megila 2, 18, Gen. 49, 12 and 37,
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בס"ד
לשכנו תדרשו
Seeking the Holy Presence in Our Holy Land
"We shall thank You HaShem our God that You have given our Fathers a desirable, good, and wide Land." Why is the Land of Israel described as a "wide Land"? One of the many answers to this question, is that the Land of Israel is called a "Wide Land" and "Land of the Deer" for the reason that just as deerskin 'widens' and expands greatly according to its body when it is alive (as its skin cannot contain its own flesh when dead), so too the Holy Land 'widens' according to its inhabitants who give her 'life'.
According to our Sages, unlike other lands which support their populace according to a specified material level, the Land of Israel itself increases its material productivity etc. according to the Jewish population within it. For this reason, just about 100 years ago, when there were much fewer Jews in the Land, many testified about the Land being 'barren' and unproductive, whereas today just a short walk through a marketplace full of Israel-grown produce will prove how greatly the productivity of our Land has changed with the great return of our People to the Land of Israel.
Not only in regard to the Land of Israel do we find this emphasis on 'wideness', but also in regard to Hebron, the very roots of Israel's connection to this Land. According to 'Paaneah Raza' (brought in 'Shaar Hahatzer 149), if we take the Torah's price per land ratio as 50 silver pieces per a field measuring enough to make a 'homer's worth of barley' (all this explicit in Lev. 27, 16), then the 400 silver pieces used to buy the 'Field of Machpela' amount to be worth 600,000 square cubits, this number being representative of all the souls/soul-groups of Israel (see calculation in the source mentioned).
Once again, we see how a seemingly small piece of this Land, and Hebron in specific, includes and has the 'wide-capacity' of all Israel. The fact that each Jew has cubit's-worth of land in the Land of Israel has halachic implications as well, in the form of 'Prozbul', the document issued to secure loans at the end of Shmita year which 'assumes' that one has a portion of land in Israel to make this document valid.
The 'wideness' of Hebron seems to have other implications as well. According to our title quote we are obligated to bring the choicest oil for the lighting of the Menora. Similarly, halacha requires that the offerings brought in the Bait HaMikdash be brought from the choicest animals. The Talmud in Menahot and Rambam specify that the sheep be brought from Hebron, because the backs of these sheep are 'wide', and 'wide' sheep are considered choicest according to Isaiah (30, 23) who describes the plentitude of the redemptive future with 'wide - 'nirhav' - sheep'.
Interestingly, the word for 'wide' in Isaiah, 'nirhav', are the same letters as 'Hebron' (without the optional 'vav'). According to Shaar Hahatzer, this spelling of Hebron (without the vav) is significant, for its numerical value (gematria) is equal that of God's Name, the Tetragamaton ('havaya'), times ten (260), to express the great uniting spiritual power of Hebron.
Real Stories from the Holy Land #56: "We had rented out our apartment, but did not receive the money for numbers of months from the tenant. When I inquired about this from the tenant, I was promised that they would pay. However, subsequently I lost all communication with the tenant, who ran off from the apartment without paying. Two years later, one month I was in debt of 18,000 NIS. Suddenly, I got a call from the tenant who said he now will pay for the rent. For all the months he missed, he deposited exactly 18,000 NIS."
Sources: Jeremiah 3, Gitin 57a, Menahot 87a, Rambam Isurei Mizbeah 7, 2, see Mabit 301 and more
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בס"ד
לשכנו תדרשו
Seeking the Holy Presence in Our Holy Land
"You shall bring them and plant them on the mount of Your heritage, directed toward Your habitation, which You made, HaShem; the sanctuary, O Lord, [which] Your hands founded."
Our Sages explain, in numbers of midrashim, that the beginning of this verse refers to Israel's entrance to the Land of Israel in general, and not only the Temple Mount, a matter which highlights once again that the Holy Land is indeed the Land of "Your habitation", Land of the Holy Presence.
Therefore, it is not surprising why Yosef made Israel vow that they take his bones, and so they did even after about 210 years in Egypt, to be buried in the Land of Israel. It is also important to notice that it is this mission of taking Yosef's bones to the Land that played a crucial role in the splitting of the Red Sea, and thus the Exodus in general.
So our Sages teach us based on the verse in Tehilim - "the Sea saw and fled" - that the Sea fled because it 'saw' the coffin of Yosef who 'fled' from Potifar's wife. Halachically speaking, the transfer of the bones of the deceased from the Diaspora to be buried in the Land of Israel is a legitimate act even today, even though generally speaking halacha bids never to move a corpse from one grave to another grave.
The reason burial in the Land of Israel is such an important matter, is in part because our Sages interpreted the Torah's words "and the Land will atone on His People" (end of Haazinu) that one who is buried in the Land is "as if buried under the Altar", being atoned for his sins. Similarly, within the Land of Israel there are different levels of burial.
A few weeks ago, we brought the ruling of the "Gesher Hahaim", one of the most authoritative works on modern burial and mourning, that the dead of Hebron are not even taken to Jerusalem, because of the tremendous merit attached to burial in Hebron - the Entrance of Souls to the Garden of Eden, just as our Patriarchs chose to be buried.
If so, why was Yosef buried in Shechem and not in Hebron? Simply, we can say that Shechem was given specifically to Yosef by Yakov, as it says "and I give you Shechem over your brothers" (this interpretation is according to the Psikta Vayehi 48, 22), and therefore Yosef had a special personal connection to Shechem. That said, it is important to note that just as Yosef is considered the primary continuation of Yakov (see Midrash Raba Vayeshev 'all that occurred on Yakov occurred on Yosef' and more), and the Patriarchs in general, so too Shechem and Hebron are considered 'sister cities' in many ways - they are the first plots of land bought by our Avos, both are 'Refuge Cities', and both carry the dominant message of the covenant between HaShem and Israel - Shechem is the location of receiving the covenant at Mount Grizim and Eval, and Hebron is the everlasting symbol of HaShem's covenant with our Avot.
Real Stories from the Holy Land #52: "One day, my wife asked me to buy lemons. That same day, I came across a lemon tree in Hebron whose branches collapsed in the recent blizzard, halachically rendered as ownerless. There were so many lemons, that after taking what I needed, there were still plenty to give to my friends."
*To share your story please contactThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
*Sources: Exodus 15, 18, Midrash Tehilim 114, Yoreh Deah 363, 1, Ketubot 111a, , Gesher Hahaim p. 299
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בס"ד
לשכנו תדרשו
Seeking the Holy Presence in Our Holy Land
"כבד את אביך ואת אמך למען יארכון ימיך על האדמה אשר ה' א-היך נתן לך"
"For from Zion Torah will be delivered and the word of HaShem from Jerusalem.” Although, as we see in this week's parsha, the first Torah and prophecy to our Nation was delivered at Mount Sinai and before in Egypt in the Diaspora, our Sages teach in the Mechilta that once Israel entered the Land all prophecy must be rooted in the Land of Israel. In the Mechilta this concept is compared to the exclusivity of the Beit HaMikdash to Jerusalem, this exclusivity occurring only after a period of time of in-exclusivity in regard to the location of the Bais HaMikdash. If so, the Mechilta asks, how did Yehezkel receive prophecy in Babylon? The Mechilta answers that, because Yehezkel began his prophecy in the Land of Israel, therefore he was allowed to continue his prophecy even when he was exiled to the Diaspora. Similarly, in a halachic sense, Torah rulings, at least in their highest levels, may only be ruled in the Land of Israel. So halacha mandates, based on this pasuk “For from Zion Torah will be delivered etc.”, that the initial establishment of months, leap years, etc. must be established by the Sanhedrin in the Land of Israel. In addition, there a numbers of laws that can only be ruled by those with “special ordination” (which we still do not have today) in the Land of Israel. Similarly, the grand Sanhedrin of Israel of 71 elders is specifically located adjacent to the Bais HaMikdash in Jerusalem, and in its absence many of the Torah's laws cannot be implemented today. The dominance of the Land of Israel in such important facets of Judaism, such as Torah and prophecy, highlight how the Holy Land stands as such an important cause in the spiritual wellbeing of our People. Indeed, Isaiah describes the Land to the People as a mother to children:
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“Lift up your eyes all around and see, they all have gathered, they have come to you; your sons shall come from afar, and your daughters shall be raised on [their] side,” and this concept is also echoed in the Yerushalmi (Moed Katan 3, 1).Based on this concept, we can more easily understand why the Torah links, in our title quote, the respect towards parents to our wellbeing in the Land of Israel, the “parent”, so to speak of our People. When we talk about Hebron, this message becomes double-folded. Hebron is both the source of our People's connection to the Holy Land, the 'parent' of our People, as Israel's first bought property therein, and Hebron is also literally the location of our holy parents, the Patriarchs and Matriarchs. The Arizal explains that by honoring our parents, i.e. our cause, we awaken the spiritual cause to our wellbeing. Thus, by also giving honor to Hebron we awaken the spiritual causes for the wellbeing of our People at large. |
Real Stories from the Holy Land #53: “I decided to spend a certain amount of money on a mitzah in Hebron, and so I did. Within 5 minutes of doing so, I was offered a job that payed for all the money I just spent... with about a 50% increase...”
Sources: Rambam Kidush Hahodesh 1, 8 and 5, 1, ibid. Sanhedrin, 5, 1-17, Shaar Hamitzvot, Yitro
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