Go to Dvar Torah for

• First Days of Pesach,

• Shabbat Chol Hamoed, or

• Last Days of Pesach

The recitation of berachot is no easy matter. What at first blush should be self evident, is not at all simple, that is, if berachot are to be recited properly. “Keitzad mevarechim?” is the opening question of the sixth perek of Massechet Berachot which runs for 10 long folio pages. Then, once again, we return to the obligations of reciting berachot in the ninth perek of the same measechta where we spend another seven blatt on halachic discussions of the proper version and situations for certain berachot.

 The technical-halachic principles involved in berachot should not be regarded as elementary just because we start to educate our tots with the recitation of berachot.

Of great halachic concern, among these many principles is the problem of reciting an unnecessary berachah (she’einah tzerichah). Reciting a berachah in such an instance would constitute an aveirah rather than a mitzvah observance (berachah le-vatalah).

But within these shared lines I should like to focus on some of the questions that arise concerning a berachah which, according to some, is derived from this week’s parashah. That berachah is Birkat haGomel.

The obligation to recite Birkat haGomel, according to Rabbeinu Asher, serves as a substitute for the korban todah, the thanksgiving offering, that a person may want to bring (Rosh to Berachot 54b). Rashi lists in Parashat Tzav (Vayikra 7:12), the circumstances where a person may want to offer such a korban. His examples are the very same instances which are listed in Massechet Berachot that require a person to recite Birkat haGomel: a person who crossed the high seas, one who traveled through a desert, someone who recuperated from illness, an individual who is released from prison.  

These very same four, the Talmud tells us, are obligated to recite Birkat haGomel. And, this berachah ought to be recited in the presence of ten. (Berachot 54b).

This having been said, some of the questions that arise ought to be examined.  

First. When the Talmud specified those who cross the high seas and deserts, are we limited to those specific instances because there are known dangers of pirates and wild animals? Or, can the examples stated be extended to other trips where danger lurks?

Here we find different attitudes in resolving the question. Despite the dangers present on the highways between cities, the Shulchan Aruch records that the prevalent custom in Ashkenaz (Germany) and Tzarfat (France) was not to recite haGomel on intercity trips since the dangers in those areas were not as ominous as crossing a desert. In Sefarad (Spain) the custom was to recite haGomel after every intercity trip since even such trips were commonly fraught with dangers.

Second. When the Talmud specified these four instances in which emerging from them safely is considered miraculous, can we extend this notion to other “miraculous” instances? Or, are we limited to the specific four cases stipulated?

Shulchan Aruch comes down on the side of those who maintain that anyone delivered miraculously from ominous danger and severe illness is required to recite haGomel. (Orach Chayim 219:9)

Third. If one travels on a road for a short distance (i.e., less than the required parsa to obligate the recitation of haGomel, a parsa being about 2.78 miles) but, at times, rocks have been thrown at vehicles and firebomb tossings have occurred, is this considered a dangerous trip?

Yes, says Rav Ovadia Yosef, that is clearly a dangerous trip (Yalkut Yosef 219:15).

Fourth. What if one travels the high seas or crosses a desert and emerges unscathed, is haGomel required after such an uneventful trip?

Mishnah Berurah (in his Be’ur Halachah) opines that haGomel is to be recited nonetheless since that potential danger is always present.

Fifth. What does one do when traveling by air? And, is there a difference between intercity and intercontinental flights?

Virtually all of the 20^th century poskim have addressed this modern mode of travel, and the opinions expressed have varied greatly. What follows are some of those opinions which are accessible to me as I write these lines.

Rav Yitzchak Weiss (Minchat Yitzchack 2:47) maintained that haGomel need not be recited when traveling by air since the dangers these days are absolutely minimal. The Rogatshover, Rav Yosef Rozen, was quoted also as having maintained a similar position.

Rav Yaakov Breish (Chulkat Ya’akov Orach Chayim 55) maintained that the berachah ought to be recited deleting sheim u’malchut (the words HaShem Elokeinu Melech haOlam).

Rav Eliezer Waldenberg (Titz Eliezer 11:4) maintained that only “lengthy” flights require haGomel but short intercity flights do not necessitate the recitation of the berachah.

Rav Moshe Stern, the Debretziner Rav, relates that he heard in the name of the Satmar Rebbe, Rav Yoel Teitelbaum, that every single flight subsequently requires haGomel to be recited. The Satmarer Rebbe insisted that it is a case of “either/or.” If a flight required haGomel then every flight necessitates its recitation. And, if a flight does not require it, then all flights are free from the obligation. Nonetheless, Rav Stern recommends that on flights lasting three or more hours one ought to recite haGomel. For shorter flights he recommended an acceptable alternate expression of thanksgiving recorded first in Berachat 54b. Translated it would read: “Blessed is the Merciful One who has returned me to you and not to the dust.”(B’eir Moshe 3:69)

Rav Moshe Feinstein (Igrot Moshe, Orach Chayim 2:59) insists that every flight requires a Birkat haGomel and he rejects as out of order making any distinction between intercity and intercontinental flights.

Sixth. Does one need an aliyah to recite haGomel?

No. One needs ten people assembled together. The notion that one is absolutely required to have an aliyah may mistakenly stem from the practice that when a member of a congregation returns from a trip he is customarily honored with an aliyah. Also, on the first Shabbat after having given birth when a woman comes to daven, her husband is honored with an aliyah at which time he may recite haGomel on her behalf. In both of these instances, a person is not absolutely required to be given an aliyah but it is a common practice. In halachic terms, the person is not a chiyuv, but to honor him with an aliyah is a known minhag. (See Mishnah Berurah 137 in Bei’ur Halachah where he discusses just who is a chiyuv for an aliyah.)

Seventh. Are women obligated to recite haGomel?

Here is what Aruch haShulchan (219:6) wrote about why women may have come to avoid reciting haGomel: "Women commonly do not recite this berachah for which there is no decent reason. Perhaps this practice came to be since haGomel is so often recited at the time of the reading of the Torah (with someone receiving an aliyah) and therefore they assume that they are not required to recite it. It is correct, therefore, that they do recite this berachah.”

Mishnah Berurah associates the practice of husbands reciting haGomel after their wives recuperate from childbirth and the women would answer “Amen” with the halachah that person other than the one obligated to say haGomel can recite the berachah, while the one obligated can respond with “Amen.”

I began these shared lines earlier by referring to the complication and questions that arise as to when a person is obligated to recite this berachah. I grant that I have not offered definitive answers to the various questions that I posed. As for what you ought to do, I suggest that you seek guidance from your rav for a determination of how to act when you are confronted with those grey areas.

Let me leave you with one final “delicious” thought that, I believe, is well known but deserves to be remembered often, and most especially this Shabbat haGadol as we ready ourselves to celebrate Pesach. “In the end of days we will be able to dispense with every korban, save for korban todah, the thanksgiving offering. All prayers will be superfluous, except for the ones of thanksgiving (hoda’ah) unto HaShem.” (Vayikra Rabbah 9:1)

Shabbat Shalom!

This past May I had a minor procedure performed as an outpatient.  Though the procedure was routine I had trouble sleeping the entire night prior to it.  I recited Tehillim in the hope that, please G-d, everything would go well.  I did this even though it was a routine and minor procedure.  My experience makes what Pharaoh did in this morning’s Torah reading so incredibly difficult to comprehend.

 The passuk tells us, “Pharaoh arose at midnight, he and all of his servants and all Egypt, and there was a great outcry in Egypt, for there was not a house where there was not a person who was dead.”(Shmot 12:30)  One has to picture the scenario: Pharaoh and Egypt have just endured nine horrific plagues.  Every warning transmitted by Moshe and Aharon to Pharaoh came about.  Yet Pharaoh, himself a firstborn as well as a father to a first born, went to sleep without a worry in the world.

Rashi explains this dilemma in one word:  memetaso: from his bed!  And Pharaoh arose from his bed.  Of course he is arising from his bed.  What is Rashi telling us that we do not already know?

Tallei Orot points out that we can appreciate the level of insolence Pharaoh exhibited by not even being concerned the least bit about the impending death sentence hanging over the first borns of Egypt. Pharaoh received the warning loud and clear, however it seemed that it made no impact upon him whatsoever.

The sefer Taam V’daat writes that Pharaoh did not care at all whether the word of HaShem would come to fruition or not.  The proof is the fact that he went to sleep like any other night in his life.  The hardening of his heart reached a point where he despised and rejected the word of G-d. As a result he was able to sleep without a worry at all about what would or might occur to him, his own family, or the entire land of Egypt.

The Malbim gives us yet another possible explanation.  One would think that with the opulent lifestyle that the Pharaohs of Egypt probably lived, the king of Egypt would have servants awakening him.  However on this night Pharaoh awoke before all of his servants.  In fact, it was Pharaoh himself who awoke his servants to tell them what had just happened.  It seems that at least according to the Malbim, Pharaoh was awakened by the screams and cries at midnight while his servants were not.

The Sefer Nair L’shabbot, by Rabbi Nachum Lerner, emphasizes the idea of Pharoah’s lack of character change in spite of the fact that his own son was lying dead before him as a first born.  He arose from his bed without any regret or guilt; there was no movement or desire to do teshuva for the terrible things he did to the Jewish people. Rather, Pharaoh just got out of bed like any other morning in spite of the fact that every single house in Egypt contained at least one corpse.

Rabbi Frand in his Commuter Torah Tapes quotes Rabbi Elya Meir Bloch.  He maintains that Pharaoh had to go to sleep to prove a point.  Pharaoh was what we would call in today’s terms on a power trip.  The only way in which he would be able to be victorious was to show to Moshe as well as to the populace of Egypt that he was in charge.  Pharaoh proved this by going to sleep. If he was afraid of going to sleep, it would be a sign of weakness on the part of Pharaoh. By going to sleep Pharaoh was in effect declaring I am in charge and nothing happens unless I say so.

This entire episode is a sad commentary about the mindset of Pharaoh.    Pharaoh proclaimed, “Who is HaShem that I should listen to His voice.” (Shmot 5:2)  HaShem gave him an answer, many answers on multiple occasions but Pharaoh refused to process the information.

Later, in Parshot V’eira, Aharon throws down his staff and it turns into a snake.  Why did HaShem choose a snake over any other object?  Through the natural process of molting, the snake sheds its skin many times during its life.  No matter how many times the snake sheds its skin, it is still the same snake.  The same held true for Pharaoh, no matter how many times he claimed he wanted the plagues to stop or said he was wrong and a sinner, he in the end was still the same old wicked, Pharaoh.

Pharaoh is the symbol of those who refuse to see the reality of the situation or recognize signs sent by HaShem to guide all of us on the proper path.  In many ways we can use Pharaoh as the symbol of the Rasha, the wicked child we talk about at the Seder.  The Hagadah tells us that the Rasha “rejects the main principle of faith” i.e. he denies God.  Pharaoh’s entire problem was due to the fact that he denied God.  His lack of belief led him down the road of death and destruction. 

On the Yom Tov of Pessach, the lesson for us is very clear.  HaShem sends each and every one of us signs to follow.  We can follow the signs or ignore them. We already have seen what happens when the signs are not followed. Pharaoh’s actions are teaching us the take to heart every sign HaShem places before us.  Please G-d, when Klal Yisroel, in unison, follows the signs of HaShem, we will merit the Geula Shlaimah, speedily and in our days.

Chag Sameach

Shabbat Chol Hamoed Pesach
19 Nissan 5767

April 7, 2007

Daf Yomi: Moed Katan 28

 

Guest Rabbi:     
Rabbi Yitzchok Rabinowitz
Congregation Beth Israel, Malden, MA 

The last verse in Parshas Vayigash (47:27) reads, “And Israel settled in the land of Egypt in the region of Goshen – Vayeiochazu ba- and they acquired property in it and they were fruitful and multiplied greatly.”

 

Rav Shamshon Raphael Hirsch ZT”L interprets the words Vayeiochazu ba in the following manner: “They let themselves be gripped by the land. Herein lies an indication of the beginning of that sin, the facts of which Ezekiel

(Chapter 20) has preserved for us.”

 

Harav Hirsch is referring to Yechezkal 20:7-11, “And I said to them, ‘Every man, cast away the detestable [idols] of his eyes; do not defile yourselves with idols of Egypt….But they rebelled against me ….they did not forsake the idols of Egypt. So I thought to pour out my anger upon them…..in the midst of the land of Egypt. But I acted for the sake of my name…before whose eyes I made myself known to them, [promising] to take them out of the land of Egypt.”

 

The beginning of this sin is the fact that, “They let themselves be gripped by the land.” Once they felt that Egypt was their home the seeds for their spiritual decline were planted.

 

Harav Yaakov Kamenetsky ZT’L in Emes L’Yaakov  (Parshas Vayechi) uses this concept to explain a tragic episode that preceded the redemption from Egypt.

 

On Shabbos Chol HaMoed, we read the Haftorah from Yechezkal 37, “The hand of HaShem was upon me; it took me …. And set me down in the midst of a valley- and it was filled with bones etc.” The Gemara in Sanhedrin 92b says these bones that were resurrected by Yechezkal were the bones of the descendents of the tribe of Ephraim who miscalculated the end of the Egyptian exile and left before the rest of the Jewish people. They were eventually killed by the people of Gath.

 

What was the source of their mistake and why the descendents of Ephraim more than anyone else? The Torah tells us that Yaakov gave Yosef’s sons a special blessing before his death- “And now your two sons who were born to you in Egypt…..Ephraim and Menashe shall be mine like Reuvain and Shimon.” Why wasn’t Yaakov concerned with showing favoritism to Yosef again? After Yosef reveals himself to his brothers and gives more gifts to his brother Binyomin than his other brothers , the Gemara in Megillah asks, “Something that the tzadik [ Yaakov ] suffered from [ i.e. showing favoritism to one son over the others] he [Yosef] would make the same mistake? ” If so, why did Yaakov feel that it was so necessary to recognize Ephraim and Menashe over the others?

 

HaRav Kamenetsky answers that Yosef’s sons who grew up in the spiritually polluted atmosphere of Egypt and not the holy home of Yaakov Avinu were at greater risk of assimilation during the duration of the Egyptian exile then the rest of the Jewish people. Therefore he raised them to the status of his own sons so that they would always remember and value who they are.

 

Rav Yaakov suggests that Ephraim was at greater risk than his brother Menashe. This is implied by their names. Yosef called his eldest Menashe because “G-d has made me forget all my hardship and my father’s household.” He named his second son Ephraim because “G-d has made me fruitful in the land of my suffering.” Ephraim was born in a period when Yosef felt prosperous in Egypt and expressed his thanks to HaShem in his son’s name. Rav Yaakov also suggests that Ephraim is an Egyptian name. Ephraim saw in his name that his family members were prosperous members of Egyptian society. Therefore he was at greater risk. This is why we find that Ephraim regularly studied Torah with his grandfather Yaakov, while Menashe assisted his father Yosef.

 

Because of this attitude, Ephraim’s descendents suffered from the slavery more than the rest of the Jewish people. They could not tolerate the fact that they, who considered themselves as part of Egyptian society, descendents of the man who literally saved the country from starvation, would now be reduced to lowly slaves! This caused them to miscalculate the end of the Egyptian exile.

 

The Midrash says they miscalculated the four-hundred years of exile that HaShem told Avraham by thirty years. They counted it from the time that HaShem told Avraham about the exile at the Bris bein habesorim and it really began thirty years later when Yitzchok was born.

 

They reasoned that at the bris bein habesorim, Avraham was promised the land thus making it rightfully his.  However when approaching the people for a plot of land to bury his wife he refers to himself as a ger- a stranger (Beraishis 23:5).That means that a citizen who cannot live like one in his own land is in exile. The descendants of Ephraim read their personal plight into Avraham’s and this caused them to miscalculate the end of the exile.

 

When celebrating our redemption from Egypt we must remember how feeling at home in exile brought tragic results to the Jewish people in Egypt and how it continues to do so to our people to this day. We pray to HaShem that just as He redeemed us from Egypt and its destructive influences that he will quickly redeem us from our present exile and its destructive influences with the coming of Moshiach.

 Shabbat Shalom!

“Kerias Yam Suf,” the wondrous splitting of the Sea of Reeds that allowed Bnei Yisrael to finally proceed to safety, and the subsequent ultimate demise of their Egyptian pursuers in those same waters, is no doubt one of the most glorious moments in early Jewish History. The Midrash Tanchuma identifies ten distinct miracles that were bestowed upon the Jewish people at the Sea, while in the Hagada at the Pesach Seder, we count as many as two-hundred fifty plagues that afflicted the oppressive Egyptians at that same juncture. When we wish to describe a task requiring heroic effort - including Parnasa and Shidduchim - we liken it to Kerias Yam Suf.  The Talmud states that the ordinary maid-servant experienced the Divine Revelation at the Sea in a manner unrivaled even by the prophet Yechezkel, whose own quintessential vision of the Chariot in “Maaseh Merkava” is so mystifying that its study is limited to a select group of individuals. The Gemara in Zevachim, also cited by Rashi in his commentary to Chumash, says that Kerias Yam Suf – along with the defeat of Amalek - was what motivated Yitro to rejoin his family and convert to Judaism. Indeed, another Midrash states that the report of Kerias Yam Suf – or perhaps the sound of the splitting itself – was heard from one end of the world to the other, causing all of its inhabitants to tremble in awe and panic. It is no surprise then that the Talmud should require that one who sees the places of traversal of the Sea is obligated to offer praise and thanksgiving before the Almighty.

Indeed, on the surface, the response of Bnei Yisrael to Kerias Yam Suf was entirely in line with the astonishing events that they had just witnessed. The Gemara in Pesachim states that it was at this time that Hallel, the classical prayer for salvation and celebration, was instituted for posterity, while the Gemara in Berakhos says that even the fetuses, still in their mothers’ wombs, also participated in this cry of joy. While there may perhaps be other origins of Hallel, in any case, the “Shiras Ha-Yam,” the song of Moses and the Jewish people just following this final act of redemption as is clearly recorded in Chumash, is the quintessential song in Tanakh: when we mention “The Shira,” without any qualification, it is assumed that we refer to the “Song of the Sea,” even though there are many other “Shirot” throughout Scripture. It is read not only in its home-context - Parashas Beshalach - when the Shabbos is so named for it as “Shabbos Shira,” but also was selected as the reading for the Seventh Day of Pesach, and in both cases, a special melody is used for the public readings and the introductory verses. It is included throughout the year in the daily morning service as part of the Pesukei Dezimra – even inasmuch as one is otherwise forbidden to interrupt at this point, and in many congregations on days when it is read later from the Torah, the Shira that is part of the prayers is said responsively by the Baal Tefilla and the Tzibbur. The Aliya La-Torah for the Shira is one of the most coveted honors associated with Torah-reading, usually reserved for a synagogue leader or the highest bidder to Tzedaka, and in most synagogues, the congregation rises for this part of the reading. It seems rather clear, that this Shira – “The Shira” – is one of the most feted portions in the entire Torah.

The Talmud Yerushalmi at the beginning of Shekalim, however, takes a strikingly different and openly critical view: Rabbi Yehuda ben Pazi said in the name of Rebbi: Is it possible to read these verses without trepidation? When it came to the Jews raising their voices in praise after their delivery from the Sea, the Torah states “Az yashir Moshe,” implying that it was only after Moshe sang that Bnei Yisrael were inspired to join in. In contrast, when it came to the slanderous reports about Eretz Yisrael brought back by the Spies, the Torah informs us that the entire assembly raised their voices and cried. The reaction was immediate and unanimous. No matter how great, when it was finally drawn out, was that Song of the Sea and the honor it would be accorded in subsequent generations, it would suffer forever from a certain stigma due to the delayed and indirect response.

It is appropriate then that Pesach, the anniversary of Kerias Yam Suf, is the holiday when, like no other we are challenged with specific regard to the same areas where, as per the Yerushalmi, Bnei Yisrael perhaps fell short. There is the concern for time whether in baking the matzot or in eating them, the need for complete participation whether in the slaughter of the Korban Pesach or at the Pesach Seder, and, more generally, the initiative and effort that is required by every household to properly prepare for and observe Pesach.  In the merit of our efforts, may we be able to say in unison and without delay, the ultimate Shira – the Shira Chadasha.  

---

NCYI's Weekly Divrei Torah Bulletin is sponsored by
the Henry, Bertha and Edward Rothman Foundation -
Rochester, New York; Cleveland, Ohio; Circleville, Ohio

To receive a free e-mail subscription to NCYI’s weekly Torah Bulletin, send an email to: YI_Torah@lb.bcentral.com