BO-O-ORING! Really? You can't think of anything more interesting to write about than bread on the table after a meal? Tell you what, thanks for the heads up in the title, I'll check back when you write about something that might possibly be interesting. Maybe.
"Oh, yeah?!", I exclaim to the heckler. "Well... well.. you ended a phrase in a preposition! You should have said, 'about which to write' -or- 'to document'; hmmpf!" I showed him, no?
And yet, check out this halacha (Shulchan Aruch Orach Chayim 190:2): Anyone who doesn't leave over bread on his table will never see a sign of blesssing, but do not bring a whole loaf of bread to place on the table; and if you do so, it looks like you are making an offering to false gods.
Yikes! On the one hand you have your mother saying "finish what's on your plate" and the halacha of בל תשחית that forbids destroying food for no reason, while on the other hand you have a warning to give up hope all ye who don't leave over some bread, while on the other other hand you are being warned about service to false gods! This is not boring at all! How do you navigate through all that?!
Let's start with why one should leave bread on the table. There are two basic reasons. One, we want to demonstrate that HaShem has blessed us with a bountiful living. Of course there are people who are constantly struggling to literally but bread on the table. However, given that the obesity rate in the US is over 30% and world wide it is over 20% (in most of the world), we should pause to consider how blessed we are with our physical necessities in the epoch of human history. (This is not in the least to detract from the problem of hunger, both world wide and even locally. Please always keep the Chicago Chesed Fund in the forefront of you mind for your charity dollars.) It is therefore quite appropriate to leave some of that bounty on the table when saying grace after meals. A tangible reminder to make your prayers that much more sincere. According to this reason, even some crumbs left on the table is sufficient.
Another reason is in case a poor person would show up at your door looking for a meal. The person will feel much more at ease joining you for the meal if there is already food on the table. Let's be honest, this doesn't actually happen very often. (I actually had this opportunity once. A m'shulach came to the door and, as I usually do, I asked him if he wanted anything to drink or eat. He replied that he actually had not had anything to eat that day. I was thrilled to be able to prepare a nice sandwich for him.) None the less, leaving over some food on the table demonstrates that one is willing and eager to the chance to do that mitzvah. According to this reason, a few crumbs won't suffice; it really needs to be enough to make a proper -- and even generous -- serving.
According to both reasons, bringing out a wrapped (or frozen) whole loaf of bread to plop on the table during grace is not really going to cut it. That is the case where it looks like making an offering to a false god. Having a loaf and some slices on the table looks like the end of a meal, so no problem. What about if you finish one loaf completely and are now left with an untouched loaf on the table? That is actually a discussion among the poskim. On the one hand, of course, you didn't bring the whole loaf to the table at the end of the meal, so it shouldn't be a problem. On the other hand, were someone to walk in right now, they would see you saying grace with an untouched loaf of bread at the table. It's best to avoid that situation, but you have poskim on whom to rely regardless of how whether you decide leave to loaf there or not.
See, even the details of your private conduct at your own meal has exciting halachic ramifications! There's just never a time you can get by with being lazy about halacha... in other words -- and I really, really can't help myself -- no loafing.
"Oh, yeah?!", I exclaim to the heckler. "Well... well.. you ended a phrase in a preposition! You should have said, 'about which to write' -or- 'to document'; hmmpf!" I showed him, no?
And yet, check out this halacha (Shulchan Aruch Orach Chayim 190:2): Anyone who doesn't leave over bread on his table will never see a sign of blesssing, but do not bring a whole loaf of bread to place on the table; and if you do so, it looks like you are making an offering to false gods.
Yikes! On the one hand you have your mother saying "finish what's on your plate" and the halacha of בל תשחית that forbids destroying food for no reason, while on the other hand you have a warning to give up hope all ye who don't leave over some bread, while on the other other hand you are being warned about service to false gods! This is not boring at all! How do you navigate through all that?!
Let's start with why one should leave bread on the table. There are two basic reasons. One, we want to demonstrate that HaShem has blessed us with a bountiful living. Of course there are people who are constantly struggling to literally but bread on the table. However, given that the obesity rate in the US is over 30% and world wide it is over 20% (in most of the world), we should pause to consider how blessed we are with our physical necessities in the epoch of human history. (This is not in the least to detract from the problem of hunger, both world wide and even locally. Please always keep the Chicago Chesed Fund in the forefront of you mind for your charity dollars.) It is therefore quite appropriate to leave some of that bounty on the table when saying grace after meals. A tangible reminder to make your prayers that much more sincere. According to this reason, even some crumbs left on the table is sufficient.
Another reason is in case a poor person would show up at your door looking for a meal. The person will feel much more at ease joining you for the meal if there is already food on the table. Let's be honest, this doesn't actually happen very often. (I actually had this opportunity once. A m'shulach came to the door and, as I usually do, I asked him if he wanted anything to drink or eat. He replied that he actually had not had anything to eat that day. I was thrilled to be able to prepare a nice sandwich for him.) None the less, leaving over some food on the table demonstrates that one is willing and eager to the chance to do that mitzvah. According to this reason, a few crumbs won't suffice; it really needs to be enough to make a proper -- and even generous -- serving.
According to both reasons, bringing out a wrapped (or frozen) whole loaf of bread to plop on the table during grace is not really going to cut it. That is the case where it looks like making an offering to a false god. Having a loaf and some slices on the table looks like the end of a meal, so no problem. What about if you finish one loaf completely and are now left with an untouched loaf on the table? That is actually a discussion among the poskim. On the one hand, of course, you didn't bring the whole loaf to the table at the end of the meal, so it shouldn't be a problem. On the other hand, were someone to walk in right now, they would see you saying grace with an untouched loaf of bread at the table. It's best to avoid that situation, but you have poskim on whom to rely regardless of how whether you decide leave to loaf there or not.
See, even the details of your private conduct at your own meal has exciting halachic ramifications! There's just never a time you can get by with being lazy about halacha... in other words -- and I really, really can't help myself -- no loafing.
Comments