Michael el Chayil

Chazal (Brachos 9b) relate that R' Yose ben Elyakim testifies in the name of the Holy Congregation of Yerushalyim that any one who immediately begins shomne esrei as he concludes the bracha of "ga'al yisrael"/who redeemed Yisrael [from Mitzrayim] (aka, "someich g'ula l't'fila") will not suffer any damages the entire day.  That's a pretty bold statement!  So bold, in fact, the R' Zeira challenged it.  "Really!?", exclaimed a perplexed R' Zeira, "I did that once and I hit with financial damage!"  R' Yose apparently knew what happened and replied, "Hang on... are you talking about the fact that you were forced to deliver a load of myrtle to the king's palace at great personal expense?  Pshaw!  That's not damage... it's worth spending a lot of money to be able to see a king!" The marshals support from a statement by R' Yochanon: I person should always endeavor to run to see kings of Isr...

As you recall from last time , we have a lot of questions about the whole incident with Yitzchak, Yaakov, and Eisav regarding the brachos.  Instead of asking more questions, let's take a look at the facts of the case. Eisav really wants his father's bracha.  We, having the advantage of the Author giving us the back story, know that Eisav is not exactly what you'd call religious.  Yet he really, really wants his father's blessing. Yaakov really doesn't want  that  bracha.  However, when he is leaving to find his soul mate (which actually turns out to four soul mates), he very much wants his father's bracha. Yitzchak really wants to give this particular bracha to Eisav.  Yet, as soon as the subterfuge is revealed, Yitzchak declares that the bracha stands.  More than that, he keeps putting Eisav off when he asks for some kind of bracha.  Eisav has to ask three times and then actually start crying (really tears, mind you; there is nothing fak...

In birkas ha'torah, we thank HaShem for choosing us from among all the nations to give us His Torah.  What difference does is make who else was in the running?  We were chosen!  Thus begins R' Efraim Twerski in his shiur regarding the bracha of "asher bachar banu".  Whether or not you feel the question is compelling; the answer is astounding! To answer we need to go back to that first break from the nations of the world that the world even noticed: when Yitzchak Avinu gave the brachos to Yaakov Avinu instead of to Esav HaRasha.  (Oops...is my bias showing?  Good!  I am fine with being charged with preferring good to evil even when it's not -- well... especially when it's not, actually -- politically correct.)  We need a few more questions to stir up enthusiasm before proceeding to the answer. Why, for instance, did Yitzchak want to give the brachos to Eisav anyway?  Hint: it was not because he did not recognize Eisav's nature; Yitzchak kn...

During Yom Tov and even during Chol Ha'Mo'ed, we take out a second sefer Torah and read the appropriate mussaf portion from parshas Pinchas.  We don't do that on Shabbos.  Tosefos ( as soon as I remember or am reminded of the location, I will -- bli neder -- fill it in here ) gives two reasons.  First, he (well... "they", technically)  says (sigh... yes, then this would have to be "say"; can we just get on with this now, please?  Thank you.) that there are only two p'sukim and we don't take out a sefer Torah for less than three p'sukim.  The truth is, though, that is not a very strong reason.  After all, even though the general rule is not to have a Torah reading session that is less than 10 p'sukim, the reading for Purim is only nine p'sukim.  The poskim all say that is allowed because the rule of 10 p'sukim applies when you aren't reading an entire topic, but if the entire topic is only nine p'sukim, then no problem.  Ma...

While still living in Dallas, so early in my career as an Orthodox Jew, I had the merit to attend a lecture by R' Berol Wein .  The rosh kollel, who had arranged the lecture, come over the me very excitedly and said, "R' Wein is here already and you are early, so take the opportunity to speak with him personally!"  "Great!", I thought... then I realized that I had nothing to say.  Since then, I've tried to always have a mental list of questions I have that still need resolution.  Some are big, some are small.  It is not unusual for one of those "small" questions to turn into big principles. I have wondered for decades what the difference is between "adon", as in "adon olam", and "ribon", as in "ribono shel olam".  The siddur translates both as adon and ribon as "lord"; so what's the difference?  The simple answer is quite a let down: ribon is the aramaic translation of adon.  See, for exam...

I think most fathers and zeidys will appreciate this story, most mothers will be aghast, and most bubbies will just shake their heads.  We were on a chol ha'mo'ed trip last Pesach and it involved a significant (hour or two) car ride to reach our destination.  I was playing the alphabet game with the older (6 and 7 year old) grandchildren.  The game is to look for an "A", then look for a "B", etc.  License plates, road signs, billboards, etc all provide fodder for the game.  Each time they found a letter, I'd say, "Ok... and what comes after C?", they would answer "D!", and the game continued.  Great way to practice the alphabet and keep everyone engaged.  We were most of the way through the alphabet when I asked, "What comes after P?"  They answered, "Q".  I said, "No; asher yatzar."  Puzzled looks turned to beaming smiles.  My grandson (the 6 year old) must have told that joke at least a dozen times over...

The second section (chapters 10 through 24) of sefer Mishlei (Proverbs) is where you find all the advice that traditionally think of as "proverbs".  They are statements in the format "Being  leads to , but being leads to ".  Without the insight and explanations provided by our sages, however, they can sound like "Do you take your lunch or the bus?" One such statement is "When willful wickedness comes, then infamy will follow; but with the modest is wisdom."  (Mishlei 11:2)  First, I am not surprised that willfully wicked people can become infamous, but what does that have to do with wisdom or modesty?  The G"ra opens this up by explaining that "willful wickedness" means to come to beis medrash only for the intellectual stimulation of debate with smart people.  This is not Al Capone, it's the guy who constantly asks questions that are not intended to reveal the full intent of the mishna/gemara/halacha.  They may be really co...

Tahor and tamei are words best left untranslated.  Lest you really want to translate "tahor" as "pure" and "tamei" as "contaminated", just remember that even a simply ingot of 24 karat gold is tamei, while even a complete vessel made of cow manure is tahor.  The terms "tahor" and "tuma" here do not actually refer to the state of the ingot or vessel, rather to their potential to become tamei.  Gold ingots can become tamei, vessels of cow manure cannot.  You might be wondering how it even entered my mind to consider what happens to a barrel made from cow manure (then baked, I suppose to be usable) when one dangles a dead rat into it.  It was not, I assure you, my simple (albeit warped) sense of intellectual curiosity.  In point of fact, there are several mishnayos in masechta keilim that discuss vessels that have either been made entirely from, strengthened by, or repaired with manure.  Gives new meaning to "any port in a s...

At the bottom of daf 7b in masechta Brachos, R' Yitzchak asked R' Nachman why he hadn't come to shul to daven ma'ariv the night before.  R' Nachman answered that he was feeling a bit shvach ("weak" for you yankee doodle dandies).  R' Yitzchak asked if R' Nachman would like him to arrange for a minyan at his home.  R' Nacham demurred as he didn't feel it was worth bothering everyone for that.  R' Yitzchak rejoined that he should at least have the shaliach tzibur come tell R' Nachman that they were about to daven so he could daven at the same time.  R' Nachman expressed some surprise that there was any advantage to davening at the same time as the tzibur/community was davening.  R' Yitzchak said, "Oh, yes!  As R' Yochanan said in the name of R' Shimon ben Yochai..." At this point, the story continues onto 8a, so just like I was left with that cliff hanger, I'll take this opportunity while I have your ra...

More from R' Efraim Twerski's insightful t'fila shiurim . There is a reasonably cut and dried halacha that long brachos -- not the one liners, but the ones that have a beginning, middle, and end -- always end with "baruch atah HaShem..." and must either start with "baruch atah HaShem" or be cuddled up to a preceding bracha; aka "samuch l'chaverta".  "asher yastzar" is an example of a long bracha.  Each bracha in shmone esrei and in birkas ha'mazon are also long brachos.  The first bracha of each starts and ends with "baruch atah HaShem...", while the subsequent brachos only end with said prescription.  (The fourth bracha of birkas ha'mazon is actually a later addition and is d'rabanan, so it starts again with "baruch atah HaShem".  I know it doesn't end that way; that's because it's really a short bracha that kept getting longer.  A story for another time.) What about "elokai ne...

"Wow!" you are thinking, "I always wanted to know about the details of how tuma can be transmitted and especially how earthenware vessels are different!  At last I can take all the worry and stress I have suffered because of this hole in my knowledge off my plate!"  Or maybe not.  None the less, I am interested because I am once again learning the mishnayos of masechta keilim.  (Since I have asked for participation in learning mishnayos l'zecher nishmas Aaron Dovid ben Yitzchak, a"h, I decided to act quickly to get one of the fun ones before they all got snapped up.  If you hurry, I am sure you can still find something you'll enjoy; just click here and let the good times roll!)  I chose keilim because it's not one the more popular masechtos (it is long and complicated).  I figured this way I'd get the better part of a year to go through it carefully and get some understanding. The word "keilim" in lashon ha'kodesh is quite flexib...

I don't use the expression, "I'll never forget ...", because umm... well... darn, I had a good reason; really!  But if I did  use it, I would certainly apply it to a conversation I heard between my dad and a new-ish uncle (ie, he had recently-ish married my step-aunt).  He had gotten his MBA and was being invited into his (new-ish) father-in-law's business; a very successful shoe store.  My uncle wanted to make all sorts of changes based on his deep understanding of business, as evidenced by the fact he had earned an MBA.  My father suggested he might want to learn why his father-in-law did things the way he did, based on the fact that the store was successful. I have tried to apply that lesson to my daily life ever since.  The brilliance of that simple idea was never more evident than when I was recently called upon to give a eulogy for my late father-in-law, Aaron Dovid ben Yitzchak, a"h.  We had had many disagreements in the 38 years I had known h...

One of the perks of writing down a thought or two each day is that is helps me to crystalize that thought and give it a permanence in my my psyche.  It also helps me to keep focus when listening to a shiur, because when I hear an interesting idea I immediately think about how to condense it into a paragraph or two.  I discovered a downside to that process this morning, when I started listening to a set of shiurim from R' Efraim Twerski of Khal Chasidim  on t'fila.  The downside is that during the time it takes to contemplate how to best express an interesting chidush, three more interesting chidushim have been expressed.  Oh well... I'll try my best. T'fila, notes R' Twerski, is the defining attribute being human.  Animals communicate; animals even talk.  Only humans pray.  One would think, therefore, that prayer would be among those things in which we take most pride.  Yet, Chazal tell us and experience confirms, prayer is largely taken fo...

There is very little that can compare to the nachas of walking with an einikl (oh yeah? so you figure out how to transliterate the yiddish word for grandchild) to shul.  Beyond that, of course, it is also important chinuch for the child.  I regularly daven k'vasikin (when I wake up in time) and my grandchildren live in communities that don't have a vasikin minyan.  That means I daven early on Shabbos and Yom Tov, then just need to get to shul for k'rias ha'torah and mussaf.  As a consequence, I have the opportunity take my darling einiklach (that's plural) at a younger age than usual, since we can leave later than daddy and tati who need to get there for shacharis. On this last Thursday/Friday/Shabbos yontif, I walked with my granddaughter and a bag of books to shul Thursday morning.  We had a fascinating conversation about snozberries; into which she had put a surprising amount of thought.  Thursday afternoon she asked me if the next day was Yom Tov agai...

When I first took college physics, I had wonderful professor: Mr. Work.  (No, really, his name was Lloyd Work; great name for a physics teacher, no?)  I learned a lot from Mr. Work.  I went to his office once to ask some questions, which lead to a more advanced discussion, and he pulled out a quantum mechanics text to elucidate his point.  I looked at the pictures and said I got most of it, but was confused by certain details.  (Not really important for my point here, but I was confused by the meaning of the quantum mechanical electron cloud and how that related to electron shells  that I knew from chemistry.)  Mr. Work got a whimsical smile on his face and said, "The only difference between you and me is that I get confused on a higher level than you do, and Feynman  (gadol ha'dor in modern physics; died 1988) gets confused at a higher level than I do."  I am not sure if his intent was to humble me or to inspire me, but it did both.  I...

One of the things you are allowed to learn in Tisha b'Av is Iyov.  I wish my reaction to that halacha was more than a sardonic "yay".  Having just heard 46 extremely elucidating shiurim from R' Yisoel Belsky on how to answer very fundamental challenges from apikorsim, I was happy to see shiurim from R' Belsky on Iyov.  I was less happy when I saw it was only on chapters 25 through 31.  However, beggars can't be choosers, so I took the plunge.  Imagine my surprise to hear R' Belsky saying on the first shiur that since he was taking over the shiur at the 25th chapter, he would give a basis overview of the sefer.  JACKPOT! Aside: I was already impressed by R' Belsky's depth and breadth of knowledge on so many topics.  (I know a more physics than he does, but he knows more biology than I do... and I started as a pre-med.)  Realizing, though, that he could "just take over" a shiur on Iyov like I could take over a shiur on algebra was another...

Finding an intelligent atheist is not as hard as it may seem.  On the one hand, you might think it's a contradiction to be both intelligent and an atheist; something akin to finding someone who doesn't believe in air or viruses because he can't see them.  However, the inclination to want a free lunch (that is, to live a life of "if it feels good, do it") is so powerful that even the most rational mind can turn a blind eye to that incongruity.  When you find one, therefore, you have found a treasure trove of (See, for example, how atheists tailor make a god whose existence they can deny .)  So when you do find one, you have found a treasure trove of absurdities that is easily mined. How about this one?  "Well, " the atheist will say with all do pomposity, "religion is a crutch, so you have to admire someone (ie, himself) who doesn't need that crutch."  No, I replied in all innocence, I don't feel at all compelled to admire someone wit...

Chazal say you should know how to answer an apikorus.  Anyone who has learned a daf or two of gemara knows that they following diyuk (precise dissection) is accurate: "know how to answer", indeed; "actually go out and answer", avoid.  Anyone who has had a minute or two of conversation with an apikorus feels deeply the wisdom of that advice.  However, it can't always be avoided. I was in a sukkah with a very nice and intelligent goy with no particular religious leanings.  He asked me, "I heard this Reform rabbi say that so-and-so is certainly in a high place in heaven.  Can they just do that... make up anything they want and state it as Jewish belief?  What is the Jewish belief of heaven and hell?"  I mean, come on, this non-religious but well educated goy has noticed that Reform rabbis just say whatever comes into there minds and asks me for affirmation and the real explanation... no one could possibly expect me to let that go.  What ensued was ...

When I first heard about the  The Shabbos Project , I was not impressed.  The idea was presented to me as, "We must go out and show Jews the beauty of Shabbos!"  In other words (the words into which I translated that in my head, that is), "Let's market holiness."  Eyew.  I worked for a marketing company for nine miserable years.  Why miserable?  Because marketing means lying to get people to buy your product; I don't do lying well.   Besides, the Torah is not merchandise that needs to be sold. In fact, I had a very bad taste in my mouth from dabbling in showing the beauty of Shabbos to non--observant Jews.  I had once invite a couple for Shabbos -- a complete, beautiful Shabbos experience.  We planned it for the summer so they wouldn't have to leave work early in Friday.  We were completely open and up front that it had to be an entire, 25 hour, experience.  They were game.  We had a beautiful Friday night, and a nice Sh...

When I first heard about the idea of putting cameras on phones, I thought is had about as much merit as putting cassette tape players on refrigerators.  However, since having grandchildren who live in different states than I do, I have recanted.  (On the phone/camera thing, not on the refrigerator/cassette thing.)  I woke up this morning to see a picture of my three year old grandson reading to his one year (and change) old sister.  I spoke to my daughter not long after and got the whole story: the younger sister loves to have someone read to her, her brother saw her looking at the books and said, "Do you want me to read to you?"  They sat down and the picture was snapped. There are several old jokes regarding the relationship between grandchildren and grandparents; most of them are true in one way or another.  One is: If I'd known having grandchildren was so much fun, I would had them first.  The irony of the joke, of course, is that you can't have ...