Parashat
Beshallach (Shabbat Shirah)
11
Shevat 5778 / 26-27 January 2018
Torah:
Exodus 13:17 – 17:16
Haftarah:
Judges 4:4 – 5:31 (Ashkenazim); Judges 5:1 – 5:31 (Sephardim)
Calendar and dedications follow
below. For a full calendar of events and other info about Temple B’nai
Hayim/Congregation Beth Meier, check out: www.bnaihayim.com
Please feel free to pass this on to
a friend, and please cite the source.
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THE PROOF IS IN THE BREAD
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THE PROOF IS IN THE BREAD
Then
the Lord said to Moses, "Here I will rain on you bread from heaven; and
the people shall go out and gather a day's portion every day that I may prove
them, whether they will walk in My law or not." Exodus 16:4.
The classic commentators disagree over the nature of the proving that is done here. How exactly are the Israelites being tested? Rashi (R. Shlomo Yitzchaki, d. 1040) says God wishes to know whether they will keep the specific commandments to not keep the manna overnight and to not gather the manna on Shabbat. Ramban (R. Moshe ben Nachman, d. 1270) says that is not correct - God wishes to see whether they can observe all of the mitzvot while having only rations of manna to eat. That is, the manna itself is the test. Sforno (R. Ovadiah ben Yakov Sforno, d. 1550) agrees that the manna is the test, but it is to prove whether people who do not struggle to feed themselves will observe the mitzvot. The commentator Or Ha-Chaim (R. Chaim ben Moshe Ibn Attar, d. 1743) says it is to see whether they will spend their time in Torah study, as well as observing the mitzvot, since they need spend no time in preparing the manna. Rashbam (R. Shmuel ben Meir, d. 1158) and Ibn-Ezra (R. Abraham Ibn Ezra, d. 1167), based on the Mekhilta (Midrashic Commentary on the Book of Exodus), say the test is whether the Israelites will have faith in God when they must rely on a fresh supply of food each and every day.
Monotony; effortlessness; leisure; dependence - All of these seem to make sense as tests. I believe that the real test is whether we can thank God for the food we eat, no matter what it is or how we obtained it (as long as we didn’t steal it!). Our rabbis tell us we are obligated to recite blessings before and after eating any sort of food. We all teach our children to say "please" and "thank you". But how can we ever ask anything of God if we do not follow that truly basic law, the law of saying "Thank you, God"? How many of us pass that test?
Shabbat Shalom - Tu Bishevat Sameach - Happy Jewish Arbor Day!
The classic commentators disagree over the nature of the proving that is done here. How exactly are the Israelites being tested? Rashi (R. Shlomo Yitzchaki, d. 1040) says God wishes to know whether they will keep the specific commandments to not keep the manna overnight and to not gather the manna on Shabbat. Ramban (R. Moshe ben Nachman, d. 1270) says that is not correct - God wishes to see whether they can observe all of the mitzvot while having only rations of manna to eat. That is, the manna itself is the test. Sforno (R. Ovadiah ben Yakov Sforno, d. 1550) agrees that the manna is the test, but it is to prove whether people who do not struggle to feed themselves will observe the mitzvot. The commentator Or Ha-Chaim (R. Chaim ben Moshe Ibn Attar, d. 1743) says it is to see whether they will spend their time in Torah study, as well as observing the mitzvot, since they need spend no time in preparing the manna. Rashbam (R. Shmuel ben Meir, d. 1158) and Ibn-Ezra (R. Abraham Ibn Ezra, d. 1167), based on the Mekhilta (Midrashic Commentary on the Book of Exodus), say the test is whether the Israelites will have faith in God when they must rely on a fresh supply of food each and every day.
Monotony; effortlessness; leisure; dependence - All of these seem to make sense as tests. I believe that the real test is whether we can thank God for the food we eat, no matter what it is or how we obtained it (as long as we didn’t steal it!). Our rabbis tell us we are obligated to recite blessings before and after eating any sort of food. We all teach our children to say "please" and "thank you". But how can we ever ask anything of God if we do not follow that truly basic law, the law of saying "Thank you, God"? How many of us pass that test?
Shabbat Shalom - Tu Bishevat Sameach - Happy Jewish Arbor Day!
Rabbi Richard A. Flom
Temple B’nai Hayim/Congregation Beth
Meier
Visit me on Facebook
Twitter: @DrahcirMolf
"שתיקה
כהודאה דמיא"
"Silence in the face of
wrongdoing is consent.”
BT Yevamot 88a
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Candle lighting: 4:59 pm
Friday – Early Shabbat Evening Service – 6:30
pm – followed by Shabbat Dinner and Family Tu Bishevat Seder – 7:15 pm.
Celebrate the New Year of the Trees! Adults - $10; under 13 - $5. RSVP to
TBH/CBM office no later than close of business today, Thursday, January 24.
Checks payable to TBH Sisterhood. No payment at the door.
Saturday – Breakfast and Torah study -
8:45 am. Shabbat Morning Service – 9:30 am. Kiddush luncheon follows.
Sunday – Religious School – 9:30 am. Adult
Hebrew – 10:00 am.
Tuesday – Lunch and Learn – 12:00 noon.
Wednesday - Tu Bishevat – Plant a Tree!
Friday, February 2 - Shabbat Evening Service - 7:30 pm, followed
by Oneg Shabbat.-
Friday, February 9 /
Saturday, February 10 - Sharsheret Pink Shabbat to educate our community
about breast and ovarian cancer, how it impacts the Jewish community, and how to
be proactive about our health. We encourage you to not only join us for this
program, but to take a moment to follow this link:
Next time you come to
TBH/CBM, please bring some non-perishable canned and packaged foods and
personal items (no glass) for SOVA.
This d'var torah is
offered for a refuah shleimah for Avi Shmuel Yosef Hakohen ben Bella, Ze’ev ben
Adeline, HaRav Chana Rivka bat Doronit, Eilite bat Miryam, HaRav Tzvi
Hersh ben Frimet, Sarah bat Devorah, Hiroe Andriola, Susan Arbetman, Ken
Bitticks, Jerry Daniels, Maya Fersht (Maya bat Esther), Dr. Samuel Fersht
(Shmuel Natan ben Gittel), Leonard Foint (Eliezer Moshe ben Esther), Jerry Forman,
Bernard Garvin, Myra Goodman, Leah Granat, Simon Hartmann, Jack Howland,
Brandon Joseph, Gabor Klein, Philip Kovac, Tonya Kronzek (Zlata Malkah bat
Sarah Emanu), Lyndia Lowy (Leah bat Sarah), David Marks, Steve Pearlman, Gil
Robbins, Debra Schugar Strauss (Devorah bat Chaya Feiga), Helen Schugar (Chaya
Feiga bat Kreina), Jonathan Woolf, Howard Yudell, and Meagan Yudell.
Please let me know if
there is anyone you would like to add to this list or if there is anyone who
may be removed from this list.
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