DOCSLIB.ORG

The Undrinkable Cup of Elijah: Down the Path of an Ancient Seder Mystery

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
The Undrinkable Cup of Elijah: Down the Path of an Ancient Seder Mystery The Undrinkable Cup of Elijah: Down the Path of an Ancient Seder Mystery שבת הגדול תשס"ט • Shabbat Hagadol 2009 Rabbi Yosie Levine The Jewish Center Rabbi Moshe Hagiz was a scholar and a rabbi living in Western Europe at the beginning of the 18 th century. In 1728, he printed a short introduction to a halachic work called the And in the course of his introduction, he asks a question – that to my . שערי כנסת הגדולה knowledge – had actually never been asked before. And I’d like to use it as our jumping : כוס של אליהו off point this morning as we explore the topic of the 1 . ברכת אליהו , ר ' משה האג' יז What is Eliyahu doing at our seder? We drink four cups at the seder. That’s the universally accepted practice. And yet we have this fifth – usually very large cup – that So my .כ וס של אליהו we fill up, but don’t drink. And everyone knows that it’s called the first question to you this morning is Rabbi Hagiz’s question: What does Eliyahu Hanavi ? כוס של אליהו Why do we have a cup that’s called the .1 have to do with the seder? And to this question, I’d like to add three more questions: 2. What’s the source of the practice to have this additional cup? Where does it come from? 3. If it’s so important, why don’t we drink it? 4. Why is it so big? 1 2. Haggadah Shel Pesach, Offenbach (1795) If you can make it out, the host and hostess are holding huge Kiddush cups – and the cup on the table that’s not attached to anyone – and appears to be for Eliyahu – is actually a they’re always these huge – כוס של אליהו little smaller. But no one has ever seen a small cups – it takes the whole bottle of wine to fill it. In my family we always give Eliyahu one of the wines with a lower alcohol content. We figure that he has a busy night and far be it from us to slow him down. It’s the night of four questions – so this morning we have our own four questions: 1. Why do we have a cup that’s called the cup of Elijah? 2. What’s its source? 3. Why don’t we drink it? 4. Why is it so big? So let’s take it from the top. How many cups are we in fact supposed to be drinking at the seder? 2 You know what George Burns used to say about drinking: “It takes only one drink to get me drunk. The trouble is, I can't remember if it's the thirteenth or the fourteenth.” So what’s our number at the seder? At what point do we call it a night? 3 . תלמוד בבלי מסכת פסחים דף צט עמוד ב משנה . ערב פסחים סמוך למנחה לא יאכל אדם עד שתחשך . אפילו עני שבישראל לא יאכל עד שיסב . ולא יפחתו לו מארבע כוסות של יין , ואפילו מן התמחוי . 4 . שכל טוב שמות פרק יב ד "ה [ מתני ' ] מזגו לו ארבע כוסות דחמרא , כנגד ד ' גאולות , דכתיב ביציאת מצרים , והוצאתי והצלתי וגאלתי ולקחתי . 5 . שמות פרק ו (ב ) וידבר אלהים אל משה ויאמר אליו אני יקוק : : (ג ) וארא אל אברהם אל יצחק ואל יעקב באל שדי ושמי יקוק לא נודעתי להם : : (ד ) וגם הקמתי את בריתי אתם לתת להם את ארץ כנען את ארץ מגריהם אשר גרו בה : : (ה ) וגם אני שמעתי את נאקת בני ישראל אשר מצרים מעבדים אתם ואזכר את בריתי : : (ו ) לכן אמר לבני ישראל אני יקוק והוצאתי אתכם מתחת סבלת מצרים והצלתי אתכם מעבדתם וגאלתי אתכם בזרוע נטויה ובשפטים גדלים : : (ז ) ולקחתי אתכם לי לעם והייתי לכם לאלהים וידעתם כי אני יקוק אלהיכם המוציא אתכם מתחת סבלות מצרים : : (ח ) והבאתי אתכם אל הארץ אשר נשאתי את ידי לתת אתה לאברהם ליצחק וליעקב ונתתי אתה לכם מורשה אני יקוק : : 6 . פסחים קיח. 3 7 . רי"ף פסחים כו : בדפי הרי"ף 8 . השגות ה ראב"ד שם 9. Haggadah Shel Pesach, Prague (1784) is not just about coming into the land – it’s also the catch word for the ultimate והבאתי redemption. Look at the depiction in this Haggadah. Who is tht riding on the donkey? It’s let’s drink , ראב"ד The fifth cup has a messianic quality to it. According to the ? מלך המשיח a fifth cup – the cup of the ultimate redemption. 4 A man goes to a zoo and sees a lion lying down in the same cage with a lamb. He is s messianic vision of peace on earth has finally been achieved. It must be a’ ישיהו .amazed sure sign that the messiah is here. He’s so excited. He runs over to the zookeeper and asks how he managed this feat. The zookeeper simply answers, "We put a new lamb in every morning.” We’ve seen two positions – but there is a middle ground as well. And that is the position of the Rambam: 10 . רמב"ם הלכות חמץ ומצה פרק ח הלכה י ואחר כך נוטל ידיו ומברך ברכת המזון על כוס שלישי ושותהו , ואחר כך מוזג כוס רביעי וגומר עליו את ההלל , ואומר עליו ברכת כ השיר והיא יהללוך ה ' כל מעשיך וכו ', ומברך בורא פרי הגפן ואינו טועם אחר כך כלום כל הלילה חוץ מן המים , ויש לו למזוג כוס חמישי ולומר עליו הלל הגדול והוא ל מהודו לה ' כי טוב עד על נהרות בבל , וכוס זה אינו מ חובה כמו ארבעה כוסות , ויש לו לגמור את ההלל בכל מקום שירצה אע "פ " שאינו מקום סעודה . The . וסכ So we have Rashi and the Rashbam on one side. They’ve never heard of a fifth Rif and the Raavid are on the opposite end of the spectrum. They haven’t just heard of it – according to the Raavid, it’s actually a mitzvah to drink it. And the Rambam is in the middle – you could have it if you want to. Just make sure that together with this cup of .after the seder is over הלל הגדול wine you say Perhaps you’ve already begun to anticipate the answers to our questions. 11 . טעמי המנהגים ס ' תקנא Are we to drink a fifth cup or aren’t we? It seems as though it’s a great debate among the poskim. So what are we to do? The Gra provides a beautiful and elegant solution. represents a very neat compromise – כוס של אליהו Our fifth cup at the seder – our position. Should be there a fifth cup? Well – we’re not quite sure – so we’ll pour it, but we won’t drink it. And we name the cup after Eliyahu because we’re waiting with baited breath for the day on which he’ll come and resolve all of our doubts – including this one. So we’ve effectively answered all of our questions: Because Elyahu is the ? כוס של אליהו Why do we have a cup that’s called the .1 great settler of doubts and disputes. We await the day when Eliyahu will come and give us clarity. 2. The source goes all the way back to R’ Tarfon’s 5 th cup. 3. And we know exactly why we don’t drink it – because pouring it without drinking it represents a beautiful compromise position. 4. Why the cup has to be so big is still a little unknown – but we’ve essentially solved all of our problems. Or have we? 5 Is anyone left unsatisfied with this answer? I can count at least half a dozen deficiencies with the approach arguing that kos shel eliyahu is the kos chamishi: ° It’s in the wrong place – should be before Hallel Hagadol? ?in the gemara or rishonim כוס של אליהו Why doesn’t anyone call it ° ° Why only one – everyone should have one? ° Why don’t we drink it? ° Why is extra large? against whom דעת יחיד Where else do we have this model of tipping our hat to the ° we paskun? We don’t set up an empty chanukiah with 8 unlit candles in deference to Beis Hillel on the 1 st night of Chanukah. I’d like to back up one step before going forward. R’ Tarfon’s position is rejected. We don’t drink a fifth cup at the seder and I’d like to suggest that this is by design. 12 . דב רים פרק כו (ה ) ארמי אבד אבי וירד מצרימה ויגר שם במתי מעט ויהי שם לגוי גדול עצום ורב : : (ו ) וירעו אתנו המצרים ויענונו ויתנו עלינו עבדה קשה : : (ז ) ונצעק אל יקוק אלהי אבתינו וישמע יקוק את קלנו וירא את ענינו ואת עמלנו ואת לחצנו : : (ח ) ויוצאנו יקוק ממצרים ביד חזקה ו בזרע נטויה ובמרא גדל ובאתות ובמפתים : : (ט ) ויבאנו אל המקום הזה ויתן לנו את הארץ הזאת ארץ זבת חלב ודבש : : . ויבאנו We cite the passage – but where do we stop in the Haggadah? Before we get to There are over 5,000 haggados in print today. I challenge you to find one that includes .ח No one includes it. Universally, we end the paragraph with pasuk . ויבאנו the pasuk of Why don’t we say the whole thing? Why do we break midway? Because fundamentally, the author of the Haggadah is telling us something crucial about what we are doing on We’re . והבאתי seder night. It’s not about the fifth language of redemption. It’s not about not celebrating coming into the land of Israel. The idea was suggested – R’ Tarfon had but at the end of the day – his position is rejected.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Loving the Convert Prior to a Completed Conversion: with a Test Case Application of Inviting Conversion Candidates to Pesach Seder and Yom Tov Meals
    147 Loving the Convert Prior to a Completed Conversion: With a Test Case Application of Inviting Conversion Candidates to Pesach Seder and Yom Tov Meals By: MICHAEL J. BROYDE and BENJAMIN J. SAMUELS Introduction The Torah enjoins us numerous times concerning the mitzvah of Ahavat ha-Ger,1 which literally means the love of the stranger or sojourner, though is primarily understood in Jewish legal sources to refer more specifically to loving the convert to Judaism.2 Furthermore, the Torah commands us that “you shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Leviticus 19:18), and also charges us to love God (Deuteronomy 6:4), creating multiple duties of love as halakhic obligations. This article will explore the question: When does the duty to love the convert commence and does it impact the con- version process? Does it apply only to a newly converted Jew, or to a Noahide who is in the process of converting, or even to a Gentile who has expressed an interest in converting? The process of conversion to Judaism can be divided into three fun- damental stages: In the first stage, the person makes a personal decision 1 See Leviticus 19:34; Deuteronomy 10:18-19. The Torah also prohibits oppress- ing the convert, “lo toneh” and “Lo tonu”—see Exodus 22:20; Leviticus 19:33; TB Bava Metzia 58b, 59b, and Ben Zion Katz, “Don’t Oppress the Ger,” Seforim Blog <https://seforimblog.com/2019/07/dont-oppress-the-ger/>. However, this article will not investigate the question of when the prohibition against oppressing a convert begins, which may or may not track in parallel with the mitzvah of Ahavat ha-Ger.
    [Show full text]
  • The Vilna Goan and R' Chaim of Volozhin
    Great Jewish Books Course The Vilna Goan and R’ Chaim of Volozhin Rabbi Yechezkal Freundlich (גאון ר' אליהו – A. Vilna Goan – R’ Eliyahu ben Shlomo Zalman Kremer (Gr”a a. 1721 – 1797, born and died in Vilna (capital of Lithuania), which was known at the time as the “Jerusalem of Lita” because of its great Torah scholarship, and he was the undisputed crown jewel. B. Genius amongst geniuses a. Fame as a prodigy began at young age and by early 20s was already recognized as leading Sage in a city of Sages and the address for the most difficult questions b. Photographic memory – though it is said he really had “no memory” because everything was fresh before him as if he just learned it i. Legend: by 4 had memorized all of Tanach. At seven he was taught Talmud by R’ Moses Margalit, by eight, he was studying astronomy during his free time. From the age of ten he continued his studies without the aid of a teacher due to his knowledge already surpassing all his teachers, and by the age of eleven he had committed the entire Talmud to memory. c. Torah study was the supreme value and of paramount importance d. Combined with astounding diligence and dedication to learning Torah i. For at least 40 years (until 70) he never slept more than 2 hours out of 24, and he never slept more than 30 minutes consecutively. ii. Competed the entirety of Torah every 30 days e. Breathtaking range of knowledge. i. there was no subject he did not know intimately: mathematics, astronomy, science, music, philosophy and linguistics.
    [Show full text]
  • Shabbat in Outer Space Astronaut Ilan Ramon’S Question: “When Should I Observe Shabbat on the Columbia?” Shabbat 69B
    Haya Mehalech Bamidbar - Teacher’s Guide 1 Thinking Gemara Series: Haya Mehalech Bamidbar Haya Mehalech Bamidbar Shabbat in Outer Space Astronaut Ilan Ramon’s question: “When Should I Observe Shabbat on the Columbia?” Shabbat 69b Teacher’s Guide Colonel Ilan Ramon, of blessed memory, posed the following halachic question to Rabbi Tzvi Konikov, the rabbi of Cape Canaveral: When should I observe Shabbat while I am on the space shuttle Columbia? The forty-eight year old Ramon was a veteran Israeli fighter pilot before he was picked to be Israel’s first astronaut. Ramon, whose father was a German refugee who fought in Israel’s War of Independence, and whose mother was an Auschwitz survivor, brought on board the shuttle a miniature Torah scroll that had made its way to Israel from the Nazi concentration camps. Since Ilan Ramon considered himself to be representing the Jewish people and Israel, he asked NASA to provide him with kosher food during the flight, and arranged to keep the Sabbath while in orbit. Though the question of when to keep Shabbat in space had been the topic of theoretical discourse since the 1960s, Ilan Ramon was the first Jew in world history to ask it halachah lema’aseh, with an eye to applying it as practical halachah. The Space Coast, Florida rabbi posed the question to some leading halachic authorities, including Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Halperin, the director of Jerusalem’s Institute for Science and Halacha. Rabbi Halperin penned a responsum, and eventually published a pamphlet entitled, “Im Esak Shamayim (If I Fly up to Heaven [… There You Are]),” on how to keep Jewish law in space.
    [Show full text]
  • Nature and Its Discontents
    Editor’s Thoughts: Nature and Its Discontents kolhamevaser.com/2019/01/28/editors-thoughts-nature-and-its-discontents/ kolhamevaser January 29, 2019 By: Daniel Shlian The word “nature” is rich with differing meanings. When a chemist describes something as “natural,” a purveyor of organic food products might disagree[i]. One person’s proclivity in any number of realms might be described as unnatural by those who do not share them, but is perfectly natural to those who do. Absent a rigorous definition, then, the word loses much of its usefulness. Despite the word’s vagueness, for many, “natural” implies something desirable and positive, perhaps idyllic, or “the way things were meant to be.” But should it imply desirability? The twentieth-century English philosopher G. E. Moore described the naturalistic fallacy: it is invalid to conclude that something is good from any of its natural properties.[ii] If something has the quality of being pleasant, that does not make it good. In Moore’s view, good is an irreducible property, not derivable from any other properties, just as the concept of “yellow” does not depend on any other concept, neither does the idea of “good.”[iii] Later philosophers have disputed Moore’s contentions, but as a purely logical tool; relating the good and the natural is not useful. I am neither an ethicist nor a philosopher, but I will phrase the question in slightly different terms: in a religious worldview wherein creation is a Divine process and nature is put in place by God, is “natural” better? Should we attempt to leave things in the universe the way they are, or are we meant to use the World for our own ends? Not at all surprisingly, Judaism’s sources are not quiet on the topic, but neither do they speak in a unified voice.
    [Show full text]
  • Fi N E Ju D a I
    F i n e Ju d a i C a . he b r e w pr i n t e d bo o K s , ma n u s C r i p t s , Gr a p h i C & Ce r e m o n i a l ar t K e s t e n b a u m & Co m p a n y th u r s d a y , ap r i l 2n d , 2009 K ESTENBAUM & COMPANY . Auctioneers of Rare Books, Manuscripts and Fine Art A Lot 38 Catalogue of F INE JUDAICA . PRINTED BOOKS, MANUSCRIPTS, AUTOGRAPH LETTERS, CEREMONIAL & GRAPHIC ART Including: The Prague Hagadah, 1526 An Extraordinarily Fine Copy of Abraham ibn Ezra’s Commentary to the Torah, Naples, 1488 An Autograph Manuscript Signed by R. Yonassan Eybescheutz Governor Worthington’s Speech on the Maryland Test Act, Baltimore, 1824 Photographic Archive by Issacher Ber Ryback Selections from the Rare Book-Room of a College Library (Final Part) (Short-Title Index in Hebrew available upon request) ——— To be Offered for Sale by Auction, Thursday, 2nd April, 2009 at 3:00 pm precisely ——— Viewing Beforehand on: Sunday, 29th March - 10:00 am - 6:00 pm Monday, 30th March - 10:00 am - 6:00 pm Tuesday, 31st March - 10:00 am - 6:00 pm Wednesday, 1st April - 10:00 am - 6:00 pm Thursday, 2nd April - 10:00 am - 2:30 pm Gallery-Talk with the Auction Expert: Tuesday, 31st March at 6:00 pm This Sale may be referred to as: “Merari” Sale Number Forty-Three Illustrated Catalogues: $35 (US) * $42 (Overseas) KESTENBAUM & COMPANY Auctioneers of Rare Books, Manuscripts and Fine Art .
    [Show full text]
  • Fine Judaica, to Be Held November 29Th, 2007
    F INE JUDAICA . PRINTED BOOKS, MANUSCRIPTS, AUTOGRAPH LETTERS & GRAPHIC ART K ESTENBAUM & COMPANY THURSDAY NOVEMBER 29TH 2007 K ESTENBAUM & COMPANY . Auctioneers of Rare Books, Manuscripts and Fine Art Lot 131 Catalogue of F INE JUDAICA . PRINTED BOOKS, MANUSCRIPTS, AUTOGRAPH LETTERS & GRAPHIC ART Featuring: The First Edition Judenstaat. Boldly Inscribed and Signed by Theodor Herzl. An Illuminated Hagadah. Ferrara, 1767. ● An Illuminated Mohel-Book. Potsdam, 1795. A 19th-Century Jerusalem Pinkas Shadar Ledger to England. A 19th-century Hebrew Manuscript of Australian Appeal. A Custom Mohel-Book from the Island of Curacao. Three Substantial Autograph Manuscript Volumes by Cantor Yossele Rosenblatt. Autograph Letters of Signifi cant 20th-century Substance by Rabbis Feinstein, Grodzenski, Kotler, Soloveitchik, Teitelbaum, etc. Set of Twelve Watercolor Designs by Ze’ev Raban. ● An Acrylic by Zalman Kleinman. Arthur Szyk’s Statute of Kalisz, along with a further three scarce Szyk Works from the1920’s. And From a Private European Collection: A fi ne complete copy of the Sepher Ha’Ikrim, Soncino 1486. Along with important Early Printed Books from the same Collection, featuring books from the presses at: Fano, Pesaro, Rimini, Ortona, Riva di Trento, Constantinople, Salonika, Augsburg, Cracow etc. (Short-Title Index in Hebrew available upon request) ——— To be Offered for Sale by Auction, Thursday, 29th November, 2007, at 3:00 pm precisely ——— Viewing Beforehand on: Sunday 25th November - 10:00 am - 5:00 pm Monday 26th November - 10:00 am - 5:00 pm Tuesday, 27th November - 10:00 am - 5:00 pm Wednesday, 28th November - 10:00 am - 5:00 pm Thursday, 29th November - 10:00 am - 2:30 pm This Sale may be referred to as: “Kew” Sale Number Thirty-Eight Illustrated Catalogues: $35 (US) * $42 (Overseas) KESTENBAUM & COMPANY Auctioneers of Rare Books, Manuscripts and Fine Art .
    [Show full text]
  • Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary • the Benjamin and Rose Berger CJF Torah To-Go Series• Nissan 5774
    1 Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary • The Benjamin and Rose Berger CJF Torah To-Go Series• Nissan 5774 Richard M. Joel, President and Bravmann Family University Professor, Yeshiva University Rabbi Kenneth Brander, Vice President for University and Community Life, Yeshiva University and The David Mitzner Dean, Center for the Jewish Future Rabbi Yaakov Glasser, Associate Dean, Center for the Jewish Future Rabbi Robert Shur, Series Editor Rabbi Joshua Flug, General Editor Rabbi Michael Dubitsky, Editor Andrea Kahn, Copy Editor Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved by Yeshiva University Yeshiva University Center for the Jewish Future 500 West 185th Street, Suite 413, New York, NY 10033 • [email protected] • 212.960.5263 This publication contains words of Torah. Please treat it with appropriate respect. For sponsorship opportunities, please contact Genene Kaye at 212.960.0137 or [email protected]. 2 Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary • The Benjamin and Rose Berger CJF Torah To-Go Series• Nissan 5774 Table of Contents Introduction Rabbi Kenneth Brander. Page 4 Pesach 2014/5774 Pesach in the Days of Chizkiyahu - the Dream and the Reality Rabbi Ezra Frazer. Page 5 “Davar Acher”: On Dual Narratives in the Haggadah Rabbi Shmuel Hain . Page 12 The Seventh Day of Pesach: Seeing the Supernatural within Everyday Nature Rabbi Yosef Kalinsky . Page 21 The Four Kosos: Songs of Silence Rabbi Yaakov Neuburger . Page 25 A Night of Questions Rabbi Zev Reichman . Page 31 Ben Neikhar and the Character of the Korban Pesach Rabbi Michael Rosensweig . Page 34 What Does This Avodah Mean to You? Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks . Page 43 Biblical Descriptions of the Exodus Collected insights from members of the Graduate Program in Biblical and Talmudic Interpretation at Stern College .
    [Show full text]
  • Thoughts on Halakhic Creativity
    Thoughts on Halakhic Creativity A Ladder upon the Earth, Whose Top Reaches the Heavens[1] In this article I will attempt to analyze the halakhic approach of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, and to compare and contrast it with two other models of halakhic thought—those of Rabbi Abraham Issac haCohen Kook and Rabbi Isaac Hutner. The central question at the core of these different halakhic approaches is the relationship between halakha and reality; that is, the relationship between the legal source material of preceding generations and the human concerns that arise from the specific question that a posek (halakhic arbiter) is asked. A central prism through which these various approaches may be best understood is their alternative theories of mahloket (talmudic dispute)—a central characteristic of the oral tradition. Over the course of this study, we will explore the way each approach understands the balance between halakha and reality, as well as its relationship to the nature of mahloket. Rabbi Soloveitchik—Divine Law In the eulogy for his uncle, Rav Velvele of Brisk (Rabbi Isaac Zev Soloveitchik), ‘Ma Dodekh Mi Dod,’ Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik describes the role reality should play on halakhic pesak through a parable. He compares the real-life circumstances, the difficulties and needs of the individual who asks a halakhic question, to a rocket that launches a satellite into its orbit. The halakhic process can be compared to a satellite that enters a particular orbit. The satellite’s entry into orbit depends on its thrust at takeoff. However, once in orbit, it begins to travel with amazing precision according to the specific parameters of its particular orbital path.
    [Show full text]
  • CD Ginsburg: Demuto Shel Ha-Meshumad,R
    Eliezer Brodt: Review of Halikhot Shlomo, by R. Shlomo Zalman Auerbach Review of Halikhot Shlomo, by R. Shlomo Zalman Auerbach By Eliezer Brodt There is a well known joke which claims that some gedolim have actually been “writing from their graves.”[1] The most famous person to be “guilty” of this charge is R. Moshe Sofer (Hatam Sofer) as he printed nothing[2] in his lifetime and yet we have volumes and volumes of his Torah on literally every area and – to this day – they continue to be published.[3] Obviously, all of this material has come to light through his own notes and those of his many students. Non-Republished works of R. Shlomo Zalman Auerbach Another such person, who has had a similarly prolific posthumous literary output – although he did publish Torah novella in his own life time – is R. Shlomo Zalman Auerbach (1910-1995). After his death there has been a printing explosion of his writings covering all topics, including reprints of everything he has ever written! The only works of his not to be reprinted are two amazing works: the Meori Aish – a classic study on electricity and muktzah – and his Madeni Aretz on Shevi’it, as these two works have connections to one of the more controversial gedolim of the past century, R. Avraham Yitzchak Ha-Kohen Kook. As the Meori Aish has a haskamah from Rav Kook and the Madenei Aretz deals at great length with Rav Kook’s views on Shevi’it. Halikhot Shlomo For this post, however, I would just like to limit my focus to one of these recent works on R.
    [Show full text]
  • JUDAICA LIST | July 2020 | [email protected] PH: +44 208 4559139
    FISHBURN BOOKS | JUDAICA LIST | July 2020 www.fishburnbooks.com | [email protected] PH: +44 208 4559139 50 ITEMS: AMERICAN JUDAICA, THE ERUV, PALESTINE MANDATE, ANTI-SEMITISM AND THE HOLOCAUST, ANGLO JUDAICA AND OTHER EPHEMERA 1. [SIR HAROLD MACMICHAEL] MURDER! SIR HAROLD MAC MICHAEL, KNOWN AS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR PALESTINE WANTED FOR MURDER OF 800 REFUGEES DROWNED IN THE BLACK SEA ON THE BOAT “STRUMA” Palestine c 1942 Small hand bill 17 x 13 cm. Sir Harold Mac Michael, was the fifth High Commissioner of the British Mandate for Palestine (1938-44). He rigidly implemented the anti-Zionist policy of the 1939 ‘White Paper,’ refusing to admit Jewish refugees from Nazi-occupied Europe to Palestine. The Struma was a ship carrying Jewish refugees from Axis-allied Romania to Mandatory Palestine. The British authorities, led by MacMichael, refused to let it dock in Haifa. On the ship’s return to Europe, it foundered in the Black Sea and nearly 800 Jewish passengers were killed. There was only a single survivor. [ref: 19920 ] £350 2. [ANTI-SEMITISM] CAPP, AL - HENRY EDWARD SCHULTZ, HERMAN WOUK. - MAMMY YOKUM AND THE DOGPATCH MYSTERY New York Anti-Defamation League of the Bnai Brith 1956 Original wrappers, 26cm, 17 un-numbered pages mostly cartoons, there is a foreword by Henry Edward Schultz, the National Chairman of the Anti-Defamation League of the Bnai Brith. Postscript by Herman Wouk, the Pulitzer Prize winning novelist. This comic book reprints a fable about prejudice and racial harmony by Al Capp. The story first appeared in Capp's L'il Abner comic strip.
    [Show full text]
  • Parsha Perspectivesrabbi Z. SKLAR
    PARSHAS BESHALACH 11 SHEVAT 5772 | FEBRUARY 4 2012 Parsha Perspectives RABBI Z. SKLAR We all want to grow, to improve. We set ולא נחם אלקים דרך ארץ פלשתים כי קרוב הוא כי אמר... goals — or make resolutions — and then we take concrete steps forward toward פן ינחם העם בראתם מלחמה ושבו מצרימה achieving those goals. It is inevitable that “G-d did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, because it we will face challenges along the way. If we was near. For G-d said, ‘Perhaps the people will reconsider when they see want to avoid automatically falling back into our old habits, we need to put distance war, and they will return to Egypt.’ ” (Exodus 13:17) between ourselves and our past ways; we need to create some kind of barrier that ow many of us have made New Year’s resolutions that have long been keeps us moving in a positive direction. forgotten? We pledged to go on a diet and finally lose those 20 extra Rabbi Sklar can be reached at H [email protected] pounds, or resolved to develop a better relationship with our spouse/child/co- worker/friend. Yet, after only a few short days, weeks, or (if we’re lucky) months, our resolve is gone. Suddenly, we’re back to eating the white flour and fatty foods. WORD of the WEEK We again treat the ones close to us in a manner that is not always ideal. Are we מן .really horrible people who don’t want to change? No, we are the victims of habit To change something intrinsic within ourselves, we need to do something drastic mahn — manna is the name — מן and break free from ingrained practices.
    [Show full text]
  • From Orthodoxy to Religious Zionism: Rabbi Kook and the Sabbatical Year Polemic
    From Orthodoxy to Religious Zionism: Rabbi Kook and the Sabbatical Year Polemic Arye Edrei* A. Introduction 1. Historical Background 2. The Ideolo- gical Backdrop: Halakhah in Modern Times; B. Rabbi Kook and Halakhic Innovation; C. Halakhah and Ideology: The Sabbatical Year Polemic 1. Is the Pro- hibition Valid in Our Days? 2. Can the Sanctity of the Land be Suspended? 3. Is it Permissible to Sell Land in the Land of Israel? 4. Are Legal Fictions Acceptable; D. Signposts of the Creation of a New Stream in Halakhah 1. Dis- senting Opinions as a Tool Available to Halakhic Authorities 2. Protected Values 3. The Target Population of the Halakhic Authority; E. Shaping Communal Parameters: The Secular Jews in Modern Halakhic Thought; F. Rabbi Kook and the Division of the Communities; G. ‘‘We are not Responsible for Them’’: Social Division and Halakhic Division; H. From Orthodoxy to Religious Zionism: Communal Schism and Halakhic Schism in the Sabbatical Year Polemic. * A preliminary version of this article was presented at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Yeshiva University, as the 2008 Annual Ivan Meyer Lecture in Jewish Law. I wish to thank Professor Suzanne Last Stone, Director of the Center for Jewish Law and Contemporary Civili- zation at Cardozo Law School, for her kind invitation, and for her support and thoughtful comments on the lecture. I also wish to thank Dr. Benjamin Brown for his insights and comments that pervade the article. His fasci- nating and comprehensive work on the H. azon Ish enabled me to make the comparison between Rabbi Kook and the H.
    [Show full text]