Parshat Mishpatim Newsletter

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Dear Naaleh Friend,

This week's Parsha is Parshat Mishpatim. Naaleh has a wide assortment of classes available on the Parsha. The newest class is from the series Living the Parsha 5778 by Mrs. Shira Smiles. The class is titled Bias Beware and in this class Mrs. Shira Smiles discusses Parshat Mishpatim. Click on the image below to view the class now.

This week's edition of our Torat Imecha Newsletter on Parshat Mishpatim is available on our Newsletter page. Click here for the printer friendly version, to share at your Shabbat table! Be sure to visit the homepage as well, for many more inspiring Torah classes!

Shabbat Shalom!

-Ashley Klapper and the Naaleh Crew

For Tehillim list please click here to view our Refuah Shleima page

Parshat Mishpatim: Sense of Servitude

Based on a Naaleh.com shiur by Mrs. Shira Smiles

Summary by Channie Koplowitz Stein

Parshat Yitro ends on the high note of the Jewish nation accepting the Torah at Har Sinai. Parshat Mishpatim begins immediately thereafter giving us the specific details of living a Torah life. The first group of mitzvot the Torah introduces deals with the treatment of a Hebrew slave, laws which seem irrelevant today. Yet there are eternal lessons to be learned. The entire purpose of our emancipation from Egypt, says Hashem, was to lead us to Sinai and accept the Torah. On a deeper level, the entire purpose of the servitude was to teach us how to submit our own will to the will of our true Master, to train us to negate our natural inclinations, as Rav Lugassi points out, and to accept the yoke of Heaven.

A Jew can become a "slave" in Torah terminology in only one of two ways: Either he has stolen and the courts have ordered him to work off his debt, or he cannot sustain himself, and willingly enters servitude so that he and his family's needs will be taken care of. His service is to last no more than seven years. Nevertheless, he can choose to refuse his freedom and remain until the Jubilee year. If he is given this option, why does the Torah seemingly frown upon it? The simplest answer given by many commentators is that at Sinai we accepted the yoke of Heaven, how can we then accept a human master over ourselves?

Meirosh Tzurim explains that both an employee and a slave toil for their sustenance, but a slave must be given all his needs. Why then would someone not choose this stress free life? But there is an inherent difference. At the end of the day, the worker can leave and go home to pursue intellectual or spiritual interests. A slave must always respond to his master's call and is never free to grow in his own right. It is for this reason that we pray daily that the only coercion we experience should be the coercion of our inclination to become servants to Hashem. By choosing to remain a slave to his human master, he has, in essence, repudiated Hashem's sovereignty and instead preferred to rely on the powers of man for his daily sustenance. He has chosen the path of the serpent who was cursed that he would never need to turn to his Heavenly Master for his needs.

In Battle Plans , Reb Nachman of Breslov's path for crowning Hashem as our King is elucidated. What killed Mickey Marcus, first general of Israel was not the enemy, but friendly fire shot in the darkness of night that created the ignorance to his identity. In the same way, our own ignorance creates the darkness that prevents us from seeing the true reality, and the presence of Hashem in every aspect of our lives. To serve Hashem correctly and create meaning in our lives requires us to turn on the light of the wisdom and intelligence and examine every situation for its potential to be an impetus for our growth and self improvement. This is the trait of Truth, the hallmark of our Patriarch Jacob. He recognized Hashem's presence in every situation, no matter how difficult. Every challenge was an opportunity for growth. In this way, he figuratively removed the crown from his own head and placed it on the head of the King.

In contrast, Esav saw every situation egotistically. His response to any situation was not how can I grow and improve, but rather what's in it for me. This is the hallmark of the evil inclination. It is the darkness that blinds us to the true purpose of our lives and the mindset that brought a person into the conditions that ultimately led to his indentured servitude.

Shidduchim: How to Find Your Soul Mate- Part III

Based on a Naaleh.com shiur by Rebbetzin Tziporah Heller

In shidduchim , personal compatibility is important. As girls mature emotionally, they develop deep and enduring friendships with other women in which they could speak profoundly and eloquently about their feelings. Most men don't connect to that. So a girl might perceive a man as being shallow while all he is, is being a man. Of course you want someone who will understand you and someone you could understand. There should be a meeting of minds at some level. But girls need to understand that men communicate differently than women.

You want him to admire your essential traits and in turn you want to be able to respect him. People's middot don't change all that much. You don't want to marry someone who wants to remodel you nor do you want someone you would want to revamp. It's a bad idea for a girl whose greatest pride is her intellectualism to marry a man threatened by bright women. It's a bad idea for a man whose pride is his diligence in learning to marry a girl who thinks that he's irresponsible and absent. It helps if both come from a similar ethnic background so that they can understand each other's cultural mores and point of view.

The bottom line question is, "What is your goal?" All of this compatibility and similarity is only a means to an end. The core question to ask is, "Can I build with this person?" If the answer is no, no matter how much commonality there is, it's not going to be a good shidduch . If the answer is yes, no matter how little commonality there is, if both parties are willing to work hard, be flexible, and build together it can be ok. If your vision of the kind of family you'll raise, the kind of couple you'll be, and where you want to be down the line in life are the same, you'll be ok. You have to be willing to work on your marriage which means developing mutual understanding, good communication, and learning the art of compromise. You are not marrying yourself. You are marrying someone "other" and this is part of Hashem's great plan to turn us into givers.

Giving means giving the other person what he really doesn't have and being willing to take from him what you really need. This requires humility. The classical paradigm in marriage is that the husband provides and the woman builds. You have to ask yourself honestly, "Can I build the kind of home I want with what he provides?" Suppose you're going out with a really nice man but the aspect of himself that gives him the most pride is his success in his law practice. You could build a marvelous home with him. He could be generous with his money. You could invite guests proudly. But if you'd really like to be married to Rabbi Akiva and sacrifice for Torah, then it's a terrible match. It could work if you're willing to build with what he has, not if you're trying to remake him.

You have to see the shidduch proposal through your eyes even if you have someone checking for you. In the very traditional communities where the investigating is very thorough and the lifestyle of the people is mostly homogenous, sometimes after very few meetings the couple can see if they like each other. But for people who are not coming from that place, it's important to get to know the person.

Respecting G-d Part III

Based on a Naaleh.com shiur by Rabbi Ari Jaconbson

The Talmud quotes a verse from Shemot where Hashem tells Moshe, " Zeh shemi l'olam v'zeh zichri l'dor v'dor." This is my name forever and this is the way you will mention me for all generations. L'olam is written without a vav and can also be read as l'alem , to hide. Hashem told Moshe, the spelling of my name will be yud keh vav keh but it will be pronounced aleph daled nun yud . Zeh shemi , my actual name is to be hidden, v'zeh zichri and this is the way to pronounce it when you pray to me and when you praise me. The Shulchan Aruch explains that although the yud keh is not pronounced it does have ramifications with respect to the intentions one must have when one says the shema . First, one is supposed to have in mind the pronunciation of aleph daled nun yud , the Adon kol , Master of all. Second, one should have in mind the spelling yud keh vav keh which represents hayah hoveh v'yiyheh , Hashem was, is, and will be. Third, when one says Elokeinu one should have in mind takif baal yecholot and baal hakochos kulam , Hashem is all powerful, omnipotent, and the source of all the various forces, even those that appear to be a part of the natural order. That's a lot to keep in mind every time one says Hashem's name. So if you have to say a bracha , there's no choice but to use Hashem's actual name. But when it comes to situations where it isn't necessary such as studying Torah or singing zemirot , it's better not to mention it unless one is sure one will have the proper intentions.

The Chaye Adam writes that people sometimes think you can't use Hashem's name if you only say half a verse, but that is not true. If you're praising Hashem or learning Torah, there is no prohibition. Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach ztzl notes that the requirement to have the proper intentions when uttering Hashem's name, although it appears in the Shulchan Aruch, does not appear in the Talmud. Thus you don't have to feel quite guilty if you're not quite there yet, and if this is something you have trouble with. Moreover the Vilna Gaon was of the opinion that it's enough to only concentrate that Hashem is the Master of all and one need not concentrate on the hahya hoveh v'yihye . Rav Shlomo Zalman suggests that it is not imperative that one actually have the intentions while reciting the words. It's enough if you have it in mind right before or after you say the words. However when it comes to reciting Shema, even the Gra agrees, that one is supposed to have both intentions namely, adon kol as well as haya hoveh v'yiyeh .

The Ohev Yisrael writes that the reason the prayer of Adon Olam was placed at the beginning of Shachrit was to serve as a safeguard if one did not subsequently have the right intentions when saying Hashem's name. Each time one says the yud keh vav keh over the course of the day it goes back to that original Adon Olam in which one declared-Hashem is the master of all, He was is and will be.

The Kitzur notes that the prohibition of using Hashem's name in vain applies to all of Hashem's kabbalistic infinite names. The Ramban writes in his introduction to the Torah that the entire Torah is a compilation of Hashem's various secret names. According to halacha, there are seven names of Hashem that have sanctity and may not be erased or uttered in vain. They are Yud keh vav keh , Kel , Elokai, Elokim, Shakai, Zevakos, Ehyeh . There are a number of related prohibitions that apply to these names including treating it in a degrading fashion, cursing another individual or taking an oath using Hashem's name.

There's discussion both in the Talmud as well as in later sources to what extent the various prohibitions apply to the seven names, to the kinuim (descriptions of Hashem such as rachum v'chanun ), and to references to His name in other languages. According to the Shulchan Aruch, the prohibition of erasing Hashem's name is limited only to the seven names. However the other prohibitions such as cursing would apply equally to the kinuim and to references to His name in other languages.