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Dear  Naaleh Friend,

This week we feature a Naaleh Torah class on Parshat Nasso. The class, 
Parshat Naso: Twelve Tribes; Model of Diversity is from Mrs. Shira Smile's series    Parsha Topics 5769.   In this shiur (Torah class) on Parshat Naso, Mrs. Shira Smiles speaks about the repetitive nature of the description of the gifts that the nesi'im brought to the mishkan, and about the blessings that Yaakov Avinu gave his children.   To view this class please click on the image below.


This week's edition of Torah Imecha 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
Honorable Mentchen: Respect For All
Based on a Naaleh.com shiur by Rabbi Hanoch Teller
The mitzvah to love one's neighbor as oneself is probably one of the most well known commandments in the Torah.  The Yerushalmi in Nedarim says that it is the Torah's preeminent command. There are no direct commandments in the Torah to visit the sick, to practice hospitality, or to comfort mourners. Yet all of these acts are part and parcel of being an observant Jew. The Rambam explains that they all emanate from the commandment to love one's neighbor as oneself.  One of the reasons that we are motivated to help others is our empathy which stems from loving another Jew. There is also the idea expressed in the beginning of the Torah that man was created in the divine image which applies not only to Jews but also to non Jews. The Seridei Aish explains according to the interpretation of the Alter of Slabodoka that Tzelem Elokim means the immensity of human potential, the latent spiritual heights contained within man which can enable him to become like Hashem.
A poor boy was once standing outside a store in Boro Park . It was before yom tov and  he watched enviously how people emerged with bags full of new clothing. Finally one mother noticed him, took pity on him, and marched him into the store. After she had finished outfitting him as if he was her own child,. The boy looked at the woman gratefully and asked, "Are you Hashem?" She smiled and said, "No, just one of his children."  The boy then said, "I knew you had to be related." Showing respect for every person means you are truly a child of Hashem.
Rashi notes that Bilaam's donkey was killed because he was able to see the angel of Hashem while his master could not. So as not to be a source of shame to Bilaam, Hashem caused the donkey to die. If the Torah shows compassion for an evil man such as Bilaam, how much more so do we have to be concerned for the honor of another Jew. According to Torah law, if a thief steals a lamb or sheep he must pay back four times. If he steals a cow he must pay back five times. The Gemara explains that because the thief suffered shame as he carriedthe sheep out, he pays back less.  If the Torah worries about the shame of a thief, how much more do we need to take into account the respect due to every Jew.
The Mishna in Avot tells us, " Yehi kevod chaverecha chaviv alecha kishelach .  May the honor of your friend be as important to you as your own." The Alter of Slabodka taught that a human being cannot live without respect. It follows that if you give your friend honor you give him life. There's a rule in manufacturing that a product is as strong as its weakest link.  If a plastic component worth 39 cents goes on the blink within a 35 million dollar jet, it could bring the whole plane down. Tragically people project this principle about objects onto people. We judge people by their lowest performance. We might see someone doing something inappropriate and instead of thinking that this is his weak link, we apply it to the whole person. This should be a rule only in manufacturing, not with people.
The Kitzur Shulchan Aruch tells us, one may not walk four amot (about 6 feet) with one's head uncovered. Even if one is stationary, one may not recite a bracha or mention Hashem's name when one's head is uncovered.  The root words of yarmulka is Yirah Malcha , fear of the King. The Kitzur writes that we must educate even young children to cover their heads in order that they should have fear of heaven.  The Talmud says the purpose of the yarmulke is to serve as a constant reminder of Hashem. In Masechet Shabbat we read how the mother of Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak was told by astrologers that her son would be a thief. She was advised not to allow him to ever go bareheaded in order that he would always have fear of heaven.
Historically it is somewhat unclear precisely the point in history where it became common practice for all men to cover their head at all times. During Talmudic times it was not common practice. The very fact that the astrologers had to advice Rav Nachman's ] mother to see to it that her sons head remained covered seems to indicate that this was not common practice. The Gemara tells us in Masechas Kiddushin about Rav Chisda who was describing to Rav Huna how great an individual Rav Hamnuna was. Rav Huna said, "Bring him to me." When he came, Rav Huna noticed his head was uncovered and he asked him why. Rav Hamnuna answered that he was unmarried. Rav Huna turned his back to him and said, "See to it that you don't return until you are married." It seems the custom was that men would cover their heads only after they were married. Rav Huna didn't chastise him for not covering his head but for not being married. The Gemara further tells how Ravina was sitting in the presence of Rav Difti. The two were studying and a man passed by with his head uncovered. Ravina said, "What audacity does this man have that he walks past the Rabbis with his head uncovered ." The impression one gets is that if you weren't in the presence of Rabbis it was not necessary to cover one's head.  In Masechas Shabbat we read how Rav Huna said, "I am deserving of praise because I don't walk four cubits with my head uncovered." This seems to indicate that Rav Huna's practice was considered midat chasiddut , not standard or necessarily mandatory behavior.
In Masechet Kidushin it says, Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi taught that one may not walk four cubits with perfectly erect posture as it represents haughtiness and a lack of awareness of the constant presence of Hashem. Regarding walking bareheaded, the Talmud simply says Rav Huna wouldn't do it. This seems to indicate that a head covering was not specifically mandated in Talmudic times. Rather there were those who did and those who didn't. Being particular to always cover one's head was considered exceptional.
There were communities going back hundreds of years who were very particular to always cover their heads. The community of Germany, tracing back to the Middle Ages, were very careful to constantly wear yarmulkas . However when traveling on business when they weren't able cover their heads, they would refrain from reciting brachot before eating food. This is an example of misplaced priorities. The impression we get from the Gemara was that initially wearing a yarmulk a was midat chassidut while reciting a bracha on food is absolutely mandatory. The Shulchan Aruch says wearing a yarmulka is   midat chasidut that everyone has adopted. The Maharshal speaks out against these German businessman.. One cannot transgress a mitzvah because of a custom. If for some reason one cannot cover one's head the halacha is one still must recite a bracha before eating food. Most poskim hold that covering one's head with one's own arm doesn't help but using a sleeve or part of a shirt is acceptable.  
In Middle Eastern countries as well as in Eastern Europe the common practice was to cover one's head.  The Mahari Bruna who lived in 15 th century Germany suggests in one of his responsa that although back in Talmudic times there was no requirement to cover one's head it is different now. As non Jews in European countries are particular to keep their head uncovered,  doing the same would be a violation of " U'bechukoseihem lo seiluchu."
How big must the yarmulka be? Rav Moshe Feinstein and Rav Ovadia Yosef ruled that if the yarmulka is big enough to see from all sides of the head, it's fine.  Rav Shlomo Kluger was very adamant that covering one's head is an absolute Rabbinic requirement and not midat chassidut .  He explains that in Talmudic times if a man was unmarried or not in the presence of great Rabbis he would still wear a little yarmulka. Otherwise his head was completely covered.  
The Art of Jewish Parenting:
Discipline  Part I
Based on a Naaleh.com shiur by Rabbi Herschel Reichman

The way of Hashem is to pursue tzedakah and mishpat , charity and justice or as it is called in Chassidut, chesed and din . This is what we have to teach our children. In Tehilim it says, " Olam chesed yibana ; the world will be built by kindness." Hashem did a great act of chesed when he created the universe and He continues to do kindness by sustaining it. The Torah begins with the verse, " Bereishit barah Elokim ;  in the beginning Hashem created."  Rashi explains that Elokim signifies din or justice. The world came into being with the laws of nature. Without it there would be chaos. The creation of the world is fundamentally the establishment of divine order. There's cause and effect, limits, and rules. Yes the world was created as an act of kindness. Yet it was also created with judgment and laws. Rashi says that originally the world was created only with din but Hashem saw that it alone would destroy humanity and so He had to introduce rachamim. You can appeal to Hashem and He can change the laws just as He did at the splitting of the Red Sea. There's a combination of rachamim and din .  We must have laws within the family, within the relationship between parents and children. Din is a core concept that we must raise our children with. There are mitzvot we must do and prohibitions we must not do. So too our children must know that there are things they need to do and things they can't do. In the old days, raising children with din was a fundamental assumption that everyone knew. It's become less popular today where everything goes. People let children do what they want and unfortunately we see the results of a broken society. This comes from a lack of respect for law. Parenting, in terms of being an institution of law, has taken a tremendous beating.

The Torah clearly emphasizes that one must follow the rules of Hashem. Hashem himself binds himself to the laws. He Himself follows the rules of nature. Very rarely does He break it. He created us to be law abiding people. It's a part of our soul, a reflection of Hashem.  We were fashioned with the divine image so clearly it's not foreign to us. It's a core psychological and spiritual aspect of who we are, people of law and responsibility. Law equals responsibility. Being a responsible person, someone who lives and fulfils his commitments means being a good person. People who don't fulfill their responsibility are evil people who have failed as human beings. We want to teach our  children to be responsible so that they can grow to be authentic, holy, and complete Jews. It says, " " Im lo brisi yomam v'layla, chukos shamyim v'aretz  lo  samti ."  Hashem gives us the laws of nature so that we will keep the moral laws of the Torah. We clearly have to raise our children not just with love and kindness but with a sense of law and order,  knowledge of justice , to be committed and have that responsibility to fulfill the do's and don'ts. We have to teach our children din , the concepts of limits. According to Chassidut the definition of law is the limiting concept called tzimtzum , constriction. Chesed is hishpashtut , spreading out. Hashem wants us to raise our children with both unbridled love and a sense of limits and responsibility. May we merit to do so.


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