Parsha Pix

Pyramids under a hot sun = descent into Egypt… and are a symbol of slave labor, both ours and other enslaved people
Lettuce is MAROR from the Seder table. It relates to the pasuk which describes the Egyptian’s embittering the lives of Bnei Yisrael. Lettuce, explains the Talmud Yerushalmi, is a kind of vegetable that is tasty when picked ripe. The longer it stays in the ground, the more bitter it becomes. That is what happened to the people of Israel. They started out in Egypt with a good, sweet life. The longer they stayed in the “ground”, the more bitter their lives became. Lettuce, therefore, is the preferred choice of vegetable
That same pasuk continues to specify the work with bricks (see the trowel and bricks)
and the field work (the planting of the seedling)

Towards Better Davening and Torah Reading

SEE FEAR

VA-TI-RE-NA HA’M’YALDOT ET HAELOKIM

The midwives feared G-d; they did not see Him. The first word above has an ALEF with no vowel under it. The ALEF is totally silent and absent from the pronunciation of the word. The word is VA-TI-RE-NA, and they feared… If it is mispronounced VA- TIR-ENA, the meaning of the word is changed to and they saw… (which, of course they couldn’t and didn’t).
SEE FEAR

VA-TI-RE-NA HA’M’YALDOT ET HAELOKIM
An ALEF and a HEI in the middle of a word is not heard from at all. But note also, that an ALEF with a vowel sometimes loses it to the provious letter, when it (the previous letter) has no vowel of its own.
Firstborn of Yaakov is R’U-VEIN, REISH with a SH’VA and an ALEF with a SHURUK. You hear the REISH with the shortest of vowel sounds (which we usually indicate in English letters as a letter followed by an apostrophe) - R’. And the rest of that same syllable is an ALEF, which doesn’t have a consonantal sound, but does have the vowel sound of the SHURUK, U (as the oo of food). The whole syllable is R’U.

Divrei Menachem

Sefer Sh’mot opens with the statement that, “These are the names of the children of Israel who were coming to Egypt; with Ya’akov, each man and his household came.” The first phrase of this verse is identical to an earlier clause introducing those who went down to Mizrayim (B’reishit 46:8).
However, while the first phrases of both these declarations match, the latter phrase of the earlier statement differs by immediately recounting by name Reuven, the firstborn, followed by Reuven’s progeny.

Supervision - Who are the Supervisors

Last week we started speaking about the practicalities of supervision and showed that it is quite difficult to have constant direct supervision and still not disturb the normal working of the fertility unit and laboratory.
This is connected to how we choose our supervisors. We are often approached by nurses, biologists or other medical professionals who are seeking to become supervisors. While we do not reject such people out of hand, we do not actively seek someone with any sort of science or medical background. The reason for this is that sometimes these people know too much about medical procedures and laboratory techniques and they may have the urge or the tendency to suggest different practices to the embryologists. This is not the specifications of the job of the supervisor, who is to oversee the procedure and not interfere even if she is convinced that she can offer good sound advice.

The Women in Sh'mot

The media is wasting their time searching out episodes of “Hadrat nashim” to expose in order to make Judaism and those who want to uphold it look bad. In actuality, Judaism holds women in very high regard. Although there may be fewer women mentioned by name in the Bible, the ones who are enumerated have very important roles.
Let us take this week’s portion for example. In his introduction to his commentary, Covenant & Conversation, a weekly reading of the Jewish Bible published by Maggid and OU press, Rabbi Jonathan Sacks discusses the development of Moshe, the leader. He points out that Moshe was brought up in the royal house and does not experience slavery, he spends most of his adulthood far away as a shepherd in Midyan and he repeats that he is “not a man of words,” reminding us that the words that Moshe will speak are not his own but are the words of Hashem.

Parsha Points to Ponder

1) Why does it say WHO ARE COMING TO EGYPT in reference to the Jewish people who already came to Egypt a long time ago (1:1)?
2) Why does the daughter of Par’o name the baby MOSHE which means DRAWING OUT in the present and not MASHUI which means THE ONE WHO WAS DRAWN OUT in the past (2:10)?
3) Why does G-D say GO AND I WILL SEND YOU TO PA’RO (3:10)? Once he has instructed Moshe to go, of course He is sending him!

CHIZUK and IDUD for Olim not yet Olim respectively

Rashi conveys important messages, not only by what he writes but also by what he does not write. Rashi at times chooses to remain silent in one place and then clarify in another one so that where he writes a commentary it is significant.
In Parshat Shmot, Hashem reveals Himself to Moshe at the Burning Bush. He assures Moshe, “I have indeed seen the affliction of My people that is in Egypt “I shall descend to rescue it from the hand of Egypt and to bring it up from that land, to a land flowing with milk and honey” (3:8). This is the first time the land is described in the way that Hashem has chosen for it “eretz zavat chalav udvash.” This will appear another fourteen times in Torah. In fact the second time it appears is also here at the Sneh. “And I have said I shall bring you up from the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanite etc. to a land flowing with milk and honey” (3:17). Yet Rashi maintains silence and does not explain its meaning. Only at the end of Parshat Bo, “Today you are leaving in the month of spring. And it shall come to pass when Hashem shall bring you to the land of the Canaanite” that He swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey…” (5:31) Here, finally Rashi says, “Milk flows from the goats and honey flows from the dates and figs.” Well, why does Rashi wait till now? Why not explain it the very first time it appears in Torah? Obviously by choosing to wait and by selecting this particular posuk, Rashi wants to teach us something important. Moshe Rabeinu understood that as long as the people are enslaved in Egypt they will be incapable of appreciating the Divine description of a land that is bountiful, fruitful, verdant, and blessed with abundance.

Lesson # 578 Pit Damage (cont.)

Previously it was stated that we would discuss the extent of liability of the digger of the pit.
Reuven, the digger of the pit is liable if the pit causes the death of an animal during any time of the day or night, if the animal that falls into the pit is young, or if a deaf-mute, witless or blind person falls into the pit. Reuven is also liable if a normal grown animal falls into the pit at night. Since it is dark at night, the animal does not see the pit. However, if a normal grown animal falls into the pit by day and is killed, Reuven is exempt from payment. Grown animals usually see obstacles and avoid them. If any animal is injured (as distinguished from being killed) by falling into the pit, Reuven is liable, irrespective of whether it is day or night.