Parshat Vaera

1 Shevat, 5777/January 28, 2017

Vol. 8 Num. 21

This issue of Toronto Torah is dedicated by Rochel and Jeffrey Silver

in honour of the recent birthdays of Jeffreys parents, Leona and Label Silver

Gratitude to Egypt?
Tell Aharon: Take your staff, and
extend your arm upon the waters of
Egypt, upon their rivers, upon their
canals, etc. (Shemot 7:19) Rashi
explains, citing a midrash, Because
the river protected Moshe, it was not
struck by his hand in the plagues of
Blood and Frogs; it was struck by
Aharons hand. This is perplexing; of
what value is gratitude toward an
inanimate object?
Devarim 23:20 adds to our confusion,
commanding, You shall not reject the
Egyptian, for you were a stranger in
his land. The Talmud (Bava Kama
92b) explains, Do not cast a stone
into the cistern from which you
drank. And explaining this mitzvah,
Rambam writes (Moreh Nevuchim
3:42), So regarding anyone you
needed once, and anyone from whom
you benefited, who now encounters
trouble. Even though he then harmed
you, you must remember that which
came first See that we learn several
good traits from these mitzvot.
It appears that Rambam seeks to see
the good in the Egyptian, despite all of
their evils. But how can one be
grateful to Egypt, and neither reject
nor hate them, after all the ways they
harmed us? Should we ignore the fact
that they threw our sons into the river,
because they gave us a home during a
famine? Further, it appears that all of
their supposed kindness to the Jewish
people in the days of Yosef was only in
order to reap the financial benefits of
his presence and leadership. When
they no longer needed the Children of
Israel, and Yosef had passed away,

Yaron Perez

they began to oppress and enslave us.

So why should we display gratitude?
We may suggest an answer. The Torah
states that a new king arose in Egypt,
who did not know Yosef. (Shemot 1:8)
On this, Rashi explains that the king
knew all about Yosef, but he acted as
though he did not know Yosef. Building
on the same idea, a midrash (Midrash
HaGadol, Parshat Shemot) states, He
knew, but he did not look at this; he hid
[Yosefs] benevolence, and in the end he
hid G-ds benevolence. Expanding
upon this midrash, Rabbi Shemuel
Ashkenazi wrote in his 16th century
commentary Yefeh Toar, All who deny
the benevolence of others, will in the
end deny the benevolence of G-d.
Pharaoh began by denying the
benevolence of Yosef, and he issued
decrees against his descendants; in our
parshah, we see that Pharaoh comes to
deny Divine authority and benevolence
as well.
In principle, recognizing the aid of
others and responding with gratitude is
a fundamental aspect of being a moral
person, and it catalyzes wondrous
changes in the soul of both the speaker
and the original benefactor.
Nonetheless, human beings do find it
difficult to express gratitude from the
depths of their hearts, and to respond
to those around them in kind. Indeed,
Sefer haChinuch (Mitzvah 33) sees the
mitzvah of honouring ones parents as a
training ground meant to help us learn
gratitude, precisely because it is so
commonly ignored: Among the roots of
this mitzvah is the fact that one should
recognize the benefit done for him by

others, and return the favour, and not

be disgusting, distant and ungrateful.
This is a wicked trait, entirely revolting,
before G-d and Man. Pharaoh exhibits
an extreme example of the challenge of
developing a sense of gratitude, and this
flaw led to his demise. We must learn to
be different.
Therefore, when we express gratitude to
Egypt, benefiting the undeserving
Egyptians is not the ultimate goal; our
gratitude to the inanimate river, too, is
not for the sake of the insensate river.
The central purpose is to train our own
character. As long as our character, and
particularly our gratitude, grows and
strengthens, we will develop a more
grateful response to those around us, to
our parents, and ultimately to G-d. As
Rabbi Eliyahu Dessler wrote (Michtav
meiEliyahu 3), One must make every
effort to acquire this trait fully, for
through it he will learn to recognize the
great kindness of G-d with all Creation,
and so he will draw close to G-d For
gratitude to Man and gratitude to G-d
share a common root. If the trait of
gratitude to others is flawed, then he
will not recognize the generosity of G-d.
yperez@torontotorah.com

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Book Review: Judaisms Encounter with Other Cultures

Judaisms Encounter with Other
Cultures: Rejection or Integration?
Ed. Rabbi Dr. J. J. Schacter
Aronson (1997)
The Question
Almost two millennia ago, the great
sage Rabbi Yishmael was asked by his
nephew, I have studied the entire
Torah; may I learn Greek wisdom?
Rabbi Yishmael replied that one ought
to study Torah day and night, and
therefore he could only study Greek
wisdom at a time that was neither.
(Menachot 99b) On the other hand,
talmudic sages debated philosophy with
non-Jewish philosophers. (Avodah
Zarah 17b, for example)
Later in Jewish history, Rambam
displayed deep knowledge of Greek and
Arab philosophy. However, he also
wrote, Regarding any idea which could
cause a person to uproot one of the
principles of Torah, we are prohibited
from bringing it into our hearts or
turning our attention to it. (Mishneh
Torah, Hilchot Avodah Zarah 2:3)
In our own day, Rabbi Aharon
Lichtenstein, himself a holder of a PhD
in English literature, told the following
story: A would-be philosopher who had
attended Rav [Yosef Dov] Soloveitchiks
shiur once turned to him for counsel as

to whether he should pursue graduate

studies in the field and in a
denominational university, at that. The
Rav responded that airplanes are
known to crash and yet people fly. The
questioner subsequently confided that
several years later he woke up one
morning with an urge to call the Rav to
tell him that the plane had just
crashed, as indeed it thunderously
had. (Judaisms Encounter with Other
Cultures, pg. 284)
A Jewish community which pledges
fealty to Torah and sends its youth to
university must ask the question: Are
we living a single, unified Jewish life?
Are we in danger of crashing?
The Answer
Judaisms Encounter with Other
Cultures seeks to answer this question,
by demonstrating the complexity of
our traditions reaction to non-Jewish
culture. As Rabbi Dr. J. J. Schacter
writes in his introduction, [T]he
attitude of Jews throughout history to
Gentile learning and culture is not
monolithic and unidimensional and
cannot be reduced to any simplistic,
facile generalization. He cites a letter
from Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak Bloch,
av beit din of Telz before World War II,
regarding general studies: [I]t is
impossible to establish firm rulings

Israels Chief Rabbis: Rabbi David Stav

Rabbi David Stav
b. 1960
Chief Rabbi of Shoham
Biography
Born in Jerusalem in 1960, Rabbi David Stav studied at
Yeshivot Netiv Meir and Mercaz HaRav, where he learned
with Rabbi Avraham Shapira, whom he considers his primary
teacher. He served in the Tank Unit in the IDF. Later he was
ordained as a Dayan (religious judge).
Rabbi Stav has been a Community Rabbi in Israel (in Bnei
Darom), as well as in Antwerp, Belgium. He taught in
Yeshivat Or Etzion, and later co-founded and served as coRosh Yeshiva of Yeshivat Orot Shaul. He has also served as
the Rabbi of Maaleh, the religious film school. He ran an
unsuccessful campaign for Chief Rabbi of Israel in 2013. He
currently serves, in addition to his role in Shoham, as
Chairman of Tzohar, a rabbinical group in Israel, and as cochancellor of Ohr Torah Stone.
Activism
Rabbi Stav has been devoted to making the Israeli rabbinate
more accessible to the average Israeli. Many have complained
of the stringency and insensitivity of the Israeli rabbinate. As
marriage and conversion are under the auspices of the
rabbinate, it is hard for any Jew, religious or secular to avoid
the rabbinate. Thus, Tzohar was founded to try to make
religiosity more appealing by providing rabbinical services to
all, by rabbis devoted to being more sensitive and inclusive. It
was to further these goals that Rabbi Stav ran his

Rabbi Mordechai Torczyner

with regard to them as [one can do] in

the halakhic portions, that is, to issue
a ruling applicable to all. They depend
very much upon the temperament of
the individual person and upon his
unique mode [of life], and also depend
upon the conditions of time, place,
circumstance and environment.
To demonstrate this point, Judaisms
Encounter with Other Cultures presents
three essays written by ordained
rabbis with extensive credentials in
both Torah and the academic study of
Jewish history and philosophy. Gerald
Blidstein speaks to the talmudic
attitude to non-Jewish knowledge and
culture; David Berger discusses the
period from the close of the Gaonic Era
up to the Enlightenment; and Shnayer
Z. Leiman adds the developments of
the past few centuries. Finally, the
book concludes with an essay by
Rabbi Lichtenstein, exploring the
threats and benefits of engagement
with general culture. All of the articles
are multi-faceted, thoroughly sourced,
and clearly argued.
To this reviewer, these essays are
essential for the university-educated,
Torah-studying Jew who wishes to
thoughtfully navigate Jewish life today.
torczyner@torontotorah.com

Rabbi Jonathan Ziring

unsuccessful campaign for Chief Rabbi of Israel. Tzohar was
specifically founded as a response to the assassination of
Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin by a religious Jew, as that
increased animosity towards the religious community.
He has pushed for more leniency in the areas of conversion
and kashrut. He encourages establishing kashrut standards
without stringencies he considers unnecessary, and he
established an alternative kashrut certification when the
Israeli rabbinate refused to certify institutions using the
heter mechira during Shemitah. He has lobbied for the
appointment of rabbinical judges who will take a harder line
against men who refuse to grant their wives gittin (bills of
divorce). In 2015, he set up a new court for conversion,
along with Rabbi Nachum Rabinovitch. He has pushed for
sensitivity towards the LGBT community, while reiterating
that the sins involved are serious biblical obligations. He is
also known to have progressive views on womens issues.
Many of his positions have generated controversy, as was
evidenced in the opposition by many to his run for Chief
Rabbi.
Interest in the World
Rabbi Stavs best-known book focuses on the Laws of
Vacation, where he reveals an appreciation for culture,
music, art, and relaxation. He combines philosophical
insights on the value of these things, with halachic
discussions to ensure that people engage only in permitted
activities. He encourages people to be well-read and engaged
in politics and other important non-Torah matters.
jziring@torontotorah.com

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Biography

Rabbi David Nieto

Rabbi Baruch Weintraub
Rabbi David Nieto, arguably one of the
most intriguing rabbinic figures of his
time, was born in Venice in 1654. His
father, Pinchas Nieto, an honored
businessman, was a scion to a family of
Spanish crypto-Jews. After serving for
some time as the Rabbi of Livorno, Italy
where he wrote a book named
Paschologia, dealing with the yearly
calendar he was summoned in 1702 to
serve as Rabbi for the Portuguese
community in London.
Two years after coming to London, Rabbi
Nieto published another book this time
dealing with questions of Divine
providence and nature. Nature, he
claimed, was but a thin veil for Divine
actions. The work became highly
contested, as Rabbi Nieto was accused
by others of being a secret follower of
Baruch Spinoza, identifying Nature with
G-d. in fact, the opposite was the truth
Spinoza argued that there is no G-d but
only Nature, while Rabbi Nieto taught
that there is no Nature but only G-d.
As the controversy heated up, the sides
agreed to accept the judgment of thenHamburg
Rabbi
Tzvi
Ashkenazi
(Chacham Tzvi), a prominent Jewish
authority of the time. After hearing the
arguments, Rabbi Ashkenazi ruled in
favor of Rabbi Nieto, acquitting him of
any blame and furthermore praising
his teachings. The answer is recorded as
the 18th responsum in Rabbi Ashkenazis
famous Shut Chacham Tzvi. About a
decade later Rabbi Nieto paid this back
and supported Rabbi Ashkenazi, who
had to flee his post in Amsterdam after a
fierce dispute which broke out between
him and local supporters of the false
Messiah Shabbtai Tzvi. Rabbi Nieto
hosted him in London, offering him a
public position.
Rabbi Nieto was deeply involved in
helping forced converts from Portugal to
return to their Jewish roots. As many of
them had great doubts regarding their
ancestors faith, Rabbi Nieto found it
necessary to write a book which would
address
their
questions,
mainly
regarding the authority of our Sages. The
book, nicknamed the second Kuzari
after Rabbi Yehudah HaLevis famous
book, became a basic text for teaching
the Jewish faith, and remains so today.
bweintraub@torontotorah.com

Call our office at: 416-783-6960

Torah and Translation

The Place of General Studies

Rabbi David Nieto, Kuzari Sheni IV
Translated by Rabbi Baruch Weintraub

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The Kuzari [king] said: My ear has heard

and understood that we have among us
two groups, disputing regarding the
wisdoms which are called external. One
says that Avraham Avinu was expert in
their rules and details and all their
divisions, and he was the one to establish
them And the other group says that
these wisdoms are not of Yaakovs
portion, for they are futile, the thoughts
of man. And I think the latter is correct,
for I see Rabbi Akiva saying, He who
reads external books has no share in the
world to come And Rabbi Ovadia of
Bartenura explained external books as
books by Aristotle the Greek and his
companions And in the end of tractate
Sotah they said, Cursed be the man who
will teach his son Greek wisdom.
And the great Rabbi the Rashba zl,
together with thirty-eight wise men,
issued a ban in Barcelona on anyone
learning or teaching the books written by
the Greeks in physics or metaphysics, in
their original language or in translation,
as recorded in his responsa. So, in the
decree of the holy ones [lit. angels] and
statement of early and recent holy men, it
is forbidden to learn and teach Greek
wisdom.

The Sage said: I will answer your

questions according to their order. Know,
my king, that G-d forbid that the sages of
Israel would distance their nation from
the wisdoms needed to settle the world.
For they did not ban but books which
lead to heresy or lewdness, or idleness
which leads to boredom. Rather, the
wisdoms were chiseled from the Rock of
Israel and from the waters of Judah
sprang forth, as I will prove, G-d willing
And regarding [the ban on] reading
external books, which was explained by
the Bartenura as applying to Aristotles
books and his companions I searched
for a similar commentary and could not
find one, for Rashi had explained it as
books of heresy alone.
And regarding, Cursed be the man who
will teach his son Greek wisdom, this
means talking in riddles, as explained by
Rashi
And regarding the ban put by Rashba
and the other sages who signed on, you
should know they only forbade teaching
to anyone younger than twenty-five. Also, the curses of the ban will only stand for
fifty years, and then will be null and void, and not in force
Rambam also holds [that learning philosophy was not banned], for he wrote in his
commentary on the Mishnah that on Shabbat one is not allowed to read philosophy
so on weekdays it is allowed. This was brought by Rabbi Karo in his Beit Yosef
and Shulchan Aruch. Hence, the greatest and most wise of the [Jewish] world did
not explain external books in the same way as Rabbi Ovadia of Bartenura.

The 613 Mitzvot: #570Promiscuity

Rabbi Mordechai Torczyner

The Torah presents multiple prohibitions against classes of

sexual misconduct. Among them, Vayikra 19:29 prohibits
zenut, which is a broad term for sexual immorality, and
Devarim 23:18 prohibits men and women from acting as a
kadesh or kedeishah, terms associated with promiscuity.
The difference between these prohibitions is unclear.
Per Rambam (Lo Taaseh 355), these two verses present a
single prohibition against intercourse without a ketubah
and halachic marriage. This leads Sefer haChinuch to codify
a single, joint prohibition as the Torahs 570th mitzvah.
According to Ramban, these two verses describe separate
prohibitions. Vayikra 19:29 prohibits a sexual relationship

where marriage is halachically impossible, as in a case of

incest or adultery (Hasagot to Lo Taaseh 355); Devarim 23:18
prohibits making ones self available for promiscuous relations
(Commentary to Devarim 23:18).
One ramification of this debate is the Torahs concept of a
pilegesh (concubine), which involves a relationship without the
benefit of ketubah. According to Rambam, this would violate
Vayikra 19:29 and Devarim 23:18, and it is permitted only for
a king. According to Ramban, a faithful pilegesh relationship
would violate neither verse, and would actually be permitted
for any Jew. For more, see Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Ishut 1:4
and Hilchot Melachim 4:4, and Sheeilat Yaavetz 2:15 .

Weekly Highlights: Jan. 28 Feb. 3 / 1 Shevat 7 Shevat

Time

Topic

Location

Adam Friedmann

Parshah Analysis

Clanton Park

R Jonathan Ziring

Daf Yomi

BAYT

Rabbis Classroom

R Mordechai Torczyner

Stones of the Temple Mount

BAYT

Simcha Suite

Yaron Perez

Parent-Child Learning

Shaarei Shomayim

Last week!

8:45 AM

R Jonathan Ziring

Responsa

BAYT

Hebrew

8:45 AM

R Josh Gutenberg

Contemporary Halachah

BAYT

Third floor

9:15 AM

R Shalom Krell

Book of Shemuel II

Associated North

Hebrew; Room 206

Ms. Miriam Bessin

The Plagues of Bo

R Jonathan Ziring

The Nile is Mine

Shaarei Tefillah
3600 Bathurst

Midreshet Yom Rishon

for Women

8:30 PM

R Jonathan Ziring

Halachah & Modernity 4:

Karaites & Ethiopian Jews

Shomrai Shabbos

Men

8:30 PM

Adam Friedmann

Gemara Arvei Pesachim

Clanton Park

Men

R Mordechai Torczyner

Judaism and LGBT

Adath Israel

Women; there is a fee

info@adathisrael.com

R Mordechai Torczyner

Ezra: Samaritan Overtures

Shaarei Shomayim

R Mordechai Torczyner

Science and Torah 4:

The Talmuds Pharmacy

Beth Emeth

2:30 PM

R Jonathan Ziring

Narratives of Vayikra

carollesser@rogers.com

8:00 PM

Adam Friedmann

Is Judaism
Inherently Zionist?

KST
2640 Bayview

8:30 PM

Yaron Perez

Parshah:

Shaarei Shomayim

Hebrew

R Mordechai Torczyner

Shoftim: Yotams Rebuke

101 Tangreen

Women

R Jonathan Ziring

Introduction to Ribbit

Yeshivat Or Chaim

Advanced

Jan. 27-28
After hashkamah
Before minchah
After minchah
6:45 PM

Speaker

Special Notes

Rosh Chodesh

Sun. Jan. 29

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Mon. Jan. 30

Tue. Jan. 31
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Wed. Feb. 1
10:00 AM

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Our Womens Beit Midrash for University Students at Ulpanat Orot offers:
Monday 9:30 AM to Noon, Middot haNefesh through Chassidut, Mrs. Elliezra Perez
Tuesday 9:30 AM to Noon, Gemara Chullin / Hilchot Kashrut, Mrs. Ora Ziring
Wednesday 9:30 AM to Noon, Hilchot Bein Adam laChaveiro, Mrs. Ora Ziring
Thursday 9:30 AM to Noon, Netivot Shalom on the Parshah, Mrs. Elliezra Perez