PARACHAT NASSO / 6 juin 2020/ 14 Sivan 5780
Bon anniversaire à Nicole Sasson et Lilly Sayegh
Donateurs de la semaine :
Valérie et Albert Tauby, Muriel et Mayer Sasson, Melda et Maurice Hazan,
Jennie et Ouri Mamroud
Tizkou Lemitzvot
HAZKARA : Miriam Harari Bat Esther (mère de Viviana Mosseri)
Torah Reading and Social Distancing
by Rav Gil Student, Director of RAA Halacha Commission
Different Rabbis, different views
As ”stay at home” restrictions begin to loosen in certain places, and within weeks will probably begin to loosen , we need to reimagine what shul will look like in the interim stages before we fully return to normal. The OU, Agudath Israel of America and several poskim have published on the subject, each in their own way. I would like to explore possible alternatives in reading the Torah during a time when we must still wear masks and people living in different homes must stay more than six feet apart (some recommend eight or ten feet).
I. How Many People?
In normal times, we need multiple people to stand at the Torah reading. The Talmud Yerushalmi (Megillah 4:1) says that it is forbidden to have one person alone read the Torah for the community. Since the Torah was given at Mount Sinai through an intermediary (Moshe; Devarim 5:5), it should also be read in public with an intermediary..
Maseches Soferim (14:14) is at once stricter and more lenient than the Yerushalmi. It says that it is improper for the reader to stand alone. Rather he should be accompanied by two people, so together they are three like the Patriarchs. According to this, we need three people at the Torah but it is only preferable, not fully required. Rav Mordechai Yaffe (Levush, Orach Chaim 141:4) bridges these two approaches by suggesting that the three who stand with the Torah represent God, Moshe (the intermediary) and the Jews at Mount Sinai.
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At a time of social distancing, the requirement for four people at the Torah seems quite challenging because they must remain at a distance of many feet (in addition to wearing masks). If the Torah reader has three male adults living with him, they can all stand together. Otherwise, since this seems like a custom and not a law integral to the Torah reading, it must be set aside in order to read the Torah safely.
II. Reading and Blessing
In normal times, three people are called to the Torah on Monday, Thursday and Shabbos afternoon, and seven people are called to the Torah on Shabbos morning. Whoever is called to the Torah stand nexts to the reader and reads quietly from the Torah scroll. How can this be done while maintaining social distancing?
Rav Moshe Sternbuch, in a responsum on Porch Minyanim dated 8 Nissan 5780 (section 4), argues that someone called to the Torah does not have to read from the scroll. Because the common practice is to call someone blind to the Torah, clearly the person called does not need to read from the scroll. Therefore, argues Rav Sternbuch, the person called to the Torah can recite the blessing from a significant distance, even from another porch. According to Rav Sternbuch, normal decisions of whom to call to the Torah can be followed without the person called going near the Torah.
Rav Asher Weiss (Minchas Asher, Corona, 2nd edition, no. 26) disagrees with Rav Sternbuch. He distinguishes between being called to the Torah and reading from it. If you are called to the Torah, you must go to it even if you will not read from it at all. Therefore, we cannot call someone to the Torah who will remain at a distance.
According to Rav Weiss and those who agree with him, how do we read the Torah during a time of social distancing? Rav Weiss suggests that the Torah reader receive each aliyah and recite the blessings before and after each reading. Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chaim 143:5) says that, in earlier times when the person called to the Torah had to serve as the reader, if only one person in the synagogue knew how to read then he would receive every aliyah. Similarly, in our unusual circumstance of social distancing, the Torah reader should receive each aliyah. The Agudah guidance also suggests this practice in Phase 1.
Rav Yitzchak Yosef, in a responsum dated 28 Nissan 5780, suggests that seven men each prepare to read their aliyah from the Torah. This removes the necessity for a reader, so each person called to the Torah can be there alone. If that is too hard, then six people should prepare three verses and be called to the Torah to read those verses. Then the seventh person reads the remainder until the end of that week’s Torah portion. The Agudah guidance also suggests that, in Phase 2, each person called to the Torah read his own portion. It adds that each person should hold the Torah with a physical barrier (e.g. a tallis) or the Torah should be sanitized in between each aliyah.
Rav Yosef says that if that is too hard also, then the congregation should remove two Torah scrolls, one for the reader and one for each person called to the Torah. In this way, the reader can read from a scroll and the person called to the Torah can also read from a scroll, switching off with the next person, so at all times only one person is with a Torah scroll. If even this is not possible, then the reader should receive each aliyah.
III. Carrying and Kissing the Torah
The OU guidance and Agudah guidance raise another issue — too many people touching the Torah scroll. I believe they are concerned with the transfer of germs through handling of a Torah scroll by different people. One suggestion is for the Torah reader to perform every function from beginning to end. He opens the ark, removes the Torah scroll, takes it straight to the table, receives every aliyah, covers the scroll (gelilah) while it is on the table, lifts the scroll and return it to the ark — without anyone else approaching the scrolls nor attempting to kiss it. This is one suggestion in the OU guidance. The Agudah guidance adds that another individual help the Torah reader with gelilah.
I did not see mention of the Torah being handled by members of a subsequent prayer service. Presumably the Torah scroll should be sanitized before its next use and/or the Torah reader should wear gloves.
The Torah is a tree of life. We must make sure that reading it transmits only good things by taking proper precautions, guided by halachic and medical authorities.
(All of the responsa discussed above can be found at KolCorona.com/halachot)
PARACHAT NASSO EN BREF
En complément du recensement des Enfants d’Israël, 8580 Lévites, hommes âgés de 30 à 50 ans sont dénombrés : c’est le compte de ceux qui auront la charge de transporter le Tabernacle.
D.ieu communique à Moïse la loi de la « Sotah », la femme soupçonnée d’infidélité par son mari, ainsi que la loi concernant le Nazir qui s’interdit le vin, laisse croître ses cheveux et ne doit pas se rendre impur par le contact d’un cadavre.
Aaron comme ses descendants, les Cohanim, se voient enseigner la manière de bénir le peuple.
Les chefs des douze tribus d’Israël apportent leurs dons pour l’inauguration de l’autel. Bien que ceux-ci soient identiques, chacun est apporté un jour différent et la Torah le décrit individuellement.
THE BLESSING OF THE COHANIM
At 176 verses, Naso is the longest of the parshiyot. Yet one of its most moving passages, and the one that has had the greatest impact over the course ofNaso is the longest parshiyot history, is very short indeed and is known by almost every Jew, namely the priestly blessings:
The L‑rd said to Moses, “Tell Aaron and his sons, ‘Thus shall you bless the Israelites. Say to them:
May L‑rd bless you and protect you;
May the L‑rd make His face shine on you and be gracious to you;
May the L‑rd turn His face toward you and give you peace.’
Let them set My name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.”1
This is among the oldest of all prayer texts. It was used by the priests in the Temple. It is said today by the cohanim in the reader’s repetition of the Amidah, in Israel every day, in most of the Diaspora only on festivals. It is used by parents as they bless their children on Friday night. It is often said to the bride and groom under the chuppah. It is the simplest and most beautiful of all blessings.
What gives them their power is their simplicity and beauty. They have a strong rhythmic structure. The lines contain three, five, and seven words respectively. In each, the second word is “the L‑rd”. In all three verses
the first part refers to an activity on the part of G‑d – “bless”, “make His face shine”, and “turn His face toward”.
The second part describes the effect of the blessing on us, giving us protection, grace and peace.
They also travel inward, as it were. The first verse “May L‑rd bless you and protect you,” refers, as the commentators note, to material blessings: sustenance, physical health and so on. The second, “May the L‑rd make His face shine on you and be gracious to you,” refers to moral blessing. Chen, grace, is what we show to other people and they to us. It is interpersonal. Here we are asking G‑d to give some of His grace to us and others so that we can live together without the strife and envy that can so easily poison relationships.
The third is the most inward of all. There is a lovely story about a crowd of people who have gathered on a hill by the sea to watch a great ship pass by. A young child is waving vigorously. One of the men in the crowd asks him why. He says, “I am waving so the captain of the ship can see me and wave back.” “But,” said the man, “the ship is far away, and there is a crowd of us here. What makes you think that the captain can see you?” “Because,” said the boy, “the captain of the ship is my father. He will be looking for me among the crowd.”
That is roughly what we mean when we say, “May the L‑rd turn His face toward you.” There are seven billion people on the face of the earth. What makes us anything more than a face in the crowd, a wave in the ocean, a grain of sand on the sea shore? The fact that we are G‑d’s children. He is our parent. He turns His face toward us. He cares.
Nasso est la plus longue Paracha de la Torah, elle contient 176 versets
QUATRE THEMES PRINCIPAUX DANS PARA
La femme Sota :
L’épreuve de l'eau amère est un rituel d’institution biblique pour mettre à l’épreuve une femme soupçonnée par son mari d’infidélité conjugale, sans qu’il n’y ait de preuves pour corroborer ses soupçons. En ce cas, il leur est interdit d’avoir des rapports conjugaux avant qu’il ne l’ait menée au temple avec une offrande de jalousie, où le prêtre officiant lui fait boire une eau amère qui prouvera sa culpabilité ou son innocence, selon qu’elle en éprouve ou non des souffrances.Le judaïsme dénomme cette procédure d’après la femme déviant2
Le nazir (en hébreu : נזיר),
nazirite, nazarite, nazarien ou naziréen[1]
est une personne qui, selon la Bible hébraïque, s'est consacrée à Dieu par un vœu en vertu duquel, selon les prescriptions décrites au Livre des Nombres (Nb 6. 1-21), il lui est interdit de boire des boissons fermentées, de se couper les cheveux et de s'approcher de ce qui était réputé impur par la loi, notamment, d'un cadavre ; cela afin d'obtenir un bienfait divin[2]. Le mot nazir vient d'un mot hébreu qui signifie étymologiquement « séparé », puis qui prit le sens de « consacré »[3]Le nazir est une personne, homme ou femme, qui se consacre à Dieu pendant une période de temps déterminée, durant laquelle elle s'engage à rester en état de pureté. Le vœu est volontairement exprimé pour trente jours. Pendant ce temps, le nazir s'abstient de boire du vin ou de toute autre boisson alcoolisée, de tirer profit d'un produit de la vigne, de se couper les cheveux, ou d'approcher un cadavre, même celui d'un membre de sa propre famille. Si, pour une raison ou l'autre, le nazir contracte une impureté par contact avec un cadavre, la Bible comporte une prescription de purification : se raser le crâne, attendre sept jours et, le huitième, apporter deux tourterelles et deux pigeons au prêtre comme offrande d'expiation pour le péché d'impureté. Le vœu peut dès lors recommencer.La période de vœu accomplie, le nazir doit apporter une brebis et un bélier en offrande au Temple, se raser le crâne et brûler ses cheveux sur l'autel ; il peut alors boire du vin et retourner à la vie normale[4]. Le vœu du nazir est souvent prononcé en remerciement, par exemple pour un rétablissement de santé, ou pour la naissance d'un enfant, ou simplement comme acte de purification spirituelle. Les rabbins décourageaient le vœu de naziréat, tout comme d'autres pratiques d'ascèse[5] ; selon eux, les lois du naziréat s'appliquaient uniquement en Terre d'Israël et, plus précisément, seulement quand les prêtres officiaient au Temple. On a relevé cependant des cas en diaspora. Si le naziréat engage le plus souvent pour une période limitée, la Bible mentionne deux cas de naziréat à vie : Samson[6], consacré à Dieu dès avant sa conception et habité par l’esprit de sainteté aussi longtemps qu’il demeure dans son naziréat, et Samuel[7],[8].[1][
3) La bénédiction des Cohanim :
La Torah fait obligation aux prêtres (Cohanim)[a] de bénir le peuple d’Israël, comme il est dit (Nb 6, 22-26) : L’Eternel parla à Moïse en ces termes : Parle à Aaron et à ses fils et dis-leuPendant la Birkat Cohanim, chaque fidèle israélite doit se tenir face aux Cohanim, en concentrant son attention sur la bénédiction, sans regarder les Cohanim ni quoi que ce soit, afin de ne pas détourner son esprit de la bénédiction (Choul’han …r : « Ainsi bénirez-vous les enfants d’Israel
Lorsque les Cohanim procèdent à la bénédiction, les destinataires de celle-ci doivent se tenir face à eux, comme il est dit (Nb 6, 23) : « Ainsi bénirez-vous les enfants d’Israël
Quatre règles de rang toranique gouvernent l’accomplissement de la bénédiction sacerdotale : « On ne fait la bénédiction qu’en langue sainte, debout, en étendant les mains et à haute voix ».
Que l’Eternel te bénisse et te protège !
Que l’Eternel fasse rayonner sa face vers toi, et te soit bienveillant !
Que l’Eternel tourne sa face vers toi et t’accorde la paix !
- Offrandes des 12 tribus :
A l’inauguration du Mishkan, Le chef de chaque tribu a apporté des offrandes . Les 12 chefs ont apporté exactement le même nombre d’offrandes pour souligner l’égalité des tribus.
… Son offrande était : une écuelle d’argent, du poids de cent trente sicles ; un bassin d’argent de soixante-dix sicles, au poids du sanctuaire, tous deux remplis de fleur de farine pétrie à l’huile, pour une oblation ; une coupe de dix sicles d’or, pleine de parfum ; un jeune taureau, un bélier, un agneau d’un an, pour holocauste ; un jeune bouc, pour expiatoire.
Puis, pour le sacrifice de rémunération, deux taureaux, cinq béliers, cinq boucs, cinq agneaux d’un an.
A nazir and a Kohen walk into a bar…
In general, a common person can become tameh (impure) whenever he needs to. There is no violation in becoming tameh. When someone does become tameh he will likely need to purify himself at some point in order to go to the Temple and such.
It is well known that both a Nazir and a Kohen are forbidden to allow themselves to become impure (never say never as there are exceptions). As an example, they can never be involved in the burial of a dead body. However, there are exceptions. For example, a regular Kohen can become impure for a very close immediate family member while the Kohen Gadol and the Nazir cannot even become impure for a very close family member. However, if there is a person from that died and is left unattended then it is a requirement for anyone walking by to take care of the body and bury it, even a Kohen or a nazir. This is because respect of human dignity trumps those other laws. Even a Kohen Gadol, or someone on their way to the Temple to fulfill the Korban Pesah or to circumcise their son would forgo those mitzvot to attend to the abandoned corpse.
The first Mishna in the 7th chapter discusses a case of a Nazir and a Kohen that are walking together and encounter a dead body that is not being taken care of by anyone. Who should defile themselves and take care of the corpse? The Kohen or the Nazir? The answer is the Nazir since he is only temporarily forbidden, while a Kohen is someone who intrinsically, from birth to death, can never become impure (unless he had to for a ‘met mitzva’ or close family me
PROVERBES JUIFS
L'homme riche est celui qui se contente de son bien.
L'homme fort est celui qui sait brider ses désirs.
L'homme timide n'apprend pas, ni l'homme colère n'enseigne.
Quand le vin est entré, le secret est sorti. Un jour sans prière est un jour sans bénédictions.
Qui cause sème, et qui écoute récolte.
L'ennemi le plus dangereux cache une épée derrière chaque sourire.
L'apprentissage de l'enfance est gravé dans la pierre
Un sourire ne dure qu'un instant, mais son souvenir est doux et agréable
N'allonge pas ton bras au delà de ta manche
Mieux vaut être seul qu'en mauvaise compagnie
FAMOUS QUOTES
“If you want to be happy, be.”– Leo Tolstoy
“Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.”– Thomas A. Edison
“If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or things.”– Albert Einstein
“Success is just a war of attrition. Sure, there’s an element of talent you should probably possess. But if you just stick around long enough, eventually something is going to happen.”– Dax Shepard
“The opposite of love is not hate; it’s indifference.”– Elie Wiesel
I never knew how to worship until I knew how to love.”– Henry Ward Beecher
“Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.”– Harriet Tubman
“It is impossible to escape the impression that people commonly use false standards of measurement — that they seek power, success and wealth for themselves and admire them in others, and that they underestimate what is of true value in life.”– Sigmund Freud
“A friend is someone who gives you total freedom to be yourself.”– Jim Morrison
THE SHABBAT SMILE :
Two little boys talking:
I'm getting operated on tomorrow
Oh? What are they going to do?
Circumcise me!
I had that done when I was just a few days old.
Did it hurt?
I couldn't walk for a year!
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Goldblatt was showing off. He told his friend, "I bought a hearing aid yesterday. It cost me two thousand bucks, but it is state of the art."
"What kind is it?" his friend asked.
"A quarter to twelve," was the answer.
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As a senior citizen was driving down the freeway, his car phone rang.
Answering, he heard his wife's voice urgently warning him, "Herman, I just heard on the news that there's a car going the wrong way on I-75."
Please be careful!"
"Hell," said Herman, "It's not just one...there's hundreds of them!
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Moshe Solomon from Israel was the best slalom skier in Israel, wining 3 world championships. Israel was almost sure to get the first gold medal in slalom at the Olympics. The competition begins and after all the skiers finished their descents, Moshé ended up being ranking 18th . Everyone was so disappointed and asked Moshé what was the the reason for his failure
He said: Someone put a Mezuzah on each post .
CHABBAT CHALOM / MAGHEN ABRAHAM
David Hasson
