~ Something to Think About ~
פרשת תזריע
Parsha Stumpers
By: Daniel Listhaus
1.
(12:3) ”Rashi writes that just like man was created after
animals, so too were the halachos of birth commanded after halachos of animals (kashrus).”
Indeed sometimes the Torah instructs us that the proper order of teaching and
responding is A-B A-B: That when two things are said the proper approach is to
respond in the same order (See also when Eliezer responded to Lavan/Besuel). However
there are also examples where the Torah orders in a A-B B-A format justifying
that since the last thing taught is still fresh on the mind we respond to that
first. (See Gemara Berachos 2a and Tosfos Bava Kamma 17a). What are the
guidelines when to respond in the order of things mentioned and when to respond
to the second item first?
2.
(13:14) Rashi writes that when a person thinks he has
tzara’as he must go to the kohen have it inspected. However, there are two exceptions:
A chossen (during sheva berachos) and any person on a Yom
Tov. How could we understand this? Why would the Torah push aside a pressing
matter for personal happiness? Clearly the person deserves the tzara’as so
why consider the fact that the afflicted will suffer on his “personal days”? It’s
his own fault!
3.
Tzara’as is a physical effect of something non-physical
(harmful speech). The truth is that all speech creates realities. Where is that
hinted to in the Hebrew word for “speech” and where do we hint to this idea in davening?
~ Something to Think About ~
פרשת מצורע
Parsha Stumpers
By: Daniel Listhaus
1.
Where is there an acronym for Motzee Shem Ra in this
week's parsha?
2.
(14:4) The Rambam writes (Mishna Torah and Shemoneh
Perakim) that one who has failed in a particular middah and now wants to
work on fixing it, should first balance it out by going to the other extreme. So,
for example, one who had become a big ba’al gaivah and want to now work on suppressing
his ego and becoming more humble, he should do things on the opposite extreme
of what he had been doing until he is able to find the proper balance in the
middle. If so, granted the hyssop is very necessary as part of the metzora’s
tahara as Rashi explains, but why the cedarwood? Shouldn’t that specically
be left out?
3.
Rabbah bar bar Shila says on Daf Beis amud beis in
Berachos that if in the passuk of “u'va ha'shemesh v'taheir”, u'va
hashemesh=beeas ohro and v'taheir=tahor gavra; then the passuk should have used
the word “vayitaheir” to illustrate the active requirement to become tahor
instead of the word “tahor” which is a more passive sounding word (even without
a kaparah).....Ask a question on this from this week's parsha.
4.
(14:34) Why is tzara’as also Hashem’s method of
letting people know when there are treasures behind the wall of a house?
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