Ask the Rabbi
April 23, 1994,  Issue #18

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This edition contains:
1.    Why is honey Kosher?
2.    What happens at an "Unveiling".

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This issue is dedicated in memory of Bernard Greenman O.B.M.

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Balint from Grinell in Iowa writes:

>I have the following question that no one could answer yet:
>Why is honey Kosher?  I thought that the product of non-Kosher >animals was 
not Kosher as well.  Bees are not Kosher, so why is >honey Kosher?
>I appreciate your time and hope you know the answer.
>Thank you,

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Dear Balint,

The Mishna in Tractate Bechorot states:

"That which comes from something which is Tameh [non-Kosher] is Tameh, and 
that which comes of that which is Tahor [Kosher] is Tahor."  So you were 
right, Balint -- the product of a non-Kosher animal is not Kosher.  So why is 
bee-honey Kosher?

The Talmud in the same Tractate quotes a Beraita (a Halachic teaching from the 
time of the Mishna) which says:
"Why did they say that bee-honey is permitted?  Because even though they bring 
it into their bodies, it is not a *product* of their bodies [it is stored 
there but not produced there]."
All the Sages of the Mishna agree with this ruling.
One of them, Rabbi Yaakov, disagrees with the *reasoning*.  He claims that 
bee-honey is Kosher based on his interpretation of 
Vayikra 11:21.  According to him, the verse prohibits one to eat a flying 
insect, but *not* that which is *excreted* from it.

Maimonides codifies bee-honey as being Kosher, as does the Shulchan Aruch. 

You may wonder: How could one even think that bee-honey is not Kosher -- the 
Torah refers to the Land of Israel as "a Land flowing with milk and honey"!  
Certainly the Torah would not choose a non-Kosher product as a means for 
describing the beauty of the Land of Israel!  This may come as a surprise, but 
the honey mentioned in the verse about "milk and honey" is not bee-honey -- 
rather it is fig-honey.  The Talmud in Tractate Berachot tells us that another 
verse "It is a Land of wheat, barley, grapes, figs and pomegranates -- a Land 
of olives and *honey*" -- is referring to date-honey.

Sources:
       Tractate Bechorot, pages 5b, 7b.
	  The Codes of Maimonides, Laws of Forbidden Foods 3:3.
	  Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh Deah, 81:8.
	  Tractate Megillah, page 6a, Rashi.
	  Chumash, Book of Devarim, 8:8.
	  Tractate Berachot, page 41b, Rashi.

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Daniel Kelber wrote:

>My grandfather's "headstone" will be erected soon, just over a year after
>his death.  I would appreciate some information regarding the Halacha 
>concerning this ceremony; a source to look >up would be helpful.
>Toda Raba 

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Dear Daniel,

There are three basic reasons for a Headstone: 
1) To mark the place as Tameh (impure and off limits for Kohanim). 2) To mark 
the place for people who want to visit it.
3) To honor the deceased.
According to the book "Gesher HaChaim", when visiting the grave during the 
first year it is customary to say seven paragraphs of Psalms: 33, 16, 17, 72, 
91, 104, and 130.  Afterwards one says Psalm 119 and recites the verses that 
spell the name of the deceased and the letters of the word "Neshama".  
Different communities have different customs.

The Halachic section of the book "Gesher HaChaim" is soon to be published in 
English.  There is another excellent book called "Mourning in Halacha" which 
is published by Artscroll. Also, a popular work is "The Jewish Way in Death 
and Mourning" by Rabbi Maurice Lamm.

"May He swallow up death forever; may Hashem G-d wipe away tears from every 
face." (Isaiah 25:8)

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