Ask The Rabbi
7 March 1998
Issue #183 (Parashat Tetzaveh)
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1. The Cemetery Next Door & Hawaiian Punch
2.  Moshe's Birth Certificate 5.  Desire to Study Torah
3.  Slalom Prayer             6.  Yiddle Riddle
4. Caviar Kosher              7.  Public Domain
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The Cemetery Next Door & Hawaiian Punch

Baruch from Shipper, New York <bshipper@haven.ios.com> wrote:

>Dear Rabbi,
>
>Is there any halachic reason (or Jewish spook reasons) about buying a home 
>next to a cemetery?  (We are not Kohanim.)  Do you know if Hawaiian Punch 
>is kosher?

* * * * * * * * * *

Dear Baruch,

When my mother was little she lived not far from a cemetery.  One day, she 
and her sister brought their mother a present they had found there:  A 
beautiful ring of flowers with a ribbon that said "Mother."

A cemetery is no place to wander about or pick flowers, especially alone at 
night ("Jewish spook reasons").  However, I know of no reason not to live 
next to a cemetery.

I'm not sure how to answer your question about Hawaiian Punch, but I'll 
take a jab at it.  In general, processed food needs kashrut certification 
in order to ensure that it is kosher.  For example, some "natural" flavors 
are made from non-kosher animals.  So look on the label for the symbol of a 
reliable kashrut certification agency.

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Moshe's Birth Certificate

Luiz Carlos Vago from Sao Paulo Brazil <hvago@ibm.net> wrote:

>Why did the daughter of Pharaoh have the zechut [merit] to give the name 
>to Moshe Rabbeinu?  Why didn't his mother Yocheved, who must have given 
>him a name, prevail over her naming?


Darren Sevitz <darrens@introstat.co.za> wrote:

>Dear Rabbi,
>
>The Torah says:  "And Amram married Yocheved, and she bore him Aharon and 
>Moshe...."  Moshe was only given his name by Pharaoh's daughter much 
>later.  Was Moshe given the same name by his parents when he was born?  Or 
>a different name, or no name at all?  Thank You.

* * * * * * * * * *

Dear Luiz Carlos Vago and Darren Sevitz,

The Midrash relates that Moshe had 10 names.  His father called him Chever, 
his mother called him Yekutiel, his sister Miriam called him Yered, etc.

Yet the name given by Pharaoh's daughter was the one chosen by G-d.  The 
Chumash never refers to him by any name other than Moshe.  Why?

Pharaoh's daughter saved Moshe's life and adopted him and cared for him as 
her very own son.  Therefore, she merited that her name prevailed.  Moshe 
himself may have used this name out of gratitude to her.

Another reason the Torah calls him Moshe is the significance of the name 
itself.  The name "Moshe" means that just as he was rescued and drawn from 
the water, so too he will he rescue others from hardship, and that is what 
he did.

Sources:
o  Shemot Rabbah 1:26
o  Vayikrah Rabbah 1:3

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Slalom Prayer

Lawrence Stein <stein@voicenet.com> wrote:

>I'd like to know whether it is acceptable to say daily morning prayers 
>(introductory and psukei d'zimra only) while exercising on a Nordic Track 
>(it's basically a cross-country ski treadmill)?  Having tried it for a 
>number of weeks, I find that this is a great way to improve both my 
>spiritual and physical health.  Because the nature of the exercise is so 
>rhythmic and intense, I am able to concentrate as well, if not better, 
>than during solitary prayer.  Thank you.

* * * * * * * * * *

Dear Lawrence Stein,

It sounds fun.  However, it's not really appropriate to engage in other 
activities while praying.  Praying with a congregation in a Synagogue might 
also help you improve concentration, although the exercise aspect will be 
lacking unless you run to services and "shuckle" a lot back and forth 
during the prayers.

If you want to say additional verses or prayers while exercising, that's 
fine.  But personally, if you have enough wind to recite prayers and 
verses, I think you're not exercising hard enough.

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Caviar Kosher

Fran Cohen from Mountain View, California <FranPC@aol.com> wrote:

>Dear Rabbi,
>
>Is caviar kosher?

* * * * * * * * * *

Dear Fran Cohen,

No, caviar is not kosher.  Real caviar is the roe (eggs) of the sturgeon 
fish, which has no scales.  I guess that's why the ultimate Jewish 
gastronomic experience is schmaltz herring!

There is kosher "caviar" made from salmon roe.

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Desire to Study Torah

Name@Withheld wrote:

>Dear Rabbi,
>
>I have strong desire for studying the Torah, specifically the Talmud. 
>What I mean by desire is that I want to be a Talmid Chacham [Torah 
>Scholar].  The trouble is that I do not have the energy to become a Talmid 
>Chacham.  I want Torah delivered to me on a silver platter.  I desire the 
>will to study day and night.  It is not there.  I want to have an ecstatic 
>experience of learning!  It comes ever so rarely.  I experience a lot of 
>frustration in my learning.  The Talmud only stares at me.  The letters do 
>not dance before me.  I guess what I am saying is that I pine for Ahavat 
>HaTorah [Love of the Torah].  How does one achieve that level?  What steps 
>can be taken, if any?

* * * * * * * * * *

Dear Name@Withheld,

You are not alone.  Every day we pray for enjoyment of Torah study when we 
say "Please, Hashem, sweeten the words of Torah in our mouth."  But like 
anything worth doing, the initial stage is often a struggle.  I always tell 
my students:  "Everyone wants to be a great Torah scholar, but no one wants 
to become one."

But you can't button your shirt wearing boxing gloves.  That is, you can't 
tap into the Torah's sweetness while steeped in physical desires.  Torah's 
true sweetness is spiritual, so it takes a certain amount of refinement to 
achieve.  The Sages say, "Before praying to internalize Torah wisdom, pray 
to not internalize food and drink."  That is, pray not to be overpowered by 
physical drives.

Enjoyment starts with clarity and discovery.  If you study too fast and get 
confused, or too slow and get bored, then you can't enjoy it.  You need to 
discover the learning technique right for you.

And finally, prayer is vital to success in learning.  The great Torah 
scholar Rabbi Yonasan Eibshitz, zatzal, attributed all his success in Torah 
study to his prayer.

An encouraging point.  Struggle must produce results.  May you find success 
and enjoyment in your Torah study.

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Yiddle Riddle

Last week we asked:  In what situation could two people in the same place 
be obligated to say Kiddush on different nights?  That is, the night the 
first one is obligated, the second one is not, and the night the second one 
is obligated, the first one is not?

Answer:  The two people are in the desert, both having forgotten what day 
of the week it is.

Someone traveling in the desert who forgets what day it is counts seven 
days starting the day he realizes that he lost count.  He sanctifies the 
seventh day by making Kiddush and Havdalah.  So, if two separate travelers 
come to the same place in the desert, each having forgotten what day it is 
-- but each having realized his mistake on a different day -- they will be 
obligated to make Kiddush on different nights!

Sources:
o  Tractate Shabbat 69b
o  Aruch Hashulchan Orach Chaim 342



Shortly after coming up with the above riddle, we received the following 
question:

David A. Schiffmann <das1002@hermes.cam.ac.uk> wrote:

>Dear Rabbi,
>
>Someone I know recently asked me the following question ... what if 
>someone was on a boat which sunk, and he clung to a bit of debris, but 
>became unconscious for a while, and was then washed up on a desert island. 
>When he came to, he would not know what day it is, and he would have no 
>way to find out.  How would he know what day is Shabbat?

Dear David A Schiffmann,

He wouldn't.  If he has enough food to survive, he must refrain from 
forbidden labor every day, in case that day is the real Shabbat.  If he has 
no food, then he must do only enough work each day to survive for that day.  
Regarding Kiddush and Havdalah, see Yiddle Riddle above.

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THE PUBLIC DOMAIN
Comments, quibbles, and reactions 
concerning previous "Ask-the-Rabbi" features.

Re: Are There Flying Rabbis Or Are There Flying None? (Ask the Rabbi #177)

With all due respect, a slight correction:  Actually Rabbi Abuhatzeria was 
from Tefilalet, Morocco.

                         David Bitton <David Bitton <davidbi@MICROSOFT.com>
                                          Enterprise Account Representative
                                                       Microsoft Canada Co.



You wrote:  "Jewish tradition relates incidents of people, both righteous 
and wicked, who were able to fly."  I presume you are referring to the 
Midrashic accounting (among others you mention later) of Pinchas, the tzitz 
(High Priest's head ornament) and Bilaam.
                                      Mike Spinrad <Spinrad@compuserve.com>



Re: Yiddle Riddle citing story about Rashi accused of stealing a garment, 
and his writing "Shin Lamed Mem Hey" five times in a row:  (Ask the Rabbi 
#178)



Shin Lamed Mem Hey spells Rashi's first name, Shlomo.  It's also roshei 
teivot (acrostic) for Shevach l'E-l Melech Ha-olam which means "Praise to 
G-d King of the Universe" (Source: Roshei Teivot book).  He wrote it 5 
times to indicate that a thief has to pay 5 times (see Shemot 21:37 
regarding theft of an ox).
                                David Lindsay <bg346@freenet.toronto.on.ca>
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