OHR SOMAYACH'S ASK THE RABBI
Issue #289 October 29, 2000 / 29 Tishrei 5761
Parshat Bereishet
=====================================
In this issue:
FIRST JEWS IN THE US
GOOD G-D
THE BIGGER THEY ARE...
PUBLIC DOMAIN
=====================================

=============FREE CD-ROM=============
Ohr Somayach in conjunction with the Jewish Continuity Foundation and
TES - www.jewishsoftware.com is happy to offer to our email list
supporters a FREE CD-ROM about Jerusalem.

The cd is a beautifully done, interactive, virtual walk-through of
Jerusalem's Old City. It includes 360 degree panoramic vision, zoom
control, descriptions of 100's of sites, and Hot-Shot photo technology
for capturing the photos you want. Whether scaling the ramparts or
going inside the Western Wall, for the memories, for the education,
and for preparing the next trip, this CD is the next best thing to
being there.

This CD which normally sells for $39, runs on both Windows and
Macintosh computers.

It is our way of saying thank you and a Happy and Healthy New Year.

For more information and to claim your FREE CD, please click below:
http://www.jewishsoftware.com/default.asp?aid=162&red=freecd.htm
=============FREE CD-ROM=============

FIRST JEWS IN THE US

From:  Leslie Tanner
<ltanner@metabolex.com>

  Dear Rabbi,
  I was wondering who the first Jewish immigrant was to come to the
  United States to live?  What year?  Did they have family?  Also who
  was the first Jewish person born in the U.S.?  Thank you.

Dear Leslie Tanner,
I referred your question to one of today's foremost Jewish historians,
Rabbi Berel Wein.  He said, that as far as he is aware, this
information is not known.  What he could tell me though, was that the
first Jews to settle in what is now the US were Sephardic Jews who
came from the West Indies in the 1650's.  The first family to settle
in Philadelphia (whether they were the first in the US, Rabbi Wein did
not know) was the Seixas family.

=====================================

GOOD G-D

From:  Name@Withheld in Brooklyn, NY

  Dear Rabbi,
  What biblical or philosophical proof is there that everything G-d
  does is for the good (gamzu l'tovah)?

Dear Name@Withheld,
Biblically, see the first chapter of Genesis, that all that G-d
created was "very good."  Thus, the entire world is good, even when we
don't realize it.  And Psalms 144 states:  "G-d is good to all..."
There are others.

Philosophically, the apparent existence of evil is in order to allow
us free choice, to overcome evil and thus attain the ultimate good,
which is the good of earning our reward, instead of having it handed
to us for free.

Regarding our inability to understand suffering, imagine a little
child at the dentist:  All he knows is that the dentist is hurting
him.  Can the child understand that the dentist is actually a good man
and is trying to save him from future pain?  One day that child will
thank the dentist.

This is a very short, condensed answer, and there is much more to be
said on this subject.

=====================================

THE BIGGER THEY ARE...

From:  Glenn Slocum in McKinleyville, CA
<gglennslocum@pacbell.net>

  Dear Rabbi,
  What are the "Nephilim" mentioned in the Torah?

Dear Glenn Slocum,
The Nephilim are mentioned twice in the Torah (Genesis 6, Numbers 13).
"Nephilim" means "the fallen ones."  They were people of giant
stature.  It is not clear how large they were, but were large enough
to scare other people.  The Targum Yerushalmi, which is a Midrash,
explains that they were Angels who descended to the Earth.  According
to this they were called fallen ones because they fell from their
heavenly stature.  The Ramban explains otherwise, that they were the
other children of Adam.  Because Adam, the First Man, was the
handiwork of G-d, his children were of greater physical stature than
their descendants.  Because these people were so close to the Creator,
they knew that they had no grandfather, they should have been
spiritually elevated.  Because they didn't live up to their potential
they were considered "fallen ones."

=====================================

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

Re:  LIFE IN THE FAST VEIN (http://www.ohr.edu/ask/ask288.htm#Q2):

I disagree strongly with your advice about intravenous on Yom Kippur.
If the insertion of a needle will save a life, it will fulfill a great
mitzvah which supersedes Yom Kippur, which is to save a life.
                                      Name@Withheld

Ohrnet Responds:
Our article was about voluntary use of intravenous on a fast day as
opposed to simply drinking water.  We were not discussing a case where
intravenous is required to save a life.  In such a case, of course you
are correct.

YOSSI GOES TO JAPAN:

I am seeking permission to reproduce Yossi & Co.
(http://www.ohr.edu/yossi) for distribution to my students at the
Jewish Community of Japan.  There are some 25 students who will be
getting Yossi & Co.  Looking forward to your answer.  Best wishes for
a Happy New Year.
                                      Ilana Marmon,
                                      Jewish Community of Japan, Tokyo
                                      <jewish@gol.com>

Ohrnet Responds:
Thanks for writing!  We love to have our stuff reprinted, and consider
it a compliment.  We do ask please that you credit us as follows:

Ohr Somayach Interactive www.ohr.edu / info@ohr.org.il


=====================================
Our scholars answer over 100 queries every day.
For donations click on:
https://www.virtual.co.il/secure/ohrsomayach/donate/donate.htm
or write to us at info@ohr.org.il
=====================================
If you like this e-mail, share it with a friend.
=====================================
Submit your questions to "ASK THE RABBI" at:
http://www.asktherabbi.org
Or E-Mail: info@ohr.org.il
=====================================
EVERY question EVER published in ASK THE RABBI
is available on-line in an easy-to-use index!
http://www.ohr.org.il/web/index/askidx.htm
=====================================
Ohr Somayach's other e-mail publications:
Ohrnet, Torah Weekly, Parsha Q&A, Ask the Rabbi,
The Weekly Daf, Seasons of the Moon,
OS-Special, Torah and Nature, Judaismo,
Judaismo-p, Light Lines, Ohrnews, Simcha, OS-Alum.
To subscribe, write to info@ohr.org.il
=====================================
If you want to unsubscribe from this list, send an e-mail to:
unsubscribe-Ask@lists.virtualjerusalem.com (no subject, no body)
=====================================
Dedication opportunities available for ASK THE RABBI!
Please contact us for details.
=====================================
General Editor: Rabbi Moshe Newman
Production Design: Michael Treblow
=====================================
ASK THE RABBI is written at
Ohr Somayach Institutions / Tanenbaum College
22 Shimon Hatzadik Street, POB 18103
Jerusalem 91180, Israel
Tel: 972-2-581-0315 Fax: 972-2-581-2890
E-Mail:  info@ohr.org.il   Home Page:  http://www.ohrnet.org
=====================================
(C) 2000 Ohr Somayach International - All rights reserved.

