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Shabbat Parashat Vayetzei| 5764

Vayeitzei | | 02/01/2003

The Danger of the Fear of High Places

After Yaakov awoke from the dream in which he saw angels ascending and descending a ladder to the heavens, his reaction is described in a curious way. “Yaakov awoke from his sleep and said, ‘Indeed, Hashem is present in this place, and I did not know.’ He was fearful and said, ‘How awesome is this place; this is none other than the House of G-d, and this is the gateway to the heavens’” (Bereishit 28:16-17).

P’ninat Mishpat

We conclude our series on hashavat aveida (returning lost articles) with a glimpse at mitzvot that Chazal saw as extensions of the concept of returning lost objects. The two mitzvot that the gemara (Bava Metzia 31a) compares and contrasts with hashavat aveida are t’ina (placing a load on an animal) and p’rika (removinga load from an animal).

Moreshet Shaul

[After our analysis from previous weeks],if one examines the gemara (Yevamot 64b), he sees that there are two differing opinions on how to deal with the beraita that after three sisters lost babies due to brit milah, the son of the fourth sister should not have one done. Rava says that the halacha with sisters is representative of that with other members of the family. Since there are certainly members of the extended family who did not suffer such a tragedy, it is hard to say that one can establish a clear assumption that all members of the family will lose children during brit milah.

Ask the Rabbi

Question: One of our columns in Torah Tidbits stated definitively that one may not walk within 4 amot (6-7 feet) ofsomeoneduringhis Shmoneh Esrei. Some readers inquired whether this is an absolute rule. We want the “Vebbe Rebbe” to voice an opinion on the matter.

This edition of
Hemdat Yamim is dedicated to the memory of
R’ Meir ben Yechezkel Shraga Brachfeld o.b.m.,
Yitzchak Eliezer Ben Avraham Mordechai Jacobson o.b.m
and Yehudit bat HaRav Shmuel Shlomo Carrey o.b.m.

A weekly divrei Torah leaflet: A Glimpse at the Parasha, Ask the Rabbi, From the writings of Harav Avraham Yitzchak Hakohen Kook, zt”l, Pninat Mishpat (Jewish Monetary Law).

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