PURIM - MISHLOACH MANOS AND MATANOS LA’EVYONIM

Among the unique features of Purim are the mitzvos of giving to one’s fellow Jew. We are obligated to give mishloach manos and matanos la’evyonim. No other festival requires such chesed. What is the thematic connection between these mitzvos and Purim?

When Haman approaches Achashverosh with a plan to destroy the Jewish people, he outlines why they do not deserve to live: “There is one nation scattered and dispersed among the peoples.” The commentaries explain that Haman’s criticism of the Jews was accurate and helped convince the king that Hashem would not protect them. Haman argued that the Jews were not unified, so they lacked the Divine protection they merited when they were.

Accordingly, one of the most powerful ways of annuling the decree of destruction from Above was to reunify the Jewish people. Rav Yehonasan Eibschutz, ztz”l, explains that this was Esther’s intention when she instructed Mordechai: “Go, assemble all the Jews to be found in Shushan, and fast for me.” She recognized that only a concerted effort could overturn the decree.

This approach succeeded. Indeed, according to the Vilna Gaon, ztz”l, several verses in the megillah demonstrate that the Jews displayed great unity when they finally gained the upper hand against their enemies. “The rest of the Jews throughout the king’s provinces gathered together and defended themselves (amad al nafsham).” The Gaon notes that the verb amad is singular, for they were completely unified, as if they were one entity. Soon afterward, when Mordechai instituted the festival of Purim, “The Jews undertook (kibel) to continue the practice they had begun….” Again, the word kibel is singular. The Sifsei Chaim adds a similar explanation to the famous verse in which, according to Chazal, the Jews willingly reaccepted the Torah: “They affirmed and undertook… to observe these two days….” The Hebrew term for “undertook” is read as kiblu, in the plural form, but it is written as kibel, in the singular, because they accepted the Torah in complete unity.

Given the significance of unity in the Purim story, it is easy to understand why Chazal instituted mitzvos in the interpersonal realm. Purim reminds us of the importance of unity within the Jewish people. Giving to our fellow Jews helps us care more about them. Moreover, it is not enough to give to one’s friends; he must not ignore the destitute, who are easily forgotten. Therefore, in addition to mishloach manos, Chazal obligated us in matanos la’evyonim.

We now understand that disunity was a key factor in the decree against the Jews and that unity played a significant role in averting this decree. However, why were the Jews were so lacking in unity, and how were they were able to rectify this flaw? The Sifsei Chaim addresses this issue by citing Rabbeinu Yonah’s interpretation of a verse in Mishlei. Shlomo HaMelech writes: “L’ta’avah yevakesh nifrad….” Rabbeinu Yonah explains this verse to mean that a person who follow his desires will become alienated from his friends. For one’s natural desires are inherently self-serving and clash with everyone else’s. Accordingly, if a person cares only about himself, his goals will diverge from others’. A society full of such people possesses no unity. Haman understood that the Jewish people had become influenced by the ideologies and desires of its various host countries. Therefore, says the Sifsei Chaim, Haman stressed to Achashverosh that the Jews were “scattered and dispersed among the nations,” for that was the cause of their disunity. Each Jew’s goals were influenced by those of the surrounding societies, so there was no unity within the Jewish people as a whole.

Rabbeinu Yonah continues that the key to unity lies in a common goal: serving Hashem. The Jews’ role in the world is to promote this goal. When they do so, contention and competition dissipate, allowing them to focus on Hashem’s will. Thus, when the Torah was given at Sinai, the Jews were so unified that they were “like one man with one heart,” for they all focused on accepting the Torah; had they quarreled, they could have accepted it properly.

Esther recognized that the Jewish people’s disunity stemmed from divergent goals, which in turn stemmed from self-interest. Accordingly, she gathered the people together to fast. Abstaining from food and drink can reduce a person’s attachment to his physical desires and help him focus on Hashem. Thus, fasting helped the Jews reconnect with their true, common goal of doing Hashem’s will.

Similarly, it is no coincidence that the unity the Jews achieved when they fought their enemies came about after fasting on the thirteenth of Adar. Again, fasting weakened their own selfish desires and focused everyone on Hashem. Moreover, this level of unity enabled them to reaccept the Torah.

With this insight into the connection between physical desires and disunity, we can now gain a deeper understanding of mishloach manos and matanos la’evyonim. To reattain the level of unity that the Jews reached, we must detach ourselves from these desires. This task is especially difficult on Purim, when we greatly involve ourselves in the physical world. Giving gifts and money to our fellow Jews is an excellent way of not getting pulled down into the selfishness that results from self-gratification. By thinking about and giving to others, we can ensure that our eating and drinking place us closer to Hashem, not farther from Him.

Purim reminds us of the importance of Jewish national unity. May we focus all our energies on the common goal of fulfilling Hashem’s will.

ATONEMENT FOR THE SALE OF YOSEF - PARSHAS SHEKALIM

"This shall they give - everyone who passes through the census - a half shekel of the sacred shekel, the shekel is twenty geras, half a shekel as a portion to Hashem."

In Parshas Ki Sisa, the Torah instructs every man to give half a shekel (known as machsis hashekel) towards the communal offering given in the Mishkan (Tabernacle). Since the destruction of the Beis HaMikdosh, we no longer merit to have this Mitzvo, however, we remember it every year when we read Parshas Shekalim. Accordingly, there still remain valuable lessons that can be derived from the machsis hashekel.

The Medrash Rabbah offers a surprising reason for the mitzvo, and in particular, why the specific value of half a shekel, must be given. The Medrash explains that the giving of the half shekel is an atonement for the sale of Yosef Hatzaddik by his brothers. The brothers sold Yosef for twenty pieces of silver. This is equivalent to five shekel. Ten of the brothers sold Yosef, each one receiving one tenth of this value, making a half shekel each. Accordingly, since each brother gained half a shekel in the sale, their descendants were instructed to give half a shekel as an atonement. The obvious question to be asked is what is the connection between the giving of half a shekel and the sale of Yosef?

In order to answer this, we need to deepen our understanding of the sale of Yosef. The brothers knew that twelve tribes were destined to come from Yaakov Avinu. Each tribe would have its own unique qualities and they would all join together to combine to make up the Jewish people as a whole, with tribe complementing the others. The brothers decided that Yosef had lost his right to be part of this group, because of what they perceived to be his dangerous attitude and behavior. Therefore, they believed that they could remove Yosef from the destined 12 tribes, and be left with only eleven. The chiddush (novelty) of this approach was that they planned to remove one of the twelve pieces to the puzzle that would constitute the Jewish people. They felt that they could do without Yosef's potential contribution to the Jewish people, and the Jewish people could continue without him.

With this understanding we can now explain how the mitzvo of Shekalim atones for the sale of Yosef. The commentaries note the significance of the fact that one must give half a shekel as opposed to a full shekel. Many explain that it comes to teach us about the importance of unity amongst the Jewish people by showing that each person is only 'half a person' without combining with the strengths of his fellow man. One should not think that he can separate from his fellow Jews and be unaffected. A person who ha this attitude he will be incomplete. In this way, the mitzvo of giving half a shekel can act as an atonement for the sale of Yosef. Yosef's brothers thought that they could get along fine without Yosef's contribution to the Jewish people. Their mistake was that even if they believed him to be erring, he was still an essential part of the Jewish people. By giving half a shekel we remind ourselves that this is not the correct attitude - all Jews are part of a unified whole, and everyone needs to combine with their fellow.

This idea even extends itself to people who are not behaving in the most optimal fashion. Shortly after the mitzvo of giving half a shekel, HaShem commands us to combine a number of spices to make the incense. One of these is the chelbanah, which Chazal tell us has a foul smelling odor. Why then is it included in the ingredients for the incense? The Gemara explains that any communal fast that does not include sinners is not considered a proper fast. Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz zt"l explains that when the Jewish people are not united, then they are not considered one unit, and therefore the power of the community is drastically weakened.

The Bostoner Rebbe zt"l epitomized the attitude that every Jew should be treated with respect regardless of his religious affiliation. His funeral testified to this by the fact that there were numerous people attending who would not be classified as regular Bostoner Chassidim. He expressed his attitude in this area in a couple of brief sentences: "The trouble with our generation is we only love our fellow man if he's like us - if he davens in my shtiebel , if he has the same Rebbe, if he goes to the same yeshiva - then [he says] 've'ahavta lereyecha'. If he's not 'camocha', then I have no business with him." In a similar vein, he said, "When people try to disassociate one group from another, that's part of the 'torah' of sinas Yisrael (hatred of Jews). Every person can improve. Every group can improve. But it doesn't mean that these people have to be blackballed because some people think that they're not exactly the way they are..."

We have seen how the Medrash connecting the episode of the sale of Yosef to the mitzvo of giving half a shekel, teaches us that we should realize that we should never 'blackball' other Jews, regardless of who they are. May we all merit to learn from the words of the Bostoner Rebbe zt"l and emulate his actions, in striving to unite all Jews.

ATONEMENT FOR THE SALE OF YOSEF - PARSHAS SHEKALIM

"This shall they give - everyone who passes through the census - a half shekel of the sacred shekel, the shekel is twenty geras, half a shekel as a portion to Hashem."[1]

In Parshas Ki Sisa, the Torah instructs every man to give half a shekel (known as machsis hashekel) towards the communal offering given in the Mishkan (Tabernacle). Since the destruction of the Beis HaMikdosh, we no longer merit to have this Mitzvo, however, we remember it every year when we read Parshas Shekalim. Accordingly, there still remain valuable lessons that can be derived from the machsis hashekel.

The Medrash Rabbah offers a surprising reason for the mitzvo, and in particular, why the specific value of half a shekel, must be given. The Medrash explains that the giving of the half shekel is an atonement for the sale of Yosef Hatzaddik by his brothers. The brothers sold Yosef for twenty pieces of silver. This is equivalent to five shekel. Ten of the brothers sold Yosef, each one receiving one tenth of this value, making a half shekel each. Accordingly, since each brother gained half a shekel in the sale, their descendants were instructed to give half a shekel as an atonement.[2] The obvious question to be asked is what is the connection between the giving of half a shekel and the sale of Yosef?

In order to answer this, we need to deepen our understanding of the sale of Yosef. The brothers knew that twelve tribes were destined to come from Yaakov Avinu. Each tribe would have its own unique qualities and they would all join together to combine to make up the Jewish people as a whole, with tribe complementing the others. The brothers decided that Yosef had lost his right to be part of this group, because of what they perceived to be his dangerous attitude and behavior. Therefore, they believed that they could remove Yosef from the destined 12 tribes, and be left with only eleven. The chiddush (novelty) of this approach was that they planned to remove one of the twelve pieces to the puzzle that would constitute the Jewish people. They felt that they could do without Yosef's potential contribution to the Jewish people, and the Jewish people could continue without him.

With this understanding we can now explain how the mitzvo of Shekalim atones for the sale of Yosef. The commentaries note the significance of the fact that one must give half a shekel as opposed to a full shekel. Many explain that it comes to teach us about the importance of unity amongst the Jewish people by showing that each person is only 'half a person' without combining with the strengths of his fellow man.[3] One should not think that he can separate from his fellow Jews and be unaffected. A person who ha this attitude he will be incomplete. In this way, the mitzvo of giving half a shekel can act as an atonement for the sale of Yosef. Yosef's brothers thought that they could get along fine without Yosef's contribution to the Jewish people. Their mistake was that even if they believed him to be erring, he was still an essential part of the Jewish people. By giving half a shekel we remind ourselves that this is not the correct attitude - all Jews are part of a unified whole, and everyone needs to combine with their fellow.

This idea even extends itself to people who are not behaving in the most optimal fashion. Shortly after the mitzvo of giving half a shekel, HaShem commands us to combine a number of spices to make the incense. One of these is the chelbanah, which Chazal tell us has a foul smelling odor. Why then is it included in the ingredients for the incense? The Gemara explains that any communal fast that does not include sinners is not considered a proper fast.[4] Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz zt"l explains that when the Jewish people are not united, then they are not considered one unit, and therefore the power of the community is drastically weakened.[5]

The Bostoner Rebbe zt"l epitomized the attitude that every Jew should be treated with respect regardless of his religious affiliation. His funeral testified to this by the fact that there were numerous people attending who would not be classified as regular Bostoner Chassidim. He expressed his attitude in this area in a couple of brief sentences: "The trouble with our generation is we only love our fellow man if he's like us - if he davens in my shtiebel [6], if he has the same Rebbe, if he goes to the same yeshiva - then [he says] 've'ahavta lereyecha'. If he's not 'camocha', then I have no business with him." In a similar vein, he said, "When people try to disassociate one group from another, that's part of the 'torah' of sinas Yisrael (hatred of Jews). Every person can improve. Every group can improve. But it doesn't mean that these people have to be blackballed because some people think that they're not exactly the way they are..."[7]

We have seen how the Medrash connecting the episode of the sale of Yosef to the mitzvo of giving half a shekel, teaches us that we should realize that we should never 'blackball' other Jews, regardless of who they are. May we all merit to learn from the words of the Bostoner Rebbe zt"l and emulate his actions, in striving to unite all Jews.


[1] Ki Sisa, 30:13.
[2] Bereishis Rabbah, 84:17. With commentary of 'Matnos Kehunah'. One may ask, that according to this reasoning, the descendants of Yosef and Binyomin (who was not involved in the sale) should be exempt from this Mitzvo. It seems that there are other reasons for the Mitzvo of Shekalim which obligate every man to give it, however the amount of half a shekel is fixed by the calculation made by the Medrash.
[3] See Tallelei Oros, Shemos, chelek 2, p.202 in the name of the Chida, and beshem amroo, Shemos, Ki Sisa, 30:13 in the name of Arvei Hanachal (author of Levushei Srad on Shulchan Aruch).
[4] Krisus, 6b.
[5] Sichos Mussar, Maamer 54, p.231.
[6] This is a term used for a place of prayer.
[7] Quoted in Mishpacha Magazine, Issue 287, 22 Kislev, 5770, p.41.

ATONEMENT FOR THE SALE OF YOSEF - PARSHAS SHEKALIM

"This shall they give - everyone who passes through the census - a half shekel of the sacred shekel, the shekel is twenty geras, half a shekel as a portion to Hashem."

In Parshas Ki Sisa, the Torah instructs every man to give half a shekel (known as machsis hashekel) towards the communal offering given in the Mishkan (Tabernacle). Since the destruction of the Beis HaMikdosh, we no longer merit to have this Mitzvo, however, we remember it every year when we read Parshas Shekalim. Accordingly, there still remain valuable lessons that can be derived from the machsis hashekel.

The Medrash Rabbah offers a surprising reason for the mitzvo, and in particular, why the specific value of half a shekel, must be given. The Medrash explains that the giving of the half shekel is an atonement for the sale of Yosef Hatzaddik by his brothers. The brothers sold Yosef for twenty pieces of silver. This is equivalent to five shekel. Ten of the brothers sold Yosef, each one receiving one tenth of this value, making a half shekel each. Accordingly, since each brother gained half a shekel in the sale, their descendants were instructed to give half a shekel as an atonement. The obvious question to be asked is what is the connection between the giving of half a shekel and the sale of Yosef?

In order to answer this, we need to deepen our understanding of the sale of Yosef. The brothers knew that twelve tribes were destined to come from Yaakov Avinu. Each tribe would have its own unique qualities and they would all join together to combine to make up the Jewish people as a whole, with tribe complementing the others. The brothers decided that Yosef had lost his right to be part of this group, because of what they perceived to be his dangerous attitude and behavior. Therefore, they believed that they could remove Yosef from the destined 12 tribes, and be left with only eleven. The chiddush (novelty) of this approach was that they planned to remove one of the twelve pieces to the puzzle that would constitute the Jewish people. They felt that they could do without Yosef's potential contribution to the Jewish people, and the Jewish people could continue without him.

With this understanding we can now explain how the mitzvo of Shekalim atones for the sale of Yosef. The commentaries note the significance of the fact that one must give half a shekel as opposed to a full shekel. Many explain that it comes to teach us about the importance of unity amongst the Jewish people by showing that each person is only 'half a person' without combining with the strengths of his fellow man. One should not think that he can separate from his fellow Jews and be unaffected. A person who ha this attitude he will be incomplete. In this way, the mitzvo of giving half a shekel can act as an atonement for the sale of Yosef. Yosef's brothers thought that they could get along fine without Yosef's contribution to the Jewish people. Their mistake was that even if they believed him to be erring, he was still an essential part of the Jewish people. By giving half a shekel we remind ourselves that this is not the correct attitude - all Jews are part of a unified whole, and everyone needs to combine with their fellow.

This idea even extends itself to people who are not behaving in the most optimal fashion. Shortly after the mitzvo of giving half a shekel, HaShem commands us to combine a number of spices to make the incense. One of these is the chelbanah, which Chazal tell us has a foul smelling odor. Why then is it included in the ingredients for the incense? The Gemara explains that any communal fast that does not include sinners is not considered a proper fast. Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz zt"l explains that when the Jewish people are not united, then they are not considered one unit, and therefore the power of the community is drastically weakened.

The Bostoner Rebbe zt"l epitomized the attitude that every Jew should be treated with respect regardless of his religious affiliation. His funeral testified to this by the fact that there were numerous people attending who would not be classified as regular Bostoner Chassidim. He expressed his attitude in this area in a couple of brief sentences: "The trouble with our generation is we only love our fellow man if he's like us - if he davens in my shtiebel , if he has the same Rebbe, if he goes to the same yeshiva - then [he says] 've'ahavta lereyecha'. If he's not 'camocha', then I have no business with him." In a similar vein, he said, "When people try to disassociate one group from another, that's part of the 'torah' of sinas Yisrael (hatred of Jews). Every person can improve. Every group can improve. But it doesn't mean that these people have to be blackballed because some people think that they're not exactly the way they are..."

We have seen how the Medrash connecting the episode of the sale of Yosef to the mitzvo of giving half a shekel, teaches us that we should realize that we should never 'blackball' other Jews, regardless of who they are. May we all merit to learn from the words of the Bostoner Rebbe zt"l and emulate his actions, in striving to unite all Jews.