Timely Torah Insights

Pinchas

The Importance of Maintaining our Kedusha

This issue is dedicated by Mr. & Mrs. Gary and Ilana Schild L’iluy Nishmas his mother, Sarah Leah bas Yechiel a”h

upon her first Yahrzeit, Shabbos, 23rd of Tammuz

A friend of mine took on the responsibility of helping out two boys whose father had passed away. About two years ago, he asked me if I knew someone who had tickets to a professional baseball game. I approached my friend Harry as I thought he might help. “I don't have season tickets, but my company sometimes has tickets, so let me check.” A few days later, Harry called me back. “I have tickets for your boys!” When I picked up the envelope with the tickets, I saw there were four -- two for the boys, one for my friend who was bringing them and a fourth so they could pick a friend to bring along! And these were box seats behind home plate! The boys were so excited.

A couple of weeks later, Harry invited me to the vort (engagement party) of his daughter. I looked at the date for the vort -- it was the same day as the baseball game he had arranged for the fatherless boys! While the boys were attending the game, his daughter would be having her vort! When I saw Harry at the vort, I told him, “I believe that because you went out of your way to take care of Hashem's children, Hashem took care of your child.”

This concept of Hashem rewarding praiseworthy behavior, is illustrated in Parshas Pinchas when the Torah lists the family names in each sheivet (tribe) with the prefix letter ‘heh’ and suffix letter ‘yud’ as in ‘Hachanochi’ or ‘Hapalui’1. Rashi2 explains that other nations were challenging the legitimacy of the Jewish people in the time of Pinchas, forty years after they left Egypt. Egypt was known for its moral decadence, so maybe some of the children had an Egyptian father or mother. To counter the nations’ accusations, Hashem added the letters 'heh' and 'yud' to each family name within each sheivet. These two letters, in reverse order, spell out the specific name of Hashem used in reference to kedusha (purity) with regard to intimate relations.

Why was this accusation by the other nations happening now in Parshas Pinchas, a full forty years after leaving Egypt? The accusation should have been dealt with when the Jews first left Egypt! The Shem Mishmuel3 explains that when Bilaam’s plan to curse Klal Yisrael was thwarted by Hashem, who was protecting them, he advised Balak to send Midianite women to seduce the Jewish men. He knew that Hashem detests licentious behavior and if his plan worked, the B’nei Yisrael’s level of kedusha would decline and they would lose their divine protection. Bilaam’s plan was successful and twenty-four thousand of B’nei Yisrael who were seduced into worshipping idols were executed.

When Zimri, the Nasi of the tribe of Shimon, publicly engaged in an immoral act with Kozbi, a Midianite princess, Pinchas sensed the anger of Hashem rising from all the immoral behavior. He boldly and courageously ran into the tent of Zimri and executed him and Kozbi with a spear. Pinchas’s zealous public act served to restore the sanctity of Klal Yisrael. However, the sinful behavior demonstrated by Zimri with Kozbi raised the question of the moral level of the Jewish people while they were in Egypt. Therefore, Hashem specifically attested, by adding the “heh” and “yud” around the family names within each sheivet, that the Jews did not falter in the area of kedusha in Egypt and that all their children were truly born of only Jewish parents.

This fact is noted by Dovid Hamelech in Tehillim: “Shivtei Kah eidus l’Yisrael.''4 Although the simple translation of this verse means the tribes of Hashem are a testimony to Israel, it can be translated as, “The name of Hashem surrounding the name of each tribe, testifies to the moral legitimacy of the tribes of Klal Yisrael.”

The Gemara5 tells us that Pinchas is actually Eliyahu Hanavi and the Tur6 tells us that Eliyahu / Pinchas attends each Bris Milah via a seat designated for him. Eliyahu is referred to as the “Malach Habris” - the angel of the Bris, and the Mohel in his recitations, calls out to Eliyahu to stand at his side and support him while he is performing the Bris Milah. This honor is a reward to Eliyahu for preserving the moral sanctity of the Jewish nation. Hashem in effect tells Eliyahu, “You took care of my children in your lifetime, so I will let you see at each Bris that I am taking care of your children’s moral sanctity, which is signified by the Bris ceremony.”

Maintaining the attribute of kedusha is especially important as summer begins. The weather is warm, our schedules are more relaxed and we may be traveling away from our regular shuls and the presence of our role models. A little extra effort at this time in maintaining our kedusha, pays dividends that will span the generations. 1 Pinchas 26:5 2 ibid 3 Pinchas, Year 673 4 Tehillim 122:4 5 Bava Metzia 114b 6 Yoreh Deah 265:11

by Rabbi Baruch Bodenheim Associate Rosh Yeshiva

Halacha in the Parsha - Pinchas

Torah Shleima1 quotes Mesorah K’tana and the Zohar2 that say that the letter yud in the word Pinchas

3 at the

beginning of our parsha is written as a זעירא ד"יו , a small letter yud. It is unclear if this means that it is normally spelled without the yud or if it is always spelled with a yud, but in this instance the yud is small. There are various Halachic ramifications regarding this uncertainty:

1. Minchas Shai4 quotes the Mesores that indicates that throughout Tanach, it is always spelled with a yud except for one time in Navi5, when referring to Pinchas, one of the two sons of הכהן עלי , where it is spelled without the yud. Paaneach Rozah6 explains that the reason the yud is missing is based on the opinion in the gemara7 that says that Pinchas was held accountable for not stopping his brother, Chafni, from sinning. He explains that the name was spelled without the yud in this one instance to demonstrate that it was in his power to hold up his hand, but he did not. The letter yud, meaning yad, hand, was removed from his name because he did not use his hand to save his brother from sin.

However, the Zohar8, as understood by Minchas Shai, implies that it is always spelled without the yud except the one time in our parsha where it has the small yud. The small yud symbolizes the joining together of the two parts of his name, פן and חס, representing the two neshamos that he possessed that were mended and brought together through his brave act of killing Zimri. Alternatively, the Zohar explains that there is a small yud in our parsha because it represents bris milah and the sanctity that we possess because of this covenant. As a reward for his heroic act to safeguard the sanctity of the bris, a זעירא ד"יו was added to his name.

Our sifrei tanach follow the tradition to always spell Pinchas with a yud except for that one instance in Navi where it is omitted.

2. Rav Ephraim Margoliyos in Sefer Tiv Gittin9 points out that there is a difference in pronunciation between פינחס, which is pronounced Pea – N’ - Chas, and פנחס, which is pronounced Pin - Chas. Seemingly, if the correct spelling includes the letter yud, it should be pronounced the first way while if it is spelled without the yud, it would be pronounced the second way. Nonetheless, Minchas Shai10 writes that since we apparently follow the position that the regular spelling includes the yud, the proper pronunciation always follows the regular spelling and should be pronounced accordingly even in the one instance where the yud is missing.

3. Maharshal11 writes that when writing a get, the name should certainly be spelled with the yud, following the Biblical spelling according to the Mesores. Beis Shmuel12 adds that even if the person himself usually signs his name without a yud, it should still be included in a get because

the individual’s personal spelling is only a factor when determining which of two similar names the true name is, such as Eliya or Eliyahu. However, regarding the name Pinchas, both spellings represent essentially the same name, with, at least practically, the same pronunciation. Therefore, the Biblical spelling, as concluded above, with the yud, should be used.

However, if a get was written without the yud, Maharshal writes that the get is valid for various reasons: Firstly, most people do colloquially spell it without the yud, secondly, it is apparently an acceptable spelling in Tanach as well in one instance as mentioned above, and finally, the inclusion or exclusion of a yud or vav when used as a vowel may never invalidate a get. Aruch Hashulchan13 adds that according to the Zohar, it is always spelled without the yud and therefore that spelling can be relied upon post facto. Also, Avnei Neizer14, Tiv Gittin, and Aruch Hashulchan point out that since we are not grammatically careful in proper pronunciation of נח שוא and נע שוא nor the long or short vowel sounds of the חירק, and the colloquial pronunciation does not distinguish between the two spellings, the spelling without the yud actually matches the common pronunciation, Pin - Chas as explained above.

4. Rav Yosef Shaul Nathanson, in his commentary on Shulchan Aruch, Shai LaMorah15, writes that he was once in a place when they needed to learn mishnayos for a neshama. The name was Pinchas, but they did not have available a copy of a mesechta that had a perek that began with the letter פ and therefore could not learn selected perakim of mishnayos that start with each letter of the niftar’s name. Based on the Zohar that implies that the regular spelling is without a yud, he suggested to learn

פסחים מסכת , which has the numerical value of פנחס without the yud.

א"י:ה"כ במדבר שלמה תורה 1 א"ע כ"ר פנחס הזוהר ספר 2 א"י:ה"כ במדבר 3 א"י:ה"כ במדבר שי מנחת 4 ג:א' א שמואל 5 פינחס פרשת ישר רזא פענח 6 ב"ע ה"נ שבת 7 ב"ע ז"נ מות אחרי הזוהר ספר 8 פ אות גיטין טיב ספר 9 ג:א' א שמואל שי מנחת 10 פ אות א"ל' ס גיטין שמות ד"פ גיטין שלמה של ים 11 פ אות אנשים שמות ט"קכ' ס ע"אה שמואל בית 12 פ אות ג"קל' סע ט"קכ' ס ע"אה השלחן ערוך 13 ב אות קצג' סי ע"אבה נזר אבני 14 פ אות אנשים שמות ט"קכ' ס ע"אה למורה שי 15

by Rabbi Moshe Silverstein Maggid Shiur

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