34 JUDAISM
11 FEBRUARY 2021
TO ADVERTISE CALL 020 3906 8488
ASK THE RABBI
Looking for answers? Send your question to Rabbi@RabbiSchochet.com APPROPROTE REPOSNSE?
Dear Rabbi Howard wrote to you last week, expressing his struggle with being isolated. You suggested to him to hang in there and tough it out. While I appreciate your response, would you not have been better off suggesting he get help from the likes of Jewish Care etc.? I think that would have been a more appropriate reply. David Dear David I am sure Howard appreciates your sensitivity and to be sure, I think I was sensitive to his concerns as well. To quote precisely what I wrote: “I am really sorry for what you are enduring, especially as it is just you and the stillness around you without any technology etc.” And then again later in my response, “I am not saying it’s easy, nor am I looking to mitigate your plight.” Perhaps you’re right that I might have referred him to an organisation, but you are missing the main point of his letter which was wanting to abandon all his previous observance which, he maintains, makes no sense in the face of his current struggles. It was that which I dealt with in elaborate detail while also adding the point that part of the challenge in being Jewish is that “when the going gets tough the tough get going.”
THANK YOU!
Dear Rabbi I just wanted to take the opportunity to thank you for the “ask the rabbi” column in the Jewish Weekly. It is truly inspirational and on behalf of my family we would like to express our sincere
thanks. Keep up the great work. Steven Dear Steven Thank you very much for your kind words. It always helps balance things out. One compliment for every one criticism (see above).
WHAT’S IN A NAME?
Dear Rabbi When I was young, living in Israel, I changed my surname to a modern name. My father did not approve. Now looking in Genesis we find that the angel confronted Jacob and told him no longer shall you be called Jacob rather you will be called Israel (Yisrael). Now when you look at the portions that follow we find that he is still called both. So I would think it is OK for me to change my name and sometimes use both. Sason Dear Sason Names, as I wrote about here previously, are very significant, and reflect something of the essence of an individual. In fact your name Sason means joy and I would hope you would never consider changing it. For the record, once you are given a Jewish name, you cannot typically change it – and at most, in unique circumstances, look to add to it. Only G-d determined to change the actual names of Abraham and Sarah and, as you note, added a name to Jacob which remained interchangeable. Notwithstanding all this, you make specific reference to your last name. That has no practical significance of any sort. Once upon a time people didn’t have
Pirkei Avot , וְ ֵאּלּו ֵהן,יֹוחנָ ן ֶּבן זַ ַּכאי ָ ֲח ִמ ָּׁשה ַתלְ ִמ ִידים ָהיּו לֹו לְ ַר ָּבן וְ ַר ִּבי,הֹוׁש ַע ֶּבן ֲחנַ נְ יָ ה ֻ ְ וְ ַר ִּבי י,הֹור ְקנֹוס ְ יעזֶ ר ֶּבן ֶ ִַר ִּבי ֱאל . וְ ַר ִּבי ֶאלְ ָעזָ ר ֶּבן ֲע ָרְך, ְו ַר ִּבי ִׁש ְמעֹון ֶּבן נְ ַתנְ ֵאל,יֹוסי ַהּכ ֵֹהן ֵ ּבֹור,הֹור ְקנֹוס ְ יעזֶ ר ֶּבן ֶ ִ ַר ִּבי ֱאל.הּוא ָהיָ ה מֹונֶ ה ִׁש ְב ָחן ַא ְׁש ֵרי,הֹוׁש ַע ֶּבן ֲחנַ נְ יָ ה ֻ ְ ַר ִּבי י.סּוד ֶׁש ֵאינֹו ְמ ַא ֵּבד ִט ָּפה , ַר ִּבי ִׁש ְמעֹון ֶּבן נְ ַתנְ ֵאל. ָח ִסיד,יֹוסי ַהּכ ֵֹהן ֵ ַר ִּבי.יֹולַ ְדּתֹו הּוא. ַמ ְעיָ ן ַה ִּמ ְתּגַ ֵּבר, ְו ַר ִּבי ֶאלְ ָעזָ ר ֶּבן ֲע ָרְך.יְ ֵרא ֵח ְטא , ִאם יִ ְהיּו ָכל ַח ְכ ֵמי יִ ְׂש ָר ֵאל ְּב ַכף מֹאזְ נַ יִ ם,אֹומר ֵ ָהיָ ה .יע ֶאת ֻּכּלָ ם ַ ַמ ְכ ִר,הֹור ְקנֹוס ְּב ַכף ְׁשנִ ּיָ ה ְ יעזֶ ר ֶּבן ֶ ִֶו ֱאל ִאם יִ ְהיּו ָכל ַח ְכ ֵמי יִ ְׂש ָר ֵאל,אֹומר ִמ ְּׁשמֹו ֵ ַא ָּבא ָׁשאּול וְ ַר ִּבי,הֹור ְקנֹוס ַאף ִע ָּמ ֶהם ְ יעזֶ ר ֶּבן ֶ ְִּב ַכף מֹאזְ נַ יִ ם ְו ַר ִּבי ֱאל :יע ֶאת ֻּכּלָ ם ַ ַמ ְכ ִר,ֶאלְ ָעזָ ר ֶּבן ֲע ָרְך ְּב ַכף ְׁשנִ ּיָ ה
last names, and even as they were later added, it usually reflected some family association – Jacobson, or one’s profession – Goldshmidt etc. So changing yours, while I appreciate might be upsetting to your father, has no halachic ramifications. (Though you ought to consider the bigger picture and your obligation to “honour your parents.” You don’t mention if you had some real reason for making the change). In keeping with the spirit of Purim (this weekend already being the first of Adar), I am reminded of a certain Rabbi Sam Ting. People thought it a most peculiar name for a Rabbi, until he once explained: “Ven vee vere emigrating from Poland, the man in front from me vas asked his name at Immigration. He had to come up wit an original and American so he said, John Jacobs. Ven it waz my turn I couldn’t think of anything so I told him, ‘sam ting.’”
RELATIVE THINKING
Dear Rabbi Do you think that as a Jew, it is incumbent upon me to embrace the view of Maimonides that the sun revolves around the earth? Brenda Dear Brenda The Theory of Relativity, as accepted by all scientists, posits that when two bodies in space are in motion relative to one another, science declares with absolute certainty that both possibilities are equally valid, namely that the earth revolves around the sun, or the sun revolves around the earth. Thus, in principle it is
impossible that it could be scientifically proven, which of the two, the sun or the earth, revolves around the other. Needless to say, anyone is entitled to their personal opinion on the matter. But it remains a personal opinion, choosing one school of thought. It would not however, be correct to say, that science has resolved the question in favour of one school of thought over another.
Follow Rabbi Schochet at: RabbiSchochet.com Twitter: @RabbiYYS Facebook: facebook.com/Rabbiyys.
For a refuah Shalema for Yitzchak Refoel Chaim ben Rifka Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai had five disciples and they were: Rabbi Eliezer ben Hyrcanus, Rabbi Joshua ben Hananiah, Rabbi Yose, the priest, Rabbi Shimon ben Nethaneel and Rabbi Eleazar ben Arach. He [Rabbi Johanan] used to list their outstanding virtues: Rabbi Eliezer ben Hyrcanus is a plastered cistern which loses not a drop; Rabbi Joshua ben Hananiah happy is the woman that gave birth to him; Rabbi Yose, the priest, is a pious man; Rabbi Simeon ben Nethaneel is one that fears sin, And Rabbi Eleazar ben Arach is like a spring that [ever] gathers force. He [Rabbi Yohanan] used to say: if all the sages of Israel were on one scale of
the balance and Rabbi Eliezer ben Hyrcanus on the other scale, he would outweigh them all. Abba Shaul said in his name: if all the sages of Israel were on one scale of the balance, and Rabbi Eliezer ben Hyrcanus also with them, and Rabbi Eleazar ben Arach on the other scale, he would outweigh them all. The previous Mishnah showed us how Reb Yochanan warns against taking credit for what we are born to do. To further illustrate this point, he now further enumerates the best Torah qualities of his finest students. We see the importance of the ability to
THEJEWISHWEEKLY.COM
Ultimately, when I have the option of choosing a school of thought, where both are essentially valid, as per the above, as a Jew it makes more sense to side with Maimonides than it does to side with Copernicus. Nobel Prize winner, Arnold Penzias, once remarked: “What we see marking the flight of galaxies with our telescopes, Maimonides saw from his metaphysical view.”
Perek 2: Mishna 9 remember Torah and constantly strive to learn more and more, like an ever increasing fountain. This can only be achieved through proper chazara, which will lead us away from sin. Learning Gemoroh four times has become a popular program followed daily by thousands across the world. May we all merit to remember our learning, Amen.
