Halacha L’Moshe MiSinai - Volume 2: Number 21

Halacha L’Moshe MiSinai
Volume 2: Number 21
March 27, 2006

Mitzvah 22: Hametz on Passover

Mitzvah 22 – It is a positive commandment to clear away Hametz on the fourteenth of Nissan.
Hafetz Hayim: Scripture states, “only, on the first day you shall put away leaven out of your houses” (Exodus 12:15) and by the Oral tradition it was learned that this “first” means the fourteenth of Nissan, before the time that it becomes forbidden to eat Hametz. Now, clearing away means that one is to destroy the known Hametz in his possession; and what he does not know about he renders null and void in his heart, and considers it as nothing – that he has no use whatever for it.
By the law of the sages one is to search and examine his premises and clear away all Hametz at the beginning of the night before the fourteenth, by the light of a candle; because all people are to be found in their homes at night, and candlelight is good for searching. It is in force everywhere and at every time, for both men and women.

When the Sages wanted to make sure that all Hametz was removed before Passover, they set in motion three ways to get rid of it. The first responsibility was to use up as much Hametz before the holiday as possible. To clear our shelves of what the Hametz we own. There is a commandment that we are forbidden to waste that which can be used, so we first try and use up what we own. We are also allowed to give it away to a worthy (non-Jewish) cause so that the Hametz we can’t use can still be put to good use. It can be donated to a soup kitchen or food pantry for instance.
In some cases, it is impossible to use up all the Hametz in our homes before Passover. Sometimes there is just too much to use. Sometimes we forget we have it until it is too late to use it. Sometimes we are in the Hametz business and it would be a great financial loss if we were to give it all away before Passover. For this reason the Sages created the “sale” of Hametz. The Hametz is placed in a secure location and closed off from the rest of the house. We then, in writing, assign the Rabbi as our agent to make sure that the Hametz is sold for the holiday. (there is usually a small donation made to have the Rabbi do this for you) He will then sell all the Hametz that he is commissioned to sell to a reliable non-Jew. This is a binding sale. Usually there is a small down payment made at the time of the sale and the full price is to be paid after the holiday at fair market value for the Hametz. If the non-Jew decides not to complete the sale, it automatically reverts to its original owners, after the holiday. Since it did not belong to us during the holiday, we are able to use it after the holiday is over. This sale must take place before 10 am on the fourteenth of Nissan, so that we will not own the Hametz from the time it becomes forbidden to us.
Tradition has us keep a small amount of Hametz and to search for it on the night before the fourteenth of Nissan (on the thirteenth, after dark). This is called Bedikat Hametz, the search for Hametz, and we use a candle and a feather, to sweep away the last crumbs of Hametz in our homes. Those crumbs and whatever Hametz we no longer can use is burned at 10 am on the fourteenth of Nissan. From that time until the end of Passover, we can not own or have in our possession any Hametz at all. If we find any that was not sold or burned, we must throw it away. We cannot use it even after the holiday.
The big question is “Why?” Why must we remove leaven from our homes? The Torah, as stated above, only tells us that we must get rid of it all. G-d simply said so and we must obey. But what is Hametz that we cannot even possess it on Passover? The Sages comment on this mitzvah saying that Hametz is that grain that has fermented, it has mixed with water and the air and has become something else. It is no longer pure grain. When we remove the Hametz from our homes, we are removing from our lives all that has been fermented, the arguments, the fights, the anger and the feelings of vengeance that spoil our live and corrupt our thinking. Passover is the time we let go of such feelings, and decide that we have no use for them whatsoever. That we will go back to a simpler kind of bread, and a simpler kind of relationship, where we no longer allow that which is fermented to spoil the love and concern we have for each other. The removal of leaven from our household symbolizes the removal of the fermented feelings from our heart. For the week of Passover, we should not really miss either the bread or the bad feelings at all.
Next week: Mitzvah 23: Eating Matzah

Halacha L’Moshe MiSinai - Volume 2: Number 20

Halacha L’Moshe MiSinai
Volume 2: Number 20
March 6, 2006

Mitzvah 21: Rejoicing on the Festivals

Mitzvah 21 – It is a positive commandment to be happy on the festivals.
Hafetz Hayim: Scripture states, “and you shall rejoice on your festivals” (Deut. 16:14) When the Sanctuary was in existence, the rejoicing was that an extra peace offering was brought in addition to the festival offering. It was called the offering of joy and women were also obligated in this joy. At the present time, thought happiness is only through meat and wine. Then one has a duty to make his wife happy with pretty clothing and to distribute sweets to the members of his household. He is also obligated to make the poor happy. If someone does not bring happiness to any poor people, his is not rejoicing in a mitzvah but only the joy of his belly, and a joy that is a disgrace to him. (see Malachi 2:3)
Now, even though eating and drinking on the religious holidays is part of the positive commandment, one should not spend a long time with wine, amusement and frivolity, since this is wild foolishness and silly behavior, whereas we are commanded only about rejoicing that contains within it the worship of G-d and it is impossible to worship G-d amid unbridled amusement, frivolity or drunkenness, but only amid the happiness of a mitzvah. The happiness that a person enjoys while doing a mitzvah is a great form of worship It is in force everywhere and at every time.

We see here the two polls of what “rejoicing” is all about. On the one hand, the point of a Festival is to be happy. On the other hand, this “happiness” can easily get out of control. The Hafetz Hayim tries to address both sides of this issue.
We no longer participate in animal sacrifice, so the legal requirement of rejoicing means we need to eat meat and drink wine on festival days. Even if we are on rather strict diets, the few festive days should not have a long term impact on weight or health. Where does this leave Vegetarians and those who do not /can not drink alcohol? Clearly Judaism would have them celebrate with foods and drinks that are appropriate to their needs. The point is to make these days “festive” through the foods that we eat. Also it is important to mention again, that for those who can not drink alcohol because of medications they are taking or because of a history of substance abuse, the above mitzvah should NOT be taken as license to indulge in dangerous activities. The mitzvah simply does NOT APPLY in that case and one should eat and drink in a manner that will not endanger their life or the lives of others around them. Even for the purpose of saying a blessing, Kosher Grape Juice should be used that has no alcohol content at all.
But even for those who may be physically able to drink, the mitzvah does NOT give such a person free reign to let the festival joy descend into debauchery. Rejoicing is not a free ticket to get drunk, out of control or even simply silly. The point is not to awaken the next day with a hangover and to forget what transpired in the holiday celebration. It is one thing to drink and celebrate; it is another to lose all sense of what it means to be a human being. I can be happy with the time off from work, spent with my family, around a festival table, eating good food, enjoying my children and family, telling family stories and remembering why we all love each other. What joy would there be if we ended the meal so full, we felt sick, so drunk that we embarrassed our family and so wasted that we don’t even remember what happened? That is not rejoicing at all and would simply be a violation of the mitzvah. Yes, I know that drunkenness is prescribed for Purim celebrations (that is a different mitzvah that this one) but I think that even in the case of Purim, such drunkenness was meant to be a metaphor, and one should not get that drunk even on that crazy, happy day.
Want to know how a Rabbi celebrates? He uses the time to learn something new. Now that is my kind of happiness and joy!
Next week: Mitzvah 22: Removing Hametz before Passover