Dear BSO Congregant,

This coming Shabbat, March 26-27, 2004 – Nisan 5, 5764 we will read Parshat Va-Yikra (annual cycle – Leviticus 1:1-5:26; triennial cycle – Leviticus 4:27-5:26). The Haftarah reading is from Isaiah 43:21-44:23. On this Shabbat we begin our reading of the Book of Leviticus – Sefer Va-Yikra, the central book in the Five Books of Moses.

Since Pesah begins in less than two weeks, the D’var Torah this week will be a D’var Halacha – a teaching of halacha – Jewish law.

One of the ceremonies to be performed immediately prior to Pesah is “bedikat hametz – searching for hametz.” This search is to take place early in the evening before the night of the first seder. Therefore, this year, the ceremony of bedikat hametz is to take place just after sunset on Sunday, April 4 (the Orioles’ opening night).

In this ceremony, members of the household gather to search for leftover hametz (usually ten small pieces of bread) that have been previously dispersed throughout the household. This collection symbolically represents the culmination of our search and removal of hametz from our homes. We usually use a feather to scoop the hametz onto a wooden spoon.

The search is also done in the darkness of our homes and we use a small candle to provide enough light to help us actually find the pieces of bread. This method obviously harkens back to the days prior to electricity. While it is certainly nostalgic to remember the previous generations who performed this search without benefit of electricity, perhaps there is another lesson we can derive by continuing the practice of using a small candle. The following halacha is a quotation from the Kitzur Shulhan Aruch that helps to make this point. The following translation of the Kitzur Shulhan Aruch has been taken from the Torah.org website compiled by Rabbi Ari Lobel. It is from the section 111:2 –

When searching for chometz on the night of the fourteenth one should use only a single-wick beeswax candle for the search (1).

One should not use a braided candle, because it is considered like a torch ("avukah") (2).

FOOTNOTES:

(1) The sages of the Talmud enacted that a candle should be used for the search, because daylight is insufficient for searching in holes and crevices. Nowadays, a flashlight may be used, however, in order not to deviate from the traditional custom, many begin the search with a candle and then use the flashlight for places where the candle would be
inadequate or dangerous ("Halachos of Pesach" by Rav Shimon Eider VII D7).

(2) A torch is too large to be brought into holes and crevices. Alternatively, the light produced by a multi-wick candle is not conducive for this type of search. If one conducted the search using only a multi- wick candle, the search is invalid and must be conducted again.

As you can read in footnote number one stated above, it is permissible to use an electrical device like a flashlight, but, “in order not to deviate from the traditional custom, many begin the search with a candle and then use a flashlight for places where the candle would be inadequate or dangerous.”

I also find footnote number two to be quite illuminating (pun intended). We are told not to use a larger torch or something like a havdalah candle that has many wicks and creates a large flame. Sometimes, bigger is not better, and too much light on a subject can cause an inability to see it properly.

Symbolically, the search and removal of hametz from our homes represents the search and removal of the “yetzer ha-ra – the evil inclination” from within ourselves. While we search thoroughly prior to the beginning of the time when hametz is no longer allowed to be in our possession, there are certain times during the search when perhaps just a little light directed to a specific location is necessary. Too much light may scare us, blind us, or cause us to look in a different direction. Sometimes just a little bit of light is enough to provide the comfort and brightness we need. There are facets of life influenced by our evil inclinations which sometimes cannot be eradicated immediately simply by utilizing overpowering devices of removal. Instead we must work slowly, persistently, carefully, and with light that will be conducive to search into those elusive “holes and crevices.”

So, even if you have a powerful flashlight and obviously all of us have electrical lighting in our homes, symbolically, it may be wise and worthwhile to search for hametz on Sunday night, April 4 using the feather, the wooden spoon and the single wicked candle.

Candle Lighting Time is 6:06 P.M.

Our Friday night instrument/choir-accompanied service will begin at 7:30 P.M.

Our Shabbat morning service will begin at 9:00 A.M. During the service we will celebrate the Bat Mitzvah of Ally Turkheimer. Mazel Tov!

Our Shabbat Minha/Ma-ariv/Havdalah Service will begin at 5:40 P.M. During the service we will celebrate the Bat Mitzvah of Morgan Cali. Mazel Tov!

Our service on Sunday morning, March 28 will begin at 8:30 A.M. (we start earlier because of Passover University being held this Sunday).

Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Philip Pohl
B'nai Shalom of Olney
18401 Burtfield Dr.
Olney, MD 20832
301-774-0879
301-774-3992 FAX