Happy Chanukah!

Scroll down for the English

חַג חֲנוּכָּה שָׂמַח לְכוּלָּם!

לִכְבוֹד חַג הַחֲנוּכָּה נְבָרֵר - מִי הֵם המקבים? וּמָה הֶקְשֵׁר בֵּינָם וּבֵין קְבוּצַת הַסְּפּוֹרְט שֶׁל מַכַּבִּי?

הַכֹּל הִתְחִיל בְּזֶה שֶׁמַתִּתְיָהוּ הַזָּקֵן, אֲבִי הַמִּשְׁפָּחָה הָחָשְׁמוֹנָאִית, מִינָּה אֶת יְהוּדָה, שֶׁלֹּא הָיָה הַבֵּן הַבְּכוֹר, לִמְפַקֵּד הַמֶּרֶד. הוּא בָּחַר בּוֹ מִפְּנֵי שֶׁהָיָה מַצְבִּיא דָּגוּל, וְעַל כֵּן דָּבַק בּוֹ הַכִּינּוּי "מַקַבִּי", שֶׁזֶּה "פַּטִּישׁ"- בִּגְלַל שֶׁהָיָה "כְּמוֹ פַּטִּישׁ עַל רָאשִׁי אוֹיְבָיו". וְיֵשׁ עוֹד אֶפְשָׁרוּת, שֶׁהָרוֹמַאִים שִׁינּוּ אֶת שְׁמוֹ מֵ"יְהוּדָה הַמַּצְבִּיא" לִ"יהוּדָה הָמַקַבִּי"- כִּי הָרוֹמַאִים הֶחֱלִיפוּ אֶת הָאוֹת צ' בִּ ק'.

לְפִי יוֹסֵף בֵּן מַתִּתְיָהוּ, מַשְׁמָעוּת הַשָּׂם "מַכַּבִּי" הִיא רָאשֵׁי תֵּיבוֹת שֶׁל הַפָּסוּק "מִי כָּמוֹךָ בָּאֵלִים י'".

בְּמֶשֶׁךְ הַשָּׁנִים, חַג הַחֲנוּכָּה יָרַד מִגְּדוּלָּתוֹ. פָּחוֹת וּפָחוֹת יְהוּדִים חָגְגוּ אֶת הַחַג. בַּתְּפוּצוֹת הוּא כְּבָר כִּמְעַט נֶעֱלַם, אַךְ לְפֶתַע קָרוּ שְׁנֵי דְּבָרִים-  אֶחָד הוּא הָפִיכָת חַג הַמּוּלָד לְחַג כְּבַד מִשְׁקָל בַּתַּרְבּוּת הָאַמֶרִיקָאִית, וּבִגְלַל זֶה הַיְּהוּדִים הָאַמֶרִיקָאִים שָׂמְחוּ לְאַמֵּץ אֶת חַג הַחֲנוּכָּה כְּחַג מַקְבִּיל (מִכָּאן גַּם הַמִּנְהָג הָאַמֶרִיקָאִי לָתֵת מַתָּנוֹת בְּעַרְבֵי חַג הַחֲנוּכָּה) וְהַשֵּׁנִי- הֲקָמַת מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל וּבִיסּוּס מִיתוֹס הַיְהוּדִי הַלּוֹחֵם. בִּגְלַל שֶׁיְּהוּדָה הַמַּכַּבִּי וּצְבָאוֹ הָפְכוּ לְסֵמֶל הַגְּבוּרָה הַיְהוּדִי, שֶׁבְּאֵיזֶשֶׁהוּ מָקוֹם סִימְּלוּ אֶת צָבְאָה הַקָּטָן שֶׁל מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל הַצְּעִירָה אֶל מוּל צְבָאוֹת עָרַב- הַשֵּׁם "מַּכַּבִּי" קָנָה לוֹ מָקוֹם שֶׁל כָּבוֹד בַּתַּרְבּוּת הַיְהוּדִית- קוּפָּ"ח מַּכַּבִּי, קְבוּצוֹת הַסְּפּוֹרְט שֶׁל מַּכַּבִּי וְעוֹד.

אַגַּב, לָאִידֵאוֹלוֹגְיוֹת וּלְמִיתוֹסִים שֶׁהִתְבָּסֵסוּ בִּתְקוּפַת הֲקָמַת הַמְּדִינָה יֵשׁ זֵכֶר עַד הַיּוֹם בִּשְׁמוֹתֵיהֶם שֶׁל גּוּפִּים גְּדוֹלִים בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל, כְּמוֹ בַּנְק הַפּוֹעֲלִים, קְבוּצוֹת הַסְּפּוֹרְט שֶׁל הַפּוֹעַל, בֵּיתָר וְעוֹד.

שֶׁיִּהְיֶה לְכוּלָּם חַג חֲנוּכָּה מֵאִיר וְשָׂמַח,

אסנת.

Happy Channukah to you all!

In honor of Channukah we are going to clarify just who were the Maccabeas and what is the 

connection between them and the sports team- Maccabi.

Everything begins from Mattityahu the elder, the patriarch of the Hasmonean dynasty who appointed Yehuda, his eldest son, to be the head of the rebellion. He was chosen because he was an outstanding military commander and therefore they gave him the nickname "Maccabi" which is another word for "hammer" because he was "akin to a hammer on the head of the enemy".   There is also an additional option as to why he received this nickname; the Romans changed his name from  יְהוּדָה הַמַּצְבִּיא (Yehuda the military commander) to יהוּדָה הָמָקַבִּי  (Yehuda 

the Maccabi) because the Romans changed the letter "צ" to "ק".

According to Yosef Ben Matityahu the significance of the name Maccabi " מְכַבֵּי" is an acronym for the phrase ""מִי כָּמוֹךָ בְּאַלִּים י' ; "Who is like you oh L-rd our G-d. "

During the years, the festival of Chanukkah has lessened in its magnitude; fewer and fewer Jews celebrate the festival. In the Diaspora Channukah would have almost disappeared but for two things- the first being the weighting that Christmas has now in American culture. It is because of this that American Jews are happy to embrace Channukah as a festive parallel (from here originates the custom of exchanging gifts on the nights of Channukah). The second reason comes from the establishment of the state of Israel on the basis of Jewish myths and warriors. Yehuda the Maccabi and his army became a symbol of the might of the Jews that in some place symbolized the small army of the young state of Israel versus the might of the Arab armies. The name "Maccabi" thus found itself in an honored place in Jewsih culture- Kupat Holim Macabbi, Maccabi sports teams and more.

Additionally, the ideologies and myths upon which the state of Israel was founded have lent their names to the major bodies in Israel such as Bank Hapoalim, Hapoel and Beitar sports teams and more.

May you all have a light and happy Channukah,

Osnat 

The exclusion of women from the social arena and the upcoming festival of Chanukah

If you can, scroll down and have a go at the Hebrew first and then take a look at the English. 

The exclusion of women from the social arena and the upcoming festival of Chanukah

In honor of Chanukah which is approaching speedily and because of the new conflict regarding the place of women in the public arena which is darkening the skies of Israel, I thought to write about the part of women in the miracle of Chanukah and their strength and place in the sources of Judaism.

Women are obligated in the commandment of lighting the lights of Chanukah, even though it is a time bound commandment (which women are normally exempt from). What is the reason behind this big change? "Even they were in the same miracle" (is the common answer). Seemingly this explanation is satisfactory but when we think about it, indeed women were a part of all the other miracles! What is so different (Ma Nishtana)?

On Chanukah, the festival of light and heroism in Judaism, we celebrate precisely the stories of heroic women that are found in our historical writings. You can include Yael, Deborah the prophetess, Queen Shlomozion and more however there are three main stories which bind the heroism of women and Channukah: Hannah the mother of the 7 sons, and Judith and Hannah the Hasmoneans (from the house of the High Priest, Yochanan). They were all women who jeopardized themselves and their dignity whilst using their feminism to save the people of Israel. (See this link for more details).

Regretfully, since then there has been a deterioration in respect and a new extreme attitude from the male population to women. From the exclusion of women from the Beit Midrash, study hall (Bruriah and the daughters of Rashi learnt Torah, Mishna and Talmud and even made public rulings- even in front of men) right through to pushing women from the public arena ("kosher" busses, the behavior of female singers and even death threats on the life of a women running for mayor of Jerusalem). The worst thing of all up until now is that women have accepted it with resignation.

Precisely today, in honor of Chanukah, it is fitting for us to look at what the women amongst us have contributed and are contributing to the people of Israel and to the Jewish state and to rejoice in the fact that they are brave and free as only women are able to be.

We have already talked about women and expulsion, the speech of women (or Kol Isha) and of Bruriah, the wife of Rabbi Meir, here is a nice fable that teaches us about her character, that she was  sharp in mind and sharp in language:

'One day Rabbi Yosi the Gallilean was walking on the road, he found Bruria and asked:

"Which way does one take to go to Lod?"

She answered him: "Galliean fool! Did the sages not say not to engage in excessive conversations with women?"

He should have said (simply): "which to Lod"' (Eruvin 53b)

We will spread the light- Happy Chanukah to you all!

Osnat

הָדָרַת נָשִׁים מִן הַמֶּרְחָב הַצִּיבּוּרִי  וְחַג חֲנוּכָּה הַמִּתְקָרֵב

לִכְבוֹד חַג הַחֲנוּכָּה הַמִּתְקָרֵב אֵלֵינוּ בִּמְהִירוּת, וּבְעִקְבוֹת הַקּוֹנְפְלִיקְט הֶחָדָשׁ לְגַבֵּי מְקוֹמָן שֶׁל הַנָּשִׁים בַּזִּירָה הַצִּיבּוּרִית שֶׁזָּרַח בִּשְׁמִי הָאֶרֶץ, חָשַׁבְתִּי לִכְתּוֹב עַל חֶלְקָן שֶׁל הַנָּשִׁים בְּנֵס חֲנוּכָּה וְכוֹחָן וּמְקוֹמָן בַּמְּקוֹרוֹת הַיְּהוּדִיים.

נָשִׂים חַיָּיבוֹת בְּמִצְווֹת נֵר שֶׁל חֲנוּכָּה, אֲפִילּוּ שֶׁזּוֹהִי מִצְוָוה שֶׁהַזְּמַן גָּרְמָה. מָה הַסִּיבָּה לַשּׁוֹנִי הַגָּדוֹל? "אַף הֵן הָיוּ בְּאוֹתוֹ הַנֵּס". לִכְאוֹרָה הַהֶסְבֵּר מַנִּיחַ אֶת הַדַעַת, אֲבָל כְּשֶׁחוֹשְׁבִים עַל זֶה- הֲרֵי נָשִׁים הָיוּ חֵלֶק גַּם מִנִּיסִים אֲחֵרִים! אָז מָה יוֹם מִיּוֹמָיִים? (זֹאת אוֹמֶרֶת: מָה נִשְׁתַּנָה?).

בַּחֲנוּכָּה, חַג הָאוֹר וְהַגְּבוּרָה הַיְהוּדִית, יֵשׁ הַמַּעֲלִים עַל נֵס (דֶּגֶל) דַּוְוקָא אֶת סִיפּוּרֵי הַגְּבוּרָה הָנָשִׁיים הַקַּיָּימִים בִּמְקוֹרוֹתֵינוּ. אֶפְשָׁר לִמְנוֹת אֶת יָעֵל, דְּבוֹרָה הַנְּבִיאָה, שׁלוֹמְצִיוֹן הַמַּלְכָּה וְעוֹד, אַךְ יֶשְׁנָם שְׁלוֹשָׁה סִיפּוּרִים עִיקָּרִיִּים הַנִּקְשָׁרִים לִגְבוּרַת הַנָּשִׁים וּלְחַג הַחֲנוּכָּה: חָנָה אִם שִׁבְעַת הַבָּנִים, יְהוּדִית וְחָנָה הָחָשׁמוֹנָאִית (בֵּיתוֹ שֶׁל הַכּוֹהֵן הַגָּדוֹל יוֹחָנָן). כּוּלָּן נָשִׁים שֶׁסִּיכְּנוּ אֶת עַצְמָן וְאֶת כְּבוֹדָן, תּוֹךְ שִׁימּוּשׁ בְּנָשׁיוּתָן, לְמַעַן הַצָּלַת עַם יִשְׂרָאֵל.

לְצַעֲרִי, מֵאָז חָלָה הִדַּרְדְּרוּת וְהַקְצָנָה בְּיַחֲסָה שֶׁל הַחֶבְרָה הָגַבְרִית  לְנָשִׁים- מֵהָדָרָתָן שֶׁל הַנָּשִׁים מִבָּתֵּי הַמִּדְרָשׁ (בְּרוּרְיָה וּבְנוֹתָיו שֶׁל רָשִׁ"י לָמְדוּ תּוֹרָה מִשְׁנָה וְתַלְמוּד וְאַף דָּרְשׁוּ בְּרַבִּים- גַּם בִּפְנֵי גְּבָרִים וּפָסְקוּ הֲלָכָה), וְעַד לִדְחִיקָתַן מֵהַמֶּרְחָב הַצִּיבּוּרִי (הָאוֹטוֹבּוּסִים הַ"כְּשֵׁרִים", הִתְנַגְּדוּת לְשִׁירַת נָשִׂים, וְאִיּוּמִים עַל חַיֶּיהָ שֶׁל הַמִּתְמוֹדֶדֶת עַל רָאשׁוּת עִירִיַּית יְרוּשָׁלַיִם). הַנּוֹרָא מִכָּל הוּא שֶׁעַד עַכְשָׁיו הַנָּשִׁים קִיבְּלוּ זֹאת מִתּוֹךְ הַכְנָעָה.

וְדַוְוקָא הַיּוֹם, לְכָבוֹד חַג הַחֲנוּכָּה, כְּדַאי לָנוּ לִרְאוֹת מָה הַנָּשִׁים שְׁבֵינֶנוּ תָּרְמוּ וְתוֹרְמוֹת לְעַם יִשְׂרָאֵל וְלִמְדִינָה הַיְהוּדִית וְלִשְׂמוֹחַ עַל הֵיּוֹתַן חָופְשִׁיּוֹת וְאַמִּיצוֹת, כְּמוֹ שָׁרַק נָשִׁים יְכוֹלוֹת לִהְיוֹת.

וְאִם כְּבָר דִּיבַּרְנוּ עַל נָשִׂים וְהַדָרָתָן, וְעַל שִׂיחָה עִם הָאִישָּׁה (אוֹ "קוֹל אִישָּׁה") וְעַל בְּרוּרְיָה, אִישְׁתּוֹ שֶׁל רַבִּי מֵאִיר הַתַּנָּא- הִינָּהּ מִדְרָשׁ נֶחְמָד הַמְלַמֵּד קְצָת עַל אוֹפְיָה שֶׁל בְּרוּרְיָה, שֶׁהָיְיתָה חַדַת שֶׂכֶל וְחָדַת לָשׁוֹן:

"פַּעַם הָלַךְ רַבִּי יוֹסִי הַגְּלִילִי בַּדֶּרֶךְ, מָצָא אֶת בְּרוּרְיָה וְשָׁאַל:

בְּאֵיזֶה דֶּרֶךְ נֵלֵךְ לְלוֹד?

אָמְרָה לוֹ: גְּלִילִי שׁוֹטֶה! לֹא כָּךְ אָמְרוּ חֲכָמִים אַל תַּרְבֶּה שִׂיחָה עִם הָאִשָּׁה?

הֱיֵה לְךָ לוֹמַר "בְּאֵיזֶה לְלוֹד" (עֵירוּבִין נ"ג.).

שֶׁנִּזְכֶּה לְהָפִיץ אֶת הָאוֹר, חֲנוּכָּה שָׂמַח לְכוּלָּם!

אסנת

Heads or Tails?

Try and read the Hebrew. For English, scroll all the way down....

עץ או פָּלִי?

כָּל אֶחָד בְּעוֹלָם מַכִּיר אֶת זֶה: אַתָּה מִתְלַבֵּט מָה לַעֲשׂוֹת, שְׁתֵּי הָאֶפְשָׁרוּיּוֹת נִרְאוֹת טוֹב (אוֹ שֶׁלֹּא), וְאֵין שׁוּם דֶּרֶךְ לְהַחֲלִיט בֵּינֵיהֶן. בְּדִיּוּק בִּשְׁבִיל זֶה יָשְׁבוּ חַכְמֵי הָעוֹלָם וְעָלוּ עַל הַמְצָאָה גְאונִית- הַטָּלַת מַטְבֵּעַ.

לְכָל מַטְבֵּעַ יֵשׁ שְׁנֵי צְדָדִים (זוֹהִי גַּם אִימְרָה שְׁמַשְׁמָעוּתַה: לְכָל בְּעָיָה יֵשׁ שְׁנֵי צְדָדִים), צַד אֶחָד וּבוֹ סֵמֶל כְּלָל לְאוּמִּי-תַּרְבּוּתִי, וְצַד שֵׁנִי וּבוֹ עֶרְכּוֹ שֶׁל הַמַּטְבֵּעַ בְּמִסְפָּר. בְּאַרְהַ"ב קוֹרְאִים לְהַטָּלַת הַמַּטְבֵּעַ "רֹאשׁ אוֹ זָנָב" (heads or tails) וּבְעִבְרִית "עֵץ אוֹ פָּלִי". מָה זֶה אוֹמֵר?

עֵץ הוּא הַצַּד שֶׁבּוֹ מְצוּיָּר הַסֵּמֶל. עַל מַטְבֵּעַ הַמִיל הָאָרֶץ יִשְׂרְאֵלִי מִתְּקוּפַת הַמַּנְדָּט הַבְּרִיטִי הָיָה צִיּוּר שֶׁל עָנָף עֵץ זַיִת- מוֹטִיב עַתִּיק הַמְסַמֵּל אֶת הַשָּׁלוֹם. בַּצַּד הַשֵּׁנִי שֶׁל הַמַּטְבֵּעַ הָיָה כָּתוּב "פַּלֵסְטִינַה א"י", וּבְקִיצּוּר : פָּלִי. 

וּמֵאָז, כָּל יֶלֶד שֶׁמַּטִּיל מַטְבֵּעַ יוֹדֵעַ כִּי עָלָיו לִבְחוֹר בְּאֶחָד הַצְּדָדִים, עֵץ אוֹ פָּלִי, אַךְ בְּלִי לָדַעַת בֶּאֱמֶת לְמָה הַכַּוָּונָה.

אַגַּב, בִּטְבֶרְיָה הָיוּ אוֹמְרִים "כּוֹס אוֹ נֶמֶר", כְּשֶׁהַכַּוָּונָה הִיא :

כּוֹס- הַצִּיּוּר שֶׁעַל הַמַּטְבֵּעַ (גָּבִיעַ) ,אוֹ נֶמֶר: הַהֲגִיָּיה הַטְּבֵרִיַנִית לַמִּילָּה הָאַנְגְּלִית number.

Etz or Pali?

Everyone in the world recognizes this: You are uncertain what to do, two options look good (or not) and there is no way of choosing between them. It was specifically for this that the wise men of the world met and came up with a genius plan- to toss a coin.

Every coin has two sides (This is where we get the saying: There are two sides to every problem), One side has an international/cultural symbol and the other, the numberical value of the coin. In America they call tossing the coin, "heads or tails" and in Hebrew "עֵץ אוֹ פָּלִי", Etz or Pali. What does this mean?

עֵץ meaning tree is the side upon which the symbol is drawn. On the Israeli Mil coin from the time of the British mandate there is a picture of an olive branch- an old motif symbolizing peace. On the second side of the coin it is written ""פלסטינה א"י and in short, "פָּלִי", Pali.

And since then, every child that tosses a coin knows that he has to choose one of the sides, Etz or Pali, without really knowing what it stands for.

Incidentally in Tiberius they would say "כּוֹס אוֹ נֶמֶר", Cup or nemer. The reason for this is that the symbol on their coin was a cup and "nemer" is the Tiberian pronunciation of the English word "number".

Hello one and all!

This week was a very stormy week. I'm not just talking about the large amount of rain that fell this week, rather additionally about the storm which was caused by the new "Slander law". What is this law and why has it been so stormy?

The new law dictates that anyone who writes false information, even if it doesn't cause substantial damage, will be obligated to pay the victim a minimum of 300,000 shekels. Many Journalists are fuming about the new law saying that it is "the silencing law" and that it is anti-democratic. Anti-democratic or not, the roots of this law are very ancient

Judaism has always maintained the creative force of words. The world itself is said to have been created by speech. Take the well known phrase " Abracadabra ". The word originates from the Hebrew Abara (I will create) , KeDabera (as is spoken) referring to the structure of creation in Genesis.

The status of words in the Hebrew language is more than just the things that leave one's mouth and evaporate into the air, rather that they create a new reality. During the Talmudic period, the Gemara, (Baba Metzia Tract), writes that "All who whiten the face of his fellow man publically (embarrass); it is as if he has spilt his blood". Jewish thought understands with great sensitivity the feelings of the embarrassed man and even more than this the power of words.

The Midrash Tehilim writes (120) "The tongue is compared to an arrow. Why? Because if a person draws a sword to kill his fellow man, the intended victim can beg for mercy and the attacker can change his mind and return the sword to its sheath. But an arrow, once it has been shot and begun its journey, even if the shooter wants to stop it, he cannot" (translated by Buber).

Words spoken about a man and even more so words written about a man are very strong and sometimes have the power to change reality. All this is so even if what is said is true, but if the statement is false, just think how much worse that is. And now the question remains, is 300,000 shekels enough to pay to a man whose life has been ruined because of a lie? 

Hello!

Finally the rain has remembered that somewhere at the end of the world is a little desert filled land that has waited for rain for a long time! Together with the rain, have come grey clouds, wailing winds and the unpreventable chill. It is true that the setting is not perfect but on the other hand, especially now, in wintertime, when all we want to do is curl up under a duvet and read a good book with hot chocolate, this is the time to improve our Hebrew.

How? It is very simple. You want to read a book in bed? Excellent! There are many great books in Hebrew! My tip is to buy the same book in Hebrew and also in your mother tongue, this way if you don't understand exactly what is happening in the plot- you can always fill in the gaps or use the English book as a backup. This makes studying very easy and the book is not as threatening as it looked before.

Do you have questions? Want recommendations of books to read? Write to us on facebook and we will get back to you soon!

Good luck and I wish a rainy and healthy winter to all!

Osnat 

Rain, rain (don’t ) go away, come again another day.

This week here in Israel we have quite appropriately have had our fair share of rain. With constant warnings going out about the state of the Kinneret (our largest lake) and our lack of water; any rain is good news.

At the end of our festive period we had the festival of Shmini Atzeret when we recited tefilat ha geshem, תפילת הגשם , the prayer for rain. Interestingly we don’t begin to include the prayer for rain in our daily prayers until two weeks after the festive period to allow the pilgrims who travelled by foot to the temple, to return home dry (outside of Israel there is a longer waiting period to allow for the longer travel times). This year the rains began to fall just three hours after the prayer for rain was instituted into the daily prayer!

The word גשם  is composed of the shoresh (root) ג-ש-מ which also creates the words גשמי meaning materialistic and  הגשמה meaning  fulfilment. Rain allows for physical, materialistic growth and without rain it is clear that life would cease to continue. הגשמה  is used in Hebrew to denote the fulfilment of a grand idea. It is only with rain that the fulfilment of G-d’s life cycle can continue and that our comfortable lifestyle can be sustained. At this time we remember countries less developed than ours, less able to deal with drought and additionally less blessed with rain.

Osnat

Hello one and all!

I hope that the festive period was pleasant for you all.

I am writing this post amidst great emotion and not because of what happened with Gilad Shallit which needs a post in itself (there is no need to tell you how excited and happy everyone here is). I am excited because of something that I heard on the radio today.

“The Israeli government plans to begin a green campaign for the Israeli industry.” Why am I so excited? For many reasons. First of all I am happy to hear that the state of Israel understands the importance of being “green” in industry. This is indeed an important point. But also, this is a problem that we Hebrew teachers have, I got excited when I heard in the news this morning a new verb!

It is true that I have already talked about the new verbs that we use day to day due to the evolving language, and it is true that I have already posed about it but it still is exciting. It is even more exciting that in the news this morning they chose to speak entirely in Hebrew and say: לירק (meaning to become more environmentally friendly/ go green) instead of choosing to use a foreign word.

And if we are already dealing with the news this morning (I’m not saying which station), I am happy to say that on the same station and the same radio personality, they are always careful to say כרוכית instead of @which in slang is called a strudel because it looks like the strudel pastry.

Here, we begin the discussion that accompanies us as Israelis and I would be happy to hear what you think: Does the love of the Hebrew language have to be absolute without any external influences? Is it the case that if the academy has found, after much deliberation and anguish, a Hebrew word to replace a foreign word that we have got accustomed  to using in the local dialect, must we warmly embrace this new word and stop to use the word we have used up until this point?

Osnat

The Jewish month of Tishrey, a month of mercy and forgiveness.

"וואו! איזו גלידה מטורפת שחבל על הזמן!" "Wow! What crazy ice cream, it's a waste of time!"

Sometimes we hear Israelis saying things that are not only confusing, but contradicting. Are they trying to say that the ice cream is good or bad?! "מטורף" (meh-tor-af), crazy, is not a positive word, like insanity, it refers to the mental illness that would not want to experience, especially on their ice cream. But, the tone in which "מטורף" (meh-tor-af) is used indicates something positive. How confusing! And what is with the phrase "חבל על הזמן" (chaval al hazman), a waste of time. It is a waste of time to eat crazy ice cream? And that's a good thing?

Like all languages, Hebrew encounters words with double meanings where the two meanings can even contradict each other. This happens most often in slang.

Some other examples:

"אוי, השמלה שלך משגעת" (Oy, ha-simla shelach meshugat)

"אני חולה עלייך" (Ani Cholah Aleycha)

"אני מתה על שוקולד!" (Ani metah al shokolad!)

Leading up to the high holidays, the days we call "הימים הנוראים" (hayamim hanora'im), the Days of Awe, I thought about the word "נורא" (no-ra).

"אל תדאגי, זה לא נורא" (Don't worry, it's not terrible), "מה קרה לך, אתה נראה נורא!" (What happened to you, you look terrible!) These are two examples of expressions containing the word "נורא" (nora) that we hear every day. So, why do we use the same word to describe "הימים הנוראים", the Days of Awe? Are these days so bad? During these days, we deeply judge ourselves and think about the ways we have darkened our world in the past year. What is so bad about these days, the days which are described as the most spiritual and holy?

We are so used to hearing the word "נורא" (nora) in a negative context that we forget its original meaning. We use "נורא" (nora) as a superlative and as an adjective.

"הוא נורא מתוק!" He is so sweet! "זה נורא יפה" That is so pretty.

Here, we can see "נורא" (nora) with a neutral meaning without negative or positive connotations.

This same word is also able to be used as an adjective, like in the phrase, "הימים הנוראים" Days of Awe. So where does that come from? The root of the word, "נורא" is י.ר.א., sharing its root with the word "יראה", fear. As we sing in the song Aishet Chayal " אישה יראת ה' היא תתהלל" (a G-d-fearing woman, she should be praised). A woman who understands the greatness and power of G-d is one who deserves praise. So what is "יראה?" The fear that comes from within love, because of the size of the matter. The Days of Awe are very important and immense, just as we describe G-d. Every Friday night we say " האל הגדול והגיבור והנורא..." The great, the mighty and the awe-inspiring… "נורא" here is defined as awe-inspiring, now in a passive form of the root י.ר.א.

Wishing all of you a place in the book of life and an easy fast.

Osnat

Shofar

This coming week is the festival of Rosh HaShanah and the sounds and smells of this festival are already amongst us. Every family has it's own special food; Grandma's recipe for fish, Dad's sweet Challah and the most tasty desert from Mum. (My husband makes the best Challot in the world and together with the best fish from my sister you can crown the festive meal at ours as the most festive meal!) But the truth, for a change, is that I don't want to speak about food rather about the sounds of the festival. We are all already waiting to hear the sound of the shofar; the sound of the opening of the gates of heaven. The shofar has many symbolic meanings in Judaism, such as the binding of Isaac, the sound of standing at Mount Sinai, the ceremony of the kingdom of kings and more.

But, from where is the word "shofar "שופר? What is the root of it's symbolism?

Eliezer Ben Yehuda refered to the root ש-פ-ר when he created the word מנשר (manifest):

"אל חכך שפר כנשר על בית ה'..." Set the horn to thy mouth. As a vulture he cometh against the house of the LORD (Hosea 8:1)

In his newspaper "the light", Ben Yehuda wrote " Did you ever see a vulture blow the shofar? There is in Arabic (with the root נ-ש-ר) another meaning: to publish, to notify to the masses something new, a new gospel." This idea fits well with our topic but unfortunately the understanding of Ben Yehuda wasn't accepted because it was lacking the complete root of the word.

Probably the word shofar is connected to the verb "לשפר to improve". The shofar, that is the method that man uses to express himself towards the firmament, is the symbol of the desire of man to leave the physical realm and the materialistic world where he is found and to improve his deeds and his world to greet the great new year.

At the moment there is a new historical shofar exhibit beginning in the Bible lands museum. You can hear a few interesting stories also here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bIfLbkx4ZIM&feature=youtu.be

I wish everyone a happy and sweet new year, a peaceful, tranquil, health, success and love and of course a year of improvement in Hebrew!

Osnat