“RABBI’S MUSINGS (& AMUSINGS)”
Erev Shabbos Kodesh parshas Tetzaveh/Zachor
10 Adar 5783/March 3, 2023
לזכר נשמת נטע יצחק בן אלכסנדר ז"ל
VERY FRESH
In my sixth-grade literature book there was a section explaining that
words can have different meanings. To elucidate the concept, it contained the
following joke: “Why did the baker get so angry at the bread? Because it was so
fresh.”
Any humor whatsoever in a school textbook was so exciting to me that I
remember it now, decades later (and that’s the only thing I remember from those
textbooks).
One of the best parts of every holiday is the preparation period
beforehand. The excitement and anticipation continuously grows as we invest in
the upcoming holiday. Primarily, that refers to our spiritual preparations.
However, the physical preparations do a great deal to help get us into the
festive mood.
Before Purim that includes buying foods for shalach manos. I wonder what
the cashier in Target thought when I put tens of cans of the same soda on the
cashier belt. When she asked me how I was doing, and I replied that I was very
thirsty, she replied, “I can see that!” Of course, preparing for Purim also
includes hamantaschen baking. The only thing better than the incredible smell
of fresh hamantaschen is eating them.
One day last week my daughter baked an assortment of hamantaschen, some
with raspberry jelly, some with chocolate, some with vanilla frosting, and some
with lotus butter.
I don’t want to say loshon hora about anyone but it’s possible that the
author of this article sampled a couple of each type to make sure they were
good. (They were!) There’s nothing quite like freshly baked pastries.
But lest you think I was just indulging, there is actually a greater
connection between fresh hamantaschen and the celebration of Purim then you
realize.
In Parshas Emor, the Torah details the holidays of the year – Pesach,
Shavuos, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Succos. Of course, the Rabbinic
holidays of Chanukah and Purim are not mentioned in the Torah. However
immediately following its discussion of the holidays, the Torah instructs about
the daily lighting of the Menorah, a clear reference to the holiday of Chanukah.
The Torah then commands about baking the lechem hapanim, the
twelve showbreads placed upon the Shulchan (table) in the Temple sanctuary each
Shabbos. The breads would remain upon the table all week, until they were
replaced the following Shabbos. Miraculously, when they were removed from the
Shulchan they were as fresh as when they were baked, a week earlier.
Rabbi Elazar of Worms (1176-1238), in his sefer Rokeach, writes that the fact that
the Torah instructs about the lechem hapanim right after the Menorah
is a veiled reference to Purim, particularly to the feasting and joyous nature
of Purim.[1]
What is the connection between Purim and lechem hapanim?
The gemara (Menachos 29a) relates that when the nation came to the Beis
HaMikdash for their tri-annual pilgrimage on Pesach, Shavuos and Succos, the
kohanim would show the assemblage the Shulchan with the fresh lechem
hapanim upon them and would declare “See how beloved you are before
the Omnipresent”.
The bread remaining fresh all week symbolized that our connection with
Hashem also remained fresh and vibrant.
When Haman maligned the Jewish people to Achashveirosh in his efforts to
convince the king to sanction his evil plan for mass genocide, he began by
saying “yeshno am echad – there is one nation”. The Gemara
(Megillah 13b) explains that the word yeshno is similar to the
word yeshenim – sleeping.
Haman was hinting to Achashveirosh that he need not be concerned that the
Jewish people would be protected by their G-d, because the Jewish people were
not fulfilling the mitzvos properly. “They are asleep in their performance of
mitzvos”.
The salvation and celebration of Purim demonstrated that our connection
with G-d had not become stale and trite but was still strong and fresh. Purim
brought about renewed dedication and commitment to Torah and our mission to be
the Torah nation. There was a national wave of joy and excitement and pride.
Just as the lechem hapanim symbolized the freshness of
our connection with Hashem, so did Purim symbolize that same connection.
With that in mind, I think it’s fair to say that the tantalizing smell of
fresh hamantaschen (and all baked goods – I don’t discriminate) is part of the
Purim celebration. It reminds us that Purim is a celebration of excitement and
euphoric joy that results from feeling connected. It’s a joy that has to remain
fresh in our minds long after the hamantaschen are eaten or are no longer
fresh.
Shabbat Shalom & Good Shabbos
Freilichen Purim Sameiach,
R’ Dani and Chani Staum
[1] סימן רמ' –
"רמז בפרשת אמר אל הכהנים לאחר פרשת המועדות שמן זית זך רמז לחנוכה ואחריו
ולקחת סלת ואפית רמז לפורים משתה ושמחה"
