This week, we read Parshat Mishpatim, the Torah portion that contains the sources for many laws of Jewish jurisprudence, and the basis for many of the tractates in the order of Nezikin, or damages. Laws governing torts, charging interest, returning lost objects and the running of Jewish courts are all found in this week’s parshah. This week’s Hakarat Hatov goes to young Shaare members Mordechai Weiss, Joe Schwartz and Sam Rael, the members of the Yavneh Moot Beit Din team, for bringing me on board in a consulting role for their presentation, which they are preparing under the guidance of Rabbi Yaakov Tannenbaum. The case they have been given deals with the complicated interplay between healthy vs. predatory competition, the need for individuals to earn an income and the role a free market, benefitting the customer, plays in Jewish law. In my probbeh (try out) Shabbos in Dallas in January 2015, I delivered a shiur on this subject, based on a case that I worked on when I was a member of the staff of the Beth Din of America. The Beth Din has published a number of their rulings , of which this case was the second (all identifying details have been changed).
Rabbi’s Recommendations
My dear friend (and past Shaare Tefilla scholar in residence) Prof. Michael Avi Helfand of Pepperdine University School of Law (and guest lecturer at Yale Law School) is one of today’s experts on the legal intersection between law and religion, religious freedom and how it relates to Jewish communal interest in particular. This week, he was interviewed on the 18FortyPodcast, hosted by Rabbi Dr. David Bashevkin (another Shaare guest speaker, virtually, during deep COVID). I recommend everyone listen to Dr. Helfand’s erudite, lucid and entertaining explanation of many of these issues. I also recommend that you listen to the 18Forty podcast in general, as Rabbi Bashevkin has many really fascinating guests speaking about important, and often uncomfortable subjects (note: Rabbi Bashevkin often begins his episodes with lengthy introductions that can be quite interesting; if you want to hear just the interview, the episode notes indicate when the interview begins).
Mystery Shul Of The Week
Some of you have told me in the past that you are occasionally, or often, stumped by my Mystery Shuls. This week, I was stumped myself! This picture was sent to me by Stuart Wernick, taken by a friend of his, and he challenged me to identify it. I was unable to fully do so even after three tries (I now know what it is). I hope you will have better success!
Last Week’s Mystery Shul Of The Week
Kudos to Josh Bernstein who correctly identified the city of last week’s MSOTW- Tsfat. It is the Kossov shul (recently renovated), popular especially for its openness, and spirited Friday night davening. Kossov was a Chasidic group that flourished in Western Galicia and Bukovina. The founder was Rav Menachem Mendel Hager, whose grandson, of the same name, founded the Vizhnitz Chassidic court. In 1847, Kosover Chassidim made Aliyah, and moved to Tsfat, founding a shul named for their community and following their customs. After WWII and the War of Independence, the shul fell apart. Nearly 40 years ago, a group of English-speaking returnees to Judaism, inspired by the Biala Rebbe, began to pray there, and the Beit Din of Tsfat appointed them guardians of the shul, so long as the customs and the name of the shul would be preserved (a certain niggun from Kossov is still sung every Friday night).
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Ariel Rackovsky
Congregation Shaare Tefilla 6131 Churchill Way Dallas, TX 75230
