The last minute attempt to get to Eretz Yisrael for Passover
NEW YORK (VINNews/Rabbi Yair Hoffman) – A principal in a highly observant yeshiva asked a classroom how many of them had ever found chametz over Pesach. Nearly half of the class raised their hand. Regardless, each year, there are numerous stories where chametz is found over Pesach. And, such incidences happen both on Yom Tov and on Chol HaMoed.
What to Do
The Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 446:1), of course, tells us what to do. If it is found on Yom Tov—it must be covered with a vessel so that the chametz can not be seen. It cannot be moved, of course, because of the issue of muktzah. At night, after Yom Tov, it must be burned.
This is based upon the Gemara (Pesachim 7a), that tells us that if one finds chametz on Yom Tov one must cover it with a vessel, and when Yom Tov is over one should burn it.
Why Cover It?
The reason for this is that there would be no biblical mitzvah to burn it over Yom Tov, and the burning would constitute a burning shelo l’tzorech for no Yom Tov need. Why is this so? Because, presumably, he had already recited the formula for the bitul, the negation of ownership of all chametz big and small, hidden or revealed that he may own. Since he had already recited this bitul formula, the mitzvah of burning the chametz does not set aside the laws of Yom Tov. (The Mishna Berurah rules according to the opinion of the Ran that burning it on Yom Tov would be biblically prohibited.)
When One Did Not Say the Bitul
There are two differing opinions, however, in a case where the person did not recite the bitul formula.
The Vilna Gaon rules that the halacha of the Shulchan Aruch applies across the board, and one may not destroy it or move it on Yom Tov.
Other poskim (Rashi, Rashba, SmaG and Ohr Zaruah), however, hold that when the bitul was not recited, one may flush it down the toilet, throw it in a river or scatter it in the wind.
So, which view do we follow? The Mishna Brurah states that the custom is like the first view; however, in a community where the custom is to flush it down the toilet through a gentile, then one should not negate a custom in Israel.
But Doesn’t the Goy Own It Now?
The Shulchan Aruch ruled that—aside from issues of Yom Tov—if found, the chametz should be burned even if one did recite the bitul. However, things may have changed since then—in light of how we sell the chametz in contemporary times. In our times, the forms in which we sell the chametz include all chametz that we own, known and unknown. What are the implications of this development? The chametz that we find, therefore, belongs to the gentile! If that is the case, is it then permitted to burn the gentile’s chametz?
Contemporary Poskim’s View
This issue has been addressed by contemporary poskim:
Rav Tzvi Pesach Frank, zt”l, held (Mikrai Kodesh, volume I, Pesach no. 74) to the position that the chametz should be placed in the goy’s section.
Rav Sternbuch and Rav Wosner, zt”l, (Shevet HaLevi, volume IX #116) both hold that it is permitted to burn it.
Rav Sternbuch bases his view on a Shach (Choshen Mishpat 358:1) that if one is completely sure that his friend would be amenable to it, one may consume fruits without the permission of the owner. In our case, since the one who finds the chametz is completely sure that the gentile would be amenable to the burning of the chametz that was found, and that he would not have to pay for the balance of it after Pesach, it would be permitted.
May One Touch the Chametz?
May one handle chametz that is to be burned or should it be kicked to the site that one will burn it in? The Shulchan Aruch rules (446:3) that if a gentile’s chametz blows onto the roof of a Jew, he should move it with a stick but not handle it with one’s hands. The reason is that when one handles things with their hands, it is likely that one might come to eat it.
The answer is that one may touch it. The Mishna Berurah 446:10 states that since one is burning it one may handle it by hand, if it is for a short period of time. It is a good idea, however, to say out loud that one is not acquiring the chametz. This is based on a responsa of the Rivash, cited in the Biur Halacha. Why is this so? Because a person’s hand acquires items for him, even if he does not have in mind that he is acquiring it.
Hopefully, however, most of us will have done a good job eliminating the chametz before Pesach has started, and there will be no need to be doing so on Pesach itself.
One last thought: When burning the chametz, make sure that it is not burnt too close to houses where the smoke can enter and cause people breathing issues.
By Rabbi Yair Hoffman
The author can be reached at yairhoffman2@gmail.com
The Reality not the phony videos!
WEEKLY PARSHA FROM THE DESTINY ARCHIVES
Tzav - Shabbat Hagadol 5777/2017
This year, as is true in most years of the Jewish calendar, the Torah reading of Tzav coincides with the Shabbat preceding Pesach – Shabbat Hagadol. Since on a deep level of understanding there are really no coincidences in Torah matters, the connection between Tzav and Shabbat Hagaol should be explored and explained.
The word “tzav” is one of a mandatory command. It does not present reasons or explanations and does not brook discussion or argument. It is representative of military discipline, of service to a higher purpose even if all of the participants in the project are not really aware of the workings of that higher purpose.
A necessary part of living in society is the mandatory obligations, which are part of everyone’s life. If it were not for these rules, mores and practices imposed upon us, life would become so chaotic as to be unlivable. It is the “tzav” part of life that allows all of the other more freedom-of-choice opportunities to be present in our lives. An ordered society demands that there be commands, not only recommendations or suggestions.
There is an understandable reflex built into our emotional system that resists and resents commands from others. Any parent of a three-year old can easily testify to the truth of this observation. Nevertheless, the young child must eventually respond to commands in order to grow, mature and become a successful human being. So, “tzav” plays a vital role.
Perhaps there are no two areas of Jewish life and law that are as complexly intertwined with mandatory commands and laws, as are Shabbat and Pesach. The concepts behind these holy days and their observances represent noble values – serenity, leisure, freedom and independence.
But noble ideas alone, without detailed instructions as to their realization, are useless in a practical sense. The sons who appear in the Torah and the Haggadah all ask the same question – “What relevance do these laws have in our time?”
Is it not sufficient that we honor the ideas that Shabbat and Pesach represent and then ignore all the mandatory commandments that accompany these days, their values and ideals. Without mandatory commandments no commemoratory day, no matter how well meaning and well planned will stand the test of time and changing circumstances. It is the “tzav” component of Shabbat and Pesach that make this Shabbat the Shabbat Hagadol – the great Shabbat that it is.
It is an historical fact that those movements and individuals that ignored or rejected mandatory observances associated with Shabbat or Pesach eventually slipped out of Jewish life and continuity entirely. Again, without “tzav” there can be no Shabbat Hagadol.
This is the basic issue that divides much of the Jewish world today. The avoidance of mandatory commandments, attractive and popular as this idea may initially appear, is a sure recipe for Jewish extinction. Shabbat Hagadol comes to remind us of this lesson.
Shabbat shalom and Chag kasher v’sameach
Rabbi Berel Wein
Shalom friends,
This Pesach, the Seder takes on new depth.
Just as the Israelites displayed azut d’kedushah by tying the Egyptian god (the lamb) to their bedposts, we are called to audit our own idols: the worship of political systems as saviors and the uncritical faith in science as objective truth. When protocols ignore trauma and institutions deform reality, it’s time to choose Divine providence over illusion.
At Second Avenue and 5th Street there remained a German landmark among the Jews. It was a Lutheran church, a brick building with an old-fashioned porch. One summer morning I saw a curious sight there. A crowd had gathered in front of the church, jeering and booing. There were venerable Jews among them with white beards. They were giggling like boys. What amused the crowd was something almost too metaphysical for words.
— Jews Without Money, Michael Gold, pp. 180
Bedpost Audacity
As the Jewish community prepares for the Passover Seder, the contemporary climate in Israel and the Diaspora remains characterized by profound geopolitical volatility and existential concern. Jews often find themselves situated between the immediate demands of national security protocols and the enduring faith in Hashem’s protection.
The Aleinu prayer, authored by Moshe Rabeinu, declares: “שֶׁהֵם מִשְׁתַּחֲוִים לָהֶֽבֶל וָרִיק וּמִתְפַּלְּ֒לִים אֶל אֵל לֹא יוֹשִֽׁיעַ” — “For they prostrate themselves to vanity and nothingness, and pray to a god that does not deliver.”
This timeless rejection of idolatry highlights the Jewish people’s greatest distinguishing characteristic: the inherent capacity to distinguish between reality and fantasy, substance and illusion, truth and falsehood. It is this clarity of vision that allows the soul to reject the allure of societal deception and focus on that which is real and true.
In this context, it is often difficult to distinguish between authentic Divine providence and the complex, frequently fallible frameworks constructed by human institutions.
In a seminal analysis of Parshat Bo, Rabbi Yitzchak Ginsburgh examines a singular prerequisite to the Exodus: the commandment for the Israelites to tie a lamb to their bedposts on the tenth of Nisan, maintaining it there for four days.
This was not merely a ritualistic act; rather, it constituted a profound challenge to the Egyptian hegemony, which deified the lamb. For the Israelites, this display of azut d’kedushah—holy audacity—served as a definitive declaration that the forces worshipped by the material world are fundamentally subordinate to the Creator.
Defining the Modern Idols
Rabbi Ginsburgh posits that ancient Egypt was anchored by two primary idols: the Nile and the Lamb. In the contemporary era, these archetypes have re-emerged in the forms of Politics and Science, respectively.
Achieving a comprehensive Geulah (Redemption) necessitates the fortitude to subject these modern constructs to rigorous scrutiny. As Rav Yitzchak explains: “If we contemplate simply on this concept of idolatry in all cultures and in all times, it appears that generally a nation chooses to worship what it considers the source of its power.”
Historically, the Nile represented Egypt’s economic vitality and political dominance. It symbolizes the externalized idolatry of the state. In our time, this has been replaced by the Jews’ belief in “democracy” as a substitute focus of faith, trust, adoration, excitement, anticipation, despair, and passion. We have allowed a political system to become the arbiter of our collective hope and the source of our deepest fears, effectively deifying a mechanism of state power. Rabbi Ginsburgh correlates this with the initial plague, which rendered the Nile unusable—a metaphysical deconstruction of the political body.
Conversely, the lamb—the Seh—represents a more refined, intellectualized form of idolatry: “Science.” This is the dogmatic belief that the scientific method provides a perfectly objective account of reality, often demanding an uncritical adherence that parallels ancient religious devotion.
Inside the Science Jungle
To “tie the lamb to the bedpost” requires an objective assessment of the scientific enterprise. In his 1967 critique, “The Science Jungle,” Paul Saltman challenged the idealized image of the researcher, describing a profession driven by institutional ego and status. He observed that when evidence failed to align with a favored hypothesis, researchers often felt compelled to “massage” data.
William Broad and Nicholas Wade further documented this in Betrayers of Truth, concluding that the conventional ideology of science as an objective, self-verifying system is a utopian myth. In reality, science is a human activity shaped by non-rational factors such as rhetoric, propaganda, and personal prejudice. The peer-review system acts as a “coarse screen” that fails routinely, and the “Self-Correction” myth of replication is rarely practiced in a world that rewards originality over confirmation.
Lysenkoism and Political Thalidomide
The corruption of the Lamb of science feeds directly into the corruption of the Nile of the state, most notably through the phenomenon of Lysenkoism. When the state compels its intellectual elite to validate a known falsehood to serve an ideological agenda, it is a demonstration of sovereign power—an assertion that the state possesses the authority to manufacture reality.
This is the archetype of “Political Thalidomide,” where policies are administered to the body politic that act as deforming agents, intentionally distorting reality for strategic ends. Whether it is the reckless disregard for human life in pharmaceutical profits or the managed chaos of security strategies, the resulting deformity is often the design. The Nile is effectively turned to blood when institutional profit and geopolitical control are prioritized over the preservation of social stability and individual life.
The Idol of Protocol
The Gemara in Masechet Avodah Zarah (55a) suggests that the Almighty may “smooth the path” (she-hechelikan) for those who prefer to be misled, allowing erroneous systems to appear efficacious as a test of faith (emunah). This is particularly relevant to contemporary security protocols.
When individuals adhere to rigid emergency measures—ignoring the demonstrable psychological trauma inflicted upon children in favor of a statistically remote safety benefit—they must question whether they are surrendering to an Idol of Protocol that offers a false sense of control.
Rav Yitzchak Koldetzki recently challenged such bureaucratic imperatives by advising parents to prioritize the psychological well-being of their children over certain remote risks. This approach advocates for statistical integrity—the recognition that authentic security is derived from Divine providence rather than the exhaustive adherence to a bureaucrat’s checklists.
The Three Souls of Redemption: Illustrations from the Front Lines
Rabbi Ginsburgh identifies three psychological archetypes encountered in the pursuit of national redemption. These are not merely abstract concepts; we encounter them daily in the intense discourse surrounding the current crisis in Israel.
The first is the Seh (the Lamb), representing the “innocent” souls. We see the Seh in those who ask, “Where can we find strength if the protocols fail?” They are currently being manipulated by the science jungle but remain ready for a deeper answer. In moments of crisis, they seek spiritual reality rather than technocratic solutions. Their reintegration requires only gentle encouragement and a reminder of their heritage.
The second archetype is the Shor (the Ox), representing the active, often aggressive resistance. We see the Shor vividly in the “mockers” who respond to any mention of Divine Providence with a barrage of accusations: “You are endangering lives with your ‘faith’,” and “Science is the only thing keeping us alive.”
Like an ox that “kicks and gores,” this demographic perceives emunah as an existential threat to their secular security fortress. They shout down the truth because they feel its power and it terrifies them. Confronting the Shor necessitates the “Boldness of Isaac”—a resolute, uncompromising commitment to spiritual truth that does not flinch in the face of their derision.
Finally, the Ez (the Goat) represents the most difficult archetype: icy, intellectual indifference. These are the gatekeepers of the Science Jungle who dismiss the existential necessity of teshuva (repentance) as “metaphysical nonsense” or even “balderdash.” They argue that the solution to societal deformity is not a spiritual return, but merely improved “situational awareness” within the existing materialist paradigm.
For the Ez, the spiritual dimension is fundamentally irrelevant because it cannot be quantified. They are the architects of the coarse screen who refuse to see that the dirty idol needs more than just a surface scrubbing; it needs to be dismantled entirely.
Rabbi Ginsburgh suggests that for the Ez, transformation requires a Divine “intervention”—historical events of such traumatic magnitude that they compel a reassessment of the materialist paradigm. Specifically, these are the missiles and rockets that are currently falling on Israel, and the misery they are causing, which will continue to prod the Ez until he relents and recognizes the Master of the World.
Choosing Reality Over Illusion
The historical imperative of the four days in Egypt remains clear: liberation from exile is predicated upon the rejection of the exile’s idols. It requires the courage to subject the contemporary gods of Politics and Science to a rigorous theological and ethical audit.
This Passover, it is necessary to relinquish the modern idolatry of bureaucratic compliance, the worship of “democracy” as a savior, and the broken machine of institutional science. True redemption requires a return to the spiritual and statistical integrity of the Torah.
By shifting our reliance from gods that do not deliver to the Master of the World, we may find that the path toward Geulah is already accessible.
May it be the Creator’s will that we witness the obsolescence of false ideologies and the restoration of a world healed from deliberate deformity, speedily in our days.
https://jewishhome.news/pesach-dismantling-the-idols-of-the-modern-age/
Doesn”t it say that Mashiach will NOT come erev Pesach!?
I don’t think this will be over until both China and Russia are stopped!
That must be the Gog uMagog.
Iran China Russia
Vs
Guest Post….must read myrtlerising 25/3/2026
Blatant Gaslighting
“Anyone else here getting totally fed up with constantly hearing:
"We're besting Hezbollah! We're creaming Hezbollah! We're pushing up the border to the Litani River!" (Halachically part of Eretz Yisrael according to the Torah, BTW. Religious soldiers take tremot and ma'asrot from the fruits and vegetables they eat there.)
“And all the while, missiles continue to arrive from Lebanon with destructive consequences.
“Recently, the media has reported Hezbollah is sending cluster missiles to Israel.”
[…]
And constantly hearing:
"We're besting Iran! We destroyed 80% of its missile launchers! We destroyed its navy! We destroyed its fighter jets! We destroyed its infrastructure! We assassinated nearly all their leaders!"
“All the while, missiles keep coming with increasing intensity (cluster missiles) and destruction.”
And much more at https://myrtlerising.weebly.com/blog/who-else-is-getting-really-fed-up-with-the-blatant-gaslighting
