Partners in Creation (and Infertility)

For those who struggle with infertility, the battle is one which is often waged in private, with very little support from family or friends, unless a choice is made to share the information. I don't think it is anyone's place to impose their advice or opinions (or to say such insensitive things like "So when are you guys going to have a baby?"), unless said advice or opinions are sought by those who struggle. While I certainly don't have answers beyond doing research, preparing the body with the proper nutrition and vitamins, and seeking out the best medical help possible, here is a religious approach that suggests there is more to what meets the eye than medical charts. 

Parshat Tazria

by Rabbi Avi Billet

 Last week I quoted the Midrash Aggadah on “Yom HaShmini” who raised the possibility that one of the interpretations of Kohelet 11:2 which speaks of seven becoming eight, is that of Rabbi Yehuda bar Simone who said that "Seven" refers to the days of the Niddah period. If the laws of Niddah are followed (7), the Midrash suggests in the name of God, a child will be born who will be circumcised on the 8th day.

 Sounds like a pretty good guarantee.

 In another passage in the Midrash Aggadah on our parsha, we are reminded of how there are three partners in the creation of a human being: the father, the mother and God. This notion comes from the Talmud (Kiddushin 30b, Niddah 31a), and many homiletical teachings emerge from it.

 But perhaps the most profound thought, certainly one that crosses the mind of God-fearing parents when their children are born, is how clearly one can understand that God is in this world when one observes a newborn.

 Of course the initial passage above is a nice thought. But there are plenty of people who observe these laws meticulously and still struggle with infertility (as well as those who don't follow them, who have no problems). If only such a guarantee came with a warranty.

 Alas, as everyone knows, it’s not always so simple.

 In his Toldot Yitzchak, Rabbi Yitzchak Caro utilized a Talmudic teaching to explain how an expectant parent must pray for the fertilization to take root in the first three days, from day 3 to day 40 pray for a male child, from day 40 to the end of the first trimester pray that it shouldn’t be a miscarriage, from 3 months to 6 months pray that it should not be a stillborn, from 6 months pray that it should be born in peace.

 If so, he concludes, it seems that the health of the child and success of the pregnancy is dependent on prayer much more than on nature.

 With regard to the praying for a “male” child – well, this passage is on the segment that says “When a woman conceives and gives birth to a male.” (For those who like “The Godfather,” think of the blessing Luca Brasi gave Don Corleone at the Godfather’s daughter’s wedding.) [Of course there are people who "want" to have a boy. There are also people who "want" to have a girl. Most people are happy to have a child and gender does not matter.]

 Otherwise, the passage speaks for itself about prayer’s role in all of this.

 When I was in his class, Rabbi Moshe Tendler would often tell us that there are so many possible genetic mutations that could take place in the development of a fetus, it is a miracle that anyone is born without some kind of problem. Baruch Hashem.

In our world of science and rationalism, we tend to aim to find explanations for why things go right, and even moreso for when things go wrong.

 But maybe, just maybe, we don’t have all the answers because some causes and cases go beyond the realm of the natural world. An unhealthy woman gives birth to a completely healthy and normal baby. A healthy woman can’t carry a baby to term. What’s wrong with this picture?

 I don’t have the answers. But the Toldot Yitzchak did offer a suggestion, which I believe is only highlighted due to Rabbi Tendler’s insight about genetics. There is a need for prayer that goes far beyond our understanding, and enters the realm of the cosmos in terms of where it sits, lies and waits, and then returns to influence the world.

 Are following the laws of Niddah and committing to prayer guarantees that a child will be born, and in good health? Of course not. But as the old Jewish joke goes: a performer in a live show has a heart attack and dies on stage. As the stage manager comes out to give mouth-to-mouth, a woman in the audience yells out “Give him an enema! Give him an enema!” She is told, “This man is dead. An enema won’t help.” “Well, it wouldn’t hurt!”

While the punchline of the joke, "It can't hurt" is more than likely true with respect to prayer and Niddah observance, the other side of it, "That maybe it can really help" is certainly not worth dropping at the wayside.

 Let those who are struggling to have that child find fulfillment in a more dedicated commitment to the laws of Niddah and to prayer. Especially praying for someone else who has similar needs . Who knows? Maybe sooner than later, prayers will be answered.

 Amen. May it only be so for all of us.

When Seven Turns Into Eight

For more on the "Eighth Day" - see here

Parshat Shmini

by Rabbi Avi Billet


This week and next week, the Torah portion begins with the phrase “Yom HaShmini” referring to an eighth day. In our parsha, the reference is to the eighth day of the “Miluim” – the time when the Tabernacle was dedicated in the wilderness.

Next week we will be reading of the process a woman goes through after giving birth, and how on the eighth day after a boy is born, he is to be circumcised. 

Is there a connection between these “eighth day”s?

The Midrash Aggadah makes the connection, quoting a verse in Kohelet (11:2), “Give a portion to seven and even to eight, for you do not know what evil will be on the earth” as a springboard to saying there are a number of things that are seven, which lead to number eight.

Moshe had a 7-day conversation with God at the burning bush before he was ready for his eighth day – to move on to be the deliverer from bondage. Rabbi Elazar (or Eliezer) said 7 refers to the days of a week, and 8 refers to Bris Milah. Rain fell in the times of Elijah the Prophet (after several years of drought), in the merit of these two mitzvot: Shabbos and Bris Milah.

Rabbi Yehoshua said 7 refers to the (Biblical) days of Pesach, while 8 refers to the eight days of Sukkot (which include Shmini Atzeret).

Rabbi Simone said 7 refers to the 7th day of the korbanot (offerings) of the N’siim (princes) in Bamidbar 7, and 8 refers to the 8th day of the same korbanot – the offerings brought by the princes of Ephraim and Menashe.

Rabbi Yehuda said 7 refers to niddah (proper observance of the laws of family purity), which can lead to the birth of a boy who is circumcised on his eighth day of life. 

Rabbi Azarya (also attributed to Rabbi Eliezer) said the verse refers to the 7 days of Miluim (dedication of the Tabernacle), and 8 refers to the Eighth day of our parsha.

 The Midrash Rabba adds to this list:

Rabbi Azarya said Moshe supervised over the Bris Milah of the 7th generation (Avraham, Yitzchak, Yaakov, Levi, Kehat, Amram, Moshe), while Yehoshua supervised the Bris Milah of the 8th generation as they entered the land of Canaan.

 Rabbi Levi said there are seven days of sukkot, and eight is Shmini Atzeret.

Rabbenu Bachaye notes the Midrash Mishlei which pointed to a number of Mitzvot in the Torah themed around the number 7: Shabbos, Shmittah (7 years), and Yovel (7 cycles of Shmittah). There are 7 days of Pesach, 7 days of Sukkos. The 4 Species actually have 7 items (1 lulav, 1 esrog, 2 aravos, 3 hadasim), there are 7 days of mourning, and 7 days of rejoicing (after a wedding) – all of this alludes to the 7 days of Creation. The reason Aharon was not consecrated as the High Priest during the 7 days of Miluim is because his role is designated to serve the One and Only God. The eighth day, which is seven plus One, serves as a “one up” on the seven, as it focuses on looking back at the 7 through the prism of serving the One.

The Mishkan highlights the number 8: the number of the High Priest’s garments, the number of spices in the anointing oil (4) and k’tores (4) - combined, the number of poles (2 each for ark, table, small and large mizbeachs), an animal can’t be brought as an offering until it is eight days old, the number of instruments/styles of music the Levites used when they sang songs (based on Tehillim 90, 53, 9, 5, 45, 8, 6).

Kli Yakar illustrates how all Moshe’s glorification of God came under the rubric of the word “Az” (alef zayin) (See Shmot 5:23, 15:1). The alef (1) rides on the zayin (7), to indicate God’s kingship over the seven planets (interestingly, he mentions seven planets in the 1600s, when planet #7 – Uranus was discovered in 1781 by Sir William Herschel, and Neptune wasn’t discovered until 1846!), and over the world created in 7 days. Eight, therefore, is a reference to Godlike qualities that go beyond the base of creation and of this world. This explains why an animal is not fit to be a sacrificial offering until it is at least eight days old.

The key to understanding the significance of 7 and 8, however, rests in the verse in Kohelet. In his explanation of the teaching that 7 refers to the days of the week and 8 refers to Bris Milah, the Torah Temimah suggests that our goal during the 7 days is to be preparing for what’s coming. Every day we prepare for Shabbos. After the birth of a boy, we are preparing for his bris celebration.

Shabbos and Milah share a commonality – the merits of both saved the Jewish people in the time of Elijah the Prophet. And the need for preparation in general serves as a reminder that a person should never put off preparing for the future when the opportunity to prepare presents itself. Who knows? Maybe such a chance to prepare will never be available again. This is the meaning of the second half of the verse in Kohelet. We have no crystal ball. We do not know what the future will bring.

Indeed, all of the holidays (including Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, which are included in the Kohelet verse in the word “v’gam” – and also), are considered to be days of judgment. Perhaps the verse is teaching us, the Torah Temimah concludes, that those who observe the laws of the holidays, and of Shabbos and Bris Milah, are protected from evil, and certainly from any judgment for gehinnom.

In the end, the Eighth Day of our parsha serves as a model for what the best kind of connection to God is, and how to serve Him. We are to do our best to prepare for the eighth day, and we are to highlight the eighth day as the day that demonstrates His power on earth, and what it means to tap into the holiness that goes above and beyond the base of the seven days of Creation.

The Eighth Day

This article appears in the Jewish Star

Parshat Emor

“A newborn ox, lamb or goat remains with its mother for seven days. Then, after the eighth day, it shall be acceptable as sacrifice for a fire offering to G-d.” (Vayikra 22:27) A similar verse in Shmot 22:29 says that “on the eighth day, you shall give it to me.”

The difference is that the Shmot passage refers to setting the animal aside for G-d, while our verse refers to the actual offering of the animal. (Chizkuni)

What is the significance of the eighth day that changes the baby animal from being unacceptable to being acceptable to G-d?

Ibn Ezra compares the animal’s eighth day of life (the day of “m’ruba,” when a quarter-month has passed) to that of a human baby – just as the baby may now be circumcised so may an animal be brought as an offering.

In a lengthy exposition of this verse, Targum Yonatan explains the significance of the quarter-month in that a seven day waiting period proves the animal’s viability as it assures us the animal is not a “nefel” – the halakhic category of a stillborn, which would obviously be unfit to be a korban. (Rabbi Shimon Ben Gamliel – Shabbat 135b. For a human, the “nefel” status is removed at thirty days.)

As a mohel, one Torah thought I hear a lot at brisses is that the eighth day is “l’maalah min hateva” – above nature, or supernatural. Through circumcision, we elevate ourselves and our bodies to G-d, by removing something natural to help attain a spiritual level previously unreachable.

But some of the commentaries have different thoughts on the subject.

Chizkuni notes how a Zav, metzora and one who comes in contact with a corpse come out of their tumah (spiritual impurity) on the eighth day – the day after a seven-day waiting period.

Baal Haturim examines how each day of beginning of the animal’s life parallels the days of creation. One who sacrifices an animal on its first day will be viewed as sacrificing to the heavens and earth (created on the first day), on the fourth day as if to the luminaries, etc. The animal must experience its seventh day (parallel to Shabbos) for the one sacrificing it to remember that G-d created the world, and that it is to Him that we are sacrificing on the eighth day.

Whether outside of nature, a new life post-removal from the camp, or a reminder that, first and foremost, G-d created the world in seven days, we can begin to understand how the animal’s status is changed on day eight when it is finally worthy to be a korban – an offering that helps a person come closer to G-d.

In the first mishnah of Avot 4, ben Zoma reminds us of the verse in Tehillim 119:99 which says “Mikol m’lamdai hiskalti.” We can learn from any one who teaches us and should accept the truth from whatever source it may come.

In Thornton Wilder’s novel “The Eighth Day,” a character describes his generation at the turning of the 20th century as the Eighth Day. “Man is not an end, but a beginning. We are at the beginning of the second week. We are children of the eighth day.” In other words, the eighth day represents progress. It is when G-d’s initial input into the world is set, and humans take a stab at what their G-d-given gifts can create, what they can invent, what they can put together to foment advancement in civilization.

We can look at all that is natural and supernatural in the world, and it is very easy for us to fall back on it all and say, “It’s all G-d. It’s always been G-d. It will always be G-d. There is nothing else.”

But we are on this earth for a purpose, and our first job is to discover that purpose. If G-d created the world in six days and rested on the seventh, we are meant to emulate Him through our own creativity for six days, as we too rest on the seventh. But the progress of human development and creativity begins on the eighth day. It is the day when we take action, when we perfect the world under G-d through the actions we take to get closer to him.

When we circumcise our sons, when we take the animal that is now over a week old, we take action and turn a being that has not yet accomplished much to a point of spiritual fullness that could not have been accomplished without our input. This is the turning point of the eighth day, a day of action and a day that looks toward a brighter tomorrow.