TISHREI 5770,arh ,aWg

C e r t i f i e d S o u l N u t r i t i o n

Dear Reader,

The concept of kashrus is not justapplicable to food. As a matterof fact, the only time the word

kosher is mentioned in Tanach is inMegillas Esther when Esther speaks toAchashverosh and says, “V’kasher ha-davor l’fnay hamelech.”

We all know that a sukkah andschach need to be kosher, and an esrog,lulav, Sefer Torah, and mikveh need tobe kosher as well. Even music can fallunder the category of kosher or non-kosher. The music of the Yomim Noroim is the pinnacle of kosher music.

Kosher music is close to my heart since I have been writing music andhave been a Baal Tefillah for the Yomim Noroim for over 20 years, daveningin shuls across the world, from Arizona to Brazil and many places in be-tween. It is interesting to note that quite a few of the rabbonim at ~ head-quarters are Baalei Tefillah and chazzanim as well!

In a way, the kosher requirements for food and Shluchei Tzibbur arequite similar. At first glance, all a chazzan needs is a good voice; however,the Shulchan Oruch says that a Shliach Tzibbur needs to have many quali-fications. It has been told that the Maharsha once applied to be a chazzanin order to earn a parnossah, but he was not chosen for the job. He won-dered why he did not get the job – after all, he had 9 of the 10 require-ments for a chazzan. He only lacked a good voice! Giving koshercertification to food can be quite complicated as well. Much work goeson behind the scenes with many safeguards and protocols to certify evena seemingly simple product. Learn more about kosher music with CantorSherwood Goffin’s fascinating article about the origins of the most koshermusic of all, the music of the Nusach HaTefillah.

While you are enjoying the first few days of your sweet new year, getanother taste of sweetness when you read Rabbi Yitzchak Gornish’s ar-ticle on the secrets of certifying sweeteners, from the original sweetener,honey to modern day artificial sweeteners.

A great Yankee baseball legend once said, “The way a team plays as awhole determines its success. You may have the greatest bunch of indi-vidual stars in the world, but if they don’t play together, the club won’tbe worth a dime.” A kosher certifying agency has to work as a team andshare their knowledge and experience with each other. Read how the ~has stepped up to the plate in the new Yankee Stadium…and what agrand slam! Get the latest stats and find out what it took to set up andmaintain a fresh, hot kosher menu at the new Yankee ballpark.

Finally, looking your best on Shabbos and Yom Tov isn’t always easy.Find out about the intricacies and halachic issues with “Shabbos makeup”with an in depth look by Rabbi Don Yoel Levy.

Wishing you and your family a K’sivah v’chasimah tovah, l’shanah tovahu’mesukah. Best wishes for a happy, healthy and KOSHER, sweet newyear!

Rabbi Chaim Fogelman

Editor-in-Chief

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF:

Rabbi Chaim FogelmanEDITOR:

Dovi ScheinerASSOCIATE EDITOR:

Dina Fraenkel DESIGN:

www.SpotlightDesign.com

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SHARE YOUR SPIRIT

QUESTIONS FOR THE ~

KOSHER MUSICTHE MUSIC OF THE YOMIM NOROIMBy Cantor Sherwood Goffin

YANKEES & THE ~SCORE A GRAND SLAM

HALACHIC ISSUES OFMAKEUP ON SHABBOS & YOM TOVBy Rabbi Don Yoel Levy

HOW SWEET IT IS By Rabbi Yitzchak Gornish

HEALTHY SPIRIT

TO SLEEP OR NOT TO SLEEP

RECIPE

WHO’S BEHIND THE ~INTERVIEWWith Rabbi Yitzchak Hanoka

CHASSIDIC INSIGHTS: BECOME ONE WITHHASHEMCompiled by Dina Fraenkel

SOUL NUTRITION

FEATURED WRITER: Cantor Sherwood Goffin

Cantor Sherwood Goffin, authorof the article “Kosher Music,” hasserved as chazzan at the LincolnSquare Synagogue in Manhattansince 1965. He has recorded 7 al-bums and has appeared in con-

cert all over the world. He is also a faculty memberof the Belz School of Jewish Music at Yeshiva Uni-versity, where he teaches courses in Jewish liturgyand folk music.

www.OK.org • 3

Share Your Spirit

F E E D B A C K

We welcome your comments, submissions and letters to the editor.

MAIL: 391 Troy AvenueBrooklyn, NY 11213

E-MAIL: editor@kosherspirit.com

Readers share their thoughtsabout the last issue...

Dear Kosher Spirit,

We were also helped by BoneiOlam and Boruch Hashem we have

them to thank for our beautiful son, butthere is also an organization that giveschizuk and support to infertile couples —ATIME — A Torah Infertility Mediumof Exchange. Without them, we wouldhave never survived 11 years of infertil-ity, 10 IVF’s, and a 26-week pregnancyloss before the birth of our son in March2007. Please give credit where credit isdue, they are both amazing and neededorganizations in the frum community!

Sharon Sommer

Kosher Spirit responds:We would be remiss if we did not ac-knowledge the incredible work of ATIME.The organization is truly a blessing forthose struggling with infertility. You canreach ATIME through their website:www.atime.org.

Dear Kosher Spirit,

I had the privilege of reading the Pe-sach issue of the Kosher Spirit; thanks

for sending it to us. I very much enjoyed perusing through

the pages. I must acknowledge thoughthat the most beautiful, eloquent, richand insightful article/page is by far theEditor’s Letter/Editorial. I read it a fewtimes and it just wouldn’t get boring.

Shulem Klein

Dear Kosher Spirit,

On page 3 of Kosher Spirit, ina comment to a letter, it

states that there is no issur bosorbecholov on treif meat. This is amistake. There is definitely anissur bishul bosor becholov on treifbeef [a machlokes if there is issurhanoho]. Only on non-kosher an-imals (eg. pork or rabbit) there isno isur bishul bosor becholov.

Sincerely,HaRav Usher Anshel Eckstein

Belzer Dayan & Rav HaMachshir

Dear Kosher Spirit,

I enjoy your magazine, pleasekeep up the good work. On

the bottom right of page 3 ofyour Spring 2009 issue theKosher Spirit writes that “the pro-hibition of basar b’cholov only ap-plies to kosher meat and koshermilk, so the prohibition is not aproblem for a Jewish student ina non-kosher culinary school.”

While the statement is true,why do you assume that theseculinary schools do not usekosher animals? If you mean tosay that they are not using basarkosher, that is correct, they prob-ably are using neveilah. Never-

theless according to most poskimthe issur of hanoho still applies toneveilah. The Dagul Mervava ismeikal but that is only wherethere is a monetary loss. TheChasam Sofer was even reluc-tant to reply on this even incases of monetary loss. I think astudent toying with such a mix-ture is surely considered to begetting hanoho from it.

All this is spelled out in PischeTeshuva YD 87:6.

Thank you,Shimshee Rosenberg

Kosher Spirit Responds:In the last issue of Kosher Spirit[pg. 3] it was implied that it ispermissible to cook milk andnon-kosher meat together. This isincorrect. It is only permissible tocook milk together with a non-kosher species (e.g. a pig orhorse); however it is forbidden tocook non-kosher meat from akosher species (e.g. meat from acow that was not properlyslaughtered) together with milk.According to most opinions, it isforbidden to derive any benefit(hanoho) from such a mixture aswell. We apologize for theconfusion.

The ~ receives manyletters/emails with kosherquestions...

Dear ~, Is it permissible to have an alcoholicdrink from a clean glass at a bar/lounge?Rabbi Hanoka responds:

F irst, we have to look at the question froma halachic perspective. Is cold liquid in anon-kosher vessel permissible? The

simple answer is that one is allowed to use aclean non-kosher vessel for cold liquids on atemporary basis, as long as one does not havethe liquid sitting in the vessel for 24 hours (thetime it takes for kovush – pickling). Halacharequires all non-kosher vessels to be cleanedbefore use. One can rely on the fact that areputable establishment keeps all items clean tocomply with health regulations.

To explain further, regular liquids have a 24-hourtime period before kovush and absorbing fromthe vessel in which it is contained. Sharp liquids,like alcohol, would absorb in a shorter period oftime (18 minutes). This is only true if the majorityof liquid is alcohol, but most alcohols are notconsidered sharp liquids, because they wouldhave to be over 100-proof (more than 50%alcohol).

The average alcohol contains a substantialamount of water and is not pure alcohol. Inaddition, many mixed drinks, such as BloodyMary, Screwdriver, etc. are even further diluted.With mixed drinks, it is imperative to make surethat each ingredient is kosher certified.

When drinking a shot, most people drink it rightaway, within 18 minutes and in most cases, theshot is not strong enough to absorb in 18 minutesanyway. In a case where someone is drinking a“sharp” alcohol, like Zeks Un Ninetziger, it isproper to make sure to drink it in less than 18minutes. Some Sefardim hold of the Beis Yosef’s

opinion that glass does not absorb at all and arelenient, but the minhag of Ashkenazim is to bemachmir.

A slice of lemon or lime (commonly added todrinks) is a sharp food cut with a non-kosher knifeand is not permissible.

There is also a din of not drinking with goyim atnon-Jewish parties (like an office holiday party).This response was written forsituations when one is socializingin a Torah-permissible manner(i.e. Shidduchim, etc.). Forquestions regarding a non-Jewish party, please ask yourlocal Orthodox rabbi. ~

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For information about drinking coffee in a bar or restaurant,please see the Tishrei 5768 issue of Kosher Spirit.

www.OK.org • 5

t is amazing to me that I am writingfor a publication produced by ~

Kosher Certification, where RabbiBerel Levy (ob”m) took the helm over40 years ago. In a way, I would not becapable today of such a task were itnot for Rabbi Levy! Let me explain.

In 1943, in New Haven, Connecticut, ayoung Rabbi Berel Levy became founding prin-cipal of the fledgling New Haven Yeshiva AcheiTmimim Lubavitch—The New Haven HebrewDay School. In those days it was almost un-heard of to find an elementary Yeshiva DaySchool outside of a metropolitan area. Yet, in1945, when the time came for my parents toenroll me in kindergarten at the precocious ageof “not yet” four years old, the school alreadyexisted and it was recommended that I shouldbe placed in Rabbi Levy’s school! Soon there-after, Rabbi Levy left for greener pastures, andthe new headmaster was Rabbi Moshe Hecht(ob”m) who had me tested at Yale’s Gesell In-stitute of Child Development before allowing

me to enter first grade in 1946 at the age of fouryears, eleven months and 18 days! Little didanyone imagine then that, someday, I would bewriting an article for Kosher Spirit, the magazineof ~ Kosher Certification, where Rabbi Levytook the helm sometime after he left NewHaven! As the saying goes: “What goes aroundcomes around.” Were it not for that smallYeshiva Day School, I would probably not bean observant Jew today—certainly not thechazzan of 44 years at Lincoln Square Syna-gogue in New York, one of the most prestigiousshuls in America; a formerly well-known He-brew folksong concert and recording artist;and, now a faculty member of the Belz Schoolof Jewish Music at Yeshiva University. ButRabbi Berel Levy did agree to start such aschool, and here I am today!

It is with a sense of hakaras hatov that I pres-ent the following analysis of the music of theYomim Noroim. I hope you will find it enlight-ening, and that Rabbi Levy (ob”m) from hisheavenly abode, will “shep” a little “nachas.”

KosherMusic

By Cantor Sherwood GoffinFaculty, Belz School of Jewish Music

RIETS, Yeshiva UniversityCantor, Lincoln Square Synagogue,

New York City (1965-Present)

IForeword

The Music of the Yomim Noroim

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The Music of theYomim NoroimThe liturgical music, or Nusach HaTe-fillah, of the Yomim Noroim is the mostprofound of the entire year and con-

tains some of the oldest musical ele-ments in our tradition. It requires an expert

Baal Tefillah who intimately knows the sancti-fied melodies of these tefillos, and it is thereforecompletely inappropriate for any synagogue tochoose a chazzan who is improperly trained inthe intricacies of the musical nusach. Needlessto say, this pertains all year-around, for everytefillah. However, the lack of competency in aShliach Tzibbur is more acutely felt on the Daysof Awe in every shul and shtible in every cornerof the world, and is emphasized in the wordsof our gedolim throughout the millennia.

It is the intent of this article to give the av-erage rabbi/layman a “crash course” in theguidelines concerning this relatively unchange-able and halachically mandated field of musicalexpertise. While it is impossible to illustratethe actual music of the tefillos in a written arti-cle, I will try to describe to you the musical his-tory and halachic guidelines for the sacredmusical themes that have been heard in shulsin every corner of the Ashkenazi world for thelast millennium. (Audio clips will be availablethrough the Kosher Spirit website,www.kosherspirit.com.)

The MaharilTo put this topic into the proper perspective,

it is necessary to open to the Shulchan Oruch,619, and the glosses of the Rama at that point.As he does in almost every area of HilchosTefillah, the Rama here paraphrases a quotefrom the Maharil: “V’al yishaneh odom miminhaghoir, afilu b’niggunim….” “One may notchange the custom of a community, even as toits customary prayer-melodies (Nusach HaTe-fillah).”

The Maharil, Rabbi Yaakov HaLevi Möllin,(b. Mainz, 1356(?), d. Worms, 1427), the firstto bear the title of “Moreinu,” was the ChiefRabbi of the Rhineland during the years afterthe Nine Crusades (1096-1272), and in themidst of the terrible period of the plague of theBlack Death which began in the 1340’s. As aresult of these two catastrophic events, Jewsfrom all over Europe fled to the cities of theRhineland to join their fellow co-religionists inthe largest Jewish cities in Europe for protec-tion and consolation. These cities were Speyer,Worms and Mainz, known as the “Irei Shum,”where the tradition of Rabbi Meir of Rothen-berg over one-hundred years prior still res-onated, and whom the Maharil followed as hisspiritual guide.

Rabbi Adin Steinzaltz writes that, “…alsobeing one of the great prayer leaders of histime, he (the Maharil) traveled from one com-munity to another, reestablishing the tradi-tional prayer melodies. By virtue of his greatauthority, the Maharil succeeded in laying thefoundations for the prayer rite accepted by allAshkenazi communities….”

The Maharil also served as a chazzan, whichwas often the custom of rabbinical leaderssince the time of Rabbi Yehuda Gaon of theYeshiva of Sura in the 8th century. The Maharilwas distressed by the incursion of many “for-eign” melodies into the musical liturgy of thesynagogues of his time. Over a period of manyyears he carefully interviewed immigrantBaalei Tefillah from all over Europe to deter-mine which time-honored melodies were theauthentic tradition, and discarded those thatwere incompatible with the consensus. Hethen sanctified those melodies that he deter-mined were authentic with the title “MiSinai,”to emphasize their ancient and immutablequality.1 In his Sefer HaMaharil, compiled byhis student Eliezer Ben Yaakov,2 he declares

T

categorically the rule that one may not change the traditionalmelodies (nusach) of a community. Let me say at this pointthat many poskim have opined that this declaration appliesall through the calendar year. For this article, we will confineourselves to the High Holidays.

The “MiSinai” MelodiesThere are approximately fifty-two known

“MiSinai”melodies (perhaps as many as over one hundred)that can be identified. Many are “motifs”, musical phrases,which are repeated in different texts, but almost all of whichare traceable to the time of the Maharil or the Maharam ofRothenberg before him. They were often referred to by thepast generations of Baalei Tefillah as “Scarbova”, from theSlavic word “skarb”, which means “(from the) treasure”, “of-ficial”, or a corruption of the word “sacra”, “sacred”. Most ofthese melodies are for the Yomim Noroim and some are sanc-tified in the tefillos of the rest of the year. Until the early eigh-teenth century this was an exclusively oral tradition becausechazzanim were not trained in the art of transcribing music,with rare exceptions (such as Solomon Rossi, 1587-1628 CE,who wrote his music in the tradition of the Sfardim). Thesemelodies were a closely guarded treasure, and each BaalTefillah carefully handed down the tradition he had learnedfrom generation to generation with relative accuracy. Whilehaving been gathered originally in Ashkenaz (Germany), asthe population moved eastward because of persecution andpogroms these melodies were transmitted to the East Euro-pean community and essentially became the hallmark of thetefillah of the entire European Jewish community. This in-cludes the musical style of every paragraph of the tefillos inthe machzor and siddur for the entire cycle of the year.

As American Jews, we are the inheritors of the East Euro-pean minhag and we are therefore required to follow that tra-dition in our davening. This is our “Minhag HaMakom.” Wemust insist that our Baalei Tefilla be well-versed in the MiSi-nai melodies that nurtured the souls of our father’s genera-tion, our grandfather’s generation and the generations beforethem. No one has the right to discard even one of these sa-cred melodies of our tefillah.

This applies to our Shabbos and Yom Tov tefillos as well, al-though most of these tefillos only have rules for the musicalstyle, or mode of each paragraph (major, minor, phreigish,etc.), rather than an actual melody. This also allows talentedchazzanim to insert congregational melodies that fit into thegiven mode, but additions that should only be done withcareful forethought. There are various tefillos outside of theYomim Noroim that have fixed melodies, primarily for theKaddishim and for some major tefillos, such as Tal, Geshem,etc. This also includes the “concluding phrases” of many ofthe tefillos. The requirement to keep the traditional nusach ap-plies throughout the year, for every prayer, at every service!3

Yomim Noroim• Hamelech—Its melody was first set by

Rabbi Meir of Rothenberg (1215-1293) andfinalized by the Maharil.

• Avos—Melody also established by R’ Meir.Contains many “MiSinai” elements and motifs.

• Mussaf Kaddish—Originally similar toTal/Geshem. By the time of the Maharil itbecame gradually differentiated to provide aspecialized musical theme for each service.

• V’Hakohanim—Intended to replicate theservice in the Holy Temple. This musicaltheme is heard again in the Mussaf Kedusha(Kvodo, etc.) and in various other settings.

• Motifs such as “Hashem Melech”, similarto the Neilah theme, and “S’lach lanu,” alsoheard at ”Sh’vikin Sh’visin,” and elsewhere.

• Ochilo LoKeil Theme—also heard in“Asisi”, “Yoreisi,” “Eimecho Nososi,” and else-where.

• Piyyutim such as Aapid, Eder Vohod, Esa Dei.

• Ancient texts such as Ato Hu Elokeinu andL’Keil Orech Din.

• Yotzros and the Avodah of Yomim Noroim.

• Selichos; V’nislach; Vidui, and many others.

Shabbos & Festivals• Festival Themes

• Mussaf Kaddish for the entire yearly cycle,such as the Kaddish before Shabbos Mussaf.

• Bor’chu themes

• Kedusha modes

Sampling of other

MiSinaiMelodies

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Hear samples of the musicdiscussed in this article online at:www.KosherSpirit.org

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The Yomim NoroimMa’ariv, Bor’chu

It is Ma’ariv, the first night of RoshHashana. The chazzan begins to singthe familiar, beloved melody of theYomim Noroim Bor’chu: “Ah...♪…♫...♪…♪...♪…….” The melody per-meates the atmosphere of the shuland uplifts the hearts of all present.Where did this melody come from,and how old is it? How many gen-erations of Jews began their NewYear with this profound introductionto the liturgy of the High Holidays?There are few melodies like this,that by simply hearing them, the lis-tener attains the palpable, visceralrecognition that we are no longer inthe mundane cycle of our weekday,but that we have now entered thelofty heights of the holiest days ofthe year – the beginning of the“Days of Awe” – immersing us in anaura of holiness and sacred prayer.

Charlemagne andThe Source of TheMelody

It may shock you to know thatthis majestic, magnificent melodymay possibly stem from a non-Jew-ish source! We do know for certainthat it is more than eleven centuriesold, having first appeared in the 8th

and 9th century in the Europe of Em-peror Charlemagne (742-814). Heimported the rabbinic leaders of Italyand Babylon, R. Kalonymos and R.Machir who composed prayers andset melodies to them based on theirancient traditions that eventuallywere sanctified by the Maharil.4 Oneof these sanctified melodies is that ofthe Ma’ariv Yomim Noroim Bor’chu,whose origin is a question of, “Whatcame first, the chicken or the egg?”

There is, consequently, the dis-tinct possibility that melodies such

as the Ma’ariv Yomim Noroim Bor’chumay truly have come from the Jew-ish community. Even though its ear-liest written source is a book ofnon-Jewish songs, that was only be-cause until the 18th century, Jewsgenerally did not know how to tran-scribe music. Therefore, when thismajestic, sacred melody of the HighHolidays is sung in shul, you can singalong with confidence that not onlyhas it been sanctified by Jewish tra-dition, but that it is very possibly anauthentic, ancient Jewish melodythat is well over 1200 years old!

The Kol NidreThe Music of the Kol Nidre, the

last of the “MiSinai” melodies, is oneof the most profoundly emotionalmelodies of our entire liturgy. Noother synagogue prayer has such animpact on the listener — arousing,uplifting, and inspiring passions thatwell up from the innermost depthsof emotion for the entire congrega-tion. What makes this prayer so im-portant to the average congregant,who is drawn to the synagogue (ontime!) with anticipation, trepidation,and awe?

The melody as heard today in theAshkenazi synagogue did not exist inits present form until the middle ofthe 15th or 16th century. (SephardiJews recite it to a completely differ-ent tune!). It is the very last “MiSi-nai” melody incorporated into thelist of the sacred Niggunei Maharil,even though it was finalized manyyears after the period of the Maharil.We do know that the singing of this“declaration” was instituted byRabbi Yehuda Gaon in the 8th Cen-tury, to be sung to a (non-specific)melody by his chazzan in the acad-emy of Sura, Babylonia. Accordingto the 11th Century Machzor Vitry ofSimcha ben-Shmuel, it was to bechanted three times: first, in a lowand soft voice, then gradually in-creasing with each repetition to fullvoice. This represents the entrance

of a subject into the King’s palacewith trepidation and his eventualstanding before his King with confi-dence. In the Sefer Maharil, the Ma-haril is described as singing the textwith “various tunes” over and overagain until nightfall: “yaarich bo b’nig-gunim,” indicative of the fact that nofully set tune was as yet establishedin the Maharil’s time. The first men-tion of an established melody for KolNidre is found in the Levush of RabbiMordechai Jaffe of Prague (1530-1612), who writes of “a widely ac-cepted tune” known to thechazzanim of his time. The earliestnotation of this melody is from1765, written down by CantorAaron Beer of Berlin (1738-1821).

The ComponentParts of Kol Nidre

Upon analysis it appears to havebeen formulated from an amalgamof other MiSinai niggunim and TaameiHaMikra (Trope) of the Torah andHaftarah. It is clear that the Jews ofFrance and the Rhineland in the 15th

century adapted the concludingphrase of the “Great” Aleinu (seebelow) for the Kol Nidre, (as well asfor the first paragraph of the YomimNoroim Avos). This phrase has a tri-umphant character, which is appro-priate for “Haboh Aleinu L’Tova,”“May it come upon us for good,” andfor use as a typical end of sentencemotif.

The opening musical phrase ofthe Kol Nidre was likely taken fromthe HaMelech of Shacharis – one ofthe great MiSinai/Scarbova melodiesdiscussed above. It can also be heardin the melody of the opening phraseof the Kaddish before Mussaf of theYomim Noroim. Professor Abraham Z.Idelsohn has written that it was achazzan in 15th/16th century South-west Germany who “voiced the sen-timents of the terror-strickenMarranos, as they recited the KolNidre in a touching tune which ex-presses the fear, terror, fervent plead-

A selection of some ofthe “MiSinai” Nigunimof the Yomim Noroim:

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ing and stern hope for ultimate salva-tion.” Throughout the world, theprofound melody of this lofty prayeris recognized as one of Judaism’smost signature contributions to songand prayer.

As we are about to endure the fastof Yom Kippur, the average Jew isacutely aware that his prayers maywell have an impact on the comingyear in pleas for health, prosperity,peace and tranquility. It is with trep-idation and a prayerful hope for thefuture that the Jew is drawn to thissolemn melodic declaration at theonset of the holiest day of the year.

The “Great” AleinuHistory

The text of Aleinu was originallycomposed for Mussaf of YomimNoroim in the third century C.E., inBabylonia. The hauntingly powerfulmusical setting of the text was al-ready known during the years of thethird Crusade (1187-1192 C.E.) ledby King Richard the Lionheart, hav-ing developed in the centuries priorto that. During the period of the NineCrusades (1096-1272 C.E.), many ofthe communities of the Rhinelandwere attacked by the maraudingChristian army and forced to convertto Christianity. Those Jews who re-fused were murdered or burned atthe stake. In Emek Habacha of YosefHaKohen (1496-1528) he quotes aletter to the tosafist and last of the

Geonim, Rabbi Jacob of Orleans(d.9/3/1189), wherein an eyewitnessdescribes such an event in the townof Blois, France in 1171 C.E. At amass execution at the stake of manyof the Jewish townspeople, theChristian knights listened in awe asthe dying martyrs sang a “mysterioussong.” When asked, the remainingJews told them that this was thesong of their “Aleinu”. The knight ex-ecutors and their French collabora-tors were so impressed, that theyincorporated this melody into theFrench Church Mass, which can beheard to this very day. This disturb-ing historical fact verifies the ancient-ness of this melody.

The “electric” power of this sanc-tified melody, one of the oldest ofour “MiSinai” tunes, introduces andprepares the listener for the most im-portant and sublime prayer of theAmidah, the central paragraphs of theKedushas Hayom section. Its impact isso great that this theme is heardagain and again throughout theYomim Noroim in tefillos such as theKol Nidre, the first section of the rep-etition of the Amida (Avos and Ge-

vuros), and elsewhere throughout theMachzor. The sublime magnetism ofthis ancient tefillah stands in starkcontrast to the simplistic openingand closing phrases of the contempo-rary tune for Aleinu sung in our shulsevery Shabbos. No example better il-lustrates the chasm separating our“MiSinai” tradition from the corpusof mundane melodies chosen by toomany in today’s congregations.

There are few melodies anywherein the world that can compare withthe lofty serenity and holiness ofthese sanctified, time-honored“MiSinai” themes. The soul of theJew responds to them, and themelodies, in turn, enter the hearts oftheir listeners and have a profoundeffect upon them. It is that very im-pact that the Maharil recognized andendeavored so mightily to preserve,so that each year and throughout theyear the Jew could be brought closerto the ideal of Teshuvah, Tefillah andTzedakah, the formula that can over-turn the negative decree and grant usall a good and blessed New Year.V’chein Y’hi Ratson! ~

1. This appellation (“MiSinai”)was first coined by Rabbi YehudaHaChassid (1150-1217), a descen-dent of the illustrious Kalony-mous family, in his SeferHachassidim.

2. Also known as Zalman of St.Goar.

3. In the writings of the halachicauthorities of past centuries, weoften see references to the impor-tance of davening within the tradi-tional guidelines. One example isfrom the Mateh Ephraim of therenown Rabbi Ephraim Margo-lioth of Brody, Ukraine (1760-1828) who writes, “...and if he(the chazzan) thinks that his ownmelodies are more pleasant than

the traditional melodies, he willbe punished by Heaven for this!”There is no question that our rab-binical leaders were concernedabout maintaining the hallowedmusical tradition of our davening.It was unthinkable that anyonewould want to change thesemelodies, and as an absolute, im-mutable, irrevocable rule oftefillah, it was considered unnec-essary to discuss! It was, there-fore, rarely voiced as a concern inmost of the halachic works of themillennia.

4. Desirous of fostering commercewith the nations of the MiddleEast, and convinced that the Jewswould be the conduit to Middle

East commerce with Babylonia,Persia, Egypt, Turkey, etc., he de-cided to encourage the growth ofthe miniscule Jewish populationin the Rhineland bordering Franceand Germany. In order to attractJewish settlement, Charlemagneimported world-renown rabbinicleaders and their families whom,he correctly surmised, would at-tract Jews who would move tothis new community. He firstchose the Kalonymos family ofItaly, led by the foremost ItalianRabbinic scholar Rabbi Kalony-mos and his son Meshullam, aswell as Rabbi Machir of Babylon.He settled the Kalonymos familyin Mainz, Germany, and theMachirs in Narbonne, Southern

France. Each brought with themnumerous Talmudists, poets andtheologians in their wake. Theirleadership elevated and preservedthe Rhineland Kehillah, whichgradually became the largest inthe early medieval Europe, andestablished its customs. These ori-ental rabbis were also chazzanimand poets (paytanim), composingpoems and melodies based on theancient traditions they hadbrought with them. As we men-tioned before, many of thesemelodies were preserved as our“MiSinai” melodies (primarily ofthe High Holidays and festivals)guided by the dictum of the Ma-haril, and formed the basis of ourMinhag Ashkenaz to this day.

Fo

otn

ote

s

KS: Tell us about how the ~ set upthe Yankee Stadium kosher foodprogram.

RNM: It was a challenge to prop-erly set up the kosher program atYankee Stadium, though we were in-volved even before construction ofthe new stadium was complete andwere advising the Yankees food serv-ice division on how best to design anefficient, designated kosher kitchen.There is also a lot of non-kosher foodserved at the stadium and the Yan-kees have a rigid protocol of howthings are to be done, including how

food is served, stored, ordered, pre-sented, etc. To ensure that kosherfood and equipment would be com-pletely segregated, a lot of work andthought went into how to best seteverything up and how to complywith Yankee protocol — which actu-ally enhanced the kosher program!

KS: That sounds like a lot of work.How many mashgichim does the ~have at a typical Yankee game?

RNM: We have six or sevenmashgichim per game, plus one run-ner. A mashgiach has to be at eachconcession stand at all times, along

with at least one other food serviceworker. The runner fills in for anymashgiach that has to step away fromhis post for a minute.

KS: So you really have your basescovered (no pun intended ofcourse)! How is all the kosher foodprepared and delivered to the con-cession stands?

RNM: There are four concessionstands, plus the private and exclusiveLegends section. All of the food forthe concession stands is prepared be-fore the game and brought in sealed

Interview with Rabbi Naftali Marrus, Rabbinic Coordinator – Restaurants & Catering

Rabbi Chaim Fogelman sat down with Rabbi Naftali Marrus, who managed tosqueeze in some time for Kosher Spirit despite his very busy schedule of visitingrestaurants & catering establishments in the tri-state area and beyond.

10 • www.OK.org

www.OK.org • 11

hot boxes that the mashgiach opens atthe stand. (Some mashgichim arrive at5:00a.m. for a day game and someleave at 12:30a.m. after a nightgame). The mashgiach has a log-sheetto check that everything in the box ison the list. This requires extensivepreparation and planning because ifthe stand runs out of food during thegame, no more food will be deliveredduring the game to that particularstand.

All of the meat is Chassidishe she-chita and all rolls are hamotzi and PasYisroel. Cups are also provided forwashing the hands and there are sep-arate ketchup and mustard packetsso kosher consumers don’t even haveto go to the regular condimentstands. The kosher kitchen is on aseparate floor from the non-kosherkitchens and is closed and sealed by~ personnel when not in use. Allconcession stands and equipment arelikewise stored in a designated andsealed warehouse when not in use.No kosher food is available on Shab-bos or Yom Tov games.

KS: Tell us a little bit about the Leg-ends section and luxury suites…

RNM: Legends is an upscale seat-ing and dining area in the stadium.Within the Legends section, there arenon-kosher buffet ‘action stations’and one kosher ‘action station.’ Themashgiach or station attendant servesall kosher food. The kosher stationalso has a surrounding glass shield toprevent anybody from serving them-selves and accidentally use a non-kosher utensil. In addition, thekosher plates are distinct: square,black plastic, while the regular platesare round, white china plates. Ifsomeone wants more food from thekosher station, a new plate is usedand the old plate discarded. There isalso waiter service to the seating areaand fresh, hot kosher meals are de-livered sealed with the ~ seal. Thereis a different menu available eachnight during the pre-game, thoughduring the game there is the tradi-tional stadium food - hotdogs, slid-ers, sandwiches, etc.

There are unique challenges in the

luxury suites because they are rentedout either per season or pergame. The mashgiach checks thesuite to make sure there are no non-kosher utensils or equipment in theroom before bringing in the kosherfood and hot dog machine. All foodis individually wrapped and sealedand served on plastic plates. The ce-ramic serving platters are alwaysbrand new for kosher service. Eachplatter has a mark on it that comesoff in the dishwasher so that themashgiach can ensure that the platteris brand new. Customers can order awide variety of meat or pareve meals(though pareve is cold only).

KS: That sounds fabulous! Who isthe caterer that makes all of thisdelicious kosher food?

RNM: Ouri Nidam of Ouri’sSports Kosher Catering is an Israeliwith many years of catering experi-ence, and the exclusive kosher cater-ing company at Yankee Stadium. Hehas served many famous people (in-cluding Israeli Prime Ministers) andwas already under ~ supervision be-fore getting involved with YankeeStadium. Ouri pays great attention todetail and knows how to follow ~protocol and satisfy the Yankees atthe same time.

The Yankees have provided foodservice for many years and have aheavily detailed protocol and to es-tablish a kosher program the ~ re-quired changes to many items. Therehave been many obstacles and chal-lenges, but the Yankees have beenworking with the ~ to satisfy eventhe most meticulous kosher con-sumer with the highest level ofkashrus. The Yankees should be ap-plauded for taking the steps to pro-vide a top-notch kosher program andextending the warmest invitation towelcome the kosher consumer toYankee Stadium.

Rabbi Marrus and the ~ would like to ex-tend a special thank you to: Ike S. Franco,Dan Smith, Mike Phillips (Sr. VP), DonMuszalski (GM Premium Services), An-thony Parnaglan (GM Concessions) andChef Rolf. ~

Ma√eup

ecently, the ~ was approachedto give a hechsher on a makeuppowder that would permit use on

Shabbos and Yom Tov. Thetopic of using colored

makeup on Shabbos is discussed inShulchan Oruch Orech Chaim, Siman 303,S’eif 25, where it is specifically stated thatit is forbidden for a woman to color herface with srak (a red color) on Shabbos.

According to halacha, there are threetypes of coloring. The first type is coloringthat lasts – for example, dyeing clothwhere the color is expected to last. This isconsidered the primary issur of dyeing.

The second type is dyeing or coloringsomething that does not last, such asmetal. This is also forbidden according tothe Rambam, even though it does not last.

The third type of coloring is uninten-tional, or undesired, coloring. For example,

eating strawberries and havingone’s hands colored while eatingis not considered coloring, as thecoloring of one’s hands is notthe “way” of coloring and oneactually does not want the color

on one’s hands.A woman who uses “paint”

(makeup) to color her face is consid-ered coloring in the normal way, eventhough it does not last for a long timesince, according to Shulchan Oruch, one isrequired to wash one’s face once a day.

The use of powder makeup is subject tomuch debate. According to one major rab-binic authority, powder can be permissibleon Shabbos, even though it contains color-ing. Since it does not really stick to one’sskin like paint, therefore, it is not evenconsidered “non-permanent coloring.”Other rabbonim hold that only white pow-der is permitted. Some major authoritiesare even more stringent and hold that anycoloring, even powder, is forbidden.

Even those who permit plain, unadul-terated colored powder do so only undercertain circumstances:

The powder is not put on top ofmakeup that was put on before Shabbos.This is because the powder will nowstick to the base and be more lasting.The powder is pure powder with no ad-ditives, such as oil based additives that

on Shabbos & Yom Tov

By Rabbi Don Yoel Levy

12 • www.OK.org

HalachicIssues of

will cause the powder to stick.

The powder submitted to the ~for certification was not a purepowder, but one with other ingredi-ents. An ~ Rabbinic Coordinatorwho also holds a Master of Sciencein chemistry investigated the ingre-dients and felt that some of themwould indeed be considered some-thing that would make the powderstick to the skin. In addition, thepowder definitely had an oily feelwhen put on one’s skin.

After consultations with variousrabbinic authorities, we felt the fol-lowing pitfalls would be too greatfor the ~ to certify the product:

The present powder was not ac-ceptable due to added ingredients.Even if we could get pure powder,one might use it on top of makeupthat was put on before Shabbos.Not all rabbinic authorities are inagreement that any powdermakeup is permissible.Ladies seeing a Rebbitzen using theproduct on Shabbos might cometo the mistaken conclusion thatother makeup is permissible.

While discussing powder makeupwith my daughters, they informedme of a different type of makeupused by women today, which has acompletely different “din” – perma-nent makeup. (Note: The issue ofpermanent makeup is different fromthe issue of “Shabbos makeup.” Thehalachic issues are due to two dif-ferent issurim.) In fact, when I heardabout it, I was shocked to hear thatthere are people in the frum commu-nity who use this!

There are a few different uses forpermanent makeup. It can be usedto permanently color the area abovethe browbone to look like eye-brows, or it can be used in place ofeyeliner, lipliner or other areaswhere one would use coloring.

Below are some quotes fromcompanies who offer this servicedescribing the actual process:

“Permanent makeup is a cosmetictechnique which employs tattoos(permanent pigmentation of thedermis) as a means of producing de-

signs that resemble makeup, such aseyelining and other permanent en-hancing colors to the skin of theface, lips, and eyelids. It is also usedto produce artificial eyebrows, par-ticularly in people who have lost itas a consequence of old age, disease,such as alopecia, chemotherapy, ora genetic disturbance, and to dis-guise scars and white spots in theskin such as in vitiligo.”

“In the permanent makeupprocess, pigment is implanted intothe upper dermal layer of the skin.In order to reach this area, pigmentmust be implanted through the epi-dermis, or outer layer, of the skin,which is the layer that collects andlater exfoliates or sheds dead skincells.”

“Permanent makeup is micro pig-ment implementation — a processinvolving application of permanentpigment into the dermal layer of theskin. Natural iron oxide is used inthe pigment. A sterilized needle isused to implant hundreds of tinydots of the pigment beneath thebasal layer of the skin. The proce-dure takes about a couple of hours.”

“As with tattoos, permanentmakeup can be difficult to remove.Common techniques used for thisare laser resurfacing, dermabrasion(physical or chemical exfoliation),and surgical removal. Camouflaging— adding a new pigment whichcounteracts the tattoo color and at-tempts to emulate normal skin coloris considered a poor choice by pro-fessionals. Removal is more painfuland laborious than the tattooing it-self.”

In Shulchan Oruch Yoreh Deah,Siman 180, it states: “If one scratchesone’s skin and then inserts color, orcolors the skin and then scratchesone’s skin (Shahch 1) so that the skinis now permanently colored, it isforbidden.” This is what we com-monly call tattooing.

The abovementioned process ofapplying permanent makeup is def-

initely a tattooing process, as thoseperforming the service describe it,and is not something that can bedone without rabbinical consulta-tion. The topic of tattooing and per-manent makeup is quite complexand many rabbonim have discussedthis topic, as one can see in Ohr Yis-roel Journal, Volume 15, Nissan 5769.Some rabbonim say the eye area isnot considered skin (which wouldonly apply to lining the eye, notother skin areas). Other rabbonimsay that only permanent applicationof letters is considered tattooing. Inthe Nissan 5769 issue of Ohr Yisroel,the editor brings multiple rabbinic opin-ions, including the most prominentposek of our time, Rabbi ShmuelVozner shlita, which state specifi-cally that all permanent makeup isforbidden. Likewise, there is ateshuva from Rabbi Chaim Kanievskishlita that it is forbidden.

As we can see, the issue of apply-ing makeup on Shabbos and Yom Tovis extremely complicated and thereis no uniform rabbinic ruling on thematter.

Additionally the use of perma-nent makeup is quite a serious issue.

Therefore, if you are a womanwho would like to use “Shabbosmakeup” or you are contemplatingpermanent makeup, you areadvised to speak with anOrthodox rabbi who hasexperience with thisissue and who can ad-vise you of the propercourse. ~

The use of powder makeup issubject to much debate.

www.OK.org • 13

Sweet14 • www.OK.org

How

it isBy Rabbi Yitzchak Gornish

Exploring the History & Kashrus Concerns of

Food Sweeteners

s we approach the holiday of Rosh Hashanah, thetraditional greeting among Jewish people is, “May

you be inscribed in the Book of Life.” However, thecommon greeting has evolved into, “Have a sweet newyear.” This is actually a shortened version of the bene-diction on the custom of eating an apple dipped inhoney on Rosh Hashanah eve. Honey, along with othersweeteners, is practically synonymous with the NewYear holiday.

It is almost a given that honey (and by extension, allsweeteners) are innocuous regarding kosher concerns.After all, honey is mentioned twelve times in the Torah,especially regarding Eretz Yisroel, which is described asa land flowing with milk and honey.1 Even the mon(manna) tasted like wafers fried in honey.2

The honey mentioned in the Torah is actually thehoney of dates3 (more on this later), but there are clearinstances of bee honey mentioned as well – from thecase of Shimshon collecting honey from the carcass ofa slain lion4, to Yonason ben Shaul haMelech dipping hisstaff into a hive and consuming the honey5. The obvi-ous issue to be analyzed is: Why is bee honey permit-ted for kosher consumption when it is derived frominsects that are non-kosher? There is a halachic rule thatthe product of a non-kosher animal is itself non-kosher.6 The Gemara wrestles with this question andproposes that honey is not produced in the bee’s body;it is only collected and stored there.7 A second approachis that only flying insects themselves are prohibited andnot their excretions.8

While one would assume that 100% pure honeyshould be totally problem-free regarding kosher, this isonly true in the case of commercially obtained honeywhere the product is collected in bulk. However, on theretail level, unflavored and flavored honeys are usuallyprocessed on the same equipment, with the latter re-quiring a serious kosher certification. In addition, it hasbeen noticed recently that honey can be adulteratedwith a variety of syrups due to the high price honeyfetches on the market. While most syrups will not af-fect the kosher status of the honey, the addition of corn

A syrup would cause the honey to lose its Kosher forPassover status for Ashkenazi Jews. This is one reasonone should only buy kosher certified honey.

There are numerous references in the Torah whereTorah is proverbially described as sweeter than honey.9

In fact, Shimshon is taunted by the Philistines to de-scribe a substance that is sweeter than honey.10 It mightsurprise the reader that several food items are sweeterthan honey. In the food industry, the sweetness of asubstance is measured by its “sweetness value,” withsugar scoring a perfect 100% and acting as the standardfor all other sweeteners. Describing the standard assugar is a misnomer, as sugar is actually a chemistry de-scription of a class of compounds. The correct standardterm is sucrose (cane sugar). In fact, several sugars, suchas lactose (milk sugar) contain only 16% of the sweet-ness of sucrose.

Predictably, honey only scores 97% of the sweetnessof value of sucrose. It therefore begs the question, whyisn’t the ultimate sweetness standard in the Torah su-crose? The obvious answer is that while the collectionof bee honey has been documented since ancient times(there are inscriptions in Egyptian tombs showing thecollection of honey), the earliest recording of cane sugarcollecting is in the 14th century in Arabia. From there,cane sugar spread to Europe and beyond. Honey wastherefore the sweetest substance known to the biblicalfigures. It is interesting to note that there is no literalmention of sugar in the Torah!

While we mentioned that in the Torah, the predomi-nant honey was derived from dates, in Talmudic timesit shifted to bee honey. The Gemara states that weresomeone to take an oath to abstain from honey, he ispermitted to consume date honey as this is an uncom-mon form of honey and was therefore not included inthe oath.11 It is possible that date honey contains ahigher ratio of fructose (1.73 times higher sweetnessvalue than sucrose) to glucose than bee honey (makingit sweeter than bee honey), since fructose is a fruitsugar and is therefore sweeter.

Generally, sweeteners are broken into two groups –

www.OK.org • 15

nutritive and non-nutritive. The nu-tritive group, in addition to sucrosealso includes syrups (such as maple,corn, molasses, etc). While years ago,small amounts of lard were added tomaple syrup to control foaming,today vegetable oil is utilized instead.Kosher certification is still requiredfor maple syrup, because vegetableoil requires certification. Corn syrupis a blend of fructose and glucose,and is used as a substitute for su-crose, which fetches a high price dueto domestic import quotas. Since thefructose portion contributes thehigher sweetness value, producersuse enzymes (which require a hash-gocha) to convert some of the glucoseinto fructose (high fructose cornsyrup), increasing the syrup’s sweet-ness value. Obviously, corn syrup isnot permitted to Ashkenazi Jews dur-ing Passover. Since nutritive sweeten-ers have a high caloric content (aswell as being a contributor to toothdecay), sugars can be converted tosugar alcohol, which is lower in calo-ries and less apt to cause tooth decay.The trade-off is that they have alower sweetness value than sucroseand can cause bloating.

Non-nutritive sweeteners containno calories and have many times thesweetness values of sucrose. Onecommon retail non-nutritive sweet-ener is saccharine, which can be ob-

tained in tablet or powdered formand is 300-500 times sweeter thansucrose. The kashrus concerns arethat the tablets may containstearates, which require kosher su-pervision, and the powdered form(Sweet’N Low) is cut with cream oftartar, which can be derived fromnon-kosher grape products. Whileoften under hashgocha, many author-ities are uncomfortable relying on theleniencies utilized to certify cream oftartar. In addition, the dextrose(added to reduce the sweetness in apacket so as to allow comparisons tosucrose) is definitely forbidden toAshkenazi Jews on Passover. Dextroseis usually derived from corn (espe-cially in the US), a kitniyos issue, butcan also be derived from grain, whichwould be problematic to all Jews asa chometz derivative. Finally, althoughthe government allows this sub-stance, consumers fear this sweet-ener because some studies haveshown a link with cancer in rats thatingested high amounts of saccharine.

Aspartame is a non-nutritivesweetener that is 180 times sweeterthan sucrose. It is sold under thebrand names of Nutrasweet andEqual. The main drawback is that itbreaks down under heat and thus isunsuitable for baking. Although ithas been thoroughly tested by thegovernment and declared safe, health

suspicions swirl around this sweet-ener as well. The main kashrus con-cern applies during Passover, becauseaspartame is also mixed with dex-trose.

Sucralose is a non-nutritive sweet-ener that is 600 times sweeter thansucrose. In fact, it is derived from thechlorination of sucrose, which con-verts it to a zero-calorie sweetener. It,too, is mixed with maltodextrin ordextrose (a problem on Passover) andsold under the brand name Splenda.Also given the stamp of approval bythe government, for many, the gov-ernment’s approval isn’t enough todispel health suspicions.

A lesser-known non-nutritivesweetener is stevia, a plant, which is300 times sweeter than sucrose.Health concerns have limited itsavailability as a sweetener in manycountries, including the US, where itmust be listed as a supplement.

It is a custom among many Jews torefrain from eating sharp or bitterfoods (such as horseradish, pickles,vinegar, etc.) during Rosh Hashanahand most of Tishrei, and to serve pre-dominantly sweet foods as a focuson a sweet outcome for the NewYear. This tradition does not requirethat foods be sweetened with honey;any of the above listed sweetenersare adequate. The underlying mes-sage being that people everywhereshould merit a “sweet new year” andan inscription in the Book of Life. ~

1 Shemos 3:8.2 Shemos 16:31.3 Gemara,

Menachos 84b.4 Shoftim 14:8-9.5 Shmuel I 14:27.6 Gemara, Bechoros 5b.7 Gemara, Bechoros 7b.

8 ibid.9 Tehillim 14:10,

119:1-2; ShirHaShirim 4:11; Shoftim 14:18.

10 Shoftim 14:18.11 Gemara,

Nedarim 53a.

16 • www.OK.org

�Pomegranates are also a symbol of fertility. Pomegranatesare an excellent source of anti-oxidants. When they are notin season, drink pomegranate juice instead.

� Some people have a custom to place thehead of a fish on the table on RoshHashanah to remind us to be like a head,not a tail.

� Wild salmon, a true “super food,”contains omega-3 fatty acids that protectagainst heart disease, Alzheimer’s,ADHD and depression.

� Consumption of Docosahexaenoic Acid(DHA), an omega-3 found in fatty fish, islinked to better brain development inbabies. For those expectant mothers whoare concerned about mercury in fish, thiscan be consumed in supplement form.

�In Yiddish, the word forcarrot is “merrin,” whichalso means “to multiply”.

�Carrots are a good sourceof alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, and beta-cryptox-anthin, which are allessential for strong, healthybones. Eating a lot of car-rots may protect againstbone loss as you age.

PomegranatesTo Be Filled With Merits and Mitzvos

CarrotsMultiply

Use Your Head

Honey is more effective thanantibiotics to combat sinusitis!

Honey, a source of bacteria-fighting hydrogen peroxide, helpsmend mucous membranes. The

Manuka variety of honey has thehighest level of these antioxidants,but all varieties have these benefits.Eat a spoonful of honey, or add itto a cup of tea, 2-3 times per day.

Eating local honey (from pollen inyour area) is an effective way to

combat seasonal allergies.

HoneyFor a Sweet Year

(see Rabbi Gornish’s article on page 14 for thekashrus status of honey.)

Apples

�Eating an apple every day can helpreduce asthma and allergy symptoms byelevating your quercetin levels.Quercetin is an anti-oxidant that altersthe immune response to allergic triggers.Apples can also improve lung health.

Healthy Spirit

www.OK.org • 17

Traditional Rosh Hashanah Foods

SleepOn Rosh Hashanah, many have the custom not to

nap during the day, because one might “sleepaway one’s mazel” and during Simchas Beis

HaShoeva, לא טעמו טע� שינה – the Jews did not even“taste the taste of sleep”. While skimping on sleep is okonce in a while, our bodies need adequate sleep eachnight in order to stay healthy.

1 Being tied town to“tech toys” – cell

phone, laptop, Blackberry.Take short breaks fromthese devices. Tuning in tothe present moment, takinga walk without your phone,is naturally energizing.

2 Not getting enoughsleep. Doing 15-30

minutes of stretching exer-cises 4 times per week re-duced sleep problems by30%.

3 Feeling worriedabout the same issue

for a long time. Workingthrough this anxiety is asurefire way to improveyour sleep.

4 Doing a really in-tense workout once

or twice a week. This type ofworkout doesn’t boost yourenergy. Switch to a lower in-tensity workout and exer-cise 3-4 times per week.

5 Eating out a lot.Restaurant and fast

foods don’t typically havemany nutrients that provideall-day energy. Try to seethat your food has a lot offiber and contains lots offruits and vegetables.

6 Not making time forfun. Seeing friends,

doing new things andspending time with familyare energizing activities.In a Dutch study, those whopreferred to spend timealone were tired signifi-cantly more than their out-going counterparts.

SLEEP FACTS✴ A good night’s sleep (7-8 hours) iscrucial for preventing inflammation inthe body that can lead to heart diseaseand diabetes. (See Rambam HilchosDaios)

✴ If getting 7-8 hours of sleep isn’t pos-sible, regularly taking a nap during theday can lower a person’s risk for coro-nary heart disease by 37%!

✴ Lack of sleep triggers hormonalshifts that boost hunger and appetite(and make you crave fatty foods, likedoughnuts and fries). One 15-year studyshowed that people who only got 5hours of sleep per night had 16% lowerlevels of the hormone leptin (low levelsare linked to obesity) than those whoslept an average of 7-8 hours per night.

✴ Children 5-11 years old who sleepless than 11 hours per night are morelikely to be obese adults than kids whoget more sleep.

✴ There is a 25% increase in the num-ber of “snack calories” people consumewhen they sleep 5.5 hours per night, in-stead of 8.5 hours.

6 Surprising Reasons

You’re Tired

18 • www.OK.org

or Not to Sleep

To

Tish

reiR

ecipe

6 cups raw sweet potatoes, peeledand sliced

6 cups sliced, unpeeled cookingapples

1 1/2 cups carrots, peeled, sliced

1 cup small, pitted prunes, cut inhalf

2 tsp. grated orange peel

1/4 cup unsweetened orange juice

1/4 cup honey (optional)

2 Tablespoons light brown sugar

Pinch of cinnamon

Pinch of ground ginger

Cinnamon sticks to garnish(optional)

Tzimmes

Preheat the oven to 350º F. Coat a 9”x13” baking pan with a non-stick spraysuch as Pam. Layer half of the potatoes in the bottom of the pan, overlappingthe edges. Repeat with half of the apples, then add half of the carrots andprunes. Repeat layers. Combine remaining ingredients and drizzle evenlyover the layers. Cover tightly with a sheet of aluminum foil. Pierce with 8-10one-inch slits so steam may vent.

Bake for 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until dish is steamed and tender.

www.OK.org • 19

~KS: Where did you grow up? Where did you go toyeshiva?

RYH: I was born in Highland Park, New Jersey and sub-sequently grew up in Monsey, New York and Brook-line, Massachusetts. I learned in Lubavitch Yeshiva ofBrookline, got my Bachelor’s Degree at the RabbinicalCollege of America in Morristown, NJ, and got semichafrom HaRav Yisroel Yitzchak Piekarski, z”l, at TomcheiTemimim Lubavitch at 770 Eastern Parkway. I continuedlearning and got dayanus from HaRav Yisroel PinchasHirshprung, z”l.

KS: What did you do after yeshiva?

RYH : After yeshiva, I married my wife Pnina and settledin Crown Heights. In Crown Heights, I learned in kollelfor four years under HaRav Avrohom Yosef HaLeviHeller shlita.

KS: When did you get involved in hashgocha work?

RYH: I got involved in hashgocha over ten years ago,when I started working as a mashgiach for the ~. I startedas a mashgiach in the Tri-State Area for training, workingin large factories. I trained under my senior colleagues atthe ~.

KS: What is your current position at the ~?

RYH : I am currently a Rabbinic Coordinator for the ~.I am responsible for ~ certified manufacturing facilities

in the Tri-State Area. I also collate halachic policy forthe ~ and thus have the z’chus to spend a lot of timeworking with highly respected rabbonim to solidify andclarify complex kashrus issues. I believe the proper ap-proach to kashrus is, “The better the company under-stands their responsibility, the better the quality of thehechsher. Education and communication are vital – “com-munication + clarity = connection.”KS: What prepared you the most for working at the~?

RYH: The hashgocha work that I did for the ~ as a Tri-State Area mashgiach was definitely the best preparationfor serving as a Rabbinic Coordinator at the ~.

KS: What is the best thing about working at the ~?

RYH: My favorite thing about working in kashrus is thatthere is something new to learn every day. There is al-ways a challenge that comes up and I enjoy meetingthose challenges in conjunction with my colleagues atthe ~.KS: How would you describe the ~ today?

RYH: The ~ is an international kashrus agency, whichconstantly strives to uphold and improve kashrus stan-dards the world over. The ~ stands behind all of itsrabbis, through all of their challenges and decisions. Itis very gratifying to be directly involved in projectswith such a positive global impact.

Interview with

Rabbi YitzchakHanoka

BEHINDWHO’S BEHIND THE ~

MEET OUR STAFF:

Rabbi Yitzchak Hanoka

20 • www.OK.org

Rabbi Hanoka shows great perseverance, is anenergetic and dynamic speaker and first and

foremost a Talmid Chochom. – Rabbi Don Yoel Levy,

Kashrus Administrator, ~ Kosher Certification

“

“

What Other People SayAbout Rabbi Yitzchak Hanoka

Rabbi Hanoka shows great perseverance, is an energetic anddynamic speaker and first and foremost a Talmid Chochom. Hisyouthful and vibrant approach to kashrus is indicative of the continuityof the ~. Rabbi Hanoka has been instrumental in the qualitative andquantitative growth of the ~ over the past several years.Rabbi Don Yoel Levy, Kashrus Administrator, ~ Kosher Certification

Rabbi Hanoka is a rare combination of a highly respected RabbinicCoordinator, with a vast knowledge and clarity in halacha,combined with sterling character traits, who with his virtues helpsguide the ~ through many difficult kashrus issues. Over the lastdecade that we have worked together, we have overcome seriouschallenges. His mission is to strengthen the ~ polices, and he bringsrespect to the ~ with his presentation and dedication to kashrus.HaRav Usher Anshel Eckstein shlita,Belzer Dayan & Kashrus Administrator

I have known Rabbi Hanoka for many years, as a Talmid Chochomand a kashrus expert who goes about his work with care, precision,and faith, and when faced with a scenario he is uncertain about, hewill ask the necessary shaila in a proper manner to be sure to do theright thing.

HaRav Menachem Meir Weissmandel shlita,Rov of Nitra Monsey & Rov of Nitra Kashrus

Rabbi Hanoka is a pleasure to work with. He is very conscientiousand caring, and is someone who really gets involved with thecompanies he helps certify.

Rabbi Dovid Steigman, Senior Rabbinic Coordinator, ~ Kosher Certification

KS: Can you share a uniqueexperience that you hadwhile working at the ~?

RYH: I was once visiting anew facility in New Jerseyabout 15 miles from where Ilived as a child. While meet-ing my contact (a nice Jewishfellow) we got into a discus-sion about my last name.After about a minute we dis-covered that his father andmy grandfather were best offriends and davened in thesame shul, etc. It was a per-fect way to begin our initialmeeting.

Rabbi Hanoka puts an empha-sis on outreach and providingconsumer kashrus educationto help people live a kosherlifestyle. You can hear hisaudio classes on his website:www.rabbihanoka.com.

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Become

O nce during the Ne’ilah prayer, the Baal ShemTov cried and entreated more than usual. Ashe aroused Divine mercy on the community,

a great prosecution was aroused against him for encour-aging Jews to settle in villages and out-of-the-way placeswhere they were likely to be influenced by their Gentileneighbors. When the Baal Shem Tov began to examine thebehavior of the village dwellers, he saw that the situationwas very grave. The chassidim noticed the Baal Shem Tov’sconcern and they also intensified their prayers and crying.When the rest of the congregation saw this, their heartswere shattered and they also joined the impassioned sup-plication.

There was a young man there from a village, who hadcome for Yom Kippur to the Baal Shem Tov’s synagogue. Hewas completely uneducated and he stood the wholetime looking at the face of the chazzan without sayinganything.

As a village dweller, the boy knew the soundsmade by all the different farm animals, and he es-pecially esteemed the rooster’s crowing. Whenhe heard the weeping and the outcries, hisheart was also shattered and he cried outloudly, “Cock-a-doodle-do! G-d, havemercy!”

The worshippers in the synagogue wereconfused to hear a voice crowing like arooster, and a few of them scolded him toquiet him down and would have thrownhim out if he had not protested, “I am alsoa Jew.”

The confusion was pierced by the voiceof the Baal Shem Tov followed by the chas-sidim as they hurried to finish the Ne’ilahprayer. The face of the Baal Shem Tov shone,and with a special melody the repetition of theAmidah commenced for the Ne’ilah prayer.

As the sudden sound of the call of the villagedweller was heard in Heaven, its sincerity broughtgreat pleasure Above, nullifying all the prosecutions.

The above story can help us understand theimportance of the ketores (incense) burned bythe Kohen Gadol in the Holy of Holies on Yom

Kippur. The ketores offering was the most prestigious serv-ice in the Beis HaMikdash. Twice a day, the ketores wasburned on the golden altar, but on Yom Kippur, the KohenGadol also offered the ketores in the Holy of Holies. If theketores was accepted, the Kohen Gadol exited the Holy ofHolies and the Jewish people were forgiven.

According to Chassidus, the animal sacrifices in the BeisHaMikdash represent offering our Nefesh HaBahamis (ani-mal soul) to Hashem – the sublimation of our natural in-stincts to the Divine Will. The ketores, on the other hand,represents our Nefesh HaElokis (G-dly soul).

Even though we no longer have the Beis HaMikdash, theanimal sacrifices and the ketores play an important part inour davening. Now, the ketores is a spiritual ketores, whichexists within us as teshuvah (returning to Hashem). Teshuvah

is the return of oneself to one’s essence, a sparkof G-dliness, which is immune to sin and cor-

ruption. It is the return to one’s true, innerself. This teshuvah arouses Hashem’s Divine

Mercy and nullifies the decrees against us.Like the young boy in the Baal Shem Tov’s

shul, who tapped into his inner self, his spark ofG-dliness, to become one with Hashem in theonly way he knew how, may each of us merit

to do true teshuvah this Yom Kippur, return toour true inner selves, and become one with

Hashem in the way we know how. In themerit of our teshuvah, may we be blessed

with the Geulah Shleima, when all willbecome one with Hashem. ~

Compiled by Dina Fraenkel

CHASSIDIC INSIGHTS

Onewith Hashem

Teshuvah, Tefillah, TzedakahAt the end of the U’Nesana Tokef prayer on Yom Kippur, we recite:“U’teshuvah, u’tefillah, u’tzedakah ma’avirin es roi’a ha gezeirah. Throughrepentance, prayer, and charity we reverse the negative decree.”

In the machzor, above the word u’teshuvah, the word tzom is written. Above u’tefillah, the word kol is written. And, above the wordu’tzedakah, the word mamon is written.

Now, none of these word pairings are synonymous, so why are they connected? Tzom, kol, and mamon are actually Roshei Teivos!

• óî® (Tzom) — í¾¼ô −îò¾î íš¼® (Tza’akah v’shinui ma’aseh)To scream out and change your ways.

• ñîš (Kol) — îòëñ þí¬î í¾îðš (Kedushah v’taher libeinu)To become holier and purify our hearts.

• öîôô (Mamon) — ö³îò óèî îþëìô ê−®îô (Motzi m’chaveirov’gam nosen)Encourages people to give and gives himself.

Each word, tzom, kol, and mamon, has a gematria of136 and when all three are added together, they equal408 — “B’zos yavo Aharon. This is how Aharon comesto Hashem to ask forgivness for Klal Yisroel.” Zosequals 408, and Aharon came to Hashem throughteshuvah, tefillah, and tzedakah, which equal 408.

SOUL NUTRITION

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Chazzanus• A chossid of the 5th Lubavitcher Rebbe, who wasin need of parnossa, once asked for a brocha to be-come a chazzan. The Rebbe agreed, but with threeconditions:1. Always go to a mikveh before davening.2. Cover your head with your tallis while davening.3. Don’t repeat any words when davening by theamud.

• Once two guests came to their Rebbe and onesang chazzanus to the words of MipneiChataeinu. The other guest said to the Rebbe,“That chossid is singing his own Mipnei Chataeinu!”The Rebbe replied, “That’s the problem with manyother chazzanim. They sing others’ MipneiChataeinu.”

• Reb Levi Yitzchok of Berditchev once asked achazzan, “Why is your voice hoarse?” the chazzanreplied, “I daven in shul and scream for the people.”Reb Levi Yitzchok answered, “If you daven forHashem, your voice won’t get hoarse.”

Number of differentflavors produced from8000 raw ingredientsat a leading flavor house under the ~.

Temperature in Wisconsinwhen Rabbi Rubin madean inspection at an ~certified cheese facility.

# of mashgichim supervising the kosher food at Yankee Stadiumon April 19, 2009.9

-14°and 100% humidity inGonzales, Texas whenRabbi Rubin visited a

spice and flavors company... quite theother extreme from Wisconsin.

107°

95,506

Kosher by theNumbers

ותשובה ותפילה וצדקה

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Kosher Without Compromise.

KOSHERCERTIFICATION

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Kosher Spirit, 391 Troy Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11213

718-756-7500 • info@ok.org • www.ok.org