Reb Eliezer

I heard in the name of the Satmar Rav, Rav Yoel ztz’l it says מראשית השנה עד אחרית שנה from the beginning of the year to the end of the year, but why doesn’t it say עד אחרית השנה? He explained that in the beginning of the year we think this will be the special year of redemption but at the end it is like any other year.
I heard that it says by Betzalel לחשוב מחשבות he had to know where to put what was donated. If someone had the proper mindset, as the Alshich Hakadash explains that what we give to Hashem was ידבנו לבו the desire to give through his heart as Hashem does not really need it because He has everything, he would make maybe, the aron with it. The Dubner Magid says that thereby he showed
that he loved Hashem more than himself by willing to give up something he loves for something else and showing that the second thing is more beloved than the first.

The table is like the mizbeach when one feeds the poor at the table as the mizbeach feeds the kohanim from the sacrifice.
The Rambsm emphasizes two places the importance of feeding the poor. In Hilchas Yom Tov (6,160) he says that someone who locks the door on the poor is not an enjoyment of a mitzva but an enjoyment of his own stomach. The other one is in Hilchas Megilla (2,17) where he says that there is no more greater or beautiful enjoyment than to make the poor and downtrodden happy. According to this, mishloach manos is based on matonas laevyonim not to ashame the poor, but according to the other Rambam above the Ksav Sofer says that it is based on the sudah in order to share with the poor. The SA O’CH 647,1 finishes up with טוב לב משתה תמיד where the question is if on Purim Katan we should make a sudah? So, says the Ksav Sofer that if he has good heart to give mishloach manos, than he can also make a sudah. The SA starts with the RMA quoting שויתי ה’ לנגדי תמיד keeping Hashem constantly in front of us as a King through fear and ends by get close to Hashem through love, so I heard that this is implied in ושני תמידים כהלכתם keeping the two tamids in front of us as the SA describes or keeping the SA in front of us constantly.

ברכות נד,א

Until now we talked about sight as a differentiation but now we talk about sight as a commemoration. Recognizing the greatness of Hashem through a miracle that many or one experienced.
The Magen Avraham (686,5) says that people can make like a Purim a national or personal holiday to commemorate a miracle that happened on a particular day. We are not diminishing by this the importance of other days. We don’t mix one enjoyment with another not to diminish from each other. The Chasam Sofer in Maseches Shabbos (22,1) starting Pesulah, says that there is a biblical mitzva to commemorate a miracle that happened to one from a kal vochomer, if servitude to freedom praise required certainly from death to life. Therefore the Behag holds that Chanukah and Purim are biblical but the method of commemoration whether throgh lighting candles or reading of the megilla, as the neis happened through the king not being able to sleep and reading a megilla, is rabbinical.

ברכות נד,ב

I one heard, יודו לה’ חסדו ונפלאותיו לבני אדם when we get cured we should thank Hashem who healed us but we see the wonder in the doctor, a human being. That is why we don’t find Moshe Rabbenu being praised in the Haggadah as he is a tool of doctor, Hashem. The Midrash asks on ויאמינו בה’ ובמשה עבדו – אם במשה האמינו בה’ לא כל שכן if they believed in Moshe than certainly they believed in Hashem? אם כן למה נאמר ובמשה עבדו so why does it say in His servant Moshe, to teach us whoever beliefs in the talmid beliefs in the Rav. The question is, it should have said, why does it say they believed in Hashem? Maybe, since all the abilities of Moshe Rabbenu came from Hashem it is obvious that if they believed in Hashem than they would also believe in Moshe Rabbenu as Shimon Hamosini did not need to learn to fear talmidei chachomim as their abilities come from Hashem whereas Rebbi Akiva was am haaretz, so for him that was not so obvious.,

ברכות נג,א

On Yom Kippur we take a rested candle but not Shabbos because, explains the MB ( 298,26), that Shabbos we take a candle to commemorate the creation of fire by rubbing two stones together which is the opposite. It indicates that it was not there before but on Yom Kippur, we want to show that this fire’s use was forbidden before and allowed now, therefore, the fire must exist from before.

There is an argument among the litvishe and chasidishe what is better, one should make kiddush for everyone or everyone should make kiddush for themselves? The Chasiddishe make kiddush for themselves and the litvishe one makes kiddush for all. They say that the rule טוב בו יותר מבשלוחו that he personally comes before the shliach does not apply as שומע כעונה hearing is like answering considering the person himself making the brocho, so we have ברוב עם הדרת מלך it is nicer to do things in a group.
In SA O’CH 298,14 says that one should make the brocho on the candle for all. They all enjoy the light at once. When it comes to make a brocho on a talis, we find in SA O’CH 8,5 we are given a choice either one makes the brocho for everyone or if they want one makes the brocho and the others answer Amen. The MB s’k 13 says that one making the brocho we currently don’t follow as people don’t know how each should have in mind the other one to be yotzei. We find in YD 19,3 that two shochtim with two animals one can motzei the other. Asks the Kreisi s’k 6 why over here there is an option as by talis above but by Milah YD 265,5 no option is given by two mohalim with two boys one makes the brocho and the other is yotzei. Maybe as he mentions there it is more in public.

ברכות נב,ב

The argument whether besomim or the candle comes first, maybe that according to the Beis Shamai we cannot avoid seeing the candle and therefore, not to bypass a mitzva praising Hashem for the fire He provides and provided us Motzei Shabbos, comes first. Whereas, the Beis Hilel looks at the levels of differentiation as explained before from lowest to highest, taste, smell, sight and the mind. In which case smell comes before sight as the sight is more reliable differentiation than smell.

At the wedding, we make always a brocho on wine first. Maybe, because it generates simcha.
Similarly, this might be the reason that wine causes kiddush because it generates simcha, so we make the brocho on wine before the day as the Beis Hilel.

Off hand the connection here to אין עושין מצות חבילות do not pack multiple mitzvos on one time because it looks like you are burdened with it and you want to pater yourself off ASAP, does not make any sense. What connection does it have to the praising of Hashem with multiple items?` Maybe, it is talking in the case where he only mentions one thing in the end of the brocho but two things in the brocho. He wants to cover all the bases at once so, he is packing on multiple items to the brocho.

ברכות מט,ב

לעולם אל יוציא אדם את עצמו מן הכלל a person should not exclude himself from the group. This is the reason we always daven in plural. The Shunamis said מלכים ב פרק ד – וַתֹּ֕אמֶר בְּת֥וֹךְ עַמִּ֖י אָנֹכִ֥י יֹשָֽׁבֶת: I don’t want to separate myself from the group because then I become individually responsible for my actions. The Rabbenu Bachaye in Parshes Ki Siso explains שמות פרק ל פסוק יב – וְלֹא־יִהְיֶ֥ה בָהֶ֛ם נֶ֖גֶף בִּפְקֹ֥ד אֹתָֽם: no plague should occur when counting them. Together we are all tzadikim, but we get separated by counting and the bad will be revealed.
The Midrash Shmuel explains the mishna in Avos where Hilel says משנה מסכת אבות פרק ב משנה ד – הלל אומר אל תפרוש מן הצבור don’t separate yourself from the group, if you think you are better than they are, then don’t trust yourself until the day of your death, if you think the group is not as good as you are, don’t judge them until you arrive in their place, if you think they don’t want to listen to you, don’t say something which is not worth listening to, if you think you will join later, then think that maybe you will never have time to join.

ברכות מט,א

The Sefer Amudeho Shivo explains why we say Alenu after a bris. Simply we say יוצר בראשית to remember that Hashem created the world for the Jews sake and the bris differentiates us from the goyim. He gives an interesting reason. As we see that the kosher animals are physically different than the non- kosher, so why shouldn’t the Jews be born physically different than the goyim? Then, we would say their are two reshuyos, two deities on for tor the Jews and one for the goyim. Therefore, a bris is a proof for having One G-d, so we say Alenu to substantiate the Uniqueness of Hashem.