Our parsha this week has a long list of do's and don't's and they cover a wide range of topics. As we near the end of D'varim, Moshe has recounted the journey that brought the Israelites to this moment and place. Now he's giving them a lot of reminders of what they are supposed to do. In some ways it reminds me of the last minute, running out the door, instructions I sometimes give to our kids. "See if you can find that sweatshirt you left yesterday. And remember its' a different pick up time. Oh, and good luck with your quiz...." Moshe has a lot of important things to tell the Israelites so in our parsha he packs in over 70 halachot, laws or rules.
I wanted a #parshainspiredmenus item that would reflect this plethora of rules. Most recipes follow some rules, so that wasn't particularly helpful as a direction for what to make. And then,
perhaps it was the late night brainstorming (I thought of this late Monday night) or maybe it was my sweet tooth talking to me, but what popped into my head is the pun of Rolos for rules. It's not a perfect match, soundwise, but once I thought of it I wanted to stick with it. It's just a fun way to think of rules! My suggested menu items for rules is, therefore, Chocolate Rolo Cookies.
Of course, Rolos are dairy, so now the whole meal is going to be dairy. This actually worked out well as I thought of what to make as another item. Within the list of these rules, there was one that caught my eye that I hadn't given much attention before.
D'varim 24:6
לֹא־יַחֲבֹ֥ל רֵחַ֖יִם וָרָ֑כֶב כִּי־נֶ֖פֶשׁ ה֥וּא חֹבֵֽל׃
A handmill or an upper millstone shall not be taken in pawn, for that would be taking someone’s life in pawn.
I was struck by how logical and kind this rule is. If someone is deep in debt, they might be willing to give anything to try and alleviate their situation, but it could end up being a short-term fix, but a long-term problem. The handmill or upper millstone is used to ground grains into flour. It is the
source of food and potentially, as the commentator Onkelos says "[taking it in pawn] would deprive the debtor of his source of legitimate income." How is the debtor to eat or make money to repay the debt without this item? The Torah puts a guardrail to prevent this from happening by saying that it's just not allowed. In the Talmud (Bava Metzia 113b, 115a) this gets extended - "if one comes to demand a pledge through the court for his debt he should not take as a pledge anything by which food is prepared." Ibn Ezra sees this as a way to protect the debtor from oppression and he sees this law in the context of many of the other halachot in this parsha where the overarching theme is protecting from oppression. (See the long list Ibn Ezra mentions below.)
I would love to discuss this at my Shabbat table, so I want a food item that recalls milled grain.
While all of the flour I use is milled, it doesn't feel milled to me. I wanted something a little grainier, so I've decided on corn meal. There are many delicious things you can make with corn meal, but since I'm going dairy anyway I am excited to make polenta with parmesan cheese.
Shabbat Shalom & B'Tayavon!
Ibn Ezra on D'varim 24:6
"the Torah mentions that one is not to steal grapes by putting them in his pots (Deut. 23:25), or to lift up a sickle upon his neighbor’s grain (Deut. 23:26); or to take a woman after she has been his and then left his house and married another (v. 1). It also states that one has to cheer the woman whom he marries (v. 5); he is not to be oppressed by going into the army (Ibid.). The taking of a millstone in pledge is a form of oppression. So too is kidnapping a person. Similarly the plague of leprosy, for if he does not observe its laws then the plague will injure those in proximity to it. Scripture similarly states, do not oppress a poor person by taking a pledge from him (v. 10). It similarly states do not oppress a hired person (v. 14) and small children should not be put to death for the sins of the fathers (v. 16). It likewise warns against perverting the justice due a stranger or the fatherless (v. 17). It prohibits the taking of a widow’s garment as a pledge (v. 17). It prohibits one from retrieving a sheaf which was forgotten in the field, for it belongs to the poor (v. 19). Similarly Thou shalt not glean(v. 21). Likewise lest if he should exceed…Then thy brother should be dishonored (Deut. 25:3). The muzzling of an ox (v. 4) is an act of oppression, for the animal toils but cannot eat of its toil. Similarly, refusing to perform levirate marriage (Deut. 25:5-10) is a form of oppression. The woman who grabs a man’s testicles (Deut. 25:11) commits an act of oppression. Employing diverse weights and diverse measures (Deut. 25:13,14) is oppression in its purest form. Furthermore, Amalek oppressed Israel (Deut. 25:17-19).
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