Mondays Musings on Sports - Of Prodigies, Prospects, Prognostications and Pisces

As regular readers of this blog are aware, the Monday post was usually devoted to sports with highlights and analysis of the Max Kellerman show which formerly aired on 1050 ESPN Radio. Although Max resigned from 1050 more than a year ago (he has recently resurfaced on ESPN Radio in Los Angeles), I have tried to continue the tradition of linking sports to Torah which I believe was an undercurrent of the Max Kellerman show.

As the expression goes, hope springs eternal. In sports, the inverse is true - in spring hope is eternal. Baseball teams go into spring training loaded with hope that their prospects will turn into major leaguers and that last year's rookies will blossom into all stars. College football teams hold their spring practices when their coaches and fans begin to dream that the team can make a run at the BCS.

I read a story on Saturday night about a different form of prospect, but first a short introduction is required. In college sports, school can recruit players to attend their school, regardless of the age of the player and how far away they are from being college age. If the recruit is in high school, then depending on his year of school he can sign a letter of intent or verbally commit to the school. If he is younger, the player can be extended a scholarship offer which is not worth the paper it is printed on because either side can back out. Still it makes for good publicity at the very least.

The story that I read about involved Michael Avery. In 2008, Michael was an eighth grader from California who was invited to a summer basketball camp tournament with kids considerably older than him. Based on Michael's performance it was "suggested" that he call Billy Gillespie who was then the coach at Kentucky. Once Michael called him, the coach offered a scholarship to Kentucky, with the understanding that it was not binding.

As more fully detailed in the article (http://www.thepostgame.com/blog/throwback/201102/high-school-juniors-college-future-uncertain-after-eighth-grade-commitment-ken), following the offer from Kentucky, life became very difficult for Michael. He transferred to a school in Florida which had a great reputation for academics and basketball. But after one year at the school, he switched back to school in California because his family could not afford the $35,000 tuition. Then, the California Interscholastic Federation would not allow him to play ball at his old school under a rule which was meant to prevent students from shopping for schools.

The article concludes with a discussion about Michael's positive attitude, his acceptance of where he is at the present and his plans for the future. It is refreshing to see his maturity in the face of adversity and I highly recommend the piece.

The story about Michael Avery reminded me of a vort that I heard from R' Mansour about the reason that the mazal for Adar is two fish. R' Mansour explained that there are two kinds of fish - large and small. If one cuts open a large fish, they will see small fish - all of which appeared to have swum directly into the mouth of the large fish. R' Mansour explained that the small fish say to Hashem - please help us and watch that we are not eaten from behind by the big fish. Hashem obliges and does watch out that the fish are not eaten from behind. However, since the fish rely on themselves to watch what is in front of them, he does not protect them from swimming straight into the mouth of the big fish.

The lesson of the fish is that we need to understand that we are not the masters of our destiny and that there is a higher power which controls all. If we completely put our trust in Hashem and do the hishtadlus which He requires, He will take care of us. But if we feel that it all comes from our own actions without any need for his help, we will get eaten by the big fish.

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Sunday Night Suds - Samuel Adams Cherry Wheat

This week's Sunday Night Suds review looks at Samuel Adams Cherry Wheat.

This past shabbos, our company brought us some delectable cherry strudel along with a six pack of Samuel Adams Cherry Wheat. While Mrs A's baking was quite delicious and could go with any meal, the Samuel Adams Cherry Wheat cannot.

The problem with fruit beer is that the brewers often make it so sweet that it can't be consumed with food. While some brews have a mild flavor which complement food, most are so strong that they can only be imbibed as an apertif as they are basically sodas or wine coolers with a little beer flavor mixed in.

The Samuel Adams Cherry Wheat is certainly more of the latter than the former. If you are a fan of strong cherry flavor and want a little kick, then this beer is for you. I opted to serve this after the fish course at lunch before the cholent and main. I have yet to find a food which would go with this beer, but if you have any ideas, please feel free to comment on this post.

Samuel Adams Pale Ale is under the Kosher Supervision of the Star-K. However, unlike many other Samuel Adams brews, this bottle does have the Star-K certification mark on the label.

To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about the Cherry Wheat, please follow this link - http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/35/108.

PUBLIC SERVICE NOTICE - The Star-K has informed me that the Samuel Adams Chocolate Bock is Dairy - Chalav Stam. Although the Chocolate Bock status as kosher and Dairy is not yet listed in the Star-K LOC posted on the website (http://www.star-k.org/loc/kosher_letter_6635_bostonbeercompany.pdf) the beer is in fact dairy.

As always, please remember to drink responsibly and to never waste good beer unless there is no designated driver.

If you've tried this beer or any others which have been reviewed on the kosher beers site, please feel free to post your comments (anonymous comments are acceptable).

Lastly, I would like to give hakaras hatov to all those who have visited this blog over the last ten months and have pushed my hit count to 30,000. I hope that you have found it worth while and informative. I appreciate all the e-mail and words of encouragement and iyh will continue to provide helpful content.

If you have seen this post being carried on another site, please feel free to click http://www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com/ to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Vayakhel

The following is a brief summary of a vort said over by R' Frand this evening. I have attempted to reproduce the vort to the best of my ability. Any perceived inconsistency is the result of my efforts to transcribe the shiur and should not be attributed to R' Frand.

In Shemos 36:5-6 the Torah mentions that the Jews were so generous with their giving to the mishkan that the chachamim came to tell Moshe that the people were bringing more than could be used in the building of the mishkan. In response, Moshe announces that people should stop and the Torah indicates that the people were restrained (Vayikalei) from bringing. Rashi explains that the word vayikalei means min'ia which is another word for being stopped from doing something.

Rabbi Frand quoted the Tolner Rebbi who asked why the Torah used the word vaikalei instead of min'ia? The word min'ia is more prevalent in the Torah as it was used in connection with Bilam as well as in the conversation between Yitzchak and Rivka as to why she was barren.

As an introduction to the answer, Rabbi Frand quoted the Midrash Rabbah on Pikudei where the Torah indicates that the work in building the mishkan was "Dayah". The Midrash Rabbah states that Moshe had gone to visit Betzalel and saw that there was more material than could be used in making the mishkan. Moshe davened to Hashem to ask what should be done with the leftover materials. Hashem responded to Moshe - you should make a "mishkan l'edus."

The unresolved question from the Midrash Rabbah is - what is a mishkan l'edus?
The Yifei To'ar states that the mishkan l'edus was a small beis medrash which was built along side the mishkan. But R' Frand then gave a more in depth explanation of the concept. R' Frand quoted the Chidushei Harim who cited to R' Bunim who said that any time a Jew does a mitzva and has a desire that he should do more, but the mitzva is finished, Hashem has greater pleasure from the person's desire to do more than the mitzva itself. By way of example - a person gives tzedakah to the shul but wants to give more, but the budget is met and there is no need for more.

R' Frand then made reference to the sentence in the Yishtabach prayer "habocher b'shirei zimra..." R' Frand quoted R' Bunim as saying that one should read b'shirei as b'shiarei - that which is left over from davening. If a person has a desire to pray more, even though he has completed the prayer, this is the person who Hashem has chosen - the one that wishes that there was more that he could say to Hashem.

R' Frand also quoted the Eliyahu Rabbah who discussed the custom of saying the Adon Olam prayer after davening on Shabbos. Why do we do so? Because by saying Adon Olam we are showing that we have a desire to pray more - we started with the Adon Olam prayer and even though we are done, we want to start again at the beginning.

R' Frand indicated that this was the meaning of the statement that Hashem wanted the Jews to make with them a mishkan l'edus - Hashem wants to reside in them and with them because they want to do more. (Much like the vort v'asu li mikdash v'shachanti b'socham - I want to be with them because they want to do more for Me).

R' Frand then quoted the Malbim in Sefer Hakarmel as to the difference between vayikalei and min'ia. Vayikalei is a language of being involuntarily stopped - a person wants to do, but he is forced to stop. This can be seen in the language for jail - a Beis Hakeleh - a person wants to leave but is forced to stay. In contrast, min'ia is a voluntary cessasion of activity.

R' Frand then tied the concept back to the Rashi - the language in the pasuk vayikalei - the Jews wanted to do more and give more, but the work was done and Moshe had to tell them to stop.

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Monday's Musings on Sports - The Wrestler With a Conscience

As regular readers of this blog are aware, the Monday post was usually devoted to sports with highlights and analysis of the Max Kellerman show which formerly aired on 1050 ESPN Radio. Although Max resigned from 1050 more than a year ago (he has recently resurfaced on ESPN Radio in Los Angeles), I have tried to continue the tradition of linking sports to Torah which I believe was an undercurrent of the Max Kellerman show.

You probably have never heard the names Cassy Herkelman or Joel Northrup, but the story of how their paths did not cross is quite remarkable and worthy of attention.

Northrup is a home schooled sophomore who competes in high school athletics and wrestles for Linn-Mar High School in Iowa. This year, Northrup compiled a record of 35-4 and qualified for the Iowa High School Wrestling Championship in the 112 pound weight class. Newspaper reports speculated that Northrup could have competed for the title in his weight class. Herkelman who was scheduled to be Northrup's first round opponent had a record of 20-13 and was a year younger than Northrup. While this could have been Northrup's first step towards the title, Northrup never got on the mat and did not wrestle with Herkelman.

As Northrup explained in a statement "wrestling is a combat sport and it can get violent at times. As a matter of conscience and my faith I do not believe that it is appropriate for a boy to engage a girl in this manner."

Northrup's father is a minister in a Pentecostal church in Marion, Iowa. As explained by their pastor, the church believes young men and women shouldn't touch in a "familiar way." The pastor further explained "[w]e believe in the elevation and respect of woman and we don't think that wrestling a woman is the right thing to do. Body slamming and takedowns, that full contact sport is not how to do that."

[To read more about this story click the following link http://sports.yahoo.com/top/news?slug=capress-wre_girl_wrestler_default-5984888]

As an NCSY advisor in Central and Southern New Jersey for eight years, I was often asked by kids who were becoming religious about the concept of shomer negiah - the popular phrase which signifies that the person does not touch people of the opposite gender. Often times, kids who were looking for their Jewish identity would learn that they could no longer have friendly contact with their male/female friends who they had close friendships with. For many of these hormone raging teenagers, it was difficult enough to avoid meaningful contact with their boyfriend/girlfriend. The greater challenge was understanding that Judaism had created this fence to prevent them from being "too familiar" with others in order to protect them from their own normal urges.

Kudos to the kid from Iowa who was willing to sacrifice his dream of competing for a state championship if it meant wrestling with a girl.

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Sunday Night Suds - Saranac Belgian Ale

This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at Saranac Belgian Ale.

Although I have reviewed other Belgian Pale Ale's in prior posts (see Blue Moon Pale Moon - http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2009/02/sunday-night-suds-pale-moon.html and New Belgium's Fat Tire - http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2009/12/sunday-night-suds-new-belgiums-fat-tire.html ), its been a few years since I presented the definition for this style of beer. As such,I reproduce below the BA definition of Belgian Pale Ale:

Belgian Pales consume the Belgian brewing scene, and were initially brewed to compete with Pilseners during the WWII time frame. They differ from other regional Pale Ale varieties, by traditionally being less bitter, using aged hops for a delicate hop finish, and boasting sweetish to toasty malt overtones. They should be decanted properly, leaving the yeast in the bottle. This will showcase their brilliant color range from pale straw yellow to amber hues. Most will be crowned with thick, clinging, rocky white heads. Flavors and aromas will vary. Some have natural spice characters from yeast and hops, while others are spiced.

There's a recent growing trend to make much more "hoppy" Pale Ales, to entice the US market and its hopheads.

The Saranac Belgian Ale poured a dark amber with a little bit of foam. The banana like spices his right away, but the flavor was not too over the top. The beer is nice as a change of pace brew and due to the way that Saranac markets it (part of a mixed pack) you wont have to worry about what to do with it as you will never have more than two at a time. Of course if you really like the brew, you will have to drive up to Utica to beg them for some singles, but they are really nice up there and its worth making the trip...

Saranac Belgian Ale is under the Kosher Supervision of the Va'ad of Detroit, as is every other brew produced by Saranac. To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about Saranac Belgian Ale, please follow this link http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/99/26617.

As always, please remember to drink responsibly and to never waste good beer unless there is no designated driver.

If you've tried this beer or any others which have been reviewed on the kosher beers site, please feel free to post your comments (anonymous comments are acceptable).

Finally, if you have seen this post being carried on another site, please feel free to click http://www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com/ to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Ki Sissa

The following is a brief summary of a vort said over by R' Frand this evening. I have attempted to reproduce the vort to the best of my ability. Any perceived inconsistency is the result of my efforts to transcribe the shiur and should not be attributed to R' Frand.

In the beginning of Parshas Ki Sissa, Hashem commands Moshe to count the Jews through the mechanism of machasis hashekel. In Shemos 30:16, the Torah writes that the machasis hashekel was given for the work of the ohel moe'd. Rashi on this pasuk explains that this request actually took place after the sin of the golden calf as Moshe was commanded to count the Jews after the plague which followed the golden calf. Rashi then states that Hashem's request was akin to a flock of sheep which was precious to its owner. After the flock sustained significant losses due to disease, the owner asked his shepherd to count the flock to show how dear the flock was to him.

R' Frand then asked - if the Jews were so dear to Hashem, why send the plague in the first place? Furthermore, the owner of the sheep did not cause their death, so how is the situation comparable?

R' Frand answered his questions by saying over a vort in the name of the Tolner Rebbi. The Tolner Rebbi first made reference to the request that Moshe made to Hashem after the golden calf story was over that Moshe wanted to see Hashem (hareini na es kivodecha). The Tolner Rebbi asked in the name of the Sfas Emes - why did Moshe make this request now? Moshe had a relationship with Hashem for many years in Midyan and in Egypt and took the Jews out of Egypt. Why did Moshe only ask after the sin of the golden calf to see Hashem?

The Tolner Rebbi answered his question by making reference to a story involving the Kotzker Rebbi and his talmid the Chidushei Harim. The Chidushei Harim asked - why is it that I feel holier on the second day of yom tov than the first. The Kotzker Rebbi answered - when a husband and wife have an argument and then make up, they will feel more strongly about each other than they did before the fight. The fact that we have a second day of yom tov is because of our misdeeds which caused the Jews to be expelled from our land. The second day of yom tov is Hashem's way of making up with the Jews and that is why you feel more holy on the second day of yom tov.

Rabbi Frand then quoted the Rambam in his Perush Hamishnayos on Parah (3:3). The Rambam asked - who is more pure - one who was previously tamei and was mitaheir, or one who was never tamei in his lifetime? The Rambam answered that the one who was tamei and now became tahor is on a higher level of tahara because he went from a lower level to a higher level.

The Sfas Emes explained that the "make up" was the reason that Moshe asked hareini na es kivodecha after the sin of the golden calf. At this point, the Jews and Hashem had gotten back together and Moshe felt closer to Hashem. It was at this juncture that Moshe wanted to see Hashem.

This is also the explanation of Rashi's mashal. Hashem had brought the plague on the Jews after the sin of the golden calf because they needed to be punished. But now that the punishment was over, it was time to show Hashem's love for the Jews and to bring them closer by counting them and using the funds to build the mishkan.

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Monday's Musings on Sports - The Saner Super Mario or Why the Goons Rule in Uniondale

As regular readers of this blog are aware, the Monday post was usually devoted to sports with highlights and analysis of the Max Kellerman show which formerly aired on 1050 ESPN Radio. Although Max resigned from 1050 more than a year ago (he has recently resurfaced on ESPN Radio in Los Angeles), I have tried to continue the tradition of linking sports to Torah which I believe was an undercurrent of the Max Kellerman show.

On Friday evening there was a hockey game between the playoff bound Pittsburgh Penguins and the cellar dwelling New York Islanders. This game was a grudge match for the Islanders as they had been shutout by the Penguins the week before. To add injury to insult, the Islanders lost their franchise goaltender in that game when he picked a fight with the Penguin goalie and suffered facial fractures from the one punch it took to put him away.

In anticipation of the rematch with the Penguins, the Islanders recalled extra goons from their minor league affiliate. Not long after the game started, there were two major fights including one where a Pittsburgh player left the bench (hockey's yeharaig v'al ya'avor) to protect his goalie. As the night progressed, the game devolved into a series of scrums which featured an Islanders player elbowing a Penguin in the head and then pummeling him into unconsciousness and another fight which was precipitated by a leaping punch from behind to a Penguin player. The total penalty minutes for the game was the third highest in the last twenty plus years.

The NHL acted swiftly to impose discipline for the players transgressions. Two Islander players were suspended (nine and four games respectively) for "deliberate attempts to injure by delivering blows to the head of players who were unsuspecting and unable to defend themselves." [The Penguin who left the bench to protect his goalie was suspended 10 games which is the mandatory penalty for such an act]. Additionally, the Islanders team which is bankrupt in more ways than one was fined $100,000 because the League felt that the team “must bear some responsibility for their failure to control their players.”

After the league meted out its punishments, Hall of Famer Mario Lemieux excoriated the Islanders for their intentional attempts to injure his players. He also openly questioned whether the league had changed for the worse since his retirement and whether he should continue to be involved with the game.

Lemieux's comments are indicative of the tension in the NHL game which is unlike any other professional sport. In most sports, if a player throws a punch he is ejected from the game and can face additional suspension or fines. In hockey, fighting is allowed and players who fight are penalized five minutes for fighting, but can return to the game if they have not committed some other misconduct.

While not attempting to apologize for the sport, I can understand why fighting is allowed in professional hockey. In the heat of battle in a sport with more legalized hitting than any other, tempers can boil over and a simple fist fight can settle the score. On the other hand, when the fight is premeditated and teams bring up their goons from the minor league in order to exact revenge, the league must step in to punish those whose only goal is mayhem.

The difference in penalty between a spontaneous act and a premeditated attempt to injure can be seen in Torah law as well. While two people can commit murder in the same way they can receive two different punishments. If the killer spontaneously kills the victim in an act of rage and without any warnings to him about the consequences of his act, the killer receives the punishment of banishment to an Ir Miklat - a city far from his own where he must live out the rest of his days (or until the kohen gadol dies). However, if the killer acts intentionally and is warned not to take his action, but still takes a life, the killer receives the death penalty for his action.

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Sunday Night Suds - Leinenkugel Classic Amber

This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at Leinenkugel's Classic Amber.

Occasionally a brewery will introduce a beer and leave unsaid what style of beer it has produced. Often times, the beer will have some kind of odd name (usually named after a fairy tale creature or some variation on a crude joke) and the point of leaving off the style of beer is to increase the novelty of the brew. There are certainly some people who will buy beer based solely on the coolness of the name or the look of the label or packaging. If you are into surprises and don't mind drinking bad beer if the brew does not taste as good as it looks, then I guess that's OK.

I have also experienced beers where the brewery gives the beer a generic beer type name but they don't actually tell you what kind of beer is produced. This can also be a negative sign as knowing that the beer is a certain color or strength does not really tell you anything about the beer.

In the case of the Leinenkugel Classic Amber, I can't tell you that reason that they left the style off the label has anything to do with the quality of the beer, but the beer is not anything special. Having first verified on the Leine website that they don't classify the brew (I mixed a six at the store so I did not have the packaging to check) I then went on the Beer Advocate and saw that it was classified as an American Amber, which BA defines as "A sort of catch-all category, these lagers boast a bit more malt backbone and overall character than their lighter sister styles. Bitterness is generally low."

The Classic Amber poured a golden orange color (almost like good scotch) with a decent amount of foam at the top. The flavor was not very strong, a little coppery and not much else other than malt. This is not to say that the Classic Amber is a light beer, the beer has some kick to it and there is certainly more flavor than a "lite", but nothing really stands out.

Leinenkugel Classic Amber is certified kosher by the Orthodox Union, although the product currently in the marketplace does not yet have an OU on the label. If you would like a copy of the LOC please contact me via email.

To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about Leinenkugel Classic Amber, please follow this link http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/710/46559.

As always, please remember to drink responsibly and to never waste good beer unless there is no designated driver.

If you've tried this beer or any others which have been reviewed on the kosher beers site, please feel free to post your comments (anonymous comments are acceptable).

If you have seen this post being carried on another site, please feel free to click http://www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com/ to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Thursday's Parsha Tibits - Parshas Tezaveh

The following is a brief summary of two vorts said over by R' Frand this evening. I have attempted to reproduce the vorts to the best of my ability. Any perceived inconsistency is the result of my efforts to transcribe the shiur and should not be attributed to R' Frand.

In Tezaveh 29, the Torah writes that Moshe had to put the clothing of Kehunah on Aharon and his sons. After this juncture, the Kohanim dressed themselves, however the first time, Moshe was to dress them. This concept is also seen in Parshas Chukas, in that after Aharon died, Moshe had to put the clothing of the Kohen Gadol on Elazar for the first time.

The Sefer Milchemes Yehuda explains that this describes the mode of Jewish leadership. When a secular person runs for office, he stands in a historic place and says "I am the most qualified for the position of..." Rabbi Frand then asked - did anyone ever get up and say I am the most qualified to be Gadol Hador? Did R' Moshe Feinstein go out to FDR Drive and announce, I am Gadol Hador?

Rabbi Frand explained that a person becomes a leader in Judaism when someone else appoints the person based on his merits. Moshe dressed Aharon to show that Aharon had been chosen for the position of Kohen Gadol, not that he had tried out or volunteered for the job.

R' Frand then mentioned that when R' Shach was getting on in years, he started to transition the role of posek to R' Aharon Leib Schteinman (sp?). This was not a role that R' Aharon Leib volunteered for. But R' Shach knew who he felt would be appropriate to take over and he learned from Tezaveh and Chukas how to appoint the next leader.

R' Frand said a second vort from Tezaveh 29:30 where the Torah states that the Kohen Gadol who would take over for the previous Kohen Gadol was to wear the clothes of the Kohen Gadol for seven consecutive days. As part of the pasuk, the Torah indicates that if the Kohen Gadol has a son who is worthy to take over for him, the son has priority to be chosen as the new Kohen Gadol.

R' Frand then quoted a gemara from Yoma, that a person might think that the same way that Kohen Gadol passed from father to son, then maybe the Kohen Mashuach Milchama would pass through to the son. The gemara states that from this pasuk we learn that only the Kohen Gadol who goes into the ohel moed can pass the title to his son and not the Kohen Mashuach Milcahama. The question is why?

R' Frand quoted from R' Kook who stated that yerusha is about continuity, something which passes from father to son like Kehuna Gedolah or in rabbanus. There is one aspect of Jewish light where we do not want to emphasize continuity, and that is war. We hope that war is not a continuous process and that war is not a regular part of life. Thus we do not allow the Kohen Mashuach Milcahama to automatically pass from father to son as milchama is the exception to the norm.

On Shabbos 63 the mishna writes that a person should not go out with his sword. R' Elezer says that the sword is an ornament and therefore can be worn on shabbos. However the rabbanim argue with him and say that a sword is not an ornament, it is a genai. The rabbanim say that if war comes we may need to fight, but a sword is not a regular part of our lives. Our goal is that we should not be regularly involved with war - lo yisa goi el goi cherev, lo yilmidu od milchama.

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Monday's Musings on Sports - The Lombardi Trophy, The Aron Kodesh and Rav Moshe

As regular readers of this blog are aware, the Monday post was usually devoted to sports with highlights and analysis of the Max Kellerman show which formerly aired on 1050 ESPN Radio. Although Max resigned from 1050 more than a year ago (he has recently resurfaced on ESPN Radio in Los Angeles), I have tried to continue the tradition of linking sports to Torah which I believe was an undercurrent of the Max Kellerman show.

Yesterday I did something which I admit to hardly ever doing. While I try to watch the Superbowl every year, I usually turn the TV off after the final gun. For reasons that I cannot completely explain, this year I kept the TV on to see who would be awarded the Superbowl MVP. I was hardly surprised to see that the award was given to Aaron Rodgers. However, while waiting to find out who would win the award, I witnessed the Lombardi Trophy procession. Carried by NFL legend Roger Staubach, the trophy was slowly carried through the throngs of players, coaches and staff until it was on the podium where the Packers' owners and coaches were standing. As the trophy made its way through the crowd, the players reached to touch it or kiss the top of the trophy.

The Lombardi Trophy procession and the absolute awe that the players had in viewing the trophy was different then other championship celebrations in other sports. When a team wins the Stanley Cup, they fill it with champagne and drink from the Cup. When a team wins the World Series, they celebrate in the locker room with the popping of champagne corks. [I can't describe the celebration in basketball as I have to admit that I have never watched an NBA Championship game]. Unlike the other sports, the Lombardi Trophy seemed akin (l'havdil) to the way that a sefer Torah is carried out or back to the Aron Kodesh.

I heard an interesting vort on a Rabbi Mansour recorded shiur (available on www.learntorah.com) which discussed the Aron Kodesh (the ark of the covenant from Raiders fame). Unlike every other article described in Parshas Terumah, the dimensions of the Aron Kodesh were exclusively half measurements (2 and 1/2 by 1 and 1/2 by 1 and 1/2). R' Mansour explained that the reason for the partial measurements was to show that Torah is not housed in perfection and is available to the masses.

Rabbi Mansour told over a R' Moshe Feinstein story related to this vort. A particularly difficult medical issue arose which required that R' Moshe meet with a medical expert. The expert who was brought in was none less than C. Everett Koop, MD. Following the meeting, Dr Koop remarked - I have been on campuses all over the country and have met many brilliant college professors,but I have never met anyone like him. Most of the scholars who I met were brilliant but arrogant. R' Moshe was humble and never made me feel like I was beneath him.

This is the role of the Aron Kodesh - a receptacle for Torah but not a perfect object, as the Torah must be approachable by the masses.

If you have seen this post being carried on another site, please feel free to click http://www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com/ to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Sunday Night Suds - Miller Lite

This week's Sunday Night suds honors the Super Bowl with a review of one of the more legendary sports advertised beers - Miller Lite.

As a kid I can recall many a sporting event with Miller Lite commercials which featured sports personalities such as Bob Uecker, Dick Butkus and Joe Frazier. But perhaps more famous than the personalities was the advertising theme of Tastes Great Less Filling. The campaign ran for many years with many different participants (including George Steinbrenner and Billy Martin during the firing years).

Unfortunately, like many things in life, the product does not live up to the advertising hype. Miller Lite is plain and simple a light beer. The beer pours a pale yellow, almost as light as, well you can guess. The beer has some semblance of pilsner flavor, but it can't stack up to any food, especially the spicy fare which is usually served at SuperBowl parties such as hot wings, chips and salsa or chili.

If you are looking a beer which won't fill you up and goes down smooth, you could do worse than Miller Lite. But if you want a light beer that tastes like beer, make sure to pass this one by.

Miller Lite is certified kosher by the Orthodox Union, as are most beers produced by MillerCoors. If you would like a copy of the LOC which identifies the specific MillerCoors products which are certified kosher, please let me know.

To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about Miller Lite (warning its not pretty, please follow this link http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/105/332.

As always, please remember to drink responsibly and to never waste good beer unless there is no designated driver.

If you've tried this beer or any others which have been reviewed on the kosher beers site, please feel free to post your comments (anonymous comments are acceptable).

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Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Terumah

The following is a brief summary of a vort said over by R' Frand this evening. I have attempted to reproduce the vort to the best of my ability. Any perceived inconsistency is the result of my efforts to transcribe the shiur and should not be attributed to R' Frand.

In Parshas Terumah the Torah discusses many of the parts of the mishkan, including the Keruvim (aka cherubs). The gemara in Yoma states that when the Beis Hamikdash was being sacked by the Romans, they entered the Kodesh Kodashim and saw that the Keruvim were embracing. The Romans poked fun at this, asking why embracing statues would be in the holiest place to the Jews.

R' Frand mentioned a question which was asked by the Ramban and Ritva in relation to a gemara in Bava Basra. The gemara there states that when the Jews were doing the mitzvos the Keruvim would embrace. When the Jews were not following Hashem's laws the Keruvim would turn away from each other. Given this rule of thumb, it is difficult to understand why the Keruvim were embracing when the Romans invaded the temple. We know that the Jews were not properly keeping the mitzvos at the time of the destruction of the Beis Hamikdash, so why were the Keruvim together?

R' Frand offered a few different answers to the question. One of the more interesting answers was suggested by the Bnei Yissoschar. He states that it is emblematic of the rule that one should honor and show appreciation to one's spouse before going away on a journey. Even though the Jews were not following Hashem's rules, the Keruvim were together and giving a symbolic goodbye embrace to the Jews.

A more poignant answer was suggested in the name of the sefer Shabbos U'Moadim. He quoted a medrash which told the story of a Jew who was being taken out to be stoned. They asked the Jew why he was being stoned and he responded - becuase I gave my son a bris milah. Another Jew was being taken out to be burned and they asked him why he was being punished. He said that it was because he had kept shabbos. We see from this medrash that throughout the generations there will be nations which will forbid or punish Jews for keeping the mitzvos. Through it all, the Jews will still cling to Hashem and do his will, much like the Keruvim which stayed together when the Romans were invading.

Rabbi Frand brought a proof to this concept from the Hoshanos that we say on Sukkos. One of the Hoshanas (Om Ani Choma) states that the Jewish nation declares that they are a wall and are likened to a palm tree, yet are murdered for Hashem's sake and are regarded like sheep for slaughter, although scattered among those who taunt [them, the Jews] hug and cleave to Hashem.

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