Prayer in the Parashah תְּפִלָּה
Our parashah teaches us the idea of מְעִילָה (me’ilah), which means that when something was dedicated to God, or set aside for use in the mishkan or Beit Ha-Mikdash, you couldn’t use it for anything else because that would be like stealing from God.
Does this still apply today, when we no longer have a Beit Ha-Mikdash? Actually yes, because Hazal connect the idea of me’ilah to making בְּרָכוֹת (berakhot, blessings) over food.
לֹא יִטְעֹם אָדָם כְּלוּם עַד שֶׁיְּבָרֵךְ שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר "לָה' הָאָרֶץ וּמְלֹאָהּ."
הַנֶּהֱנֶה מִן הָעוֹלָם הַזֶּה בְּלֹא בְּרָכָה – מָעַל.
A person shouldn’t taste anything before making a berakhah, as it says (Tehillim 24:1): “The earth and everything in it is God’s.”
A person who enjoys something from this world without making a blessing–committed me’ilah.
Since everything in the whole world is God’s, helping yourself to anything without permission–even just an apple–is like stealing from God, which is me’ilah. Saying berakhot before eating is like asking permission from God, and that makes the food ok to enjoy.
- How does this affect the importance of making berakhot before eating?
- Do you think of the earth as entirely God’s? How might people act differently if they thought of the earth this way?
- What feelings do you have when you slow down to make a berakhah before enjoying your food?
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