Illustration Credit: Rivka Tsinman
Halakhah הֲלָכָה
Benei Yisrael capture a whole bunch of objects in their war with Midian. Elazar, the High Priest, tells them that any metal object that can withstand fire must be passed through fire, and everything else must pass through water (Bemidbar 31:21-23).
The Talmud (Avodah Zarah 75b) understands this to refer to two practices: 1) Using fire and heat to make things used for non-kosher food fit to use for kosher food, and 2) immersing or dipping metal objects used for food in water when a Jew acquires them for the first time.
The second practice is known as טְבִילַת כֵּלִים (tevilat keilim), and it was understood to apply not just to metal objects, but to glass ones as well. Here’s how the Shulhan Arukh describes it:
הַקּוֹנֶה מֵהָעוֹבֵד כּוֹכָבִים כְּלֵי סְעוּדָה שֶׁל מַתֶּכֶת אוֹ שֶׁל זְכוּכִית...אַף עַל פִּי שֶׁהֵם חֲדָשִׁים צָרִיךְ לְהַטְבִּילָם בְּמִקְוֶה אוֹ מַעְיָן...
When a Jew buys metal or glass vessels used to prepare or serve food from someone not Jewish…even if they are brand new, they must be immersed in a mikveh or a natural spring…
What’s the idea here? It isn’t about making the dishes kosher, because this rule is meant to apply even to dishes that have never been used before. The Talmud (Yerushalmi Avodah Zarah 5:15) says that it’s supposed to teach us to create a kind of holiness for when we prepare and eat food!
So when bringing something from a non-Jewish space to a Jewish space, there is almost a kind of “sanctification” of the pots and pans that dedicates them for their use in a Jewish home.
When doing tevilat keilim, there are a few rules to keep in mind (Shulhan Arukh Yoreh Deah 120):
- You have to go to a naturally collected body of water that is big enough to hold a person’s body. Many communities have a mikveh especially for this purpose, but rivers, natural lakes, and seas are also great!
- Spring or ocean water can be moving, but lake and river water (unless they are connected to a spring) should be still.
- There is a special berakhah that is said right before immersing the objects:
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יהוה אֱ-לֹקֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו וְצִוָּנוּ עַל טְבִילַת כֵּלִים
Blessed are You, Lord our God, Ruler of the Universe, Who has made us holy with Your mitzvot and commanded us regarding tevilat keilim.
- All parts of the item need to come in contact with the water. So make sure water fills the spaces of the vessel, and either let go for a second when it’s under the water, or lower it in a basket, or wet your hand before immersing the item.
- What does it mean to ensure that there is holiness in our kitchens, even when we are not doing a mitzvah like eating a Shabbat meal? How can holiness be part of any time we eat?
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