Because many of us are not able to attend shul in person, the Rabbi has agreed to share his shabbat morning drashah in advance. Here is the first half of it. To read the full drashah, click here and it will take you to what will become a rich archive of all of Rabbi Staller's drashot.
Given the events of the past several months– full of difficulty, tragedy, and unexpected surprises– it is perhaps fitting that we conclude this year with an unusual and unexpected act of solemnity: fasting on Shabbat. While generally we never fast on Shabbat, as Shabbat is a joyous day characterized by festive meals and celebration, the two exceptions to this rule are Yom Kippur, which supersedes Shabbat, and Assarah BeTevet, which this year fell out yesterday, Erev Shabbat, and extended an hour into Shabbat– ultimately dictating the earliest time we were allowed to say Kiddush. And while this year we only fasted an hour into Shabbat, the Halakha is that if Assarah BeTevet were to fall on Shabbat itself, we would fast all of Shabbat. But how can it be that this one, minor, rabbinic fast trumps Shabbat? Why don’t we just push off Assarah BeTevet to Sunday like we do when Tisha B’Av falls on Friday/Saturday?
Rav Yosef Kairo, in his Beit Yosef– an earlier and lengthier codification of Halakha that would later be summarized into the Shulchan Aruch– quotes the Abudraham as the source for this peculiar halakha. The Abudraham explains that, while generally fast days are pushed off for Shabbat, since the fast of Assarah BeTevet commemorates Nebuchadnezzer’s first act of siege against Jerusalem, and in describing that siege the prophet says it occurred “BeEtzem HaYom HaZeh,” in the midst of that very day, we see that, like Yom Kippur, the day itself is important and non-negotiable. Therefore, even if it falls out on Shabbat, we must observe Assarah BeTevet on its proper day, and fast on Shabbat. Yet, while the Abudraham brings a verse to support himself, he hardly explains why Assarah BeTevet should be any different. Isn’t the precise date of every fast day important? Indeed, based on this difficulty, the Beit Yosef concludes that he is unsure about this Abudraham. Yet, despite R’ Yosef Kairo unsurety we all clearly have adopted the Halakhic practice of following the Abudraham. So what is special about Assarah BeTevet that it breaks the normal rules and forces us to fast on Shabbat?
... continued
Click HERE to read the Rabbi's full Drasha
