| Dvar Torah for Pesach
|
Based on Likutey Halakhot Nezikin 4:5 "No chametz (leavened foods) shall be seen in your possession" (Exodus 13:7). "In your possession"—your chametz is forbidden, but chametz belonging to a non-Jew is not (Pesachim 5b). One of the lessons to be learned from the prohibition of owning leavened foods (e.g., pasta, scotch) is that we must disown "leavened" thoughts, for example, thoughts that weaken or undermine our faith, and thoughts that tease us towards sense pleasures. However, if you do your honest best, try your darndest, to banish such thoughts—by ignoring them—then if they return, God forbid, you are not culpable for having them. You're only held accountable for thinking such thoughts, if you continue to hold on to them once you've noticed that they're there. So if on Pesach a non-Jew brings his pizza into your dining room, if you've been duly and truly diligent in keeping chametz out of your home, you're innocent. Just be careful not to touch it, and be on the alert not to benefit from it or tempted by it. Sooner or later the pizza—and those chametz-thoughts—will be out of sight and out of mind.
|