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Q & A - WITH RABBI RISKINQuestion: Why do we insert the addition, "And give dew and rain for blessing" (in the section of the Amidah prayer that asks God for a blessing for the land and bountiful produce) only from the 7th day of the month of Heshvan onwards, rather than starting right away on Shemini Atzeret, when we already insert "Who causes the wind to blow and the rain to fall?" And furthermore: I am about to leave on a trip to New York, and I understand that the insertion "Give dew and rain for blessing" is customarily included there only from the middle of December. This seems entirely illogical to me, since the rainy season in New York starts in October. As an Israeli who will be outside of Israel for the next two weeks, what should I do concerning this insertion in the Amidah?Answer: The Gemara, in Massekhet Ta'anit, rules that since the rainy season begins in Israel on Sukkot, we must praise God with the words, "Who causes the wind to blow and the rain to fall" starting on Shemini Atzeret. (During Sukkot reciting these words is not considered "praise", since we do not wish for rain to come and disturb our rejoicing in the sukkah.) However, we do not add the words "Give dew and rain for blessing" until the 7th of Heshvan - because of the pilgrims. Why? Because in Temple times, special consideration was shown to Jews who came to Jerusalem from Babylon, and who needed another two weeks after the end of Sukkot to get home. Since rain would have made their journey difficult, the prayer was postponed for sufficient time to allow them to return. Jewish communities in the Diaspora start reciting "Who causes the wind to blow and the rain to fall" on Shemini Atzeret, as we do in Israel, in order to emphasize the awareness of and connection with the climate in Eretz Yisrael - the true home of every Jew. But concerning the supplication, "Give dew and rain for blessing", there is an interesting dispute in Massekhet Ta'anit 10: One opinion asserts that Diaspora Jews should start asking God for rain on exactly the same date as do Jews in Israel - i.e;, on the 7th of Heshvan. A second opinion maintains that every community should include the prayer for rain in accordance with the local rainy reason. A third opinion contends that all Diaspora Jews should begin reciting, "Give dew and rain for blessing" in accordance with the rainy season in Babylon - which begins in the middle of December.The third opinion - a difficult one to understand - is accepted as halakha, and therefore, Jewish communities in New York - and throughout the Diaspora - start praying for rain only in the middle of December. I believe that the reasoning behind this halakhic ruling teaches us a very important lesson. Our Sages sought, on one hand, to emphasize that the true home of every Jew is in Eretz Yisrael. This idea finds practical expression in the recitation of "Who causes the wind to blow and the rain to fall" starting from Shemini Atzeret - both in Israel and in the Diaspora. On the other hand, the Sages insist that a Jewish community can survive in exile only if it resembles the Babylonian exile. The Babylonian exile was characterized by a regime that allowed the Jews to create a "state within a state": a Jewish state in the midst of the Babylonian State. The Jewish State was led by its own "Reish Galuta" ("governer of the exile"), its own legal system, and its own educational system. This situation allowed the Jewish community of Babylon to flourish for a period of about a thousand years. It is for this reason that Diaspora communities, in the commencement of their recitation of "Give dew and rain for blessing," memorialize the Babylonian exile - despite the fact that today there remains no trace of the Jewish community of Iraq.If you have a question for Q & A, send it to ots@ohrtorahstone.org.il . We cannot guarantee that all questions received will be answered in this column.
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