This week’s Parsha speaks about kashering and performing tevilah on utensils purchased from a non-Jew. Someone recently asked through WhatsApp the following question. They acquired a new pre-seasoned cast iron and they want to know if it has a kashrus question, and if it needs to be koshered, should it be koshered first before doing tevilas keileim, or is the reverse order fine too.
The second question regarding the order of tevilah and kashering is addressed in the Rishonim and all the way up to Shulchan Aruch, who paskins that kashering comes first. The logic is that before you purify the utensil and bring into the kedushas Yisrael you need to remove the negative taste that is absorbed in the walls of the utensil. There is an hashkafic message that can be learnt from the Halacha; however, first let’s get to the pre-seasoned cast iron.
The concern with these utensils is based on new science and technology where in the process of making the utensil an oil which can be based from non-Kosher or kosher sources; many times it’s not clear. The objective is actually to prevent the utensil from rusting. The dilemma is how to kosher the oven if the oils are really non-kosher. There are essentially three opinions in the kashrus world. One suggests that it should be placed in an oven and run a cycle of self-cleaning this would get rid of the top seasoned layer. The second opinion is to just put in a regular oven on the highest for ten minutes. Third opinion is to do hagallah. It would be too complicated to delve into the reasoning behind each opinion, but I want to bring out a thought based on the above.
Every one of us in a way is a holy vessel - כלי שרת we are here to do Hashem will which is only done when one lives with the awareness of Hashem existence. When we speak about the three weeks, we are trying to mourn the loss of awareness of Hashem, especially the Bais Hamikdash which was the main source of awareness of Hashem.
Many people today find it difficult to relate to mourning the Bais Hamikdash, and hence have a challenging time keeping the laws of mourning in a meaningful way. The key is to figure out what is stopping us from tapping in; what impurities, whether in action or thought, prevent us from becoming aware of Hashem?
For example, take one of the five tragic things that occurred on Shiva Asar BeTamuz: משה שבר את הלחות – Moshe, after seeing the golden calf, takes the luchos and breaks them. Before the tablets were broken, we would learn Torah and not forget, there was an incredible level of clarity; we were called the Dor Deah. All this was lost, and we suffer tremendously from the lack of clarity. Every moment that we are struggling with understanding tragedy and the like, we must remind ourselves it’s from the lack of clarity that stems from the breaking of the luchos.
May we be zoche to see the final geulah and become more aware of Hashem in every aspect.
by Rabbi Daniel Coren
