Reishis Hageiz in “The Shteitel”

Question

I am in the process of building a moshav called “The Shteitel” right outside of Yerushalayim, next to the neighborhood of Kochav Hashachar. The moshav will, be’ezras Hashem, have a kollel, and our goal is for English-speaking Jews to settle and live a simpler and more Torahdike life, like we once had in the shtetel. I would like to ask the rov for advice on how we can set up “The Shteitel” and its kollel in a way that will facilitate maximum growth in avodas Hashem for all those who live there.

A second question I would like to ask the rov is about the mitzvah of reishis hageiz. On the land allotted for the moshav, we are raising sheep whose time for shearing has arrived. I would like to mechabeid my friend, Rabbi Daniel Travis, with this mitzvah, and I would like to ask the rov how I should practically go about this.

Thank you.

Eli

Rav Zafrani 

It is not easy for Jews from chutz la’aretz to settle here in Eretz Yisroel, and it is a very great mitzvah that you are doing by providing them with a place where they can feel part of a community and, at the same time, grow in avodas Hashem. There are many things to take into account that could increase your success in this project, but I will share with you one thing that I think is critical.

Making a Moshav and a Kollel Work

Chazal teach us, “Sof maaseh bemachshavah techilah,” the end result is based on what the original plan was. “Growth” means something different to each person, and every Jew is on a different level, which for them might be fine, but someone else might not be comfortable with it. In order for your moshav to work, it is critical that there be baseline standards demarcating where people are now in their religious observance and where you hope to get to, so that everyone has a clear picture of what they are getting themselves into.

The same is true about your kollel. In general, yungeleit will perform best if they are given a very clear picture of what is expected of them, and they are directed in how they are meant to achieve this. The clearer you lay down your goals and expectations of what you want the kollel to achieve vis-à-vis their own growth and interaction with the other members of the moshav, the more success you will have with your project.

Reishis Hageiz vs. Bechor

In regard to your questions about the mitzvah of reishis hageiz, let’s deal with one issue at a time. The Torah mitzvah of reishis hageiz applies when a person owns five sheep. When these five sheep are sheared, the first wool is given to a kohein.

As far as fulfilling this mitzvah, there are a number of issues we must consider, especially when the sheep are female. The firstborn of a female sheep is a bechor, which is meant to be offered as a korban. The halachos of bechoros are very complicated and involve kodshim. How should we practically deal with this?

Since we do not have a Bais Hamikdosh to offer the bechor today, we try to exempt ourselves from this mitzvah. Often, what is done is that a small part of the female sheep is sold to a non-Jew, since partnership with a non-Jew removes the issue of bechor. The problem with this solution is that partnership with a non-Jew also removes the mitzvah of reishis hageiz.

One partial solution to this problem is to sell the non-Jew the veshet, the windpipe, of the animal. Since it is an organ needed for survival, its sale to a non-Jew is sufficient to exempt one from the mitzvah of bringing a bechor. On the other hand, since it is a non-kosher part of the sheep, it is not considered a significant partnership that would eliminate the mitzvah of reishis hageiz entirely. However, this is not the preferred way to perform this mitzvah.

There were groups that sold the neck of the sheep, which is kosher and high-quality meat, on condition that the sale ended right after the female sheep gave birth and the issue of bechor was no longer significant. At first glance, this seemed like a good solution, but, in truth, it caused great problems. Such a sale does not really create a partnership, and the owners were back to square one. Therefore, this is no longer done.

The most effective way to deal with this issue is to sell to a non-Jew an important part of the sheep, like the neck, and, after the sheep has given birth, to make a kinyan and acquire it back from them. If the owner of the sheep owns the land that the sheep are in, then if the non-Jew agrees to give that part back, he can acquire the sheep with his chotzeir, i.e., his domain.

Acquiring Sheep

Once the female sheep no longer belong to the non-Jew, or if we are dealing with male sheep, when one has five sheep, he can perform the mitzvah. However, whether the sheep are male or female, one is only obligated to fulfill this mitzvah if he actually owns the sheep.

If you would like to honor Rabbi Travis with the mitzvah, he must acquire them from the owner. He should pick up five of the sheep three tefachim off the ground and acquire them for himself with a kinyan hagba’ah. Since sheep tend to be heavy and sometimes stubborn, someone else can help him pick them up for this acquisition.

Shearing the Sheep

After the sheep belong to Rabbi Travis, they need to be sheared. The general principle is that “it is better to do a mitzvah by oneself rather than using a shliach,” and preferably, he should shear them himself. One hundred grams of shearing is needed to give to the kohein, but it is preferable to shear two hundred grams, because a lot of the wool tends to be unusable.

Once the wool is sheared, you should find a kohein meyuchas to give it to. Although the wool may be very dirty and smelly, you are not obligated to wash it beforehand and no brocha is recited when giving it. A few years ago, I performed the mitzvah myself, and I gave the wool to my son-in-law, who is a kohein.

May you have great success in all of your endeavors, and may “The Shteitel” flourish and become a true makom Torah.