[Avodah] ra'ah bird - nevelah in EY

[Eli Turkel]

from R. Scheinman of the Hebrew Academy in Cleveland:
http://www.shemayisrael.co.il/parsha/peninim/archives/shmini66.htm

"he daah and the ayah according to its specie. (11:14)

In the Talmud Chullin 62a, Chazal say that the daah, ayah and raah are
all one specie of fowl. Why is it called raah? Because it sees very
far. It stands in Babylon and sees a neveilah, carcass, in
Yerushalayim. Horav Meir Shapiro, zl, notes the "character" and
possibly the reason for this bird's siman tumah, sign distinguishing
it as a non-kosher food, is its tendency to be in the spiritual filth
of eretz ha'amim, the land of the pagan nations. Yet, it notices the
tumah, the carcass in Eretz Yisrael. It does not see the tumah of the
environment of which it is a part of. It sees the tumah in the Holy
Land. This is a character defect. An individual who can stand amidst
tumah, but notice only the tumah of others, especially those who are
in a holy place, is an individual of a flawed character.

Rav Meir Shapiro interprets this into the pasuk in Zecharyah 3:2,
Yigaar Hashem becha ha'Satan v'yigaar Hashem becha ha'bocher
b'Yerushalayim, "May Hashem, denounce you, O' Satan! May Hashem, Who
chooses Yerushalayim, denounce you!" Why are two denouncements
necessary? The answer is that there are two types of "satans." There
is the individual who is always finding fault, always presenting a
critique, but does not distinguish between the holy and mundane. He
finds fault in everyone. For him, one denouncement will suffice. There
is, on the other hand, a satan who only finds fault with Yerushalayim,
who only maligns the holy, whether it is the people, the city, the
Torah, anything that is reserved for sanctity. It is specifically in
this area that his perverted and malignant mouth finds a place. For
him, two denouncements are necessary. "

I am willing to bring slogans based on Horav Meir Shapiro Zt"l

-- 
Eli Turkel