The Twilight Zone: Chanukah 5779

(45) For the king had sent letters by messengers unto Jerusalem and the cities of Juda that they should follow the strange laws of the land, (46) And forbid burnt offerings, and sacrifice, and drink offerings, in the temple; and that they should profane the sabbaths and festival days: (47) And pollute the sanctuary and holy people: Set up altars, and groves, and chapels of idols, and sacrifice swine’s flesh, and unclean beasts: (48) That they should also leave their children uncircumcised, and make their souls abominable with all manner of uncleanness and profanation: To the end they might forget the law, and change all the ordinances. (49) And whosoever would not do according to the commandment of the king, he said, he should die....

(57) Now the five and twentieth day of the month they did sacrifice upon the idol altar, which was upon the altar of God.

(6) Ten things were created on the eve of the [first] Shabbat at twilight. And these are they: The mouth of the earth [that swallowed Korach in Numbers 16:32]; and the mouth of the well [that accompanied the Israelites in the wilderness in Numbers 21:17]; and the mouth of the donkey [that spoke to Bilaam in Numbers 22:28–30]; and the rainbow [that served as a covenant after the flood in Genesis 9:13]; and the manna [that God provided the Israelites in the wilderness in Exodus 16:4–21]; and the staff [of Moshe]; and the shamir (the worm that helped build the Temple without metal tools); and the letters; and the writing; and the tablets [all of the latter three, of the Ten Commandments]. And some say, also the destructive spirits, and the burial place of Moshe, our teacher, and the ram of Abraham, our father. And some say, also the [first human-made] tongs, made with [Divine] tongs.

(18) If a man has a wayward and defiant son, who does not heed his father or mother and does not obey them even after they discipline him, (19) his father and mother shall take hold of him and bring him out to the elders of his town at the public place of his community. (20) They shall say to the elders of his town, “This son of ours is disloyal and defiant; he does not heed us. He is a glutton and a drunkard.”

(2) From when is he liable [to be stoned]? When he eats a tarteimar of meat and drinks half a log [ measure of liquid] of Italian wine. Rabbi Yosi says, a maneh [equal to one hundred zuz] of meat and a log of wine. [If] he ate [it] in a mitzvah gathering; [if] he ate [it] in [celebration of] the intercalation of the month; [if] he ate [it] as ma'aser sheni [the second tithe, which must be eaten in Jerusalem] in Jerusalem; [if] he ate nevelot [an animal not properly slaughtered] or terefot [a mortally wounded animal] or creepy crawlies; [if he ate] tevel [untithed produce] or ma'aser rishon [the first tithe] from which terumah [the portion given to the priest] has not been taken; or ma'aser sheni or hekdesh that has not been redeemed; [if] he ate something [in fulfillment of] a commandment or something [in violation of] a transgression; [or if] he ate all foods but did not eat meat; [or] drank all drinks but did not drink wine, he does not become a wayward and rebellious son, until he eats meat and drinks wine. As it says, (Deuteronomy 21:20) "He is a glutton and a drunkard." And even though there is no proof to the matter [from a Scriptural verse], there is a reference to the matter, as it says, (Proverbs 23:20) "Be not among winebibbers, among gluttonous eaters of flesh."

(3) If he stole from his father and ate in his father's domain; [if he stole] from others and ate in others' domain; [if he stole] from others and ate in his father's domain, he does not become a wayward and rebellious son, until he steals from his father and eats in others' domain. Rabbi Yosi bar Yehudah says, until he steals from his father and from his mother.

(5) The wayward and rebellious son is judged on the basis of his end.