TEFILA: Malbish Arumim. Clothing vs. Evolution.

כשלובש את בגדיו הוא אומר:  מלביש ערומים

Previously (see here) we have explained that the Birkot haShaḥar  are organized as a careful description of all the steps that we take when we wake up every morning, from the moment we regain consciousness. We praise HaShem for our sight, for our working body, for our erected posture, etc. 

Today we will explore the blessing in which we praise (and thank!) God for providing us with clothing. "Blessed are You, HaShem our God, King of the Universe, Who clothes those who are naked". The rabbis established this blessing to be said when we are getting dressed, upon getting out of bed.

Humans are the only mammals that were created without fur.Every other mammal have a dense covering of fur. Primates included, from the short black pelage of the howler monkey to the flowing copper coat of the orangutan. Anthropologists are at odds over how to explain from an evolutionary point of view that humans have no fur. Because they find it impossible to imagine any benefits provided to naked people by natural selection.  In his "The descent of man and selection in relation to sex" Charles Darwin himself was convinced that no naturally selected advantage could be cited as evidence for the lack of body-fur in humans. 

When saying this berakha we remember that unlike other creatures, we have a unique dependency on clothing and that God Himself made for Adam and Eve their first clothes (Gen. 3:21), an act that the Rabbis understood as an expression of compassion and love from our Creator to us (Abuderham, 14th century). Every morning, we acknowledge that--directly or indirectly-- it is thanks to Him that we have clothes to cover our bodies and protect ourselves from the inclemencies of the weather.  Incidentally, this berakha also reminds us that we are commanded to imitate HaShem's actions, providing clothing and other basic needs to those who lack the means to take care of themselves. 

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KETUBA: The financial obligations of the Jewish husband (Part 3)

Previously, we mentioned that the monetary compensation established in the Ketuba includes the main capital or iqar ketuba, i.e., the indemnification or marriage insurance (see this ),  and  the dowry or nedunya i.e., the wife's valuables which must be restituted to her in case of dissolution of the marriage (see this). 

Today we will describe the third component of the monetary compensation: the tosafot or increments.  

There are two increments which are normally added in the Ketuba. First, the increment to the dowry, which is traditionally the equivalent of the dowry itself.  In other words, the dowry is normally set at one hundred pieces of silver (100 zequqim dekesef), the tosefet or increment, then, consist of an additional one hundred pieces of silver.  Second, there is an increment to the main Ketuba that the husband promises his wife.  In some communities they would specify the amount of this increment. In other communities the tradition is to state that the husband adds an increment to the main Ketuba without specifying any amount. 

To summarize, the bridegroom undertakes in the Ketuba to pay the main Ketuba and the dowry, together with their increments, in case of divorce or death of the husband.

Finally, the Ketuba also states that if the husband does not have the actual money to compensate his wife in case of divorce, or if he did not leave enough money to cover the Ketuba in case of death, his assets will be seized by the Bet Din (the Rabbinical court of Law) to pay for the Ketuba. This last rule was established by Shimon ben Shatah (120-40 BCE) when he saw that many women were hesitant to get married for fear of being abandoned by their husband with no means. His ruling served as an additional  deterrent to frivolous men, who in a moment of anger or weakness might make a rash decision to divorce their wives (TB, Ketubot 82b).

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by Elliot Katz, from Aish.