131109 – Parshat VaYeitzei

**************************

VORTIFY YOURSELF

Reb Yosil Rosenzweig

rebyosil@gmail.com

PARSHAT VAYEITZEI

Bereishit (Genesis) 28:10 – 31:3

Haftarah – Hosea 12:13 – 14:10

131109

**************************

In last week’s Parsha some commentators discussed the concept that both Ya’akov and Eisav were meant to continue and become the third generation of patriarchs. We continue with that theme in this week’s Parsha’s discussion of Ya’akov marrying the two sisters, Rachel and Layah. Rabbis Mendel Kessin and Azri’el Tauber both do an extensive analysis of this interesting chapter in the birth and future of the B’nei Yisra’el.

Rabbi Kessin teaches that in the original plan for mankind, the divine purpose for man was to bring holiness into the world. This is called in Hebrew HitPashtut HaKedushah (the spreading of holiness). However, when the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, was eaten, the Yetzer Hara – Evil Inclination entered into our beings and became part of us. Because of that act, an additional purpose was given to mankind, K’Fiyat Hara (the destruction of Evil). After both the generations of No’ach and Babel failed to fulfill these purposes, Avraham and his children were chosen to bring about these two objectives.

Avraham spread holiness in the world by going out and teaching the ways of HaShem, through his own example. Yitzchak was a solitary man who endeavored to perfect himself and thereby, destroy evil.

Remember that Eisav was a man of the field, and Ya’akov, a dweller of tents. If Eisav had been true to his fate, he would have conquered the physical and material world (Eisav was a man of the field), and accomplish the spreading of holiness by making the mundane holy. Ya’akov, like his father, tried to perfect his entire being, and disallow any evil to exist in his proximity (a dweller of tents).

Rabbi Azri’el Tauber gives us a parable to better understand Eisav. Imagine that a person was born into the home of a powerful Mafioso. The negative influence and pressure on this child would be tremendous. Nevertheless, if he grew up to be a good wholesome person, it would only be because of exerting colossal efforts of self-discipline. Rabbi Tauber says that Eisav was born with enormous impediments to holiness, a strong inclination to materialism, and powerful lusts that needed conquering, consequently – the challenge. Had he channeled and redirected those feelings, Eisav could have become a powerful spiritual force. Instead succumbed to the temptations of the material world and instead of spreading holiness; he spread evil itself. Because of his display of evil, his brother Ya’akov then attempted to take on Eisav’s duties (of HitPashtut HaKedushah) in addition to his own (K’Fiyat Hara).

“Now Lavan had two daughters; the name of the older was Layah and the name of the younger was Rachel. Layah’s eyes were tender (Rakot), while Rachel was beautiful of form and beautiful of appearance” (Bereishit 29:16, 17). RaShI cites a Midrash (Rabba 70:15) that explains that Layah’s eyes were tender (from weeping during prayer) because it was decreed that she marry the now evil Eisav. “People used to say that Rivkah had two sons and Lavan had two daughters, the elder daughter would be married to the elder son, while the younger daughter was destined to marry the younger son.” When Layah heard of Eisav’s downfall, she wept in prayer, because instead of marrying a Tzaddik (a righteous man), she would have to marry a Rasha (an evil man). Layah prayed for an annulment of the decree (and her prayers were answered).

But the manner in which her prayers were answered is most interesting. Ya’akov made an arrangement to marry Rachel after he completed seven years of servitude for his uncle Lavan. Distrusting Lavan, he gave Rachel signals to use under the Chupah (the marriage canopy); so that he would know that the veiled bride was, in fact, Rachel. When Lavan substituted Layah for Rachel, Rachel gave her sister Ya’akov’s signals so that Layah would not be embarrassed. When Ya’akov discovered that he was married to Layah, he protested: “…So he said to Lavan, ‘What is this you have done to me? Was it not for Rachel that I worked for you? Why have you deceived me?’ Lavan said, ‘Such is not done in our place, to give the younger before the elder. Complete the week of this one (seven days of Sheva Berachot) and we will give you the other one too, for the work that you will perform for me yet another seven years” (Bereishit 29:25-27).

The Lekutei Basar Lekutei brings a ChaZaL (a rabbinical teaching) that explains that when Ya’akov said to Lavan, “Why have you deceived me?” Layah replied; “But didn’t you deceive your father when you said, ‘I am Eisav your firstborn?’ ”

The Lekutei Basar Lekutei found it very strange that Layah would defend Eisav, whom she despised. Rather, her words should be understood this way: if your claim to the birth right is true, then Eisav’s claim for me, as his wife, has also been claimed by you. Do not deceive yourself, your father, or me, by taking only part of his birthright.

Layah became the mother of six son’s/tribes and a daughter Deena; and through her maidservant Zilpah, she was accredited with another two sons/tribes. Rachel, on the other hand, became the mother of only sons/two tribes; and through her maidservant Bilhah, with another two sons/tribes. Layah’s prayers were answered; she married a Tzaddik and become a significant partner in the birth of the nation of Israel.

Our Parsha began with Ya’akov leaving Eretz Yisra’el to find a wife. It ends after he becomes the father of a nation and returns home with two wives. Rachel and Layah also became the foundation of this future nation blending their strengths into the spiritual DNA of the B’nei Yisra’el in order to fulfill their true destiny.

Shabbat Shalom,

Reb Yosil

130914 – Yom Kippur

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

VORTIFY YOURSELF

Reb Yosil Rosenzweig

rebyosil@gmail.com

YOM KIPPUR

Shacharit – Morning Service

VaYikra (Leviticus) 16:1-34

BaMidbar (Numbers) 29:7-11

Haftarah ‑ Isaiah 57:14-58:14,

Mincha – Afternoon Service

VaYikra (Leviticus) 18:1-30

Haftarah ‑ Book of Jonah and

Micah 7:18-20

130914

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

 “For this day shall be an atonement for you to cleanse you; from all your sins shall you be cleansed before HaShem. It is a Sabbath of Sabbaths (a Sabbath of complete rest) for you, and you should afflict yourselves; an eternal decree” (VaYikra 16:30-31).

One of the anomalies of Yom Kippur is the status it carries as Shabbat Shabbaton (the Sabbath of Sabbaths). Most of us who observe Shabbat know that to observe one must follow certain Halachik (legal) guidelines: We must dress appropriately; we must eat festive meals; we must read special sections from the Torah; etc. It appears somewhat incongruous that on a day that might be described as a super-Shabbat not only do we not eat our usual three festive Shabbat meals, but we are forbidden to eat or drink any food at all. Why?

The verse says: “you should afflict yourselves,” which is understood as not eating or drinking. The RaMBaM (acronym for Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon [Maimonides], 1135-1204, Egypt) the great codifier and philosopher maintains that the root of the word Shabbat means to cease; we are obligated to cease or rest from eating and drinking. In fact, the RaMBaM brings the law (Laws of Yom Kippur 1:4-5): “There is a further positive commandment on Yom Kippur. It is to rest from eating and drinking. It is [also] forbidden to bathe, to apply lotion to the body, to wear [leather] shoes, or to cohabitate. It is a positive commandment to rest from all these just as it is to rest from eating.” The RaMBaM saw the cessation from eating and drinking as a form of rest. HaShem frees the Jews from certain physical activities on that one day allowing us, to strive for something much higher.

The Pirke de Rebbe Eliezer chapter 46 (a Midrash composed by the school of Rebbe Eliezer ben Hyrcanus, circa 100 C.E.) elaborates even further: Sama’el (Satan, the Angel of Death, the Evil Inclination, the Accuser or Prosecutor) saw that sin was not found among [Israel] on Yom Kippur. He said to HaShem: ‘You have a unique nation, which is like the ministering angels in heaven. Just as the angels have bare feet, so the Jews have bare feet (by not wearing shoes) on Yom Kippur. Just as angels neither eat nor drink, so the Jews neither eat nor drink on Yom Kippur…’ ”

On Yom Kippur, we give the impression of being angels. We not only refrain from the five prohibitions cited by the RaMBaM, we also dress in white, the color of the angels – the color of purity. This status is fascinating for us to explore in order to understand it better.

Three days after Avraham our Patriarch was circumcised, he sat at the entrance of his tent looking for a way to do his special Mitzvah – hospitality to strangers. HaShem came to him and was Mivaker Choleh (visited the infirm); during that visit, Avraham saw three figures approaching from the desert. HaShem appeared to him in the pains of Mamre while he was sitting at the entrance of his tent, in the heat of the day. He lifted his eyes and saw: And behold! He perceived that three men were approaching him, so he ran toward them from the tent entrance and bowed to the ground” (Bereishit [Genesis] 18:1-2).

RaShI (an acronym for Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki, France, 1040 ‑ 1105) on the words “three men were approaching” cites an amazing Midrash (Bereishit Rabba 50:2) that claims the three were angels: “One to bring tidings (of the birth of Yitzchak) to Sarah; one to destroy Sodom; and one to heal Avraham. For one angel does not perform two missions.”

Angels are similar to robots; they serve only one purpose or function. Though HaShem has hosts of angels, each is programed for a specific function: Raphael is the healer; Gavriel is the forceful one; Satan is the Accuser, etc.

If Israel is likened to angels on Yom Kippur, then maybe the above mentioned Pirke de Rebbe Eliezer is telling us that our function on Yom Kippur is to focus our lives to our one and only function: to spread holiness in the world through the fulfillment of HaShem’s Torah.

We have to some extent lost track of our true objective. We think that we were created in order to heal the sick, or to fight for the rights of the downtrodden, to compose beautiful music, or to produce great movies, or just to make a living. But that is not so. Our true purpose is to spread HaShem’s holiness in the world; perhaps we can accomplish this by being doctors, musicians, social workers, poets, housewives or rabbis. However, at times we get sidetracked and we focus on how much “I” get out of my efforts rather than how we can fulfill His directives. Yom Kippur is the one day of the year when we attempt to get back on track, look at our faults and rectify them through Teshuvah (repentance or better – a return to His priorities).

And so, one day a year, we are likened to angels who do not need food or drink, or bathing, or applying lotions to our bodies, or wear the hides of animals on our feet, or even cohabit with our spouses. All of these needs distract us from His directives.

Angels do not need to satisfy any physical, emotional or spiritual needs; they are pure energy whose sole purpose is to serve their Creator, though their service is robot-like. since angels do not have the ability to make choices. Human beings on the other hand have souls that are spiritual but are imprisoned in a physical shell, always needing to be fed, clothed, pleasured and nurtured. Yet this imprisonment is also the glory of humanity. Unlike the angels, we can rise above our limitations and serve our Creator by blending both our physical and our spiritual natures. For this reason the Torah was given to human beings rather than to the angels.

So the RaMBaM, RaShI and Rebbe Eliezer ben Hyrcanus and all of our teachers and mentors stress the point that on Yom Kippur we attempt to fool Satan into thinking that we are angels, not centered on the physical but on our divine purpose. “Sama’el …said to HaShem: ‘You have a unique nation, similar to the angels in heaven. Just as the angels have bare feet, so the Jews are bare foot on Yom Kippur. Just as angels neither eat nor drink, so the Jews neither eat nor drink on Yom Kippur…’ ”

Do not see our abstinence from the five pleasures as affliction; rather we view it as a respite from our limitations as humans. Our true objective is to serve HaShem with joy, awe and love, and to attend Him with our entire body, heart and soul. That is spirit of the day; and when achieved, it deludes the angel Sama’el into perceiving that we too are angels.

Tzom Kal – Have an easy fast,

Reb Yosil

130803 – Parshat Re’ay

********************

VORTIFY YOURSELF

Reb Yosil Rosenzweig

rebyosil@gmail.com

PARSHAT RE’AY

Devarim (Deut.) 11:26-16:17

Haftarah – Isaiah 61:10-63:9

130803

********************

Because we suffered continuous religious persecutions since the destruction of our second Temple (in 70 C.E.), the Jews have become tolerant of other religions. However, this was not always the case. In ancient times, the world was very tolerant of others’ religions; people thought that gods were territorial, when one left the boundaries of ones’ own gods’ influence; he entered the confines of new gods. Being tolerant of other religions was a necessary survival technique. One never knew when the gods of another territory would come in handy. What was always important was not to upset the local gods.

Along came the Jewish people who antagonized the world by preaching that not only was their

G-d invisible and all-powerful, but their G-d was the only legitimate G-d. The ancient Jews were not very popular among the nations because they rejected any and all tolerance for the worship of wood, stone and natural phenomenon.

This obsession with the pursuit of religious truth finds its source in this week’s Parsha: “You shall utterly destroy all the places where the nations that you are driving away worshiped their gods; on the high mountains and on the hills, and under every leafy tree. You shall break apart their altars; you shall smash their pillars; you shall burn their sacred trees in fire; you shall cut down their carved images; and you shall obliterate their sacred names from that place” (Devarim 12 2-3).

In ancient times, when one nation conquered another nation, it would try not to destroy the vanquished nation’s religious sites and objects. The conquering nation often used these edifices (which were usually beautifully constructed and very ornate), for their own purposes. The fact that the nation of Israel had to destroy the Temples, the idols and the religious symbols of the former inhabitants, was a revolutionary concept.

Our Parsha explains that HaShem declared that the seven nations occupying Eretz Yisra’el (the Land of Israel) had no right to worship as they pleased. Eretz Yisra’el had to be emancipated from any religious pollutants. Whether conquered or driven out, the non-Jewish resident aliens or wayfarers had no right to worship their gods or practice their religious beliefs while on this holy ground. To make sure that these religious places and symbols did not infiltrate the conquering society, they had to be – “destroyed,” “broken apart,” “smashed,” “burnt,” “cut down,” and “obliterated.” Any and all traces of these artifacts had to be eradicated lest they influence the Jewish population.

But all this destruction had a price. The very next verse reads: “You shall not do this to HaShem, your G-d” (12:4).

RaShI (an acronym for Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki, France, 1040 – 1105) teaches us three different lessons:

1. Offerings to HaShem can only be presented from the Mishkan (Tabernacle), or later, from the place that HaShem designates (the Temple on Mt. Mori’ah in Jerusalem).
2. It is forbidden to obliterate the name of HaShem. For this reason we do not write His name (G-d) unrestrictedly so that (if the page is thrown away, discarded or desecrated) His name will not be erased.
   • RaShI brings a Sifri (a Halachic [legal] Midrash [interpretation] of the Books of BaMidbar [Numbers] and Devarim) that warns: “Rabbi Ishmael said: Would one even think that the Israelites would destroy their own religious places and artifacts? Rather, do not do anything that would CAUSE your religious places TO BE DESTROYED.”

Rabbi Ishmael asks if one could imagine Israel doing such a terrible thing. But in the history of our nation and in the very days of Rabbi Ishmael, such things did happen. Our Temple was desecrated by Hellenist Jews bringing in Greek idols and offering non-kosher animals as sacrifices (during the Chanukah period of our history). Rabbi Ishmael knew very well that terrible acts of desecration were committed by the Sadducees during the Roman period. Even recently, in modern Israel, acts of desecration are perpetrated by Jews against Jews and their religious institutions. Rabbi Ishmael, who was martyred by the Romans and whose miserable death was cheered on by Jews who were Roman sympathizers, knew full well what Jews were capable of. How could he say, “Would one even think that the Israelites would destroy their own religious places and artifacts?”

I found an interesting answer to this question from Rabbi Ya’acov Haber formerly of Melbourne, Australia, who mentions that the first Halacha in the Shulchan Aruch (code of Jewish law) is: “…if the performance of a Mitzvah will embarrass you (for example, praying Mincha [afternoon prayers] on a public highway, or saying grace at a board meeting, perhaps sporting a Kipa [skull-cap] at your place of work), you should still do it.

However, the Mishnah Berurah [an updated version of the code – written by the Chafetz Chaim – Rabbi Yisra’el Meir HaKohen Kagen, 1838-1933] quotes the Beit Yosef [Rabbi Yosef Caro, the author of the Shulchan Aruch, 1488-1575] as saying that, ‘…one should not go out of their way to antagonize people even in the performance of a Mitzvah (for example, deliberately praying Mincha on a public highway when it is unnecessary), since that will give one’s personality the characteristic of Chutzpa (insolence) [in the words of the Beit Yosef] YiK’neh B’Nafsho Midat HaAzut (one’s soul will acquire the characteristic of insolence), which will then be used for less than noble purposes’ ” Reachings – Talks on Torah, page 172).

What Rabbi Haber means is if one performs Mitzvot either in an antagonizing manner or specifically to antagonize, then that behavior will continue in non-Mitzvot situations which will be destructive.

When I lived in Israel, I served in the Israeli Army reserves. During my short basic training (I was 35 years old, married with 3 children and established in business) I served with other immigrants from similar backgrounds and ages. Clearly one-third of our group was religious and many were from the “ultra-orthodox” camp.

I began noticing that the more physically challenging and strenuous our training got, the more our sophisticated and personally disciplined group began to act in a boorish manner. Our characters began to change, we began using rough and profane language, and sometimes we behaved in a manner that would have been unacceptable in polite society. I realized that in civilian life, we suppress certain feelings, desires and forces, but in the army those very forces are encouraged and relied upon. The increase in physical activity and extreme conditions had a powerfully negative effect on us. As civilized human beings and religious Jews, we were forced to keep ourselves in check, otherwise we were capable of Chutzpa (unbecoming behavior).

This is what Moshe was saying to us. Am Yisra’el (the nation of Israel) will spend considerable time conquering the land and making it suitable for Jewish existence. In the process, we might become crass and boorish, which would make us insensitive to one another.

In the post Holocaust era, Am Yisra’el also had to lift itself up out of the ashes. A state had to be founded, and wars unfortunately had to be fought. The battles for independence were conducted in the Sinai desert, the Galilee and on the West Bank. But there were other battles that Am Yisra’el also fought spiritual battles in America and in the Soviet Union, on campuses in Berkeley and Jerusalem, in the suburbs of our great cities and in the outposts of Siberia and in the disengagement of Gaza. Our leadership spoke about tolerance and acted with intolerance, decried injustice and meted out inequity. We expounded community and acted as segregationists. And today Eretz Yisra’el has become our battleground for self-righteous and self-centeredness.

It is one thing to understand a problem and another to rectify it. That is the real Tikkun Olam (world rectification) that very few of us are attempting. We must demand dialogue among our Rabbis and lay leaders. When we use these hidden and subdued forces within us they take a toll on how we think and how we behave. Our very souls have become inundated with self-righteous insolence and we aren’t even aware of it.

Moshe is warning us to be very careful with the use of necessary force. While it was imperative to destroy the idols and the holy places of the Canaanite nations, he cautioned us that those forces could also be used against each other and against HaShem. Even today, as we battle for our homeland and for the very souls of our brethren, we must use extreme caution. Otherwise, the results can be tragic.

Shabbat Shalom,

Reb Yosil

130727 – Parshat Ekev

*********************

VORTIFY YOURSELF

Reb Yosil Rosenzweig

rebyosil@gmail.com

PARSHAT EKEV

Devarim (Deuteronomy) 7:12-11:25

Haftarah – Isaiah 49:14-51:3

130727

*********************

We have been selected against our will to be players in the game of life. Right from the very beginning, the “conspiracy” began. The first humans, created in the idyllic Garden of Eden, were expelled because they exercised their powers of free choice improperly. Life after the Garden entailed making choices for right or for wrong.

In the ten generations from Adam to No’ach (Noah), mankind generally chose improperly and a new world was formed. After that time, all of mankind was required to live by a set of seven laws, the “Seven No’achide Mitzvot [Commandments]” that became and still is the basis for all human behaviour: 1. Belief in G-d, 2. Do not murder, 3. Do not steal, 4. Do not commit adultery, 5. Do not blaspheme, 6. Setup a court system, 7. You must kill mammals before eating them.

In the ten generations from No’ach to Avraham (Abraham) again, the world chose improperly. The former single world-wide nation became splintered into seventy different nations and languages and dispersed around the planet. Avraham and his future offspring were “chosen” to be the examples of how to choose correctly.

After receiving the Ten Utterances (Commandments), the Torah (with its 613 Mitzvot) and after spending 40 years in the desert absorbing the Torah and its many regulations and lessons, the Children of Israel thought themselves ready. But prior to Moshe’s death, just as Am Yisra’el (the Nation of Israel) was about to enter Eretz Yisra’el (the Land of Israel), he gave four discourses of admonition to his flock, so that they might learn from mankind’s history and from their own, how to LIVE successfully in Eretz Yisra’el. And it is here, in his second discourse that Moshe makes known the essence of the Torah.

In chapter 10 verses 12 – 13, Moshe rephrases the nature of the Torah into just a few words: “And now Israel, what does HaShem your G-d demand of you? Only this: to revere HaShem your G-d, to go in His ways, and to love Him and to serve HaShem your G-d with all your heart and soul. To guard the commandments of HaShem and His statutes, which I enjoin upon you today, for your own good.”

Two very important teachings are learnt from these verses. RaShI (an acronym for Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki, France, 1040 – 1105) cites the famous ChaZaL (Rabbinical teaching) from the Talmud (Berachot 33) based on these verses: “All is in the hands of Heaven – except the reverence of Heaven.”

Mankind can only serve HaShem properly if it has reverence for Him. No matter what situation one faces one must first have a sense of reverence for HaShem in order to be able to choose correctly. Without it, one may be swayed either by the temptation of the action or by the fear of punishment (which isn’t really free choice). Only a highly developed sense of reverence allows one to exercise true free will.

The second lesson, reciting 100 blessings per day, was incorporated into the Seven Mitzvot of the Rabbis (while the Rabbi’s enacted thousands of ordinances within the framework of Jewish Halachah [law], only seven had the same standing as G-d given commandments. They are:

1. Lighting candles prior to Shabbat and holidays,
2. Lighting candles each night of Chanukah,
3. Reading the Scroll of Esther on Purim,
4. Giving gifts of food and charity on Purim,
5. The use of an ERUV [to carry on Shabbat, or to cook on a festival in preparation for Shabbat],
6. Reciting Hallel on Holidays and New Moons,
7. Reciting 100 blessings per day.

The Talmud (Tractate Menachot 43) records: “…every person (Jew) is obligated to recite 100 blessings per day, because it says [in the Torah] ‘And now Israel, what does HaShem your G-d demand of you?’ “RaShI comments: “when the Torah wrote “Mah” (what – does HaShem…) read instead Me’ah (100).”

In other words, instead of reading: “And now Israel, what does HaShem your G-d demand of you?”  

One should read, “And now Israel, 100 does HaShem your G-d demand of you?”

The Sefat Emet (Rabbi Yehudah Leib Alter, 1847-1905, the second Gerer Rebbe and leader of Polish Jewry) commented on this Rabbinical Commandment: “Since everything that happens to mankind, stems from a blessing from HaShem, the more one is reverent [of HaShem] and fortified [by the performance of His Mitzvot], the more one can connect to His blessings” (The Crowns of the Torah, by A.I. Greenberg, page 72).

By making at least 100 blessings per day, we become aware of the many blessings that HaShem showers upon us. The more we are aware of how many blessings we receive, the more appreciative we become of all the good that comes our way.

A decade ago, my parents, Jacob and Helen Rosenzweig celebrated their 51st wedding anniversary. Gathered around the Shabbat table we ate, we sang, and we related stories of the many blessings that HaShem has provided us. My father (who also just turned 93 years of age) told the story of how he approached a wealthy man in our community and asked him to sponsor an upcoming Kiddush (a post prayer light reception during which we bless HaShem and sanctify the Shabbat or Holiday). The man pointed at others eating herring and asked my father why he didn’t ask any of those people to sponsor the Kiddush.

My father told him that HaShem created two types of Jews. To one group He gave check books, so they could write as many checks as they desired and none would ever bounce. To the other group, He provided as much herring as they desired. My father told this wealthy man that if he was unhappy with the check book, he could trade it in for some herring. Put in this light, the man happily agreed to provide for as many Kiddushim as were needed.

Also a decade back my wife Kathy (A”H) had a very difficult time before and after receiving Chemotherapy during this post Shabbat Nachamu week. In a car ride home, she said to me that she was so happy that it was she who was ill and not me or any of our children. It reminded us of the story of the grandfather of the present Belzer Rebbe, who was born with a “clubbed foot”. The child’s parents made an arrangement with the parents of a young girl that their children would be wed after the girl reached Bat Mitzvah. Never having met each other, they accepted their Mazal (fate) with the assurance that their parents were looking out for their best interests.

On the day of the wedding, as guests were beginning to arrive, the bride looked out her window and was shown her groom walking down the road. When she saw that he had a deformity, she refused to marry the young man. Her parents and the parents of the groom pleaded with her to no avail. The synagogue was filling quickly and still she refused to marry this cripple. When all seemed lost, the young man asked to speak to his BASHERT (fated one). He entered the room, and a few minutes later he left informing everyone that the musicians should begin playing the processional. The future Rebbe and his Rebbetzin lived for sixty years together.

At the Shiva (seven days of mourning) after her funeral, the Rebbe was asked by one of his Chassidim (disciples) what was said in the room sixty years before. Never having spoken of the incident, the Rebbe surprised everyone when he began to explain that he had told his bride that before either of them were born, a heavenly decree proclaimed that they would be married. It also proclaimed that SHE would be born with a clubbed foot. He made an arrangement in heaven that he would suffer the clubbed foot instead of her. He told her that she didn’t have to marry him, but, she would have to take her foot. When confronted with his sacrifice, she realized that what seemed like a curse was actually a blessing.

All of these stories illustrate how reverence for HaShem allows one to appreciate the many blessings that HaShem bestows. The wealthy man who felt perturbed by the fact that he was always being asked to provide for others, did so with joy when confronted with the reality of his blessings. Similarly, my wife surprised me with her statement of her joy in accepting her illness rather than HER illness afflicting one of her loved ones.

In order to see HaShem’s many blessings we must bless Him so that we can literally, “count our Blessings.” Every time we pray, or make a blessing before or after we eat food, or see a rainbow, or witness a beautiful landscape, we become conscious of the great gifts that He bestows upon us.

HaShem doesn’t need our blessings, we do. Those, whose attitude toward life is negative, are unaware of the many blessings that surround them.

Shabbat Shalom,

Reb Yosil

130515 – Shavu’ot

*******************

VORTIFY YOURSELF

Reb Yosil Rosenzweig

rebyosil@gmail.com

SHAVU’OT – 5773

130515

*******************

The Barrel Or The Flow

While the festival of Shavu’ot represents Z.man Matan Torateinu – the Period of the Giving of our Torah, our tradition teaches us that we did not accept the Toah out of passion, but rather out of an insinuation of coercion.How is it possible that the Torah be binding upon us and every previous and future generation of Jews when in fact, we were coerced into the Covenant with HaShem?

A review of the sources can help us shed light on this matter.

• Moshe brought the people forth the nation from the camp toward HaShem, and they stood at the bottom of the mountain. Shemot 19:17
• RaShI teaches us that when the Torah says: At the bottom of the mountain,  means at the foot of the mountain.
• But according to the Talmud, the mountain was plucked from its place and was held over them like a barrel. (Tractate Shabbat 88a).
• The Talmud goes on to say (Tractate Shabbat 88a): At the bottom of the mountain: Rav Avdimi bar Chama bar Chasa said: This teaches us that the Holy One Blessed Be He placed the mountain over them like an inverted barrel and said to them; “If you accept the Torah – good, but if you do not [accept the Torah], then there will be your burial place.

We must therefore reexamine the verse. For the words seem to be out of order. Instead of: “Moshe brought the people forth the nation from the camp toward HaShem,” the verse should have said, “Moses brought the people forth the nation from…” and only then “to meet HaShem.”

Our Sages teach that all the souls of Israel, of both past and future generations, were present at Mount Sinai and this is hinted to in our verse, as it is written:

“Not with you alone do I make this covenant and this oath, but with those who stand here with us this day before HaShem our G-d and also with those who are not with us today” (Devarim 29:14; Midrash Tanchuma Yitro 11).

There is a Hebrew word in our verse that is not translated. The verse actually reads: “Moses took Et HaAm – the people to meet HaShem from the camp.” The word “Et” can be an untranslatable word that assists the grammar; hence our translation omitted it. Or, “Et” can mean “with.” “Moses took with the people” – together with the B’nei Yisra’el of his generation, Moses took others to Mount Sinai.

These others were the souls of other generations, which were visible only by HaShem. Our verse thus says: “Moses took with the people [the souls visible only] to HaShem from the camp” (Ben Ish Chai, Derushim Parshat Yitro).

The Oral Law

“They stood in the bottom of the mountain” (Shemot 19:17). HaShem turned the mountain over Israel like a barrel and said: If you accept the Torah, fine. If not, there will be burial place (Tractate Shabbat[1] 88a).

Why did HaShem have to coerce the Israelites to accept the Torah? They had already accepted the Torah by saying, “Na’aseh V’niShmah – We shall do and we shall hear” (Exodus 24:7)! What was the point of holding the mountain, over the Jews and what was the point of hollowing out the mountain like a barrel? It would have been just as threatening if it were not hollow!

What the Israelites had accepted willingly was the Written Torah. They said, “We shall do and we shall hear” – we shall do as we hear and understand from the verses of the Torah. HaShem had to coerce them to accept the Oral Law. He hollowed out the mountain like a barrel to teach them that each letter of the Written Torah contains innumerable Halachot expounded in the Oral Law, just as a barrel contains innumerable drops of wine. Their acceptance of the Written Torah would therefore have to include acceptance of the Oral Law (Ben Ish Chai, Sefer Ben Yehoyada).

However there is an even more profound understanding of the mountain/barrel. Consider that the barrel were a glass case. HaShem could have been appealing to the Children of Israel not to let the moment be wasted. He was telling the B’nei Yisra’el that they had an opportunity to become an eternal nation that would continue to live generation after generation not in memory but in reality. Many nations can still be viewed, studied and appreciated by going to museums and gazing at their handiwork. Ancient books can be discovered, reprinted and studied and an appreciation of the teachings and wisdom can be attained. But all that is but a look at the archeological showcase of history.

Israel had an opportunity to make history by becoming an eternal nation that would adapt, modify and amend itself to the winds of change and modernity without losing the spark of revelation that challenged them at the “bottom of the mountain.” Yes, without the Na’aseh V’niShmah, without both the Written and Oral Torah, Israel would eventually become a force that would lose its light.

Classes in ancient religions would ponder on the affect that Israel had on the region for just a few centuries, but stagnation and entropy set in and petrified the once vital force of Judaism. Or, a guarantee of eternal strength would emanate from the “bottom of the mountain,” and the ability of light, inspiration and enlightenment would come from this small nation of freed slaves. Is this coercion or is this the only real choice that Israel could make.

How are we to achieve this power? We know that the – Mitzvot of the Torah are divided into two different groups. Mitzvot Bain Adam LaMakom – commandments between Man and G-d, and Mitzvot Bain Adam L’Chaveiro – commandments between Man and Community. Israel tends to oscillate between these two extremes. Some Jewish groups emphasize the rituals of Judaism and minimize the social context of Mitzvot, while other groups emphasize the social and minimize the ritualistic. We therefore must examine that which HaShem expects of us. “And now O Israel, what does the L-rd, your G-d, demand of you? Only to fear HaShem, your G-d, to walk in all His ways and to love Him and to worship the L-rd, your G-d, with all your heart and with all your soul” (Devarim 10:12).

“A song of David: O L-rd, who will sojourn in Your tent, who will dwell upon Your holy mount? He who walks uprightly and works righteousness and speaks truth in his heart.

Who does not slander with his tongue, who does his neighbor no harm, neither does he take up reproach upon his kinsman. A corrupt person is despised in his eyes, and he honors those that are G-d-fearing, he swears even to [his own] harm and does not withdraw his words. He does not lend his money with interest, nor does he accept a bribe against the innocent, whoever does these things shall never falter” (Psalms 15:1-5).

“He has told you O man: what is good, and what does the L-rd demands of you, but: to do justice, and loving-kindness, and to walk discreetly with your G-d “ (Micah 6:8).

All of the above references emphasize the Mitzvot Bain Adam L’Chaveiro – commandments between Man and Community. Does that mean that the Mitzvot Bain Adam LaMakom – commandments between Man and G-d are secondary or even unnecessary?

Notice that each of the above-mentioned definitions of righteous behavior alludes to Halacha: to walk in all His ways; who walks uprightly, to walk discreetly with your G-d.

Lech – to walk, or to go – shares the same root as Halacha – Jewish law. This is the manner in which we must focus our spiritual attention. The combination of Written and Oral Law brings meaning and rationale to the myriad of obligations we have taken upon ourselves. The blending of the positive and the negative Mitzvot represent the affection and love we must cultivate in ourselves to experience the proper relationship that we must establish with our Creator. And it is the melding of our Mitzvot Bain Adam LaMakom – commandments between Man and G-d, and Mitzvot Bain Adam L’Chaveiro – commandments between Man and Community, which brings out the very best in us. The rituals teach us to look deeper and deeper into the meaning of our conformity to the Covenant and the human displays of kindness become our manifestation of a living, binding Covenant.

Yes, if we as a nation did not accept all aspects of Torah then the mountain would have crushed us and we would have disappeared from the annals of living history. To choose Halacha – the Way – is to choose His Way, and just as His Way is eternal, so too, do we become the manifestation of His eternity.

As you celebrate and observe this special festival, stand at the bottom of the mountain and purposefully join the many links of those who chose His Way, enabling you to connect your past to your future.

Chag Samei’ach,

Reb Yosil

---

[1] Talmudic tractate in the Order of Mo’ed – dealing with the laws of the Sabbath.

130316 – Parshat VaYikra

*******************

VORTIFY YOURSELF

Reb Yosil Rosenzweig

rebyosil@gmail.com

PARSHAT VAYIKRa

VaYikra (Leviticus) 1:1-5:26

Haftarah – Isaiah 43:21-44:23

100312

*******************

What does it mean to be human? What is it that defines our essence? Are we the social animal described by Aristotle, or the thinking animal proposed by Descartes?

Clearly, one can come up with a variety of definitions for the human being, from the notion of the creature who loves for no reason, to that being which hates for no reason at all. But I would like to suggest that the opening verses of Sefer VaYikra, the Book of Leviticus, present us with a different, somewhat surprising idea of what it really means to be human, and it is certainly not the usual first–choice definition for the human spirit.

It is tied, in essence, to the theme of this Biblical book, namely that of sacrifice: “I sacrifice, therefore I am.” I refer to this as surprising because we are, as part of this exercise, searching for a universal, human definition, and the sacrificial cult detailed in Leviticus is rather particularistic; it is parochial in its scope, and according to some, even primitive. So great is this perception that large segments of modern Jewry, intent on erasing all barriers between Jews and the rest of humankind, endeavoring to put only Judaism’s best foot forward, have practically edited out all references to sacrifices from time–honored prayers in the prayer book and from the festival Torah readings. These are decisions that have been made by the liturgical authorities in other denominations in Judaism. But I might contend that in their haste to whitewash Jewish texts and to remove them of any last vestige of the sacrificial cult, they sometimes overlook concepts and possibilities in the text, whose underlying message strikes at the heart of the human existential need.

Sefer VaYikra, the Book of Leviticus, begins with HaShem calling to Moses, and presenting a command which is the theme of the entire book, and perhaps of all of life: “Speak to the children of Israel, when any man of you shall bring from themselves a sacrifice to HaShem, from the cattle, from the herd or from the flock…” (Lev. 1:2).

“When any person from among you” doesn’t really do justice to the original Hebrew term, namely the word Adam – human. “Human beings, when they shall bring from themselves a sacrifice” is how it really should read. Adam is, after all, the most universal term for humankind, for personhood, since it evokes the first human who ever lived and from whom every single person in existence is derived and descended, and it is the root word of Adamah – earth, from which all life emanates and originates. Not only does Adam seem out of place in this particular context, but if we remove the word “Adam,” the verse still makes perfect sense.

Hence, the Torah is teaching us that the essence of the human being is his/her or her need, and ability to sacrifice. And the logic behind this concept inheres in the most fundamental aspect of the human predicament/condition. It is after all, only the human being, among all other physical creatures of the world, who is aware of his/her own limitations, who lives in the shadow of his/her own mortality, and since the time of Adam is aware of the painful reality that no matter how strong, powerful or brilliant he/she may be, he/she will ultimately by vanquished by death. his/her only hope is to link themselves to a Being and a cause which is greater than them, which was there before they were born and which will be there after they dies.

I once had a discussion in one of my evening class discussing the issue of whether or not we can change HaShem’s plan. We might call this our struggle with Bashert – predestination, and our ability to be the architects of our own destiny. Many of these very questions were raised by participants in the group: What is the purpose of life? What does it mean for us to be human? What is it all for? Why live? Because in the end, we decay and rot away. And yet, so many of us are smitten with the bug to amass wealth and material goods in this world, to achieve and create fame and fortune. Many people collect and assemble their wealth in order to utilize it for themselves, in order to enjoy these material means in the here–and–now. However, our mortality teaches that our material possessions do not really belong to us; one day we will be forced to leave them and the entire world behind, and in fact they often fall into the very opposite hands from those we would have liked to have received them. Hence the real paradox of life: only those objects which we commit to a higher, more sublime cause and purpose, which we give to HaShem, to a sanctuary, to a study hall, to a home for the sick and aged, to a shelter and haven for the poor and disadvantaged – only those are truly ours, because they enable us to live beyond our limited lifetime, perhaps to all eternity. Only that which we sacrifice is really ours. Only that which we give of ourselves to others has a lasting significance and purpose.

The expressions of sacrifice, or sharing and giving, are, and can be, various; but common to building a synagogue or a Yeshiva, or funding a new hospital wing or a scholarship fund, and assuming other tasks to ease the sufferings and the challenges of humankind, is that all link us to a greater good, a hope for the future. I may die, but to the extent that I devoted my life to causes that will not die, that live on and endure, I also will live on. Sacrifice makes it possible to bathe in the light of eternity.

Jewish history, and the city of Jerusalem, the center of the universe, emanate from this fundamental truth, as seen and reflected in HaShem’s initial command to Abraham to sacrifice his beloved Isaac on Mount Mori’ah, the eventual site of the Temple. Yitzchak – Isaac was the first “Olah – whole burnt offering.” In effect, HaShem was teaching Abraham that his newfound faith would only endure in history eternally if he, Abraham, were willing to commit to it his most beloved object, paradoxically his very future. In his willingness to make that sacrifice, Abraham secured his religions and his own eternity.

But the Torah teaches that the most significant sacrifices of all that we can make are not our material goods, but are rather our own selves, our time and our effort, our intellects and our unique abilities. People must sacrifice “MeKem – from themselves” (Lev. 1:2). Giving a child the gift of a check is hardly as significant as giving a child the gift of our time, of our personalities, of our thoughts and of our struggles. And this, too, HaShem teaches Abraham. HaShem ultimately instructs Abraham not to slay Isaac, but to allow Isaac to live because the greatest sacrifice we can make is not in dying for HaShem; we do not believe in Jihad, in religious war and struggle, but rather in living in accordance with His commands and desires. Isaac, in life, is called an Olah – a whole burnt offering.

Strangely enough, RaShI, the well–known and celebrated Biblical commentator, suggests another reason for the seemingly superfluous use of the term “Adam” in our text. The Torah, he contends, is teaching us that just as Adam, the first human being, never sacrificed stolen goods, since everything in the world belonged to him, so are we prohibited from sacrificing anything which is stolen and is not our own. Such a lesson certainly protects Jewish society against a Robin Hood mentality, which steals from the rich in order to give to the poor. In our faith and in our ethical teachings, we do not believe that the ends justify the means, and we must always pursue justice by means of justice.

Perhaps, then, RaShI is protecting us against an even deeper and more demonically appealing, danger inherent in the identification that we might make with Divine service. We can only sacrifice objects or characteristics which technically, if even in a limited sense, belong to us. We dare not sacrifice innocent human beings, even if we believe that such a sacrifice will prevent the murder of Jews. We cannot offer up ourselves on a funeral pyre, commit suicide with a dying gasp of “let my soul die together with the Philistines,” or the Palestinians. Our lives belong to HaShem, and we dare not steal that which is His, even in our gift to Him. Judaism is not Machiavellian. And the ends can never justify the means. We are each an end unto ourselves and not a means for the achievements of others.

Let us celebrate our potential, the opportunities we have to properly sacrifice for just and noble causes; to give of ourselves to serve purposes that go beyond our earthly existence, and ensure the eternity of our souls and the enduring value of our earthly existence.

Shabbat Shalom,

Reb Yosil

130209 – Parshat Mishpatim – Shabbat Shekalim

***************************

“VORTIFY YOURSELF”

Reb Yosil Rosenzweig

rebyosil@gmail.com

PARSHAT MISHPATIM/SHEKALIM

Shemot (Exodus) 21:1-24:18

Maftir Shemot 30:11-16

Haftarah – II Kings 11:17 – 12:17

130209

***************************

This Shabbat is special because it is the Shabbat prior to Rosh Chodesh (the new month of) Adar (Sunday and Monday) and it is also called Shabbat Shekalim. On Shabbat Shekalim we recall that while the Temple stood a census was taken of all men 20 years old and over; each man was required to donate a half Shekel of silver (Shemot [Exodus] 30:11-16), and the money collected was used for the upkeep of the Temple and for the various communal offerings. Every year, on the Shabbat before Rosh Chodesh Adar we remind ourselves of our Galut (exile) by reading a special Maftir (the last Aliyah) and a special Haftorah.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

“And they saw the God of Israel; and there was under His feet the like of a paved work of sapphire stone, and the like of the very heaven for clearness. And upon the nobles of the children of Israel He laid not His hand; and they beheld HaShem, and did eat and drink” (Exodus 24:10-11).

Picture the scene. The Torah has just been given; the sin of the Golden Calf has not yet been recorded. Moses, Aaron and his children, and the seventy elders of Israel, are invited up the holy mountain. There they experience a vision of the Divine Glory. We can only dimly imagine it; what does it mean to see HaShem? And what is their reaction: do they fall on their faces? Utter hymns of praise? Merge with the cosmic consciousness? No: they have lunch – they chapped-a-nosh. Already back then, we find the penchant and pre-occupation that Jews have for food.

The incongruity of the text did not escape the classical commentators. RaShI (acronym for R‘ Shlomo Yitzchaki (1040-1105), considered the commentator par excellence. RaShI’s commentary on the Torah as well as his commentary on the Talmud is considered absolutely basic to the understanding of the text to this very day), citing the Targum Unkelus (The most authoritative, predominantly literal Aramaic translation of the Torah, based on the teachings of the great Tana’im Rabbi Yehoshu’a and Rabbi Eliezer, and ascribed to the proselyte Unkelus (second century C.E.), attempts to apologize for the apparently sacrilegious behavior: “Do you think that they ate food? No, they `feasted their eyes’ on the presence of HaShem.”

The eating and drinking, the Targum suggests, is a metaphor for the joy the participants felt upon beholding HaShem. In a more modern vein, Professor Nachum Sarna suggests that the ritual of covenant–making was typically followed by a ceremonial meal. The covenants between Isaac and Avimelech and between Jacob and Lavan are also followed by eating and drinking (Genesis 26:30 & 31:54).

But, I think, we need not be embarrassed by Moses and his party. We are being taught that there is a relationship between food and theology that is far more profound than the gastronomic Judaism of later generations.

What is the source of energy for the world? The source of energy for all things is HaShem, of course. But, the Almighty generally works through the food chain: big fish eat little fish. Through the combined miracles of photo–synthesis, cell reproduction, human biology and good kosher restaurants, we are sustained each day: “You open Your hand and satisfy all that lives” (Psalms 145:16).

One medieval commentator suggests that when Moses, Aaron, Nadav, Avihu and the seventy elders ascended the holy mountain, they were at such a lofty spiritual height that they bypassed the normal channels; they were physically sustained directly from HaShem.

At that moment they perceived HaShem not only with their intellects and emotions, but with their internal organs as well: “Taste and experience how good is the Lord!” (Psalms 34:9). The normal boundary between the spiritual and the physical was shown to be flawed; theology and cuisine were intertwined. To be human was understood in its fullest meaning; seeing HaShem, they understood that humans are created in HaShem’s image, and the sacred feast is a perfectly appropriate religious response to holiness.

It is in this spirit that we can understand the celebratory side of Yom Kippur. On that day, we remind ourselves that eating is not just a physical requirement, but, a way to experience HaShem’s bounty. Hunger, fulfillment, want and plenty; these are all windows through which we can glimpse His Glory. By transcending biology for twenty–five hours, we, too, bypass the food chain and gain our physical nourishment directly from HaShem. This is an occasion for celebration. But the fasting of atonement is just half of the ritual of the day; the eve of the Day of Atonement, is, according to tradition, to be spent in feasting!

I knew a woman who certainly intuited this intertwining of the spiritual and the physical when she prepared her recipes; all of her written instructions used the standard Yahrtzeit (death memorial candle) glass as the accepted unit of measure: one Yahrtzeit glass of flour, a half Yahrtzeit glass of sugar.

To be sure, this synergy of body and soul, food and Frumkeit (religiosity), is not an excessively subtle point. It’s just that when it occurs to us, we usually dismiss it as unauthentic. And, of course, there is that annoying ascetic religious tradition that denies the holiness of the body and sees self–denials as the only path to HaShem. Thankfully, the Sabbaths and festivals of the calendar weaken such moroseness.

HaShem is the author of human biology, and we can experience HaShem’s presence through our most basic needs and sensations. The procurement, preparation, serving and enjoyment of food have always been opportunities for a religious encounter. “One’s table resembles an altar, our meals a sacrifice.” Our need for food becomes our need for HaShem.

My mother (A”H) told of her grandfather, a Vishnitzer (sect of Chassidim) Chassid, who hosted Se’udat Shlishit (the third and last meal of Shabbat), in his home. She remembered the delicious food and the wonderful singing. In fact, she remembered the gypsy neighbors assembling at the windows to listen to the singing of the last of the Shabbat songs and melodies. To hear the pride in her voice when she recalled the ancient tradition that instructs the family of a deceased pious individual to fashion his/her coffin out of the dining room table used to feed the poor. What better possession to accompany us to the True World than the instrument of hospitality to strangers, of sweet Shabbat melodies, of the celebration of our holy seasons, the very place and platform upon which words of Torah and blessings were offered over tea and cake?

Moses perceived that standing in the presence of HaShem was a celebration and called for a feast. The reverse is also true: mealtime is an opportunity to stand before HaShem. We acknowledge HaShem’s presence in our lives by praising HaShem daily in all that we do, including eating and drinking. And that may be the connection between the seemingly dry legal code that forms the bulk of this Torah reading and its dramatic conclusion. Maybe it is precisely by incorporating the dry injunctions of Mishpatim that we, too, can behold HaShem. It is the fusion of law and lore, knowledge and nosh, learning and leisure that provides for the meat of our survival.

May our tables forever be our altars and may our offerings bring us the nourishment of both body and soul.

Shabbat Shalom,

Reb Yosil

120818 – Parshat Re’eh – Shabbat Rosh Chodesh

********************

VORTIFY YOURSELF

Reb Yosil Rosenzweig

rebyosil@gmail.com

PARSHAT  RE’EH

SHABBAT ROSH CHODESH

Devarim (Deut.) 11:26-16:17

Haftarah – Isaiah 66:1 – 66:24

120818

********************

As a result of the Jewish people suffering continuous religious persecution since the destruction of our second Temple (in 70 C.E.), Jews have become tolerant of other faiths and religions. However, this was not always the case. In ancient times, most of the world was very tolerant of other religions. People believed that gods were territorial, therefore when one left the boundaries of ones’ own gods’ influence; one therefore entered into the province of new and unfamiliar gods. Being tolerant of other religions was a necessary survival technique. One never knew when the gods of another territory would become demanding or, benevolent. Tolerance was necessary to not upset the local gods.

Along came the Hebrews who antagonized the world by not only preaching that their G-d was an invisible and all-powerful G-d, but equally important was that their G-d was the only legitimate G-d. The Hebrews were not very popular among the nations because they rejected any and all tolerance for the worship of wood and stone gods and other natural deities.

This obsession with the pursuit of religious truth finds its source in this week’s Parsha. “You shall utterly destroy all the places where the nations that you are driving away worshiped their gods; on the high mountains and on the hills, and under every leafy tree. You shall break apart their altars; you shall smash their pillars; you shall burn their sacred trees with fire; you shall cut down their carved images; and you shall obliterate their sacred names from that place” (Devarim 12 2-3).

In ancient times, when one nation conquered another nation, it would try not to destroy the vanquished nation’s religious sites and objects. Just the opposite, the conquering nation often used these edifices which were usually beautifully constructed and very ornate, for their own purposes. The fact that the nation of Israel had to destroy the Temples, the idols and the religious symbols of the former inhabitants, was a revolutionary concept.

Our Parsha explains that HaShem declared that the seven nations occupying Eretz Yisra’el (the Land of Israel) had no right to worship as they pleased. Eretz Yisra’el had to be emancipated from any religious pollutants. Whether conquered or driven out, the non-Jewish resident aliens or wayfarers had no right to worship their gods or practice their own religious beliefs while on this holy ground. To make sure that these religious places and symbols did not infiltrate the conquering Hebrews, they had to be – “destroyed,” “broken apart,” “smashed,” “burnt,” “cut down,” and “obliterated.”  Any and all traces of these artifacts had to be eradicated lest they influence the Jewish population.

But all this destruction had a price. The very next verse reads: “You shall not do this to HaShem, your G-d” (12:4). RaShI (an acronym for Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki, France, 1040 – 1105) teaches us three different lessons:

1. Offerings to HaShem can only be presented from the Mishkan (Tabernacle) and later from the place that HaShem designates (the Temple on Mt. Moriah in Jerusalem).
2. It is forbidden to obliterate the name of HaShem. For this reason we do not write His name (G-d) unrestrictedly so that if the page is thrown away, discarded or desecrated His name will not be erased.
3. RaShI brings a Sifri (circa 400 C.E., a Halachic [legal] Midrash [interpretation] of the Books of BaMidbar [Numbers] and Devarim) that warns:
   • “Rabbi Ishmael said: Could one even think that the Israelites would destroy their own religious places and artifacts? To be more precise, do not do anything that would CAUSE your religious places TO BE DESTROYED.”

Rabbi Ishmael asks if one could imagine Israel doing such a terrible thing. But in the history of our nation and in the very days of Rabbi Ishmael, such desecrations did happen. Our Temple was desecrated by Hellenist Jews (during the Chanukah period of our history) by bringing in Greek idols and offering non-kosher animals as sacrifices. Rabbi Ishmael knew very well that terrible acts of desecration were committed by the Sadducees during the Roman period. Even recently, in modern Israel, acts of desecration are perpetrated by Jews against differing Jews and their religious institutions. Rabbi Ishmael, who was martyred by the Romans and whose wretched death was cheered on by Jews who were Roman sympathizers, knew full well what Jews were capable of. How could he say, “Could one even think that the Israelites would destroy their own religious places and artifacts?”

I found an interesting answer to this question from Rabbi Ya’acov Haber formerly of Melbourne, Australia, who mentions that the first Halacha in the Shulchan Aruch (code of Jewish law) is: “…if the performance of a Mitzvah will embarrass you (for example, praying Mincha [afternoon prayers] on a public highway, or saying grace at a board meeting, perhaps even sporting a Kippa [skull-cap] at your work place), you should still do it.

“However, the Mishnah Berurah [an updated version of the code – written by the Chafetz Chaim – Rabbi Yisra’el Meir HaKohen Kagen, 1838-1933] quotes the Beit Yosef [Rabbi Yosef Caro, the author of the Shulchan Aruch, 1488-1575] as saying that, ‘…one should not go out of their way to antagonize people even in the performance of a Mitzvah (for example, deliberately praying Mincha on a public highway when it is unnecessary), since that will give one’s personality the characteristic of Chutzpa (insolence) [in the words of the Beit Yosef] YiK’neh B’Nafsho Midat HaAzut (one’s soul will acquire the characteristic of insolence), which will then be used for less than noble purposes’ ” (Reachings – Talks on Torah, page 172).

What Rabbi Haber means is if one performs Mitzvot either in an antagonizing manner or worse doing so specifically to antagonize, then that behavior will continue in non-Mitzvah situations which will become physiologically and spiritually destructive.

When I lived in Israel, I served in the Israeli Army reserves. During my short basic training (I was 35 years old, married with 3 children and established in business) I served with other immigrants from similar backgrounds and ages. Clearly one-third of our group was religious and many were from the “ultra-orthodox” camp.

During that time I began noticing that the more physically challenging and strenuous our training got, the more our sophisticated and personally disciplined group began to act in a boorish manner. Our character began to change, we began using rough and profane language, and sometimes we behaved in a manner that would have been unacceptable in “religious” society. I realized that in civilian life, we suppress certain feelings, desires and forces, but in the army those very forces are encouraged and relied upon. The increase in physical activity and extreme conditions had a powerfully negative effect on us. As civilized human beings and religious Jews, we were forced to keep ourselves in check otherwise we were capable of Chutzpa (unbecoming behavior).

This is what Moshe was saying to us. Am Yisra’el (the nation of Israel) will spend considerable time conquering the land and making it suitable for a Torah based population. In the process, we might become crass and boorish, which would make us insensitive to one another.

In the post-Holocaust era, Am Yisra’el also had to lift itself up out of the ashes. A state had to be formed and wars unfortunately had to be fought. These battles for independence were fought in the Sinai desert, the Galilee and on the West Bank, but there were other battles that Am Yisra’el also fought: spiritual battles in America and in the Soviet Union; on campuses in Berkeley and Jerusalem; in the suburbs of our great cities; in the outposts of Siberia; and in the disengagement of Gaza. Our leadership spoke about tolerance and acted with intolerance, decried injustice and meted out inequity. We expounded community and acted as segregationists. And today Eretz Yisra’el has become our modern battleground for self-righteousness and self-centeredness.

It is one thing to understand a problem and another to rectify it. That is the real Tikkun Olam (world rectification) that very few of us are attempting. We must demand dialogue among our Rabbis and lay leaders. When we use these hidden and subdued forces within us they take a toll on how we think and how we behave. Our very souls have become inundated with self-righteous insolence that we aren’t even aware of it.

Moshe is warning us to be very careful with the use of necessary force. While it was imperative to destroy the idols and the holy places of the Canaanite nations, he cautioned us that those very same energies could also be used against each other and against HaShem. Even today, as we battle for our homeland and for the very souls of our brethren, we must use extreme caution. Otherwise, the results can be tragic.

Shabbat Shalom,

Reb Yosil

120811 – Parshat Eikev

*********************

VORTIFY YOURSELF

Reb Yosil Rosenzweig

rebyosil@gmail.com

PARSHAT EIKEV

Devarim (Deuteronomy) 7:12 – 11:25

Haftarah – Isaiah 49:14 – 51:3

120811

*********************

Due to a medical setback, I’m republishing a “Vort” from July 31, 2010.

*********************

Minor Commandments

Since I was a young boy in Yeshiva, the first RaShI in this week’s Parsha has always been troublesome for me. The Parsha begins: “And it will be the result of hearkening to My commandments…” Devarim (Deut. 7:12) If we follow these commandments, then a whole series of blessings will become the reality of Israel’s existence.

The problem is in the Hebrew wording. The word Eikev (which literally means heel, like in the name Ya’akov – Jacob, who was named that because he held on to the “heel” of his twin brother Esau during birth) is used for the phrase: “the result of hearkening.” The language is strange and whenever strange language is used there is a message being transmitted to us. Of course this message or code can only be noticed in the original Hebrew, translations do not pick up the subtleties of the Hebrew language.

RaShI, the Torah’s foremost commentator points out a MiDrash Tanchuma (Aggadic Midrash on the Torah of the 4th century) that suggests that the reason the word Eikev is used is to inform us that if we heed the minor commandments that people tend to tread upon, then we will be worthy of the blessings that HaShem promises.

My problem? What is a minor commandment? If all the commandments are the word and will of HaShem, then there shouldn’t even be categories of major or minor commandments. Is there really a qualitative difference between observing a commandment like returning a lost item or, dealing fairly with one’s enemy? Are not both the will of HaShem?

Over the years I have struggled with this. I have received the many flimsy answers as to the degrees of importance to commandments, but they all left me empty and without proper understanding. A few months ago I read a story of the Chafetz Chaim – Rabbi Yisra’el Meir HaKohen of Radin (1838-1933, author of basic works in Halacha, Hashkafa, and Mussar, famous for his saintly qualities and acknowledged as a foremost leader of Jewry) that provided me with what I think is the answer. His son-in – law Rabbi Menachem Mendel Yosef Zaks wrote:

The Chafetz Chaim’s faith in HaShem was whole and complete. Every event that happened in the world and in his life was viewed as a lesson in serving HaShem. Once, I was going with him on a trip. Upon arriving at our destination the Chafetz Chaim gave me money with which to pay the wagon driver. Afterwards, as we walked into the house together, I saw that the Chafetz Chaim was not pleased with me. He then asked me, “What was in your mind when you paid the driver?

I told him that I paid him for services rendered.

“Do you know how many Mitzvot you could have fulfilled? If only you had in mind while you were paying the driver that by paying him on time you fulfilled the Mitzvah of Bal Talin: “…you should pay a worker on the day of the service” (Devarim 25:15), then you would have performed a Mitzvah. If you had in mind that he is a pauper so you could have also fulfilled the Mitzvah of “ViChai Achicha Imach – strengthen him so that your brother can live with you… (VaYikra 25:35),” then you would have performed a Mitzvah. And in his poverty we provided him with work, then you could have fulfilled the Mitzvah of Tzedaka at its highest level.

He then went on to enumerate several other Mitzvot that could have been fulfilled and ended by exclaiming, “And all you did was just pay him like it was only a business transaction!”

This story had a very profound effect on me. How many times a day do we have a chance to perform a Mitzvah and instead just do something that is honorable or that gives one a sense of satisfaction? When someone is stuck on the highway with a flat tire and without a jack, do I stop and help them because I’m a good person or do I do it because HaShem wants me to activate HIS goodness in the world. When someone insults me and all I want to do his hurt that person and instead I stop myself, then I activate HIS kindness and forgiveness in the world.

The purpose of HaShem giving the nation of Israel the Torah is to bring the knowledge of HaShem’s ways into the reality of this world. The reality is we become programmed to behave, or not behave in a certain manner and forget that the purpose of these freewill choices is to do HaShem’s will, to become His agent and for the world to see that He manifests His will through us. We need to be careful not to tread on the minor commandments, those commandments that have become so ingrained in us that I have forgotten the difference between a commandment and a good deed.

In these few weeks before the High Holidays, we should examine our ways so that these very same minor actions can become major actions. That our will become His will so that He will be manifest through our actions. As it says in Isaiah 11:9: “…for the earth will be full of the knowledge of HaShem, as the waters cover the sea.”

Shabbat Shalom,

Reb Yosil

120721 – Parshi’ot Matot/Masei

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

VORTIFY YOURSELF

Reb Yosil Rosenzweig

rebyosil@gmail.com

PARSHI’OT MATOT/MASEI

BaMidbar (Numbers) 30:2‑36:13

Haftarah Jeremiah 2:4-28, 3:4, 4:1-2

120721

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

This week’s Parshi’ot (and the last in BaMidbar), give us a detailed list of the 42 journeys that the B’nei Yisra’el made during their forty year migration from Egypt to Eretz Yisra’el (BaMidbar 33:1 – 10). There is a general misconception that the B’nei Yisra’el wandered in the desert, constantly packing and unpacking, always on the move and never staying in any one place.

RaShI points out the reason for the Torah detailing the individual journeys, he writes: “…to make known HaShem’s acts of kindness, even though He decreed against them (the B’nei Yisra’el) that they should move about and wander in the desert. You should not think that they wandered from place to place all forty years and had no rest. There are only forty two journeys mentioned. We can deduct fourteen that took place in the first year before HaShem’s decree that this generation had to die in the desert (reviewed in Parshat Shelach). Deduct another eight in the fortieth year, after the death of Aharon, and we can then understand that in the thirty eight middle years, they only made twenty stops” (RaShI to BaMidbar 33:1).

What a profound revelation! Our entire perception of the life of the B’nei Yisra’el in the desert must be reconsidered. ChaZaL (our wise men of blessed memory) teach us that the B’nei Yisra’el remained stationary for years at a time, then, when the pillar of cloud would suddenly move, they would pack up and follow it until it stopped. What did they do all those years that they remained stationary?

The obvious answer is that they were occupied with learning how to live as Jews. Prior to the revelation on Mt. Sinai, the former Hebrew slaves had certain rituals that they followed. We know that men were circumcised, that they prayed, and that they followed the seven Noachide commandments, one positive commandment and six negative commandments:

1. Establishing courts of justice;

The prohibitions…

2. The prohibition of blasphemy;

3. The prohibition of idolatry;

4. The prohibition of robbery;

5. The prohibition of murder;

6. The prohibition of adultery; and

7. The prohibition requiring one to kill an animal (mammal) prior to butchering it.

But other rituals were performed as customs, without the authority of being commandments i.e., Shabbat, Levirate marriages and Kashrut. It is no wonder that Moshe was not called Moshe HaNavi – Moshe the Prophet, but Moshe Rabbeinu – Moshe our teacher. Suddenly, with the revelation on Mt. Sinai and the obligation of 613 Mitzvot, vast amounts of time had to be spent on acquiring the knowledge to perform each and every Mitzvah properly.

One might therefore look at the stops made during the 40 years in the desert as interruptions – breaks in the months and years of intense Jewish scholarship. Yet, each move had a purpose and each location was a lesson in accumulating spiritual stamina and fortitude.

The Midrash of Rabbi Tanchuma cites a parable of a king who takes his young son to a distant country to find a cure for his ills. On the journey, a series of events take place, but the prince who is delirious with fever is unaware of their ordeals. After the prince is cured and upon their return home, the king informs the prince – here our carriage broke down, there we were attacked by highwaymen, here we rested and had refreshment, and there your head ached so very badly. Not only was the cure important, but it was also important for the prince to know the cost of the cure.

Similarly, our Parsha recounts all the stops that the B’nei Yisra’el made over the 40 years… Here we crossed the Sea of Reeds; there Moshe caused fresh water to come out of a boulder; here we were attacked by the Amalekites; there we worshiped the Golden Calf; and here we hearkened to the spies. Each location was a story and each story carried a lesson.

We are now in a period in the Jewish calendar called “the three weeks” between Shiva Assar B’Tamuz – the 17th of Tamuz – and Tisha B’Av – the 9th of Av (this year observed on Sunday, July 29). These 21 days force us to remember dark times in our history by actively mourning the destruction of our Temple through fasting and behavior modification. The 17th of Tamuz officially commemorates the siege of the outer walls of Jerusalem by both the Babylonians and the Romans; the 9th of Av commemorates the destruction of both Temples. Throughout our history, terrible tragedies occurred to the B’nei Yisra’el during these 3 weeks, i.e., the Expulsion from Spain, the crusades, pogroms and of course the Holocaust. This period begins and ends with fast days, to emphasize our loss.

Since our dispersion after the destruction of the second Temple in 70 C.E., we have wandered the face of the earth, spending a few years in this place and a few centuries in that place, but never with full security and a sense of wholeness. Regardless of how good our hosts may have been, we have never allowed ourselves to forget Israel, Jerusalem or our Temple.

Every day in our Amidah prayers we say: “V’Li’rushalayim Ircha B’Rachamim TaShuv – And to Your city of Jerusalem, return us in Your mercy. After every meal in the Birkat HaMazon (grace after meals), we recite: “U’Vnei Yerushalayim Ir HaKodesh BiM’hayra B’Yamaynu – Rebuild Jerusalem the holy city, speedily and in our days.” At every wedding, the groom breaks a glass to signify that while we may be rejoicing; we are also broken, living only a partial existence, cut off from our spiritual center.

These 3 weeks remind us of where we have been, what we have endured, the price of our dispersion and the weight of our uncertain future. But like the wanderings of the B’nei Yisra’el in the desert, we look ahead and see that our destiny is tied to Eretz Yisra’el. Each period in our history, each stop that we made along the way, each event, uplifting or devastating, has added to our collective experience.

So we mourn our loss and our dislocation. In fact, it is a Mitzvah – a very difficult Mitzvah – to cry on Tisha B’Av (Talmud, Tractate Sotah 35). Like the groom under the Chupah, our lives may be filled with joy and contentment, but we are actually living only a partial existence. The loss of our Temple and all the rituals, events and influences that surrounded it leaves a great void.

There are suppressed feelings deep inside us that must be amplified and brought to the forefront of our consciousness…feelings of loss, abandonment and inadequacy can contribute to our awareness that our lives are incomplete without our Temple in Jerusalem. Mourning is the vehicle that ChaZaL have given us to deal with these feelings.

We are very lucky to live carefree lives. Most of us do not experience the threat of physical danger. Most of us can afford to live by a very high standard, and even when faced with financial troubles, abject poverty is not usually a real possibility. By relating to an imposed sense of grief we can heighten our connection to Eretz Yisra’el. By not buying new clothes, by not taking a hot shower, or by not attending a live concert, we won’t change the world but we can change our consciousness.

On one hand, the 3 weeks represent all the evil done to Am Yisra’el as a result of our dispersion among the nations. But the 3 weeks also forces us to focus on the Shivat Tziyon – on the return to Zion, a return to an intensified intimacy with our G-d, our land and our Torah.

Like the B’nei Yisra’el in the desert, we need to embrace the study of Torah, so that we will be familiar with our obligations. We must value the cycles of the Jewish year so that we can train ourselves to be open and sensitive to our spiritual needs. And we must never forget the journeys that we have taken: here we experienced a golden age; there a holocaust; here we attempted to abandon our heritage and there we were reborn. Sometimes, journey we must, but each excursion is both a diversion and a lesson in awareness. Only by comprehending our past will we ever connect to our future.

Shabbat Shalom,

Reb Yosil