From the sichos of R' Avraham Shapira z"l:
צריך לדעת להעריך את הנס והפלא הזה, שעשו לנו מן השמיים, בביטול עול הגלות. צריך לדעת להעריך, שבוטל עול הגלות. הגלות היא מום. הגלות היא נגד היצירה הטבעית של עם ישראל. זוהי פגיעה בחיים, כפי שהם צריכים להיות. אי אפשר להיות גלות, בגלות אין חיים כפי שהם צריכים להיות, ואין תורה כפי שהיא צריכה להיות. בגלות אין עם ישראל כפי שהוא צריך להיות
Why is today tinged with a certain sadness? Because how can one not be saddened when one realizes the tremendous hisgalus Elokus that occurred 60 years ago - v'nahapoch hu from the near complete destruction of Jewish life as it was lived for hundreds of years to a miraculous rebirth that continues to this very day - and the same time see ma'aminim bnei ma'amainim who don't see any reason to acknowledge what occurred and express hakaras hatov with shevach to Hashem, who go about their business as if a world with a State of Israel as a political entity and a world without a State would be equal in their eyes. How can one not be saddened when bnei yeshiva, the elan of our people, do not realize that the flourishing of Torah is Eretz Yisrael would not be possible without the Zionism they disregard, if not outright disparage? R' Shapira continues in the same sicha (emphasis mine):
יש לנו חידוש של מצוות עשה מן התורה. כולם ראו זאת, אבל אעפ"כ צריך חסדי ה' כדי להבין שיש לפנינו ישועה. גם אנחנו צריכים חיזוק ולימוד. לכאורה, זה צריך להיות מובן לכל, כולם ראו שאחרי אלפים שנה החזירו לנו את מצוות ישוב ארץ שראל. כולם ראו שבטל עול הגלות מעלינו ושזכינו מחדש, במצוות עשה מדאורייתא, ואי אפשר לומר שאין זה מעשה ה', אבל אעפ"כ זה צריך לימוד. יתכן שרואים אבל לא מתבוננים בחסדי ה'. צריך ללמוד את חסדי ה', וצריך חכם שיבין אותם, ורק אז יכולים להודות ולהלל לרבש"ע, על עצמאותנו בשלמות.
To use the framework of the Shem m'Shmuel I developed earlier in the week, there is a re'iya, but no shemiya. There is no "hati ozneich", of thinking and hisboninus. Chodesh Iyar is the chodesh of shemiya; 5 Iyar is a good time to start.
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What are you doing here??? Although I know that moving families there is a real gamble.
ReplyDeleteTruth is, everytime someone metions Tzefas, I wonder what I am doing here, too. Yerushalayim is just too strange for me; it's like living under a microscope. It's hard enough for me to remain sane when I spend a week or two there.
practical day to day life often intrudes on fulfilling aspirations - but that does not mean they will go unfulfilled forever or that one should cease aspiring.
ReplyDelete"Zionism they disregard, if not outright disparage"Much like the Poloticians disparage the Torah and Judiasim as most View all people with Torah values as Parisites and Backwards as everyone conviently forgets how the criminaly Kiddnaped All the Yemininte children to "HELP" them remove their Backwards Peyios(simanim) and how THEIR hero Hertzl Yiachsehmo Wanted all Jews to convert and had no intrest in Eretz Yisrael But a state anywhere that would be for Jews. I am sorry if we dont affiliate with a criminal Entity That claims to represent me.Now of course there is a sense of Hakoroas Hatov for the torah but they Know they need it to mianitain any legitimacy as the one reason we are there is the TORAH
ReplyDeleteParshas Emor
ReplyDeleteוְכִי-תִזְבְּחוּ זֶבַח-תּוֹדָה לַיהוָה לִרְצֹנְכֶם תִּזְבָּחוּ
The Posuk structure is very strange what does it mean "When you give a Korban it should be willingly? The answer is Profound the Korban we are referring to is a Todah which is given after going through a life threatening experience. The person might say to himself, why should I thank God After all the reason I got out of this situation is because God put me into this situation? The Posuk foresees this situation and says no that is not the case you must give it לִרְצֹנְכֶם, and you must recognize that even though in your limited life view it was a negative experience your belief in Hashem tells you needed it.
בַּחֲמִשָּׁה עָשָׂר יוֹם לַחֹדֶשׁ הַשְּׁבִיעִי הַזֶּה חַג הַסֻּכּוֹת שִׁבְעַת יָמִים לַיהוָה
וּלְקַחְתֶּם לָכֶם בַּיּוֹם הָרִאשׁוֹן פְּרִי עֵץ הָדָר כַּפֹּת תְּמָרִים וַעֲנַף עֵץ-עָבֹת וְעַרְבֵי-נָחַל וּשְׂמַחְתֶּם לִפְנֵי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם שִׁבְעַת יָמִים
The Sefer Bnei Yissachar has some very interesting Remazim for Succos. It is said that the Lulav includes all of the Torah. The Bnei Yissachar Illustrates this point .The Torah starts with the word בְּרֵאשִׁית and ends with the words לְעֵינֵי כָּל-יִשְׂרָאֵלthe navi starts with וַיְהִי אַחֲרֵי מוֹת מֹשֶׁה and ends in Divrie Hayomim with אֱלֹהָיו עִמּוֹ וְיָעַל you put together the last and first letters you get Lulav. It is also interesting to note that Lulav is an Acronym for the words וטהר לבנו לעבדך באמת take the first letters and again you have Lulav. Another interesting one comes from the word Sukkah the structure of the letters can actually teach you the Halachos of how many walls are required to have a kosher Sukkah. There are 3 types of Kosher Succos one a Samech which has 4 walls first letter of the word Sukkah. Then a Mem which has three and half walls the second type of kosher Sukkah and then a Heh 2 and a partial wall the Third type of Kosher Sukkah and making up the word Sukkah.
וּקְרָאתֶם בְּעֶצֶם הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה מִקְרָא-קֹדֶשׁ יִהְיֶה לָכֶם כָּל-מְלֶאכֶת עֲבֹדָה לֹא תַעֲשׂוּ חֻקַּת עוֹלָם בְּכָל-מוֹשְׁבֹתֵיכֶם לְדֹרֹתֵיכֶם
The Posuk makes a very strange comment "and you call in middle of this day" what is its significance? The Brisker Rav answers based on a Rambam months are sanctified based on two witnesses. It would happen every once in a while that the witnesses would come late and say a while back I saw the moon and it was Rosh Chodesh. The Rambam says in this situation we declare the day the witnesses saw the moon Rosh Chodesh. This means in middle of the day it can theoretically become a day of Yom Tov. This Posuk is talking about Shavous which is not based on Rosh Chodesh but on Sefirah meaning once Pesach happened count Sefirah and in the end is Shavous. Therefore our Posuk says בְּעֶצֶם הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה on Shavous is the only day you can be מִקֹדֶשׁ in middle of the day because it is definitely Shavous because Rosh Chodesh does not affect it.
דַּבֵּר אֶל-בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְאָמַרְתָּ אֲלֵהֶם מוֹעֲדֵי יְהוָה אֲשֶׁר-תִּקְרְאוּ אֹתָם מִקְרָאֵי קֹדֶשׁ אֵלֶּה הֵם מוֹעֲדָי שֵׁשֶׁת יָמִים תֵּעָשֶׂה מְלָאכָה וּבַיּוֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִי שַׁבַּת שַׁבָּתוֹן מִקְרָא-קֹדֶשׁ כָּל-מְלָאכָה לֹא תַעֲשׂוּ שַׁבָּת הִוא לַיהוָה בְּכֹל מוֹשְׁבֹתֵיכֶם.
ReplyDeleteWhy did this Parsha in the first Posuk start talking about Yom Tov and in the next Posuk talk about Shabbos? The Vilna Gaon provides the answer there are שֵׁשֶׁת יָמִים that are from the Torah but you are allowed to do Melacha for food. The first and last day of Pesach make 2 days and a third is one day of Shavous a Fourth is a single day of Rosh Hashanah and then again 2 days of Succos adding up to 6 days that the Torah gave us But then the last Yom Tov is שַׁבַּת שַׁבָּתוֹן Yom Kippur and Hence the connection of the two Posukim is Explained.
וְלֹא תְחַלְּלוּ אֶת-שֵׁם קָדְשִׁי וְנִקְדַּשְׁתִּי בְּתוֹךְ בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל
The Posuk seems to be repetitive "do not desecrate my name and I will be holy"? The Posuk is issuing a special warning. The Posuk is addressing certain special situations where there is potential for booth. The airplane minyan has a lot of potential for people who have never seen a davening before to see it first hand and take part aוְנִקְדַּשְׁתִּי ְ but on the flip side it also has potential to be תְחַלְּלוּ אֶת-שֵׁם קָדְשִׁי with people being inconsiderate to the people sitting in this seats closest to the Minyan. Therefore Hashem in this Posuk is telling us see the Posuk when you go to make a Kiddush Hashem make sure וְלֹא תְחַלְּלוּ אֶת-שֵׁם קָדְשִׁי וְנִקְדַּשְׁתִּי.
Anonymous, I think maybe you need your own blog. (BTW, I assume you are a different anonymous than the previous anonymous?)
ReplyDeleteChaim, while I agree that anonymous II should get his own blog, I think it's funny that his last vort is a poignant reflection on Anonymous I. #I said that the Medinah was an enemy of Orthodox Judaism, if not of religion in general, and that affiliating with them abets criminal chilul Hashem.
ReplyDeleteI say that while it is absolutely clear that the founders of the state hated religion and actively did whatever they could to nullify it, this does not mitigate our obligation to do what we can to improve the situation, nor does it nullify the opportunity to be mekayeim yishuv Eretz Yisroel. Nobody is asking us to put on a white Bozo wig and Jimmy Durante nose and become Ben Gurion. Our job is to make Eretz Yisroel into a physical and spiritual paradise. That's what the Chazon Ish held, that's what the Chafetz Chaim held, that's what the seichel hayashar holds. The people who want to make a kiddush Hashem even if it results in a chillul Hashem are just morons, and that includes Anonymous I.
With all due respect and my best wishes for a good Shabbos, of course.
I just want to make sure we are on the same page - I meant "get his own blog" not in a deragatory way, but in a complimentary way. The divrei torah are nice, but how many people are going to see them in the comment section of my blog?
ReplyDeleteWhich just gave me an idea...
I like his divrei Torah too. I just would think he would leave a word about the host's divrei Torah as well.
ReplyDelete