Going Places- Yisro 2013

Insights and Inspiration

from the 

Holy Land

from 

Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz

"Your friend in Karmiel"

January 31^st 2013 -Volume 3, Issue 17 –20^th of Shevat 5773

Parshas Yisro

Going Places?

 There’s an old joke Americans have about asking an Israeli directions. It ends off with the Israeli answering something like

“Tamshich Yashar Yashar Vi’Sham Tisha’al”.

 Which means-“continue going straight and then further straight and then ask somebody else”.

 I never really got the humor in that joke because if you’re lucky, in fact that is the average Israeli response to your unfortunate query. I scratch my head puzzled each time I ask directions and hear that response. Yet sure enough as I continue to keep on asking people, what do you know? Eventually I arrive at my destination.

 The reason I qualify my statement with “if you’re lucky” is because I remember when I first moved here I tried taking a different tactic and it didn’t work. The first time after I was here for a few months and I was pretty confident I could handle this on my own. I had called up Egged, the bus company and they told me the number of the buses I have to take to get to my destination in Ramat Shlomo. They told me where to switch buses and it sounded simple. Hop on one bus to Rechov Bar Ilan and switch buses over there to get to Ramat Shlomo. So I get on the bus, happy that I have no need to ask any Israelis for directions. I get off on my stop at Bar Ilan, another bus pulls up at the same time it says Ramat Shlomo on it, I get on and I am proud of myself. And then we start moving. Funny, I thought, after 15-20 minutes or so. This ride seems longer than what I had thought it would be. I took out my pocket GPS on my phone and it seemed even stranger. Why was this bus heading in such a strange direction? It looks like we are going to the other end of town. Hmmm… All of a sudden the bus driver announces “Last Stop Har Nof." Uh Oh. How did this happen?

 I approached the driver and asked him where Ramat Shlomo was. He looked at me quite strangely and said it’s the bus going the other way. I’m on the wrong end of the line. When I pointed out to him that the sign on the front of his bus clearly says Ramat Shlomo. He responded- without apology of course- “Lama Lo Sha’alta” Why didn’t you ask”- It was my fault of course I should have asked. Silly Oleh Chadash (New immigrant).

 Later on that week I had to take a train. This time having learned from experience I decided to ask. So I turn to the nice soldier standing next to me and I asked him if this is the right train to Tel Aviv. He responded quite confidently that it was and he is going there himself all I have to do is follow him and we’ll get on together. Feeling better about myself, I got on the train. Sure enough 20 minutes into what should have been a 2 hour train ride. I hear once again “Last Stop- Nahariyia” Uh Oh, wrong way again. I look at my soldier friend who supposedly knew the way. He looked back at me.

 “Hayinu Tzrichim Li’Shol Kodem She’Olinu-We should‘ve asked before we got on” he tells me nonchalantly. Thanks Buddy. You’re a real help. Now you see why I decided to become a tour guide (last exam in week and a halfJ). Somebody’s got to know where to go in this country.

 This week the Torah portion in its unique subtle way, shares with us a lesson that puts the asking of questions and directions in a different light. After all the great narratives of our miraculous Exodus from Egypt that we have had over the past few weeks, the pivotal moment that this was all leading up to has arrived. The Jewish people are now at Sinai. Yet before the Torah tells us the story of the giving of the Torah and the Ten Commandments, we are interrupted with a story of Yisro, Moshe’s father-in-law a Midianite priest who comes to visit. It seems, the Torah tells us, he has heard of all the great things that had happened and he wanted to check them out. Moshe fills him in on the details of the great miracles, which ostensibly he had heard already. And he then leaves. So why come for in the first place? (Never a good question to ask your father-In-law incidentally J)

 In addition, before he leaves he notes that Moshe is sitting and answering the people’s questions day and night and he offers advice to appoint other subsidiary responders to alleviate the burden from his son-in law. Moshe acquiesces to this seemingly simple idea and implements it. A wonderful piece of Jewish history and Torah, but it begs the question. Why do we have to hear about this right now before the climax of our exciting Egypt to Sinai story? What makes this even stranger is that many commentaries note that this story actually takes place after the giving of the Torah. Yet the Torah interjects it here for a reason. Why?

 The answer, one may suggest, is that the Torah is telling us that the prelude to our receiving the Torah is knowing that we have to ask. We have to seek out. We need to find direction. And we should know that there is a process to receiving those answers. Yisro heard about Hashem and the great miracles of the Jewish people and he didn’t just jump on the train and move on with his life. He came to ask questions from Moshe. How should this affect me? What should I do with this knowledge? What is meant for me? The Medrash tells us that Yisro’s answer was to go back to his people and teach them the ways of Hashem. The Torah then tells us that not only Yisro, but all of the Jewish people came to Moshe to ask questions. From morning to night. We are a people that were seeking. We are a people that want and need answers. We want directions and it is in that merit that we received the Torah.

 As in everything here in Israel, there is always life lesson that can be learned. Yashar Yashar ViSham Tisha’al- keep going straight and then ask. There are so many areas in life that we get on the wrong buses and thing we are heading the right way. Here in Israel, you sometimes learn the hard way that it pays to ask. And then to ask again. To keep checking if the things that we do and the decisions that we are making are leading us to the places that we eventually want to get to. As true as this certainly is to get around the city, it is even more so to make it through our journey of life. It is important to have the right people to consult with. Not just any solider you meet at the train station or friend that doesn’t have the life experience of navigating the challenges that life presents; but true leaders and wise individuals who have an insight and are objective. If our prelude to the Torah was that we would have questions and there will be responders, than how much more so is that true today when the challenges we face in our lives, our marriages, our jobs, our families and most importantly our spiritual goals require us to pursue the guidance we need. There’s no need to try to figure it out on your own. We just have to stop and ask before we get on the next train.

Have an absolutely marvelous Shabbos 

Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz

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 RABBI SCHWARTZ FUNNY "MOSES DIRECTIONS COMMERCIAL" OF THE WEEK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRiPa-ldiN0

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RABBI SCHWARTZES TOUR GUIDE COURSE QUESTION OF THE WEEK

 (answer below)

With which of the following periods is the Meshe Stele associated with?

(a) The Patriarchs

(b) The Israelite Period

(c) The Monarchy

(d) The return to Zion (Shivat Tziyon)

RABBI SCHWARTZ COOL PLACES IN ISRAEL OF THE WEEK-

Citadel/ ShemV'Ever-Tzefat – On the top of the mountain of Tzefat the Talmud tells us in the times of the Mikdash each Rosh Chodesh there would be a fire lit here to let that would let all the inhabitants of the area know that the Sanhedrin in Jerusalem had accepted testimony of the new month. Word would get out by a series of bonfires from Jerusalem ( Har Ha'Mishcha, Sartaba, Kochav Ha'Yarden(Groufina), Har Tavor, Tzefat, and Gush Chalav). In the times of the Crusaders they built a small fortress on this hill to overlook the their farms in the area. After Salaadin came and destroyed the fortress and surrounding moat by setting it on fire. The Crusaders came back again in the 12^th century and rebuilt it even greater making it one of two remaining Crusader fortress he left untouched. Saladin eventually came back and sieged the fortress and allowed he Crusaders to leave, but in the 13^th century they came back making the largest fortress in the Mideast with 3 concentricwalls 28 meters high ( the largest reaching to Rechov Jerusalem today) with moats around. When the mamaluks and Beibers came in the 1266 they laid siege as well and offered the Crusaders to surrender but tunlike Salaadin reneged on his deal and murdered them. They built a 60 meter tower with a huge water resivour underneath as well. Eventually most of it was destroyed by earthquakes. The British used it as military post and handed it over to the arabs in 1948 and they used it to throw down explosives on the jews. Eventually we got it back and today it is a lovely park. Right near the bottom is a cave that the Crusaders mistakenly attribuited to Shem and Ever where Jacob the children of Noach where Yacko studied upon running from his brother Esav, based on a misunderstanding that Tzefat was connected to the city of Beit-El. Yet for generations Jews muslims and Christians come to this cave and describe the spring tha flows as coming from the tears of Yaackov. But we know better!

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RABBI SCHWARTZ QUOTE OF THE WEEK
'We are not retreating - we are advancing in another direction."--Douglas MacArthur
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Answer

Answer is C- (skipped this one on my exam, can't keep track of all the different archeological finds) The Meshe Stele was found in Jordan in 1838 and its story of the Moabite kings Meshe's battle with the Jewish kings of the house of Omri is significant because besides the external corroboration of one of the stories and figures mentioned in Tanach, its mention of Hashem's name and possibly even a mention of the David's house from the 9^th century makes it one of the earliest found today. The Meshe Stele can be seen in Louvre in Paris today.

Make Me Proud-Beshalach 2013

Insights and Inspiration
from the
Holy Land
from
Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz
"Your friend in Karmiel"

 January 24^th 2013 -Volume 3, Issue 16 –13^th of Shevat 5773

Parshas Beshalach

Make Me Proud

 If there is one thing that Israelis pride themselves the most on it is their sense of pride. They are proud to be proud. Proud of what? Well it depends who you ask. Most of them are just proud to be proud. Many Israelis are so concerned with pride that they want to share the pride that they feel with others that they are sure don't have it. Israel's most recent political campaign was all about who will restore our pride or make us proud once again or bring us real pride. For some pride means equitable living for all (or at least in Tel Aviv), for others it is pride in our religion and heritage (or at least the way they feel it should be lived), for others it is pride in our moral high ground by giving dignity, money, electricity and maybe even guns to our poor helpless cousins who are suffering under our "occupation" so that we and they can be proud in the UN and in the State Department and in France, and for others it is pride in a life that contains military service, being self-sufficient and being part of our proud society.

What is most ironic is that most Israelis, who claim to be proud, feel that their fellow countrymen are lacking in pride and that only if they would vote for them would they truly be proud once again. The religious feel that the secular are not proud of their heritage and the secular feel the religious are not proud of their close-minded minimalist lifestyles. The right feels the left is not proud of Israel's existence and its accomplishments and the left feels that Israel has no sense of pride in being a moral peaceful nation that cares about its minorities. For a proud nation our obsession with our own pride seems to be at the core of our Jewish psyche and sadly enough for me, a recent Oleh, all of this makes me very not proud. Our country is ripped into shreds by all of this well-meaning-and I truly believe it to be so-divisiveness. Thirty four parties ran for office. Thirty four different groups and campaigns were dedicated to bringing their own unique vision to the Holy-land and the Jewish nation. They all lost. We all lost. In my humble opinion we have nothing to be proud of.

Whoahhhh… you say, what do you mean, nothing to be proud of? Don’t you know that Israel is the first to________  ___________  __________...that we are the greatest_____  _______ __________…. We accomplished________ ________ __________…. There is no other place in the Middle East that ______ __________ __________… For three thousand years we have been the only ones _______ ____________ ________… That every major ________ throughout history is only because of the Jews- they got it from us…….  In the field of ____ _______ ______ the Jews were the ones that led the way… that broke new ground…that shone the light. See how proud you just became, when I said that we have nothing to be proud about.

OK, maybe I'm wrong. We are the greatest country in the world. We are the most successful people around. We are a nation that is perfect. The world should learn from us, rather than us from them. They have nothing to teach us. We are Chosen and a light to the world. If not for us, where would everyone else be? We are the smartest, strongest, most educated, most loved by God and the possessors of the only truth. There is and will never be another nation as incredible as us and it's about time we realized it.

Woahhhh… you say again. But don’t you know that we are failing at _____ ______ ______... and that more than half of us are ______ __________  ____________..... and when it comes to _______ __________ _______ even the ______ are doing better… have it better… are  more____ _____ _____. What makes you think you're so superior? Don't you know that _____ __________ _______ were all Jews and doesn’t that make you ashamed to be Jewish. It certainly does me… I'm sure Hashem as well can't be too proud of his people, with someone like that…! And there you have it. See how un-proud you became when I said we should be proud. So there we are, the proudest nation and the least proud nation all wrapped up into one nice corned beef sandwich on Jewish Rye with mustard and sour pickles (sorry about that I told you I was getting nostalgic about the States J).

If you have mixed emotions about now, don't feel bad. This is an ancient struggle of our people; perhaps the quintessential one that has always been our challenge. In fact it started 6 days after we left Egypt on the way to becoming that perfect Nation we have yet to achieve becoming and it of course starts in this week's Torah portion.

The Torah tells us that the Jewish people left Egypt on the first day of Passover leaving in their wake the greatest world empire in total destruction. The entire infrastructure of Egypt was destroyed, the Egyptian morale and certainly their "deity-complex" was shattered. Hashem had shown them who His nation was and punished them for all they have done to us. You don’t mess with the Jews. What a proud moment. But wait… what's that in the distance? Uh Oh… 600 chariots and the elite forces of Egypt are pounding down our backs and here we are stuck against the Sea. The Medrash tells us that at that moment a bunch of political parties opened up. . One group favored a battle with the Egyptians- probably the militant right, another group advised leaping into the sea-this was the Masada group-die as free men rather then slaves, a third said to surrender and return to Egypt-perhaps the left- let's work this all out in a peaceful diplomatic way, and a fourth advocated crying to Hashem for help- and there goes those religious guys again. Welcome to our first Israeli politics. Not bad it only took one week.

What does Hashem say?

"Don't be afraid! (for the masada people) Stand firm and see the Lord's salvation that He will wreak for you today, for the way you have seen the Egyptians is today,  you shall no longer continue to see them for eternity (for the diplomatic left returnee advocates) . Hashem will fight for you (for the militant ones), but you shall remain silent (for the religious prayer ones)."

Well what do you know? They were all wrong. Hashem continues in the next verse..

"Why do you cry out to me (seemingly the political commercials didn't stop, especially the prayer ones)"

"Speak to the Jewish people and tell them to go".

 I'm in charge of this one. It's not about you- Hashem says- it's about Me. And thus ends our first lesson of becoming a nation. The water splits. The Jews come out and our first song-our national anthem is declared. The song of our pride. Our song to Hashem.

 

Ashira La'Hashem Ki Go'ah Ga'ah- I sing to Hashem for He is the pride of all prides…

This is my God and I will glorify him…

U'Vrov Gaon'Cha TaH'aros Kameicha- With the abundance of Your pride You shatter Your opponents

Who is like You in greatness…Hashem shall rule forever..

 

This is perhaps the most pivotal moment of our history. We are united. We are one. We are at once the most humble of all nations and the most proud. We recognize that in essence there is nothing that we have or accomplish that is not from Hashem. What fills us with the most pride possible is that we are connected to that greatness. Our only and greatest pride is that we are His people and He is our Father. It's never about us being proud about us. It's always meant to be us proud about Him.

 

We've fallen a long way since that moment. But there are times when we really do and can feel that pride. Think about your most proud moments. Is it your child's Bar Mitzvah, walking them down the Chupah? Is it when you achieved a milestone that you never thought you could achieve, but for the help of Hashem? Is it when you moved to Israel and connected and returned to that special country that we have longed for? It is at moments of our deepest sense of pride that we are probably most filled with a sense of humility and connection to Hashem. It is at those moments that our souls fly back to that first moment and echo that song- Ashira La'Hashem Ki Go'ah Ga'ah. I'm proud that Hashem is with me. Our least proud moments in life are when we are disconnected from Hashem. When we are trying to "make it on our own" and when we are trying to change and fix the world and everyone else because we don't value their connection to Hashem and their sense of pride in being His children; the connection they possess merely by created in His image.

Our sages tell us that our pride for Hashem is reflected in the Teffilin/Phylacteries that we wear as a crown upon our head which state in it Hashem is our one God, our eternal love for Him and our memory of that moment of our Exodus.  Hashem, our sages teach us, also "wears" Tefillin. In God's tefillin it states his pride in the Jewish people… His crown…His greatest nachas. And what does it say in his tefillin? Mi K'amcha Yisrael Goy Echad Ba'Aretz- Who is like you Israel, one nation on the land. What makes Hashem proud of us? That we are one nation. All of "our" accomplishments throughout history in wars, technology, innovation, wisdom, ethics, even the light we share all comes from Hashem. It is He that gives us greatness and from which everything comes. The only thing Hashem can be proud of us is when we are one…when we are united and when we can all put aside all of our petty differences and become His people together…all of us.

Can you remember that moment when we left Egypt? Do you remember that moment when we stood on Sinai when we crowned Hashem? When we knew we could change the world into His world? When we knew that was all that we wanted…all that we were here for? When we all stood together as His people? I don't remember it…but my soul does. It longs for that pride. It knows we can achieve it again. Ba'Yom HaHu Yehiyeh Hashem Echad U'Shmo Echad- On that day may it be soon Hashem will be one and His name one. Together we can be proud once again.

Have a wonderful Shabbos and an inspiring Tu B'Shvat,

Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz

 RABBI SCHWARTZ PROUD ISRAEL VIDEO OF THE WEEK IN HONOR OF TU B'SHVAT

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iF7uGmmGn-M  

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RABBI SCHWARTZES TOUR GUIDE COURSE QUESTION OF THE WEEK

 (answer below)

Biblical Giv'on is located in?

(a) Nahal Sorek

(b) East of Mikhmash

(c) the Ayalon Valley

(d) north of  Nebi Samuel

 

RABBI SCHWARTZ COOL PLACES IN ISRAEL OF THE WEEK-

Ari Ashkenazi Shul, Tzefat – The Ari"zl – Reb Yitzchak Luria (1534-1572) was one of the greatest Kabbalists of all times and can be accredited with starting the standard and normative ideas about Kabbala elaborating and explain the concepts of Tikun Olam and redeeming the sparks of holiness found in every aspect of Creation. His father was Ashkenazi and his mother was Sefardi raised in Jerusalem and moved to Egypt when he was orphaned at a young age. He came to Tzefat for the last two years of his life ( he died at the young age of 38) and in those two years he transformed much of the religious world and lifecycle as we know it. Innovations attributed to the Ari'zl (which means lion but also an acronym of his name Adonainu Reb Yitzchak of Blessed Memory) include Tashlich Rosh Hashana, Simchat Torah Hakafot, Shavuot night studying, Ushpizin/ the heavenly Sukkot guests and even the TU bi'shvat Seder that many will hold this Shabbos J. Perhaps most significantly each Friday night they would come out to this field where the shul is and welcome in the Shabbat Queen with psalms and songs. The shul originally built by the Jewish greek community form Grigos was sold to the ashkenazic Chasidic Jews that came here in the late 1700  and early 1800's. It was destroyed by an earthquake in 1837 that killed over 2000 Jews in Tzefat and rebuilt with mystical design that looks like an orchard and trees.

On the top of the Ark with 3 pillars on each side corresponding to the three classes of Jews Kohein Levi Yisrael one can make out the face of man that was turned into a lion so as not to have any human images in the Shul. In the rear of the Shul is a chair of Eliyahu donated by the daughter of the the Sanzer Rav where it is said to be an omen for having children. The Bima as well is known to be a place of miracles as in 1948 when a missle hit the courtyard shrapnel flew into the shul and just missed the person who was sitting there as he was bowing down during the modem portion of prayer. Many put letters with their prayers in that crack which is still visible as they do  in the Kotel.

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RABBI SCHWARTZ QUOTE OF THE WEEK

While the sage Choni was walking along a road, he saw a man planting a carob tree.

Choni asked him: "How long will it take for this tree to bear fruit?" "Seventy years," replied

the man. Choni then asked: "Are you so healthy a man that you expect to live that length

of time and eat its fruit?" The man answered: "I found a fruitful world because my

ancestors planted it for me. Likewise, I have planted for my children."

~Taanit 23a

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Answer

Answer is D- Giv'on is mentioned quite a few times in tanach. The Giv'onim tricked Yehoshua into making a treaty with them when the Jews first came into Israel. They became the water carriers and wood choppers for the Jewish people. The city became one of the Lev'im cities in the portion of the tribe of Binyomin. King Shaul was from there and because he killed the Givonim King David (after suffering a three year famine in Israel and being informed by Hashem that this was the cause) handed over Shaul's children to be killed to them in order to rectify the desecration of Hashem's name. The Tabernacle/Mishkan resided in Givon as the final place (after Gilgal, Shilo, Nov) until Shlomo built the Mikdash. Shlomo brought 1000 sacrifices in Givon when he received his dream that gave him wisdom. By the pool of Givon as well was the fatal battle between Avner Sauls general and Yoav Dovid's general. Archeologists have found this ancient pool as well as all types of burial tombs and huge ancient wine cellars for 95,000 wine jugs with what do you know? the letters Givon engraved on their handles. L'Chaim!

 

 

 

 

Bo- Donkeys, Dogs and Rabbis (not rabies)

Insights and Inspiration
from the
Holy Land
from
Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz
"Your friend in Karmiel"

 

January 17^th 2013 -Volume 3, Issue 15 –6^th of Shevat 5773

Parshas Bo

Donkeys, Dogs, and Rabbis (not rabies)

 

You don't want to start up with Rabbis, certainly not in a religious debate. Our sages tell us that the words of our sages can be like fire. You don't mess with fire. It can burn. So when you see two sages arguing or dueling it's best to just sit down and watch the show. There are lessons to be learned so just soak it in and live and learn.

It was in the early days of the British mandate pre-state of Israel. The battle between the old yishuv simple, holy traditional jews who had lived in the old city of Jerusalem for generations versus the new "modern" secular Zionists that had come to Palestine to build a new country, a new Jew and a new nation. At the helm of the Zionist party was no less of a figure than the Rav of Yaffo, Rav Avraham Ha'Kohein Kook who was known for his love of every Jew regardless of observance level as well as his broad knowledge of Jewish law and philosophy and who saw in the new movement the "beginning of the redemption". On the other side was Rav Yosef Chaim Sonnenfeld- the "guardian of Jerusalem" also a man renowned for his love of his fellow Jew but also one who carried the burden of maintaining the sanctity of Jerusalem and preserving the holiness of the city and the yishuv from the forces that sought to transform its 3000 year special nature. The unplanned showdown of these two holy leaders took place by a once in lifetime mitzvah meal that a simple Jew was having to fulfill the commandment of this week's Torah portion of Peter Chamor; the redemption of the first born donkey.

In this most fascinating and mysterious mitzvah the donkey, the only un-kosher animal requiring redemption, has to be redeemed by giving a sheep to the Kohein. If for some odd reason one does not wish to redeem his donkey, the law than states that he must decapitate the donkey as it is prohibited to be used. Rav Kook, being a Kohein was given the honor of receiving the redemption, while Rav Sonnenfeld as the local Rav in Jerusalem was the officiating Rabbi. The fun was about to begin.

Rav Kook, who eventually went on to become the first chief Rabbi of Palestine, always the orator got up to speak at the meal and to explain what he saw as the lesson of this mitzvah. The donkey, he explained, is a symbol of lowliness and degradation (and continues to be so even today in many cultures). It is impure, non-kosher and the word in Hebrew -Chamor is also the term for physicality and the baseness of man. Yet our sages tell us that it merited to achieve holiness in this particular mitzvah, because it assisted the Jewish people in their redemption, as the text tells us that the Jews used donkeys to carry out the booty of Egypt. If that is the case, Rav Kook suggested, we can than derive that whoever assists the Jewish people in their return from Exile to Eretz Yisrael, regardless of their observance and their connection to tradition can also achieve holiness by merely assisting and facilitating the redemption…I'm sure you, as well as everyone there gets his point. Round 1-Zionists 1 point.

Rav Yosef Chaim then got up with the disclaimer that he had not planned to speak. However, he said, since the Rav from Yaffo only started his lecture and did not conclude the lesson; he felt that it behooved him to conclude it for him. Uh Oh… Rav Yosef Chaim then continued and said

"Yes, it is true that even a simple, base and impure donkey has the potential to achieve holiness. Yet the halacha than continues that if it is not redeemed for a sheep-ergo it remains a donkey, it does not upgrade itself after or during that encounter with holiness but chooses to remain that same old impure donkey- than its holiness is removed; the connection to holiness, the neck that could have uplifted it from its status is disconnected forever and all that is left is one dead donkey."

And the Rabbi hits it out of the park. Game over.

It is interesting to note that this battle between secular and religious Jews has been going on in our opinionated people's spotted history for eternity. No less a figure than the great Rabbi Akiva before become the knowledgeable and great leader who's mantra was loving your neighbor as yourself described his hatred of Rabbi in vociferous terms.

"If I saw a scholar I was filled with such hatred I wished I could bite him like a donkey. His students said "Rebbe, at least say that you would bite like a dog" He responded and said thast a donkey bites and breaks bones whereas a dog doesn't."

Ouch, Ouch!

It's interesting that these two animals that Rabbi Akiva differentiates between, the dog and the donkey, are both mentioned as helping the redemption. The dog, the Torah tells us remained quiet and did not bark as the final plague takes place. This act gave credit that it was Hashem alone that redeemed the Jewish people and killed the first born of the Egyptians and not the Angel of Death (which seemingly they would sense and naturally bark for). In addition they were quiet as the Jews entered the Egyptians homes and took the booty that the Egyptians had promised them upon leaving as opposed to their natural instinct to bark and prevent intruders. So both the donkey and the dog assisted the redemption. The donkey however was rewarded with his opportunity for greatness and the chance to achieve and transform itself into the holiness of the first born. The dog, our sages tell us, merited was to keep the flesh of the non-kosher meat from an animal that died would be discarded and given to a dog. What is the difference? Why does the donkey achieve the potential for greatness whereas the dog just a good steak?

 Once again we turn to the writings of Rav Kook (they deserve a rebuttal) who suggests that the dogs just remained silent; they broke their natural tendency and held themselves back from barking. Their participation was passive. The donkeys on the other hand were active. They schlepped and carried much more than they could in order to assist the redemption. They pushed themselves for greatness and they thus merited the chance to achieve the ultimate greatness; a chance to be holy.

Rabbi Akiva's hatred for the scholars was not one of a dog that just bites and scares off the competition. Rabbi Akiva hated the scholars because he saw in them the ability for an uneducated person, impure person like himself to achieve greatness like a donkey. He wanted his piece of flesh. He wanted to break bones. (Also interesting that the word he uses is Etzem which is the same word used to describe the moment of redemption- B'Etzem Hayom- in the middle, essence or core of the day we left Egypt. It's also interesting to note that the sheep that we ate for the Paschal lamb we were prohibited from breaking an Etzem-bone. The sheep doesn’t have to break bones- the donkey breaks bones to achieve-ponder… drink a l'chaim… it will make sense J). But Rabbi Akiva didn't bite. He studied. He raised himself he took his donkey and made it into a sheep. The Sheep. The one that led a nation in the service of the Almighty ,our shepherd. Ro'einu. He taught his students to love their Re'eacha- their friends and in doing so their Divine shepherd.

We are told that when Moshiach comes he can come on a cloud or if we do not merit he will arrive on a donkey. Their description of that generation that doesn't merit achieving the clouds is that "the face of the generation will be like the face of a dog". Our redemption is a foregone conclusion. The question is only how will we look, how will we merit it. Will we be like dogs that sit back passively, not barking, but also not elevating ourselves to merit the clouds and participate in the redemption in the merit of our deeds. Are we satisfying ourselves with the steaks thrown our way? If so than the donkey who lifted himself up to carry Moshiach will redeem us, to remind and teach us the greatness we can achieve. Or will we merit it by transforming ourselves into that pure sheep; ridding ourselves of the idolatry and impurities that plague us and threaten our nation, as our ancestors did when they merited the miracles of our original Exodus. We can achieve the clouds. The redemption is just a ride away. We just have to choose that mode of transport. Let's all fly together.

Have an amazing Shabbos,

Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz

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 RABBI SCHWARTZ FUNNY "DOG OF REDEMPTION" VIDEO OF THE WEEK

(its great what you can find on youtubeJ)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qut4bbXpii8

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RABBI SCHWARTZES TOUR GUIDE COURSE QUESTION OF THE WEEK

 (answer below)

Which of the following has recently been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO?

(a) Nahal Me'arot

(b) Casarea

(c) Beit She'an

(d) The church of Annunnciation

 

RABBI SCHWARTZ COOL PLACES IN ISRAEL OF THE WEEK-

Beit She'an – Located south of the Kinneret in the Jordan valley the ancient city of Beit Shean consists of the older upper and Roman/byzantine lower city. The upper city/Tel sates back to the pre Israel Egyptian era. Which is kind of cool as one can see the idolatrous temples of ancient Egypt (even a dog fighting with a lion-see this week's Torah portion how the dogs which the Egyptians thought would protect them from plague didn't bark by the final plague). This upper Tel is also the site where Tanach tells us King Saul and his Yonasans heads were hung on the gates of the city by the philistines after they died in battle in by Gilboa (not far from here). It was eventually destroyed by King David built up as an administrative center by Shlomo and destroyed by Tigleth Pilasar and the Assyrians. The lower city was built up by the Hellenists and eventually the greeks and was one of the Decapolis-10 cities that made a truce in the Roman Empire (the only one in Israel) and became known as Schitopolis. In the city one can see a classic Roman bathouse, temples, theater, monumental building and fountains, "pleasure area", shops and most fun for the kids… an ancient public bathroom. The was destroyed by and earthquake and went downhill from there in the subsequent arab and mamluk periods

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RABBI SCHWARTZ QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Rabbi Zeira says-If the earlier generations were like angels than we are like people and if the previous generations were like people then we are like donkey- and not even like the donkey of rav Chanina ben Dosa (that upon being stolen refused to eat grains that were not tithed)- Avos d'Rebbe Noson

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Answer

Answer is A- Nahal Me'arot located in the Carmel Mt. range was recognized as a UNESCO recognized world site for its archeological evidence of early man and his development from the Neanderthal man through different stages. In the four caves Gedi, Tanur, Gamal and Nachal. The earliest burial grounds known to man have been found as well as the earliest northern most homo-sapien skeletons. The transition in tools from a hunting to an agrarian society can also be seen here. Nahal Me'arot joins Masada, Tel Aviv, Biblical tells (Be'er Sheva, Hatzor and Megiddo) and the spice trail cities (Mamshit, Obdat, Chalutza and Shivta) and Akko as the UNESCO recognized cities in Israel

Plagued!- Vaeira 2013

Insights and Inspiration
from the
Holy Land
from
Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz
"Your friend in Karmiel"

January 10^th 2013 -Volume 3, Issue 14 –28^th of Tevet 5772

Parshas Vaeira

Plagued!

 It has been an interesting week. I cut my finger and it began to bleed. BLOOD. My fuses blew and the lights went out. DARKNESS. I looked out my window at the brewing storm and what do you know? HAIL. My wife started screaming as she combed my daughter's hair. LICE. I have decided to stay away from wild animal, frogs, cattle and anything that might burn me and I gave my 1^st born an extra hug this morning. Call me paranoid, but it's Parshas Va'eira and if I wasn't thinking about plagues beforehand, I sure got thinking about them now.

It is perhaps one of the most familiar stories of our nation. We recount it in much detail and embellishment at our Pesach Seders-sometimes with the help of all types of little cutesy demonstrative toys- dead sheep, windup hoppy frogs, hail ping pong balls… We all know the story of the ten plagues  and could  name them probably even faster than we can name the ten commandments (I'll pause so you can try it…J). Yet in truth after all the fun and games and exciting stories the question we have to ask ourselves is what was really the point of it all. Don't get me wrong I'm all for an exciting story, but imagine you were living in Egypt for 210 years under harsh slavery conditions and the time for Exodus is here. Wouldn’t you want to just get out already?

To make this perhaps even more real imagine a concentration camp survivor when the Americans came through the gates of Auschwitz at the end of the war. But rather than chocolate bars and buses to take the people out, they soldiers said "Hold on a second-or a year-as we change their water to blood, hit them with frogs, kill their animals, knock out their lights and so on and so on." For an entire year we remained in Egypt as this process went on. Don't you think our nation would have said "thanks for the show but we'll catch the movie later. We'll grab our matzo's and leave now- thank you". If Hashem wanted to punish the Egyptians than He could've had some type of Nuremberg trial once we were out of there already. Even if the function of the plagues were to serve as a Divine quid pro quo (mida k'neged mida-as our sages refer to it), each plague being retribution for every type of persecution that they enslaved and tortured our people with, why did we have to be there for it all? Wouldn't it have been nice just to sit back, with some hot cocoa and watch it all on TV?

The answer the Torah tells us in the first few verses of this week's Torah portion in Hashem's preamble to the entire story is that it was not about the Egyptians or retribution. It was about us.

Hashem spoke to Moshe, and He said to him, "I am the Hashem.  I appeared to Avraham, to Yitzchak, and to Yaakov with [the name] Almighty God, but [with] My name Hashem, I did not become known to them.  And also, I established My covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, the land of their sojournings in which they sojourned.  And also, I heard the moans of the children of Israel, whom the Egyptians are holding in bondage, and I remembered My covenant. Therefore, say to the children of Israel, 'I am the Lord, and I will take you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will save you from their labor, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments.  And I will take you to Me as a people, and I will be a God to you, and you will know that I am the Lord your God, Who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.  I will bring you to the land, concerning which I raised My hand to give to Avraham, to Yitzchak, and to Yaakov, and I will give it to you as a heritage; I am the Lord.' "

So there we have it. The ten plagues, the yearlong extended stay in Egypt, were in order that we would know the name of our Father and redeemer. Until we personally witnessed Hashem's hand against the Egyptians, until we realized that all the forces of nature were united by Hashem's word to carry out His will, until we first hand stood back in awe and amazement as their water turned to blood while ours stayed water, the frogs, lice, locusts, wild animals terrorized them but didn't even croak in our direction, until we saw that we had total light while our oppressors were frozen in the dark…we weren't ready to go. The Exodus from Egypt wasn't as much about getting us out of a rotten concentration camp as it was of creating us a nation that would always know at its core that we were different, Chosen, Hashem's people. We were meant to know that Hashem who created all and who consistently manages and directs all aspects of nature is our God. It was a course that we would never and have never forgotten. We may not always remember all the commandments but deep in our souls we will never forget what we witnessed that year in Egypt.

I once saw a testimony from a Holocaust survivor who described his worst day during the Holocaust. He said that it was not the day that he was separated from his loved ones when he first came to the camp. It wasn't the day that he watched his children killed in front of him, nor when he thought he was going to die as he marched 14 miles in the bitter snow. The worst day he said was when the gates opened up and the American tanks with their shiny flags came through throwing chocolate bars to the surviving prisoners. Why was that the worst day? He asked for us. Because throughout all the years and all the suffering, no matter what happened we had one thing that held us through it all; it was the faith, knowledge and belief that there would be an end and it would bring Moshiach. What we were going through were just the birthpangs, the persecution before we were to be redeemed. But, this time forever. We saw those gates opened and we were expecting Moshiach on a white donkey blowing a shofar waiting to bring us finally home. And when we saw that it was just the Americans with chocolate bars there was nothing more devastating than that…

Moshiach did not come after the Holocaust. We were not redeemed after the Crusades, the Inquisition, the Cossacks, Stalin and even after all of the wars and terror we have undergone since the founding of the State of Israel. Yet the Jewish people are still here, still strong and have still maintained faith that we will ultimately be redeemed. That strength to survive and flourish and pick ourselves up from the ashes again and again is only because we have the knowledge that Hashem is our God and that he controls all that happens to us. It's what has still kept us looking at those gates of challenge hardship and tragedy and still wait for the redemption. It was the lesson we have never forgotten from that last year in Egypt.

 At our Pesach Seder we drink four cup of wine to remember the four terminologies of redemption. I will take you out, I will save you, I will take you to me and I will redeem you. While most people drink to forget we drink to recall that sense of euphoria and knowledge we had when we left Egypt. We drink because we truly are free with the knowledge and redemption we experienced. We will never again be enslaved in spirit because of that redemption. No matter what we are put through the horrors that we experience and the challenges that we face we know that Hashem is our God. Yet there is one cup, a fifth cup that we place on our table that we do not drink. That cup is the only one, even here in Israel today that we do not fully have; we cannot yet drink.  And I will bring you to the land. -we have come home or at least begun to, yet we still await for Hashem to join us and bring that final redemption, the culmination that we have been longing for. We know it will happen. We pray it will be soon. We've had enough of the chocolate bars, the hail, the darkness and the lice. It's time for Him to come home.

Have a warm, light filled, scratch free J Shabbos

Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz

 RABBI SCHWARTZ "TEN PLAGUES" VIDEO OF THE WEEK

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mx8TE1v6RtM&playnext=1&list=PLE1F134C3BA685D5A&feature=results_video

 

RABBI SCHWARTZ COOL ISRAELI ELECTION COMMERCIAL VIDEOS OF THE WEEK

http://www.theyeshivaworld.com/article.php?p=151657

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RABBI SCHWARTZES TOUR GUIDE COURSE QUESTION OF THE WEEK

 (answer below)

What is a casemate wall

(a) A wall composed of two parallel with partitions between them

(b) a wall with projections and recesses

(c) a wall with an attached moat

(d) a thick wall with towers

 

RABBI SCHWARTZ COOL PLACES IN ISRAEL OF THE WEEK-

Holon/Blind, Deaf and children's Museum – the city of Holon founded in 1935 on the sand dunes (Hol being sand) outside of Tel Aviv has the 2^nd largest industrial area (after Haifa) in israel. In addition to that in 1954 President Yitzchak Ben Tzvi established the 2^nd only city for Shomronim/Samaritans here. This ancient people who believe they are the real jewish people after the destruction of the 2^nd Temple have lived in Israel since then historically being a thorn in the Jewish peoples side today they are a small population supportive of the state of Israel with many jewish/like customs and distortion of our traditional Judaism. The best reason to visit Holon though, is the incredible blind and deaf museum where you can take an hour tour led by blind and deaf people through total darkness or soundless environments. It is absolutely amazing and gives you a real appreciation of the gifts of eyesight and hearing that we have and a true sense of awe and empathy for the lives of the blind and deaf and their strength to achieve and succeed despite their handicaps. There is also a wonderful hands on children's museum as well with five different tours and programs to inspire and excite your youngsters with the world we live in.

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RABBI SCHWARTZ FAVORITE LICE JOKE OF THE WEEK OYYYY…

What did the head lice say to the other head lice? You wait here – I’ll go on a head!

What do you call a lice on a bald person? Homeless

Where do mountain – climbing head lice go? The Widow’s Peak

What does a louse need to drive? A License

What did the head lice say when their host went to the barber? “There goes the neighborhood.”

What is the favorite San Francisco treat of a louse? Lice-a-roni.

What is the favorite hobby of head lice? Nitting

What is a louse’s favorite frozen confection? Lice cream

What is the favorite lice nursery rhyme? Three Blind Lice

What did the mother louse say to her misbehaving little nits? “Don’t make me get the comb!”

 

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Answer

Answer is A- I actually skipped this one on my exam (you're allowed to skip 5 out of 50 questions). The reason was because I learned the material in hebrew and was not familiar with the English word for this. In Hebrew the casemate wall is known as a Chomat Sograyim which is two parallel walls with space in between. We find them in the great cities that shlomo built Chatzor, Meggido and Gezer as well as in Masada. The function of this type of wall was that it was cheaper to make as one didn’t need to fill up a whole solid broad wall and the space between the two walls could be used for storage, guard space or other purposes. In case of attack the space in between the two walls could be filled up to add extra fortification for the city.