You''ll See When You Get There- Parshat Re'eh 2019/5779

Insights and Inspiration

from the

Holy Land
from

Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz

"Your friend in Karmiel"

August 30^th 2019 -Volume 9 Issue 47 30^th of Av 5779

Parshat Re’eh

You’’ll See When We Get There

“So where are we going next?” they want to know. “We’ll see…” is my extremely unhelpful, non-informative and pretty frustrating answer. “But what are we going to do there… see there… how long till we get there… is it going to be fun….???” We’ll see, we’ll see, we’ll see…I’m not going to respond. I’m not going to give in. Children are certainly persistent, but they have never messed with Rabbi Schwartz. I’ve done this too many times and I find there really is no point in letting my tourists know what is next on our schedule or what I have planned for them. In fact, quite the opposite, or punkt fakert, not knowing what is next to come makes the day even more exciting, makes the experience of discovery even more fantastic and of course it’s fun to drive children crazy.

Now, the smart parents generally trust their tour guide and don’t try to figure out what’s next either. When their children turn to them, generally in frustration with their stubborn guide, and ask them what we will be doing today, they shrug their shoulders and are happy to be absolved of any nudgy, endless questions. Because as you know the answer to what we are doing next is not the final one… It will continue with “what is there… is it fun… how long will it take... what will we do after that…” and on and on and on…Yet there are some parents who their children seem to have trained very well to do their bidding and they will ask me on the side if they are smart in a hushed tone “No, but really… where are we going next…?” Guess what…? I’m still not telling… I’m sparing you. Trust me it’s for your own good.

Now don’t get me wrong, it’s not like I am giving you a surprise itinerary. We worked out the general idea of the things that we will be doing on your trip to Israel. You know it will have all of the 4 ingredients of your classic Rabbi Schwartz tour. There will be history, whether it’s Tanach, Mishna, Romans, Crusaders, Modern Israeli wars, some era to give you a feel of the long historical connection we have in this land of our ancestors. We will as well have some nature. It could be a hike, a trail, a overlook or farm something to give you an appreciation of the incredible beauty and nature of Hashem’s favorite country. Number 3) we will of course have some fun activities. It could be jeeping, rappelling, rafting down the Jordan, chocolate making, winery, camel, donkey or horseback riding. We got it all. And of course finally we will have good food. There are tour guides that might find you the hardest hikes in this country. My forte is that I know where the best mehadrin restaurants are. I find most of my clients appreciate it better that way.

So you definitely know already what we are generally doing. You drove me crazy to give you an itinerary. You just really never paid much attention to it. You forgot what it said. You just don’t know what is coming next. Listen to me. Trust your guide. Relish in the not-knowing. Bask in being able to tell your kids “I have no idea…, it’s not my job to know today. Bother the tour guide….” You are patur/ exempt from having to answer the children. That’s what you’re paying me the big bucks for. Don’t nudge me to tell you. First of all I probably won’t tell you. Second of all, you’re kids will be able to smell that you know what’s coming next and they will not leave you alone. And of course the most important reason not to know… Because it’s the way the Torah teaches us is best to appreciate something.

And here we have come to this week’s Torah portion. Although the truth is you don’t really need this week’s Torah portion to teach you that idea. You should know it by now.  There is one place we have been longing to get to for the past 40 years that we have been drayzichen arim in the wilderness for, and at least 3 books of the Torah have gone by telling us that we will come to it. Do you know what that place is called? Not telling you. But there are Cannanites and other people living there. Where will we go there? Again not telling you.  It shall remain nameless but its location has been pre-determined in our Divine itinerary. I’m just not telling you where it is. In the words of our Divine tour guide “It will be the place I will show you” . But, when will we get there..? You’ll see… What will it be like? You’ll see… Are we almost there? Maybe.. You’ll find out…

The truth is that all the way from the beginning when Hashem told Avraham to bring his son, Yitzchak, up as a sacrifice.

Take your son, your only son, the one that you love, Yizchak, to the place that I will show you and bring him up as an offering.

 Hashem could have made this much easier. He could’ve just as easily said ‘Bring Yitzchak to Yerushalayim to the temple mount and sacrifice him there.’ But He doesn’t. He doesn’t tell Avraham, which son right away. After-all he has two. He considers both of them his only son, he loves them both… OK, fine I’ll tell you. It’s Yitzchak. This is harder than pulling teeth out of Rabbi Schwartz when he has a bowl of chulent sitting in front of him. For some reason it seems from the get-go, Hashem likes secrets and surprises. He’s not telling us the name or location of what will be the most important place on the world.

You know we tour guides or Pro-Israel advocates (which should be one and the same thing, although bizarrely enough it’s not necessarily true) like to make a big deal of how the name Jerualem isn’t mentioned once in the Koran. The Muslims made it up. It’s a bubbe meihseh that was created for political reasons to put the caliphate of Jerusalem on par with Mecca and Medina. Something about a magical horse tied up on a ‘corner place” or “al aktza” (from the Hebrew word katzeh. Well guess what, tour guide and Israel advocate, Yerushalayim isn’t mentioned in the Chumash, at least the five books as the specific place of the Temple either. Just don’t tell the “squad” about this, OK. But why not?

We have a saying that a question is half an answer. Well, here’s another question. There is a mitzva in this week’s Torah portion of

Devarim (12:5) The place that Hashem your God will choose from all the tribes to place His name- Lishichno tidrashu u’va’asah shama- You shall seek out His resting place and you shall come there.

There is a mitzva to seek out the place of the Mikdash, our Temple. We are meant to discover it. Thus the Torah can’t tell us where it is. We have to find and discover it ourselves. Rashi notes on the command to bring Yitzchak up for the binding, that Hashem didn’t tell Avraham right away in order to make it dear and beloved to him. Every step there is anticipation. Every step there is longing, will I be there. What will it look like? How much longer…

For the same reason Rabbeinu Bachaya suggests Yerushalayim isn’t revealed. Everyone knew where the Akeyda took place. Everyone knew where the mountain in Jerusalem was, but Hashem hid from us that it was the place where the Beit Hamikdash would be built. He was tour guiding us. He wanted to keep trying to find the place. To long for it and ultimately be entirely awed when we get there. King David ultimately reveals the place, and then Hashem confirms it. We had arrived. And the joy and excitement was exactly what our Tour Guide had hoped for.

We enter the month of Elul this week. Our vacation is over. (Well actually, my vacation just begins…). Sefardim will begin getting up early next week and begin saying selichos before davening to prepare for the High Holidays. Even us Ashkenazim begin to recite the psalm 27 of L’Dovid  Hashem Ori after morning services when we blow the shofar. That Psalm concludes with the words and mandate that should be our focus this entire month. (And is also a great Diaspora Yeshiva Band song- that you will being to hum as soon as you read the next words…)

Lulay He’amanti li’ros b’tuv Hashem b’eretz ha’chayim- If I had not believed to look upon the goodness of Hashem in the land of the living!—

Kavey el Hashem- long for Hashem

Chazak v’ametz libecha- strengthen and make your heart courageous.

V’Kavey el Hashem-And long for Hashem.

Rav Charlap notes that it is longing for Hashem itself that connects us to Hashem. The more we long, the more we await to see His presence. The more we search Him out and seek His home in the “Land of the living”. The one place that is only true life. The Beis Hashem- the House of Hashem that Dovid Ha’Melech’s only request was to finally see and reside in. Then Kavey El Hashem. We will find ourselves longing even more for Hashem. We will be connected in that holiest of ways. We will be able to bring that holiness down to the Land of Israel and to the Beit Hamikdash. The longing is the glue. The can’t-wait-to-get-there, is what unites us with the shechina. Elul stands for Ani l’dodi v’dodi li- I am to my beloved and my beloved is to me. It is the month of cholas ahava- when we experience that love sickness for the Almighty. For those of you that took a tour with me this summer, you know how to anticipate something and how exciting it is when we get there. We are prepared and longing. For those of you that haven’t… I know you’ve been longing for the Beit Hamikdash. We are still in the 7 weeks of consolation from the destruction of our Temple that we mourned not three weeks ago. Tzion is also awaiting consolation. She is waiting for her inhabitants to seek her out. May this Elul see her deepest desires and ours realized.  

Have a magnificent Shabbos and a bleesed Rosh Chodesh Elul

Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz

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RABBI SCHWARTZ’S FAVORITE YIDDISH PROVERB OF THE WEEK

“Dorten iz gut vu mir seinen nito.”- The place where we aren’t- seems good.

RABBI SCHWARTZ’S COOL VIDEO  OF THE WEEK

https://youtu.be/ZQRtBwvk-1s    – Gorgeous Song by Leibowitz brothers arranged by Ari Goldwag Elokai full of heart

https://youtu.be/YeiCh4T82WI   – The one and olnly Pumpedisa with a monkey and Voltzwagon Bus new hit Modeh Ani  awesome!

https://youtu.be/Cr4Rk5pldkw   -Classic Zushe with this new hit. I’m not a Zushe fan, not my style music but for those of you that are check this out it’s as holy as it gets… Lyrics in english: "Until it shall be, that the flame can arise from its own accord".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RV1CCVkK_OA   – Diaspora Yeshiva band Lulay He’amanti in honor of Elul sung by Ruach… Wow! This is a golden oldie… Do you know I used to work for Ruach…?

RABBI SCHWARTZ'S TOUR GUIDE EXAM QUESTION OF THE WEEK

answer below at end of Email

Q   A burial site for dogs was discovered in:
A) Gaza and Ashkelon
B) Gath (Gat) and Jaffa
C) Acre (Acco) and Haifa
D) Ashkelon and Jerusalem

RABBI SCHWARTZ'S “LOMDUS” CONNECTION OF THE WEEK

Parshat Re’eh– Being a lamdan pays off. Not only in the incredible insights that one uncovers by examining the text of the Torah critically and paying attention to the nuances of the commentaries. Sometimes it pays off in the additional reward one can achieve for doing the mitzvos, such as when you uncover an insight that can transform your perspective and appreciation of the service of Hashem that you are doing. That’s the real payoff.

In this week’s Torah portion the parsha begins with Moshe telling us about the blessing and curse of life and death and following the mitzvos and the consequences of not observing the Torah. The Torah uses a language that isn’t precise. Here, take a look.

Devarim (26:11-13) Behold, I set before you today a blessing and a curse. The blessing, that you will heed the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you today. And the curse, if you will not heed the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn away from the way I command you this day, to follow other gods, which you did not know.

Note how when it describes the blessing it just says which you will ‘heed the mitzvos’. The curse on the other hands it says that you will not heed and ‘you will turn away from the way Hashem commanded us’.  As well, there is a seemingly inexplicable Rashi on the words ‘the blessing’- that says ‘on the condition that you will heed’. What is he adding that I wouldn’t have understood from the text itself?

The Kesef Nivchar explains quite brilliantly that there is a law that if one has good intentions to do a mitzva however it doesn’t work out for some reason, then Hashem considers it as if he has fulfilled the mitzva. He connects the machshava- the good intentions, with the action that hasn’t been fulfilled. However, this is only if he had the right intent. On the other hand, if someone plans to sin and it doesn’t work out for him, Hashem does not punish him. You are only held accountable for sins you commit. Not for actions that never took place.

With that idea he explains our verse and Rashi. The blessing one achieves if he merely heeds the commandment. Tishma’u- He heard it and plans to fulfill it. Rashi notes this is on the condition he is tishma’u- as long as he hears it and plans on fulfilling it. The action is not required to achieve the blessing merely the heeding is sufficient. On the other hand, if one does not heed the commandments that only will not bring him the curse. He has to ‘turn away from the path’. He actually has to do the sin or the action that is turning away for Hashem to be punished. The mere not heeding will not do you in.
So often we try to do something and we miss out on the mitzva. We feel bad. Don’t worry we still get reward. On the other hand sometimes we have thoughts that aren’t the greatest. We feel guilty about them. We feel down on ourselves for feeling that way. Don’t worry. Thoughts will not get you any curse. There is a saying that the Goyim seem to have gotten wrong. I will paraphrase it to make it correct. The road to Hell is not paved with bad intentions only bad actions. On the other hand the road to heaven is the one that is paved with good intentions. For those intentions are considered as if we fulfilled the commandments.

RABBI SCHWARTZ'S ERA’S AND THEIR PLACES AND PEOPLE IN ISRAEL OF THE WEEK

Shamgar Ben Anat the 3rd Shofet 1125 BC – We don’t know much about this elusive Shofet/ Judge/ leader. In fact all he gets is about three verses of face time. His entire “reign” was for one year. But it seems in that year he was able to repel many Philistine attempts.

He is perhaps most famous for his weapon of choice an ox goad or prod. In the good old days when a field was plowed by oxen then the farmer would stand behind the ox who would pull the plow with a yoke attached to its neck and the prod would keep the ox moving as it was a big stick that was pointy at the end that he would keep nudging him with. I’m not sure if there’s anywhere in Israel where you can see this process as we pretty much use tractors today. But in Kfar Kedem in Hoshaya where you can experience the Talmudic experience they show you the yokes and the process of ancient farming which is pretty cool!

The significance of this as his weapon of choice is two fold. The historians suggest that the Jews being under the rule of the Philistines were prohibited from sharpening weapons, thus this was all they had. We Jews were always good at making do with whatever we could get our hands on. Many of the wars during the pre-war State were used and fought with farm instruments the kibbutzim had to protect themselves against the Arabs. The ethical message of this weapon of the Judge was to send the message to the Jewish people that all of our troubles with our enemies were merely prods from Hashem to keep us on the straight and narrow when we were straying from the path of Torah and Mitzvos we were meant to remain on.

The navi is not clear what tribe he was from and where he ruled. However the Seder Dorot suggests he was a Kohen perhaps from the city of Anatot which in Mateh Binyamin right near Wadi Kelt and the Prat spring that’s a great water hike. It seems though from the next story of Devora and Sisera which took place that he lived in the North of Israel as it seems to connect the two stories. I guess one more connection one can make is that Israel had a supreme court judge Meir Shamgar in the 1980’s. His original name was Meir Sternberg, but under Ben Gurion’s advice took a more Biblical name. He certainly was no Shamgar Ben Anat, but hey it’s cool to have judges of Israel once again with biblical names. May we merit to have the same provide the same biblical leadership we long for.

RABBI SCHWARTZ’S TERRIBLE JOKES OF THE WEEK

1. My Mother taught me about ANTICIPATION..."Just wait until your father gets home."

2. My Mother taught me about RECEIVING...."You are going to get it when we get home!"

3. My Mother taught me to MEET A CHALLENGE..."What were you thinking? Answer me when I talk to you! Don`t talk back to me!"

4. My Mother taught me LOGIC..."If you fall out off that swing and break your neck, your not going to the store with me."

5. My Mother taught me MEDICAL SCIENCE..."If you don`t stop crossing your eyes, they are going to freeze that way."

6. My Mother taught me to THINK AHEAD..."If you don`t pass your spelling test, you`ll never get a good job."

7. My Mother taught me ESP..."Put your sweater on; don`t you think I know when you`re cold?"

8. My Mother taught me HUMOR..."When that lawn mower cuts off your toes, don`t come running to me."

9. My Mother taught me how to BECOME AN ADULT..."If you don`t eat your vegetables, you`ll never grow up."

10. My Mother taught me about GENETICS..."You`re just like your father."

11.My Mother taught me about my ROOTS..."Do you think you were born in a barn?"

13.My Mother taught me about WISDOM OF AGE..."When you get to be my age, you will understand."

14.And my all time favorite... JUSTICE..."One day you`ll have kids, and I hope they turn out just like you....Then you`ll see what it`s like." 

How can you tell elephants love to travel ? They always pack their own trunk!

Why did the witch stay in a hotel?  She heard they had great broom service!

 Where do sharks go on vacation? Finland!

 Where do sheep go on vacation?The Baaa-hamas!

Where do hamsters go on vacation? Hamsterdam!

How do rabbits get to their holiday destination? By hare-plane!

What did the pig say on the beach? I’m bacon!

Where do cows go on vacation? Moo York!

What did the Pacific Ocean say to the Atlantic Ocean? Nothing, it just waved.

Yankel from Williamsburg puts up a sign that says "BOAT FOR SALE". Yoily, his friend says, "But Yankel you only own a house and a car". "Dat's right" Yankel responded "And dey are boat for sale"

Berel Greenblatt left the snowy city for a vacation in Florida. His wife was on a business trip in Atlanta and was planning to join him in Florida the next day. When Berel reached his hotel, he decided to send his wife a quick e-mail. Unable to find the scrap of paper on which he had written her e-mail address, he did his best to type it in from memory.

Unfortunately, he missed one letter and his note was directed instead to an elderly Rebbitzin whose husband had passed away only the day before. When the grieving Rebbitzin checked her e-mail, she took one look at the monitor, let out a piercing scream, and fell to the floor dead. At the sound, her family rushed into the room and saw this note on the screen:

 Dearest Wife,
Just got checked in. Everything prepared for your arrival tomorrow.

Your Loving Husband 

P.S.: Sure is hot down here.

Izzy owned a small deli in Stamford Hill, in London. One day, a tax inspector knocked on his door and questioned him about his recent tax return. Issy had reported a net profit of $250.000 for the year and he wanted to know all about it. "It’s like this," said Issy. "I work like a maniac all year round and all of my family helps me out whenever they can. My deli is closed only five days a year. That’s how I made $250,000."
"It's not your income that bothers us," said the taxman. "It's the business travel deductions of $80,000 that worries us. You entered on the tax return that you and your wife made 28 business trips to Israel, Italy, Switzerland, France, the US, Hawaii, and the Caribbean Islands. What are all these business trips about?"
"Oh," said Izzy, smiling. "I forgot to tell you that we also deliver!"
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Answer is D–  OK this is two weeks in a row that I got a question wrong. I’m still pretty far ahead and I think I passed the point where I know I passed the exam as you only need a 65 score. But still it’s annoying to get questions wrong and this question is one that I had no clue for. Not only did I not have a clue but I googled the answer and couldn’t find it there either. See I knew that Ashkelon was one of the correct answers. First of all, it’s mentioned in two answers that’s usually a good sign that it is correct. As well, although I missed our tour of Ashkelon in our tour program, I remember reading about how the largest ancient dog cemetery is there. Now I didn’t remember anything about dogs in Jerusalem, and I figured that Gaza was a philistine city as was Ashkelon so that was probably the ancient custom there. Turns out I was wrong. How do I know? I posted it on my Tour Guide Whatsapp group and the consensus was that by the City of David there was indeed an ancient Persian period dog burial site that was found. Oh well… So the score is Schwartz 34 and 8 for MOT (Ministry of Tourism) on this exam so far.