Naming our Country- Parshat Vayishlach 2020/ 5781

 

Insights and Inspiration

from the

Holy Land

from

Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz

 "Your friend in Karmiel"

December 4^th 2020 -Volume 11 Issue 8 18^th Kislev 5781

Parshat Vayishlach

Naming our Country

 

So it seems the era of Trump is over. I'll miss the Donald. He was fun to have around for a few years. It was almost like having a yeshiva guy that really had no clue about the significance and décor of what the White House and seat of the presidency was meant to represent. Sitting there in the oval office and ordering up some chulent and just spewing whatever came to his mind at whoever was interested in listening. Firing everyone who disagreed with him-just because he could. It was fun and funny and certainly a great time for Israel, which also seems to have a bunch of yeshiva-guy-mentality politicians just hocking around. I don't know what the future will hold for our country under the new administration. But either way it will certainly be good for us. Whatever Hashem does is good. It may be difficult or challenging. Jews may continue running over here to Israel for fear of their safety or for better falafel. But it's where they're supposed to come anyways. As my friend Sruli wrote recently in his Mishpacha column now that we will no longer have Trump to put our faith in, we can return it to its rightful place; to Hashem.

 

Yet like many American and foreign dignitaries Trump will have an eternal legacy here in Israel. He's the second American president to have a settlement named for them; Moshav Truman being the other. There are other Americans that have cities named after them as well. All my tour guide and Israel trivia readers out there, I'll give you a minute to think and guess…. Don't feel bad, I didn't get all of them right away, and couldn't even find a google hit on it either. I guess it's really not a big enough deal or question that anybody really cares about…shhh don't tell Donald. There's Netanya named after Nathan Strauss (whose brother died in the Titanic and he was saved by coming to Israel). Nachal Hashofet after Supreme court  justice Judge Louis Brandeis, Tal Shachar named after Henry Morgenthau (Morgen- thau in yidish is morning dew, and Kibbutz Ramat Hashofet named after NY appellate court judge Julian Mack who was the head of ZOA. Oh and there's a pizza shop in Geula called Klinton Pizza, but I'm not sure there's a connection there…

 

Personally I love traveling the country and looking at the names of the various settlements and cities and learning about the people that were chosen to be memorialized in that way. I even read the short little bios they sometimes have on the street signs here and google to learn about them. I don't know if anyone else does, but I think it's cool. The only problem I have though in this country is that there is too many people that want their names on the street and perhaps even deserve to have that honor, so the same streets can change names every 10 houses or so, which is a real pain in the neck when you're lost and trying to find an address. Maybe one day they'll name a street after me too… It would be nice. My only request is that there be a chulent/ Shabbos deli store on the corner so it can be a true commemoration.

 

Now here's another fascinating little bit of trivia, once we're on the subject. Did you ever think or ask who named Israel the country that I live in? How did Israel get its name? I imagine most of you would think that it has always been called Israel, but you would be wrong. In fact, there are a few names for the "Land of Canaan" that Hashem tells Avraham will belong to his children, but it doesn't really call it Israel. More often than not it's just called "The land". Hmmmm…

 

 How about in the books of the prophets? Well after the time of King Shlomo the country was divided and there were two kingdoms here; the Kingdom of Judea/ Yehuda and Yisrael/ Israel. But again there was no name Israel for the entire country. When Ben Gurion and the early Zionist entities were looking for a name to call what Theodore Herzl  had called the “Der Judenstaat.” – The Jewish State in his visionary book and the bible of modern Zionism "Alt Neueland, the name Judea was suggested as an option. It made sense as Jews were/ are called yehudim and have been called so historically. It was nixed however when they realized that the majority of the biblical portion of Judea would not make it into the State's borders in 1948, as Jordan still controlled the old city of Jerusalem, Hebron, Beit Lechem…

 

By the Bar Kochva revolt they did find coins that said for the redemption of Israel. However, there were also coins that said Judea and Jerusalem. Some of those sitting at the Zionist table suggested Tzabar- like the word Sabra. How ridiculous is that? Other's suggested 'Eiver'-like Avraham Ha'Ivri- Hebrew…But again it would seem to be strange to name a country after the language and Avraham when the Zionists were trying to get away from that. Similarly, the word Zion which is used repeatedly in Tanach for our country was turned down, as the Zionists envisioned a country where Jews and Arabs lived together in peace and harmony and they felt it would be pushing it to have citizens of this country call themselves Zionists. I think Satmar was also pretty glad they didn't go with that name.

 

So it seems that at the end of the day, with not too much time remaining on the clock before our declaration of statehood, Ben Gurion made the final call and landed on Israel. Interestingly enough he chose not to call it Eretz Yisrael, because that term would refer to the entire land and its biblical borders and they saw themselves as only building a State within the UN two- state solution borders and didn't want to seem presumptuous. Unlike our arab cousins who clearly said that this entire land until the sea was theirs. But I guess they felt that we Jews couldn't get away with that, so thus we became Medinat Yisrael- the State of Israel. A state that still awaits the entire Eretz to be redeemed and returned to her.

 

There are cynical people that have suggested that BG's affinity for the name Israel over Judea was because he was trying to get away from Jews identifying themselves as Jews- yehudim. He was looking to create a new Jew that was not defined by their religion, but rather by the country that we live in. We're Israelis- not Jews, was the idea. But like all major decisions that take place, our Rabbis tell us that lev melachim b'yad hashem- the heart and the decisions that world leaders make are from the manipulations of Hashem. The mentch tracht- und gut lacht- Man plans and G-D laughs. There's a reason we're called Israel and this week's parsha tells us that it goes to the essence of who we are and what our country as well perhaps is all about.

 

Our parsha begins with Yaakov heading back home to his father's home in Eretz Yisrael. If last week's parsha was the portion of Vayeitzei contains in it all the secrets, objectives and challenges we will face in our exiles, that Yaakov paved the way for us his children, this week it's about the struggles to come back to our land. Yaakov is fearful that Esau will prevent him from returning, and thus it has been historically that we have suffered from all of Esau's descendants for millennia. Whether it was the Romans, the Crusaders, the Inquisition, the Cossacks, Mother Russia, England, France and all of the other fake mothers we adopted up to the Nazi's and the United Nations, they shared one common theme; kill us, stop us, destroy us before we get back to the land of our forefathers. On this journey home Yaakov struggles at night with the mysterious man, whom chazal tell us is the "angel of Esau". The dust of their wrestling goes up to the throne of Hashem and they fight all night long. Before daybreak it seems Yaakov despite suffering an injury in his sciatic nerve in his leg- you can count on them to fight cheap-manages to get the angel into a stronghold and refuses to let him go until he blesses him. The blessing Yaakov receives includes the angel telling Yaakov that his name will be changed to Yisrael. The reason for the name change?

 

Bereishis (32:29) Said he, “Your name shall no longer be Yaakov, but Yisrael, - Ki Sarisa-for you have striven with beings divine and human, Va'tuchal-and have prevailed.”

 

The root word of Yisrael is sarisa, which Artscroll and many commentaries translate as 'striven'. It seems that these translations interpret the word sar- which means prince or leader (like Sarai/ Sarah our Matriarch). Yet the verse is not telling us that he 'lorded' over the angel. For then what is the next word of 'prevailing'? Rather it is telling that he sought and struggled to become that sar- that victor over the angel. Thus the word strive which means to struggle to become greater. So what is our name? What is our essence? 'Striving".

 

Reb Leibeleh Eiger notes that we were not called after the fact that we won the battle, that we prevailed. Although that would seem to be the more important aspect. We beat an angel! We should've been called after the va'tuchal- that Yaakov won. Although the name Tuchaleh-might not sound that great,-particularly in Yiddish. But it seems that is not that case. Rather we're called and our essence is not whether or not we win, but that it's that we keep on fighting. We are always trying to aim higher. We struggle for greatness. That is Yisrael.

 

Reb Chatzkel MiKuzmir explains on an even deeper level, that whether we succeed in our struggle or not is really not always in our hands. Sometimes we can try and try, but at the end of the day, it just doesn't work out. I remember thinking when this Corona think hit about the quite a few tourists that I have taken that would make me crazy that we had to find a minyan to daven Mincha with in middle of our day. This is not always an easy task, even in Israel for although during busy seasons one seems to always be able to put a minyan together, in off-seasons not neccesarily. But as my tourists informed me, they have never missed davening with a minyan since their Bar Mitzva. Not even once. Until Corona…. They struggled, they strove, but in the end they didn't prevail. It's fine. It's not about prevailing. It's about always trying to overcome. Even when we are injured and limping from that battle. We've gotten hit and when we're at a point where we think we can't do it anymore, we need to remind ourselves that our name is not Tuchaleh. The dust from our struggle and our striving has already reached the kisey ha'kavod- the heavenly throne. That's how we got our name.

 

Which of course brings us back to the name Hashem put into the minds of those at the Zionist council to give to this incredible country that is best called by the struggles she endures. It is the struggles to return here and the challenges that we face upon arriving and settling the land. It is the constant wars, attacks and world denigration and condemnations. It is the struggle to find a way to form a government that can adequately and respectfully lead a country of a few million "presidents"; -sarim. There are times we have prevailed. There is a tremendous amount that we have accomplished and that Hashem has blessed us with seeing success, perhaps even more than our failures But until Mashiach comes this will not be the Medinat Va'Tuchal, it will be the State of Israel; the country that is always striving and our holy dust that we kick up is always climbing higher and higher to the heavens.

 

This coming week is Chanuka, and it is on this holiday that the power of light overcame the forces of darkness. It was when the tzadikim- the righteous overcame the kingdom of Yavan- Greece. The other name that was suggested for Israel is Tziyon- Zion. The word Tziyon, our sages is a contraction of two words The letter tzadik is the first and Yavan- Greece. The victory of the children of Yisrael won that struggle, albeit temporarily. But for a time we were the nation of Tzion. A country that was metzuyan- that was perfect. That was redeemed. May the light of this Chanuka once again return the children of Yisrael who have struggled for so long and may we once again see Zion rebuilt.

 

Have a poignant super-duper Shabbos,

Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz

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RABBI SCHWARTZ’S FAVORITE YIDDISH PROVERB OF THE WEEK

" Ven tsvai shpilen, muz ainer gevinen un ainer farliren." When two play a game, there must be a winner and a loser.

RABBI SCHWARTZ'S TOUR GUIDE EXAM QUESTION OF THE WEEK

answer below at end of Email

6) A tribe that wandered northwards according to the Bible:

a) Naphtali

b) Benjamin (Binyamin)

c) Dan

d) Zebulun (Zevulun)

 

RABBI SCHWARTZ’S COOL VIDEO  OF THE WEEK

 https://soundcloud.com/ephraim-schwartz/al-hanissim    – Getting into Chanukah Mode? Nothing like my amazin Al Hanissim composition that will make you want to start dancing and getting into the mood. Aranged and sung by the amazing Dovid Lowy!

https://youtu.be/bmi5Tjj6y54  – This ranks up there with strange… Make Breslav great again, world is falling apart let's sing video… Hmmm

https://youtu.be/--DM4XsY_Zk    – Yoni Z getting ready for Chanuka songs here's his Every Yid's a Fire!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-cwEwFPbMQ    – Ari Goldwag's latest video Ah Ahalela

RABBI SCHWARTZ'S PARSHA/ ERETZ YISRAEL CONNECTION OF THE WEEK

 Mama Rachel- Parshat Vayishlach– We have four Matriarchs. Sarah, Rivkah, Rachel and Leah., but yet it is Mama Rachel more than the other three that seems to have grabbed a special place in the hearts of every Jew. The picture of her tomb has adorned Jewish homes for centuries right next to that of the Kosel. She is the symbol of the mother who was not buried with the rest of the imahos, but rather she is on the side of the road in Beit Lechem, so she could pray for her children as they are being exiled. It is perhaps most fitting that she is the one that does that for in truth she really never lived in Eretz Yisrael herself. She is the Matriarch of the exile for that is where she spent her life and much like the great Rebbi Yehudah Halevi who wrote the famous words libi ba'mizarach v'anochi b'maarav- My heart is in the East (Eretz Yisrael) but I'm in the west, Rachel died with the dream of living here when she arrived. More than our other mothers, Rachel embodies the longing and dream of life in Eretz Yisrael.

 But it is so much more than that as well. The Midrash tells us that Rachel continues to cry for her children. Hashem, in trying to console her makes two promises to her.

Mini koleich m'bechi, v'einayich min dim'a- hold back your voice from crying and your eyes from tears.

V'Shavu banim mei'eretz oyeiv- and the children will return from the land of their enemies. V'shavu banim l'gvulam- and the children will return to their borders.

 The Chasam Sofer notes that seemingly Hashem had told all of the prophets that the Jewish people will ultimately return. That there will be a redemption. What is the uniqueness of this promise to Rachel. Why would this console her? She wants the redemption now, and a promise of an ultimate future return shouldn't pacify her.

 He answers, almost prophetically, that Rachel was not just crying about the exile. She was crying because she was scared that there wouldn't be anyone left to redeem. The children would assimilate. They would forget. They would call Bavel their home. They would think that Spain was their golden age. They would think that Russia was their Father Land. That we would "lin (rest) in Polin. And that the Torah in America (and the shopping!) was the greatest in the history of the Jewish people and the only place where we could educate our children to be good Jews. That is why Rachel was crying. The children will be too far gone to return.

 So Hashem reassures her. Don't worry Mama Rachel. There will be two redemptions. The children will return even before Mashiach. They will return 'from the land of their enemies'. They will be thrown out. The ones that they thought will never turn against them, will become their enemies. They will return from their thoughts that this time it will be different. These are different goyim. It's a new world. Never Again. They will realize that they are in the land of their enemies and they will return. They will build Eretz Yisrael. And then ultimately there will be the full redemption with Mashiach of v'shavu l'gvulam- when we will return to our original borders.

 The Chasam Sofer wrote this in the early 1800's when the Jewish population of Israel was about 10,000. He wrote this at a time of relative peace, when Jews truly felt that Europe was finally at rest and they were settled. A century later after the holocaust, we learned we were in the land of our enemies and the children returned. That 10,000 by 1948 was 600,000. Mama Rachel's tears and promised had accomplished their goal. Those tears are still working today as 70 years later we have over 7 million Jews living here. May that final promise of returning to our borders be fulfilled soon as well.

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

 David's Reaction to Shaul and Yonasan's Death- 877 BC-  We begin this week the Book of Shmuel II (a division incidentally that is of Christian origin-but that we kind of adopted because of the printing press laws). As opposed to Shmuel I which is primarily the story of the establishment of the kingship of Israel from the birth of Shmuel leading up to the Kingship of Dovid, Shmuel Beis is the story of Dovid's Kingdom. Perhaps there is no better verse to bring out the contrast between the two kingdoms than the first verse which opens the sefer.

 And it was after the death of Shaul and Dovid returned from slaying the Amalekites….

 Shaul's glorious kingdom began its downfall when he failed to kill Agag the king of the Amalekites as he was commanded to. From there it was downhill with his paranoia about Dovid usurping him, his listening to the lashon Harah of Doeg (who we shall soon see according to some opinions was an Amalekite descendant), and the destruction and murder of the Kohanim and the city of Nov. Dovid's kingdom begins with his wiping out of the Amalekites, rectifying that sin. There's a new sheriff in town…

 When Dovid returns from that battle he finds a refugee from the battle by Gilboa. The man identifies himself as a Ger Amaleki. He tells Dovid about the Jewish soldiers who fled the battle and were massacred. He tells them about the death of Yonasan and the sons of Shaul bravely on the battlefield. And under serious interrogation he tells Dovid that Shaul after falling upon his own sword (after his weapon-bearer refused to kill him, and who ultimately committed suicide as well), was still alive and had asked this Amalekite convert to kill him and put him out of his pain as he was suffering death throes and seizures. The Ger did so and brought Dovid the crown and armor of Shaul as a gift.

Who was this man? According to different midrashim it was Doeg (or his son) Ha'Edomi. The same person that convinced Shaul that Dovid was hiding in the city of Nov. In his description of his last conversation with Shaul, he told Shaul he was an Amalekite-meaning that it was the sin of Shaul not having killed the Amalekim that he was being punished. This Doeg it seems was now nervous and switiching sides and bringing Dovid Shaul's crown to show that he was accepting him as his King. Perhaps he assumed that this would make him find favor in Dovid's eyes. Other commentaries suggest that this was just an Amalekite slave or convert that as well was trying to curry favor with Dovid. Regardless Dovid was not happy. He ordered the bearer of bad news killed as was his Kingly prerogative because he was outraged that anyone could lift their hand to the anointed one by Hashem.

 Dovid then gives perhaps the most quoted eulogy in the history of the Jewish people if not the world. Oh how the mighty have fallen… Shaul and Yonasan who were beloved and dear in their lifetimes and in their death were not parted, were swifter than eagles and stronger than lions…

 I usually like to read this eulogy as I stand by Mt. Gilboa and hike along the Nachal Kibbutzim river next to it. For there under these bald hills one appreciates the curse that Dovid placed on these mountains.

 Shmuel II (1:21) O mountains of Gilboa, let there be no dew nor rain upon you, nor shall you be fields of heave offerings, for there the shield of the mighty was rejected, Saul's shield was as though not anointed with oil.

 The commentaries explain Dovid's cursing the mountain that they should remain barren in that they he wished that the blood of Shaul and Yonasan should always cry out to Hashem from there and that they should not be something that makes the ground more fertile. It is amazing how 3000 years later we find that curse still on that mountain whereas the rest of the mountains in the vicinity are green with trees and forests. And that's why there is no where better to learn Tanach than here where it all took place. Or at least to learn about it from a tour guide that is here for you…

 RABBI SCHWARTZ’S TERRIBLE ISRAELI JOKES  OF THE WEEK

 There were people having a disagreement over whether it is correct to use the term "Jew", "Israeli", or "Hebrew". In the end they were just arguing semitics.

 What do you call someone who is only part Israeli? An Israel-light.

 I wanted to know the name of the Israeli Prime Minister. I had to use Google as it was not in yahoo…. Oyyyy…

 Donald Trump wanted to repaint the White House, and received three quotes:

Mexican contractor: 3 million

Italian Contractor: 7 million
Israeli Contractor: 10 million
After a while Trump asked the
Mexican - Why did you ask for 3 million.
The Mexican said:-One million in paint, one million in labor and one million profit.
He asked the Italian why he was asking 7 million.
Italian replied:-3 million in high quality painting, 2 million in specialized workforce and 2 million gain.
He asked the Israeli why he was asking 10 million.
The Israeli responded: Don Trump my friend - 4 million for you, 3 million for me,
And with the 3 million leftovers we pay the Mexican to paint!!

 General Dayan asks his newest recruit Dudu, "what will you do if you see 20 soldiers coming to attack you? Dudu says that I would take an Uzi and shoot them."

The general asks him what if a tank is coming to kill you? I would take a rocket launcher and defend myself replied the young soldier.
The general asks him what if you see tanks, terrorists and planes together?
The Chayal says, general, am I the only one in the army?

 Itzik Epstein enrolled in the elite Israeli Paratrooper unit called “Tzanchanim” and while its soldiers are known for their bravado, Itzik was a little nervous.

On his first day of class Itzik asked his instructor, "If our chute doesn't open, and the reserve doesn't open, how long do we have until we hit the ground?"

The training officer looked at Itzik without hesitating and answered, "The rest of your life"

 

General Marshall is in charge of the American Army, and he is visiting his colleague General Goldstein, who is in charge of the Israeli Army. Marshall arrives at the military camp and is greeted by Goldstein. They both walk around the place, and Marshall asks: "So how are your men?"
"Very well trained, General."
"I hope so. You see, my men over at the United States Army are so well trained, you see, they're the bravest men in the world."
"Well, I'm not so sure about that General," replies Goldstein. "My men are very brave, too."
"I'd like to see that," says Marshall.
So Goldstein calls private Barak and says: "Private Barak! I want you to stop that tank simply by standing in front of it!"
"Are you crazy?" says Private Barak. "It would kill me! Are you some kind of fool?"
Goldstein turns to a Marshall and says, "You see? You have to be pretty brave to talk like that to a general."

 An Israeli tourist on a visit to New York City hires a cab to drive him around the sights.

He engages the driver in small talk to get better acquainted.
"Where are you from?" he asks.
"I'm from Palestine" says the cab driver proudly, "and you?"
"I'm from Narnia."
"What are you talking about! That place doesn't exist" says the cab driver.
"Well, you started it" says the Israeli.

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Answer is C –  Easy shmeezy one for me. Tel Dan is one of my favorite sites in Israel, and of course it's the perfect place to talk about how the tribe of Dan wasn't successful in conquering their biblical portion (which today is the Gush Dan area the most populated part of Israel!) and how they moved up to the border of the Golan and Upper Galile by the Dan River. So another one right and the score now stands at 5 for Rabbi Schwartz and 1 for the Ministry of Tourism on this exam.