Insights and Inspiration
from the
Holy Land
from
Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz
"Your friend in Karmiel"
March 28th 2025 -Volume 14 Issue 22 28th of Adar 5785
Back in my previous Tour Guide life before October 7th I very rarely would give my clients an itinerary of what we would do. I always felt that an itinerary was the enemy of a good day. I wanted to meet them first, get a better feel for what’s best for them. I didn’t want to be locked into anything in case, as usually would happen, the schedule changed. We were late, we got stuck in traffic. I didn’t want them to feel they missed out on something. I wanted them to enjoy every part of the day-which kids never do if they know that there’s something exciting at the end of the day. I liked to keep that surprise element about what’s coming next open. So there was no itinerary on a Rabbi Schwartz day. If you came with me on a tour you had to do so on faith. Trust me, or at least your friend that recommended you take me on a tour. And Baruch Hashem, I don’t think I’ve ever disappointed.
Well, guess what? Now the tables have turned on me. Welcome to my new life. I’m a “war guide” now. My clients are no longer tourists or even “war”ists. My clients- as I tell the good people from America, who call me daily for these “Chizuk missions” that I now do-are the people whom we visit, we strengthen, we help, we comfort and whom we donate to. They are the focus of my daily trips. They are the ones that I care about and are there to service. The widows, the orphans, the soldiers, the farmers, the families of hostages, the wounded, the hurting and the bereft. Everyone else with me in the minibus or car are just coming along for the ride. They’re just carrying the luggage. The luggage filled with all of the heart, tears, love and money that we are delivering. My real clients are our brothers and sisters in pain that we will be visiting.
The problem though is that Hashem has a funny way of also not planning itineraries for me. He has His own ideas about where I’m should be going and He doesn’t like to share them with me either. It’s payback time for all the clients I had in the past, that I made go through that trial of faith before starting a tour with me. He’s not telling me, just as I never would tell them. Mida k’neged mida- Tit for tat. But just like a Rabbi Schwartz tour. I’ve learned in this daily process He’s been putting me through, He never disappoints me with a less than spectacular miraculous day.
Every tour, every day, it’s another adventure. You’ve read some of them already in these weekly missives that I somehow try to pass off as a Dvar Torah- so you don’t feel too guilty reading it in shul in the middle of the Rabbis speech or kabbalat Shabbat. But this past Rosh Chodesh Adar Hashem was feeling exceedingly joyous He decided to have some real fun with me as He rachets up His “surprise-here’s-where-you’re-going-next” factor.
I woke up Monday morning with a day that I had “somewhat” planned- which is pretty much all I ever feel I could do. I had a basic outline and schedule which included picking up my clients at 9:30 AM from the Waldorf, heading over to the hospital to visit some soldiers at 10, I was going to visit a hostage family at some point in late morning and take their son to a carnival for evacuated children that I was hoping my clients would be inspired to help sponsor after meeting him. As well in the evening I had made up to bring pizza to soldiers for Rosh Chodesh and sing and dance with them a bit and be home back in Jerusalem about 8 or so. Sounds like an amazing day right? I thought it did and was quite proud of myself for putting all those little pieces together to make it happen. Things had clicked. Hashem had gotten me all the right appointments I needed. The timing seemed great. Little did I know that He was just playing with me. He was having some pre-Purim Rosh Chodesh Adar fun with His Yeled Sha’ashuim- Ephraim Schwartz- His personal little play-toy.
I woke up that morning to go to davening to the sight of an empty parking spot where the mechanic who had taken my car a week ago and had promised me that I would see my car in the morning, as he would leave it there for me. Well, the car wasn’t there. I called him up frantically and listened to his Israeli excuses about why my car wasn’t there. The truth is I really didn’t listen. It was irrelevant. I needed my car. I had tourists to pick up. What was I supposed to do? He did the Israeli “ahh jahst tek ah Ohto-buuuz to mai houzzz in Givat Zev”. I wasn’t taking a bus in the morning in traffic. I didn’t have time for that. And that’s how I knew that my day was already going to be different. Here we go again.
I walked out of the BNB that I stay by to try to get a cab and lo and behold one just pulled up just as I exited. Ok… that’s nice and convenient. The cab driver asked if I had ordered him, I told him I didn’t, to which he responded that he really wasn’t working then. He had just come to have coffee with his mother up the block. I begged him to give me a ride to Givat Zeev to get my car. It was strange that he wasn’t jumping at the fare, but I just wrote it off to typical “I’m -doing-you-a-favor-by-taking-you” Israeli version of customer service and gratefully got into his cab.
I was wrong though. Because as we started to schmooze, he told me that he really doesn’t work that much anymore at all. He pretty much stays at home most of the time. You see his son was murdered at the festival. Not only was his 24-year-old son Amit killed, but his son’s fiancé Nurell and her sister Roya were killed there together with him. I slowly started to understand why my car wasn’t where it was supposed to be parked this morning. Hashem had other plans for me today.
While we drove to Givat Zeev where he lived, his wife Orly who pretty much hasn’t left the house in 5 months called. She didn’t sound in good shape at all. He told me she hasn’t slept more than an hour or two straight a night in the past few months As well his 22-year-old son Omer called in. He had a dream last night that his brother came to him and he told him that everything would be b’seder. I didn’t know that I was the b’seder Hashem had sent. But now I did. I told Yossi, that I would be over later that night with my group of chizuk givers and thus my crazy day on Hashem’s plan commenced.
After that I jumped in my car and quickly davened at Belz down the block I rushed backed to the Waldorf. I had to pick up my people to go to my appointment in the hospital with the soldiers. At least I thought I did. It seems I was wrong though. See, because about 15 minutes away my hospital contact called me to tell me that they were running late. I would need to push off my visit for an hour. Hashem was generous and gave me 15 minutes to pull this off, and so I quickly called my friends in Chabad of Katamon where they make about 3000 sandwiches a day for children of refugees and reservist wives who have enough on their plate- excuse the pun and asked if they needed a hand or two for about an hour to help, which of “course” – another pun there, they did. Good. Baruch Hashem! Making sandwiches this morning just became part of our itinerary, I told my tourists as they got in…
As we were wrapping up the sandwiches- these terrible puns keep coming- quite literally. They called again from the hospital to tell me that I had another hour to fill as the soldiers we were meant to meet were not yet out of therapy. Hashem is really playing with me here… I quickly made a phone call and whadaya know? My good friend at Eretz Chemda was relieved to hear my voice, as he just got 20,000 pairs of tzitzis just dropped off by the army for soldiers that needed whatever hands and time I could spare to help make. So now we’ve got tzitzis making on Hashem’s itinerary. OK… I’m flowing with this…
Finally, we finish the tzitzis and are making our way to the hospital. The visits with the soldiers was incredible . The soldier’s stories were one after another mind-blowing. What they’ve done. Their passion. Their faith. Their sacrifice. What they’ve lost and how much they want to keep doing and seeing this through until the end. By the third soldier however I realized that my plans were going to have to change again.
See one of the couples that was supposed to come with me and help sponsor the carnival I had planned to join had to cancel and didn’t come along that morning. The one woman, Ilana, who did come was my only potential sponsor left and I really wanted to take her to this hostage family. They really needed to meet her, and she really needed to meet them. They needed her special neshoma and chizuk that she could give. But she had told me in the morning that she needed to be back at her hotel at 2:00 PM, as she hadn’t really spent time with the grandchildren she had come to visit. Well now, because of all of the delays it was not going to happen. It was already 1:15 and I wasn’t going to be able to make it to their house and have a meaningful visit and get here back on time.
All of this is racing through my brain as we’re meeting our last soldier and he’s telling us about how he was injured when the building he was “clearing” in Khan Yunis had been blown up by an RPG. As he’s talking and I’m already giving up hope and planning in my mind to just take her back to the hotel and go with the other family to visit the hostage family and figure out how to pay for this carnival, the soldier says something that catches my ears. He tells us how not only was he wounded in Gaza, but in fact he was at the Nova festival as well on October 7th and he was rescued heroically under fire, by a security guard that was incredible and was good friends with his other friends there.
Would you believe it? The guard that helped his friends and him was none other than Rom Breslavsky the hostage in Gaza whose mother we were on the way to meet, She really didn’t have too much information about her son from and since that morning when he was taken. She didn’t know what a gibor he is. I videoed his story for his mother and Ilana with tears in her eyes turned to me and told me that she is obviously going to come with me to the hostage family so she could be there to give it to her personally. Hashem had His plan and tour and she was on board!
So we headed out to their house blown away that out of all of the soldiers in the world, Hashem found the one that he wanted us to meet to bring this video to his mother. He even rearranged our schedule a bit so that we would have the perfect timing to meet him. When we arrived, it was perfect timing as well. Sivan, Rom’s aunt had just gotten there with the younger brother Ziv. And yet much to my surprise Ziv decided that he wasn’t interested in my carnival, and he ran off to the mall with some friends. Oh well, no carnival now…
The truth is I didn’t really have a sponsor anyways at this time, but now once again I had to make new plans. While Ilana and the other family were talking to Rom’s mother who was really emotional about the video and their meeting, I was on the phone trying to figure out where I was going next. Baruch Hashem my farmer Shachar said that he would be able to meet with me as he had lots of lettuce and greens that he needed help harvesting. So I thought at least I was good to fill up my former carnival slot until our soldier pizza delivery. Perfect! Thank You Hashem! But I was wrong. Hashem still had fun in His bag to play with me. This was just another part of His game.
We left the Breslavsky family after our emotional visit. Ilana and the family exchanged numbers and promised to be in touch-which is really the most important part of our visits. These families need constant chizuk and the meetings we have are really for my good people from America to adopt the people that we meet and to be their lifelines. About 20 minutes from Beit Shemesh though on the way to the farm, Shachar my farmer called me to tell me that he had to apologize but he got called out and wasn’t going to be able to meet with us. I turned my eyes to heaven at that point and just smiled. Hashem is really in an Adar mood. v’nahapoch hu meant that he was going to turn around my whole day.
Desperate once again for something to do I made a quick call to my friend from the Beef Jerky boys in Beit Shemesh and asked if we could come on over and help him out prepare and package some good cow for our chayalim, so they have some basar in the belly when they wipe out Amalek. It’s hard to really get into the spirit with tuna fish from their army rations. He was a little hesitant as he had another group there at the present, but once they left, we would be fine. So we could come over and hope for the best. I was beyond hope. I had faith. Hashem was driving our day and He’s usually on target and doesn’t waste any of my time. And I was right.
Just as we pulled up, the other group packed out (actually I had the wrong address and by the time we got to the right address the other group was literally just walking out!).We had a blast slicing and preparing the beef Jerky knowing the soldiers would be getting the necessary protein they needed that evening thanks to us and then we popped out to daven Mincha with the boys. When we came back though Chani, the mom on our group told us that she now understood why we had to come to the Beef Jerky instead of the farming. For she had been given a new job while we were davening which was to put stickers on each bag that they had just printed up. The stickers had the names of hostages that one could daven for and have in mind when they made their blessings. The stickers that we were putting on today? None other than Rom ben Tamar’s! Hashem had sent us there so I can send Tamar a video of them so that she would know that even though Ephraim Schwartz and his friends may have left their house. But Hashem had not forgotten about them or Rom. He was still with them. She still could have faith and chizuk.
From there it was off to pick up the pizza for soldiers and bring them some Adar cheer. It was fun, amazing as it always is. You can’t imagine what a few slices of pizza and the knowledge that appreciative Americans flew across the ocean to bring them can do to build our army’s morale. Finally our incredible day on Hashem’s itinerary concluded going over to Yossi my taxi driver from the mornings house where we hugged, cried, comforted and sang with him, Orly and their son Omer over the loss of Amit.
Yossi told me as I was leaving that after that cab ride in the morning (which felt like a year ago) he spoke to Amit’s fiancée’s grieving father, Menashe, who had lost his two daughters and they both decided that this was a sign from heaven that they needed to do something more for the neshomos of their children. They had already put out a Tehillim, birkat Ha’Mazaon and even a Tikun klali, yet today they decided they were going to do the ultimate memorial. They were going to try to raise money for a Sefer Torah for their massacred children. We were the first to contribute to this new campaign, that Hashem had decided was an important part of His plan. And thus our day came to an end. The story and book is over. Welcome to my life.
On that note this week’s parsha is also the conclusion of a Book; the book of galus and geula- exile and redemption, as the Ramban calls it, the book of Shemot. Our book started off with us going down to Egypt. With names. Each Jew, each family. We are each special. We are stars that Hashem counts. The book concludes however with the final verse that tells us that Hashem is with us in all of our travels. He is there l’einei kol beis Yisrael b’kol ma’aseihem- the cloud and the fire of Hashem is there day and night wherever we go. It’s a strange verse and ending. Parshat Ma’asei which enumerates our travels doesn’t come until the end of Bamidbar. At this point in time historically we were a few days away from Israel. What travels? Where were we going? Why is this the end of the book of redemption? We’re still in Galus. We haven’t come home yet.
The answer is because the function of redemption, the purpose of the Creation, is when we realize and experience that Hashem is with us in all our travels. Hashem doesn’t need a home down here. It’s quite nice up in heaven. He created this world so that He could be with us. So that He could live with us. So that He could hold our hands on every trip, on every journey, in the darkness of night and in fire and in the morning in the light. The Mishkan isn’t and never was about a building campaign. It was about the shechina residing in each and everyone of us… always.
Each and everyone of us, find out in this week’s final ‘closing credits parsha’, has every screw, every bolt, every pillar, every gold, silver and copper accounted for. There’s nothing left over. Each person’s donation is there. That’s what this week’s boring parsha is about. Nobody stays for the ending credits of a movie. Well, almost nobody stays. The mother whose child is the screenwriter, the 10-year-old boy whose father was the extra in that street scene. They’re waiting to see their names in lights. We each play in an important essential part of the parsha, in the Mishkan. We each have a contribution that is mentioned and accounted for.
The parsha tells us Hashem is walking with us every day. He’s journeying with each of us all the time. He’s got your sandwich for gan in the morning with Rabbi Schwartzes crew from America to make it, even though you might think Hashem abandoned you when He threw you out of your home or your father is fighting in Gaza. He has your tzitzis taken care of and made this morning even though you may have never worn a pair before, despite the fact that they don’t sell any in Khan Yunis where you’re serving.
He’s going to visit you in the hospital and the shechina is resting on top of your bed. He’ll even let you send a message to the family of the security guard who saved you and give them strength. It’s not a big deal for the Creator of the World. He’s right there with you. He’s actually Planned the entire day around you. That is redemption. That’s the book that we concluded. We are the credits that are scrolling down the screen. We are the names and Shemot that went down to exile and we are each the precious stones on the breastplate of the Kohen and the bolts and brackets of the home of Hashem. The movie is almost over. The last names are gone, the final sacrifices Hashem took from us that are sitting next to His holy throne of glory are waiting to accompany that shechina down here to its final eternal resting place. Chazak Chazak Vi’nitchazek!
Have a smashing Shabbos and a happy Rosh Chodesh Nissan.
Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz
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YIDDISH PROVERB OF THE WEEK
" A mayse uhn a moshl iz vi a moltsayt un a tsimes.”- A story without a moral is like a meal without a sweet dish.
RABBI SCHWARTZ'S TOUR GUIDE EXAM QUESTION OF THE WEEK
answer below at end of Email
13. The name of the border crossing through which Palestinian Authority citizens cross into Jordan
is ______
Which of the following most accurately describes the regime under which the residents of the Gaza
Strip lived between 1950 and 1967?
A. Egyptian military rule and Palestinian civilian rule
B. Full Palestinian autonomous rule
C. Government by virtue of a mandate of the United Nations (UNRWA) under Egyptian
supervision
D. Full Egyptian military rule
RABBI SCHWARTZ’S COOL VIDEO OF THE WEEK
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4H8Newq1BMc – Yaakov Shwekey’s latest moving song in memory of all of the fallen “Kaddish”. The video has the faces of the fallen as he wears a Talis with their names on it… may Hashem’s name become great as He avenges the blood of our fallen brothers and sisters.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SrVGFm2feMg - one of my most favorite old classic Shabbos songs that not enough people know. Levi Falkowitz sings V’hareinu… What a song…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLlt17euqqw - Must watch video of the most mind-blowing responsa of Reb Chayim Kanievsky on living in Eretz Yisrael…. Only watch if you’re brave enough to listen to Daas Torah..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gja1y9y2G84 – Mi she’beirach for hostages by 613 Acapella
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-kINIg_tFI – Yehuda Green Birkat Ha’Chodesh in honor of the new month!
RABBI SCHWARTZ'S ERA’S AND THEIR PLACES AND PEOPLE IN ISRAEL OF THE WEEK
Yehoyachin, The Exile of the Gatekeepers and Craftsman- 598 BC – With the death of Yehoyakim, his son Yehoyachin becomes King. Like his father, Yehoyachin as well is not a great fellow and continues the “contzeptzia” that Hashem would never destroy Israel and His home and thus we can do whatever we want to do. Yet, Nevuchadnezzar, like most of our enemies, know that when we’re not doing what we should be doing they have free reign to do what they want. Thus, three months into Yehoyachin’s kingship, Nevuchadnezzar comes back to Jerusalem and takes him into exile as well. But before doing that he cleans out the Temple of its vessels. Yehoyachin sees this happening and he chucks the keys up to heaven. Hashem’s got them now. He’s holding on to them until our day when He can give them back.
With the exile of Yehoyachin, begins the exile of the entire nation. The navi tells us that ten thousand people were exiled with him to Bavel. It was the craftsman and the gatekeepers exiles, which our sages tell us were all of the sages and Torah scholars. Together with this exile went the prophet Yechezkel, whom we will talk about, as well as Mordechai of the Purim story. This galus to a large degree as well even in its curse prepares the foundation of Klal Yisrael in Bavel. For just as our first exile Yaakov sent down Yehudah to prepare a place of Torah in Egypt for when the rest of the Jews get there, here as well Hashem sent down these great men to build the foundation for what will become the great yeshivos of Bavel that will last throughout the entire 2nd Temple and of course even after that period.
The prophet Yirmiyahu however tells the exilees another message for what their job in galus is. He tells them that they should plan on staying in exile. They shouldn’t think that they will be returning right away. They need to understand that they Temple is decreed to be destroyed and they have to daven and pray and repent and beseech Hashem for Eretz Yisrael from there. They’re not being sent to galus for a vacation. They’re being sent there to remember and yearn for their home. To know that they are being punished. Perhaps if they would do that then they would be merit that Hashem would gather them in and bring them home. He would spare Yerushalayim. Yet, unfortunately they don’t do what they need to do. They forget and become disconnected from their brethren. And thus things begin to spiral down. With Yehoyachin gone and it’s scholars and light out of Yerushalayim, we arrive at the last king of Israel. Tzidkiyahu. The end is finally here.
RABBI SCHWARTZ'S TERRIBLE BEEF JERKY JOKES OF THE WEEK
Sometime in the 1970s, on an absolutely freezing day, a shipment of meat arrives in a town in the Soviet Union. The townspeople, bundled to their eyeballs, line up outside the town store to wait to be given their rations. After about an hour, a man comes out of the store and announces,
"Comrades, I'm sorry to tell you, but there isn't enough meat for everyone, so the Jews have to leave." The Jews in the line leave grumbling.
About an hour later, the man comes out of the store and announces, "Comrades, I'm sorry to tell you this, but there isn't enough meat for everyone, so anyone who is not a member of the Communist party will have to leave." More grumbling as the non-Party members depart.
Another hour goes by and the man comes out of the store again and announces, "Comrades, I'm sorry to tell you this, but there isn't enough meat for everyone in the line, so anyone who wasn't a member of the Party before 1956 has to leave." More grumbling as all the younger Party members leave. A few old people remain in the line.
Another hour goes by. It's now getting dark and it's cold. The same man comes out of the store and announces, "Comrades, I'm sorry to tell you this, but there isn't any meat. Go home."
One old lady in the line turns to her neighbor and says, "See? It's like I told you. The Jews always get the best treatment ..."
A woman's poem
He didn't like my salt beef
And he didn't like my cake.
My kichel were too hard...
Not like his mother used to make.
I didn't make the borsht right
He left the cholent stew.
I didn't wash his gatkes…
The way his mother used to do.
I pondered for an answer
I was looking for a clue.
Then I turned around and gave him a potch...
Like his mother used to do.
Do not use "beef_stew" as a password! It's not stroganoff.
I said to the woman at the deli, “I’d like to buy a corned beef and pastrami, with pickles.”
She replied, “Sorry... We only take cash or card.”
Difference between roast beef and pea soup? Anyone can roast beef
I saw Han Solo crying while eating his beef. Later I asked why. He said it was chewy.
I’ve started investing in stocks; beef, chicken and vegetable. One day I hope to be a bouillonaire.
Christians, Muslims, and Jews are always fighting, but Hindus never have any beef......
When vegans get into an argument is it still called beef?
I have no idea. But if it gets physical, all vegans know the art of foot karate. They call it tofu.
I went to the store for some beef broth. But they were all out of stock
If a mass of beef fat is 'tallow', and mass of pig fat is 'lard', what is a mass of human fat called?
'American'.
When vegans have an argument, is it still beef? No. It’s leaf.
Yankel goes into a fancy Israeli restaurant and orders the main dish special of the day. After a few bites he calls his waiter over and says
“Waiter! Is this a Prime Rib or Filet Mignon?
“ Can't you tell by the taste of it?” Dudu asks him back
“No!”
“Then why do you care?”
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The answer to this week”s question is D- This one was pretty easy. Palestinians cross into Jordan through the Allenby Crossing also known as the King Hussein Bridge. It’s called that because he refused to recognize an official crossing from Israel’s “occupied territory” to Jordan his sovereign nation. Thus it’s an unofficial crossing for Palestinians only. Part II is an important question and timely yediah to have… Gaza was under Egyptian Milliatry rule until 1967. There was no Palestine. There was no such thing as a Palestinian people. They were Egyptians- that Egypt pretty much never had an interest in having. Did the world complain about the poor Gazan’s back then under Egyptian Rule and “occupation”? You gueesed right! So anyways this is important information that the world is not interested in acknowledging. But I got it right and thus the new score is Rabbi Schwartz 8.5 Ministry of Tourism 4.5 on this exam so far. Oy….
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