from the
Holy Land
from
Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz
"Your friend in Karmiel"
February 20th 2026 -Volume 16 Issue 18 3rd of Adar 5786
All Aboard
We're on a fast train ride. I don't know, could be by the time I finish and send this E-Mail World War III will have already started. US aircraft carriers, fighter jets, submarines are all lining up in a row. There hasn't been a buildup like this since the Iraq war in 2003, when to a large degree Iran really started developing the power it has today, as it took over the void left by Sadaam who balanced them out. Things are tense here. The only thing certain is that no one knows what Trump can do or when, although most of us have a good feeling as we get closer and closer to Purim, the fun will start. Amalek is getting ready to get destroyed. There's Mashiach energy in the air and the train is moving fast.
Now that train is called the Nissan/ Geula/ Bais Ha'Mikdash express. We're going to pass through Parshas Teruma this week, which is our fundraiser for the Bais Hamikdash. It also coincides with the annual fundraiser to my shul which you can donate below towards… I'm just saying. Next is Tetzave, the priestly clothing. We'll stop off and do some mechiyas Amalek along the way with Zachor. Make a short stop in Persia/ Iran and kill the Ayatoilet and his buddies with the help of AchashveiTrump. Then we'll hit Ki Tisa, for those that forgot to donate to our annual campaign and still have some money left after Purim. Finally we end it all off with Vayakhel Pikudie the Bais Hamikdash is built. Boom. We're here. You're here. America is over. It's time to party. Choo Choo, the train is leaving. All aboard.
There's a great and famous song from my childhood by the one and only Abie Rottenberg, that those of you that are my age are probably humming right now about a train. I'll put the link down below in my E-Mail by the music section. It will be right there after the paragraph where you can donate on my annual appeal for my shul. Wait, did I mention that already 😊? The song is that life is really a parable of a train ride. You don't know where you're going, who you'll meet, what section you're in. You can sit back and enjoy the view, or you can be busy on your phone and miss the entire thing. I thought about that song a lot a few weeks ago while Aliza and I took the train through Switzerland to the Alps. While she was on her phone… I was too, but that was just so that I could status it for you guys that are smart enough to check it out daily and live vicariously through our adventures.
It was truly magnificent, yet that song and that parable kept ringing through my head with the chorus "You're riding riding, riding, on a train… " I thought about the war we've been through and the journey of our country and nation. Our train ride started in Egypt a few weeks ago in Shemot and at Sinai in Yisro where we picked up our tickets. And here we are ready to build that final Bais Ha'Mikdash, finally a nation redeemed. It's been a bumpy ride. We've had glorious views. We've been in dark tunnels. Lots of people got off along the way. They didn't make it to the final destination. We've had lots of reading material and even wrote quite a few books. There were a small few that would go to the back to daven. There were soldiers coming home or heading out to war. There were rich and poor, business men and shoe makers. There were those on their computers. Some with headphones others just sleeping. And then there were lots of kids laughing and crying and kvetching. When will we get there? Are we almost there yet? One thing they all have in common though, is that everyone aboard knew we were heading somewhere special. That we weren't driving. That the conductor knew where he was going. That we were only there for the ride.
It's not just on a national level either. Each one of us, our lives, are one big train ride. That neshoma comes down into our train and heads off for its final destination. It has a few stops that we switch along the way. We start off with a free childhood ticket. Well for girls, its free, boys have to have their tickets clipped… ouch! When we're Bar and Bat Mitzva we get tickets to get our own seat, although our parents are usually paying for them, and they don't really usually nudge you or punish you until you're about 20 or so if you slip up here or there. At least min ha'shamayim. When we get married though, that’s when we really have to pay the full fare. Although there are some lucky guys and gals that still have parents covering them, while they're being moser nefesh for Torah, to sit in the Kollel section. But for most of us that's the main journey. The journey of building a home, a family, a house and a life. It's the reason why we get on the train. It's why we left Mitzrayim. It's what we were put here to do. To get to that final destination, to Yerushalyim, where we can sit down together with the Conductor who brought us there to His House and dwell together with us.
I saw an amazing vort from the Radomsker Rebbe this week, that describes the options the Torah gives us for that ticket to that final destination and our journey. I went to town with it because it's really an amazing idea. Let me know what you think… by donating of course on the link below 😊. He notes that the Mishna tells us that a man can get married through three ways. Kesef- money, shtar- a marriage contract, or biyah- through having relations for the purpose of marriage. Anyone of those three ways work, yet the Talmud tells us, (actually for those that are learning Oryasa, we saw this in this week's blatt in Yevamos), that most Jews, then and today, get married through money. Or today we use a ring that is has monetary value which works the same way. These three options, he writes are not just about marriage between husband and wife, they're on a deeper level, our relationship with Hakadosh Baruch Hu. They're how he wed us and we Him.
The beginning of our journey from Egypt began with money. Hashem got us with all of the wealth that we picked up as we left from Egypt and the "banks" of the Yam Suf. Now you know why they call them banks. And why Jews are good bankers. That journey brought us on the train ride through the midbar where we then took that money, in this week's parsha and lovingly donated it back to Hashem to build the house for Him. As well, it is the parsha of Shekalim the first of the four parshiyos and ways of getting to the final geula. It's with money. It's investing financially and making that commitment out of our own pocket into that special house and relationship we are looking to build. It's clicking on the link below. It's the way the Talmud tells us most Jews connect and get married. Then and now. We write checks. We pay the piper. We have tzedaka and chesed organizations. It's natural and easy. Yet, at the same time, it's really the least personal. It's paying a bill and cracking open your wallet. But it's not your soul or necessarily even your heart.
The second Temple and the return of the Jews to Eretz Yisrael happened with the declaration of Cyrus. It happened with a shtar- a contract that we could return. If you want to learn more about that, then you could check out our Era's and places in Israel column below that has been building up to that precise point in our history. If you have trouble finding that column it's right before the jokes that you usually skip to and after the link that you probably want to stop at and donate to as well… Now a shtar a contract is much more than handing over a donation. It's a commitment. It's writing something from within yourself and putting those thoughts into words on to paper. It touches the mind and even the heart and makes it real. It's a lot deeper then reaching for your wallet, swiping with a card, or clicking on your phone. In fact, I know a gvir once that told me, that on Purim and in general he prefers writing checks then just handing out money specifically for that reason. He wants to sign his name on that donation. He wants to put himself on that paper and be part of the project or cause he is donating to.
That process of getting married through shtar, corresponds to the second of the four parshiyot; Zachor, remembering and reading from a sefer, the mitzva to wipe out Amalek. The story of Purim, which was the ride to the train station for the trip back to build the second Temple, is all about sefarim being written. Achashveirosh and Haman's sefarim, getting knocked out by the sefarim of Mordechai and Esther. And ultimately this return is led by none other than… Ezra the Sofer- the scribe. The shtar writer. It begins with all of Israel signing on a proper marriage contract and getting rid of all of their fake goyish marriages. It's kinyan shtar. It's that commitment to destroy Amalek and getting rid of all false treaties we may have signed on that with goyish wives from Oslo and commit to the Torah Shtar we were given that promises us the entire land as a home for Hashem.
As well, it corresponds to the next level and Jewish relationship, ticket to Hashem and marriage of the Torah yid. The one that doesn't just donate and contribute, but the one that actually sits down and reads and writes and studies and learns the shtar. This process isn't done by everyone. There are some and perhaps even the majority of Klal Yisrael which are happy being kinyan kesef- donation Jews. Most of them didn't come back for the second Temple. Their money and nursing homes were in Bavel. In Iran. In New Jersey. They missed out on the neis Chanuka. The Torah Jews and anshei kneses ha'gedola did return. It's through them that the period of the second Temple happened.
Finally, after Purim and the destruction of Amalek, Persia, Iran, we come to the third parsha; Parah. This is the final redemption. We read it on parshat Ki Tisa when Moshe sprinkles the holy waters of the ashes of the sin of that burnt smashed Golden calf on the Jewish people. It is Kedushei Bi'yah- it is when we become the most intimate with Hashem. It's when all of the idols and previous more external methods of connecting aren't around anymore. There's no kiddushei kesef, there's no shtar, no Torah that protects. It's not like there's no money or even Torah. But it's not li'shmah. It's not li'sheim kiddushin for the sake of marriage to Hashem. For the sake of building His house. Our house. It's money that's given for ulterior motives. It's Torah that's learned because that's the system. It's what we do. And kiddushin she'lo li'shma doesn't work. Doesn't last. Doesn’t build a Temple la'netzach.
Do you know what Jews that corresponds to today? It's the "Hashem" Jews. It's the one that may not have money, may not donate, may not have Torah or lomdus or shas. Maybe they just have the tikkun klali they recite, the kumzitzes where they sing and pour out their hearts to Hashem, the forest they go to at night and have hisbodidus- meditation, or perhaps even just got to a dance festival and sing and dance to Hashem. The ones that want their souls, not just their minds, their books, not just their wallets, their dress and their beketches to be connected and married. They want heart and soul. They want Lavo B'heichalo- they want bi'yah, that personal intimate relationship, that those holy hostages of ours that were held in the tunnels of Gaza expressed they felt.
That's the First Class car on the train. That's the last leg of the journey. That's the method of Kiddushin that perhaps in earlier generations our Rabbis frowned upon. But yet in the final geula, it's the choo choo that will get us there.
It's fascinating to look at the return in the last century of our galus that we're experiencing in regards to the Jewish people's connection to Eretz Yisrael. It started off with Kiddushei Kesef. People didn't come, but they donated. Take my money and leave me alone. Leave me here in Europe in the alteh heim, before Hashem wiped out those that didn't come. Leave me alone in America and I promise I'll visit and spend money there. I'll send duffle bags full of drones and helmets if you guys have a war. I'll plan trees for your Bar Mitzva. I'll even send money and support Kollel's there. They were wed to the land through money. Shekalim.
In recent years especially with the rise of anti-semitism and with lots of money and not much to do with it, more a more have been buying places here "paper". Some can only afford to buy a grave here on HarMenuchos or in Eretz Ha'Chayim. Others actually have an apartment. A place in Shneller, Jerusalem Estates and maybe even a "retirement" house or a place to escape to for the holidays or in case they throw us out of the country we're living in, that we can eventually move to. It's Kiddushei Shtar. They're making a stronger commitment. They're paying property taxes. They're saying that Israel is my home. It's my destination. But they haven't had bi'yah yet. They haven't yet consummated the relationship. They haven't yet divorced their other false wives. They're not yet ready to come and build that eternal palace. To fight for it. To vote for it. To be part of it. They're happy just being guests and watching the wedding on Zoom. They're not ready to get into that first class car on the train. They're just waiting on the platform for a plane ride on some eagle's wings. They don't like to ride on trains. What they don't realize though is, it's too late. The conductor said "all aboard" and we're there. No Jew will be left behind. We're coming to the final stop.
The last parsha is Chodesh. We'll read it Va'Yakhel and Pikudei. The Parsha of "and He gathered and He redeemed or counted". That's the parsha of the last destination. That's when we will read that this month is the New month of all months. That's when we will bless the month of redemption of Nissan. When the train ride will finally arrive. So come on aboard the train. Take your ticket. No two are the same. We'll soon be going for a ride. There's no where to run, no place to hide. We're riding, riding, riding on a train…
Have a joyous Shabbos,
Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz
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YIDDISH PROVERB OF THE WEEK
" Az men shmirt—fort men.- When you grease the wheels- it moves.
RABBI SCHWARTZ'S COOL VIDEO OF THE WEEK
https://soundcloud.com/ephraim-schwartz/layehudim - Getting into the Purim mode? Put on our dancing Shoes for my amazing La'Yehudim composition arranged and sung by Dovid Lowy!
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/sk0xViBOJSM - Shlomo Carlebach on Amalek and Purim
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_o34yjqBv4 – Mordechai Shapiro's latest hot off the press Ad D'Dlo Yada..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8V7mK9RULyc&list=RD8V7mK9RULyc&start_radio=1 – Motty Weiss HaKol La'Tova… for my Karmielim check it out and see if you can spot any Karmiel Tour guides or "former?" rebbeim on this video…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WtTNHiyxiXE&list=RDWtTNHiyxiXE&start_radio=1 – Joey's latest Ameilim Ba'Torah for the Adirei Torah…
RABBI SCHWARTZ'S TOUR GUIDE EXAM QUESTION OF THE WEEK
answer below at end of Email
21. The process by which water and carbon dioxide dissolve limestone bedrocks is called_______? What kind of rock is dolomite?
A. Marine sedimentary rock
B. Terrestrial sedimentary rock
C. Igneous rock
D. Metamorphic rock
RABBI SCHWARTZ'S ERA’S AND THEIR PLACES AND PEOPLE IN ISRAEL OF THE WEEK
The Service Starts? - 369 BC- So just like our E-Mail above declares, the return to Yerushalayim has begun. Fascinating enough, although as we said most Jews didn't take the opporotunity of that window that Koresh had provided. The great leaders and the prophets Chaggai Zecharia and Malachi did, the final prophets of Israel did. Yet, that window closed very quickly. Chazal tell us in the Talmud in Rosh Hashana that Koresh/ Cyrus needed some work done back in his palace, maybe he was expanding his West Wing 😊 and when he was told that the Jewish laborers had headed off to Israel, then regretted and pulled the plug on the project. He closed the window. He said that those who had crossed he Euphrates already could stay, but the ones that remained can't go. It's a scary message and warning for our times as well. Remember Jewish history repeats itself. "Binu Shnos Dor V'Dor" Hashem tells us. Understand and internalize the lessons of the past. For if you don't you will be doomed to repeat the same mistakes….
The ones that returned though received three laws from those prophets which are actually perhaps even relevant today? The first was the location of where the mizbayach altar was on the destroyed Temple Mount of which there were no remains from the first Temple. The second was that they were given permission to expand the original altar to 60 Amos from its original size which was much smaller. It seems that they had big plans. And the third and most important ruling was that it was permitted to bring offerings already even before the Mikdash was built. We don't need a Bais Ha'Mikdash to bring korbanos. Just an altar we build that's holy in it's proper place.
This halacha led to much practical discussion and debate when the Jews in modern times returned to Eretz Yisrael and there were great Rabbis that discussed bringing the Pesach offering and even other public offerings that are permitted to brought even when we are still tamey. Most notable was Reb Tzvi Hirshc Kalisher in his work Derishas Tziyon and Reb Akiva Yosef Shlesinger, a primary Talmud of the Ksav Sofer from Hungary in his work of Lev Ivri. They were opposed by Reb Yosef Chaim Sonnenfeld of the old Yishuv who felt that it was not kdai to start up with the goyim. Rav Tzvi Pesach Frank as well was for the concept yet, was not sure of exact location of mizbayach with more technical objections than political ones. Ultimately the main consensus was that this is not to be done and thus it stands until today.
Yet, back then the service began right away. That first Yom Kippur offerings were brought without a temple. As well as holiday offerings of Sukkos and after that the twice daily sacrifices of the Korban Tamid. For a whole year all we had was a mizbayach. It's almost incomprehensible to us today to think about real sacrifices without a Bais Ha'Mikdash, yet that's how the second Temple period started. With us doing our part first and then only a year later did the actual construction begin. So it was then… Maybe it's something we need to think about today as well…
RABBI SCHWARTZ’S TERRIBLE TRAIN JOKES OF THE WEEK
My boss said to me, "you're the worst train driver ever. How many have you derailed this year?"
I said, "I'm not sure; it's hard to keep track."
A pessimist sees a dark tunnel
An optimist sees light at the end of the tunnel
A realist sees a freight train
The train driver sees 3 idiots standing on the tracks
A Guy sat next to me on the train. He pulled a out a photo of his wife and said, "She's beautiful, isn't she?"
I said, "If you think she is beautiful, you should see my missus mate.
He said, "Why? Is she a stunner?"
I said, "No, she's an optometrist!"
I was on a train and this woman opposite looked at me and said, "Every time you smile, I feel like inviting you to my place...."
I asked, "Are you single?"
She replied, "No, I am a dentist."
A train conductor ends up killing two people while on the job. He is found guilty and sentenced to the electric chair. When the day comes, he is asked what he would want for his last meal, and he requests a banana. After finishing his meal, he is strapped to the chair and electrocuted. However, by some miracle, he ends up surviving.
Seeing as he technically served his sentence, he is released from prison, where he gets a job as a train conductor. This time, he ends up killing three people while on the job and is sentenced to the electric chair. The day comes, and for his last meal, he asks for two bananas. He finishes them and gets strapped to the chair, but he ends up surviving the electrocution again. He was released from prison for the same reason as before.
He gets another job as a train conductor and ends up killing four people this time. He is sentenced to the electric chair again, and for his last meal, he asks for three bananas. He finishes his meal and gets strapped to the chair. The guards shock him for longer than necessary and use more power, but he ends up surviving again.
The guards, all surprised, ask him, "How do you keep surviving every time? And why do you keep ordering bananas, do they save you?" The man replies, "It has nothing to do with the food, I'm just a really bad conductor."
Did you hear about the crazy guy that only kills on trains? I was told he has a loco motive.
How does a train hear another train coming? With its engin-ears.
A tourist was riding the train across Israel when suddenly everything started rocking violently.
People were being thrown out of their seats and luggage was flying everywhere. Then, as suddenly as it started, everything is back to the calm, smooth ride he was used to. Everyone sorted themselves out and found seats again.
When they reach the next stop, the man went forward to the engine car and asked the conductor what had happened. The conductor replied "We hit an Arab."
The man couldn't believe it. "You mean hitting a person caused that?!"
The conductor looked at him and explained "Well he was in the ditch, but we got him anyways."
What's the difference between a teacher and a train?? The teacher tells you to to spit out the gum, while the other says "chew-chew!".
My mum used to feed my brother and I by saying ‘here comes the train’, and we always used to eat it straight away. Otherwise she wouldn’t untie us from the tracks.
A few months ago, my wife and I were taking a nice walk down an old dirt road during the heat of the summer day. All of a sudden, I stopped and looked around. My wife was a little hesitant as to what I was doing. I slowly moved towards the railroad tracks ahead of us and knelt down, putting my hand on the steel. I looked both ways, sniffed my fingers, and contemplated for a few seconds. I turned and looked at my wife and told her that a train has been through here. She looked confused and asked how I knew. I told her, pointing to the railroad, "Because there are its tracks".
Shaking her head, she let out a sign of disappointment as she turned her back and walked away. I giggled.
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The answer to this week's question is A–Well this week makes up for last week. It was a hard question. Geology isn't my favorite topic. But I managed to swing this one right. I was actually at Mitzpe Ramon this past week and there I spoke about the erosion and they even have a movie that shows the process of carbon dioxide dissolving the rock and form it. As well was at the Stalactite and Stalagmite caves and saw the process there as well that forms those things. Dolomite as well is that sedimentary rock that is formed from the sea. I speak about that by Rosh Hanikra. So this is pretty basic tour guiding geology. So I'm back in the game with a new score of Rabbi Schwartz having a 14.5 points and the MOT having 6.5 points on this latest Ministry of Tourism exam.
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