Insights and Inspiration
from the
Holy Land
from
Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz
"Your friend in Karmiel"
August 9th 2012 -Volume 2, Issue 39 –29th of Av
5772
Parshat Re’eh
The Man who Changed the World
I never try to start my
E-Mail with a Dvar Torah. You have to capture your reader’s attention
with a story, a personal anecdote or best yet a joke. I know that, because that’s
how I get drawn in. There are a lot of people that try the other Dvar Torah
first approach. I delete them. Maybe you do too. We need a teaser in life;
something to suck us in and entice to read that Torah or do that mitzvah. A
free lunch, good AC, maybe a bagel and donut breakfast class will always be
better attended than the dry hardcore Torah class. The chulent Kiddush shul and
minyan will generally get better membership and attendance. We’re human. Hashem
gave us a natural desire for some personal pleasure to accompany our natural desire
to fulfill His will and to grow spiritually. It’s healthy. It’s fun and it
works so go with the flow.
This week though I’ll start with a little Torah idea
that flows throughout this Parsha. (unless of course you count the above as the
grabber intro- see I got you J-didn’t
have the guts to start too dry). The portion begins with Moshe presenting to
the Jewish people “See I have given you today the blessing and the curse.” The blessing
is to heed the mitzvos that Hashem has commanded and the curse is not listening
and leaving the path Hashem has commanded. Simple instructions. The portion
continues and delineates that the function of the Jewish people is to live in Israel
and create a society where Hashem permeates every area of our existence. The commandments
to destroy alternate forms of worship to foreign false gods and to destroy all
the corrupting influences that take us away from our mission, the obligation to
tithe to the temple, to the spiritual leaders from the tribe of levi, the laws of
kosher, the sabbatical year, the obligation to give charity and assist the
needy in the forms of loans, helping ones slave become independent and finally
the laws of the pilgrimage holidays Pessach Shavuot and Sukkot. The unifying
idea behind all of these diverse commandments is to recognize that in every
area of life be it the way we live, the food we eat the money we earn and the
seasons of the year that we traverse- Hashem’s name and our mission must be
taken into account and be furthered. We weren’t meant to lead ordinary lives.
We weren’t meant to live in ordinary countries. Our meals aren’t just meals,
and the money that we earn is not for us to hoard and put away in some 401k.
All that we have and are given is bring the blessing of Hashem to this world.
This past week Jewry lost one of its greatest
leaders that exemplified this concept and lifestyle. Mr. Ze’ev Wolfson was on
one hand the simplest of men. When one saw him you couldn’t imagine that you
were standing in front of one of the wealthiest people in the world. He would
invite you in personally offer you a drink and share with you his inspiration
and aspirations to making a more godly world. On the other hand he was one of
the greatest men. He was tireless and demanding in his drive to accomplish his
mission and the jewish peoples mission. It is certain that the 10’s of millions
of dollars that he gave annually and hundreds of millions over his lifetime to
jewish causes particularly as he took the lead in spearheading the battle
against assimilation, Jewish apathy, and the spiritual holocaust that has
distanced so much of our family from our Father in heaven and the blessing of
the lifestyle gifted to us transformed the world that we live in. There is no
outreach organization, or community Kollel that did not benefit and in many
cases survive and flourish because of his support. Yet, unlike many
philanthropists that see their contributions as ways of building their own name
or in some way just getting people of of their case by making token “alimony
checks” to Judaism, Zev was a partner in all of the work we were doing. Regular
reports that were thoroughly read as detailed as any business plans were
submitted so he could be appraised of the furthering of Hashems mission. “How
many people started keeping Shabbos? Kosher? Went off to Yeshiva to learn and
grow as Jews, were regular questions we had to answer. We weren’t just building
organizations of outreach. We were part of a larger project to bring all of
Hashems children back to Him. Zev set the tone for outreach in the world. He
could have sat back, retired and basked in his wealth but till his last days he
was in his office greeting, planning and inspiring a world in the mission of
our people.
I share with you some thoughts from my colleague
Rabbi Tzvi Holland of the Phoenix Kollel upon hearing of the loss of our
teacher.
“One of the measures we use in Kollelim to determine who
and what a prospective Kollel Rabbi is about is asking him who his Rebbi
is. Most have a few. A number of years ago while interviewing a particularly
feisty young man, I was asked "Rabbi Holland, Who is your Rebbi?" As
I answered I realized that my answer was not complete. Who taught me how to ask
a direct real.practical question? Who influenced my methods of determining what
I accomplish? After a while I realized that in addition to the Roshei
Yeshiva, Rabbonim, and Rabbeim I merited to be close with, there was another
powerful influence that I never really considered.
That most unique philanthropist of the Yeshiva world, the
tireless, fearless legendary Mr. Zev Wolfson ZT"L.
Mr. Wolfson taught me what it means to care. When you care
you never lose focus of your goal. He was only interested in results. Doing for
Klal Yisroel. He could not bear to waste the two most precious
commodities in the world time and money. He never forgot to measure success in
real terms, "how many Rabbis do you have?" " How many shomrei
shabbos?" "How much money did you raise?"
He hated honor and attention with an unmatched
passion. His simple lifestyle was far below his means. I remember how he and
his wife Tlct"a Mrs. Nechama Wolfson, once welcomed my wife and I to their
home, not only with warmth and grace but as equals, colleagues in the commitment
of community service for Klal Yisroel. Imagine a billionaire and his wife, just
off a plane from Eretz Yisroel, after an hour or two, playing host to a
young couple from Phoenix with energy, concern and great interest.
We felt that they were as enthused about our work as we were.
His love and concern for Klal Yisroel knew no bounds. He
was always looking for a new idea. He showed me tremendous concern and interest
even as a wet-behind the ears Rosh Kollel yet to celebrate his 30th
birthday. This from a man who cut his "community responsibility
teeth" with Rav Aaron Kotler ZT"L (the founder of Lakewood Yeshiva
and the builder of Torah Jewery in America!
I will never forget the words he said to me the first
time I met him. "Who are you?" He asked. When I told him he said,
" Rabbi Holland, your name goes before for you from one end of the world
to the other!" He had vision that transcended the limitations most people
believe exist in the world. He had no question of the value of a person
that not only could he say and act with the confidence of “the world was
created on my behalf” for himself, but he saw it in others and he actualized
what he saw by giving hundreds of millions of dollars to Rabbonim.and Askonim
for his beloved Klal Yisroel.
I once participated in a solicitation in his house with a
large group of Roshei Kollel. In a matter of seconds we asked for millions of
dollars ....and got it...Zev then.spent a day and a half, figuring out how the
projects would be successful, not just writing a check and going back to
business.
Zev knew the value of good people. He wasn't interested in
buildings, he was interested in manpower for klal yisroel. He once said to me
"there are not enough boots on the ground", I told him I could
find them, he said then I will pay. It was that simple.
Zev knew what responsibility was and he was a shining
example of what a person could accomplish if they lived a life with that
mission and sense of responsibility.
He took responsibility for outreach, he took responsibility
for protecting the interests of Eretz Yisroel. He took responsibility for the
needy and indigent. He never wanted anything back.
That is truly amazing.”
For the many of us we need that teaser, the candy, the joke
the bagel to get us to do the greatest mitzvos and to be motivated to fulfill
our Divine mandate. For Mr. Zev Wolfson the blessing and the good was in merely
being part of the greatest mission that Hashem has given us.
May his light continue to shine through the world and the
merits of the millions touched by his generosity, inspiration and vision
continue to grow as we continue to fulfill his dream of experiencing the
blessing Hashem has given us. Tehi Zichro Boruch.
Have a
beautiful Shabbos and Rosh Chodesh,
Rabbi
Ephraim Schwartz
RABBI SCHWARTZ COOL PLACES IN ISRAEL OF THE WEEK-
The Great Synagogue- THE REAL SITE OF THE SIYUM HASHAS LAST WEEK-I know I told you last week that heichal Shlomo was the site I hope you dint get lost but he real site was the building that replaced Hechal Shlomo as the Great Synagogue of Jerusalem in 1982. The synagogue which was donated by Sir Isaac Wolfson ( I don’t know of any relationship to Zev mentioned above) of England seats 1400 people and is the center of prayer in Israel for all official services. The beautiful stained glass windows with symbols of Israel the glorious Ark and the incredible acoustics all make the prayer experience truly royal each Rosh Chodesh - like this past Shabbos one can hear the great choir of the synagogue lead an incredible cantorial service truly inspiring and hearkening back to the services of the greatest congregations in the alteh heim!
RABBI SCHWARTZ YOUTUBE CLIP OF THE WEEK
IN HONOR OF THE LAWS OF KOSHER
http://wejew.com/media/2367/Kosher_Dog_of_Comic_Bob_Alper/
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