Insights and Inspiration
from the
Holy Land
from
from
Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz
"Your friend in Karmiel"
September 13th 2019 -Volume 9 Issue 49 13th of
Elul 5779
Parshat Ki Teitzei
Aliya Children
They were two
brothers. Let’s call them Moshe and David. They were both making Aliya. The year
was 1905, this was the period of time known as the 2nd Aliya to
Israel. Both brothers had enough of the antisemitism they suffered from in
Europe. The Kishinev riots, the pogroms, and the general laws passed against
the Jews drove them out. Most of their friends were going to America or
Australia that absorbed over one million Jews during the 10 years of the 2nd
Aliya until World War I. But they both chose to come to Palestine. They came
for reasons that sounded very the same but were exactly the opposite.
Moishie, the more religious of the two, was coming to
Eretz Yisrael, for the same reason his uncle who had come years before had
come. The Shechina was in Galus- the divine Spirit was in exile. He needed to
come to the Holy Land to bring that spirit back there with him. To return his
soul and the shechina with Him to the land that Hashem had promised our
ancestors. It was the only place a Jew was meant to live and to become the Jew
that he could.
Dovid was from a new generation. He had enough with
the old ways. With the ‘exile’ ‘ghetto’ Jewish mind-set and all the archaic
laws that went along with it. Dovid also said he was moving to Palestine
because “the shechina was in galus”, in Exile. The shechina was in Exile
and he wanted to go to Israel to get as far away as possible from it. He was
coming to the land where the shechina had long ago left and was not coming back
to. He was going to go there to create a New Jew. One that wasn’t burdened by
and tethered down by the traditions of the past.
That in a nutshell defined the 2nd Aliya to
Eretz Yisrael. Jews that came from traditional shtetl homes. Jews looking to
create a new life, who were idealists, but both of them needed each other. And
even more significantly they both needed a leader that could speak their
language and bring out and direct those yearnings for Eretz Yisrael, in the way
that would ultimately develop the land. Many of the Moishies that came starved.
They couldn’t find work; they couldn’t support their families. They thought
they would be coming to the land they had learned and studied about that Hashem
would bless and would be flowing with milk and honey. And the land remained
desolate and their cupboards were bare. So they left. Some went back to Europe
and others to America.
Many of the Dovids left as well. The child mortality
rate back then was close to 80%. The anti-Semitism they were fleeing from
seemed to have followed them there, where they were subjected to the whims of
the Ottoman governors and the local Arab populace that robbed and destroyed
those fields that they tirelessly slaved over only to see go up in flames and
being taken from them repeatedly. It’s
estimated that about 70% of the 2nd Aliya didn’t make it to the end
game. They never saw the establishment of the State. They moved off
respectively to what they thought would be greener spiritual or secular
pastures.
The leader that remained, was the Volozhiner student,
about whom the Netziv, it’s Rosh Yeshiva, commented that if the entire yeshiva
was only founded for him it had fulfilled its purpose. The Rav of Yaffo and the
first chief Rabbi of Palestine, Rav Avraham Yitzchak Hakohen Kook, understood
the challenges of this fledgling nation and its returnees. He saw equally the
idealism and what he termed as the gevura/ the courage of both of these
groups to have the holiest of underpinnings. Every Jew has a purpose. Every Jew
has a purpose that is meant to be fulfilled in Eretz Yisrael. The purpose is to
work, to build, to plant, to grow and to make this land flourish. At the same
time the purpose is to imbue all of that labour with the holiness that only a yiddisheh
neshoma that is connected to its Creator can bring forth. That only a Jew
that is ensconced in Torah and mitzvos and is in touch with the spiritual
nature of his soul can reveal to the world.
For the next 30 years of his life until his passing on
the 3rd of Elul 1935, his life revolved around bringing these two
camps together. Perhaps his most famous venture was his month long Masa
Hamoshavot- when he joined together with the head of the Old Yishuv
Chareidi community at the time Rav Yosef Chaim Sonnefeld to travel around the
entire country and visit all the Dovids or Dudus that worked day and night on
the fields of the kibbutzim and moshavot. When they were told by one of
the kibbutzim that they were wasting their time, as they would not be
influenced at all by these Rabbis and their old traditions. Rav Kook responded
that they had not come to influence but rather to be inspired by the incredible
sacrifice these young idealists had to plant and grow the holy land of
Hashem. This wasn’t a line he was giving
them. It was dvarim ha’yotzim min halev- words that pour right out of
the heart, which our sages assure us will always penetrate the hearts of the
listeners.
One of most powerful anecdotes of those journeys were
when they came to Migdal. At the time there was only one mezuza in the
entire yishuv that a young girl had brought with her from Europe. The
kosher situation was non-existent, there wasn’t a synagogue the ‘Dovid’s’ had
left that all behind. When Rav Sonnenfeld mentioned to them about Shabbos and
spoke about the universality of the day of rest, he noted that it was the
responsibility of anyone Jewish establishing a “Jewish State” to mandate its
observance. The head of the yishuv, a Professor Glickin, took offense
immediately he responded that he felt Jewish in every fibre of his being. Yet
he did not feel Shabbat spoke to him or was relevant at this time. Yet at the
same time, he is definitely free-minded in his observance and yet he has no
problem if the Rabbi can convince him to do teshuva and change his ways.
Rav Kook quickly stepped in and told him that no one
was questioning his Jewish identity which certainly is burning strong. It is a
powerful spark. It just needs to be fanned. The professor responded that he
feels he is finding his spark and his place in the resurrection of the
agriculture of Israel. Rav Kook picked up on that cue. He spoke to him all
about the incredible holiness of the land of Israel, its fruits, the incredible
service of Hashem and the Jewish people in making this desolate land flourish
again. The professor, whose entire life was dedicated to buying lands and
restoring them to their Jewish roots, was touched by the Rav’s appreciation of
his contribution.
The Rav then asked him, that there is a Jew that has a
lot of money and who has tremendous passion for Israel and he wants to buy the
Temple Mount from the Turks. Glickin nodded, this is something he could
appreciate and himself longed for. Yet this person, continued the Rav, wants to
plant a huge orchard and garden there on top, perhaps even make it a fantastic
agricultural park. What is the Professors opinion of this plan? Glickin turned
red, and with the fire of zealotry responded that he would personally go and
destroy this orchard. This is our holy place. This is our Temple Mount. This is
not a place for gardens or orchards. I would rip every tree out myself
personally. Rav Kook smiled and turned to him. “Did I not tell you that the
fire of Hashem is burning inside of you...”.
We continue our journey into this incredible month of
Elul with the Torah portion of this week. We have left the Judges, the Kohanim,
the leaders of the nation in last week’s Torah portion and this week we arrive
at the “amcha”. Perhaps one of the most fascinating mitzvos and puzzling
mitzvos is the one that starts off this parsha the law of the yefat to’ar.
The Torah tells us that when a soldier goes out to war and he finds amongst the
enemy a beautiful woman that he desires. He may take her home and ultimately
after a waiting period and a process of her mourning her own home he can marry
her. The Talmud tells us this law is given under the extraordinary
circumstances of a soldier at war.
Kiddushin (21b) “The Torah only spoke against the
Yetzer Hara- the evil inclination, for if Hashem would not make her permissible
he would marry her in a forbidden manner”
It’s a strange law that stands out in the Torah. If
something is inappropriate and undesirable the Torah generally prohibits it. We
don’t make concessions for the yetzer hara. Let’s throw him a bone…is
not our way. In fact, there are those commentaries that note that by the mere
fact that this is the only place the Torah makes such an exception in every
other circumstance we do have the ability to overcome our desires and
inclinations. But still… Why here? What makes this different.
Again Rav Kook gives us an incredible insight. He
notes that the soldier that we are talking about here is not your typical
soldier. For those that remember last week’s Torah portion not only were the soldiers
who had just built a home, got betrothed or planted a vineyard sent home, but
anyone that was fearful of any sin in his hand as well was discharged. According
to Reb Yosi in the Talmud this was even for sins of a minor nature. This
soldier that is fighting in this battle is someone of a holy calibre. Even more
significantly as Rashi notes this battle is a permissible war. It is a war that
was not for the defence of Israel or even the initial conquest of the land
which are obligatory wars. This was one that was mandated by a Sanhedrin of 70
sages (which of course there isn’t today and therefor this entire law is not
relevant today) to expand the borders of Israel. This could be for political
reasons (maybe someone has an election to win…shhhh) or for financial reasons,
or even to strike fear in the hearts of our neighbours not to mess with us. The
soldiers that are fighting are volunteers. They are idealists. They leave their
wives, their established houses, their grown vineyards at home and they are
fighting for the homeland. They are Dovids and they are Moshes.
It is that strength and that holy fire that will bring
out the biggest and strongest challenge. The Jew, fashioned in the image of
Hashem, on one hand has the highest soul that is looking to draw close and
fight the battle of Hashem and create that perfect Holy world. At the same time,
it is in a body that is made from the earth that will need to be raised up from
the lowest of the low. It will need to reveal those holy sparks as buried as
they may. With that gevura, energy and drive to reach higher and to
elevate the world comes the pull deeper and deeper downward. For those are
where the deepest sparks may lay. When we go out to war the Torah tells us we
have to recognize that the yetzer hara will be most powerful. If we just
write it off and pretend it doesn’t exist, we will fail and ultimately “take
her in a forbidden manner”.
So what do we do? We don’t prohibit it. We tell him to
wait until the battle is over. Until our soldier leaves the heat of that
battle. In the interim we tell him how holy his fight is, how special his
battle , the fields he is planting is in fact holy land. Show him that his dvar
reshus- his permissible war is also a mitzva. His daily job at the office
is a Kiddush Hashem- a sanctification of Hashem’s name. The desires and
temptations are natural. They come with the territory of someone that is
involved in the holiest job on the planet. They are part of the fibre of every
Jew who can never sit still in Creation. Who understands that he is put in this
world of reshut- where so many things are permissible and are waiting to be uplifted; to be brought to
their spiritual fulfilment that only we can bring it to. And our job is to
fight that battle not by ignoring and pretending that they don’t exist or that
we are above the downfall. But rather to fan that spark inside of us that will
allow us to elevate those sparks as well and to create a perfect beautiful
physical world that reflects the sanctity of our Creator.
One doesn’t have to live in Eretz Yisrael to be a Jew
that is making Aliya. We are all bnai aliya- children who are striving
to uplift the world. We all have battles that we have to fight, and challenges
that can bring us down. Elul is the time of year to recognize that all of those
battles are there for one purpose. To bring us closer to Hashem and to bring
the shechina closer to us. For those of us that are Moishie’s who are
fortunate enough to be engaged primarily in the world of Torah and mitzvos the
challenge is to not lose sight of the holiness that can be found outside
of the Beit Midrash, the synagogues and our homes. We need to bring that same
degree of holiness and spiritual enthusiasm to the other areas of our life as
well. To the stores we shop in, the markets we frequent, and the streets we
drive in. To our neighbors, our brothers and sisters and to the entire world.
For the so so many Dovids, Dudus, or Davids amongst us
who are primarily involved in the social causes, the chesed, the
advocacy and philanthropic areas of tikun olam, we need to bring Hashem
to those causes as well. Reveal His name in all that we do. Don’t ashamed,
don’t be universal or agnostic about it. You are doing a mitzva. A holy job
that you accepted 3300 years ago on a Mountain called Sinai in the wilderness.
The spark and drive that you have is holy. Fan that flame. Let it shine.
But perhaps most importantly for all of us is to
remember that we are all brothers and sisters in all of this. Moishie can’t do
Dovid’s job. And Dovid can’t reveal the spark that Moishie can. We are all
connected Hashem’s Kingdom will only reign supreme when all of His children appreciate
one another. When we do that the Shechina will finally no longer be in exile as
well. V’haaleinu l’socha- we should merit to make the ultimate Aliyah together
with it.
Have uplifting Shabbos,
Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz
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RABBI SCHWARTZ’S
FAVORITE YIDDISH PROVERB OF THE WEEK
“Dos gantze lebn iz a milchome..” - All of life is a war.
RABBI SCHWARTZ’S COOL VIDEO OF THE WEEK
https://youtu.be/yJf4tWBUq94
– 3 Brothers Performing Together - Chaim Yisrael,
Itzik Eshel & Avishai Eshel singing beautiful
https://youtu.be/zCa0KTNJCH0
– New Benny Friedman
Harieni Mikabel with his children singing along with him…
https://youtu.be/ECy3CMxShIQ
-Yishai Ribo singing an incredible new
song Seder Ha’Avoda the service and feelings of Kohein on Yom Kippur…
RABBI SCHWARTZ'S TOUR GUIDE EXAM QUESTION OF
THE WEEK
answer below at end of Email
Q A prophet
who does not make part of the Twelve Minor Prophets (Trei Asar)
A) Amos
B) Micah
C) Zechariah
D) Isaiah
A) Amos
B) Micah
C) Zechariah
D) Isaiah
RABBI SCHWARTZ'S “LOMDUS”
CONNECTION OF THE WEEK
Parshat Ki Teitze– There are no synonyms in lashon hakodesh- the holy language of the Torah. There are words that might be similar to one another, but each word has its own nuance and each word is used precisely to convey the idea that is being presented. The difference between a lamdan and a layman is whether one pays attention to those varied nuances or not. The layman gets the basic idea and moves on, the lamdan understands that if the Torah uses a particular word, particularly if it is not the standard term than one should pay attention to the usage. There is something more below the surface, and if you just pause for a moment and ponder it you may reveal an insight or an idea that you may not have if you just breeze right on through it. This is particularly the case when the Torah goes out of its way to switch up words multiple times in a narrative. Those should jump out at you. Those are the opportunities when even a non-lamdan should take heed.
In this week’s Torah portion we have the mitzva of yibum and chalitza the levirate marriage and the process for someone who does not wish to fulfill this mitzva. In a nutshell the law is that someone who’s brother dies without children, the widow “falls” to yibum- meaning the brother of the deceased has a mitzva to take her as his wife and produce an heir that will carry on the name of his deceased brother. If he does not wish to marry her then being that with the death of the brother she automatically had already “fallen” into his mitzva jurisdiction, the only way to “free” him of this obligation and to free her to marry another is by a process known as chalitza. That process consists of him coming in front of the court declaring his refusal to marry her. She takes off his shoe and spits in it in a ceremony that is meant to reflect the Torah’s disappointment and disdain for “the man who will not build his brothers house” and she is then free. That’s yibum and chalitza. Got it?
Now take a look at the Torah description of the scenario of chalitza
Devarim (25:7) V’Im lo yachpotz ha’Ish -But if the man does not desire
to take his brother's wife, the brother's wife shall go up to the gate, to the elders, and say,
Me’ein yivmi-"My husband's brother has refused
to perpetuate his brother's name in Israel
lo ava yabmi- he does not wish to perform the obligation of a husband's brother with me.
Then the elders of his city shall call him and speak to him, and he shall stand up and say,
Lo chafatzti lakachta-"I do not wish to take her.
Then his brother's wife shall approach him before the eyes of the elders and remove his shoe from his foot. And she shall spit before his face and answer [him] and say, "Thus shall be done to the man who will not build up his brother's household!"
Did you note the changing terms? I bolded them for you. The brother does not chafetz- desire. The woman on the other hand doesn’t say he doesn’t desire, rather she says he is lo me’ein he refuses to do the mitzva. And then she adds ‘lo ava’- he does not wish to do the mitzva. When he comes to court however he reiterates his stance that he does not desire- chafatzti to take her. In the end the court leaves it pretty neutral and he is described as the man who doesn’t build his brother’s house.
The Ksav V’Kabala notes the differences in terms and explains. He suggests that chafetz- desire is reflective of the man’s objection which is not to fulfilling the mitzva. Rather he has a problem with her. He doesn’t desire her. It could be for whatever reason. She is not attractive to him. Maybe spiritually, maybe physically, maybe emotionally. He has a lack of desire for her.
She on the other hand doesn’t use the term he doesn’t desire rather he is me’ein- he refuses to fulfill his obligation. It is not out of lack of desire. Rather it is a refusal to step up to the plate. And then she adds. Lo ava- he does not wish or the way the Ksav V’Kabala understands the word, he has no motivation either way to fulfill the mitzva. He is being complacent.
When he is called to court however he reiterates however that his problem is with her. Lo chafatzti l’yabma- I don’t desire her. The court however not wishing to judge one way or the other who’s responsible allows the yevama to make the neutral statement “the man who does not build his brother’s house”. Not the one who doesn’t desire, not the one who refuses, not the one who isn’t motivated. Just the person who at the end of the day did not build his brother’s house by marrying his widow.
C’mon, you have to appreciate this. It is a vort like this that makes you want to go back and read the parsha again and look for other instances of non-synonyms you ignored. Well, that’s what this column is all about. Inspiring your inner lamdan.
RABBI SCHWARTZ'S ERA’S AND THEIR PLACES AND
PEOPLE IN ISRAEL OF THE WEEK
The battle of Sisera and Song of Devora 1124
BC – This battle is one that I mention a lot to my
tourists as there are so many places where one can mention it. Particularly in
this time of year as we approach Rosh Hashana. After all this battle is what makes
our day so special right? What am I talking about? As I tell my tourists, you
tell me…
While you think about that let’s talk about the
story. So Yavin the King of Chatzor, right in the Hula Valley by Ayelet
Hashachar today, one of those Canaani Kings that the Jews after settling
the land got too lazy to wipe out, overtook the nation in the North and began
to enslave the people. This was of course punishment from Hashem for leaving
his ways. But now for the first time they were being subjugated by the Canaani
Kings they left around rather than the previous battles which were external
enemies. Yavin has a general by the name of Sisera who rules an army that
consists of 900 chariots. To give you a sense of what that means remember that
Pharaoh in Egypt only sent out 600 chariots against the Jewish nation fleeing.
This is 150 times as many as Pharaoh in Egypt. It’s a big deal.
Opposite him stands
Devora and her general Barak Ben Lapidot whom she calls to battle by Mt.
Tavor. The location is a perfect one as it is the crossroads of three
tribes; Yissachar, Zevulun and Naftali. There Barak, after getting assurances
that Devora would stand with him in battle, gathered an army of 10,000 men.
This was an open affront to Sisera and Yavin and the army came rolling into
town. The battle begins in Kedesh Naftali, near Yavni’el south of
Tiverya and continues to the valley by Megiddo on the western
slopes of Mt. Tavor. The Jews came storming down the mountain and the
Canaanites didn’t know what hit them. The midrash suggests they saw a big fiery
sword in the sky. The Kishon river which flows from Mt. Carmel into that
valley became a raging river and swept the chariots out to the Sea.
Sisera seeing defeat
flees the battlefield and flees to Alon Batzaananim which is seemingly
between Yavne’el and Menachmia of today to the tent of a Kenite
woman, a descendant of Yisro, named Yael. In fact, today the Nature Reserve
called Churshat Yaelah, in that area there is a spring called Ein
Yael named after her. Yael invites him into her tent, liquors him up and
tires him out and once he is fast asleep she yanks out the peg from the tent
and jams into his head killing him. Barak, upon seeing the miraculous defeat of
Sisera and his army headed up to Chatzor and finished the job they should have
done years before and wiped out Yavin and the Cananites.
The book of Shoftim then
shares with us the incredible song that Devora composes, perhaps one of the
most beautiful in Tanach. There she recounts how Hashem saved the nation. She
praises he tribes that joined the fight and lambasts the tribe of Dan, Reuvein
and Asher that stayed on the side lines. (by the way inspiring that song by
Yigal Calek and London Boys Choir lama yashavta bein hamishpisayim-I’ll
see if I can find it on youtube for you guys below-betcha never knew it came from
here and bet you didn’t even know what the song was talking about…). Finally,
she gives us the image that brings us to Rosh Hashana. The mother of Sisera is
sitting by window waiting for her little boychik to come home with the booty of
the Jews. When she sees through her “magic mirror” he ain’t comin home she
cries. How many times did she cry? 100 times. And each year on Rosh Hashana we
blow 100 blasts on our Shofar to commemorate those cries which symbolize the
eradication of evil from this world according to the Sifsey Chaim’s explanation.
And there you have it an
incredible story that you can share with your tourists and think about when you
drive through the Jezre’el Valley, the Tavor area in the lower
Galile or even by the Kishon river or up by the Galile Panhadle
near the Hula valley.
RABBI SCHWARTZ’S KIBBUTZNIK JOKES OF THE WEEK
Marvin Epstein was on his first trip to Israel and couldn’t believe how advanced the country had become. Innovation everywhere, even on Israel’s farms, far surpassed what he saw anywhere else in the world. Driving through an agricultural kibbutz, Marvin started experiencing car trouble.
He stopped, got out of the car, and as he lifted the hood to study the engine, a brown and white cow from an adjoining field walked over.
After a moment or two, the cow turned to Marvin and said: "Looks like a faulty carburetor to me." Then she walked back into the field and resumed her grazing.
Amazed, Marvin walked up to someone and said: "Is that your cow in the field?"
"The brown and white one?” a kibbutznik responded. “Yes, that's old Rivkah."
"Well," continued Marvin, "my car broke down, and she just said: 'Looks like a faulty carburetor to me.’ Even the cows in this country brilliant?”
The kibbutznik shook his head and said: "Don't mind old Rivkah. She doesn’t know a thing about cars."
A Texas cattleman on vacation in Israel was visiting an agricultural kibbutz one day, boasting to the kibbutznik about the size of his ranch. "Takes me three whole days to ride across my farm on a horse."
Dudu, the kibbutznik takes a slow drink of water and replies, "We had a horse like that once, but I shot the lazy thing."
Danny Steinberg decided to work on a Kibbutz in Israel for the summer as it had always been his dream. One Sunday morning, Danny was in line for breakfast in the communal dining room. The Kibbutz had a cook who asked Danny how he wanted his eggs.
Not wanting to burden him, Danny said cheerfully, "Whatever is easiest for you."
With that, the cook took two eggs, cracked them open onto his plate, and handed it back to him.
Levi was called into the KGB offices in Sovier Russia after applying for a Visa to move to Israel. Comrade Lev, why now, just when things are getting better for your people, are you applying for an exit visa to make Aliyah to Israel?
“Well, comrade, there are two reasons. One is that my next-door neighbor is Pamyat (the anti soviet Russian party) and he tells me that after they get rid of you communists, they are coming next after the Jews.
But they will never get rid of us communists!: The officer barked at him
I know, I know, of course you are right! And that's the other reason.
Benny from Haifa passed away and was sent ‘below’. He was amazed, however, to discover lush vegetation, running streams, waterfalls and beautiful lakes everywhere. Everyone seemed happy.
“You look surprised,” said a resident.
“Yes, I am,” replied Benny, “I expected this place to be very dry and exceedingly hot. Like a desert. But all I can see are trees full of all kinds of fruit, beautiful flowers, lots of vegetables, lush grass and water everywhere. This is not hell”
“Well,” said the resident, “it used to be like you thought, but then the Israelis started to arrive and they irrigated the daylights out of the place!”
A disappointed Coca Cola salesman returns from his assignment to Israel. A friend asked, "Why weren't you successful with the Israelis?" The salesman explained, "When I got posted, I was very confident that I would make it. But, I had a problem. I didn't know Hebrew. So, I planned to convey the message via three posters.
The first poster was a man lying in the hot desert sand, totally exhausted.
The second poster was the man drinking the Coca Cola.
The third poster was the man now totally refreshed.
"These posters were pasted all over the place."
"That should have worked!!" said the friend.
"Of course it should have!!" said the salesman. "But I didn't realize that Israelis read from right to left!!!"
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Answer is D– Also
not the challenging of a question for a ben Torah. It shouldn’t be at least,
although I’m not sure how many would get this wrong. It’s easy not necessarily
because every learning Jew know which prophets are in the 12 minor prophets. I
think that probably sadly maybe 15% could name them all. I probably couldn’t
off-hand either. But it’s a giveaway in regards to anyone who has seen the navi
knows that Isaiah/Yeshaya Hanavi is no minor prophet with 66 chapters and close to 1300
verses it’s the largest of the books of the prophets. Now if they would’ve
thrown Esther or Rus in there then it might have thrown some people for a loop
maybe even Yechezel. So the score
is Schwartz 35 and 8 for MOT (Ministry of Tourism) on this exam so far.
