from the
Holy Land
from
Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz
"Your friend in Karmiel"
December 12th 2025 -Volume 16 Issue 8 22nd of Kislev 5786
Storms of Redemption
Have you guys ever heard of Lord Byron? Me neither, don't feel bad. But guess what? That's why I have to write this weekly E-Mail to you guys. In order that Hashem can reveal really cool and amazing things that you won't get anywhere else to the world. So I have to sit down in front of the laptop and try to find something in my heart and soul, that I feel is going on in the world that is not the same old regurgitated Torah that everyone else is writing about. Reveal a new angle and give a few squeezes on my laptop, a few questions to my new friend in life ChatGPT and boom out comes the secrets of the universe. Out pours that special holy pure oil of light that will shine away all the darkness and bring Mashiach. Or at least give you something new and cool to share with your family and friends by your Shabbos table or kiddush.
So as you probably know we have this storm we just went through here. Our prayers for rain after this very dry year have been answered and the falls and rivers are flowing. He faucets in heaven are opened and the best part is that it didn't even mess up my tours too much, as the rain generally stopped as soon as I got out of my car with my tourists. It's nice to have a God that is madly in love with my tourists and wants to make sure they have an amazing touring experience here, while at the same time making sure that the country has the rain and water that it needs.
Yet, what struck me is when my tourists told me that this storm that was coming through was called Byron. I was like what does that even mean? I know in America they always named storms, but I never remember them giving them names over here? What is this mishigas? See, I understood that what our sages tells us is that in chutz la'aretz- outside of the land the world is run by mazalos- all types of messenger angels and ministers that have names Sandy, Katrina, Helen, Milton etc… But what does that have to do with Israel. Here its all straight from Hashem. So who's this Byron guy over here?
Elah mai….- it must be, that if there's a name for the storm that we got here. It must be from Hashem. And if it's from Hashem, there must be a message. And if there's a message. It needs to be revealed to the world. And that's what I'm here for. So get ready folks, get ready to have your heads explode. It's Byron time.
So first of all Byron in Hebrew actually is spelled with Hashem's name with two yuds. Ba'Hashem ron- it could be read. With Hashem is song. That's cool. But anyone that reads that could come up with that. What I wanted to share with you is a bit about Lord Byron, who perhaps some of you that had a bit of education and secular exposure might be aware was a famous romantic English poet in the late 1700's and early 1800's. But here comes the cool part. Do you know what he was famous for? He was very inspired to be active for the independence of Greece from the Ottoman empire and even sold his estate in London to raise money for his battle that he led against them. The source of his inspiration… Israel and the Jewish nation and our longing for our independence and return to our homeland.
Did you get that? Greece, Chanuka, independence, English, war and his most famous works and poetry were called "Hebrew Melodies". They were poems he composed to be sung to Jewish songs. They were about Tzion. That's the name of the storm that Hashem brought to Israel this year the week before Chanuka. The storm that brought rains of blessing to Israel is named after the name who if he would have one the battle instead of dying at age 36 right before his last battle could've according to many historians been elected as the "King of Greece". How cool is that!
What does this have to do with this parsha. I quote you a poem of Byron, perhaps his most famous one about Israel and that many early Zionists attribute to being the inspiration for our return to Israel.
" Tribes of the wandering foot and weary breast!
How shall ye flee away and be at rest!
The wild-dove hath her nest–the fox his cave–
Mankind their Country–Israel but the grave"
Do you know what our parsha is called? Vayeishev. And Yaakov settled. What does Rashi tell us?
Bikeish Yaakov leishev bi'shalva- Yaakov wished to settle in tranquility. The wandering feet of Yaakov were tired. He had fled. And now he wished to be at rest. Rashi tells us this is not just Yaakov. It's all the righteous. The world to come is not enough for us. We want to rest here as well. We want the Shechina to come down. We want that dove to finally land and return to his nest. And for that to happen, Hashem brings upon Yaakov and on us the storm of Byron that's called Yosef. Wow!
The truth of the matter our entire parsha is about our national exile. The parsha is called Va'yeishev- settling, but it is the most unsettling of parshiyot. It begins with a dream; with two dreams. The dream is of a Messianic time. It is a time when all 12 tribes will unite around one. When we will bow. When the sheaves of wheat that grow from the ground and the sun and stars all do the same thing. They unite around the Jewish King. They herald in Mashiach. The dream of Yosef is the dream of Klal Yisrael for eternity. Yet for that dream to come true and be realized we have to overcome the storms that divide us. That prevent us from getting there. That steer us off the path but ultimately will bring us home.
Let's sail through the parsha with eyes of Byron on a journey to Mashiach, shall we? The parsha starts off with Yaakov sending Yosef out on a journey; a voyage if you will. His job? To find the peace of the brothers and sheep. To bring those weary feet home. Yet Yosef gets caught in a storm. He is to'eh ba'sadeh- he is wandering in the field. What field? According to the Midrash this may have been the field of Yitzchak's prayers. It may be the field that the Bais HaMikdash will be built on. It is that concept that he seems to be stumbling with that he's trying to find his way to.
There as he is stumbling and lost, Hashem sends an angel who asks him what he is seeking. He tells him that he is seeking for that brotherhood and the angel cryptically tells him that he's on the wrong track. His brothers are in Dosan. They each have their own "datot". Their own religions. Their own opinions. They're own sacred cows and ideologies. They're not on your derech. They're not in Shechem, where they once stood as one and fought for Dina and saw her as their sister. When they were one against the whole world. Where they stood shoulder (shechem) to shoulder. They're in a different place. You, Yosef need to change your mindset. You have to come to them, not with your dreams or dibasam ra'ah your judgmental eye about what you see as their actions. To be a King and ruler and to unite the nation, you need to see their path. Their journey and their voyage as one that will bring all of you to the destination that you seek. But Yosef didn't see that, the Ohr Ha'Chayim Ha'Kadosh tells us. He continued achar echav- he thought they were still his brothers, that they were on the page that he had written for them. They were the stars and the wheat that would bow down to him.
The brothers see him coming and they as well don't appreciate who he is. They see him as a threat. He is the owner of dreams. He's the Rebbi in cheder that his ideas for who I have to be and the box I have to fit into and not someone who sees me for who I am. I'm a mere notch on his chinuch belt. Another color on his coat that he wears proudly and glorifies himself with. He's not someone that can bring us together. He just wants us to be like him. So they take Yosef and throw him into a pit. They take off that coat and dip it into blood. Chazal tell us something amazing about that pit. The pit was empty and there was no water in it, yet there was snakes and scorpions in it. As well Chazal famously tie that strange pasuk and description timely enough into the laws of Chanuka and the height where we can see the Menorah from.
Rav Moshe Shapiro tells us something amazing about these two creature. He see's in them the essence of the geula. A snake is called a nachash. The word nachash is also from the word nichush is to feel. We are told that there are two points or ways that the redemption will come. Bi'ito achishena- it can come either on the set time when it is meant to come or achishenu- Hashem can make it come quicker. He can herald it in. Rav Shapiro suggests that achishenu can be the feeling- chush. The spirit in the air of Mashiach. It's an emotional sensation. The sin of the snake is that of desire. It's longing. It's the first sin when the snake tells Chava/Eve what do you feel. What do you want. When Yosef is stripped naked in that pit. He has no water. There is no Torah. There are no sefarim. There is no Yaakov. There is only nachashim. There is only that inner deep desire for Hashem. It is in the pit. In the darkest part of storm, in the tunnel in Gaza without that multi-colored coat that he wore so proudly at all his demonstrations. Without that black hat and jacket, or that fancy suit, or that knitted Kippa or that yellow ribbon, that he realizes that the redemption will come when we can see beyond all of that and tap into our inner- nichush our desire to be one.
As well in that pit, he writes, there are scorpions. Akravim- comes from the word oker. It is when we are uprooted. When we are alone. It is then when we can become close. We can become karov. Sometimes it takes us going off the path that we feel is paved in front of us. That we can only then come to the path of Mashiach. The path of redemption. The realization of the dream.
The Parsha continues on that theme even more viscerally with the aftermath off that sale and division. It continues with Reuvein, who had good intentions. He felt he knew the way to save Yosef, but he was wrong. His plan failed. He finds himself in a storm as well. 'Va'ni anah ani ba- how can I come". Where am I? How do I go? He is sitting in mourning for his sins. Reuvein is the symbol of one who blames all his troubles on his sin. He sees redemption only through crying and mourning and focusing on his misdeeds. He is sure that will save Yosef. That is the path to bring home to his Father. To Hashem. To rest and to console. Yet, he's wrong. His storm comes in. He's lost at sea. Yet again Rashi tells us, Hashem is at the same time preparing the light of Mashiach. It has nothing to do with you Reuvein. This is the journey I'm bringing you on. The light is coming.
The final piece of this parsha before we get to Egypt is of course Yehuda. Yehuda is King David. He is Mashiach. He is the leader, the ruler and yet he as well has to lose it all. He loses his wife. His children. He marries the daughter of a Cannanite. Maybe he's a business merchant- as Rashi tells us. Maybe she's a convert and the non-Jewish world is calling to him. Is it money of this merchant that gets him to partner with his new friend Chira the Adulamite. Interesting how the word Adulami can be read as a contraction of the word ad d'lo mi- until you don't know who you are anymore. He is in this quandary and all his children from this Canaanite woman who marries and connects to whose name is not even given but she is the daughter of Shua; the daughter of redemption, as well are named with that double entendre. The first child Er means awaken, yet it also means ariri- childless, backwards it reads as the word ra- evil. The second child Onen, as we saw from Binyamin's naming can mean strength as well as grief and mourning. Shela, the third son can be shela- it's hers. It's Shel Hashem. Or it can be a bottomless abyss-she'ol. It's dark. It's stormy. He's uprooted and lost. And there as well Hashem says the light of Mashiach is being born.
Tamar- the daughter-in-law whose name as well is on one hand tam- complete pure, perfect; the power of Yaakov- the ish tam. Yet on the other hand she is mar- she is bitter. She is the confluence of these two things and it is in her belly that Mashiach grows. It is in twins. It's in Peretz- that bursts forth. That doesn't wait. That is almost redeemed that pushes the red stringed light brother called Zarach. It's both paths growing together. She is the pregnant mother where the Torah tells us te'umim is written completely. They are both righteous. They both can come out and work together and reveal the light in the birth pangs of Mashiach.
For Yehuda to find her amazingly enough though he needs to go on a journey to the murkiest of places. Va'yet eleihah el ha'derech- he turns to her to the path. What a fascinating description. Generally one wanders from the path. Yet Yehuda, who thinks he's going off the derech to be with this woman, that he doesn't recognize. Who he doesn't see the spark of Mashiach in. Who he thinks is a sinner, a zonah, a licentious woman, a goy, a tziyoni, a leftie; someone who's not as frum as me. He needs to wander off his thinking, he needs to take a left turn to get on path and highway of Hashem. He needs to go off the derech to get on the derech. He needs to give her his ring, his staff, his coat, his black hat and jacket. He needs to take them all off and hand them to the zona that will open his eyes. He needs to ride out that dark storm to finally wake up and get home.
What's even most powerful is that all this revolves around the mitzva of yibum. Yibum is yud beis- it's twelve tribes. It's mem- it's forty days of conception. This is the first yibum in the Torah and the source for our understanding of the mitzva. It's meant to be done when brothers feel one and take the place of the other. When each sacrifices their very essence and seed for their brother. To give their brother a name. To see their essence. To reveal their brother's neshoma. Yet by Yehuda, it doesn't work that way. Perhaps his sons saw how he was with his own brother and thus as well didn't have what it took to be there for their brother. So this first yibum comes when the father takes the place of the son. It's not b'ito- in the way it's supposed to be. It's achishena- It's Hashem bringing it closer. It's the Father stepping in when the kids and brothers are not there for one another and bringing us back on the path. Bringing us through the storm. That's how Mashiach is born. That's how the redemption can come.
Which brings us to Chanuka. The gemara quoted above tells us, im zachu achishena im lo zachu- b'ito - if we merit will be hurried, we will feel it, it's a chush. If we don't merit the redemption will only come in it's time. The word zachu- the sefarim teach us comes from the root zach- pure. Like the oil we light on Chanuka. Shemen zayis zach- pure olive oil. Do you know what that oil is and how it comes out to shine that light of the menora. It's the first squeeze that comes out by itself afterwards. The oil that we use for all the other offerings, the Lubavitcher Rebbe notes is kasis- or katit. It is crushed. It's kitot- like the word kat- in Hebrew. It's fractionalized. It's each one in its own groups. It's different paths that are divided by kelipos. By shells, by husks, by coats, by kippas, by ideologies. That can't light the menora. That's good for other sacrifices. That can hold us out and even be used to serve Hashem, but they can't reveal the light of Mashiach. They can't even reveal the truest purest light of the Torah, which the Menora symbolizes. For the Menora's light is zach- it's all he colors united into one light. It's not crushed Jews. It's Jews that are squeezed and the light and purity just comes out on its own.
Im lo zachu- if we do not have zach, then achishena- Hashem will have us tap into that inner feeling. He will bring us on His path. He will bring the storm of the Greeks. He will give us holy soldiers that fight for Hashem and for klal Yisrael. Yet, if we are zachu then the storm will abate and the time will come. The Rebbi said that we have been purified already. The oil is oozing out of us. We only have to light that candle. We just have to bring that spark. We need to light menora and the redemption will be here.
Byron's Hebrew songs poem ends with a Chanuka song that will soon sing.
And where shall Israel lave her bleeding feet?
And when shall Zion’s songs agains seem sweet?
And Judah’s melody once more rejoice
The hearts that leap’d before its heavenly voice?
Or as we will sings when we light the Menora.
Tikon bais tifilasi- prepare our house of prayer
L'eis tachin tacheen mahtbayach- there (in the eis!) we will prepare the thanksgiving offering
Az egmor B'Shir mizmor- then I will conclude with songs of poems
Chanukas Ha'Mizbayach- the dedication of the Altar.
The storm is over. The poems are ready to be sung. The light is ready to shine out. I always tell my tourists that rain is Hashem's windshield wipers shpritz to give us the clearest skies and views. The sky is zach- clean and pure and so are we. Let the light shine forth, we wish to final rest and settle with the Shechina and be returned to our Father. It's time to come home.
Have a brilliant Shabbos and Chanuka
Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz
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YIDDISH PROVERB OF THE WEEK
" Men antloyft fun regn, bagegnt men hogl"- Run away from rain and you get hail.
RABBI SCHWARTZ'S TOUR GUIDE EXAM QUESTION OF THE WEEK
answer below at end of Email
11. The name of a British Royal Commission established in 1936 to discuss the circumstances
in Palestine and propose a solution to the Arab-Jewish conflict is _______
Which of the following statements about the Balfour Declaration is true:
A. The declaration is a commitment by Britain to divide the country into a Jewish
state and an Arab state
B. The declaration was given in 1920, following the end of the military rule in
Palestine
C. The declaration was an initiative of the American government which the
English agreed to adopt
D. The declaration was given in 1917 during World War I
RABBI SCHWARTZ'S COOL VIDEO OF THE WEEK
https://soundcloud.com/ephraim-schwartz/maoz-tzur – And here you go Rabbi Schwartz's Chanuka composition playlist- Here's my Maoz Tzur- Dovid Lowy did great ararngements and vocals on this beautiful waltz I composed to sing around the Menora
https://soundcloud.com/ephraim-schwartz/al-hanissim – Here's my Al Ha'nissim for all of the miracles of Chanuka we thank Hashem for- once again he amazing Dovid Lowy
https://soundcloud.com/ephraim-schwartz/chasof-zeroah – This composition the fun dance tune of Chasof Zeroa was one of my first composotions and that talented and now famous Yitz Berry did the arrangements on this for me!
https://soundcloud.com/ephraim-schwartz/haneiros-halalu – And finally the best tune to sing when you light your candles. Here's my Ha'Neiros Ha'Lalu that the Schwartz family (and my shul! ) sing. Yitz Berry again really beautiful!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1oxdgOZixU - It's Chanuka Acapella season and the first release from Kippalive Toda La'Hashem compilation is here in the Shuk!
RABBI SCHWARTZ'S ERA’S AND THEIR PLACES AND PEOPLE IN ISRAEL OF THE WEEK
The Writing on the Wall PART II- 375 BC – I was just in the Tunisian shul in Akko yesterday with it's incredible Mosaics that detail Jewish history all over it. On the ceiling in the staircase there it has the picture of Belshatzar at his feast with the handwriting that appears in the wall. There is something very symbolic about this picture. It's the letter from Hashem that the exile is ending soon. That the redemption is coming around the corner. That is the message that Belshatzar got then and it is with the return of the Jews to Israel as well.
What did the writing say? It was a hand on the wall that wrote "MENE MENE TAKEL UFARSIN". Daniel being the only one that was able to interpret and read the writing was brought before Belshatzar to explain it. He already had received previous prophecies and dreams about the redemption and the fall of Babylonia in the hand of Persia and Media a ram with two horns that would attack them. Incidentally he also saw a one horned goat- or unicorn coming and wiping out the ram- which is of course a prophecy of the Greeks and Alexander wiping out the Persians and bringing he Yevanim to Israel. That goat gets taken over and divided into a few horns that go up and down which is of course the story of Chanuka this week and Antiochus. He sees until the end of days when Mashiach comes as well.
But regardless Daniel understood that the writing was a message to Belshatzar that his game was up. Persia was coming. He "Mene Mene "– your count is up. It's exactly up to be precise. "Takel"- you messed up your accounting that Mashiach wasn't coming and the 70 years had passed already. "Ufarsin"- your kingdom will be divided into pieces between Persia and Media. In other words Belshatzar, your party is hereby over. You should've learned from your Zaidy Nevuchadnezzar who humbled himself before Hashem. It's too bad you didn't.
Belshatzar offered Daniel rewards for his interpretation with the hope that Daniel would pray for him. But Daniel turned him down. It was too late. There's no point. Babylonian money won't be worth much for long and Daniel starts brushing up on his Persian as the next kingdom and exile is around the corner.
RABBI SCHWARTZ’S TERRIBLE ARTIFICAL JOKES OF THE WEEK
Israel is the only country where everyone goes crazy from a rain storm but missiles from Iran don't even stop traffic.
The storm is fierce. The plane hits such turbulence that everything is shaking violently. Yankel is sitting next to Rabbi Greenberg, the great rabbi with a long white beard. Pale with fear, he turns to him and pleads,
"Can't you do something, Rabbi?"
Rabbi Greenberg turns to him and calmly replies,
"I'm not in management; I'm in sales."
What does a storm wear under its pants? Thunderware
A storm blew away 25% of my roof last night. Oof
An old sailor once told me you could hear the calm before the storm. He said it sounded like a C flat.
Dudu is now in Hadera. Sadly, the weather conditions there are very, very bad. The perceived temperature is close to freezing, lots of heavy rain, and wind gusts of close to 100 mph (150 km/h). They are now completely isolated, they cannot leave. They're completely stuck. His mother-in-law does nothing but look through the kitchen window. He's thinking, if it continues like this, he'll have no choice but to let her in..
Did you hear about the big winter storm in New York? It got so cold that the Mayor and supporters were walking around with their hands in their own pockets.
One of the joys of parenthood is snuggling into your child's bed with them when there's a thunderstorm to make sure they aren't frightened.Although my daughter has started hinting that she and her husband can manage perfectly well on their own.
Did you hear about the storm that walked with a limp? It needed to use a hurri-cane.
A windmill and a solar panel are talking during a storm...
Windmill "Awesome weather we are having!"
Solar panel "I am not a fan."
A blonde got lost in her car in a snow storm. She remembered what her dad had once told her: "If you ever get stuck in a snow storm, wait for a snow plow and follow it." Pretty soon a snow plow came by, and she started to follow it.
She followed the plow for about forty-five minutes. Finally the driver of the truck got out and asked her what she was doing. She explained that her dad had told her if she ever got stuck in the snow, to follow a plow.
The driver nodded and said, "Well, I'm done with the Walmart parking lot, now you can follow me over to Target."
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The answer to this week's question is D – OK, so I'm back in the passing zone on this exam with this fairly easy question. I mean you gotta know about the history of the "two state" solution which started with the PEEL commission and their division of the land proposal. Although it was rejected by the Arabs- as every plan has been since then, the Israelis continue until this day to debate the wisdom of this two state concept that was later formulated into the UN Partition plan in 1947. This plan as well negated the promise that British made to us in the Balfour Mandate in 1917 that if we supported them in WWI against the Turks who had joined with the Nazi's YM"SH they would recognize our right to have a Jewish State here and the Arabs who did not support them seemingly should not be entitled to one. We helped, they didn't. We did get recognized but that really took a war and us having to throw them out for it to happen. So I got this one right and the new score is Rabbi Schwartz having a 7.5 point and the MOT having 3.5 point on this latest Ministry of Tourism exam.
