Insights and Inspiration
from the
Holy Land
from
Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz
"Your friend in Karmiel"
August 15th 2025 -Volume 14 Issue 41 21st of Av 5785
Fifteen years is a long time. It's half of my married life, which is also a long time. But like the Torah's description of Yaakov's years of working for his wives Rachel and Leah, they are like yamim achadim- they feel like just a few days in my eyes in my love and passion for my "wife", my partner, my house and home, the other half of myself and my neshoma, the land that am privileged to live in, Eretz Yisrael. Oh yeah, Aliza's also pretty important to me.
This week is our 15th Aliyah-versary. I look back at those pictures of me and Aliza and my once very cute little children, who now have been replaced by my very cute little grandchildren, who are crazily enough older than Tully and Elka when we first came here, coming off of the plane. We had our Nefesh B'Nefesh hats proudly on our heads as we walked down on the tarmac to the holy earth my ancestors for thousands of years dreamed of coming to and living in. Hayinu K'Cholmim- they were like dreamers. We, their descendants, we're living and realizing their dream. There was music, there were soldiers waving flags greeting us, the entire plane of Olim was singing V'Shavu Banim- and the children are returning. It was Messianic. Besides my Bar Mitzva, my chupah, and perhaps the birth of my first child Shani, It is perhaps one of the most highlighted and emotional moments of my life. And to be honest, Shani was great and all… But she really was supposed to be a boy. I wanted a bechor. But hey, she made up for that by giving me my first grandson, and to be honest, grandchildren are so much easier and more fun.
To be honest, I didn't expect it to be like that for me. I wasn't moving to Eretz Yisrael because I was passionate about the land at all. I was a typical American, frum, yeshiva system young man, who had that specialness kind of stolen from him in the system I was raised and taught that the only really important thing in life is Torah study. Eretz Yisrael is just a thing we sit on the floor and pretend to be sad about a few times a year. It's a place to go study in yeshiva for a bit, maybe even honeymoon in for a year or two. It's a place that we'll probably have to move to when Mashiach comes, but that will be a while anyways- although of course of course of course we daven for that every day.
Meantime let's just build bigger homes, make better restaurant's, more kosher meat boards and options and of course spread Torah, and shiurim, and Artscroll, and Oraysa, a Kinyan Shas, and new takanos,about smartphones, shaitels, shidduch crisises, and how quickly boys and girls are allowed to date- and maybe they shouldn't even go to Israel at all. Most importantly it's a place that we should talk about the politics and evil that lies there. We need to make sure to bash the secular government who are making it mamash mamash inhabitable for any respectable frum family who doesn't want their child taken away like the Czar's army to become frei and ripped out of the Bais Medrash. We should make sure not to vote for any organizations that might promote a better situation within the government.
Yeah, I didn't come because I loved the land or even because I felt that it had much more real Torah and spiritual significance to me as a frum Jew- as crazy and incomprehensible as that now seems to me in hindsight. We came because it made sense financially. It was a good place to start fresh. It was nice place to live. It just felt right for my family. To a large degree I would say that it was like a chasidish shidduch date, that decided that this was his bashert. There wasn't love, passion, romance. It makes sense on paper. We dated once or twice. Her father will support me… wink wink nod nod. He likes his daughter and wants her to be happy with him. Well then … so will Eretz Yisrael's Father…Maybe the love will come later, maybe it won't. But hey… at least I've got my rent paid and a job working for the Tatteh…
Yet when I got off that plane something changed and clicked. It was like walking down the aisle and bride was sitting at the end of that tarmac. I had been bitten. I started to tear up. A part of my neshoma I never knew existed all of a sudden charged on. I had a new app on my spiritual phone. I was connected forever. My life had finally begun a new phase. I was home.
An aliya-versary, or any anniversary is a time to look back. As well it's a time to look forward and build from. It's not just an anniversary though when this happens. In truth it's every single day. In this week's parsha we read the second paragraph of the Shema that we recite daily. It begins
V'haya im shamo'a tishmi'u el mitzvosai asher anochi mitzavecha HA'Yom- It will be if we listen to the mitzvos which Hashem commands us today.
Rashi picks up on that word "today" as he does in numerous places when the Torah uses it and tells us that we are meant to feel each day as if it was given anew. Each day should be an anniversary. Each day we should remember that moment on Sinai as if it happened this morning. Each day we should build up to the future as if we landed in Israel for the first time. As if we heard Hashem telling us how much He loves us and trusts us with His sacred mission for mankind. To bring down His shechina and shine His light out to the world.
Yet besides that there is something significant about the date in the Torah as well when something happens. Ma'aseh avos siman la'banim- the stories and challenges and events of our ancestors are an omen of what we are going thorough. It's not just the events though, it's even the time frame when they occur. Each date, each period of time during the year has it's own program when one has the opportunity to tap into the spiritual nature of the period. Just as each season has its own crop. There's apple season, watermelon season, mango season and ice cream season- which is what this past sweltering week has been. There're spiritual seasons as well.
Pesach as we know is freedom time of year, Chanuka is miracles, Purim and the month of Adar is joy, and the High Holidays are judgement and repentance. Until Tisha B'Av from the month of Tamuz when the spies wandered the land is the time of sadness and mourning and most particularly of focusing on Eretz Yisrael, the longing and loss we feel for having missed the opportunity and dream and desire to fix that sin and return. From Tu B'Av, last Shabbos until the month of Elul, it seems is vacation time. "Bein Ha'Zmanim". It's when we're off. No more mourning. We don't have to do teshuva yet. A good vacationer doesn't even say the word Elul in these three weeks. It's like saying steak and BBQ in the nine days. It's taboo. We don't think about teshuva until Elul. It's like eating matza before Pesach. Our job right now is to chap arein as much chametz, and sins as we can so we have what to atone for and do teshuva about… right?
Or not. See, unfortunately Hashem gave us a full-time job. He doesn't do off-days. There is no such thing for Him, and thus for us as "Bein Ha'zmanim". There is always a zman, an avoda, and job and an energy that we are meant to tap into. That if we sleep through it, we will miss out on. That perhaps this year more than any other year could possibly be the key to bringing the long overdue redemption. If each day is an anniversary, then the first step is to understand what it is an anniversary of. What happened during this period of time and what are we meant to tap into?
Baruch Hashem, He doesn't leave us hanging. Like a good wife, He drops little hints here and there about the upcoming anniversary day, cause they know that otherwise we will forget. Hashem does that in the form of our Torah reading, during these weeks. Last week's parsha is about Torah, it's about mitzvos, the Ten commandments, Shema, and mostly rehashing the sin of the spies. Hey, it was Shabbos Nachamu. It's the shmooze before bein hazmanim to learn Torah over vacation. To remember when you tour the land with Rabbi Schwartz not speak badly about Eretz Yisrael. To love the heat and at least be thankful that you got here.
This week though, something else is going on. This week's parsha Moshe in his final speech tells us what he was doing this time of year, right after we left Egypt. See on Shavuos we got the Torah. He then went up for forty days and nights to bring down the Luchos. We, Jews waiting on the bottom didn't yet get the concept of "Jewish time" and when Moshe was a bit late on the 17th of Tamuz we were already dancing around a golden calf and calling for new elections. The day was a bad day. The tribe of Levi kills about 3000 sinners or so and this is an eternal fast day where just bad things happen to our nation on this day. As I said, that's the energy in the air, that we tainted.
Now from that 18th of Tamuz until Rosh Chodesh Elul, meaning this time of year, Moshe heads back up the mountain and spends another 40 days davening before Hashem. That's the period of time that we're in right now. What did Moshe do on Bein Ha'Zmanim? He went mountain climbing and floated around up in the heavens and the clouds. Now unlike my tourists that head out on some hike on vacation whom I caution to take and drink lots of water and nosh, Moshe sits there for 40 days without a bite. Without a sip. There the Torah tells us three times he is
Mishnapel- before Hashem just like the first 40 days. The word misnapel is that he falls before Hashem. It is connected to the word prayer; tefilla. But it is a more intense prayer. It is one of falling before Hashem. Of being broken. Of looking and understanding that our sins caused the luchos to be broken. That Hashem doesn't want us to be with Him, in His presence. He'll send an angel instead. Maybe Bibi. What's even more fascinating is that Moshe tells us that at that time he is holding with him those broken tablets. He makes an Aron, an ark for them. This is not the Ark of the Mishkan. That doesn't come until a year later. This is one that Moshe put together on the spot on the Mountain. And Rashi tells us that it is the one that we would take with us whenever we went out to war. When we are fighting in Gaza today. It is the Ark of the broken tablets of prayer, of falling before Hashem. It is the Ark and tablet of Bein Hazmanim and our avoda for now.
One more question and a story about this narrative. I'll try to keep this short it's almost Shabbos and my mother complains its too long. Moshe says he davened this second 40 times like the first 40. He didn't eat and drink. He was praying hard that Hashem should be with us. That He shouldn't write us off. It's intense. Question. Why is he comparing this a few times to the first 40 days. Seemingly then he wasn't davening. Who has time to daven when you're learning the entire Torah? There he wasn't pleading for our lives. Hashem was so excited about us. He was in love with us. He was giving and bringing this gift. We were chosen. What's the comparison? It's like someone saying I davened and prayed so hard when I got this deadly diagnosis from the doctor, just like I danced at my daughter's wedding. I didn't eat a thing I was davening so hard, just like I didn't have time to eat by the wedding. What does this all mean?
Now for the short story. It is said that when the Baal Ha'Tanya was young and was already recognized as budding prodigy he wasn't sure where he should go study. Should he go to Vilna to study by the great Gaon, or rather to Mezritch where he would be amongst the students of the Baal Shem Tov. There were those that were urging him towards Vilna, because that's where you will really be able to learn to how to learn Torah to its deep depth and to develop into a scholar. By the Baal Shem, he was told, there you'll "just learn how to daven". He responded that he would head over to Mezritch. For to learn Torah, that he already knew and understood a little, but to daven?! That he still needed to learn how to do.
When Hashem took us out of Egypt, He told Moshe that the function of us leaving and being chosen was that we would "serve" Hashem on that mountain. avoda- is prayer. It's not Torah. Torah is a book. Torah is instructions. One can sit and study and learn and even one gets reward for that and for every word that we study. That's what last week's parsha was all about. Yet, that's not why we were taken out. It's not why we were chosen. The study of Torah itself has to translate into, fascinatingly enough, prayer. Falling before Hashem. For forty days Moshe goes up to get the Torah, not just to learn Torah. He could've done that in Lakewood, in Volozhin in Mitzrayim, in Vilna. Moshe goes up to not eat and drink for forty days and turn that Torah study into a prayer before Hashem. That His gift of Torah brings our nation to His arms. That we learn Torah li'shmah- not just for the sake of Torah study within itself, as is often wrongfully translated in yeshivos. But rather it's l'sheim shamayim. It's so that Hashem's glory will be revealed in the world.
The forty days after the sin of the calf, Moshe enters phase two. It's bein ha'zmanim (or sof zman-which is kind of the same thing…) It's no longer about Hashem giving us that gift that has that special power. It's about us meriting to be able to daven to Him and fulfill our mandate. The number 40 our sages tell us is that amount of time it takes for a fetus to be formed. It's birth. It's creation. The first forty days was about the Torah. It was Va'eschnanan. It was about creating the Torah, which is the life and soul of the Jewish people. The next forty days is the formation of our nation. It's the body. It's the broken tablets. It's taking those pieces and bringing them with us to war with us in the Ark that Moshe made. It's man-made Torah. It's the Torah of our prayers. It's not the when we have when we're in the Bais Medrash. It's the Torah that we get and learn and internalize when we're out on the field. On vacation. In a tzimmer. On a Rabbi Schwartz tour. That is the season that we're in. It's the anniversary of those 40 days. Each day is another one of growth, Each day is one of looking back at how far we've come and where we're headed to.
The period after the 15th of Av as well within these forty days also has a special history today. For on the 15th of Av, all those that were meant to die in wilderness for the sin of the spies stopped dying. (Truth is they stopped on Tisha B'Av, we just didn't realize it until the 15th when the moon was full.) This began the new era of Klal Yisrael. This was a nation that realized that now all of the Torah that had learned and gathered in the 40 years in the midbar, was meant to be brought home. They were going to turn it into a House of prayer for all nations. The neshoma would finally have a guf. The soul would find it's earthly body. The last forty days from Elul when Moshe goes back up for the last time to get the final man-made luchos concludes on Yom Kippur. That is the wedding day of Klal Yisrael. It is the next stage after the 15th day of Av. Those are the two days which our Rabbis tell us are the happiest on the calendar. It's when all girls would go out to the fields and find their Bashert. It's when Hashem finally joined together with His. The chasan was ready and the kallah is as well. Let the festivities begin.
We are at the end game of this galus, friends. All the dead of midbar are over, hopefully. The sins of the spies that didn't want to enter and thought that Torah study was in itself a purpose have fallen before Hashem. We are at war and the broken tablets that remind us of those mistakes and sins and the power we have to come back to our Father go before us. They herald us into the land. Hashem describes the beauty of Eretz Yisrael and is calling for us to finally to celebrate that anniversary. To have an aliya-versary. To fulfill our destiny. He desires us. He has forgiven us. He's standing under the chupah ready for us to fall before Him. It's bein ha'zmanim. It's in between times. The past and the future are coming together. Let's all celebrate together.
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YIDDISH PROVERB OF THE WEEK
“Vayber zaynen gebildet un kenen tsvey shprakhn: eyne far der khasene un eyne nokh der khasene"- Women are educated and can speak two languages: one before the wedding and one after the wedding.
RABBI SCHWARTZ'S TOUR GUIDE EXAM QUESTION OF THE WEEK
30. The type of soil typical of the Be'er Sheva Arad Valley is called _____
What do the Sa'ar River and the Yarmouk River have in common?
A. Both constitute an international border of the State of Israel
B. Both are located between basalt rock and limestone
C. Both are located in the northern Golan Heights
D. Both contain the remains of exploded old train bridges
RABBI SCHWARTZ’S COOL VIDEO OF THE WEEK
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2FzBma7eIA&list=RDu2FzBma7eIA&start_radio=1 – Yishai Ribo's latest Od Yishama!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVgy1-dG7KQ&list=RDfVgy1-dG7KQ&start_radio=1 – Nishmas Amazing song Fried, Chaim David,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Opoj3Qyn9Zo&list=RDOpoj3Qyn9Zo&start_radio=1 - Hanan Ben Ari- Gal Einai
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jDfe5NiiZYE&list=RDjDfe5NiiZYE&start_radio=1 - A gorgeous Shwekey and Amir Dadon concert in Tzedkayah's cave Guf Ve'Neshama-- powerfulll
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrzCfLPTOcI&list=RDvrzCfLPTOcI&start_radio=1 –Fried sings Rem Mechel Twerski's incredible Nachamu song!
RABBI SCHWARTZ'S ERA’S AND THEIR PLACES AND PEOPLE IN ISRAEL OF THE WEEK
Our Worst Enemy- Us… - 586 BC - We are in the period of time now between the Churban and the aftermath. Those 52 days that lead up to the death/murder of Gedalia ben Achikam were the last chance and final opportunity to maintain some type of remnant in Israel. 52 is in fact gematria Gedalia. Yet, Jews being Jews we mess up. We fight. We kill each other. We don't listen to the prophet Yirmiyahu and ultimately we exile ourselves to Egypt. This is the unknown and really unlearned saga of the conclusion of the first Temple period.
Nevuchadnezzar allowed a few thousand to remain in Israel. Gedalia was the regent and Jews from Jordan started to even come back to worship. A new government was set up in Mitzpa, yet there was some "out- of towners" "Galus" yidden that decided that this new government was not going to work for them. They didn't trust Nevuchadnezzar. They preferred to rely on the King of Amon, Balis who they felt would be the better bet. The more trustworthy one. They decided to topple the government of Gedalia. And in those days the best way to do that was through assassination. Yishmael Ben Netanya who was a member of the former Royal House of the Yehoyakim, set out to carry out this very task. He perhaps jeaolous of Gedalia, as well convinced that he is acting l'sheim shamayim to save us from ourselves goes out to assassinate Gedalia.
Now intelligence back then it seems was also not that bad. Yochanan the son of Kareach who seems to have been the head of the Mossad back then, warns Gedalia about this looming threat. But, as then and now, Gedalia is under the conception that we don't have enemies. It's lashon hara. We're all good. There's nothing to fear. Nobody really wants to kill us. He ignores the "lookouts". Yishmael thus comes with ten men to join Gedalia for his Rosh Hashana meal in Mitzpa and kills him there. The story of the "Last Supper" has its roots of course like all good Christian fables in Tanach. Yishmael is original Judas. They can't even make up a good assassination story without us.
Yet the story doesn't end there. Yishmael wants to make it look like it's Gedaliah's own fault and to disgrace his legacy, thus when 40 other unwitting Jews come to mourn the Temple from Shechem, Shilo and the Shomron to bring sacrifices to Hashem in the place of the Temple, Yishmael tells them that Gedalia had forbidden that. It would upset Bavel and Nevuchadnezzar if Jews were mourning the Temple. It might cause them to rebel. Thus he had them arrested and "officially" brought to Gedalia – who was already dead, for "judgement". There in Mitzpa, yes, the same place where Jews before the Temple fought against the tribe of Binyamin and almost wiped out that tribe, which of course was restored on Tu B'Av. There, he had them all killed and thrown into a pit. There were ten that pleaded for mercy, they claimed that they had hidden food reserves that they would share with him. He spared them and took the hostage.
But it doesn't end there. His plan which took hold was to blame the deaths of those that were with Gedalia on him. Fake news and spin begins here, boys and girls. It's Gedalia's fault. He's responsible. He pacifies Bavel. He is settled with the Churban. It hasn't even been three months and we are at each other's heads blaming, pointing fingers and fighting. Even Chazal it seems gets into this. Rava blames Gedalia for not listening to the Lashon Hara. The law is one has to take precautions and suspect when information like this comes your way. You can't bury your head in the sand. You can't ignore the warnings of the ones that tell you about your plotting neighbors.
It's not just the death of Gedalia though that brings this story to an end. The aftermath, the revenge, the hostage return and the ultimate self-exile is much more what this is all about. Stay tuned in the coming weeks' for the little known story of the true fall of the first Temple period.
RABBI SCHWARTZ’S REALLY TERRIBLE ANNIVERSARY JOKES OF THE WEEK
It happened I asked my wife asked when she knew I loved her. She said "We were in Israel, the way you knew so much about the city like it was second nature to you. But I never felt you were condescending to me when I'd ask stupid questions. I saw how much you knew, how passionate you could be. I'd been bored by all the old buildings, but you brought it all to life. I think that weekend, was when I realised you could be the best thing about my life."
I didn't speak for a while and then just looked at her until and said three words.
"You mean only on our Our twentieh anniversary?!"
On their 25th anniversary, a husband took his wife out to dinner. Their teenage daughters said they'd have dessert waiting for them when they returned.
After they got home, they saw that the dining room table was beautifully set with china, crystal and candles, and there was a note that read: “Your dessert is in the refrigerator. We are staying with friends, so go ahead and do something we wouldn't do!”
“I suppose,” the husband responded, “we could wash the dishes and vacuum.”
My wife is blaming me for ruining our Anniversary. Which is ridiculous, cause I didn't know it was our Anniversary in the first place.
For the past 20 years my wife has been complaining about me not putting the cap back on the toothpaste. Last anniversary, I decided to change this bad habit and make my wife happy.
For a week, I was diligent, always capping the toothpaste. I was expecting my wife to thank me, but she never did it. Finally last night, she turned and looked at me and said - "why have you stopped brushing your teeth?"
Marriage is a difficult relationship I tell you.
A couple was celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary when the wife claimed that her and her husband hadn’t argued since their wedding night.After being asked about how they did it, the wife explains that after their wedding ceremony, they went and took a little honeymoon in a horse and buggy. The horse walked ten miles and stopped, refusing to go further.
“That’s one.” Said the wife. The horse looked back, walked another five miles, and stopped, refusing to go further.
“That’s two.” Said the wife. The horse looked back, walked another five miles, and stopped, refusing to go further.
“Alright - that’s three!” Said the wife angrily. She stepped out of their buggy, grabbed a shotgun and shot the horse.
“Hold on!” The husband said. “What do you think you are doing? We are twenty miles from home with no way back, and that was a vicious act of animal cruelty!”
The wife looked at her new husband and said: “That’s one.”
Berel: "I'm getting you diamonds for our anniversary" –
Shaindy "Nothing would please me more"
Berel: "Gets her nothing instead.
My wife asked for something shiny that goes from 0 - 200 in five seconds or less for our anniversary...I bought her a scale. We're still not speaking.
I bought my wife a fridge for our anniversary... I know it wasn't a great gift, but I loved seeing her face light up when she opened it.
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The answer to this week”s question is B- Ok we're back to a 50/50 score on this question. The first part I really didn't know. After looking at the answer though I did remember the term for the sand that is windblown sand and very fertile is called Loess. But I don't care much about it and neither do my tourists. So it was one of those things my brain with limited storage space had to delete when I finished my tour guiding course, along with all of the different muslim dynasties and everywhere Yoshka pished in this country. Part two though I got right, but more so because of process of elimination and deductive reasoning. See, I figures that since part One of this question was geological part two would be as well. Besides that I knew there was no railroad by Saar neither was it a border and Yarmouk borders the Golan Heights but isn't located in it. So the answer was the limestone basalt one. So the score is now Rabbi Schwartz 19 Ministry of Tourism 11 on this exam so far.I still don't have passing grade for this exam unless I deduct the questions I don't have to answer. Only 3 questions left. Let's see what happens…
