from the
Holy Land
from
Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz
"Your friend in Karmiel"
June 4th 2026 -Volume 16 Issue 36 18th of Tamuz 5786
Click here below for print edition
(Weekly Newsletter - Parshat Pinchas )
Sinas Chinam- Free hatred. Hating one another for no reason. You're going to hear a lot about that the next few weeks. It's customary. It's tradition. It's what we talk about during this period of time that began yesterday with the fast of the 17th of Tamuz when the walls of Jerusalem were breached 2000 years ago, until the Fast day of the 9th of Av, when it was destroyed. Hopefully this year, it won't be a fast day. It will be a day of celebration and renewal, as the prophets tell us it will turn around and become. I'm sick of fasting. I'm ready to party. But it seems to get there we first need to truly be sick of fighting as well. We need to eradicate sinas chinam, that is the cause, our sages tell us, of the destruction of the Temple, from within our midst.
Now, since you were a child, and me too, those Rabbi's speeches and teachings we have been taught about this "senseless hatred", seem to focus on the issues that we face and struggle with today. We've got that great Chafetz Chaim Heritage Video each year that tells us it's about Lashon Harah- evil gossip and putting down others and what a big sin it is. It's like a pillow with feathers that fly out of it, like our words, that we can never gather back in again. It's about not having Whatsapp groups and social media posts, that are utilized to badmouth others. It's how we shouldn't bully little children in the playground. How we need to have positive thoughts. How we should be nice to singles and do kiruv to our fellow brothers. And how we shouldn't have fancy houses and elaborate weddings that make others feel small and at the same time we shouldn't speak badly about the people that do that, because that's lashon hara. That's not danning li'kaf zechus- giving the benefit of the doubt. That's sinas chinam. And sinas chinam is a bad thing.
That's all true, by the way. Except of course for the Whatsapp group thingy… I mean how are you supposed to survive or know what's going on if you're not on my status? What are you supposed to do in the bathroom if you're not watching my status? To be honest I don't even know what people did beforehand. But, although all of those other things above are really important and perhaps even relevant things that we should not be doing and we should be getting rid of. They're not what the sinas chinam was during the times of the Bais Ha'Mikdash and for which it was destroyed. And if we don't realize that, then I think we're missing the essence of what we need to truly be focused on eradicating.
See, back then in the times of the Temple, Jews killed each other in the streets. They took each other's babies and threw them off of roofs. They slaughtered one another's families. They burn down each other's fields. We reached a point of civil war where there were two Jewish king contenders who were brothers that formed armies and were literally slaughtering one another on the Temple Mount, with the Bais Ha'Mikdash still there. Great Rabbis were killed freely, their coffins even stabbed with swords, at least almost. It was insane. We've come along way with our pillow feathers, whatsapp group issues and Yeshiva World News propaganda. We've even come a long way with the protests in the street and yeshiva fights. One could even argue that our fights today are closer to Ahavas Chinam, rather than the sinas chinam of old. Calling our issues today, "sinas chinam" compared to what it once was, is about as similar as calling the anti-Semitism in America today- which is not fun, Holocaust anti-semitism and Nazism, which everyone gets all up me when I equate the two.
Does that shock you, about the era back then? Well, if it does, then you probably haven't learned Tanach. Because although our sages tell us that it is the sin for the reason, why the second Temple was destroyed. Even a perfunctory reading of the stories of Tanach teach us that there were far more Jews that were killed, murdered and disappeared from Judaism by their own brothers' hands then the goyim have ever been able to do to us. When we say that we are own worst enemy, it's not just talking propaganda wise, or our failure to finally act on our own behalf and rather consistently sell ourselves out and short. Rather it literally means, historically, that we are our worst enemy in the fact that we killed and murdered and destroyed more Jews ourselves then Chamas and all our enemies could ever dream of. How'd you like dem sour apples?
Fascinatingly enough in the times of the judges, the book of Navi, I recently completed in my Nach Yomi program, there's a figure that seems to be at the head of this civil warfare consistently. It's not Dasan and Aviram nor is it Korach either. Rather, it's the Nobel Peace prize winner himself, who this week's parsha is named after. It's none other then Pinchas Ben Elazar Ben Aharon Ha'Kohen.
Yes, that grandson of the man of peace whom all of Israel mourned Aharon Ha'Kohen who ran after peace and united men with their brothers, who sacrificed his own life with the sin of the golden calf to save the rest of klal Yisrael, who would go out of his way to bring harmony to the homes of our nation between men and their wives. That, grandson of his Pinchas, who gets the peace prize- or covenant of peace from Hashem, turns out to be the head of all of the major fights and wars in klal Yisrael. It almost seems like l'havidil giving the prize to Arafat. I know this may shock you… but stick with me here and then tell me what you think.
Ok let's first start with a few basic Rashi's that I think most people miss. So, when I ask most people how many died by the sin of the daughters of Midian and Moav in last week's parsha, I imagine most would say 24,000 as last week's parsha ended off. Yet, that would show that you didn't see Rashi which tells us that Moshe commanded the Judges of Israel to kill
Ish es anoshuv- each man his fellow men.
How many is that? Rashi does the math for us. Every judge killed at two men. Which is 78,000 judges making that 166,000 Jews were killed that morning by each other. Throw onto that the other 24,000 that were killed in the plague we're talking close to 200,000 Jews which is about 1/3 of the number given of men between the ages of 20-60. That's a big number. 1/3 of klal Yisrael is about what the Nazi's and Crusaders killed in their years of genocide against our nation. That's about 10x as many as were killed in all of the wars of Israel in the past 75 years here in our wonderful Jewish state. Seemingly that battle would've been led by Pinchas, as being the guy that started this whole thing. Or as Moshe tells him you're the letter bearer, the zealot, who charged them, carry out the justice. Yes, that's how our Nobel Divine Peace prize covenant awardee gets his start.
But it doesn't end there. When they come into the land conquer it, the book of Yehoshua tells us about how the tribes of Reuvein and Gad set up an altar on the banks of the Yarden to remind them to return to the Temple and to connect them to their brothers on the other side of the river. Perhaps, I suggested, the symbolism of an altar that they never meant to bring sacrifices upon was to remind the rest of the Jewish people, who may not want to take their kids into their schools or marry them, as they were "out of towners", that they also had brought sacrifices for our country. They were in fact the chayalim and the chalutzim that went before everyone else in battle and perhaps lost their own children on the altar of the conquest of the land. They may not wear black hats and shtreimels, but they also turn to them Temple. They also are part of our family.
Yet, Pinchas misconstrues this message and comes out to kill them all with the leaders of every tribe. He "reminds them" of the sin of Baal Pe'or here in our parsha, as if to say, hey, we wiped out a 1/3 of Klal Yisrael then, we have no problem doing it again. Thankfully though, Reuvein and Gad are able to explain to Pinchas their true motives and the war never takes place, yet, once again we see that this Pinchas guy has no problem coming to wipe out a large amount of our nation. The next two times he shows up, though, we're not so lucky.
See, Pinchas once again shows up when we have Yiftach from the tribe of Menashe on the other side of the Jordan again, who wages war against Moav and saves the Jewish people. Seemingly, Pinchas and his tribe of Levi didn't join that battle. They were sitting and learning and teaching and couldn't be bothered to come out and defend the nations out there by the Kibbutzim on the border that were being attacked. After-all Yiftach wasn't such a religious guy, and his army was a band of hooligans. No tzitzis and payos or beketches on them at all. Not even Mashiach ribbons. Yet after the war when Yiftach makes an oath that would cause him to kill his own child, Pinchas doesn't bother to come to absolve him of his vow. He demands, that Yiftach come to him. What comes out of that story? Another civil war, this time between the bitter tribe of Menashe and their brothers in Ephraim across the river, those two cute twin boys that Yackov and every parent blesses their children should be peaceful like. Well, that's except for this story, where Menashe wipes out 42,000 of their brothers. Or as the verse tells us they shechted them- Ouch! That sounds a bit October 7thish. Except on October 7th, it was 1200 that were killed and this is about 40 times as many by our own hands. Whose fault is it? Our peace prize winner Pinchas.
Finally, we come to the end of the book of Shoftim with the most horrific story of Pilegesh Ba'Givah. I won't go into the gory details of what led up to this story of civil war, besides to note that it starts with this Levi, who chops up his concubine who was October 7th by Binyamin's mob, into 12 pieces and sends her to all of Israel, to avenge her. The story ends with as well a dance festival where girls are kidnapped from by the tribe of Binyamin with the consent of the rest of Israel. Ok… it's time for you to learn to Tanach…
Well in the middle there we have Pinchas leading three battles against Binyamin with an army of 400,000 against Binyamin's 26,000 and basically wiping out the entire tribe barring a few hundred men, while incurring losses of the Israel tribes of over 40,000. That's besides the aftermath when they all get together and wipe out the city of Yavesh Gilead, seemingly again by Pinchas's order killing there almost every man, woman, child and the verse tells us even baby. See, what I mean about us being worse than our enemies. It's not a concept. It's blood, murder, killing, death, it's us being baby-killers but not against our enemies, but rather than us. Yes, we've come a long way with our pillows and whatsapp groups. Welcome to parshas Pinchas.
The truth is although our parsha is called Pinchas. Besides the first few verses it really has nothing else to do with him. Rather the parsha continues with the commandment to be tzror es ha'midyanim- to antagonize or attack or bind together against the Midyanim and avenge Yisrael's revenge, or as later it says Hashem's revenge against them. I really think we need to start calling this war that. "Milchemes Nikmas Hashem- The Vengeance of God" war. It's so much more meaningful and would probably have been over already, rather than these "Roaring Lion" or "Swords of Iron" names.
Then it continues with counting all of the families of Israel, with the division of the land, with the daughters of Tzlafchad asking for their portion, Moshe's request to see the land, his handing over the reigns of Israel to Yehoshua and the holiday sacrifices with all the accompanying wine libations that have never been given or commanded before. So Pinchas doesn't really seem to be the appropriate name for the parsha. Unless of course we recognize what Pinchas really was. What he's meant to represent. What our challenge is. And why on this week when we finally join back together with you guys in Chutz La'Aretz in our one united same parsha Torah reading when we start the three weeks of mourning and fixing, we read and remember and learn the lesson of Pinchas.
Now, although we didn't and perhaps don't realize how we are worst enemy. Bilaam definitely did. He realized that the enemies of Israel could never do as much damage as could do to ourselves. Thus, when he realizes that all of the curses he and they eternally will try to lay upon us might bounce off and go back on them, and will be a blessing for us. We are the only ones with the real power to do the most damage to ourselves. Thus, he sets up the stage for this eventual civil war. He "bribes" much of the nation with his Quatar-ian funds- or Midianite daughters. He donates their daughters to join the "pride parades" and everything that Torah and Moshe stands for. And at the same time, he knows that the zealots will thus respond, Hashem will respond. We'll do to ourselves what he could never do to us. We'll wipe out 1/3 of our nation.
Rashi as well tells us something fascinating that he continues to note by this tragic counting of our nation of how many of our nation were wiped out by each other. If you note the family names and numbers Rashi tells us that besides the tribe of Shimon and the entire families that were wiped out in this story. There were quite a few entire families that were killed by us also not long before this. For we are told that after Aharon died, quite a few families decided they had enough of this war thing already and wanted to go back to nice safe Lakewood- I mean Egypt. The tribe of Levi, presumably led by the warrior Pinchas chases them. 4 entire families of Levi get wiped out, five from Binyamin-which would be half of them. A family of Gad, a family of Asher, Shimon. When we talk about families, it's not just a family we're talking thousands in each family. The Jewish population 40 years prior was 603,550 and now it was 601,730. Rather than a birth explosion during the 40 years we were down 1820. That's what we did to ourselves.
What is sinas chinam? Hatred is a deep passionate emotion. It doesn't come stam. There must be a reason for it? It's also not senseless. When I hate someone, it's because I want to do something about it. It's because the existence of the other I feel threatens my own. My life, who I am, perhaps even my survival. When we fought all of these civil wars we had good reasons, we thought. We hated them. We hated them more than we hate our enemies. I believe it's even arguable that we have that hatred today. We see it. We hate those Jewish lefties that Free Palestine and even more so those Neturei Karta that hug Iran. And they hate us just as much. We hate the Supreme Court that's arresting Yeshiva boys, we hate those soldiers they send against us. We hate those stupid yeshiva guys that call soldiers Nazis and that block traffic. We hate those Daati guys who are busy supporting the Army and they hate us for not serving. That's not chinam. We've all got good reasons. That's all we can talk about. That's all we're blogging and fighting about. While Bilaam and his descendants are laughing at how we destroy each other much worse than they could ever do to us.
Why do we hate our family members, our brothers and sister more than our enemies? Why are family fights always the worst? The reason is because we have sinat chinam- we hate things that are free. We hate relationships that are based not on what the other does or can do for me, but rather just because they're our brother and sister. Because we're family. We have a hard time having ahavas chinam- just loving them because we have one thing that neither of us did anything to earn. We love them, just because we have the same father and mother. We have one Father in heaven.
There's no reason for that. There's no agenda. There's no personal gain. He's my brother and I have to love him. We’re family. And thus, no matter what he does, how he acts, how much his existence embarrasses me. No matter how much I feel even more so, that I want to distance myself from him. I want to make sure that no one identifies him, his behavior, his sins, his ideology with my own. That I want to ensure that no one believes that there is any of him that has rubbed off on me. It's pointless. It's hating the association that will always be there. It's ignoring the bond that we truly share and that we can never run away from. We have one father. We are one family. He is me and will always be, and I am him. Ahavas Chinam is embracing that free pointless relationship, and sinas chinam is detesting it and trying to run away and kill it.
The commandment li'tzror es Ha'Midyanim is to bind them all together. It's to realize that all our enemies can be thrown into one big pot. They we have he revenge of Hashem and Yisrael to take against them. We can only take revenge if we feel that there is Hashem in each of us. If we can look at what happens when we allow them to divide us. When we don't see that uniting family spark that joins us all together. That just like Hashem is one and can only be revealed as one. So too Am Yisrael is one. A goy echad ba'aretz. One nation in the world. Idolatry is saying that there is more than one god that runs and created and is present in the world. Denial of that is heresy. It's a lie. It's not true. It's the worst sin. Sinas Chinam, is the denial of that spark of Hashem that is in every Jew. It's not seeing the Hashem Echad in each Jew. That's heresy as well and falsehood. That's when our enemies have the most power and when we become our worst enemies. Because then we become Hashem's enemies as well.
There are many things that Hashem does that we don't understand. How was there a Holocaust? How was there so much suffering? So many that have pain., so much tzoris, so many challenges, so many that daven and daven and only experience terrible things. Anguish, anxiety, depression. Where is Hashem. He seems evil, although we know that He never is. We would even get upset with anyone who would even suggest that. Do you know why? Because we have Ahavas Hashem. Because we have a love for him embedded in our heart that knows and experiences his love for us. Because He is our Father and Creator and who gives us life. He does that for no reason. We certainly didn't do anything to deserve it. It's because He has ahavas chinam for us.
It is exactly the same way when it comes to the way we are meant to feel about our fellow Jews, especially the so many who we have a desire to distance ourselves from. Who do things that pain us, that hurt us, that seem so dark and twisted. Can we love them? If you can't then you can't love Hashem either for all of the pain He give us and has tortured us with. The reason is because you can't have ahavas chinam. You can't have love that is above all for no reason. You can't see in him the same love that Hashem has for us. The same love Hashem has for him. The spark of that love that is in him. That holy pure neshoma, that is so lost, that is also part of me.
Do you know who Pinchas is? He's the letter bearer. He's each of us. Our sages tell us that despite the explicit verses in Nach that date him at almost 400 years old by the story of Pilegesh Ba'Givah, he in fact never dies. He becomes Eliyahu Ha'Navi. Who as well is a zealot. Who as well fights and belittles Klal Yisrael before Hashem, until he is removed from his job and sent up to heaven in a fiery chariot. Whose ultimate task is to return the children to their fathers. Who will purify all those that were assumed to impure. Who will find that one uniting spark. He is the one who will herald in Mashiach. Yet, it is upon us to herald him in. To find that spark in our brothers and sisters and stop being our own worst enemy that is preventing the Shechina from coming down.
I don't want to fast this Tisha B'av. I want to party. But the only way that can happen, is not by just minimizing our lashon harah, our whatsapp and tearing less pillow feathers, but its by picturing truly that party and celebrating with the Jews, the brothers and sisters, I most dislike, I most hate for what I might even think are good reasons- but that really aren't. Because I love them for no reason. Because I see Hashem in them, and His love for them, and understand we are all family. For free. For Mashiach to come and for us not to fast and rather party, we need to picture them at that party with me. Picture me dancing with them. Hugging them. Embracing them. The left, the Karta, the yeshiva boys, the Reform, the conservative. All of them. We need to love them for free and then Eliyahu will come. Pinchas's covenant of eternal peace will finally be fulfilled. And the party in the Bais Ha'Mikdash will begin.
Have a magnanimous Shabbos
Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz
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YIDDISH PROVERB OF THE WEEK
" Vos der mentch ken alts ibertrachten, ken der ergster soineh im nitvintshen..– What a man thinks up for himself, his worst enemy couldn’t wish for him.
RABBI SCHWARTZ'S TOUR GUIDE EXAM QUESTION OF THE WEEK
answer below at end of Email
6. A massive and intentional destruction of coastal cities in the land of Israel occurred during the ______ period.
Which of the following was a French king who traveled to the Land of Israel?
A. Baldwin II
B. Louis IX
C. Guy de Lusignan
D. Philip the Fair
RABBI SCHWARTZ'S COOL VIDEO OF THE WEEK
https://soundcloud.com/ephraim-schwartz/achainu – Rabbi Schwartz Acapella composition season, I composed this Acheinu two years ago during the war when I got sick of the same old one again and again. Dovid Lowy Arrrangements and Vocals of course… Let me know what you think
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_iVVbv461c - Wasn't sure I was going to last three weeks without hearing this song… Thank Your Ari Goldwag who is always there to make sure we have good acapella during the three weeks. Ayeka!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGIueaEfnv0 - And another new Bardak "the Kosher internet room"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cIXNnohEIU - – Eilu V'Eilu Shmulik Sukkos- nice acapella song beautiful
RABBI SCHWARTZ'S ERA’S AND THEIR PLACES AND PEOPLE IN ISRAEL OF THE WEEK
The Supreme Court of Israel -345 BC- It's truly amazing how when I write this column how much of our history repeats itself and how important it is to learn Tanach and be familiar with the challenges of the past. Those lessons are timeless and as well should give us hope in appreciating and navigating the struggles that we have today as well.
When Ezra returns to Israel with the Olei Bavel, he understands that the Jews living in Israel and who had remained in the land, were not good holy ones. They were corrupt. They were intermarried. To a large degree most were even unobservant despite being passionate about living in Israel, and even of building the country up and even establishing the Temple here. Does that sound familiar at all?
The biggest problem he had were the leaders and court system which had mandated all this corruption and sinful life and refused to allow Torah life to flourish and return. Ezra thus foresaw this problem. He therefore upon arriving to Israel came with an order that he received from Darius to reestablish the court system. The Sanhedrin. They would have the full weight of Darius behind them and they would be permitted to not only make laws and institutions but to carry out punishment and tax and fine the nation. The Frummies thus took over the government.
With that power Ezra thus established many new takanos- decrees. Many that we still have until today. He established that the Torah must be read publicly on Mondays and Thursday and on Shabbos Mincha. That there should be regular court procedures and hours on those days as well. There were laws of modesty for woman that were added to endear them to their husbands and bring a sense of purity to the nation as well as obligating men to regularly go to the Mikva before engaging in Torah study.
Four months after he arrived things began to take hold and the pushback began. There were those that were drawn to his spirit of holiness that started to permeate the nation, as well as others that were intimidated by these changes and new spirit. It is here when Ezra finally takes a stand and decides its time to finally bring the nation together. This is the backdrop to our return then to Yerushalayim and the Temple. When we daven we precede our prayer for Yerushalayim, the Temple and Mashiach with a prayer for the restoration of the court system of Israel; Hashiva Shofteinu. That is where it all starts. That's what we need today. Some things never change.
RABBI SCHWARTZ’S TERRIBLE ENEMY JOKES OF THE WEEK
Genie granted me one wish, but with a condition that my enemy will get two times more
I asked for 120/80 blood pressure
My dad said that I'm my own worst enemy. I've been thinking about it for ages.
Why can't I be my own *best* enemy? I must be terrible at that too.
Out of all the enemy leaders during World War II, who could run with the most speed?
Mussolini, because he was the fascist
Toward the end of the service, the Rabbi asked, "How many of you have forgiven your enemies?" 80% held up their hands.
The Rabbi then repeated his question. All responded this time, except one small elderly lady.
"Mrs. Goldberg? Are you not willing to forgive your enemies?"
"I don't have any," she replied, smiling sweetly.
"Mrs. Goldberg, that is very unusual. How old are you?"
"Ninety-eight," she replied.
"Oh, Mrs. Goldberg, would you please come down in front and tell us all how a person can live ninety-eight years & not have an enemy in the world?"
The little sweetheart of a lady tottered down the aisle, faced the congregation, and said:
"I outlived em all."
.
I once killed an enemy soldier by cutting off his feet. I defeated him.
Forgiving your enemy brings you one step closer to God But pushing him down a Flight of stairs brings him to God faster
A third grade teacher had her students ask their parents to tell them a story with a moral for their homework one day. The next day, the kids came back and one by one, began to tell their stories. But then the teacher realized that only Katie was left.
"Katie, do you have a story to share?"
''Yes ma'am... My Mommy told me a story about my Dad."
"OK, let's hear it," said the teacher.
"My Dad was a Marine pilot in Iraq and his plane got hit. He had to bail out over enemy territory and all he had was a flask of whiskey, a pistol, and a survival knife. He drank the whiskey on the way down so the bottle wouldn't break and then his parachute landed him right in the middle of 20 enemy fighters. He shot 15 of them with the pistol, until he ran out of bullets, killed four more with the knife, till the blade broke, and then he killed the last one with her bare hands."
''Oh my!" said the horrified teacher. "What did your Mommy tell you was the moral to this story?"
"Stay away from Daddy when he's drunk!!!"
"Is it a crime to throw sodium chloride into enemy's eyes?"
"Yes, that's assault."
"I know its a salt but, is it a crime?
Match the middle eastern country to its sworn enemy...
- Bahrain
- Lebanon
- Qatar
- United Arab Emirates
- Egypt
- Syria
- Jordan
- Iran
- Iraq
- Saudi Arabia
- Algeria
- Morocco
- Yemen
- Oman
- Kuwait
1. Israel
Alcohol may be man’s worst enemy. but the Bible says love your enemy.
This one hurts… How many guns do the Israel need to combat an enemy? Two: one to shoot and one to give him to shoot back. OUCH!
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The answer to this week's question is B– Another fairly easy one for anyone with basic history of Israel knowledge. The Mamluks came and destroyed all of the Crusader cities that were on the coastline. And as regards to the King of France one, so it was a bit trickier. Because they're all French and all Kings. Yet, Baldwin and Guy were only Kings of Jerusalem while Phillip who was the King of France and the guy that threw all of the Jews out of there. Which happens sometimes to Jews who get too comfortable in other people's country. Not that it will ever happen in America though. That's different. It will be the only place in 2000 years where that won't happen. So build that extension on your house and donate to you Shul and school building campaign. Because those are important buildings that will be there forever. But Phil, never came to Israel. The heiligeh Jewish murderer and Talmud burner St. Louis did though and that's the correct answer. So I go this one right and the test continues with Rabbi Schwartz having 4.5 points and the MOT having 1.5 points on this latest Ministry of Tourism exam.
