Insights and Inspiration
from the
Holy Land
from
Rabbi Ephraim Schwartz
"Your friend in Karmiel"
May 6th 2022 -Volume
11 Issue 31 5th Iyar 5782
Parshat Emor- Yom Ha’Atzmaut
The Miracle, the Refuge and our Home
Do you know how
many refugees there are in the world? How many people have had to flee their
countries, leave everything behind and find asylum in a foreign country?
According to The United Nations there are about 20 million or so. The main
countries where people have fled are Syria (6.7 million), Ukraine (5.7
million), Venezuela (4 million) and Afghanistan (with 2.6 million). That’s just
the people who had to flee their countries. Internally displaced people,
families that have been forced to leave their homes and belongings more likely
than not never to see them again, and escape to another city in their own country
number around 42 million; with Ukraine alone having over 6 million people that
are homeless and on the run. That’s a pretty crazy and historic number for
Ukraine. Does the number 6 Million ring a Jewish bell for you? I guess what
goes around comes around in Hashem’s Divinely managed just world.
Now of those tens
of millions of refugees, homeless people, nations without a country or home to
call their own anymore, do you know how many of them are Jewish? Take a guess.
Did you get it? The answer I’m sure you know is Zero. There is not one Jewish
refugee in the entire world. Every single Jew in the world regardless of his
country and situation has a home here in Eretz Yisrael. Not only are the
automatically granted citizenship, but they are assisted financially with an
absorption basket, they receive benefits that regular native-born citizens
don’t receive and they are integrated into the country with subsidized job and
skills training and Ulpan language development. We even take in many halachic
non-Jews with Jewish lineage so as not to err on the side of leaving someone
with Jewish blood without a place to call home. Take this idea in and absorb it.
It’s mind-blowing.
For over 2000
years the Jewish nation was probably the most exiled in nation in the world. We
didn’t last most places for more than a century or two. We wandered, we left
behind everything and perhaps most terrifying we had no where to go. We were
the losers scorned by the world. Our boats were turned away and sunk, our visas
denied, and our families were many times divided and lost. But in the past 74
years that all changed. The 2000-year homeless aspect of our Exile ended on the
5th of Iyar 1948. Never again will a Jew have to suffer that fear
that he has nowhere to go to or settle in when they get thrown out of their
host country as we always did. ALWAYS. ALWAYS. ALWAYS…. I’m just sayin…
But now it’s
different. The land which had been sealed to our people for millennia opened
its arms to embrace and welcome back her children. There are no more British
turning away our boats. No Muslims that have any authority over when and where
we could live. There are no Romans that deny us entry to our holiest city. No
Crusaders that pillage and plunder us and no Babylonians that are trying to
Exile us. Our only real problem is the Jews in charge of the country. But
that’s family. It’s a whole different type of problem. It’s internal. It’s
amongst ourselves and yes there’s no fights like family fights. But we still
have to thank our lucky stars that we have a family and we are not out on the
streets, in the forests, or in the camps looking for them. We have a home and
we’re with our family, finally.
Now if you would
ask me, it would seem that a day when the history of our people changed so
dramatically like that would be worthy of establishing it as a holiday. I mean
yes, Chanukah we got back the Bais Ha’Mikdash and we killed off the Greeks (and
Hellenist Jews) that were trying to destroy us spiritually and physically when
we wouldn’t comply. But that entire saga lasted only about 40- 50 years. The
state of Israel is around almost twice as long as the Chasmonai dynasty was
religious and that the temple was pure and sacred. All of the grandchildren of
the Maccabees were Hellenists. The Romans were brought into Israel at the
behest of the Jews to settle the civil religious and political wars that were
going on. A century or two later most of Israel was murdered and exiled. And
yet we eat latkas every year, spin a dreidel and most importantly recite Hallel
on that great victory. Shouldn’t Yom Ha’Atzmaut at least get a TYH (thank you
Hashem) as well?
Now I know that
some of my readers do celebrate the holiday. The ones in Israel that are not so
Chareidi make barbeques. The more Daati ones even say Hallel at davening. And
some of you guys in America that are more modern orthodox probably do as well
and even have some falafel. But you lakewooders, Boro Parkers and out of
towners whom have had Lakewood and Boro Park Rebbeim and Rabbis in your shuls
and communities certainly don’t. Fuggetabout Villiamsburgh and Munroe…And I
guess I just have to ask if you don’t recite Hallel-which I happen not to as
well…shhh…- why not? Would you recite it the day you got thrown out of your
country and had nowhere else to go and got turned away and away and away and
then found yourself welcomed into the one place Hashem promised you was yours.
The place where not only did all your ancient ancestors live, but the place
where for 2000 years your Bubby’s and Zaidy’s couldn’t live but they went to
sleep dreaming that they could. Would you recite Hallel then? Would you kiss
the land and thank Hashem every day that you were finally home?
Don’t knee jerk
me with the “ehhh… Mashiach isn’t here yet…” or the “Zionists are not
religious” or the “they persecute Yeshiva students and are trying to
destroy religion” lines you may have been fed or used your entire life. I’m
not denying those claims or rebutting them. I just want you to think for a few
minutes of what it would feel like to be a refugee. What it feels like to be
what tens if not hundreds of your great great grandparents at different times
went through whenever they were exiled. And the fact and the knowledge that you
will never ever have to experience that sense of not having a place to come
home to. That nobody in the world wants you.
I remember
hearing a holocaust survivor tell me once that the worst moment for him was at
the end of the war when the American soldiers were trying to place the
Holocaust survivors in the DP camp and they asked him where his home was and
where he wanted to go or where he might have a relative that he could find
asylum by, and he didn’t have an answer. They were all dead. No country wanted
him. You know how a child feels when no
school wants to accept them? Imagine if it wasn’t just a school but it was every
country in the world. That’s what we will never have to go through again. And
shouldn’t that be something we thank Hashem for on this day every year?
This week’s
Parsha of Emor interestingly enough is the parsha that contains all of the
Jewish holidays and its laws. The Shulchan Aruch tells us a cute way to
remember what day of the week every Jewish holiday falls out on. See all our
holidays have their basis in our first holiday of redemption, Pesach, that we
just celebrated. And if we utilize a method known as At Bash where the
first letter Aleph or day one corresponds to the last letter of the Aleph
Beis, taf, and count them we can find all of the holidays and when
they will fall out. So alef or the first day of Pesach, which this year
was Shabbos, corresponds to the letter taf which stands for Tisha B’Av
which will fall out on Shabbos! Beis the 2nd day of Pesach,
Sunday, corresponds to the letter Shin which is when Shavuos falls
out. Gimmel, the third day of Pesach corresponds to reish which
is Rosh Hashana on Tuesday this year. Daled, day four corresponds to kof
which is keriyat ha’torah on Simchat Torah, Hei is tzadik
which is tzom- fast days of Yom Kippur and Gedalia, and vov is pei
which of course is Purim on Thursday.
Fascinatingly
enough he doesn’t bring a corresponding day for the 7th day of
Pesach which was Friday and would correspond to the letter ayin. Maybe
there wasn’t a holiday on that day 500 years ago when he wrote that yet. But
isn’t it amazing that Yom Ha’Atzmaut- with an ayin for Atzmaut
the 5th of Iyar when the State was established is on the same day of
the week as the 7th day of Pesach? The day that corresponds to the
final aspect and celebration of our redemption from our first exile in Egypt is
always on the same day-when it’s not pushed off because of Shabbos- itself an
incredible thing that so as there not to be desecration of Shabbos it’s
celebrated a day early this year- as the beginning of our final redemption and
return to Israel.
The Rambam writes
that we celebrate Chanuka despite the fact that we lost it all because it
heralded in over 200 years of Jewish sovereignty over Eretz Yisrael. This is
despite the fact that for the majority of those years we were ruled by terrible
non-religious Jews and even quasi Jews like Herod that murdered thousands of Rabbis and students- yeah…
governments cutting kindergarten subsidies for Chariedim is a mosquito bite
compared to the evil we bore in the past from bad anti-religious Jewish
governments back then. But we still celebrate. We have a home. We could live
there. We didn’t have to sit and wait for them to kill us or throw us out of
Babylonia, Rome, Italy, Spain, Boro Park or Lakewood and not know where we
would go next. Not know where we would be welcomed. When we could come home and
live in the only place Hashem tells us we are supposed to live. Where we get a
mitzva to live. Where we can really really fulfill our spiritual potential.
Where we could shine His light out to the world from. That’s important to us,
right? That’s everything, isn’t it? Shouldn’t it be a holiday?
There’s a
fascinating juxtaposition to the parsha of the holidays which is the laws of
all the Kohein. He can’t marry everyone. He can’t come in contact with the dead
or serve in the Temple. If he did he must wait until he’s purified. He can’t
serve if he has blemishes. A lot of details that seemingly have nothing to do
with the adjacent portion of shaking a lulav, blowing the shofar, and eating
matza on Pesach and rejoicing on all our holidays. But perhaps the answer is to
allow us to appreciate what the holidays we all celebrate are all about.
They’re about connecting to Hashem. They’re about us understanding how perfect
the world could and would look when we are in the home of Hashem.
In the times of
the Bais Hamikdash there were a group of people that were sitting in
Yerushalayim that were there to help us connect to that eternal life that we
are meant to strive for. They have no blemishes. They are perfect when I see
them. They have nothing to do with death and tuma because they are
entirely holy for us. They have given up on marrying anyone that might even
make us get distracted from the perfect eternal life that we are meant to appreciate
when we think about Yerushalayim on those holidays when we see them. No past
marriages that failed. No widows for the high priest, no one with a sordid past
that had become impure. When we think about Yerushalayim, when we celebrate our
holidays, we have to know, that its not just about the rituals of each one.
It’s about seeing the perfection that we can strive for. It’s about only seeing
the blessing of the Bais Ha’Mikdash and privilege we have to come there. To be
with our Father. To experience His home filled with His family back again.
There’s the
famous story that Rabbis say about this non-religious soldier crying when he
came with all of the other soldiers in 1967 and they liberated the Kotel and
Jerusalem. When asked why he was crying he answered that he’s crying because he
doesn’t know what to cry for. Raised secular, he didn’t know how special and
important and how much he’s missed out on about who he is as a Jew and what
this holy place was supposed to mean to him. And that made him cry. Maybe you
don’t say Hallel on Yom Ha’Atzmaut. As I told you, I’m kind of traditionalist
and pretty much follow my Rabbi and grandparents tradition. But I cried this
year for the first time that I wasn’t saying Hallel. Ok I didn’t really cry-
I’ll be honest. But I should’ve. We all should if we don’t say Hallel.
Something miraculous happened 74 years ago. Something holiday worthy. Something
that if I ignore and don’t see the miracle, the blessing, the incredible tovah
of Hashem and the hand of the redemption and all I see our blemishes than I’m
missing the boat. I’m missing the refugee boat. Let’s call her Exodus.
There have been
42,000 Olim to Eretz Yisrael that have found their way back home this past year
alone mei’arba kanfos ha’aretz- from the four corners of the globe and
from lands of our enemies. Millions that have come over the past few decades
and whose children born here don’t know another country. They don’t know that
they will never be homeless. That’s something to sing about. Something they need
to thank Hashem for. Something that we need a holiday and Kohanim to remind us
about how perfect life is when we have that blessing and how much closer and
holier we can become. If I don’t realize that this really should be a day of
Hallel, it’s because I can’t haven’t found those kohanim that are calling me
back there yet. I haven’t davened for them hard enough. I haven’t come to
Israel to receive their blessings. I’m waiting for Mashiach, perhaps I tell
myself, but I’ve forgotten that he’s waiting for me as well.
The Gaon of Vilna writes that the name of the first man of creation embodies all of us what we’re meant to be and to ultimately fulfill. A name after all describes the essence of a being. And the neam Adam is the essence of why we’re here and what we’re m
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RABBI SCHWARTZ’S FAVORITE YIDDISH
PROVERB OF THE WEEK
Az me gait tsevishen leiten, vaist men vos se tut zich in der
haim..- When you
go to your neighbors, you find out what is happening at home.
RABBI SCHWARTZ’S COOL VIDEO OF THE
WEEK
https://youtu.be/7oFxcQOoTPU – The Goy and Reb Shayaleh
https://youtu.be/luwJ3HtwSmY
– Ari Goldwag’s Acapella Geshmack to be A yid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VtjAIzrRYE
– Rav Yoshe Beir Soloveitchik 1956 Yom Ha’atzmaut 10
years reflection on the State… powerful
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XO6VcvnOGeY
– Shlomo Carlebach on Yom ha’Atzmaut
RABBI SCHWARTZ'S TOUR GUIDE EXAM
QUESTION OF THE WEEK
answer below at end of Email
26)
Machtesh Hatira is also known as: _________
It is widely believed that the
craters in the Negev were formed as a result of:
a)
An asymmetrical anticline
b)
Hard and soft rock layers
c)
The erosional downcutting (hithatrut) of a stream
d)
All the answers are correct
RABBI SCHWARTZ'S PARSHA/SHABBOS
CONNECTION OF THE WEEK
A Day to Shine -Parshat Emor - Parshat Emor which contains all of
the holidays that we celebrate also mention the mitzva of the counting of the
Omer. What’s interesting about this mitzva is that it repeatedly mentions and
seems connected to the Shabbos. We are told that w should count from the day after
Shabbos- which are sages tell us is really another term and reference for the
first day of Pesach. We should count 7 complete Shabbasos. And we should count
until the 7th Shabbos. Shabbos Shabbos Shabbos, what’s it all about?
The Nesivos Shalom explains that the mitzva of counting
Omer is that this is the time of year when we move from the 49th
level of impurity of Egypt and rise to the level of holiness to receiving the
Torah on Shavuos. In fact the word sefor- to count is also the same word as sapphire-
that precious clear gem that we are told is under the throne of Hashem. Now how
can someone so low and so dirty and tamei rise so high? The only way is if
there is help from Hashem behind us. Pushing us. Inspiring us. Giving us the
strength and fortitude to rise and grow. That special gift is the gift of
Shabbos.
Shabbos we are all blessed with this divine light that
pushes higher week to week that comes from Hashem. Pesach is the epitome of
that divine intrevnetion. Our Exodus from Mitzrayim was all from that special
leap Hashem made skipping over our sins and bring us under His wings. With that
strength we move forward. We move to Sinai. Each Shabbos we get that gift again
and again. It is the light of Creation renewed. So as a result of that each day
of Omer we recognize where we have the strength to go forward week to week
from. It is the power of Shabbos, our precious sapphire that we count from to
bring us to the day when we will god willing once again merit that special
revelation.
RABBI SCHWARTZ'S ERA’S AND THEIR PLACES AND PEOPLE IN
ISRAEL OF THE WEEK
King Asa of Yehuda -740 BC The victory against Zerah the
Kushite brought peace to the land for 35 years. The Jews celebrated in Jerusalem
sacrificing 7000 sheep and 7000 goats! Woah… Talk about a Yom Ha’Atzmaut
Barbeque. Ok it wasn’t exactly Independence Day, rather it was Shavuos and the
Jews from the north started to trickle down to be Oleh Regel and to join once
again in the good times. This of course concerned Baasha, the King of the
North. And so they went to war.
Now although Asa had seemingly experienced Divine intervention
in the past, yet perhaps time had weakened his faith. Baasha had made a
treaty with Ben Hadad, the King of Aram which was in Damascus. So
rather than go heads up against the two of them, Asa made the royal
error- which only kings can- and went to Ben Hadad and bribed him to
break his treaty with Baasha. A true busha. Imagine Jews bribing gentile
arabs to break their treaties so that other Jews could attack them. But that’s
what happened. They broke the treaty and Asa attacked the Northern cities of Dan,
Iyun, and Avel Beit Maacha and wiped them out and destroyed their
temples.
For those that like the tour part of this column. Dan is of
course by Tel Dan. Iyun is the great Tanur waterfall right
outside of Metulla which gets its water from Lebanon and is one
of the highest in Israel. And Tel Avel Beit Maacha is right
around the corner from it right outside Kiryat Shmona although there’s
really not much to see there.
Baasha
realizing that he can’t fight on two fronts retreats down to his capital of Tirtza
abandoning as well the area near Nebi Samuel of Rama and Asa as
well destroys those temples and with the wood and stones he built Geva
Binyamin and Mitzpa. Today Geva Binyamin is the official name
of the settlement known as Adam in Binyamin. It is adjacent to
the arab village Jebba nearby where the original tel is found. In fact
the original walls built by Asa described in our verse are still found there! Mitzpa
nearby is either Nebi Samuel or the arab village of tel al natzba.
Yet despite these great victories the Navi Hanani tells Asa that
he has angered Hashem for his lack of faith. Rather he persecuted the bearer of
bad news Hanani. As well he made a forcible draft of newlyweds and
yeshiva students, which is never a good thing to do. Newly weds are biblically
exempt from battles and yeshiva students provide the power of Torah that allows
us to win our battles. These are lessons that unfortunately many Israeli
governments forget.
Asa’s
long reign that had so much potential ends with this tragedy. He becomes sick
he is paralyzed from his feet and up and dies and is buried in the City of
David. His belongings are all burned so that no one else could use them.
And the cycle of civil war does not end but even ups itself as the next stage
of descendants and kings take over.
RABBI SCHWARTZ’S TERRIBLE REFUGEE JOKES OF THE WEEK
What's the difference between a
refugee and E.T? E.T learned English and wanted to go home.
I met a refugee on the bus today.
"What country are you
from?" I asked.
"Iraq" he said.
"How did you escape?" I
asked.
IRAN
An Afghan soldier called me
earlier and told me he was in a refugee camp......but when he told it to me, he
said he was caught between Iraq and a hard place.
Why are refugees so bad at
baseball? Because they can't get home
How does Germany pay for all
these refugees it’s taken in ? Krautfunding.
A refugee who recently snuck over the border is sitting in the
street in Mexico in the streets of Texas, bemoaning his life, when suddenly, a
genie appears.
"I'm the socialist, liberal genie," says he, "and I'm here to grant you three wishes."
The refugee says "You see this gap in my teeth? I want it
fixed." No sooner does he say that, that he gets a copy of a new law,
decreeing that all refugees in the US will get free health and dental care,
courtesy of the state. He ran to the dentist and got his teeth fixed for free.
He is ecstatic, and says "I want a fully furnished
house, endless money and to be reunited with my family."
No sooner does he say this, that a new law is passed,
guaranteeing all refugees to the USA a fully furnished new home, welfare, and
reunification with their families. And in his hands were a deed to his new
home, and refugee papers for his family.
The man is stunned. He had gotten everything he wanted, and
still had a wish left. So he said "I want to be a US citizen. In fact,
I want to be named Billy." And as soon as he said that, his teeth went
back to having a gap, and his house and family disappeared.
"What happened?!" he yelled.
"What do you mean, 'what happened'?" replied
the genie. "You're an American now. You should be ashamed, trying to
live off of government money. Go get a job, Billy!
About
a month ago, a man in Amsterdam felt that he needed to confess.
So
he went to his priest, "Forgive me Father, for I have sinned. During
WWII I hid a Jewish refugee in my attic."
"Well," answered the priest, "that's not a sin."
"But
I made him agree to pay me 20 Guilders for every week he stayed."
"I
admit that wasn't good, but you did it for a good cause."
"Oh,
thank you, Father; that eases my mind. I have one more question..."
"What
is that, my son?"
"Do
I have to tell him the war is over?”
Sam Levinson, the famous Jewish comedian told
this story: When his parents were immigrants, escaping the prejudice of
war-torn Europe, they fell under the spell of the American dream that the
streets were paved with gold.
“When pop got here, he found three things:
First, the streets weren't paved with gold… Second, the streets were not even
paved. And third, he was supposed to do the paving.”
local Aliyah ambassador from the Israeli
government was noticing that the response to his usual “pitch” about moving to
Israel was having limited effect so he decided to change tactics.
“Instead of talking about Israel today, I
am going to talk about nutrition and health.” Said the Aliyah representative.
“Here is a summary of the latest medical findings:
The Japanese eat very little fat and suffer
fewer heart attacks than do the British or Americans.
On the other hand the French eat a lot of fat
and also suffer fewer heart attacks than the British or Americans.
The Japanese drink very little red wine and suffer
fewer heart attacks than the British or Americans.
At the same time Italians drink excessive
amounts of red wine and also suffer fewer heart attacks than the British or
Americans. As well the Germans drink a lot of beer and eat lots of sausages and
fats and suffer fewer heart attacks than the British or Americans.
My conclusion: Eat and drink what you like. Move to Israel and learn to speak Hebrew. Speaking English is apparently what kills you.”
********************************
Answer is D -I have never even heard the term Machtesh Hatira. The three incredible craters in Israel, our “Grand Canyons” are Machtesh Ha’Gadol, Ha’Katan and the largest is Machtesh Rimon. I knew they were formed by all of the above unique phenomena that were choices, I’ve seen the movie there tons of times- which is actually cool because it’s the only science museum I’ve ever been to that starts off Bereishis Bara Elokim- in the Beginning Hashem created the world! But Hatira? Never heard that name. I suspected it was one of the two that are in Sinai which I didn’t even know if they have names. But that’s not in Israel so therefore I didn’t go with them. I guessed Ha’Katan. But it turns out the correct answer was Ha’Gadol, which I didn’t even know had officially been renamed Machtesh Yerucham- to increase tourism to the city nearby. So I got it half right and the score is now Schwartz 21 and 5 for MOT (Ministry of Tourism) on this exam.
