Torat HaRav Aviner - The Nobel Prize

The Nobel Prize

Posted by Mordechai Friedfertig at 1:56 PM

Question: How should we relate to the Nobel Prize of the non-Jews? How should we relate to other prizes given out by non-Jews? Does a movie awarded an Oscar become a good and quality movie?
Answer: The non-Jews do not establish for us what is true and what is not, and they do not decide which movie is proper and which is not. The Torah is what decides which movie is good, clean, kosher and brings blessing. We received the Torah precisely for this reason. But our Sages do tell us (Eichah Rabbah 2:13): "Do not believe the Torah among the non-Jews, but do believe wisdom among the non-Jews." They possess the ability to teach scientific knowledge. See the Maharal at length in Netivot Olam, Netiv Ha-Torah (chap, 14) for the difference between Torah and wisdom. Science describes reality, and the non-Jews are able to understand this realm. The Torah describes what this world should be from an ethical, and we understand this realm. In this area, we need to give approval regarding what is proper and what is not.

Question: A scientist from the Weizman Institute won the Nobel Prize in the area of Bio-Chemistry. What does this say to us? Should we be happy?
Answer: We should certainly be happy. Although many Jews have won the Nobel Prize, we are now not only speaking about Jews but about the State of Israel. This is another indication that the Nation of Israel is returning to the Land of Israel. We are strengthening ourselves in Torah as well as in needed non-holy areas. Hashem has decided to revive our Nation in our Land. We are returning to Zion and building the Land. We established the State and the army. There is therefore also a need for non-holy matters. Non-holy matters are obviously not enough and holy matters are above them, but the non-holy is also important. The non-holy and holy are like the relationship of the body and soul. The body needs the soul and the soul needs the body. The essence is the soul, but there is also a need to strengthen the physical side of the national revival.

Originally posted by Torat HaRav Aviner

Shir Ha-Ma'alot #25

Posted by Mordechai Friedfertig at 9:13 AM

30

Sep

2009

Magdil, Migdol
The same verse appears twice in the Tanach with a minor change. In the Book of Tehillim (18:51), it is written "Magdil" (meaning "He is magnifying [magdil] the salvation of His King [David]"), while in the Book of Shmuel (2 22:51) it says "Migdol" (meaning "He is a tower [migdol] of salvation to His King"). The Book of Shmuel is part of the "Prophets," which were said through prophecy. The Book of Tehillim is part of the "Writings," which were said through the Divine Spirit. Our Sages teach that there is a difference between "To David, a Psalm" and "A Psalm of David": "‘To David, a Psalm’ teaches that first the Divine Presence rested on him and then he recited that song; ‘A Psalm of David’ teaches that he first recited the Psalm and only then the Divine Presence rested on him" (Pesachim 117a). At times he began to sing and the Divine Presence rested on his song. This is the Divine Spirit. At other times, the Divine Presence rested on him, and, on account of this, we began to sing. This is prophecy. Our Rabbi, Rav Tzvi Yehudah Kook, therefore explained that on the days of holiness like Shabbat and holidays, we use the more exalted version, "Migdol," and on weekdays the simpler version, "Magdil." The meaning of "Magdil" is that the Master of the Universe is the One who brings about the process of the magnification of the Salvation. "Migdol," is that He, may He be blessed, is the Infinite Essence of greatness.

Originally posted by Torat HaRav Aviner

Torat HaRav Aviner - Amount of sacrifices when the Temple is rebuilt

Amount of sacrifices when the Temple is rebuilt

Posted by Mordechai Friedfertig at 1:48 AM

25

Sep

2009

Q: How many sacrifices will we need to bring for our transgressions when the Temple is rebuilt?
A: Immediately after the destruction of the Temple, it was thought that the Temple may soon be rebuilt and so each person would put the money aside for a sacrifice when he transgressed. The money then became mixed up with other money and was used for other purposes, and so people ceased putting the money aside. Therefore, when the Temple is rebuilt, we will be required to bring many Sin Offerings for our accidental transgressions.
In Shut Torah Lishma (#120), the Ben Ish Chai discussed the ruling of the Rama in the Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chaim 334:26) that if one desecrates Shabbat by accident, he should gives 18 "shekels" to Tzedakah in place of the "Korban Chatat" (Sin Offering). He was asked: If some gives the Tzedakah, will he still have to bring a Korban Chatat when the Temple is rebuilt? The Ben Ish Chai answered that the Gemara in Shabbat (12b) rules that it is forbidden to read by candle light on Shabbat lest one come to tilt the candle so that the oil flows to the wick and ignite the flame even more. Rabbi Yishmael ben Elisha said: I will read but I will not tilt it. He was once reading, and was about to tilt it - he said, how great are the words of the Sages, who forbade to read by a lamp! Rabbi Natan said that he actually did tilt the lamp and wrote in his diary: "'I, Yishmael ben Elisha, read by a lamp and tilted the Shabbat light, and when the Temple is rebuilt, I will bring a fat Korban Chatat." The Ben Ish Chai says that if it is enough to give Tzedakah in place of a Korban Chatat, why did Rabbi Yishmael ben Elisha wrote that he was obligated to bring a sacrifice in his diary?!
Our Sages also say (see Menachot 110a): Anyone who reads the section in the Torah about the Korban Chatat is considered as if he sacrificed it. The Ben Ish Chai says that it is considered as if he brought the sacrifice, not that he actually did so; and when the Temple is rebuilt, he will be obligated to bring it. See introduction to the book "Likutei Halachot" of the Chafetz Chaim who discussed this issue.
But we also need to understand that there are many conditions as to which transgressions require a Korban Chatat. Not every transgression requires a Korban Chatat. See the Rambam in Hilchot Shogagim for all of the conditions.
There will therefore be a lot of sacrifices, as it says: "Like the flock of sacrifices, like the flock of Jerusalem, in her holidays, so shall the destroyed cities be filled with flocks of men, and they will know that I am Hashem" (Yechezkel 36:38) – there are many Jews and many sacrifices. How will we solve all of the technical problems of having so many people and so many animals at the Temple? I do not know but we will solve them, but that is not the issue. The problem is: how do we reach the conditions for rebuilding the Temple: the Nation of Israel’s complete repentance?
In this context, it is worth mentioning what our Rabbi, Ha-Rav Tzvi Yehudah, related about the book "Likutei Halachot" of the Chafetz Chaim which is like the "Mishnah Berurah" for sacrifices in the Temple. The Chafetz Chaim asked his close friend Ha-Gaon Ha-Rav Eliyahu David Rabinowitz-Te'omim, Ha-Aderet – the Rav of Ponovezh and Maran Ha-Rav Kook's father-in-law – to write an approbation for the book. Ha-Aderet said to Maran Ha-Rav Kook: "I received a letter from Reb Yisrael Meir, the Chafetz Chaim, and he informed me that he is preparing to publish a sort of 'Mishnah Berurah' on sacrifices, and he asked me to write a letter of support and an approbation. I want to honor his request immediately, without delay. But you see that it is impossible, because of the great Rabbinic demands of a big city which leaves me absolutely no time to rest. I am therefore asking you do me this favor: You write it. What you write will be in my spirit, and it will be as if I wrote it." Maran Ha-Rav Kook prepared the letter for him and gave it to him to sign. Within the lengthy letter, full of feelings of holiness for the expectation of Salvation, preparations for the Temple and the sacrifices, he brought a teaching of our Sages: "Rabbi Yochanan said: The Torah scholars who engaged in the Laws of the Temple Service are considered as if they build the Temple in their days." But we must understand what being "engaged" in the Laws of the Temple Service means. It is not simply reciting it, as printed in the Siddurim. Our Sages used the word "engaged in," i.e. to learn the subject with depth and toil in the manner of Torah scholar to elucidate the Halachah. Ha-Aderet said to Maran Ha-Rav Kook: How can I sign when you added your own teaching? How can I be a thief? Ha-Aderet therefore added before the innovative explanation: "And his honor, the well-known Gaon, who is praised, our teacher Ha-Rav Avraham Ha-Cohain, may his light illuminate, the Av Beit Din of Boisk, pointed out to me..." The Aderet then signed the letter but it was written by Maran Ha-Rav Kook. And with Hashem's help, the "Mishnah Berurah" of sacrifices will be used as a halachic guide when the Temple is rebuilt and we bring all the required sacrifices.

Torat HaRav Aviner - Amount of sacrifices when the Temple is rebuilt

Haftarah for Rosh Hashanah

Posted by Mordechai Friedfertig at 2:02 PM

16

Sep

2009

The Prince of Hope

[Shmuel 1 1-2]

The Haftarah for the first day of Rosh Hashanah describes the birth of the prophet Shmuel, the great judge who saved the Nation of Israel from a period of terrible darkness. What a dreadful period of "When the judges judged" (Rut 1:1), which is explained by our Sages: "Woe to the generation when their judges are judged" (Bereshit Rabbah 42:4).

But relax, the judges did not commit any shameful transgressions, rather they simply despaired of that generation. Instead of rolling up their shelves and traveling throughout the entire length and breathe of the Land to teach Torah and ethical behavior, they preferred to lock themselves in their ivory tower. They were convinced that the spiritual struggle was lost from the outset (see Yalkut Shimoni, Shoftim 68).

They were certainly many reasons to despair from the Nation of Israel, who was ripped asunder by civil war as in the case of the prostitute in Givah (Shoftim 19-20), and also by the spiritual corruption of idol worship such as in the case of the idol of Michah in the northern part of Israel (Shoftim 17-18). The result was that the enemies of Israel routed them and cruelly ruled over large parts of Eretz Yisrael.

Out of this darkness shone the light of the spiritual giant, the prophet Shmuel, who succeeded in bringing the Nation of Israel back to the proper path, while liberating us from our permanent enemy: the Philistines. Furthermore, he prepared the kingship of Israel, the kingship of Shaul which laid the groundwork for the permanent kingship of David. This is the great message he gave to us: Never despair (see Maamrei Ha-Re'eiyah, p. 450).

But who fashioned the wonderful personality of this judge and prophet? As in many cases, it was his parents. His mother, Chanah, is famous enough that there is no need to describe her spiritual level. But his father, Elkanah, was also a spiritual giant. What do we know about him? Only one thing: "This man would ascend from his city every year to prostrate himself and to bring sacrifices to Hashem, Master of Legions, in Shiloh, and the two sons of Eli, Chofni and Phinchas, were cohanim to Hashem there" (Shmuel 1 1:3). On the face of it, this verse seems quite ordinary: the custom of that period was to visit the Mishkan on holidays. But there is actually a lot more to it. To understanding this verse, we turn to a story related by Ha-Rav Moshe Tzvi Neriyah about Maran Ha-Rav Kook, the first Rabbi of the reviving Jewish community in Israel.

A Torah scholar who made aliyah from America came to Maran Ha-Rav Kook and complained about the state of Judaism in the Land of Israel. He was so distressed that he was considering leaving Israel. Maran Ha-Rav Kook said to him: Doesn't your honor remember the learning of his youth? The Book of Shmuel relates about Elkanah: "This man would ascend from his city every year to prostrate himself and to bring sacrifices to Hashem, Master of Legions, in Shiloh, and the two sons of Eli, Chofni and Phinchas, were cohanim to Hashem there." Rav Kook asked two questions about this verse: 1. Why are we told in this verse that Chofni and Phinchas were there? 2. Our Sages say that Elkanah would not only go up to Shiloh, he would go around and encourage others to do so as well. Why did he have to do this? After all, isn’t ascending to the Mishkan on the holidays a Torah mitzvah? Why weren't people following this mitzvah? Rav Kook explains that the first question is in fact the answer to the second question. The fact that Chofni and Phinchas were the cohanim in Shiloh caused people not to make the pilgrimage there, since they were corrupt. People said that if there were cohanim like this in this holy place, it was better not to go and see this ugliness and meet such sinners. Elkanah then came and convinced them that despite the sons of Eli and despite the sins at this holy place, they should not give up on this mitzvah of Hashem. They should strengthen this holy place. Right now there are not great people there, but later there will be. Do not give up because of the difficulties. As a reward for this act, Elkanah was blessed with a son, the prophet Shmuel, who served in the Mishkan. Rav Kook said to the Torah scholar that the same applies in relation to the holiness of the Land of Israel. Why are you mad at the Land of Israel? There are problems, therefore exert yourself and everything will work out. Although there are sinners, this is not a reason not to make aliyah and, all the more so, not to leave the Land of Israel. The more people committed to the Torah and mitzvot in the Land of Israel, the more holiness will be added to it (Chayei Ha-Re'eiyah pp. 211-212).

This story from Maran Ha-Rav Kook's life provides us with deep understanding and an important contemporary lesson. The Nation sometimes loses its path, but we are told to act like Elkanah, who guided the Nation to follow him to the Mishkan on the holidays (Yerushalami Berachot at the end of chap. 9). But, make no mistake about it, Elkanah did not spend time giving speeches on proper behavior. In his commentary on the Jerusalem Talmud, Rabbi Eliezer Azkari, who was one of the leading sages in Tzefat during its golden period, explains that Elkanah had an influence on those of his generation mainly by his example: he would go up to Shiloh with such excitement, cleaving to Hashem and joy that it awakened a desire among others to join him. He loved the Nation of Israel, and respected it despite what he saw, and he was therefore successful in sharing his unshakeable faith with them. In the end, he merited a son who followed his path: he brought the Nation of Israel from darkness to great light.

Originally posted by Torat HaRav Aviner

Before You Go to Sleep

Posted by Mordechai Friedfertig at 10:12 PM

15

Sep

2009

What do you do before you go to sleep? Romance, gentle words, sweet words, loving words?
Perhaps you will say: We are grown up already, it is not right for us. We are embarrassed. Incorrect! It is definitely correct.
Perhaps you will say: We are tired, we work hard, we fall off our feet, we don't have time. Incorrect! You have time. Do you also not have time to live? This is life.
Perhaps you will say: We had a fight today, like all days. We are experts in creating disputes, so we don't have the heart to be loving to one another. Incorrect! On the contrary, before you go to sleep, make up.
Perhaps you will say: It is already too late… Than it is even better, even more romantic. This is how you will have pleasant dreams, since reality is even sweeter than dreams.

Originally posted byTorat HaRav Aviner

Parashat Netzavim-Vayelech

Posted by Mordechai Friedfertig at 8:51 PM

08

Sep

2009

How will the Redemption from Exile occur?
[Tal Chermon pp. 348-350]

The later authorities disagree about this question. Some explain that the Redemption will come from Hashem and not through our own hands. We must sit, do nothing and wait until Hashem saves us. The Satmar Rebbe even explains that any act on our part to hasten the Redemption is considered a rebellion, expressing a lack of faith in and denial of Hashem. Any success (such as declaring the State of Israel, winning the wars, etc.) is an "act of Satan." Chabad expresses this idea in a less harsh manner: we did not go to into the Exile willingly, and we will not leave it on our own initiative (Sichot of the last Lubavitcher Rebbe, 3 Tammuz 5714). This does not mean that it is forbidden for an individual to make aliyah, but only that it is not the proper path for the entire Nation of Israel. Other Sages, however, hold that Hashem redeems us through our own hands and actions. Hashem uses us as emissaries to redeem His Nation.

A second dispute which is related to the first is whether or not the Redemption is dependent on our repentance. According to all opinions, the Nation of Israel will repent in the time of the Redemption. The question is, however, whether repentance is a pre-condition for Redemption or whether Redemption can occur before the complete repentance of the Nation of Israel (see the dispute between Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Yehoshua – Sanhedrin 97b. And see Le-Netivot Yisrael vol. 1, p. 191).

When we look into our Torah portion, we see that chapter 30 describes the process of Redemption and repentance:
Verses 1-2 – "And you will take it to heart…and you will return unto Hashem, your G-d, and obey His voice according to all that I command you" – repentance.

3-4 - "And then Hashem, your G-d, will return your captivity…and gather you…If your dispersed will be at the ends of heaven…" – Redemption.

5 - And Hashem, your G-d, will bring you to the Land…and you will possess it, and He will do good to you and multiply you…" – Redemption.

6 - "And Hashem your G-d, will circumcise your heart to love Hashem" – repentance.

7- "And Hashem, your G-d, will put all these curses on your enemies" – Redemption.

8 – "And you will return and obey the voice of Hashem and perform all His commandments" – repentance.

9 – "And Hashem will make you abundant in all your handiwork…for good" – Redemption.

10 – If you will listen…if you return to Hashem, your G-d, with all your heart and all your soul" – repentance.

There seems to be an intermingling of Redemption and repentance. What we see is in fact three things: 1. Gradual repentance. 2. Gradual Redemption. 3. The processes of Repentance and Redemption in stages one after the other (Akeidat Yitzchak – Sha'ar Ha-Meah).

The stages of Redemption are: Gathering of the Exiles and the Return to Zion (3-4), possession of and building the Land (5), military-political success (7) and economic success (9).

The stages of Repentance are: Beginning with the second stage: "And Hashem your G-d, will circumcise you heart to love Hashem" – removing the obstacles and the confusion from our hearts or, in the words of Onkelos (Aramaic translation), the "foolishness of the heart." We have to understand that this Divine act is accomplished through human beings. Just as it is clear to us that the guarantee of economic success does not contradict our going out to the field to work in order to help fulfill Hashem's promise, so too do we have to realize that the same is true of spiritual repentance. It is accomplished by educators, by people convincing others and speaking with others in their own language and style. It is impossible to approach a Charedei Jew from Hungary in the same way in which one approaches a so-called "secular" Jew. There is a style for the fathers and there is a style for the sons: "And he will turn the heart of the fathers to the sons and the heart of the sons to their fathers" (Malachi 3:24). The fathers must understand the holiness that is in the sons, no less than the sons must understand the value of the fathers. It once happened that a Rabbi visited a community outside of Israel and saw a poster which read: "And he will turn the heart of the sons to their fathers." He asked: "Where is the other part of the verse?" They responded to him: "Why is it needed? The fathers are fine, the hearts of the sons are what must change." But the prophet Malachi seems to think otherwise. He sets the turning of the fathers' hearts to the sons first, for as a result of this the sons will turn to the fathers. Nonetheless, the repentance described in this stage is not performed to fulfill the mitzvot but rather to come closer to faith in Hashem. The next stage is fulfilling the mitzvot (v. 8) – only after respect and love are entrenched in one's heart does the learning and fulfillment come (Orot Ha-Teshuvah, Tosafot Ha-Teshuvah 8). And the last stage – love of Hashem, returning to Hashem "with all your heart and all your soul," means a supreme cleaving to the Divine. And what about the first stage? It seems to contradiction what we have said since at the beginning it says "and you will return unto Hashem, your G-d, and obey His voice according to all that I command you." The difference is that the first stage is repentance unto Hashem, while the last stage is repentance to Hashem. Repentance unto Hashem is repentance out of fear. There is suffering in Exile. Israel therefore learns the lesson of blessing and curse. This, however, is physical, outer repentance caused by external factors. This is the return to Israel because the King's decrees are as harsh as Haman's, as the Gemara explains (Sanhedrin 97b). This is action without understanding, and perhaps without faith. "Unto Hashem," but not any further. The Nation of Israel returns to its language and Land without truly understanding the meaning of its actions (Orot Ha-Teshuvah 17, 2. And see Le-Netivot Yisrael p. 15 and "Ha-Medinah Ke-Hitkayamut Chazon Ha-Geulah," p. 188-190).

Only at the end of the processes of Redemption and repentance does the Nation of Israel reach complete repentance, repentance to Hashem, repentance out of love and repentance out of cleaving to Hashem.

Originally posted by Torat HaRav Aviner

Shir Ha-Ma'alot #22

Posted by Mordechai Friedfertig at 10:35 AM

"And may we find favor and good understanding in the eyes of God and man."

Both of them are needed. "This without that is not sufficient" (Niddah 70b). On the one hand, if a person only tries to find favor in the eyes of people, in a superficial, sociable manner, and he forgets the absolute Divine truth, in the end his life will be devoid of true content. On the other hand, if he only operates based on what he believes to be the opinion of Hashem, but people do not approve of him, this is also a bad sign, because he does not know how to point the way to the truth. Obviously what is explicit in Halachah does not require the approval of people. But for a person who chooses a path for himself to follow in life, it is incumbent upon him to be extremely particular that people do not speak ill of him. Our Sages say that if a "Ben Torah" (a Jew who lives according to the dictates of the Torah) does not speak pleasantly and does not conduct business honestly, people say about him: "Woe to him who learned Torah. Woe to his father who taught him Torah. This man who learned Torah, look how corrupt are his deeds and how ugly his ways" – This is the definition of desecrating God’s Name. But if he speaks pleasantly with people and conducts business honestly, people say about him: "Fortunate is his father who taught him Torah. Fortunate is his teacher who taught him Torah. Woe to people who have not learned Torah. This man learned Torah, look how fine are his deeds and how proper his ways" - This is the definition of sanctifying God’s Name (Yoma 86a).

Originally posted by Torat HaRav Aviner

TV

Posted by Mordechai Friedfertig at 9:13 PM

27

Aug

2009

Q: What is Ha-Rav's opinion on having a television in one's home?
A: There are three problems with television:
1. Television is a snake. It is true that there are good things on television but there are also bad things. The problem is that when people start to watch TV, they cannot stop. They begin watching good programs but then watch inappropriate things, such as violence, stupidity, etc. It is similar to cigarettes and alcohol: people cannot overcome bad behavior. A study was done and people were asked: do you watch stupid things on TV? This means that they themselves considered the programs to be stupid. 60% answered that they watch stupid programs. They were then asked: if you are watching an intelligent program and it is follow by a stupid program, do you have the strength to stop watching? 90% answered that they continue to watch. People are not strong by nature.
2. In many homes where there is a TV, there is no family life. People do not talk to one another. Parents do not talk to their children, and spouses do not talk.
3. One who watches TV is passive. You are not thinking or using your intellect. You are just watching, watching, watching and watching.
Therefore, TV does not contribute positively to humanity. It is not only a problem for Judaism, but for all humanity.
[note: In Shut Teshuvot Ve-Hanhagot (1:368), Ha-Rav Moshe Sternbuch was asked by a Ba'al Teshuvah (newly-observant person) who was still living at his parents' home: it is permission to break my parents' television set? Ha-Rav Sternbuch begins by saying that watching TV is very destructive, leads to many transgressions and he should do everything in his power to stop his family from watching TV.
Regarding damaging the TV, he notes that there is a dispute between the Ketzot Ha-Choshen (known as the "Ketzos" in the Yeshiva world) and the Netivot Ha-Mishpat (known as "Nesivos) (Choshen Mishpat 3) if the halachah that one may stop someone from violating a prohibition by force applies to each individual or only to Beit Din (Jewish court). He rules that it applies to a Beit Din. And, even according to the opinion that it applies to an individual, one cannot take away someone else's money without a ruling from a Beit Din.
He also points to the Gemara in Berachot (20a) that one of the Rabbis ripped off a red garment from a woman in the street because it was immodest. Although the Gemara praises him, he himself seems to say at the end that he should not have been so hasty. Furthermore, Rachel stole Lavan's idols, but Yaakov Avinu apparently did not approve of such behavior and declared that whoever stole them will die, and this is indeed was happened to Rachel.
Ha-Rav Shternbuch concludes that no action should be taken without consulting a Rav since more damage than good may come out of it. It is best to explain to them the destructive effects of TV and try to persuade them with kind words.]

Originally posted by Torat HaRav Aviner

Torat HaRav Aviner: The State of Israel & rebelling against the nations

The State of Israel & rebelling against the nations

Posted by Mordechai Friedfertig at 5:26 AM

20

Aug

2009

Q: How was it possible to establish the State of Israel when the Gemara (Ketubot 111a) says that it is forbidden to rebel against the nations of the world?
A: While the Gemara in Ketubot does mention the prohibition of rebelling against the nations of the world, it is not found in the law codes – not in the Rambam or the Shulchan Aruch. There are two possibilities why this is so: 1. It is a dispute and we did not hold this way (Our Rabbi, Ha-Rav Tzvi Yehudah, Le-Netivot Yisrael, vol. 2, p. 217). 2. This is not a legal (halachic) issue but a homilectic (aggadic issue) (see Shut Avnei Nezer, Yoreh Deah #454 and Ha-Rav Menachem Kasher's "Ha-Tekufah Ha-Gedolah," p. 187).
There is a commentary to the Rambam's Sefer Ha-Mitzvot called "Megillat Ester" by Ha-Rav Yitzchak Leon and he did in fact write that it is forbidden to conquer Eretz Yisrael since it is it is forbidden to rebel against the nations of the world. He argued with the Ramban who said that it is a mitzvah to conquer the Land of Israel throughout all generations (Additions to the Sefer Ha-Mitzvot, positive mitzvah #4). It is thus a dispute between the Ramban and the author of "Megillat Ester." According to the general rules of deciding Halachah, we must follow one of them. The Ramban is well-known to all and there are many of his rulings in the Shulchan Aruch, while there is not even one law from the "Megillat Esther." Furthermore, the Rambam did not cite the Gemara that it is forbidden to rebel against the nations of the world.
Ha-Rav Meir Simchah – the Or Sameach – wrote in a letter of support for "Keren Ha-Yesod" ("The Foundation Fund" established to raise money and invest in the Jewish Homeland) that even according to one who claims that there is a prohibition to rebel against the nations of the world, we did not rebel or take the Land by force since the British gave us the Land. And after the British gave us the Land, the Arabs attacked us. We did not rebel against them, they came and attacked us. By permission of the nations of the world in the Balfour Declaration, San Remo and the UN vote, the prohibition fell even according to those who claim that such a prohibition existed.

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Torat HaRav Aviner: The State of Israel & rebelling against the nations

When is the Messiah Coming?

Posted by Mordechai Friedfertig

["Be-Ahavah U-Be-Emunah" – Balak 5769 – translated by R. Blumberg]

If someone tells me that the Messiah is coming on a particular day, I won't believe him. Rather, today, like every other day, I will wait for him, because, "I firmly believe in the coming of the Messiah, and although he may tarry, I daily wait for his coming” (Number 12 of Rambam’s Thirteen Principles of Faith).

And if today passes without his coming, I will then know that this was not the day, and I will wait for him tomorrow, and every other day. The Rabbis said, “Come and listen: If someone says, ‘I hereby declare myself a Nazarite on the day that the son of David arrives,’ he is then allowed to drink wine on Shabbat and festivals, and he is forbidden to drink wine on weekdays” (Eruvin 43a-b; Rambam, Hilchot Nezirut 4:11).

If by ten years from now, the Messiah has not yet arrived, I will continue to put on tefillin, to eat kosher food and to keep the Sabbath. I will continue to wait for his arrival, and I won't engage in calculations. “Believing in the Messiah means believing and saying that he is going to come, and not thinking that he is going to delay. ‘If he delays, wait for him’ (Habakuk 2:3). One should not set a time for him to arrive nor seek logical Biblical proofs of when that will occur. The Rabbis said, ‘blast the spirit of those who calculate the end.’” (Sanhedrin 92b, Rambam’s introduction to Perek Chelek, 12th foundation).

And if in thirty years he has not yet arrived, I will continue to send my children to religious elementary schools, and I will still go to services and learn Torah. I will continue to wait, with absolute faith, for “Rabbi Shmuel bar Nachmeni said in the name of Rabbi Yonatan: Blast the bones of those who calculate the end, for they would say: ‘Since that deadline has passed without the Messiah coming, he is not going to come any more.’ Rather, we must wait for him, as it says, ‘If he tarries, wait for him.’ Now one might ask, ‘We are waiting for him, but is G-d not waiting for him?’ It therefore says, ‘And therefore will the L-rd wait, that He may be gracious unto you, and therefore will He be exalted, that He may have compassion upon you’ (Yeshayahu 30:18). Now, since we are waiting and He is waiting, what is holding it up? Strict Justice is holding it up. Yet since it is being held up, why should we wait? To receive reward, as it says, ‘Happy are all those who wait for him’ (ibid.).” (Sanhedrin 97b).

And if by eighty years from now the Messiah is not yet here, I will continue to build Eretz Yisrael, the State of Israel, the army of Israel, and I will know that there is much more I must do for all these, and then the Messiah will come. “A king once got angry at his sheep, and he dismantled the pen and removed the sheep and the shepherd. Sometime later he restored the sheep and rebuilt the pen, but he did nothing regarding the shepherd. The shepherd said, ‘The sheep are restored and the pen is rebuilt, but I have not been recalled.’ The same applies in our case. It says, ‘For G-d will save Zion and build the cities of Judah, and they shall abide there and have it in possession. The seed also of His servants shall inherit it, and they that love His name shall dwell therein’ (Tehillim 69:36-37). Surely the pen is rebuilt and the flocks are back, but the shepherd (David) has not been recalled. Tehillim therefore continues, ‘[A Psalm] of David; to make memorial. O G-d, to deliver me’ (70:1).” (Rashi, ad. loc.). The Messiah comes at the end.

And if in 130 years he has not yet arrived, I will continue to arouse the Jews to move quickly to Israel. And if they say, “We are waiting for the Messiah, and then we will move to Jerusalem,” I will answer, “You sin and make others sin out of malice, and you do enormous damage, for in the meantime Jews assimilate or are murdered. For ‘it won’t be time for the Messiah’s arrival until the Jews pine for him and say, ‘He’s near!’ or ‘he’s far!’ (Rambam’s Igerot Kiddush Hashem, Mossad HaRav Kook 66-67). We wait for the Messiah every day, so come today!”

And if he has not yet arrived by 230 years from now (the Hebrew year 5999), they will say to me, “Be ready for the Messiah’s arrival, for he will come in the year 6000, as our Sages said, ‘The world shall last for six thousand years, consisting of two thousand years of chaos, two thousand years of Torah and two thousand years of the Messiah’ (Sanhedrin 97a-b), and unfortunately the results were what they were.” Then I will answer them, ‘I am preparing myself for the Messiah’s arrival now, and not in the year 6000. I recall what happened in the Hebrew date of 5600 (called “tav resh”, i.e., 1840) when rumors spread throughout the Jewish People that the Messiah was coming, based on the verse, “The sound of the dove [tor – tav-vav-resh] is heard in our land” (Shir Ha-Shirim 2:12). At that time, the rabbi of the Warsaw Jewish Community, Rabbi Yaakov Gezundheit, ascended the dais on Rosh Hashanah with a sefer Torah in his hands, and he swore that the Messiah would not come that year. Apparently he feared that people would once more go crazy as they had in 1648 when it was prophesied that the Messiah would come. What followed instead were the pogroms of the wicked Bogdan Chmielnicki in 1648 and 1649, and the episode of Shabtai Zvi, who filled the breach and gained many adherents. You will certainly ask, “And what would the rabbi have done had the Messiah indeed arrived that year?” Have no fear! Questions of that sort our Rabbis know how to answer… If the Messiah does not come by 6001, I will not despair. I will remember that Rambam did not rule that 6000 is the deadline for the Messiah’s arrival (Hilchot Melachim 12:2). Perhaps he holds that that source is just a parable or the opinion of only one rabbi, and not the majority view, and I will continue to wait for the Messiah every day.

And if the Messiah has not yet arrived by 6100, that will not wear me down. Rather, I will devote all my physical and mental energies to serving G-d, and that is what is most important. Rambam wrote, “One should not dwell too much on midrashim dealing with the Messiah. One should not treat them as the essence, for they lead neither to increased love or fear of G-d. Neither should one calculate the end of days. Our Sages said, ‘Blast the minds of those who calculate the end.’ Rather, one should wait and believe in the principle of there being a Messiah” (Rambam, Melachim 12:2). “I daily wait for his coming.”

And if by 6200 the Messiah has not yet arrived, I will continue to keep Torah and mitzvoth, to love the people of Israel and the State of Israel, to build a family and to go to the army. If I have waited so long for the Messiah, I will continue to wait daily for his arrival.

And when he finally comes, in the year 6999… I will greet him with tears, and I will recite a blessing, “Blessed be G-d, who bestowed His glory on flesh and blood. Blessed be He who bestowed His glory on those who fear Him, blessed is the Wise Knower of Secrets, blessed be He who has sustained us and brought us to this time.” And I will immediately set out for my army unit, without waiting for the orders (see Rambam, ibid., 11:4).

At last! The Messiah’s arrival! We waited so long! Yet it actually feels like a short time. So much do I crave his coming that the wait feels like just a few days. I can hear the sound of the great Shofar. I see Elijah the Prophet. He will say, “Thank you for the generations you waited daily. His arrival is thanks to you.” “Happy are all those who wait for him.”

taken from Torat HaRav Aviner

Our Rabbi, Ha-Tzvi Yehudah Ha-Cohain Kook, on Jerusalem, the Temple Mount and the Temple

Posted by Mordechai Friedfertig

[From Sefer Le-Mikdashech Tuv, pp. 11-14 unless noted otherwise]

A student related: When I asked our Rabbi the well-known question whether the content of the prayer "Nachem," which is recited on Tisha Be-Av [in the Shemoneh Esrei in the prayer for rebuilding Jerusalem,] is speaking falsely in our time because of the passages of the "bitterness of our situation," he responded: "Jerusalem is still scorned and desolate, since the essence of Jerusalem is the Temple. Furthermore, the Old City of Jerusalem is in a state of desolation without inhabitants. It is impossible to approach the Old City and see piles of stones of synagogues and not burst into weeping!" (Sichot Ha-Rav Tzvi Yehudah, addendum at the end of the talk "U-le-minim al tehi tikvah - And for the slanderers let there be no hope").

When I came to request permission and a blessing from our Rabbi (see Sanhedrin 5b, Eruvin 63a and Rambam, Hilchot Talmud Torah 5:3) in order to establish a yeshiva in the heart of the Jerusalem, he rejoiced with great joy and encouraged me.

In the twilight of his years, when I asked him - in the name of my colleagues - if we should request that the guarding of the gates of the Temple Mount be placed in the hands of Tzahal and not in the hands of non-Jews, he did not see this as a pressing matter; he responded: "Slowly, slowly [Redemption arrives]" (see Jerusalem Talmud Yoma 3:2).

When I continued and asked if should we request the presence of our army on the Temple Mount, he again cooled with his glance what he considered as an impure burning desire and said sternly: "Slowly, slowly [redemption arrives]."

At the same meeting, when I mustered the courage, I asked - in the name of my colleagues who greatly pressed me to do so - if should we request that the flag of the State of Israel be flown on the Temple Mount, he looked at me with a dreadful glance of pain and amazement that I had sunk so low to the point of asking such questions, and he said forcefully: "We will raise a banner in the Name of our G-d!" (Tehillim 20:6). Despite this, "It is Torah and I need to learn it" (Berachot 62a), I therefore asked again, "Certainly, we will raise a banner in the Name of our G-d, but won't it be by way of the flag of the State of Israel?" Our Rabbi patiently repeated: "I told you: we will raise a banner in the Name of our G-d," with his absolute rejection of all the comparisons between any infringement of the holiness of the Temple Mount and the building of the Land of Israel.

At the end of this meeting, I told our Rabbi how we are continuing with the acts of redeeming the heart of Jerusalem, house after house, and then the stern and dreadful facial expression disappeared, and a full smile of eternal kindness enlightened his face. When I detailed the names of the streets, he said that I need not bother, because all of these places were etched in his memory from his youth.

A student was one scheduled to give our Rabbi a ride but was late because all of the traffic and expressed to distress. Our Rabbi said: On the contrary, I am happy that Jerusalem is filled with people.

When a Torah scholar brought to our Rabbi researchers of the Temple Mount, whose purpose was to identify the boundaries of the Temple, (since in their view it was permissible to enter there without fear of harming the sanctity of the Temple), our Rabbi said to the scholar: "What is all this for?!" He compared this to a rabbi who gathered many proofs for the existence of G-d, and the Aderet ztz"l [Rav Eliyahu David Rabinowitz-Teomim, former Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem and father-in-law of Maran Ha-Rav Kook], said about this rabbi’s book: "For what do we need proofs? (and he quoted the words of our Sages, "Any matter which is not clear, bring sources from the Talmud for it" - Jerusalem Talmud, Berachot 2:3, Eruvin 10:1). We believe in Hashem above all proofs" (Sichot Ha-Rav Tzvi Yehudah, sidra 2 Tazria, Parashat Ha-Chodesh 3-4; Emunah, sichah 15, 8). And so too in our matter: Behold, the Temple Mount’s boundary is surrounded by a wall. We do not traverse it, and we have no need for researchers.

After the liberation of the Old City during the Six-Day War, there were extensive excavations of the Kotel Tunnels, which extend under the Temple Mount. Ha-Rav Meir Yehudah Getz, Rav of the Kotel, asked our Rabbi, is it permissible to excavate under the Temple Mount to find the Temple implements? Our Rabbi answered, "No, do not dig." Our generation is still not ready to merit discovering the treasures of the Temple. (The book "Rav Ha-Kotel" p. 306)

When a Torah scholar mentioned to our Rabbi the custom of placing notes in the Kotel, our Rabbi said that one should not do this, and one should even refrain from putting one’s fingers into the Kotel [since it is forbidden for an impure person to enter the air of the Temple Mount in even the slightest way]. The Torah scholar said to him, but this is the custom of Israel [minhag Yisrael]. Our Rabbi responded, the word "minhag" [custom] contains the same letters as "gehinom" [purgatory].

When it became known to our Rabbi that archeological excavations were being performed under the Temple Mount, he responded with great distress: "What is all this for?! For what purpose should one fuss there?"

When they asked our Rabbi if there is a need to organize tours which encircle the Temple Mount in order to strengthen the fact that it belongs to us, he responded: "The Temple Mount is in our hands - there is no need for tours." They said to him that not everyone knows that the Temple Mount is ours. To this, he responded that if this is so, there is positive value in the tours in order to strengthen the proof of our ownership.

After the Six-Day War, when a Torah scholar and professor came to our Rabbi and asked him why he did not then begin to build the Temple, he responded, "The mitzvah of building the Kingdom of Israel takes precedence, according to the ruling of the Rambam at the beginning of the Laws of Kings" (Sichot Ha-Rav Tzvi Yehudah, chapters of Messiah 4, Talmud Torah 1 addendum 2). Later, this was extensively explained by our Rabbi in the article "From Behind the Wall" (Mei-Achar Kotleinu) in which he said that only after great improvement in the building of the Nation, both physically and spiritually, can we enter into the holiness of rebuilding the Temple (see Le-Netivot Yisrael vol. 1, #23).

When a delegation of public figures came to our Rabbi with the request to work as forcefully as possible against the threatened agreement which the Government of Israel was prepared to sign with the Country of Jordan, which included surrendering the Temple Mount to their control, our Rabbi reacted: "What about the entire Land of Israel?" They repeated their words many times, as did he.

After the Six-Day War, students approached our Rabbi and quoted the words of Rav Tzvi Hirsch Kalisher in the introduction to his book "Derishat Tzion" which repeats a tradition recorded in the name of the Vilna Gaon that if we will only leap and sacrifice one lamb, then everything will be ready for Redemption. They asked: perhaps it is proper to sacrifice one Pesach sacrifice? When our Rabbi heard this he became enraged: "We need to strengthen the Kingdom of Israel and return the Torah to those who learn it in Israel; to bring great repentance, and we will then ascend to the Temple Mount from the midst of this prophecy." He said these words emphatically and forcefully. (Le-Mikdashech Tuv, p. 180)

Blowing up the Dome of the Rock
After the Six-Day War, the Minister of Defense, Moshe Dayan, evacuated the non-Jews from the Jewish Quarter of the Old City. A few young men, who fought in the Jerusalem Brigade, felt that it was not enough, and they prepared explosives to blow up the mosques on the Temple Mount. They nonetheless went to take counsel with our Rabbi, who rejected the idea: This must come from the entire Nation, and not a part of it. They went to Reb Aryeh Levin, thinking that since he supported Etzel and Lechi before the establishment of the State, he would response positively; but he also rejected it for the same reason that there is a need for National agreement. He related a story, which our Rabbi would also relate, that a certain preacher would travel to different cities and encourage belief in false messianism, and he had a major influence. When Rav Chaim of Volozhin was informed that he was scheduled to speak on Shabbat in a particular community, he sent two messengers, who were to violate Shabbat to stop him, since it was a matter of life and death. They were successful. A rich non-Jew asked Rav Chaim if he had heard about the preacher and if, in his opinion, he was the Messiah. Rav Chaim responded: And what do you say? He answered: This has nothing to do with me. Rav Chaim said: You are wrong. When the Messiah comes even you will feel it.

The young men asked Reb Aryeh Levin, half in jest: If so, the building of the Temple also depends of the decision of the Knesset? He answered: It may be. (Iturei Cohanin #57 from Ha-Rav Avraham Remer)

taken from Torat HaRav Aviner

Shir Ha-Ma'alot #11

Posted by Mordechai Friedfertig at 8:46 AM

Please, make us not in need - Hashem, our God, of the gifts of human hands...

Do not live on the account of others. Do not spend money in an uncontrolled fashion, and afterwards search for "Gemachim" – societies to help the needy. Fix your expenses based on your income, and not the other way around. "The mind does not tolerate four types of people...a poor man who is arrogant" (Pesachim 113b), because he lives at a high standard beyond his means. Rav said to Rav Kahana, "Deal in carcasses in the market, and do not say, ‘I am a great man, I am Kahana’" (Pesachim 113a). "At all times one should hire himself out to ‘avodah zarah’ than be in need of the help of other people. He thought that ‘avodah zarah’ meant ‘idol worship’ [which is the usual meaning], but it is not so, it means [literally], ‘work which is strange to him’" (Baba Batra 110a). Do not take unemployment payments with the claim that they are offering you work that is beneath your honor. Working - this is honor. Even regarding Shabbat they say, "Treat your Shabbat like a weekday rather than be dependent of man" (Pesachim 112-113), i.e. eat simple food and do not take loans. Nevertheless, our Sages teach that the Holy One, Blessed be He, says, "My children, borrow for Me, and I will repay," but this is with the condition that he plans that he will have the money to repay the loan."

taken from : Torat HaRav Aviner

Shir Ha-Ma'alot #10

Posted by Mordechai Friedfertig at 8:46 AM

Third blessing of the Birkat Ha-Mazon

"David and Shlomo established the blessing of building Jerusalem" (Berachot 48b). What is the connection between a meal and building Jerusalem? Maran Ha-Rav Avraham Yitzhak Ha-Cohain Kook, explained that the act of eating cannot be reduced to the physical existence of the individual, and even to the building up of strength in order to build his Nation and his Land and to wage war for their sake; rather the higher goal needs to be the spiritual building of the Nation of Israel, which is defined by one word: Jerusalem! "David established the blessing of ‘Israel your Nation and of Jerusalem your City,’ and Shlomo established ‘On this great and holy House’" (ibid. pp. 364-365).

taken from : Torat HaRav Aviner

Is it permissible to kill a thief who breaks into your home?

Posted by Mordechai Friedfertig

[Opening words of Ha-Rav to his radio show]

Every child in nursery school should know that it is permissible to kill a thief if he is discovered while sneaking into one's home, since he may be willing to murder in order to carry out his plan (Shemot 22:1-2). It had already happened in the world. When the Torah says, "If the sun shone on him, there is blood-guilt," it means that if one is sure that the thief will not murder, then it is not permitted to kill him. It is not that you are permitted to kill him if you think he might murder, but the opposite – the presumption is that the thief will murder. After all, a thief is not the most righteous person of the generation. According to Halachah, it is therefore permissible to shoot a thief provided that there is not any contradictory evidence that he will not kill.

One can ask: Why don't we just give the thief the money and that is it? Will you kill someone to save money? The answer appears in Sefer Ha-Chinuch (mitzvah 338). The mitzvah being discussed there is not our issue of theft, but the issue of insults. If someone insults me, am I obligated to take it or can I respond in kind? Answer: It is permissible to respond in kind for two reasons: 1. In order to protect yourself. If he insults me and I remain quiet, he will continue to insult me. If I yell back, he will stop. 2. The Torah does not require a person to sit like a stone. He can respond. This is referred to as "his heart is hot." My heart is hot and I am permitted to insult or strike back. This is not revenge. Revenge is cold and calculated. This is in the heat of passion. It is true that the Gemara in Yoma (23a) says, "Those who are insulted but do not insult back, who hear themselves slandered but do not respond, who act with love and rejoice in suffering, of them the Tanach says, ‘Those who love Him are like the sun rising with all its might’ (Shoftim 5:31), and keep it in one’s heart." Everyone understands from the style of our Sages that this is an act of piety. One is not obligated to act in this way, it is a very high level and a personal decision. A student of the Chafetz Chaim stood trial, and the Chafetz Chaim testified as a character witness. The student's lawyer said: "Honored judges, do you know who has stood before you to provide testimony as a character witness? This Rabbi once heard noises in his courtyard. There were thieves! In order to save the thieves from committing a sin, he yelled: "Hefker – everything is ownerless!" The judge said to the lawyer: "My educated friend, do you believe this story?" He responded: "No." The judge said: "My educated friend, if you do not believe this story why are you telling it to relate this Rabbi's character?" The lawyer said: "They do not tell stories like this about the honorable judge." He meant that even if the story about the Chaftez Chaim is not true, based on the fact that they tell stories such as this about him, it shows how righteous he is and that you can rely on him. This is an act of piety, however, and one is not obligated to act in this manner. I am not obligation to be insulted just as I am not obligated to have my money stolen. Money does not grow on trees. It is therefore permitted to kill a thief. If it is possible to injure the thief without killing him, that is certainly good. A person does not have to give up his possessions. He works hard and it belongs to him. Yaakov Avinu forgot some small jars and went back to get them because the money of the righteous is dear to them. This is because they earn their money honestly through hard work (Rashi to Bereshit 32:25 based on Chullin 91a). It is therefore permissible for someone to protect himself and his property and to shoot an intruder.

taken from:Torat HaRav Aviner

President Obama's Favor

Posted by Mordechai Friedfertig at 5:04 AM

08

Jun

2009

[Opening words of Ha-Rav on his radio show]

President Obama has truly done us a great favor, despite what many think, because when people give us trouble, it unites us. The Nation which dwells in the Land is not panicked by threats and dictates. There is obviously a dispute within the Nation of Israel whether to evacuate settlements but when a demand comes from Obama it infuriates many Jews. They say: "This is an inner dispute between us. He is going to tell us what to do?! Furthermore, he doesn't want us to expand existing houses to allow for natural growth. Where should we put our children? – outside in boxes!" The Nation of Israel is therefore strengthened, and he is in fact doing us a big favor.

This obviously does not mean that we do not take into account what the Americans say. But we need to understand: we need them and they need us. Do not think that the Americans help us because of loving-kindness. Everything is based on cost-benefit analysis. They give aid to where it will benefit them. They give us military help because they profit from it. There was once the "Rogers’ Plan" – it is always the same plan to expel us from parts of Eretz Yisrael but they change the name. Rogers said to Prime Minister Golda Meir: If you do not accept the plan, we will not provide you with weapons. Mrs. Golda Meir replied: We will live and see. In the end, they provided weapons. We do not need to panic. They need us just as we need them.

Regarding the money which we receive from the Americans, this is truly a shame and embarrassment which cannot be describe. Have we become beggars? Being a beggar is shameful when it is an individual and all-the-more-so when it is a nation. Why does an American need to provide me with a livelihood? We are an extremely wealthy Nation – the fifteenth wealthiest Nation in the world. We receive a few billion which is a negligible part of our budget. After the establishment of the State we did not have any money to buy weapons and to develop means to provide jobs – it wasn't good then – but I understand why we took money. But now, taking money from America is an illness. This is similar to the people who collect money at the Kotel and they are extremely wealthy. They continue to beg for money there because it is a sickness. There was once a beggar there and his brother said to him: "Stop. I will give you money to establish a business." The beggar said: "Do not judge your fellow until you walk in his shoes. Come to ask for Tzedakah with me at the Kotel and then we will talk." The brother put on rags and stood at the Kotel all day with his brother asking for Tzedakah. The beggar said: "We leave at five." At five o'clock, the beggar said: "It's five, let's go." At that exact moment, wealthy tourists were coming. The normal brother said: "After them." The beggar said to his brother: "You see. One day of collecting Tzedakah and you are already addicted." It is a sickness! And now this sickness has become a national sickness, so that we are asking the Americans for a small percentage of our budget. This is a desecration of Hashem's Name. We should be doing the exact opposite: calculating how much we have received from the Americans and tell them that we are so grateful for their financial aid and we will pay it back little-by-little.

Some people think that if the Americans pressure we have to bow to the pressure. This is incorrect. Since the American see that we are willing to bow to the pressure, they exert pressure. This is a known saying: One who makes himself into a sheep, the wolf will eat him. We must say to the American that we do not interfere in their matters and please do not interfere in ours. We are ready to take advice and to discuss, but please do not dictate to us.

In conclusion: a true story. A President of the US once said: You Jews must stop dreaming of the whole Land of Israel. Two Rabbis wrote him: Honorable President, we are accustomed to you, the Americans, interfering in our affairs and giving us advice all of the time as to what we should do. But it is a huge innovation for you to interfere as to what we should dream.

Therefore, we are informing you that we began to dream about returning to the Land of Israel and building the Land, "When Hashem will bring the exiles back to Zion, we will be like dreamers" (Tehillim 126:1), before your country existed. And now – Baruch Hashem – our dream is beginning to come to fruition. Therefore, we will certainly take into consideration what you say but we are not afraid of all sorts of pressure.

taken from :Torat HaRav Aviner

BAR KOCHBA, FROM THEN UNTIL NOW

Bar Kochba, from Then Until Now

Posted by Mordechai Friedfertig at 12:23 PM

[from "Be-Ahavah U-Be-Emunah" – Emor 5769 – translated by R. Blumberg]

Between Pesach and Shavuot, we decrease our joy slightly, because according to tradition, twenty-four thousand students of Rabbi Akiva died at that time. Rabbi Akiva was one of the greatest scholars of his generation, and simultaneously he supported the national rebellion of Bar-Kochba. Rambam writes: “Rabbi Akiva was a great sage of the Mishna, and he was the armor bearer of Bar-Kochba, the king. Rabbi Akiva would say of him that he was the Messianic king. He and all the sages of his generation envisioned him being the Messianic king” (Hilchot Melachim 11:3). True, it turned out in the end that he was not the Messiah, yet we have to understand that there was no mistake here. Rabbi Akiva envisioned the POSSIBILITY of his being the Messiah. Rambam codified as law that if a Jewish king emerges, immersed in Torah and mitzvoth, and he rules the people according to the Torah and fights G-d’s battles, he should be related to as the Messianic king. If he succeeds in everything, it will become clear that he is the Messiah for certain. Otherwise, he will turn out to have been a king of Israel who did the best he could (ibid.).

Rambam also proves from the support of Bar-Kochba given by Rabbi Akiva and the sages that we needn’t require the Messiah to perform miracles. Rather, he can operate by non-miraculous means, such as through wars. That same Rabbi Akiva was a spiritual giant in his generation, but at the same time he was a militarist on behalf of the Jewish People, and he saw no contradiction between the two. In the same way, the Hasmoneans were both holy men and warriors. In his day, Maran Ha-Rav Avraham Yitzchak Kook wrote that we are certain that when Rabbi Akiva in his time encouraged support for every vision of Jewish national liberation, he was expressing a doctrine of truth. Precisely from the fact that the attempt failed at that time and the Jewish People fell from the standpoint of their national freedom, we know that the time for this vision will come, and that time is approaching now, and Israel will not suffer again. Not in vain did Israel fight the battle for their survival. (Ma’amarei HaRe’iyah 202-203).

And indeed, our Jewish State arose and it stands strong. Here we are safe both spiritually and physically. True, we have enemies around us, but psychologists have determined, contrary to the prevalent view, that the Israeli citizen leads a safe life and relies on our country and our army. Quite the contrary, the security threat strengthens our national cohesiveness, as well as the sense of safety of the people dwelling in Zion. Indeed, the most important thing for us to preserve faithfully is our brotherhood and unity.

When French-Jewish historian and writer Andre Maurois (nee Emile Herzog), who died a hundred years ago, was asked to what extent it was possible to allow political quarreling in a democratic regime, he responded: “The heads of our political parties may be compared to rival officers in charge of a large ship. As a passenger on that ship, I can allow them, at most, to hate one another, but under no circumstances will I consent to their hatred causing the ship to sink.”

Thank G-d, generally speaking there is a lot of love in our nation, yet we mustn’t fall asleep at the watch. Obviously, our army is strong, but at the same time, contrary to what all the libelers and anti-Semites among the nations say, it is a moral army. There’s a story about the recent Gaza Campaign that the soldiers of one of the reserve battalions found amongst one enemy force a very large sum of money. When the battalion commander heard about it, he moved his operations room there so that no one would mistakenly take the money.

Let us take this opportunity to mention another story about a unit that entered a home, and found cartons of fruit clearly marked as being headed for the “mehadrin” Shemittah market. In that same home, Kassam missiles were found. Obviously, orders were given to immediately destroy that house and the adjacent hothouses. It thus turns out that those who had claimed that buying fruit from the Arabs of Gaza was indirectly supporting the bombing of Israel were mistaken. It was DIRECTLY supporting it. The main point is that fear of the Jews befell those terrorists. We encountered almost no resistance. Rather, those murderers fled to hiding places like hospitals. Obviously, the role of the Jewish army chaplain changed dramatically. No longer was he just an army chaplain dealing with the religious needs of the soldier as an individual. Rather, he also worried about that soldier’s functioning as a soldier, and about the success of the fighting. He was not just a partner in the education corps. Indeed, the Chief Chaplain of the I.D.F. wrought a change in this realm. He, himself, was a high-ranking military officer, and he brought in fighting army chaplains who were together with the fighters and strengthened the fighting spirit. He likewise founded, within the army chaplaincy, a department for strengthening the fighting spirit.

from: Torat HaRav Aviner (http://www.ravaviner.com/)

"MA'ASER KESAFIM" FOR CAT FOOD

"Ma'aser Kesafim" for cat food

Posted by Mordechai Friedfertig

Q: My neighborhood (in Israel) has so many cats. They recently changed the garbage cans and the cats cannot open them. They are literally starving. It is permissible for me to buy them food with "ma'aser" money?A: The huge amount of cats in Israel is a known problem. They are also a great benefit since – in their merit – there are hardly any mice and snakes. At the same time, we need to solve this problem and reduce their population by spreading chemicals in their food which will prevent reproduction. But "ma'aser" money is for the poor: first for poor Jews, then for non-Jews and only then for animals. Mercy for animals is certainly important but we must first be merciful to people. The proper order of concern is first people and then the cats.

taken from : Torat HaRav Aviner (http://www.ravaviner.com/)

VISITING NAZI DEATH CAMPS FORBIDDEN

Visiting Nazi Death Camps Forbidden

Posted by Mordechai Friedfertig

NOTE: This has been Rav Aviner's stated position for years.See Be-Ahavah U-Be-Emunah vol. 3 #44 and Am Ve-Artzo vol. 2 #55

Rabbi Aviner in the News:Visiting Nazi Death Camps Forbidden
By Kobi Nahshoni – from 1 Adar 5769 –

www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3675990,00.html

Educational school trips to the Nazi death camps in Poland have become common among most Jewish sectors in Israel, but prominent Zionist Rabbi Shlomo Aviner recently claimed that they are in fact forbidden for halachic reasons, and urged schools to cancel them.

Answering a reader's question on the subject in the religious "Ma'ayaney Hayeshua" journal, Aviner stated that trips to Poland were "not good" due to the halachic ban on leaving Eretz Israel, and because they "provide livelihood to murderers."

In a conversation with Ynet, [Rav] Aviner explained: "As is well known, leaving Israel is permitted only for the sake of mitzvah, while visiting the death camps is not defined as a mitzvah by the Halacha. There are important figures and great rabbis who have not visited there.

"Clearly what happened in the Holocaust must be remembered, but this can be done using films, books, the Yad Vashem museum and there are even the testimonies of survivors who are still alive," he stated.

And what about the emotional experience?

"I once told educators that in any case the impression vanishes after six months, like any other emotional experience with a short shelf life. They smiled and said that it actually fades away after three weeks.

"[Rav] Aviner also said that the trips have not been proven to have an "educational value." "For some this experience is very difficult and they come back utterly distraught," he added.

'Why should Nazi collaborators benefit?'

Another argument against visiting the camps, according to the rabbi, was the fact that the Polish people "collaborated with the Nazis" and were now making a living off of these visits. "I'm not busy holding a grudge against the Poles, but we shouldn't provide livelihood to people who allowed death camps to be built on their land and who are now making a profit out of it.

"They are not my friends and I don't want to support them."

According to [Rav] Aviner, it was not accidental that the Nazis chose to erect the extermination camps in Poland. "They knew that the people would do nothing. One person was enough to blow up the railroad tracks. Why wasn't this done? Because they all said, 'good,' smiled and waited for what needed to be done to be done by the Nazis.

"Many Jews who escaped from the camps were later murdered outside by the Polish resistance. When the Jews came back to the city their housees were inhabited and they faced a pogrom. To this day trials are being held against Poles who stole houses," he concluded.

taken from : Torat HaRav Aviner (http://www.ravaviner.com/)

WHAT DO YOU SEE WHEN YOU SEE A TREE IN ISRAEL ?

What do you see when you see a tree in Israel?

Posted by Mordechai Friedfertig

When you are walking along and you see a tree, what are you actually seeing? While it is certainly correct to say that you are seeing a tree, you are actually seeing much more than that, much more.

One hundred and seventy years ago, the French writer Alfonse De Lamartine wrote: “(Outside the walls of Jerusalem) we saw nothing living. We heard no sound of life. We found that same emptiness, that same silence that we would have expected to find before the buried gates of Pompei or Herculanum…total silence reigns over the city, along the highways, the villages… the whole country is like a graveyard.”

One hundred and thirty years ago, the American author Mark Twain visited the Land of Israel and he wrote: “There is not a solitary village throughout its whole extent -- not for thirty miles in either direction. One may ride ten miles, hereabouts, and not see ten human beings. We traversed some miles of desolate country whose soil is rich enough, but is given over wholly to weeds -- a silent, mournful expanse. Desolation is here that not even imagination can grace with the pomp of life and action. We safely reached Tabor...We never saw a human being on the whole route. There was hardly a tree or a shrub anywhere. Even the olive and the cactus, those fast friends of a worthless soil, had almost deserted the country. Palestine sits in sackcloth and ashes. Over it broods the spell of a curse that has withered its fields and fettered its energies. Palestine is desolate and unlovely. And why should it be otherwise? Can the curse of the Deity beautify a land? Palestine is no more of this work-day world."

Did you hear that? There was hardly a tree or a shrub anywhere, not even an olive tree!Therefore, when I see a tree, I see the Jewish People rising to rebirth in our Land. For almost two thousand years, this Land was angry at us and would not smile at us. Obviously, and by no coincidence, “because of our sins we were banished from our country and distanced from our Land.”

As we know, our Sages objected to making Messianic calculations. They even said, “Let the bones be blasted of those who calculate the end of days!” (Sanhedrin 97b). If so, how can we know that the end is near? They answered, “We have no better sign of the end of days than that of Yechezkel (36:8): ‘But you, O mountains of Israel, you shall shoot forth your branches and yield your fruit to My people Israel; for they are at hand to come’” (Sanhedrin 98a). Rashi comments, “If you see the Land of Israel yielding its fruits plentifully, be aware that the end of the exile has arrived.”

Indeed, one hundred and twenty years ago, the Land began to blossom, and since then this sign has not proven to be a disappointment. Our country is being built up, and despite all the harsh shortcomings visible in our public lives, we have to admit that we are rising up to rebirth, and we have to be happy, hold on and look forward.

[Parashah sheet "Be-Ahavah U-Be-Emunah" of Machon Meir – Beshalach 5767]

taken from : Torat HaRav Aviner (http://www.ravaviner.com/)

TORAT HARAV AVINER

Torat HaRav Aviner

Inspiring Torah from Rav Shlomo Aviner

From Tzipiyah.com (http://www.tzipiyah.com/):

"...I highly suggest visiting the blog and adding it to your bookmarks. If you own your own blog or website, make sure to let your readers know about this new blog. There is very little material on it right now but it is sure to be a great resource for all those who wish to explore religious zionist thought."

Rav Shlomo Aviner’s Blog - http://www.ravaviner.com