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Beit Midrash
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- Settling the land
- Additional Lessons
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2. A "New Custom"
3. The Torah Vision
4. Impact of the Exile
THE QUESTION
Is it halachically permissible to leave Israel in order to go on a pleasure trip abroad? The majority of rabbinic authorities lean towards forbidding such a trip;according to all opinions, such a trip is not desirable , not, what is referred to in halacha as "Midat Chasidut." In this regard, the Talmud, Tractate Kiddushin (31b), recounts the following story: "Rav Asi asked Rebbe Yochanan: 'Is it permissible to leave Israel to go abroad?' R. Yochanan responded: 'It is forbidden!' R. Asi: 'To leave in order to greet one's mother - permissible or not?' R. Yochanan: 'I don't know!'" In other words, R. Yochanan was even hesitant to permit leaving with the explicit condition of returning to Israel after greeting one's mother.
A "NEW CUSTOM"
I was therefore surprised to hear that, in honor of Pesach, certain religious families typically travel abroad. It has apparently become clear to them that the price of a hotel outside Israel is no higher than that of a hotel in Israel; so, they go to Rumania for the whole week of Pesach. There, they hold a Seder, tour the country, and do not even sense the absurdity of what they are doing! When others ask these people how they could do such a thing, they respond by saying that a very prominent Rabbi often accompanies them, as well.
THE TORAH VISION
I am both surprised and saddened by this phenonmenon. "Three times year, " the Torah says in Shmot chapter 23, "all of your males shall come [to Jerusalem] to appear before the Master [of the Universe] God, the Lord of Israel." When the Temple stood, it was compulsory to come for these festivities. Pesach is all about becoming sanctified and uplifted, and drawing closer to Hashem. This "drawing closer" is achieved through situating oneself in a holy place.
True, now we have no Beit Mikdash, but the Land of Israel remains the holiest of all lands, even today! It would therefore be appropriate, that in anticipation of the holiday, Jews from around the world come observe the festival here, in the Land, in Jerusalem, to absorb something of the holiness of the Land of Israel. (The Talmud in Tractate Ketubot asserts that anyone living here is as if he or she "has a God..." Elsewhere, we learn that one who learns in Eretz Yisrael is compared to one who actually "greets the Shechina (Divine Presence)!"
How can it be, then, that observant Jews leave Israel in order to be in the Diaspora for the festival of Pesach? If, during the course of the year, it is undesirable halachically to leave Israel for a vacation, and some even declare it to be forbidden, how much more so is it problematic to travel abroad during our Festival of Redemption, to find oneself in the impure atmosphere of Gentile lands!
IMPACT OF THE EXILE
This attitude is nothing less than the fruit of the long exile, an exile that has distanced us from our homeland, to the point where we have seemingly lost our natural healthy sense of reality, to the point where we cannot seem to appreciate the unique holiness of the Land of Israel. We apparently do not yet felt the uplifting quality and contentment that one should sense when breathing in the air of the Land of Israel.
Despite all this, thank God, we are in the midst of our national return to Eretz Yisrael, and with God’s help, we’ll heal, be restored to our natural spiritual health, to a state in which we will once again know how to distinguish between holy and profane, pure and impure, between Eretz Yisrael and lands of other nations.
Additional Lessons Answering Accusations of Israeli-Occupation
& Why the Moral Mitzvot are Geared Only to Jews- Not Gentiles?
Rabbis in Midrash
Lessons
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Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 5- "Proofs of G-d"
This may be the most important class of the entire book, where we finally get to the Jewish proof of the existence of G-d and truth of the Torah. We should follow His own direction where He tells us how to get to Him: through the Nation of Israel: Jewish history, Jewish prophets (and today, prophecies fulfilled), and national reward & punishment towards Am Yisrael.
Ein Aya One Humanity, One Creator, One Jerusalem
Rav Kook innovatively and beautifully explains this aggadeta where our sages say that after Jerusalem was destroyed her cinnamon fragrance is only found locked in a particular kingdom's treasury.
Shlach Lecha "Why So Many Don't Make Aliya?" - Parshat Shlach
This short article deals with the weird phenomena that every single time Am Yisrael is meant to enter the Land of Israel, throughout the Tanach, 2nd Temple and until today, they "chicken out" and look for excuses. What's the problem with this mitzvah that proves so challenging. The article, based on sources, suggests that the difficulties of Eretz Yisrael is precisely her secret and beauty!
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 4
The class deals with Islam and how the Muslim tries convincing the King of the Khazars, and why he was also rejected.
Beha'alotcha JEWISH STATE= GUIDE TO G-DLINESS & SELFLESSNESS
A Jewish State not only is a good idea, but educates us towards selflessness, altruism and G-dliness in our daily lives.
Ein Aya In Zion Even the Smoke of the Bark is Sweet
Just as Jewish nationalism is different from others, so too our capitol of Jerusalem is totally different than other national capitols. Rav Kook beautifully explains the passage in the Talmud that the trees of Yerushalayim were cinnamon trees.
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 3
The second speaker invited to convince the Khazar King is the Christian, who presents their beliefs. Even before the questions of the King, "between the lines", the author R. Yehuda HaLevi already begins disproving them.
Ein Aya "Intimacy: Love, Life & Giving or Egocentric Taking & Expiration"
Today, many confuse between intimacy in marriage, based on love, giving and life which are diametrically opposed to empty "sex", pornography and prostitution which destroyed the Beit HaMikdash. The practical importance of clarifying this topic in today's western society is obvious, especially for young adults.