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Beit Midrash
- Shabbat and Holidays
- The High Holidays
- The Month of Elul
As any writer will tell you, the only way to overcome writer’s block is to write anyway. It is like falling off the proverbial horse - get back on it and ride anyway. It is interesting that the process of writing itself - even writing unwillingly, painfully and inefficiently - gets the writing juices going again and the block is circumvented if not completely eliminated. In Yiddish there was a great phrase that meant "with the eating comes the appetite." So too with the writing comes the ability to write. I think this article is a good example of that, of how to make an article out of nothing. Writing requires thought. There were gifted people who never wrote with pen and ink or with a typewriter. Churchill dictated all of his books orally to a cadre of ever changing scores of secretaries. We ordinary mortals usually have to see the thought in our minds put to paper and then decide if that is really what we want said and published. Thinking is free flowing and unlimited. Writing is laden with self censorship and much doubt. Good writing is laced with nuance, associative memory and piquant ideas. This being the case the appearance of writer’s block on a fairly regular basis to all writers is understandable and to be expected. Getting back on the horse quickly and effectively is the challenge that faces all writers. The timing and effectiveness of getting back on the horse naturally varies from one individual to the next.
There is a spiritual writer’s block as well. Not always do we feel enthusiastic about our religious observances, charitable commitments and Torah studies. It is difficult to maintain the proper intensity of feeling and reaching for holiness on a constant daily basis. And the Torah, though certainly making allowances for human frailties and foibles, never relaxes its standards or compromises its goals. Oftentimes this leads us to be frustrated in our service to God and our observance of Torah commandments and values. In spiritual matters "burnout" often occurs. We witness this with "children at risk" as well as with those who opt out of the Torah society later in their lives. Basically these people, well intentioned as they may be, are simply unable to overcome their spiritual writer’s block. Shlomo writes in Mishlei that the righteous also fall seven times but they pick themselves up and continue. The mark of the righteous therefore is the ability to get back on the horse and continue in spite of all of the writer’s blocks that impede our spiritual growth and progress. In essence that is the main theme of the month of Elul and of the Days of Awe and Judgment that follow it. We admit our failures and failings but we pledge ourselves nevertheless to keep on trying and to eventually write a page of worth and glory in the volume that is our lives. So let us not be discouraged by writer’s block. You see from this article that something can be written even when the creative well appears to be dry.
P'ninat Mishpat P'ninat Mishpat: Realtor’s Fee on Large Commercial Building – part I
(based on ruling 85031 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
P'ninat Mishpat Complaints about Contractor’s Work – part II
(based on ruling 83037.1 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
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Shoftim TESHUVA IN COURT OF LAW?
Parshat Shoftim-Chodesh Elul
Why does parshat Shoftim always come out during Elul? This innovative and central explanation is an eye-opener regarding many aspects of Judaism.
The Month of Elul TESHUVA IS THE ANSWER
The month of Elul serves as a vital time for self-reflection and personal accountability to prepare for true repentance.
P'ninat Mishpat P'ninat Mishpat: Realtor’s Fee on Large Commercial Building – part I
(based on ruling 85031 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
(based on ruling 85031 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
P'ninat Mishpat Complaints about Contractor’s Work – part II
(based on ruling 83037.1 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
(based on ruling 83037.1 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
Chemdat Yamim Moreshet Shaul: The Goal of an Agricultural Yeshiva – part I
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 263 (address at the laying of the cornerstone of the Yeshiva Chakla’it in Kfar Haroeh)
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 263 (address at the laying of the cornerstone of the Yeshiva Chakla’it in Kfar Haroeh)
Chemdat Yamim The Goal of an Agricultural Yeshiva – part II
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 263 (address at the cornerstone laying for the Yeshiva Chakla’it in Kfar Haroeh – 1938)
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 263 (address at the cornerstone laying for the Yeshiva Chakla’it in Kfar Haroeh – 1938)
Re'e NEVER EXTREME EXCEPT ISRAEL
Parshat Re'eh
Judaism is against extremism, so how can we understand the seemingly extreme statements found in our sages in favor of living in the Land of Israel and against living in Chutz laAretz? The article deals with the seeming contradiction between the strength of Free-Will and the strength of being influenced by our surroundings.
Ekev DANCE FOR ISRAEL- FOR YOUR BENEFIT
Parshat Eikev
Description: The 7 Haftarot we read after Tisha B'Av ("Shiva D'Nichemta") surely get us excited that they're coming TRUE, and awaken us to yearn, dance & join the return to Zion! The short article also deals with the problems and solutions facing the American Jewish community as discussed at a recent panel, as well as the question why Jews come from America to Israel to help when we face problems, but Israelis don't come to aid Jews in America when they face anti-Semitism.
P'ninat Mishpat P'ninat Mishpat: Complaints about Contractor’s Work – part II
(based on ruling 83037.1 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
(based on ruling 83037.1 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
Chemdat Yamim Moreshet Shaul: Twin Foundations
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 690
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 690
