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Beit Midrash
- Sections
- Chemdat Yamim
- Parashat Hashavua
- Torah Portion and Tanach
- Bamidbar
- Masei
Moshe himself said: "You shall remember all of the path that Hashem had you take during forty years in the desert in order to afflict you, to test you" (Devarim 8:2). This was not a normal national existence. They did not occupy an inhabited land; they did not have normal houses or normal bread to eat. Everything was unnatural: bread from the sky, water that arrived miraculously. The travels were totally unpredictable, sometimes after a day, a month, ... (Bamidbar 9:22). It is not such a surprise that the people were short-breathed at times. It is not easy to always live in uncertainty and undergoing tests. Let us take a look at some of the test results.
The Torah does not concentrate on the praise due to the nation, but highlights that which was wrong and needed repair. However, we can see some of the good things in the nation specifically from the appraisal of one who was not so enthusiastic about seeing their goodness, Bilam. He was particularly impressed with Bnei Yisrael’s living quarters, among other things. Apparently they had slowly started fitting the mold for which they were destined, as the Nation of Hashem.
By the end of Sefer Bamidbar, there was a changing of the guard. The final census did not contain members of the generation that Moshe and Aharon originally counted (Bamidbar 26:64). The new generation was one that was poised to conquer the Land. They conquered nations on the east bank of the Jordan and were encamped just to the east of the Jordan, near Yericho. Perhaps the most daunting challenge was that their great leader, Moshe, was preparing to pass on from leadership and from life. He had to instruct them about the boundaries of the Land and the methods of dividing it. He had to warn them how to interact with the inhabitants of the Land of C’na’an, and to set up even cities of refuge for unintentional murderers.
The parasha ends in a manner that expresses the essence of the nation and the Land they were to inherit. "Do not defile the Land that you are living in, in which I dwell, for I am Hashem Who dwells in the midst of Bnei Yisrael" (Bamidbar 35:34). Chazal (Sifrei, Bamidbar 1) derive from here that even when the nation is impure, still the Divine Presence is among them. This the nature of the Land and the nation, whose sanctity does not cease even in a state of defilement. Indeed it was worthwhile to undergo 40 years of trials and tribulations in order to hear such a Divine assurance. Chazak, chazak, v’nitchazeik. May we be repeatedly
strengthened.
Army and War "If Haredim Should Serve in the IDF, So Should You"
IDF Service for Young Jewish Men from America
Army and War "If Haredim Should Serve in the IDF, So Should You"
IDF Service for Young Jewish Men from America
Rabbis in Midrash
Lessons
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The Land of Israel LGBT'S IN ISRAEL
The question was asked, how can one make Aliyah with the LGBT parades?
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 7 - Five Accumulative Proofs of G-d
As a preparation for the Kuzari's classic proof of G-d from the mass-revelation at Sinai, we start here with 5 other directions to strengthen our belief which also contribute to what the Kuzari will present as well.
Ein Aya Muscle & Meaning: The Dual Nature of Gevurah (Physical Strength)
Is physical strength and fitness a necessity or an ideal? Although it if often totally overlooked among topics of Judaism, Rav Kook writes that it clearly is also a necessity to deter the many enemies of Israel, but even in Y'mot HaMashiach, in the Messianic era, to a certain extent, it's ideal continues even after our enemies will have been finished off.
Chukat "HOW ENTEBBE STOLE THE BICENTENNIAL
The Difference Between Historic & Eternal"
As we approach America's 250th birthday, it's worth remembering her 200th Bicentennial birthday, on Jul. 4th 1976, when Israel "stole the show" by shocking the world & miraculously saving 101 hostages in a foreign continent. As Pres. As Pres. Trump decides which countries get priority in his new Middle-East, it's worth reminding him of the difference between historic events and eternally historic ones. This obviously connects with this week's parsha, as well!
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 6 - The Parable of the King of India
The advantages of testimony over circumstantial evidence or philosophical speculation.
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.
