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Beit Midrash
- Torah Portion and Tanach
- D'varim
- Ki Tetze
If I may be bold enough to add my insight to this matter as well, I would say as follows: The Jewish people are now about to become a nation and to establish their own government in the Land of Israel. They will have to fight many battles, bloody and painful, to establish their right to the Land of Israel and to establish their sovereignty over the territory that it encompasses. They will need an army, a civil government, a judicial system, an economy and labor force and all of the other necessary trappings that accompany nation building and establishing a territorial entity and effective government. In the face of these necessarily pressing and even overriding demands it will be likely that they will think that they may discard the spiritual yoke of the mitzvoth imposed upon them at Sinai. It will be easy to say that mitzvoth were necessary in the Sinai desert where no other demands on our time, energy and service existed for us. But now we have more pressing business at hand and therefore the punctilious observance of mitzvoth is no longer required of us. Moshe therefore comes in this parsha, in the midst of his valedictory oration to the Jewish people, to remind them that mitzvoth and Torah are the only effective guarantee of Jewish success and survival even while engaged in building and defending Jewish sovereignty in the Land of Israel. Moshe in effect says to them: "Here are some more mitzvoth that will help you succeed in building the land and your sovereignty over it." This message of Moshe is as germane to our time as it was to the first Jews who arrived en masse to settle in the Land of Israel thirty three centuries ago.
Rabbis in Midrash
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Israel and the Nations A Few Minutes & Many Innovative Ideas on Antisemitism & What to do About It
As we approach the High Holidays, this short lecture (18 minutes) deals with the unfortunate situation of how Israel and the Jewish People stand against antisemitism, analyzing its cause according to Rav Kook, and how to deal with the issue pragmatically & via our prayers.
Ha'azinu PURSUIT is PERFECTION
p. Ha'azinu, Shabbat Shuva
Rav Kook deals with the question of the seemingly hopeless nature of Tshuva. For G-d Himself knows that He created us with free will, which inevitably means we will sometimes make mistakes and choose wrong. This can easily be frustrating, freezing us into inaction and ye'ush (loss of hope). If one sins even once, does he chalila have no choice but suicide?! Moreover, our Godly conscience demands justice, righteousness and perfection, but we all know this is impossible, so what's the solution? Rav Kook's innovative thinking, strongly based on chazal (our sages), offers an inciteful and important aspect to this topic, especially this time of year!
Sukkot Bug-Free Sukkah: Essential Halachic and Practical Schach Guide
How to inspect, clean, and store bamboo mats and palm branches to protect your mitzvah and holiday meals.
