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Beit Midrash
- Shabbat and Holidays
- Purim & The Month of Adar
- The Month of Adar
Adar’s main claim to fame is naturally the fact that the holiday of Purim falls within the month. It is clearly identified by name in the Book of Esther itself. The month of Adar is identified in that book as being the twelfth month in the Jewish calendar. This year as is the case seven times in every nineteen year lunar-solar cycle there are two months of Adar. So Adar will not only be the twelfth month this year it will also be the thirteenth month of the Jewish calendar year. The rabbis who ordained and perfected the permanent Jewish calendar in the fifth century ordained that Adar is the only month that can be doubled up so to speak. There are many reasons given for this decision based upon weather, agriculture, travel conditions and other vagaries of life. But in a simple sense the rabbis wanted us to enjoy the atmosphere of hope and optimism that is the atmosphere of Adar a little longer. It has been a long exile and very difficult events have occurred to us. It would have been very easy to give in to sadness and depression, loss of hope and a feeling of despair. Adar came to dispel all of those feelings. Purim is the prototype of the Jewish spirit, of our indestructibility and eventual survival and eternity. We can always use a double measure of such spirit and atmosphere. Hence the rabbis in their wisdom decreed that only Adar was to be doubled up in a fairly regular sequence of years. For when Adar enters so does hope and joy and a feeling of eternity.
This month of Adar contains the day of Purim Katan - the minor Purim celebrated on the 14th day of Adar I. This is also to be seen as a harbinger of the great Purim that is yet a few weeks distant. The knowledge that there exists a small and minor Purim is itself a heartening message. Good tidings and hoped for redemptions do not always burst upon the scene suddenly. Rather they usually come incrementally, one step at a time. The preparation for the great Purim is encased in Purim Katan, the minor Purim. If one can commemorate minor achievements, small victories, gradual improvements then one can expect even greater achievements in the future. Life is never an all or nothing instant winner sum game. Purim Katan leads to the great Purim which in terms leads to the holiday of redemption and national freedom, Pesach. So Adar I has great lessons contained within its calendar days. The appreciation of its hopeful messages fuels our optimism even when apparently everything around us is falling apart and undergoing rapid and uncertain change. We should view the advent of Adar, even the first Adar, even the minor Purim as being positive promises of goodness and security and salvation from our enemies and all of the evil that is unfortunately so prevalent in our world. Yes, my beloved friends when Adar enters so does goodness and happiness.
The Month of Adar 4. The Three Mitzvot Concerning the Obliteration of Amalek
Chapter 14: The Month of Adar
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.