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Beit Midrash
- Shabbat and Holidays
- Sefirat Haomer
- The Meaning Sefirat Ha'omer
And the reason for this paradoxical situation is that history has intervened and altered our perception of these weeks. In a perfect world the Jewish people would never have suffered exile with all of its tragic traumas and murderous events. But in the real world terrible events have taken place during this period of time. Rabbi Akiva’s entire society of twenty-four thousand scholarly disciples died during this period of time. The rebellion of Bar Kochba against Roman tyranny failed during this period of time with enormous loss of Jewish lives. The ancient tri-city Jewish community of Speyers, Worms and Mainz in the Rhineland was destroyed by the Christian crusaders in 1096 during this Pesach to Shavuot weeks. Much of the atrocities committed against the Jewish communities in the Cossack/Ukrainian war against the authorities in 1648-9 also occurred mainly in the springtime, the period between Pesach and Shavuot. The Israeli War of Independence which cost over six thousand Jewish lives also began and much of it took place during the weeks between Pesach and Shavuot. In short, this period of time has over the past years of Jewish exile this period of time of the annual Jewish calendar has been anything but a happy and satisfactory period of time. To mark these sad events of Jewish history the days between Pesach and Shavuot have morphed into days of sad commemoration and very limited joy and satisfaction.
It is interesting to note how Jewish values and halacha itself accommodate itself to historic relevance, events and intervention. The Torah is the book of human life and its story. Therefore whatever happens in the human story is relevant to understanding and appreciating the Torah itself. Just as life intervenes with our plans and projects so too does the history of human events intervene in all of Jewish religious life. And by allowing the events of Jewish history to be commemorated within a halachic framework, even changing the original nature and mood of the mitzvah itself involved, Judaism allows the Torah to be truly the book of humankind. The abysmal lack of knowledge of Jewish history and its events is one of the major maladies that affects all of Jewish societies today. It is one of the failings that we have that prevents us from effectively presenting our just cause to the rest of the world convincingly. If we are unable to understand how our history has intervened and affected our current world we are simply helpless before the lies and hatred of our enemies. Without knowing the entire story of our past we are unable to put the events of the past century - the Holocaust and the independence of the State of Israel - into some sort of true historical perspective. History always intervenes and influences our lives, thoughts and attitudes. Without realizing this basic fact of human life we are certainly going to find it difficult to think and act wisely in our current situation.
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.
