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Beit Midrash
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The Torah study is dedicatedto the full recovery of
Lea Bat Rahma
It is impossible to ignore the significance of a calendar and the manner in which we count the days and the years.
Some say, "Who thinks about the original intentions of the creators of these calendars anyway? Their intentions do not interest anybody today. Usage of the non-Jewish calendar does not imply any ideology; it is simply more convenient. It is even necessary, for we here in the modern state of Israel do not live in a vacuum. We maintain tight relations with the western world; Europe and the United States both use this calendar, and therefore we too must use it. It is extremely convenient that there is a single calendar, and not using it will certainly confuse all of our accounting and will lead to all sorts of complications - so why confuse and complicate things for no reason? The universality of this calendar, a common reckoning of dates, is a technical-organizational matter. It's all a question of convenience, and there is no reason to see in it any particular ideology or intention beyond technical calculations." However, they are mistaken.
Some say, "Using the non-Jewish calendar does not have any spiritual significance." This is not true. Perhaps it is not the intention of the user to give it spiritual significance, yet, unintentionally, the usage of a particular calendar has such significance. It is impossible to divorce the fiscal-organizational order from the ideological-conceptual order in the world. Economic and commercial strategies along with communal-religious planning are grounded in the in the yearly order. If economic and revenue systems are determined according to yearly frameworks, then it follows that the spiritual and social arrangements are also determined according to these yearly frameworks. Every yearly plan begins from some date, and that date is necessarily imbued with significant value.
When the end of the fiscal year arrives, one summarizes the year that passed and prepares for the coming one. At that time there is a feeling of having reaching the end of a cycle and the beginning a new one. One makes a financial accounting, and this spills over into moral accounting - spiritual matters. We, the Jewish people, have a rich spiritual world of our own, and it is intimately bound to the unique Hebrew calendar. The Jewish New Year is on the first of Tishrei. This is the conclusion of the year in all respects: personal accounting, repentance, and rectification. At this point each Jew considers and reflects upon what he managed to accomplish during the previous year, deciding in which areas improvement is needed, and in which areas matters should be allowed to continue as they have up until now.
It is no coincidence that the Hebrew calendar is arranged such that Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, falls on the first of Tishrei. The intention is to count the days of the year and the number of years that have passed since the creation of the world by the Almighty, according to our Torah-based tradition.
Because the economic and social-religious systems are interlocked, and because they are connected to time, there is great significance to one's choice of calendar.
Indeed, the time has come to reintroduce ever more the usage of the Hebrew calendar.
The Hebrew calendar is ours, and we have four New Years: the first of Nissan is the New Year for kings; the first of Elul is the New Year for the tithing of animals; the first of Tishrei is the New Year for the reckoning of ordinary years, Sabbatical years, and Jubilee years etc.; the fifteenth of Shevat is the New Year for the trees.
This is our calendar. A practical worldly calendar, bound to nature and the seasons of the year by the Creator of nature Himself.
Rabbis in Midrash
Lessons
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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.
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 2
The King of the Kazars, in his search for truth, starts by inviting the philosopher. This is a "crash-course" on Aristotelian philosophy and the reasons why the king is not convinced. Through this dialogue, R. Yehuda HaLevi already foreshadows some of his central ideas that will appear later.
Shavuot "Love of Torah = Love of Israel"- for Shavuot
People often identify Judaism as just a religion, but upon examination, we see, even halachically and explicitly in the siddur, that the Torah is dependent upon Am Yisrael, Jewish nationalism.
Ein Aya The Middle-Child & Anti-Tzni'ut Syndrome- Negative Attention
Although tzni'ut is for men just like women, Rav Kook deals here with the sources in Yishayahu and the Talmud which deals with the special problem of lack of tzni'ut in women's dress and actions, where it's not just a problem of midot and character traits, but also can include practical, social and national ramifications, as well, which caused the destruction of the Beit HaMikdash and exile from Israel. The class continues the previous one (Ayn Aya Shabbat vi, 29), and is a must for all educators and parents of high-school aged and young adults.
P'ninat Mishpat P'NINAT MISHPAT: A Mess of Loans, Repayments and Grievances – part II
based on ruling 83033 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts
based on ruling 83033 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts
