YeshivaThe torah world Gateway
Beit Midrash
- Shabbat and Holidays
- Jewish Holidays
- Simchat Torah and Shmini Atzeret
Simchat Torah! The very name conjures up delightful images of exuberant dancing, kids marching with flags, entire congregations embracing the Torah in celebration of a new lease on life. The 10 Days of Repentance & Yom Kippur are past us, & now it’s time to lighten the atmosphere & "let it all out" in a burst of spiritual ecstasy.
The Rabbis really show their creative genius on this day, & we demonstrate our unity & commonality as we dance in circles around the Sefer Torah – everyone equidistant from the center - as aliyot are universally dispensed.
My Rabbi once asked me, "What, exactly, does the name ‘Simchat Torah’ actually mean?" When I shot back a puzzled look, he said, "The literal meaning of Simchat Torah is, ‘The happiness of the Torah!’ " And he then explained: "Our Torah is not a dead document or a sterile story, it is a Torat Chayim, a living Torah! Not only does it contains all knowledge – past, present & future - the Torah actually has feelings, it has emotions, no less than a human being. It can cry, it can be sad, it can even be upset; but on this day – the Torah is boundlessly happy."
An amazing concept, is it not? And it led me to thinking about what the Torah might feel at certain times:
I think the Torah is discouraged when it is ignored & neglected, when its vast wisdom is not accessed & its many secrets not fully plumbed. It feels hurt when some members of the faith selfishly claim it as theirs alone, as if it is reserved for only the privileged few. Yet the Torah also must be resentful, even indignant, when – as Pirkei Avot cautions against – it is used as someone’s personal "spade" with which to dig; i.e. for their own self-aggrandizement or to advance their own personal agenda.
But the Torah must be very proud when people rise in respect when it is lifted, or even when it just "shows its face" as the Aron is opened. It certainly must "shep nachas" when the children gather ‘round it, approaching it with awe & reaching out their hand to lovingly kiss it. It
must smile with satisfaction when it is read from properly, when care is taken to gently cover & "dress" it so that it always maintains a most dignified appearance.
But what I think most pleases the Torah is when it feels confident that it is never going to lose its special place in our society. That generation after generation, it is going to be revered as the depository of G-d’s wondrous word, that its timeless message will reverberate all the way from Moshe to Moshiach.
It is precisely that feeling which allows the Torah to dance with US – even as we dance with IT!
Rabbi Stewart Weiss
Was ordained at the Hebrew Theological College in Skokie, Illinois, and led congregations in Chicago and Dallas prior to making Aliyah in 1992. He directs the Jewish Outreach Center in Ra'anana, helping to facilitate the spiritual absorption of new olim.
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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.
