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Beit Midrash
- Torah Portion and Tanach
- Bereshit
- Bereshit
Yet there is a famous Midrash in our Sedra that says G-d created many worlds before our own, destroying them, one at a time, until He finally arrived at this one. What a strange idea! Why would Hashem - who is All-seeing, All-knowing - create something imperfect that He
is ultimately destined to destroy? Why not just start with this world, and then go on from there?
I have an idea.
The first 3 major characters in the Torah: Adam, Noach and Avraham, all have something very interesting in common. All three of them saw their world destroyed before their very eyes, and had to create a whole new world, a whole new life, for themselves and their families.
Adam was banished from Gan Eden, from his pampered, personal Paradise where he did not have to work, where he was immortal, where no pain or struggle existed. Now, he would have to live by the sweat of his brow and subdue Earth’s elements in order to simply survive.
Noach watched as the whole world went down the drain. Every person, every place he had known was no more. He emerged from the Ark to a brand new world, and had to start over from scratch. (No wonder he went right out and planted a vineyard, so he could drown his sorrows!)
Avraham, too, was told to leave his land and home and begin anew "in the land I will show you." (Wisely, Hashem did not reveal to Avraham til later that he was making Aliya!) Life in Israel, as we know, is a whole new ballgame.
Now we can understand the Midrash! Hashem created and destroyed worlds in order to put this characteristic, this capability, this strength in the DNA of Am Yisrael. For we, too, have been destined to build worlds in virtually every corner of the planet - from Ur to Spain to Poland - only to see them destroyed in front of us and have to start again. Says G-d: If I could do it, then so can you!
And no wonder Bereisheit comes so close to Sukkot: For then, too, we build homes, only to dismantle them 8 days later! How many homes have we built on this Earth in the last 3000 years, only to pack them up and move on?
But IY"H, this pattern must come to an end. The homes we build in Israel are permanent, not temporary housing.
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.
Jewish Laws and Thoughts Shul “etiquette:” can we honor Hashem while respecting our fellow congregants?
Rabbis in Midrash
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Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 9 - "Seeing is Believing" (parag. 21-30)
These paragraphs elaborate on the theme that seeing and knowing is better than any attempt to prove logically, and begins explaining the difference between Israel and gentiles.
Ein Aya Various Universal Stages of the Geula Process
Rav Kook examines the various stages of redemption, explaining how (in addition to the obvious oft-mentioned stages of ingathering the exiles, reviving the Hebrew language, army, state etc.) the messianic dream of world prosperity, the State of Israel and world unity can and are realistically and logically gradually coming true.
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 8- "Answering Questions on the Kuzari's Proof from Mass Revelation
How do we know that the "claim" of mass revelation to 2,000,000 witnesses at Mt. Sinai is really true? This important class answers all of the questions skeptics ask about this claim of the Kuzari.
Ein Aya Armies Still Necessary for Balance & the War Against Wars
Rav Kook explains why the world was originally divided into the various seemingly contradicting ideologies and cultures, in order to develop each one respectively. Swords or armies symbolize how each respective ideology defends themselves, as well as deters their opposing ideologies and cultures. On the other hand, the messianic era will be one of peace, and Rav Kook explains the transition to that stage, which mankind is already undergoing.
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.
