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Beit Midrash
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- Ein Aya
Ein Ayah: The contamination of the oil represents the harming of the characteristics and philosophies, the most extreme calamity that affected the essence of the Jewish nation, which befell it when the Greeks ruled. The Greeks weakened the belief in such basics as the unity of Hashem. However, just as a kohen’s status indicates that he is to teach the laws of the Torah and sanctity to the nation, so too every Jew has an element of kehuna within him, as a member of the "kingdom of priests." The inclination for a life of sanctity, Torah knowledge, and its fulfillment is hidden in the depths of the Jewish heart. We have explained that the idea behind the owner eating ma’aser sheni in holy surroundings is the idea of inspiring every Jew to find his soul’s priestly element.
The element of kehuna that encompasses a Jew’s activities throughout life was susceptible to being defiled by the Greeks. However, deeper in the heart dwells the light of the Jewish soul, which connects to the basic belief in Hashem, the G-d of Israel, and the strong desire to cling to the vestiges of his religion despite all pressure. This sacred part of the Jewish soul is parallel to the Kohen Gadol’s entrance into the Holy of Holies to serve on the holy day on which we are separated from the physical world. That small flask with the Kohen Gadol’s seal was impervious to Greek impurity. In other words, the most powerful men could not uproot from Israel their inner connection to Hashem, as is written (Shir Hashirim 8:7): "Great waters could not extinguish the love, and rivers could not wash it away."
However, when the flask is small, i.e., when the belief is hidden well and does not exhibit its existence in regard to one’s practical life, it is difficult for it to survive. After all, life has gone in a direction that is contradictory to this belief. Thus, the flame could be extinguished under the pile of burnt out materials that prevent it from spreading. This is the wonder of the special concealed light. Even when it encounters a lifestyle and philosophies that are antithetical to it and the person is unaware of the light within him, it is not extinguished. Hashem will arrange a reawakening of the nation that He chose and the spark will lead a process that will uproot the foreign influences that threatened to choke and extinguish it. The growing flame will spread among the hearts of Bnei Yisrael and return them to their Father in Heaven. This will prevail until the powers of practical life, which already are following a Torah lifestyle, will revive Israel and return the people’s light until the present era ends and a new light will shine over Zion, through the geula shleima.
At the time of the great confusion caused by the Greeks, whose lifestyle spread throughout Eretz Yisrael, leaving just a spark deep in the hearts of Israel, the flask of oil characterized the situation. Indeed, there was oil that survived, pure with the kohen gadol’s seal. The question was whether that oil would be able to provide light, when it was not supported by enough other oil, i.e., proper Jewish lifestyles. Ostensibly the oil could only last for one day, i.e., for the direct period in which the reawakening had occurred. Without a connection to practical observance, it would certainly die down. However, there was a miracle, and the light of belief in Hashem did not leave His people. Even without preparation for strong observance, it lasted for eight days. This hints at the long period until that future day when knowledge of Hashem will fill the world like the waters cover the ocean bed (see Yeshaya 11:9)
Rabbis in Midrash
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Moreshet Shaul Hashem Is your Shadow – part I
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 420 – an address from 1941
P'ninat Mishpat A Non-Contractor in Changing Times – part I
(based on ruling 85128 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
Moreshet Shaul Our King on Rosh Hashana, Our Father on Yom Kippur.
Based on Aroch Siach, p. 221 (Rav Shaul Yisraeli)
P'ninat Mishpat A Non-Contractor in Changing Times – part II
(based on ruling 85128 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
Moreshet Shaul Hashem Is your Shadow – part II
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 420 – an address from 1941
Parashat Hashavua Happiness for the Right Reasons
[With painful longing, we share these divrei Torah from our co-Rosh Kollel for close to 40 years, Harav Moshe Ehrenreich zt”l.]
Israel and the Nations A Few Minutes & Many Innovative Ideas on Antisemitism & What to do About It
As we approach the High Holidays, this short lecture (18 minutes) deals with the unfortunate situation of how Israel and the Jewish People stand against antisemitism, analyzing its cause according to Rav Kook, and how to deal with the issue pragmatically & via our prayers.
Ha'azinu PURSUIT is PERFECTION
p. Ha'azinu, Shabbat Shuva
Rav Kook deals with the question of the seemingly hopeless nature of Tshuva. For G-d Himself knows that He created us with free will, which inevitably means we will sometimes make mistakes and choose wrong. This can easily be frustrating, freezing us into inaction and ye'ush (loss of hope). If one sins even once, does he chalila have no choice but suicide?! Moreover, our Godly conscience demands justice, righteousness and perfection, but we all know this is impossible, so what's the solution? Rav Kook's innovative thinking, strongly based on chazal (our sages), offers an inciteful and important aspect to this topic, especially this time of year!
