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Simha Bat Hana
"The Jewish people cannot achieve Divinity anywhere else. All of the prophets prophesied either in the Land of Israel or for its sake. Hence, Abraham's prophecy outside of the land, in Ur Casdim, was on behalf of the land – he was told to journey to the land of Israel. Ezekiel and Daniel, when they prophesied in Babylon, did so for the sake of the land of Israel, and their prophecy began in the land of Israel. The prophecy of Jeremiah in Egypt was similarly for the sake of the Land of Israel.
"The same is true of the prophecies of Moses, Aaron, and Miriam - for Sinai and Paran are both within the boarders of the land of Israel. They are both contained within the boundary of the Red Sea, of which Scripture writes, 'And I will place your boundaries from the Red Sea until the Philistine Sea, and from the desert until the river' (Exodus 23:31). The 'desert' in this verse refers to the Paran Desert, which Scripture also calls 'the great and awesome desert.' This is the southern boarder of Israel. The river in the verse refers to the Euphrates River, which is the northern boarder of Israel.
Foundations of Faith (51)
Rabbi Zalman Baruch Melamed
27 - 27. The Preeminence of the Land of Israel
28 - 28. Expression of the Land's Preeminence
29 - 29. “You have shamed me, King of Khazar”
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"Subsequently, Abel was killed at the hand of his brother, making the position of Adam's successor vacant. Scripture then records that 'Cain left God's presence,' meaning that he was chased out of Israel, as Scripture testifies, 'Cain went out from before God's presence' (Genesis 4:16). After this, Adam's son Sheth was born and inherited the unique spiritual propensity of his father, and merited the land of Israel, which is one level below the Garden of Eden.
"The altars of the forefathers – from which God appeared to the forefathers with a fire from heaven and with prophecy – were in Israel. The Binding of Isaac was on the desolate mountain, Mount Moriah. But it was revealed only later, in David's time, that this was the special place upon which the Divine Presence would rest. The Book of Chronicles explicitly states that the Holy Temple was built upon Mount Moriah.
"Isaac and Ishmael strove over the land of Israel, until Ishmael was finally pushed aside as the peel. Even though God stated about Ishmael, 'I have blessed him and made him great in number,' this only referred to worldly bounty. Whereas by Isaac, God stated afterwards, 'I will establish My covenant with Isaac,' meaning that Isaac would attach himself to Divinity and the special rewards of the World to Come.
"Neither Ishmael nor Esau inherited this covenant, despite the fact that their nations became successful in this world. Rivalry between Jacob and Esau arose over this land in the form of both the firstborn right and the special blessing given by Isaac. Esau was eventually pushed aside from the land of Israel, despite Esau's physical strength and Jacob's weakness.
"Israel also contains those places that unquestionably are worthy of being called 'the Gates of Heaven.' Take Jacob for example. He did not attribute his prophetic visions to his own fear of God. Rather, he attributed his prophecy to his place, as it says, 'And he was in awe, and said "How awesome is this place"' (Genesis 28:17). Jacob saw the prophetic vision in his dream by virtue of the qualities of the place where he lie."
These are a few of the things which the Rabbi said to the Khazar king regarding the land of Israel.
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Postscript: In the above article, some of what appears to be the dialog of Rabbi Judah Halevi's The Kuzari has in fact been added by Rabbi Melamed for purposes of clarity and explication.
Much of the translation of the Kuzari in the above article is taken from N. Daniel Korobkin's translation of The Kuzari (Jason Aaronson Inc.).
Rabbis in Midrash
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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.
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.