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Beit Midrash
- Torah Portion and Tanach
- Vayikra
- Emor
Among the many items in Emor are Kiddush Hashem & its opposite, Chilul Hashem (Sanctification/Desecration of G-d); & the Lechem HaPanim, the "show-bread" placed upon the table in the Mishkan. Let us combine these two diverse subjects into one special little story.
He once was a baker, who eked out a living in his small village. But now that he was old, his hands could not knead as they once did, & the oven’s fire was too hot for him. And so he turned his job over to a younger man.
He wanted to thank Hashem for his ability to work for so many years, but he was poor, & all he knew how to do was bake. Then one day he read this Parsha about the bread in the Bet HaMikdash, & a joyous idea occurred to him. He baked 12 loaves of Challa, & late one night he climbed through the shul window & placed them in the Aron Kodesh. "This is my offering to G-d!" he exclaimed.
On Shabbat morning, when the shamash opened the Aron to prepare the Torah, he was amazed to see - & smell – 12 fresh Challot! He had no idea where they came from, but he took them & gave them to the poor. When the baker came to shul later, & saw that the loaves were gone, he was ecstatic: "G-d has accepted my offering!" he rejoiced.
This scene repeated itself for weeks, until one day the shamash was cleaning the shul & saw the baker come in and place the Challot in the Aron. He smiled, & said nothing. But unbeknownst to them both, there was another man, a very wealthy man, who was quietly davening in the corner, & he saw all this, too.
The next Shabbat the wealthy man stood up in shul & proudly announced: "I have solved the mystery of the Challot! It is the old baker who put them in the Aron, foolishly believing that G-d Himself took them! But it was the shamash, & not G-d, who disposed of them!" And he laughed a coarse and conceited laugh.
The baker was so humiliated that he ran home & did not return to shul for weeks. Then, one night, the shamash had a dream. G-d appeared to him & said, "I have not been given such a pure & holy gift since My Temple was destroyed! Tell the baker I miss his offering. As for the wealthy man, his fate has already been decided."
The shamash rushed to the baker & pleaded for him to return & continue his gift of Challot – which he finally agreed to do. As for the other man, his fortunes soon turned, & he lost all of his money. He was seen years later, in tattered pants, on the streets of a nearby city - begging for a piece of bread.
Rabbis in Midrash
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D'varim Judaism’s Social Vision
Re’eh
Giving is more than an act of generosity—it is an essential part of human dignity that belongs to everyone, rich and poor alike. The ultimate goal of help is to empower others to stand on their own.
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.
