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Beit Midrash
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both descend into slavery in Egypt, but then be gloriously redeemed from there as well (15:13-16).
Yet there is a later message from Hashem to Avram that is somewhat perplexing. "And G-d said: ‘I am el Shadai, walk before Me & be perfect (17:1). The "walk before Me" clause we understand: If Noach walked with G-d, then Avraham was to be more pro-active, a leader of humanity & not a follower. But what does it mean to "be perfect?"
Rashi comes along & offers a tantalizing Medrash: "Walk before Me with the Mitzva of Brit Mila," he says, "and by doing this you will be perfect." In other words, by removing a part of his body – something other cultures, like the Greeks, would clearly consider a defect, a handicap – Avraham & his offspring would actually be adding to their holiness & rising to a level of perfection.
The message being sent here is profound: We live in a world where the goal seems to be perpetually amassing more & more things. A company is judged each year by how much its profits have grown since last year; we know the famous saying, "Whoever dies with the most toys, wins."
But while it’s certainly true that we must continually grow in spirituality & increase our connection to Hashem, there are times, says the Torah, when less is more & losing is winning. And so we actually gain each time we give away some of our hard-earned money in Tzedaka; we advance in wisdom & in the eyes of others when we say less; we increase our credibility, & certainly our humility, when we confess that we simply don’t have all the answers; & we enhance our integrity when we defer & sometimes give in - even when we know we are right! - & let the other person win the argument.
I suggest this is why Hashem chose to employ one of his less-frequently used names, "El Shadai," when making this particular statement to Avram, as opposed to the more common name "YKVK," which He uses in all the other instances. By tradition, the name "El Shadai" means, "the G-d who said ‘Di – enough!" That is, when Hashem created the world, He knew when enough was enough, when to stop. He created the seas, but said to them, "Enough! Stop! Any more & you will overrun the land! And so it was with the forests & the vegetation & the animal kingdom; they could not grow ad infinitum, either. They, too, had to be "cut off" (pun intended), so that the world would be just perfect.
A beautiful message of Mila – particularly apropos now that we have begun reciting "Mashiv HaRuach u’Morid Hagashem – is that when we lower the physicality, the Gashmiut, our Ruach, our spiritual side, returns in greater intensity.
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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.
