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The first time we met – even before Rav Ronen began his almost decade-long tenure at Ohel Ari – we cried. He had come to meet Susie & I, & to learn about the fallen soldier for whom his shul was named. After we spoke about Ari HY"D for a long time, he cried. And we cried, too. I knew then what a genuine person he was, for tears are real, they’re genuine, & they can speak louder than words.
We became close friends & great admirers of his. He was a dynamo of activity, filled with an unquenchable desire to accomplish something special & important every day. An idealist, with a passion to change the Jewish world; he didn’t just talk the talk, he walked the walk. IDF's prestigious Shayetet unit, Tzohar, Beit Hillel, Ohel Ari, V’Ahavta – he was a man of action as well as words. I was zoche to review his landmark book, "The Halachic Bridge," a remarkable achievement, and we spent wonderful hours discussing it.
He was, above all, a giver - someone who sought to contribute, to share all of his many talents with whoever was prepared to receive them.
I keep thinking about the number 50; Rav Ronen's age when he was taken by Hashem. In our current period of S'firat Ha-Omer, as we make the spiritual climb from slavery to Sinai, our Sedra commands us to count 50 days: "U's'fartem lachem chamishim yom." But we never actually do that - we stop the count at 49. What happened to that elusive 50th day?! The answer is that we never actually reach the 50th level, for it is the level beyond. It is always just out of our reach, calling to us to keep going, to never stop, to try each and every day to add more Kedusha to our lives & attain an even higher level than yesterday. For if we stop, if we were to somehow reach the highest possible point, we would cease to exist.
I believe that while Rav Ronen zt"l had so much more to reveal to the world, he had the z'chut to come within reach of that ultimate 50th plateau. It’s therefore so fitting that his shloshim this week comes shortly before the parsha of B’Har; for he climbed that mountain & he made it to the top.
And so Rav Ronen zt"l is a model to all of us; an inspiration encouraging us to fill each day with positive achievement, to accomplish something every moment of our lives. If we do that, there can be no greater kavod that we can give him to honor his memory. Y'hi zichro baruch.
Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu The Path of the Righteous is as the Light of Dawn
From the book The Father of Israel
Rabbis in Midrash
Lessons
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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.
