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Beit Midrash
- Torah Portion and Tanach
- Bamidbar
- Beha'alotcha
Our Sedra is called "Parshat Ha’mito’n’im," the chapter of the complainers. After the nation has reached a true "high" – we were freed from Egypt, we received the Torah, we built & then dedicated the magnificent Mishkan – it all seems to break down. We go into depression, we find fault with our leaders - and, by extension - with G-d, & we start to practice that time-honored Jewish tradition: Kvetching.
We complain about the conditions of the desert; the lack of water; the shortage of meat; the taste of the miraculous Mahn. Even Miriam & Ahron get into the act when they complain to Moshe about his neglecting his wife Tzipora. We find fault with everyone & everything.
In fact, we don’t even need a specific reason to complain: The chapter (11) begins by simply saying, "The people complained; it was evil in the ears of Hashem; He became angry & He burned the people." Notice that this is BEFORE any specific grievances were lodged! There was just a general mood of discontent that gripped the nation.
Where did/does this dissatisfaction come from?
The answer, I suggest, can be found in two tiny, little words. When grousing about the mahn, the people say: "Our souls are parched, spoiled; ayn kol!" These last two words - "ayn kol" - can mean, "we have nothing." But it can also mean, "We don’t have everything!" And there is the key to it all.
If you believe that everything is coming to you, then the moment you don’t have something – be it a steak done exactly the way you like it, ice in your drink, the temperature a perfect 72(F) - 22(C) degrees (all pretty hard things to get in a desert!) – you forget about all the amazing blessings you DO have, & you focus only on what is missing. And then, invariably, you come up with a million & one faults in your own personal universe.
If this was a problem 2500 years ago, it is perhaps even more of a problem today. Our own souls are often "spoiled," too. We want everything to be perfect, & when it doesn’t quite go that way, we go ballistic, or we fall into moaning, groaning or depression. We suddenly forget all the beautiful gifts which Hashem sends our way every day, every second.
One of a Jew’s greatest tests is whether he will see himself deprived, or Divinely blessed. One attitude leads to a life of bitterness, the other to a life of bracha.
Rabbis in Midrash
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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.
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 3
The second speaker invited to convince the Khazar King is the Christian, who presents their beliefs. Even before the questions of the King, "between the lines", the author R. Yehuda HaLevi already begins disproving them.
Ein Aya "Intimacy: Love, Life & Giving or Egocentric Taking & Expiration"
Today, many confuse between intimacy in marriage, based on love, giving and life which are diametrically opposed to empty "sex", pornography and prostitution which destroyed the Beit HaMikdash. The practical importance of clarifying this topic in today's western society is obvious, especially for young adults.