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Beit Midrash
- Shabbat and Holidays
- The High Holidays
- The Month of Elul
The Torah study is dedicatedin the memory of
R. Avraham Ben David
2. Shir Hashirim an Allegory of Love Between Hashem and Am Yisrael.
3. Return to the True Relationship.
Month of Elul
"I am for my beloved and my beloved is for me." (Shir Hashirim 6, 3). The first Hebrew letter of each of the words in this verse spell out Elul. The connection between Hashem and Am Yisrael is one of a marriage. Am Yisrael is compared to as the maiden and The Holy One Blessed Be He the husband.
Shir Hashirim as Allegory of Love Between Hashem and Am Yisrael
Chazal have taught us that Shir Hashirim is not a book of love between a man and a woman, but rather about Hashem’s eternal love for Am Yisrael. This connection between Am Yisrael and our Father in heaven is an eternal bond. Just as a husband needs his wife (his ezer kinegdo) to be complete in life and he cannot realize his full potential without her, so it is also with Hashem and his ezer kinegdo- Am Yisrael. Hashem created Am Yisrael to be his partner. He structured the continued existence and development of this world upon the condition that there be a nation that would carry out his will and be, in essence, his helpmate.
The Beloved (Hashem) knocks on his beloved’s (Am Yisrael’s) entrance and requests that she lets him in. Even at times when she may respond with distance, evasion, forgetfulness and reluctance to open the door, Hashem repeats his entreaties and rouses her from her apathy. He knows that the pure, complete and unblemished heart of Am Yisrael lies beneath this exterior shell of distance and apathy. "My heart of my beloved beats". Once the shell is removed this heart will be revealed, for this period of distance is temporary but Hashem’s true relationship with Am Yisrael is eternal and everlasting.
Thus, the maiden does eventually search for her Beloved. The bride realizes her admiration for her Beloved and seeks Him. She now knows that "My beloved is white and ruddy, and distinguished among ten thousand" and "His head is as the most fine gold, his locks are wavy, and black as a raven." She beseeches Him: "Draw me, we will run after thee. The king has brought me into his chambers. We will be glad and rejoice in thee."
Return to the True Relationship
This is the essence of the month of Elul. "I am for my beloved and my beloved is for me." It is the month of refreshed and renewed closeness between Hashem and Am Yisrael. This renewed bond is not only desirable to the Am but is also Hashem’s will. Hashem rules this world through his mercy. "He does not desire the death of the guilty, but in his repentance he shall live". Hashem desires tschuva and is forgiving. He does not tire of forgiving his people because He wants them to be pure. And so He persists and pursues them just as a father seeks to exonerate and help cleanse his son even though his son might object to his endeavors.
Hashem also desires the purification of his partner. He is, therefore, overjoyed when she turns to Him and accepts her as if she had never been distant from Him. "He has not beheld iniquity in Yaakov nor has he seen perverseness in Yisrael." (Bamidbar 23, 21). "As a flower of the pomegranate is your emptiness. Even your empty ones of Am Yisrael are filled with mitzvoth like a pomegranate." (Brachot 57, A).
The month of Elul is a month of repentance, a month of true happiness, a month of reconnecting. "I am for my beloved and my beloved is for me". This happiness does not lessen the need for introspection and awe, rather it deepens and greatens the quest for true tschuva. "O joyous is Israel, before who do you purify yourself, and who purifies you, our Father in heaven"(Yoma 85, B).
P'ninat Mishpat P'ninat Mishpat: Realtor’s Fee on Large Commercial Building – part I
(based on ruling 85031 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
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Shoftim TESHUVA IN COURT OF LAW?
Parshat Shoftim-Chodesh Elul
Why does parshat Shoftim always come out during Elul? This innovative and central explanation is an eye-opener regarding many aspects of Judaism.
The Month of Elul TESHUVA IS THE ANSWER
The month of Elul serves as a vital time for self-reflection and personal accountability to prepare for true repentance.
P'ninat Mishpat P'ninat Mishpat: Realtor’s Fee on Large Commercial Building – part I
(based on ruling 85031 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
(based on ruling 85031 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
P'ninat Mishpat Complaints about Contractor’s Work – part II
(based on ruling 83037.1 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
(based on ruling 83037.1 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
Chemdat Yamim Moreshet Shaul: The Goal of an Agricultural Yeshiva – part I
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 263 (address at the laying of the cornerstone of the Yeshiva Chakla’it in Kfar Haroeh)
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 263 (address at the laying of the cornerstone of the Yeshiva Chakla’it in Kfar Haroeh)
Chemdat Yamim The Goal of an Agricultural Yeshiva – part II
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 263 (address at the cornerstone laying for the Yeshiva Chakla’it in Kfar Haroeh – 1938)
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 263 (address at the cornerstone laying for the Yeshiva Chakla’it in Kfar Haroeh – 1938)
Re'e NEVER EXTREME EXCEPT ISRAEL
Parshat Re'eh
Judaism is against extremism, so how can we understand the seemingly extreme statements found in our sages in favor of living in the Land of Israel and against living in Chutz laAretz? The article deals with the seeming contradiction between the strength of Free-Will and the strength of being influenced by our surroundings.
Ekev DANCE FOR ISRAEL- FOR YOUR BENEFIT
Parshat Eikev
Description: The 7 Haftarot we read after Tisha B'Av ("Shiva D'Nichemta") surely get us excited that they're coming TRUE, and awaken us to yearn, dance & join the return to Zion! The short article also deals with the problems and solutions facing the American Jewish community as discussed at a recent panel, as well as the question why Jews come from America to Israel to help when we face problems, but Israelis don't come to aid Jews in America when they face anti-Semitism.
P'ninat Mishpat P'ninat Mishpat: Complaints about Contractor’s Work – part II
(based on ruling 83037.1 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
(based on ruling 83037.1 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
Chemdat Yamim Moreshet Shaul: Twin Foundations
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 690
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 690
