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Beit Midrash
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- Chemdat Yamim
- Igrot Hare’aya
Recipient: The rabbis of the Secretariat of "Mizrachi of the Western Countries." They had many questions for Rav Kook about the state of education in Eretz Yisrael.
Igrot Hare’aya (200)
Beit Din Eretz Hemda - Gazit
73 - The State of Education in Eretz Yisrael – part III
74 - The State of Education in Eretz Yisrael – part IV
75 - Potential Partners in Building a Yeshiva in Yafo
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Body: The best place to promote innovative institutions, which are based on a spirit of pure lives, filled with the light of Torah, belief, and sanctity, yet supported by skill in science and craftsmanship, is specifically the New Yishuv (the "modern" areas of Jewish settlement), and not Yerushalayim the Holy City. In Yerushalayim, the old style of education must continue. In Yerushalayim, there is not a clear collapse of trustworthy Judaism.
We should also remember that there is a purpose for the approach of abstinence from certain areas of "complete life," at least from the perspective of the external eye. The purpose is as a sign of our exile and the related affliction of the soul. In Yerushalayim, the impact of our national mourning is very poignant, as we can see the ruins of our Holy Temple, the Sanctuary of our King, before our eyes, and we are in its midst as lowly servants. This situation pierces the heart and brings pain to the soul. It by necessity leaves traces of fear and wariness of broader education and a more open lifestyle, until the time when Hashem shows us signs of relieving our situation.
The New Yishuv has a different status. Here, the spirit of live nationalism is increasing and in the air. In fact, the New Yishuv has been established by a movement that is based on this spirit of nationalism. The issue is that without a basis of true Judaism, of a sanctification of the truth and the light of eternal life, as the Name of Hashem rests on His nation and heritage, this spirit of nationalism is not worth anything. It would pass like foam on the face of water and would be comparable to a withering blossom. When the nationalism will be based on the work of religious laborers who recognize their obligations and know how to serve Hashem honestly, according to the Torah of life and the light of truth, then their efforts will represent a clear spirit, which will bring dew of reawakening to Israel and the tents of Judea. Only when the power of the peripheral communities will increase will Yerushalayim also be elevated as its center, an event toward which our eyes and heart are focused.
Therefore, we must establish in the heart of the New Yishuv an advanced yeshiva that will operate according to all of the paths of honor and the best and most embellished life that is attainable. In this type of yeshiva, the greater part of the studies must be on the Written Torah and the Oral Torah in an orderly manner, in a way that incorporates all that is worthwhile from the Jewish (philosophical) scholarship of our generation. The spiritual and scientific elements of the Torah in all of their applications need to be studied as independently valuable, just as Talmud and Halacha are studied. The external order in the yeshiva needs to be done with good taste, acceptable to everyone who is upright and well-mannered, and this applies to the building, the attire, and the interaction with others.
Secular knowledge needs to have a formal place in the curriculum to be studied in Hebrew, and the students should learn foreign languages, both Western and Eastern. The students should be taught by good instructors and with good books, not including the time of learning in yeshiva, which should not be more than eight hours a day. In this way, after six to eight years of study in such a yeshiva, the [finished products] will be well-rounded people, who will truly be a tribute to the Jewish People and to Eretz Yisrael.
Beit Din Eretz Hemda - Gazit
Igrot Hare’aya Departure of an Uncle to Eretz Yisrael
Igrot Hare’aya – Letters of Rav Kook: Vol. I, #1 , p. 1-2 – part II
Igrot Hare’aya Trying to Arrange Purchase of Land in Eretz Yisrael – part II
#229 Date and Place: 13 Tishrei 5670 (1909), Yafo
Igrot Hare’aya Connecting Disciplines in Torah Study
Igrot Hare’aya – Letters of Rav Kook 103 – part III
P'ninat Mishpat Payments after a Gradual End of Employment
(Based on ruling 82024 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts
Igrot Hare’aya What Requires Protest? – #279
Igrot Hare’aya – Letters of Rav Kook Date and Place: 15 Adar I 5670 (1910), Yafo
Igrot Hare’aya Concern for Communal Kashrut Standards – #288, 290
Date and Place: 4 Nisan 5670 (1910), Yafo
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 8- "Answering Questions on the Kuzari's Proof from Mass Revelation
Rabbis in Midrash
Lessons
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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.
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.
