Parashat HashavuaSeries'LibraryPiskei Din (Hebrew)Test YourselfRav Chaim Drukman, who just passed away at the age of 90, was one of the leading roshei Yeshiva, educators and rabbis, members of Knesset, and key figures in Religious Zionism in Israel over the last 8 decades. His life of dedication and sacrifice for Am Yisrael is both inspiring and practical, for as Rav Mordechai Eliahu zt"l said, our generation should learn our love for our fellow Jew and for the Jewish nation from Rav Drukman. R. Shlomo Zalman Auerbach even identified him as 1 of the 36 tzadikim. Unfortunately, almost all of the many eulogies and memories have not been in English. Hopefully these short personal memories of my rebbe will bezH help fill that significant void, introducing this historic giant figure to the Anglo audience.
The prophets and the Sages instituted the fasts for healthy people, not for sick people. anyone who is sick is exempt from fasting, even if his condition is not life-threatening.
How can we understand the rebellion against religion over the past century? What does the world gain spiritually from this rebellion which was foreseen in the mishna 1,800 years ago as part of the period preceding the mashiach? Only after we understand the rebellion can we glean the benefit and relate to our brothers properly.
Did Jews fast over the destruction of the First Temple when the Second Temple stood? Must pregnant and nursing women abstain from eating and drinking on minor fasts? Rabbi Eliezer Melamed addresses these and other important questions.
Human beings, capable of ascending to a level higher than that of angels, are worthy of enjoying the shelter of the Clouds of Glory, clouds which offer supernatural protection. Being under these clouds is like taking shelter "under God's wings."
After the destruction of the First Temple, the Prophets and the Sages of Israel legislated fasting on the Tenth of Tevet, for it was on that day that Nebuchadnezzar, the King of Babylon, and his legions placed Jerusalem under siege.