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Beit Midrash
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Yet suddenly, Hashem puts the 10 Plagues on hold. He interrupts the process of Redemption in order to issue His first decree to Bnei Yisrael as a nation: "This month (of Nisan) will be for you the first of months." Our calendar, like Jewish life itself, is starting anew, and so we will now begin counting our months from Nisan, even though the world was created in Tishrei, six months prior.
But why pause to make this decree, rather than first concluding the Makot & only then establishing a New Jewish Order? Would that not have made more sense?
I think the answer lies in a statement Hashem makes just before He issues the command to re-order the calendar: "L’ma’an tayd’un asher yafleh Hashem bayn Mitzrayim u’vayn Yisrael; so that you shall know that G-d has differentiated between Egypt & Israel."
Rashi helps us by defining the unusual word, "yafleh" as "differentiated." But clearly, the word also connects to "peleh," which means wonder, or miracle.
I want to suggest that Hashem here is making a grand statement about the nature of His relationship with the Jewish People, as well as hinting as to how we are to proceed towards ultimately fulfilling our eternal destiny.
Hashem is telling us that there is a structured, systematic procedure for us to follow in normal, Halachic life. We will studiously observe the moon; that will allow us to "set up" each month, so we can designate our Chagim during the next 30 days, as well as establish our seasons. The sun will guide us as to when we rise for morning prayers & when we recite evening Tefilot; it will also tell us when Shabbat begins & ends. These universal objects are not ours alone; we share them with all humanity, but we utilize them for our own specific Jewish purposes.
Yet the natural world is not our boundary. We are also a people of wonders, witnesses to miraculous events & recipients of Divine assistance from above that defy logic, science & rationality. There is no rational explanation as to how we could have survived – no, flourished! - all these centuries against such staggering odds, outlasting mighty empires along the way that sought our demise.
Our very existence is a peleh, a wonder. To the knowing eye, it is as clear as the moon & as bright as the sun.
Rabbi Stewart Weiss
Was ordained at the Hebrew Theological College in Skokie, Illinois, and led congregations in Chicago and Dallas prior to making Aliyah in 1992. He directs the Jewish Outreach Center in Ra'anana, helping to facilitate the spiritual absorption of new olim.
Jewish Laws and Thoughts Shul “etiquette:” can we honor Hashem while respecting our fellow congregants?
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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
D'varim Judaism’s Social Vision
Re’eh
Giving is more than an act of generosity—it is an essential part of human dignity that belongs to everyone, rich and poor alike. The ultimate goal of help is to empower others to stand on their own.
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.
