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Beit Midrash
- Torah Portion and Tanach
- Vayikra
- Tazria - Metzora
How do we do it? I suggest our Sedra, & the Sefira we are now counting, offer us a valuable insight.
Tazria opens by discussing the state of impurity known as Nida. A woman must (Biblically) count 7 days from the end of menstruation in order to again reach a state of Tahara, purity. Menstruation indicates the inability to bear new life (thus the status of Tuma), while its conclusion represents the chance to give birth once more (Tahara).
The counting of 7 rings a bell to us. For we are all now counting another 7; 7 weeks from Pesach to Shavuot. What is the connection between these two sevens?
I suggest that the Torah is telling us that life is a progression from tragedy to triumph, from Tuma to Tahara, from despair to deliverance. Only by enduring the blood do we ultimately achieve the birth; that is the history of Am Yisrael; the pattern that G-d imposed upon the universe.
And so, we could not climb the mountain of Sinai had we not first gone through the bitter Egyptian experience & all the travail it engendered. We emerged as a new creation, but we had to traverse a harsh birth canal to get there.
What seems difficult to understand is that the Torah also prescribes a state of Nida for a woman who has just given birth! This seems strange; should not this moment be one of pure joy, a celebration of absolute purity? The answer lies in the origin of childbirth. The Zohar tells us that in Gan Eden Chava conceived & delivered a child in the same day, with no pain at all! But then sin entered the world, Adam & Chava became mere mortals, & the trauma of labor & delivery became the norm. And so, even having a child is tempered by the knowledge that this same pattern of pain & pleasure will continue.
The good news is that it won’t always be that way. In the end of days we’ll restore the pristine perfection of Gan Eden, & then childbirth, as well as Life itself, will come with no suffering attached. For all those who have paid the supreme price for Israel - & so, for them, the celebration of Yom Ha’atzmaut cannot be fully realized – we anxiously await the coming of Moshiach & Techiyat HaMetim, when all the souls will be reunited, the tears will finally disappear & complete joy will reign. May it happen soon, b’sha’a tova.
Rabbis in Midrash
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Chukat "HOW ENTEBBE STOLE THE BICENTENNIAL
The Difference Between Historic & Eternal"
As we approach America's 250th birthday, it's worth remembering her 200th Bicentennial birthday, on Jul. 4th 1976, when Israel "stole the show" by shocking the world & miraculously saving 101 hostages in a foreign continent. As Pres. As Pres. Trump decides which countries get priority in his new Middle-East, it's worth reminding him of the difference between historic events and eternally historic ones. This obviously connects with this week's parsha, as well!
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 6 - The Parable of the King of India
The advantages of testimony over circumstantial evidence or philosophical speculation.
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.