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Beit Midrash
- Shabbat and Holidays
- Passover - Pesach
- The Seder Night
- Shabbat and Holidays
- Passover - Pesach
- The Haggadah
these 3 things at Pesach (seder) has not
fulfilled the obligation: Pesach (the lamb offering); Matza; & Maror.
Of course, we know that these three rituals
formed the basis of Chag HaPesach. Today, because
we have not yet rebuilt the Bet HaMikdash, only
the eating of Matza remains a Torah Mitzva among
the three; the Maror is a Rabbinic commandment, &
we have no lamb offering at all (Magid,
re-telling the story of the Exodus, is the only
other Torah Mitzva still in force).
Yet it seems strange that the Ba’alei Hagada
placed Maror at the end of the sequence! I would
have thought that Maror would have preceded the
other items. After all, historically &
chronologically speaking, we first endured the
bitterness of Egyptian servitude for more than a
century (117 years, to be exact) & only then did
we go & prepare the Matza & partake of the lamb
offering! The message should have been: struggle
through the hard times & you will merit to live a life of prosperity & peace.
Furthermore, at the Seder itself, the order of
eating was Matza-Maror-Pesach (lamb). So what is
the idea of placing Maror at the end of the process?!
Rav Shimshon Rafael Hirsch comments that it is
davka the suffering & the self-sacrifices we
make, in order to fulfill Hashem’s decrees, that
"validates" our adherence to Mitzvot. Quoting
Rashbi in Gemara Brachot, he says that the 3 most
important things we are given – Torah, Eretz
Yisrael & Olam Haba – are only attained &
acquired via yisurin, hardship. Mesirat Nefesh is the litmus test.
And so, when judging as to whether or not we
deserve these gifts & their rewards, G-d looks at
how we related to them: Did we learn Torah only
when it was convenient, accessible or
comfortable? Or did we go to shiurim in all kinds
of weather, sweat over a tough Tosfot, take out
valuable time from our hectic schedule to study?
Did we come to Israel - & stay in Israel! – when
the going was tough, when our salaries were
lowered, when our family begged us to stay back;
& did we live a life directed to a higher cause;
often giving up some of our "creature comforts;"
trading temporal life for eternal life?
The final verdict hinges on how we reacted to the
bitter experiences that life threw, or throws at
us; that will be the truest barometer of just how
devoted we are, & were, to the ideals Hashem
requests or demands of us. Maror, then, is the
"bottom line." It is our determination to "do the
right thing" in the very bitterest of moments
that is telling; & that is what will turn that every Maror into sweet reward.
From Slavery to Redemption How Does One Fulfill the Obligation to Experience the Exodus
A Moment of Wisdom
Rabbis in Midrash
Lessons
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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.
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.
