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Beit Midrash
- Torah Portion and Tanach
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Para Aduma! The ritual of the Red Heifer is so
mystifying that even the wise King Solomon was
stumped. Particularly puzzling is the fact that
the Kohen who administers this elaborate rite -
which helps to make others Tahor, spiritually
pure – will himself become tamei, spiritually
impure, at least until evening. Why is this?
Far be it from me to try to understand what
Shlomo haMelech could not. But – one lesson
clearly emerges from this Mitzva: If you want to
purify someone else, you had better be prepared
to endure some "tuma" yourself.
Wow, what a message for our times!
How often do we encounter so-called "righteous"
people who refuse to "dirty their hands" by
associating with those whom they deem less
learned, less observant, less pure than they are?
Barricaded either socially or spiritually, they
shield themselves from the masses, fearing that
they will be "contaminated" by others if they get
too close. Alas, they just don't get it.
I suggest that the Red Cow's enigma helps to
explain the strange behavior exhibited in the
last two Sedrot. In Shlach, the Meraglim - Spies
reject Hashem's promise & spurn Eretz Yisrael.
How could such noble people, who had seen
G-d in all His glory, do this? I suggest it is
because these people had lived a 100% pristine
spiritual existence: they were fed Manna from
heaven; protected by Divine clouds; taught by
Moshe himself, treated to a daily dose of
miracles. And now, they should get their hands
filthy by engaging in politics, commerce,
military service & the everyday trappings of national life? No way!
Korach, for his part, suffered from the very same
type of paranoia. He could not bear to think of
himself as anything but the leader. "After all,"
he proudly boasts, "look at the high-class stock
I come from! I am royalty! Should I be treated
like some common commoner?! The cheek of it all!" Oy, what a tzadik!
To be a Jewish leader & purify the nation, one
has to be prepared to go, literally, into the
trenches with "amcha," as Avraham, Moshe & Rabbi
Akiva did, & as Moshiach will do. The tragic
approach of so many "so-called "leaders" in high
places who look down (both literally &
figuratively) upon others & say, "Come up here,
to me!" will never succeed. They need to climb
down from their ivory towers & pull the people up to them.
Yes, it does indeed takes guts to get down &
dirty, but then, Geula-Redemption is not for COW-ards.
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.
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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.
