YeshivaThe torah world Gateway
Beit Midrash
- Torah Portion and Tanach
- Bamidbar
- Balak
prophetic of the current crisis in Israel,
offering us crucial lessons as to how to respond
to the drama unfolding before us.
Moav & Midian are long-time enemies of one
another, yet to destroy Israel, they forget past
differences & forge an unholy alliance. Indeed,
when you take the last 2 Hebrew letters of Bilaam
& join them with the last 2 letters of Balak, you
get.......Amalek, the arch-enemy of the Jewish People!
Now, it would have been infinitely more
productive for Balak & Bilam to bless their own
nations rather than to curse ours. But our
enemies often spend their time blaming others for
their problems, rather than using that same
energy to solve them. Unable to defeat us Jews
physically, they choose a strategy of
delegitimization. They denounce & defame us,
screaming to all from the highest cliffs that we
are dangerously different, a threat to humanity &
undeserving of being part of the community of nations.
Of course, Hashem ultimately presides over the
truth & changes these curses into blessings. Are
we truly "a nation that dwells alone?" Yes,
perhaps we are, but that is not a negative! In
fact, it’s a crucial key to our survival, for by
our not melting into the world at large we’ve
managed over the centuries to maintain our
particularity. Do "we do not compute among the
nations?" Yes, certainly, but that means the
norms of the world don’t apply to us; we skew the
graphs & defy the odds as we march on throughout
history. Our survival is statistically improbable
- if not impossible - but we are here,
nevertheless. Are we "rock-like," that is,
stubborn & unmoving? Yes, but that, too, explains
why we & our traditions stubbornly survive & why
our enemies, despite their incessant efforts, cannot dislodge us.
In the end, Bilam & Balak’s plot to curse us does
not work - just as the current, worldwide slander
campaign against us will IY"H also fail – so
Balak & Bilaam devise a new, even more diabolical
plot: They seduce us into turning away from G-d &
worshipping all manner of false gods, succumbing
to our baser lusts & desires. This creates a
schism in our nation & truly threatens us. For
when we fragment into different camps, we are
vulnerable; when we cast aspersions - or throw
stones - at each other, we open the door to being stoned by our enemies.
At the end of our Sedra, Pinchas steps forward to
take bold action. While controversial, Hashem
validates Pinchas’s courage & bestows upon him a
"Brit Shalom." The message is crystal-clear: Only
when we are closely bound by one, enduring
covenant of brotherhood will we find that lasting
peace that we so desperately seek. In short, WE MUST STAY TOGETHER!!
Rabbis in Midrash
Lessons
fast navigation
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.
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.