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Beit Midrash
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- Chemdat Yamim
- Parashat Hashavua
- Shabbat and Holidays
- Sukkot
- The Essence of Sukkot
The Torah describes Sukkot as happening "when you harvest" (Devarim 16:13), and the gemara calls it "the holiday that comes at the time of harvest" (Rosh Hashana 13a).
We are to leave the "fortress," the house where you tend to hole yourself up, specifically at the time of harvest. At the time of sowing, it is not possible to isolate oneself in one’s house because there is a need for help from other elements. You need sunlight and rain, and often there is a need for external help. However, once the time of reaping and of drying the grain is over and the grain is ready to be stored, a person can think he no longer needs partnerships. At that time, the commandment comes to "live in sukkot." You are not a creature who is unconnected to his surroundings, for all the days of your life you depend on the good graces of others. Let the stars, and the people who walk down the streets, see into your private domain. You should remember that you live within a world and that you cannot isolate yourself with your own interests alone and sleep quietly alongside your pile of grain. The goodness you receive that allows you to live should be joined by the goodness you grant to others.
These are ideals that do not only exist until the time of harvest, but are specifically highlighted at the time of harvest. It is a "mutually beneficial agreement" [involving Hashem]. "If you come into My house, I will come into your house. If you make My people happy, I will make your people happy."
What makes the joyousness of Simchat Torah special is that it does not involve the rejoicing of the individual but the joy [of the community and the nation]. It includes a plan of practical action. It is not just words at a time that they require no action, but they specifically bring joy because they relate to the following practical plan – "I was happy, and I made others happy" (mishna, Maaser Sheni 5:12). This is what the whole Torah is about. We do not know about compartmentalizing our lives. We do not believe in the saying: "Give Caesar that which belongs to Caesar." For us, all philosophical ideas have value to the extent that they are applicable in a proper manner within practical life. It has to pass the test of practicality, and only then can we assess its value.
The mitzva of hakhel, when the king of Israel would read the Torah portions that deal with the behavior of the individual and the collective, is something that has to be read specifically by the king. It is the king and not the crown prince, and not the candidate for a leadership office, because the Torah is not a platform for elections. There are those who know how to talk beautifully but do not know how to fulfill what they set out to do. Rather the Torah parallels the plan of the cabinet which is set out to be applied and it sets out the relationship between the nation and the individual.
Rabbis in Midrash
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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.
