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Beit Midrash
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Another intriguing pattern occurs with Yehuda’s sons. Peretz, Yehuda’s firstborn from Tamar, appears in our parasha among those who descended to Egypt, along with his firstborn, Hetzron (46:12). Peretz is the patriarch of the royal dynasty (Mashiach is called "son of Peretz"). Yet Divrei Hayamim reveals a surprise: Hetzron had three sons—Yerachme’el, Ram, and Kluvai (I, 2:9), and David descended from Ram, the second son, not Yerachme’el (2:10-15). Thus, the phenomenon of leadership not coming from the firstborn occurred in both families.
The struggle for leadership continued into the next generation. Menashe and Ephrayim enjoyed noble status in Egypt through Yosef’s position, while Yehuda’s sons claimed leadership as descendants of the brothers’ leader who took responsibility for Benjamin. Both claimants’ statuses were influenced by their wives’ identities, as marriage often was a tool in the pursuit of status.
Divrei Hayamim reveals that Menashe had two wives. According to the Metzudot’s explanation of a cryptic pasuk (I, 7:14), Menashe married a proper Jewish woman but then took an Aramean concubine during a war of conquest. As taking a concubine is proper only for kings (Rambam, Melachim 4:4), he declared himself a king and created international diplomatic ties with Arameans. This marriage to a foreign princess for political purposes disqualified him from leadership and firstborn status. However, since he also married a proper woman, he lost his status only partially, and her descendants received inheritance in Eretz Yisrael proper. Those from his Aramean concubine were pushed east of the Jordan.
Similar events occurred in Yehuda’s family: "Yerachme’el had another wife, and her name was Atara; she was the mother of Onam" (Divrei Hayamim I 2:26). The term "another wife" hints at a serious problem, resembling the navi’s use of this phrase regarding Yiftach’s mother (Shoftim 11:2). According to the Yerushalmi (Sanhedrin 2:3), Yerachme’el married a non-Jewish woman to adorn himself with her crown. Atara was a high-ranking Egyptian princess. Yerachme’el thought this marriage would secure his status of nobility, but the result was the opposite, as with Menashe’s concubine.
These episodes teach that moral missteps disqualify one from leadership. Both cases occurred before the giving of the Torah, yet the consequences were harsh. Since the Torah was given, "marriage" with a non-Jew is strictly forbidden. Additionally, the children of a Jewish man and non-Jewish woman are not Jewish and can only enter the Jewish covenant through full conversion. Even when the mother is Jewish and the father is not, assimilation almost certainly occurs quickly.
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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.