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Beit Midrash
- Jewish Laws and Thoughts
- Serving Hashem, Mitzvot and Repentance
Judaism is a religion of moderation and good sense. The great rule of Rambam of always avoiding extremes in life and behavior (the two exceptions to this rule being humility and the lack of anger) is the clear rule of law and behavior in Jewish life. Basically, it teaches us not to overreach, not to exert ourselves in a manner that is beyond our capabilities to achieve. One has to have a realistic picture of one ’s self, physically, emotionally and spiritually. Overreaching can create problems and pain. The Talmud taught us that King Saul overreached himself in his compassion towards Agag the king of Amalek. Mercy and compassion are enormously necessary and positive attributes. But applied wrongly and emotionally in a situation where the greater long term good demands a more strict type of attitude and behavior, self-righteous compassion turns into pain and tragedy, both personal and national. The Talmud also speaks against impatience. Hasty decisions, unrealistic actions, almost always result in aches and pains. Be patient in judgment, the rabbis in Avot advised us. Letting my bag spin around the carousel until the two larger bags that compressed it would be removed by their hopefully rightful owners would have been a wise, reasoned and correct policy. But since impatience, especially at a luggage carousel after a long flight is contagious, attempting to overreach myself in my impatience produces back pains for which the only real cure is time and patience. Ironic how these things work out, eh?
Impatience is what leads to many of the problems that plague our little country. We want things to develop quickly, to have peace now and to settle all matters quickly. This is really an attempt to badly overreach our abilities and misjudge our true situation. We suffer therefore from a very aching back. Perhaps we should let our bag go around the luggage carousel a few more times until the other heavy bags are somehow removed and it will then be much easier for us to retrieve our rightfully owned suitcase. In the religious world we also suffer from overreaching. We expect the highest standard of religious observance and behavior from our secular and converted brethren immediately. We are not interested in the natural gradual process that brings people closer to their faith and tradition. Maximalism rules our street and the competition to constantly raise the bar is the watchword on the religious street. But this leads to less and not more, to exclusivity and isolation, to a counter - productive attitude and result. The rabbis taught us in the Talmud "Attempting too grab too much too soon means that one will eventually grab nothing." Grabbing less and wisely with patience and a long view of things always is a better policy. Haste and impatience, overreaching and unrealistic assessments of the situation, always lead to at the very least painful backaches. Our bodies and physical vicissitudes have much to teach us about life in general and how we should conduct ourselves in all of the challenges that constantly face us.
Ein Aya Responsibility for Teshuva Within Our Family: "Does Father Know Best?"
Ein Aya Shabbat 2, 292
Rabbis in Midrash
Lessons
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Israel and the Nations A Few Minutes & Many Innovative Ideas on Antisemitism & What to do About It
As we approach the High Holidays, this short lecture (18 minutes) deals with the unfortunate situation of how Israel and the Jewish People stand against antisemitism, analyzing its cause according to Rav Kook, and how to deal with the issue pragmatically & via our prayers.
Ha'azinu PURSUIT is PERFECTION
p. Ha'azinu, Shabbat Shuva
Rav Kook deals with the question of the seemingly hopeless nature of Tshuva. For G-d Himself knows that He created us with free will, which inevitably means we will sometimes make mistakes and choose wrong. This can easily be frustrating, freezing us into inaction and ye'ush (loss of hope). If one sins even once, does he chalila have no choice but suicide?! Moreover, our Godly conscience demands justice, righteousness and perfection, but we all know this is impossible, so what's the solution? Rav Kook's innovative thinking, strongly based on chazal (our sages), offers an inciteful and important aspect to this topic, especially this time of year!
Sukkot Bug-Free Sukkah: Essential Halachic and Practical Schach Guide
How to inspect, clean, and store bamboo mats and palm branches to protect your mitzvah and holiday meals.
