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Beit Midrash
- Torah Portion and Tanach
- Bamidbar
- Shlach Lecha
The rabbis (especially the Netziv, Rabbi Naftali Zvi Yehuda Berlin of nineteenth century Volozhin) who commented on this verse stated that the ‘desires of our heart’ refers to people who perform mitzvoth but without any faith in their worth or in their Giver, and that ‘after their wandering eyes’ refers to those who view mitzvoth that they personally observe through the prism of their eyes and understanding alone.
They are always willing to substitute either their desires or their intellectual rationalizations for the pure belief in God and the subservience necessary to serve the Eternal. Man’s natural inclination to be independent of commands and orders of others, to do what man alone wishes to do irrespective of duty, tradition and ultimate consequences, always places man in opposition to this Jewish concept which stresses obedience and humility before our Creator.
The Torah allows us desires and rational thinking. But like every other facet of human behavior, these desires have to be channeled and disciplined. They are not meant to run wild and follow all of the changing whims and vagaries of human society in all of its ages and generations.
Performance of the mitzvoth faithfully and in acknowledgement of the One Who commands those mitzvoth to be performed becomes the foundation and anchor for the necessary disciplines that enhance Jewish life and make it eternal.
Otherwise, our hearts and eyes, our uncontrolled desires and uninhibited intellect and thoughts, will allow us eventually to go astray.
But, why is the commandment of tzitzit the ultimate method for teaching us these lessons of obedience, probity and faith? After all there are hundreds of other commandments that would seem to be proper to instruct us in the same fashion.
Here also the commentators to the Torah struggled to find a proper and meaningful explanation. The one that appeals most to me has to do with the form that the mitzvah takes. Even though the mitzvah applies only to four-cornered garments, a relative rarity in post-Talmudic times, Jews purposely wore such four-cornered garments in order to obligate themselves in the performance of the mitzvah of tzitzit.
Thus, this is a mitzvah that was omnipresent in their lives - a garment that was constantly worn on their bodies. It was an item of self identity and a primary reminder of the yoke of mitzvoth and Torah that the Jews accepted upon themselves and their generations at Mount Sinai.
Tzitzit is a mitzvah that numerically (through gematryia) and in its form (its knots and strings) constantly reminds us of the 613 mitzvoth that are the basis of our existence and the responsibilities in our lives and in this world.
Tzitzit is the sum total of all of the commandments - in fact of the very concept of commandments - that is the heart of Judaism and the nucleus of all Jewish life. Such is the methodology of Torah in all of our behavior and thoughts.
P'ninat Mishpat P'ninat Mishpat: Realtor’s Fee on Large Commercial Building – part I
(based on ruling 85031 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
Chemdat Yamim Moreshet Shaul: Twin Foundations
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 690
Rabbis in Midrash
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P'ninat Mishpat P'ninat Mishpat: Realtor’s Fee on Large Commercial Building – part I
(based on ruling 85031 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
(based on ruling 85031 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
Chemdat Yamim Moreshet Shaul: The Goal of an Agricultural Yeshiva – part I
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 263 (address at the laying of the cornerstone of the Yeshiva Chakla’it in Kfar Haroeh)
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 263 (address at the laying of the cornerstone of the Yeshiva Chakla’it in Kfar Haroeh)
Re'e NEVER EXTREME EXCEPT ISRAEL
Parshat Re'eh
Judaism is against extremism, so how can we understand the seemingly extreme statements found in our sages in favor of living in the Land of Israel and against living in Chutz laAretz? The article deals with the seeming contradiction between the strength of Free-Will and the strength of being influenced by our surroundings.
Ekev DANCE FOR ISRAEL- FOR YOUR BENEFIT
Parshat Eikev
Description: The 7 Haftarot we read after Tisha B'Av ("Shiva D'Nichemta") surely get us excited that they're coming TRUE, and awaken us to yearn, dance & join the return to Zion! The short article also deals with the problems and solutions facing the American Jewish community as discussed at a recent panel, as well as the question why Jews come from America to Israel to help when we face problems, but Israelis don't come to aid Jews in America when they face anti-Semitism.
P'ninat Mishpat P'ninat Mishpat: Complaints about Contractor’s Work – part II
(based on ruling 83037.1 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
(based on ruling 83037.1 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
Chemdat Yamim Moreshet Shaul: Twin Foundations
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 690
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 690
D'varim Judaism’s Social Vision
Re’eh
Giving is more than an act of generosity—it is an essential part of human dignity that belongs to everyone, rich and poor alike. The ultimate goal of help is to empower others to stand on their own.
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.
