R' Yonah speaks about how when we have Hope and confidence in Hashem, it strengthens and reinforces itself. He also speaks about the idea of always recognizing that the seemingly negative situations we may be in are also for our best. Finally, we speak about the concept that although a person usually has pain from extended longing for something, when it comes to the longing of the righteous for the help of Hashem, that longing does not create pain.
CLICK HERE to listen to the audio
Why is the illegitimate child punished for the sin his parents committed? How does Hashem promise that He will console this person in the future when Moshiach arrives? What is the idea behind the Shechina (Divine Presence) which accompanies us into exile, and leads us home with redemption? What is the twofold power of the tongue? How are we to have a 'soft tongue' in our relationships with others? How are we to understand when others cause negative events in our lives?
Find out in this week's Parsha Podcast.
Running time: 27:58
R' Yonah teaches us that we can always have hope, no matter the challenge we face, because we know that Hashem is Compassionate and Kind, and even if we have sinned, Hashem is our Father who wants to forgive us.
CLICK HERE to listen to the audio
Running time: 21:22
What is the concept of Holiness? How does it relate to the Jewish People's specialness and our ability to inhabit the land of Israel? How does it relate to the concept of the forbidden relationships, the concept of Kosher food, and the concept of finding out spiritual information from Kosher sources? How does this connect to the special holiness of the Kohanim-Priests? What is the special nature of the Pure Speech of Hashem? Why are Hashem's commitments different than those of human beings? What do we learn from the fact that the Torah goes out of its way to speak with a positive idiom?
Find out in this week's Parsha Podcast.
Running time: 25:32
Bitachon 57: Hashem Gives the Challenge
Rabenu Yonah goes into the idea that it makes a lot of sense to place our trust in Hashem, as He is the one who gives us the challenge in the first place - to help us grow and become better - so it is in Him that we can place our trust.
CLICK HERE to listen
Bitachon 56: Hashem is in Charge of it All
Rabenu Yonah speaks about the hope that is engendered by our Bitachon, and the idea that Hashem is All-Powerful and therefore, he can save us from even the most dire situation. He also speaks of the importance of realizing that all that occurs to us is from Hashem, and the humans who bring it about are just His messengers.
CLICK HERE to listen
Running time: 17:40
Bitachon 55: Facing Difficult Times
Rabenu Yonah teaches us that with Bitachon and strong commitment to Torah we have special protection, even from the sins of those around us. He also talks about how important it is to know that the challenges and difficulties of our lives serve to purify us from our previous sins.
CLICK HERE to listen
Running time: 22:10
Bitachon 54: Bitachon and Yiras Hashem
We continue in the Rabenu Yonah on the topic of trusting Hashem in every area - even the lighter cases that we might think we can 'do it on our own.' This helps us recognize that it's really all Hashem. He also helps us realize that our Bitachon level is tied in to our ability to give tzedakah, and is intimately tied into our level of Yiras Hashem - Fear of Heaven.
CLICK HERE to listen
Running time: 15:56
What is the depth that underlies the idea that when we are careful about keeping our eyes pure, we merit to have a revelation of the Shechina-Divine Presence? How does this relate to the concept of Holiness? How does the concept of Holiness relate to 'singing to Hashem' in all situations - the good and the seemingly not good? What is the Truth that is revealed in the end of time with the destruction of the Wicked?
Find out in this week's Parsha Podcast.
Running time: 27:59
Why do we find that the verse tells us in Koheles that the righteous and the wicked can seem to have the same fate - be it positive or negative? Why is it that the time of joy - the holidays - coincides with a time of judgment? Why did the students of R' Akiva die in this happy time from Pesach to Shavuos? Why does Hashem sometimes bring difficult or challenging situations to us in the moment of great joy? How does this relate to the sons of Aharon, Nadav and Avihu, who lost their lives at the very moment of the joy of the dedication of the Mishkan-Tabernacle?
Find out in this week's Parsha Podcast.
Running time: 26:08
Why do we speak of the Matza - the 'bread of affliction' in terms of our slavery, but also in terms of our freedom - the bread we ate as we hastily left Egypt? Why do we speak about the Future Redemption - Next Year in the Land of Israel - at the very beginning of the Seder? Why do we quote a verse speaking about 'blood, fire and pillars of smoke' in regards to the plagues of Egypt, if it is a verse that refers to the War of Gog Umagog (Armageddon)? What is the 'cup of retribution' that is used for the Nations of the World, and how does it coincide with the Redemption of the Jewish people? Why did we have this unusual experience of the bread not rising as we left Egypt? What is the lesson, and how does it apply to us today?
Find out in this week's Parsha Podcast.
Running time: 26:10
What are the causes of the spiritual leprosy called Tzara'as? What was the magical elixir of life that the peddler was 'selling' in R' Yanai's neighborhood? What is the idea of not speaking negatively - both of other people, and of one's life situation? What is the depth of the praises that King David sang when he was saved from near-certain death at the hands of Avimelech? Why does Dovid Hamelech speak of trust and faith and praise of Hashem, but seem to veer off topic in mentioning the importance of not speaking negatively of others?
Find out in this week's Parsha Podcast.
Running time: 28:28
Why does the concept of a woman conceiving and giving birth follow the concept of the laws of kosher animals? What is the meaning of the verse that speaks about 'earlier and later' in regards to the Human being's fashioning? What is the idea behind Adam harishon in that he filled up the whole world, 'from east to west, north to the south and reached until the heavens?' What are the tools we can use to be a window through which the light of Hashem can come into the world and fill up the farthest reaches?
Find out in this week's Parsha Podcast.
