This song testifies to the great joy that unity brings. The words are הנה מה טוב ומה נעים שבת אחים גם יחד - how good and how nice is it when brothers sit together. When we look for the good in our friends and neighbors by judging others favorably we can find great joy in unity.
This is the next song in my new series called "A song and a thought."
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Vayishlach
Why did Yakov 'happen' to have an experience with angels just as he was running away from Esav, and again just as he was about to encounter him again?
Why did Yakov prepare so greatly for his meeting with Esav, splitting his camp up out of fear that Esav would kill part of it, but then bring out his whole family to greet him?
What is the significance of Yakov's ladder and Yakov's meeting with the angel of Esav?
What can we learn from these events?
Find out in this week's parsha podcast.
Why did Yakov prepare so greatly for his meeting with Esav, splitting his camp up out of fear that Esav would kill part of it, but then bring out his whole family to greet him?
What is the significance of Yakov's ladder and Yakov's meeting with the angel of Esav?
What can we learn from these events?
Find out in this week's parsha podcast.
How Fortunate Are We
Guest post by Daniel
How Fortunate Are We, How Wonderful is Our Portion, and How Beautiful is Our Heritage
Today, the traffic-jammed street is full
Of people and not cars.
The only wheels moving
Are strollers pushed by young couples
And scooters chased by little brothers.
The many passersby have made a coup
Against traffic lights
That signal no one.
Walls of apartments on either side
Their windows open to buzzing summer air.
In flies a bee, a breeze, and blossoming jasmine.
Out flows laughter, silence, and song
From families still dining
On the dessert that is family.
One day a week,
This street transforms
Into a blessing that lacks
Impatient horns.
One day a week.
How Fortunate Are We, How Wonderful is Our Portion, and How Beautiful is Our Heritage
Today, the traffic-jammed street is full
Of people and not cars.
The only wheels moving
Are strollers pushed by young couples
And scooters chased by little brothers.
The many passersby have made a coup
Against traffic lights
That signal no one.
Walls of apartments on either side
Their windows open to buzzing summer air.
In flies a bee, a breeze, and blossoming jasmine.
Out flows laughter, silence, and song
From families still dining
On the dessert that is family.
One day a week,
This street transforms
Into a blessing that lacks
Impatient horns.
One day a week.
Monday, December 8, 2008
What in the world is going on?!
I try not to read the news. I try to avoid the news websites and the magazines and papers that bring the news into my home. The news dazzles and confuses. We can always find some tragedy to hold up and either cry from or encourage ourselves with, saying that surely Moshiach is on his way.
But reading the news is like putting on dark glasses that block one's view of reality.
Part of the problem is that no matter what we read we are completely missing the point.
A while ago, I read the headline that said Olmert is giving 250 prisoners to Abbas as a good-will gesture.
My blood began to boil. Is he nuts? On PA television, Abbas is spurring on his people to more and more hatred of the Jews living next door, and we need to show him good will?
As the juices start running in my head I catch myself. I let out a laugh! This makes no sense!
The joke is that the thought is so ludicrous it is clearly Hashem peeking out from behind the scenes.
Hashem you say? In Olmert's idiocy? Come now, you must be kidding. Olmert is just a fool who somehow made it into a position of power by a fluke. Soon we will be rid of him and all will be well. But to say that Hashem is behind his lunacy?
But get this, folks. If you want to find Hashem, you actually have to look for the joke. Find the point that makes absolutely no sense. That is where He is found. How do I explain that?
Things start to make sense when we internalize the fact that Hashem Himself is pulling all the strings. He is placing all of the chess pieces in their positions in order to bring about the final checkmate. He is putting the ideas in the heads of the leaders of each country, orchestrating events so that a beautiful concerto will soon be heard. As the orchestra gets in tune and is about to start playing, the room sounds like a rather awful cacophony. One would be hard pressed to believe that a symphony is about to be heard.
Then the conductor lifts his wand and the whole room is silent, and the music begins.
One could think that the music has only just begun, but in truth, the music was written before and each musician received the musical notes specially prepared for the part he was to play. The conductor also invested much time and effort placing each instrument in its proper place. The wind instruments in their place, the strings in theirs, the brass in theirs, and the percussive instruments in theirs. The concert actually began long before the conductor raised his wand.
One with a discerning ear can indeed hear the music long before. Such a person sees the careful placement and planning, yet hears the cacophony directly preceding the symphony and is struck with the utter humor of the situation. Others will notice the irony only in retrospect. Still others will miss the fact that there ever was an irony to begin with.
We can choose the group we wish to be a part of.
But reading the news is like putting on dark glasses that block one's view of reality.
Part of the problem is that no matter what we read we are completely missing the point.
A while ago, I read the headline that said Olmert is giving 250 prisoners to Abbas as a good-will gesture.
My blood began to boil. Is he nuts? On PA television, Abbas is spurring on his people to more and more hatred of the Jews living next door, and we need to show him good will?
As the juices start running in my head I catch myself. I let out a laugh! This makes no sense!
The joke is that the thought is so ludicrous it is clearly Hashem peeking out from behind the scenes.
Hashem you say? In Olmert's idiocy? Come now, you must be kidding. Olmert is just a fool who somehow made it into a position of power by a fluke. Soon we will be rid of him and all will be well. But to say that Hashem is behind his lunacy?
But get this, folks. If you want to find Hashem, you actually have to look for the joke. Find the point that makes absolutely no sense. That is where He is found. How do I explain that?
Things start to make sense when we internalize the fact that Hashem Himself is pulling all the strings. He is placing all of the chess pieces in their positions in order to bring about the final checkmate. He is putting the ideas in the heads of the leaders of each country, orchestrating events so that a beautiful concerto will soon be heard. As the orchestra gets in tune and is about to start playing, the room sounds like a rather awful cacophony. One would be hard pressed to believe that a symphony is about to be heard.
Then the conductor lifts his wand and the whole room is silent, and the music begins.
One could think that the music has only just begun, but in truth, the music was written before and each musician received the musical notes specially prepared for the part he was to play. The conductor also invested much time and effort placing each instrument in its proper place. The wind instruments in their place, the strings in theirs, the brass in theirs, and the percussive instruments in theirs. The concert actually began long before the conductor raised his wand.
One with a discerning ear can indeed hear the music long before. Such a person sees the careful placement and planning, yet hears the cacophony directly preceding the symphony and is struck with the utter humor of the situation. Others will notice the irony only in retrospect. Still others will miss the fact that there ever was an irony to begin with.
We can choose the group we wish to be a part of.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
The Generation of Moshiach
My wife recently bought me the second volume of the wonderful book Machat Shel Yad by my rebbe Rav Yitzchok Frankel. The first book came out about a year ago on Braishis, and even though I got it toward the end of the parshios in Braishis, I read the whole thing from cover to cover. It was difficult to put down.
Perusing excitedly through the new book on Shemos, I found myself in Parshas Tetzaveh where Rav Frankel speaks about the phenomenon of Moshe's complete absence from that parsha. He speaks of Moshe's humility, which is a reflection of Hashem's. He spends a page speaking of Hashem's humility and as I read it I was incredibly moved.
Here I quote (from page 246):
The fact that the infinite Being should lower Himself to take interest in those tiny dots on Earth called human beings is an amazing concept, so much so that many of the ancient philosophers could not comprehend it nor would they believe such a thing to be true. This disbelief in Hashem's tremendous humility has continued even into modern times where we find great intellects such as Albert Einstein unable to comprehend how the Creator of the universe could be concerned with the little details of a human being's life.
Contrary to their way of looking at things, this trait of Hakadosh Boruch Hu actually reveals His true greatness and power. How so? It is not so impressive when a strong man picks up a heavy object. It is not so amazing when a lofty person acts aloof. But if Someone who is immeasurably great is capable of involvement with something immeasurably small, this is a true proof of His greatness. To borrow a metaphor from Rav Shimshon Dovid Pincus זצ"ל, let's imagine the renowned giant Og Melech Habashan. For him to lift a great boulder is no big deal. But can he squeeze himself into a matchbox? Hashem can do even this, so to speak. He concerns Himself with the little details of a little Jew's life. This type of humility is a truly staggering level of greatness.
We see this trait of Hashem most clearly and decisively in the month of Adar. The miracle of Purim took place ata time when K'lal Yisrael were not deserving of miracles as in previous generations. It comes as no surprise to hear of miracles occurring in the days of Dovid Hamelech and Shlomo Hamelech. In those days, the Shechinah was revealed in all its glory in the Bais Hamikdash. But after the Babylonian exile, under Persian rule, did the battered and lowly remnant of a people expect to see miracles such as this?
Yet, Hashem brought Himself to relate even to their low level. In this way, it was even a greater miracle than the ones that took place in the times of Israel's greatness. In spite of the iron barrier that was erected between us and Hashem when the Bais Hamikdash was destroyed, Hashem saw our plight nonetheless. As it says in Shir Hashirim 2:9, "He observes through the openings; He peeks through the cracks." Hashem's hashgacha did not leave us.
I was deeply touched by these words, and could only think that despite the fact that Klal Yisrael has never been in a worse spiritual state then we are now, nevertheless the greatest redemption will come from this state. Hashem will soon show His infinite greatness by displaying His incredible humility, caring for His people even in their most lowly state. What greater sign of Geulah can one find? What greater consolation can there be?
This is also a concept that is echoed in the fact that when Hashem redeemed the Jewish people from Egypt, He was manifest through His name אקיה אשר אקיה. This name corresponds to the concept of כתר - Keser. This represents the greatest mercy of Hashem, the mercy that is beyond the intellect and beyond understanding. We as a people had sunken to the lowest levels in Egypt, and logically were not deserving of the miracles and redemption that Hashem had in store. We were not worthy to be separated and singled out when the plagues occurred only to the Egyptians. Despite the logic, Hashem manifested with Keser, which was above logic and brought about the Exodus from Egypt.
Similarly, when the final redemption is to occur, there is a notion that Hashem again will manifest with the name אקיה אשר אקיה and the middah of Keser - transcending logic and raising His people from their lowly defiled state to rise above all to truly be a light unto the nations, במהרה בימינו אמן.
Perusing excitedly through the new book on Shemos, I found myself in Parshas Tetzaveh where Rav Frankel speaks about the phenomenon of Moshe's complete absence from that parsha. He speaks of Moshe's humility, which is a reflection of Hashem's. He spends a page speaking of Hashem's humility and as I read it I was incredibly moved.
Here I quote (from page 246):
The fact that the infinite Being should lower Himself to take interest in those tiny dots on Earth called human beings is an amazing concept, so much so that many of the ancient philosophers could not comprehend it nor would they believe such a thing to be true. This disbelief in Hashem's tremendous humility has continued even into modern times where we find great intellects such as Albert Einstein unable to comprehend how the Creator of the universe could be concerned with the little details of a human being's life.
Contrary to their way of looking at things, this trait of Hakadosh Boruch Hu actually reveals His true greatness and power. How so? It is not so impressive when a strong man picks up a heavy object. It is not so amazing when a lofty person acts aloof. But if Someone who is immeasurably great is capable of involvement with something immeasurably small, this is a true proof of His greatness. To borrow a metaphor from Rav Shimshon Dovid Pincus זצ"ל, let's imagine the renowned giant Og Melech Habashan. For him to lift a great boulder is no big deal. But can he squeeze himself into a matchbox? Hashem can do even this, so to speak. He concerns Himself with the little details of a little Jew's life. This type of humility is a truly staggering level of greatness.
We see this trait of Hashem most clearly and decisively in the month of Adar. The miracle of Purim took place ata time when K'lal Yisrael were not deserving of miracles as in previous generations. It comes as no surprise to hear of miracles occurring in the days of Dovid Hamelech and Shlomo Hamelech. In those days, the Shechinah was revealed in all its glory in the Bais Hamikdash. But after the Babylonian exile, under Persian rule, did the battered and lowly remnant of a people expect to see miracles such as this?
Yet, Hashem brought Himself to relate even to their low level. In this way, it was even a greater miracle than the ones that took place in the times of Israel's greatness. In spite of the iron barrier that was erected between us and Hashem when the Bais Hamikdash was destroyed, Hashem saw our plight nonetheless. As it says in Shir Hashirim 2:9, "He observes through the openings; He peeks through the cracks." Hashem's hashgacha did not leave us.
I was deeply touched by these words, and could only think that despite the fact that Klal Yisrael has never been in a worse spiritual state then we are now, nevertheless the greatest redemption will come from this state. Hashem will soon show His infinite greatness by displaying His incredible humility, caring for His people even in their most lowly state. What greater sign of Geulah can one find? What greater consolation can there be?
This is also a concept that is echoed in the fact that when Hashem redeemed the Jewish people from Egypt, He was manifest through His name אקיה אשר אקיה. This name corresponds to the concept of כתר - Keser. This represents the greatest mercy of Hashem, the mercy that is beyond the intellect and beyond understanding. We as a people had sunken to the lowest levels in Egypt, and logically were not deserving of the miracles and redemption that Hashem had in store. We were not worthy to be separated and singled out when the plagues occurred only to the Egyptians. Despite the logic, Hashem manifested with Keser, which was above logic and brought about the Exodus from Egypt.
Similarly, when the final redemption is to occur, there is a notion that Hashem again will manifest with the name אקיה אשר אקיה and the middah of Keser - transcending logic and raising His people from their lowly defiled state to rise above all to truly be a light unto the nations, במהרה בימינו אמן.
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Do not fear at all
Many things in life can make us fearful. Whether it is the fate of our livelihood, the fate of our children, the fate of our people in Israel, or the fate of the world. When our faith is placed solely in Hashem, we need not fear.
Rebbe Nachman says "כל העולם כולו גשר צר מאד והעיקר לא לפחד כלל" - the whole world is a narrow bridge, and the main thing is not to fear at all. When we know Hashem is taking care of us and protecting us we can truly place our trust completely in Him and face our challenges with confidence.
Click here to hear my rendition of the classic song, composed by Rabbi Baruch Chait.
Rebbe Nachman says "כל העולם כולו גשר צר מאד והעיקר לא לפחד כלל" - the whole world is a narrow bridge, and the main thing is not to fear at all. When we know Hashem is taking care of us and protecting us we can truly place our trust completely in Him and face our challenges with confidence.
Click here to hear my rendition of the classic song, composed by Rabbi Baruch Chait.
Those who talk...
A while ago I had a conversation with a certain well-known rav, who is a talmid of the mekubal Rav Moshe Shapiro. I mentioned to him a few things that strongly implied that Moshiach may be on the very near horizon, and I was curious what Rav Shapiro was saying on this matter.
He told me that Rav Shapiro had said something very profound:
Those who talk don't know, and those who know don't talk.
He told me that Rav Shapiro had said something very profound:
Those who talk don't know, and those who know don't talk.
Vayetze
The issue that we address in this week's parsha podcast is where Leah was at in the whole con game that Lavan had in store for Yaakov's marriage to Rochel.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
The end of the psak
People have asked if I have found anything further.
I have received a number of emails from people who either asked themselves or sent a letter to him and his response was the same, "שקר וכזב" - absolutely false.
You can see a similar story here.
One final thing is that people were very quick to send the first part of the story. I would greatly appreciate if all those who gave links to this site or pasted the story into an email (or received the original for that matter) would please do the same for the second half of the story.
I would also appreciate if any comments are added for what ever reason, that it be kept in mind that my intention was not to mislead anyone. I honestly believed the story was accurate, or I would not have written it. It would have been much easier for me to leave the story and let people think what they would, rather than write a follow up displaying my error.
Thank you in advance.
you'll find the post here:
http://geulahperspectives.blogspot.com/2008/11/rav-kanievskys-psak-part-two.html
I have received a number of emails from people who either asked themselves or sent a letter to him and his response was the same, "שקר וכזב" - absolutely false.
You can see a similar story here.
One final thing is that people were very quick to send the first part of the story. I would greatly appreciate if all those who gave links to this site or pasted the story into an email (or received the original for that matter) would please do the same for the second half of the story.
I would also appreciate if any comments are added for what ever reason, that it be kept in mind that my intention was not to mislead anyone. I honestly believed the story was accurate, or I would not have written it. It would have been much easier for me to leave the story and let people think what they would, rather than write a follow up displaying my error.
Thank you in advance.
you'll find the post here:
http://geulahperspectives.blogspot.com/2008/11/rav-kanievskys-psak-part-two.html
Monday, December 1, 2008
Rejoice!
Are you looking for a little pick me up? Rebbe Nachman says that it is a great mitzvah to always be joyous. Here's a little song that might help.
It's part of a new podcast series I am working on, which you should be able to find on itunes already (in the section on Judaism) and I hope to have up on my website soon bezras Hashem.
It's part of a new podcast series I am working on, which you should be able to find on itunes already (in the section on Judaism) and I hope to have up on my website soon bezras Hashem.
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