This presentation was not videotaped on Pesach itself! Knowledgeable Hebrew-speaking Jews will find a lot of replacements for the usual words in the script.
Thanks to my teacher Noemi, who is a Sefaradiah and speaks at least 3 and possibly more languages fluently.
Sorry, no English subtitles. But the video itself is well-enough produced, and the speech (in my opinion) enough on the slow side, that viewers who celebrate Pesach (Passover), but don't speak Hebrew ordinarily, should be able to follow along, and some of the tunes are even familiar to Ashkenazic Jews.
NOTES: "Lib" stands for LIBERATION, for those who don't remember those days, or who weren't alive yet, then.
This post was inspired by an article from Vision Magazine, "They didn't teach me Hanukah" by Danit Grady. Like her, I didn't learn the real story of Hanukkah until later in life. For me, it was MUCH later.
***
People might be forgiven for thinking that from the end of the Holocaust until the Six-Day War, almost 20 years, was the process of liberation of the Jewish people from the notion that we were weak and helpless against our enemies. We had gained and declared a state, after all, within the boundaries of our ancestral homeland in the Middle East.
The June 1967 victory was so great, the world stood up and took notice. But, unfortunately, it's hard to describe the relationship between the Israeli government and its citizens as having any kind of unity. The army and the government were taking all the credit for the victory, but the rest of us — as well as many Arabs who witnessed this with their own eyes — saw the miraculous happenings. Unlike the Holocaust, which ended almost 20 years prior, God was not "hidden" from the Israeli Jews that fateful June.
Our leadership, however, was oblivious. They have taken credit for every victory then and ever since. We've been paying for it even during the Simchat Torah/October 7th massacre and followup war.
I was a pre-teen at the time of the "6-Day War", and it was the first time in my life that I could stand up straight and look my peers in the eye. It didn't last very long, unfortunately.
We cannot allow them to get away with whatever shenanigans they've been up to, then and ever since. The liberation we were expecting at that time didn't come. It still hasn't.
Rather than accepting and ensuring that Judaism would flourish in the Land, our leadership suppressed and mocked anything particularly Jewish, to the point of allowing Arab Muslims to be in our government, even though these were enemies of the so-called Jewish leadership that invited them in and the laws of the country, and especially of our religion and relationship with God.
Certain leaders made a point of abdicating leadership, for example the handing over of the Temple Mount to the Arabs there and not allowing Jews the same rights. (Ideally, no one should be up there at all until King David's scion and heir to the throne is revealed (and who would also be Mashiah). But no one was ready to treat Jews equally with Arabs. Either both on, or both off.)
The article linked to above, if you haven't read it already, is about the struggle of the Hebrew people to retain our religion and the culture that grew out of it. You might want to say that nowadays it's about the Palestinians...but unfortunately for us, and also for you, dear reader, is that today the moniker Palestinian is applied to the wrong people. Our government screwed up, quite frankly, when then-prime minister Golda Meir decided to throw that name to the dogs, so to speak. They picked it up and ran with it, and we don't even bat an eyelash when we hear it used by our enemies as their identity.
EVERY REFERENCE TO PALESTINIANS UNTIL THEN WAS TO THE JEWS. The Palestine Post (and many other names of things I can't think of right now) was JEWISH. My maternal grandmother was a Palestinian Jew (not many American Jews can say they have a relative who was a Palestinian Jew before the declaration of the state; but I can, and in her merit I returned here, after asking Heavenly Permission.).
But I didn't only come here to rehash a bit of history. I came here to insist that we demand liberation from the necessity to follow the dictates of the nations so that we can recover ourselves from our own sources.
The best way to do that is to SAY BYE-BYE TO THE NATIONS and come home to the Land we were given by God millennia ago. Even Israel Behind the News is writing about this HERE, saying: "Jews are no longer welcome. The days of comfort for Jews in the west are over!"
While things were relatively good in lands across the seas and over dry land, we might have needed to ask permission to come home, as I wrote about doing in the link three paragraphs above. But now HQB"H (God) seems to be forcing us to reconsider and even run home as soon as possible!
Despite everything I heard about our governance system while I was still in chutz la'aretz, I have not regretted a single moment since I made aliyah. I have found that it's more important to choose a city, town or village — wherever you want to live — where you can make friends with your neighbors, if you don't already have friends there, and trust them.
It may even be that HaShem will guide you there, in times like these.
We may never have a completely joyful occasion again until we're all gathered together and Mashiah makes himself known.
We need to try to have a happy Hanukkah as best as we possibly can, through our tears.
...and maybe we should call what should have been the Jewish Liberation movement back in the 1960s/5720s the "goodness liberation" movement...and have it now, in the 2020s/5780s. What do you think?
***
P.S. The US First Amendment to the Constitution limiting certain forms of expression from freedom of speech is exemplified by the phrase "shouting 'fire!' in a crowded theater." Why? See here for more.
The reversal there and in Europe is more evident by the day.
There was an incident in the desert where the son of a Hebrew woman and an Egyptian man was rejected from the tents of what he thought was his tribe, Dan. It turns out that this is the precedent for ordinary Jews as well as the tribes of Levi and Yehuda for the father determining the tribe: If the father is not a Jew, the offspring between him and the Jewish mother do not have a tribe. The son turned and blasphemed God, using the Name we don't pronounce, and then, after He was consulted by Moshe, he was punished with death by stoning.
Part of the geula process is the resolving of questions that come up as part of its anticipation. Even though I most likely haven't come up with an answer to the following question, I hope people to whom it applies will begin to think about it.
How do we deal with Jews who have no Jewish fathers with regard to living in the Land?
(A warning to the many, many American Jews (and perhaps among those from other countries as well?) who have non-Jewish fathers, like the one in this Torah portion. Please, don't curse God for your situation. It won't turn out well even if you are not put on trial and sentenced with a bunch of rocks thrown at you until you die. This is what the Talmud and many other books have been all about: Figuring out what to do when we all finally get back together again, with precedents for many, many situations. Even sticky ones like yours.
It's not your fault. It might have turned out differently for ben Shlomit bat Dibri (the young man above), had he prayed and asked for an answer, instead of insulting Him. You have the chance to do better than he. It would be best to start with your Local Orthodox Rabbi. Hopefully, if he doesn't have an answer for you, he might know one or more halachic authorities who have thought about it in advance of the day when it will be urgent to know what to do.)
My perspective (please don't take this thought like halacha, since I am no authority): During the times we've been living in since at least the last century or so, many women seem to have found it challenging just to give birth to Jews, never mind finding a Jewish husband. I have read articles that explain why many Jewish men didn't want to marry a Jewish woman. Either way, problems result that may seem to have no consequence now, but will later on...especially since we are expecting the Great Redemption shortly with God's help, given that all the other times previously have not been witnessed globally, in real time, like the aftermath of the Massacre of October Seventh, 2023. Remember that it was also Simchat Torah 5784, bringing forth a mostly negative global response against the Jews of the Gaza Envelope and the rest of Israel as well, rather than against their attackers, murderers and kidnappers.
The solution to this difficulty would seem to be a challenging one, to say the least. I would like to see it solved so that those who find themselves in that position through no fault of their own would be able to dwell with their people Israel in our Holy Land, even if not among the tribe of their mother. In my experience, those children whose father is Jewish and their mother, not so, can convert, and they will have a tribe and likely would be able to live among their tribe. Even though if their father is a Kohen they will not be able to inherit that part of it, so wouldn't be able to participate as a Kohen, conversion would make them Jewish.
I wish my readers a happy La"G laOmer and Shabbat Shalom!
***
P.S. 16 July 2025: Looking through my Rabbi Sprecher videos for something else, I came across this explanation about the connection between Zachor זכור (Remember) and Zachor זכור (male human).
The original d'var Torah by Rav Mansour was posted in time prior to SHABBAT DEBARIM 5784. Take the Temple Institute Illustrated Tour of the Holy Temple HERE.
(Holy Temple = Bet Ha'mikdash)
***
On Tisha B'Ab, as we know, we observe a fast and
mourn the destruction of the Bet Ha'mikdash.Although this calamity occurred many generations after the Torah was
given, nevertheless, the day of Tisha B'Ab – like everything else – has a
source in the Torah.
This source is revealed to us by the Zohar, in
Parashat Vayishlach, where it teaches that the 365 days of the solar year
correspond to the 365 Misvot Lo Ta'aseh – prohibitions introduced by the
Torah.Each day of the solar calendar is
associated with a different Biblical prohibition.And the day of Tisha B'Ab, the Zohar writes,
corresponds to the prohibition of "Gid Ha'nasheh," which forbids partaking of a
certain sinew of animals.This
prohibition commemorates the incident that occurred when Yaakob Abinu was on
his way back to Eretz Yisrael after having spent twenty years with his
uncle.On the night before he crossed
the river into the Land of Israel, he was attacked by a mysterious assailant,
identified by the Sages as the Satan, the angel of Esav.Yaakob ultimately prevailed, but suffered an
injury in his Gid Ha'nasheh.In
commemoration of this struggle, we refrain from eating the Gid Ha'nasheh of
animals.The Zohar teaches us that this
prohibition corresponds with Tisha B'Ab.Just as this command requires us to refrain from eating something to
commemorate a foreigner's attack that caused Yaakob a painful injury, on Tisha
B'Ab we refrain from eating to commemorate the pain and suffering caused by our
enemies on this day.
The Hatam Sofer (Rav Moshe Sofer, Pressburg, 1762-1839)
develops the Zohar's teaching further, establishing that this fight between
Yaakob and Esav's angel actually took place on the night of Tisha B'Ab.That night set the precedent for what would
happen many centuries later, when, like then, our enemy would come and deal a
painful blow.
If so, then we can perhaps understand an otherwise
peculiar aspect of the Torah's description of the events of that night when the
angel attacked Yaakob.
The Torah relates that on this night, Yaakob brought
all his belongings across the river, to the other side ("Va'ya'aber Et Asher
Lo" – Bereshit 32:24).Afterward, he was
left alone on his side, and he came under attack.Rashi explains this verse to mean, "He made
himself like a bridge, taking from here and placing it here."We must wonder, why is this important?Why did the Torah find it necessary to inform
us that Yaakob formed a "bridge" over the river, bringing his possessions from
one side to the next?
The answer is that this "bridge" is the secret for
how we defeat "Esav" and recover from the destruction and exile that he brings
upon us.In Yaakob's famous dream, he
saw a ladder extending from the ground – from the site of the Bet Ha'mikdash – to
the heavens.This is what the Bet
Ha'mikdash represents – connecting the earth to the heavens, infusing our
physical world and our physical reality with sanctity, with spiritual
meaning.Offering an animal as a
sacrifice means taking a physical entity and making it sacred, which is
precisely the way we are supposed to live.This is what the Bet Ha'mikdash represented, and this is the symbolic
meaning of Yaakob forming a "bridge" for his material possessions.When he brought his assets across the river
to Eretz Yisrael, he was showing us what religious life means – infusing our
physical, worldly existence with holiness.This is the significance of Yaakob's "bridge" – bridging the gap between
heaven and earth, between the sacred and the mundane, between the spiritual and
the physical.
On that night of Tisha B'Ab, which established this
occasion as a time of exile, suffering and calamity, Yaakob showed us how we
can bring an end to our troubles and earn redemption.In order to be worthy of the Bet Ha'mikdash,
we need to work to make this connection between heaven and earth, between our
physical reality and Kedusha.We need to
infuse our mundane activities with spiritual meaning, by directing everything
we do toward Torah and Misvot.We do
this by going about all our activities in strict adherence to Halacha, and by
devoting time and resources for sacred purposes.By elevating our worldly existence, and
injecting it with holiness, we form the "bridge" that will lead us to the
rebuilding of the Bet Ha'mikdash, speedily and in our times, Amen.
***
May haShem bring this about with all due speed; may the upcoming Tisha b'Av become a feast day before our very eyes!
"When the Jewish People are willing to stand up and say the truth, that God gave us this Land, in public, we will not need to go to war; we will not even need weapons..." —Shifra Chana Hendrie, quoting Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson
Warning: Men, if you're careful about guarding your eyes, you may want to listen rather than watch the video.
Now, I want to make clear that I am not Chabad (nor am I affiliated with any specific Jewish group, for that matter); I'm just citing a source as I know I should, for such a quote! The truth is that no matter what the results, we should state loud and clear, "in front of God and everybody" the truth about the land the Jews of Israel live in.
"It is a nation that will dwell in solitude and not be reckoned among the nations." BaMidbar/Numbers 23:9
If you don't like the above, I guess you shouldn't follow any religion that states this truth in their primary source, whether it be the Torah, the Christian bible or the Quran.
We see the results of having given physical and moral support to our neighbors, the Arabs who surround Israel and live within her. Not very nice, is it, to say the least.
The system we have lived under for more than 75 years has failed, having ended up in (hopefully, the last) war. We will not allow this to take us out...WITH THE HELP OF GOD!!!!!
Along with Him, we are JEALOUS OVER THE LAND HE GAVE US, and thankful for His choice of us as HIS PEOPLE!!!!! Our enemies, on the other hand, are envious of us and have been trying to divest us of any desire to cling to the Land for over 75 years. The Muslims who front for them have their own rule from the Quran that if they conquer a land and a people, they own them forever (they say "the Jews are our dogs"...sound familiar?), while Israel's leadership has done everything they can to keep certain Jewish population groups down and unsuccessful, even resorting to name-calling.
God told us that some lands aren't ours until He says so, but that the lands we hold now are part of the lands He told Moshe Rabbenu are ours. It is up to Him and to us whether we get the rest or not.
We shall see whose rules stand the test of time, and whether the Muslims really believe in God, or in opposition to Him. For that matter, will Israel's leadership believe enough in God and the Torah (let alone the Talmud) to even desire to hold on to what we have, by the hand of God?
(It wouldn't surprise me if I were to see evidence that Israelis' tax
monies are being used to support the Arabs' takeover of the Holy Land,
in the name of "peace." It's bad enough that US, Canadian and European
money is being passed to them, but for us to fund our own demise —
What???!!!)
Watch this video (over an hour) for the surprising details:
or click on the video on the top of the sidebar on the right, as long as it's there.
***
The rest of the post features a few of the many enablers of Israel's physical and psychological woes. One thing to keep in mind:
The more the nations condemn Israel for striking back and even overdoing it (as they perceive it), the more they are pushing us to consider changing over to Torah law, rather than what passes for law now. Do they have a clue as to the significance of the changes in many Jews, both in Israel and among the nations, due directly to the worldwide antisemitism that has manifested in the most virulent way ever, in collective living memory?
The more you force us back together, the more clarity there is in the collective punishment you are imposing on us (but see below, it seems the Muslims have also been imposing collective punishment on all Jews!). Therefore, you should expect collective punishment of our enemies from God Almighty, whether through our hands or not!
***
A note to PM Netanyahu: The government has a deadline with the proposed global government (the WHO) of 1 DECEMBER 2023 (this is true of all the governments in the world, by the way). You may want to check this out independently, pronto (here's a shortcut) if you haven't already. LAST CHANCE NOW!Since we're in a war for our survival literally on our soil, with more threatened to come, the country really can't be bothered with deadlines that might divert our attention from...let's just say...more important things.
***
One of my pet peeves for decades is the women's rights movement that doesn't really seem to fight for women's rights. I noticed this when I saw that they didn't put up any fuss when it became known that Arab women are really in desperate need of advocates for their rights, back in the '90s. Not that there wasn't anything against Jews going on, see below.
I don't often have the opportunity to express it, as we do now. I have a message today for the UN WOMEN...
UN WOMEN, YOUR SILENCE IS UNFORGIVABLE.
Whether you, dear reader, are a woman or a man...I've joined many others who signed THIS PETITION. I encourage everyone to stand up for the women, girls and baby girls of the Israeli border of Gaza who were victims of the SIMCHAT TORAH MASSACRE in many nightmare-making ways. Kindly let me know in the comments if you do, or have already signed.
I've been slow as usual, having this post in editing over a month. Sorry about that.
I also recognize that the men, boys and baby boy victims deserve the same attention. Justice for all!
You know what? Sign the petition even if you advocate only for the male victims' rights. The site is named "me too--unless you are a jew" for a reason. And no, I'm not part of it in any way. I just received an email from a friend, that's all.
***
You should know that Israel did not plot to massacre all "Palestinian" Arabs, never mind all Arabs. They struck first! We live "next door" on all sides to neighbors who keep trying to murder us. We were forced to accept them (at least on the physical level) since that was one of the conditions of our having a state. Thus, we must have firm boundaries between us and them in order to get along at all. Since the boundaries were breached, we say: NO MORE, THIS HAS TO STOP! As far as I am concerned, THEY CAN NO LONGER LIVE NEXT TO US.
What would you do if you had a murderer for a neighbor, but the rest were good? A pedophile? Would you be the one to leave the neighborhood, or would you insist that the murderer or pedophile leave?
Our primary source document is called the Tana"ch; it stands for Torah, Prophets and Writings. In English, it's called the Bible (I think my readers know this, but it's always good to have a reminder.). I'd like to see all the Israelis I've heard about who returned their thoughts to God since the Simchat Torah massacre looked more closely at what's involved in having a unique Jewish government, and find out what they think, in the light of this latest attempt at genocide in our homeland.
I think we need to consider how our current system is failing us miserably, even as we try to get our hostages back, including children aged 4 and 8 (who I think turned 9 in captivity, if it was Emily Hand they were referring to) in exchange for Arab teenage boys 14 years old and up caught attempting murder by shooting, stabbing and more. (This reminds me of about ten years ago, when throwing stones and boulders wasn't considered a crime in Yehuda and Shomron. These things, used as weapons, kill, and I hope by now that our system recognizes them as such, anywhere remotely resembling Jewish soil and certainly within "recognized" Israeli territory.)
What could be worse than giving our enemy (freeing) actual criminals who were serving jail time in exchange for our kidnapped hostages, and three times as many of their guilty ones as of our innocent ones?
There is a HUGE difference in quality between people taken hostage, as opposed to criminals caught attempting murder. Attempted murder is a serious crime anywhere else, and people who did this are being released as though they're the same as people taken captive.
It seems as though Israel is sending the message that they are the same here. This cannot continue if we intend to survive anywhere in the world, never mind as Jews in our homeland after a couple thousand years in exile. And so I ask...
WHERE IS KFIR, THE BABY BOY LESS THAN A YEAR OLD??? HOW IS HE THE SAME AS AN ATTEMPTED MURDERER??? WHAT DID HE DO TO DESERVE BEING KIDNAPPED AND IN CAPTIVITY???
These are serious violations of derekh eretz, common decency, not to mention current law. Don't you think it's about time we searched our own primary sources for the replacement of our current governance, since it has proven it can be, and has been, influenced by the evil of the world?
***
I got an email recently from an organization that claims it has been raising money to provide defense materials for the periphery of Israel (the "Gaza envelope", Judea and Samaria, northern Israel) for the last 30 years. Here's what I wrote back:
I
understood that all the weapons were taken away by the army BEFORE the
massacre in Otef Aza, and have been (and maybe still are being) taken
away from the towns of Judea/Samaria. Wouldn't you want to check out
whether the weapons you gave the border communities, as well as Yehuda
and Shomron, were taken away as well?
I
was visiting Israel in August 2005, when Gush Katif was about to be
expelled by the army from what we know as Gaza today, I was here on the
very day they were expelled, and I made aliyah in 2007. I do not trust
the government when it comes to these sorts of things. It would seem
that the money people donated to your organization might have been a
waste back in 2005.
I
like your idea very much, but I think somebody should be making sure
that anything (in this case, weaponry) provided by the public's money
donated for defense purposes should be left with the citizens that are
holding it. It is a weak hope I hold that this was the case back in
2005, and even weaker that it was the case before the current Arab war
against the Jews, supported by governments around the world and, it
would seem, even Israel itself, began on Simchat Torah 5784.
Please read it. It should speak for itself. You don't need me to tell you whether or not Gazan civilians participated in the massacre.
***
The last thing you should know: "hamas" חמס is biblical Hebrew for robbery (Bereshith/Genesis 6:11), injustice (Bereshith/Genesis 6:11 and 16:5; Tehillim/Psalms 25:19) and fraudulent (Shemoth/Exodus 23:1) according to Artscroll's supercommentary on Rashi there. Rashi also notes that in the passage in Jonah 3:8, the word hamas is used in the last phrase in the verse ("...and from the robbery that is in their hands") to indicate that the people of Nineveh had stolen goods in their possession.
Hamas (the thing the organization is named after) is the sin that tipped the scales and made God decide to wipe the earth nearly clean of mankind and Creation itself. Fortunately for us all, God has been patient and kind, allowing the world to develop these last several thousand years; but now, we must choose the side we'll be on for eternity.
Choose wisely, Official Israel (whether in the current government coalition or in the opposition). Do you want to be identified with the evil of the rest of the world's leadership? I for one don't want to be dragged down with you, should you so choose.
Let's pray that our leadership doesn't make a mockery of our upcoming Hanukkah!
—
IDF SURPRISE ATTACK… “Shield and Arrow” - A few hours ago the IDF
attacked Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) leadership in Gaza, bombing and
killing 3 top leaders, naming the operation Shield and Arrow. An
additional 10 sites were bombed in Gaza per the IDF.
— IDF HOME
FRONT COMMAND… has declared an emergency situation within 40 km of the
Gaza Strip. All outdoor activities are canceled.
— IDF RESERVES… Defense Minister Gallant has approved the call up of reserves
— GAZA CROSSINGS… Erez and Keren Shalom crossings are closed.
—
RISK…. the operation is directed against Palestinian Islamic Jihad
organization and not Hamas, Hamas is out of the picture as far as Israel
is concerned, will they choose to get involved?
— BEN GURION…. Flights to Ben Gurion Airport were re-routed farther north to avoid risk of rocket fire. (None yet.)
— HEZBOLLAH…. In Lebanon, Hezbollah has stated it is mobilizing.
— ROCKETS? None so far, the funerals for the killed PIJ leaders are scheduled for right after noon prayers. Likely then?
…updates as they become available.
--
EVACUATION FOR RESIDENTS AT SPECIAL RISK NEAR GAZA... HOME FRONT
COMMAND has activated an evacuation plan for residents of near-Gaza
towns & villages including Sderot who have special needs, seniors
over a certain age, cancer patients, or disability over certain levels
or who receive treatments or therapies. These people should expect to
be contacted by their city or town officials for EVACUATION DUE TO HIGH
ROCKET RISK. (source: note sent out by Sderot municipality)
—
PALESTINIAN NEWS SITES HACKED…. Palestinian Islamic Jihad news site
Kanan News has been hacked as has PalToday and Jehad, the front pages
now with a poster in Arabic showing the killed leaders and saying “Who’s
next?”.
ISRAEL REALTIME defense/security updates
—
SHECHEM (Nablus)… Situation escalating? “Reports on helicopters and
helicopters participating in the activity in Nablus. Mosques calling on
fighters confront the IDF. According to the Arab reports, such a
large amount of forces has not been seen in Shechem for many months.
Dozens of armed men are involved in shooting against IDF forces.”
—
PIJ KILLED LEADERS WERE HEADING TO EGYPT? According to reports, the
three individuals have been in hiding for the past few days out of fear
of assassination. They have recently resurfaced to join a delegation of
political bureau members from the Islamic Jihad, to attend a convention
of the movement's elected officials from outside the Gaza Strip and West
Bank. They emerged from hiding to bid farewell to their families in
their homes after receiving permission from Egypt to leave through the
Rafah crossing to Cairo. However, during this time, they were attacked
and killed.
— JETS OVERHEAD… IDF jets heard loudly overhead in southern Israel. Fly safe, be successful!
***
My thoughts:
Remember that this occurred on and around La"G laOmer, a very auspicious time for the Final Redemption.
YET ANOTHER BIG QUESTION: When will the Israeli government STOP considering Judea and Samaria as "territories" to be bargained away? What makes me ask this question? A modern Jewish hero in the JUDEAN HILLS was attacked the day before, which I call "Lev laOmer" (ל"ב לעומר, the 32nd* Day of the Omer Count) and left for dead by Arab Muslims. He's in the hospital with major injuries to his skull, hearing and face. The family is asking for donations. They're farmers with goats, and they're losing the major contribution the head of this family makes daily.
His name happens to be Yisrael; I wonder if this means anything.
If the body of this article is a sign of anything, it won't be long before the rest of the world, and even our Leftists, stop demanding that Jews stop living in land that's clearly ours FROM BIBLICAL TIMES. That much, I know!
* I made a mistake there, but it's not the one most people would expect. I really meant the 32nd day of the Omer. Thanks, Neshama. 😉
Parashat Vayikra addresses the situation of somebody who falsely denied
on oath owing money to another person. The Torah (5:21) gives several
examples, such as a situation where a person entrusted his fellow with
his object, or lent him money, and the recipient later denied receiving
the object or money. Another example mentioned by the Torah is "Ashak
Et Amito" – where somebody hired a person to work for him, and then
denied owing him wages. If the person falsely swore that he did not owe
the object or money, and then confessed his wrongdoing, he must bring a
special atonement sacrifice in addition to paying what he owes as well
as a fine.
The Or Ha’haim Ha’kadosh (Rav Haim Ben-Attar,
1696-1743) notes that the Torah uses three different expressions in
reference to this offense. First, it says, "Nefesh Ki Teheta" – "If a
soul committed a sin." Thereafter, the Torah says, "U’ma’ala Ma’al
B’Hashem" – "and transgressed against G-d." Finally, the Torah
describes "Ve’kihesh Ba’amito" – that the person "denies his fellow."
The
Or Ha’haim explains that these three phrases refer to the three
different aspects of this sin, falsely denying a debt that one owes to
his fellow.
Firstly, and most obviously, "Ki Teheta" – such a
person commits the sin of theft, keeping for himself that which belongs
to his fellow. Such conduct constitutes theft, plain and simple, no
different from forcibly seizing someone else’s possession.
Secondly,
"U’ma’ala Ma’al B’Hashem" – this denial amounts to a direct offense
against G-d Himself. If a person rightfully owns something, then we
must believe that G-d, in His impeccable justness, determined that this
person should own that money or that piece of property. If a person
keeps for himself that which belongs to his fellow, then he in essence
casts aspersions on G-d’s justice, challenging G-d’s decision to give
the object or money in question to the other individual. The Or Ha’haim
suggests that the Torah uses a double expression – "U’ma’ala Ma’al" –
to allude to the two injustices that the liar is attributing to G-d: he
challenges G-d’s decision that his fellow should have this property, and
he also challenges G-d’s decision that he himself should not have it.
This challenge against G-d’s justice is the second aspect of this
offense.
Finally, the Torah speaks of this person as "Kihesh
Ba’amito" – literally, "denying his fellow." He does not just deny
owing his fellow the object or money that he owes; he denies his
fellow’s uprightness. He essentially accuses the rightful owner of what
he himself is guilty of – dishonesty, charging that he is trying to
steal by falsely claiming that he is owed money or an object. The
person thus not only casts aspersions on G-d – he casts aspersions on
his fellow, turning him into the criminal.
Seeking to profit
through dishonesty is thus a triple crime – theft, a challenge against
G-d’s justice, and falsely accusing one’s fellow of wrongdoing. Each
one in its own right suffices for us to avoid such misconduct; the
combination of all three makes dishonesty especially egregious, and
requires us to exercise extreme care to conduct all our financial
affairs with strict honesty.
***
I have a couple of questions for the Rav:
—How does this triple sin of dishonesty apply to the relationship between a government and the people it serves (or rules over)?
—Does a government have the right to, or is it allowed to, do or seek to do any of the above things the Rav wrote about at the people's expense (taxes, whether paid annually or through a general sales tax)?
(Readers, please feel free to add your questions in the comments.)
***
A kosher and happy Pesah 5783 | פסח ה'תשפ"ג כשר ושמח
Not only the sovereignty of the United States, but of the whole UN constituency of 193 nations, no less.
This currently includes Israel.
(I feel betrayed as both an Israeli citizen ...and an American citizen. How could "the land of the free and the home of the brave" hand almost 100% of the world over to the "dictatorship of the oligarchy"??? My thought: If this handover goes through, the USA wasn't as advertised. God, help us.)
On January 18, 2022, with no public awareness, officials
from the Biden Administration sent the World Health Organization these
extensive amendments to strengthen WHO’s ability to unilaterally
intervene into the affairs of nations merely suspected of having a
“health emergency” of possible concern to other nations.4 The U.S. amendments cross out a
critical existing restriction in the regulations: “WHO shall consult
with and attempt to obtain verification from the State Party in whose
territory the event is allegedly occurring…”5 By eliminating
that, and other clauses (see below), all the shackles will be removed
from the Director-General of WHO, enabling him to declare health
emergencies at will.
Declaring health emergencies at will is no laughing matter. We have seen a prime example of that already, and have witnessed the taking over of issues far from health concerns with the plandemic.
These were temporary, but what's coming up is threatening to be permanent, if we don't ACT RIGHT NOW.
[NOTE: If you find any better evidence before next week, please let me know in the comments. Also, translation to HEBREW will be very helpful, even though the highest-up in our government do speak (and possibly read and write?) English. Israelis, whether English-language-haters or simply couldn't grasp English, need to know. It just takes me too long. Thanks in advance!]
If this is absolutely true, then our government has a choice it must make, and FAST:
Either give in to America and stay tied to her for practically eternity, or quit the UN immediately, before the vote.
If it's not willing to do the latter, we have no choice but to take down the foreign system of governance we have been subjected to for at least the last 74 years, and make room for our own Great Resetters:
God and His Mashiah.
NOW.
ABBA, HELP!
***
According to Rashi (Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki) in our current parasha, Behuqothai בחוקותי, we can spot those (both regular people and authorities above us) who intend to annul God's covenant with Israel.
It takes seven steps, the ones referred to in the text of Vayikra (Leviticus) 26:15-18 that say:
...and if you will consider My statutes revolting, and if your being rejects My ordinances, so as not to perform all My commandments, to annul My covenant — then I, too, will do this to you: I will assign over you panic, and the wasting away, and the fever, causing your eyes to pine and your souls to feel anguish; you will sow your seed in vain, and your enemies will eat it. And I will direct My face against you, you will be struck down before your enemies; those who hate you will subjugate you — you will flee but there will be no one pursuing you. And if during these you will not heed Me, I will increase tormenting you, seven for your sins.
In particular, the summary of the following commentary is on Vayikra (Leviticus) 26:15, the "seven for your sins," specifically on the words to annul My covenant.* I have added the content in (parentheses) and put some text in CAPITAL LETTERS to clarify what I see to be issues in understanding.
What are the sins?
1. They do not study Torah (and how to perform it).
2. They do not perform Torah.
3. They hate those who (seek to) perform Torah.
4. They hate the (real) Torah scholars.
5. They prevent others from performing Torah (to any meaningful extent).
6. They renounce the commandments.
7. They renounce that which is ESSENTIAL, denying BELIEF IN GOD.
* Source: The Torah: with Rashi's commentary, translated, annotated and elucidated, Leviticus, The Artscroll Series, Mesorah Publications, Fifteenth Impression, January 2015, p. 354.
WHAT KIND OF WORLD DO WE WANT? AND WHO DO WE WANT RUNNING IT?
PEOPLE WHO THINK THEY'RE god...OR THE REAL GOD AND HIS REPRESENTATIVE???
(...and isn't it funny-strange, all this occurring during the OMER count of a SHMITAH year? Hint, hint.)
***
UPDATE:
The event in question is the Seventy Fifth [75th] World Health Assembly: Strengthening WHO preparedness for and response to health emergencies. The file with the proposed changes that will hand over the world's nations' sovereignty to the WHO from the hand of Joe Biden is within the Proposal for amendments to the International Health Regulations (2005):
It doesn't seem to have been published in Hebrew. If I find it, I'll link it, be"H, b"n. It might be that the Hebrew one is a separate article on the same topic.
It turns out that Neshama and I have picked two separate articles: in her case, to repost and in mine, to link to.
UPDATE 3:
A PUBLIC INVITATION
Fifth Annual Convention...Agudas Kedushas Tzion invites you to its yearly
convention to thank HaShem for the great miracles He has done for us in
these times, and for returning us to additional regions of His beloved
Land and its holy sites.
Program in Hebrew. Advertisement attached. Entrance free of charge.
* There will be a women's section
This Thursday, 25 Iyar / May 26th | 18:30
Shirat Yerushalayim | Kanfei Nesharim 64, Yerushalayim
* Among rabbonim, admorim, and others, we just got confirmation that Jonathan Pollard is planning to attend!
IT IS A curious thing. Each
year we sit down to make a Pesach Seder to commemorate an event that the vast
majority of the world thinks is fictitious. But we do it anyhow, even Jews
whose lives reflect their disbelief in the very origin of this time-honored
tradition.
We are not the only people to
do this. Various different religions and cultures also continue to celebrate
long-ago historical events, the spirits of which are often contradicted by the
present-day lives of their celebrants. That’s the power of tradition: it can
keep alive even that which, for all intents-and-purposes, is actually dead.
Is it hypocrisy? A lot of
times.
Perhaps this is part of what is
bothering the Evil Son. He’s the main antagonist in the Haggadah because he
dares to ask the question: “What does this service mean to you?”
And though we break his teeth
for asking such a question, and wag a proverbial finger at him saying, “Had you
been there, you certainly would not have been redeemed!” his question is indeed
a good one. In fact, it is one the Haggadah each year asks us all to answer by
the end of the evening, for the right answer is not only liberating, it is
freedom itself.
The problem with the Evil Son
is not his question; it is his answer. His question is his answer because for
him it is rhetorical. He may have phrased his words as a question, but he was
really making a statement: Though this service may have made sense back in the
days of Egyptian slavery, it is meaningless today.
Okay. For making fun of
tradition we break his teeth, metaphorically-speaking. However, if he is in
agreement that once-upon-a-time all of this was necessary, then why do we tell
him that had he been in Egypt at the time of the redemption, he would have been
one of those who did not go out?
Because he has missed the point
of the Haggadah, of the Pesach-Offering, of the entire concept of redemption.
Sure, we no longer worship
Egyptian gods, and therefore no longer have to parade through the streets with
lambs to prove that we do not fear them or adhere to their religious values.
But
that was not the entire story of the Korban Pesach, just a part of it. After
all, when Kayin and Hevel brought their offerings to God (Bereishis 4:3), it
was on the fourteenth day of Nissan. They had brought Pesach Offerings. And, as
the Brisker Rav points out, Avraham Avinu ate matzah on the fifteenth of
Nissan, hundreds of years before there was even an Egyptian exile!
This begs the question: Do we
eat matzah because there wasn’t enough time to bake bread, or was there not
enough time to bake bread so that we would eat matzah? Because, contrary to the
Evil Son’s thinking, mitzvos are eternal. They supersede our daily reality and
are never the result of circumstance. If anything, they make circumstances
possible, such as the leaving of Egypt in Moshe’s time, and the leaving of
exile at the End-of-Days.
It is the Chacham, the wise son
in each generation who understands this. Hence, the Haggadah’s response to his
question is the opposite of the one given to his evil brother:
You, in turn, shall instruct
him in the laws of Pesach, [up to] “one is not to eat any dessert after the
Pesach lamb.”
The Wise Son is the person who
understands one of the most important ideas of Creation, and yet one of the
least-known: Redemption is a de facto state of existence. To understand this,
it is important to first understand the concept of exile.
When we think of the first
exile, we think of the Jewish people in Egyptian bondage. However, the Egyptian
exile was really the result, and in many respects, a replication of the
original exile of all of mankind. In the beginning, man was created into a
state of redemption. Immediately after being formed by God, Adam HaRishon was
placed in the Garden of Eden where he lived an idyllic existence. The life of
the first man is the one that we all dream of living if we merit to make it to
Yemos HaMoshiach—the Messianic Era.
Eating from the Aitz HaDa’as
Tov v’Ra—the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil—changed all of that. The bottom
line is that within one day of being created and placed into Paradise, mankind
was forced to leave it, and the question is, why? The answer is, the transformation
of man:
The creation of Heaven and
Earth and their components was with the Supernal Light, and they existed on a
very elevated and awesome level, specifically man who was higher than all of
them. However, after the sin of the Tree of Knowledge and Good and Evil, he and
everything else descended and was transformed from skin made of light to human
skin. (Hakdamos uSha’arim, Sha’ar 6, Ch. 10)
Though man has always consisted
of a body and soul, before the sin they both existed on a much higher spiritual
plane. A human body once more closely resembled a soul than the body we now
have, made of divine light rather than of opaque skin. Sin resulted in skin,
and the distancing of man from God. That is the very definition of exile, and
the Pesach Seder comes to reverse that. To be continued…
