Appreciate Choice

Erev 27 Elul 5775

דברים ל:יט-כ

יט הַעִדֹתִי בָכֶם הַיּוֹם אֶת הַשָּׁמַיִם וְאֶת הָאָרֶץ הַחַיִּים וְהַמָּוֶת נָתַתִּי לְפָנֶיךָ הַבְּרָכָה וְהַקְּלָלָה וּבָחַרְתָּ בַּחַיִּים לְמַעַן תִּחְיֶה אַתָּה וְזַרְעֶךָ

כ לְאַהֲבָה אֶת יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ לִשְׁמֹעַ בְּקֹלוֹ וּלְדָבְקָה בוֹ כִּי הוּא חַיֶּיךָ וְאֹרֶךְ יָמֶיךָ לָשֶׁבֶת עַל הָאֲדָמָה אֲשֶׁר נִשְׁבַּע יְהֹוָה לַאֲבֹתֶיךָ לְאַבְרָהָם לְיִצְחָק וּלְיַעֲקֹב לָתֵת לָהֶם

Devarim (Deuteronomy) 30:19-20

19 I call the heavens and the earth today to witness against you: I have placed life and death before you, blessing and curse; and you shall choose life, so that you will live, you and your offspring —

20 to love haShem your G-d, to listen to His voice and to cleave to Him, for He is your life and the length of your days, to dwell upon the land that haShem swore to your forefathers, to Avraham, to Yitzhak, and to Yaaqov, to give them.*

רש"י

  

העדתי בכם היום את השמים ואת הארץ:  שהם קיימים לעולם וכאשר תקרה אתכם הרעה יהיו עדים שאני התרתי בכם בכל זאת. דבר אחר העידתי בכם היום את השמים וגו'  אמר להם הקב"ה לישראל, הסתכלו בשמים שבראתי לשמש אתכם, שמא שנו את מדתם שמא לא עלה גלגל חמה מן המזרח והאיר לכל העולם, כענין שנאמר (קהלת א, ה) וזרח השמש ובא השמש, הסתכלו בארץ שבראתי לשמש אתכם, שמא שנתה מדתה, שמא זרעתם אותה ולא צמחה, או שמא זרעתם חטים והעלתה שעורים, ומה אלו שנעשו לא לשכר ולא להפסד אם זוכין אין מקבלין שכר ואם חוטאין אין מקבלין פורענות, לא שנו את מדתם, אתם שאם זכיתם תקבלו שכר ואם חטאתם תקבלו פורענות על אחת כמה וכמה

ובחרת בחיים:  אני מורה לכם שתבחרו בחלק החיים, כאדם האומר לחבירו בחר לך חלק יפה בנחלתי ומעמידו על חלק היפה ואומר לו את זה ברור לך, ועל זה נאמר (תהלים טז, ה) ה' מנת חלקי וכוסי אתה תומיך גורלי, הנחת ידי על גורל הטוב לומר את זה קח לך

Rashi

This day, I call upon the heaven and the earth as witnesses: For the heaven and earth exist for ever, and when the evil befalls you, they will be witnesses that I had warned you regarding all of this. Another explanation of “I call upon the heaven and the earth as witnesses, etc.”: The Holy One, Blessed is He, said to Israel, “Look at the heavens which I created to serve you. Have they ever changed their ways? Has the sphere of the sun ever failed to rise from the east to illuminate the entire world, as it is stated, ‘The sun rises, and the sun sets’ (Koheleth/Ecclesiastes 1:5)? Look at the earth which I created to serve you. Has it ever changed its ways? Have you ever sown [in] it that it did not grow? Or have you ever sown wheat and it yielded barley? Now, they [heaven and earth] were created with neither reward nor loss in mind-for if they are meritorious [by fulfilling their purpose for which I created them], they nevertheless do not receive reward [for this]; and if they sin, they are not punished. And yet [even with this lack of incentive], they have never changed their ways! So you, who will receive reward if you are meritorious and who will be punished if you sin-how much more so [should you fulfill My will]!”- [Sifrei 32:1]

you shall choose life: [God says: “Even though you have free choice, nevertheless,] I instruct you to choose the portion of life.” It is like a man who says to his son, “Choose for yourself a fine portion of my estate,” and then directs him to the best portion, saying to him, “This [is the portion which] you should choose for yourself!” And regarding this, the verse says,“The Lord is my allotted portion and my cup; You guide my destiny” (Ps. 16:5). [The last clause, אַתָּה תּוֹמִי‏ךְ גּוֹרָלִי, literally means “You laid upon my lot.” That is to say:] “You laid my hand upon the good lot, saying, ‘Take this for yourself!’”

Appreciation:

1. Gratitude; thankful recognition
2. The act of estimating the qualities of things and giving them their proper value.
3. Clear perception or recognition, especially of aesthetic quality.

There are more definitions, but these will do for the purposes of this essay. By this set of meanings, it can be shown that the act of appreciation does not have only to do with positive experiences or beautiful things, but with everything that is put in front of us.

*****************************************************************

This is the portion I went along with my husband and studied this past Monday with our rabbi and his study group. I don’t usually go with my husband to do this; but, because the yeshiva is not in normal mode due to the upcoming holidays and I was off from work, this was an exception.

When we got to the part where Rashi says:

“Look at the earth which I created to serve you. Has it ever changed its ways? Have you ever sown [in] it that it did not grow? Or have you ever sown wheat and it yielded barley? Now, they [heaven and earth] were created with neither reward nor loss in mind-for if they are meritorious [by fulfilling their purpose for which I created them], they nevertheless do not receive reward [for this]; and if they sin, they are not punished. And yet [even with this lack of incentive], they have never changed their ways! So you, who will receive reward if you are meritorious and who will be punished if you sin-how much more so [should you fulfill My will]!”- [Sifrei 32:1]

The rabbi was stumped. For many years he could not understand why the “all the more so (על אחת כמה וכמה),” since the inanimate objects do not have will at all, much less choice and free will – so why the comparison at all with human beings?

We all traded thoughts back and forth, and then fell silent. Then I had a flash – “We need to appreciate that G-d gave us choice.”

The rabbi pointed at me and said “That’s it!” and had me repeat it again. I wish I could do this all the time - even if I would be wrong occasionally, so that I could learn more.

I bring this to you, my gentle readers, because it was just as much a revelation to me as it was to the Rav and the class. It clued me into something especially for me that just might have something for everyone. I don’t say that lightly because I find it difficult to relate some things I have experienced to other people. Let’s just leave it at this: I have gone through some things that are rather uncommon to the average person. Until now I have had a difficult time learning how to appreciate, in all the word’s meanings, the events that touch my life, even (maybe especially) the negative ones. But, even the weather can have something special in it for some of us. I hope to get to that level, someday. (The huge thunderstorm with added hail last April is another example of weather reaching out to us. Extremes don’t happen often in Yerushalayim. We’re about half a mile high on nearly the same latitude as Atlanta, GA.)

The power of choice is something haShem did not grant lightly either. This, along with speech, is what makes us most like Him. As long as He remains hidden, we will have choice even on our most important question. We can give credit where credit is due to haQadosh Baruch Hu — or not. He also has the option on how much of the consequences must be dealt us for any lack of recognition we choose.

• Here is an article about some interesting choices American Jews making concerning aliyah to Israel.
• Here is another post about the value of a human life (and kindly notice that the Israeli/Jewish life is worth far less than the black one.)
• Here is an example of appreciating a tough issue and getting through it.
• Here is an example of what the nations (particularly those in Europe) think of the Jewish nation. 

How careful do you think most people (including these examples and those you encounter personally) are in considering their situation when they make the selections they do?

 As a matter of fact, according to Midrash Bereshith Rabbah, appreciation is the main reason mankind was created. Borei haOlam wanted a creature that could realize and understand His greatness and that of the creation He made.

Thus, when the ministering angels said before the Holy One, blessed is He, "Master of the World, what is frail man that You should remember him, and the son of mortal man, that You should be mindful of him? (Teh. 8:5) - why should this trouble be created?"

[G-d] replied to them, "If so, sheep and cattle, all of them, and also the beasts of the field (ibid. v. 8) - why were they created? The birds of the sky and the fish of the sea - why were they created?" -This can be compared to a king who had a tower full of every good thing, and he did not have wayfarers with whom to share it. - What pleasure does the king have from that with which he filled it?

Here’s a thought: Perhaps G-d made something potentially almost as great as He Himself. How could that be? He never has to do teshuva in the same sense that we do. So, Teshuva  – return, regret, repentance – is something to which we must assign highest value, especially in this season. Because He loves it, and us.

I hope this post has made teshuva easier for all of you, as well as for me. I’ll be thinking about it all year.

May you have a good and sweet year 5776.                           שנה ה"תשעו טובה ומתוקה.

A good writing and signing (for a good year ahead).                     כתיבה וחתימה טובה.

Complete redemption now!                                                          גאולה שלימה עכשיו!                

*English translation from hard copy of November 2009, Herczeg, R’ Yisrael Isser Zvi, ed., The Torah with Rashi’s Commentary, Deuteronomy, pp. 317-18. Mesorah Publications, Brooklyn, NY.

 

Background on Parashath Nitzavim:

 Parashat Nitzavim: Choose Life! | You Are Standing  Today, All of You, Before Hashem Your G-D…

And a very special video from the Montreal Torah Center.

Restore Jewish Prayer to Har haBayit!

Erev 23 Elul 5775

להחזיר תפילת יהודים על הר הבית! העם דורש תפילה בהר! אומרים המפגינים

A demonstration, organized by Yosef Rabin, blogger for Arutz 7 and Temple Mount activist, took place in the early evening by the Cords Bridge (Gesher haMetarim) near the western entrance to Yerushalayim, about returning Jewish prayer to Har haBayit (the Temple Mount).

Much spirit was displayed as people chanted, "Restore Jewish Prayer to the Temple Mount" and "The People Demands Prayer on the Mount" in Hebrew.

Mr. Rabin expressed the hope that in the near future, more would be done to arouse the desire for justice for the Jewish People, particularly with regard to central parts of our faith connected to the Land of Israel. As a blogger tracking the Complete Redemption as it goes along in its many phases, I am happy to advertise future events of this nature, so that the people have a chance to express their choice to walk along this special path. It is up to each and every one of us to do our part, especially because the mainstream media won't touch this!

This blog is dedicated to helping see every part of HaShem's agenda come to fruition, including the building of the Temple and praying on it, in addition to the Sanhedrin system of Torah governance and Mashiach.


In other related news, the nascent Sanhedrin is scheduled to go to Har Tzion (Mount Zion) to judge Har Esav (the mount of Esav, in particular the Vatican and its Pope) on Wednesday (Yom Revi'i), 9 September (25 Elul, the day of the creation of the world!) at noon according to the prophet Ovadiah, verse 21. We wait with 'bated breath for the results!

גאולה שלימה עכשיו! Complete Redemption Now!

Oh, yes. I did take that picture. ;)

Yom Kippur's Goal - Compassion for the Needy!

20 Elul 5775



by Rabbi Ephraim Sprecher, Dean of Students at Diaspora Yeshiva

The Mishna in Yoma 8 states, "Sins that are between a person and his friend are not atoned for on Yom Kippur." One cannot offend and harm another person and ask for forgiveness from G-d. Forgiveness must be asked and can only come from the person that we hurt, and only he can pardon us.

Thus, on the morning of Yom Kippur we read the amazing words of the prophet, Yeshayahu, (Ch.58) where he presents a debate that takes place between G-d and Israel. In this chapter, we see how Yom Kippur can lead us to change our evil ways and be just and compassionate to our fellow Jew.

Yeshayahu states that Israel claims before G-d, (Ibid.) "Why have we fasted and You (G-d) did not pay attention; we have afflicted our soul, and You (G-d) do not know?"

This question is asked after the Yom Kippur fast, when G-d's pardon is not apparent. The people cry out, "Why hasn't the Yom Kippur fast helped to obtain forgiveness?"

G-d's response is clear and unequivocal – "Will such be the fast that I will choose, a day of a person afflicting his soul? Is it to spread out sackcloth and ashes? Will you call this a fast that is acceptable to G-d? Do you (human beings) think that I desire you to suffer? Do I get any benefit from the fact that you afflict yourselves?"(Yeshayahu 58).

G-d is telling us that the Yom Kippur fast is not only an end in itself but the means to reach a further goal. What is this yearned for goal? G-d responds to this question with the surprising answer, "Is this not the fast I will choose? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to bring the poor into your home, when you see a naked one, you shall clothe him and not hide from your fellow Jew." (Ibid.)

Here G-d explains the goal that He wants our Yom Kippur fast to achieve. The purpose of the fast is not to suffer or to diet. The purpose is that we should remember the poor, those who do not have proper food, clothing or shelter. This is the true purpose of the Yom Kippur fast.

Thus, Yeshayahu promises, "Then you shall call, and G-d shall answer; you shall cry out, and He shall say, 'Here I am'."

Therefore, on Yom Kippur we repeat over and over again the 13 Attributes of G-d's Compassion, "G-d, G-d, Compassionate and Gracious, Slow to Anger and Abundant in Loving-kindness and Truth…, Forgiving iniquity, rebellion and sin." (Shemot 34).

Why do we keep repeating these verses over and over again on Yom Kippur? When we repeat this declaration again and again, we become convinced that the correct path between us and our fellow Jew is G-d's path of compassion, forgiveness and loving kindness. We turn to G-d in the merit of those very same qualities with which He identifies Himself, and thus we awaken those same traits in ourselves.

As the Talmud in Rosh Hashana states, "Whoever forgives his friend for sinning against him even when he doesn't have to guarantees similar treatment from G-d on Yom Kippur." If we make a habit of displaying undeserved grace to others, including those who have committed wrongs against us, then we are guaranteed to earn the same kind of undeserved grace from G-d MIDAH K'NEGED MIDAH. G-d conducts Himself with us in the same way that we conduct ourselves with our fellow human beings.

Rabbi Ephraim Sprecher, Dean of Students and Senior Lecturer at Diaspora Yeshiva, is not only a popular speaker and teacher, but also a dynamic thinker and writer. A student of Harav Yaakov Kamenetsky and Harav Gedalia Schorr, Rabbi Sprecher was granted smicha (rabbinical ordination) by Torah Vodaath Yeshiva. Prior to his current position, Rabbi Sprecher was a professor of Judaic studies at Touro College in New York. In addition to his duties at Diaspora Yeshiva, Rabbi Sprecher writes regular columns on various Judaic topics in the Jewish Press and in Torah Tidbits, and lectures regularly at the OU Israel Center in Jerusalem.

[Blogger's Note: This Shabbat is the Hebrew date my husband and I made aliyah to Israel 8 years ago. May my readers be blessed, and may we all strive for truth, righteousness and peace despite our troubled world.]

The Conspiracy of the Mekatregim, part 2

16 Elul 5775

Prologue |Prologue 2 | Part 1 | Part 2

By now we have had enough of what the “powers that be” have been thinking about and planning since Pharaoh, who famously said, “Get ready, let us deal shrewdly with them, lest they increase, and a war befall us, and they join our enemies and depart from the land.” (Exodus 1:10)

Them, is us. The Israelites then are the Jews now. The land is Egypt, Mitzrayim, the land of constraints and slavery. Everything I described earlier and so much more started here among human beings in this world, after waiting for Avraham’s chosen family to grow into a nation and eventually return to its intended Land (which Pharaoh did not wish to see accomplished). 

Fortunately, in our time we may look back to our Prophets, read them carefully and see what is left to fulfill. There isn’t much left. To summarize:

• We have been subject to an extremely long exile, accompanied by horrifying persecution and attempts to wipe us out many times over, and which would have indeed exterminated us had we not been protected from Above.
• We’ve come back to our land after an extremely long exile, which still exists in the hearts of all too many – even here in Israel.
• The land has responded to our return by flowering and putting forth fruit. This sign is undeniable. The “Palestinians” learned this the hard way before Gush Katif was created by the Jews, and now, after the expulsion as well. Everything that has happened since is a distraction from this lesson (not to mention mightily dangerous for all involved).

 Now what?

It has been said that the Final Redemption will be like the first one, from Mitzrayim. Rabbi Ephraim Sprecher of Diaspora Yeshiva writes in Torah Tidbits Parashioth Shof'tim and Ki Tetze:

The prophet Micha (7:16) states, “As in the days of your leaving Egypt, I (G-d) shall show them marvelous wonders.” The prophet’s words imply that the Exodus from Egypt is the precedent for the Geula Sh'leima (Complete or Final Redemption).

The Midrash Tanchuma states, “Just as in Egypt, I (G-d) shall redeem you in the Messianic future and shall perform miracles for you.”

Indeed, gradual, phased redemption is already found in Egypt, as in the Four Redemption Expressions with which G-d addresses Moshe, “Therefore tell Israel that I am G-d,

1.    and I will remove you from the suffering of Egypt,

2.    and I will save you from your enslavement.

3.    I will redeem you with an outstretched arm.

4.   and I will take you to Me as a people ... I will be for you G-d.” (Sh'mot 6:6,7)…

…The redemption comes when Israel recognizes Hashem as our G-d, as occurred during Stage 4 of the redemption process which was at the Sinai Revelation.

Yet the Torah goes on and brings a fifth expression of redemption: “And I will bring you to the land which I swore that I will give to Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov; I will give it to you as an inheritance, for I am G-d. (Sh’mot 6:8). (emphasis mine - CDG)

And so…much…more…

So, what does national recognition of haShem entail? We know that the nation of Israel was commanded to perform three commandments (mitzvoth) upon their entrance into the land of Israel (Sanhedrin 20b):

1.  Appoint upon themselves a king
2.  Eradicate the offspring of Amaleq
3.  Build the Holy Temple (Beit haMiqdash)

But now, over the last 6-and-a-half decades or so, we find ourselves to have become stuck in a quagmire: It takes a lot of emuna to tackle the problem of not being able (or willing?) to exercise sufficient sovereignty for our needs – forget about the nations and organizations who wish to see us gone and their tools, whether Middle Eastern nations, BDS, education, media...you name it. How much longer are we going to hold out, and what are we waiting for?

Will this help? (It doesn't have to be the "established Sanhedrin" we have now; but we do need those who have the power to do so, to seriously consider whether this is the right time to form the real one. If they're for real themselves.)

For further discussion:

Why is democracy not sufficient and why do we need a king? | Woe unto a generation with judges like these | The Electoral System for a King | The High Court is killing us | "The High Court Is Killing Us" OR Are You Ready for the Court in Shamayim? | "He Who is Merciful to the Cruel will End up Being Cruel to the Merciful”

UPDATE: Remember that the Ba'al Shem Tov said this generation would see a lot of rabbis and they would be the ones delaying Geula! Be careful whom you take as your rav!

UPDATE 2: the Ba'al Shem Tov anecdote immediately linked to above can be found in a sefer (book) called Otzar haChaim (Treasury of Life). I cannot find a link to the text of the passage online.

UPDATE 3:  Rav Yaak found it in Hebrew (I never would have; so thank you, Rabbi.). If you read Rashi script, you may read this version that he found (It didn't cover my entire screen, so you may have to scroll down to the passage.).

The Conspiracy of the Mekatregim, part 1

15 Elul 5775

Prologue | Prologue 2 | Part 1 | Part2

From these translations of the original Hebrew in the prologues, it can be understood that the opposing angels (we humans call them concepts, but in relation to G-d everything imaginable has a soul and can speak with Him) anticipated that only bad could come of haShem’s creating mankind. Looking around today, we see what a complete and utter mess has been made of the world we live in and from which we draw our sustenance.

A lot of articles have been written – and even entire Web sites have been dedicated to exposing some strong influences, mainly brought about by hidden groups of people who generally do not wish to be known — despite the fact that some are now notorious — which have nurtured the frightening developments that have resulted, some of which seem to be good (at least they are sold that way) and turn out to be evil, and others being outright evil.

Indeed, peace and truth have been badly twisted, beaten up and turned inside out worldwide in our day, and in their names some of the worst mendacity and bellicosity have been perpetrated. Even charity has not been exempt from this mega-distortion; murdering terrorist organizations get a great deal of their moral, as well as financial, support from charity! But donors, even wealthy ones, should know that the lion’s share of the money comes from higher up, as well as from thievery and war booty. 

Lately, it seems we are being warned that about 93% of all mankind  is soon to be wiped out. Could the date be on or around September 23^rd (Yom Kippur), as some Web sites have hinted at?  The goal is to bring our population to fewer than 500 million, and to keep it that way.

Possibly to that end, a “false flag year” capable of destruction on a massive scale, beginning on Yom Kippur 5776 and ending on Yom Kippur 5777, may be imminent. The worst part is that we, mankind, will seemingly have done it to ourselves, by our own hand or by that of others, the result of our wrong, sinful and self-destructive decision-making over centuries, both personal/individual and national/collective; or else, some say, a cataclysmic event will take place originating from outer space. Either way, billions may no longer be alive at the end of it. Or it may not happen at all, like the Mayan end of the world as we know it, in 2012.

We did not suddenly come to this place, where it is more likely than not to occur. It has been developing for a very long time, some many hundreds of years. Some would say since the times of the Romans, or when the Muslims began; others, from the time the Illuminati were formed, just a month before the United States became a nation in 1776; or the Jesuits were formed from out of the Roman Catholic Church in 1540. I say the Midrash quoted in the prologue above is at the very least a huge hint that the struggle comes from spiritual forces higher than man himself, but, of course, lower than G-d.  As a matter of fact, many people involved in a lot of these organizations locally and globally attribute their inspiration to invisible higher forces that are guiding them*. The versions of the Midrash Rabbah I quoted above say that Peace and Truth themselves are the opposition. 

I do have an idea about what the root cause might be – may it never come to fruition! — The angels who resisted HaShem’s creation of mankind (maybe lower ones than those depicted in the Midrash?) may still be at work, infusing human thought with detrimental and suicidal concepts, ideas and plans, even up to the highest government levels. Why? To rid the earth of mankind altogether, starting with the Jews. Forget about the 2/3rds or even the 93% of the world that the Jesuits, New Agers, Rosicrucians, or whoever, secretly plot. Why stop there? Having done their dirty work, I imagine these spirit beings might go back to HaShem and tell Him: See, You shouldn’t have made man. We were able to bring about his destruction simply by appealing to his worst drives, his selfishness and his laziness, both physical and mental. And spirituality, You ask? Forget about it.

The biggest question I have is: Why has HaShem allowed us to be brought so low?

That's next.

Update: We're still here, so far. Tomorrow night is Yom haKippurim 5777. Thank G-d. -CDG

*Thanks to Rav Yaak, I no longer need the warning that was here before. I believe I found the author's new (and her own) Web site.