Kehillah Or Ahayim

Israel's Strange Priorities

2010-10-17T23:35:00.000+01:00

10.02.2010]

Israel's Strange Priorities

Once again, Prime Minister Netanyahu has publicly pleaded with the Palestinians not to leave the "peace talks." And his Defense Minister (who did his best to give Arafat the Old City of Jerusalem) joined in by promising that a compromise can reached that will allow the talks to go on.

While Israel's leaders are chasing after Abbas ( a man who believes that Jerusalem was never Israel's capital) the Iranians continue to charm the West and proceed toward attaining nuclear weapons. Last week, a Yale University professor arranged for her students to meet and listen to Iran's tyrannical President. Did you hear or read anything about this meeting -- this brainwashing of American college students? Well unless you read the Yale Daily News orMichael Ledeen the chances are this is the first time you even heard of this outrage.

Where are the critics of this odious man and the deadly regime he represents? Where are the human rights groups who denounce Israel for phony human rights abuses? Why aren't they protesting? Where are Israel's defenders? Where is the State of Israel?

We received a note from a popular Christian writer who asked why Israel's Prime Minister was not in New York focusing the world's attention on the barbarity and the dangers of the Iranian regime. We responded, "Ask him."

As Iran moves closer to attaining nuclear power, we need to demand that the United States and Israel make stopping Iran a top priority.

Concedieron el Premio Nobel de la Paz a un famoso disidente

2010-10-17T02:52:00.000+01:00

Liu Xiaobo cumple una larga condena de cárcel

Concedieron el Premio Nobel de la Paz a un famoso disidente

El escritor chino Liu Xiaobo, galardonado con el Premio Nobel de la Paz y en prisión desde el año 2008 por pedir reformas democráticas en su país, es un molesto disidente para el Gobierno comunista de Beijing, que ha tratado, sin éxito, de intimidar a la Academía sueca, para que no incluya al implicado entre los galaronados este año.
En los últimos días ha sido la propia “dictablanda” china, como el mismo Liu denomina al sistema de su país, la que más fama le ha dado al amenazar formalmente a la Academia de Oslo y al Gobierno noruego con graves consecuencias en sus relaciones bilaterales si deciden otorgar el próximo viernes el galardón más importante del mundo a este polémico crítico literario y político. Nacido en Changchun (Jilin) el 28 de diciembre de 1955, Liu es uno de los autores del manifiesto conocido como “Carta 08”, rubricado por otros 303 conocidos intelectuales y artistas de su país en 2008, y que un año después le supuso una condena de 11 años entre rejas.
En el documento, los todavía hoy acosados firmantes pedían al Gobierno de la segunda potencia económica del mundo que aplicara derechos recogidos expresamente en la Constitución china, como la libertad de prensa y de expresión, el multipartidismo o la protección del medio ambiente.
El manifiesto, que hoy acumula 20.000 firmas, estaba inspirado en la “Carta 77” que la oposición de la extinta Checoslovaquia redactó en 1977 y contribuyó a la caída del régimen comunista en 1989.
Fue ese mismo año cuando Liu abandonó su estadía como profesor visitante en la Universidad de Columbia, en Nueva York, para encabezar la huelga de hambre en las protestas estudiantiles de la Plaza de Tiananmen, en Beijing, que ese verano acabaron en masacre.
Aquella madrugada del 4 de junio de 1989, él y otros tres veteranos activistas salvaron cientos de vidas al negociar una salida pacífica de la famosa Plaza antes de que los carros blindados mataran a los centenares que se negaban a abandonar su protesta en las inmediaciones del lugar.
Quienes lo conocen de entonces aseguran que su carácter se suavizó y su lucha tomó un cariz francamente pacifista y dialogante.
Tiananmen le valió una primera condena, de dos años, y en 1996 llegó la segunda, de tres, en un “campo de reeducación laboral” (“laogai”) donde celebró su matrimonio con su segunda y actual esposa, la poetisa Liu Xia, cinco años más joven que él y que gracias a un certificado especial podía visitar a su marido a menudo.
Ella cuenta que “les une una amistad de décadas y su amor por la literatura, en concreto por el ruso Dostoievski y checo Kafka”; y él definía así su relación en un mensaje escrito tras la sentencia de 2009: “Tu amor es la luz que atraviesa los muros y las rejas de la prisión, acaricia cada pulgada de mi piel, calienta cada una de mis células y me permite mantener mi calma interior”.
La misma calma interior que mostraba en 2007, cuando abandonó la Presidencia del “Centro Chino PEN para la libertad de expresión” y en una entrevista anticipaba un futuro carcelario que se veía resignado a afrontar para proseguir con su lucha pacífica por el futuro de sus compatriotas.
Una actitud similar a la del pacifista alemán Carl von Ossietzky, el otro presidiario galardonado con el Premio de Oslo en 1935, cuando cumplía condena por alta traición y espionaje.
Geir Lundestad, el director del Instituto Noruego Nobel y quien denunció esta semana las presiones de la vicecanciller china Fu Ying para que la distinción no vaya a parar a ninguno de los disidentes chinos nominados, sugirió en 2001 que tarde o temprano la pesadilla de Beijing se hará realidad.
Otros ganadores del galardón como el Dalai Lama, líder espiritual tibetano en el exilio, o el escritor Vaclav Havel, ex presidente de la República Checa e impulsor de la “Carta 77” contra el rígido régimen comunista, han expresado públicamente su apoyo al escritor chino premiado, que cumple una larga condena de cárcel. (EFE).

Netanyahu: o Líbano está se tornando uma extensão do regime iraniano

2010-10-17T01:48:00.001+01:00

Netanyahu: o Líbano está se tornando uma extensão do regime iraniano

O primeiro-ministro Benjamin Netanyahu (foto) respondeu à previsão do "desaparecimento dos sionistas" feito no Líbano, o presidente iraniano, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, com um convite a olhar para a força que tem o país.

Netanyahu advertiu que o Líbano está se tornando uma extensão do regime dos aiatolás do Irã ".

"Hoje ouvimos insultos e abominações da fronteira libanesa A melhor resposta para tal blasfêmia foi dada 62 anos atrás:. Estado e tudo o que temos construído e desenvolvido desde então", disse ele, no Museu da Independência, em Tel Aviv.

"E desde então, olhar para as pessoas do estado, eo exército é o povo de Israel. Vamos continuar a construir e criar o nosso país e estar preparado para protegê-lo", continuou ele.

Netanyahu evitou responder a pergunta de se seu governo tivesse considerado assassinar o líder iraniano durante sua visita ao país vizinho dos cedros.

"Nós vemos o que precisa ser feito para proteger o Estado", ele disse simplesmente.

O deputado do Partido União Nacional Aryeh Eldad, disse que Israel deve aproveitar a visita de Ahmadinejad ao Líbano para assassiná-lo, o que "seria como matar Hitler em 1939, pouco antes do Holocausto.

Por sua parte, porta-voz do Ministério dos Negócios Estrangeiros, Yigal Palmor, disse que o discurso do presidente iraniano no sul da cidade de Bint Jbeil, perto da fronteira com o Estado judaico, corresponde a "um incendiário obsessão descontrolada."

"Nós não serviremos a revista," ele disse Ahmadinejad, que na sua visita oficial ao Líbano, elogiou o grupo xiita Hezbollah (Partido de Deus), chamado por seus partidários a "Resistência".

O líder iraniano elogiou o Hezbollah por "provocar a derrota amarga dos sionistas e introduzir medo e desespero nos corações dos sionistas." EFE, Aurora

Parshas Lech Lecha

2010-10-14T01:50:00.000+01:00

Parshas Lech Lecha

Rabino Pinchas Winston

Divine Intervention in Our Wars Against Our Enemies

And the angel of God said to her, "You are pregnant, and you will give birth to a son. You will call him 'Yishmael,' because God has heard your affliction. (Bereishis 16:11)

It is the butterfly effect in action. There was Hagar, in the middle of nowhere, pregnant and dying. Sarah, her mistress, had been hard on her and she had fled to the desert, and left up to her own devices, she and her future son Yishmael would have died then and there, and what a different world it would be today!

In next week's parshah, history will get a second chance. This time Yishmael will already be a young man when Avraham sends him away with his mother, this time on command from God, and they will come close to dying. And, even though the angels will protest against any kind of Divine survival effort, because of how he will later treat the descendants of Yitzchak in the future, God reminded them that He judges a person based upon his current spiritual status only, not his future one.

Amazing, is it not, how such a seemingly insignificant event, comparable to the simple fluttering of a butterfly's wings, could have such a dramatic result thousands of years later, like a raging storm caused by the same butterfly half a world away? Most people do not almost die as he once did twice, and yet, look at what he has become and what he has done over the millennia, because he did not!

And he is only just warming up.

Even God, according to the Talmud, had second thoughts, so-to-speak:

There are three things that God regretted creating: Kasdim, Yishmael, and the yetzer hara. (Yerushalmi, Ta'anis 15a)

A little later on, the Talmud brings the story about how when the Jewish people were on their way into exile to Bavel and dying from thirst, they turned to the people of Yishmael for relief. Feigning sympathy, the Yishmaelim instead fed the Jews salty fish to intensify their thirst, and then gave them empty water pouches from which to quench themselves, causing them to die immediately. With relatives like that ...

But, how does God regret anything? Regret is something you feel when you did something you thought would turn out well, but happened to turn out bad. For God, such surprises are not possible, since He is omniscient, and always knows the outcome of an event before it even begins. Indeed, God wouldn't cause something to happen unless He intended for the end result from the start.

Rashi, answering a similar question, says the following:

God repented-vayinachem-that He had made man on earth, and it pained His heart. (Bereishis 6:6)

Vayinachem: It was a consolation-nechamah-for Him that He created man on earth, for had he been one of the Heavenly beings he would have incited them also to rebel against God.

It pained Him: In the mind of God man became an object to be bothered (i.e., punished).

In other words, it wasn't that God was surprised by the outcome of history; He knew what would eventually occur long before man was even created. However, once history fulfilled its destiny, necessitating a Flood, God turned from Divine mercy to Divine judgment, in order to decide what to do with mankind who had become so corrupt (Rashi). The verses are noting the historical change of Divine thinking, which had always been planned. This has to be the case, because with respect to the yetzer hara, the Midrash says:

Rebi Nachman the son of Shmuel said: "... And behold, it was very good" (Bereishis 1:31); "And behold," this refers to the yetzer tov; "very good" refers to the yetzer hara, for the yetzer hara is very good. Were it not for the yetzer hara, a man would not build a house, marry a woman, do business ... (Bereishis Rabbah 9:7)

After all, as the Talmud states, "God created the yetzer hara, and He created Torah as its spice" (Kiddushin 30b). Hence, without the yetzer hara, what would there be for Torah to spice?

But then again, why would God 'regret' having created it, if its purpose is so central to everything the Jewish people strive to accomplish? The answer to this question is also in the Talmud:

Rav Shimon, the son of Levi said: Every day the yetzer of a man strengthens itself seeking to kill him, and it would succeed if Heaven did not help him. (Kiddushin 30b)

Confused? No need. The Midrash is talking about the yetzer hara prior to Adam HaRishon's sin, when man was perfectly balanced between good and evil (Derech Hashem 1:3:1). The Talmud is talking about the yetzer hara after man sinned and spiritually 'absorbed' the yetzer hara into his very being. Long gone is man's perfect balance between good and evil; he is like meat for the vultures now.

The situation is the same with respect to the descendants of Yishmael. Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world today, going far beyond the effects that Christianity once had. And, the strange thing about it is that when Christianity spread, it brought a more advanced message about God than the paganistic world at that time had ever known. Islam seems to be a large step backwards for the Western world, and one that many would not take if the Arab world wasn't so incredibly intimidating.

The Yerushalmi made its statement in fifth century. We are living some 15 centuries later, and during the time since Bnei Yishmael have had time to grow, build, and conquer. And conquer. And conquer some more. And today, what they do not take through war they take through diplomacy and diplomatic intimidation. The have greatly upset the equilibrium of Creation, and for that reason, God changed his heart, so-to-speak, with respect to his creation.

But that is just a Divine warning to man to be aware of Bnei Yishmael just as he should be aware of his yetzer hara. And, in each case, he must turn to God for help, for clearly the power that each wields is more than anyone can counter on his own. Indeed, that is the very reason why both exist in the first place: to turn man back to God.

Hence his name: Yishmael: God will hear, as in:

Eventually the king of Egypt died. By that time, the Children of Israel were broken because of the servitude, and they cried. Their cry for help came to God, who heard their groaning. God remembered his covenant with Avraham, Yitzchak, and Ya'akov, and saw the Children of Israel. God was aware of their suffering. (Shemos 2:23-25)

That is the job of Yishmael. Like the yetzer hara, they exist to make the Jewish people turn to God for help, Who is only too willing to give it. The problem is that we are not too willing to ask for it, instead turning to politicians or technology to solve our problems. Or, we simply adapt to the situation and say things like, "Nu, it could always be worse." Hence, the Talmud says:

Rebi Alexandri said: Rebi Yehoshua ben Levi raised the following contradiction: It says, "Behold like the clouds of Heaven came one like the son of man" (Daniel 7:13). It is also written, "Lowly and riding upon a donkey" (Zechariah 9:9). If they merit it, he will come with the clouds of Heaven, but if they do not merit it, he will come upon a donkey. (Sanhedrin 98a)

It is certainly no coincidence that the Arab world is compared to the chamor-donkey-for a number of reasons. Hence, when the Talmud says that if we are not worthy of Moshiach arriving like clouds of Heaven, that he will arrive lowly and riding upon a donkey, it is safe to assume that this means on the back of Yishmael. Yishmael, the Talmud indicates, and all the trouble he will cause us, God forbid, will trigger Moshiach's arrival.

Why? The answer is obvious. All hypocrisy aside (which is not an easy task), the Arab world, for the most part, shuns the modern world. Turning a blind eye to the Arab aristocracy, which most seem to do, Muslims, in general, see modern technology as a device of the devil, and deplore and fear it. They'll use it to carry out terrorist attacks on innocent civilians, but they won't use it that much in everyday life.

It is just the opposite by the Jews. They'd rather not use technology for military purposes, but instead just enjoy its multiple and often addictive opportunities in everyday life. Jews, for the most part, love the good life, and they'll use the modern world any way they can to get more of it, sometimes at the cost of important spiritual values, like God, for example.

Indeed, explains the Shem M'Shmuel (Parashas Vayishlach), the number one obstacle in the path of the Final Redemption will be materialism. It already is. In fact, find me a deviation from the long term goals of the Jewish people, and I will show some form of materialism that is causing it. And, as a result, for the umpteenth time in our three-millennia history, it is endangering us all over again, leaving us, once again, in harm's way.

Fascinating, is it not, how the more technology speeds up and tries to dominate people's lives, the faster Islam and Sharia Law tries to dominate the world? It is a such a counter-culture, with some aspects being reminiscent of certain Torah values. But, like all the religions that have used Judaism as their base, the Muslim adaptation has become extreme in its interpretation and application of the original Word of God, until it has become anything but that.

One thing is for sure. Like the yetzer hara, which is all over us and trying to kill us every chance it gets, Yishmael is all over the world, and capable of doing very much the same, one way or another. In each case, we aint going to win this war on our own, not without a formidable amount of Divine intervention. There are just too many of them, they have too much chutzpah, and the West tends to be intimidated by them to no end.

And to think, all we have to do is ask for God's help.

And to fear, we won't, at least not until, as was in the case of Egypt, we are forced to scream out for Divine assistance.

And, we didn't even get a chance to deal with Persia-Iran-yet.

Rav said: "All the keitzin-end dates-have passed, and the matter depends only on repentance and good deeds." But Shmuel maintained: "It is sufficient for a mourner to keep his mourning." This matter is disputed by Tannaim: Rebi Eliezer said: "If Israel repents, they will be redeemed; if not, they will not be redeemed." Rebi Yehoshua said to him, "If they do not repent, will they not be redeemed! Rather, The Holy One, Blessed is He, will set up a king over them, whose decrees will be as difficult as Haman's, whereby the Jewish people will repent, and He will thus bring them back to the right path." (Sanhedrin 97b)

Parshas Lech Lecha

2010-10-13T02:14:00.000+01:00

Parshas Lech Lecha

Avraham's Legacy to his Descendants

Why is Avraham so special? The Torah does not grant him the complimentary adjectives that it lavished upon Noach at the beginning of last week’s parsha. His willingness to die on behalf of his belief in one God at the test of the furnace of Ur Casdim is not even mentioned in the Torah text. It was only inferred by the rabbis from tradition and a reference to one word – Ur – in the text itself.

So why is Avraham the father of many nations and generations and the spiritual ancestor and guide to so many millions in the world, even thirty five centuries after his death? The rabbis of Mishna Avot have long ago provided the answer to these questions. They stated that our father Avraham was sorely tested by life and the Creator ten times and he rose greater each time from the experience.

I have often thought that the most remarkable quality of the Jewish people is not necessarily or even mainly its scholarship and its contributions to the betterment of humanity, as much as it is its resilience. This resilience is personified in the life and vicissitudes of our father Avraham. To a great extent we all pray that we not be tested too often or too severely in our lives. Yet simply being a Jew and not deserting the cause of the Jewish people at the time of its need is a significant test.

Many are the critics and enemies of Avraham. Yet he never loses his faith. His hopes for humanity and his loyalty to the values that have guided his way in life survive all of his experiences in life. That is the Jewish definition of the quality of resilience that has become the hallmark of Jewish life throughout the ages.

I have also often thought that the most difficult tests in Avraham’s life concerned members of his immediate family. Throwing one’s self into a fire for an ideal or a closely held belief is not unique to the Jewish people. Even though we may be the leader in continuous world martyrdom we are not the only ones with such a history and value.

Perhaps that is why the Torah did not choose to stress the test of Ur Casdim in its text. But, it does tell us, in painful detail, of the betrayal of Avraham and his values and life style by his ungrateful nephew, Lot. How does one deal with such a disappointment? Yet Avraham goes to war to save Lot and his wealth and it is because of Avraham alone that Lot apparently undeservedly survives the destruction of Sdom.

Avraham’s son Yishmael behaves like a wild beast in human guise. Parents may be helpless and even blameless regarding the behavior of their adult children, but the hurt that those adult children can inflict upon their parents with wrongful behavior is immeasurable. Yet Avraham does not waver, and at the end of his life he lived to see that Yishmael repented and returned.

It is the unwavering courage and tenacity of Avraham, in the face of all defeats, hurts, hostile enemies and false friends, that most impresses us about our father. This strength of constantly renewing resilience is the legacy that he has bestowed upon us, his generations and descendants.

Shabat shalom.

Weekly Review: October 10, 2010

2010-10-11T01:53:00.001+01:00

Weekly Review: October 10, 2010
Dear Friend of Jerusalem,

Here are the latest headlines from the One Jerusalem Blog:

● Jerusalem is voted one of the world's top travel destinations: We always knew this was the case but its good to see the rest of the world catching on. Our friends at the City of David have received special mention. Bravo. Check out the winner's list here.... (read more)

● Americans Distrust Obama ON Israel, Iran, Security: The Emergency Committee for Israel recently polled 1,000 likely Americans and the results show a growing divide between Americans and the policies of the Obama Administration:Some highlights from the poll:47% believe that Obama's outreach to Muslim world has decreased American... (read more)

● Israelis Growing Impatient With Government: Haaretz political reporter Yossi Verter in the weekend magazine (published in Hebrew) reports new polls from Kamil Fuchs which he says should be headlined :"Government in Free Fall". Netanyahu lost 12 per cent support since June 2010. Foreign Minister Lieberman... (read more)

Sincerely, The One Jerusalem Team

Lech Lechá

2010-10-08T02:54:00.000+01:00

Lech Lechá

O particular e o universal no judaísmo

Muitas vezes o judaísmo é criticado por ser fechado. Segundo essa observação, os judeus ocupam-se apenas deles, não querem contato com não judeus e acreditam que são o povo escolhido por serem naturalmente melhores do que os demais.

A parashá que inicia o caminho de Avraham, o primeiro hebreu, nos mostra uma realidade bem diferente. O primeiro mandamento que recebe o patriarca - e através do qual se torna patriarca desse povo acusado de ser particularista - é: “Vai-te da tua terra, da tua pátria, da casa de teu pai, à terra que te mostrarei... e seja benção... para que em ti sejam abençoadas todas as famílias da terra”. Ou seja, ele deve justamente abandonar a pátria particular, a casa particular e se entregar a uma causa geral cujo objetivo é a benção da humanidade inteira.

É verdade, para isso irá a uma terra determinada e fará uma viagem para si mesmo (Vai-TE − a ti mesmo), mas o objetivo final são todos. O judaísmo é particular porque não se impõe, porque não persegue, porque não tenta converter, porque não acredita ser o único caminho. Mesmo assim, quer trazer a benção a todos, a sua benção particular, sem impor, sem converter. Todos são igualmente dignos e destinatários dessa benção.

Normalmente é assim: o que temos a dar para fora de nós é aquilo que é especial em nós. Para podermos contribuir precisamos desenvolver a nossa unicidade, aquilo que nos faz únicos. S.R.Hirsch, que viveu na época da Emancipação no centro da Europa, dizia que é justamente a abertura cultural da Europa que convida os judeus a contribuírem com sua particularidade, a realizarem a sua missão universal de aportarem a sua particularidade judaica. Na era moderna o judeu não é chamado a se assimilar e sim a se aproximar da sua identidade, ser mais ele mesmo, pois é em virtude disso que será valorizado.

As contas morais, políticas e existenciais

Nesta parashá, Avraham acumula muito sucesso, conquista bens econômicos significativos, salva-se de ameaças e salva reis em meio a guerras injustas. Ao voltar vitorioso da guerra, Deus diz a ele: “Não tema, Eu cuidarei da sua recompensa”. Os comentários tradicionais se perguntam: do que poderia temer Avraham uma vez que obteve tanto sucesso, uma vez que a recompensa justamente estava na sua mão? Destacarei quatro das múltiplas respostas que foram sugeridas ao longo da história de leituras empáticas: a) Avraham temeu ter atropelado e matado na guerra inocentes que estavam misturados entre criminosos; b) Avraham temeu pela integridade moral dele mesmo pelo fato de ter matado mesmo justificadamente. A guerra machuca e estraga a humanidade em todos os casos; c) Avraham temeu a possível represália dos descendentes daqueles que perderam a guerra, mesmo sabendo que foram culpados, levando a uma escalada interminável de violência; d) Avraham temeu pelos efeitos de seu sucesso. Assim como tememos o fracasso, existe o temor do sucesso, que pode gerar inveja nos demais, arrogância própria e falta de autocrítica, necessidade (interna - psicológica; ou externa - teológica, mística) de compensar o bem com algum mal neste mundo ou em outro, nesta dimensão ou em outra. Como se o mundo e a vida tivessem equilíbrios rígidos que precisam se manter a fim de manter a saúde das pessoas e de sua educação. Ter e não ter, conquistar e perder. Talvez essa seja uma possível explicação para a expressão da famosa benção dos sacerdotes que começa dizendo “ievarechechá Ad-nai veishmerecha”, ou seja, Deus te abençoe e te cuide. Te cuide de ter recebido a benção, te cuide da própria benção, de como esta será administrada por você, de como você será visto pelos demais por ter recebido a benção e de como será visto por você mesmo depois de ter consciência de ter recebido a benção.

Recebamos bênçãos, sejamos bênçãos, cuidemos das bênçãos e cuidemos de tudo que nos cerca através delas e por elas.

Shabat Shalom,

Rabino Ruben Sternschein

Rabbi Yissocher Frand

2010-10-08T01:58:00.000+01:00

These divrei Torah were adapted from the hashkafa portion of Rabbi Yissocher Frand's Commuter Chavrusah Tapes on the weekly portion: Tape # 698, Did the Avos Keep the Torah? Good Shabbos

Lech-Lecha #1 or Lech-Lecha #2 – Which is the harder test?

The Medrash Rabbah on this week's Parsha states in the name of Rav Levi: There are two times that "Lech Lecha" is written in the Torah and we do not know which is G-d's favorite – the first or the second. The first "Lech Lecha" is obviously the first pasuk of our parsha [Bereshis 12:1]: "Go out from your land, from your birth place, and from your father's house to the land that I will show you." The second "Lech Lecha" is in connection with Akeidas Yitzchok [the Binding of Yitzchak], where Avraham is told "Go out to the Land of Moriah and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you." [Bereshis 22:2] Rav Levi concludes that Akeidas Yitzchok was a greater test than the test of Avram leaving his homeland and thus the second instance of "Lech Lecha" is "more precious to G-d".

It is actually strange that Rav Levi was even puzzled by this question. Why would anyone think that the test of leaving one's homeland (particularly in the conte xt of the great reward that HaShem promised to Avram if he complied with this commandment) might be comparable to the test of the Akeida? The Akeida would be most difficult for any parent – particularly such a person as Avraham, who was the paradigm of Chessed [kindness] and who had preached monotheism and the virtues of a Merciful G-d all these years to his many disciples.

A Nesivos Shalom (by the Slonimer Rebbe) at the beginning of the parsha addresses this issue. Certainly, the Akeida was a very difficult nisayon [test], but it was a "one shot affair". Avraham was called upon to ascend the mountain, sacrifice Yitzchak, and then the nisayon would be over. However, the nisayon of Lech Lecha in our parsha is a test of beginning a journey that will affect him and will last the rest of his life.

Everyone has his own personal odyssey in life. We are all charged with the task of bringing completeness (shleimus) to our souls. We have to achieve correction (tikun) of our neshma [soul] in our own personal fashion. That is the charge of Lech LECHA (go in YOUR OWN way). This charge involves a lifetime of work. Many times, this charge requires getting out of the box that is one's environment, one's society, and one's family. We never enter life with a clean slate. We all enter life with baggage – emotional baggage, financial baggage, genetic baggage, family baggage. Sometimes the "baggage" is very good and extremely helpful. Other times the baggage can be a real handicap. The type of people that we are and the characteristics (middos) that we have are primarily not our own choosing.

When a person is given a mission in life and a goal to accomplish, it may involve the need to rid himself of so much of the baggage that he came with (one's land, one's birthplace, one's family). Such a challenge is not a one shot deal. Rather, it accompanies us day in and day out. Such a constant – lifelong – challenge may indeed be cumulatively a greate r test than a test requiring only a momentary rise to the occasion, as difficult as that challenge may be.

Historia Rav Chaim KAnievsky com Rav Bracha

2010-10-03T02:25:00.001+01:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5bReRK-n0w

Shana Tova

2010-09-17T09:18:00.004+01:00

http://www.youtube.com/user/midreshetshaareibina#p/a/u/0/dVlzFbA2MQ4
http://www.youtube.com/user/midreshetshaareibina#p/a/u/0/7SyDuuiDCFg

Americans Distrust Obama ON Israel, Iran, Security

2010-09-10T16:56:00.000+01:00

Americans Distrust Obama ON Israel, Iran, Security

The Emergency Committee for Israel recently polled 1,000 likely Americans and the results show a growing divide between Americans and the policies of the Obama Administration:

Some highlights from the poll:

47% believe that Obama's outreach to Muslim world has decreased American security. 33% say it has increased security.

51% said that Israel's enemies are America's enemies. 38% disagree

51% believe Jerusalem should remain undivided capital of Israel, only 20% disagree.

26% say the creation of a Palestinian State will increase terrorism against Israel. 19% say it will decrease.

22-16 say anti-American sentiment will increase with the creation of a Palestinian State.

81% believe that enemies of the United States use the Israel-Palestinian conflict as an excuse for being anti-American.

Nearly 60% disagree that Israeli policies create terrorists.

76% say the United States can not be safe with a nuclear Iran.

79% say that Obama will fail to stop Iran from going nuclear.

Clearly the American people are strong supporters of Israel and for a robust effort to stop Iran. Rea the whole poll here.

Halacha Yomit: Making a bracha for another person

2010-07-29T02:38:00.001+01:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tvpwziMy84&feature=related

In this video, Rabbi Chaim Brovender, of WebYeshiva.org, discusses if one can make a bracha for another person. He explains that this only holds for bread and wine, and for fruit eaten as part of a meal.

El éxodo de un judío catalán

2010-03-28T02:27:00.002+01:00

El éxodo de un judío catalán

El periodista Moshé Yanai (Barcelona, 1930) rememora cómo él y otros judíos fueron expulsados secretamente de España en 1944 por decreto del Gobierno franquista

Javier Dale | Barcelona | 26/03/2010 | Actualizada a las 00:58h |

http://www.lavanguardia.es/ciudadanos/noticias/20100326/53898985753/el-exodo-de-un-judio-catalan-barcelona-cadiz-israel-haifa-palestina-europa-franco-vera-ebro-segunda-.html

Hace 66 años, cuando arrancaba 1944, Moshé Yanai avistaba por primera vez la silueta de Haifa, entonces parte del protectoradopalestino del Reino Unido. Cerraba así un trayecto que duró días a bordo del Nyassa, un buque portugués que era el primero en cruzar el Mediterráneo sin escolta desde el arranque de la Segunda Guerra Mundial. Su puerto de origen quedaba ya muy atrás. Y también una tierra, una ciudad, un idioma, una vida y una identidad: la suya propia. Hasta ese momento, Moshé Yanai había sido Mauricio Palomo, un niño cuya vida había transcurrido en el principal 1º de la calle Marques de Campo Sagrado 28 de Barcelona, la ciudad que le vio nacer. El por qué de su llegada a Haifa en aquel 1944 sólo encuentra una respuesta: Mauricio Palomo –Moshé Yanai- es judío.

Yanai, que hoy cuenta 79 años, ha dedicado gran parte de su vida a ejercer de traductor y periodista en Israel. Pero nunca ha olvidado Barcelona, Catalunya, ni el misterio de su salida de España. El pasado verano una nueva información le permitió arrojar luz sobre su propia existencia. Lo que le ocurrió a él, a su familia y al grupo de judíos que abandonaron España en enero de 1944 fue que fueron oficialmente expulsados.

La pesadilla de la familia de Moshé Yanai, hijo de dos turcos emigrados a Barcelona, empezó el 20 de diciembre de 1940. "Dos agentes secretos llamaron a la puerta de nuestro apartamento –recuerda- , y pidieron a mi padre acompañarlos a la comisaría para contestar algunas preguntas, pero le llevaron a la cárcel Modelo. No le preguntaron nada, nunca hubo una acusación contra él". Así, José Palomo, un hombre que había llegado a Catalunya dos décadas antes, donde se había establecido como comerciante y había fundado una familia pasaba de ser un ciudadano sin pasaporte pero libre a un recluso que fue trasladado de inmediato a un campo de concentración ubicado en Miranda de Ebro (Burgos). "Era judío y apátrida; en otras palabras, persona no grata", afirma con amargura Moshé Yanai, que recuerda cómo su padre mantuvo la esperanza de poder volver a Barcelona: "Durante los primeros años de nuestra permanencia en la Palestina Mandatoria, mi padre ansiaba que los aliados derrocasen el régimen de Franco y pudiera regresar. Después de tantos años en Barcelona, y tras haber dominado tanto el castellano como el catalán, se consideraba hijo de esa tierra que le había acogido, por la que realmente tenía un profundo cariño".

Franco y los judíos

La única suerte de la familia Yanai/Palomo fue que la detención del padre no implicó la del resto de la familia. "El régimen franquista era cruel, pero en ese sentido se portó en otra forma que los nazis –explica Moshé Yanai-. Las familias de los detenidos judíos no fueron tocadas". Sin una persecución organizada contra los judíos, pero sí atentos a las denuncias que se pudieran recibir, Yanai aún no tiene una explicación a porqué su padre resultó detenido, y no otros judíos de su familia. El único argumento que encuentra es el de la denuncia directa de algún comerciante que conociera la religión de su padre y que quisiera "ampliar mercado" en una época de carestía: "Suponemos que fue detenido por una denuncia de alguien a quien mi padre habría perjudicado comercialmente". La historia y los archivos ofrecen respuestas a algunas de las preguntas que han acompañado a Yanai a lo largo de su vida. Lamentablemente, la memoria histórica no puede responder a todas. Quizá la denuncia que supuso el éxodo de los Palomo aún exista entre algún legajo de papeles olvidados, quizá el tiempo amarillo ya la haya corroído. Pero ese papel, ese aparente trámite burocrático, rompió la vida de una familia por el delito de ser judía.

Mientras el niño Mauricio Palomo y su madre trataban de sobrevivir en la Barcelona de posguerra, su padre, José Palomo, languidecía en un campo de concentración en Miranda de Ebro. La primera vez que Moshé fue a visitarle se estremeció: "Nunca había visto un lugar de reclusión –rememora-. Los ennegrecidos muros coronados por alambres de espino eran tan amenazadores como los ceñudos rostros de los soldados de guardia". El encuentro familiar –el único en todos los años de reclusión de José Palomo- fue dramático, por mucho que el padre de Moshé quisiera, con sentido del humor, rebajar su padecimiento y evitar el sufrimiento de sus seres queridos: "Nos contó alguna que otra anécdota, enfocándola de modo tal que pareciera que todo era en broma. Pero no había nada cómico en lo que ocurría". Paradójicamente, el hecho de José hablara catalán le permitió obtener el favor de alguno de sus carceleros: "A los guardianes que procedían de Catalunya les encantaba hablar con él en el excelente catalán que conocía. Eso sí, con mucha discreción".

Entretanto, y sin la conciencia de si su padre saldría alguna vez de la cárcel –o con el temor de que pudiera morir allí-, Moshé y su madre seguían con su vida. Como parte de la comunidad judía de Barcelona –Yanai estima que serían "unos cuatro o cinco mil" antes de la Guerra Civil- seguían con sus ritos. "Si no me equivoco, la sinagoga de Barcelona estaba cerca o en El Paralelo, y constaba de una sala de oración sefardí y otra ashkenazi". A pesar de todo –el encarcelamiento de su padre, la observación discreta de la religión- Moshé y su madre pudieron seguir practicando su religión sin ser recriminados. "Afortunadamente, desconocía lo que era el antisemitismo. Por eso, y a pesar de todo, mantengo esa actitud tan positiva con respecto al país en donde nací. Pero con la guerra y las conmociones de aquella época, no llegué a obtener ninguna educación religiosa. Lo único que mi madre hizo cuando cumplí los 13 años fue realizar la ceremonia del Bar Mitzvá".

Poco imaginaba entonces que, poco después de la ceremonia, su vida iba a dar un giro de 180 grados.

La expulsión

Sólo había pasado un mes y medio desde que había cumplido con el rito del Bar Mitzvá cuando Moshé Yanai se vio paseando por Cádiz de la mano de su padre, puesto en libertad, y de su madre. En apenas 45 días la vida de este niño judío catalán había dado un vuelco: la familia volvía a estar unida, pero se veían obligados a abandonar Barcelona, Catalunya, España, sin una explicación.

En Cádiz, alojados en el Hotel Playa, más de 500 judíos de distintas nacionalidades esperan a embarcar en el buque portugués Nyassa, con destino a Haifa. Saben dónde están y a dónde irán, e intuyen lo que les espera. Pero aun no saben por qué están allí. Por qué les obligan a irse.

El pasado verano, un reportaje publicado por Diario de Cádiz resolvió al fin el enigma: fueron expulsados. Cuando el Nyassa partió, la Delegación del Gobierno de Cádiz recibió varios telegramas. Entre ellos, el que decía: "Prohíbase la entrada en España, aunque traigan documentación en regla, a los súbditos extranjeros Josef Palomo Sagues, de 37 años, hijo de Mauricio y Sara, natural de Bruyrquía, y Rudolf Heymann, de 42 años, hijo de Luis y Betty, natural de Hamburgo (Alemania). Expulsados del territorio nacional".

La orden nunca se hizo pública, ni fue comunicada a los expulsados. Como tampoco, en las breves noticias publicadas en los medios de entonces, figura que el Nyassa hiciera escala en España. Sólo Diario de Cádiz publicó algo al respecto: "En tren especial ha llegado la expedición que se esperaba, integrada por 550 israelitas de distintas nacionalidades que se hallaban refugiados en España. Se hará cargo de ellos la Cruz Roja, que los trasladará a Palestina en un barco portugués que es esperado el próximo lunes". Pero no concreta –no podía concretar- que entre los israelitas se encontraba un grupo de judíos expulsados del país.

"No estaba loco"

Pilar Vera, la periodista que encontró el telegrama que confirmaba la expulsión de los judíos españoles, comenta que el hallazgo fue casual, casi una fábula. "El Archivo Histórico de Cádiz no guarda las causas por su nombre. Es decir, uno no puede buscar masones' o 'prostitución' y encontrarse con todos los expedientes, sino que tiene que saber lo que busca`, o a quién busca". Indagando sobre documentos vinculados a un hombre apellidado Palomo halló el telegrama "relativos a órdenes de expulsión. Entre ellas, por supuesto, estaba la familia de Moshé". El 22 de Enero, la Dirección General envió un primer telegrama informando de una lista de apátridas –"Eufemismo para judíos en tiempos de Franco", concreta Vera- que embarcarían en el Nyassa. Pero las autoridades franquistas esperaron a que el barco arribara a Haifa para emitir la orden de expulsión.

Cuando Vera contactó con Moshé Yanai para confirmarle que, en efecto, tanto él como su familia como el resto de los judíos que viajaron en el Nyassa habían sido expulsados, el anciano judío catalán sintió "una gran emoción, la sensación de que, al fin, se había cerrado un capítulo... y de que, sobre todo, no estaba loco", explica la periodista, que añade: "dado que el régimen franquista mostró, por comparación, una actitud más tolerante hacia los judíos que los otros fascismos en Europa, sonaba muy extraño que se hubiera llevado a cabo la expulsión de un grupo de judíos del territorio nacional".

Una nueva vida

En Haifa, y ya con Barcelona como el recuerdo de un imposible obligado a la nostalgia, la familia Palomo pronto fue la familia Yanai. Fueron años duros: Israel no existía –Palestina era un protectorado británico-, y la familia tuvo que adaptarse a nuevas circunstancias. La primera –al menos para Moshé- aprender hebreo: "Había que dar un giro completo: escribir a la inversa, de izquierda a derecha. Y luego puntos y rayas en lugar de vocales… Y eso que todavía no sabía que en el hebreo moderno, que mi padre todavía no conocía, habían desaparecido tales adiciones que hacen las veces de vocales. Pronto se instaló en una aldea agrícola –Ben Shemen- donde conoció a un tal Shimón, que con el tiempo sería Shimón Peres. Fueron tiempos de carencias, en los que Moshé aprendió a sacarse las castañas del fuego: como muchos judíos, ante las dificultades de su situación, pretendían viajar a Latinoamérica, el joven Yanai pudo empezar a ganarse la vida como profesor de castellano. Al poco, se establecieron en un arrabal de Tel Aviv junto a la mayoría de judíos que llegaron de España.

La paz llegó a Europa, y al cabo de tres años nació el estado de Israel, y en paralelo Moshé Yanai empezó a hacerse una vida: su dominio de varios idiomas le permitió establecerse como traductor, más tarde como periodista. Para su padre, el expulsado Jose Palomo, preso durante tres años en un campo de concentración, la vida no fue tan fácil: "Ansiaba que terminara la guerra para que los aliados derrocasen el régimen de Franco, y pudiera regresar. En Israel siempre tuvo una condición modesta. Pero no dejó nunca de trabajar. Para él, fue una amarga decepción no haber conseguido regresar a Barcelona".

Moshé tuvo la suerte que le faltó a su padre. Ha podido visitar Barcelona, la ciudad en la que nació, aunque sólo sea para comprobar que el edificio en el que transcurrió su infancia, el de la calle Marqués del Campo Sagrado 28, fue derruido. Pero sí sobrevive el Mercat de Sant Antoni, que tantas veces visitó. A sus 79 años, aún planea un nuevo viaje que también le llevará a Cádiz. Aunque esta vez será distinto. Esta vez sí sabrá por qué tuvo que partir su vida en dos a los 13 años: porque fue expulsado. Al fin, el círculo se ha cerrado.

casher l'Pésaj:

2010-03-26T15:09:00.000Z

Productos casher l'Pésaj:

Para los que ya han pedido sus productos de Pésaj, por favor,ven a recogerlos.

Los precios para los miembros son más económicos que para los no-miembros.

Aún así, los precios son accesibles para

Si todavía no los has pedido, todavía quedan:

Matsá cubierta en chocolate Yehudá (Israel)

Pastas de té dulces de matsá (limón y naranja) Bienfaisán (Francia)

Sémola de matsá Rosinski (Francia)

Matsá cuadrada, doble paquete, Rosinski (Francia)

Matsá shmura, Yehudá (Israel)

Rábano picante j'rein (para acompañar el guefilte fisch)

Vino dulce de shabat de Hafner (Austria)

A Sweet and Healthy Pesach

2010-03-26T14:19:00.001Z

Dear Beloved Readers of the Shabbat Shalom Weekly,,

A Sweet & Healthy Pesach !

If you enjoy reading the Shabbat Shalom Weekly

and have often thought about making a contribution

to help it continue and reach more people,

but it went from the front burner to the back burner ...

and then kinda fell off the stove ...

Then I ask, please, don’t "passover" this opportunity to give!

Take the pleasure of being a partner in something important and meaningful.

May you and your family be blessed with health, happiness and long life!

Warmly,

Rabbi Kalman Packouz

G-d Showing Off

2010-03-26T14:15:00.001Z

G-d Showing Off

Chapter 5, Mishna 5

"Ten miracles were performed for our fathers in Egypt and ten at the [Red] Sea. Ten plagues did the Holy One, blessed be He, bring upon the Egyptians in Egypt and ten at the sea."

This week's mishna makes mention of four sets of ten miracles, all of which occurred at the time of the Exodus: ten miracles performed for us in Egypt, ten miracles at the Red Sea, the Ten Plagues of Egypt, and ten plagues at the sea. It's also a wonderful case of Divine providence that we reached this mishna immediately before Passover.

Moving from easiest to hardest, the Ten Plagues are of course well recorded in Scripture. They are: blood, frogs, lice, mixtures of wild animals, animal-afflicting pestilence, boils, hail, locusts, darkness, and death of the firstborn.

The ten miracles G-d performed for us in Egypt are explained by the commentators to be the sparing of us from the plagues affecting the Egyptians.

The ten miracles at the sea are not as explicit -- other than, of course, the splitting of the sea itself. The commentators, based on the Midrash, explain that together with the parting of the sea, many other miracles occurred: the seabed drying and hardening to afford easy passage, the sea dividing into twelve passageways for the Twelve Tribes, water flowing from the sea wall providing the Jews with fresh drinking water, etc.

Finally, the ten plagues the Egyptians suffered at the sea were the punishments they received in the process of drowning, such as the Pillar of Fire heating up the seabed, G-d removing the wheels of the chariots, and the continuous jarring of the Egyptians in the water.

The Ten Plagues, as well as the accompanying miracles, stand apart in Jewish History. Never before or since has G-d performed so much so spectacularly for a single nation. G-d revealed Himself in unprecedented glory and power, delivering us from an invincible, implacable foe, and leading us to our ultimate salvation.

There is an additional aspect to the story which in a way adds even more to its impressiveness. To some extent the Ten Plagues were not even *necessary*. G-d had many means at His disposal of saving us from servitude (of course). He could have easily provided us with magic carpets and whisked us away with much less drama and fanfare. Or He could have kept any one of the plagues going until we were well out of harm's way -- rather than bullying Pharaoh into acquiescence only to have him renege as soon as things quieted down.

Instead, G-d made a much lengthier saga out of it. (And we'll assume this was *not* with an eye towards producing a better motion picture.) ;-) In fact, if we look more closely at the story, Pharaoh wasn't even capable of bearing so many plagues. As the Torah attests, G-d had to "harden" Pharaoh's heart by the sixth plague in order to prolong the ordeal (see Exodus 9:12).

Furthermore, the splitting of the sea occurred -- as well as scholars can determine -- quite close to the northern tip of the Gulf of Suez. G-d could have easily led Israel slightly further north on a fully land-based route. Instead, He led them right up to the sea, pinned them between the water and their enemies, only to then split the sea in climactic drama. Again, G-d seems to have almost orchestrated events for the sake of heightening the drama -- certainly beyond what was necessary to save us. What was the idea behind this?

Jewish thinkers distinguish between two types of miracles (see Sifsei Chaim Vol. 2, pp. 5-6). The first type is basically utilitarian: A righteous person is in trouble and cannot be saved via natural means. G-d will bend or break a few rules, so to speak, in order to save him or her. These miracles are not extremely rare occurrences. G-d ordinarily avoids tampering with the laws of nature -- preserving the concealment of His existence. However, if a person's greatness warrants -- if he is the type who serves G-d above and beyond *his own* natural abilities -- G-d may just reward in kind and look after him beyond the normal allowances of nature. (See _Tales out of Shul_ by R. Emanuel Feldman, pp. 198-201.)

I mentioned this story not long ago, but I think it drives this home well. I can't remember who this story was said about, but I believe it was a great rabbi who lived in America in the mid-20th Century. He had been accosted by a mugger and turned to flee. The assailant shot him point-blank from a few feet away. The rabbi kept running, only to discover later that the bullet had lodged itself in his coat and went no further. He insisted on wearing that same coat with the bullet hole for years to come, long after it wore out, as a reminder of the great kindness G-d had performed for him.

However, many miracles of our history -- in particular ones with which holidays are associated -- were of a different sort. You could almost say they were for the sake of show. A classic example is the miracle of Chanukah. G-d did not *have* to make one day's supply of oil last eight days (long enough for the Jews to produce a fresh supply of pure oil). If the Jews, after recapturing and rededicating the Temple, did not have any more pure oil, it would have hardly been their fault. They tried their best and would certainly bring pure oil as soon as it became available. Why eight days?

The answer is that G-d had a message to deliver. There was something He wanted us to know. The victorious revolt of a small band of devout Jews against the world's greatest army was not just a successful guerrilla uprising. It was miraculous: It was the Hand of G-d. G-d Himself had been operating all along. And there was a message behind it -- that the eternal light of the Torah shines brighter and steadier than the darkness and barbarity of Greek civilization (for all its flair and sophistication), as well as all other "modern" philosophies which have come to take its place. And the Sages rightly saw in the miracle Divine sanction to commemorate Chanukah for future generations. Its salvation was not a limited, short-lived one -- in order to save a few righteous individuals (who would not remain independent for all that long anyway). It contained a message which would endure for all time.

And the same is true regarding the Ten Plagues. As we have seen, G-d did not perform them out of necessity -- as the only means of bringing about Israel's salvation. They too were for show: to demonstrate unmistakably G-d's powerful and providential rule of mankind: "In order that you tell your sons and grandsons how I mocked the Egyptians and My signs which I placed upon them -- and you shall know that I am the L-rd" (Exodus 10:2).

The great and mighty Egyptian Empire, which for generations had humiliated the Jews and subjugated them to their service, was now cowering helplessly and miserably before our all-powerful G-d. G-d had made them His plaything, an object He could punish, subdue -- and ridicule -- at will. Never again would the Jewish people see physical might as the arbiter of authority. We would be subservient to G-d alone. All who challenge G-d's authority would ultimately become the butt and plaything of His infinite justice.

For this reason Judaism relates belief in G-d very closely to the Exodus. In the opening statement of the Ten Commandments, G-d identifies Himself as, "the L-rd your G-d who took you out of the Land of Egypt..." (Exodus 20:2). We relate to G-d not merely as the Creator of heaven and earth, but as the One who, in His greatness and power, delivered us from the bondage of Egypt, demonstrating His true reality -- and earning our eternal gratitude.

The Ramban (Nachmanides, of 13th Century Spain), in His commentary to Exodus 13:16, elaborates further: Since the times of Enosh (grandson of Adam; see Genesis 5), there were various sects who did not believe in G-d at all, or who believed in a creator who either was not aware of or was not concerned with the deeds of man. Now, when G-d publicly performs a miracle on earth and takes control of the course of history -- as He did at the Exodus -- all such notions are swept away. And when a prophet foretells the occurrence of that miracle (as did Moses), it also becomes established that G-d communicates with man.

The Ramban continues: Since G-d does not perform open miracles for every generation -- since not all are worthy of it -- He commanded us to forever commemorate and memorialize the miracles He did for us -- so that the matter be firmly established for all generations. Thus, a great number of the commandments serve as reminders of the Exodus -- Passover, tefillin (phylacteries), mezuzah, as well as the daily obligation to mention the Exodus in our prayers. All these serve not only to remind us of G-d's awesome strength, but to remind us of the wonderful kindness He did for us.

The Ramban concludes with an even more profound message: From the recollection of open miracles we begin to recognize the hidden miracles of life -- the providence with which G-d always oversees us -- for this is the foundation of the entire Torah. Thus, Passover and the story of the Exodus provide us with the key message of life: that the same G-d who redeemed us from bondage to freedom continues to watch over us -- whether through miracles or within nature -- rewarding us, punishing us, and constantly spurring us to the greatness for which we are destined.

I'd like to wish my readers a happy and kosher Passover!

El 27% de los israelíes cree que Obama es antisemita

2010-03-19T17:15:00.001Z

Publicado 19/03/2010

Aurora informa

La opinión pública, dividida con respecto a las construcciones

El 27% de los israelíes cree que Obama es antisemita

Un 69% de los israelíes considera que el presidente estadounidense, Barack Obama (foto), es justo y amistoso con su país, aunque un 27% piensa que es antisemita, según un sondeo que publica hoy el periódico Haaretz.

La encuesta se efectuó el pasado martes y miércoles en medio de la mayor crisis diplomática en décadas entre ambos países aliados.

Netanyahu ha salido indemne del incidente en términos de opinión pública interna, según los resultados del sondeo, que muestra un país dividido sobre el precio que pagar por mantener la amistad con Washington.

Así, un 48% de los encuestados opina que Israel debería seguir construyendo casas para judíos en Jerusalén del Este, aunque supusiera un enfrentamiento con la Casa Blanca, frente a un 41% que aboga por detener la ampliación de los asentamientos en la ciudad.

Muchos medios israelíes dan por resuelta la crisis, tras la conversación telefónica que mantuvieron ayer Netanyahu y la secretaria de Estado estadounidense, Hillary Clinton.

De acuerdo con el portavoz del Departamento de Estado, Philip Crowley, y con la oficina de Netanyahu, ambos abordaron "acciones concretas" que se podrían tomar para mejorar el clima entre las dos partes.

El enviado de la Casa Blanca a Oriente Medio, George Mitchell, sellará el próximo domingo la reconciliación con una visita a la zona que había sido inicialmente aplazada y en la que se reunirá con Netanyahu y con el presidente de la Autoridad Palestina, Mahmud Abás.

Netanyahu quiere además oficializar el fin de las idas y vueltas, con un encuentro en la Casa Blanca con Obama, quien ha pospuesto su viaje a Indonesia y Australia para impulsar un proyecto de reforma sanitaria.

Parashat Vaikra

2010-03-19T17:03:00.000Z

Shabat Shalom Chaverim

Andre Moshe

Parashat Vaikra

Vaikrá (Levítico) 1:1 - 5:26

Nuestra parashá habla sobre los siguientes temas:

Primera aliá (1:1-13): Las leyes del sacrificio olá (holocausto) de los vacunos, de los corderos y de las cabras.

Segunda aliá (1:14 - 2:6): Las leyes del sacrificio olá de las aves. Las leyes de la minjá (ofrenda).

Tercera aliá (2:7-16): Leyes de otros tipos de menajot (ofrendas). La minjá de las primicias.

Cuarta aliá (3:1-17): Las leyes del sacrificio shelamim (de paz) de los vacunos, de los corderos y de las cabras.

Quinta aliá (4:1-26): Las leyes del sacrificio jatat (por el pecado) del Cohén Gadol (Sumo Sacerdote), del pueblo y del rey.

Sexta aliá (4:27 - 5:10): Las leyes del sacrificio jatat de las cabras y de los corderos por el individuo. Las leyes del sacrifico olé veiored (variable) de las cabras, los corderos y las aves.

Séptima aliá (5:11-26): Las leyes del sacrifico olé veiored de harina. Las leyes del sacrificio asham (por culpa) y la reparación de algunas culpas.

Comentario de la Parashá

Esta semana comenzaremos a leer el tercer libro de la Torá, el libro de Vaikrá (Levítico), y con él comenzaremos a estudiar acerca de los distintos korbanot que se ofrecían en el Mishkán (Santuario).

En el Mishkán se hacían todo tipo de "servicios, ritos o ceremonias" - por explicarlo de alguna forma - que la misma Torá nos dice que D'os se lo ordenó a Moshé. Estos servicios se dividían en varias clases: había que preparar panes especiales y disponerlos cada shabat sobre la mesa, otras veces había que quemar el incienso, y habían otros servicios que consistían en derramar un poco de vino y de agua.

Pero todos estos servicios no son tan conocidos para la mayoría de la gente. De todos los servicios que se ofrecían a D'os los más famosos son los llamados korbanot, pero ¿qué son los korbanot y qué significa la palabra korbán?

La palabra proviene de la raíz hebrea "kof", "resh" y "bet" que denota la idea de acercamiento: lehitkarev (acercarse), lekarev (acercar). Los korbanot - que generalmente se los traduce erróneamente como "sacrificios" - son determinados servicios mediante los cuales el hombre podía (o a veces debía) acercarse a D'os, a través de un korbán que él acercaba al Mishkán (Santuario) o al Bet Hamikdash (Templo de Jerusalem).

Los korbanot eran en su mayoría, de animales de varias especies, que eran tratados de distintas formas según el korbán que se ofrecía. Pero habían también varios korbanot de especies vegetales, como ser las distintas menajot (ofrendas, oblaciones), y es por eso que es erróneo hablar únicamente de sacrificios animales al referirse a los korbanot.

A pesar de esta breve introducción al tema, todavía hay una gran pregunta sin respuesta: ¿Por qué D'os ordenó en su Sagrada Torá - que es eterna, y también lo son sus leyes - todos estos servicios tan extraños a nuestra mentalidad, y especialmente, si hablamos de la obligación de matar animales limpios de culpa y cargo, por nuestros propios pecados?

Variadas respuestas pueden ayudarnos a descifrar este interrogante, pero en este comentario trataremos de ofrecerles a nuestros estimados lectores (en esta parashá y la siguiente), la visión de uno de los más grandes sabios y pensadores que tuvo nuestro pueblo: Rabí Iehudá Haleví (España, 1085 - 1140), a través de una traducción - absolutamente libre y no literal - de algunas partes de su famoso libro "Hakuzarí", que es un diálogo entre el rey de los cuzares y un sabio judío.

En su libro, Rabí Iehudá Haleví nos relata acerca de la historia del rey de los cuzares - rey no judío - quien buscó servir a D'os a través de distintos caminos y variadas religiones, y que a pesar de sus grandes búsquedas, soñaba por las noches que le decían: "tu intención es buena, mas tus acciones no lo son", hasta que se acercó a hablar con el sabio de los judíos, después de que los mismos cristianos y musulmanes le dijeron que no tenía nada que hacer con ellos, y le dijeron que vaya a las fuentes.

"Dijo el cuzar: A pesar de que es lógico pensar que el más destacado de todos los pueblos del mundo, es el que desciende del hombre que siguió más fielmente las ideas de Adam, el primer hombre, sin alejarse de D'os yéndose detrás de otros dioses en toda la historia, todavía no se entiende cómo es que el pueblo judío pecó haciendo el becerro de oro después de recibir la Torá.

Dijo el Sabio: En esos tiempos todos eran idólatras, y además de tener muchos dioses - espiritualmente hablando, ellos cometían otro pecado al materializarlos diciendo que cada dios se manifestaba a través de una imagen. En el desierto del Sinai, los hijos de Israel estaban esperando que Moshé descienda de la montaña a la cual había ascendido después de haber escuchado los Diez Mandamientos, y Moshé los había preparado diciéndoles que él bajaría de la montaña con algo que le daría D'os para ellos y que ellos lo verían, así como veían a la columna de nube y de fuego que los acompañó al salir de Egipto. Ellos lo esperaron a Moshé, pero por cuanto que se demoró en bajar, se juntaron algunos de los hombres del pueblo y buscaron alguna imagen tangible que esté delante de ellos, sin que se contradiga con la idea de D'os. Su pecado consistió en que relacionaron a D'os con la obra de sus manos y de su deseo - sin que D'os lo haya ordenado, y pensaron que llegarían por su propia inteligencia al camino que los llevaría hacia D'os, y el pecado en sí no fue que hicieron una imagen, pues el haber hecho una figura no es tan grave por sí mismo, ya que vemos que también en el Mishkán estaban los querubim (imágenes de jóvenes) sobre el arca. (Véase también el comentario del Rav Ari Kahn a la parashat Ki Tisá).

Dijo el cuzar: Ya me ayudaste a encaminar mi pensamiento respecto de lo que yo soñaba todo el tiempo: "tu intención es buena, mas tus acciones no lo son", pues el hombre no puede llegar a D'os sin lo Divino, es decir sin seguir Sus palabras, y esto es una gran verdad, pues la mayoría de las personas tratan de acercarse a Él, incluso los que miran las estrellas y los hechiceros y los que sirven al fuego o al sol, pero ninguno lo logra.

Dijo el Sabio: Así es. Y es por eso que todas nuestras leyes están escritas en la Torá - que es lo que habló D'os con Moshé - y respecto de toda la Torá que escribió Moshé y se la dió al pueblo en el desierto, era como si D'os mismo hubiera hablado con ellos y no precisaban ninguna transmisión oral ni explicaciones para cada parte o mitzvá, o para saber cómo eran los sacrificios y cómo se los sacrificaban, y dónde y de qué lado, y cómo se los mataban y qué se hacía con sus partes y con su sangre. Todo estaba explicado por D'os hasta el más mínimo detalle, pues si faltaba alguno de esos detalles de los sacrificios, se echaba todo a perder, así como ocurre con las criaturas de la naturaleza que están formadas por todo tipo de elementos y células combinados de una manera determinada y en una cantidad determinada, y si falta alguno de ellos o la relación entre ellos se desequilibra, crecerán con deficiencias o imperfecciones, o tal vez no existiría alguna planta o algún animal, o algún miembro de alguno de ellos.

Así también está especificado en nuestra Torá quién debe comer cada parte del animal o si debe quemarse, y quiénes deben hacer el servicio a D'os y cómo deben estar vestidos, y más que todo el Cohen Gadol a quien se le dió permiso para allegarse hasta el lugar más sagrado, el lugar de la Divinidad: el arca de la Torá. También están descriptas las condiciones que debe cumplir respecto de santidad y pureza, y las plegarias que debe rezar y muchas otras cosas que si vendríamos a detallarlas nos extenderíamos demasiado.

Así también respecto de la forma del Mishkán que le fue mostrado a Moshé en el monte Sinai junto con la menorá y la mesa, y el arca y todo lo que se necesitaba, le fue mostrado espiritualmente a Moshé cómo debería ser su forma material, así como el Gran Templo que construyó Shelomó le fue mostrado a David espiritualmente, y así como también el tercer Templo le fue revelado al profeta Iejezkel.

Y no existe en el servicio a D'os una lógica humana como para que podamos comprender, tampoco podemos relacionar lo que D'os nos ordenó con otras cosas que ya supimos, y tampoco podemos crear teorías que expliquen algo, pues ya ves que los más grandes investigadores se ahogaron en el mar de dudas más grande, pues si esto sería comprensible para los hombres, los filósofos - a través de su sabiduría y entendimiento - hubieran llegado a la conclusión de que todos estos servicios son la idea que D'os tiene para el hombre, y también hubieran experimentado un acercamiento a D'os a través de una profecía, mucho más de lo que ocurrió con los hijos de Israel, pero nada de esto ocurrió con ellos.

Dijo el cuzar: Ahora entiendo, y también me quedo tranquilo aceptando la Torá sin dudas ni rechazos…".

(Hacuzarí, primera parte, cap. 96 - 100)

Double Commitment - One Wavelength

2010-02-21T01:18:00.000Z

Reuven Shefigal escreveuàs 11:54 de 13 de Fevereiro de 2010

"And these are the judgements you shall place before them". And as the commentaries express - place them neatly and orderly like a fine table is set.

From Avraham to Moshe and the receiving of the Torah on Mt. Sinai, passed some 400 years of waiting to have this Godly system for man presented. Avraham was described back then as the right founding father because he could be trusted to "command his sons and household after him, to keep Hashem's way and to act with righteousness and judgement".

We are used to thinking that the Bnei Yisrael said the famous Na'ase Ve'Nishma, declaring their commitment to keep the laws without questions as to content -meanings, and will strive to study to understand the laws as well. In this weeks parsha the event is brought down, and we see that not only did they say only Na'ase at first , but also when Moshe told them the Mishpatim they first answered Na'ase. Then Moshe made a big party inviting the youngmen with sacrifices and feast, then he wrote the laws down and read them, and only then they declared Na'ase Ve'Nishma.

The Torah records the sequence of events in a strange way. First there is the general call to obey everything Hashem will tell them, and they said Na'ase. Then there was the giving of the Ten Commandments, and then a continuation, as depicted by the "vav" at the start of Parshat Mishpatim, then the laws were given, Moshe told the people the laws. They declared Na'ase. Had a party, Moshe wrote and read and they declared Na'ase Ve'Nishma. The Mishpatim thus are part of the Ten Commandments, and only with them is Moshe back with the people to celebrate, hear their acceptance, and then continue, rising up Mt. Sinai and entering the thickness of the cloud, to receive the rest of the Torah, and at the end of 40 days receives the first tablets.

I wish to point out 2 issues. One, that Na'ase VeNishma is relevant once the format of the Torah is presented. All the while that Bnei Yisrael received an oral passing of Hashem's commands they agreed to do anything the Lord requests. Once Moshe wrote it down, they realized that Torah is composed of the oral and written. They saw that the written law is the basis and that it requires great study to extract the oral law from it. Then they said Ve'Nishma, that they will study the written law.

Second, that the Ten Commandments are the chapter heads of a complete system of law, touching the particulars of every aspect of life. Not general codes, but a way of life, the way of Hashem, that was mentioned in the verse about Avraham. Interestingly, the verse states, keeping and acting, indicating the two-way system of the Torah, refraining from the bad and persuing the good. This was the model Torah that Avraham instituted in his household, positive and negative laws, as King David sang in Tehillim (Psalms), "turn from bad and do good".

The Na'ase commitment to perform the mitzvoth relates therefore to the revealed. It starts with the basic knowledge that Hashem commanded and its our duty to perform His Will, even to bend our will to be one with Hashem. It’s a very personal arena where naturally one would want to understand as much as possible. Comes Na'ase and demands a willingness to do as the law states without understanding. It is like the written law, the revealed part. The Ve'Nishma commitment to study and gain clarity, to personally grow thru your aspiration and actualization of new understandings now grasped, relates to that knowledge and wisdom which is concealed from you right now, at your personal level, but its waiting to be grabbed. In this way it is like the oral law, that represents the proper and true teaching and application of the written law.

A Torah scholar reads thru Parshat Mishpatim, and the Talmudic and Aggadic teachings in his soul jump to life. His appreciation of the material in the written Torah is enhanced in proportion to his knowledge. Still, he is caught in the cycle of Na'ase Ve'Nishma, just like the simple Jew. Understand this well, that once one progresses in this cycle, the Nishma, concealed, oral law, once acquired, becomes your Na'ase, revealed, written law, and of course the obligation to act accordingly, in alliance with your new level of understanding. And so you will continue to the next level of aspirations to learn more and more of that which is still concealed from you. This cycle carries the Jew throughout his life with constant personal growth.

Moshe was commanded here to set the laws before them, orderly and clearly. Before he passed on, Hashem told him to put the Torah in their mouths, and called the Torah a song. There is an enlightening distinction to make between these two aspects, the Torah that Moshe set before us, and the Torah he put in our mouths. We recite everyday after Amida, the quote from Yeshayahu the Prophet, ''This is my covenant, my spirit that is upon you and my words that are in your mouths will never ever leave you or your sons or your son's sons, forever". I am sure the prophet was correct, and if we look around us at the Jewish nation and see so much violation of the laws of the Torah, not to panic. This guarantee clearly states that the Torah is in all of our mouths. I think the meaning is that, although the acts are lacking, the Na'ase aspect, the Nishma aspect is very alive, the seeking and clarification that the Jewish nation is undergoing, testify to the fulfillment of the prophet's words. Even where whole Jewish societies don't practice Judaism, the Na'ase, revealed laws, they will always remain in search for the Nishma, the concealed. This we see, that somewhere down the line, the return to Torah takes place.

These sparks of Torah commitment were implanted by Avraham, Yitzchak and Ya'akov, they're in our Jewish souls, in our mouths and such, a common tongue must be found with every individual and group yearning to talk about Judaism. Oral law thus includes this important feature of bringing our brothers and sisters close by recognizing that there is no lack of conversation material. We are all, more or less, on the same wavelength.

The Temple In One's Heart

2010-02-21T01:16:00.002Z

Reuven Shefigal escreveuàs 4:21 de 19 de Fevereiro de 2010

In this weeks Parsha Bnei Yisrael are called upon to contribute to the building of the Mishkan. Each individual is to give according to his heart's inclinations, to be as generous or frugile as one sees fit. Alongside this donation, is the required, sort of tax, that each mature man must give, the half-shekel, which was used for the foundational sockets of the Mishkan. This was a set sum which could not be added to or detracted from, regardless of one's ability or desire.

The mutual obligation clearly represents the principle of equality opposite each other, as a nation, unity of purpose, and before Hashem, the national concensus to accept His Reign and the standing before Him as an individual.
The Rambam, as explained by Rav Elimelech from Lazynsk, took this to an additional realm. The half-shekel also indicates that no one is complete without his mutual and common binding to the whole, and there is shared responsibility between us. Each person should see himself as able to tip the balance, the scale of judgement, with every action, thought and spoken word.

If we could train ourselves to take this thought abit farther, it would change our lives. A person should look at himself as if he\she stands exactly at the even point as regards one's merits and demerits. Such, one would understand that one's next act will tip the scale to here or there. Life or Death, Reward or Punishment, Good or Bad. One shoud look at the community that way and at the nation, and at the world civilisation too, as being dependent solely and exclusively, on his/her personal choice at this very moment.

Reaching this point seems unattainable on a practical level? However, cognitively we can build a ladder that will take us there. The Mishkan represents this concept and parallels the birth of the Nation of Israel. The Bnei Yisrael used the Mishkan in the desert and eventually it reached Shilo, after conquering a large part of Eretz Yisrael, The Promised Land, where it stood an additional 369 years, and was replaced by the Bet Hamikdash in Yerushalayim. In Shilo the Mishkan received a stone base, yet the roof was of the original Mishkan. The Bet Hamikdash was built by King Solomon with a permanent foundation and roof.

The maturing of Bnei Yisrael parallels the Temple they had at any given time in their development. And as we explained, there really is no ignoring one's personal part in the whole. In the desert, we are like children, being cared and nutured by Hashem. There is Mon, clouds of glory, etc., and when we reach the taking up of arms to conquer the land, we are like young mature men, with a stron root and foundation, just as the Mishkan in Shilo. When we become grown, tested and experienced men we have a Bet Mikdash. If we remove the yoke of Torah, we risk losing all, as has happened to our great people twice.

The Third and final Temple is waiting for our mutual commitment. May it be Hashem's will to bring about our personal and collective redemption and geula, speedily in these forthcoming days.

Parshas Terumah

2010-02-19T17:07:00.000Z

Parshas Terumah

Rabbi Label Lam

Parshas Terumah

What Life is Like in the Holy of Holies

You shall make two cherubim of gold- beaten shall you make them-from both ends of the lid. You shall make one cherub from this end and one cherub from this end; from the lid you shall make the cherubim at its two ends. (Shemos 25:18-19)

Cherubim: They each had the image of a child’s face. (Rashi)

Cherubim: The two are to face each other like friends exchanging words of Torah. (Baal HaTurim)

What is the significance of these two angelic faces fixed in the Holy of Holies? Are they like children or are they like friends learning Torah with each other or both? What might be the connection between these two images? What is the value of such a place, the Holy of Holies, where no man may go, except the Kohen Gadol on Yom Kippur? What do we get from the Holy of Holies now that the Temple/Tabernacle is no more and we find ourselves in the depth of a protracted exile?

Rabbi Klonymos Kalman Shapiro ztl., the Rebbe of Piacezna buried in a metal canister a written record of the lectures he gave in the Warsaw Ghetto during the hellish war years between 1939 and 1942. His fiery words were later uncovered and published posthumously in a Sefer entitled, Aish Kodesh- Holy Fire. The following is a tiny ember of that fire from a talk given in June of 1942 not long before the demise of the Rebbe: Every Jew has faith that there exists nothing else but G-d. As explained in sacred literature, when the Torah says, “There is none but Him…” (Devarim 4:35) It does simply mean that there is no G-d but G-d. It means that nothing exists but G-d. The universe and everything in it is the light of G-d. Therefore we must grasp everything in the world, not as something individual unto itself, but as a revelation of G-d’s light. Even our Jewish children must not be seen as just another category of persons. Just our children; Jewish children in addition to bei ng the permanence and existence of the Jewish People, are creations and Renewal, the revelation of G-d.

Likewise, the Torah that we teach to school children or that one person teaches his friend, even if he merely gives him a word of caution or guidance, should not be seen as events unto themselves but as tremendous revelations of G-d. Each instant is a renewal and a birth, for each learning event is a creation and a renewal. Before studying and learning, the person may not have been a Torah student or a principled person, and now, through learning, he has undergone a renewal and birth. As we said above, any person who teaches Torah to another is considered by the Torah to have given birth to him, and every birth and renewal is a revelation of G-d, because there is nothing else, and nothing else but G-d exists in the world.

It follows then everything a Jew does or says is actually an expression of his inner soul, which is always acting for and talking to G-d, because the soul knows that there is nothing but G-d. The soul knows that everything is G-dly and every action or word is directed toward G-d. We ourselves may be unconscious of this because the physical body, besides blocking our awareness of the sanctity of our soul and its yearning for G-d, also blocks our awareness that whatever we are doing is actually for G-d. Though a person may think that he is acting or speaking on his own behalf, as for example when a Jew asks his friend for a favor, in reality his soul knows that his friend cannot grant the favor, the favors come from G-d. His soul knows that the one from whom the favor is being asked has merely been designated as the agent of G-d in the granting of the favor. So, while a person may think that he is begging a favor from another, his inner self is begging G-d all the time for help because G-d is omnipotent, He is a Merciful Father and He will show mercy and save us.

Somehow the Piacezna Rebbe spoke and wrote, while in the midst of those terrible flames, with the perspective of one who treads on the most sacred of soil. I wonder if it is entirely necessary to be surrounded by suffering and the smell of death to gain such a concentrated appreciation of what life is like in the Holy of Holies?!

Shabat Shalom

2010-02-19T15:04:00.000Z

Shabat Shalom para todos!!!!

"Shabat Shalom para todos!!!! Que terminen esta semana y empiecen la siguiente llena de bendiciones ustedes y sus flias ;) Amén"

Returning Apples

2010-02-03T20:33:00.000Z

RABBI BELSKY

QUESTION 47: RETURNING APPLES
My wife said that she bought 5 apples at a local market, and that they tasted spoiled. I returned the apples, and they gave me $1.50 back. When I got home, my wife admitted that she wasn't absolutely sure she had gotten the apples from that store. Am I obligated to return the money?
RABBI BELSKY

If it may have been from a different store, you just got $1.50 that may be not coming to you. How could you be clear about whether that money belongs to you? You got it under false pretenses, and must give it back.
QUESTIONER
So there's the question of percentages again. If I asked her, "What percentage are you sure that you went to this store, as opposed to another store?" Let's say there are only four stores where she shops, at the very least it's a 25% chance that this was the store where she bought the bad apples.
RABBI BELSKY

In this case, as well, I don't see how you can keep the money.
NEXT WEEK'S QUESTION 48: BUS DRIVERS
There are many bus drivers who work for Monsey Trails, and some are more aggressive in traffic than others. In the morning, when people looking in can see us in tallis etc, I've sometimes wondered if more aggressive driving could lead to a chillul Hashem. How concerned should the bus driver, the passengers, and the bus company be about this? If a bus driver does something overly aggressive, is it the passenger's responsibility, halachically (according to Jewish Law), to say something to him or talk to the bus company? Should the bus company have a clearly written policy about guidelines concerning this? If a bus driver wants to avoid the possibility of chillul Hashem entirely, and be extra polite in his driving, and as a result gets his 40 passengers home 15 minutes later, is it still his obligation, or right, to do so?

Parshas Yisro

2010-02-03T20:26:00.000Z

Parshas Yisro

Rabino Dovid Siegel

Yeshaya 6:1

Parshas Yisro

Yeshaya 6:1

This week's haftorah reveals to us the unlimited potential of of the Jewish soul. The prophet Yeshaya shares with us his astounding vision of Hashem's throne of glory. He says, "Fiery angels stand before Hashem in service ... They call to one another and say in unison, 'Holy, Holy, Holy is Hashem the master of the legions whose glory fills the entire world'" (6:2,3) Yeshaya saw one of the loftiest visions ever to be seen by man and responded in the following manner, "Woe to me for I remained silent because I am a man of impure lips...and my eyes beheld the Divine Presence itself." (6:5) This verse displays Yeshaya's humble response to his awesome experience feeling unworthy of catching the faintest glimpse of Hashem's magnificent glory. Yet, Yeshaya was troubled by his personal silence during those lofty moments unable to participate in the angels' glorious praise. (see Radak ad loc) He attributed this to his personal imperfec tion and inadequacy. Apparently, his speech was impure and sinful and rendered him unworthy of uttering a sound in Hashem's holy presence.

The vision continued and Hashem commanded one of His fiery angels to deliver Yeshaya a burning coal. Yeshaya said, "And with tongs the angel removed the coal from the altar, touched my mouth and said...'Your sin is removed and your error forgiven.'" (6:6,7) Immediately following this, Hashem asked, "Whom shall I send?" and Yeshaya responded and said, "Here I am; send me." (6:8) Yeshaya's awesome vision together with his humble response initiated him into prophecy. After this initial cleansing, he became worthy of transmitting Hashem's penetrating message to His people. In addition, Yeshaya's cleansing process allowed him to join the ranks of the angels and converse with Hashem in His actual presence. (Radak ad loc)

This intriguing incident suggests the unthinkable, that man can rise to the lofty status of Heavenly beings. Although Yeshaya was privy to the inner most levels of spirituality he sensed his mortality and felt unworthy of associating with such elevated levels of holiness. Alas, he was a human being and not a spiritual entity. He identified with impurity and sin and didn't deserve to see such revelations or sing Heavenly praises. Hashem revealed Yeshaya that he had the potential and after minor refinement he would personally attain those lofty levels. Interestingly, when we reflect upon this incident we tend to side with Yeshaya. We also wonder, "What position does an impure mortal occupy amongst Heavenly angels?" How could man even consider participating in Heavenly praise? Although angels reflect Hashem's glory what can be said about man?!

The answer to these is found in the essential discussion of mortality between Hashem and the angels. The Sages relate that the angels complained to Hashem when He chose to share His precious Torah with His people. They argued, "Your glory (Your Torah) should remain among the Heavenly beings. They are holy and Your Torah is holy, they are pure and Your Torah is pure and they are everlasting and Your Torah is also." Hashem responded that the Torah could not remain amongst them because they are perfect spiritual beings with no mortality, impurity or illness. Hashem's true glory would ultimately come from man plagued by impurity and mortality. (Midrash Shochar Tov 8) This response also troubles us because, in truth, we side with the angels. Isn't perfect fulfillment of Hashem's will the greatest tribute to His honor? What could be more glorious than the angels' purest praises? How could mortality and impurity serve as positive factors in Hashem's ultimate glory?

The Sages' words in this week's haftorah provide deep insight into this. Rashi reflects upon the burning coal and notes that the fiery angel held it with tongs. This suggests that the coal's heat was too intense for an angel to hold. Surprisingly however, Yeshaya's lip endured direct contact with the coal without being harmed. Rashi quotes the Sages who explain a human being's potential truly surpasses the status of an angel. They support this with a verse in Yoel that says, "For His camp is massive but mightier are those who do His word." (Yoel 2:11) Chazal interpret Hashem's massive camp to refer to His angels and those who fulfill His word to refer to His prophets. This teaches us that, in truth, a devout prophet is greater than an angel. (Rashi 6:7 from Midrash Tanchuma)

The upshot of this is based on man's equal ability to obey or disobey Hashem. An angel's clear perception of Hashem basically leaves no room for anything but perfect behavior. Man, on the other hand, is plagued by impurity, weakness and temptation. His perfect adherence to Hashem's will is undoubtedly true testimony to Hashem's greatness. Man's absolute negation for Hashem's sake displays the true power of His word. The spiritual ascent of a prophet proves that free thinking man can be so subservient to his master that he transcends all physical barriers. Maimonides explains that the basic qualifications of any prophet demand full control over all passions and emotions never succumbing to any physical desire. After achieving this he continues to detach himself from worldly matters totally focusing his mind on spirituality while training it never to stray into frivolity or vanity. He continues developing until his mind becomes transfixed on Hashem's innermost secrets thus deeming one worthy of Hashem's contact. During prophecy one realizes that he transcended all human barriers and joined the ranks of the angels. (see Rambam Yesodei HaTorah 7:1) This incredible accomplishment by man supersedes indeed the Heavenly angels even during their loftiest praises to Hashem. Man, unlike angel, begins far from perfect but can actually refine himself and attain the spirituality of the Heavenly hosts themselves.

We now understand that the human being sings the "praise of all praises" through his enormous efforts overcoming his human imperfections. Yeshaya originally felt unworthy of participating in the Heavenly display of Hashem's glory due to his human limitations and imperfections. Hashem responded that his conscious decision to totally subject himself to Hashem's will surpassed the Heavenly praise. Once Yeshaya's personal speech was totally cleansed he was worthy of participating in the loftiest of all praises. He could now speak in Hashem's presence and even rise above the angels and display, through his total subservience, Hashem's greatest honor.

This lesson has great bearing on our times. Chafetz Chaim raises the classic concern how the latest generations consider meriting the advent of Mashiach? If previous generations who were undoubtedly more pious than ours did not merit Mashiach how could our shameful generation merit him? Chafetz Chaim answers that, on the contrary, no generation ever qualified for Mashiach as much as ours. He explains that in previous times Mitzva observance was, basically, a foregone conclusion. It did not require endless self sacrifice and had therefore had relatively limited value. In our days, however, foreign influences are so rampant that even basic Mitzva observance requires tremendous devotion and sacrifice. In present times, we may add, morality has fallen so low that attaining any level of purity and self negation is a tremendous accomplishment. In this light every mitzva has such great value that we, above all, display Hashem's greatest glory. Hashem undoubtedly tells His angels , "Look at My people who manage to remain moral and pure even in their corrupt and free thinking environment." "Can anyone bring Me greater glory than them?!"

Parshas Yisro

2010-02-03T20:17:00.000Z

Summary of The Weekly Torah Reading:

Parshas Yisro

Rabino Aron Tendler

Summary of The Weekly Torah Reading:

Parshas Yisro

Moshe Prera, Pres. KOAH

Note: The Shabbos Torah Reading is divided into 7 sections. Each section is called an Aliya [literally: Go up] since for each Aliya, one person "goes up" to make a bracha [blessing] on the Torah Reading.

1st Aliya: Yisro brings Moshe's wife and two sons to join him in the desert. In 18:10, Yisro proclaims his belief in Hashem (G-d) and identifies His manifest justice as the primary motive for his belief and conversion.

2nd & 3rd Aliyot: Yisro observes Moshe's daily schedule as chief administrator, judge, and teacher. He advises his son-in-law to delegate some responsibilities to a hierarchy of worthy judges and administrators. This would allow Moshe to focus his attention on those issues that demand his specific attention. Moshe listens to Yisro's advice.

4th Aliya: This begins the preparation for Revelation. It is the 1st day of Sivan, and the Bnai Yisroel have been in the desert for 43 days. Moshe is told by Hashem to explain to the nation that they are a "kingdom of priests..."

5th Aliya: Moshe tells the nation of G-d's expectations and they respond, "all that Hashem will command we will do." Moshe is further instructed to tell the people to prepare themselves by immersing themselves and their clothing in a Mikveh, and to remain apart form their spouses for 3 days. Mt. Sinai is to be fenced off so that no person or animal could ascend the mountain until the shofar sounded the conclusion of Revelation. On the 3rd day, Revelation began with lightning, thunder, the sounding of a Shofar, and Mt. Sinai completely engulfed in clouds, smoke, and fire. Moshe led the nation to assemble at the foot of a trembling Mt.Sinai.

6h Aliya: Hashem summoned Moshe to ascend the mountain and instructed him to re-emphasize the prohibition against anyone ascending the mountain during Revelation. Moshe descends and discharges G-d's wishes. With Moshe standing among the people at the foot of the mountain, Hashem spoke the Ten Commandments to the entire people.

7th Aliya: This last Aliya describes the reaction of the nation to Revelation. In 20:19, the Pasuk factually states that the Bnai Yisroel (Jewish Nation) collectively heard G-d speak. It is among the most fundamentally important statements in the entire Torah. The Parsha concludes with the three commandments regarding the Mizbeach (Altar).

Summary of The Haftorah:

Haftorah Yisro

Yishaya 6 - 7

This week's Haftorah is from Yishaya 6 and 7. Continuing the theme of Revelation, the Haftorah recounts the famed vision known as Maaseh Hamerkavah - the vision of Hashem as He sits upon His throne surrounded by various angels singing His praises.

Yishaya prophesied during the reign of Achaz, the King of Yehudah. This vision is repeated in greater detail in Yechezkel, and is usually associated with Yechezkel, rather than Yishaya. However, in this awesome vision, Yishaya is told of the eventual destruction of Yerushalayim. He is sent to relate this prophecy to the new King Achaz, who would prove to be an evil and wicked monarch.

The concluding prophecy is far more optimistic than the beginning one. Achaz is told not to fear the coming war with Aram and Israel. In the merit of his, yet to be born son, Chizkiyahu, their alliance would fail. Chizkiyahu would eventually be crowned as "The Prince of Peace," and return the Jewish people to an unprecedented devotion and commitment to Torah scholarship and observance. Unfortunately, the Jewish People would return to their evil ways and Yerushalayim would be destroyed.

The Story of Chana: Prayer with a Purpose

2010-02-03T15:58:00.000Z

Mrs. Leah Kohn

Class 11

The Story of Chana: Prayer with a Purpose

Chana's is the story of one woman's prayer. That a woman should be recognized as a role model for prayer is interesting given that, in terms of formal prayer, men have more obligations than women. Women are required to pray once a day, but can do so on their own and in their own words. Men pray three times a day from the prayer book (siddur) and are responsible for other related mitzvot. A man's involvement in prayer is far more regimented and public, yet the sages teach us that many of the halachot (laws) of prayer are derived from Chana - a woman.

Chana lived in the era before the Temple was built in Jerusalem. She was married to Elkanah, who also had a second wife, Penina. The Torah tells of Chana that Hashem had "closed off her womb." Penina, meanwhile, had seven children. Chana's anguish at not having children had to do not only with her own yearning to have a family, but with her desire to serve G-d by dedicating her offspring to Him.

We are told that while approaching Hashem and praying for a child, Chana examined each part of her body to confirm she was using it fully for Divine service. On concluding that all aspects of her being - apart from her reproductive organs - were fully utilized, she asked Hashem to make this last area productive: "Hashem, Master of Legions, if you take note of the suffering of your maidservant, and You remember me, and do not forget your maidservant, and give your maidservant male offspring, then I shall give to Hashem all the days of his life..." (I Samuel 1:11). In response to Chana's entreaty from her heart, Hashem blessed Chana with a son Samuel (I Samuel 1:20), who would become a prophet compared to Moses and Aaron in greatness.

The details of Chana's prayer as well as her way of thanking G-d for a child (see I Samuel 2:1-10), teach us about the laws and philosophy of approaching the Divine. In addition, since many of the halachot of prayer are learned from Chana, we understand that a woman's prayer is as important as a man's. Chana's example indicates that, contrary to current misperceptions, different obligations between men and women in prayer do not indicate women's inferiority.

It is written that Chana spoke from her heart (I Samuel 1:13), and from this we learn of our obligation to pray with focus and intention. In addition, when Chana prayed, her lips moved, but her voice was not heard. From this, our sages tell us, comes our obligation to articulate our prayers, pronouncing each word clearly, but not too loudly. (We also learn from Chana, that we are not allowed to pray, when intoxicated.)

Beyond Chana's influence on the halacha related to prayer, we attribute to her the foundation of the eighteen separate blessings in the Shemoneh Esrei (the silent prayer for morning, afternoon and evening). Chana forged such a unique connection to Hashem through prayer that she became a role model for future generations, despite the fact that, as a woman, she was not even obligated in this area.

Chana teaches us that devotion to G-d helps us to rise above perceived limitations in life. Certainly, we come into the world with parents, talents, resources and life circumstances, but if we are sincere in our divine service, we may well receive the tools necessary to accomplish our most meaningful goals. Through prayer, we access our deepest needs and through this experience we become profoundly connected to Hashem. Chana gives us the formula for this spiritual journey. She inspires us with the courage to inventory every aspect of ourselves in order to maximize our potential.

Chana's prayer added a new dimension to our understanding of the relationship between G-d and the Jewish people. Chana asked for a personal blessing so that she might more fully serve G-d. Her joy at bearing a child expressed not only her personal thanks to Hashem, but her gratitude and wonder at His total mastery of Creation. Chana harnessed her own joy as a tool for praise. Rather than restricting the blessing she had received, she associated it with a greater sense of good that is provided only by G-d. the source of Chana's contribution lies in her awareness of G-d's existence in the life of every Jew. Through Chana we understand that when G-d blesses just one of us, He is in essence blessing us all.

Our sages tell us that Chana's prayer is prophetic, inasmuch as it describes not only the history, but the future of the Jewish people, when the Messiah will redeem all of Israel. Chana teaches us to broaden the scope of our personal achievements, to connect spiritually to our common Divine source and to liberate ourselves from the pressures of contemporary life by accessing the eternal energy of Torah. As Jews, we are each capable of achieving this high level, by focusing on the pervasiveness of G-d in our lives for all time.

Staying in the World

2010-01-28T15:54:00.001Z

Rabbi Dovid Rosenfeld

Staying in the World

Chapter 4, Mishna 28

"Rabbi Elazar HaKappar said: Jealousy, lust and the [pursuit of] honor remove a person from the world."

This mishna bears a strong resemblance to a much earlier one --www.torah.org/learning/pirkei-avos/chapter2-16.html">Chapter 2, Mishna 16. We learned there: "Rabbi Yehoshua said: An evil eye, the evil inclination, and hatred of others remove a person from the world." Here too, R. Elazar lists three qualities which have the same catastrophic effects on a man's life -- and the qualities map almost precisely to the earlier ones. A person ruled by jealousy has an "evil eye" towards others who are better off, begrudging them their fortune and successes. A lustful person, whether for money or worldly pleasures, becomes slave to his evil inclination. And last, one who craves honor will soon come to actual hatred of others. He will care first and foremost about himself and the recognition he receives. Anyone who has the chutzpah to be worth something on his own and detract from his own ho nor -- which is of course basically everyone -- will earn the honor-seeker's resentment and ultimately hatred.

It seems that our mishna is dealing with underlying character flaws, while the earlier mishna discussed their evil manifestations. Either way, the resultant behavior will be the same:"removing a person from the world."

All of this raises an interesting question. Our mishna is very harsh on such people. The world cannot so much as suffer their existence. And that's far worse than the run-of-the-mill sinner. We all sin, but somehow the world puts up with us. G-d is merciful; He is not so quick to "remove sinners from the world." He gives us a little time to come to our senses and repent.

But these guys are granted no such grace. Their traits are so self-destructive as to actively remove them from this world. And this is interesting: such people are not even really "sinning" per se. Does the Torah ever state "Thou shalt not be jealous" or lustful, or pursue honor?
(It's true that the final of the Ten Commandments is not to desire another's possessions (Exodus 20:14), but the Sages understand this as primarily referring to acting on your desires, such as forcibly taking the other's coveted item, even if you leave money for it.) Are these really actually "sins"? I mean, we are all prone to occasional bouts of jealousy, we all desire honor to a greater or lesser extent, and no son of man is entirely beyond lusting for that which is forbidden?

The answer, in a word, is that it's true -- our mishna is not dealing with "sins". In fact, it does not state that G-d will strike you down if you engage in such behavior. It is dealing with character flaws. And in a way, this makes them less serious: Regardless of what is seething in my mind, I haven't actually *done* anything wrong. And so from a technical standpoint, I deserve no punishment. Outwardly, at least, I'm a perfect saint!

Yet now we arrive at a Jewish fundamental. There is more than one way of measuring sin. We cannot simply gauge deeds according to the punishment that they incur -- or if they're forbidden at all for that matter. It's very possible for a person to obey every jot and tittle of the law (That's actually from Matthew, but who's counting?) but to not really be much of a committed Jew.

The Ramban (Nachmanides, Torah and Talmud commentator of 13th Century Spain) comments on the verse "You shall be holy..." (Leviticus 19:2) that one can observe the letter of the law in its entirety, but still basically be a disgusting human being. Most pleasures are permitted by the Torah -- at least in some form -- and so a person can live for his passions and still live within the parameters of Jewish law. And, continues the Ramban, the Torah never explicitly forbids such things as foul language. And so, a person can live a very coarse and vulgar life, imagining he has done no wrong. Thus, explains the Ramban, the Torah exhorts us to be "holy": not simply to observe the letter of the law, but to go beyond: to truly sanctify ourselves as beings in the image of G-d.

In a similar vein, I once heard R. Berel Wein (www.rabbiwein.com/">Rabbiwein.com) observe that a person can act out the role perfectly -- wear the right clothes, follow all the stringent customs, hang out with the right crowd -- but not *really* be all that committed. He referred to such a person as a "professional" tsaddik
(righteous person). It's a role he's filling: he's mimicking a tsaddik. But how intensely religious is such a person *really*? On the other hand, we have a person such as King David who really did sin grievously, yet he had the passion, the devotion, the commitment of a truly holy human being. You can be truly righteous even if you slip now and then. But just because your behavior is always prim does not necessarily mean you are a true believer.

Thus, to return to our track (which at least at one point I had), character flaws technically may not be so severe. If I stew in my pettiness or jealousies, I may not have *done* anything wrong. Yet in a sense I am far worse than one who simply transgresses. A person who is always lusting or seeking honor may be distant from G-d in a far more profound sense. As our mishna puts it, he will be removed from this world. He won't even have a life. He will pine away wishing he were someone else or had that which is not meant for him. And in the process he won't even live his own life: He will be unable to enjoy the blessings and talents he does have. The Talmud writes, "Whoever sets his eyes on something inappropriate for him, that which he seeks will not be given to him and that which is his will be taken from him" (Sotah 9a). If a person refuses to accept his own lot in life, he will be unhappy, frustrated and unfulfilled. His faults may not have manifested themselves on the physical plane, yet in a very profound and tragic sense, his life will not be worth living.

To conclude, one the truly profound messages of Judaism is that we cannot judge ourselves according to our deeds alone. It's not enough to do everything right. We must ask ourselves a far more profound question: What am I truly doing for G-d? What kind of relationship do I have with Him? Are my actions a reflection of heartfelt commitment, or are they just thoughtless, habitual actions which happen to be good deeds? Even if I do it all, is it really an indication of passion and commitment, or is it

The Talmud, in its characteristic succinctness, sums it up perfectly: "G-d wants the heart" (Sanhedrin 106b). The commandments of the Torah provide us with the guideposts for true fulfillment, and as we know Judaism is not a religion which simply says "Have a good heart and everything else will
(somehow) follow." It takes a lot of work to develop a truly good heart -- as anyone in the business can tell you. Yet the ultimate factor is not our deeds; it is our hearts. We must begin with deeds, but we most go beyond that. Our actions must serve as indicators that we are truly divine beings, in the image of our Creator.

Dia de Memória do Holocausto

2010-01-28T15:15:00.001Z

Grémio Hebraico 28/1 às 9:25 Responder

A Assembleia da República consagra o dia 27 de Janeiro como dia de Memória do Holocausto. Assista hoje (28-Janeiro) entre as 18h00 e as 20 na Assembleia da República a cerimónia de consagração do Projecto de Resolução nº 62/XI. A SUA PRESENÇA É MUITO IMPORTANTE.

UM POVO JUDEU - ASHER BEN-SHLOMO, DIRETAMENTE DE ISRAEL

2010-01-27T20:36:00.003Z

UM POVO JUDEU - ASHER BEN-SHLOMO, DIRETAMENTE DE ISRAEL

Diretor e editor do Site Jornalístico Haleom www.haleom.com, foi eleito membro efetivo Partido Político Hatikva, representado na Knesset, o Parlamento de Israel, pelo General da Reserva, o deputado e prof. Ariê Eldad, ex-comandante geral do setor de medicina do Exército de Israel, e atua como Chefe do Comitê Diretivo do SICA - Sindicato Israelita das Comunidades Anoussitas, sediado em Israel, o qual congrega brasileiros descendentes dos judeus perseguidos pela inquisição, entre os séculos XV e XVIII, no Brasil e em Portugal, os quais lograram fazer aliah e receber a cidadania israelita

A atual legislação do Estado de Israel define duas distintas identidades nacionais : a identidade nacional judaica exilica ou extra-estatal, e a identidade judaica estatal.

A identidade judaica extra-estatal corresponde a uma identidade universalista, que independe do vínculo civil com o estado judeu . Esta identidade corresponde ao judeu da galut (exílio), o qual desconsidera Israel como sendo sua pátria ancestral, e desmerece qualquer obrigação civil ou militar em relação ao estado judeu. A referida identidade judaica exilica encontra-se definida nos termos da conceituação de "Quem é judeu", na Lei do Retorno, de 1950.

Por sua vez, a identidade nacional judaica estatal, a qual corresponde a identidade israelita ou israelense, abrange em Israel uma maioria judaica secular, cerca de 75% da população judaica do Estado de Israel. São judeus que vivem em Israel, e entretanto não seguem o estilo de vista estabelecido pela halachá (jurisprudência rabínica).

Devemos ressaltar o fato de que Israel constitui-se num estado secular. Inexiste em Israel qualquer lei que imponha o judaismo a todos os judeus do país. Desta forma, a maioria dos judeus em Israel não é religiosa. Entretanto, de acordo com a Lei da Cidadania, de 1952, , estes mesmos cidadões israelitas são considerados judeus do ponto de vista civil, ainda que, do ponto de vista religioso, "judeu é todo aquele nascido de mãe judia ou que "nitgaier" (se tornou residente estrangeiro) e não pertence a outra religião", conforme estabelecido na Lei do Retorno de 1950. Após passar por algumas modifições legais, aprovadas pela Knesset (parlamento de Israel), a Lei do Retorno confere o direito de "aliah" (emigração para Israel), não apenas para judeus, mas também para descendentes de judeus até a terceira geração .

Desta forma, filhos e netos de pai judeu ou de mãe judia possuem o direito de fazer "aliah", e receber o status de oleh, ainda que não sejam considerados judeus. Por outro lado, a Lei da Cidadania define, em parâmetros gerais, o "israeli" (israelita ou israelense) nos seguintes têrmos : "Israelita é todo aquele nascido de pai israelita ou de mãe israelita, ou que "nitazrear" ( tornou-se cidadão, nos termos da lei). Convém ressaltar o fato de que, embora no Brasil o termo "israeli" seja traduzido para "israelense", em Portugal prefere-se o uso do termo "israelita" para caracterizar o cidadão de Estado judeu, tomado-se o Estado de Israel enquanto continuidade histórica do Reino bíblico de Israel, no qual, à época dos reinados de David e de Salomão, todos os judeus, membros da tribo de Judá, eram considerados cidadãos israelitas de nascimento.

No livro de Levítico, Capítulo 24, Versículo 10, em sua versão original em hebraico, encontraremos o termo "israeli" traduzido em português para "israelita", ou seja, "membro do povo de Israel". Este principio propiciou a aliah de centenas de milhares de descendentes de judeus, da extinta Uniao Sovietica, os quais lograram receber a cidadania israelita, sem entretanto serem considerados membros do povo judeu exilico. Como inexiste em Israel o estatuto do casamento civil, cerca de meio milhão de cidadãos israelitas encontram-se impossibilitados de contrair matrimônio em Israel, uma vez que inexiste em Israel qualquer lei que regulamente o casamento civil.

Embora estes cidadãos não sejam reconhecidos como judeus, em base a definição de "Quem é judeu", na Lei do Retorno, eles se sentem judeus, e portanto se recusam a se casar dentro de outra religião. São cidadãos israelitas que possuem sobrenomes judaicos, que foram discriminados como judeus pelo antissemitismo nos países da extinta União Soviética e que foram registrados civilmente como cidadãos soviéticos, de nacionalidade judaica, em base à ascendência paterna. Fazem uso em Israel do direito de viverem de acordo com os moldes do secularismo judaico, e não sentem-se obrigados à conversão religiosa.

A Torah de Israel define dois status sociais, o de "guer" (residente estrangeiro) e o do "ezrah" (cidadão). O "guer"(residente estrangeiro), corresponde ao membro de povo de outro Estado, cuja origem nacional difere a do Estado no qual se encontra, no caso, Israel. Os filhos de Israel foram "guerim" (residentes estrangeiros) no Egito, antes do êxodo liderado por Moisés, pois não pertenciam ao povo egipcio. O "ezrah"(cidadão), ao contrário do "guer" (residente estrangeiro), corresponde ao "membro do Estado".

Nos livros de Ezrah e Nehemias encontraremos referências aos judeus enquanto "bnei hamedina" (membros do Estado), em relação ao antigo Estado da Judeia. A Torah estabeleceu o principio de que "um mesmo direito deve haver para o "guer" (residente estrangeiro) e para o "ezrah" (cidadão). Este principio visa garantir a igualdade de todos os habitantes do país perante a lei, visando , desta forma, a concretização de uma sociedade justa.

De acordo com a moderna Teoria Geral do Estado, o "povo" é definido enquanto "conjunto dos cidadãos do Estado". Pergunta-se: esta definição é cabivel atualmente ao povo judeu?

A resposta a esta pergunta depende da definição juridica de "quem é judeu".

Conforme acima elucidado, o direito vigente, no Estado de Israel, estabelece duas identidades judaicas distintas: uma religiosa (exilica) e outra laica ( (estatal). A primeira, calcada na Lei do Retorno, de 1950, e a segunda, calcada na Lei da Cidadania, de 1952. Enquanto a Lei do Retorno define "quem é judeu" em base ao princípio da "guerut" (residência estrangeira), considerando Israel parte do exilio do povo judeu, e desta forma, impondo ao povo judeu a condição de povo exílico, a Lei da Cidadania, por sua vez, define "quem é judeu" em base ao principio da "ezrahut" (cidadania), considerando Israel a pátria histórica do povo judeu e consolidando o povo judeu enquanto povo estatal.

O famoso Dicionário Ariel, da Lingua Hebraica, publicado em Israel, conceitua o "Israeli" como "israelita", ao estabelecer sociologicamente que "israeli" correponde ao judeu, hebreu, membro do povo de Israel, cidadão do Estado de Israel". Esta conceituação de judeu em base ao vinculo de "ezrahut" (cidadania) com o Estado de Israel, foi estabelecida pela própria Torah, no livro Levitico, capítulo 24 , versiculo 10. Desta forma, podemos considerar, sociologicamente, a existência de dois povos judeus, o primeiro em base a Lei do Retorno, e o segundo em base a Lei da Cidadania, conforme acima relacionadas.

Percebemos, desta forma, que a Lei do Retorno desconhece o Estado de Israel enquanto personalidade politica do povo judeu, enquanto a Lei da Cidadania reconhece o Estado de Israel enquanto personalidade política do povo israelita. A explicação deste fato reside no fator histórico de que a definição de "Quem é judeu", conforme apresentada na Lei do Retorno, ter sido baseada na halacha elaborada pela autoridade rabínica, após a desintegração do antigo Estado da Judeia, em decorrência da conquista do país pelo império romano, transformando os judeus, de cidadãos do extinto Estado da Judeia, em residentes estrangeiros na própria Judeia, transformada em parte do território imperial romano.

comunicado de agai no dia da shoa

2010-01-27T20:23:00.000Z

Comunicado de AGAI no Día da Shoá

Desde a Asociación Galega de Amizade con Israel (AGAI) queremos sumar a nosa voz e a nosa razón neste día de lembranza, de dor e de condena. Porque un 27 de xaneiro de 1945, hai agora 65 anos, era liberado Auschwitz-Birkenau. Demasiado tarde para millón e medio de seres humanos transformados en cinza. Auschwitz-Birkeanu, a fábrica do horror sen nome máis perversa e brutal que teña coñecido a Humanidade.

Un primeiro de novembro de 2005, Nacións Unidas tomou a decisión de designar a data do 27 de xaneiro como recordatorio anual das atrocidades dunha traxedia que nunca máis debera suceder no mundo.

O lema aprobado daquela por Nacións Unidas no ano 2005 “Lembremos por hoxe e por sempre” manifesta con nidia claridade o obxectivo que desde todo tipo de institucións e organismos internacionais se deben marcar na xornada.

Parlamento Europeo, Goberno de España, Parlamentos autonómicos… seguiron a senda marcada por NNUU e fixeron oficial cadanseu no seu espazo e competencia territorial esta mesma data como xornada de conmemoraxción oficial.

A condena e repulsión mundial ao xenocidio sistemático e industrializado que acabou coa vida de millóns de seres humanos, xitanos, disidentes politicos, homosexuais, deficientes físicos e a seis millós de xudeus debemos lembrar que foi con certeza no seu momento, unha das razóns principais que motivaron o nacemento da propia Declaración Universal dos Dereitos do Home.

Desde a Asociación Galega de Amizade con Israel, queremos e debemos, neste 27 de xaneiro de 2010, lembrar o Holocausto, a Shoáh na milenaria lingua Hebrea, e lembralo con vergonza e con horror desde Galicia e como galegos e europeos que defendemos e militamos con paixón na nosa condición humana, porque só así, non esquecendo o que hai agora 65 anos sucedeu nos campos de Europa, da nosa civilizada Europa, podemos honrar ás vítimas como estas merecen e estar así en condicións de evitar por sempre que as ideoloxías criminais que levaron a un pobo europeo e culto a desatar a barbarie absoluta na procura de aniquilar a outro pobo polo simple feito de seren xudeus, volvan a rexurdir.

E hoxe, 65 anos despois, non esquecer debe ser tamén, unha vacina para o noso futuro, para que nunca máis os nosos campos de Europa e do Mundo vexan agromar a perversión inhumana e asasina que significaron as fábricas de morte e de exterminio de Treblinka, Sobibor, Mauthausen, Majdanec, Dachau, Auschwitz…

E desde a Asociación Galega de Amizade con Israel queremos ter hoxe un recordatorio especial polo seu profundo simbolismo, do falecemento o pasaso 19 de Maio de Marcelino Pardal Pouso. O derradeiro sobrevivinte galego do campo de concentración de Mauthausen.

"Sei que a miña voz se perde no devastador ruído do tempo, agardo que as xeneracións vindeiras non nos esquezan" Violeta Friedman, sobrevivinte do Holocausto.

www.amizadeconisrael.org

Apartado de Correos 730

Teléfono: +34 610 424174

36200 Vigo - GALICIA

Alba de mi corazon - la javurah

2010-01-27T20:21:00.000Z

---Tienda: Cosas para tu consideración....
1) Me quedan unos ejemplares de cada uno de los títulos a continuación (todos los precios son para los no-afiliados a La Javurá; siempre hay un discuento para los afiliados):
    =>Tanaj (Biblia) hebreo/español de Katznelson. 50euros
    =>Jumash (Torá comentada, 5 tomos) hebreo/español de Edery. 100euros
    =>Hebreo con Placer: Sin ayuda de maestro  Edna Dadmán y Java Farstey, Ediciones Zack, pp380. 18euros
    =>Diccionario esp/heb//Heb/esp Ediciones Zack, pp360//381. 17euros
    =>Con las manos atadas: El liderazgo sionista y el Holocausto 1949-1945  Dina Porat, Yad Vashem, 2008. isbn 978-965-90691-1-8. pp421. 20euros
    =>Miloní (Mi diccionario, heb/esp) ilustrado, para niños La Semana Publicaciones, pp206. 17 euros (agotado, he pedido más...)
    =>Miloní (sólo en hebreo) ilustrado para niños  La Semana Publicaciones, pp176. 18euros
    =>Shoá: Enciclopedia del Holocausto. Con ensayos: de Guy Miron, Shumel Spector, DanielFraenkel, Aharón Weiss, Robert Rozett, David Silberklang , Haim Avni, David Cesarani. Yad Vashem, E.D.Z. Nativ Ediciones, 2004, pp572. 55euros
    =>Enciclopedia de la Historia y La Cultura del Pueblo Judío. Nativ Ediciones, 1998. Pp 467. 30euros
2) ...cosas casi regaladas,  a un precio muy muy muy accesible al que se acoplará todos los presupuestos (garantizado, palabra de honor)
    =>Matsá Rosinski 900g (2009-10)
    =>Harina de matsá Rosinsky 500g (2009-10)

Auschwitz-Birkenau

2010-01-27T20:17:00.003Z

show details 12:14 PM (8 hours ago)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSsp-KLSqWA

Auschwitz-Birkenau é o nome de um grupo de campos de concentração localizados no sul da Polônia, símbolos do Holocausto perpetrado pelo nazismo. A partir de 1940 Adolf Hitler construiu vários campos de concentração e um campo de extermínio nesta área, então na Polônia ocupada. Houve três campos principais e trinta e nove campos auxiliares.

PSRebelo

Holocaust Remembrance Day

2010-01-27T20:13:00.001Z

Holocaust Remembrance Day

This message asks you to do one small act to remember the six million (6,000,000) Jewish lives that were lost during the Holocaust.

Send this message to everyone you know who is Jewish.

If we reach the goal of reaching six million e-mail names before May 2, we will fulfill and give back to G-d what He gave to us:

6 million Jews who are alive today who remember those who perished.

Please send this message to as many Jews as you know.

Ask them to also forward it to others.

Thank you.

Prenez 20 secondes avant de refermer cet e-mail.

Ce message vous demande de faire un petit geste pour le souvenir des six millions (6.000.000) de vies juives qui ont disparu pendant la Shoah.

Envoyez ce message א chaque juif que vous connaissez.

Si nous rיussissons א atteindre six millions d'adresses e-mail avant le 2 mai, nous aurons accompli notre tךche et rendu א D.ieu ce qu'Il nous a donnי:

6 millions de Juifs en vie א ce jour qui se souviennent de ceux qui ont pיri.

Merci d'envoyer ce message א autant de Juifs que vous en connaissez.

Demandez leur de l'adresser א d'autres.

Merci

Monica Pinto Mendes

Holocaust Era

2010-01-27T20:11:00.000Z

Israel satisfied with outcome of the Holocaust Era Assets Conference

June 30, 2009

Communicated by MFA Spokesman's Bureau

The Holocaust Era Assets Conference, which convened in Prague on June 26-30, held its final session at the Terezin concentration camp. There, on Tuesday morning, June 30, the Terezin Declaration was presented.

The Israeli delegation expressed satisfaction with the results of the conference and the concluding statement, which summed up the various working group discussions held during the conference.

The declaration established norms for the restoration of private and communal property and mentioned for the first time the need to deal with property without heirs, tying this to the need to look out for the welfare of surviving Holocaust victims.

At the conference it was decided that a new institute – the European Shoah Legacy Institute – would be set up in Terezin by the Czech government, outgoing President of the European Union, under the auspices of the EU. The new institute will be assisted by the European community and other states, with the US and Israel playing a major role. The institute will follow up on activities relating to Holocaust assets, education and the fight against antisemitism.

Five Holocaust survivors, who formed the central component of the Israeli delegation, participated in the discussions and featured prominently in the working groups. One of the objectives presented by the acting head of the delegation, former director general of the Foreign Ministry Reuven Merhav, was to boost the status of the World Jewish Restitution Organization (WJRO), headed by David Peleg as director general. Peleg, who until recently was Israel's ambassador to Poland, presented a working plan at the conference in which the organization plays a major role in the process of property restitution.

The head of the Israeli delegation, Minister of Information and Diaspora Affairs Yuli Edelstein, who was the first delegation head to speak at the plenary session, was received warmly by the large audience. In his address, Minister Edelstein stressed the moral obligation of the 46 states that signed the Terezin Declaration. He noted that, at this late stage, it is important to move quickly. The minister expressed commitment, on behalf of the Government of Israel, to participate and support the Terezin Institute.

1.07.2009

Para não esquecer o Holocausto

2010-01-27T20:08:00.000Z

HOMENAGEM ÀS VÍTIMAS DO HOLOCAUSTO EM RECIFE

2010-01-27T13:28:00.001Z

FIQUE POR DENTRO

HOMENAGEM ÀS VÍTIMAS DO HOLOCAUSTO EM RECIFE

A Confederação Israelita do Brasil e a Federação Israelita de Pernambuco vão realizar no dia 27 de janeiro cerimônia em Recife para marcar o Dia Internacional em Memória das Vítimas do Holocausto. O evento contará com a presença do presidente Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva e será realizado na Sinagoga Kahal Zur Israel, a primeira das Américas, fundada no século 17.

Em 2005, a ONU instituiu o Dia Internacional em Memória das Vítimas do Holocausto, homenagem a ser realizada na data em que tropas soviéticas entraram no campo de extermínio de Auschwitz, na Polônia, em 1945.

O presidente Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva vai comparecer pelo quinto ano consecutivo à cerimônia de 27 de janeiro. Autoridades políticas, sociais e religiosas, de diferentes tendências, também estarão presentes.

Realizada em anos anteriores em São Paulo e no Rio de Janeiro, a cerimônia vai ocorrer na Sinagoga Kahal Zur Israel, que hoje abriga um centro cultural e se transformou num dos principais pontos de visitação da capital pernambucana.

A sinagoga, cujo nome significa Comunidade Rochedo de Israel, funcionou no século 17, durante a ocupação holandesa em Pernambuco, e seu prédio foi recuperado há cerca de oito anos, a partir de uma parceria entre a Fundação Safra, Ministério da Cultura, Prefeitura do Recife, Federação Israelita de Pernambuco e Confederação Israelita do Brasil.

CONIB CONVIDA JAQUES WAGNER

PARA CERIMÔNIA EM RECIFE

NOTA: O presidente Moshe Prera e a comunidade Or ahayim celebram em comunidade o dia do Holocausto em memória das vítimas judias e outras do odioso regime nazista.

Bem hajam e a todas as comunidades judias do mundo.

Da'at Tevunot - The Knowing Heart

2010-01-22T15:13:00.001Z

Da'at Tevunot - The Knowing Heart

Section 3, Chapter 10

1.

Enveloped as we are by the sure veneer of our bodies and forever swayed by everything else covered-over, we’re blinded to much of the truth. We see this, that, and another thing but we never catch sight of the thread running through them all -- which is G-d’s will.

Fortunately then we’re assured here that despite our doubts and misgivings the truth is that all pieces of the “great and mighty clock” of the universe fit within G-d’s will for the cosmos without exception. And it’s our souls -- connected as they are to all the celestial phenomena that also go into it -- that will activate all that and contribute to the slow, steady, single-minded uplifting of the universe. When it’s no longer encumbered by the shielding though enveloping body, that is.

Included in all those things, though, is all the wrong, injustice and evil in this world. For it too is part of the plan.

2.

All of it, the good and the bad, plays a vital role in the eventual revelation of G-d’s Yichud -- of His full and overarching sovereignty [1]. For as a consequence of all of it, “light will be disclosed within the darkness”, and the hiddeness of G-d that we experience now along with everything that comes about because of it will be reversed.

For G-d wants His sovereignty to be fully manifest in the world, as we’d said before; and it will be, through all the mechanisms G-d has set in place to do just that -- all so that we can fully know that “I (G-d) am He; before Me no god was formed and after Me none shall be. I (alone) I am the L-rd, and aside from Me there is no savior” (Isaiah 43:10-11), and that “I am He! There is no G-d with me! I alone bring on death and bring on life; I alone wound and heal“(Deuteronomy 32:39) [2].

Once His Yichud is manifest, we’re assured, we’ll “cling onto and grasp His being …, luxuriate in His perfection that would have become revealed to us, bask in the light of His presence, and we’ll fully and always comprehend all the profound things (that had alluded us) …, forever and unto eternity”. As our sages illustrated it, “the righteous will sit with crowns upon their heads and bask in the glow of the Divine presence” (Berachot 17a) [3].

The truth be told, despite these depictions and citations, we really can’t grasp that phenomenon at this point in our experience. To begin with, there’ll be many, many particulars we can’t now fathom [4]. We know about pleasure, of course, and about craving other sorts of pleasures that we don’t now enjoy in our day to day life, so we might be able to extrapolate the sorts of pleasures we’ll enjoy then from what we know of now. But there’s really no comparison, since the sorts of experiences we’re promised in the future will be wholly spiritual and abstract delights [5].

3.

We thus find that there are two distinct epochs in which G-d interacts with us. The second one will come into play after He will have revealed His sovereignty to us, and we will have fully ingested it. And it’s within that epoch that the whole phenomenon of ultimate reward we’d cited above will come into play.

The first epoch, though, is the one we’re in now, in which the revelation of G-d’s sovereignty is still in process and hasn’t yet come full flower -- which is to last from the beginning of time until the ultimate redemption. It’s the one in which all pieces of the great “clock” -- wrong and injustice included -- contribute to the give and take of this world.

Wrong and injustice are of course negative elements of the mix, to be sure; but while all the good in the world contributes to our service to G-d and plays a role in our reward [6], wrong and injustice will fall aside after they will have served their ends, like marks we might leave behind on a path not to lose our way which we’d easily do away with once we’d arrived.

Notes:
[1] We’ve discussed this theme a number of times until now. See for example Part 3 of the Prologue, notes 2 and 4 to Ramchal’s Introduction, as well as the first section’s Chapters 4-11, 14, and 18.

See R’ Friedlander’s cogent remarks (in his note 233) about the two sorts of clock-mechanisms there are at play at one and the same time. There are the gears that move the hands forward, and the sort of gears that act as a resistance to the former which contribute to the mechanism just as well. His point is that while the former, like all the goodness and righteousness in the world, are certainly necessary, the latter which are like all the wrongfulness and injustice are equally necessary.

See R’ Goldblatt’s kabbalistic insights in his notes 12-13, 15 here, as well as his notes 51-54 on p. 483 of his edition; and see R’ Shriki’s note 79 (both for its kabbalistic and important non-kabbalistic insights).

[2] These two verses are cited in 1:4:2 as well, along with: “I am the first and I am the last; there is no G-d beside Me“(Isaiah 44:6); “Know … that there is none beside Me. I am G-d, no one else. I form the light and create darkness; I make peace and create evil; I G-d do all these things“(Isaiah 45:6-7); “G-d alone will be exalted on that day“(Isaiah 2:11); “G-d will (prove to) be king over all the earth. And ... G-d and His name will be one and the same“(Zechariah 14:9); and “Hear O Israel! G-d our L-rd is the L-rd (i.e., His reign is sovereign) (Deuteronomy 6:4).

[3] See note 9 to 1:6.

[4] Most especially, how we ourselves will experience that. Some for example, might imagine themselves being off-put by such an experience because they don’t tend toward spirituality here in life.

[5] This is like the difference between love and the idea of love. While the latter is less delightful than the former, abstract love is still and all endless, total, and perfect in effect.

[6] Since we are the great initiator as well as the greatest beneficiary of all that happens here.

Abe Foxman

2010-01-22T14:53:00.001Z

Dear Andre Moshè Pereira,

Anti-Semitism has moved from the fringe to the mainstream.

This year, violent actions and vicious words added fuel to the explosion of anti-Semitism worldwide. The ugliness has even spread to home, where we’ve seen the horror of the shooting at a Holocaust museum, the murder of a Jewish college student and a thwarted plot to bomb synagogues. All of these acts shared the same goal to harm and kill the Jewish people.

Very few years have presented the challenges of 2009, across Europe, the Middle East and even in the United States. In fact, Abe Foxman calls 2009 arguably, the worst year for global anti-Semitism in his tenure with the ADL.

Yet, each day the Anti-Defamation League was there to protect the Jewish people. We fight those who question Israel’s legitimacy. We combat the rise of age-old stereotypes about Jews and money that have resurfaced in the wake of the financial crisis. And we recognize the power and the danger of the internet, by working with social networking sites to prevent anti-Semites and Holocaust deniers from recruiting impressionable young people.

2010 will present its own challenges. Whether it's the explosion of global anti-Semitism, the growing move to delegitimize Israel, the Iranian nuclear threat, or the emergence of cyberhate and cyberbullying,ADL must be prepared to battle on all fronts.

In short, our job is to defend the Jewish people against the wave of hate that threatens the security of all Jewish people.

The Path of the Just

2010-01-22T14:03:00.000Z

Rabbi Yaakov Feldman

Chapter 15 (Part 2)

Let’s touch on something we’re drawn to day after day which often presents a spiritual challenge: food. Assuming the food in front of us is kosher, that it hadn’t been stolen, that we aren’t responsible for doing something else at the time, and given that today isn’t a fast-day, we’re encouraged and even obliged to eat if we’re hungry.

But the soul striving for piety would want to make do with the simplest of foods, he or she wouldn’t want to fuss with it and would only want to eat and go on serving G-d other ways. The rest of us, though, would spend more time choosing what we’d eat and would fuss with it. Let’s see how Ramchal would convince us that it’s just not worth the bother.

He underscores just how short-lived the pleasure we’d get from eating something good-tasting is -- it only lasts from the time it takes to pass “the length of your gullet … (then go to) your stomach” when “it’s completely forgotten”.

Given that, he goes on, doesn’t it stand to reason that “you’d be just as full eating stuffed swan as you would be eating coarse bread?” So why bother making the extra effort and taking the time and energy away from doing more important and holy things?

Then consider the more serious risks. Just think of all “the diseases you could expose yourself to by your diet”, or of “the feeling of heaviness or dull-mindedness” that comes from eating too much rich food. All that being true, aren’t the “disadvantages real”, “serious and long-lasting”, and aren’t “the apparent benefits a sham” and “short-lived” at best? So, how could any “intelligent person endanger himself for the minute benefits that might accrue … through (eating) them”?

Take this all to heart, be honest with yourself and “free yourself from the entrapment of all the foolishness” that comes from caring too much about food, and “you’ll no longer be seduced by its so-called pleasures”. Do that on a regular basis and you’ll eventually train yourself to only “take from the world what you absolutely must” and no more.

Parshas Bo

2010-01-20T15:31:00.003Z

Rabbi Aron Tendler

Parshas Bo

1st & 2nd Aliyot: Moshe and Aharon forewarned Pharaoh about the Locust. His advisors begged Pharaoh to consider Moshe's request, and Pharaoh attempted to negotiate with Moshe and Aharon that the children should stay behind. When his offer was refused, all negotiations broke down and Pharaoh chased Moshe and Aharon away. The Locust swallowed up Mitzrayim (Egypt), but Pharaoh still refused to send away the Jews.

3rd Aliya: Darkness enveloped Egypt for three days. Pharaoh told Moshe that he could take out his people, but he had to leave the cattle behind. Moshe refused and Pharaoh forewarned Moshe that he could not come to him again. In truth, the next time they saw each other would be after the Death of the First Born, when Pharaoh went to Moshe.

4th Aliya: Moshe forewarned the Egyptians about the Death of the First Born. In 12:2 Hashem (G-d) commanded Moshe and Aharon with the very first Mitzvah to be given to the Nation. The very first Korban Pesach was described along with the Mitzvos of Matzoh, Chametz, and Pesach.

5th Aliya: The Bnai Yisroel were commanded to mark the inside of their doors with the blood of the Korban Pesach.

6th Aliya: The plague of the Death of the First Born left Mitzrayim in mourning. Pharaoh and the Egyptians hurried the Jews out of Mitzrayim. Approximately 600,000 men besides women, children, and the elderly (3,000,000 total) as well as about 1,000,000 non-Jews (the Eruv Rav) left Mitzrayim during the Exodus. It was the year 2448, and the Pasuk says that the Jews had been in Mitzrayim for 430 years. (exactly 430 years from the Bris Bain Habisarim - The Covenant Between the Halves) The laws of the Korban Pesach were reviewed

7th Aliya: The Parsha concludes with a review of the laws of Pesach as well as introducing the Mitzvos of Pehter Chamor - the commandment to exchange all first born, male donkeys for a sheep; Pidyon Haben - redeeming the first born male child; and the Mitzvah of Tefillin.

Summary of The Haftorah:

Haftorah Bo

Yirmiyah 46:13

This week's Haftorah is from Yirmiyah 46:13. The rise of Nevuchadnetzar and Babylon to world dominance heralded the destruction of Mitzrayim (Egypt) eight centuries after the time of the Exodus. Mitzrayim had been a dominant power in the region for many centuries and saw the decline of Israel as an opportunity to gain even greater power. Israel, concerned about her own fate in the face of Babylon's onslaught, turned to Egypt for help. Yirmiyahu had already predicted in last week's Haftorah that Bavel would turn its fury and strength against Egypt, conquering her and dispersing her inhabitants. This would force Israel to stand-alone and meet her destiny. Israel's only option for salvation would have to come from Hashem (G-d) and Hashem alone. In this week's Haftorah Yirmiyahu continues his prophecy of the destruction of Mitzrayim. This is the obvious connection to our Parsha in which the proud and arrogant Pharaoh is bought to his knees by the awesome hand of Hashem. So to o, Bavel, acting as Hashem's agent, would punish Mitzrayim for her continued arrogance and pride.

The Bnai Yisroel (Jewish nation) would be directly impacted by Mitzrayim's destruction; however, they are reassured that Hashem will ultimately deliver them, so long as they keep their faith and trust in Hashem's promise.

Jordania: Irán ordena el ataque contra el embajador israelí en Amman

2010-01-20T13:25:00.001Z

Fonte: Aurora Israel

Jordania: Irán ordena el ataque contra el embajador israelí en Amman Intento terrorista fallido de la semana pasada contra las vidas de los diplomáticos israelíes en Jordania fue aparentemente llevado a cabo por instrucciones de Teherán, revelaron fuentes cercanas al Departamento de Inteligencia General de Jordania.

Las fuentes dijeron que el GID estaba investigando la posibilidad que los explosivos utilizados en el ataque fueron introducidos de contrabando en el reino por los diplomáticos iraníes.

El ataque en sí fue aparentemente llevado a cabo por una red local de Al-Qaeda que recibió dinero y explosivos procedentes de Irán, dijeron las fuentes.

Medios jordanos informaron que un taxista de Ammán fue arrestado bajo sospecha de participación en el atentado.

Según las fuentes, el GID considera que el ataque se produjo en respuesta a la muerte del científico iraní Massoud Ali Muhammadi en Teherán la semana pasada. Muhammadi Ali fue asesinado por una bomba a control remoto colocada en una motocicleta.

El ministro de Interior iraní, Mostafa Mohamed Najjar, prometió vengarse de Israel por el asesinato del científico nuclear.

El presidente, Mahmud Ahmadinejad (foto), acusó al gobierno israelí de estar detrás del asesinato, que dijo que había llevado a cabo en el "estilo sionista".

"Podemos ver las huellas dactilares de Irán sobre la bomba en la carretera", dijeron las fuentes, añadiendo "la investigación continúa en varias direcciones."

Los funcionarios de seguridad también están considerando la posibilidad que el ataque pudo haber sido llevado a cabo por un grupo terrorista palestino.

Kehillah Or Ahayim, Moshe Prera, Rosh HaKehillah

Reciting the Shema - Kerias Shema

2010-01-20T13:08:00.001Z

Rabbi Dr. Azriel Rosenfeld

Reciting the Shema - Kerias Shema

B. Love - Ahavah

"In the second book I will include all the commandments that apply constantly and that we were commanded to observe in order to love G-d and remember Him always, such as the reading of the shema, prayer, phylacteries, and the priests' blessing; circumcision is included since it is a sign in our flesh to remind us always, at times when there are no phylacteries or fringes or the like. And I have called this book the Book of Love."

Twice each day one must recite the shema, which consists of three sections of the Torah: "Hear, O Israel...",[1] "If you listen to my commandments...",[2] and "...They shall make fringes...".[3] The first of these proclaims the unity of Ha-Shem and our love for Him; the second, our acceptance of all the commandments; and the third also tells us to remember all the commandments [as it says "And you shall see them (i.e., the fringes) and remember all My commandments and perform them"].[4] In addition, the third section contains a reminder of the exodus from Egypt, as it says "I am Ha-Shem your G-d who brought you out of the land of Egypt",[5] which we are commanded to remember, as it says "In order that you remember the day of your departure from the l and of Egypt all the days of your life".[6,a] A man may recite the shema in any language that he understands.[b]

We recite the shema every evening and morning at the time that people lie down and at the time that they get up, as it says "And you shall speak about them... when you lie down and when you get up".[7,c] Specifically, we recite it in the evening between the time the stars come out and dawn (before midnight if possible) and in the morning between dawn and the end of the first quarter of the day (but preferably just before sunrise).[d] We recite two benedictions before it and one after it in the daytime; two before it and two after it at night.[e]

1. Deut. 6:4-9

2. Deut. 11:13-21

3. Num. 15:37-41

4. Num. 15:39

5. Num. 15:41

6. Deut. 16:3

7. Deut. 6:7 a. 1:2-3

b. 2:10

c. 1:1

d. 1:9-11

e. 1:5

Tu Bishvat

2010-01-15T14:14:00.002Z

El domingo 31 de enero 2010
a las 12h de la mañana en punto
Disfruta con nosotros la bondad
que nos brinda cada minuto los árboles
mientras paseamos entre los frutales
por debajo de las copas de los árboles monumentales con
Fruta Alabanzas a los árboles Poesía. Zumo de uvas, y...

AGAI

2010-01-15T08:27:00.007Z

Presentación en Ourense

Presentación en Ourense do libro Judios e Inquisición en Ribadavia. De Gloria de Antonioeditado polo Concello de Ribadavia, Casa Sefarad-Israel e Red de Juderías de España (2009)

Terá lugar o vindeiro día 29 de Xaneiro, venres, ás 19:30 horas no Liceo Recreo de Ourense, rúa das Lamas Carvajal, 5.

A presentación do libro dará o peche a presenza en Ourense da exposición "Testemuñas do Holocausto" organizada por AGAI con motivo da conmemoración do Día Internacional de Recordo das Vítimas do Holocausto que ten lugar todos os anos o 27 de Xaneiro, en data instaurada por Nacións Unidas. A Exposición estará aberta ao público desde o 16 ate o 29 de Xaneiro nos salóns do Liceo de Ourense.

Presenta: Afonso Vázquez-Monxardín. Escritor e socio de AGAI

Intervén: Gloria de Antonio Rubio. Doutora en Historia Medieval (UNED, 2002) coa tese "Comunidades judias en Galicia (siglos XI — XV)", dirixida polo Doutor Enrique Cantera Montenegro. Posteriormente, no ano 2006, foi publicada pola Fundación Pedro Barrié de la Maza, dentro da colección Galicia Histórica, co título "Los judíos en Galicia (1044-1492)". Esta obra foi galardonada en Israel co Premio Samuel Toledano (Jerusalén, 2008). Gloria de Antonio é tamén autora de numerosos capítulos de libros e artígos publicados en diversas revistas de ámbito nacional e internacional, así como de varias monografías de carácter xeral. Cabe mencionar, entre elas, "Os xudeos de Galicia" (Santiago, 2002). Forma parte desde o ano 2000 dos equipos de investigación do Instituto de Estudos Galegos "Padre Sarmiento" (CSIC-Xunta de Galicia), participando específicamente nos traballos vinculados ao Dicionario Biográfico da Galicia dos Trastámara (1469-1480), proxecto financiado pola Fundación Pedro Barrié de la Maza. Achegamos de seguido algunhas das colaboracións da Profesora Gloria de Antonio no semanario israelí AURORA PICAR AQUI

Educação e Holocausto

2010-01-14T21:45:00.002Z

OR AHAYIM - BE PORTO - MOSHE PRERA

Parshas Va'eyra

2010-01-14T19:32:00.000Z

Rabbi Frand on Parshas Va'eyra

These divrei Torah were adapted from the hashkafa portion of Rabbi Yissocher Frand's Commuter Chavrusah Tapes on the weekly portion: Tape # 665, Checking Out Families for Shidduchim. Good Shabbos!

Pharaoh Underestimated Moshe's Empathy For His Brethren

The parshiyos at the beginning of the book of Shmos all recount the terrible enslavement the Jewish people endured in Egypt. The enslavement was so intense that even when Moshe came to Klal Yisrael to announce their impending redemption, the pasuk [verse] informs us that "They were unable to listen to him out of shortness of spirit and hard work." [Shmos 6:9]

Andre Moshe Prera, President Kehillah Or Ahayim

Rav Yonasan Eibeshutz [Tiferes Yonasan] asks why Pharaoh excused the entire Tribe of Levy from servitude. It seems uncharacteristic of the ruthless ruler to give such a dispensation. Rav Yonasan Eibeshutz answers that Pharaoh saw through his astrologers that the eventual redeemer of Israel would come from this tribe. Pharaoh reasoned that a person who was not part of the pain and suffering of the people would never be able to redeem them. Simply, he would not be able politically to rally the people behind him. The masses would discount his ability to lead them by virtue of the fact that he was not one with them during their time of suffering.

This indeed is how Rav Yonasan Eibeshutz interprets the above referenced pasuk. The people were not able to listen to Moshe because of the fact that they had experienced shortness of spirit and hard work - and he never had. Moshe lived in the lap of luxury. They were not ready to listen to him or to let him become their redeemer!

Pharaoh's logic seemed very reasonable. So where did he go wrong? His error was that he underestimated what the Torah highlights as the most prominent character trait of Moshe Rabbeinu. If we look back in Parshas Shmos, we notice that there is very little we are told about Moshe Rabbeinu before he became the leader. We are told "Vayigdal Moshe" [Moshe grew up], which Rashi says means he became prominent in Pharaoh's household - he became a prince. He could have stayed in the luxury of the palace and sufficed with saying a few chapters of Tehillim for his brethren. But Moshe Rabbeinu went out. He wen t out to see what was happening with his brothers and he saw their suffering. He risked his life by killing the Egyptian, thereby takimg part in the misery and the drama of his brethren's enslavement. He identified not only with the "macro" suffering of his brothers, but with that of each individual, as indicated by his rescue of the unfortunate Jew being beaten by the Egyptian. Even when two Jews were fighting, he came to the rescue of the victim, again demonstrating his attribute of empathy and association for the burden of his fellow man (noseh b'ol chaveiro). In Midyan, he again came to the rescue of Yisro's daughters because his personality could not tolerate oppression. Finally, we are told that he watered the flocks.

In all these descriptions, the Torah emphasizes over and over again that Moshe demonstrated the character trait that Pharoah thought he would never have - the attribute of empathy for the suffering of others. Logically, Pharaoh was right, but he un derestimated Moshe's strength of character that despite the fact that he was not part of the enslavement, he did feel the pain as acutely as anyone who experienced it personally.

Giving Pharaoh His Due Respect

The pasuk says, "And Hashem spoke to Moshe and Aharon and commanded them regarding the Children of Israel and regarding Pharaoh, King of Egypt, to take the Children of Israel out of Egypt" [Shmos 6:13]. Rashi comments that Moshe was commanded to deal respectfully with Pharaoh, by virtue of his role as King. We derive from here that we are obligated to give honor to monarchy (malchus). Even though Moshe was called upon to warn, threaten, and rebuke Pharaoh, he was commanded to deliver all of these messages with respect and honor.

There are some pasukim at the end of the parsha that seem very strange. At the conclusion of the plague of hail, Moshe tells Pharaoh, "When I leave the city, I shall spread out my hands to Hashem, the thunder will cease and the hail will no longer be, so that you shall know that the earth is Hashem's..." [Shmos 9:29]. Then the Torah says, "The flax and the barley were struck, for the barley was ripe and the flax was in its stalk. And the wheat and the spelt were not struck; for they ripen later. (They were softer and did not break from the force of the hail's impact.)" [Shmos 9: 31-32]

The insertion of these pesukim ia quite strange. In the middle of the dialogue between Moshe Rabbeinu and Pharaoh, Pharaoh says, "Stop this. I can't take it." Moshe agrees and tells Pharaoh what he would have to do to stop the plague. The narration should have continued directly with pasuk 33 - "And Moshe went out from Pharaoh, from the city, and he stretched out his hands to Hashem, the thunder and hail ceased and rain did not reach the earth." At this point, when the plague was over, perhaps it would be appropriate to give us the damage assessment documenting the fact that the barley and flax were damaged and the wheat and spelt were not. Why, however, is this damage assessment stuck right in the middle of the dialogue between Moshe and Pharaoh, regarding cessation of the plague?

The Ramban asks this qu estion. The Ramban quotes an answer in the name of Rav Sadiah Gaon that pasukim 31-32 are in fact not the Torah's narrative of damage assessment, but are a continuation of Moshe's words to Pharaoh. Rav Sadiah explains that Moshe was informing Pharaoh that although he would be able to stop the plague, he was not able to undo the damage that was already done. Moshe told Pharaoh that it was too late to do anything about the ruined barley and flax crops, but that he could still salvage the wheat and spelt crops.

The Ramban is not satisfied with Rav Saidah Gaon's interpretation. The Ramban gives his own interpretation. However, I saw a very interesting interpretation in the Sefer Kometz HaMincha from Rav Chanoch Ehrentroy. Pasukim 31-32 are indeed the words of Moshe Rabbeinu and part of the dialog with Pharaoh. But, unlike the approach of Rav Sadiah Gaon, they are not meant as a "damage report". Moshe was sending Pharaoh a message.

The Gemara says [Tanis 20a]: A per son should rather be soft like a reed than stiff like a cedar tree. In terms of personality and behavior, a person should be flexible, bendable like the reed. He should not be inflexible like the cedar. Why? When there is a windstorm with hail and driving winds, a reed that is flexible will bend and survive. The cedar will either stand up to the wind or will break in half.

Moshe could have been rude and told the King of Egypt: "Wake up and smell the coffee, Pharaoh. You are doomed! Look where your obstinacy has gotten you. You have ruined the country. Everyone is suffering because of you. Don't be such a stubborn idiot! Listen to Hashem already!"

That is how he could have talked to Pharaoh. However, mindful of G-d's exhortation regarding Kavod Malchus [honor due the King], Moshe delivered his message in a much more gentle fashion. Moshe politely told Pharaoh to look out his window and consider how the respective crops fared during the storm of hail. The flax an d barley were broken because they were too inflexible. That is what happens when something is inflexible. The wheat and spelt on the other hand were flexible and they survived. The message was the same, but it was delivered in a more subtle fashion, out of respect for the monarchy. V'hamayven yavin. [And the one who understands will understand.]

The Path of the Just - Or ahayim

2010-01-14T19:20:00.001Z

The Path of the Just

Rabbi Yaakov Feldman

Chapter 15 (Part 1)

It’s one thing understanding that we’d all need to abstain from something or another if we’re to grow in our being, especially if we hope to be pious. But it’s quite another thing knowing how to actually do it. We always want more and more (especially in our age, when so much is within reach and so many things seem to call out to us), so what practical advice can Ramchal offer?

“The best way to acquire abstinence” he says, is to “realize the crassness of the pleasures of the world and their inherent inferiority, as well as the great harm that can so easily result from them.” That’s to say that we’re to reformulate our attitudes and priorities. If we’d only realize just how crass some of our desires are -- how beneath us, how soiled and unsavory they are and how harmful, he asserts, we’d surely come to our senses.

Now, many have tried things just like that, the truth be known, and have failed. What then is the shadowy, veiled mechanism in the mind that allows it to be fooled like that? “The seductive powers” of the things we crave, Ramchal declares. Things side up to us, if you will, whisper in our ears and charm us into hearing them out, and we succumb.

In fact, it’s a primal problem that goes back to Adam and Eve (see 2:1-2 above for a lengthy discussion of that; also see Da’at Tevunot 40). “Seduction is in fact what caused the first sin to be committed” Ramchal reminds us; for as the Torah attests, "The woman saw that the tree was good to eat and that it was pleasing to the eyes ... (so) she took from its fruit and ate from it" (Genesis 3:6). (Ramchal offers several fascinating Kabbalistic insights in Adir Bamarom pp. 177, 273, and 309 into the unique role that eyes play in being tempted.)

He seems to offer that we’re to actually picture ourselves as being attracted to something or another that we should avoid (when he says that the object at hand is to become “clear to you”, that is, in your mind). Do that, he offers, and you’ll see the foolishness of your attraction to it from what’s termed a critical-distance and that will convince you of just “you how utterly false, unreal and ephemeral its pleasures are, yet how real and immanent the harm that will come from them is to you”.

You’ll get to the point, he says, where you’ll “certainly be disgusted” and off-put by your cravings. And you’ll find it far easier to abstain from them.

Haiti Relief Appeal

2010-01-14T04:39:00.000Z

Haiti Relief Appeal

January 14, 12:45pm EST

The news and pictures that are coming out of Haiti are painful and heartbreaking, it is estimated that thousands of people have died. Many hundreds of thousands are injured and homeless. We have heard that money is needed most to help the relief effort.

The World Union for Progressive Judaism asks all of its members to participate and make generous donations as so many of you have before, when previous disasters have occurred.

The Latin American Council of the World Union is initiating a disaster relief fund in cooperation with the Union of Jewish Congregations of Latin America (UJCL) and the World Union's Yad B'Yad Taskforce. We currently have a member of the UJCL on the ground in Haiti and he will be directing all donations received to the places that they are most needed, working with the Office of Disaster Management. Any donations made to the WUPJ earmarked for Haiti Disaster Relief will be sent in their entirety with no administrative fee (save for credit card fees).

You can go to http://www.wupj.org/Contribute/Giving.asp and make a credit card donation - please make sure you indicate that it is for Haiti Disaster Relief.

We are sure that your own regional bodies, congregations and communities may have their own disaster relief fund already set-up. Please support them as best you can.

Haiti is one of the poorest countries in the world and can ill afford to help themselves. They need our support at this time.

Andre Moshe Prera - Kehillah Or Ahayim

cip AVANHANDAVA

2009-12-17T19:57:00.001Z

La Yihad islámica trata de vengarse por otro Corán

2009-12-04T15:16:00.001Z

La Yihad islámica trata de vengarse por otro Corán

Vicente R. Gutiérrez

Gentiuno.com

Publicado el 01.12.2009

Esta información viene de primer nivel y todo lo que afirma es correcto respecto a Alemania. Los musulmanes que viven en ese país ya pretenden darle la vuelta al calcetín. En Colonia quieren edificar una Mezquita más alta que su famosa Catedral católica, en la propia ciudad de Colonia. Ahora están infiltrados en las redes de metro de toda Alemania porque se mezclan entre los pasajeros normales. La Revista Focus Magazine cita a unos 90 islamitas radicales entrenados para la lucha armada y guerrillas urbanas. 30 de ellos tienen una experiencia amplia y real obtenida de enfrentamientos con soldados del ejército de Estados Unidos o de Pakistán. Yo no quiero alejar a Irak y Afghanistán. Se concluye que los jóvenes radicales son esos que dicen cumplir el Corán y aguardar a las 72 doncellas en caso de ofrenda vital, para poner bombas donde sea y con gente popular. No importa. Ellos quieren matar y suicidarse, con premio metálico para sus familiares, ya que la proporción matemática es de docenas de asesinados por unos pocos ofertados en nombre de Alá.

Muchos países con categoría de "adelantados" han dado marcha atrás y estos desaforados sociales hacen lo que les da la gana. Es tan difícil tomar decisiones previas para impedir barbaridades de estos terroristas islámicos? No sólo se trata de ostentar cargos políticos, sino de comunicación e influencia en la opinión pública. Cómo se ha podido permitir la entrada inmigrante de gente que perteneció a colonias antiguas y ahora quieren vengarse del Colonialismo en que nacieron. Esto no lo ha detectado la Madre Patria, ej: Reino Unido, Francia, España, Holanda, etc. Los yihadistas islámicos ya no sólo son captados en los centros musulmanes en actos religiosos, sino que son captados en universidades, presidios y lugares deportivos. No olvidemos el ataque brutal que hicieron en Munich en las Olimpiadas de 1974 para asesinar a deportistas "israelíes". Vaya otro crimen de Humanidad, como muestra del Holocausto Nazi

Europa actual - futura Eurabia si continúan evolucionando los acontecimientos - tiene problemas YA. Alemania con fuentes turcas inmigrantes, Reino Unido con palestinos que reniegan de su ciudadanía británica, indonesios colados en Holanda y buscando un peso poblacional (ya poseen la alcaldía de Rotterdam),

¡Oh la France! con lugares donde parece que estamos en la zona del Magreb (Marsella) y el propio París en los suburbios, España con zonas de Andalucía y comunidad valenciana con la adición de barrios de Madrid y Barcelona, países nórdicos donde va aumentando la presencia de islámicos terroristas ej: salida de discotecas con las jóvenes que salen con tragos ya bebidos. Tengo información de lo sucedido en Noruega este año, etc, etc. La Revista Der Spiegel señala que el Centro Común de Defensa del Terrorismo iniciará unas sesiones de trabajo inmediatamente para lograr una cooperación efectiva entre la policía alemana y las agencias de inteligencia para revisar las estrategias y los enfoques de terrorismo en toda Alemania. Ya se acabó la inercia. Hace falta trabajar a fondo correctamente y tener como mira en el telescopio a los terroristas fundamentalistas.

¿Quiénes han sido capaces de tomar decisiones e ir dando la vuelta a la presión islámica? Ya tenemos dos países muy democráticos que saben conservar sus derechos y proteger a las generaciones futuras. Cito a los dos ejemplos, situado uno bien lejos, en otro mundo que promete mucho en este Siglo 21 y el siguiente a un país admirado en pleno centro europeo. Me refiero a Australia y Suiza. En la primera, tierra de progreso y gran futuro, el ex-Primer Ministro John Palmer antes de terminar su período se dio cuenta que tenía que dejar en vigor ciertas legislaciones hacia los inmigrantes musulmanes que habían ingresado para llegar a dominar al país receptor que les solucionaba su vida material con mejor estándar de vida, pero... ellos imponiendo sus costumbres, lengua, religión, vestimenta sobre todo las femeninas, etc, etc. Mr Palmer antes de terminar su vigencia legal proporcionó una disyuntiva: O se adaptan al modo de vida australiano, con idioma inglés, costumbres, formas de convivir, vestimenta femenina frente a las costumbres mínimas para cumplir los requisitos oficiales como fotos por ejemplo. De lo contrario, las puertas del país quedaban abiertas para el regreso a sus propios países si no se adaptaban cumpliendo las leyes y costumbres oficiales que "todos" los ciudadanos cumplían.

Ahora, en Suiza ocurre otro tanto. Han recurrido al Referéndum contra la construcción de minaretes. Se prohibe ya la altitud de las mezquitas que son el templo musulmán para erigir alturas de rascacielos que dominen la visión urbanística. Los suizos se han decantado por no aceptar costumbres fundamentalistas en su propio país. Quiero citar a Ruben Kaplan que ha informado de versiones reales procedentes de medios de comunicación y uno de ellos comenta dónde está la fuente de creatividad de nuevos miembros fundamentalistas. Los "presidios" son considerados un lugar propio para la conversión al Islam debido a las numerosas posibilidades que gozan los reclusos que profesan esa Fe. Otro comentario es de Rebecca Camber, periodista del Daily Mail. Citaba a Abu Hamza, quien lleno de odio como predicador y clérigo musulmán, "daba sermones extremistas a los presos a través de las tuberías de agua de su Celda, incumpliendo y desafiando una prohibición impuesta por los jefes de la Prisión de Belmarsh". En una palabra mía y por conocer otros fanatismos como el castrista - robolución cubana -sobre todo en los primeros años del traicionero proceso lavaban el cerebro de mayores e instalaban el cerebro a los niños desde su inicio en las escuelas utilizando el Marxismo-Leninismo clásico.

Yo, como usualmente basado en las matemáticas, destaco que estas minorías según algunos "ayatollahs" los terroristas no exceden del 10%. El restante 90% es aceptable según ellos. Hagamos un pequeño cálculo. La población musulmana mundial ya está por los 1,200 millones. Hasta el ejemplo es bueno calculando no más de 1,100 millones y ese ejército fundamentalista representa más de 100 M! Existe algún ejército a nivel mundial que llegue siquiera a la cuarta parte del ejército terrorista, alocado y asesino que siempre pretende matar a niños, mujeres y ancianos, donde, como y cuando sea?

A ver si el ejemplo alemán procedente del estudio de la Policía y las Agencias de Inteligencia es capaz de plantar cara y hundir la del contrario, porque no se puede dar luz verde para que el Islamo-Fascismo siga incrementando su poderío asesino en cualquier parte del Mundo en que vivimos. A mí que no me ofrezcan 72 doncellas en la otra vida. Pongamos los pies sobre la Tierra y las tres grandes religiones - judaísmo, cristianismo y musulmanes - que se entiendan y trabajen en lo positivo, no en lo negativo!

Desde hace tiempo propongo el "super-diálogo entre las tres grandes religiones monoteístas".

SHABAT SHALOM - Manresa - Zaragoza - Barcelona

2009-11-07T15:15:00.003Z

SHABAT SHALOM !!!

MANRESA

SABADO 7 NOV. Mor Karbasi a las 23 hs. Envelat Pati Casino. Con sólo un disco en el mercado (THE BEAUTY AND THE SEA), la jóven cantante residente en Londres,

ha querido poner al día el legado histórico musical heredado de los judíos expulsados de la península en 1492, con arreglos actuales que se inspiran en ritmos procedentes de Oriente. Mor Karbasi canta en sefardita, castellano, hebreo e inglés, como consecuencia del mestizaje sanguíneo que corre por sus venas.

ZARAGOZA

VIERNES 13 NOV. Canciones sefardíes con Rosa Zaragoza. La música de Rosa Zaragoza y Eduard Iniesta se presentará el 13 de noviembre a las 21h con el espectáculo

“Terra de jueus”. Será un concierto de músicas tradicionales que nacen de un afán de comprender y expresar el latido más íntimo del alma. Salón de Actos CAI (Pº

Independencia nº 10).

LUNES 9 NOV. ' K R O K E ' Magnífico grupo polaco de Música Klezmer - Teatro Principal, 21:00h
Entradas: www.teatroprincipalzaragoza.com

BARCELONA

JUEVES 12 NOV.  ' K R O K E ' Magnífico grupo polaco de Música Klezmer - Sala Bikini, 21 hs.
Entradas:  www.bikinibcn.com

SHABAT 5 DIC.  Centro de Cultura Contemporánea de Barcelona (CCCB) de 9 a 22 hs.
En el marco de la 15º Edición de Miniput se proyectará el documental israelí    "MY BLOOD IS RED LIKE YOURS"   dirigido por CHAIM YAVIN.

El MINIPUT es una muestra de la televisión de calidad más innovadora del añoy se celebra en Barcelona cada mes de noviembre/diciembre desde hace 12 años. El Miniput
es, además, una versión reducida del INPUT (International Public Television Screening Conference) hecha a partir de los mismos planteamientos estructurales, filosóficos
y de contenidos.   Programación: www.upf.edu/miniput

SHABAT 12 DIC.  JANUCA PARA TODA LA FAMILIA !!!!!!!!!
El   'INSTITUT DE MUSICA JUEVA' de BARCELONA convoca a todas las familias y niños al concierto de la festividad de las luminarias !!!!!!!!!!
Con la cantante ROMINA REISIN acompañada en piano por SHARON MONIS, 18 Hs. Sitio a confirmar.

Andre Moshe Prera, Kehillah Or Ahayim, Pres.

Hapoel Tel AVIV

2009-11-06T16:07:00.003Z

Espectacular triunfo de Hapoel Tel Aviv en Viena Después del 5 a 1 de Hapoel Tel Aviv al Rapid de Viena, hace dos semanas, los austríacos hablaron que estaban planificando una "venganza."

Pero hablar es una cosa y la realidad otra. El equipo de Eli Gutman (foto)no estaba asustado, dio un gran espectáculo contra los austríacos y en la noche del jueves también los derrotó en su casa, con un increíble 3 a 0.

"Dimos una visión de gran fútbol, es increíble", dijo Gutman, al final, agregando "estoy orgulloso de ser entrenador de Hapoel Tel Aviv."
Gutman expresó: "Tuvimos que jugar con un formato de inteligente. Merecen elogios los jugadores que se movieron en fiorma correcta, redujeron las brechas, y supieron cómo combinar contraataques."

Itai Schechter dijo que "la defensa fue el tornillo más importante del grupo. Nos preparamos de manera excelente, y jugamos bien frente a equipos europeos."

Iosi Abuksis, entrenador asistente, dijo al final: "Antes del partido estábamos firmando por un empate. Es un gran resultado para nosotros, es increíble lo jugamos."

Abuksis agregó: "Nos concentramos en nosotros mismos y disfrutamos de la victoria, pero los jugadores deben volver el terreno para el partido del domingo. El fútbol es un asunto de capacidad, y no todo lo que dijo antes de que se trata de venganza."

Hapoel Tel Aviv necesita un punto para calificar para la fase siguiente. Después de la victoria, los Rojos siguen liderando la zona 3 de UEFA, esta vez, solos, con 9 puntos en cuatro partidos.

Hamburgo en el segundo lugar tiene 7 puntos, lo sigue en tercer lugar el Rapid de Viena con 4 y el Celtic, que será el anfitrión de los Rojos en la fecha siguiente, cierra la tabla con 2.

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Scraping a Car That's Parked Badly

2009-10-30T14:18:00.002Z

Scraping a Car That's Parked Badly

QUESTION 32: SCRAPING A CAR THAT'S PARKED BADLY
Rabbi Yisroel Belsky Shlita

My friend's wife went to a doctor's office, and the parking lot was full. Someone had parked a car right in the middle of two spaces, making it impossible for someone to park on either side of their parked car. My friend's wife tried to park in the narrow space next to this car anyway, and scratched the parked car slightly. Should she leave a note with her phone number, or did the person "bring it on himself" for being selfish in the way he parked, making it unnecessary to leave a note?

RABBI BELSKY'S ANSWER

It's a close call. There is a halacha (Jewish law) that if someone hems you in, you're allowed to get out, even if it will cause damage to the other person: Meshaber v'nichnas meshaber v'yotzei ("breaking going in, breaking going out"). If someone fills up my driveway with bottles -this is a case in the Talmud - and I have to drive out, I could just drive out and crash across the bottles, or sweep them away. Nobody has the right to blockade the public domain, or my own domain, and you're allowed to push a blockade out of the way, even if it causes damage.

So there may be some justification for cutting into that space, given the fact that the person sort of blocked my access to it, but I don't think it's the same thing. It's not so straightforward. If they denied my access to the public domain, I'm allowed to force my way out. If the other car had been parked at the entrance to the parking lot, and the only way to get through is by squeezing between two cars, and if I inevitably scratch the parked car, I am exempt from any damages. I don't have to tell them anything because it's meshaber v'nichnas meshaber v'yotzei. On the other hand, I don't know if the right to park in the parking lot has the same privilege as getting access to the public domain. It's specifically when the reshus horabim (the public domain) is blocked off or you trap someone that this rule is applicable.

QUESTIONER

Then that's when there's ein breirah (no choice). But here there was a breirah (choice).

RABBI BELSKY

Here there's a breirah, to park outside in the street. It often happens that a parking lot is full. And if this fellow hadn't used up the extra parking space, someone else would have definitely taken it. The only reason the space is here is because he was parked like that. So the owner of the parked car did not bring it on himself. She surely wouldn't have gotten the space, because if the space had been there, someone else would have taken it, because the parking lot was full. It's absolutely out of the question to try to squeeze in, if you think that there's a probability that you'll damage the parked car.

QUESTIONER

But there could have been two parking spaces, and he parked right in the middle, so that only one car is taking the place of two cars.

RABBI BELSKY

The rest of the parking lot is all full - right? There is a heavy demand right now. So if he would have moved over and parked within the confines of one space, so somebody else would have already taken the second space. So the parked car never denied you a space. Only now it appears that a space has been denied, but in fact someone else surely would have gotten it, because it's hard to imagine that a lot where 700 cars have parked wouldn't have had 701 cars parked. It's full, so that means that last space would have been filled. You can't look at the person who parked the car there as your enemy who denied you a space. Therefore you have to go park in the street, and you should not do anything to risk damaging their car.

QUESTIONER

So the answer is, you should leave a note?

RABBI BELSKY

Yes.

NEXT WEEK'S QUESTION 33: USING A STRANGER'S CUP FOR YADAYIM

At my company's pantry, I wanted to wash for bread, but didn't have a cup. There was a coffee mug there, but I had no idea who it belonged to. Can I use it to wash for bread? Even though I will dry out the cup after using it, isn't there a possibility that the owner of the cup could come by while I'm using it, and ask why I'm using his cup? Is that a potential chillul Hashem (desecration of G-d's name)?

NEXT WEEK'S QUESTION 34: CALLING AFTER A FENDER BENDER

My car hit the rear fender of another car. I asked the other person to settle this between us, without the insurance companies, and I gave him my phone number. He got an estimate of $400, and I got an estimate of $200. He said he would think about it. Three weeks have elapsed since I heard from him. It's remotely possible that he lost my phone number. Should I call him?

Glimpses of Jewish Femininity (Part 1 of a Series)

2009-10-30T13:42:00.002Z

Glimpses of Jewish Femininity (Part 1 of a Series)

Mrs. Leah Kohn and Torah.org

Adapted from a lecture by Rebbetzin Tehilla Jaeger

The Torah holds women in high esteem and, as such, assigns them responsibilities commensurate with this status. What are the feminine qualities behind the Torah's high expectations of Jewish womanhood, and how might we connect to the paradigms our sages describe?

Our next several classes address these questions. Each installment surveys Biblical sources that explore aspects of Jewish femininity, including its potential to inspire and empower others, and its role in personal fulfillment.

Introduction:

Ashet Chayil / "A Woman of Valor" is an ode of praise to the righteous woman, written by King Solomon in honor of his mother, Batsheva. The text, from the Book of Proverbs (31:10-31), is a compendium of the many facets of Jewish femininity. While it is beyond the scope of this essay to catalogue the attributes embedded in Ashet Chayil / "A Woman of Valor" the text provides an appropriate point of departure for our essay.

Line by line, Ashet Chayil / "A Woman of Valor," follows the letters of the Hebrew alphabet ("alef-bet"), with each line corresponding to one letter. The "alef-bet" format is Solomon's way of comparing the all-encompassing virtues of the righteous woman to the completeness of the entire alphabet. The deeper significance of the "alef-bet" also finds its way into Ashet Chayil/"A Woman of Valor." Our sages say that God combined the spiritual powers vested in each letter of the "alef-bet" as building blocks for the universe. Through the "alef-bet" structure of his text, Solomon establishes a connection between the creative potential of the Hebrew alphabet and the Jewish woman who like the letters is also a builder - her edifice being the Jewish people.

Adam's Rib and The Essence of Feminine Modesty

The Book of Genesis describes how God creates Eve:

"...[God] took one of [Adam's] sides and He filled in flesh in its place. Then Hashem God fashioned the side that He had taken from man into a woman" (Genesis 2: 21-22).

The midrash states that God's decision to use Adam's rib has a significance on par with the creation of Eve, herself. That God chooses the rib over any other part of the body suggests a great deal about His definition of ideal femininity. The rib is fundamental to structure and strength. Indeed it protects some of the most important organs of the human being. In spite of its critical function, however, the rib is concealed from view, and its importance is not readily apparent. The very making of first woman, specifically from the rib, therefore imbues Jewish femininity with hidden power and vitality.

On a practical level, this brand of indispensable yet unseen strength is expressed through the quality of, "modesty." The midrash explains that with each stroke of Eve's creation, God reiterates His desire for her to be modest. Beyond Eve, the prophet Michah (6:8) includes modesty as one of three fundamental keys that unlock the Jewish people's potential to fulfill what the Torah asks of them:

"What does Hashem require of you but to do justice, to love kindness and to walk humbly with your God."

Jewish modesty is so vital, so intrinsic to the Jewish woman that it influences speech, interpersonal conduct, mode of dress and private behavior. (The question of why this is even more important for women than for men will be addressed in the next class). In the same way a great person is all the more impressive when not calling attention to himself, the ideal Jewish woman is admired for the fact that she is modest in spite of her many attributes. Judaism holds modesty in high regard based on the fact that good deeds performed out of the public eye are more likely to have been done with pure intentions. Thus, Jewish modesty, as expressed by the way God created first woman, is replete with understated power and integrity.

Besides the attribute of modesty that Eve shares with women of all time, she also imparts a gift for fulfilling things incomplete. God's very creation of her is a response to the fact that Adam - already a spiritually exquisite being - will not be spiritually complete without Eve. God looks at Adam's magnificence and says, "It is not good that man be alone." In this seemingly perfect picture, God still considers Adam incomplete - until he is joined by Eve.

Thus, Eve brings to the Jewish woman an ability to guide others in a fundamental way. This capability is alluded to in one of the initial moments of Eve's creation, when God closes the incision from which He has extracted Adam's rib:

"So Hashem God cast a deep sleep upon the man and he slept; and He took one of his sides and He filled in flesh in its place" (Genesis 2:21).

The midrash explains that the phrase, "He filled in flesh," means that God heals all flesh under a woman's influence. A woman's impact can be so all encompassing and so powerful, that it seals in an inspiring fashion those with whom it comes into contact. Given its inherent subtlety, Jewish femininity may not leave an obvious imprint. Nonetheless, its effect is unmistakably deep.

Rebetzin Tehilla Jaeger has inspired scores of Jewish women worldwide. Her lecture series, "Ayelet HaShachar - Woman to Woman Inspiration," is available on cassette. Titles include, "Speech - the Power to Recreate Your World," "Marriage - the Exquisite Approach," "Our Three Mitzvot - Wellsprings of Renewal, " and "The Art of Parenting." For further information and a complete list of cassette offerings, please phone (718) 471-7141.

Lech Lechá

2009-10-30T13:38:00.000Z

Lech Lechá

[31 de Outubro de 2009/ 13 de Cheshvan de 5770]

“Lech lechá meartzechá umimoladetchá umibeit avichá el haaretz asher areca”. Saia da sua terra e da sua pátria e da casa do seu e se dirija a terra que vou te mostrar.

Essas palavras que precisei conhecer de memória quando eu era aluno do Colégio Renascença indicam o início de uma revolução religiosa na narrativa bíblica. Deus se revela a Avram, nosso primeiro patriarca, e o convida a abandonar uma vida de idolatria, iniciando uma página nova na história da humanidade.

O chamado de Deus a Abrão fez com que ele desse origem ao Monoteísmo Ético e também ao nosso judaísmo. O Patriarca quebrou um importante paradigma e dirigiu-se à Canaã para começar uma nova filosofia religiosa.

Quando eu trabalho essa história com nossos alunos da Escola Lafer da CIP, nos perguntamos por que Deus chamava pessoas para importantes tarefas e hoje não nos chama para nada. Por qual motivo os personagens bíblicos recebiam mensagens de Deus para tarefas específicas e hoje precisamos tomar nossas próprias decisões de maneira autônoma.

Acredito que o ser humano deixou de compreender que o chamado de outro ser humano é um chamado de Deus.

No mundo contemporâneo passamos a nos preocupar com nossas necessidades individuais. Na melhor das hipóteses, cuidamos também de nossas famílias. Aquelas pessoas muito altruístas ainda se preocupam com suas comunidades. No entanto, são poucos os seres humanos que possuem empatia e defendem a dignidade de qualquer outro ser humano.

Que Deus nos ajude a compreender que o chamado do homem é sempre um chamado de Deus.

Shabat Shalom

Rabino Michel Schlesinger

Parshas Lech Lecha

2009-10-30T13:33:00.000Z

Parshas Lech Lecha

The Unique Level of Avraham

1. Continuous Commitment to Torah Mitzvos

We say every morning in the P'sukei D'zimra at the end of V'yivorach Dovid (and David Blessed Hashem...) "You are Hashem, the G-d, who chose Avram, took him out of Ur Kasdim, and gave him the name Avraham. And you found his heart faithful before You."[1] What is meant by the phrase "took him out?" We see from the Parsha that Hashem said to Avraham "Lech Lecha" or "Go for yourself..." from this we would think that there is a contradiction between what we say in the P'sukei D'zimra and the Parsha.

The Chazal explain that Ur Kasdim was the name of the kiln (in Kasdim) used to threaten Avram. As we learn, Avram was given an ultimatum by Nimrod to either bow to the idol or be thrown into the fiery kiln. Of course Avram did not bow to the idol and was thrown into the fire. Hashem performed a miracle and Avram emerged from the kiln unharmed. And as a result of Avram's great devotion to Hashem, which he demonstrated by not bowing to the idol, he was given the name Avraham, thus beginning his ascent into greatness. So we see from here that the Hashem miraculously "took" Avraham out of Ur Kasdim.

Clearly, Avraham passed an incredible test of faith and was saved and elevated to greatness; yet, we do not see that the Chazal sight the incident of Ur Kasdim as one of the ten tests faced by Avraham. This is one point that needs to be understood. Another point to be understood is Nimrod's reaction to the revealed miracle performed for Avraham. One would expect that after witnessing such marvels of Hashem, Nimrod should have prostrated himself and declared Hashem as the one and only G-d. Who could imagine a person being thrown into fire and emerging completely untouched? Yet we find that he did not react in this manner. Why?

Avraham had a brother named Haran, who also was in line waiting to come before Nimrod to be given the choice to bow or be thrown into the fire. Haran chose to wait and see what would happen to Avraham. He thought that if Avraham would go into the fire and perish then he would bow to the idol. If, however, Avraham emerged from the fire then he too would go into the kiln and not bow. So after Avraham appeared from the fire, Haran chose not to heed Nimrod's threat and he went into the fire. Only this time, Haran did not emerged as his brother. Nimrod observed this and concluded that there was nothing special about what happened to Avraham. Because he could see that both brothers did not bow to the idol yet only Avraham came back alive. He therefore was not compelled to change his ways and accept Hashem. But one must ask, Why did Avraham come out of the fire alive and his brother not? Avraham went into the fire because he was willing to give up his life for Hashem, while Hara n went into the fire simply because he believed that Hashem would perform a miracle for him just as He had done for Avraham. This is why Haran did not come out alive. Hashem only performed the miracle for Avraham because he was willing to die rather than bow to the idol. So this makes our question even greater. Why is this not counted as one of the ten tests faced by Avraham?

The answer lies in the following. We find that Jews throughout history from varied backgrounds were willing to give up their lives rather than succumb to idol worship. The observant Jew as well as the loosely affiliated Jew are both willing to die rather than bow to an idol. Yet we see that observing Shabbos properly is not universally undertaken. Even though observing the Shabbos is a testimony to believing that Hashem created the world. If one is willing to give up their life, which is most precious, for the sake of Hashem then why not be as committed to observing Shabbos properly? There are many excuses for not seeing it correctly. Rabbi Meir Simcha explains that a task that can be completed quickly in a single action is much easier to perform than one, which is repetitive and ongoing. Jumping into the fire takes a second; however, observing Torah Mitzos such as Shabbos is ongoing. This requires one to be at a higher level. We can now begin to understand why the incide nt at Ur Kasdim is not listed as a test and Lech Lecha counts as the beginning of Avraham's challenges.

Jumping into the fire, as we said, is instantaneous. However Lech Lecha is an ongoing process for Avraham. Avraham must leave his land, family, and countrymen and live continuously with this commitment despite any feelings to have remained with him. This is an ongoing issue. In addition, after Avraham returns from the Akeidah his wife passes away and he must pay a tremendous sum of money to acquire a burial plot. One would not regard this as a reward for performing the selfless act of the Akeidah, yet we see that Avraham is not shaken by these events. He in some way was able to push these issues aside and have complete faith in Hashem. To live in a continuous state of faith and trust despite any adverse events is a true test. This level of commitment is exceptional. Avraham did not require any level of explanation or understanding. He negated himself completely and followed the will of Hashem continuously. This is why the instantaneous act of going into the fire is not re garded as one of the ten tests faced by Avraham.

The Parsha begins with, "Hashem said to Avram, 'Go for yourself from your land, from your relatives, and from your father's house...". Everyone is in agreement that this was one of the most difficult tests that Avraham faced. Yet, on the face of it, it is difficult to understand why this would be regarded as such as great test. We see from the Chazal and the Midrash, that the relationship that Avraham had with his father, relatives, and countrymen was not desirable in any way. At Ur Kasdim, it was Avraham's father Terach that informed Nimrod that Avraham had destroyed the idols. His father basically informed on him to the authorities to be killed. The Chazal also tell us that Abraham had to hide in a cave for thirteen years because his countrymen wanted to kill him for espousing monotheism. He was a fugitive in his own country. After thirteen years of hiding and after being thrown into the fire, Hashem tells Avraham Lech Lecha. One would think that Avraham would gladly le ave immediately given the circumstances. However, Avraham's leaving is considered one of his most difficult tests. How can we understand this? The question is made even stronger, because not only does Hashem tell Avraham to leave a land filled with people who hate him, but that he would be blessed, become a great nation, with children and wealth if he leaves. Does Hashem need to give all of these incentives to Avraham in addition to asking him to leave an untenable situation? What could have been holding back Avraham from simply fleeing immediately?

2. A Test for One Person is not a Test for Another

We find that Chazal label Adam one lacking in gratitude. Hashem asked Adam "Why did you eat from the tree?"[2] To this Adam responds, "Because of the woman You gave me."[3] Adam basically blames Hashem for his mistake despite all that Hashem had done for him. According to Chazal, Hashem therefore calls him an ingrate. We find that throughout our history when we have complained to Hashem he refers to the Jewish people as "Ingrates who are descended from an ingrate." If one were able to see things correctly one would be tremendously thankful to Hashem and not blame Him or complain. But what is it that determines if we are able to see things correctly or incorrectly. If a person is an ingrate and does not want to be beholden to Hashem, then one has a warped sense of reality. However, if one truly understands that we are continuous beneficiaries of Hashem's kindness then we would be beholden to Hashem to the nth degree on an ongoing basis. And a person would not deviate from Hashem's commandments in any way.

The Gemara teaches us that a child's obligation's to the parents, in terms of honoring them, stems from the fact that a child needs to be beholden to his parents. One would not be in existence had it not been for the parents. Therefore it is obligatory to honor one's parents. Despite the nature of the relationship between parent and child, one is still obligated. Hashem commands Avraham to leave his father and community and insists that he would not be successful in his attempts to help them reach any level of spirituality. Leaving was difficult for Avraham because he believed that he had an obligation to his father and his community. Avraham could not abandon them despite how terribly they treated him. Avraham viewed his obligation as a genuine debt to his father and community. A person would still owe money to his creditor despite how the creditor treats him. This is an indication of Avraham's greatness that regardless of how badly he was treated he still felt obligated . And this demonstrates Avraham's capabilities of being completely devoted to Hashem despite any hardships because he owes everything to Hashem. Therefore Avraham was conflicted between leaving and staying; however, when Hashem commanded him to leave he went immediately without question. This was Avraham's level of self-negation to Hashem. He was able to completely forget any feeling of obligation and indebtedness simply because Hashem told him to leave. This was the test- to what degree could Avraham subordinate his own sentiment of obligation.

If this test were given to an average person, they would have left without issue. There would not have been any hesitation to leave such a difficult situation. One would not even have the feelings of obligation to overcome. This was a test specific to Avraham.

The Chazal teach us that we should not pass judgment on our fellow Jew until we are able to put ourselves in their place. Just as we can see that this was a test for Avraham because of his unique level and not for the average person. We have no relevance to Avraham's level of indebtedness therefore this would not be considered a test for us. Only Hashem knows what a person is able to handle and overcome. Only He can judge what is a true test.

3. The Tremendous Potential of Every Jew

The Torah tells us that after Avraham arrived in Canaan, Hashem appeared to Avraham and said, "To your offspring I will give this land."[4] Through this statement, Hashem tells Avraham two points: firstly that he would have children and secondly that the land which Hashem promised to him would be his and his children's at this moment. The Torah goes on to say that Avraham immediately built and altar to "Hashem who appeared to him" in order to commemorate this event. [5] Rashi explains that the altar was built as a memorial to attest that Hashem promised Avraham children and that the land would be his. The Ohr Ha'Chaim states that Avraham built the altar to only commemorate Hashem's appearance to him. However, Avraham at the time was childless, 75 years old, and had no land because he left his homeland at Hashem's instruction. Even though Hashem reassured Avraham by promising children and land, this was secondary to Avraham compared with the mere appearance of Hashem. He w ished to express his thankfulness and excitement about the experience of Hashem's appearance and he therefore built the altar. The experience, to Avraham, was much greater then the promises. But does the Ohr Ha'Chaim's explanation contradict Rashi's commentary on the pasuk?

The answer is no. We are dealing with two separate items. For example, we can see from a story: A 100-year-old man went to a fellow Jew and said to him that Hashem had appeared to him and that Hashem promised him a child and that the entire country was his! The 100-year-old man then goes on to state that he is going to give charity in honor of Hashem appearing to him. The average person would ask, "What about the child? What about the land you were promised? Why no mention of these amazing promises?" People relate to physical reality - a child for example, perpetuates one existence, land represents wealth. The appearance of Hashem is less relevant. It is the promise, which is important. In terms of what the world at large is able to gain from seeing the altar built by Avraham - it is the promise of children and the land (as Rashi explains); however, the Torah is attesting to what the altar meant to Avraham. To Avraham it was the experience of Hashem's appearing to him. To Avraham Hashem was everything. Children and land were only a means to an end.

The Chazal tell us that every Jew must say to himself,"When will I be able to achieve what Avraham, Yitzhak, and Yakov achieved?" Meaning, the potential of every Jew is that of each of the Patriarchs. What do we aspire to in our generation?

We read in European Jewish history that the entire community would dress in Shabbos clothing and come out into the streets to greet a Torah sage when they would be visiting their community. This behavior was the same as when a king passed through the community. This attests the mindset, values, and type of upbringing that existed during that era. What was Avraham's mindset? For example, at the Akeida the challenge to Avraham was not that he had to slaughter his only son; but rather, Avraham clearly saw in Yitzhak the potential of being his successor to espouse Hashem's existence. Slaughtering Yitzhak would have ended all of Avraham's work in this world in terms of serving Hashem. This level of understanding is accessible to every Jew, while the world at large has almost no relevance to these concepts. This is why the altar built by Avraham from the perspective of the world was to commemorate the promise of children and land, while to the Jew it is meant to represent the s pecial experience of Hashem.

4. Measure for measure

We read about the war of the kings in this week's Parsha[6]. One of the kings defeated and captured by Avraham was the King of Sodom. As a captor, the King of Sodom arrogantly comes to Avraham and tries to dictate terms even though he was the defeated party. He suggests that Avraham should take the spoils of the war and that he should take the people. The King of Sodom's behavior was indicative of the arrogance and level of the people of Sodom. As it says in the Chazal the people of Sodom recognized Hashem but openly defied Him. What should have Avraham's response been to the king's request? Perhaps he should have killed him immediately being that he had just lost the war. But this is not what Avraham did.

Avraham swears in the name of Hashem, Maker of heaven and earth, that he will not take as much as a thread or a shoe strap from the King of Sodom so that he should not say that Avraham's riches came from him. For Avraham all blessings and wealth came from Hashem. Why was it necessary for Avraham to take an oath not take as much as a thread or a shoe strap? We also find that if Hashem gives a Tzadik so much as a penny he will value it more than his existence. We see this from Yakov, when he went back to retrieve the small vessels. Evidently Hashem wanted to give Avraham tremendous wealth because he helped him to win the war. How could Avraham give this wealth to an evil person who would probably use it to do more evil?

The Gemara tells us that in the merit of Avraham's mentioning of the thread in his oath the Jewish people merited the mitzvah of tzitzit. Because Avraham mentioned the shoe strap in his oath the Jewish people merited the mitzvah of tefillin. What does one have to do with another? Is this just a play on words?

We all have conflicts of interests and they are difficult to reconcile. Avraham believed that if he were to take the wealth, albeit rightfully his, an evil person (the King of Sodom) could say that he was the person who made Avraham wealthy. That would be a chilul Hashem. Yet the wealth was his since Hashem granted it. This created a conflict for Avraham. Avraham wished to see the world clearly with no conflict. Therefore Avraham needed to take an oath to separate himself from the wealth. Once the oath was taken, the wealth was no longer available to him and the conflict resolved. He was able to see the world clearly. Rabbenu Yona explains in Perke Avos that the value of acquiring a friend is that the friend would be able to help us out of conflicts of interest that cloud our judgment. This is true because the friend does not have the same set of issues and therefore is not conflicted and he could advise us to take the correct path.

Avraham had a tremendous level of commitment to Hashem and a cognizance of Hashem. In order to maintain this he took an oath to eliminate conflict. But what is the measure for measure between the thread and tzizit and the shoe strap and tefillin? We know that the mitzvah of tzizit states that, "you shall look upon them and remember all the commandments of Hashem and fulfill them."[7] Tefillin represent the dedication of the head and the heart to Hashem: "You shall bind them as a sign upon your hand, and they shall be for you a reminder between your eyes."[8] These two mitvos are specifically related to maintaining the cognizance of Hashem. This is the measure for measure. Avraham had a continuous cognizance and clarity as to not succumb to the wealth, thus avoiding a chilul Hashem. Hashem says that in the merit of your cognizance and clarity I will give the Jews these two mechanisms to maintain cognizance and clarity like you. These are tzizit and tefillin. One must howev er understand that by looking at the tzitzit one is "reminded" of the mitzvos. In order to be reminded of something one needs to know it to begin with. Therefore one needs to learn Torah so as to be able to look at the tzitzit and be reminded of one's learning.

5. Foundation in fact

We read in the Parsha about the war between the four kings against the five kings during which the five kings were defeated. One of the kings who were defeated was the King of Sodom. The Torah tells us, "The Valley of Siddim was full of lime pits (or bitumen wells). The King of Sodom and Gomorrah fled and fell into them while the rest fled to the mountain."9 The obvious question is why does the Torah need to teach us that the King of Sodom fell into a lime pit while he was fleeing? Rashi explains the pasuk by quoting the Chazal who teach us that normally if one were to fall into this kind of pit it would be lethal; however, a miracle was performed and the King of Sodom was saved. Why should such as miracle have been performed for this evil man? The Chazal continue by explaining that some people of the world did not believe that Avraham was saved from the fire at Kasdim by a miracle from Hashem. However, now that the people witnessed the King of Sodom being saved from the lime pits, they were able to retroactively believe that Hashem brought Avraham from the fire. Therefore this pasuk is needed to teach us about the King of Sodom's falling into the lime pit in order to explain that the world was forced to believe the miracle at Ur Kasdim as a result of this second miracle.

While this explanation seems to help us understand the purpose of the pasuk, we are left with a difficulty. Avraham was a tremendous tzadik while the King of Sodom was a monumental rasha who personified evil. Both men were on opposite ends of the spectrum, yet we see that Hashem performed a miracle for both. In fact we learn that the people of the world believed the miracle performed for Avraham only through the miracle performed for the King of Sodom. What does this teach us?

We learn from here that it was important for Hashem first to establish the fact that Avraham was saved by a miracle. The further question of why Hashem chose to establish this fact through the King of Sodom is for a later discussion; however, we see that it was imperative for Hashem to establish the fact to the world regardless of the situation. How can we understand this? We know that without establishing a fact as the basis for further discussion the entire discussion is meaningless. For example, if one does not believe that millions of Jews left Egypt and gathered around Mount Sinai to receive the Torah then the factual history of the Jewish people is denied. Without the basic belief in these facts any following discussions on the meaning of Mount Sinai, the Torah, etc. have little meaning. Therefore it is important to establish the facts from which deeper understanding can be attained.

I had once said that the whole basis for Judaism is mesora, the unbroken chain of transmission from generation to generation. While we may not have been at Sinai we know that our ancestors were at Sinai as a result of this chain of transmission. Rabbi Meir Simcha of Dvinsk has an interesting explanation, which will help us to further understand the power of mesora. He asks why is it so vital to honor and revere one's parents? Rabbi Meir Simcha explains that trusting one's parents stems form honoring them. Without the reverence and honor for a parent, the child would not trust the parent. This mechanism of honoring parents is a fundamental mitzvah, which is vital to the infrastructure of Judaism because it is through trust that Torah can be transmitted from generation to generation and without honor there is no trust.

We find a very unfortunate state of affairs, which stems from the gap between parents coming from one generation and their children growing up in another. This is particularly true in first or second-generation immigrant families where the children regard the parents as being antiquated. By regarding the parent as antiquated in terms of skills, jobs, etc. the child cannot have the level of trust in information transmission from the parent needed to perpetuate Judaism. Where there is no honor and reverence there is not trust and therefore to transmission. It is therefore important to re-establish the value of the unbroken chain. For example, there are those who give validity to Reform Judaism that is approximately 150 years old. However, any events or beliefs that were held prior to Reform Judaism are regarded as antiquated and archaic. Is this to say that prior to 150 years ago there were not any Torah sages? Brilliant minds? Accomplished people? This is a lack of respect and honor that stems from the breaking of the chain of transmission. Therefore we see that it is imperative to establish the facts from which all understanding will follow. Once the facts are establish only then it is possible to discuss the value of Torah.

6. Converting anxiety to growth

We read in this week's parsha about the Covenant Between the Parts, which is connected with the promise of the Land of Israel as well as the future of the Jewish people. Hashem tells Avraham that," Your offspring shall be strangers in a land not their own..."10 The Seforno has an interesting commentary on this section. He explains that Hashem is informing Avraham that the inheritance of the land by the Jewish people will be delayed. Seemingly after Yakov, the Jews should have inherited the land yet we see that the Jews spent 210 years in Egypt. The Seforno attributes this delay to the sin of the Amorite. The Amorite were a nation that lived in Canaan and whose sin had not yet reached a climax. Since their level of sin had not reached its highest point, it would be unjust to drive them out of the land prematurely. Therefore Hashem explains to Avraham that even though the land is promised to your descendants there must be a delay due to the fact the Amorite cannot be expell ed until their sin reached an apex. Hashem further explains to Avraham that the delay of inheritance should not be misunderstood as an indication of it not passing to the Jews as promised.

We find that there is much to be learned from this interchange between Hashem and Avraham for our daily lives. We often pray to Hashem with various requests and we consequently experience almost endless delays in having these requests fulfilled. We are unsure if our requests, even those in line with Torah and Hashem's will, would even be fulfilled. The waiting could be distracting and agonizing, yet we see from the interaction between Hashem and Avraham that there is a tremendous opportunity. The not receiving of our requests as well as the feelings of anxiety are themselves kapara for us not being at the level which we should be.

Hashem is the ultimate in justice and He will not grant a request at the expense of some other injustice. Our faith may be tested while we anticipate the outcome of our requests, yet we must always believe that the outcome is just and in our best interest. Therefore we need to utilize the time of our waiting to grow and introspect. Avraham was at a level where Hashem made him aware of the reasons for the delay. We are not at that level and despite the unexplained delays we need to operate within Hashem's timetable and exercise faith in Him with complete understanding that the result will always be for the best.

[1] Nechemia 9:5-8
[2] Paraphrase from Genesis 3:11-12
[3] Ibid.
[4] Genesis: 12:7
[5] Ibid.

[6] Genesis: 14:1-10
[7] Shema
[8] Ibid
[9] Genesis:14:10
[10] Genesis: 15:13