PESACH SEDER

    As we walk through the stores, we can feel that Pesach is in the air.  So many are running around in preparation of this magnificent Yom Tov  

   I would like to share with you a Hasidic story; When the Baal Shem Tov had a difficult task before him he would go to the woods , light a fire and meditate in prayer, and what he had set out to perform was done. When a generation later the Maggid of Meshritz was faced with the same task he would go to the same place in the woods and say, "We can no longer light the fire , but we can still utter the prayers" and what he wanted done became a reality. Again, a generation later Rabbi Lev of Saasov had to perform his task and he too went into the forest and said, "We can no longer light the fire, nor do we know the secret meditations belonging to the prayer, but we do know the place in the forest to which it all belongs and that will have to be sufficient". And sufficient it was.  When another generation had passed and Rabbi Israel was called on to perform the task, he sat down on his chair in his home and said, "We cannot light the fire, we cannot speak the prayers, we do not know the place, but we can tell the story of how it was done.” And the story he told had the same affect as the actions of the other three.
    Understandably, this profound anecdote clearly describes the decline of the sacred, but at the same time reflects upon the trials and tribulations that each generation goes through, and how they recover the holiness of the past which gives them the strength and the courage to face the present and the future. 
     This is Pesach and the entire Seder in a concise and cogent and meaningful way.
    Kierkegaard said it well when he explained the concept of "Holiness" as "Wholly Other ", as an experience unlike any other.”

     Pesach is a time when we expierence such an extraordinary feeling of awe, wonder, mystery and majesty. It excites our admiration, it invites our adoration, and stimulates our devotion to Hashem.
  This feeling of great excitement is present when we sit down at the Seder, though somewhat exhausted from all the preparations, with much Simcha as we recite in unison,

שהחינו וקימנו והגיענו לזמן הזה . 
    As we prepare for this years’ Seder, let us gather with our families, as they did in years of yore, and to renew special relationships with our friends and loved ones  and to strengthen our bonds with Hashem in a most productive way with our  הלל ותשבחות.
     Let this Pesach refresh and revive our jaded spirits, dampen our cynicism, and remind us of the great opportunities that are ours to achieve as we open the door once again for Elijah the Prophet and show our preparedness to welcome our מלך המשיח.       

   
  

 

WISDOM OF THE HEART

    "Rabbi are you going to purchase the new wrist watch by apple?" I was asked.  I wasn't even sure what this new apple phenomenon was all about. I did, however, begin to realize that the advancement of our technological world has no limits.  I can only imagine what this world will look like in ten years or so, as we become more and more tech savvy. 

     I am reminded of the story of the man who found frost on his window and tried to scrape it off. His neighbor, observing what he was doing asked him, "What are you trying to accomplish?" He replied, "I can't see out of the window and I am trying  to get rid of the frost.  But as fast as I scrape off the frost from one pane, frost appears on another." The neighbor answered, "Let the windows alone and light a fire inside. You will, then, see that the frost will disappear of itself."

  These are times that we are feeling the chill of the world against our Jewish faces and we need to kindle the fire of enthusiasm , the fire of love, the fire of spirituality, the fire  of Betachon , inside our very beings to thaw ourselves out.

   It is with this understanding that our Torah this Shabbat records the selection of Betzalel  to build the Miskan. Why was he chosen.  The Torah relates; 

ויקרא משה אל בצלא-ל ואל אהליאב ואל כל איש חכם לב אשר נתן הי חכמה בלבו

  "And Moshe called Bezalel and every wise hearted man in whose heart G-D had put wisdom."

    This is a very interesting expression; "Wisdom of the heart." What exactly does this mean?

      I sense there are two types of wisdom. There is wisdom of the mind, relating to 'things.' It is of a 'quantitative' nature. 

    Then there is the wisdom of the heart,  'reflecting the values of life' in a 'qualitative' way.

  Wisdom of the Heart projects oneself in ideals, in ethics , in love, in loyalty, and in friendship.  

  Understandably, the mind without the heart produces a robotic existence. The heart without the mind produces misery and poverty.

   Bezalel had all the qualities.  He was an outstanding architect and engineer, but more so, to build this edifice to Hashem, he needed to be a חכמת לב, a man who possessed a heart in all of his dealings .

    As I began my blog I emphasized that we are involved, greatly, in technology and I do realize it's importance. However, to do so for the better of humanity, a we must infuse our achievements with "The Wisdom of the Heart."

  This is our modern day challenge as we make great strides in the arena of technology.

   I remember reading of a western scientist who was boasting to an Indian intellectual. 

" In the west we are so advanced technologically, we can fly like a bird, we can run like a deer, and we can swim like a fish". 

 The Indian pondered for a moment and responded,"Yes, you can fly like a bird , you can run like a deer, you can swim like a fish, but can you walk like a man?"        

      Like Bezalel, let us meet the challenges that face us today with  "Wisdom of the Heart". 

MEGILLAH REVISITED

The Yom Tov of Purim is our most joyous holiday. As we read the Megillah I am greatly impressed by the two heroes of the story, Mordechai and Esther. Let me explain how I see these two messengers of G-D who are asked to save the Jewish.  The uniqueness of Purim is that it's a story of people, yes ordinary  people who acted in a most extraordinary  fashion.

   The Megillah describes Mordechai simply ; 

איש יהודי היה בשושן ושמו מרדכי

He was a Jew, an ordinary Jew.  He sat together with the other guards at the gate of the King. " Mordechai was just one of the people."

  Similarly, when the Megillah describes our Heroine Esther it says;והנערה יפת תואר וטובת מראה

She was a sweet and simple and pretty girl, eventually winning  a beauty contest leading her to become the Queen to Ahashveros. "Esther was just one of the people."

   I am extremely impressed with Mordechai and Esther.  They were ordinary people like you and me who lived at a time of crisis. 

   Though they were ordinary people, they lived during a period which called for greatness and these simple ordinary people, in responding with greatness became great. 

  Greatness in life is dependent upon our response to life.

  This is what Mordechai was saying to Esther in what I believe are the most important and cogent words in the entire Megillah,  כי אם החרש תחרישי כעת הזאת,

    At a time like this how can you turn your head away from the needs of our people, this is your hour , this is why you were brought forth on this earth, this is your Tafkid of life, don't let the hour pass.  There may never be another opportunity.  Time waits for no one. 

     That was the message of Mordechai, the ordinary man , to Esther the ordinary woman.  Together, because they heeded the call to save Jewry, they achieved greatness and became the saviors of the Jewish People.

     I often think that all of us have the capabilities of rising to the occasion, of becoming extraordinary, in helping our fellow Jew. In so many different ways, we can become our modern day heroes.

    I am reminded of the folk story of the Little Dutch Boy, Peter. He lived in a country below sea level where the people had built dikes to keep out the water. Peter playing at the seashore, saw moisture seeping through a tiny hole and he became frightened, he knew it meant danger. He cried out but no one heard him. He was afraid the opening was getting larger and the countryside would be flooded, so, he put his finger into the hole and stayed there all night. He saved  his country and little Peter is a symbol of heroism to this very day. Indeed, Peter rose to the occasion. 

    This is the story of Purim.  When Esther and Mordechai saw the great danger threatening the Jews, they too performed acts of courage and dedication and this foiled Haman's plot and Jewry was saved.

   I am sure you echo my feelings as we welcome The Prime Minister of Israel to our country.  Though there are many who may think he should not speak to the members of Congress, one thing I am sure of - that when he does address the assemblage he will speak for the salvation of the Jewish People and the State Of Isreal. 

    Mr. Netanyahu loves the Jewish People and his only concern is the safety and security of the Jewish State. I see him as an ordinary man who hears the cry , "this is your hour" and we know that your reason for your actions is the salvation of the Jewish People.

      "Heroes are made not born."  To be a hero one must act with great empathy, firmly and not with indifference. Mr. Netanyahu fits this bill.

       These are times we need men and women who are ordinary to act extraordinary.  In doing so we will help to hasten the coming of Moshiach in our time.

   May Hashem bless us with peace and tranquility and to use this Yom Tov of Purim to bring us closer to each other with love and happiness.

FREILICHEN PURIM

     As  we prepare to celebrate the  Holiday of  Purim, I am reminded of the Rabbinic statement,"Should all the festivals be annulled, Purim will endure". Our sages spoke with great foresight. They saw the inevitable future of the hatred that continues to be espoused against the Jews which is implied in the Holiday of Purim. They knew Israel's role as G-D's suffering servants would demand agonizing sacrifices. They saw Mordechai and Esther perennially confronting a hostile world with some Haman arrayed against them. 

    Leo Tolstoy wrote,"Anti Semitism is a mad passion akin to the lowest perversities of diseased human nature, it is the will to hate." A study of world history shows us how true these ideas are. This is the story of Purim, a story that bespeaks outright Anti- Semitism. 

  Today we are experiencing, to our dismay, that  "History repeats itself". It is a sorry state of affairs that hatred in general, and hatred  in particular for the Jew still exists. How ironic it must seem that Iran, the Persia of old, where the entire story of Purim took place is once again in the throes of hatred, killing and disrespect for human rights.  

      Mr. Netanyahu is so right as he speaks as our modern day Mordechai on behalf of the Jewish State  to the world and to the United States Congress. It is a sad state of affairs when so many who are afraid to listen to the truth  are willing to boycot the session, acting as intellectual and political puppets. 

     Mr. Netanyahu is issuing a warning that our modern day  Haman in Iran is, once again, raising its ugly hand of hatred. This time it can become a nuclear war against the Jewish People and the world at large.

  The audacity of members of the congress to walk out on their Ally, a man who only wants to warn the world of the possibility of another world disaster threatening humanity.

  Today I call out  to the world "Awake, Awake and take your heads out of the sand , a real threat to humanity lurks behind the falsehood of the perpetrators of hatred."

  Remember well these words of wisdom "Deal with yourself as an individual worthy of respect and thereby make everyone else deal with you in the same way".  

   When  humanity will understand , that it is not an"us" and "them" world. It is an "all of us" world, then humanity will be saved. As soon as people understand this fact, the world will be a better place. 

   The amazing thing about Purim, is that, in spite, of all the uncertainties of life, we still celebrate Purim as one of the most joyous holidays on our calendar. The reason is plain and simple, it is because we celebrate life, not because we have any guarantees but because we possess the confidence of a Mordechai and Esther.  We believe that there is a divine Providential design that will bring our salvation and the salvation of all persecuted Jews throughout the world.

    Today, like the time recorded in the Megillah, קימו וקבלו היהודים, we are to rededicate ourselves to a greater allegiance and commitment to Judaism. 

   With a great sense of  Bitachin  that will bring about a greater sense of better times for the Jewish People , we will echo the words of the Megillah, ליהודים היתה אורה ושמחה וששון ויקר, " For the Jews there was light and joy, gladness and honor" כן תהיה לנו, So may it be for us in our times.

  Freilichen Purim to all.

   

INTERNAL LIGHT

    Our  Sedrah this week ,Parshas Trumah, speaks about the building of the Mishkan , the portable Tabernacle that accompanied the Jewish People through the desert.

    The Torah states , ועשו לי םקדש ושכנתי בתוכם,   " and you shall make Me a sanctuary, that I shall dwell among you".

   Reading this directive I am reminded of a story that a colleague of mine related ; He was visiting the interior of his Synagogue with the children from his Hebrew school.  He described and explained the different parts of the Sanctuary and especially the Ner Tamid, the Eternal Light  which burns constantly over the the Aron Hakodesh.

   Shortly after the visit he received numerous thank you letters from the students and he remembered one in particular, from a third grader who thanked him for all the explanations especially the one about the "Internal" light.  My colleagues remarked "Out of the mouths of  babes a profound truth is found."

     The light over the Aron is, indeed, eternal but even more so in each one of us there is an "Internal" light of spirituality that is always aglow. Even when it seems not to be there , that "Internal" light is always present.

    The Rav , when discussing the Mishkan posed the following question, "Why was the Mishkan necessary? Does G-D need a home?"

    The Rav brings to mind that when Shlomo dedicated the Beit Hamikdash in Yerushalyim he asked a similar question and evidenced this dilemma by stating;

הנה השמים ושמי השמים לא יכלכלוך אף כי הבית הזה אשר בניתי

" Neither the heaven nor the heaven of the heavens,  can contain Thee. Certainly not the house that I have built for Thee".

    The Rav, searching for an answer presented the following response; 

     Whenever the term בית הי, the House of G-D, is used we should realize that it does not refer to the house  of Hashem , but rather to the House of Man. There is no need for Hashem to have a home, for Hashem embraces the entire universe , He is Makom shel Olam, the universe is within G-D. However, man needs a spiritual home that will give him total security. Such a home can only be found within  Hashem  Himself.

   Thus, we begin to realize that when Hashen instructs Moshe to build a Mishkan , He was providing him with a home which the Almighty offers humanity. A man who feels close to Hashem feels he is protected by G-D'S  guiding Hand.  He is a person that has a true home to dwell in.

 When Hashem dwells , so to speak, in the  Beit Hamikdash, he does so to satisfy our need to be close to Him and to feel His presence  and His protection.

     As we dwell with G-D on a daily basis , our "Internal light is aglow and we thus feel the Brachos of Hashem upon us.

    It is this "Internal" light that endows  the Jew with his specialness, with his creativity , with his ability for greatness, because it is an "Internal" light, a spark, a glow of the Divine, that is kindled in each of us. 

     As we experience the depravity of society around us , from the killing of innocent lives, and the growing anti Semitism and that the State of Israel is the scape goat for the world powers,  we begin to realize more and more the need for our Home of protection that the Beit Hashem can offer us. 

     However, to do so, we must dwell in the  House  of The Lord, not by ourselves , but to extend the invitation to all Jews throughout the world to dwell under the canopy of peace and security that the House of Hashem provides for all of us.

     כי  ביתי בית תפילה יקרא לכל העמים

    

   

ENLIGHTENMENT

"The moment of enlightenment is when a person's dreams of possibilities become images of probabilities."

   Let us keep this in mind as we discuss the two Parshiot Yisro and Mishpatim that express our feelings of belief and faith. These Parshiot represent the essence of Judaism. For me, they can be considered our Judaic Constitution. 

    Parshat Yisro relates that great spiritual moment for the Jewish People as they stood at Har Sinai and heard the majestic Ten Commandments proclaimed by Hashem amidst thunder and lightening. They were so overwhelmed by the experience , that even before hearing the Ten Commandments they shouted out together Naaseh Venishma, "We shall do and we shall hearken". In this weeks Parsha, Mishpatim, which discusses the Mitzvos of בין אדם וחברו, between man and his fellow man, we heard the great response, once again, "We shall do and we shall hearken".  

    This response from B'nai Yisroel always amazes me.  We live in a time where before we even entertain to act we want to know what and why we are obligated to do so.  However, reading these two Parshiot we see, once again, the great faith and submissiveness of the Jewish People to G-D which brought about this superior  response . In fact, Chazal tell us that even Hashem was overwhelmed and asked "Who revealed to My children this secret which only the ministering angels know of?"

   The importance of this response suggests that man is not the center of all things, but rather G-D is the all important motivator in our lives. The law of G-D which we submit to humbly, has been and continues to be our way of life. When things occur , which in our intellectual way, we may not comprehend at that moment, our faith and belief in Hashem's  supremacy encourages us to fulfill His will which then becomes our will.

  Yes, we want to understand the will of G-D and the whys and wherefores of the Mitzvos.  However, this lack of knowledge must not deter us from fulfilling the directives of the Torah and to continue to be motivated in our studies which eventually will lead us to greater understanding of the will of Hashem. 

     I am reminded of an Anecdote that I included in one of my writings;

John Churchill, the first Duke of Marlborough, was elevated to the Dukedom by Queen Anne and many of the old established nobility did not welcome this newcomer, because of his humble parentage. On one occasion a member of the old aristocracy said to him mockingly "Tell me whose descendant are you?" To which Churchill replied "Sir I am not a descendant, I am an ancestor".

  As Jews we are truly proud and blessed that we are descendants of a worthy and great  and glorious and noble  past , but we dare not fall into the trap of resting upon  the laurels and accomplishments  of the past , how magnificent and important it was. When it comes to the practice of our Torah we need to reaffirm נעשה ונשמה, in our study and practice of Torah, so that we become its "ancestors",and thereby bringing Torah oriented Judaism into the 21st. Century in a glorious way.

  The Rav said, "The most amazing thing about the Exodus , far greater than the signs and the wonders, is the transformation that occurred to the nation as they accepted the obligation to observe the Torah."

  The political world is upset with our Prime Minister Netanyahu for his willingness to address the congress. Why are so many upset, I ask myself. The answer that seems to swell up in my mind is,  because he comes to tell the world that Israel cannot and must not be jeopardized  by Iran's threat  to wipe out the State of Israel. The problem is  that no one really understands the threat like Israel does and they must do everything possible to protect the citizens of our Holy State.We are living in a demoralized society when a young pilot is burned alive in front of the world. Though we are disturbed by such happenings, we move into our daily activities not realizing how such criminal acts are destroying the fabric of  our humanity. We are living in times of crisis and we must act, whatever way possible,to be a guiding light of spirituality and humanity for a world that has become complacent to the evil that exists.

  Our aim is to bring back the Sinai of the past and the laws of humanity that is espoused in our Parsha of Mishpatim, to insure the future of a sane and humane world.

   The Jews are descendants of the past , but we want to be the ancestors of the future and we  cannot do so if there is a threat to our future.

   When the Jews angelically said Naaseh Venishma, revealing their love and loyalty to Torah and to it's dictates under all circumstances, those words must now become our call today to world  Jewry, for our survival and for the future of our children and grandchildren.

   The danger of our civilization today is that most of the world is satisfied with simplistic solutions to difficult problems . We want quick solutions and quick answers and this is not the way to bring about a better world . We need more than ever the words of our Prophet Micah.

הגיד לך אדם מה טוב ומה הי דורש ממך כי אם עשות משפט ואהבת חסד והצנע לכת  עם אלוקיך.

" That you do justice , that you have mercy and that you walk humbly with your G-D."

   I sense from these magnificent words of our Navi, that  if we practice justice and if we act with mercy to one another , then the reward will be the Blessing of having the Z'chut to walk with G-D and then we will merit that G-D will always walk with us. 

  May our lives merit this great and needed Bracha.

GUARDIANS

" Your living is determined not so much by what life brings to you as by the attitude you bring to life"

   A metaphor comes to mind as we assess our state of today's society;

   Man is like a bird. A bird can fly higher and higher, but only if it keeps it's wings in motion constantly. If it stops flying for a moment, it will fall and crash to the earth. The same is true of man, he must continue to move forward and grow spiritually, or else he may fall to the ground.

   Our Parsha this Shabbat is Yisro,  when we read the most dramatic and inspirational document ofthe entire Torah , the Aseres Hadibros, the Ten Commandments, given to the Jewish People amidst divine revelation. At this great historic event בני ישראל  responded, even before the actual commandments were given, נעשה ונשמע "We will do and we will listen."

    Then our Torah relates how the Jewish  People gathered around Mt. Sinai to hear the words of G-D as He gave them the Ten Commandments. The Torah describes this great moment in Jewish History, ויהי קולות וברקים, they heard "thundering and lightening"

and ויחרד כל העם אשר במחנה, "they became frightened by the experience" and ויעמד העם מרחוק "they stood at a distance from the mountain." Our Sages teach us that the Jewish People backed away from Mt. Sinai. They were frightened of the responsibility of being the bearers of the Ten Commandments. They stepped back, not wanting to accept the commandments as they felt it was too burdensome

   Moshe seeing their reaction, as they stepped back and away from the mountain, felt he needed to inspire them and to remove their fears.     The Torah states ומשה נגש אל הערפל

"And Moshe rushed toward the flames that engulfed the mountain and caught a glimpse of G-D."

  Moshe was teaching the people an important lesson in Yahadut; 

If one wants to achieve the optimum bonum of Judaism then one must penetrate into the essence of Judaism and not move away from accepting responsibility for a Judaic way of life. 

  This is why we are the ממלכת וגוי קדוש , for we are ready נעשה ונשמה, to accept the Mitzvot of the Torah unequivocally.  We do so with great confidence that what ever Hashem gives us, is for our benefit, and for our betterment.

  Judaism requires that we constantly flap our wings of Yiddishkeit and to have the courage to step into the ערפל of Jewish Life by accepting our responsibility as Jews and to pass on this strong commitment to Torah and Mitzvot to the next generation, with the same התלהבות. 

    I am writing this blog on טו בשבט , on the day we celebrate Jewish Arbor  Day, the time we commemorate The New Year for Trees. I would like to share the following Talmudic story;

    A Rabbi passed a man planting a carob tree."How long, he asked, will it take for the tree to bear fruit?"

  "Seventy years," the man replied.

   "Are you sure, asked the Rabbi , that you will be here in seventy years?"

    "No, replied the man, but just as I found carob trees in the world, planted by my grandparents, so I am planting this for my grandchildren."

   We are the guardians of the past for the sake of our future.

  This lesson of dedication to all that is Jewish is crucial to our existence and at all times we must remember  כי הם חיינו וארך ימינו, 

"For they are our life, and the length of our days"