Shabbat-B'shabbato Parshatvayeitzei

Shabbat-B'Shabbato – ParshatVayeitzei

No 1551: 7 Kislev5775 (29November2014)

AS SHABBAT APPROACHES

Heaven and Earth - by Rabbi Oury Cherki, Machon Meir, Rabbi of Beit Yehuda Congregation, Jerusalem

Different sectors within Judaismread different versions of the Haftarah for this week's Torah portion. Ashkenazim read from the verse starting, "And Yaacov fled" [Hoshaya 12:13], until the end of the book (14:10). The Sephardim and the Yemenites read from "And My nation hesitate about returning to Me" [11:7], until "on the furrows of my field" [12:12]. And some Sephardi communities continue until "... in a parched land" [13:5].

We can search for the essential elements of the Haftarah in verses near sections which are shared by all the different communities, since it is a good assumption that these verses represent the combined strength of all sectors of the nation.

Near the verses shared by the various Haftarot are two verses that are very similar to each other:

"And I am your G-d from the Land of Egypt, I will yet bring you back in tents, as in past days" [12:10]. "And I am your G-d from the Land of Egypt, you will never know another god, and there is no savior except for Me" [13:4].

The two verses echo what was said in the first of the Ten Commandments, "I am your G-d" [Shemot 20:2], but they omit the phrase "who took you out (of the Land of Egypt)." This shows us that in addition to our obligation to accept the authority of G-d because He took us out of Egypt (see Rashi: "The fact that I took you out of Egypt is sufficient to make you obligated to Me" [20:2]), Bnei Yisrael also are inherently linked to G-d, even before they received any physical benefit from Him. This link is what is called "segulah" by our sages – an innate uniqueinner quality. And this rises up at the time of redemption: "He brings the redeemer to their children's offspring" [from the first blessing in the Amidah; see also the letters of Rav Kook volume 2, pages 186-187]. Our inherent outstanding characteristic does not negate our need for merits, rather it is an element of our most important merit: the fact that we have a unique identity of our own.

The knowledge that "I am your G-d" sets Yisrael free from bondage, because "only a slave of G-d is truly free" [Rabbi Yehuda Halevi]. As a consequence of our innate freedom, we are involved in two missions: Torah and politics. Economic independence, which came to the fore when Yisrael dwelt in tents around the Tabernacle while eating heavenly manna, facilitated the adoption of the Torah as a permanent possession within Yisrael, corresponding to the first of the two verses quoted above. Sovereign independence is possible for Yisrael because we do not recognize any other authority over us except for that of the Creator, as is noted in the second verse. It is impossible to be truly faithful to the G-d of Yisrael without fulfilling these two missions.

It may be that the combination of Torah and political action is hinted at in Yaacov's vision of the ladder at the beginning of the Torah portion, which showed him that even at the time of going out to exile it is possible to combine heaven and earth. Torah without political independence, without a political outlook, becomes something that is not relevant to "tikun" – improving the state of the world. The political dimension brings Yisrael together with its historic mission, which is to reveal that no external means are needed in order to have an encounter with the Creator. All that is necessary is to cling to His nation, which is free and idependent.

Rabbi Cherki is the head of Brit Olam – Noahide World Center, Jerusalem

POINT OF VIEW

Only a Jewish National Homeland can Vanquish Terrorism- by Rabbi Yisrael Rozen, Dean of the Zomet Institute

The week after I write this article is expected to be very stormy. That is not only the weather forecast as of now, it is mainly a forecast of the general mood in the country. The level of security and national controversy will come to a crest, and I hope and pray that He who Dwells on High will hear our prayers to decrease the levels of anger and wrath.

Terrorism Equals Islam

In the matter of security, we are facing an enemy of a type with which our ancestors were not familiar – terrorism. This is a murderous and satanic enemy who holds a sword dripping with blood, infused with cruel insanity, who is not backed by a specific country or an army that is ready for hand-to-hand combat. Semi-anonymous terrorism has become the ultimate enemy of the free world, the world of culture – and not only in the Western World. In the past we spoke about terror nations (such as that of Stalin and others), but today the concept of terrorism has changed and it now refers to gang-style murders and callous ideological violence, without specific national or governmental links.

Here is a quote from "The Oracle," (The High Priest of all knowledge) - Wikipedia: "According to Prof. Ehud Sprinchak the definition of terrorism is 'performing harsh violence against non-combatant citizens as a symbolic act and as a means of giving a message of fear to the entire population.' Dr. Boaz Ganor adds, 'The objective of terrorism is to achieve political goals or to change overall policies.' Such actions do not target individuals but rather an entire population, such that a terrorist is usually not interested in the identities of his or her victims. Murder of a specific person, even if it is carried out by a terrorist organization, is considered political murder and not terrorism. This is true, for example, of the murders of Kennedy, Rabin, and others." I assume doctoral candidates all over the world are "making their living" from research on terrorism, and are avidly defining and redefining all the relevant terms. Meanwhile, "the sun rose, the system has bloomed, and the slaughterer continues to slaughter" [Chaim Nachman Bialick, "B'Ir Haharigah," on the subject of the pogroms of Kishinev, 1903). And this is true not only in Jerusalem, "Har Nof, the joy of the entire land" [Tehillim 48:3].

What is missing in all the learned definitions is a very simple sentence: "Any mention of terrorism is a reference to Islam!"

Collateral Punishment

During the last decade terrorism has taken on a monstrous character, seemingly without any conventional solution – when it was transformed into the suicidal act of a shahid who sanctifies death. No punishment has yet been invented in any earthly court that will serve as a suitable punishment for a suicidal person for his or her murders. The only possible deterrence is related to his surroundings, by making his close relatives pay for his deeds in a way that corresponds to his level of murder. Questioning of Islamic prospective suicides who were caught on the way to performing the deed has shown that only harsh treatment of their parents (and especially their mother) together with other family members – might perhaps be some sort of a deterrent for their actions. If it will not deter their actions, it can at least serve to create a warning. Family members who can expect to be punished might be induced to "spill the beans" before the terrorist can act.

Our Minister of the Interior speaks – and more power to him for that – about revocation of the individual rights of those who support terrorism, such as social security benefits. I hope that we will pass emergency legislation that goes much further than this – expulsion, expropriation of property, and revocation of rights of parents of suicidal terrorists, and their wives and children, and perhaps the same for other close relatives in their extended family (the "chamulla"), unless they can prove that they did everything they could to stop the action and that they are strongly opposed to his or her actions. The crime would be defined as supporting or not preventing terrorism, related to what appears in the Torah: "And I will set my face against that man and h-i-s f-a-m-i-l-y, and I will cut him off" [Vayikra 20:5]. Based on the words of the sage, Rashi writes, "What was the sin of the family? ... The answer is that they all cover for him... Should we say that the whole family can be punished by karet, being cut off? No, because it is written, 'I will cut him off.' He will be cut off but not the whole family, who will be punished with suffering."

I am not naive. This emotional cry will be opposed by a strong legal wall that will cry out: "Collective punishment! Individual rights! Democracy above all else!" Well, this may be satisfactory when learned experts in academia have discussions of how to define terrorism, and there it may not do any harm. But when legal professionals get involved, we may well be in deep trouble! In the war between the religion of individual rights and the religion of the shahidim, the discouraging results are predictable...

The Jewish State Law – A Ray of Hope

And this is our opportunity to move on to another current topic – defining our country as the National Homeland of the Jews! The root of the dispute over the proposed new Jewish State Law revolves around the question whether democracy as defined by the Israeli Supreme Court is the ultimate value which will always prevail, or whether it can be superseded by values of nationality and Judaism. Since the details of one or more proposed laws are not yet available at the time that I am writing this article, and since the matter is fluid and depends on considerations related to the coalition, primaries, and elections –this is neither the right time nor place to discuss the matter in depth. However, there is one thing that I know. Only a law defining the Jewish State will give us the capability of fighting against suicidal Islamic terrorism. Only lowering democracy and legalism, the roots of the religion of individual rights, from their exalted positions can put us on track to eradicate terrorism. And at the same time, only a Jewish StateLaw will allow us to fight against the infiltration of Sudanese and prevent the courts from rejecting laws to put them in prison. Only a Jewish State Law will allow us to destroy homes of shahidim and not to destroy homes of Jews which were built on national land. There are other benefits ofsuch a law, which the anti-Jewish leftists so violently oppose, no doubt for reasons that they know very well...

(Written at the end of Shabbat Toldot.)

LET YOUR WELLSPRINGS BURST FORTH

A Melody is the Quill Pen of the Heart - by Rabbi Moshe Shilat, Director of "The Torah of Chabad for Yeshiva Students"

From the earliest days of Chassidut, music has played a major role in the service of G-d. Every movement within Chassidut has its own special tunes, songs of both happiness and sadness. In spite of its penchant for deep analysis and its serious depth, Chabad too has not neglected the subject of song. Just the opposite – a melody comes to replace something that is lacking, to serve as a way of expressing something that cannot be expressed in words. It is a way to communicate with G-d, to listen to Him, and to make improvements within the soul and in the world. "The 'Elderly Rebbe' influenced the world through Torah and through melodies." [Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak of Lubavitch].

Most of the tunes of Chabad were composed by the Chassidim. There are very few tunes that were composed or were taught by the Rebbe himself, and they are called "hanigunim hamechuvanim" – directed melodies. In this case, every movement, every emphasis, is precise and deliberate. The most famous of these melodies is the "Arba Bavot," a tune related to the four different worlds, which is sung only on very special occasions.

Another ancient and very exalted melody is the "Three Movements," which is made up of three segments. The first was composed by the Baal Shem Tov, the second was added by his disciple the Maggid of Mezeritch, and the third was composed by his disciple – the elderly Rebbe, the author of the Tanya.

The Melodies of the Rebbe

The two most prominent rabbis in terms of melodies were the Tanya, who composed ten tunes, and the last Rebbe, who taught ten melodies that were not well-known by the public.

For nine years (5716-5724), on the eve of Simchat Torah, after the "Hakafot" ended a few hours after midnight, the Rebbe would go up to his room and eat a light meal. He would them come back down to the Beit Midrash in the very early hours of the day, when it was neither dark or light, in a very special atmosphere, and teach the people a new tune (in the ninth year he taught two melodies).

The Chssidim described a very rare event, where the Rebbe would teach a very old melody, one section at a time, and they would repeat it until they had fully mastered it. The tunes expressed outstanding dedication in addition to happiness, and most of them were set to words from the prayers of the Days of Awe and Succot. It seems that he did not compose these tunes himself but learned them in his home in his youth.

The Rebbe gave enlightening explanations for each melody, both during the early-morning session and the next day, on Simchat Torah. After teaching the song the Rebbe would share a "mashkeh" – a drink – from his goblet with anybody who promised to broaden his study of Chassidut during the following year.

The "Tzam'ah" Project

Most of these melodies became popular very quickly, but to this very day they have not been gathered together, and they have not been accompanied by modern arrangements, of the type which not only doesn't lose the internal charm of the tune but even brings it closer to the heart of the listener. Recently, the work has finished on preparing a new CD-ROM of these tunes, by the name "Tzam'ah" – (My Soul is) Thirsty. On this recording, top musical artists will perform the songs, one song for each singer.Each melody has its own unique "touch," and the set taken as a whole is a deep and exciting creation. The CD-ROM will come with a booklet full of explanations about the melodies, based on the discussions led by the Rebbe when he taught them, all in the modern languageof Israel. Listen, and enjoy.

THE LIGHT STARTS IN THE EAST

You Must Know when to Close your Book– by Chezi Cohen, Yeshivat Maaleh Gilboa and Midreshet Ein Hanatziv

In our last article (Chayei Sarah, issue 1549), we discussed the Rashash (Rabbi Shalom Sharabi), and we will continue this discussion now. Rabbi Sharabi (1720-1777) was one of the greatest masters of the Kabbalah. He was the head of the Kabbalah-oriented yeshiva Beit El, and he is considered as the most important commentator on the works of the ARI. The Rashash was involved day and night in Torah study and prayer, and he wrote a Siddur which described deep internal intentions of the prayers, based on sources within mysticism. But he also knew when it was necessary to close his books and take action.

* * * * * *

One day, when Rabbi Shalom Sharabi was on his way to the Beit Midrash, he saw a blind woman, barefoot and dressed in rags, holding the hand of her small daughter. There was heavy rain that day, the street was full of mud, and there were many puddles for the entire length of the street. The Rashash had pity on the woman and on her daughter, and he asked her to come home with him. He removed his cloak and wrapped it around them both, and he took his shoes off and gave them to the woman. And they continued walking in the street, with the rabbi barefoot and wearing only the garment he wore inside his home. When they reached his home, the rabbi gave the woman and her daughterwarm clothing, food, and money. She asked him his name, but he refused to tell her, only saying that he too had once been a poor orphan, and that G-d had helped him, and that he therefore wanted to help her. The woman insisted again on knowing his name, and he told her, "Shalom." But she was persistent, and he finally gave her his full name, "Shalom Sharabi." The woman was shocked to hear who he was, and she started to apologize that because of her this great righteous man was interrupted in his Torah study and that because of her he had gone around outside barefoot and without his cloak. The Rashash calmed her down, saying, "You have done me a great kindness. For years I have been studying Torah, and today I was able to see that my studies were worthy." The woman didn't understand, and the rabbi explained further: "Only a man who knows when to stop studying in order to help another person can be considered one who truly knows how to study."

* * * * * *

This story shows us a scene where the Rashash is on his way to the Beit Middrash, the natural place for him as Rosh Yeshiva. This is where his great spiritual undertaking takes place, where he studies the Torah of mysticism. However, it teaches us that there are times when the spiritual labor takes place while he is on the way, and not only in the Beit Midrash while he is holding a holy book or a Siddur (even if it is the one that he wrote). His labor can consist of helping a poor widow and her orphan daughter who find themselves out in the street on a rainy day. He can be involved not only in exalted spiritual study but also in down-to-earth activity.