Tag Archive for Chanukah

Understanding the enemy mind: Chanukah

March 3, 2016 Uncategorized No comments
This article was constructed with the help of either writings, lectures or shiurim of Rabbi’s Yissachar Frand, Akiva Grunblatt-Rosh Yeshiva Chaffetz Chaim,  Pinchas Winston, Asher Hurzberg, Yitzchak Ginsberg and Dr. Abba Goldman

 
If only Jews, over the course of history, would embrace their culture like they have done with others, they would have been unstoppable. However, they often pledge allegiance to the flag of blah- blah- blah and as a result abandon their own culture leading many of our own to relinquish, their religion. Then, what follows is big time trouble…….It seems like we never learn our lesson.
 The Greeks laid out a not yet Chanukah present:
* The Greeks decreed that they would eradicate: 1) Shabbat, 2) Brit Mila, and 3) Rosh Chodesh from the Jewish faith.
* I can understand Brit Milah and Shabbat, the pillars of Jewish faith, but how did Rosh Chodesh make the top three lists. The Greeks were an intelligent society, a super power and if they choose their battles and strategy a certain way, one can bet their bottom dollar that they knew what they were doing.  Why then, did they believe that Rosh Chodesh was essential in destroying the spirit of the Jews?
*We are judged on every Rosh Chodesh; it’s similar to Rosh Hashana; it’s a renewal. In the recitation of the Ya’aleh V’yavo which is said on Rosh Chodesh there are similar references like we recite in our Rosh Hashana prayers to Zachor- remember, which a primary component in our pursuit for forgiveness is.
*Did you know the Bnei Yissaschar comments that Chanukah is unique among the Jewish holidays in that it is the only holiday that spans two months (Kislev and Tevet). This means that Chanukah always contains a ‘Rosh Chodesh’ [First day of the Month] within it. Why is that?
We always try to find some similarities to the weekly parsha. Strangely? We discovered in this week’s parsha – Miketz something very unique. The Parsha ends but the story doesn’t. It is the only time where one parsha doesn’t finish its story line. A real cliffhanger!! We have to wait till next week to find out what happened to Yosef and his brothers. Tune in next week same bat time, same bat channel. Why the only cliffhanger in the Torah?
Firstly, let’s understand the significance of the candle lighting ceremony.
 The lights of Chanukah are essential for it represents us.  Candle lights are very spiritual. The soul derives joy from the candle’s light, whether dead or alive. As the verse states, “The light of the righteous will rejoice.” How come? The soul is made up of divine light, and it is natural to delight in something that is of a similar makeup. This is the case even though the candle generates mere physical light, whereas the soul’s light is spiritual. For this reason there are special segulot where if one looks at the candles after the brachot they will merit tremendous blessings.
We have said that Chanukah is unique in having a Rosh Chodesh in between. Interestingly, Rosh Chodesh occurs when the moon is not seen; however, we know it’s there. On a similar vein – a Neshama-soul is never distinguished as well. Even though we don’t see it, it only needs to be rekindled for the soul is eternal.  Rosh Chodesh implies renewal (of the moon and of the month). This is the theme of Chanukah — the renewal of the spirit of the Jews.
The Jewish people are compared to the moon — sometimes their fate seems to darken and fade away but we are always confident that it will be renewed in the future. This too is a pattern that sometimes reflects our relationship with the Almighty. There are ups and downs. There are peaks and valleys. It waxes and it wanes. Rosh Chodesh demonstrates that there can be renewal. There can be a new moon. The moon returns. It can get bigger.
This is why Chanukah is connected with Rosh Chodesh. The whole theme of Chanukah is that the Jewish people’s relationship with G-d slackened; but then they came back and the relationship was fully renewed its previous level.
“By seeking to annul the observance of Rosh Chodesh, the Greeks sought to deprive the Jewish people of one of their greatest strengths – the ability to master time by determining the order of the Jewish calendar. The Jewish people, through the Sanhedrin, the Jewish High Court, enjoyed the unique prerogative of proclaiming the new moon and, consequently, the timing of all the festivals. It was this unique ability to master time that the Greeks sought to deny us.
When we bless the new moon, we are transforming a natural occurrence into something much more powerful. We are creating Kedusha, Holiness, in this material world, to create light from darkness. This was something the Greeks could never accept.
 The ramifications of the Greek attempt to destroy Rosh Chodesh would have had a devastating effect on both the spiritual world as well as the everyday mundane life of not just of Jews, but in fact all of  Humanity.
How? One may ask?
 Chanukah always falls out on either our parsha Miketz or last week Vayeshev; sometimes it falls on both.
 We open the parsha where Yosef has been in prison for two years since interpreting the SAR HAMASHKIM- head butler’s dream. Yosef said to the butler after being right on the money in successfully interpreting his dream, “please don’t forget to use your connections in getting me out”. Perhaps, the butler forgot about him or it just wasn’t time. In any case Yosef withered away in jail an additional twenty four months. G-d is in charge of the time clock and when “He is good and ready”, then, it will take place.  Sometimes, we forget.
Anyone who tries to push off the moment will be pushed off by the moment. Anyone who is pushed off because of the moment, the moment will be pushed off for him. (Brochos 64a)
On an everyday level, this means don’t try to bring about desired results prematurely. As the Mishnah says:
Do not be contemptuous of any person, and don’t remove yourself from anything, for every person has his moment and everything has its place. (Pirkei Avos 4:2) which of course is rarely known to us in advance. Hence, it also says:
Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is G-d’s plan that prevails (Mishlei19:21). Patience is definitely a virtue, perhaps the most important one of all. It is amazing how far a little patience or impatience can go to change a moment, a life, lives, or even history. Usually, people are impatient when the moment calls for patience, but sometimes people can be too patient when the moment calls for a little impatience in order to put an early end to what eventually may become a disastrous situation. Everything is timing; even a joke has to be told at the right moment. The punch has to be delivered correctly or there’ll be a dead silence, every comedian’s nightmare.
A Rabbi took over a pulpit position in one of the New York’ communities. One of his congregants kept his store open on Shabbat. The Rabbi approached him and tried to reason that he should close up the shop arguing that there is no bracha -blessing from proceeds obtained on Shabbat. The congregant complained “it’s my busiest day”. After a few months, the Rabbi convinced the congregant that the bracha will come through the other days of the week. Finally, the congregant acquiesced. “Have Faith!!” the Rabbi smiled and said. Months passed by, and on every Friday the congregant would call and complain to the Rabbi that “I’m losing money!! I shouldn’t have listened to you”. Until, one day, the congregant approached the Rabbi and said “you know Rabbi; I received a huge order that made up for all those closed Saturdays”. The Rabbi said to the congregant “you see – it pays to have faith”. The congregant replied with an uncomfortable sigh of relief “yes, yes, G-d is great, however, He’s not very punctual”.
One has to ask: who owns time?
There is a fascinating incident about the famous commentator on the Chumash, the Abarbanel. He was one of the biggest Rabbis of his time. He was also, surprisingly, the finance minister of one of the super power countries of the time, Spain.
 We pray during the high holy days that “All of Israel is judged”. The question is asked, why the verse has to say “all of”. The verse would have been sufficient with “Israel is judged”. The Sages say that it’s coming to add the people who are deceased. How can that be – they have not done any mitzvoth? Once one passes away, he’s done!!
In the late 1400s, the Spanish Inquisition went into effect and the Jews were given the choice: leave, convert or die. Don Yitzchok Abarbanel packed his bags and left.
 In his introduction to one of his books which he wrote later in his life, he says that he regrets ever taking public office. He felt that he could have spent his time learning and teaching Torah. “The reason I stayed in office was to pass legislation to make Jews comfortable while learning Torah and even that didn’t happen”. Well, his wish indeed did happen! It happened 500 years later, though. Abarbanel was the finance minister who was responsible for financing Christopher Columbus’s voyage to America. Apparently, Columbus could not get any financial support from Italy, however, Abarbanel and Spain believed in his cause. The Jews and Torah prospered in the United States. Every time a Jew opens up an Artscroll Gemara in Central Park, Abarbanel gets his percentage of the learning 500 years later! Perhaps, G-d’s not punctual….better late than never!
The sin of the Golden Calf is a sin of a lack of patience. The Jewish People were waiting for Moshe to descend from Mt. Sinai and they thought that his descent had been delayed, “And the people saw that Moshe was late in descending from the mountain and the people crowded around Aaron and said to him, ‘Rise and make a god for us.'” It certainly wasn’t easy to wait for so long. Immediately after the revelation at Mt. Sinai, Moshe ascended the mountain, entered the fog where G-d was, and left us down below in tense expectation. Another day and another day went by, forty days had already passed, and our patience snapped. How much longer could we wait? Even the sages stated (as Rashi quotes) that before his ascent Moshe had told them that he would not return for another forty days. Yet, forty days had already passed and there was no sign of life from Moshe. What would be?
Apparently, G-d wanted to put us to the test of patience.
This was not the first time that a lack of patience had led to tragedy; neither would it be the last. In fact, historical tragedies as a whole seem to be the result of impulsiveness, and if people would just wait a little longer, everything would look completely different.
The first sin in the history of mankind stemmed from a lack of patience. If Adam and Eve had just waited a few more hours, until sunset on Friday evening, and the beginning of the first Shabbat, they would have been permitted to eat the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge. But, it isn’t easy to wait; such a succulent fruit that looks so tempting just asks us to eat it right away; especially when the snake nags us that “nothing will happen.”
Even King David was no exception. The sages state, “Bathsheva was predestined for David, but he ate her unripe [i.e., he took her prematurely].” Instead of waiting patiently for her to be ready for him, like a sweet ripe fruit, he snatched and “ate” her like an unripe fruit and the bitter results speak for themselves.
The Jewish people had a tombustial relationship with The Master of The Universe to say the least. Just in the dessert alone we read parsha after parsha how G-d is angry- Moshe pleads and begs for the Lord to forgive and the cycle begins again.  Unfortunately, we -humans are not perfect and the seesaw relationship is all too common.
 The Jewish people are compared to the moon — sometimes their fate seems to darken and fade away but we are always confident that it will be renewed in the future. This too is a pattern that sometimes reflects our relationship with the Almighty. There are ups and downs. There are peaks and valleys. It waxes and it wanes. Rosh Chodesh demonstrates that there can be renewal. There can be a new moon. The moon returns. It can get bigger.
This is why Chanukah is connected with Rosh Chodesh. The whole theme of Chanukah is that the Jewish people’s relationship with G-d slackened; but then they came back and the relationship was fully renewed its previous level.  Just like the moon will reappear again, G-d will also shower us with happiness and joy. Nevertheless, that time will come when we hang on to our hats and have patience.
The Hebrew word for patience is “savlanut”, which also means “tolerance.” The same root gives rise to words that means “suffer” (sevel) and “burdens” (sivlot). We learn from this that patience is not a necessarily a pleasant experience. We should expect patience to be the hard work; we usually find it to be. That may mean enduring and tolerating, and the experience may even mean bearing a burden.
 If we were dividing up the parshiyos, we would probably not end the parsha in the middle of a story. What is this — a series? “To find out what happened to Binyamin…” Miketz leaves us sitting on the edge of our seats, waiting in anticipation to know the end of the story. Why doesn’t the Torah tell us what happens?
 The answer is that the Torah is teaching us a very important lesson. There are sometimes in life we need to ‘wait until next week’. Sometimes we need to wait until next week and sometimes we need to wait until next year and sometimes we need to wait until the next life. Things do not always become abundantly clear, certainly not instantaneously. That is what this lesson is about. That is why the climax of the story of Yosef and his brothers does not end in Parshas Miketz as it logically should.
 The Torah is sending us a message regarding how to deal with these types of troubles. The answer is that sometimes we have to wait to see how things will resolve

Jewish monarchy

February 11, 2016 Uncategorized No comments

 

This article was constructed with the help of either writings, lectures or shiurim of Rabbi’s  Baruch Dopelt, Yossi Bilius, Pinchas Winston, Asher Hurzberg and Dr. Abba Goldman

In our illustrious glorious past we’ve often yearned for the mashiach.  When we were in grade school we had to recite that “we believe whole heartedly that Mashiach is coming”. Mashiach this and Mashiach that. There have been many songs sung, manypsalms read, There even was a period where many of our people were killed for they thought that time had come and were careless, where they’re usually very careful,  in dealing with  gentiles arousing their  hostility and Anti-Semitism only to be disappointed with a false prophet.
 How ironic it is then, the proud Jews that we are, with our glorious past, the beautiful temple both past and future, that the Mashiach signs in through an undignified manor. We would never write a Hollywood script like this. Here, there is no poor or rich young couple who loves each other, have a baby (Mashiach), is allergic to kryptonite, and can’t keep him etc. It’s quite different script. One cannot complain “this movie is predictable -same formula”.
 Let us take a look at the relevant places in the Torah and perhaps, dig deep, learn some insights into the mashiach
This is where the Jewish monarch and the  Mashiach comes from……..
         Uncharacistaly, Yehuda, leader of the tribes visits  a prostitute, who is his daughter-in law in disguise. The Sages, say that the cohabitation of Yehuda, Tamar, his daughter in law, resulted in the inception of the Mashiach……Go Figure!! (Please see highlight section for full synopsis)
  One may ask, how can the Mashiach come in such a degrading way?
Wait there is more!
        *The seed of the Mashiach was also implanted in a bazar way by Lott,  Avrahams nephew, After the destruction of Sedom, Lott’s two surviving daughters believed that the world was destroyed. They devised a plan to seduce their father on back to back consecutive nights after getting him drunk where they will procreate and populate the world once again. Ruth, is a descendant of this union The oldest son/grandchild Moav is where Ruth, the grandmother of king David, comes from.
        * Boaz, a widower,  a leader and descendant  of the tribe of Yehudah marries Ruth, the convert, a widow herself to the childless son of Elimelech, a descendant of Yehuda as well.  The courtship was strange, Ruth appear that night on the threshing floor  to be as close as possible to the fields at a critical time in the harvest. Niomi, her mother in law, instructs Ruth to uncover Boaz’s feet so as to wake him and set the process of “yibum” in motion. Pretty odd isn’t it. The union between Boaz and Ruth was in question for A Israelite is forbidden to marry from Moav. Boaz died the next morning after their wedding night and Ruth gave up her child to Niomi to raise.
         *King David marries Bat-Sheva in one of the most controversial union in our history. Did he usher Bat Sheva’s husband to the battlefield in what was presumably a death wish? The marriage between David and Bat-Sheva produced King Shlomo
This is our royal past?
 In our current mindset or Western mentality we, perhaps, will entertain the thought of the Mashiach having that kind of introduction for  we have grown accustom to a very promiscuous nature. The media has etched in our minds the kind of sexual provocation daily. Car commercials, game shows and even real estate ads come with a door prize and a smiley attractive female or male model. Television, no matter how PG it is full of sexual innuendos. Let’s not forget the advancement of the internet….GOODNESS GRACIOUS!!
 Furthermore, as we Jews moved around the world we are constantly reminded through our neighbors about their immodest appetite way of life. We were the only Jews living on the block, in my childhood home in Rego Park. It was a predominantly Irish neighborhood and it was difficult to stay focused even as a very young Yeshiva grade school student with the immodest dress of my non-Jewish neighbors. What’s an orthodox boy doing living in this part of the world?
Interestingly, if one notices our biggest test growing up before entering our young adult, where then we are introduced to inflated egos, pursuit of money, keeping religion, is to watch our brit. There is a tremendous insurgence or wave of desire where hormones are flying uncontrollably when entering the teenage years.
This is our mundane life of today where the western culture has a tremendous influence. However, why has the Torah have to introduce the Jewish monarch and future Mashiash in a degrading way. Golden Yerushalayim and its purity should be left alone. Why drag it to such shmutz?
Furthermore, why is the topic of Erva-  promiscuity associated with the kingdom. Why not murder? Jealousy?
Lets examine an aspect of brit milah where then perhaps we might understand the topic of mashiach a little more clearer.
  Adam HaRishon was created circumcised, as it says, “God created man in His image …” (Bereishis 2:5). Avot d’Rav Nossan 2:5
Rav Yitzchak said, [Adam] caused his foreskin to be extended [and cover his circumcision]. Sanhedrin 38b
Interestingly, this is what the Greek Jews were a custom to do in the time of Chanukah. They were ashamed that they were different then the Goyim. The sexual revolution was influencing the world….sounds familiar. It was custom to remove your cloths entirely in many social functions. The Greeks believed in exposing the beautiful body. However the Jews, because of their brit had a different look, were ashamed.
The Greeks put a spiritual barrier between the Jews and their G-d. In Hebrew the growth of foreskin is called  Orlah. This was the  mistake of Adam. For, whether we are talking about “Orlat HaLeiv” (uncircumcised heart), “Orel S’fataim “(uncircumcised lips), or “Orlah” from a tree (fruits of the third year), the word Orlah always implies a spiritual “barrier” between man and God which has to be removed.
There are two aspects of the mitzvah referred to in the verse. Firstly, Milah is a sign of the covenant between Avraham and God; secondly, Milah is to take place on the eighth day from birth. We should take note of the point in the Parsha at which the Mitzvah is commanded after Avraham’s successful routing of the Canaanite kings. It’s no coincident that saving Lott, his nephew, who holds the seed for part of the Mashiach, is a precursor for brit milah.
 When Avraham  placed his faith in G-d for his physical sustenance, he demonstrated his unwavering commitment to live above nature. As a result, he was provided with the means to remove all the Orlos Adam’s mistake had brought to mankind. This is the Bris Milah which is performed on the eighth day (eight always symbolizes the spiritual, supernatural realm, as we see through Chanukah as well).
Why was Bris Milah so important to history? As the following reveals, it is the source of Malchut (of kingship), and therefore, the Final Redemption.
And Yosef said to his brothers, ” ‘Please come near to me,’ and they came near to him and he said . . .” (Bereishis 45:4). Why did he call them if they were already next to him? Because when he told them, “I am Yosef your brother” (Ibid.), they were in shock to see his royal position. He told them that his royalty was a direct result of this. (Zohar 1:93b)
What was Yosef referring to? The Zohar explains:
” ‘Please come near to me,’ and they came near to him”: He showed them that he upheld Bris Milah, saying, “By keeping this intact, I was able to attain royal status.” From here we learn that whomever keeps this sign intact will merit royalty. (Ibid.)
In other words, Yosef was saying that his royal status had been conferred upon him by Heaven for having resisted the advances of his master’s wife, Aishet Potiphar. Such intimacy would have been forbidden to him, and though he had been tempted at the time, in the end he had overcome his yetzer hara and had run out of the house, risking her vicious retribution that followed.
However, the Zohar is not finished yet, and backs up its statement with the following:
From where else do we know this? From Boaz, as it says, “As Hashem lives, lie down until the morning” (Rus3:13). His evil inclination was enticing him, so he made this oath to keep his bris intact. (Ibid.)
In other words, while he was secluded with Ruth, he desired her then. However, intimacy with her then was improper, and therefore he made the oath to safeguard himself against a sinful relationship. If she was to be his wife, Boaz reasoned with himself, it had to be after all the halachic conditions had been satisfied. Thus the Zohar concludes:
The world is called an OLAM. Interestingly OLAM means hidden. What is hidden? G-d is hidden and he is hidden throughout the world. Interestingly the more we do G-d’s commandments the more vision and clear the world looks.
This OLAM is like a game. A game similar to “Wheel of Fortune”, where one has to turn over the puzzle board and therefore making the entire board clearer. The board is pretty large it encompasses the entire world.   The mission of the Jewish people over the last 3,300 years, the Jewish role in history and the essence of the concept of the Chosen People – a people chosen for the responsibility of teaching the world about one God and absolute morality. But there is much left to do before the vision the Jewish people saw at Mount Sinai becomes a world reality. The Jews have always believed that they have a key role to play in bringing this vision to fruition. We are to create a society based on a God-given standard of morality that will serve as the model for the rest of humanity to emulate – to be “a light unto the nations.”
When we look back on the vast sweep of the last four thousand years we see how significantly the Jewish people have directly and indirectly affected humanity.
The Jewish monarch represents the Jewish people. He rules with justice and mercy. It’s his mission to guide and to turn over the most impure  part of life and manifest it to a source of kedusha. G-d chose the very organ that is the source of life, which can also be chosen to use for the basest acts, as the site to be sanctified with circumcision. This gives us the profound message that we can use every physical drive for holy purposes.
 Chanukah always falls out during this time of the year where days are short and nights are at its longest. It is our mission to light the candles, to bring light in to the darkness, to see things more clear, to flip the puzzle board, to transform an illicit moment to the spiritual.
Interestingly the menorah is lit by Jews in public showcase all over the world….may we, the chosen people continue to make this world more clear.

Money makes the world go round

July 3, 2015 Uncategorized No comments
This article was constructed with the help of either writings, lectures or shiurim of Rabbi’s Akiva Grunblatt Rosh Yeshiva Yeshivat Chaffetz Chaim,  Yissachar frand
There is an age-old question that has been haunting us Jews forever: Why do tzadikim have to go through hardship in this world? Why doesn’t G-d give a ‘special tzadikim credit card’ to spend on things such as yeshiva tuition, preparing for Shabbat, etc.? The financial pressures are tremendous. Many can’t meet these expectations, often saying, “Always live within your income, even if you have to borrow money to do so”. Perhaps for this reason, people turn for help. It’s interesting how many people become observant due to challenges that they’ve experienced in life. Why is it human nature to turn to G-d when going through troublesome times? We rarely see a “rags to riches” guy turn to G-d. The story always mimics the following pattern: A boy from a poor family starts a business or gets an education, working hard to climb the ladder of success. There never seems to be a religion attached to the story. He’s not learning Gemara as he climbing up the ladder of success. Furthermore the “success story individual”, for the most part, flirts with the notion of rebelling against G-d, arrogantly claiming that religion is a nice concept but very remote to his high end lifestyle. “I’ll contact a Rabbi for the bar mitzvah of my children; but the buck stops there!”

It is known that high-end lottery winners often ruin their lives as a result of amassing a large amount of money in such a short period of time. On a similar note, our Sages say that there is a pattern in our scriptures as to how some Jews and non-Jews handle success. G-d gave abundance of wealth to Avraham, who personifies the rags to riches story. In turn, Moshe and Chizkiyahu approached life with modesty and appreciation. However, they were a part of the precious few. For the most part, man doesn’t handle wealth very well. Examples are given of famous Gentiles like Nimrod, and Pharaohs who have taken the gift and, seemingly shoved it in G-d’s face.

Money makes the world go round…..

In this week’s parsha we read about a Korach, a unique Jewish individual from a prominent family who was considered the richest man of his generation. He was accumulated a lot of wealth from the booty left on the shores of the sea after the waters went back from the miracle of splitting the sea. At times, money leads to power. However, Korach was frustrated that he wasn’t able to achieve that status even with all his accumulated wealth. His wealth brought him arrogance, where he thought he deserved the world and a backbone to complain and rebel.
Wealth is seductive and tends to bring out the conceit in human nature. The Chovot Halevavot, in The Gate of Humility, one of the major works in the literary Jewish world, tells us that wealth is a greater test than poverty.

Our Sages comment on the verse “And behold, a ladder was standing on the ground, and its top reached the Heavens” [Bereshis 28:12] referring to the famous dream our forefather Yaakov had. It was a significant prophetic message to Yaakov’s descendants. In the dream, there were angels going up the ladder and there were angels going down the ladder. G-d showed Yaakov two individuals: Korach (who was swallowed up by the ground) and Moshe (who ascended up to the Heaven).

…..world go round

Why are Korach and Moshe hinted to by the ladder? There is a very interesting Ba’al HaTurim (commentary on the Torah) referring to that famous verse. The Ba’al HaTurim says that the numerical [“Gematria”] value of the word ladder (samech-vov-lamed-mem) [60+6+30+40=136] is equal to the numerical value of the word money (mem-mem-vov-nun) [40+40+6+50=136], and it is also equal to the numerical value of the word poverty (ayin-vov-nun-yud) [70+6+50+10=136].

A ladder can be used as a parable for money. Just as a ladder can be used to climb to great heights or descend to the depths, so is the case with money. A person can be blessed with money, do the right things with money, and go up the ladder. On the other hand, money corrupts. Money can be a terribly destructive force.

……world go round

There is no coincidence of the timing of Yaacov’s dream. Soon after he met his father in law, the wicket Lavan, who had a plan. By having Yaakov work for fourteen years for his wives, and by subsequently promising him wealth and continually changing his compensation, Lavan hoped his ultra-orthodox son-in-law would trade the soul for the silver spoon. That his mind would become so preoccupied with making a living that he’d forget his desire for the spiritual, his taste for the refined having been congested and clogged by the crude trappings of material success.

The Aramaean tried to destroy my desire. The word avi – my father – can also mean ‘my desire.’ The Lavan’s of the world are always there to seduce us with their promises of wealth, fame, and happiness. “All it takes is hard work,” they say. And maybe they really will make us rich – but at what price?

Many people have the custom, on Motzaei Shabbat [Saturday night], to sing a beautiful Pizmon [poem] which begins with the words “HaMavdil bein Kodesh L’chol, chatoteinu Hu yimchol” — He who distinguishes between that which is holy and that which is not holy, He will forgive our sins. These are beautiful words. Interestingly, the words can be quite appalling. The poem says that we sin because we do not appreciate the difference between that which is Sacred and that which is mundane. We spend our time and efforts on foolishness. We do not know what is Kodesh and what is Chol. We ask G-d, Who has the ability to distinguish between Kodesh and Chol, to please forgive our sins.
(The Lubliner Rav, Rav Meir Shapiro, once said about American Jews that they know how to make Kiddush, but they don’t know how to make Havdalah. In other words, they put the wrong emphasis on things. That which is holy, they treat lightly, and that which is really unessential, they make holy. They do not know how to differentiate.)

………..Money Money Money Money
What is the next line of the Pizmon? “zareinu v’chaspeinu yarbeh k’chol,” which means: “May our children and our money increase like the sand.” This, in and of itself — the lumping of children and money in the same breath — would be difficult to comprehend. But, moreover, we just finished saying that we are inadequate for not being able to distinguish between Holy and mundane, and now we go ahead and make the same mistake all over again — equating that which is Holy (children) with that which is mundane (money)!

In the beginning of laws of Chanukah [3:1], The Ramba”m says, “In the time of the Second Temple, the Greek Government made decrees against Israel and tried to abolish their religion. They did not permit them to learn Torah or perform the mitzvos, and they sent forth their hands against their property and their daughters.”

Let us consider this list: They nullified our religion, they did not let us learn, they did not permit us do mitzvot, they took away our daughters, and they took away… our money. Money may be important, but should it be listed in the same breath with the others? Should the Ramba”m be equating taking our money with taking our daughters (and not only that, but the Ramba”m mentions money first!)?
How are we to understand this statement of the Ramba”m?

Rabbi Yissachar Frand quotas Rav Shimon Schwab who offers a beautiful insight, both in the Ramba”m and in the Pizmon. Rav Schwab says that what the Ramba”m means by saying the Greeks took away our money and our daughters, is that the Greeks knew how to destroy us. If we are to succeed with our children and with our religion, we need money. In order to have Yeshivot, shuls, a community, one needs money. Money is a wonderful thing. Let’s not kid ourselves. We can do tremendous things with money. We cannot exist without money.

But money corrupts, sometimes… most of the time. However, money, in and of itself, can be the greatest tool that there is. Our Sages say that when G-d showed Moshe our leader, who guided us out of Egypt, a Half-Shekel coin, He showed Moshe a ‘coin of fire.’ The reason is because that is what money is. Money can be terribly destructive, like a fire. But where would we be without fire? No heat, no light, nothing.

Money is the same way. If one handles it right, it can save him. If one handles it wrong, it can destroy him.

This, the Ramba”m says, is what the Greeks understood. When they wanted to take out the foundations of the Jewish people, they sent forth their hands against their money and their daughters. Take away their money. Don’t let them have Yeshivas, don’t let them have Torah educators. That is how the Jewish People will be destroyed. The Ramba”m has his priorities very straight. The Greeks knew how to wage a war.

Rav Schwab says that this too, is what we say on Motzaei Shabbot: If we want to be successful with our children, then we also need ‘our money (to) increase like sand.’

Imagine! Money like sand, unlimited funds! Consider what that would mean. We could pay educators, instead of their current low rate salary, more sponsors for “Cup of Coffee weekly periodicals — one-half, one-third, or one-quarter of what the lawyers and the doctors are earning – an amount that they truly deserve.

Imagine if we could pay our teachers top dollar. What would the face of Torah education in America look like if we had unlimited resources and could pay top dollar? What would be if we could drop the class ratio from one teacher per 25 kids, to one teacher per 15 kids?

What about the children that need extra help? For those children, we could even have one teacher for every two children. It wouldn’t matter if that would require an extra salary! We could do amazing things. The Jewish People would be a different Jewish People if our children and our money were ‘increased like the sand.’

That is the prayer. We know what is holy and sacred and we know what is mundane and profane… and we know what money can do. We can do the right things with money. We can change the Jewish People with money. We pray that we have ‘children and money like sand’ to accomplish wonderful things for the Jewish people.

However lets not forget the pitfalls of money and how the Sages equate it to quicksand. If one has a hundred he wants two hundred. Lets not forget what our wise Sages said about it being the bigger test between rich and poor. For this reason the tzadikim go through hardship because there would be much less of them if they had the excess money.G-d is doing them a favor!!

Rav Yehuda Hanasi, who was the aurther of the prestigious Mishna, who also happened to be one of the riches man of his generation, always gave wealthy Jews the utmost respect. He said if one is wealthy and he still follows the Torah to the letter of the law, therefore not succumbing to temptation and arrogance then I tip my hat to them. They have passed a tremendous test and will have a special place in the heavens.

When the dreamer collides with the realist….BOOM!!!

December 16, 2014 Chanuka, Uncategorized No comments
This article was constructed with the help of either writings, lectures or shiurim of Rabbi’s , Berril Wein, Yissachar Frand Noach Isaac Oelbaum, Yossi Bilus, and Dr. Abba Goldman
Boro Park 1963 and Alexanders on Queens Blvd where many of our mothers shoped

My parents immigrated, from Israel, to this great big country in 1960. They had hopes and dreams like many settlers who stepped on American soil. My father, whose dream of coming to the United States ever since he was a teenager, was so disappointed after the first three months of arriving, he wanted to go back. However, my mother firmly objected, stating “we are here and we’ll make the best of it”. Their sleeping arrangement was quite difficult back then; they used the living room drapes to cover themselves in the Boro Park apartment shared by relatives; my father slept on the floor while my mother slept on the couch. Money did not grow on the trees as it was thought and they struggled mightily in the early years.

There is a photo, which I recall, in my parents pictures archives, where they were sitting in the living room with our basement tenant, a single guy from Israel, a very recent immigrant, in our Rego Park home in the early 60’s. It seamed they were all excited, full of energy; they were hungry, eager, full of hope, to sink their teeth into the American workforce. My parents and their friends, who came around the same time, like many wanted to express to their loved ones, back home, that they made it!!; they were successful in the land of opportunity.


In this week’s parsha we learn a very valuable lesson about life. It becomes evident from the beginning that there is a clear difference between Yosef and his brothers. Yosef is the classic dreamer, his head in the stars and his youthful high spirits and certainty in the truthful outcome of his dreams becomes very irritating to his siblings. The brothers, on the other hand, have their feet firmly implanted on the ground, in the reality of the world in which they exist.

Yosef feels the brothers have been unjust for rejecting his dreams immediately and they in turn are convinced that he and his dreaming constitute a veritable danger to the unity and survival of Yaakov’s family.

By carefully analyzing the conflict between Yosef and his brothers, and for the most part, Yehuda, since he’s the leader, the underlying message is the difference of inspirational theory of Judaism and it’s sometimes day to day practice of practical reality – of what can be achieved even though it is not exactly what one dreamt of achieving. Although it presents itself as two separate entities, Yosef and his brothers, it is our utmost responsibility to combine both.

The Jewish people in its long and difficult history have somehow been able to fuse together the spirit and dreams of Yosef with the hardheaded realism of his brothers. Both traits are necessary for our survival and accomplishments, both as individuals and as a nation. Someone without dreams and ambition, who refuses to reach heavenward and conquer the stars, will never be a truly creative or original person. However, if this drive is not tempered by a realistic sense of the situation and the society that surrounds us, then all dreams are doomed to eventually disappoint.

Our celebration this week of the holiday of Chanukah is based on the kindness of G-d for performing the great miracles on his chosen people. However, it’s vital that we should not rely on miracles; one cannot sit back expect G-d to deliver; one has to put effort; it’s quite important that one has to use brains; he has to be clever to handle any situations that’s presented. If after all the efforts are exhausted then and only then may he turn to G-d.

The Macabees were a small band of untrained individuals, clearly the underdogs, with the dream of beating the most powerful nation in the world. They had the hope, the dream, the drive of Yosef combining the ingenuity and practicality of Yehuda and the brothers. The Macabees found a method where they were able to inflict a wound under the elephant, the Greeks most powerful and deadly weapon. There is a soft spot in the location of the elephant, where the Jewish warriors were able to inflict a devastating knife wound. Although, one of Matityahu’s (the Jewish leader) sons was killed in an attempt, the huge animal trampled him. The experience, although at a terrible price, had enabled them to refine the method of attack. The motivation and dream of regaining the holy Temple with the ingenuity of finding the right clever warfare approach led to the Jewish victory. It’s incredible!! The Macabees subdued the greatest empire in the world. This band of Kohanim organized an effective military.

 

A VISION OF YOSEF IS IMPLANTED

In the Shabbat morning Amida (Shemoneh Esrei) we read “YISMACH MOSHE BEH MATANAT CHELKO”, Moshe was happy. What exactly Moshe was happy about?

It says in tractate Baba Kama(10:2) that G-d was speaking to Moshe and said ” I have a present in my secret chamber and it is Shabbat, and I want to give it to the Jewish people. So please, Moshe, go and bring the good news to them”. It was for this reason that “Yismach Moshe”, that Moshe was ecstatic to be the one to deliver the news.

When the Jews were in Egypt, Moshe saw how torturously overworked they were, so he convinced Pharaoh to give them one day off to rest. He reasoned that ” if one wants to maximize the production of his workers, one has to give them a day of rest. That day was the seventh day, Shabbat. Therefore, Moshe was happy.

This day, Shabbat, which Pharaoh gave them to rest, was a very significant day for them in the spiritual growth and hope for the redemption. They would congregate and read from Megilot (scripts) about how G-d was going to redeem them; it was a very inspirational day. It gave them a vision for the future. However, when Pharaoh discovered what was being conducted on these Shabbat gatherings (not sure if Cholent was served!!) he discontinued them. After this disclosure, he made them work double on Shabbat with no straw to work with.

But it was too late; the seed was planted. The Jews in Egypt now saw beyond the bricks and straws. They saw the future, a bright one. This was due to the ability to hope. The Yosef in each Jew began to flourish.

 

YOSEF AND YEHUDA

This story of Yosef and his brothers, particularly the roles of Yosef and Yehuda, does not end with the narrative of the Torah here in Bereshit. In later Jewish history, after the death of King Shlomo, the Jewish nation is split into two sections – the kingdom of Israel (Yosef) and the kingdom of Yehuda (the house of David.) Thus the competition between the two leading sons of Yakov’s family, Yehuda and Yosef, survived centuries of attempted unity. And the eventual result of this split within the Jewish nation was disaster for both sections of that nation. Both sections of the nation were weakened.

The Rabbis of the Talmud divided the Messiah himself into two personages – Moshiach ben Yosef and Moshiach ben Dovid (a descendant of the tribe of Yehuda.) The former was to pave the way for the latter, but both were part of the envisioned messianic process. Apparently, Jewish redemption and fulfillment is dependent on both Yosef and Yehuda and is destined to realization only if both are full participants in the process.

Yosef remains a holy Jew, in spite of his being exposed to the decadence of the prevailing Egyptian culture. He is an integral part of the Egyptian court and world, but he really is only an outsider looking in and not really desirous of “belonging” to the culture that surrounds him. Yosef is the model for the Jew who is successful in the general world but doggedly determined to remain faithful to his own soul, tradition and destiny as a son of Yakov. Yehuda is much more cautious and conservative. He has seen the outside world, the general society and is frightened to become part of it. Yehuda has lost sons, has suffered tragedy and disappointment, has made errors and risen from sin, and is willing to sacrifice all to remain Jewish and save other Jews. Yehuda does not wish to be Yosef. He sees Yosef’s way as being too dangerous, too risky – certainly for the masses of Israel. Yosef, on the other hand, cannot see a future for Israel if it is completely isolated from the general society, of which it is a part, no matter what Israel’s preference in the matter may be.
Yosef takes the risks and is successful in maintaining his Jewishness and in raising holy children and grandchildren, in the midst of the squalor of Egyptian culture. But Yehuda is also successful in his way and Yosef and Yehuda therefore march in lock step throughout Jewish history. They remain competitors and sometimes they have harsh things to say to and about each other and their different paths. But in the end, they are both the pillars of Jewish survival and society. They complement each other even if many times they do not utter compliments about each other. They are partners in the messianic and redemptive historical process of Jewish history. They are both still here with us today in our own personal and national struggle to build a Torah nation and a good world. We should appreciate their presence and influence upon us.

That generation of builders, our parents, are now the great grandparents of today’s young. What were the results of their dreams?

If the achievements of the dreams and hope of Yosef were planted with the skillful practicality of Yehuda, there is a good chance that success was imminent. As Theodore Roosevelt said “I want men to fix their eyes on the stars, but they must not forget to feel the ground on which they walk”

After World War II, the future Rosh Yeshiva (headmaster) of the Ponevezh Yeshiva, one of the largest Yeshiva in the world today, Rabbi Yosef Kahaneman, was quoted as saying , as he stood on a hill where the future yeshiva stands overlooking Bnai Brak Israel, “I am going to build B’H a tremendous Yeshiva”. He was told “you must be dreaming”. He answered back “I’m dreaming, however I’m not sleeping”.” One has to work on his dreams in order to be successful!!!”