Parshas Mishpotim

Hashem told Moshe to explain the laws of this week’s Parsha “Like a set table”. (Rashi)
My brother (SEB [beshaim R' Grossman]) once told me a beautiful explanation. What one can prepare to eat depends on what utensils he has with him. If he has a knife he can make himself a sandwich, if he has a flame to cook with- more can be prepared, a full oven even more etc. But if one comes to a wedding hall and sits down in his seat and before him the table is laid with three types of forks, three spoons, two knives and three glasses- he knows that whatever they bring out of the kitchen, he’ll be prepared and ready to eat. Rashi is telling us how to teach and give over Torah and Yiddishkiet. For the giving over of Torah teaching is not enough, one must give over a way of life and prepare the student so that whatever comes his way he will be ready with all tools at his disposal.

Story Time

Rabbi Friefeld in his older years was going to the Doctor. Being that he was weak, he was debating if he should get dressed- after all he was a Rosh Yeshiva or he should go in pajamas. He decided on getting dressed but did not put on shoes but rather went in slippers. A talmid asked him what made him decide on his choice of footwear. He answered that he felt that it would not be respectful to his talmidim if their Rebbi was seen in pajamas and a robe. But being that he couldn't tie his shoes it would be disrespectful to his Rebbitzin to have her tie it for him, so he decided to wear slippers.

Rav Shamson Raphael Hirsch Zt"l

I would like to share a thought from Reb. Shamson Raphael Hirsch zt"l- who's yahrtziet is this Shabbos, the 27th of Tevas.
"Other nations habitually are described by the picture of an animal, Yisroel is pictured preferably as a tree. An animal can be killed with a single pressure of the trigger- finger or a single stab of the dagger. But a tree reproduces with every part- the possibility of the continuance of life of the whole. Even if the root is severed, a branch, a twig, a bud, a germ is often sufficient to reinstate the destroyed plant, and save its continued existence" (Shemos 3;18)
The best way to learn about a Gadol and what he stood for is to learn his Torah. In this small piece we see all that Rabbinner Hirsch went through in his life as Rav in Frankfurt. He came to town with all but a small bud left of a tree which was once from the nicest kehillahs in Europe and revived and nurtured it back to its old glory. While leaving all of Klal Yisroel with his eye opening and bright writings. Yehai zichro boroch.

Parshas Shemos

Chazal tell us that Avraham asked Hashem (Brieshes 15;8) “Bameh aidah”- How will I know that my descendents will inherit me? To which he was answered- seemingly as a punishment- “Yoda tiedah” You shall know that your descendants will have to endure 400 years of exile and suffering. The Masai Hashem (the rebbi of the Alshach and Baal Lecha Dodi) explains that the golous Mitzraim wasn’t a punishment but rather Hashem answered Avrahams question. The very first Rashi in the Torah teaches us that Klal Yisroel having the Torah proves that Eretz Yisroel rightfully belongs to us and we didn’t just go to war and kick the Cnanim out of their land. The Torah is like our receipt that we were righteously given the land as an inheritance. Avraham fully believed in Hashem that he’ll have a son, he just wanted that when the nations of the world should realize that Eretz Yisroel belonged to him. He wanted Hashem to give him the Torah- the deed to Eretz Yisroel right then. To which Hashem told him- not as a punishment but rather as an explanation, three things are only acquired through hardships Eretz Yisroel, Torah and the world to come. In order for your descendants to receive the Torah, and with that Eretz Yisroel they will first have to endure the hardships of a exile, be redeemed and be created by Hashem as a nation. The golous is just the path we must embark on, in order to get to the geulah.

P.s. excuse the grammer, spelling its close to shabbos, sorry. Shabbos Shalom!

Chanukah

In ‘Al hanissim’ we thank Hashem for delivering “The strong in the hand of the weak, the many in the hands of the few, the impure in the hands of the pure, the wicked in the hands of the righteous…” The meforshim ask, the miracle of strong and many in the hands of the few and weak is a miracle worth mentioning, but what is the big deal if the victors happened to have been pure and righteous - that doesn’t make the miracle any bigger, so why mention it in the tefilah?

The miracle of Chanukah was twofold, one, Klal Yisroel defeated the mighty Greek empire. “The many in the hands of the few, strong in the hands of the weak…” The second miracle was that the oil that was enough to last one day lasted for eight. Yet we only commemorate the miracle of the oil and not our victory at war.
There are two different types of miracle, one is that we do some kind of hishtadlus- effort however small and Hashem ‘helps us’. Then there is a miracle where we just sit back and leave it up to Hashem to take care of us and our needs. Chanukah has both aspects. The Chashmonaim went out battle physically- even though they were heavily outnumbered they did what they were able and Hashem helped them out. (As opposed to Purim when all Klal Yisroel did was daven.) The miracle of the oil on the other hand was purely by Hashem from start to end.
The Chachomim of the time foresaw that if they institute a commemoration for the miracle, later generations would come and make the mistake and celebrate the unlikely victory and forget what it stood for and that it was all from Hashem. (As can be seen in modern day Israel every sports team is named Macabee.) Instead they gave us the miracle of the oil lasting for eight days as a miracle to celebrate and commemorate. A miracle that we will never be able to take credit, and all generations will thank Hashem.

Maybe we can suggest that is why we mention that the victors of Chanukah were pure and righteous, to remind us in later generations that the war wasn’t fought for our own political benefits and wasn’t won through our involvement. Only we fought for Hashems greatness and only because of him did we defeat the mighty and impure Greeks.

Parshas Vayishlach

As Yaakov was in battle with the angel, the malach said, “Let me go for it's morning" Chazal tell us that he meant that 'it's time for me to sing shira to Hashem'.
The Koshnitzer Maggid asks - If he knew that he has to sing shira at a appointed time why did he pick a fight with Yaakov so close to that time? Wouldn’t it have been smarter for him to fight with Yaakov after he sang shira?
The answer lies in the understanding of who the angel was and what his tachlis- purpose on this world. Chazal teach us that the angel was the 'sar shel Esav' also known as the yetzer horah.
On the last day of creation it says, (bereishes 1;31) "Hashem saw all that he had made, and lo! It was very good." The medrish explains that 'It was good' refers to the yetzer tov, while the 'very good' refers to the yetzer horah. The meforshim explain that life would be nice and calm without an evil inclination, but without any tests we wouldn't be able to grow. Being challenged by the yetzer horah and overcoming it is what makes this world 'very good'. The whole purpose of creation in general and the evil inclination in particular is to help us grow by overcoming the obstacles we are faced with and when we do, the evil inclination has accomplished it's purpose of creation.
Shira is sang to Hakodosh borech hu when a mission has been accomplished. The precise second that the angel saw that he could not win over Yaakov, that in fact Yaakov had overcome the yetzer horah his mission was completed successfully and thus was able to sing shira to Hashem.

Parshas Vayietzai Ponderable Points

Why is it important for the Torah to tell us the give and take between Yakoov and the shepherds about the rock on top of the well and that Yakoov (The 'ish tam') was able to roll it off himself?

Why did Yakoov offer to work for seven years?
(In the Torah we find we find the concept of working for six- days, years and resting the seventh. Shabbos, Shmitta and eved evrey)

Is there a significance that all the Shvotim where named by their mothers? (With the exception of Levi)

How come Yakoov left Lavans house before his mother called for him, as she said she will?

Parshas Toldas- Yitzchok

As we learn the Parshas of Yitzchok we realize that there isn't much to say about him as an individual. We see him at the Akaidah which the Torah credits his father, Avrohom with. We don't learn anything about him when his mother died. His marriage is arranged by Avrohom and his servant Eliezer. Even the brochos that he received- and passed down to Yakoov, were just the brochos of Avraham. Yet there are things that about Avraham that aren't known until the Torah tells it to us by Yitzchok. We don't know anything special about Sarahs tent or about the wells that Avraham dug and there names, until we learn that Yitzchok took the same steps as his father.

All three Avos had a certain middah that they perfected and found Hashem with. Avraham was the amud hachesed- always giving, and revealed Hashem to the world as the ultimate giver. All that Avraham gave, was just to get the people to come to the realization that everything is from Hashem. The Medrash relates that when a weary traveler would come to Avraham he would be served the best food and drink one could find. When it came time to pay Avraham would charge an rbitant amount of money. The only way to bargain with him was if you thanked Hashem and benched. If you realized that it wasn’t Avraham giving you the food, only Hashem then you didn’t owe him a dime. We see that all the chesed Avraham did was to spread the knowledge of the ultimate chesed provider, Hashem.

Yitzchok’s middah was gevurah- strength, being able to withstand anything that you are faced with. When showered by Hashem with chesed too much can be detrimental. Yitzchak was able to filter the chesed, to take and utilize what was necessary and deflect what wasn’t.
While the trait of chesed is to be the giver, gevurah is to be the taker. One has to be able to to receive the chesed from Hashem and when the time comes have the strength to say, enough of chesed. This can be explained with a parable. A fruit tree that grows has nutrients flowing from the roots into the fruits it bears. The nutrients are the chesed, the flowing of good- while the recipient is the fruit it self. Have you ever seen a fruit that stays on the tree to long? It bursts. Gevurah is needed to receive and at the same time say stop enough of the bracha, anymore will be harmful.

Elokai Avraham is the infinite giver. Elokai Yitchok is the one that helps us get the bracha and make it usable for each one of us the right amount we need and can handle. (Mi sheomar leolamo dai- Hashem told the creation to stop, enough bracha, without that gevurah the world would be a jumble of chesed with no form.)

Yitzchok with his gevurah doesn’t have anything on his own for everything originates from Avraham and chesed. Yitzchok is just the reflection of Hashems good. Taking the chesed that was revealed to the world through Avraham and showing that Hashem in his infinite wisdom knows exactly how much kindness is needed. Yet the bracha of Avraham is only potential for it didn’t have a form. The bracha of Sarahs tent and that of Avrahams wells weren’t realize until Yitzchok came along and gave it its life.

Parshas Chai Sorah

Every Shemonah Esrai starts with praise for Hashem, we praise him for being the one that runs the world. We start off by saying 'Elokai Avraham’- the G-d of our forefather Avraham. This doesn't seem like an appropriate way to praise an omnipotent g-d- one that rules every being, that he's the G-d of one person or even three individuals- Avraham Yitzchak and Yakoov. Wouldn’t it be a bigger praise just to say our G-d and the G-d of the universe? Why do we individualize him as being the ruler of our forefathers?

When Avraham sends Eliezer to find a wife for Yitzchak, he makes him swear in the name of the "G-d of heaven and the G-d of the earth” that he shall not take a wife for Yitzchok form the daughters of Canaan. While a few pesukim later he says "Hashem the G-d of the heaven, who took me from my fathers land..." and fails to mention the fact that Hashem is the G-d of the earth. Rashi explains that Avraham said that when I left Charan it was only G-d of the heaven for nobody knew of him but now I can say G-d of the land also, for I spread his glory and people know of him.
This sounds astonishing, wasn't Hashem always the creature of heaven and earth? What changed after Avraham spread the word and knowledge of Hashem that only after that was he G-d of the land?
Reb Yitzchak Hutner in a letter in reference to, establishing a day to commemorate the Holocaust. He writes that wherever there is a Jew in this world, there is a witness of Hashem. Every Yid is a resting place for the Shchina. Hashem choose to manifest his glory in the very soul of each and every Jew. A Yid not just symbolizes that there is a G-d but rather is a actual “dira betachtonim”- a house for the presence of Hashem, down on this world. (He explains the cause of anti-semitism that the Goyim know and feel this, and in their illusion to eradicate Hashem from his world wish to destroy Klal Yisroel.)
Avraham Avinu was the first one to recognize Hashem and call him the master of the World. In doing so Hashem rested his glory in Avrahams soul, and thus for the first time having a place to dwell in this world. Never before had Hashem actually rested down in our world until Avraham came along and actually brought Hashem into his own world. That is what Avraham told Eliazer that before he recognized Hashem and brought him down to the earth he was only 'Elokai Hashmaim'- he didn’t have a house down on the land. This is what we mean when we say 'elokai Avrahom' the same kind of G-d that our forefather had, the G-d that has a presence down on this world in each one of us, thanks to Avrahom.

Parshas Ki Savoh

All over the world Yidden on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur shed thousands of tears when we say the tefilah of “Unisaneh tokef”. If we think about it it seems as if we don’t understand what is the important part of the davening. All that tefilah is just a mussar shmooze, just telling us what happens on these exalted days. It’s not at that moment that we are being judged and it’s not the highlight of the tefilos. If anything we should be crying when we crown Hashem by saying Malchios, zichronos and shofros or when we blow the shofar. What is it about this small tefilah before Kedusha that became the highlight of our Mussaf?
Ezra implemented the reading of Parshas Ki Savoh- the Parsha that contains 98 curses, before Rosh Hashanah because “Tichlah shanah v’kililosehuh” the year and it’s curses shall come to an end. What does that mean just because we read the Parsha how does that translate into a year of blessing?
The Rma”z (one of the big chachmai kabola) writes that if one reads the curses with yiras shamaim it’s as if he lived through them. The Beer Moshe (Ozlevah Rebbah) explains, that the point of bad things befalling Klal Yisroel is that we should come to fear Hashem. To come to the realization that everything we get or don’t get, the good and the bad all come from our father in heaven. We say on Yom Kipper “Ki atah tzadik al kol haboh aleinu” For you are righteous on all that befalls us. We can translate this to mean that we put our full faith in Hashem that anything that will happen to us is coming from Hashem and is just. Standing less then two weeks away from the day of judgment, we read about curses and what can happen to us if we don’t listen to Hashem. What we have to believe is that the only thing that keeps us removed from all those terrible things stated in the Parsha, is Hashem’s loving kindness. That on our own standing we don’t deserve anything that we have or the good we ask Hashem to send us in the new year. “Whatever Hashem sends our way is righteous”. Ezra told us a deep secret, if we read the curses before Rosh Hashanah and picture ourselves going through all of it and then believing that Hashem is the one that’s saving us from every curse and in his infinite kindness gives us all the good, then there is no need to live through it.
This special gift of being able to come to Yiras Hashem just through visualizing the potential calamities was put into our Rosh Hashana mussaf by Reb. Amnon. When we say the beautiful yet frightening words of Unesanah Tokef the point is to experience the words “who will live and who will die,…who with water and who with fire….” To realize that on the day of judgment we stand there in front of Hashem deserving nothing and that anything we get is overflowing with his kindness.

Based on a shmooze given by, Reb Elyah Brudny Shlit"a.