The Third Error of President Donald Trump

Rabbi Kessin's latest shiur                           

 

Rabbi Meir Ba'al ha Ness - Master of the Miracle

Yarzheit: 14 Iyar

Ohel of Rabbi Meir Ba'al HaNess

By simply saying the phrase אלהא דמאיר ענני "Eloka d'Meir aneini" three times , which means "the G-d of Meir Answer me !", a person will be saved from trouble, if they promise to give charity to the poor and needy in the memory of the soul of Rebbe Meir Baal Haness . Donations can be made at Rabbi Meir Baal HaNeis.com

The Chida says that the source for this custom is the Gemara [Avodah Zara 18a-b] where Rebbi Meir bribed a guard to release his imprisoned sister-in-law. The guard asked what happens if he's caught and Rebbi Meir told him to say ''G-d of Meir answer me'' and he would be saved, and that's what happened. From there comes the custom of donating money or oil for the neshama of Rebbi Meir, saying Eloka D'Meir Aneini, three times.

Rebbi Meir Baal HaNess said he would help those that gave to the poor of Eretz Yisroel, for the sake of his neshama.

Reb Dovid of Dinov points out a fascinating allusion: 

Mishlei 12:25 says דְּאָגָה בְלֶב-אִישׁ יַשְׁחֶנָּה - if one has worry in his heart, he should suppress it.

Mesechta Sanhedrin 100b explains this as ישיחנה לאחרים, tell it over to others. Mesechta Horios 13b says אחרים refers to Rebbi Meir. Putting it all together – if one is in a time of trouble give tzedaka for the neshama of Rebbi Meir Baal HaNess.  [Source: Tzemach Dovid]

Anytime, and especially on the yahrzeit, it is a big zechus to give tzedaka or light a candle li'luy nishmas Rebbi Meir Baal HaNess. 

There is a custom that when something is lost, a person immediately promises to give some money to the Tzedakah of Rebbe Meir Baal Haness in the merit of finding what was lost, and say the following [red text in picture below]

Geneivat Da'at: Theft of the Mind

Art Mike Worrall

Text by Rabbi Eli Mansour

The Torah in parshas Mishpatim denounces as a thief not only one who steals property but also someone who acts in a deceptive manner towards others.

Trickery, lying, and deceiving, are forms of stealing.

The Tosefta in Masechet Bava Batra lists seven categories of theft, and mentions at the top of the list, as the most grievous form of thievery, the sin of "Geneivat Da'at," which literally means "theft of the mind," referring to deception.

The Ritva (Rabbi Yom Tov Ashbili, Spain, 1250-1330), in his commentary to Masechet Chulin, writes that deceiving another person transgresses a Torah violation. According to the Ritva, the verse "Lo Tignovu" ("Do not steal" – Vayikra 19:11) refers specifically to this form of "theft," and thus a person who deceives another violates this Torah prohibition. This is also the position of the Yerei'im (by Rabbi Eliezer of Metz, France, 1115-1198), in Siman 124. Others, however, maintain that deception transgresses a Rabbinic edict, and not a Torah violation.

We present here a number of practical examples of Geneivat Da'at.

The Gemara mentions the example of somebody who invites his fellow to join him for a holiday, fully aware that this person had already made plans to spend the holiday elsewhere. He deceives his fellow into thinking that he sincerely wishes to host him, whereas in reality he has no actual intention to extend the invitation. Even though no practical harm results from this disingenuous invitation, it nevertheless violates the prohibition of Geneivat Da'at, insofar as the individual has deceived his fellow.

In the context of business operation, the issue of Geneivat Da'at arises quite frequently. For example, a proprietor may not announce a 50% price reduction and then raise the prices so that the sale price will amount to the item's actual price. Even though he in the end receives a fair price for the merchandise, he has nevertheless transgressed the prohibition of Geneivat Da'at because he has deceived the consumers.

The Poskim (Halachic authorities) discuss the question of whether a person who purchased a gift for his fellow at a discount price may leave the original price-tag on the package, so that the recipient will think he paid the price listed on the tag. Would this be considered Geneivat Da'at, in that the giver deceives the recipient into thinking that he paid a higher price for the gift? The Poskim generally conclude that one may leave the price-tag on the package, since the price on the tag is, after all, the true value of the item purchased.

Another question addressed by the Poskim concerns a case of one who wishes to give a gift. For example, it is forbidden to gift a set of Zohar that has several pages missing. The person giving the gift assumes that the recipient will never actually study the Zohar and will thus never realize that the set is missing pages. The Poskim write that it is forbidden to give this set as a gift, since one thereby deceives the recipient into thinking that he has received a perfect set of Zohar, whereas in reality it is defective.

Rabbi Moshe Feinstein (Russia-New York, 1895-1986) records in his work Iggerot Moshe a question he was asked as to whether Yeshiva High School students may be shown the answers to the Regents' Exams before the tests, so that they will not have to study the material and could use the extra time for Torah study. Rabbi Feinstein responds by expressing his astonishment over the very posing of such a question. Cheating is a clear violation of Geneivat Da'at, and it cannot possibly be allowed even for the purpose of facilitating additional time for Torah study.

Rabbenu Yona of Gerona, Spain (1180-1263), in his work Sha'arei Teshuva, compares one who steals property committing a sin with his hands to sins involving deceit. A person's soul, he explains, is a part of the Almighty Himself, the embodiment of perfect, unadulterated truth. Engaging in deceitful conduct contaminates this Godly quality of the soul, and thus constitutes a most grievous sin, more severe than the theft of property.

Summary: Geneivat Da'at, deception, is deemed by Halacha as the most grievous form of theft.

Facilitated Communication Exposed

This is a must read:  Facilitated Communication: Who Is Really Doing The Talking 

For everyone who has been sucked in to the FC whirlpool, and believes the nonsense that is brought down.   A huge thank you to Rivka for once again giving us truth and reality on the internet.

Components of Creation

Rabbi Kessin elaborates on the different parts of creation as set forth by the Ramchal. Parts 1 and 2.

The Power Behind the Redemption - Addendum

A three minute follow-up to last week's shiur.

Judge Well

Source: – Rabbi Yehoshua Leib Diskin

It is written, “With righteousness shall you judge your fellow” [Kedoshim 19:15].

The Sages interpret this to mean, “Judge your fellow favorably” [Shevuot 30b]. 

How can we apparently lie to ourselves by judging people favorably in every case, when in certain cases we can see them doing the very opposite of something favorable? What is the meaning of this mitzvah in that case? 

The Sages have said, “Any man who is insolent will in the end stumble into sin” [Taanith 7b]. This means that shame serves as a barrier and an obstacle to sin. Once a person has breached the barriers of modesty and shame, there is nothing to prevent him from sinning, as it is written: “It is a good sign if a man is shamefaced. … No man who experiences shame will easily sin” [Nedarim 20a]. 

The same applies to a person’s influence on others. The first one who sins completely breaches the barriers of shame. The one who follows him does not require as much insolence to sin, and the third person needs even less, once these barriers have been broken down. 

This is why the sin of desecrating Hashem’s Name is so grave. A person who openly sins diminishes the intensity of the fear and shame that are engraved in man with regards to committing a sin, thereby prompting others to sin as well.

We can now understand how the advice given to us by the Sages, to judge others favorably, is designed to help us. It is meant to ensure that the barriers of shame are not breached within our own hearts, for once we are certain that everyone is righteous, how could we dare to be the first ones to sin? However if a person tries to find fault with everyone, he will be more likely to sin at a time of weakness.

We Have the Geula Backwards

THE WORLD HAS IT ALL WRONG. We have come to believe – whether from our teachers, or from our books that The Geula – the Final Redemption – will cause all of our pain and suffering to go away. How many times in history have Jews, individually and collectively longed for Moshiach (The Messiah) to come to alleviate us from our pain and suffering. From the hurbans – destructions of the two Holy Temples in Jerusalem, the expulsions, the massacres, the inquisitions. the false messiahs, the pograms, and the Shoah (Holocaust) came the cries for Moshiach, the wailing for the better times of the Geula. We sat there, longer for, cried for the expected healing of our problems that Moshiach would bring.

The World has it all wrong. It has it backwards. It is NOT that the Geula will bring the Healing. It is that the Healing will bring the Geula.

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