Earthquakes and Homosexuality

Among the many possibilities put forward for the underlying reason why [some] earthquakes occur - such as the one last week on the east coast of America - homosexuality is often cited as the main one.  In this shiur, Rabbi Zecharia Wallerstein quotes from the Gemara and explains how and why.

Click here to listen: Torah Anytime [Video] or MP3

Validating the Torah Codes

Rabbinical Support for the use of Torah Codes

Question: Is it allowed to show the truth of the Torah or try to prove its truth in different ways like the words which appear in Torah at equal interval skip distances.

Answer: I was surprised and wondered about such a foolish question. It does not require thought. It is simple. It is a great mitzvah to do it. In every generation the Sages of Israel, who were the experts to answer the atheists, used ways appropriate to their generation to prove the truth of Torah. Look at the tractate Hulin, page 60b. The Sages ask: Was Moses a hunter or did he know all the animals in the world, [to be able to say that the only ones which chew their cud and do have split hooves or which do not chew their cud and do have split hoofs are the ones mentioned in Torah?] The Sages answer from here that Torah is from Heaven. For only G-d knows the characteristics of all the animals. Since the facts show that this kind of proof has a great impact to strengthen the faith that Torah is from Heaven, it is a great mitzvah for those who occupy themselves in these matters. But they must be on a level to properly deal with this on a scientific basis. They must not be like the people who do not know enough who spoil instead of rectifying. All those who occupy themselves in these matters will be blessed by G-d in all blessings which are for those who help others to be more meritorious and bring back those who are far away. Their hands should be strengthened. Heaven forbid, they should not be discouraged by any pious and righteous arguments because those who are arguing out of piety, do not speak with sense. It is better that they should keep quiet.. Blessed will be those who establish words of Torah.

Rabbi Shlomo Fisher This answer was shown to the Gaon Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Oyarbach by Professor Branover. Rabbi Oyarbach said that he would say the same words:

[Click to enlarge]

A number of contemporary Gedolim and Torah sages have repeatedly given their strong support for the use of Codes as a Kiruv Rechokim tool. Included in this prominent group is the renowned Jerusalem Posek and Rov, Rav Shlomo Fisher. In addition to his own 1989 Psak Din stating that "it is a Mitzvah to teach Codes," Rabbi Fisher recently issued a public letter wherein he states that he met with Doron Witztum and Dr. Rips on several occasions, together with Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach, Zt'l. He testifies that Harav Auerbach not only gave his unequivocal approval of the Codes research but also strongly encouraged the use of this material in Kiruv Rechokim efforts.

Numerous prominent Roshei Yeshiva and Rabbonim have personally sat through Codes presentations at our Discovery seminars. Among those who have attended - and gone on record as supporting the use of Codes for Kiruv Rechokim - are Rav Yaakov Weinberg, Rav Shmuel Kaminetzky, Rav Moshe Heinemann, and Rav Yisrael Meir Kagan. In fact, Mr. Harold Gans, a former senior cryptologic mathematician with the United States' National Security Agency for twenty-eight years, has had a number of long discussions about the Codes with Rav Moshe Heinemann. Despite the recent controversy surrounding the topic, Rav Heinemann remains emphatic in characterizing the Codes as "absolutely part of our Mesorah, and a Kiddush Hashem to teach."

If you want to read more, click here.

Remember....

 

If you don't ask forgiveness from a person you have wronged, the whole Yom Kippur davening is pointless. Properly begging forgiveness doesn't mean sending a fax or a message, but personally approaching the person. 

[Rabbi Elazar Abuchatzirah [Baba Elazar] zt"l

Source: Torah Code US

An Elevated Impression

 

"You shall make a guard-rail for your roof" [Ki Teitze 22:8]

A roof, being the highest part of any structure, alludes to the ego, which gives a person an elevated impression of himself.

Thus, in order to prevent a person from "falling off his roof" by allowing his feelings of swollen self-esteem to degenerate into selfishness, we are warned to "make a guard-rail for your roof" - to carefully control and temper the ego with "guard-rails".

Source: Likutei Sichos, Lubavitcher Rebbe

No Fear

Art: ''Havdalah with the Klausenberger Rebbe'' - Raphael Nouril

When you go out to war against your enemies and see horses and chariots, and a people more numerous than you, you must not be afraid of them, for Hashem, your G-d, is with you. [Shoftim 20:1]

Several fortunate students witnessed the fulfillment of this verse in the home of the tzaddik, R' Yosef Yozel Horowitz [the Alter of Novaradok].

During the Alter's later years, a brutal war had broken out in Russia. The battle had taken to the streets, as Russian citizens fought against the marauding bolsheviks.

One motza'ei Shabbos, the Alter stood with a cup of wine in hand, ready to recite Havdalah.

Suddenly, sounds of gunfire and shouting filled the air, as rioters entered the small town of Novaradok. The townspeople were in a panic, and screams of terror could be heard emanating from the houses. The sounds of gunfire and explosions were also clearly heard in the Alter's courtyard.

Yet to everyone's amazement, the apparent danger seemed to have no effect on the Alter. With a calm and pleasant voice, the Alter began reciting Havdalah, displaying a heart full of trust in Hashem.

The students who were present in the Alter's home that motza'ei Shabbos later remarked that in those incredible few moments, they had learned what it means to truly trust in Hashem.

Source: Rabbi Yisrael Bronstein

The Miraculous Etrog Tree

Rav Michel Yehudah Lefkowitz zt"l

It is well-known that Rav Michel Yehudah Lefkowitz zt”l, rosh yeshiva of Yeshivas Ponovezh L’tzeirim, who was niftar this summer, was given seeds of an esrog by the Chazon Ish to plant to produce esrogim that are pure and are under no suspicion of being murkav, grafted.  The Chazon Ish had approached him with an esrog that he said was definitely kosher and was not grafted. The Chazon Ish actually asked Rav Michel Yehudah to plant the esrog seeds in his yard and told him that he would have parnassah from it. 

Rav Michel Yehudah asked, “Can an esrog grow in the Bnei Brak climate? Moreover, I don’t have any experience growing esrogim, and an esrog tree takes much time to cultivate. I don’t have time to cultivate it; I want to learn Torah!”

The Chazon Ish replied that all he would have to do was plant the esrog and water it. The Chazon Ish promised him that it would not take up much of his time.

Remarkably, that esrog tree grew into the famous “Lefkowitz-Chazon Ish Esrogim.” Rav Michel Yehudah barely had to invest any time into it, despite the fact that an esrog tree is usually very sensitive, requires much attention, and does not last for many years. 70 years later, that tree stood tall in Rav Michel Yehudah’s yard and was still producing beautiful esrogim.

However, this month, news emerged from Bnei Brak that the historic tree has died. Since the time of Rav Michel Yehudah’s petirah, the tree’s branches have gradually been getting dried out, and, at the present time, the tree is all but dead. The fruit have fallen off and the branches have dried out.

Upon learning of the news, the Toldos Aharon Rebbe, who is makpid each Sukkos to make a bracha on an esrog from Rav Michel Yehudah’s yard, sent chassidim to confirm the report. They indeed found that the tree has withered.

Source and more at : Matzav

3 Elul: Yarzheit Rav Avraham Yitzchak HaCohen Kook

[3 Elul begins Thursday night]

Avraham Yitzchak HaCohen Kook was born on the 16th Elul 5625 (September 1864). On the day of his bris, he received a kippah as a gift. From that day on, his parents always kept a kippah on his head. Even while he was sleeping, Avraham Yitzchak's parents did not take the kippah off his head so that he should not be bareheaded - not even for a minute. The little boy would not fall asleep without his kippah. When he turned over and it fell off, he immediately woke up.

Avraham Yitzchak was four years old when he was brought to the cheder (school) in his home town of Geriva, to learn to read. The teacher offered him a siddur and turned to the page with the alef-bet. The child stubbornly refused to learn.

"Why won't you study?" asked the teacher.

"I want to learn from the big books" replied Avraham Yitzchak shyly.

"Which big books?" asked the teacher.

Avraham Yitzchak did not know how to answer. Instead he ran home and brought back a Shulchan Aruch, the Code of Jewish Law, and another large heavy book. The teacher smiled and said to the child: "If you want to be able to learn from the big books, you must first study from the small books." Avraham Yitzchak understood and began to read the alef-bet from the siddur.

In the same cheder, there was a class of older children who were studying Torah. Every Friday, these children were tested on the material they learned all week. One Friday, an interesting thing happened. One of the older children did not know the answer. There was silence. Sudddenly, the voice of a small boy from the youngest reading table was heard. It was the answer, spoken clearly and correctly. Avraham Yitzchak had been listening to the lessons of the older children and had understood them.

Little Avraham Yitzchak invented an unusual game to play with his friends in cheder. He arranged the children in rows. Each child had a knapsack on his back, as if they were getting ready for a long journey. Avraham Yitzchak was their guide. The small soldiers asked: "Where are we going?"

"To Israel, to Eretz Yisrael..."

*************************************

After many years of diligent study, Rav Kook was appointed as the rabbi of Zoimel, one of the small villages in Lithuania. After serving as rabbi of the town of Zoimel, Rav Kook was appointed the rabbi of a large city, Boisk. In Boisk, the Rav could sit and learn Torah for many hours each day. There was a time when he would learn 50 or 60 pages of Talmud in one day.

Many years passed before the Rav went to live in Eretz Yisrael. When the possibility of becoming the Rav of Jaffa arose, he refused all other appealing offers which came from European Yeshivot which asked him to be their Rosh Yeshivah or from great cities abroad, whose congregants wanted him to be their rabbi.

In addition, the congregation of Boisk refused to allow their rabbi to leave, until the Jews of Jaffa wrote to them explaining that the mitzvah of yishuv Eretz Yisrael, settling the land of Israel, takes precedence over everything else.

On Friday 28th Iyar 5664 (10 May 1904) Rav Kook went to live in Eretz Yisrael. He was received at the port of Jaffa with great honours and began his term as Rabbi of Jaffa. At that time, Israel was under Turkish rule and Jewish settlements were first being established. Jaffa was one of the main centers of Jewish settlement.

Hundreds of people from Jerusalem, Rishon LeZion, Rehovot and Petach Tikvah came to welcome the Rav and to form their own impressions of this unique figure, and his wife the Rabbanit Raiza Rivka.

The first World War broke out. The Rav had gone to Europe on shlichut, as an emissary for Eretz Yisrael, and could not return to his home in Jaffa because of the war. He stayed in London and served as a rabbi of the city. But he was constantly worried about the fate of his community in Jaffa and the hardships facing Jews in Israel which was then in a state of siege and famine.

After the war ended, the Rav returned to Eretz Yisrael. The Jews of Jaffa wanted him to continue as their rabbi. At the same time, the community of Jerusalem asked him to become their rabbi. The Rav debated this dilemma for quite some time. He knew that a small part of the Jewish community of Jerusalem did not want him as Rabbi. He did not want to be the cause of fights and arguments in the Holy City. On the 3rd Elul 5679 (29 August 1919), the Rav came to Jerusalem and only after a while did he bend to the will of the community, and become the rabbi of Jerusalem.

Here he established the centre of the world-renowned Yeshiva Merkaz HaRav, the "Centre of the Rav". Later, along with Rav Yaakov Meir Charlop, he instituted the Chief Rabbinate of Eretz Yisrael, with both rabbis acting as Chief Rabbi. All his time and effort was dedicated to the Rabbinate, the affairs of the community, and to the learning of Torah.

*******************************

The author, Tikvah Sarig, tells the following story about Rav Kook:

On the first Yom Kippur eve, after my father passed away, I was not yet five years old. Every morning since his death, my mother would wake me before dawn and wipe the sleep from my eyes with the same words: "Get up, my daughter, my neshama, my soul, to pray for the memory of your righteous father, the tzaddik".

What a tzaddik was, I did not know, but I imagined he looked like this: a kippah on his head, his beard long, his eyes warm and good, the palms of his hands soft, and his voice, melodic. Just like my father who was taken from me.

It was erev Yom Kippur. After the pre-fast meal, my mother took me to the house of Rav Kook. The sun was about to set. We marched quickly to the Rav's house. The streets were filled with worshippers, clad in white, hurrying to the synagogue to hear Kol Nidre, the opening Yom Kippur prayer.

Opening the door, we were welcomed by the fragrance and warmth of burning candles. Rebbetzin Kook and her daughter opened their arms to us and began to cry. My mother patted my head.

"Soon you will go into the Rav's study to receive his blessing" said the Rebbetzin.

With her words, my fear grew. I sighed loudly. Just then, the great door opened and from within, a righteous man, a tzaddik, came out. He was all dressed in white, his gartel was embroidered with gold. On his head he wore a white kippah; his beard was long. His eyes, warm and good, were looking at me with pity and kindness.

"Aba! Daddy!" I cried and clung closely to my mother, hiding my face in her dress, my limbs trembling. I heard my mother's voice through my tears: "Go my child. Receive a blessing from the honoured Rav!"

She led me a few steps towards him. The Rav took my small hands into his warm, soft ones.

"Do not cry, my child" he said, placing his hands on my head. "Do not be afraid of me. I was a friend of your father. Come here and I will bless you on this holy day."

The Rav's hands were soft and warm - just like my father's. His voice was melodic - just like my father's. I felt as if a river of kindness and warmth washed all over me - from my head to my toes - just like when I used to sit on my father's lap.

*********************************

Rav Kook was so righteous that he always forgave his enemies and even loved and blessed them.

*********************************

In his last days, the Rav became very sick. He suffered in terrible pain. It was difficult for him to learn, and it was difficult for him to hide his anguish from his students and relatives.

On the morning of the 3rd Elul, his condition became worse. Even though speaking was very hard for him, he strained himself and demanded of his family and students not to add any titles to his name on the cover pages of his books, not to eulogize him, telling them (do not call me) "Rabbeinu, our Rabbi, and not the "Chief Rabbi of Eretz Yisrael" - "Simply HaRav - the Rav".

A large crowd stood outside the house, where the Rav lay on his deathbed. He raised his eyes to the window in his room. Everyone in Eretz Yisrael knew that a great leader, a teacher, a man of wisdom, was about to leave the land he loved so much.

The Rav grew weaker by the hour. His family, relatives, and a number of his students gathered around his bedside. In his last hours, the Rav's face was turned towards the wall. His students knew that it was written in the Talmud: "If a man passes away with his face towards the wall - it is a bad sign, and if his face is turned toward the people, it is a good sign". With his remaining strength, the Rav struggled and turned himself to face the people. At the last moment, all those who were standing around the Rav broke out saying "Shema Yisrael".

At sunset, on the third day of Elul 5695 (Sept 1st, 1935) the Rav passed away. The news flashed through the Jewish nation with the speed of lightning. The backbone of the Jewish nation was broken. The Rav of the generation was gone, the Rav of the era, the Rav of Eretz Yisrael at the time of her rebirth.

Exactly 16 years (3rd Elul) after Rav Kook ascended to Jerusalem, he ascended to Heaven.

Source: Reprinted from "Stories from the Life of Rav Kook" edited and translated by Masha Fridman

More on Rav Kook at Rav Kook Torah

Over-Reaction or Wake Up Call

by Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis

That which transpired during these last few weeks should have shaken us all. To be sure, traumatic happenings have been pounding away at American Jewry for years now ... as a matter of fact, from 9/11 on. But very few of us have taken them to heart or even blinked an eye to somehow indicate that we heard “the message”. Something was happening and is happening in the world, but we react as if we are blind and deaf. We choose not to see; we choose not to hear. It’s easier to attribute everything to natural causes, because in that way, we can go on our merry way and indulge in “business as usual”.

But this time, things were different – that which transpired during the past several weeks must make us all stop and ponder.. First, we were witness to the roller coaster stock market. For three consecutive days, the market plummeted and each day, at its closing, the numbers differed, but on each day, totaled “26", which in Hebrew, the Holy Tongue, equals the Name of G-d.. If you recall, at that time, I wrote about it at length. People smiled – they found it curious. Some put it down to “so much hype” but few took it seriously. Only a very small number considered that it might be a message from G-d telling us that at the end of the day, it is He, and only He who is in charge. If He wills it, all our speculation, our best laid plans can come to naught, and in a matter of minutes, our money is gone.

We try to place the blame for our financial downfall on this or that, but only to an exceptional few has it occurred that this might be a warning from the Almighty to stop worshiping the “Golden Calf” and re-examine our lives. We refuse to listen, so the wake up calls became more intense. New York, the bastion of strength and finance, Washington the symbol of power, shook and trembled....tremors of an earthquake rocked our very foundations. To be sure, it lasted only a few moments, so the experience made for good conversation. “Did you feel that?” we asked one another. “Where were you when it happened?” “Wasn’t it amazing?”, etc. etc. Once again, we failed to heed the call. It all flew over our heads and we went on with “business as usual”.

But G-d keeps knocking. The wake-up call becomes louder and louder. “Irene”in all her fury comes to visit. We hear the warning – an historic hurricane, the likes of which New York has not witnessed. The mayor takes to the airways and warns all citizens to be on guard. Hundred mile an hour winds are predicted, swells from the ocean might go 10 – 15 feet, all public transportation is shut down, communities in low-lying areas close to the shore are ordered to evacuate. Once again, many people dismiss the warnings and attribute them to overreaction. But then, the warnings become more urgent and can no longer be ignored..

I myself reside on Long Island and it was on erev Shabbos, that we were told to evacuate.

But since it was almost Shabbos, we were even more conflicted.. What to do? Where to go? How would we make it before Shabbos.

Panic broke out. Frantic calls were made. People tried to get reservations in nearby hotels, only to be told that they were all fully booked.. Many decided to leave their homes. I and my two children who live nearby were caught in a dilemma. What should we do? To be sure, we had many invitations. My children who reside in Brooklyn urged us to come to them. Hineni friends who have studied with us for years and live in areas that were not threatened, offered hospitality with generosity and heart felt concern. But where to go remained a major problem.

What if we encountered a traffic jam and couldn’t make it to our destination before sundown? Every highway had its own perils, so we decided to stay put together in the home of my daughter. The knowledge that we would all be together was comforting and strengthening. B’li ayn hara – Baruch Hashem, with all the kinderlach, we are a large mishpocha. My children decided that we would all sleep on the same floor so that we might watch over one another and, if the electricity failed or some other crisis erupted, we would all be there to help.

Of course, we did not have beds for so many people, so the children would sleep on the floor. If you are mishpocha, there is always place for everyone. 

Shabbos was calm, but the announcements became more ominous. The eye of the storm was expected to hit with full force in the middle of the night or at dawn. Once again, we were told to evacuate. However, the same problem which we encountered just before Shabbos still prevailed. This time there was no fear of desecrating the Sabbath, but the possibility of being stuck on the road with babies and small children was frightening, so once again, we decided to stay put. The little ones kept everyone busy. One of my grandsons learned the entire night, my daughter recited tehillim until the break of dawn, we all davened with full heart. As for me, I was in a strange place. The word “evacuation” evoked ominous memories. It took me back to a different time. I will never forget the sound of their voices – “All Jews must evacuate!” And there were other painful reminders – the question of what to do – where to go?... the dangers we might encounter on the road, all served to recall the past.

My father, HaRav HaGaon Avrahan HaLevi Jungreis, Z’tl was the Rabbi of our city. I remember the meeting in our home – “Where is it safer? The shtetlach? The city? The forest?” No one had an answer ... no one knew .... but we did know for certain that all roads were perilous. The Nazis and the Hungarian Zsandars (Gestapo) were everywhere, ready to slaughter us.

Oh, I know. I know my thoughts were totally ridiculous. There was no comparison – this was totally different, but just the same, you, my readers must understand that those of us who went through that gehenom remain forever scarred and can never forget. Even as these recollections crowded my heart, our Torah teaching of the flood in the days of Noah also came to mind. I asked myself a simple question that we must all ask – Are the heinous sins that brought about the flood still a part of us? Over the thousands of years that have since transpired, have we really changed? Of course, we cloak our transgressions in sophisticated 21st century garb, but the question remains, Have we changed? Are we living by the laws of our G-d?

We Jews who are the custodians of the Torah, have to understand that there are no accidents in this world. Nothing, but nothing happens by coincidence and that which happened these past few weeks are wake-up calls that we dare not ignore, that we dare not attribute to happen stance.

“Ayn yisorim bah l’olam eleh bishvil Yisroel....” Tribulations are not visited upon the world but for the Jewish people...” is a teaching of the Talmud. Yes, all these events are wake-up calls urging us to act before further tragedy strikes, and we have seen many of these calls unfolding in recent months – the passing of three Torah sages in the U.S., Europe, and Israel within a period of two weeks; the barbaric, unfathomable slaughter of little Leiby, the savage murder of a great Torah Sage in Israel — and sadly, I could cite many more. But as much as we mourned and wept, as much as we united in expressing our sorrow, we have yet to make changes in our lives, and banish the jealousies, the mean spiritedness, the strife and hatred that have become part and parcel of our lives.

As these thoughts dominated my mind, the sound of the fierce winds and torrential rain could be heard from outside. Suddenly, it became dark – we lost power, and in the darkness of the night, I made a silent prayer, “Ribbonoh Shel Olam – Almighty G-d, Creator of the Universe... In the parsha that we read this Shabbos, You told us that we were Bonim L’Makom – Your special children, chosen from all the nations of the world to be Your treasured people. So. Almighty G-d,” I pleaded, “You are not only the Creator of the Universe, G-d our King, but You are our Father, Who chose us to be His.

“Surely, as our Father, You will forgive us and spare us from any further tribulations. Let none of Your children come to any harm in the fury of this storm. Protect us, guard us, even if we are not deserving”

“As for me, I give You my word that so long as You allow me, I will not stop, but will remind myself and all Your children of who we are – Bonim L’Makom – Your special children who have a mandate to live by that awesome calling. It is to that end that, B’ezrat Hashem, I will devote my next few columns. It is to that end that I will speak. True, I have always tried to achieve that goal. It was in that spirit that I founded Hineni so many years ago when outreach was virtually unknown. It was in that spirit that we called for a Jewish awakening in Madison Square Garden.

So what is different now, you might ask. Haven’t you been doing this all along?

The answer to that is “yes” and “no” -

Yes, Hashem did grant us the privilege of being among the first to start a kiruv – outreach movement, but now, in these pre-messianic times, our thrust cannot be directed to secular Jews alone, for the sin that is at the root of our destruction, the sin that has enveloped us in dense darkness for almost 2,000 years is not limited to a small segment of our people, but is sadly, very much a part of all of us, even our own Torah community.