24 Elul: Yarzheit Chafetz Chaim

1838-1933 [5598-5693]

Rabbi Israel Meir HaCohen Kagan is commonly known as the "Chafetz Chaim," the name of his famous work on guarding one's tongue.

Born in Zhetel, Poland on February 6, 1838 [11 Shvat 5598], he was taught until age 10 by his parents and then moved to Vilna to further his Jewish studies. Refusing the pulpit rabbinate, the Chafetz Chaim settled in Radin Poland and subsisted on a small grocery store which his wife managed and he did the "bookkeeping"-watching every penny to make sure that no one was cheated. He spent his days learning Torah and disseminating his knowledge to the common people.

As his reputation grew, students from all over Europe flocked to him and by 1869 his house became known as the Radin Yeshiva. In addition to his Yeshiva, the Chafetz Chaim was very active in Jewish causes. He traveled extensively (even in his 90's) to encourage the observance of Mitzvos amongst Jews. One of the founders of Agudas Yisrael, the religious Jewish organization of Europe and later the world, the Chafetz Chaim was very involved in Jewish affairs and helped many yeshivos survive the financial problems of the interwar period.

Exemplifying the verses in Psalms 34:13-14, "Who is the man who desires life...? Guard your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit," the Chafetz Chaim passed away in 1933 at the ripe age of 95.

The Chafetz Chaim's greatest legacy is the 21 sefarim [holy books] which he published. His first work, Sefer Chafetz Chaim [1873], is the first attempt to organize and clarify the laws regarding evil talk and gossip. He later wrote other works, including Shmirat HaLashon, which emphasized the importance of guarding one's tongue by quoting our Sages. The Mishnah Brurah [1894-1907], his commentary on the Daily Laws of a Jew [his first series in the Shulchan Aruch], is found in many Jewish homes and is accepted universally to decide Halacha.

Firmly believing that he was living right before the time of Moshiach and the rebuilding of the Holy Temple, the Chafetz Chaim wrote a work that stressed the learning of laws concerning sacrifices, the Holy Temple, and related topics. He also published seforim to strengthen certain aspects of Jewish life including kashrus, family purity, and Torah study.

More on the Chafetz Chaim click here

Obama-Netanyahu Press Conference [video]

Leaders discuss hopes for peace in the region during the UN General Assembly. September 21, 2011.

Obama's UN Speech [video]

Sept. 22 (Bloomberg) -- President Barack Obama’s speech to the United Nations was elegantly written and eloquently delivered. But it missed an opportunity to promote a strong U.S. role in the world and voice his opposition to this week’s paramount issue: Palestinian plans to seek UN recognition as a nation.

Yet we were struck by the force of Obama’s description of the U.S.’s “unshakable” commitment to Israel. Rarely has a speaker at the UN rostrum spoken so clearly and obviously sympathetically on how Israeli and Jewish history shapes that nation’s security concerns. That point might seem self-evident, but it was a pointed and welcome rebuke to Holocaust deniers or minimizers in the Middle East and elsewhere.

Source: Business Week

The Time of the Redemption: Hidden or Revealed

 

"The hidden things belong to the Lord, our God, but the revealed things apply to us and to our children forever: that we must fulfill all the words of this Torah." [Nitzavim 29:28]

[Written by Rabbi Yisrael Bronstein]

In Maseches Sanhedrin[98a], R'Yehoshua ben Levi poses a question regarding a verse dealing with the eventual redemption of the Jewish people. The verse sates, Ï am Hashem, in its time I will hasten it" [Yeshayahu 60:22]

Asks R'Yehoshua ben Levi: If the redemption will ultimately occur "in its time", then how can Hashem promise the Jewish people "I will hasten it"?

The answer, says the Gemara, is as follows: If the Jewish people will carry out the will of Hashem, then the redemption will, in fact, be hastened.  But if not, then the redemption will occur at its assigned time.

Chazal's words, said the Kesav Sofer [R'Avraham Shmuel Binyamin Sofer, son of the Chasam Sofer] are alluded to in the above mentioned verse: "The hidden are for Hashem, our G-d" - if the Jewish people will not perform the will of Hashem, then the redemption will come at a fixed date, one that is ultimately hidden from us and known only to Hashem.  However, "the revealed are our and our children's [responsibility]" - if the Jews choose to follow the will of Hashem, then the redemption will arrive immediately.

The time of the redemption, therefore, can be revealed and known to the Jewish people, for it is something that can be determined by their actions.

25 Elul: Abu Mazen, Netanyhu, United Nations - Torah Codes

We found in the Zohar (Balak 212b) that in the beginning of the process of the coming of Mashiah, the day of the 25th of Elul - which is the first day of the creation of the world - will fall out on a Shabbat. And in 5771, the 25th of Elul falls out on Shabbat.... [Sept 24]

And on Friday, the Palestinians are expected to announce their state in the UN at a time when it's already Shabbat in the Land of Israel. The implication of this announcement is a declaration of war. All these things are not simple at all when Turkey and Egypt are already in a state of declaration of war. In addition, I heard that Gedolei Yisrael, Maranan VeRabanan, Hagaon Rav Elyashiv Shlit"a, Hagaon Rav Shteinman Shlit"a, and Hagaon Rav Chaim Kanievsky Shlit"a expressed to those close to them that they are very very concerned about the upcoming Shabbat. [extracted from Yeranen Yaakov's Geula update from Rav Fish]

Rabbi Glazerson finds the relevant words and names encoded in last week's parsha Ki Tavo 28:52 :
"And they will besiege you in all your cities, until your high and fortified walls in which you trust come down, throughout all your land. And they will besiege you in all your cities throughout all your land, which the Lord, your God, has given you."

The Voice of the Shofar

by R' Tal Moshe Zwecker

 

In Keren LeDovid, the Puppa Rov, Rav Greenwald has an amazing short but succint message for us Rosh HaShanna:

He begins with a question:

In mussaf on Rosh haShanna we recite a blessing saying "Because You hear the sound of the kol shofar and listen to the teruah blast of the shofar and there is none like You,"

Why does the verse seemingly repeat the fact that Hashem hears us blowing shofar twice, once saying that He hears the kol shofar and once saying He listens to the teruah of the shofar, isn't that saying the same thing twice?

And what does the end statement mean, and there is none like You,? we know that no one and nothing can compare to or with Hashem, what connection does this idea have to the fact that Hashem hears our shofar?

In essence the answer is based on the well known statement of our sages, Chazal tell us that where the baal teshuva, the masters of repentance stand, not even the righteous can stand.

Citing the holy Shel"ah, the Keren LeDovid teaches that there are two distinct forms of blowing shofar and what they represent. The holy Shel"ah says that the kol shofar - the simple basic trumpet like blast - is the sound of a righteous tzadik. Whereas the wailing cries of the teruah represent the penitent baal teshuva,  crying as he repents over his sins and mistakes.

Thus we now understand the symbolism and language, the Puppa Rav writes, that hearing and listening are also different. In Hebrew one can hear (Shomea) from afar, but (Haazana) listening connotes intimacy and closeness.

Thus G-d is saying that he hears the kol shofar, He is saying that He hears and accepts the prayers of the whole and simple righteous tzadik. Yet when it comes to the penitent baal teshuva, the master of return, Hashem listens up close. There is a closeness and intimacy there that the tzadik does not share.

This is why the blessing ends declaring there is none like You Hashem, because normally we would expect that a blameless righteous tzadik should be the closest to G-d, yet Hashem shows us that just the opposite is true, He values the close intimacy of the baal teshuva, thus none is like You.

The story is told about a student studying in a yeshiva for newly devoted returnees to Judaism who himself came from a religious background. He once approached a famous rabbi and introduced himself. "And in which Yeshiva do you learn?" asked the rabbi. "I study in such and such yeshiva," he answered and quickly he added, "but I am not a baal teshuva!" The rabbi smiled looked at him with a piercing glance and asked him "Nu why are you not?"

May we all merit to make this new year our best year, repent and correct our mistakes and learn from the holy words of the advocate for Klal Yisroel the holy Berditchever who declare all month long during Elul, "Today I shall repent and  return Hashem!" "Who are you kidding?" he would berate himself, "thats what you said yesterday." "ya, but yesterday I didnt really mean it, today, I mean it." And thus he would try again and again. let's give ourselves a second chance and we will all be masters of return.

Shana Tova -  A Sweet New Year to you, your family and loved ones

Kol Tuv,
R' Tal Moshe Zwecker
Director Machon Be'er Mayim Chaim Publishing
Chassidic Classics in the English Language
www.chassidusonline.com


and my favourite shofar video, with the dog in the park [a new year tradition on this blog]

Future Man

A Much Bigger Picture

The gemara in Chulin (63a) says that when Rebbi Yochanan saw a Shalach (a non Kosher bird) he would say the pasuk "Mishpatecha Tihom Rabba", your judgement is like a deep abyss (Tehilim 36:7). Rashi says that the Shalach is a bird that flies over the water and swoops down to prey on a fish, which it plucks from the water. This, says Rashi, shows that Hashem takes revenge on those who deserve to die. What is the significance of this particular act of preying that depicts Hashem's revenge?

Maybe we can conjecture that the fish that the Shalach eats is a predator himself. Yet he knows that in his turf in the ocean no one can exact revenge on him. He is the king of his turf and is protected in his environment. Hashem teaches him a lesson, that although in his eyes the world is limited to his underwater habitat, in reality there is a much bigger picture. There is a world above his cloistered confines. And from that world, from the Heavens above, Hashem can send an angel in the form of a Shalach to swoop down and take revenge, even in his deep water abyss.

We often look around and think that the cards are stacked in our favor and we are protected from Hashem's judgement. But it is not so. Our picture is limited to the confines of our mind. Hashem's world is far beyond our naive outlook. From the Heaven's, Hashem can come down and strike us and we wouldn't even know what hit us.

On the flip side look at it from the small fish perspective. We must realize that even if we are being hunted by a far larger fish and it seems there is no help in sight and we are doomed, there is far more to consider than meets the eye. Even when we think we are trapped and the bigger fish are closing in on us, a Yeshua can come from places far beyond our imagination. Hashem's means are vast. Never lose faith!

Source: Revach L'Neshama