Shabbat-B'Shabbato – ParshatYitro
No 1609: 20Shevat5776 (30January2016)
AS SHABBAT APPROACHES
"And you will be a Treasure for Me"- by Rabbi Mordechai Greenberg, Rosh Yeshiva, Kerem B'Yavne
The Torah portion of Yitro is the portion where Bnei Yisrael is chosen. "You will be a treasure for me from among the other nations" [Shemot 19:5]. "And you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation" [19:6]. However, no explanation is ever given why the Holy One, Blessed be He, specifically chose us.
In addition, it seems that there is an especially lenient attitude towards Bnei Yisrael. "You are sons of your G-d" [Devarim 14:1]. "You are called sons in any case, even if you engage in idol worship" (Kidushin 36a). When the elders of Yisrael told Yechezkel that they would be severed from the Holy One, Blessed be He, because of their idol worship, he replied: "What you are thinking will not happen, that you say, we will be like the other nations, like the families of the lands, which worship wood and stone. I swear by My Name that I will come at you with a mighty hand... and I will rule over you." [30:23]. When else have we ever heard about a covenant where one side is forced to accept the agreement?
The Ramban asks why the Torah writes at length about the righteousness of Noach but does not discuss the same traits of Avraham. The Maharal replies that the Torah hides Avraham's piety on purpose, so that the choice of Avraham and Bnei Yisrael should not be considered love that depends on an external factor (such that if the factor is removed the love will cease). But this leaves us with a stronger question than ever: Just why did G-d choose the nation, if not for their good deeds?
The Maharal explains his answer to this question at length in Chapter 11 of his book "Netzach Yisrael" – the eternity of Yisrael. He lists three main factors:
- The world cannot exist without the Divine Torah, since human mentality cannot transform a stone heart into a heart of flesh, as is noted by Rav Kook.
- In order for a Torah of G-d to exist in the world, it needs a nation which will receive it and implement it as part of its humanity, and especially in its national life, so that the Torah will not remain as a book lying idle on a shelf.
- For this purpose, there must be a nation with Divine traits that correspond to the morality of the Torah. Otherwise, the Torah would be a foreign element which would not be incorporated into the life of the nation, such that it would not continue to implement it and would not remain dedicated to its observance.
Such a nation did not exist among all the nations of the world, and it was therefore necessary to create one that meets these criteria. As is written, "I created this nation for Me, it will tell My praises" [Yeshayahu 43:21]. It was planned in advance to create such a nation, which would sing the praises of G-d. It is not right to think that we were chosen because we were the only ones who agreed to accept the Torah. It is the other way around – The Torah was given to us because we were the chosen ones. But in the above verse, the prophet uses the term "created" instead of "chosen." In a similar way, in the blessings for the Torah we thank G-d, who "chose us from among all the nations," and therefore, because of that, "He gave us the Torah." The fact that we received the Torah is not what makes us different from the other nations, rather since we are different we were given the Torah.
The situation doesn't depend on our will. The covenant has been forced on us, it is the reason that we were created. We cannot escape from our mission. Even such sins as idol worship will not free us from our appointed task. "What you are thinking will not happen!"
POINT OF VIEW
"Isn't he Cute for a Murderer?"- by Rabbi Yisrael Rozen, Dean of the Zomet Institute
"What is the meaning of 'Mount Sinai'? It is the place where 'hatred' by the nations descended to the world" [Shabbat 89a]. ("Sinai" has a sound similar to "sinah" – hatred.)
The above title is not a direct quote, but it is the gist of the declaration by Michal Froman, who was stabbed by an Arab terrorist at her home in Tekoa. (Thank heaven, she was hospitalized after a "moderate" injury and has since been released.) "He was a boy about fifteen years old, with a nice-looking face... I felt close to him... He gave the impression that he had come to give a quick stab and then run away, to achieve some goal. He would be able to mark the deed with a 'check mark,' but he was not interested in killing me... Just stab-and-run. It enhanced my impression that he appeared to be lost." Michal's mother-in-law, Hadassa, said this about her daughter-in-law: "Michal tried to hug him and to help him..."
Michal is the daughter-in-law of my unforgettable friend (who could refuse to be his friend?), the late Rabbi Menachem Froman, the rabbi of Tekoa. He was unique in all his behavior, thoughts, and actions. (In this case, the adjective "unique" is a synonym for "different.") Rabbi Froman constantly preached about the need for understanding and coexistence between Jews and Palestinians, with great emphasis on the populatino of the settlements and nearby Palestinian villagers. His ideological political approach was to hold discussions between rabbis and Moslem religious leaders, out of a belief and faith that they would be able to find solutions to the problems. In this matter he not only preached his ideas, he was very active. He met, he arranged meetings, he embraced, he explained, he listened, and he wrote, and he raised his hands to the sky in a Tanachic-Messianic pose (which was not faked but real for him). In my eyes and in the eyes of many others like me, his was a "voice in the Arab wilderness," which did not generate any return echo. We argued on various occasions, including a long television broadcast where we discussed his vision, at a time that was close to the expulsion from Gush Katif.
The reactions by the battered-stabbed woman which appeared in the press correspond to the approach of Rabbi Menachem, who had an excessive measure of "love for mankind." The rule "a person should not be held responsible at a time that he is suffering" [Bava Batra 16a] refers in the original to expressions of anger and rage. I would also apply this statement to delusional declarations of love and embracing as a result of traumatic incidents. This would include a scene of a battered creature which kisses the end of the whip that is stretched out in front of it. I would expand this to a slightly different aspect and say, a person should not be held responsible at a time that he is being struck, both for the bad and for the good. To round out the family picture, I will quote the son-husband, Shivi Froman, who spoke in a more balanced manner: "What we need is an unyielding struggle against these agents of death, and we should expel their families to Azza. On the other hand, we will enhance the lives on our side and for the Palestinians. Life will triumph over death." I agree with every word he said, but I say that the context is warped by a very strong leftist affinity – we must show understanding for the other side, in any situation, at any price. As far as I am concerned, this type of statement can follow a (crooked) solid line to the traitorous acts of some leftist activists, who have recently been exposed taking part in deep dark activity. These people understand the hearts of the enemy, who is right – and even nice.
The Use of Religion to Enhance a Dispute
And here we have an opportunity to look at Rabbi Froman's vision about the role of religious leaders in the current struggle between Israel and the Palestinians. He believed that religious leaders from both sides, are in a position that can lead to more restraint and a closer approach, and that they (alone) have the power to bring calm and to achieve dual existence in this land. Who will remove the earth that covers your eyes, my brother and colleague Rabbi Menachem, so that you will see how humanity as a whole has reached a state of danger of self-destruction just because of the religion of Islam.World terrorism, flowing with blood, is fed by heightened levels of religion, and their wars against infidels, Israel, and the Western World are waged in the name of "Allah the merciful." Unimaginable atrocities are performed in the shadow of the Moslem half crescent, and the enthusiasm of the suicide murderers grows on a bed of religious incitement. And the false premise of dragging the El-Aktza Mosque into the focus of the struggle shows how the focus has purposely been moved in the direction of ecstatic Islam.
And we must also admit the truth on our side. Rabbis, and religion in general, are not elements that add to restraint. Sometimes the opposite is true. Transferring the Israeli-Palestinian struggle from the realm of nationalism and Zionism to the realm of Torah and religion does not help to decrease the intensity of the flames. The Torah itself, which is part of the basis for the settlement activity in Yehuda and the Shomron, provides added texture to general Zionism, but in no way does it call for violent and bloody actions. The anarchistic hilltop youths do not represent any segment of religious Judaism. Islam and only Islam is forcing on the world a culture of religious wars and jihadi destruction, following the direct orders of murderous religious leaders. Rabbi Menachem Froman found a number of "liberal" Islamic religious leaders at the margins of the camp, who spoke of peace and who were "nice." They are a mirror image of rabbis-for-peace-at-any-price who are at the margins of the Jewish camp. On both sides of the struggle, these people are not significant at all!
I am not an expert in the approach of the late Rabbi Shagar, who was a modern Torah thinker in our Torah-Zionist camp. I have been told by one of his followers that he used to say that the slogan "we will triumph by love" is flawed at its very basis. Love is not a weapon used to obtain victory but rather a tool for surrender...
(Written at the end of Shabbat for the Torah portion of Beshalach)
A WOMAN'S ANGLE
Yisrael was Redeemed through the Merits of the Women - by Shuli Mualem-Refaeili, MK from the Bayit Yehudi
"And the Prophetess Miriam, Aharon's sister, took the drum in her hands. And all the women followed her, with drums and dancing. And Miriam said to them: Sing to G-d, for He is higher than the arrogant, He threw horse and rider into the sea." [Shemot 15:21].
The end of the exile in Egypt has arrived, and the women of Yisrael, led by the Prophetess Miriam, celebrate the redemption that the Holy One, Blessed be He, brought about – which He did with their help. Moshe was eighty years old when he stood before Pharaoh, but the buds of redemption began to develop even before he was born.
To Believe in Life
Pharaoh's decree to throw the male children into the Nile, coming after years of bondage and oppression, caused the men of Bnei Yisrael to lose the will to live and to divorce their wives. Why should they bring new boys into the world if they would all be killed? However, the women had a different point of view – it was based on an optimistic outlook and on having faith that the G-d of Yisrael would redeem them. In the midst of the darkness of the exile, the women prepared musical instruments to be used after the exile was over.
This outlook of faith on the part of the women is what led Miriam to convince her father to remarry her mother. She said that Pharaoh's decree harmed men, but that the men of Yisrael had extended this to include the future women, by staying away from their wives. Amram, who according to the Midrash was a very prominent figure in the nation, was convinced by his daughter's arguments, and the other men followed him and remarried their wives.
Eventually, Moshe was born. Because of her faith in G-d, his mother put him in a sealed box in the Nile, and he was rescued by the daughter of Pharaoh, who decided to adopt him.
This outlook was maintained by all the women, who continued to dress up for their husbands, to enlarge and to maintain the family unit. The rabbis teach us with respect to the verse "I awakened you under the apple tree" [Shir Hashirim 8:5] that "as a reward for the righteous women of that generation, our fathers were redeemed from Egypt" [Sotta 11b]. The innate faith that was part of the world outlook of the women convinced the Hebrew midwives to revolt against Pharaoh's decree, to put themselves in mortal danger, and to rescue the children, who later on trekked through the seabed on dry land.
Today is Like it was Then
The role of the women as a motive force behind the redemption of the Jewish nation did not end in Egypt, it continued throughout our history. The decree by Haman to destroy the Jews during the reign of Achashverosh was overturned by the mother of Koresh, who was none other than Queen Esther. The return of sovereignty and the kingdom to Yisrael took place due to the resourcefulness of Yehudit, the daughter of Matityahu, of the family of the Chashmona'im. She kindled the multiyear revolution which led to the triumph over those who wanted to destroy our Torah.
Today too, in the era of the flowering of our redemption, women play a central role in the "tikun" of the world and in forming an exemplary society which will in the end lead to the era of the Mashiach.
Bravery, daring, determination, and great faith in the justification of our path are what have led the leading women to jump into the waters, to manage to change the course of history, and to sanctify the name of G-d. We must learn the lesson of our mothers and free ourselves from day-to-day shackles, and identify pockets of darkness – and we must continue to be partners in the critical process of "tikun," improving and mending the world around us.
THE GOOD LAND
Maaser on the Way to Bror Chayil - by Yoel Yaacobi, Institute for Torah and the Land
"One time, Rabbi Yehoshua went to Rabbi Yochanan Ben Zakai at Bror Chayil, and the people of the villages took out figs to give them. They said to him: Is it necessary to take off maaser? He replied: If we sleep here, it is required but if not, giving maaser is not necessary. Once travelers reach a place to sleep, maaser is required even after spending only two hours there. Rabbi Meir says, when they reach a place where they will stop, maaser is required even on Monday."
A Temporary Status for Eating while Traveling
The language barrier that residents of Bror Chayil who came from Brazil experience when they try to pronounce the name of the kibbutz where they live might make us forget some other very important elements. This is the name of an ancient Jewish settlement in the northwestern area of the Negev (not far from Sdeirot). Today this is identified with Olim from Brazil, but in the past it was known as the residence of the head of the Sanhedrin, Rabban Yochanan Ben Zakei – evidently after he gave the job back to Rabban Gamliel of Yavneh, who was from the dynasty founded by Hillel.
Rabbi Yehoshua, a disciple of Rabban Yochanan, observed the command of the sages to go and learn from the greatest man of the generation, which in this case took him to Bror Chayil. When the local residents of the area saw Rabbi Yehoshua and those who accompanied him, they quickly brought them some of the seasonal fruit, some figs. Since the figs were picked in an orchard and were not brought into the home, the travelers were allowed to eat them in a state of "tevel," before teruma and maaser were set aside. The obligation to remove teruma and maaser would only begin when the fruit was "established" in terms of maaser. There are six ways to establish the requirement for maaser, and as long as none of these criteria has been met the fruit can be eaten, since it has a status of "temporary eating" – that is, eating the fruit not as part of a meal (whatwe call a snack). However, if even one of the six criteria is met, the fruit loses its "temporary" status and it may not be eaten unless teruma and maaser have been set aside.
The six criteria are listed by the Rambam (Hilchot Maasrot 3:3): Bringing the fruit into the house; purchase of fruit that has been picked; cooking; salting; giving teruma; and the arrival of Shabbat. In the Mishna, there is a dispute about a case where a person takes fruit from one place with the intention of eating it someplace else (Maasrot 2:3). The first opinion is that the traveler can eat this as "temporary" food for the whole trip, until he reaches his destination. Rabbi Meir feels that if the traveler reaches a place where he will make a pause, even if this takes place a few days before Shabbat, he has the status of entering a house, and the fruit can no longer be considered as "temporary." In the above Tosefta, Rabbi Yehoshua is quoted as feeling that reaching a place where the traveler will sleep for the night gives the fruit a permanent status, on condition that a special place for him was set aside. The Talmud Yerushalmi notes that we can be sure that the local population set aside special quarters for such honored guests.