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Parshas Lech L’cha-פרשת לך לך

October 29, 2009 // Posted in Weekly Parsha Divrei Torah (Tags: ) |  1 Comment

וה’ אמר אל אברם אחרי הפלט מעמו

כל זמן שהרשע עמו, הי-ה הדיבור פורש ממנו (רש”י)

Hashem spoke to Avraham AFTER he parted ‘with him’ (Lot)

Rashi explains that as long as Avraham was with Lot the Shechina left him.

The midah that Avraham personified here is something of great importance.  Avraham understands that when he is with a rasha the shechina leaves his presence. Yet, when he is walking here with Lot he doesn’t utter a word and keeps quiet. The level a person must have attained to have the shechina talk with him is obviously of very high caliber. What greater honor is there? Why would anyone, once achieved, want to give up even the possibility of not being able to be spoken to by Hashem for even a minute amount of time?

Yet this was the midah personified by Avraham. The gemarah in Shabbos (127a) says ‘Gedolah hachnasas orchim yoser mikabalas p’nei HaShechina’. Welcoming someone into your home; being mechabed someone - is greater than actually greeting the shechina. Even though speaking with Hashem is on the greatest level, still - a person must not distance himself from another-because hachnasas orchim is greater.

It was for this reason that Avraham wasn’t anxious to get rid of Lot. However, eventually when each others shepherds started arguing over the sheep THEN Avraham called it quits and had to part with Lot.

We learn here a valuable lesson from Avraham Avinu. All men are not created equal. Just because someone is different than you, or on a lower level than you doesn’t mean one should turn him away.  On the contrary, embrace him and get close to him. Lot was a rasha, not just on a ‘lower level’ than Avraham. Yet, Avraham tried to have a hashpa’ah on him.  He said if I turn away from him the shechina will be back. But if I never try to influence him he’ll never consider changing. So Avraham stood with him, abandoned the shechina (so to speak) in order to try to be mechazek Lot and try to change him.  When a person sees that there’s someone less fortunate than him, don’t run away.  Try to have an influence on him. Put your needs on the side for a moment and try to get close to him.

The gemarah (Moed Koton 17a) says if the Rav is similar to a malach Hashem then you shall seek torah from him and if he is not comparable to a malach then do not try and learn torah from him. Many of the mefarshim struggle with this gemarah. Firstly, how can man be like a malach? And secondly, how are we supposed to know how malachim act? How can we tell if he’s like the malachim or not?

Some of the meforshim answer, that the underlying difference between a malach and man is the ability to spiritually grow and fall. A malach cannot grow spiritually; he is what he is and can neither strive higher nor fall lower than his current level. Man was blessed with the ability to constantly strive higher (and unfortunately sink lower). The ultimate Rebbi is one who acts as a malach and forfeits his own growth for the sake of the growth of his talmidim. One who has the ability to focus on his students needs and place them before his own is worthy of being a Rebbi. THAT’S how one can tell.

Avraham put his needs, of conversing with the shechina, aside and tried to have a hashp’ah on Lot. That’s a rebbe.  We must also remember that this applies only if it won’t bring a person down by doing so.  If it will merely prevent a person from growing, says Rav Shach ZT”L, one should do it.  But if it will bring a person down then of course one need not do this.

It’s no easy task but with practice we can all hopefully adapt to this wonderful midah. May we all be zoche.

(Search by: parsha; lech l’cha; parshas lech l’cha; torah; chumash; rav shach; loving others; giving up on your own for others; hachnasa orchim; shabbos; moed katan; rebbi should be like malach; being a role model; influencing othrs; putting your needs aside to help another)

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Parshas Noach-פרשת נח

October 23, 2009 // Posted in Weekly Parsha Divrei Torah (Tags: ) |  No Comments

נח איש צדיק תמים היה בדורותיו (ו, ט)

Rashi on the word b’dorosov comments that there are those who darshin this as a praise and say had Noach been living in the times of tzadikim he would’ve been an even bigger tzadik. Others darshin this on the contrary and say that had he been living in the times of tzadikim he would’ve not been such a tzadik.

The obvious question here is if we’re able to take this word (b’dorosov) as a praise why would even mention that we can take this word the other way, as a g’nai?

There’s a gemarah in Sanhedrin (108:2) that asks a question on a Pasuk in this weeks parsha.  The Pasuk says ‘from all the kosher animal you shall take 7 and 7; man and his wife’ and from the non kosher 2; man and his wife. The question over here is: where is there a concept of man and wife by animals? Is there a concept of marriage by animals? The gemarah answers that since they only mated with their own kinds we used this loshon.

The Aruch has a pirush on the side of the gemarah and he continues to pursue this question.  He says…the gemarah seems a bit shver because we still have our question. The gemarah didn’t answer the question. All the gemarah said was that they remained faithful. L’maaseh, is there or isn’t there a concept of marriage (of man and wife) by animals?

The aruch answers and says from the fact that they didn’t mate and they only stayed within their kind-the torah elevated their status due to their behavior and treated them as if there is a concept of Ishus by animals. We elevated them to the status of a human being.  These animals were living in a corrupt world.

What’s the gemarah telling us?  The torah wanted to highlight their behavior so everyone should realize that these animals are special. How did the torah do that? By referring to them like the torah would to humans……using a loshon of ishus.

The chofetz chaim says that this is the pshat for the one that understood the word b’dorosov as a derogatory description. That if Noach was living in the times of Avraham he wouldn’t have necessarily been a tzadik.

Even though had Noach been living in the time of Avraham he may not have reached the level of Avraham but the torah nonetheless was machshiv Noach as a tzadik due to the level of his surroundings. Noach was living in a corrupted world where he could’ve easily assimilated with the ‘regulars’ and used the excuse of…..’everyone’s doing it’.  But he didn’t. He wasn’t willing to be influenced by his surroundings. And it was this that saved him from the destruction of the Mabul. The torah wanted to inform us that it was his ability to ignore his surroundings that characterized him as a tzadik. And despite the fact that he may not have been considered a tzadik in a different generation, he nevertheless received this prestigious title for his ability to reach his level in his generation by overcoming his challenges.

It’s an important lesson for us all to learn from Noach. We’re all living in a corrupt world ourselves where we are easily influenced by everything going on around us. It’s up to us to make sure we stand out and are highlighted from our neighbors, from our society. How do we do that? By not going with the flow. By not being influenced with all the outside shtusim.

The more gedarim a person makes and the more one elevates himself the more he is highlighted in Hashems eyes and the more it will show hashem that we don’t want to assimilate with the goyim. And even if we are not perfect at times, we can be classified as tzadikim by simply being better than our surroundings. We will then be called tzadik in in Hashems eyes for not being swept along with this filthy current.

May Hashem give us all the strength to not be influenced by our surroundings and to be included in the title of ‘tzadikm.

(Search by: parsha; noach; parshas noach; chumash; torah; chofetz chaim; Sanhedrin; aruch; staying within your kind; elevating your status; not going with the flow; not being influenced by your surroundings; your status is according to your surroundings; overcoming your challenges; making gedarim; not assimilating; being better than our surroundings; having a higher status for not following the norm)

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Parshas Bereishis-פרשת בראשית

October 15, 2009 // Posted in Weekly Parsha Divrei Torah (Tags: ) |  No Comments

After Adam ate from the eitz hadas, he was punished with the curse of ‘B’zeas apecha tochel lechem (3:19)’ which literally means, “with the sweat of your brow you shall eat bread”. The concept of working hard for sustenance, while well known to all of us, is not the way God originally created the world.

The question is, does this curse apply only to bread literally, or to all endeavors man tries to accomplish?

Once someone asked the Nitziv why his chidushim were coming with more difficulty once he was hired as a rebbi for pay? The Nitziv answered that until he was hired as a rebbi, his chidushim and shiurim weren’t his parnassah. But now that it’s his parnassah his Torah doesn’t come as easy as it used to because it falls into the curse of ‘B’zeas apecha’. We see from here that the curse extends so far that whatever a person’s profession may be, even if it’s in a spiritual ‘field’, he has to sweat it out (so to speak) due to this curse.

Rav Chaim Shmuelovitz Zt”l says this curse goes even further. He says anything a person does that requires ‘work’ falls into the category of this curse! Not just parnassah, but anything that requires toiling, working hard, hustling or anything of that sort falls into this category- even ones torah. If a person is having trouble learning a piece of gemarah or chapping a Reb Akiva Eiger , that’s all part of this curse, according to the Rosh HaYeshiva. He explains that this is why the gemara uses the lashon of ‘yagati u’matzasi ta’amin’, that if someone works on something and strives for it and he finds it, and he’s matzliach, and he chaps it….we believe him. But you’ll notice the term used is ‘matzasi’. Why? Because a person should know that it’s not “because he worked hard on it” that he succeeded. It uses the word ‘metziah’ to tell us that just like a lost object is always present, and the act of searching does not produce it, torah knowledge too, does not materialize due to our efforts. It is always there, but we need to put in great efforts due to this curse of ‘b’zeas apecha’.

One should not get discouraged when struggling on a matter.  Be it parnassah, torah or anything that requires work, we  have to remember that Hashem changed the nature of the world at the time of Adam’s cheit and that’s what holds us back at times from succeeding.  Through toil and emunah we can overcome this curse and succeed in everything we do. If we put in our kochos to be ‘mutzuh’ to ‘find’ what we’re striving for, then we will succeed.

(Search by: torah; chumash; parsha; adams cheit; bereishis; parshas bereishis; rav chaim shmuelovitz; nitziv; toiling for ones work; the curse of sweating for sustenance)

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Succos 5770-סוכות תש”ע

October 1, 2009 // Posted in Yomim Tovim (Tags: ) |  2 Comments

As we know, Succos is a continuation of the Yom Hadin that concludes with Hoshana Raba. The mitzvah of lulav is a representation of our victory in din, akin to someone raising their hands high in victory upon leaving a courthouse victorious.

The obvious question, asked by Rav Nosson Wachtfogel Zt”l, is what shayches does Succos have to the yom hadin? There seems to be no connection between the fasting and praying of yom kippur and the feasting and joy of Succos.

Rav Wachtfogel gives a beautiful and inspiring answer.

There’s a gemarah that tells of the terrible yesurim of Rebbi. The gemarah says that the yesurim came because of a certain ‘incident’ and it left because of a certain ‘incident’. How did the suffering start? What was this ‘incident’? The gemarah says that Rebbi was walking one day and a small calf had run away from the slaughterhouse and crawled under his coat. Rebbi looked at the little calf and he said ”go…shew….for this is what you were created for.  You have to be shechted.” It was because of this incident that he suffered terribly his entire life.  However, the gemarah states that “the end result for an animal is to be killed.”  So what was the terrible sin of Rebbi, if he was speaking the truth?

The yesod is as follows: even if a person is undeserving of such great hospitality, once he comes into your house and wants to be taken under your wings, you have to show rachamim. There’s a different level of responsibility once someone’s in your domain. You have to treat him properly and respect him. The little calf WAS created to get killed but when he came under the coat of Rebbi, into Rebbi’s domain, Rebbi should’ve been extra sensitive and showed special rachmanus. But because he didn’t, he ended up suffering terribly for the rest of his life. When Succos follows Yom Kippur, we have just finished a day of forgiveness and judgment and we don’t know what our fate will be.  But we quickly jump and move into a Succah, into the house of Hashem. Why? What’s the connection? Because no matter what our judgment is, when we’re in the house of Hashem, the baal habayis has to show us mercy even if we’re undeserving. And while we are in the Succah, we can rest assured that we will get that extra special mercy!

When we’re sitting in the Succah this year, on all the days, we need to remember this and know that when we’re in the house of Hashem he will treat us with extra special care.  We should try to behave like we’re in his house as well; the two go hand in hand. With this I hope we all had an easy and meaningful fast and with the help of Hashem this should be the last yom tov in golus and iy”h next year we should all be in Succos Bais Dovid….in Yerushalayim habnuya with Moshiach.

(Search by: succos; rav nosson; rav nosson wachtfogel; having rachmanis; having mercy; rebbi’s suffering; yoma; the connection between yom kippur and succos; the house of Hashem)

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