Parshas Ha’azinu

I Did Not Realize Until Now!

“Return O Israel to Hashem your G-D for you have fallen because of your sin”. Haftorah for Shabbos Shuva (from Parshas Vayelech) (Hoshea 14:2)

Rav Saadia Gaon zt”l was the pre-eminent Jewish leader in the 900’s. Once he was a guest at the home of a fellow Jew who did not recognize him. The Jew welcomed his guest warmly and treated him with the utmost respect. He treated him in a fine fashion, the same way he would treat any fellow Jew. The next day, when the host found out that his guest was none other than the great Rav Saadia Gaon, he felt terrible. He quickly ran to find the great sage. When he found Rav Saadia Gaon, the host begged his forgiveness. He apologized saying, had he known who his guest was, he would have treated him with more respect. Rav Saadia Gaon was surprised. He responded that the host welcomed him with open arms and did treat him very respectfully. The host responded that it was true that he treated Rav Saadia Gaon with respect. However, had he known who he was, he would have treated him with even more respect.

Rav Saadia Gaon learned a lifelong lesson from the words of his host. His host had felt the need to apologize for not having given him the proper respect the day before, based on his new knowledge today, of who his guest was. Rav Saadia Gaon felt that he should feel the same way, regarding his relationship with Hashem. He felt that he currently had more of an appreciation of Hashem than he did the day before. Taking the lead from his host, he felt that he had to apologize to Hashem for not have shown Hashem greater respect the day before, based on his his new-found understanding of Hashem. From that day forward, Rav Saadia Gaon repented every single day for not having shown Hashem the proper respect the day before. (based on a dvar Torah quoted by Rabbi Yaakov Yisroel Beyfuss in his sefer Yalkut Lekach Tov)

Based on Rav Saadia Gaon’s actions, we can understand the answer to a glaring question. On Yom Kippur, we spend an entire day, close to Hashem. We abstain from physical pleasures such as eating, drinking, washing ourselves, …. We are almost like angels who have no physical needs. We spend almost the entire time praying to Hashem enumerating our many sins and begging Hashem for forgiveness. If we are sincere in our pleading, at the conclusion of Yom Kippur we feel a sense of accomplishment. We feel that we exerted all our efforts to cleanse ourselves from our sins.  Immediately following the Yom Kippur prayers, we pray the weekday evening prayer. In the Shmone Esray we say to Hashem, “Forgive us, our Father, for we have sinned”.  If we just spent our entire day cleansing ourselves of our sins, why are we asking for forgiveness for our sins? What sins do we have now? Based on Rav Saadia Gaon’s actions, we can understand the answer to our question. We spent an entire day begging Hashem for forgiveness and enumerating our many sins. We declared Hashem’s greatness and loving kindness. We felt ourselves coming ever closer to Hashem. Now we realize just how terrible our past sins really were. Based on this new understanding, now we plead to Hashem, please forgive us for our prior sins.

The closer we get to Hashem, the more we realize how much we owe Him.

Parshas Nitzavim-Vayelech

I Hit ‘Rock Bottom’ Now What?

“If your dispersed will be at the ends of heaven, from there Hashem, your G-D, will gather you in and from there he will take you.” (Devarim 30:4)

Soon after conceiving the idea for Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling began writing but was pulled away from her work by the devastating death of her mother, which caused her to sink into a deep, grieving depression.  Soon after, she ended up with a failed marriage and a baby daughter she now had to raise alone. She had no job, no finished product and two mouths to feed. She had hit rock bottom. As she struggled with depression, raising a child on her own and living off meager unemployment benefits, she resumed work on her book in cafes while her daughter was asleep. She finally finished her book and sent it to numerous publishers who all rejected it. Finally, one accepted it and published it. Now, J.K. Rowlings is a famous author and a billionare! J.K. Rowlings had hit rock bottom. She persevered through a very difficult time in her life and succeeded beyond her wildest dreams. (from Failure. Rejection. Success: The J. K. Rowling Story)

Rabbi Shimshon Chaim Nachmani zt”l, in his sefer Zera Shimshon (as quoted by Rabbi Nachman Seltzer) asks an insightful question on our pasuk. It appears as if the pasuk includes unnecessary words. The Torah would have the same message had it left out the words “from there” as well as the words “and from there He will take you”.  The message of the pasuk would then be, “If your dispersed will be at the end of the heavens, Hashem, your G-D, will take you”.

The Talmud (Megillah 16A) quotes Rabbi Yehuda son of Ilai who says that the Jewish People are compared to the dust on the ground and the stars in the heavens. When the Jewish People fall, they fall all the way down to the dust on the ground. In his commentary the Maharsha, Rav Shmuel Eidels zt”l explains that everyone steps on dust.  Similarly, when the Jews fall, they may fall so low that everyone, even slaves, will have dominion over them. However, when the Jewish People rise, they rise as high as the stars.

 Rabbi Isaac Alfasi zt”l, in his commentary the Rif, says that when the Jews fall down so low, to the dust of the ground, that is a sign that they will rise as high as the heavens! Chanoch Zundel ben Yosef zt”l, in his commentary Eitz Yosef (on the Talmud in Brachos 4B), adds that if the Jewish People fall as low as the dust of the earth, Hashem will not help them to rise up. However, that is only if the Jews can raise themselves up on their own. If the Jews fall so low that they can not raise themselves up then Hashem will perform a miracle, going against nature, and raise them up.

Clearly, when the Jews sink so low, that is an indication that the ascent is about to begin.  The Jewish People will once again rise to greatness, like the stars of the sky.

Rabbi Shimshon Chaim Nachmani zt”l explains that this is what the seemingly extra words of the pasuk are alluding to.  If the Jews have fallen so low that it does not seem that they can fall any more, then “from there Hashem will gather you in” and turn you around.      “From there Hashem will take you” and you will begin to ascend to the greatest heights.         

When Hashem approached Moshe to redeem the Jewish People from Egypt, Moshe told Hashem, “Behold, they will not believe me and not listen to me” (Shmos 4:1). Moshe knew that the Jewish People had sunk so low. Moshe felt certain that they were hopelessly entrenched in the quagmire of Egypt and would ignore him. Hashem showed Moshe that he was wrong. Yes, the Jews had fallen to the 49^th level (out of 50) of impurity in Egypt. Yet they could rise, and they did rise to the highest levels when they perceived Hashem’s Presence at the splitting of the Red Sea and again when they received the Torah.

We should never give up on ourselves or on others. No matter how difficult things are or no matter how low a Jew has sunk, things change, and people can rise to the greatest heights! As Rosh Hashana approaches, we should realize our inherent greatness and holiness. We can become great again! If it is too hard for us to do so on our own, then Hashem, Himself, will help us become great again!

Parshas Ki Savo

You Can Dig A Little Deeper!

“Hashem did not give you a heart to know and eyes to see and ears to hear until this day”. (Devarim 29:3)

I vaguely recall reading a very fascinating story. Baruch had a desperate need. He approached his rabbi who asked him if he had davened to Hashem. Baruch said that he had. The rabbi then asked Baruch if he had davened with intensity. Baruch said that he had.  The rabbi drove Baruch to a lonely spot in the desert, in the dark of night, and without a cell phone.  The rabbi said he would be back in a few minutes and meanwhile Baruch should daven to Hashem to answer his prayers. The rabbi left Baruch and returned a few minutes later. The rabbi looked at him and said he was going to leave him for a lengthier period. When the rabbi returned and looked at Baruch again, the rabbi shook his head, no. He said that he was going to leave for an even lengthier period. At this point in time, in the dark of night, with the sound of animals in the background, Baruch truly felt that he was alone. No human could help him, and he could only rely on Hashem.  With tears streaming down his face, he davened to Hashem from the depths of his heart. This time, when the rabbi returned, he noticed that Baruch had tear-stained eyes and looked weary as if he had just run a marathon. The rabbi understood that Baruch finally davened to Hashem from the inner depths of his heart. The rabbi felt that these were powerful prayers and took Baruch home, confident that Baruch had done his best. 

Moshe Rabbeinu knew Hashem had decreed that he would not enter Eretz Yisroel (the Land of Israel). As the Jews were approaching Eretz Yisroel, Moshe defeated the two powerful giants, Sichon & Og in battle. Since the Jews were about to enter the land, Moshe wondered, if perhaps that meant the decree against him had been lifted. He prayed to Hashem. Hashem responded that the decree still stood, and Moshe was not permitted to lead the Jews into the land. Moshe prayed many times, but Hashem did not remove the decree against him (Devarim Perek 3). The Midrash Rabbah (Devarim 7:10) says that Hashem had made two decrees. One was that the Jewish men would die because they had sinned with the golden calf. (This punishment excluded the women who had neither participated in the sin nor were responsible for stopping it).  The second decree was that Moshe would not enter Eretz Yisroel because of a “sin” that he had done. Hashem had told Moshe to speak to a specific rock, which would then miraculously provide water for the millions of Jews and their animals. Moshe did so. However, instead of speaking to the rock, Moshe hit it. [There is a discussion among the commentators as to what Moshe’s actual sin was.]

After the Jews had sinned with the golden calf [only a tiny percentage of people were actively involved in the sin] Hashem told Moshe that He wanted to destroy the Jewish People and start the nation anew from Moshe. The Maharzu (Devarim 7:10) explains when Hashem said that He would make Moshe into a great nation it meant that Moshe would enter Eretz Yisroel and inherit it for eternity.  The Midrash continues, Moshe prayed for the Jews and Hashem spared them and removed the decree against them. “I have forgiven them, according to your words” (Bamidbar 14). Now, as the Jews were close to entering Eretz Yisroel, Moshe asked Hashem to remove the second decree, that barred him from entering the land. Hashem told Moshe that he could not have it both ways. If Hashem would remove the decree and allow Moshe to enter Eretz Yisroel, then Hashem would have to reinstate the decree which called for the death of the Jews for their sin with the golden calf. The Maharzu explains, Hashem had told Moshe that He wanted to destroy the Jewish People for their sin. Moshe would enter Eretz Yisroel and the Jewish nation would begin anew from Moshe. Hashem forgave the Jews “according to your [Moshe’s] words”. The Jews would be forgiven, and Moshe would not enter Eretz Yisroel in their place. If Moshe would enter the land now, the decree against the Jews would be reinstated.  The Midrash says, Moshe heard that he had the choice. Either the Jews would be forgiven, and he would not be allowed to enter Eretz Yisroel or he would enter Eretz Yisroel and the Jews would be destroyed for their sin. Moshe, showing his love for the Jewish people, immediately said, “Moshe should die and not one fingernail of one Jew be harmed”.

Despite this, Moshe criticized the Jewish People before his death. He said to them, “One person could redeem six hundred thousand but six hundred thousand couldn’t redeem one person?” Moshe’s prayers saved the lives of the Jewish People. Yet, the six hundred thousand Jews (males between 20 and 60) could not save Moshe’s life. Moshe had a complaint, why the Jews did not daven and beg Hashem for mercy to allow him to enter Eretz Yisroel. It would been a great benefit for them. Had Moshe led the Jews into Eretz Yisroel, the Beis HaMikdash would have been built immediately and permanently. It would never had been destroyed and the Jewish People would never have had to go into exile.

Moshe had hinted to the Jews a few times that he would not be leading them into Eretz Yisroel. (Matnos Kehuna & Maharzu in 3:11). Apparently, they did not take the hint. The Maharzu (3:11) says, had they truly and totally loved Moshe then their deep feelings for him would have prompted them to daven for him. Since they did not do it on their own, even after Moshe’s hint, then their prayers would not have sufficed even had Moshe told them explicitly to daven for him.

HaRav Henach Leibowitz zt”l  explains that prayer comes from the heart. There are many different levels of feeling. A prayer is more effective if it comes from the depths of ones’ heart and soul. If it comes from every fiber of our being then it is a more powerful prayer. HaRav Henach Leibowitz says that the Jewish People did love Moshe very much and did pray for him. However, the decree against Moshe was so strong that it required a prayer from greatest depths of their hearts. And that was lacking.

Hashem cherishes and listens to every prayer that we say. Even a prayer that is not said with intensity is valuable. At times, our prayers are more intense and come from the depths of our heart.  Those prayers are more powerful and are more capable of overcoming strong decrees against us. May we take advantage of our “secret weapon”, davening to Hashem with all our heart and all our soul.

Parshas Ki Tetzei

I Accept All Challenges!

“And you will see amongst the captives a woman who is of beautiful form and you will desire her, you may take her to yourself as a wife” (Devarim 21:11)

I recently heard a Holocaust story. A young Jewish boy was put to work in the kitchen in the concentration camp. He was able to scrounge some food for himself. So, he did not starve. One day a German officer entered the kitchen and noticed the Jewish boy working. The German officer went into a rage, wondering why the boy had “such an easy job”. He gave the boy a hammer and told him to go outside and dig a ditch 6 feet by 6 feet. He told the boy that he would be shot if it was not completed in three hours. The boy went outside with just the hammer and no true digging tool. The ground was frozen solid. There was no way that the boy would be able to dig the required hole. This was an impossible challenge!

The Torah says, if a Jewish soldier desires a non-Jewish woman who was captured during war, he is permitted to take her as a wife. Before marrying her, the Jewish soldier had to bring her into his house where she had to mourn the separation from her parents for thirty days. He also had to cut off her hair and give her ugly clothes to wear. The purpose of that was to try to dissuade the soldier from marrying her. However, if he still wanted to marry her, then it was permitted.

Why does the Torah permit a Jew to marry a non-Jewish woman in this circumstance? [Obviously, she would first have to convert to Judaism. However, this was not the typical marriage of a Jew marrying a precious convert.] The Talmud (Kiddushin 21B) explains that the Torah understands the powerful yetzer hara, especially in time of war. The Torah gives special permission to marry this captive in a permissible way, to prevent the Jewish solder from sinning, and acting in an improper way.

When you stop to think about this special dispensation, it is truly astounding. Earlier (Devarim 20:8) the Torah tells us what type of person the Jewish soldier was. The pasuk says that if the soldier was “fearful”, he did not have to serve on the front lines. According to one explanation (quoted in Rashi), that means if the soldier was afraid that his own sins would cause him to be unsuccessful in battle, then he would not have to fight on the front lines. The Talmud (Menachos 36A) gives an example of the type of sin that the Torah is referring to. Even if the soldier had spoken between putting on his tefillin shel yad and his tefillin shel rosh, that would be considered enough of a sin to hold this soldier back from combat.

Rav Tzvi Pesach Frank zt”l says we see from this that the Jewish soldiers were truly righteous individuals. Would such a person be interested in marrying a gentile woman? Why does the Torah have to give this special dispensation for such a righteous individual? Rav Tzvi Pesach Frank points out that even totally righteous individuals can be tempted to sin, especially during a war.

Rabbi Yechezkel Abramsky zt”l learns an important life lesson from here. There are times that mitzvos can be very challenging for us. In the 1930’s it was exceedingly challenging to observe Shabbos in America. Many Jews were told that they had to work on Shabbos or lose their jobs. Without jobs, they would not have money to buy food for their family. Yet, the Torah does NOT give a special dispensation allowing one to work on Shabbos even if one would have to go hungry for a while.

Berel left his family behind, in the Ukraine, and boarded a boat to America. Upon his arrival in New York, he got a job pressing shirts. A few months passed. Berel realized that he would now need to leave work earlier on Friday afternoon, since sundown was getting earlier. On Friday, Berel told his boss that he would need to leave early. The boss threw Berel’s ironing board into the street and told him never to come back. Berel hurried into the street and retrieved his board. It was almost Shabbat. He had no time to take his ironing board to his boarding house before the onset of Shabbat. “I stood there in middle of the street staring at my only possible means to support my family, and wondered what I would do with it,” he would later tell. In desperation, he dashed into the nearest store and asked if he could please leave his ironing board there. When Shabbat ended, Berel retrieved his ironing board. As he was walking home, a man noticed him holding his ironing board and offered him a job, pressing clothing. The job paid more money than Berel’s old job and did not require him to work on Shabbat. Apparently, his old boss had been taking advantage of him by paying him less than the going rate.

“At that moment it struck me,” he would later tell his children. “If I would have kept my old job and worked on Shabbat, I would have lost not only my share in the World to Come, but my rightful portion of this world as well!” Berel passed his challenge and now his grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren keep Shabbat. (Based on the story Saved by Shabbat by Menachem Posner)

Rabbi Abramsky said that the only dispensation that the Torah gives is when a Jewish soldier sees a gentile woman during war. Clearly, the Torah acknowledges that this is the only time that it may be too difficult to withstand the temptation of the yetzer hara. However, any other challenge we can handle successfully. We CAN overcome the challenge to do any other mitzvah, no matter how difficult it may be!

(based on a dvar Torah by Rabbi Yissocher Frand in Rabbi Frand on the Parsha 2)

Sometimes we feel that a mitzvah is too challenging for us to do. That is 100% false!
While it may be difficult or challenging, it is not too difficult!
Hashem does NOT present us with a situation that is impossible for us!
Hashem only gives us challenges that we are able to pass.
We must strengthen ourselves and work hard, knowing that WE CAN DO IT!

Parshas Shoftim

Don’t Even Think about Doing That Again!

“Only he [the Jewish king] shall not keep many horses and not cause the people to return to Egypt to get many horses….” (Devarim 17:16)

There is a famous story about a wealthy Jewish rug merchant. He was enjoying his Shabbos meal with his family when he heard loud and persistent knocking at his door. It was the Sultan’s messengers. The Sultan was having a party and needed some expensive rugs, immediately. The merchant apologized that he could not do business on Shabbos. The messengers left, saying that the Sultan would not be happy. Sometime later, the messengers returned with a message from the Sultan. If the Sultan would not receive the rugs immediately, he would stop doing business with the merchant and would also encourage others to stop doing business with him. The merchant apologetically refused. The merchant’s wife and children were worried that the Sultan might harm him because of this refusal. The merchant said that it was Shabbos and they should not worry about it now. After Shabbos, the Sultan’s guards came to the merchant’s house to take him away. When he was escorted into the Sultan’s chambers, the Sultan was smiling. The Sultan had made a bet with the prince of another country that a Jew would not desecrate the Shabbos, even for money. The merchant’s refusal to desecrate Shabbos even under the threat of a large financial loss, allowed the Sultan to win his bet. The Sultan told the merchant that he would purchase more from him and encourage others to do so as well. The merchant’s refusal to desecrate Shabbos facilitated his getting more money than before.

In this week’s parsha, Hashem exhorts the Jewish king not to acquire too many horses. Egypt was known as the premier seller of fine horses and Hashem did not want any Jew to return to Egypt to purchase horses. The Chofetz Chaim zt”l  (Biuri HaChofetz Chaim al HaTorah by Rabbi Yisroel Braunstein) questions the wording of the pasuk. First the pasuk uses the plural for horses, “susim”, saying that the Jewish king should not acquire too many horses. The end of the pasuk uses the singular form, “sus”, that the Jewish people should not return to Egypt to get many horses.

The Chofetz Chaim explains that the Torah is teaching us a very powerful lesson in human nature. Generally, a person will not sin for a minimal gain. However, if the potential gain is great, the temptation to sin will be greater. For example, a person who observes Shabbos will not desecrate Shabbos for the benefit of gaining a few pennies. However, the temptation to desecrate Shabbos will be much greater for the benefit of gaining thousands of dollars. A person might be tempted to rationalize to himself and desecrate Shabbos.

The Chofetz Chaim continues, if a person does desecrate Shabbos because of the temptation of gaining thousands of dollars then he weakens his resolve of keeping Shabbos. In his mind desecrating Shabbos is no longer as terrible as he once felt that it was. He will more easily come to desecrate Shabbos. Our rabbis tell us, once a person sins and repeats the sin, the action becomes permissible in his eyes, “na’ase lo ke’heter”. Little by little, the importance of keeping Shabbos will become less and less until he will be willing to desecrate Shabbos even for the gain of a few pennies!

This is the lesson that the pasuk is teaching us. The Jewish king certainly will not send a fellow Jew back to Egypt just to purchase one horse. However, if the Jewish king desires and acquires too many horses then it will break-down his barrier, and he will now be willing to send Jews down to Egypt to purchase even a solitary horse.

The Talmud (Kedushin 40A) explains Rav Huna’s teaching. When a person transgresses and repeats his transgression, then it becomes as if it were permitted to him. He becomes accustomed to this behavior and no longer senses that it is a sin.

For this reason, Rabbeinu Yona of Gerona says (Shaarei Teshuvah) that one who sins should repent his sin as soon as possible. If he delays, then he will more easily succumb when the yetzer hara presents the same sin to him at another time. At that point, teshuvah will be more difficult because the sin becomes permissible in his eyes and he will not feel the need to repent.

There was a famous rabbi who fainted in shul when the gabbai announced that the month of Elul was approaching. The Rabbi felt the nearness of Rosh Hashana, the day that Hashem judges us.

The month of Elul is here. It means that Rosh Hashana is approaching. If we have not already done so, it is time to reflect on our actions. What needs improvement? How can we come closer to Hashem? Which sins do we have to quickly correct before we view them as permissible actions? To whom do we have to ask for forgiveness? How can we improve our relations with others?

May Hashem give us the strength to do teshuvah and may we all merit a year of health, and success.

Parshas V’eschanan

Loving Hashem Means Loving His Children and Getting Involved!

“And you shall love Hashem, your G-D with all your heart…” (Devarim 6:5)

Sholom lost his job. When his friend, Menashe, heard about it, he arranged for food to be delivered to Sholom. Then Menashe helped Sholom find another job. When Sholom’s car would not start, Menashe gave his car a boost. When Sholom had to go to the hospital, Menashe arranged childcare for Sholom’s family. Menashe cared so much for Sholom and took care of him. Sholom truly loved Menashe. At every opportunity, Sholom would tell others how special Menashe was.

The Chofetz Chaim zt”l says that it is a positive mitzvah to love Hashem with all your heart, soul, and resources. The Rambam says that this mitzvah comprises bringing others closer to Hashem; to serve Hashem and to believe in Hashem.  The Chofetz Chaim continues that, when you love someone, you praise him and encourage others to love him as well. This what our forefather Avraham did. Avraham loved Hashem and spent his life trying to bring others to an awareness and love of Hashem.

The Talmud (Gittin 55B) quotes a famous story. There was a wealthy man who lived at the time of the Second Temple. The Talmud does not tell us his name. This man had a close friend, Kamtza, and a bitter enemy named Bar Kamtza. He was having a party and instructed his servant to deliver an invitation to his good friend Kamtza. The servant mistakenly delivered the invitation to Bar Kamtza. Bar Kamtza assumed that he was purposely invited in an attempt at reconciliation (see the Maharsha). Thus, he went to the party. When the host saw Bar Kamtza, he flew into a rage and wanted to know why he had the audacity to come to his party, as they were hated enemies of one another. Bar Kamtza explained that the host’s servant had mistakenly invited him. The host did not care and ordered Bar Kamtza to leave immediately. Bar Kamtza, seeking to avoid humiliation, offered to pay for whatever he would eat at the party. When this offer was refused, he offered to pay for half of the party. When this was refused, Bar Kamtza offered to pay for the entire party! The host angrily turned this down as well, physically grabbed Bar Kamtza, and threw him out!

As the story continues, Bar Kamtza became very upset that the rabbis who were present did not intervene when he was humiliated. (The Maharsha gives two reasons explaining the rabbi’s inactions). Bar Kamtza responded by visiting the Roman Caeser and falsely accusing the Jews of rebelling against Rome. That led to a chain of events which ended with the destruction of the city of Jerusalem, along with the destruction of the Temple.

The Talmud blames the destruction of Jerusalem on the actions of Kamtza and Bar Kamtza. Bar Kamtza was the person who falsely informed on the Jews. Rabbi Yaakov Reischer zt”l,  in his commentary Iyun Yaakov, asks, what did Kamtza do!? Why was his name included as a villain? Furthermore, the party’s host was quite nasty.  Why wasn’t his name recorded, together with Bar Kamtza, as the ones who caused the destruction?

During this era, the Jews learned Torah and performed mitzvos. Unfortunately, they had sinas chinum. They felt unwarranted hatred to one-another. There was too much divisiveness. That hatred caused the destruction of the Temple.

Chacham Yosef Chaim Ben Yehoyada zt”l, known as the Ben Ish Chai, answers the Iyun Yaakov’s question. Rashi explains that Kamtza and Bar Kamtza were two people who were not related. The Talmud says that Kamtza was a “beloved friend” of the host of this party. As such, when he observed Bar Kamtza being publicly humiliated, he should have said something to his friend. He could have explained that this was an honest mistake. He could have said that Bar Kamtza only came because he thought that the host invited him to make peace (see Maharsha), so maybe the host should accept that offer of peace. Or perhaps he could have told the host that he was 100% correct but that he should not embarrass Bar Kamtza publicly. The point is that he was able to prevent this outrage, yet he did nothing! According to the Maharsha, Kamtza and Bar Kamtza were father and son. If so, Kamtza must have known the hatred that this host had for his son. Even before this party, he was obligated to try to end the strife and promote peace. Had he done so, then Bar Kamtza would not have been humiliated at the party and the catastrophic, ensuing events would not have occurred. Therefore, Kamtza was culpable and the devastating episode is also called in his name.

We often find ourselves in a position where we can be a peacemaker or help guide others to do the right thing. If we shirk our opportunity/responsibility, then we, too, are accountable for what happens. When we actively work at creating peace and bridging happiness, we are showing how much we love Hashem and His children.

Parshas Devarim

You Lose Some, You Win All!

“So I took the heads of your tribes, distinguished men who were wise and well-known, and I appointed them as heads over you: leaders of thousands, leaders of hundreds, leaders of fifties, leaders of tens, and officers for your tribes.” (Devarim 1:15)

Yitzchak was a shochet in a small town in Europe in the 1800’s. Once he questioned if the cow that he had slaughtered was kosher or treif. He asked the Rav of the town who told him that it was treif. Even though it was a large financial loss, Yitzchak accepted the ruling calmly. Sometime later, Yitzchak had a financial dispute with Yosef, another resident of the town. The dispute did not involve a large sum of money, but they did not resolve the dispute on their own. They went to the Rav who convened a bais din (a Jewish court of law). After they ruled against Yitzchak, he became furious, lost control, and screamed at the Rav. Even though the sum of money in question was relatively small, the idea of losing to someone else was too much for Yitzchak to bear.

When the Jews camped in the desert, after leaving Egypt, they were told to pitch their tents together with members of their own tribe. Shlomis was the only Jewish woman who had been violated by an Egyptian man. A dispute arose when her son wanted to pitch his tent with the tribe of Dan, the tribe of his mother. Another member of the tribe of Dan said that he was not permitted to camp there because his father was not from Dan. Instead of trying to work things out, the Jew from the tribe of Dan was quick to say that they had to go to Beis Din to settle the dispute. Beis Din ruled against Shlomis’ son. He responded by cursing, using Hashem’s holy name (for which he was punished).

The Da’as Zekanim (Shmos 24:11) brings a story from the Talmud (Pesachim 4A) about a person who, whenever he disagreed with someone, immediately suggested that he and his adversary bring the matter to court.  Rashi explains that for any monetary disagreement this person had, he would immediately say, “Let’s go to court”.

Eventually, people who knew him concluded that he must have descended from the tribe of Dan.  Our forefather Yaakov blessed the tribe of Dan, “Dan will judge his people …” (Braishis 49:16). The tribe of Dan had the tendency to take all their arguments to court and not listen to their peers.

Rav Henach Leibowitz zt”l says that this trait of Dan was a positive one.  Yaakov gave this blessing, having Shimshon (Samson) in mind. Shimshon came from the tribe of Dan. Yaakov’s blessing was that Shimshon would have strong convictions, uphold the truth, and be able to fight to the very end.  However, as with any trait, it can be used in a good way or in a bad way. One would think that it is good to have a desire for justice and to constantly want to go to Bais Din to follow their judgements. In reality, rushing to do this all the time is bad. Instead, a person should first try to settle his differences out of court. He should try to avoid arguments by respecting an opposing opinion and trying to work-out a compromise.

In this week’s parsha, Moshe repeated the guidelines used for instituting their judicial system. Moshe had changed the system at the suggestion of his father-in-law, Yisro. The Netziv, Rabbi Naftali Tzvi Yehudah Berlin zt”l quotes the Talmud (Sanhedrin 6B) that Moshe ruled court cases with strict justice, according to the law. As soon as Moshe heard both sides of the argument, he knew immediately who was in the right, and ruled accordingly. Yisro had suggested establishing a comprehensive court system, with many judges. The judges would often need time to analyze both sides before rendering their decision. That would allow time for compromise, to end the dispute. Yisro’s main intention was to establish a justice system based on the idea of compromise, enabling it to become a judgement of peace (See the commentary Harchev Davar on the pasuk, Shmos 18:23). Without compromise, the one who loses will often feel embittered towards the winner and towards the judges. Yisro’s system promoted peace since no one loses. Each side would feel that although he did not win, he also did not lose.

Rav Avrohom Pam zt”l (quoted in Rav Pam on Chumash by Rabbi Sholom Smith) quotes the Shulchan Aruch (Choshen Mishpat 12:2) that the Beis Din should always try to settle a case by negotiating a compromise. The Sma says that “The pursuit of peace is so important that it justifies a monetary concession”. The Shulchan Aruch prohibits a person to bypass the Jewish Beis Din in favor of a secular court, unless authorized by the Beis Din. Rav Pam zt”l  quotes Rabbi Akiva Eiger zt”l who rules that it is considered stolen property if a person is awarded money by a secular court which would not have been awarded him by the Beis Din. In fact, if one uses that money to betroth a woman, the marriage would be considered invalid!

The Bais Hamikdash was destroyed because of baseless hatred. Anything that we can do to minimize ill-feelings can make us feel happier and can also be the catalyst for the rebuilding of the Bais HaMikdash. When we have disagreements with others, be it friends, spouses, or business associates, we should try to compromise. By not “winning” the argument, we will be the true winners!

Parshas Ha’azinu

All Of Us Belong to This Club

[And Hashem said to Moshe…] “You shall die in the mountain that you are about to ascend…” (Devarim 32:50)

Shmuel & Chana owned a small food store. The store was filling with customers and Chana could not handle them all. Shmuel had gone to shul a few hours before and was not back yet. Some of the customers were already waiting in line for half an hour. Chana explained to one customer that Shmuel used to be in the store from early in the morning until late at night. He never used to take off time to daven in shul. However, last week he had told her, ‘Chana, I am an older man now. It’s time that I started preparing for the long trip ahead”. Since that time, he had been going to daven in shul and was away from the store every morning. When another customer said that davening had finished long ago, Chana got very concerned and rushed to the shul to see if her husband was okay. When she arrived, she saw that Shmuel was calmly sitting down and learning Torah. ‘Have you gone mad?! The store is filled with customers and you are sitting and studying?’ Shmuel calmly responded, ‘Just imagine that your greatest fears would have been correct and that the Angel of Death had come to take me away. Could you have told him that there is no time now because there is a store full of customers? Pretend that I am really dead. In a few hours I will miraculously return to life and come to help you in the store.’ (adapted from Give Us Life, Mesholim and Masterwords of the Chofetz Chaim by Mendel Weinbach)

Once a person dies, it is too late to do any more mitzvos. That realization is very painful to a person’s soul. The Chofetz Chaim zt”l says that many people sin because they don’t feel strongly enough that they will die. They feel that they don’t belong to the “club” of those people who will die. Therefore, they feel that there is no rush to accumulate as many mitzvos as possible. The Talmud (Shabbos 30A) relates that King David asked Hashem when he was going to die. He wanted to know which year, which month, and which day. Hashem refused to tell him. Then King David asked in which season he would die. Hashem refused that request as well. When King David asked to know at least on which day of the week he would die, Hashem told him that he would die on a Shabbos. Rabbi Shmuel Eidels, known as the Maharsha, explains why Hashem refused King David’s first two requests. Hashem has a decree not to divulge this information. One must do teshuva every second of his life because of the fear of impending death. If one knows the exact time of his death, he may sin his entire life and wait until close to his death before doing teshuva. King David’s last request was acceptable. Knowing on which day of the week he would die would not go against Hashem’s decree of not divulging the day of death. This way, at least every week King David would be involved in doing teshuva.

Rabbi Henach Leibowitz zt”l, highlights two points from this. How is Hashem’s decree about not revealing the specific time of death relevant to King David? Certainly, someone as great as King David would be constantly involved in teshuva every day of his life. Apparently, if he knew the exact time of death there could be the ever-slightest lack of intensity in his teshuva. By not having that information, his intensity would be total. Therefore, it was better for him not to know the exact time.

Furthermore, we would have thought that it would be beneficial to know the exact time of death. This would help people realize that they WILL die, that they DO belong to the “club” of those who die. We see from the Maharsha that this is not the case. We see that one can only use the knowledge and awareness of impending death effectively if it is uppermost in his mind, at all times. He must constantly be aware that death can come at any second. That will serve as in impetus to do teshuva. If he knows the exact time, he may be tempted to sin until right before that time

The world we live in is temporary. It is a preparation for the eternal world. Focusing on the unnerving fact that we WILL die, will motivate us to maximize the time that we do have. We will do more mitzvos and constantly do teshuva.