Parsha Acharei Mos / Kedoshim and Emor, stories, halacha

Suffering from a brain hemorrhage is Luna Efrat Bat Kamilla.

We are in danger at the time of this writing from a world Pandemic. There is one anti-flu recipe proven over the course of many centuries: Repentance, Prayer and Charity prevent the evil decree. You need all three.

S. sent me a letter which was such a question that I began thinking that it was worth answering here. The answer is that one should be ready at all times in deed and word when nobody is watching to accept the Moshiach.

Hello Rachamim,

"You are welcome now it is time to move ‘bistra, bistra’ hurry up." (The person had a Russian background so I used a Russian word.) Why do you think we need to hurry up? Time is coming to an end?

The answer is that we have to wait for Moshiach on each and every passing day. The only time I don't believe that the Moshiach will come in any one given year is as I walk to Schul to pray Mincha as the sun is setting Erev Rosh Hashanah and then I believe that he can only come next year.

Our Sages of blessed memory tell us that when one sees trouble in the world he should review his own deeds and work on Repentance (Tshuvah), Prayer (Tephillah) and Charity (Tzedakah). We all think that before the king Moshiach can establish his rule that there will be a war of Gog and Magog. In Meseches Baba Kama 60B it states: "That in times of peace the Angel of Death walks along the side of the road and in times of war, he occupies the middle of the road." The statement can be interpreted in many ways and the first way is at face value. However, when one is at war with the forces of evil he cannot stay in the middle of the road where he is sure to die. He must take a firm stance off to the side. He must be zealous for G-D and his cause.

Now the Prophet Yeshayahu (Isa.) states in the early chapters of war, famine, poverty, etc. With the scandals, taxes, loss of trust in the stock market and collapse of companies and green energy taxes literally taxing businesses and power plants out of existence we are headed back towards the Stone Age. One cannot legislate technological advances on a commercial level it is just impossible to do. Corn aka Maize is being used for fuel for automobiles instead of feeding the hungry. In Mexico the H1N1 virus is spreading and Iran is heading towards 60 atomic bombs in the next 5 years and nobody so far is stopping it.

These appear to be signs that make me worry. Things that tell me "Beware Rachamim if HASHEM wants you to miss out on Moshiach, HE just might call you back home via an Iranian Nuke, Virus, Car accident, snake or whatever when the Angel of Death is on the prowl." So am I prepared? Have I given out charity? Have I made a commitment to strengthen myself in Torah and Prayer? Have I stopped my mad folly? - As it is written: "One does not sin unless a spirit of folly enters him".- Mishlei from Shlomo HaMelech.

Thought for the week: Chaim Yitzchok Cohen: One is never alone Hashem is always with us. 24/7 Smile and say "Hashem is always with me'' HASHEM IS WONDERFUL!!!! Let us not let the Yetzer Hara make us think any other way no matter what.

Acharei Mos / Kedoshim and Emor

As a modern person, I believe in taking a vacation for rest and relaxation. However as a Rabbi I cannot take a vacation from Torah and Mitzvos they go with me all the time. Therefore so as not to be under pressure to put out a half baked Parsha and a weak www.rabbipauli.blogspot.com I have sort of jumped the Parsha gun and added another week here and I will see how free I am or if I will have to have another triple header.

We are talking here about no small section of the Torah from Vayikra (Lev.) 16:1 to 24:23

Acharei Mos 28 of the 613 mitzvot; 2 positive, 26 prohibitions

Kedoshim 51 mitzvot; 13 positive, 38 prohibitions

Emor 63 of the 613 mitzvot; 24 pos. 39 prohibitions

This is 142 Mitzvos in all or 23.1% of the Mitzvos of the Torah 39 positive and 103 prohibitions.

16:1 And the LORD spoke unto Moses, after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they drew near before the LORD, and died;

One does not treat his king like a buddy especially the King of Kings. We know about the hint of not drinking wine and now the new prohibition about entering the Holy of Holies. What does G-D want from us to be humble and follow his commandments faithfully no extra additions and no false dress to put on an air for human beings.

2 and the LORD said unto Moses: 'Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the veil, before the ark-cover which is upon the ark; that he die not; for I appear in the cloud upon the ark-cover.

We now go into the laws of Yom Kippur Korbanos. What atonements Aaron and his future children are to do for the service of the Cohain Gadol and atonement for the Nation. How the scapegoats are chosen from twin goats or look alike goats. The Mishnah and Talmud Yomi go into depth with the Oral Torah how this was done. Since the Aron Kodesh was permanently placed in the Temple there was a road leading towards the wilderness in the direction of the Dead Sea where the goat was thrown to Azazel. I assume this would be slightly after the turn off to Pisgat Zev on route one something like 15 kilometers from the Temple or about 3 hours of speed walking but probably longer duration due to the goat itself stopping to eat along the way. (That is also the way of our animalist soul inside of us. Our bodies might be pushed off the cliff real soon and all we can think about is enjoying our food along the way. Thus is the nature of this false world. In the true world real values come up for our Neshama.)

3 Herewith shall Aaron come into the holy place: with a young bullock for a sin-offering, and a ram for a burnt-offering. 4 He shall put on the holy linen tunic, and he shall have the linen breeches upon his flesh, and shall be girded with the linen girdle, and with the linen mitre shall he be attired; they are the holy garments; and he shall bathe his flesh in water, and put them on. 5 And he shall take of the congregation of the children of Israel two he-goats for a sin-offering, and one ram for a burnt-offering. 6 And Aaron shall present the bullock of the sin-offering, which is for himself, and make atonement for himself, and for his house. 7 And he shall take the two goats, and set them before the LORD at the door of the tent of meeting. 8 And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats: one lot for the LORD, and the other lot for Azazel. 9 And Aaron shall present the goat upon which the lot fell for the LORD, and offer him for a sin-offering. 10 But the goat, on which the lot fell for Azazel, shall be set alive before the LORD, to make atonement over him, to send him away for Azazel into the wilderness. 11 And Aaron shall present the bullock of the sin-offering, which is for himself, and shall make atonement for himself, and for his house, and shall kill the bullock of the sin-offering which is for himself. 12 And he shall take a censer full of coals of fire from off the altar before the LORD, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the veil. 13 And he shall put the incense upon the fire before the LORD, that the cloud of the incense may cover the ark-cover that is upon the testimony, that he die not.

Looking towards the holy presence directly would cause the soul to depart. A bit different than pictured in raiders of the lost ark but along a similar end result in death. That is why so many unworthy Cohanim in the Second Temple perished.

14 And he shall take of the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it with his finger upon the ark-cover on the east; and before the ark-cover shall he sprinkle of the blood with his finger seven times.

As we say on Yom Kippur “one, one plus one, one plus two … one plus seven” one above and seven below.

15 Then shall he kill the goat of the sin-offering, that is for the people, and bring his blood within the veil, and do with his blood as he did with the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it upon the ark-cover, and before the ark-cover. 16 And he shall make atonement for the holy place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions, even all their sins; and so shall he do for the tent of meeting, that dwells with them in the midst of their uncleanness. 17 And there shall be no man in the tent of meeting when he goes in to make atonement in the holy place, until he come out, and have made atonement for himself, and for his household, and for all the assembly of Israel. 18 And he shall go out unto the altar that is before the LORD, and make atonement for it; and shall take of the blood of the bullock, and of the blood of the goat, and put it upon the horns of the altar round about. 19 And he shall sprinkle of the blood upon it with his finger seven times, and cleanse it, and hallow it from the uncleanness of the children of Israel. 20 And when he hath made an end of atoning for the holy place, and the tent of meeting, and the altar, he shall present the live goat. 21 And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions, even all their sins; and he shall put them upon the head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of an appointed man into the wilderness. 22 And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land which is cut off; and he shall let go the goat in the wilderness. 23 And Aaron shall come into the tent of meeting, and shall put off the linen garments, which he put on when he went into the holy place, and shall leave them there. 24 And he shall bathe his flesh in water in a holy place and put on his other vestments, and come forth, and offer his burnt-offering and the burnt-offering of the people, and make atonement for himself and for the people. 25 And the fat of the sin-offering shall he make smoke upon the altar. 26 And he that lets go the goat for Azazel shall wash his clothes, and bathe his flesh in water, and afterward he may come into the camp. 27 And the bullock of the sin-offering, and the goat of the sin-offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the holy place, shall be carried forth without the camp; and they shall burn in the fire their skins, and their flesh, and their dung. 28 And he that burns them shall wash his clothes, and bathe his flesh in water, and afterward he may come into the camp. 29 And it shall be a statute for ever unto you: in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, ye shall afflict your souls, and shall do no manner of work, the home-born, or the stranger that sojourns among you. 30 For on this day shall atonement be made for you, to cleanse you; from all your sins shall ye be clean before the LORD. 31 It is a sabbath of solemn rest unto you, and ye shall afflict your souls; it is a statute for ever. 32 And the priest, who shall be anointed and who shall be consecrated to be priest in his father's stead, shall make the atonement, and shall put on the linen garments, even the holy garments. 33 And he shall make atonement for the most holy place, and he shall make atonement for the tent of meeting and for the altar; and he shall make atonement for the priests and for all the people of the assembly. 34 And this shall be an everlasting statute unto you, to make atonement for the children of Israel because of all their sins once in the year.' And he did as the LORD commanded Moses.

Before going on to the next section, I would like to tell a very short story. Once an officer of the King of Poland stopped at a Jewish Inn. The woman of the house broke an egg and there was blood in it and threw it out. He asked her why this was so and she replied that Jews are forbidden to eat anything with blood in it. The officer said that he was a non-Jew and could eat it. However, the Innkeeper’s wife would not put forbidden blood in eggs in her pot as she had to have strictly kosher pots. This went on for a few more eggs. He saw that the Jew was more bothered by the kashrus than the money and was very impressed. Years went by and the officer became governor of the Polish Province. He heard that there was a Pogrom in the works about the Jewish killing a Christian Child to bake their Matzos with its blood. He gathered his troops together and defended the Jews from the Pogrom quoting the incident that occurred many years earlier in the Inn. Unbeknown to the simple woman, her performance of the Mitzvah with all her heart and money had saved the Jewish Communities in that area. Now read the Torah at face value.

17:10 And whatsoever man there be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among them, that eats any manner of blood, I will set My face against that soul that eats blood, and will cut him off from among his people. 11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood; and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement by reason of the life. 12 Therefore I said unto the children of Israel: No soul of you shall eat blood, neither shall any stranger that sojourns among you eat blood. 13 And whatsoever man there be of the children of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among them, that takes in hunting any beast or fowl that may be eaten, he shall pour out the blood thereof, and cover it with dust. 14 For as to the life of all flesh, the blood thereof is all one with the life thereof; therefore I said unto the children of Israel: Ye shall eat the blood of no manner of flesh; for the life of all flesh is the blood thereof; whosoever eats it shall be cut off. 15 And every soul that eats that which dies of itself, or that which is torn of beasts, whether he be home-born or a stranger, he shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even; then shall he be clean. 16 But if he wash them not, nor bathe his flesh, then he shall bear his iniquity. This last sentence forbids the eating of Trafe – something torn by beasts or Nevailah – something dying of itself and the defilement of the carcass of such a beast on the body.

The L-RD despises sexual lewdness contrary to modern media and movie propaganda. If a man uncovers the nakedness of a close female relative the sex leads to Kares the cutting off the soul(s) of the perpetrator and stoning if caught, warned and brought before a Sanhedrin. These acts may lead to the land vomiting the people out but note the words abomination or perversion are not used. However, homosexuality especially among males is considered an abomination while females should not marry Cohanim if they have done such acts. (Tractate Shabbos). The word perverse is used for bestiality. The Torah does not mince words. If incest is not perverse or abominable then these acts are the vilest of the vile acts that a lewd person can do. If the Torah thinks these acts are the lowest of the low then how can certain Reform and Conservative Rabbis approve of this. Or even the non-Jews who have this reiterated in their book of Roman (perversions and abuse) appoint a Bishop or Clerk to a post as I have seen in the States. Let me tell you that Samael has been given the ability to tempt people just before the Moshiach to weed out the pure from the impure Neshamos. Do not be astounded when you see the wicked thrive or be afraid of sudden fear because we have G-D.

From 5767: 18:22 Thou shall not lie with mankind, as with womankind; it is abomination. All the other prohibited or animalist type of acts one could do with close relatives or a married woman is not called ‘normal’ but only this last one is called an abomination. 23 And thou shall not lie with any beast to defile thyself therewith; neither shall any woman stand before a beast, to lie down thereto; it is perversion. While the Torah detests all the above behavior the words get strong on this filth. Otherwise as we see in 25 below, Eretz Yisrael will vomit the violators out! 24 Defile not ye yourselves in any of these things; for in all these the nations are defiled, which I cast out from before you. 25 And the land was defiled, therefore I did visit the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land vomited out her inhabitants. … 20:13 And if a man lie with mankind, as with womankind, both of them have committed abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.

From 5768: 18:28 that the land vomit not you out also, when ye defile it, as it vomited out the nation that was before you. 29 For whosoever shall do any of these abominations, even the souls that do them shall be cut off from among their people. 30 Therefore shall ye keep My charge, that ye do not any of these abominable customs, which were done before you, and that ye defile not yourselves therein: I am the LORD your God. G-D has a way of purging the abominations and that is by having the land vomit the culprits out. There can be no tolerance on a public scale perhaps one individual to his neighbor but publicly we cannot tolerate a Jew doing an action that will cut himself off from the people and delay redemption of Am Yisrael by the Moshiach. This is liken to a man on the private scale is overwhelmed with love for a woman who does not fully observe Shabbos so much that he can think of her as a potential marriage partner but in the end he must try to persuade her to be flexible to observe Shabbos for her own Neshama’s sake.

19:1 And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying: 2 Speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them: Ye shall be holy; for I the LORD your God am holy.

We should learn from G-D – you want to be a leader set an example. Not like most of our politicians in most of the countries “Do as I say not as I do.” G-D is holy so we should be holy. Period! We have an example of our ruler being that way something to look at with awe and respect.

3 Ye shall fear every man his mother, and his father, and ye shall keep My Sabbaths: I am the LORD your God.

Again the honoring of ones parents and the holiness of the Shabbos. Fearing a mother is hard to do. She help you with a bottle or nursing you at nights and changed your diapers yet you as an adult perhaps taller and stronger than she is have to fear her and be awed by her presence. One’s father is easier as while growing up he was the strength and disciplinarian of the family. We also have one sentence next to another about the L-RD being holy and the holy Shabbos so we should have some degree of respect here.

… 12 And ye shall not swear by My name falsely, so that thou profane the name of thy God: I am the LORD. 13 Thou shalt not oppress thy neighbor, nor rob him; the wages of a hired servant shall not abide with thee all night until the morning.

It is not easy to be a Jew and sometimes in modern times a check, credit card, contract etc. can meet this requirement. L.W.P was a fellow in my second grade class. He had a hot temper and we got into a fight. I was not a tough guy or a bully but he attacked me. I literally flipped him over. I was told that he had a kidney operation and was very weak. Instead of stepping on him and crushing him, I used less strength just enough to prevent him from hurting me until he calmed down and not down trod on him. We later became quite good friends until I left for Brooklyn Technical High School and he for Stuyvesant and we kept in touch for a few more years. Although as a second grader I had no knowledge of the mitzvah of not oppressing my neighbor who in this case was of a different religion, I had enough common sense not to be a bully. One thing is not to crush a classmate or colleague at work and one thing is to be soft on terrorism to your enemy. The later is a mitzvah to crush the wicked for who is merciful to the wicked is cruel to the merciful.

14 Thou shalt not curse the deaf, nor put a stumbling-block before the blind, but thou shalt fear thy God: I am the LORD. 15 Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment; thou shalt not respect the person of the poor, nor favor the person of the mighty; but in righteousness shalt thou judge thy neighbor.

It is the natural order of things to have extra respect for a wealthy person of stamina dressed tip top over the average Joe. Thus the Torah comes along to warn us that both get equal treatment before G-D. Whom HASHEM has made poor does not mean that he is less of a person than the wealth one.

We now have a series of Mitzvos against Lashon Hara, carrying a grudge and taking vengeance, the laws of Shatnes (forbidden mixtures of animals, clothing and purposely cross breeding fruits). A slave girl had rights to husband and engagement but if she was forced by a free person, she is not put to death and neither is he. I am sure that if this were to become a plague, then even more than a guilt offering would be required.

16 Thou shalt not go up and down as a talebearer among thy people; neither shalt thou stand idly by the blood of thy neighbor: I am the LORD. The first section is talking Lashon Hara and the second section about the blood is listening to Lashon Hara. There comes a fine distinction when a husband or wife come to a Rav to complain about a spouse and ask how to correct his/her bad behavior because chances are this is out of love and not the normal tale bearing. 17 Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thy heart; thou shalt surely rebuke thy neighbor, and not bear sin because of him. Many years ago at work I had a colleague who was married to a woman who was loyal a real baalabusta (a Jedi of a housekeeper and cook). However, her cute plumpness turned into fat and his IQ vs. her IQ were worlds apart but she loved him very much. He, however, was lacking companionship and became a bit of Don Juan going with different females more for the intelligent give and take than for anything else. At one point about the 25^th female, he found somebody whom he really fell for and wanted to divorce his wife of 25 years for her. I told did not gossip to his wife but instead asked him, “You are working for this company for 27 years. How would you feel after all your loyalty that you were given the boot for some younger person to work at half or a third of your salary?” He got the message. But if you are not going to have any effect but make the person change or only make an enemy of that person try to say that you don’t want any partnership in his/her sin.

18 Thou shalt not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself: I am the LORD. Boy this one line would put most criminals out of business. No vengeance on the killing of Don So and So or bearing a grudge against somebody of course if he lied and cheated you and was very wicked you don’t have to have dealings with him. But under normal circumstances that the person has just a plain obnoxious personality you should still love your neighbor as thyself.

19 Ye shall keep My statutes. Thou shalt not let thy cattle gender with a diverse kind; thou shalt not sow thy field with two kinds of seed; neither shall there come upon thee a garment of two kinds of stuff mingled together. This is the law of grafting and interbreeding. It once happened that a Donkey and a Zebra at the Biblical Zoo mated and they produced a Zebkey but that was an accident. I also had a purple flowering plant that was near my Geraniums on my porch. The end result due to natural pollination was a very strong resistant red flowering plant that had the properties of both but not grafted by me in my wildest dreams.

20 And whosoever lies carnally with a woman, that is a bondmaid, designated for a man, and not at all redeemed, nor was freedom given her; there shall be inquisition; they shall not be put to death, because she was not free. It is forbidden for a man to lie with a bondwoman especially if she was supposed to marry a Jewish slave or non-Jewish bondman. However, her lack of freedom and not having family around to defend her exempts them in this world from a penalty but perhaps in the next he could be accused of a real sinister crime.

21 And he shall bring his forfeit unto the LORD, unto the door of the tent of meeting, even a ram for a guilt-offering. … 29 Profane not thy daughter, to make her a harlot, lest the land fall into harlotry, and the land become full of lewdness. A Jewish Woman is to be treated as a daughter or granddaughter of kings and must of us over the centuries have some blood from Cohanim, Leviim and from royalty.

30 Ye shall keep My Sabbaths, and reverence My sanctuary: I am the LORD. One of the many-many warnings about Shabbos in the Torah and if I am not mistaken, these warnings are more numerous than the 39 Melachos (creative work) listed as categories of things forbidden on Shabbos.

20:7 Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be ye holy; for I am the LORD your God. 8 And keep ye My statutes, and do them: I am the LORD who sanctify you. … 23 And ye shall not walk in the customs of the nation, which I am casting out before you; for they did all these things, and therefore I abhorred them. 24 But I have said unto you: 'Ye shall inherit their land, and I will give it unto you to possess it, a land flowing with milk and honey.' I am the LORD your God, who have set you apart from the peoples. 25 Ye shall therefore separate between the clean beast and the unclean, and between the unclean fowl and the clean; and ye shall not make your souls detestable by beast, or by fowl, or by any thing wherewith the ground teems, which I have set apart for you to hold unclean. 26 And ye shall be holy unto Me; for I the LORD am holy, and have set you apart from the peoples, that ye should be Mine. Not only are we to keep the Mitzvos but we are to be holy in deeds and all our actions. We all are supposed to live a life of Kiddush HASHEM for what ever we do, somebody is looking at us a Jew first an a human second. “That Jewish doctor saved my foot from being amputated.”

27 A man also or a woman that divines by a ghost or a familiar spirit, shall surely be put to death; they shall stone them with stones; their blood shall be upon them. This refers to séances and other things. One should know that card readings come from Shaydim at best and charlatans at worst. I once learnt the rules of card reading just for knowledge but the most important thing that I learned was that similar to the interpretation of dreams that if one takes out the bad from the interpretation or the bad cards from the interpretation, then a good interpretation can be found. After I learned that knowledge similar to the Rabbi Eliezer HaGadol story and Rabbi Akiva with the laws of witchcraft, I immediately forgot every thing only the general knowledge of how it worked. On the other hand, Palmistry and knowledge of reading ones face if done for the sake of heaven can be like a spiritual doctor reading the ailments of the soul and the weakness of a person.

21:1 And the LORD said unto Moses: Speak unto the priests the sons of Aaron, and say unto them: There shall none defile himself for the dead among his people; 2 except for his kin, that is near unto him, for his mother, and for his father, and for his son, and for his daughter, and for his brother; 3 and for his sister a virgin, that is near unto him, that hath had no husband, for her may he defile himself. 4 He shall not defile himself, being a chief man among his people, to profane himself. 5 They shall not make baldness upon their head, neither shall they shave off the corners of their beard, nor make any cuttings in their flesh. 6 They shall be holy unto their God, and not profane the name of their God; for the offerings of the LORD made by fire, the bread of their God, they do offer; therefore they shall be holy. 7 They shall not take a woman that is a harlot, or profaned; neither shall they take a woman put away from her husband; for he is holy unto his God. These laws are separating a Cohain from an ordinary Jew. A divorced woman can be one of the greatest women in the world and even divorced because the husband was a criminal, wife beater, had other wives and Beis Din forced him to divorce, yet she has this mild blemish and is forbidden for a Cohain. The laws of how a Cohain must check for the wife back six generations are the most important thing that she comes from good stock. Being on call before the L-RD 24/7 he could not defile himself with the dead except for very close relatives which the Torah made an exception of.

22:1 And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying: 2 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them: The appointed seasons of the LORD, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, even these are My appointed seasons. 3 Six days shall work be done; but on the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, a holy convocation; ye shall do no manner of work; it is a Sabbath unto the LORD in all your dwellings. At this juncture the Torah the Torah repeats the holiness of the Shabbos, Pessach and all the Yomim Tovim mentioned in the Torah. This is a repetition of special holiness for the Cohanim and since the Torah brings it down again it is for reinforcing the holidays into the minds of the Bnei Yisrael. No words are minced in Torah and so again and again the importance of Shabbos and Yom Tov observance is emphasized by the Torah. Believe me if I was not bound to HASHEM, I too would be out with a sailboat and swimming at a beach on Shabbos as a form of rest and relaxation. Therefore the Torah tells me it is more than that type of rest but a rest from all forms of creative work – “Every type of Melacha one should not do.” The Torah does this for us not for G-D – Shabbos observance is our own reward. My private asylum from a crazy planet full of crazy people – where for around 25 hours there is not existence of stock markets, H1N1 virus, Iranian attempt at gaining nuclear devices, UN (in)-Security Councils, Israeli Drivers with Road Rage, etc. OK, I have to give up sailing up and down the coast of Israel and being free with the breeze or even like waltzing along with the breeze and the breeze drifting over the sea. But I get in return a stronger family unit and a chance to sit and read things other than the internet and the fast pace of information. The amount of Frum people with stress related disorders are much lower than the rest of the population because we have Shabbos. I am not saying that Frum Jews don’t have stress and some do have disorders from stress but it is relatively smaller than the rest of the population.

… 15 And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the day of rest, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the waving; seven weeks shall there be complete; 16 even unto the morrow after the seventh week shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall present a new meal-offering unto the LORD. 17 Ye shall bring out of your dwellings two wave-loaves of two tenth parts of an ephah; they shall be of fine flour, they shall be baked with leaven, for first-fruits unto the LORD. 18 And ye shall present with the bread seven lambs without blemish of the first year, and one young bullock, and two rams; they shall be a burnt-offering unto the LORD, with their meal-offering, and their drink-offerings, even an offering made by fire, of a sweet savor unto the LORD. 19 And ye shall offer one he-goat for a sin-offering, and two he-lambs of the first year for a sacrifice of peace-offerings. 20 And the priest shall wave them with the bread of the first-fruits for a wave-offering before the LORD, with the two lambs; they shall be holy to the LORD for the priest. 21 And ye shall make proclamation on the selfsame day; there shall be a holy convocation unto you; ye shall do no manner of servile work; it is a statute for ever in all your dwellings throughout your generations. 22 And when ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not wholly reap the corner of thy field, neither shalt thou gather the gleaning of thy harvest; thou shalt leave them for the poor, and for the stranger: I am the LORD your God. This is the reason for the counting of the Omer in line 15 and the gleaming of the wheat and barley harvest and the bringing of these crops of first fruits (meaning wheat and barley) before the L-RD on Chag Shevous through the other 5 Species during the summer until Sukkos. Line 21 hints at the confession that the crop or fruit farmer makes before the L-RD that is spelled out in Oral Torah.

24:8 Every Sabbath day he shall set it in order before the LORD continually; it is from the children of Israel, an everlasting covenant. 9 And it shall be for Aaron and his sons; and they shall eat it in a holy place; for it is most holy unto him of the offerings of the LORD made by fire, a perpetual due.'

This is the Lechem Hapanim or Showbread before the L-RD and it went from Shabbos unto Shabbos and when it was taken off the table was as fresh and warm as if it came out of the baker’s oven. This was one of the Miracles of the Temple.

Halacha

If you forget to count the Omer at night, then you should count the next day - but without a Bracha. You then continue counting (at night) as usual with a Bracha. If you forgot to count during the night as well as the following day, then you should still continue counting the Omer, but you may no longer make the Bracha.
If you're unsure if you counted the previous night, you may continue counting with a Bracha.
Source: Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 120:2

Before making the Bracha on counting the Omer one should know which day one is going to count. If one has not yet counted the Omer, and somebody wants to know which day we're up to, you should tell them "yesterday was such-and-such". If, instead, you replied "today is such-and-such" you may not be allowed to make a Bracha on that night's count, since you already counted. However, you should still count "properly" (without a Bracha) since you have to mention the weeks as well. Source: Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 120:3

Living in Eretz Yisrael is a Mitzva. Walking 4 Amos (about 2 meters) in Eretz Yisrael is a Mitzva. Even moving to Eretz Yisrael is considered part of the Mitzva.
One may not leave Eretz Yisrael except to learn Torah, to get married, to escape from danger or for business trips.
Source: - Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim 248:4

If one experiences a miracle, one should celebrate the day of the miracle every year. On this day one should set aside time to thank Hashem for the miracle and to talk about the miracle. Source: Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 61:3 It was 43 years ago that an Atheist or at best agnostic College student experienced a phenomena that could not be explained by four dimensional Physics. This led him to the Principle of Cosmic Unity which is above time and space. This is why I don’t say Tachanun on both Hay and Vav of Iyar and Hallel without the Bracha on Hay. The story will be repeated again for the 45^th anniversary ble neder or if I publish a book.

In the time of Rabbi Mordechai Sason who lived in Baghdad, a high ranking officer fell sick. The officer went from doctor to doctor but no one was able to cure him- there was no cure for his sickness. Seeing this, his parents saw the doctors could not help so they went to the house of the rabbi. With tears in their eyes they started begging the Rabbi to save their son.

Rabbi Mordechai Sason had one condition for them: if they are willing to sanctify G-d’s name in this world and to notify everyone that there is a G-d who obligates man to do His will and listen to his commandments.
“Only if you accept this and accept upon yourself not to harm any Jew, I can agree to cure your son”

The parents accepted.

Rabbi Mordechai stood and prayed on behalf of the officer, and in a short time he was healed.

All better, the officer came to Rabbi Mordechai. In appreciation to him he gave him an expensive shirt as a gift. Rabbi Mordechai wore the shirt to remind all who saw him the sanctification of G-d that was shown clearly in the eyes of the gentiles.

Many similar stories has taken place in Europe in the middle east and especially in IRAN.

Our sages have directed and enlightened and caused miracles for gentiles.
But in return what are we getting back!!!?

This story took place in Germany. A mother once called the doctor to come urgently. Her baby was extremely sick he was running with very high fever, and his face turned blue, his shallow breathing was sure to stop any minute. Petrified the mother saw her baby dying in her hands.
She started screaming repeatedly "Where is the doctor"? Finally she heard the door bell ring- it was the doctor.

He looked at the baby, gave him a shot and the baby fell asleep. “I saved your baby in the last minute, no need to worry the baby will live” the doctor said. “What’s the baby’s name Mrs. Shiklagberger”?

“Adolf and thank you” his mother answered.

“No problem just doing my duty” the doctor smiled and turned to leave.
The baby grew up and changed his last name from Shiklagberger to HITLER.

Let's do kindness to Those that really deserve help.

Rosh Chodesh Tov and Shabbat Shalom,
Binyamin Jadidi – thanks to Gene There is a moral to this story as I once saw the Tzaddik Rabbi Glixsman Zatzal pray for a non-Jewish nurse who became ill and she was a great help to the Jewish community. We do pray for the righteous among the Nations of the world.

Enjoy Your Last Eggs

A simple grocer once came to Rabbi Shmuel Salant and started complaining.

“I am going to go bankrupt soon, every night thieves break into my store and

steal sixty eggs. I have no clue who it is, and if this continues any further I will be forced to close my store”.

Rabbi Shmuel answered him “tonight before you close your store cook sixty eggs and place them on the top of the cases of eggs in your store”.
The grocer did as he was told. The next day he entered his store and he saw to his great surprise a huge snake lying dead on the ground. He quickly understood that it was the snake that ate sixty of his eggs every night but tonight he choked on the cooked egg.

Word spread out, the city was shocked- how did the Rabbi know they wondered,

is he a prophet?

Rabbi Shmuel explained: “It’s simple, I thought to myself who can be the thief? Either it’s an animal who’s hungry or a person who wants to make profit out of it. If it’s an animal then the best solution will be to cook it in order for him to choke on it. And if it’s a person who is stealing it cooking the eggs will cause a stir in the city – everyone will hear of a person trying to sell cooked eggs and then it wouldn’t be so hard to catch him…

The total number killed in 9/11 attacks: 2,819
The estimated number of New Yorkers suffering from post-traumatic-stress disorder as a result of 9/11: 422,000
In Israel countless number of babies, pregnant women were blown up in busses as a result of suicide bombers.

But the snake is still enjoying the eggs....
Nobody bothers himself to boil the eggs and choke the snake. Sadly, its not just a simple egg and a hungry snake anymore.
Unfortunate are the people (men, women and children) that vicious mentality has caused agony for the world.
Boiled eggs is not enough.
Binyamin Jadidi

Mussar from an Idea that I got from Binyamin Jadidi Shlita: What does one do when he wants to board an airplane or cruise ship? He plans his trip gets prepared for the day of departure and books his tickets and packs his bag. He reviews prior to his trip things like did I pack my Siddur, Mishnayos for reading, Tallis & Tephillin, Passport, proper clothing of the climate and weather? He of course has to purchase his ticket in advance. Will he be down below deck for the cruise or an inner cabin with no ocean view? Will he have an ocean view, ocean view with a balcony, or a suite? Will he travel economy, economy plus, business or first class on his flight? One he is in the middle of his flight or the middle of the ocean, he cannot change his class of seating or quarters. So too is this world we have either prepared for our departure into the next world or not. Once we have departed it is too late for trip preparations.

Philosophy of Reb Simcha Bunim

From Yitzchak R. : The problem with keeping or not violating commandments 

because of fear of punishment is that basically you are saying that you will obey the

 person with the biggest stick who can inflict the most damage on you. So you are 

acting strictly out of self-preservation.

In other words there is no recognition of who Hashem is – other then the Being with the biggest stick. The Commandments don’t really mean anything they are just something you have to do or otherwise a powerful being will hurt you.

Keeping the Torah out of fear actually negates the very essence of the Torah.

We should be keeping commandments because of recognition that Hashem as our Creator is infinitely wise and understands how humans operate at our core and therefore is giving us the greatest gift by helping us to actualize our greater selves by keeping the Commandments.

Its about recognizing that the love and appreciation that we have for a

Being that created us and gives us infinite abundance and is giving us a great opportunity – how can we violate that sacred trust and love? In essence we are violating ourselves when we disregard a Commandment from Hashem.

Keeping the Torah is about recognition of Hashem’s role in your life – which should fill us with love, appreciation, thankfulness, loyalty, willingness to sacrifice and do anything for such a Being of infinite loving-kindness and wisdom. Awe - is realizing that not only can’t I violate the trust of the Being that I owe my greatest allegiance and love (1000 times higher then the allegiance and love for a soul mate) but all that He asks of me is directly for my benefit to grow and develop as a human being.

That is what Years Shemayim – Awe of heaven translates to when we move beyond the simplest reading of the Torah. The Torah was given for comprehension on many levels, from the simplest, basest, level of thinking to an elevated growth oriented way of thinking.

The purpose of this group and the Rabbis and people of Peshischa was to move beyond simplistic thinking and strive for truth and elevation. Certainly in Peshischa “Yerah” would be translated as AWE.

…

"The heart which involves the desire of the soul, i.e. the will, is a very important 

sensibility. Bina by itself is not enough, if emotion is not joined with it. There must 

be a unity of brain and heart, a harmony of intelligence and emotion.

…Human beings who think that they can come to know G-d through research, philosophy and intellectual insight, are mistaken. “The teachings of his G-d are in his heart” (Psalms 37:31) There is no more suitable insight to attain the divine than through the heart. When a person purifies his traits, he will find the Divinity in his heart

…“From there you will seek G-d, your Lord, and if you pursue Him with all your heart and soul, you will find Him.” (Deut.4:29)

Reb Simcha Bunim explained it this way:

“All the efforts to know G-d which comes only through wisdom and research will not reach the desired objective because those efforts do not flow from this other special source. Thus it is written ‘From there,’ i.e. from another place. ‘From there you will seek G-d, your Lord…’ A person may twist and turn to seek G-d through research and study but he loses his way because he is seeking ‘from there’. Suddenly a ‘finding’ appears upon his path in front of him, ‘a ray of light’, a wondrous light, which breaks through all his darkness, ‘and you will find’. Why? ‘Because you pursue Him with all your heart’; one needs to pursue G-d with all ‘your heart’.”

A powerful film by Rabbi Beryl Wein Shlita: http://www.aish.com/literacy/jewishhistory/Survivors_and_Sefardic_Jews_Miracl.asp

A little Parable from R’ A.L.: Ribono Shel Olam, I almost sold a Yid for a quarter.'

Several years ago, a rabbi from out-of-state accepted a call to a community in Houston, Texas. Some weeks after he arrived, he had an occasion to ride the bus from his home to the downtown area. When he sat down, he discovered that the driver had accidentally given him a quarter too much change.

As he considered what to do, he thought to himself, 'You'd better give the quarter back. It would be wrong to keep it.' Then he thought, 'Oh, forget it, it's only a quarter. Who would worry about this little amount? Anyway, the bus company gets too much fare; they will never miss it. Accept it as a 'gift from God' and keep quiet.'

When his stop came, he paused momentarily at the door, and then he handed the quarter to the driver and said, 'Here, you gave me too much change.'

The driver, with a smile, replied, 'Aren't you the new rabbi in town?'

'Yes' he replied.

'Well, I have been thinking a lot lately about going somewhere to worship. I just wanted to see what you would do if I gave you too much change. I'll see you in Schul on Shabbos.'

When the rabbi stepped off of the bus, he literally grabbed the nearest light pole, held on, and said, 'Oh Ribono Shel Olam, I almost sold a Yid for a quarter.'

Our lives are the only thing some people will ever read.

This is a really scary example of how much people watch us as Jews, and will put us to the test! Always be on guard -- and remember -- You carry the name of Hashem on your shoulders when you call yourself a 'JEW.'

Watch your thoughts; they become words.
Watch your words; they become actions.
Watch your actions; they become habits.
Watch your habits; they become character.

Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.

I'm glad a friend forwarded this to me as a reminder.
So, I choose to forward it to you - my friend. May Hashem bless you; I hope you are having a wonderful day!

If you don't pass this on to anybody, nothing bad will happen; but, if you do, you will have reminded someone that he is being watched.

After R’ A.L. sent this to me he received back the following story from Abe B. Just as Mitzvah brings upon another Mitzvah about 5 years ago, I was sure that I would run out of stories to write or post. But some how story brings on story.

Let me give you the flip side of thje story as told to me by Rabbi Lozer Eichenstein, zt’l.

In the 1930s the Novominsker Rebbe who was his father in law sent Reb Lozer to America to do Kiruv work before it even had such a title.

While he was looking for a rare safer in the library of the Jewish Theological Seminary, he had to go to a very secluded part of the library where the sefer he was looking for was located.

While there he comes upon a Professor of Talmud at the Seminary, who had originally learned in the Volozhin Yeshiva, sitting over a Gemara and crying like a baby. Reb Lozer asked him what was the matter - to which he replied that he "sold his Olam Haba" for a pair of pant - isn't that a good reason to sit and cry?"

An American Torah Giant goes against most of the Rabbis of Eretz Yisrael and I follow them this came from R’A.L.: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cw91yrKuQec&feature=related

Very shocking from R.S. how Islam will overcome by demographics Christianity in most western countries in 50 years. The world as we know it today will not exist either culturally, financially or ethically. The US can survive longer through Mexican Immigration but not for long. We are on a collision course with cultures and they are about to win unless we stop worrying about population control and global warming and focus on the first commandment given to Adam and Noach in the Torah. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-3X5hIFXYU

Inyanay Diyoma

Israel wants more ties with Africa: http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3706003,00.html

I warned my Democratic friends before the election but I was pooh-poohed as a Conservative Republican: http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/131020

Black Jewish NY Jet player is angry at the NFL for scheduling games on the High Holidays: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvY98WQ5n9g

Beating back the pirates: http://www.ynetnews.com/Ext/Comp/ArticleLayout/CdaArticlePrintPreview/1,2506,L-3706848,00.html

HAMAS HAS POWERFUL FRIENDS IN WASHINGTON. BIDEN IS AGAINST ISRAEL ON IRAN. http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3707195,00.html Non Compass Mentis on Iran: http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1239710795607&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

Why should they get a state? Modern Palestinian demand for state stems from anti-Semitic desire to harass Jews by Hagai Segal

Our independence celebrations this year will be held against the backdrop of the upcoming Palestinian independence. We are the only state in the world excited ahead of the establishment of an enemy state. Some groups around here are already planning huge parties.

To our new government’s credit, it’s not taking part in the celebrations. As opposed to the previous government, it does not show religious longing to the 1967 borders. However, it’s making life easy for itself by focusing on reciting the security risks posed to us by the Mitchell plan: A second Hamastan, Qassam rocket attacks on central Israel, the right of return, etc.

Netanyahu and his people are in fact admitting that the Palestinians deserve a state, but they claim that it won’t be safe enough to have one, and therefore it cannot be established now; perhaps we can do it later.

It appears that even the most right-wing Likudniks ran out of the courage to question the basic assumptions entrenched here by the Left. Only 30-40 years ago, we were arguing whether there’s even such thing as a Palestinian people, and today there are almost no reservations over its demand for complete sovereignty. Its sophisticated PR agents managed to bring it into the family of nations via a fast tracked registration procedure. As opposed to what is customarily required, it was not required to present documents that prove longtime existence, cultural uniqueness, and previous experience in running a country.

Yeshayahu Leibowitz once ruled that even a kitchen table is allowed to present itself as a people, and the Palestinians jumped on the bandwagon of this simplistic criterion. However, even Leibowitz refrained from arguing that every fresh nation immediately deserves a state. After all, earth is too small to contain all the different desires for sovereignty of the people who live here.

Anti-Semitic trick

The Kurds, for example, a people boasting a rich history and numbering 25 million souls, are forced to get by without a state of their own. The Basques, Catalonians, Corsicans, and Scots also have no state. Even the Native Americans, Flemish, the Copts and the Maronites have no state. Therefore, it is quite odd that it is precisely the absence of a Palestinian state that preoccupies the international community and the Israeli consciousness.

But in fact, it’s not so odd. The demand for the establishment of a Palestinian state, speaking of the recent Durban II conference, is another type of anti-Semitic trick against us. With all the giant states in the Middle East, it is the Jewish State that is required to share with the Palestinians the little territory that we have. Instead of our neighboring countries crowding a little more in favor of their repressed brethren, we are the only ones required to make do with less territory.

All the archeological and biblical findings prove that we were here much before them, yet the contemporary narrative insists on equality of historical rights between us.

The Palestinians claim to have lived here for many generations, yet they remembered to present their desire for self-determination only when we returned here from the Diaspora. They didn’t speak about two states for two peoples when the Jordanians ruled Judea and Samaria and when the Egyptians took over Gaza. They also said nothing when Damascus referred to Palestine as southern Syria.

Their modern demand for independence stems from a desire to harass us. Should Obama suddenly proposes not to have any state here – neither ours nor theirs – they may be sympathetic to the idea. Try it and you’ll see.

William sent me this: http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/131077#replies

Now for M.Wolfberg's Good Shabbos Story: Too Salty

Good Shabbos Everyone. Shlomo HaMelech states "Death and life are in the power of the tongue." (Mishlei - Proverbs 18,21) This verse is self- explanatory. The commentator Orchos Tzadikim comments on this verse by saying "There is no limit to the amount of mitzvahs one can do with their mouth." (Gate of Lashon HaRah 25) The opposite is also true: there is no limit to the amount of evil one can cause with his mouth.
The Chofetz Chaim (Reb Yisroel Hacohen, 1838-1933) readily agreed when another prominent rabbi requested his help with a communal matter in another city in Poland. The participation of the renowned Chofetz Chaim was sure to add considerably to the success of the mission because of his high standing in the eyes of all his co-religionists.
In the course of their trip the two rabbis stopped at a roadside inn to partake of a meal. They were happy to eat at this establishment as a Jewish woman who was well respected for her high standards of kashrus ran it. The two rabbis were seated at a special table and accorded every mark of honor. After they had finished the meal the proprietress came to their table to inquire how they had enjoyed the food.
The Chofetz Chaim smiled politely and replied: "It was very tasty, and I enjoyed it very much. Thank you."
The other rabbi answered: "The meal was very good, thank you. Only, if I might say, the soup might have used a bit more salt." Then the owner left the table the Chofetz Chaim turned to his companion, and in an anguished voice said: "Unbelievable! All my life I have avoided speaking or listening to lashon hara (slander about a fellow Jew), and here I am, going on a trip to perform a mitzva (commandment), and I have been put into a situation of having to hear you speak lashon hara! I deeply regret my involvement in this mission, for it cannot be a true mitzva. If it were, such a terrible thing would never have happened to me!"
The other rabbi was shocked and upset by the Chofetz Chaim's reaction. To him it seemed to be a perfectly innocent remark. "What was so terrible about my comment? I only mentioned that a little salt would help the food, which was otherwise very good." The Chofetz Chaim began to explain himself. "You certainly don't understand the power that words possess! Just see what a chain reaction your words have set off: I'm sure that the woman who owns the inn doesn't do her own cooking; she probably employs some poor person to do it, maybe even a widow who depends upon this job for her living.
"Because of your thoughtless comment the employee will be reprimanded for not adding enough salt to the food. She will try to defend herself before replying that she certainly did put in enough salt, which will be a lie. Then the owner will accuse her of lying, since she will certainly take your word over that of the poor cook. This exchange will lead to an argument and the owner will, in her anger, fire the poor cook, who will then have no income with which to support herself and her family. "And just think how many sins have been caused by one off-handed remark: You spoke lashon hara and caused others to hear it; you caused the owner of the inn to repeat the lashon hara; the poor cook was prompted to tell a lie; the owner caused pain to a poor person; your remark caused an argument. All of these are violations of the Torah!"
The rabbi, who had listened closely to the Chofetz Chaim's explanation, replied respectfully: "Reb Yisroel Meir, I simply can't help but feel that you are overreacting to the whole incident. My few casual words couldn't have created all that damage. I think that your scenario just isn't realistic."
The Chofetz Chaim rose from his seat, still in an agitated state, and said: "If you don't believe me, then follow me into the kitchen and you will see with your own eyes what has happened!" The two rabbis quietly entered the kitchen, and a sorry sight met their eyes. The proprietress was standing before an elderly woman and giving her a sharp tongue-lashing; while the woman stood there with tears streaming down her face.
The shocked rabbi ran up to the cook and begged her to forgive him for all the pain she was suffering. He then turned to the owner of the inn and pleaded with her to forgive him and to forget that he had ever made a comment. He had never intended that it be taken so seriously. The proprietress of the inn, who was really a kind person by nature, had never actually intended to dismiss her elderly employee and was happy to accede to the rabbi's request. She explained that she had merely wanted to impress upon the cook her responsibility to be more careful in the future. She assured the rabbi that the woman's job was secured and he had no grounds for worry. The rabbi turned to the Chofetz Chaim with an understanding look. He had certainly acquired a new profound respect for the awesome power of words. Good Shabbos Everyone.

M.Wolfberg is sponsored by: Mazal Tov to Elazar Friedman on his recent Chasuna

Refuah Shleima to Golda Chiyena bas Chaya Gittle Refuah Shleima to Mordechai Menachem Mendel ben Tziporah Yitta In memory of Shosha Malka bas R' Avrohom 21 Cheshvan Refuah Shleimah to Chana Ashayra bas Dodi

Be well and have a wonderful next too weeks. I will be taking a little vacation and hence a regular combined Parsha and Emor during my vacation. I should have e-mail access for questions, comments etc.

Good Shabbos and don't forget to count the Omer - by the time I return it will be

after Lag B'Omer and appoximately 5 weeks in the Omer.

Rachamim Pauli

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