Friday, May 25, 2018

Parsha Naso, two stories, news, mazel tov


BDE Rena Leah bas Chana Fraydel returned her relatively young soul to her maker leaving small children behind.





Parsha Naso





Last week we ended with a few questions. Why were the Bnei Kohath mentioned before the Bnei Gershon of the subtribes of Leviim as Gershon was the Bechor? Why did the Sages separate them in two Parshiyos?



I am not the first to come up with these questions. Rashi hinted about this. The Ohr HaChaim HaKadosh, Kli Yakar, Rabbaynu Bechai and others.



The Bnei Kohath produced the prophet that spoke face to face with HASHEM and brought us out of Egypt. From Kohath came the Cohanim. This gives them some exclusiveness over the other Leviim. More so, they carried the holiest of objects from the Mishkan directly on their shoulders while the other sub-tribe in Levi had wagons to move the objects. For this reason, the Bnei Kohath were put first over the Bnei Gershon who were placed second.



There are a number of pages in Hebrew written on the subject, but the proximity of the Cohanim, Bnei Aaron to their Kohath brethren put them also together in last week’s Parsha. The Bnei Kohath had to be very careful moving the Aron HaKodesh. Also Moshe from the Bnei Kohath received the Torah.



Last but not least from the commentaries is that the Bnei Kohath were mentioned from the age of 25 to 50 unlike the rest of the Leviim.



Since the duties of the Bnei Gerson and Merari were not mentioned in last week’s Parsha they are mentioned here.



As for my own personal thoughts, I believe that Kohath was mentioned last week because Aaron and sons were from the Bnei Kohath and therefore a completion of that group vs. the rest of the Leviim. Since there are 70 faces or commentaries on each word of Torah, your thoughts are valuable too on this subject.





4:21 And the LORD spoke unto Moses saying: 22 'Take the sum of the sons of Gershon also, by their fathers' houses, by their families; 23 from thirty years old and upward until fifty years old shalt thou number them: all that enter in to wait upon the service, to do service in the tent of meeting. … 33 This is the service of the families of the sons of Merari, according to all their service, in the tent of meeting, under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.' 34 And Moses and Aaron and the princes of the congregation numbered the sons of the Kohathites by their families, and by their fathers' houses, 35 from thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old, every one that entered upon the service, for service in the tent of meeting. … 49 According to the commandment of the LORD they were appointed by the hand of Moses, every one to his service, and to his burden; they were also numbered, as the LORD commanded Moses.



Whatever Moshe did, he was commanded to do it and he did not stray to the left or the right.

5:1 And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying: 2 'Command the children of Israel, that they put out of the camp every leper, and every one that hath an issue, and whosoever is unclean by the dead; 3 both male and female shall ye put out, without the camp shall ye put them; that they defile not their camp, in the midst whereof I dwell.' 4 And the children of Israel did so, and put them out without the camp; as the LORD spoke unto Moses, so did the children of Israel.



These Mitzvos went by so fast in a large Parsha that most of us miss them. A person who has such a form of Tuma cannot be within the camp of the Tahor.



5 And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying: 6 Speak unto the children of Israel: When a man or woman shall commit any sin that men commit, to commit a trespass against the LORD, and that soul be guilty; 7 then they shall confess their sin which they have done; and he shall make restitution for his guilt in full, and add unto it the fifth part thereof, and give it unto him in respect of whom he hath been guilty.



This is trespass on the holy.



11 and the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying: 12 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them: If any man's wife go aside, and act unfaithfully against him, 13 and a man lie with her carnally, and it be hid from the eyes of her husband, she being defiled secretly, and there be no witness against her, neither she be taken in the act;



Two male witnesses over the age of 13 cannot be found. In fact most likely it is so discreet  that only the adulterer and adulteress know of the affair.



14 and the spirit of jealousy come upon him, and he be jealous of his wife, and she be defiled; or if the spirit of jealousy come upon him, and he be jealous of his wife, and she be not defiled;



Either the man gets some nonsense into his head or the woman’s behavior has made him jealous. There was a man in Ashdod named Benny Solomon who suddenly became jealous of his wife. The friends of the wife told him that there was no reason for it. It ended up with a murder suicide. [There is some humor to the story as a former co-worker named Benny Solomon received calls from the press about the murder suicide and I answered them “speaking” until they realized it was the other one whom both of us knew casually.]



… 19 And the priest shall cause her to swear, and shall say unto the woman: 'If no man have lain with thee, and if thou hast not gone aside to uncleanness, being under thy husband, be thou free from this water of bitterness that causes the curse; 20 but if thou hast gone aside, being under thy husband, and if thou be defiled, and some man have lain with thee besides thy husband-- 21 then the priest shall cause the woman to swear with the oath of cursing, and the priest shall say unto the woman--the LORD make thee a curse and an oath among thy people, when the LORD doth make thy thigh to fall away, and thy belly to swell; 22 and this water that causeth the curse shall go into thy bowels, and make thy belly to swell, and thy thigh to fall away'; and the woman shall say: 'Amen, Amen.'



The Chida once came to know of a case of adultery. He called in the couple and asked the husband to divorce his wife. The husband could not comprehend such a thing. The Chida then asked the wife to confess and read her this section from the Torah. She claimed innocence. The Chida was a Cohain so she passed not away on the spot, but as soon as she left his house, her belly swelled and she died on the spot.



… 28 And if the woman be not defiled, but be clean; then she shall be cleared, and shall conceive seed. … 31 And the man shall be clear from iniquity, and that woman shall bear her iniquity.

6:1 And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying: 2 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them: When either man or woman shall clearly utter a vow, the vow of a Nazirite, to consecrate himself unto the LORD, 3 he shall abstain from wine and strong drink: he shall drink no vinegar of wine, or vinegar of strong drink, neither shall he drink any liquor of grapes, nor eat fresh grapes or dried.



Just by looking at the adulteress could give a man such thoughts that it would arouse him enough to swear off wine and strong drink for a month.



4 All the days of his Naziriteship shall he eat nothing that is made of the grape-vine, from the pressed grapes even to the grapestone. 5 All the days of his vow of Naziriteship there shall no razor come upon his head; until the days be fulfilled, in which he consecrated himself unto the LORD, he shall be holy, he shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow long. 6 All the days that he consecrateth himself unto the LORD he shall not come near to a dead body. 7 He shall not make himself unclean for his father, or for his mother, for his brother, or for his sister, when they die; because his consecration unto God is upon his head. … 11 And the priest shall prepare one for a sin-offering, and the other for a burnt-offering, and make atonement for him, for that he sinned by reason of the dead; and he shall hallow his head that same day.



Why the sin offering? Because the Torah wanted a man to live a life with eating and drinking and he is abstaining from a pleasure which HASHEM has allowed.



… 18 And the Nazirite shall shave his consecrated head at the door of the tent of meeting, and shall take the hair of his consecrated head, and put it on the fire which is under the sacrifice of peace-offerings.



Shimon HaTzaddik never ate from a Korban of such a sinner except one case. Once there was a Shepherd boy who was very handsome and one day he saw himself in the reflection where the Sheep drank. He was afraid that the young women would turn his head to sin so he took the vow for the sake of heaven. Of such a Korban the Tzaddik ate from.



… The passage below appears to be a month earlier than our starting date at the beginning of the first month in the second year. However, it could be later or earlier.



22 And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying: 23 'Speak unto Aaron and unto his sons, saying: On this wise ye shall bless the children of Israel; ye shall say unto them: 24 The LORD bless thee, and keep thee; 25 The LORD make His face to shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee; 26 The LORD lift up His countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. 27 So shall they put My name upon the children of Israel, and I will bless them.



He we go back in time to the dedication of the Mishkan starting with the first day of Aviv or the first month of the second year. The census was in the second month.



7:1 And it came to pass on the day that Moses had made an end of setting up the tabernacle, and had anointed it and sanctified it, and all the furniture thereof, and the altar and all the vessels thereof, and had anointed them and sanctified them; 2 that the princes of Israel, the heads of their fathers' houses, offered--these were the princes of the tribes, these are they that were over them that were numbered. 3 And they brought their offering before the LORD, six covered wagons, and twelve oxen: a wagon for every two of the princes, and for each one an ox; and they presented them before the tabernacle. 4 And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying: 5 'Take it of them, that they may be to do the service of the tent of meeting; and thou shalt give them unto the Levites, to every man according to his service.' 6 And Moses took the wagons and the oxen, and gave them unto the Levites. 7 Two wagons and four oxen he gave unto the sons of Gershon, according to their service. 8 And four wagons and eight oxen he gave unto the sons of Merari, according unto their service, under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest. 9 But unto the sons of Kohath he gave none, because the service of the holy things belonged unto them: they bore them upon their shoulders.



Even though the children of Kohath were mentioned first last week, here they are mentioned last.



10 And the princes brought the dedication-offering of the altar in the day that it was anointed, even the princes brought their offering before the altar. 11 And the LORD said unto Moses: 'They shall present their offering each prince on his day, for the dedication of the altar.' … 13 and his offering was one silver dish, the weight thereof was a hundred and thirty shekels, one silver basin of seventy shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary; both of them full of fine flour mingled with oil for a meal-offering; 14 one golden pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 15 one young bullock, one ram, one he-lamb of the first year, for a burnt-offering; 16 one male of the goats for a sin-offering; 17 and for the sacrifice of peace-offerings, two oxen, five rams, five he-goats, five he-lambs of the first year.



Since all the tribes are equal, each one is mentioned by name and this is repeated 12 times.



… 84 This was the dedication-offering of the altar, in the day when it was anointed, at the hands of the princes of Israel: twelve silver dishes, twelve silver basins, twelve golden pans; 85 each silver dish weighing a hundred and thirty shekels, and each basin seventy; all the silver of the vessels two thousand and four hundred shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary; 86 twelve golden pans, full of incense, weighing ten shekels apiece, after the shekel of the sanctuary; all the gold of the pans a hundred and twenty shekels; 87 all the oxen for the burnt-offering twelve bullocks, the rams twelve, the he-lambs of the first year twelve, and their meal-offering; and the males of the goats for a sin-offering twelve; 88 and all the oxen for the sacrifice of peace-offerings twenty and four bullocks, the rams sixty, the he-goats sixty, the he-lambs of the first year sixty. This was the dedication-offering of the altar, after that it was anointed. 89 And when Moses went into the tent of meeting that He might speak with him, then he heard the Voice speaking unto him from above the ark-cover that was upon the ark of the testimony, from between the two cherubim; and He spoke unto him.



Moshe always gave an accounting to the Bnei Yisrael so like Avraham Avinu nobody could accuse him of even taking a shoelace from the money collected or in Avraham’s case the spoils.




A young Billionaire’s priorities by Rabbi Yerachmiel Tilles



Adam Neumann is one of the most successful Israeli entrepreneurs in the world. He founded an American company worth $20 billion, and his capital was recently estimated at $2.6 billion. He tops Fortune Magazine's list of the world's most influential business people under the age of 40. But despite all that, he is a Sabbath observer who does not work nor take phone calls on the seventh day of the week.

"In the past two years, I have begun to observe Shabbat," Neumann, who now lives in New York with his wife Rebekah and their five children, told the Yediot Aharonot Israeli Hebrew daily in an interview.

"During Shabbat I am completely cut off, there is no one to talk to, and I do not compromise about it," he said. "At first it felt like a tough commitment, but it gives me time with my children, my wife, my friends. Last week I had a crazy week in which I was flying and working a lot. But on Friday morning we got up and said to each other, 'We are ready for Shabbat.'

"Shabbat arrives, we light candles, relax, friends come over, we eat a meal that we cooked beforehand. We are cut off from the rest of the world, but in reality connecting with each other. I spend more time than I ever did with my family and even phone and see my mother more during the week. And the real magic is that the more I do it, the more successful the company is. Go figure."

Neumann is the head of WeWork, an American company which provides shared workspace, community, and services for entrepreneurs, freelancers, startups and small businesses. He founded the company in 2010, along with Miguel Mckelvey. WeWork has more than 2,000 employees and has locations in 23 United States cities and 16 countries including Australia, Canada, India, China, Hong Kong, France, United Kingdom, Israel, South Korea, Mexico, Netherlands and Germany. WeWorks chief brand director is Neumann's wife, Rebekah Paltrow Neumann, who was part of the company from its inception.

Neumann, now 38, grew up in Kibbutz Nir Am, which is located in southern Israel, near Sederot. He served in the Israeli navy before moving to New York in 2001 to be with his sister Adi, an Israeli model. He founded WeWork after several failed ventures.

"When I met my wife 10 years ago, I thought money was the goal," he told Yediot Aharonot. "I had a difficult childhood, my parents divorced, my mother was a doctor and worked late hours, Adi and I were alone, and we moved apartments 13 different times.

"When I came to the U.S. I tried to take shortcuts to make money - but everything crashed. I was angry at people, I felt I deserved everything. Then, when I met my wife, she told me to stop complaining about the past. She made me stop smoking and told me that I was chasing the wrong things. She made me realize that the goal was to be happy, to do something that is meaningful to you."

The clean-living regime Rebekah instigated, combined with the study of spirituality, philosophy and the soul, eventually led to the young Jewish couple taking on Shabbat observance.

Adam Neumann exudes good health: tall, bright-eyed and with a glossy black mane of hair. He runs or skateboards to work, before breakfasting on a nutritious shake or water-based oatmeal. But it wasn't always the case. When 13 years ago he first met his wife-to-be, Mr Neumann was rakishly thin, 20 pounds lighter than today, getting through the day on two packs of cigarettes and a single meal.

"My hands were shaking, I couldn't hold my focus for more than five minutes," he recalls. "But Rebekah sorted me out quickly. She said: 'You have potential, but you are really going to have to work on yourself.'

"If you had asked me 10 years ago what my life would look like," continued Neumann, "I would not have believed that I would have such a relationship with my wife, and that I would be able to improve in the way I treat people. I would not have guessed how much I love being a father. As for my money? I may have dreamed I'd establish a company worth a hundred million dollars, but I did not even know the number billion; I would not have guessed [it was possible]."

Asked whether having so much money changed him, he replied, "I have more access to things today, but the most fun part is that I can help those who helped me in the past: the family, mom, dad and my grandmother, friends, and also return money to investors who invested in me in the past and lost their money."
~~~~~~~~~~~
Source: Adapted by Yerachmiel Tilles from//israelnationalnews.com and //telegraph.co.uk; photo credit: //hitabroot.com
Connections (2): Seasonal -- On Sunday, Shavuot, we heard the Ten Commandments, including the fourth.
Weekly Reading -- The contributions of the wealthy tribal princes to the Mishkan (Sanctuary in the centuries before the Temple)





Rebbes are not Popes they can be wrong.

When the Rebbe was Wrong by Yosef Wineberg


During the 1940s the Previous Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn, of righteous memory, periodically sent emissaries to visit Jewish communities across America, with the goal of sharing the joy and warmth of Judaism with everyone they encountered.

One particular mission was given to Rabbi Shmuel Levitin, an illustrious rabbinic figure, who had previously served the Lithuanian city of Rakshik. He was to travel from New York to Chicago (where I lived at the time), to spend a few days with the Jewish community, inspiring them as only he could.
During his visit, in the midst of lectures and farbrengens, Rabbi Shmuel asked Rabbi Perlstein, the rabbi of the Tzemach Tzedek synagogue, to arrange an appointment with Mr. Charles (Yechezkel) Lissner, a prominent businessman and member of his congregation, whom the rebbe had specifically instructed him to visit. He explained that Mr. Lissner’s ancestor, Arke of Liozna, had been a devoted Chassid of the first Chabad Rebbe, but when Mr. Lissner arrived in America as a young boy, he had become somewhat “Americanized.” The Rebbe, therefore, wished for Rabbi Shmuel to visit him, with the hope that the rabbi’s regal visage and Chassidic inspiration would give him a much-needed spiritual awakening.
Though it was not an easy appointment to arrange, a meeting in Mr. Lissner’s home office was secured. Rabbi Shmuel made his way there, along with Rabbi Perlstein and several other local rabbis. I too was among the delegation.
Mr. Lissner welcomed us with sincere warmth, and during the course of the intimate and animated conversation that followed, Rabbi Shmuel reminisced about his personal acquaintanceship with Mr. Lissner’s grandfather. Mr. Lissner too spoke nostalgically about his parents’ and grandparents’ homes, where chassidic customs and practices had been part of daily life, and where Shabbat and holidays were truly joyous occasions.
As the meeting drew to a close, Rabbi Shmuel rose to leave, at which point Mr. Lissner brought out his checkbook and asked to whom he should make his check payable.
“My dear friend,” the emissary told him, “I did not come to solicit a financial contribution, and I trust you will not be offended if I decline to accept any money from you!”
This puzzled Mr. Lissner. “Surely the venerable emissary of the Lubavitcher Rebbe did not come all the way from New York to pay me a social visit, or just to have a cold drink in my house!” he exclaimed.

Rabbi J.J. Hecht, Rabbi Shlomo A. Kazarnovsky, Rabbi Yitzchok Perlstein, Rabbi Yosef Wineberg, the Rashag (Rabbi Shmaryahu Gurary), Rabbi Yisroel Jacobson, Rabbi Shlomo Z. Hecht, Charles Lissner, Jennie Lissner, and two grandchildren in the Lissners' Chicago backyard.
“Let me explain it to you,” interjected Rabbi Perlstein. “You are surely aware that a Torah is written following very detailed rules, by a sofer [scribe], with a quill and a specific type of black ink on a particular type of parchment. It sometimes happens, especially when the Torah scroll is not used for a long period of time, that a letter fades, and the Torah is no longer kosher. In days of old, the community would employ a Torah-checker, whose function was to regularly check the Torahs. If he found a missing or faded letter, he would fill it in with his quill and ink, making the Torah kosher again.
The rabbi continued, “The Rebbe has taught us that every Jew is a Torah, replete with letters and words, which the Jew writes and spells out in his daily conduct—through keeping Shabbat, kashrut, Jewish family life, and bringing up children with a lifestyle of Torah and mitzvoth. Occasionally one of these ‘letters’ fades, so the Rebbe sends us as his ‘examiners’ to freshen up the faded letters and ensure that each one of us is a perfectly kosher Torah scroll.”
As he bade the rabbi’s farewell, it was clear Mr. Lissner was deeply touched.
When Rabbi Shmuel returned to New York, he gave the Rebbe a thorough report of his trip to Chicago, including the visit to Mr. Lissner.

The Previous Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn, of righteous memory.
“It is indeed an interesting explanation,” noted the Rebbe, “but strictly speaking, the analogy is not true in all respects. It is true that a Jew is a Torah. However, there are two ways to inscribe. There is the method of writing with a quill or pen and ink, and there is the method of engraving. The Ten Commandments were engraved in stone.
“What is the difference between these two methods?
“Writing with a pen or quill involves applying ink to paper or parchment. The ink and the parchment are separate entities, skillfully fused by the writer. Nevertheless, because they are separate entities, it is possible for the ink to fade or be erased. On the other hand, engraving involves forming letters and words within the very stone itself. Nothing is superimposed upon the material; the material and the letters are one and the same. Such letters cannot be erased, nor can they fade. As long as the material exists, the letters are there. Although no actual fading or erasure can occur, there is a possibility of dust and grime gathering and covering up the engraved letters. Should this happen, all that is necessary is to clear away the dust and grime, and the letters will again be revealed in their original vividness.
“A Jew is a Torah scroll, but not a written one,” the Rebbe concluded. “Rather, like the Ten Commandments, the script is engraved. You do not have to ‘rewrite’ a Jew; all you have to do is help him brush away the dust and grime of his environmental influences which have temporarily and superficially covered up his true self, dos pintele Yid [the Jewish spark engraved in each soul]. This is why the heart is always awake; always responsive.”
Adapted from an account by Rabbi Yosef Wineberg, which was printed in Di Yiddishe Heim.



Milestone 1: Author Philip Roth mentioned on most newscasts. Born a Jew without Jews and Judaism similar to myself. Only he went on to continue this way and I went to Judaism. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5268468,00.html


Rabbi Y. Eckstein on the need for the help of Evangelists. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5266503,00.html

PM cannot appoint the next police chief. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5268128,00.html





Inyanay Diyoma







5 powers to offer a new deal to Iran. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5265665,00.html


Analysis Political Quake in Iraq-Iran. www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/246199

Arab Kite Fires cause a lot of damage. www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/246188




The unarmed Charedi that took on a terrorist. www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/246181

U. S. Embassy Jerusalem May 21, 2018
Location: Golan Heights
Event: The U.S. Embassy has lifted the prohibition on U.S. government employee personal travel to the Golan Heights (announced in the Security Alert of May 10, 2018). A previous requirement that U.S. government employees observe additional security requirements if traveling east of Route 98 in the Golan Heights remains in effect.     U.S. Embassy Jerusalem
14 David Flusser St.  
Jerusalem
Telephone: +972-2-630-4000
E-mail: JerusalemACS@state.gov Website: https://il.usembassy.gov/


IAF destroys tunnel and naval base. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/246313

First Combat Role for F-35. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/246319

Syrian-Hezballah division posed in the north for battle. https://www.debka.com/a-syrian-hizballah-buildup-for-a-leap-on-jordans-border-cause-for-us-israeli-concern/

No John Kerry the gloves are off. https://www.debka.com/pompeo-iran-is-a-world-threat-is-in-for-the-strongest-us-sanctions-in-history/

Terrorist set fire to sniper post. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/246268

Shooting attacks. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/246266

IDF uses drones vs. kites. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5267825,00.html

Religion of Peace sabotages Toronto. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/246299


100 missiles shot at IAF int’l drill soon. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/246270

As Russia works on a 6000 mile range nuclear torpedo, sub fires 4 nuclear capable missiles at once. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5268473,00.html

Ed-Op by Ben Yishai who thinks this is worth the risk, I do not think so but let you read and decide if you think there is a chance or the Religion of Peace will not be so peaceful as he wishes. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5266644,00.html





Terrorist attacks police apprehended. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5269411,00.html



Trump cancels meeting but N. Korea changes tune. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/246420

Canada bomb set off in restaurant. www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/246459



Have a good Shabbos all and Mazel Tov to my forester child Menashe who is reading his Bar Mitzvah Parsha this week and has made of Seeum on Meseches Berachos.

Rachamim Pauli


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