Parsha Beshalach
The
last few Parshiyos were enslavement and the notion that the Bnei Yisrael shall
be free. Finally, after 430 year from Bris between the pieces and 400 years
after the birth of Yitzchak and 210 years after arriving in Mitzrayim, the Bnei
Yisrael are free at last!
16:17 And it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the
people go, that God led them not by the way of the land of the Philistines,
although that was near; for God said: 'Lest peradventure the people repent when
they see war, and they return to Egypt.'
Derek Eretz – way of the land. The people did
not leave Mitzrayim by the shortest route or the natural way. Instead they
would leave with wonders and miracles. G-D was building a nation form the slave
mentality to that of a mighty spiritual and physical force. We see in 14:11-12
how they were afraid of war.
18 But God led the people about, by the way of
the wilderness by the Red Sea; and the children of Israel went up armed out of
the land of Egypt.
Armed they were but like modern Israel in 1948
had not real military training and weapons such as chariots were not in the
arsenal.
19 And Moses took the bones of Joseph with him;
for he had straitly sworn the children of Israel, saying: 'God will surely
remember you; and ye shall carry up my bones away hence with you.'
While everybody was busy borrowing Jewelry,
Moshe was taking care of finding where was the bones of Yosef.
20 And they took their journey from Succoth, and
encamped in Etham, in the edge of the wilderness. 21 And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of cloud, to
lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; that
they might go by day and by night:
The pillar of fire and cloud guided them on
their way.
22 the pillar of cloud by day, and the pillar of
fire by night, departed not from before the people.
The people went in the direction of the cloud
and pillar traveling at a faster clip to get distance between themselves and
Pharaoh. Still with children and animals, it was impossible to cover their
tracks and despite the hours from dawn to night fall, still they could not
progress too much.
14:1 And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying: 2 'Speak unto the children of Israel,
that they turn back and encamp before Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea,
before Baal-zephon, over against it shall ye encamp by the sea. 3 And Pharaoh will say of the children
of Israel: They are entangled in the land, the wilderness hath shut them in.
At the time of the Bnei Yisrael being trapped,
they could not see or feel the end results. However, HASHEM Yisborach has a
complete plan ready from the outset and only after it is completed, the people
could realize what was going on.
4 And I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and he
shall follow after them; and I will get Me honor upon Pharaoh, and upon all his
host; and the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD.' And they did so.
The path with no way out except by the sea was
done by HASHEM to make Pharaoh think that he had them trapped and he could
easily kill the leaders and re-enslave them.
5 And it was told the king of Egypt that the
people were fled; and the heart of Pharaoh and of his servants was turned
towards the people, and they said: 'What is this we have done, that we have let
Israel go from serving us?
They went three days into the wilderness spies
pursued them. When the fourth day arrived there was neither a sacrifice with
prayers or the return of the people. Pharaoh missed his work force.
6 And he made ready his chariots, and took his
people with him. 7 And he took
six hundred chosen chariots, and all the chariots of Egypt, and captains over
all of them.
Egypt was the super-power of that time. Can you
imagine the modern equivalent of 600 well trained armored personnel carriers
coming at a civilian population that had been brought up subservient.
8 And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh
king of Egypt, and he pursued after the children of Israel; for the children of
Israel went out with a high hand. 9
And the Egyptians pursued after them, all the horses and chariots of Pharaoh,
and his horsemen, and his army, and overtook them encamping by the sea, beside
Pi-hahiroth, in front of Baal-zephon. 10
And when Pharaoh drew nigh, the children of Israel lifted up their eyes, and,
behold, the Egyptians were marching after them; and they were sore afraid; and
the children of Israel cried out unto the LORD.
They are trapped between the mountains and the
sea with Pharaoh behind them.
11 And they said unto Moses: 'Because there were
no graves in Egypt, hast thou taken us away to die in the wilderness? wherefore
hast thou dealt thus with us, to bring us forth out of Egypt? 12 Is not this the word that we spoke
unto thee in Egypt, saying: Let us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians? For
it were better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the
wilderness.'
We now see the reason that HASHEM did not take
the Bnei Yisrael via the Plishtim. But still they are entrapped and at the
mercy of the 600 Chariots and perhaps a back-up of many running infantry.
13 And Moses said unto the people: 'Fear ye not,
stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will work for you
to-day; for whereas ye have seen the Egyptians to-day, ye shall see them again
no more forever. 14 The LORD
will fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.'
Just have faith in G-D saving you. Physically
they were trapped and scared yet their logic told them that their own hope was
to turn their eyes towards HASHEM.
15 And the LORD said unto Moses: 'Wherefore do
you cry unto Me? speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward.
What are you and the people whining about they
should start walking into the sea.
16 And lift thou up thy rod, and stretch out thy
hand over the sea, and divide it; and the children of Israel shall go into the
midst of the sea on dry ground.
So Moshe lifted the rod and the sea started to
split.
17 And I, behold, I will harden the hearts of the
Egyptians, and they shall go in after them; and I will get Me honor upon
Pharaoh, and upon all his host, upon his chariots, and upon his horsemen.
Pharaoh had refused to accept the fact that he
was not a god and that HASHEM HU HA ELOKIM. He was about to learn the hardest
of ways and from a super-power to no power in a few minutes of horses, chariots
and soldiers drowning in the sea.
18 And the Egyptians shall know that I am the
LORD, when I have gotten Me honor upon Pharaoh, upon his chariots, and upon his
horsemen.' 19 And the angel of
God, who went before the camp of Israel, removed and went behind them; and the
pillar of cloud removed from before them, and stood behind them;
This was Pharaoh’s last chance to turn back and
stop his army when they were separated by the cloud.
20 and it came between the camp of Egypt and the
camp of Israel; and there was the cloud and the darkness here, yet gave it
light by night there; and the one came not near the other all the night.
This according to the laws of Pessach given is
a Yom Tov but not mentioned as an Asseres (gathering) it is the culmination of
Pessach so we do not bless Shecheiyanu (who has kept us alive).
21 And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea;
and the LORD caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all the night, and
made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided.
I have written that an east wind of about 40
mph or 60 kph at a temperature of around or above freezing would be enough to
blow water aside and freeze it to stand in a column or columns on the right and
on the left. (See last year or the year before in the blogspot).
22 And the children of Israel went into the midst
of the sea upon the dry ground; and the waters were a wall unto them on their
right hand, and on their left.
The Pshat is one wall to the right and one to
the left. There is a Medrash that says 12 paths one for each tribe. The spot
where chariots were found between Sinai and Saudi Arabia that has a higher sea
floor or not so far from the other side at the straight and the water level of
the Red Sea at that time and world Glacial Period was much lower so that the
wall of water need not be that high. Artifacts found on the western coast of
Eretz Yisrael indicate that the sea level 3400 years ago was much lower than
today.
23 And the Egyptians pursued, and went in after
them into the midst of the sea, all Pharaoh's horses, his chariots, and his
horsemen.
The pillar and cloud stopping them moved itself
and they immediately continued in their folly. Pharaoh like the movie played by
Yul Brenner watched safely from the western bank.
24 And it came to pass in the morning watch, that
the LORD looked forth upon the host of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire
and of cloud, and discomfited the host of the Egyptians. 25 And He took off their chariot
wheels, and made them to drive heavily; so that the Egyptians said: 'Let us
flee from the face of Israel; for the LORD fights for them against the
Egyptians.'
The wind began to die down and with it the
wind-chill factor. The ice holding the walls of water began cracking and the
trickling water turned the sand into quicksand and between the water, stuck
wheels, pillar-cloud and heavy armor the Egyptians could not easily flee from
the middle to either shore.
26 And the LORD said unto Moses: 'Stretch out thy
hand over the sea, that the waters may come back upon the Egyptians, upon their
chariots, and upon their horsemen.'
Even though horses are natural swimmers, when
they are hooked up with chariots it is the equivalent to the mafia sending
somebody off a boat weighted down. When the soldiers and their armor met the
rushing water they drowned even if they knew swimming. The current would then
push their bodies to the shore from the force.
There is a limit how much a person can swim against or even with a current. That is why when a rip tide hits the beach, you learn to swim with the tide and swim towards the side. If one is in a rocky Wadi in the Dead Sea area it is almost impossible to survive with the rocks when the Wadi grabs one or their vehicle. The only hope then is to try to find a place on the side quickly where one can get out of the water and rise up.
29 But the children of Israel walked upon dry land in the midst of the sea; and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left. 30 Thus the LORD saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians; and Israel saw the Egyptians dead upon the sea-shore. 31 And Israel saw the great work which the LORD did upon the Egyptians, and the people feared the LORD; and they believed in the LORD, and in His servant Moses.
At this time, our Parsha gets it second name “Shabbos Shira” or the Shabbos of Song because of the Song by the Sea.
Actually, the Hebrew reads: Then will Moshe and the Bnei Yisrael Sing. [implying that one day the people will be resurrected or perhaps reincarnated and sing. For even though our Sages talk of resurrection of the ‘dry bones’; after the Shoah and the massive burnings of bodies in the ovens of the camps; I tend to believe in reincarnation. I was once in a discussion with a lady around my age who claimed to be a reincarnation of somebody from the Shoah and I myself had dreams of trains that I wanted to avoid and riding one and seeing through the cracks grass and shrubs growing to a certain height on the tracks. The dream kept repeating itself that even though I was three at the time and my memory of how my friends looked like and what games I played are gone those dreams of 68 years ago remain implanted in my brain and the memories of the lady from her childhood too.
… 20 And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances. 21 And Miriam sang unto them: Sing ye to the LORD, for He is highly exalted: the horse and his rider hath He thrown into the sea. 22 And Moses led Israel onward from the Red Sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness, and found no water. 23 And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter. Therefore, the name of it was called Marah. 24 And the people murmured against Moses, saying: 'What shall we drink?' 25 And he cried unto the LORD; and the LORD showed him a tree, and he cast it into the waters, and the waters were made sweet. There He made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there He proved them;
From Eilat to Sharm El Sheik there are very few if any water sources and the same thing on the Saudi side of the Sea. The problem was that the waters were still and the stagnant waters gathered from the minerals a very bad metal taste. Putting in the wood absorbed the bad flavor and it became potable water.
26 and He said: 'If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in His eyes, and wilt give ear to His commandments, and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases upon thee, which I have put upon the Egyptians; for I am the LORD that heals thee.'
Due what is correct and everything will be OK. Or sing the modern song with G-D “Let’s get together and it’ll be all right.”
27 And they came to Elim, where were twelve springs of water, and three score and ten palm-trees; and they encamped there by the waters.
This was an establish Oasis and abundant water supply.
16:1 And they took their journey from Elim, and all the congregation of the children of Israel came unto the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departing out of the land of Egypt.
It appears from the current Midbar Sin that the people moved north and west if it is our current Nahal Sin near Sde Boker.
2 And the whole congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron in the wilderness; 3 and the children of Israel said unto them: 'Would that we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the flesh-pots, when we did eat bread to the full; for ye have brought us forth into this wilderness, to kill this whole assembly with hunger.'
They were being supplied by HASHEM water but now after a month, their flour supplies had run out or was running out. When I was a new immigrant I did not have the luxuries and convenience of the States, I too complained for it is easier to see the negatives. Things then were not like they are now. Milk bottles had some cream on top then but the cream cheese was light in fat and a lot of other things did not exist. I complained to one foreman at work informally on the hardships of Israel. He gave it to me with the Pasuk above. He was right and I quieted down. It was not easy but I had come on my own and continued to make sacrifices. Gradually, I moved up in Israel society from the minimum wage to a higher level but not top notch. After 48 years, I am happier here than a lot of my friends in the States. I feel that I have better health care, my children had cheaper Jewish education and all the wealth they had went on education and health care. Compared to my classmates from grade school, I feel that I am better off. I do like the vacations in the States but there is something special about living in Israel.
4 Then said the LORD unto Moses: 'Behold, I will cause to rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a day's portion every day, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in My law, or not. 5 And it shall come to pass on the sixth day that they shall prepare that which they bring in, and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily.'
This is the first indication of Shabbos being Kodesh. It is also a hint against gathering, going carrying from a public domain to a private domain even food on Shabbos or kneading it together into a Mann cake.
6 And Moses and Aaron said unto all the children of Israel: 'At even, then ye shall know that the LORD hath brought you out from the land of Egypt; 7 and in the morning, then ye shall see the glory of the LORD; for that He hath heard your murmurings against the LORD; and what are we, that ye murmur against us?' 8 And Moses said: 'This shall be, when the LORD shall give you in the evening flesh to eat, and in the morning bread to the full; for that the LORD hears your murmurings which ye murmur against Him; and what are we? your murmurings are not against us, but against the LORD.'
Not only will they have this daily fresh tasty Mann but for a month they will get flesh of quail.
… 13 And it came to pass at even, that the quails came up, and covered the camp; and in the morning there was a layer of dew round about the camp. 14 And when the layer of dew was gone up, behold upon the face of the wilderness a fine, scale-like thing, fine as the hoar-frost on the ground. 15 And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another: 'What is it?'--for they knew not what it was. And Moses said unto them: 'It is the bread which the LORD hath given you to eat. 16 This is the thing which the LORD hath commanded: Gather ye of it every man according to his eating; an omer a head, according to the number of your persons, shall ye take it, every man for them that are in his tent.'
The people asked themselves Mann Hu in Hebrew or what is this and the Omer of Mann became their bread. This Parsha is called Parsha Ha Mann.
17 And the children of Israel did so, and gathered some more, some less. … 20 Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto Moses; but some of them left of it until the morning, and it bred worms, and rotted; and Moses was wroth with them. 21 And they gathered it morning by morning, every man according to his eating; and as the sun waxed hot, it melted. 22 And it came to pass that on the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for each one; and all the rulers of the congregation came and told Moses. 23 And he said unto them: 'This is that which the LORD hath spoken: To-morrow is a solemn rest, a holy Sabbath unto the LORD. Bake that which ye will bake, and seethe that which ye will seethe; and all that remains over lay up for you to be kept until the morning.'
The people had gathered 2 Omers on Friday morning and from this we get the custom that is Halacha in nature of saying Motzei over two Lechem (two Challos or Challa and a roll.
24 And they laid it up till the morning, as Moses bade; and it did not rot, neither was there any worm therein.
Six Days a week it would rot, but on the Shabbos it will not rot showing the holiness.
25 And Moses said: 'Eat that to-day; for to-day is a Sabbath unto the LORD; to-day ye shall not find it in the field. 26 Six days ye shall gather it; but on the seventh day is the Sabbath, in it there shall be none.' 27 And it came to pass on the seventh day, that there went out some of the people to gather, and they found none.
For the L-RD rested on Shabbos and did not make a miracle. If the CREATOR of the Universe acts this way, all the more so the Ben Yisrael who was commanded at Sinai to observe.
28 And the LORD said unto Moses: 'How long refuse ye to keep My commandments and My laws? 29 See that the LORD hath given you the Sabbath; therefore, He giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days; abide ye every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day.' 30 So the people rested on the seventh day.
G-D was angry and disappointed that the Bnei Yisrael did not fully rest on the Shabbos as commanded.
31 And the house of Israel called the name thereof Manna; and it was like coriander seed, white; and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey. 32 And Moses said: 'This is the thing which the LORD hath commanded: Let an omerful of it be kept throughout your generations; that they may see the bread wherewith I fed you in the wilderness, when I brought you forth from the land of Egypt. … 17:1 And all the congregation of the children of Israel journeyed from the wilderness of Sin, by their stages, according to the commandment of the LORD, and encamped in Rephidim; and there was no water for the people to drink. 2 Wherefore the people strove with Moses, and said: 'Give us water that we may drink.' And Moses said unto them: 'Why strive ye with me? wherefore do ye try the LORD?' 3 And the people thirsted there for water; and the people murmured against Moses, and said: 'Wherefore hast thou brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our cattle with thirst?'
This is the third trial for HASHEM. Moshe was ordered to seal in perhaps a glass jar for future generations to see.
4 And Moses cried unto the LORD, saying: 'What shall I do unto this people? they are almost ready to stone me.' 5 And the LORD said unto Moses: 'Pass on before the people, and take with thee of the elders of Israel; and thy rod, wherewith thou smote the river, take in thy hand, and go. 6 Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb; and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink.' And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.
Moshe was about to produce water in a miracle.
7 And the name of the place was called Massah, and Meribah, because of the striving of the children of Israel, and because they tried the LORD, saying: 'Is the LORD among us, or not?'
The name of the place comes from the Hebrew for bitter and dispute meaning the name is called ‘bitter dispute’ for that is what it was before both Moshe and HASHEM.
8 Then came Amalek, and fought with Israel in Rephidim.
The root of the word means softness and because their faith softened, Amalek or more the people who championed the Yetzer had the power to harass the Bnei Yisrael. Amalek came from Esav. Rabbi Shimon (Bar Yochai) said, “Halacha which is know that Esav hates Yacov”.
9 And Moses said unto Joshua: 'Choose us out men, and go out, fight with Amalek; tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in my hand.' 10 So Joshua did as Moses had said to him, and fought with Amalek; and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. 11 And it came to pass, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed; and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed. 12 But Moses' hands were heavy; and they took a stone, and put it under him, and he sat thereon; and Aaron and Hur stayed up his hands, the one on the one side, and the other on the other side; and his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. 13 And Joshua discomfited Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.
HASHEM gave the men the power to make the victory, but they needed the psychological assurance of seeing Moshe holding the rod to over-come their slave mentality and fear. I believe that I wrote in the past that I was supposed to be a paramedic on an Air Force base far from the front lines as my training had been quite short. Instead, I got apprenticeship training on the front line and had come like many soldiers during the Yom Kippur War from a place far from the front. The noise of our artillery rattled the ground and even our own booms were scary for a peaceful reserve civilian. There I was trained to shoot half inch-wide bullets and full machine gun in a few minutes. There was one thing that kept me from panic and that was faith. Every morning I rose with the Proverb (Mishlei 9:10) on my tongue, “The beginning of wisdom is the fear of the L-RD!” The L-RD and not an RPG or bullet from Fatachland or today Hezballah on the Lebanese side.
14 And the LORD said unto Moses: 'Write this for a memorial in the book, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua: for I will utterly blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven.' 15 And Moses built an altar, and called the name of it Adonai-nissi. 16 And he said: 'The hand upon the throne of the LORD: the LORD will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.'
Every
generation until Moshiach will deal with their own enemy who wants to
obliterate Yisrael via Inquisition, Pogroms or Hamas and Hezballah of today.
Good
news for Israelis. Tu Be Shevat should have ideal weather for planting trees
but the ground may be very wet still.
A note to my readers: When I wrote that I was too
busy for the blogspot I am not what we call in the Israeli Army the equivalent
of crybaby when given guard duty or kitchen patrol. Even though the paramedic
was not supposed to guard the tents at night, I never complained and fulfilled my
duty. This week I had sudden chest pains and my pulse jumped, temperature rose
and I felt faint. I ended up 26 hours on watch in the hospital. Fortunately, it
was a false alarm. I only wrote this to show you that despite everything I feel
that I produced a reasonable amount of “new commentary and explanations from a
different angle on the Parsha”. I value my ability to teach and bring Torah to
my readers. So sometimes when my commentary is a bit weak, please bear with me
as I am only human.
The
Paris to Petersburg Train Cabin by Rabbi Yerachmiel Tilles
In
the year 1912 in Russia, Rebbe Shalom-Ber
Shneersohn ("HaRashab")
was the leader of the Chabad-Lubavitch Chassidim, and his son, Rebbe Yosef- Yitzchak Schneerson ("HaRayatz",
who would become the sixth Lubavitcher Rebbe after the passing of his father in
1920), was on a train from Paris to Petersburg. Life in Russia were not easy
for the Jews, and the Rayatz was often sent by his father on long journeys to
help Jews or even save Russian Jewry.
After
several hours of travel, he left his cabin and went to the dining car for a cup
of tea. As he sat down and looked around him, he noticed a finely-dressed
clean-shaven businessman sitting at a table in the corner eating a fine meal of
rabbit meat and drinking French wine with great savor.
The
man was obviously an assimilated Jew. The Rebbe-to-be winced with each bite the
man took. He couldn't bear seeing a Jew act that way. So he turned back to his
cup of tea and tried to ignore him.
But
then, he heard the man push back his chair, stand up and approach him.
"Excuse me Rabbi," he said. "Excuse me, but are you the son or
grandson of Rabbi Shmuel of Lubavitch?" (fourth Lubavitcher Rebbe - HaMaharash)
"Yes",
the Rebbe turned to face him and answered, "In fact, I am his
grandson."
The
businessman just stood there speechless. His eyes filled with tears and he made
no effort to wipe them away. He trembled slightly as though in shock, ran his
hand over his eyes. Then he turned abruptly back to his table, paid the waiter
and left the room without finishing his meal.
That
evening, hours after this strange episode, the train made a short stop in
Frankfort. The Rayatz had just stepped outside for a breath of fresh air when
that same businessman again approached him. But before he could begin to speak
he again began to weep, and continued doing so uncontrollably until the train
whistle forced him to return to his place.
Both
episodes perplexed the Rayatz. On one hand the man looked like a nobleman; a
large trimmed mustache, elegantly dressed in fine silk clothes. But on the
other hand he acted as though he was insane.
The
next morning, just as the Rayatz finished praying in his cabin, there was a
knock on the door. It was one of the porters. He reported that a certain
passenger would like to know if he could see the Rabbi.
The
Rebbe agreed and in a few minutes the same man appeared. He entered, closed the
door behind him and said, "Please excuse me my emotional outbursts
but…." and suddenly began to again weep uncontrollably. He put his hands
over his face and his entire body was shaking with sobs.
The
Rayatz didn't know whether to stop him or not, but after several minutes the
man dried his eyes, looked at the Rayatz furtively and asked if could borrow
the Rebbe's tefillin.
When
the Rayatz answered yes, he again began to weep like a small child saying
"Oy! When was the last time I put on Tefillin!! Oy!"
The
man took the tefillin, removed
them from their pouches, kissed them tenderly, put them on as one who was
familiar with the commandment and began to pray.
The
Rayatz left the man alone to pour out his soul before his Creator. After an
hour he came out of the cabin, thanked the Rayatz, asked him if he could borrow
a Sefer Tehillim (Book of
Psalms) and left to his own cabin without saying another word.
That
afternoon, several hours later, the man returned to the Rayatz's room. His face
was pale and he looked as though he was undergoing drastic internal changes. He
spoke in a weak voice.
"I
would like to speak to you if possible. May I?" The Rayatz invited him to
sit down; he closed the door and began.
"First,
thank you for your Tefillin and book of
psalms. And I'm sorry if I was of any inconvenience. My name is Y… I was born
into a family of Chabad Chassidim by the name of Monison, although I know I
don't look it.
"My
childhood was very happy; our house was always filled with guests, Torah and
joy. But when I was fifteen I somehow got drawn into a bad crowd of young
people and I began to enjoy them.
"My
father saw what was happening to me and decided to take me to Lubavitch for the
High Holidays and it worked. The first moment I saw your grandfather the Rebbe
Maharash, it had a deep effect on me. My father even took me in for a private
audience.
The
Rebbe spoke to my father for a few seconds, then turned to me and said,
"'The world can be very dangerous, never forget that you are a Jew.'"
"'The world can be very dangerous, never forget that you are a Jew.'"
"The
experience completely changed me. I had absolutely no desire to even see my
'friends'. But gradually the effect wore off. Little by little I became cool to
Judaism and warm to what I thought was freedom. I stopped praying, stopped
doing the commandments and after a year or so I left my parent's house and
moved in with my new 'friends'.
"Several
times my father tried to make contact with me but that only aroused my anger. I
had made up my mind; I would not live my life according to some book. Six years
later I finished university, married an assimilated girl like myself and broke
completely with my past. I was free!
"At
that time I joined a secret political movement whose goal was to help the
needy. There had been several Pogroms (government instigated riots against Jews)
at that time, and most of our efforts were directed to helping Jews.
"After
several years of this work, we heard that the Lubavitcher Rebbe was to be
visiting Petersburg in order to stop the Pogroms at the government level. We
decided to let him know of several impending Pogroms that we had heard about.
"We
arrived at the hotel where the Rebbe was staying and were met by a large group
of Chassidim some of whom remembered me and greeted me warmly. Suddenly the
Rebbe opened his door to come out to pray the afternoon prayer. He glanced at
me and I immediately knew that he recognized me despite the fact that we had
met for just moments over eight years ago. I was speechless
"Later
one of the Rebbe's secretaries told us that the Rebbe would like to speak with
us and we entered his room.
"His
knowledge of the situation in Russia was nothing short of miraculous and the
next few months we devoted ourselves totally to helping him in every way. We
saw much fruit from our labors and saw how the Rebbe literally prevented tens
of pogroms.
"Then
one day as we were leaving his room and I was the last one out, the Rebbe
called to me and said, "Tell me, when was the last time you put on tefillin? Please
don't lie to me; I know exactly what you have been doing."
"I
can't explain it, but I was so stunned I couldn't even open my mouth. I just
made some strange gestures and left. Those few words made such an impression on
me that that day I looked for a pair of tefillin and put them on for the first time in years
and I even stopped eating non-kosher food.
"After
the Rebbe left Petersburg I returned home, told my wife that I decided to
return to a Jewish life to which she agreed and I eventually even renewed ties
with my father. But I still was working with my friends in our organization and
at the end of that year it became known to us that there were to be a series of
massive Pogroms in the south of Russia.
"I
was chosen to travel to Lubavitch to tell the Rebbe and when I entered his
office I could tell he was happy to see me. We spoke for some time but he said
that he had to go to the country for his health and we would deal with the
problem when he returned in a few days.
"When
we met again he told me that he had been at his father's (the third Rebbe, the
'Tzemach Tzedek' who is buried in Lubavitch) gravesite and his father told him
that there was no real danger but nevertheless we must take steps. The Rebbe
then gave me some letters and told me what to do. He was in a good mood as he
paused for a moment, smiled and said.
"'It
says that Moses, because he helped the Jews, G-d gave him the chips of sapphire
from the Tablets that he carved out. You are helping Jews so you too deserve a
reward.'
"The
Rebbe looked me deeply in the eyes as he continued speaking.
"'When
I told you that my father spoke to me at his grave I noticed that you smirked.
The reason for this is that you are so involved in the physical that you have
no appreciation for spiritual things.'
"The
Rebbe then sat with me for over an hour explaining, with many examples and
stories, what 'spiritual' means and he concluded with these words:
"'How
long can a person live a life of physicality? Fifty years? Fifty five years?
Remember who you are and where you come from. You are a son of a Chassid! May
G-d protect you and give you true happiness.'
"I
didn't really understand what he was getting at because I had already returned
to Judaism for almost a year. But I thanked him warmly, took the papers he gave
me, set out for Petersburg to give them to officials. On that trip I saw some
open miracles.
"First,
police stopped the train ordered everyone out and began searching each person
for any political papers. I considered throwing the Rebbe's letters away before
they got to me but the Rebbe's words made me think differently. And miraculously,
when they came to me they just told me to get back on the train. I was the only
one they didn't check!
"Then
afterwards in Petersburg I got in to see the officials and hand them the papers
with no trouble. And to top it all off the Rebbe, or rather his departed
father, was right! The situation was not as severe as we thought.
"But
despite all this, just like the Rebbe said, I had no appreciation of the
spiritual. A few months later the Rebbe became ill and passed away at the age
of forty-nine. After that, I gradually gravitated to my old friends again.
"Little
by little I left G-d and His Torah and became a very successful businessman.
That was thirty years ago. Believe me, for the last thirty years I never once
even thought about G-d. Now I am retuning from my birthday party, I was
fifty-five years old yesterday, and my friends made me a gala party in Monte
Carlo.
"Then
suddenly, like a flash of lightning, when I saw you I remembered the words of
your holy grandfather. It touched me to the essence of my soul."
This
businessman became a different person. He moved his entire business to a
different country and became a pillar of the Jewish community there.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Source: Supplemented by Yerachmiel Tilles from the rendition of Rabbi Tuvia Bolton on the website of his yeshiva, //ohrtmimim.org/torah.
Source: Supplemented by Yerachmiel Tilles from the rendition of Rabbi Tuvia Bolton on the website of his yeshiva, //ohrtmimim.org/torah.
Biographical notes (in order of appearance):
Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn [of blessed memory: 12 Tammuz 5640 - 10 Shvat 5710 (Jan. 1880-June 1950 C.E.)], known as the Rebbe Rayatz, was the sixth Lubavitcher Rebbe, from 1920 to 1950. He established a network of Jewish educational institutions and Chassidim that was the single most significant factor for the preservation of Judaism during the dread reign of the communist Soviets. In 1940 he moved to the USA, established Chabad world-wide headquarters in Brooklyn and launched the global campaign to renew and spread Judaism in all languages and in every corner of the world, the campaign continued and expanded so remarkably successfully by his son-in-law and successor, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson.
Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn [of blessed memory: 12 Tammuz 5640 - 10 Shvat 5710 (Jan. 1880-June 1950 C.E.)], known as the Rebbe Rayatz, was the sixth Lubavitcher Rebbe, from 1920 to 1950. He established a network of Jewish educational institutions and Chassidim that was the single most significant factor for the preservation of Judaism during the dread reign of the communist Soviets. In 1940 he moved to the USA, established Chabad world-wide headquarters in Brooklyn and launched the global campaign to renew and spread Judaism in all languages and in every corner of the world, the campaign continued and expanded so remarkably successfully by his son-in-law and successor, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson.
Rabbi Shmuel
Schneersohn [of blessed memory: 2 Iyar 5594
- 13 Tishrei 5643 (1834-Sept. 1882 C.E.)], the fourth Lubavitch Rebbe, known as
the Rebbe
Maharash, was the seventh and youngest son of his predecessor, Rabbi
Menachem Mendel Schneersohn, the Tzemach Tzedek.
Connection: Seasonal - The 69th yahrzeit of the Rebbe Rayatz.
Connection: Seasonal - The 69th yahrzeit of the Rebbe Rayatz.
I
was sent this by Bishop Gabrielle of Australia. A man collects to feed the poor
even though he is homeless and is fined. http://concit.org/a-quiet-australian-hero/?fbclid=IwAR2zoq9fEh7p6VSaY0yKF2h9hZ4KcoA8ZK7Ua2dnxk0JLN8YSM98UPtQ8Co
6
Auschwitz victims to be given proper burial. https://www.algemeiner.com/2019/01/10/remains-of-six-auschwitz-victims-to-receive-jewish-funerals-at-cemetery-near-london/?utm_content=news1&utm_medium=daily_email&utm_campaign=email&utm_source=internal/
More
on the Shin Bet pressure and forced confessions. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257607
Druze
Minister faces police investigation. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5447053,00.html
Search
for holocaust victim’s bones continues in Hungary. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5446862,00.html
Public
opinion poll that forgot Aguda 6 or 7 seats. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257724
New
Prayer Book competes with Art Scroll. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257702
Ramat
Gan Vandals topple Holocaust Memorial and smash 6 chimneys. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5447922,00.html
The
Brazilian Jewish Saint for Christians. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5447935,00.html
Not only Yemenite
babies were stolen and sold for money in the early days of modern Israel. My name is Hanan Shomrony and I’m searching
for my brother.
He was born in 1946, his parents’ first born, in Europe after
the Second World War. In 1949, when he was two and a half years old, he and his
parents made Aliya to Zfat in Israel. He was hospitalized a month later in the
Emek Hospital in Afula because of dysentery. Two days later my father was informed
that he had passed away. (Parents were not allowed to stay with their sick
children so my father was obliged to leave him there.)
There was no funeral and of course there is no grave. My
parents were new immigrants, survivors of the holocaust, who had arrived only
one month prior to this. They accepted this news without question and didn’t
make any further inquiries.
The Ministry of the Interior informed me, years later, that in
1963 someone with his ID number had left the country. However, in the Death
Registry of the Religious Council in Afula he is registered as having died in
17.04.1949 and was buried in a common grave.
His first name was Israel, the son of Chava and Yosef
Heiventreager (sp) I.D. 0203317-3. It is possible that his first name stayed
with him as he was already two and a half years old at the time.
I was born six months later and know of him only from what my
parents had told me. Unfortunately, my parents have passed away and the
searches that I have been carrying on during the years have never provided any
answers. I still hope that this story will awaken a spark of a memory in
someone of a baby that was adopted at the age of two and a half, blond with
bright eyes that spoke only Yiddish. He or those who adopted him were probably
told that he was an orphan brought from Europe. He would be 65 or 66 years old
today.
I enclose pictures of him as an infant with our parents before
coming to Israel. I regret that I don’t have any pictures of a later period.
Perhaps this mail will, by some stroke of luck, be received by someone who will
recognize or will find similarities in the faces of our parents and that of Israel.
Please forward to this mail to anyone you can. Perhaps a miracle
will happen and I’ll be reunited with my long lost brother.
Thank you,
Hanan Shomrony shomronys@gmail.com
Reform
Hungarians against bone search for Kiddush H ASHEM
victims. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257810
Inyanay Diyoma
Breaking
News rocket from Gaza. https://www.debka.com/mivzak/rocket-fired-from-gaza-explodes-on-empty-ground/
Shabbos
IDF attacks Hamas after fence riots. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257501
Iran
and ballistic missiles. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257506
The
insurance policy of McCabe and the rest. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257512
Dr.
Sherman on the new right. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/23287
Hezballah
warehouse attacked. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257514
Hezballah
leader may be having health issues. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257511
Hamas
shows video of botched Gaza raid. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257507
Erev
Shabbos attempted stabbing of soldier in Chevron only terrorist injured.
Sixth
tunnel found believed to be the last. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5445732,00.html
IAF
attacks underground military facilities of Hamas after rocket. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5445711,00.html
At
one time at least, Spirit Airlines was owned or partially owned by an Orthodox
Jew. Antisemitic flight attendant. https://www.algemeiner.com/2019/01/10/you-could-see-the-hatred-eyewitness-alleges-shocking-verbal-assault-on-orthodox-jewish-family-by-spirit-airlines-flight-attendant/?utm_content=news1&utm_medium=daily_email&utm_campaign=email&utm_source=internal/
Pompeo
in Cairo backs Israel against Tehran: https://www.algemeiner.com/2019/01/10/pompeo-in-cairo-us-backs-israels-efforts-to-stop-tehran-from-turning-syria-into-the-next-lebanon/?utm_content=news1&utm_medium=daily_email&utm_campaign=email&utm_source=internal/
Iran
bragging about Hezballah. https://www.algemeiner.com/2019/01/10/iranian-irgc-official-claims-lebanese-palestinian-resistance-groups-can-end-the-disgraceful-life-of-israel/?utm_content=news1&utm_medium=daily_email&utm_campaign=email&utm_source=internal/
58%
of Israelis feel that Syria withdrawal harms Israel. https://www.algemeiner.com/2019/01/11/poll-58-of-israelis-feel-trumps-syria-withdrawal-harmed-their-countrys-security-interests/?utm_content=news1&utm_medium=daily_email&utm_campaign=email&utm_source=internal/
British
lawmaker proposes cutting funds to PLO hate schools. https://www.algemeiner.com/2019/01/10/british-lawmakers-introduce-bill-to-slash-funding-to-palestinian-schools-that-promote-hate/?utm_content=news1&utm_medium=daily_email&utm_campaign=email&utm_source=internal/
Mixed
multitude goes against Israel. https://www.algemeiner.com/2019/01/11/jewish-voice-for-peace-group-showcases-palestinian-woman-with-assault-rifle-defends-right-to-resist-military-occupation/?utm_content=news1&utm_medium=daily_email&utm_campaign=email&utm_source=internal/
Rep.
Steve King slammed for white supremacy. https://www.algemeiner.com/2019/01/11/jewish-groups-slam-republican-congressman-steve-king-over-white-supremacist-remark/?utm_content=news1&utm_medium=daily_email&utm_campaign=email&utm_source=internal/
6
Auschwitz victims to be given proper burial. https://www.algemeiner.com/2019/01/10/remains-of-six-auschwitz-victims-to-receive-jewish-funerals-at-cemetery-near-london/?utm_content=news1&utm_medium=daily_email&utm_campaign=email&utm_source=internal/
Murder
by truck or accident? A friend of mine died that way with an Arab Truck. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257543
Irrelevant
tunnels as per Debka? https://www.debka.com/idf-ends-northern-tunnel-operation-strikes-gaza-tunnels-hizballah-hamas-threats-remain/
Is
Trump saving western culture from globalism. https://dianebederman.com/awakening2019-is-donald-trump-saving-western-culture/
Crown
Heights attack a hate crime. https://www.algemeiner.com/2019/01/13/new-york-police-treating-latest-attack-on-orthodox-jew-in-crown-heights-as-hate-crime/?utm_content=news1&utm_medium=daily_email&utm_campaign=email&utm_source=internal/
Not
surprised his father was born in ’39 to a German-American family. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257546
Two
elderly people found murdered in area bordering east Yerushalayim. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257555
Trump
will ruin Turkey’s finances if they attack Kurds. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257561
Male
Arab Nurse tried to assassinate MK. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257552
Teacher
of Nazi Salute Students raises money for Auschwitz. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257564
Why
Israel stopped the ambiguity - Ed-Op Ben Yishai. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5446006,00.html
Many
battles of Chief of Staff – Ed-Op Yossi Yehoshua. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5445952,00.html
Poland
– major of Gdansk assassinated. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jan/14/gdansk-residents-donate-blood-stabbed-mayor-pawel-adamowicz
Pompeo
cuts short ME tour as Arabs distrust US with Syrian withdrawal. https://www.debka.com/pompeo-cuts-short-mid-east-tour-no-headway-in-selling-trumps-post-syria-drive-against-iran/
Challenges
for the next Chief of Staff. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257602
More
on couple murder and seems 100% terror. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257602
Iran
buys 150 from China J-10 aka Lavi Aircraft. https://www.debka.com/iran-orders-from-china-150-j-10-fighter-jets-that-incorporate-israeli-technology/
Iranian
satellite launch fails in third stage. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257632
Gaza
the original sin/mistake by Daniel Pinner. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/23302
Search
for holocaust victim’s bones continues in Hungary. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5446862,00.html
Druze
Minister faces police investigation. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5447053,00.html
ISIS
murders US Troops in Syria. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5448031,00.html
US
Army to buy 2 Iron Dome systems. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5447797,00.html
Kenya
terrorist attack and kill 14 one was an American Jew. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5447814,00.html
I
have always been disturbed by the fact that the Israel Judges have been unjust.
One case a female became a judge by supplying favors. The other a wife. https://www.debka.com/israels-judiciary-rocked-by-judgeships-for-sex-scandal-two-ministers-chief-justice-called-to-testify/
Justice
Minister very upset. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257714
Arab
Israeli murdered down under. https://www.jpost.com/Diaspora/Israeli-Arab-woman-found-murdered-in-Australia-577624
Russia
might have been notified about last raids on Syria. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257686
From
DeHaan Chief of Staff retires and hands the reigns to the new Chief. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25mi4XrfJOs
Fishman
Ed-Op. Ending the Ambiguity on Syria. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5446498,00.html
Nation
of Islam keeps getting tax dollars. https://www.algemeiner.com/2019/01/15/the-nation-of-islam-gets-taxpayer-funds-to-incite-hatred-of-jews/?utm_content=opinion1&utm_medium=daily_email&utm_campaign=email&utm_source=internal/
Truth
about the liberal “Rabbi Jill Jacobs”. https://www.algemeiner.com/2019/01/15/the-truth-about-truah-and-rabbi-jill-jacobs/?utm_content=opinion1&utm_medium=daily_email&utm_campaign=email&utm_source=internal/
Abbas
warned stop spending 7% of your budget on terrorists. https://www.algemeiner.com/2019/01/15/stop-spending-7-of-your-budget-on-terrorist-salaries-israeli-un-envoy-tells-abbas-following-palestinian-leaders-g-77-speech-in-new-york/?utm_content=news1&utm_medium=daily_email&utm_campaign=email&utm_source=internal/
Proposed
Palestine is denied by Greenblatt. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5448227,00.html
Lebanon
Hezballah leader’s strategy. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5447935,00.html
10,000
Iranians tanks and troops massed in Iraq to cross into Syria. https://www.debka.com/__trashed-2/
Suspect
arrested in the murder of Israeli-Arab girl. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257806
Hamas
builds Iranian funded luxury homes for families of jailed terrorists. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257802
American
kidnapped by Ramallah and jailed for selling land to Jews deported to USA. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257787
Malaysia
bans Israeli Athletes. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257781
Was
he a spy or deranged individual who crossed into Lebanon. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257769
Home
of terrorist murderer demolished. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5448915,00.html
Good
Shabbos all and guard your health,
Rachamim
Pauli
