Parsha Pinchas
There is a time to be zealous for
HASHEM and a time not to be zealous. Pinchas being zealous for HASHEM stopped
the anger. However, some people can be over-zealous on minor issues and make a
Chillul HASHEM. Fighting for freedom for example is generally good but
zealously fighting against wearing a mask can make one into a ‘Rodef’ in that
case the person contacts Corona and without a mask transfers it around until
somebody dies and the zealot is a murderer in the name of his personal freedom.
I have seen too many ignoramuses running around who become potential murderers
despite their religious beliefs.
25:10
And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying: 11 'Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the
son of Aaron the priest, hath turned My wrath away from the children of Israel,
in that he was very jealous for My sake among them, so that I consumed not the
children of Israel in My jealousy.
For his zealousness showed ME that
there is hope for Am Yisrael with G-D fearing and loving leaders.
12
Wherefore say: Behold, I give unto him My covenant of peace; 13 and it shall be
unto him, and to his seed after him, the covenant of an everlasting priesthood;
because he was jealous for his God, and made atonement for the children of
Israel.'
He killed a Rodef of Am Yisrael and
saved tens of thousands of lives. Therefore for him and his seed after him
there is a Bris of Peace.
14
Now the name of the man of Israel that was slain, who was slain with the
Midianitish woman, was Zimri, the son of Salu, a prince of a fathers' house
among the Simeonites. 15 And the name of the Midianitish woman that was slain
was Cozbi, the daughter of Zur; he was head of the people of a fathers' house
in Midian.
As I wrote their souls reincarnated.
Pinchas became Eliyahu HaNovi who was the man looking for straw after his wife
gave birth and he helped the Zimri reincarnated as Akiva ben Yosef become Rabbi
Akiva. Because Zimri died on a Chillul HASHEM, Rabbi Akiva has to die on a
Kiddush HASHEM. His 24,000 students that died were the 24,000 who died in the
plague. Cozbi who went with the prostitution idea of Zur, because Rachel the
daughter of Kalba Savua who defies her father to get Akiva to learn Torah.
16
And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying: 17 'Harass the Midianites, and smite
them; 18 for they harass you, by their wiles wherewith they have beguiled you
in the matter of Peor, and in the matter of Cozbi, the daughter of the prince
of Midian, their sister, who was slain on the day of the plague in the matter
of Peor.'
It is more than the English word harass
but to blot out the name of Midian except for the females under three who knew
not man.
26:1 And it came to pass after the plague, that the
LORD spoke unto Moses and unto Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest, saying: 2
'Take the sum of all the congregation of the children of Israel, from twenty
years old and upward, by their fathers' houses, all that are able to go forth
to war in Israel.' 3 And Moses and Eleazar the priest spoke with them in the
plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho, saying: 4 '[Take the sum of the
people,] from twenty years old and upward, as the LORD commanded Moses and the
children of Israel, that came forth out of the land of Egypt.'
Am Yisrael was about to enter the land
like just before the incident with the spies a census was taken.
5 Reuben, the
first-born of Israel: the sons of Reuben: … 9 And the sons of Eliab: Nemuel, and Dathan, and Abiram.
These are that Dathan and Abiram, the elect of the congregation, who strove
against Moses and against Aaron in the company of Korach, when they strove
against the LORD;
Their claim for better status was quite
poor as they might have been from Reuven but not from the Bechor and they were
born second and third to their father. Yet their eyes were blinded by power.
10 and the earth opened
her mouth, and swallowed them up together with Korach, when that company died;
what time the fire devoured two hundred and fifty men, and they became a sign.
11 Notwithstanding the sons of Korach died not.
They stayed out of the fight between
the older generation and they survived.
… 12 The sons of Simeon
after their families: …15 The sons of Gad
after their families:
This was not according to birth of the
tribes as Levi should have been mentioned here. However, this was their place
in the camp in the southern direction.
…19 The sons of Judah:
Er and Onan; and Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan. 20 And the sons of
Judah after their families were:
Since Er and Onan were sons of Yehuda
who were born to him but never became fruitful and multiplied, they are
mentioned.
… 23 The sons of
Issachar after their families:
As the first three tribes were under
Degel (flag) Reuven they were under Degel or Machane (camp) Yehuda.
… 26 The sons of
Zebulun after their families:
They were the eastern and most forward
flank in the war of the liberation of lands.
… 28 The sons of Joseph
after their families: Manasseh and Ephraim.
This is the western flank.
29 The sons of
Manasseh: … 33 And Zelophehad the
son of Hepher had no sons, but daughters; and the names of the daughters of
Zelophehad were Mahlah, and Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.
These women are singled out as they are
mentioned in the Torah in regards to the laws of the inheritance of women.
35 These are the sons
of Ephraim after their families: …
38
The sons of Benjamin after their families:
These three tribes protect the nation
from surprise attacks from let’s say Arad or Plishtim from the west.
42 These are the sons
of Dan after their families;
… 44
The sons of Asher after their families: … 46 And the name of the daughter of Asher was Serah.
She is signaled out because she broke
the news to Yacov that Yosef was still alive in a pleasant tune. He blessed her
with long life and she lived long enough to see Yacov and the return to the
land of Eretz Yisrael.
… 48 The sons of Naphtali after their
families.
This was the northern flank.
… 51 These are they that were numbered of
the children of Israel, six hundred thousand and a thousand and seven hundred
and thirty.
After the incident with Zimri, the
population was slightly less than 39years earlier.
52 And the LORD spoke
unto Moses, saying: 53 'Unto these the land shall be divided for an inheritance
according to the number of names. 54 To the more thou shalt give the more
inheritance, and to the fewer thou shalt give the less inheritance; to each one
according to those that were numbered of it shall its inheritance be given. 55 Notwithstanding the land shall be divided by lot; according to
the names of the tribes of their fathers they shall inherit. 56
According to the lot shall their inheritance be divided between the more and
the fewer.'
Lots were drawn and tribes received
their inheritance. Dan received a portion in northern area of the Tel Aviv and
the Tel Dan Banias Area at the foot of the Golan Heights. Menashe received on
the Golan Heights and near Ephraim’s inheritance.
They received no inheritance only 24
cities and their fields.
… 62 And they that were numbered of them
were twenty and three thousand, every male from a month old and upward; for
they were not numbered among the children of Israel, because there was no
inheritance given them among the children of Israel.
Their number increased ever so slightly
over the last census and from the last one.
63 These are they that were numbered by Moses and Eleazar
the priest, who numbered the children of Israel in the plains of Moab by the
Jordan at Jericho. 64 But among these there was not a man of
them that were numbered by Moses and Aaron the priest, who numbered the
children of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai. 65 For the LORD
had said of them: 'They shall surely die in the wilderness.' And there was not
left a man of them, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.
27:1Then drew near the daughters of
Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of
Manasseh, of the families of Manasseh the son of Joseph; and these are the
names of his daughters: Mahlah, Noah, and Hoglah, and Milcah, and Tirzah. 2 And
they stood before Moses, and before Eleazar the priest, and before the princes
and all the congregation, at the door of the tent of meeting, saying:
Although this incident did not occur
when the theory was mentioned by the Torah, the time had not come. Now the
theory is becoming practical.
3
'Our father died in the wilderness, and he was not among the company of them
that gathered themselves together against the LORD in the company of Korach,
but he died in his own sin; and he had no sons. 4 Why should the name of our
father be done away from among his family, because he had no son? Give unto us
a possession among the brethren of our father.'
Why shouldn’t we inherit to keep up the
name of our father, seeing that we are his only heirs and had no sons.
5
And Moses brought their cause before the LORD.
The Medrash writes that Moshe knew the
Halacha but because it went up the chain of Chachamim and Dayanim, that he
wanted to honor HASHEM by asking.
6 And
the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying: 7 'The daughters of Zelophehad speak right:
thou shalt surely give them a possession of an inheritance among their father's
brethren; and thou shalt cause the inheritance of their father to pass unto
them.
HASHEM brings about a social revolution
as women can now inherit, own and manage property. Also see the laws of Ketuvah
Eben HaEzer starting around Siman Kuf in more details in Kuf-Dalet about women
inheriting land or receiving their Ketuvah in land.
8 And
thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying: If a man die, and have no
son, then ye shall cause his inheritance to pass unto his daughter. 9 And if he
has no daughter, then ye shall give his inheritance unto his brethren. 10 And
if he has no brethren, then ye shall give his inheritance unto his father's brethren.
11 And if his father has no brethren, then ye shall give his inheritance unto
his kinsman that is next to him of his family, and he shall possess it. And it
shall be unto the children of Israel a statute of judgment, as the LORD
commanded Moses.'
The
reason here is the same as the reason for the land returning to the original
owner in the Yovel Year. That is the land returns to the original tribe. Thus
if one man from the Tribe of Yehuda wants to corner the watermelon market but
his land is only good for growing grapes, he can buy land up in the northern
part of Israel and build an artificial lake to supply is watermelons with water
from the rainy season to grow then but in the Yovel Year, he has to return the land to the family of the original owner.
12 And
the LORD said unto Moses: 'Get thee up into this mountain of Abarim, and behold
the land which I have given unto the children of Israel. 13 And when thou hast
seen it, thou also shalt be gathered unto thy people, as Aaron thy brother was
gathered; 14 because ye rebelled against My commandment in the wilderness of
Zin, in the strife of the congregation, to sanctify Me at the waters before
their eyes.'--These are the waters of Meribath-kadesh in the wilderness of Zin.
At first Moshe does not think of
himself and appeal the Gezaira but looks out for his flock, Am Yisrael so that
a good leader can replace him. Only in Parsha Vaeschanan, will Moshe think of
himself in an appeal.
15 And
Moses spoke unto the LORD, saying: 16 'Let the LORD, the God of the spirits of
all flesh, set a man over the congregation, 17 who may go out before them, and
who may come in before them, and who may lead them out, and who may bring them
in; that the congregation of the LORD be not as sheep which have no shepherd.'
Let there not be a vacuum in leadership
as existed during the 40th day of the Aliyah to Sinai and the Am
make the Egel HaZahav.
18 And the LORD said
unto Moses: 'Take thee Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is spirit, and lay
thy hand upon him;
The
laying of the hands in Hebrew is called “Smicha” and that is ordaining a
person. In this case Yehoshua is ordained as leader or king for conquest of the
land. Thus when one is an ordained Rabbi he has Smicha for the Rabbinate.
19 and set him
before Eleazar the priest, and before all the congregation; and give him a
charge in their sight. 20 And thou shalt put of thy honor upon him, that all
the congregation of the children of Israel may hearken.
Moshe
did so publically as even though the people were often rebellious, they knew he
was the leader. So now Yehoshua would be the leader.
21 And he shall
stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall inquire for him by the judgment of
the Urim before the LORD; at his word shall they go out, and at his word they
shall come in, both he, and all the children of Israel with him, even all the
congregation.' 22 And Moses did as the LORD commanded him; and he took Joshua,
and set him before Eleazar the priest, and before all the congregation. 23 And
he laid his hands upon him, and gave him a charge, as the LORD spoke by the
hand of Moses.
People have asked me why didn’t the
Rebbe from Lubavitch do the same for a successor? The answer is that he had a
tradition that there would be 7 Rebbes from Lubavitch and then Moshiach!
The daily morning and evening Korbanos to our great misfortune have been replaced by the morning and afternoon prayers today. The Korbanos had extra power when offered with the songs of the Leviim and the large congregation to have a positive effect in heaven on Am Yisrael that does not exist today despite all the intent and Kavanah of millions of our nation praying from all over the globe.
9 And on the Sabbath day two he-lambs of the first year without blemish, and two tenth parts of an ephah of fine flour for a meal-offering, mingled with oil, and the drink-offering thereof.
Normally I would go into the benefits of Shabbos and since Shabbos is the source of all blessings that the observance thereof can save family members from evil, enable the infertile couple to become parents, prevent a lot of problems and illnesses. However, I receive yesterday evening a story of a man who recently passed away. He lived in my Condominium in FL on the 3rd floor directly underneath my 6th floor apt. So I shall wait for the second version of the ten commandments in Sefer Devarim for my Drasha.
10 This is the burnt-offering of every Sabbath, beside the continual burnt-offering, and the drink-offering thereof. … 11 And in your new moons ye shall present a burnt-offering unto the LORD: … 16 And in the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, is the LORD'S Passover.
The same goes for the 3 Regelim and their holy observance that I shall defer until a future date. I only ask my readers to try their best to be holy and observe and love the L-RD. For fear of G-D or fire and brimstone observance is a much lower level of observance than out of love and that applies to marriage. A husband who terrorizes his wife instead of showing love and respect destroys his marriage.
… 26 Also in the day of the first-fruits, when ye bring a new meal-offering unto the LORD in your feast of weeks, ye shall have a holy convocation: ye shall do no manner of servile work; …
29:1And in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, ye shall have a holy convocation: ye shall do no manner of servile work; it is a day of blowing the horn unto you. … 7 And on the tenth day of this seventh month ye shall have a holy convocation; and ye shall afflict your souls; ye shall do no manner of work; … 12 And on the fifteenth day of the seventh month ye shall have a holy convocation: ye shall do no manner of servile work, and ye shall keep a feast unto the LORD seven days; … 35 On the eighth day ye shall have a solemn assembly: ye shall do no manner of servile work; ... 39 These ye shall offer unto the LORD in your appointed seasons, beside your vows, and your freewill-offerings, whether they be your burnt-offerings, or your meal-offerings, or your drink-offerings, or your peace-offerings.
30:1 And Moses told the children of Israel according to all that the LORD commanded Moses.
Moshe continued guiding the flock with
love, even though he knew that he would not lead them into the land.
After Rabbi Moshe Feinstein passed
away, Rabbi Chaim Kreiswirth was one of the few Gadolei HaDor that one could
count on his fingers. In 1939 in Poland, he was given the numbers to a Swiss
Bank Account and guarded them for years. https://www.aish.com/sp/pg/Rabbi-Kreiswirth-and-the-Hidden-Treasure.html?s=sh1
The following story from Chabad is a
man who was very dear to me.
He passed away from Kidney Disease a
month ago. When I first bought my Condo in FL for retirement both in the US and
Israel, he invited me for dinner to his house the first Shabbos. He was one of
the leaders and a senior in the Chabad Community of Hollywood-Fort Lauderdale
Area. Since he was one of the few Charedi Palmach Officers in the Israeli War
of Independence, we often spoke in Hebrew and his wife was very close to mine
as they were both Hebrew Speakers more so than English Speakers. He also gave
Menashe guidance on reading the Parsha and other learning tips.
I am on the JEM mailing list but this
came from Jaime another neighbor:
Jews,
Uncategorized Rabbi Shmuel Blizinsky
When I served in the Israel
Defense Forces, I was only one of twelve Torah observant recruits in the Givati
Brigade which, back then, numbered some three-thousand soldiers.
We had kosher food —
because, by Israeli law, all food in national institutions has to be kosher —
but we had nothing else. We had no synagogue in which to pray (like they have
today on every base), nor a Torah scroll to read from. But we tried to make the
best of it.
One Friday, as Shabbat was
approaching, I went to the other observant boys and said to them, “Come to my
tent this evening and we’ll pray together. Let’s have our own Shabbat meal; we
can sing and celebrate, and it will feel like a real Shabbat.”
They thought it was a fine
idea and so that is what we did. We got the food from the dining room and
brought it back to my tent, where we made Shabbat — just the twelve of us. We
prayed, we sang, we ate, and it was beautiful. And nobody bothered us.
But then a new commander
was put in charge of our base — the famed Brigadier General Abrashah Tamir. He
went around inspecting everything and, one Friday evening, he came to my tent
and found us sitting there and singing.
“What’s going on over
here?” he asked. “Why are you not eating together with all the other boys in
the dining room?”
I explained to him that we
were observing Shabbat, and this was the reason we were eating apart. He didn’t
say anything right then, but two weeks later, just as Shabbat was coming in, I
was summoned and told that General Tamir wanted us to eat with everybody and —
not only that — he was asking me to recite Kiddush, the blessing that starts
the Shabbat meal, for all the soldiers.
I was pleased and
flattered. I said, “That’s a great idea!” But as I was approaching the dining
room, I heard a band playing inside. This was a violation of Shabbat and I
stopped — I couldn’t go in.
So I told my escorting
officer, “Forget it.”
A few minutes later, the officer
returned telling me that there was now an official order from General Tamir
that I and the others must come. I refused to obey the order; I said, “I have
orders from a Higher Authority. I will not violate Shabbat and I will not
come.” The others agreed with me and we stayed where we were.
The upshot of that exchange
was that my colleagues were arrested and I was brought to General Tamir’s
office. When I walked in, he took off his jacket with the commander’s insignia
and he said to me, “Speak to me like I am not your commanding officer. And
please explain why you did this! Why did you shame me in front of all the
soldiers?”
I didn’t know what he was
driving at. I said, “What did I do to you? You can make Kiddush yourself, why
did I have to do it?”
And then he told me what
had happened: After he saw us in the tent that first time — when we were
singing and celebrating Shabbat — he decided that this experience would be good
for the whole camp. And he brought in the band to make it even more joyful. He
had no idea that playing musical instruments was forbidden on Shabbat. He just
didn’t know!
Once I understood all this,
I said, “If you just stop the band from playing, we will come. It will be
fine.”
He agreed and, five minutes
later, we joined the others — I made Kiddush and everyone was happy. A couple
of days later, I was summoned by the commander of the division headquarters who
— to my utter amazement — apologized to me. He actually said, “I apologize to
you in the name of the whole headquarters for what happened. Nobody had the
right to make you violate Shabbat.” These were his exact words. And then he
asked me, “What do you need?”
“We need a synagogue, a
proper place to pray,” I said, “and a Torah scroll.”
“Don’t worry,” he said. You
will get it.”
Sure enough, a space was
designated for us to pray and a Torah scroll was brought in with a military
escort and an army marching band.
It was just amazing, and I
related this whole story in a letter which I sent to the Rebbe.
In short order, I got an
answer — and it was an answer which changed my life. The Rebbe’s letter was
dated the 16th day of the Hebrew month of Elul, 5711 — or the 17th of
September, 1951 — just two weeks before Rosh Hashanah, and it read:
“I greatly enjoyed your
letter... in which you describe your army service and your activities in
strengthening Judaism among your comrades.... The greatness of what you are
doing can’t even be described in writing... but I can correctly say that if you
joined the army only for this, that would have been enough.”
This meant so much to me.
And then the Rebbe asked me to do something for him: “My heartfelt request is
for you to give my blessing to each soldier, not just to the “religious
soldiers” as you refer to them in your letter.”
He went on to explain: “The
adage of my father-in-law, the [Previous] Rebbe, is well known: ‘A Jew neither
wants nor is able to be separated from G-dliness,’ and therefore, all of your
comrades are religious.”
I had the attitude that
there were twelve religious soldiers in a brigade of three thousand men. But,
to the Rebbe, all three thousand were religious — they just didn’t know it yet.
As he wrote:
“It is simply that some of
them lack knowledge of Judaism. But they will not remain distant and will
realize that they, too, believe in G-d and his Torah. Please convey to all of
them my blessing — that they be inscribed and sealed for a good and sweet
year.”
He told me to go and tell
every single soldier whom I encountered — each one of them — that the
Lubavitcher Rebbe blesses you for a good and sweet year!
His message was an entirely
different mindset about how to look at a Jew. Until then, I would put people in
categories — religious and non-religious — and obviously, I considered myself a
member of the religious group. But the Rebbe taught me just how wrong I was,
because all Jews are religious — some of them just don’t know it yet. ______________
For most of his life, Rabbi
Shmuel Blizinsky (1931-2020) served as the Chabad emissary to the kibbutzim of
Israel. In recent years, he retired to Hollywood, Florida, where he continued
his outreach work. He was interviewed in March of 2011.
The
Chassidic Rebbe and the Guinea Pig by Rabbi Levi Welton
Her reason was simple. Behind our modest home, nestled in the foothills surrounding U.C. Berkeley, was the community Mikvah, a quaint redwood cottage housing the Jewish ritual bath used primarily by women. As the volunteer director, my mother didn’t want the spiritually serene “Mikvah experience” to be spoiled by the barking rants of an overzealous pooch. So, in an effort to satiate my zoological curiosity, she allowed all other kinds of indoor pets. Salamanders from the backyard. Frogs from Boy Scout camp. Hamsters. Parakeets. Guinea pigs. Even a chicken named Fwedwika. Through encouraging me to be a caretaker for my little critters, my mother taught me the meaning of responsibility, reliability, and perhaps even love.
But the guinea pigs were proficient at producing exorbitant amounts of excrement and they had begun to breed. As soon as I began to smell like them, I was told I needed to figure out an “outdoor solution.” Our neighbor, a kind and skilled architect, fashioned an outdoor guinea pig hutch for me, adjacent to the flower garden in front of the Mikvah. I presume my parents agreed to it for easy access to the self-perpetuating, 100% organic, guinea-pig fertilizer.
One Friday afternoon, I was out cleaning the hutch in preparation for Shabbat. My T-shirt was splattered with guinea pig feces from my vigorous scrubbing. My hands were caked with a multicolored malodorous muck, from changing their newspaper bedding. But I loved it, because I loved seeing the guinea pigs squeal with excitement and purr with contentment when being let back into their freshly cleaned home. I was so engrossed in the task at hand that I didn’t hear the crowd speaking Yiddish until they were already upon me.
I looked up and saw an entourage of men walking down the path, headed toward the Mikvah. At their center was a Chassidic Rebbe, Rabbi Hershel Yolles, who regularly visited the Bay Area. (Many Chassidim immerse in a Mikvah daily, especially before Shabbat or Jewish holidays). Like a startled guinea pig, my head jerked from side to side looking for an escape route. But it was too late. The path to the Mikvah snaked right by my location. I froze. I felt so embarrassed.
Oh no, what is the Rebbe going to say to me?
I may have only been in elementary school but I knew enough to know that there were more appropriate ways to prepare for Shabbat than being caught knee-deep in rodent excrement. And from an animal called a “pig” no less.
As Rabbi Yolles’ sharp eyes flitted in my direction, I felt the heat of shame flush onto my face. I wished the ground would just open and swallow me up. Please, Hashem, please, I thought, make them not notice me. Please make them walk straight by me. But the Samborer Rebbe, royal descendent of the Baal Shem Tov, Reb Elimelech of Lizensk and the Sanzer Rebbe, stopped right in front of me.
“Yingeleh (young boy), what is your name?” he asked.
I felt my face go red as I answered, “Levi. Levi Yitzchak Welton.”
“Ah,” he said as he stroked his pure, white beard. “You’re the son of Rabbi and Rebbetzin Welton?”
“Yes,” I muttered, desperately wanting the interrogation to be over. His followers stood in respectful silence but I could tell they were restless, confused as to why the Rebbe had stopped to converse with a child.
Then he asked the question I had been dreading, “And what are you doing here?” He pointed one of his fingers toward the guinea pig hutch. Fingers, I knew, which only touched the soft pages of the Torah or the tear-soaked lines of his siddur (prayer book). I felt mortified.
I felt overwhelmed with guilt. How often did Chassidic Rebbes make pilgrimages to Berkeley, California? I should be inside, studying Torah in preparation for Shabbat. Or helping my mother prepare the Shabbat candles. I wish he would have caught me in the midst of davening (praying) or something like that!
Mumbling and fumbling, I told him, "Um. These are my pet guinea pigs. I'm cleaning their hutch for Shabbos." My eyes locked onto the tips of my feces-covered sneakers as I awaited the beratement I was sure would ensue.
Instead, I heard him laugh.
I looked up. The California sun glinted off of his wrinkled face. His laugh was quiet, warm and musical. Then he leaned towards me, his eyes twinkling as they grasped my soul.
“Yingeleh,” he whispered, “Der Beshefer (The Creator) made the world in six days and on the seventh day, He rested. Almighty God took care of all His animals before He entered Shabbat. I can think of nothing more Godly than for you to take care of all your animals as you prepare for Shabbat.” He paused and said, “May HaKodesh Baruch Hu bless you to always be a loving caretaker of the beautiful creatures in His beautiful garden.”
I was shell shocked. No words came out of my mouth. The Rebbe smiled. Then, just as unexpectedly as he had appeared, he disappeared down the path with his entourage and into the Mikvah. I ran into my house to proudly tell my mother and father what had happened.
As I grew up, I learned many stories of Chassidic Rebbes. Quite often, the tales recorded pop off the pages with more vivid authenticity than Broadway's award-winning all-Yiddish rendition of "Fiddler on the Roof." Many of those tales involve miracles of supernatural scale.
Mine involved guinea pigs. And that’s kosher enough for me.
I was an unhappy Atheist by Kylie Ora
Lobell
When I was 12, I decided I was an atheist.
After all, I had prayed to God multiple times
that my parents wouldn’t get divorced, and they still did. When my Catholic
grandmother would drag me to church, I’d be incredibly bored; if God was so
magnificent, why was church awful?
I didn't have a strong religious background or
education, so letting go of God was easy.
After I made my atheist declaration, I
believed everything was in my control. If I was having a bad day, it wasn’t the
universe was trying to tell me something; that was on me. And since I was the
one who controlled my destiny, I got anxious whenever things didn’t work out.
No greater power was watching over me, protecting me, so I felt all alone in
the world. I didn’t think there was any sort of afterlife and got down thinking
about the eternal nothingness that I was someday going to experience. Life
became pretty meaningless.
I did what I had to do – go to school, get my
homework done, and, as I got older, work part-time jobs to support myself – but
I was rarely joyful about life. By the time I was a junior in college, I was
going to weekly therapy sessions because I was having panic attacks. I was
anxious about boys, about grades, and above all, about my future. I’d get sad
on the weekends when there was nothing happening on campus, and I’d stay in my
room, all alone, sulking and binging on pizza. Whenever I didn’t do well on a
test, it felt like a huge setback. If it was rainy outside, which it often was,
I got upset.
Upon graduation from college, I met Daniel, a
Jewish comedian who was no longer observant but still enjoyed going to his
local Chabad for Friday night dinner. The first time he took me along with him,
I felt the palpable joy in the room as the Lubavitchers and their guests sang
Shabbat tunes and excitedly talked to one another while eating delicious food.
This was the kind of joy and community and warmth I needed in my life.
I kept going back to Shabbat dinners and
discovering more about Judaism. The wisdom I learned resonated with me and I
began to see how Judaism's framework for living could provide a structure and
moral guide I needed. I was fascinated by the stories in the Torah, which
played out in my head like a movie.
There was no definitive time when I knew, for
sure, that I was no longer an atheist. I just felt God when I was at that
Shabbat table or learning Torah. It felt like serenity sweeping over me. It
made my days better and gave me hope. Instead of just relying on myself, I knew
God was there, watching over me, and ensuring I would be okay. I became
grateful for all the blessings in my life, of which there were plenty. They
were no longer mere accidents. Focusing on the good things showed me just how
great my life really was.
When I decided to pursue an Orthodox
conversion to Judaism, Daniel decided to become more religious and return to
his Orthodox roots.
Throughout my conversion process, I noticed
that my mood was shifting. I was still in therapy and practicing self-care, but
I saw how being a believer amplified my efforts. If I was having a bad day, I
could talk about it in therapy to feel a little better, but ultimately, it was
up to me to say, “God, I believe that everything that happens to me is for a good
reason,” and try to improve my day as much as possible.
Now, 10 years after I started on my conversion
process and five years after I formally became a Jew, I am happier than I’ve
ever been. I wake up every day with a great attitude, and I’m ready to conquer
what’s ahead. I don’t let the little things overwhelm me; I can control them as
much as possible by staying calm and centered, but I can’t change everyone and
everything around me. I treat myself right, and I have trust in God that
everything will be fine. I pray for the big and small blessings because I know
God has the power to transform my life.
I don’t know where I’d be without Judaism –
probably still miserable, not enjoying life, and being bitter about what I
didn’t have. Instead, I focus on what I do have, I live every day to the
fullest, and I am excited about all the joys life has to offer.
One of Dr. Martin Luther King’s best
friends was Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel. That made him quite famous and he
hosted the Reverend for Pesach. But did you know he did a lot of work for
Baalei Teshuva for my generation. The Sabbath by Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel.
Rabbi
Friedman 1hr. New World Order. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kk-JcAsfseQ
Rabbi of Tsfat warns of Reform Propaganda: Rabbi Eliyahu opened his words with caution. "Care should be taken
here not to be misled," he says. "Women learning Torah is a wonderful
and blessed thing, and to be a rabbanit who teaches Torah is wonderful. I was privileged to be born
to a mother who was a rabbanit who taught a lot of Torah, my wife teaches Torah
and my daughters get to learn and teach a lot of Torah. There's nothing better
than that. There is nothing wrong with studying Torah and the more the better.
This is how we educate the girls in the school in Tzfat. This isn't the issue.
This is how it's always been." https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283177
Poll Likud and right win. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283334
Cantorial Star Spangled Banner. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/282963
Milestone: One of my childhood rock n’ roll and
talk show host Barry Farber passed away two months ago. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barry_Farber
Milestone: A non-Jew who played in “Back to the
Future III” “Devil went down to Georgia” Charlie Daniels. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Daniels
Stray Cat population a nuisance. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283224
Chasidic Group closes all institutions in Israel. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283162
Inyanay Diyoma
Iranian Centrifuge facility damaged. https://www.debka.com/natanz-incident-was-a-blast-at-irans-largest-enrichment-site/
1391 new cases. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/282979
Miami Dade and Broward worse less people than
Israel has more cases. https://www.foxnews.com/us/florida-14-percent-coronavirus-positivity-rate
Ring leaders of statue tear down and other things
white. https://www.foxnews.com/us/florida-14-percent-coronavirus-positivity-rate
Demark falls victim to statue protests. https://www.foxnews.com/world/denmark-little-mermaid-statue-vandalized-racist-fish-grafitti
Calls for the arrest of top figures from Epstein’s
Lolita Express. https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/rose-mcgowan-calls-for-arrests-prince-andrew-bill-clinton-following-ghislaine-maxwell-fbi-capture
Alabama mall shooting. https://www.foxnews.com/us/alabama-mall-shooting-kills-boy-8-wounds-3-others
Poll Likud and right win. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/282947
Corona effects security. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/282990
Ed-Op Dr. Sherman De-Americanizing America: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/282988
Would not eat there because of Kashrus. https://www.algemeiner.com/2020/07/03/toronto-restaurant-tells-customers-zionists-not-welcome/
After 3 rockets, IDF hits Hamas. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/HyHlEFyJP
Iran has 4th explosion. https://www.debka.com/iran-braces-for-next-blow-after-mystery-explosions-hit-nuclear-and-missile-production-sites/
Journalists fired one critic of Netanyahu. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/r1egTqJyD
IDF vacation days cancelled. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283037
More Corona but numbers decline. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283036
Father of Hyrochloriquine warns against being
stuck. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283017
98% of El Al unemployed. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/282998
Wedding halls shut down along with gyms. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283081
Death toll rises by 3 to 5 each day. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/Hy7xLCeyP
Draconian Measures reintroduced. https://www.debka.com/israel-clamps-harsh-restrictions-as-coronavirus-soars-near-1000-a-day/
Corrected numbers 1057 new cases 338 dead from
Corona. Health Chief Resigns as nobody listens 12,717 active cases. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283135
Netanyahu becomes dictator for a month! https://www.ynetnews.com/article/SkGrOkbkP
Bennett’s wife blasts Netanyahu. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283111
Lack of Corona Hotels spread infection. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/SJBFjTg1P
El Al may be nationalized again. https://www.ynetnews.com/business/article/rkZZzx111D
Iran waiting for a democratic gov. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283115
N. Korea rattles sabre before Nov. 3rd. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283107
Finance Min. wants to lower arg. prices. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283062
Ex-Concentration Camp guard given 3 years. https://www.algemeiner.com/2020/07/06/german-prosecutors-call-for-three-year-jail-sentence-for-ex-nazi-death-camp-guard/
Kansas Newspaper apologizes poor comparison. https://www.algemeiner.com/2020/07/06/kansas-newspaper-publisher-apologizes-for-posting-cartoon-comparing-coronavirus-regulations-to-holocaust/
Tribute to Jew who died saving Bedouins. https://www.algemeiner.com/2020/07/06/bedouins-pay-tribute-to-jewish-man-who-lost-life-saving-mother-and-three-children-at-southern-israeli-lake/
Israel cannot afford a 4th election. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283150
Most Corona cases are from home. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283125
We must deal with affected workers. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283147
2 Policemen give ticket to 13year old girl. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283091
Dozens murdered by Arab Mafia. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283151
Government failure not evacuating Corona Patients
to hotels. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283219
IDF ready for a Gaza battle/war. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283246
Social Unrest in Israel. Netanyahu panics extends
unemployment until June 2021 if unemployment continues at over 10%. https://www.debka.com/netanyahu-katz-unveil-recovery-package-amid-a-storm-of-discontent/
Iran’s 5th or 6th mysterious
explosion. https://www.timesofisrael.com/explosion-reported-in-tehran-latest-in-series-of-blasts-in-iran/
Israel wants KC-46 Refuelers sooner. https://www.timesofisrael.com/amid-iran-tensions-israel-said-to-ask-us-to-speed-up-delivery-of-air-refuelers/
Corona Cases rise to 1,464 in one day, death toll
reaches 350. More lockdowns Kupat Holim in Kiriat Sefer shuts down 1pm Friday on several neighborhoods Jerusalem, Lod, Ramla, Beit Shemesh,
Kiriat Malachi. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/B1A1UtB1v
US sees more spikes in Corona, Aussies, south
America. https://www.timesofisrael.com/us-hits-1-day-virus-record-with-65000-new-cases-australia-locks-down-millions/
Dr. reverses Corona with Asthma Steroid. https://beforeitsnews.com/health/2020/07/texas-doctor-reverses-coronavirus-symptoms-in-100-of-cases-with-inexpensive-treatment-3031007.html
Iran promises aid package to Syria. https://www.algemeiner.com/2020/07/08/iran-inks-deal-with-assad-regime-to-boost-syrias-air-defenses/
After Health Minister hosted Party then
restrictions came into place. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/ByfZoYX1D
Israeli Schools to reopen somehow Sept. 1. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/ByTW6IXkw
One of Netanyahu’s lawyers quits. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/SyNsVqm1P
Hamas bans dogs from beaches. https://www.ynetnews.com/magazine/article/ByGpKcQJw
Lockdown for city. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/B1u4WB7kP
IDF new Corona Cases. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283253
China censors Hong Kong internet. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283223
Campaign to remove hate speech. https://www.algemeiner.com/2020/07/08/public-campaign-launched-to-remove-three-hour-antisemitic-speech-by-louis-farrakhan-from-youtube/
Chasidic Group closes all institutions in Israel. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283162
PLO military activity. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283169
Title: Health Alert – U.S. Embassy Jerusalem (July 9,
2020) Location: West
Bank Event: COVID-19 – PA Extends West Bank Lockdown Until July 13 The
Palestinian Authority (PA) declared an extension of the current lockdown in the
West Bank for five additional days, through July 13, in an effort to contain
the spread of COVID-19.
Morning comet in the NE Sky. https://www.foxnews.com/science/comet-visible-this-month-nasa-skywatchers-tips
Ties cut with antisemitic Toronto Restaurant. https://www.algemeiner.com/2020/07/08/businesses-cut-ties-politicians-condemn-toronto-restaurant-that-said-zionists-not-welcome/
Serious malfunction on COS helicopter. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283242
Chinese spying on immune system tech. https://www.foxnews.com/us/professor-charged-scheme-us-grant-money-research-china
NYC no religious gatherings but BLM gatherings OK. https://www.foxnews.com/us/nyc-black-lives-matter-marches-can-continue-despite-large-event-ban-de-blasio-says
Poll Likud and right win. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/283334
Friday-Shabbos tropical storm Fay to hit VA to NE.
States. https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/refresh/graphics_at1+shtml/053656.shtml?cone#contents
Have a wonderful, peaceful and blessed
rest. If one is past the age of 65 or suffers from various diseases, please
guard your life and try to find an outdoor Minyan or pray by oneself. The Torah
requires that you live by it.
Rachamim Pauli
