Friday, April 30, 2010

Parshas Emor

Liyluy Nishmas Elchonon Tzvi ben R' Yisroel Menachem.... In perek chaf dalid posuk yud, when the Torah begins the famous story of the mikalel, it says, "Vayeitzei ben isha yisraeilis vhu ben ish mitzri bsoch bnei Yisroel, vayinatzu bamachane ben hayisraeilis v'ish hayisraeili."  Rashi brings down from the Toras Kohanim that we see from the fact that it says "mitoch bnei Yisroel" that the mikalel was migayer.  Whether or not the mikalel needed to be migayer since his mother was jewish is a whole discussion, because the halacha is that an oveid kochavim habah al bas yisroel havlad kasher (-if a non-jew has a child with a jewish woman, the child is pure).  In any event, everyone holds that he was a jew and based on that, the Turei Zahav (The Taz) has a question.  In Shemos, when Moshe killed the Mitzri it says that he checked to make sure that there was nobody from him that would be migayer and only then did he kill him.  What about the mikalel? He was the son of
 this Mitzri so why was he not included?  The Taz gives two answers.  The first is that Moshe was checking from then on and the Mikalel had already been born.  The second is that the mikalel was not included because he was a rasha and rishaim are not considered  a part of Klal Yisroel.  The Rosh Yeshiva ztl derived a tremendous yesod from the Turei Zahav's first teretz.  This lowly Mikalel was enough of a reason for Moshe to not kill the Mitzri.  Had he looked into this Mitzri's furture before the Mikalel was born, and seen his birth in the future, it would have been sufficient to shield the Mitzri from his death even though in the end he stooped low enough to lose both his olam hazeh and olam haba.   We see the tremendous kedusha of each and every one of us, and how special we are.  No matter where we are holding in life we have to remember how special we are and use that knowledge to assist
 us in continuing to grow.. Good Shabbos

Friday, April 23, 2010

Acharei Mos-Kedoshim

Liyluy Nishmas Elchonon Tzvi ben R' Yisroel Menachem.... In perek yud ches pesukim beis and heh when Hashem comes to Moshe Rabbeinu to have him warn klal Yisroel for the toeivos he says, "Ani Hashem".  Rashi explains that Hashem was saying that "I am the same Hashem from Har Sinia and I am ne'eman to pay you back either good for withholding from arayos or bad for being nichshal.  At the end of the warning in posuk lamud "Ani Hashem" is repeated.  Rashi explains here that what Hashem is saying is, if you are mitameh yourself with these things  then you are "nifsal meiacharai".  Why do I need you? The Sifsei Chachamim explains that Rashi said this because he knew that the first time Hashem said it was for schar and therefore knew that this time Hashem was kaviyochal disowning people who didn't listen.  I heard from my Shaul Umeishav Harav Yehoshua Schloss shlita that we can see a tremendous thing from this.  The first warning to someone who wants to do unheard of things such as mishkav zachar is that if they do it they will be punished tremendously by Hakodosh Baruch Hu.  However it seems that that is not enough.  The Torah has to go on to say that Hashem will break his connection with someone who does these toeivos.  Here we have a person who is ready to do who knows what and the idea of being paid back tremendously is not enough to stop, this person seems beyond help!  Yet the Torah says Hashem will disown you, and its mashma that that will have an effect on them!  True it may be a mixture of the fear of bing punished mixed with the desire to not be disowned, but either way we see a tremendous concept.  Everyone, no matter where they are holding, has a desire, a tshuka, to have a connection with Hashem.  They could be down in the dumps and have desires they want to fulfill and not care what will happen to them physically or emotionally as a result of this action.  However, even in such a dire situation, they are not ready to give up their connection with Hashem Yisborach! Mi K'iamcha Yisroel...Good Shabbos

Friday, April 16, 2010

Parshas Tazria Mitzorah

Liyluy Nishmas Elchonon Tzvi ben R' Yisroel Menachem.....  In perek yud dalid, posuk beis, it says, "Zos tihiyeh Toras hamitzorah biyom taharaso v'huva el hakohen."  The Medrash Rabbah brings down a famous story.  A peddler was once selling his wares and called out "who wants to buy the potion of life?"  People flocked around him to see what he had to sell and maybe buy some extra life for themselves.  Rav Yanai heard this and decided he wanted to buy some.  However, the peddler told him he didn't need it, but after much persistance the peddler gave in and opened a Tehillim and showed him, "Mi ha'ish hechafetz chayim oheiv yamim liros tov, nitzor lishoncha meira usifasecha midaber mirma."  Reb Yanai responded, "My whole life I've been reading this posuk and I never realized how simple it is."  What Rav Yanai gained that he didn't understand before is a discussion in itself however Rav Yaakov Aryeh Neiman zt"l (Darchei Mussar) asks, what was everyone thinking when they all came running?  Didn't they know that you can't buy the elixir of life?  Furthermore, once they heard what he meant they should have stoned him!  Here they were shutting down their businesses, putting their lives to a halt to acquire the greatest possession one can possibly acquire and it turns out that he reads them a posuk on how to better themselves!  Elah mai, says the Darchei Mussar, they must have known that the peddler was talking about gaining something in ruchniyus when they all came flocking.  They all closed their stores and put their lives to a halt so that they can hear a chidush in Avodas Hashem.  They understood that olam hazeh is nothing and a life of Torah and Olam Habah is the only life, and therefore knew that he must have been selling "life" as they knew it.  We find this idea in Chazal on the posuk of "V'nas el achas ha'arim vachai."  If someone has to go to golus, his rebbe must go with him because the posuk says "va'chai", and a life without a Torah and a Rebbe is not a life.  This is an unbelievable darher.  Forget about what we would be thinking when we heard the announcement in the market "wow I could live forever!" Picture what would happen to the peddler once we heard what he had to say.  We should work on ourselves to be on that madrega of our forefathers to understand what true "Chaim" is..... Good Shabbos..

Friday, April 9, 2010

Parshas Shmini

Liyluy Nishmas Elchonon Tzvi ben R'Yisroel Menachem..... In perek yud posuk beis it says "Vateizei eish milifnei Hashem vatochal osam vayamusu lifnei Hashem." The Medrash says that R'Levi said that the problem with Nadav and Avihu was that they were extremely haughty and therefore they caused many women who wanted to marry them alot of tzaar. Many women wanted to marry them and therefore waited for them and never got married. Nadav and Avihu said "our fathers brother is the melech, our mothers brother is the nasi, our father is the kohen gadol and we are kohanim, what woman is worthy of us?" The Rosh Yeshivah ztl asks, what did Nadav and Avihu do wrong? They didn't force these women to wait for them, they didn't even want them to so what did they do wrong? Elah mai the Rosh Yeshivah said we can see from here how responsible we are for things that we cause, even indirectly (gramah) Eve
 though Nadav and Avihu didn't mean for this to happen, they had acted "shelo kihogen" and therefore had caused the pain to these women and were held accountable. Furthermore, the Rosh Yeshivah explained, from R' Levi we see that the reason why Nadav and Avihu were chayav Misa was not because of their Gaivah, and not even for not fulfilling the mitzvah of "pru u'rvu" which is considered like shvichas domim, as if you killed people. Their aveira was causing tzaar to these women. We see how terrible it is to even in a backhanded way cause tzaar to people and how careful we should be to make sure that we don't... Good Shabbos.