Author: Shayna Rosenberg

Written by: Rabbi Avrohom S. Moller

“The meat was yet between their teeth not yet chewed and Hashem’s wrath was kindled against the nation and He smote the nation with an exceedingly large plague.” These frightening words describe Hashem’s response to the demand for meat by some of the אספסוף, the “riffraff” amongst the Jewish people. G-D gave them their wish to demonstrate that he could deliver vast quantities of meat as they demanded, but he also extracted a very harsh punishment for the demand.

As with all other unhappy episodes in the Torah, this story is meant to teach us how to behave and to learn the lessons from this incident. So that begs the question, “What was the cause of Hashem’s anger in this incident?” Was it the demand for animal pleasure? Was it the lack of appreciation for the miracle of the manna? Was it the fact that there was rabblerousing going on when the אספסוף involved other people in their complaint for meat? These are all plausible explanations and the pesukim support these interpretations.

The Kehilas Yitzchok (A Torah anthology published in Vilna in 1900) offers the following insight based on the Midrash. The Midrash  tells us that the manna was delivered to each person according to his spiritual status. If a man was righteous, the manna fell at his doorstep. If not, he had to leave the camp and scour the area to collect his daily sustenance. If he was worthy the manna arrived well prepared. If not, he needed to grind, pound, cook, bake, etc. In effect, every person got a daily update of his standing in G-d’s eyes. This was unnerving for some of the less spiritual people. They didn’t like this level of accountability. They wanted to live their lives without all of the feedback. This is why they wanted food that they could access without the high visibility of Hashem’s opinion of them. This is why they pined for the days in Egypt that they could, “eat without any cost” which Rashi explains to mean, “free of all mitzvos” even though they certainly had to work physically to get their food in Egypt.

Hashem’s response to this attitude was very harsh. Accountability is the foundation for growth. It gives us the ability to repair our mistakes and to avoid them in the future. It encourages us to go on to greater things. To reject that feedback is not only rebellion, it shuts the door to any form of development and this was the terrible mistake of the אספסוף.

This idea is very important for all of us. It is repeated in Tanach and in the writings of our sages. The wise person appreciates constructive criticism and seeks feedback and guidance to grow more and more. Growth is the essence of and the real definition of life in this world! As parents, we need to speak to our children and to guide them. We should praise their good efforts and good choice making and correct them when they have fallen short so that they grow into well-developed people.

Written by: Rabbi Avrohom S. Moller

All On the Same Page

In this week’s parsha, Nasso, we read about the leaders of each shevet (tribe) bringing an offering at the dedication of the mishkan. If we pay close attention, we notice that each offering was exactly the same. This begs a question. Since the very concept of  creating the 12 shevatim is that every shevet has its own unique role to play, if they are all doing the same thing, where is the individuality that is supposed to emerge from each shevet?

There is a powerful lesson to be learned here. It is true each shevet had its own individual role to play.  For example,  Shevet Levi was composed of the kohanim who served in the Bais Hamikdosh, Shevet Yehuda  produced the kings while Shevet Yissachar produced Torah scholars. In addition, throughout the year, each shevet had plenty of other opportunities for individual growth and expression.

However, at this moment there was one goal in mind. The Jewish people were about to dedicate the mishkan to serve Hashem. They all had one focus, and therefore, brought the same exact offering. As they were starting, so to speak, the first synagogue of Klal Yisroel, the first business of order was to be on the same page, having the same goal, building the mishkan as a unified people in serving Hashem.

The same is true as we gather in our shuls whether it be daily, Shabbos, or Yom Tov. We all have different roles to play when we are interacting with the world around us. Some of us are rabbis, teachers, lay leaders, etc. However, when we come to shul, we all do the same thing; we say the same words and tefillos. We recognize that these moments of davening unite us in serving Hashem. Perhaps, that unity in shul is what gives us the ability to go out and serve Hashem in our individual roles as well. I believe that is what the nesiim  (leaders of each shevet) recognized. When we come together, we all need to start on the same page. After doing so, we can branch out and fulfill our individual roles in this world, completing many pages in the book of the Jewish people.

Written by: Rabbi Avrohom S. Moller

We are about to celebrate Shavuos, the Yom Tov which we refer to as the “Time of the Giving of our Torah.” The timing of this holiday is not coincidental. We celebrate Shavuos in the middle of the spring, the heady time of year when the weather is warming up, the trees are blossoming and all of nature seems to be singing. This time of year necessitates a “mission realignment” since the world around us is beckoning to us in a most alluring way.

The Gemara (Avodah Zarah 2b) tells us that Hashem offered the Torah to the other nations to give them an equal opportunity in gaining the strong antidote to the Yetzer HaRah- evil inclination which the Torah provides. The nations responded by identifying challenges in the Torah to their national vices. One nation said we cannot abide by the commandment not to murder. Another said we cannot refrain from adultery, etc. Although the Jewish people are considered the fiercest of nations (see Beitza 25b), yet they responded with נעשה ונשמע- we are ready to commit. The Jewish nation had the trust that the gift of Torah will not only help them overcome the challenges posed by their moral weaknesses, it will give them the ability to elevate the, mundane and make it holy.

We need to focus on this important aspect of Torah life when we prepare for the wonderful opportunities and pleasures that this part of the year promises to afford us. If we choose to access the Torah’s wisdom, it will make this wonderful time a time of growth and appreciation of Hashem’s wonderful world and help Hashem’s physical world fulfill its purpose the right way.

Written by: Rabbi Mordechai Raizman

Walking with You

In the beginning of the Torah portion of this week, we are commanded to walk in the ways of Hashem. Rashi explains this commandment does not refer to doing the mitzvos, but rather, the effort that goes into the action of doing them. The reward for this effort as stated in the ensuing verses includes peace, prosperity, and that G-d will rest His presence with you and walk with you. How do we understand the meaning of this last blessing? How does G-d walk with you?

The Seforno (a 16th century commentator on the Chumash) explains that walking with you means that G-d is ready to interact with us wherever we may be. We should not limit our interactions with G-d to only designated places for Torah and tefillah. Yes, our synagogues and Batei Medrash are places where the presence of Hashem is felt. However, we have to understand that they do not have to be the only places.

If we do as the Torah commands us, to walk in the ways of Hashem, applying ourselves as much as we can in the effort of doing the mitzvos, we will have the ability to feel His presence wherever we are. It is not about how much we do, but rather about the effort we put forth in doing. This effort leads us and keeps us focused on strengthening our connection with G-d in our synagogues, in our homes, and wherever we may be. The more effort we put in, the more we are thinking about doing His will, which will subsequently lead to feeling His presence in all aspects of our lives.

Written by: Rabbi Avrohom S. Moller

This week we read the Torah’s main description of the mitzva of Shmita – the sabbatical year. This mitzva obligates us who are fortunate to be in Eretz Yisroel to leave the ground fallow, make the perennial fruits available to all and to treat the fruits with special sacredness. There are several rationales given for this great and difficult mitzva.

The Gemara (Sanhedrin 39a) says that it is Hashem’s reminder to us that in spite of all of our work and our investment in it, the land is still His. This is demonstrated by the אפקעתא דמלכא  – the “seizure of the King” meaning that we lose ownership of the land for the Shmita year so that we always remember who the true owner is. This idea reappears later in the parsha when the Torah tells us that all land must revert to its original owners in the Jubilee year and that the land cannot be sold in perpetuity.

The Chinuch (a Spanish medieval sefer which expounds on the rationale of the 613 mitzvos) says that the mitzva is intended to reinforce our belief that the world was created ex nihilo. When we stop our work in the field once every seven years, it is just like when we stop our activities for Shabbos. We also make the fruits available to all to show that we understand that it is all the creators and not ours.

The Sfas Emes (Rabbi Yehuda A. Leib of Gur 1847-1905) explains that since our right to Eretz Yisroel (and the true response to those who challenge our right) is grounded in a divine grant which is recorded in the Torah, it is appropriate that the Torah dictate the parameters of its usage. This unusual and seemingly impractical mitzva is the Torah asserting its sovereignty over the land and, in turn, it justifies our presence in it.

Reb Meir Don Plotsky (prominent Rov and Rosh Yeshiva in Congress Poland 1866-1925) in his sefer, Kli Chemdah, explains that Hashem stops all agricultural work for a complete year to show us that He can provide us with food without our efforts to make it grow. This is done when Hashem blesses the previous year’s crop and it provides us with abundant food for three years, all from one crop. The Chinuch alludes to this idea by saying that it strengthens our faith when Hashem demonstrates His ability to provide for us without our own efforts and intervention.

The Rambam writes in his Guide to the Perplexed that the benefit of this mitzva is a social one by making the produce available to the poor. It is also beneficial from the agricultural standpoint since the land can rejuvenate when it is left fallow.

The Kuzari (R. Yehudah Halevi) writes that the Jewish farmer restores balance to his life by abandoning physical work and the pursuit of material wealth during this year and focuses on his spirit and his spiritual acquisitions since he is unable to work in the fields.

Rabbi Yitchak Abarbenel (Spanish Torah commentator 1437-1508) adds that a man needs to realize his mortality and recognize that the “the day is short, and the work is abundant.” When we pause from our intense agricultural work and take the year off, it helps us focus on the waning years of our lives when we need to withdraw from the “rat race.” The seventh year should remind us of the seventh decade of life which is typically close to the end of a person’s lifespan.

Rav S. R. Hirsch says that this mitzva is a national statement that we recognize that we are all guests of Hashem in the land, and we will show more concern and respect to the strangers and those who are disenfranchised from society.

While many of these explanations to this mitzva vary and some are quite similar, this discussion teaches us how nuanced the mitzvos are. While some relate to the Torah and mitzvos as a set of legal and technical parameters for all aspect of our lives (which it is), it also contains a whole layer of beliefs that are aroused and brought into our consciousness by the practice of these laws. Shmita frames our relationship to Eretz Yisroel which is not just a territory which is dear to us from a nationalist standpoint. Instead, it is a spiritual mandate granted to a Chosen People by the King of Kings. It changes the whole national enterprise on the Land to be a special and holy one.

Perhaps this is why the Torah introduces this specific mitzva as being given at Har Sinai. All the mitzvos were given at Sinai, why mention it here? Perhaps the message is that the Holy Land which was given to us by Hashem needs to be appreciated as a mitzva from Sinai and not a land granted to a conquering people which is subject to the waxing and waning of historic events. The Torah defines us and our homeland, and it is not that the land defines the nation.

Written by: Rabbi Mordechai Raizman

Easy Does It

In this week’s Torah portion Emor, Moshe gives instructions to the Kohanim about their additional responsibilities. In giving the message, G-d tells Moshe “Emor El Hacohanim” (say to the Kohanim). The commentaries wonder why the word emor is used and not the common word used for commandments daber? Furthermore, our sages tell us that these two words have different connotations. Daber connotes a strong tone or command while emor suggests a softer tone. Therefore, one would think in preparing the Kohanim for their additional responsibilities, the word daber would be more appropriate.

Rav Moshe Feinstein, z”l, explains the use of the softer tone is to teach us an important lesson in role modeling. Moshe was to impart to the Kohanim, that as leaders, they were to receive additional mitzvos. When he speaks to the Kohanim using a soft tone, the tone itself as well as its words is delivering a message.  The soft tone illustrates that leaders need to take things in stride and make it look easy to accomplish whatever is needed to be done. This calm can-do attitude strengthens everyone around the leader and enables all participants to live up to their responsibilities as well. A more demanding approach is generally not so effective.

In life, we try to teach lessons and values to our children and students. When doing so, we need to remind ourselves of how we speak when role modeling. More often than not, better results come not from a stronger and demanding tone, but from the softer and more encouraging tone. As the saying goes, Easy Does It.

Live By Them

In the end of this week’s parsha, Acharei Mos, we find the phrase Vochai Bohem, a commandment to keep the laws of Hashem and “LIVE BY THEM.” Rashi comments that to live by them is not referring to living by them in this world, but rather in the world to come.  His explanation, however, requires further exploration. What mitzvos are we doing in the world to come? We are taught by Chazal that we do mitzvos in this world to enable us to enjoy the next world. The world to come is the world where we reap the benefits from what we did here in this world; the world to come is not a place of doing.

Furthermore, the Talmud uses this very same verse to teach us that we need to LIVE BY THEM (the mitvos), meaning not to die by them. Therefore, we are not supposed to give up our lives in this world in fulfilling a mitzvah (except for the three exceptions of murder, idol worshipping, and immoral relationships). Hence, this verse is speaking about this world and not the world to come. So how do we reconcile these two different interpretations of the same phrase, Rashi’s explanation with the understanding of the Talmud?

The Slonimer Rebbe z”l (20^th c) resolves this difference in opinion with a simple thought.  According to him, both interpretations are correct. The verse is referring to both worlds.  Rashi is telling us that the reward we earn in the world to come is based on how we kept the mitzvos in this world. If we are inspired and we are truly living the mitzvos with enthusiasm and passion, in the world to come we will feel a greater connection to Hashem. However, if we are just going through the motions while doing the mitvos, we may not feel as connected in the world to come. In other words, what we put in here (in this world), carries over to the next world (the world to come).

The following short story epitomizes this thought. A student once proudly stated to his Rabbi with excitement that he just went through a tractate of Talmud and completed it. The Rabbi commented, “That is nice that you went through it, but did the words you learn go through you, did they touch you?” We need to take the inspiration of how we do our mitzvos with us.

Last week we concluded the holiday of Passover providing us with many opportunities to fulfill many mitzvos. These mitzvos are ones that we generally celebrate with much enthusiasm and inspiration. Let’s take that inspiration as a model to LIVE BY THEM throughout the year so in the world to come we will have that stronger connection with Hashem.