Myrtle Rising

Links to Stuff Everyone Needs to Know about Purim

17/3/2019

The more I learn about Purim, the more fascinated I become.

At superficial glance, it seems like a fun, light-hearted holiday accompanied by feel-good mitzvot (donations to the poor and to anyone who requests charity, mishlochai manot, and being happy).

But a deeper look reveals a very strong connection to Yom Kippur.

It's actually a day in which the more correctly you can carry out its mitzvot, the more benefit you reap on your deepest soul-level.

Purim is a powerful & empowering day rich with many hidden layers of meaning & influence.

The transformative joy of Purim comes from profound gratitude to Hashem, not mere levity or light-headedness.

You can find posts on Purim by clicking "Purim" in the sidebar of Categories.

(Or you can just click here: Myrtle Rising Purim posts.)

And as always Rav Avigdor Miller offers good solid guidance for Purim, both in halacha and our attitude & understanding of Purim:
Purim with Toras Avigdor (includes dvrei Torah, plus several Q&As -- everything you wanted to know about Purim, but didn't know who to ask!)

And just so you don't miss it, here is an interesting, all-important question answered by Rav Miller:
Rav Avigdor Miller on Post-Purim Blues:
Now that Purim is over, what are we supposed to think?

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How to Overcome the Terrorist-Klippah of Zeresh

17/3/2019

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Most of us are familiar with the famous liturgical poem, Shoshanat Yaakov—Rose of Jacob, which is recited after the reading of Megillat Esther on Purim.

Here are some links for lyrics & more information:
Shoshanat Yaakov with Chabad (includes an audio track)
Know the Words!: Shoshanas Yaakov (with inspiration regarding Charvona)

While we love singing “Baruch Mordechai Hayehudi!--Blessed is Mordechai the Jew!”, there is another stanza which reads: “Arur Zeresh eishet mafchidi—Cursed is Zeresh, the wife of my terrorist.” (That is how the book of Rav Levi Yitzchak Bender’s lectures, Words of Faith, translates mafchid: terrorist.)

The word mafchid is literally “a frightener” (as in “one who frightens”) or “scary one” (as in “one who scares”). So mafchidi is like my own personal frightener, one who scares & terrorizes me — my own personal “terrorist.”

In the name of the Arizal (Netiv Yitzchak 128), Rav Bender explains that there is a klippah (a spiritual "shell" of spiritual blockage) called “Zeresh” that injects fear into the heart of a person...and even makes him paranoid.

And this stanza in Shoshanat Yaakov remedies fear, as Rav Bender explains:

“About this we say, ‘Cursed is Zeresh, Arur Zeresh’ — to subjugate that klippah which terrorizes a person.”

(Words of Faith, Vol. I, page 364)

A great many people today understandably suffer from anxiety, fear, or even paranoia.

But all that anxiety and fear are really the klippah called Zeresh, the evil conniving wife of Haman.

B’ezrat Hashem, if we say "Arur Zeresh! — Cursed is Zeresh!" with enough heartfelt gusto, we can nullify & overcome that awful klippah.

(Don’t give in to terror!)

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How to Drink on Purim: Rav Avigdor Miller

15/3/2019

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Some people have a lot of confusion about how much to drink on Purim and what ad d'lo yada (drinking until you don't know the difference between Haman and Mordechai) really means.

And some people think they know, but don't even know that they don't know & should really ask.

As usual, there are different interpretations of this and here is Rav Avigdor Miller's opinion:

"You drink up to the point of losing your da’as. You drink just enough. But not enough to lose your da’as. On Purim you have to have da’as. You have to have more da’as on Purim, not less."

Rav Miller cautions against drinking so much you fall asleep or need to be rescued by Hatzalah.

You need da'as on this holy day of Purim!

"And you won’t be gaining any da’as lying on the floor waiting for Hatzalah to come."

(All quotes used with permission from Toras Avigdor.)

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Rav Avigdor Miller on the Secret Power of the Korbanot of Parshat Vayikra

14/3/2019

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The idea of korbanot sounds strange in our times. We’ve never seen it, so it’s hard to imagine its healing power, kedushah, and effect on us.

Yet we have the capability of sincere tefillah in place of korbanot today — so why do we need actual korbanot?

And why, despite their current absence in our lives, are korbanot still such an important aspect of Torah today?

The Hidden Imprint of Korbanot

Rav Avigdor Miller explains that the emotions aroused by properly given korbanos can elevate a person to true knowledge of Hashem and excellence of character.

This elevation causes Hashem to tell you:
“My beautiful child, I’m so happy with you, I love you.”

Avraham Avinu set the stage for all future korbanos.

He loved his son Yitzchak more than his own life. But when he thought Hashem wanted him to offer up Yitzchak Avinu as a korban, Avraham Avinu was willing to sacrifice his precious son — and in a sense, sacrifice his own self and his future — out of his great love for Hashem.

Fortunately, Hashem stopped the Akeidah of Yitzchak just in time. Yet Avraham still wanted to make a sacrifice and offer up something to Hashem.

So he took another ram — ayil acher — in place of Yitzchak. Yitzchak was the original “ram” for the korban, so the Torah makes sure to say that Avraham Avinu took another ram instead.

This engraved within the Jewish people a passionate devotion for Hashem, which overrode all else — including their own lives.

This is why you have a history of Jews of all backgrounds and levels willingly sacrifice themselves to the sword rather than accept upon themselves the emptiness of Christianity.

It’s with THAT devotion that Jews brought korbanot to the Beis HaMikdash.

The Meaning of Life

Rav Miller zeroes in on the pasuk in Vayikra 1:2: “אדם כי יקריב מכם קרבן להשם. This means: “A man of you, when he offers an offering…”

The word adam, a man, isn’t used in this way with any other mitzvah.

So why here?

Rav Miller explains:

“The word adam signifies the source from where Mankind first came, adamah, the earth. And it intimates, it hints, to the place where all of Mankind will one day return.”

To really earn the title of adam, a person must feel gratitude toward Hashem. Eating, breathing, running, writing, seeing, speaking — the more you appreciate every single thing about even your most basic physical existence, the more of an adam you are.

How vital is hakaras hatov for being a good, frum Yid? Rav Miller states:

“If you’ve never once turned to Hashem and said ‘Thank You Hashem for bringing me into this world and keeping me alive,’ then you haven’t even taken the first step in serving Hashem. Don’t be ashamed. You should say it.”

This wields tremendous power — as Rav Miller continues:

“Of course, when you come to the Next World, you’ll see that even that tiny little step, talking to Hashem, thanking Him for life, is really a tremendous step, but it’s still only the beginning. Because gratitude to Hashem for being alive is what you’re alive for.”

How Did the Korbanos Work?

Yet as everyone already knows, Judaism despises human sacrifice.

So instead, Jews offered up a korban to Hashem out of gratitude.

That’s why the owner needed to lean his hands on the animal prior to shechitah; this leaning woke the owner to the fact that this korban was a literal representation of him! And everything the Kohen did to the animal in front of the owner further ingrained within the owner how this korban should actually be him.

So the whole process essentially says, “Out of my tremendous love and gratitude for You, Hashem, I wish I could offer You my very self. So here’s a korban instead.”

Yes, tefillah has always been very, very important. You can change yourself through tefillah. You can change fate. You can change world events. You can even save lives — all through tefillah.

But as powerful as tefillah is, offering a korban with the right kavanah is even more powerful.

How to Achieve Greatness without Korbanot

Yet without korbanot today, we can still achieve greatness and find favor with Hashem in This World and the Next.

How?

Rav Miller recommends focusing on the following:

There are so many things — so many processes, so many organs, so many bones and limbs that are functioning just as they should right now in your body.

You’re not strewn out on the floor waiting for an ambulance to come…

Did you ever stop to think about how many millions of things have to function perfectly for you to be a basically healthy person? Your chromosomes, your DNA molecules, your enzymes… You don’t have cerebral palsy, right? You don’t have multiple sclerosis, or muscular dystrophy. You don’t need dialysis on kidney machines. You don’t have a tumor on the brain?

There are tens of thousands of disorders and you have been exonerated, you have been exempt from all of them.”

Yishtabach Shemo for all that chessed and more!

Note: If you'd like to understand more about the process of the korbanot and the powerfully transformative effect they had on a person & why on earth we still yearn for them, it's a great idea to go read Rav Avigdor Miller's original booklet with all that information inside:
Parshas Vayikra — Animal Sacrifice: The Pillar of the World

(All quotes used with permission from Toras Avigdor)

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How to Identify & Overcome the Amalekite Conspiracy

13/3/2019

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In Shemot 17:8 ("And Amalek came and battled with Yisrael in Refidim"), the Kli Yakar mentions the nefarious plot of Amalek:

And “Amalek came” to add spiritual impurity upon their [Am Yisrael’s] spiritual impurity by means of mishkav zachur as is written [Devarim 25:18] “asher karcha baderech — when they encountered you on the way.”

And all this it did in order to completely remove Hashem from upon them because His Blessed Holiness can only exist in a place where there is a fence against immorality…and they also had no rescue via natural means, like when a man assists his fellow…

According to our Sages, the word “karcha” has several implications:

occurred
happened
became cold
wasted seed

The Kli Yakar doesn’t detail further exactly how Amalek infiltrated male-male relations into Am Yisrael, but he does explain at length how the initial breach — the tumah of strife — created an opening for Amalek’s nefarious plan.

(You can learn more about Amalek exploiting our spiritual breaches in the Kli Yakar on Parshat Vayishlach.)

Unwanted Strife

In today’s Jewish world, the only Jews really striving for peace are Orthodox Jews —though not all of them.

Having been Conservative surrounded by a lot of Reform and very assimilated at times, then Modern Orthodox and Dati-Leumi, then chareidi Litvish BT to Sephardi chareidi (with a thing for Breslov) now, I can tell you that the only Jews who really strive to connect positively with all Jews — including those who are not like them and even reject them — are Orthodox Jews (though not all of them).

Maybe once (in a book) did I ever hear a non-Orthodox Jew describe Orthodox Jews with anywhere near the same understanding and compassion with which many Orthodox Jews describe non-Orthodox Jews. (I’m not saying that such non-Orthodox Jews do not exist. I’m saying that I did not encounter them, whether personally or even in a magazine article — except for a couple of passages in one thick book.)

In fact, many Orthodox Jews can be even more sympathetic & generous-minded toward their non-religious fellows than toward their religious fellows.

And Amalek has seized on this division, even though the connection between interpersonal strife and mishkav zachur is difficult to make.

The Ancient & Dark Roots of Today's Movements

I guess mishkav zachur is a particularly nasty way to cut down Am Yisrael with immorality.

The Kli Yakar emphasizes that the strife removes natural protection from us while the immorality removes spiritual protection from us.

This is why we are seeing such massive push for acceptance of mishkav zachur in our times. Even some frum Jews have adopted an embracing attitude.

Note: I don’t criticize the fact that someone has this taavah. I oppose acceptance of mishkav zachur as a perfectly decent & legitimate lifestyle—it’s like saying that other serious Torah prohibitions, like baseless character assassination or chilul Shabbat or stealing or murder, are totally legitimate lifestyle choices that can find leniency within the Torah.

Please see What of a "Lashon Hara Pride" Movement? for one analogy of that.

It’s no coincidence that as Germany’s Jews made strife against their fellow frum Jews (including outright disdain of ostjuden — their fellow Jews in Poland, etc.) that Berlin became the mishkav zachur capital of the world prior to World War II, with some assimilated anti-Torah Jews falling under that Amalekite influence and fighting for mishkav zachur acceptance in German society & law.

(Please see It's Berlin All Over Again for more.)

Furthermore, the current movement in favor of transitioning gender identity touted as “unprecendented!” actually has roots in ancient Mesopotamia.

Archaeologists discovered a hymn by a Sumerian priestess (circa 2300 BCE) from Avraham Avinu’s hometown of Ur, who boasted of her occult ability to have successfully “changed men into women!”

(Please see Why, This Reminds Me of Ancient Mesopotamia! & If the Torah is So Adamant, Then That Must Mean Something: Why Polytheism Really is So Awful for more on that topic.)

Clearly, all this mishkav zachur and gender identity confusion has roots in ancient dark spiritual systems.

It’s all kochot hatumah & avodah zarah — and it’s not new at all.

And they are trying to push mishkav zachur acceptance into Eretz Yisrael.

This is all an AMALEKITE STRATEGY to DESTROY AM YISRAEL.

Fighting Amalek as a Small, Powerless Person

Because the promoters of toeva orientations whomp everyone over the head with the club of "compassion," those with the correct moral & ethical attitudes are made to feel uncompassionate, cruel, insensitive, and ignorant.

That's why it is so important to remember that the acceptance of toeva lifestyles is an Amalekite strategy for destruction and not a real movement for compassion or social "progress."

So what is the regular powerless person supposed to do about it?

As a frum person who has worked in kiruv and was even a rebbetzin for a blessedly short while, I realize that I cannot convince Jews committed to anti-Torah ideologies (Reform, socialism, communism, feminism, Leftism, etc.) not to make strife. (Some frum people can — sometimes. But I discovered that I personally cannot.)

However, as a frum person, I can:

work on not making strife with my husband or my neighbors.
foster harmonious sibling relationships among my children
be careful of my attitude toward different yet Torah-true groups of Jews
give tzedakah to precious Jews with whom I don’t share the exact same hashkafah (like Chabad or the Gush Katif kallahs)
strive to judge favorably
see a positive attribute in even the yuckiest Jew
forgive those who hurt me in some way
struggle to overcome a grudge
I can pray positively to Hashem on behalf of all Jews.

I can do my part.

We all can.

It’s the only way to really fight Amalek.

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UPDATED: The Hidden Viciousness of the Esav/Edom Pig

12/3/2019

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Sorry for today's bizarre post, but its information correlates so well with what's happening throughout Edom today, I couldn't resist.

(Don't you love it when people say that? It's like, if you're really sooooo sorry, then why post it in the first place?)

Oh, and you probably shouldn't read it while eating.

Esav's Mugshot

This blog has often mentioned Chazal’s analogy of the pig representing Esav/Edom.

With its split hoof, the pig looks kosher on the outside, but its true treifut hides inside by virtue of its non-cud-chewing digestive system.

But I recently discovered an even more horrifying fact about pigs: They eat humans (including, without getting too graphic, live & kicking humans).

As we know, kosher animals are non-predatory: cows, goats, sheep, etc.

But pigs not only eat humans, they can actively prey on humans.

(I did not find reports of kosher farm animals eating humans under any circumstances. Yes, kosher farm mammals can attack humans, but not for food.)

Some experts theorize that British pigs are the most aggressive.

For example, an experienced 51-year-old horsewoman was riding through New Forest in England when an enormous pig, who’d been circling a car with people inside, suddenly turned its attention on her.

The pig charged, spooking her horse and causing her to fall to the ground, where the pig began attacking her. Fortunately, her teenage daughter and other passers-by managed to scare off the monster pig.

And just to be clear: I’m not talking about the tusked boars.

I mean the humble pink or beige or spotted pigs. (Pig farmers release their pigs to wander freely through New Forest in a practice called "pannage," which creates better-quality pork by enabling pigs to feed on chestnuts, acorns, and other fresh forest nuts.)

In fact, gangs of pigs in New Forest have taken to assaulting people in organized attacks.

The head verderer of New Forest described pigs as normally "curious" and "docile" while promising to investigate the attacks.

Other pig farmers have been eaten by their own pigs in places like Oregon, Romania, and most recently in Russia.

Granted, the people had gone out to feed the pigs, meaning that the pigs were hungry, but still. While it’s hard to know exactly how these events happened, investigators point to an epileptic episode that felled one owner while a heart attack is assumed to have felled the Oregonian farmer. But in another incident, it looks like the pigs knocked over their owner, then ate her.

Yet this is all so weird.

I mean, we always had a pet dog and cat when I was growing up. They never tried to attack us or knock us down for food. In fact, had any of us passed out while pouring food into their bowls, I can’t imagine them eating us as a response. I've never heard of a hungry pet dog or cat doing that. (And by hungry, I mean since last feeding time, not a starved pet.)

And dogs and cats are predatory carnivorous animals! Yet not as aggressive (or disloyal) as pigs, apparently.

Yeah, knowing animal behavior, I’m very surprised that pigs were this aggressive and carnivorous toward their own benefactors.

Also, we know that some wild animals, like bears, are less likely to eat a person who looks like he’s dead (i.e. an unconscious person) — but that apparently doesn’t stop a pig!

How odd that a seemingly friendly, harmless, mostly vegetarian barn animal can actually be more carnivorous & aggressive than dogs, cats, and bears.

Another expert pig farmer said that pigs are like sharks in that once they get a taste of blood, they can go into a feeding frenzy.

So this seemingly kosher, docile, "hum-dee-dum-dee-dum," inquisitive, friendly, domestic, mostly vegetarian omnivore can actually be a treif, predatory, vicious, blood-thirsty, treacherous carnivore who will turn on its own benefactor?

What an incredibly deceptive appearance from beginning to end.

In using the pig as the symbol for Esav/Edom, our Sages were even more perceptive than I realized.

And there's actually a lot to learn from this analogy...as Jewish history unfortunately shows.

UPDATE: And with the studies that point toward humans being affected by the nature of the animals they eat, could eating pork contribute to the extreme Jekyll/Hyde nature found in some people and which has revealed itself in intermittent bursts throughout Edomite history?

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Hashem is with You Even in the Silly Superficial Stuff

10/3/2019

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At the risk of coming off as pathetically shallow & superficial, I’d like to share my hunt for a good under-eye concealer & how Hashem is even with us in the petty insignificant stuff.

I’d heard good reviews for a particular anti-aging under-eye concealer that is sold in my neighborhood, so I went to purchase one. The anti-aging under-eye concealer marked “Fair 03” seemed good enough, plus I’d read that a paler concealer in a large triangle area under your eyes brightens & highlights that area, so that’s the concealer I ended up with.

Only once I got home, I couldn’t get it to work. No matter how much I twisted the base of the concealer, the product wouldn’t ooze out through the little applicator sponge.

So I called the store and spoke with the nice young woman who’d sold me the concealer. Surprised to hear it wasn’t working properly, she offered to exchange it after making sure I’d really followed the directions.

But I was too tired to go back to the store that day. Then it rained a lot the next couple of days, so I didn’t go out then either.

Finally, I made the short journey, hoping I’d get one of the nice salesgirls and not the somewhat brusque owner who might turn the concealer-exchange into a minor confrontation.

And because you really are supposed to ask Hashem for everything (including the smallest, most insignificant desires), I asked Hashem to provide me with a successful concealer-exchange. There is also a short & highly effective prayer you can say for success in your errands and other stuff here:
A Very Short Prayer for Success before Going Anywhere

It's also worth noting that I did not sink into grumbles about the challenges of accomplishing anything in Israel. That sentiment goes away after many years, especially if you work on the emuna that everything is from Hashem regardless of cultural variations. Also, it helps that I haven’t been to the USA in over 16 years, so I no longer have cultural comparisons fresh in my head—it’s all a blur! (Thanks, Hashem!)

Anyway, back to my concealer challenge...

Fortunately, one of the nice young salesgirls stood behind the counter.

Unfortunately, she could not find another Fair 03 in stock, no matter how thoroughly she searched.

Fortunately, she thought to suggest that I look at Light 01, which is also very fair, the only difference being that it was made for fair skin with warm undertones—which happens to describe my own skin.

Unfortunately, she didn’t have a tester-sample of Light 01.

“That’s really the only difference?” I asked, holding them up together for comparison.

“Yes,” she said. “In fact, I don’t even like the Fair 03 myself. I've found that kind of shade just doesn’t look good.”

I looked at the salesgirl, who was possibly fairer than me and also with warm undertones. “You would take this one for yourself?” I asked, holding up the Light 01.

“Yes,” she said.

So I took Light 01. Once home, I saw that it looked fine on my face. Then I read that for older women, making the whole under-eye area brighter and fairer actually ages your face -- yet another reason why the first concealer wouldn't have been good for what I wanted.

So Hashem was with me in my anti-aging under-eye concealer journey, finessing events so that I would end up with a concealer in just the right shade for my face & stage of life.

In the scheme of things, it’s all so meaningless. I know that.

But you also have to remember that Hashem created anti-aging under-eye concealer and all their shades, and that out of His Great Love for us, He is with us in the small, petty stuff too.

Just like a real Father.

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Rav Avigdor Miller on Jewish Aristocracy

8/3/2019

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I think one of the very compelling aspects of Rav Avigdor Miller was his way of making ancient dynamics come alive.

Describing scenes and events from Tanach or Gemara in picturesque snippets using everyday language pumped life into Jewish life and personalities from thousands of years ago.

In this week’s dvar Torah Parshat Pekudei—Torah: The Heart of Our Nation, Rav Miller brings Dor Hamidbar to life.

(All quotes used with permission from Toras Avigdor.)

Yeshivas Hamidbar

What was Am Yisrael doing in the Sinai Desert for 4 decades? No plowing, no harvesting, no sowing, no laundry—not much to worry about there. Lots of free time.

Okay, we know they were ridding themselves of their slave mentality too.

But how?

“Yeshivas Hamidbar,” says Rav Miller. They were learning Torah.

And they loved it. They were on fire for learning.

Try to imagine a place where you could access talmidei chachamim ten times greater than the Baba Sali, the Chafetz Chaim, Rav Aryeh Levine…

Try to imagine a place where daas Torah was clear as day and easily accessible—after all, Moshe Rabbeinu was right there.

In fact, women were included in this too. Rav Avraham ibn Ezra says that all the women gathered at the entrance to the Ohel Moed (Tent of Meeting), where Moshe Rabbeinu taught them himself. (And I cannot remember exactly where the ibn Ezra wrote that.)

Can you imagine hearing a shiur directly from Moshe Rabbeinu?

You know your favorite speakers? Well, imagine them, but something like 10 times even better.

(I guess Moshe Rabbeinu must have considered women pretty important if he insisted on giving the shiurim himself, rather than relegating it to a lesser prophet.)

And there was no foreign influence. Rav Miller points out that no one tried to get their hands on any Midianite newspapers. (Nor were there bamboozled Jews to print up newspapers like Idi’ot Rishonot or Ha’shegetz.)

The Holy Leftovers

Rav Miller quotes a Gemara which describes a talmid chacham as a sarid. A sarid means a remnant, a survivor—or a leftover.

What is a talmid chacham a leftover or remnant from?

Dor Hamidbar, Yeshivas Hamidbar!

Extending this even farther, Rav Miller insists that a man studying Gemara with or without Tosfos or Shulchan Aruch—he’s part of Yeshivas Hamidbar, one of the most prominent and stunning yeshivahs to have ever existed in the history of Mankind.

Nice!

Rav Miller also relates several heart-warming anecdotes from his personal experiences with Torah Jews back in pre-WWII Baltimore and Slobadka. And because Rav Miller heard or saw these events himself, he gives it over to you as if he’s your friend sharing a nice chat with you.

Take It 1 Line at a Time

And as always, Rav Miller encourages you to take pleasure in even just a little bit of Torah learning—whatever you can manage is worth more than diamonds:

One line of Torah is more important than all the mitzvos put together.

How can that be?! It's astonishing!

All the mitzvos together, the tefillin and mezuzos and tzitzis and matzah and korban pesach, all the obligations of the Torah cannot compare to one thing of the Torah.

You sit down, open a gemara and learn one line, it's such a tremendous happiness, such a great achievement, that it eclipses, it far outdoes all the good things together.

If you can open the gemara for one line, you should know what you're doing for yourself in this world. I’m not saying you’re a talmid chochom already; that takes work after all.

But you’re already joining the aristocracy of the Am Yisroel; you’re emulating the upper class, the elite of our nation.

Cool!

Here’s more on learning just one line of Gemara (and REALLY learning it):

If you would learn one line a week, you know that in ten years you’d know something!

One line a week, and you’d review it constantly.

One line a week; who couldn’t do that?!

And so, there won’t be any excuse to give on that great day when the question will be asked, “Osakta batorah? Did you engage in the study of My Torah?”

Everybody must study the Gemara. And it’s not hard.

It’s difficult to learn a lot of Gemara, the whole Shas, but one line?!

Needless to say, women can do the same with mussar or Tanach. In fact, the Vilna Gaon strongly encouraged his own daughters to learn mussar and Mishlei/Proverbs.

The Real Aristocrats of Am Yisrael

And Rav Miller testifies to the power of sincere Torah learning to effect profound change:

I was once walking on Eastern Parkway and a man with a big beard approaches me - "Rabbi Miller," he calls out.

"Who are you?" I asked, and he tells me his name. Whoooo! He was in the yeshivah with me years before.

He was a nobody, mamesh ah lo klum [a literal nothing]. It seemed hopeless.

And now he has a big beard - a frum Jew. And his grandchildren are learning in Yerushalayim, he tells me.

That's a result of the Beis Medrash. I can tell you stories like that without end. Again and again.

Needless to say, Rav Miller mentions this man’s big beard symbolically. Rav Miller is the first to acknowledge that merely having a big beard doesn’t automatically mean you’re great.

And what about women?

Certainly, a wife whose heart is happy when her husband learns Torah and even encourages him to go out to the beit medrash receives a weighty share in his Torah learning.

But not only that, says Rav Miller. Every child a woman raises is like finishing Shas several times. So maybe your husband never finished Shas even once, but if you have 2 children, then it’s like you’ve completed the entire Shas many, many times.

I’ll let Rav Miller have the final say:

"Ein umatenu eleh umah baTorah - Our nation is a nation only because of the Torah.”

And it’s those who keep pumping the blood of Torah through the veins of our nation, who are keeping us alive.

And therefore it’s the Torah learners who are the aristocrats of our nation, the ones whom we admire and emulate.

And the more a person is mechaber himself to the Torah, the greater of an aristocrat he is.

Once you understand this, you have gained a new perspective on the Am Yisroel, and you’ve learned to see our nation the way Hashem sees them.

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Lowering Inhibitions for Holiness

7/3/2019

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One morning, I was on the bus returning from taking my son to gan when a sweet-faced respectably dressed young woman in her late teens/early twenties seated herself next to me, held up a little siddur (prayerbook), and self-consciously asked me if I would say Amen to her brachot (blessings).

Except that I didn’t hear her at first because the bus was so noisy. So she needed to repeat her request twice more, and I started feeling uncomfortable because I felt I was making her uncomfortable when she was obviously already self-conscious (yet pleasant) about making her request one time, let alone several times.

Finally, an older lady sitting behind us said, “YES. I’LL say Amen to your brachot!”

“Me too,” I said quickly, feeling awkward, relieved, yet filling up with warm fuzzies all that the same time.

So the young woman started reciting Birkot Hashachar (the morning blessings), and I still couldn’t hear her so well. But the lady behind us now had her head between ours and each time she asserted, “Amen!” in my ear, that was my cue too.

So I was straining to listen to the young woman because I wanted to give a real Amen, but I also didn’t want to say Amen too early (before she finished her bracha) or too late (and say Amen to the previous bracha when she already wanted to recite the next bracha).

So the whole thing was kind of awkward and bumbling—yet heart-warming too.

Then the lady behind us got off the bus and I fumbled through the Amens on my own, but the young woman didn’t seem bothered at all.

By the time I needed to get off the bus, I’d grown extremely fond of this lovely young woman and her unassuming piety. Also, we 3 “sisters” had shared a spiritual experience together—even before breakfast!—and that’s a great way to start the day.

As I stood up to go, the lovely bas Yisrael said, “Thank you” with a friendly smile.

“Thank YOU!” I replied, grateful that she had merited me to say Amen so much.

I never have the guts to do this kind of thing myself, so I always admire those who can go up to a perfect stranger (though we actually all know each from Har Sinai) and do this kind of thing.

You go, girl!

And this is the tahor side of lowering your inhibitions.

In Eretz Yisrael, you can be uninhibitedly frum—and no one thinks you’re showing off or eccentric (unless, of course, you actually are).

Yet because there are also frum buses in New York, I don’t know if this is an “Only-in-Israel!” story, but it’s true that living in Eretz Yisrael definitely facilitates uninhibited frumkeit.

The truth is that in Eretz Yisrael, you can also ask a seemingly secular person to say Amen to your brachot on the bus. Not only would they have some cognizance of what you’re doing and what you want from them, many would also be happy to do so.

But the other point I wanted to make is about the bumbling, fumbling awkwardness that sometimes accompanies ruchniut (spirituality).

For example, being fruitful and multiplying is a very spiritual activity.

Yet mothers of small children know that you can’t always be polished no matter how hard you try. Maybe you’ve got baby spit-up on your navy skirt and you don’t even notice.

Maybe you didn’t even see the person who just said hi to you because you’re trying to cross the street while pushing a double stroller with two other kids holding onto the sides and all your frantic head-twisting to keep track of everyone—plus the wind—just nudged your hair-covering over one of your eyes.

Sometimes, before you know Hebrew or understand how a frum prayer service works, you get lost in the davening. You’re on the wrong page, you don’t stand up with everyone on time or else you stand at the wrong times, and so on.

And this is all SO NORMAL.

Sure, I could’ve described the above story as follows:
One morning, the young woman sitting next to me on the bus held up her siddur and invited me to say Amen to her brachot. Of course, I gladly complied—and so did the woman sitting behind us.

It felt so good to be in this warm nest of brachot and to bond with perfect strangers because after all, we really are one family.

Only in Israel!

And there would be nothing wrong with writing the above.

In fact, writers edit out the "static" all the time—not to deceive the reader (the warm fuzzy familial feelings are totally real)—but to make smoother reading for the reader. Otherwise, it’s like reading something transcribed from a stutterer.

But I decided to write it up exactly how it played out, with all the fumbles and bumbles, because that’s all part of authentic ruchnius.

You can be clumsy and awkward in mitzvot, yet feel really good all at the same time.

And that's because you ARE doing something really good—even if you're fumbling with it.

Those two women on the bus put me in such a good mood, despite all the awkward bits of it.

It felt really good, we all accomplished something spiritual we wouldn’t have otherwise, we bonded, and…

…it was good in Hashem's Eyes.

2 Comments

How Much Longer Can We Straddle the Fence?

6/3/2019

2 Comments

For years now, we keep hearing that prior to Mashiach, Hashem will orchestrate events that will force people to pick a side—meaning, a firm side.

No more keeping one foot in the Torah world while the other goes tapping for loopholes & goodies in the anti-Torah world.

With the accusations of dual loyalty flung at American Jews by a Muslim Somali-reared congresswoman from Minnesota, it looks like that time is approaching.

This particular bit of Jew-hatred is coming from the Left, but it has also had its proponents from certain elements on the Right for a long time.

And yet again in Jewish history, this is the place for those of opposing ideologies to unite: antisemitism.

Furthermore, I’m not impressed by all the condemnations from politicians and the like—especially those who have shown themselves to be immoral, power-hungry connivers. Decrying bigotry makes them look good and they know it.

While the accusation of conflicting loyalties is an old one for Jew-haters, actually proving your loyalty as a Jew is a bit trickier.

For knowledgeable and solidly Orthodox Jews, it’s actually easier to explain because halacha demands respect for your host country’s laws while cherishing Eretz Yisrael itself (i.e. the Land, regardless of government) and fellow Jews.

What's best for the Jews in Eretz Yisrael according to Torah values is also what's best for America.

Therefore, there is no conflict of interest.

But for less committed and less knowledgeable Jews, answering the charge will take some soul-searching. They’ll have to examine their own priorities and values.

They’ll have to examine their Judaism.

Some Jews will reject Israel. Many on the Left already have.

But I think we’re seeing the initial nudges of a tipping point.

It’s also worth noting that being pushed to the wall cannot only happen to American Jews.

Straightening out your mind and soul before Mashiach needs to occur across Am Yisrael wherever we are.

In Eretz Yisrael, the Left are forming an ominous bloc. And knowing how much Israelis love to vote for new parties, it doesn’t bode well.

While in my non-expert opinion, the Israeli elections will not force Jews to pick a side once and for all, I have a feeling that what comes AFTER the elections might force that hand.

In England, with the surge of the Leftist Jew-haters and Brexit struggles, plus a tsunami of immigration from cultures not known for their love of Jews, it looks like British Jewry is also on its way to a tipping point.

Regarding other Jewish communities around the world, I don’t know enough to say what might push them to the wall of ultimate decision.

But even for those of us who already consider ourselves frum and firmly committed, how many of us still have at least a toe in a world that’s increasingly anti-Torah?

How many of us (whether consciously or unconsciously) hold onto beliefs or behaviors that aren’t supported by Judaism—or may even conflict with authentic Torah values?

I’m talking to myself as much as I’m talking to you.

And it’s good to clear out all spiritual chaff we’ve been holding onto, whether we meant to or not.

Days are coming…

And b'ezrat Hashem, our self-introspection & teshuvah will make those days sweet ones.

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