Category: Emuna

How to Overcome the Terrorist-Klippah of Zeresh

17/3/2019

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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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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Shabbat: The Mind-Transforming Gold Mine

28/2/2019

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One of the most important things to remember about Shabbat is that it is an undeserved gift of unfathomable worth.

The angels actually protested to Hashem against giving us Shabbat.

They said we wouldn't appreciate it properly.

And for the majority of our people today, the angels have unfortunately been proven right.

But there is still the priceless minority who DO appreciate Shabbat — and want to appreciate it even more!

How to REALLY Appreciate Shabbat

There is a lot of work entailed for Shabbat. Some of it is grunge work. If you can afford it, you can pay someone else to do it for you.

But if you can't?

In Parshat Vayakhel - Building the Shabbos Home, Rav Avigdor Miller emphasizes that it's similar to a diamond merchant who is seen carefully sweeping the dust off the floor under his work table.

Why is he doing such menial work and doing so with such care?

"This is diamond dust!" says the sweeping diamond merchant. “And therefore it’s worth my while to sit on my knees and collect dust that comes from diamonds.”

Here's one of the amazing (yet imperceptible to most people) events that occurs on Shabbat:

When we stand up in Shemoneh Esrei and in Kiddush and say [or hear someone else say], "Vayechulu haShamayim v'ha'aretz v'chol tzeva'am — The heavens and the earth and all their hosts were finished at the end of six days,” to our surprise it’s such an important declaration that the Gemara (Shabbos 119b) says: "B'sha'ah sheh omer 'Vayichulu' — “At that time when a person says Vayichulu, shnei malachei hasharet hamelavin lo l'adam, so two angels come — manichin yadeihem al rosho, and they put their hands on this man’s head. V'omrim lo, and they say to him, V'sar avonecha v'chotecha yechupar, Your iniquity will depart and your sins will be forgiven.”

What Came Before "Beresheit"?

We hear about the concept of Beresheit—In the beginning—so much, that we don't think more deeply about the real meaning of it.

"The Universe was created ex nihilo!"

"There was absolutely nothing before Hashem created the Universe!"

How many times have you heard all that?

Yet was does that really mean?

Rav Avigdor Miller explains:

Now this is a startling idea that has no equal; here the Torah tells us a statement which is so revolutionary that it has no equal in all the statements and writings since the beginning of time.

And never again will another statement be made that has the same impact.

And that is that Hashem created from nothing.

***

But when you say Vayichulu, you’re declaring that there were no building blocks in the beginning, that the world was created out of nothing. Before Bereishis, nothing existed. There was no Big Bang, and there was no Little Bang. There were no black holes and no explosions of stars.

There was nothing to explode. There was zero.

Nothing at all existed except for the ruach Elokim, the spirit of Hashem which pervaded all
space — I don’t want to say space because there was no space yet — but Hashem pervaded All.

There was only Hashem and nothing else.

Can You Really Imagine "Nothing"?

The human mind can't really imagine "nothing."

When completely blind people are asked, "What do you see? Do you see darkness? Black?"

"No," they answer. "I see nothing. Not even black."

That's interesting because seeing people often describe blind people as living in darkness, but the truth is, they don't because they don't perceive even darkness.

To a sighted person, blind people live in visual darkness. But that's not how a blind-from-birth person perceives it. They simply do not see.

So could a blind person imagine "nothing"?

Visually, perhaps.

But "nothing" includes an absences of sound, scent, and everything else.

We just cannot imagine.

This week's dvar Torah is bursting with all sorts of necessary and luscious insights:

how to REALLY keep Shabbat
Hashem's "Imagination" & how it works
how the science of matter has changed
how dvar Hashem can be both energy & material
how anger, anxiety, and excitement can harm one's physical eyes
the effect of the weekday on one's mental & spiritual eyesight and how Shabbat heals this effect
why saying Vayichulu last Shabbat can make the coming erev Shabbat more peaceful
how Vayichulu is like a mini-Yom Kippur every week
why being a frum cow is better than being a wicked cow, but how to avoid being a frum cow anyway

Parshat Vayakhel - Building the Shabbos Home

Enjoy!

(All quotes used with permission from Toras Avigdor.)

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Who WASN'T on the Bus - and Why

13/2/2019

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While I don't know the whole spiritual message behind the bus-overturn tragedy that happened on the Modiin-Jerusalem 443 route, I do want to point out something else.

While we need to pray for and assist the survivors and mourn those who died, it's also important to realize something revealed by my son:

Many people meant to be on that bus ended up missing it.

And it wasn't their fault.

Two boys who learn in my son's yeshivah intended to take that bus. Familiar with that bus's timetable, they stopped in at a nearby grocery store to pick up some nosh when the bus suddenly sped by.

In fact, several other potential passengers were in that same store and also shocked that the bus came early and didn't stop.

(In routes between cities, buses don't come as often and a missed bus is a huge inconvenience to the potential passengers -- something the drivers are aware of, making them more likely to wait for a person running after them and yelling, "Wait!")

This missed bus was their salvation, as they found out later.

It reminds me of similar incident that happened around the time of suicide-bombings on the buses in Tel Aviv & Yerushalayim.

An American girl was attending Tel Aviv University's one-year program for English-speakers.

When the crowded bus pulled up at the stop where she waited, she tried to get on, but the driver started yelling at her, "There's no room! Get off! Wait for the next bus!"

Startled, she protested that there was room as she was already inside the bus.

But the driver kept yelling at her and with a final shout of "There's no place for you here!", he shoved her off the bus.

Living in Eretz Yisrael for 25 years, I've never seen a bus driver do that.

Then the bus continued along its route and...

...exploded.

That's why, indeed, there was no place for her on the bus.

It wasn't her time yet and it wasn't her way to go either.

(BTW, she didn't leave her dorm for a month after that.)

So while we need to remember & be sensitive to the pain of the victims of this tragedy and the pain of their families, and to help them and daven for them any way we can, we should also remember that nothing is truly an accident.

And we should ask Hashem what message He wants us to understand from this.

Hopefully, we won't need to suffer anymore tragedies and the Geula will come already, b'ezrat Hashem.

Please see Neshama's blog for a list of names for davening:
Route 443 Accident Victims Need Your Prayers

Also, Hamodia included these names:
Chemdatia Ditza bat Rivka
Tamar bat Rivka
Moshe ben Chana Hendel

May everyone have a refuah shlaima of the nefesh & guf b'toch sha'ar cholei Yisrael.

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Why Fear of God is Still Important (and Beneficial!) in Our Generation

5/2/2019

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In our times, yirat Shamayim — fear of Heaven — has become underrated and underappreciated.

In some cases, it's even despised.

True, great tzaddikim have been saying for generations that our generations cannot handle the pious fear expected of our ancestors.

But that doesn’t mean that yirah — yirat Shamayim and yirat Hashem and yirat ha'onesh (fear of Heavenly punishment) — should be ignored completely.

There is way too much emphasis throughout Tanach & Chazal to dismiss the necessity of yirah.

Particularly if you read or hear about those who’ve suffered in the Afterlife, whether in Rav Yehudah Petiyah’s stories in Minchat Yehudah or Rabbi Alon Anava’s near-death experience or anything else — and how even a moment of sincere regret could have saved them so much suffering — we need to realize that there is indeed a Judge and Judgement.

Personally, there have been times when I refrained from doing or saying something only because the works of tzaddikim repeatedly emphasized the fact that I’ll eventually need to face the consequences of my negative actions.

Furthermore, so much of Judaism, whether Tehillim or anything else, emphasizes how deeply Hashem probes your true motivations. You can fool others (or think you're fooling others) and you can fool yourself, but Hashem knows the real reason why you decided to do what you did.

For example, there are times I really wanted to indulge in lashon hara, but the idea of facing that particularly odious sin later kept my words muzzled. Sure, I could lie to myself and invent some kind of toelet, a beneficial reason, but Hashem knows the truth and deep down, so do I.

Having said that, many people are inspired by the idea that for every moment you refrain from indulging in particularly gratifying lashon hara, you create a light that even high angels cannot perceive. I’m inspired by that too.

But sometimes, the fear aspect makes a better muzzle.

It depends.

It also depends on your individual personality and what you personally need to bring out the best of your soul-potential.

The Way Out of Spiritual Bankruptcy

Excessive fear and harsh atonements have been discouraged by some of our greatest, like the Arizal.

In the chapter on Teshuvah, the Pele Yoetz explains in the name of the Arizal that the little done in our generation is considered like the great performed in previous generations.

Why?

The klippah (the external spiritually negative "shell") is stronger and our sins are stronger, making us weaker.

In Chulin 84a, Chazal writes: “Father was from a healthy family, but we need to borrow money and eat well.”

This explains it all in a nutshell.

Spiritually speaking, we are the weaker, sicker descendants. If we eat minimally like our father from a healthy family, we can become even weaker, sicker, and die, chas v’shalom. So we need to “borrow money and eat well” just to survive.

The Pele Yoetz goes on to explain that we are like a man who owes a great debt, goes bankrupt, and lacks the means to pay in full.

How can we shoulder such a burden?

The Pele Yoetz advises us to:

Speak like a poor man (i.e., admit the bankruptcy & impoverishment)
Show your “accounts” (i.e., “See? This is what I owe, and this and this, and here are my empty coffers.”)
Continue until your “creditor” agrees that in light of the facts, you should be allowed to pay back over time whenever and as much as you are able — but no more than that because you simply don’t have it.

(Yet you will certainly give what you can when you can.)

This is how we should speak with Hashem.

Yes, it’s the opposite of our generation’s voices promoting self-assurance, self-praise, self-aggrandizement and self-cheerleading, constantly pumping up ourselves and tweeting/posting our most minor accomplishments.

Yay me! Rah, rah, rah!

(Note: It's possible to serve Hashem with joy & without self-aggrandizement. It's also possible feel joy about a spiritually healthy fear of Hashem. It all goes together.)

But really, we should be saying to Hashem: “I know I should be doing more and I wish I could do more, but this is my best for now. Please forgive me and please help me. Please give me what I need to make it through.”

And feel happy about that.

As the Pele Yoetz concludes:

Likewise, we are broke and we don’t have the ability to withdraw ourselves from our debt —only that which is within our power to do, we shall do little by little, to rectify what we have corrupted throughout the days of our lives.

Perhaps God will consider us and forgive all our debt — but on the condition that all that is in our power to do, we shall do and accept upon ourselves.

So we should be patient and understanding with ourselves and others.

But not completely ignore the benefit of a spiritually healthy fear of God.

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Why Life is So Hard & the 1 Thing You Can Do About It

28/1/2019

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In a November class, Rav Shalom Arush described a woman who completed 6 hours of hitbodedut – then immediately had a fall. He didn’t say in what, but he described her frustration and despair.

Six hours! That’s something like 2 hours of thanking Hashem, 2 hours of confession, and 2 hours of requests – or however the woman parceled it out.

People can go through their whole life without ever accumulating 2 hours of sincere heartfelt confession before Hashem. And here, she did that (more or less) in one go – and she tripped up right after.

That’s not encouraging, is it?

Why It's Not Your Fault

Rav Arush used this example to stress the importance of begging Hashem to help you overcome your yetzer hara, your dysfunctional inclinations.

Your yetzer hara is so strong that good intentions and iron resolve aren’t enough; you need Hashem.

Sound depressing?

It’s not.

It’s actually another way of saying that your flaws and your falls aren’t really your fault.

You aren’t a failure if you try then stumble.

The yetzer hara is barreling at us full-force, particularly in this generation, and Hashem is the only One strong enough to overcome it.

Some Sagely Statements

Here is proof (and advice) from our truly great Sages:

Sefer Hachareidim: “A person must pray over himself and his children to be rescued from the yetzer hara.”

This is why the morning blessings specifically request that the yetzer hara not overcome a person.

Likewise, during the Bedtime Shema in the blessing of “Hamapil” ("al yishlot bi yetzer hara – don’t let the evil inclination take control of me") a person must intend that he, his spouse, and his children are saved from the yetzer hara. (Yeladim Mutzlachim/Successful Children by Rav Shalom Arush)

Chazal: “The yetzer hara is so harsh that even its Creator called it ‘bad’.”

Rav Yitzchak: “The yetzer of a person renews itself upon him each day.”

Rav Sh. Ben Levi: “The yetzer of a person overcomes him each day and seeks to slay him – and if the Holy One Blessed Be He wouldn’t help him, he [the person] could not [help himself]. (Kiddushim 30)

Rav Yechezkel Levenshtein (Avot Yisrael): “A person’s greatest hater is the yetzer hara, and it wants to annihilate him from two worlds [i.e., This World and the World to Come].”

Sefer HaYashar: “...each person needs to fear for his soul and to pray each day to his God to rescue him from the force of the yetzer hara.”

The above paints a picture of a merciless and monstrous psychopath in hot pursuit of ripping us to pieces.

So if we’re crushed beneath the yetzer hara, is it really our fault?

Only if we didn’t cry out for help.

I Protest!

In Words of Faith, Rav Levi Yitzchak Bender stresses the importance of protesting the yetzer hara. Even just one second after you’ve just sinned!

Say something like: “I DON’T WANT THIS! I DON’T WANT TO BE LIKE THIS! I HATE THIS MIDDAH! I HATE THIS FACET OF ME – TAKE IT AWAY, HASHEM, BECAUSE I DON’T WANT IT!!!”

Because of this, Rav Arush recommends to cry out several times a day, once on behalf of yourself and a few more times on behalf of your spouse and children, to be saved from your biggest enemy, which wants you to lose Two Worlds.

So don’t sink into self-disgust or despair if you fall.

Maybe you had great week, then you find yourself back to square one again.

Maybe yesterday, you managed victory after victory, then all of the sudden, you trip up this morning before you even said Modeh Ani.

Or maybe you started off your morning well, then found yourself flat on your face by noon.

That’s how it goes, sorry to say.

It’s not a reflection on you.

As described in a previous post, this generation is under assault from the fierce and gargantuan death throes of everything bad.

Why is that YOUR fault?

It’s NOT!

So even as you find your face smushed into the mud from yet another fall, try to at least mumble the words: “I protest! Help me, Hashem! Save me from the yetzer hara! Mrmph-mrmph!”

As Rebbe Akiva Rabinovitz said [Ahavat Kedumim, p. 170, emphasis mine]:

Hakadosh Baruch Hu holds absolutely no hakpadah against a Jewish person who possess evil traits and lusts.

Hakadosh Baruch Hu does not come in accusations about this since He implanted these within him, and He brought us down here FOR THIS PURPOSE.

If so, regarding what is the hakpadah?

The hakpadah occurs when the Jewish person does not strive to seek out the path and the counsel as to how to get out of [those evil traits and lusts].

Therefore, there exists the iron rule:

"As long as a person engages in battle, he is always called 'the winner'."

This is mind-bogglingly liberating.

It means that even if you don’t succeed, you are still considered victorious in Shamayim just because you TRY.

But you have to really try.

And you have to call out to Hashem.

Previous Post:
Inspiring Words for the Darkest & Coldest Times

Related Post:
How to Get Past Toxic Shame & Apathy

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Inspiring Words for the Darkest & Coldest Times from the Kli Yakar

21/1/2019

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In Shemot 6:1, the Kli Yakar offers a comforting observation for hard times:

For it is one of the known phenomena that this is the quality that exists within each day close to sunrise:

The darkness is at its darkest, even more than the darkness of night.

And after that, the light of morning breaks through and increases.

And so it is with the majority of ill people: Close to their death, they grow strong and sit up on the bed and ask to eat—and after that, death overwhelms them.

And so with the days of winter: Close to the rising of the Sun, the cold increases and overwhelms—until finally, it is conquered by the Sun.

And this is a natural phenomenon.

Because in the natural world, every thing that senses when something opposite it is coming against it—something which desires to abolish its existence—so it fortifies itself to its utmost against that which comes against it and resists submitting before it.

And according to its nature, it draws upon every resource it possesses to action.

Yet in the end, it is conquered because its opposing force overwhelmed it.

So it is with all the things that we mentioned.

Likewise, so it was with what Paroh was evil toward Yisrael now even more than he was in the past: This is a sharp sign that his end is approaching, and that the time of Redemption is approaching to nullify all the functions of Paroh—therefore, he wants to strengthen his actions…therefore, he wants to rise up against them with a strong arm.

And this is a sign that My Salvation is near to come and My Righteousness to be revealed.

It’s like Rabbi Wallerstein’s parable of the flapping fish dying on the fishing dock.

Fish are never as active and wild as when they’re taking their last breaths. Rabbi Wallerstein said then that lots of craziness and sin is coming to the surface because all the bad is gasping its last breaths.

It’s true now that a lot of loonies and people expressing anti-Torah values regularly work themselves into a frenzy—and it’s only increasing.

Many of us keep saying, “It can’t get worse than this; it can’t get crazier than this”—and then it does exactly that: It gets worse and crazier.

And we’ve been repeating that pattern for years now.

I don’t know when the end of bad is going to come and the good revealed.

But it really does seem close because the insanity is overwhelming—it’s like the Plague of Frogs, with the slimy little varmints getting into every crook and cranny.

And yes, because it’s only natural for one force to fortify itself to the utmost and fight back with everything it’s got against a rising counterforce, things could get even crazier, chas v’shalom.

If we can all just HOLD ON AS BEST WE CAN, I really think we can make it.

B'ezrat Hashem.

The above is mostly my translation, with some help from Elihu Levine's incredible & highly recommended translation of the Kli Yakar, Shemos I. But any errors are still mine. Sigh...

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The Zealous Religion of Modern Science

16/1/2019

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It took me an embarrassingly long time to realize the real problem between meshing Torah with modern science is that much of modern science is neither proven nor as objective as asserted.

Whether best-selling books written by top scientists for laymen or prestigious science journals, scientists cannot stop using words like the following:

“assume”
“think”
“seems”
“probably”
“possibility”
“may”
“suggest”
“could have”
“perhaps”
“likely”
"if"
“indicate”
“believe”

These are not scientific words. These are guesses. And “believe” is a term of a faith.

Boy, Am I Glad Astronomers Don't Perform Surgery!

In contrast, the science of surgery is very different. I’ve had a few Cesarean births and guess what?

Nobody “assumed” the location of my uterus—they knew.

They didn’t “suggest” that sterilizing the instruments would “probably” kill germs and “may” prevent infection, they followed certain procedures because research has PROVEN that these procedures and techniques definitely lower the chance of infection.

Furthermore, no one thought it was “likely” that there was a baby in there as opposed to, say, a pumpkin—they knew.

And that’s science you can pretty much rely on.

Why?

Because they’re actually able to PROVE things.

With regard to germs, scientists can see germs through a microscope and see what sterilization procedures reduce germs and which don’t. Doctors have also researched the effects of their procedures, making Cesarean births not only possible, but safer than previous generations could’ve ever imagined.

(Having said all that, there are aspects of medical science subject to baseless theories, personal agendas, ego, and greed—which have harmed or killed people. I just focused on the more proven aspects of medical science.)

The Scientific Ego

Today, many people think that scientists are highly intelligent and scrupulously objective. Not surprisingly, many scientist WANT you to see them that way. But history (including recent history) has not shown this to ever be true for many scientists.

The desire for funding, fame, recognition, and ego-defense affect scientists to a large degree. Scientists can also be a surly defensive lot who don’t hesitate to shoot down and humiliate theories (along with the proponents of those theories) that interfere with their above-mentioned desires.

If you’ve ever actually known academics—whether professors, scientists, doctors, or researchers—or listened to people who know them, you’ll know that many (though certainly not all) possess an elitist mindset, which isn’t conducive to objectivity or integrity.

Would you want to attend a medical school in which they discussed their personal beliefs about the human body?

“We believe the kidney is located over here.”

“Computer models indicate that this could be an eyeball.”

“We will teach you to perform Cesarean surgery on a woman who is likely to be pregnant because the suggestion of a baby in there is the more intriguing possibility.”

You can't really learn anything useful from guessing, especially emotionally driven guessing, as shown by phrases like: "more intriguing possibility" -- a phrase that appeared in a prestigious science publication -- or feeling that something is too "remarkable" to be believed, as you'll see below).

Anti-Torah Science Leads to Medical Mistakes

Just as one example: If you believe in evolution and randomness, then body parts that don't have an obvious purpose may be considered flukes or a no-longer-necessary leftover of evolutionary development.

"We don't need these anymore" has been said about tonsils, the appendix, and wisdom teeth.

In my parents' generation, tonsillectomy was a normal part of childhood.

Who needs tonsils? We've evolved beyond that!

Then scientists discovered tonsils play an important part in preventing infection. Yes, some people are indeed better off without their tonsils and need them removed, but it actually harms people to have them removed unnecessarily.

Likewise, the appendix was a big mystery. And I think the only reason why it wasn't removed as regularly as tonsils is because it's much more invasive surgery.

But more recently, scientists began to discover that the appendix also serves a vital function for the immune system. This is accompanied by pompous headlines like: Appendix May Actually Have a Purpose. Nowadays, appendicitis isn't always automatic surgery. If they think it's safe to do so, many doctors try treating it with antibiotics first.

Finally, many pointed to wisdom teeth as evidence of evolution. What do we need those unnecessary and annoying teeth for? They must be primate leftovers!

Then I came across the idea that our diminishing nutrition is causing smaller jaws, which is possibly why crooked teeth are so common today. I don't know if anyone can prove the suggested link between nutrition and jaw-size, but it seems that a smaller jaw might also not have enough room for wisdom teeth--rather than just assuming it's an evolutionary leftover.

But if you're stuck on the evolutionary model, you won't look at the possible causes of the issue. You'll just keep removing teeth.

(And if you're wondering about the difference between me saying "possibly" or "suggested" and scientists saying those words? I'm not using the suggestions in place of proof or twisting your arm to believe that smaller jaws caused by poor nutrition is indeed the only possibility. I didn't entitle the piece: "Case Closed: Wisdom Teeth Removal Caused by Poor Nutrition." And that's the big difference: honesty.)

Heliocentrism! Oh, Wait...

Opposing the Torah narrative also leads to inaccuracies modern science.

For example, one of the scientific debates you used to hear in the frum community is the objection to the tradition of a geocentric universe in which everything revolves around Earth—an objection purely based on modern scientific theory (AKA "wishful thinking").

Instead, people insist on the heliocentric universe (in which everything revolves around the Sun), as proposed by Galileo centuries ago.

In fact, ever since I can remember, people were taught that we live in a heliocentric universe. And I remember a time in which debates among educated frummies consisted of a struggle to find Torah sources that supported the idea of a heliocentric universe.

I also remember reading stuff by educated frummies who expressed serious consternation over the fact that the Lubavitcher Rebbe did not believe in a heliocentric universe and attitudes like: Oh-heavens-to-Betsy-the-Lubavitcher-Rebbe-did-not-believe-that-the-Earth-revolves-around-the-Sun-despite-evidence…

(The above isn't a direct quote, by the way; no one ever said "Heavens to Betsy" as far as I remember. Heh-heh.)

Heliocentric, heliocentric, heliocentric.

Except that no scientist actually believes this.

The Scientific Practice of Inaccurate Terminology

What they believe today is the theory of a barycentric universe in which all planetary bodies (including the Sun) revolve around a constantly fluctuating center of mass called a barycenter. (And according to this theory, this "center" moves tremendous distances from one point to another; it's not just wobbling around in more or less the same place.)

Nothing actually revolves around the Sun.

In fact, no planets revolve around any suns or stars anywhere in the universe.

Yet you will always hear about orbits around the Sun and planets orbiting stars even though scientists don’t actually believe this.

And people continue to blather on about a heliocentric universe.

But even this barycenter is also just a theory.

They don’t KNOW. There’s no PROOF.

Furthermore, anyone who believes in an expanding universe (which is standard science today) does not believe in any "center of the universe" at all. (Please remember this every time you read an article written by these same believers that mentions something discovered in “the center of our galaxy” or whatever.)

Anything! As Long as It's Not God...

A 2008 Science Daily article entitled “Earth Not Center of the Universe” admitted in the first paragraph:

“Although the Copernican principle has become a pillar of modern cosmology, finding conclusive evidence that our neighborhood of the universe really isn’t special has proven difficult.”

Meaning, they believe that Earth is not “special” and is not the center—despite the fact that they can find no proof of their belief.

Yet they continue their mythical quest for such “proof” anyway.

And they state outright that Earth is NOT “center of the universe”—with absolutely no proof.

Why? Because they believe in the Copernican principle, which believes that Earth is not in a central, specially favored position—even though there is NO PROOF of the Copernican principle.

Canadian scientists sound very religious. What a dedicated belief system they have!

If you read the original article, you’ll see that it is filled with phrases like:

“indicated”
"they proposed"
"put forth the alternate theory that…"
"modeling"
“it’s really hard to determine if…”

They also make unproven statements of personal belief like:

“cosmic microwave background radiation—the afterglow of the Big Bang” (The Big Bang is a theory—a very popular theory, but only a theory nonetheless. Therefore, you also cannot make a factual statement that CMB radiation is the afterglow of it.)

“solidify the conventional view” (“Solidify” is a new weasel word for me. It doesn’t prove anything but is merely another synonym of “indicate.” Also, “conventional view” simply means that a lot of scientists agree, but demonstrates no proof.)

“Recent advances in data collection have brought us to the era of precision cosmology” (Says who? Where is there any proof of “precision”? These guys still rely on models and “indications” and “hard to determine if.” In other words? Not precise at all. But I guess they really need that funding...)

Faith-Based Science

In space, there is no up or down, no right or left, no north or south or east or west. Things are in motion and there’s no real center.

Except that there is: Earth.

Furthermore, how do you define the Center of the Universe?

Center of mass? Magnetic pull? Electric attraction? Physical location?

The 2005 Sloan Digital Sky Survey of 400,000 galaxies shows that they were all arrayed in concentric circles around...Earth.

(Even though this jives with my personal belief of a geocentric universe, I still ask: Does it actually show this or does the survey only indicate such an arrangement? Inquiring minds want to know!)

Furthermore, the Cosmic Microwave Background radiation converges on the Earth along its equator and axis.

Likewise, astronomers see red shift (galaxies zooming away from you) wherever they look—which is exactly what you would see in a geocentric universe!

In fact, Stephen Hawking (A Brief History of Time) states that the only reason why scientists picked out an alternative and completely baseless theory (that wherever you stand in the universe, you see redshift):

“...modesty: it would be most remarkable if the universe looked the same in every direction around us, but not around other points in the universe.”

Again, no indication or proof whatsoever, simply a desire to believe that Earth is NOT the center of the universe. A geocentric view would simply be too "remarkable."

Try not to hold yourself back, Stephen!

Anyway, that’s their whole basis. False modesty. Gosh, how scientific!

In an October 1995 Scientific American article called Thinking Globally, Acting Universally, cosmologist George Ellis states:

“…we are using philosophical criteria in choosing our models. A lot of cosmology tries to hide that.”

Hmm…

I’m not sure what the consequences are for anti-Torah wishful thinking on the part of scientists, but as long as they insist in digging in the wrong places and creating unfounded theories (i.e. myths) instead of following the evidence, I don’t see how we can advance (or safely send humans to Mars or predict astronomical events or describe the Universe accurately)—scientifically speaking, of course.

Related Links:
Rav Avigdor Miller: Where is the Center of the Universe?
Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation
Several quotes and points were taken from the following article:
Current Science Excludes Geocentrism Through Unproven Assumptions
(Note: This particular link is shomer anayim friendly, but the rest of the site isn’t necessarily.)
How would the World be with No Moon?
Yet Another Stunning Scientific Discovery: Heck, We Haven’t Got a Clue!
The Venus Effect: Lots of Fun Insanity

May this post serve as some kind of tikkun for all the time I believed the wrong thing.

Thanks ever so much, Hashem!

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A Witty Program for Developing True Happiness

10/1/2019

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This week's dvar Torah from Rav Avigdor Miller ztz"l on Parshat Bo can transform your life.

He goes into the idea of how to be a truly wealthy person, a sameach bachelko--one who is happy with his portion.

And what is a "portion" anyway? Find out in The Guide to True Happiness: Parshat Bo.

He explains how to build yourself into a very happy person. Rav Miller's innovative take on happiness is that it's a science that needs to be studied and practiced. And he offers a weekly program, starting with appreciating air (including how to instill this in your children).

This reminds me of a story I heard about Rav Miller.

His child or grandchild walked into the kitchen when the venerable rav had his head in the sink with water covering his whole face. When he finally came up for air, the child asked him what he was doing and Rav Miller said something like, "Appreciating air."

People often complain that we aren't really told how great people become great. How can we learn from them? The truth is that real teshuvah & self-improvement is a private process. But here is one tip from Rav Miller: Dunk your whole face in water and stay there until you can't any longer. Then appreciate the great gift of air.

Rav Miller also declares his program to be a wonderful antidote to depression.

The Correct POV toward Any Holier-Than-Thou Resistance

One of the problems with trying to form authentic Torah habits is the response of other people -- which is why Rav Miller has stated that you shouldn't tell others what you're doing because they'll cool you off. (Of course, like-minded people are fine and will encourage you; it depends.)

Now, those of us who read Rav Shalom Arush's books and took them to heart, including doing some of the very difficult things he insists are part and parcel of authentic Torah Judaism (they are), know that you must be very careful when discussing this with others because they will say things like, "Avraham Avinu wasn't really b'simcha when he went to Akeidat Yitzchak" (even though Rashi clearly says he was--not because he was cruel, but because it was ratzon Hashem and Avraham Avinu was always happy to conform to Hashem's Will).

Or they'll insist it's "Breslov" -- which it is, but Rebbe Nachman didn't invent the concept; it's in the Torah and every mussar book that predates Rebbe Nachman emphasizes this. It's in the Gemara too.

Or people will insist that such a hike toward emuna is only for "truly great people" or "not realistic for our generation."

And it's disheartening because I'm not Breslov (although I'm a big fan) and I'm discouragingly far from being a "truly great person" and as a firm member of "this generation," it's also discouraging to hear that such core concepts aren't for me.

But guess what? People also tried to discourage Rav Miller! He's not Breslov, nor was he quoting from Breslov, and he was a truly great person who was also in "this generation."

So what is there to say to him?

Here you go:

Here comes along a frum tzaddik and says to me, “You're teaching people to enjoy life?! The purpose of life is ta'anugim?! To be rodef ta'anugim, run after pleasures?!”

He was upset at me.

No joke.

It's so bizarre because Rav Miller is always talking about divorcing oneself from the materialistic non-Jewish aspects of This World. Rav Miller possesses a very Slabodka-like perspective on what people should not be doing -- a perspective that often isn't popular and even drove people away (although Rav Miller was right).

Yet he is suddenly accused of encouraging people to be rodef taanugim--a person who pursues pleasures.

How wacky is that?

But as always, Rav Miller demonstrated his incisive perspective on things. For example, he pointed out that his critiquer wore a wristwatch, while Rav Miller did not. His critiquer drove a car to shul while Rav Miller came on foot.

Then Rav Miller tells the "frum tzaddik":

"Who is running after pleasure, you or I? You're running after it, but you don't have it. I'm not looking for pleasures. They're coming to me. As I walk in the street with my “Rolls Royce” -- my two shoes, that's my Rolls Royce -- and I'm breathing the air of Hakadosh Baruch Hu, I'm enjoying life. I walk past the cemetery on Ocean Parkway, and I'm filled with happiness that I'm on this side of the gate.”

That kind of kosher ta'anugim is a chiyuv, it's a mitzvah gedolah to enjoy life that way.

You've got to love a person who considers his two shoes as his own personal Rolls Royce.

Then Rav Miller explains the irrationality of denigrating gratitude and appreciation:

I know that if you go to a kollel and you'll tell them these things, they'll laugh at you. That's because they're silly -- they don't begin knowing Torah.

And don't tell me that enjoyment and happiness is not for tzadikim.

Oh no, you big tzadik, you don't want to enjoy the sun and the wind. He's eating his chocolate cakes and ice cream -- but to be happy with the sun, that's too much.

I admit that I never thought of that dichotomy until I read it in this dvar Torah. Nice point!

(Also, it's important to note that Rav Miller didn't mean all kollels would respond that way. There are some which would really appreciate hearing such things. He was saying this to make a point about how divorced from authentic Jewish hashkafah even scholarly frum Jews can be if they allow the surrounding culture to overwhelm their better instincts.)

Shabbat Shalom & I hope you'll fully enjoy The Guide to True Happiness: Parshat Bo.

(All quotes used with permission from Toras Avigdor.)

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Some Heart-Warming & Mind-Boggling Words from Rabbeinu Bachya

9/1/2019

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Sometimes, I've got so much to write about that everything bottlenecks & I end up not writing anything at all.

So I'll start clearing up the bottleneck with something short yet powerful.

In Parshat Bo (Shemot 13:2), Rabbeinu Bachya says the following:

And therefore, we find that the Navi [Yeshayahu] likened the Love of the Holy One Blessed Be He for Yisrael to the love of the mother for the child.

As it says (Yeshayahu/Isaiah 49): "Shall a woman forget her suckling child, compassion on the son of her belly?"

And it doesn't say "Shall a father forget his son?"

And my teacher and rebbi, Shlomo of blessed memory [the Rashba], explained that this text which says "Shall a woman forget her suckling child?" comes to inform us of 2 things:

1) One is that there should be no doubt for Am Yisrael that they are the children of the Living God just as there should be no doubt for Reuven that he is the son of his mother...

2) ...And the second is that just as it's impossible for a mother to exchange her child for another, so it is impossible to exchange Yisrael for another nation.

Hashem is with us all the way.

Let's delve into the analogy of Hashem to a nursing mother.

A nursing mother literally cannot forget her suckling child, not only because of her natural love and concern for him, but also because her own body reminds her that her child needs to be fed. In fact, her body actually demands that she feed her child. ("More than the calf wants to suckle, the cow wants to nurse" - Pesachim 112a.)

It implies that not only does Hashem possess a Primal Need to nurture us, but that His Need to nurture us is stronger that our need to receive sustenance from Him -- which is an astounding statement because technically, Hashem has no needs!

But obviously, Hashem sent this nevuah to Yeshayahu so that we would understand in our own terms Hashem's Great Attachment to us.

It's mind-boggling, if you think it over. In fact, I can't quite get my brain around the concept.

But in short: God not only loves us, but He would never & will never give us up or exchange us NO MATTER WHAT.

And that's a pretty amazing thing.

Thanks, Hashem!

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<<Previous

How to Overcome the Terrorist-Klippah of Zeresh

Hashem is with You Even in the Silly Superficial Stuff

Shabbat: The Mind-Transforming Gold Mine

How to REALLY Appreciate Shabbat

What Came Before "Beresheit"?

Can You Really Imagine "Nothing"?

Table of Contents

Who WASN'T on the Bus - and Why

Why Fear of God is Still Important (and Beneficial!) in Our Generation

The Way Out of Spiritual Bankruptcy

Why Life is So Hard & the 1 Thing You Can Do About It

Why It's Not Your Fault

Some Sagely Statements

I Protest!

Inspiring Words for the Darkest & Coldest Times from the Kli Yakar

The Zealous Religion of Modern Science

Boy, Am I Glad Astronomers Don't Perform Surgery!

The Scientific Ego

Anti-Torah Science Leads to Medical Mistakes

Heliocentrism! Oh, Wait...

The Scientific Practice of Inaccurate Terminology

Anything! As Long as It's Not God...

Faith-Based Science

A Witty Program for Developing True Happiness

The Correct POV toward Any Holier-Than-Thou Resistance

Some Heart-Warming & Mind-Boggling Words from Rabbeinu Bachya

Myrtle Rising

Categories

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Jewish Current Events

Jewish Health

Archives

Copyright Notice

How to REALLY Appreciate Shabbat

What Came Before "Beresheit"?

​Can You Really Imagine "Nothing"?

Table of Contents

The Way Out of Spiritual Bankruptcy

Why It's Not Your Fault

Some Sagely Statements

I Protest!

Boy, Am I Glad Astronomers Don't Perform Surgery!

The Scientific Ego

Anti-Torah Science Leads to Medical Mistakes

Heliocentrism! Oh, Wait...

The Scientific Practice of Inaccurate Terminology

Anything! As Long as It's Not God...

Faith-Based Science

The Correct POV toward Any Holier-Than-Thou Resistance

Myrtle Rising

Categories

Jewish Blogs

Jewish Current Events

Jewish Health

Archives

Copyright Notice

Can You Really Imagine "Nothing"?