"When it comes to a marriage, not I can help you, not your father can help you, not your mother can help you, not your seichel [your intellectual faculties] can help you. The only thing that can help you is your heart. If you feel for her, go ahead. If you don't do not." Lubavitcher Rebbe
Joseph Telushkin, Rebbe: The Life and Teachings of Menachem M. Schneerson, the Most Influential Rabbi in Modern History (New York, 2014), p. 189, who quotes what the Rebbe told R. Leibel Groner
Q:
What does it mean to learn Torah lishmah?
A:
To learn Torah lishmah first means, like everybody knows, that you’re motivated because you want to know, “What does Hashem request of me? What does he desire of me?” That’s number one.
But it doesn’t mean that you should merely have a good intention. You have to put in the labor because to understand what Hashem wants of you , you must have a certain achievement of the intellect. It’s never easy to know מה ה' אלוקיך שואל מעמך. Don’t think it’s easy to know.
That’s why when the ger came to Shamai and said, “Teach me on one foot how to become a Jew,” Shammai said, “Get out of here! On one foot you want to learn the Torah?!”
And even when he came to Hillel and Hillel said, “Come, I’ll tell you,” Hillel didn’t really tell him. He only said, “You have to know that if you’ll study the rule I’m giving you, that’ll be the foundation. I’m giving you a rule: ‘What you don’t want others to do to you, don’t do to others.’ Now, that’s the rule,” Hillel said, “and the rest is an explanation. ואידך פירושא – study the rule because it needs explanation; so go learn.”
So Torah lishmah requires effort. And the more effort you put in, the more it’s lishmah. Don’t make any mistake about it. Lishmah doesn’t mean you learn superficially. It has to be with the motivation to do the will of Hashem, but it must be with yegiah, with effort to learn Torah. And every Jew who puts in effort will succeed in gaining the will of Hashem more. Hashem’s ratzon, His favor, is upon those who seek His will; those who seek to know His will.
TAPE # 900
"I looked and there was no one (among the nations) helping (the Jewish people)." Haftarah Nitzavim
"This verse teaches us that we must not make the mistake of hoping that any political, sociological, or other/natural human process per se will lead us to Redemption. The true Redemption can occur only by means of God's direction intervention, which we will elicit and hasten by fulfilling our Divine mission to make the world His home by by dissemination of Divine consciousness through prayer, the study of Torah, and the performance of the commandments. In the words of the sages of the Talmud, "We have no one to rely on save our Father in heaven."
Lubavitcher Rebbe, Hitva'aduyot 5722, Vol. 2, p. 289, Haftarah, parshas Nitzavim, Chayenu, 2019.
This is similar to this:
“When, during the reign of Hadrian, the uprising led by Bar Kochba proved a disastrous error, it became essential that the Jewish people be reminded for all times of another important fact; namely, that Israel must never again attempt to restore its national independence by its own power; it was to entrust its future as a nation solely to Divine Providence. Therefore when the nation, crushed by this new blow, had recovered its breath and hailed even the permission to give a decent burial to the hundreds of thousands who had fallen about Betar as the dawn of a better day, the sages who met at Yavneh added yet another blessing to the prayer for the restoration of Jerusalem. This fourth blessing is an acknowledgement that it has always been G-d and G-d alone Who has given us, and still gives us to this very day, that good in which we have had cause to rejoice; and that for future good, too, we may look to none other but G-d, and none besides Him."
R' Samson Raphael Hirsch, Commentary to the Prayer Book, p. 703
A principal of a Lubavitch school was once asked to speak at the annual convention of Torah Umesorah. When he asked the Rebbe what to address in his talk, the Rebbe responded in a note: “It is imperative that you say – in my name or not, as you see fit – that it is absolutely necessary to teach the children yiras Shamayim. “All agree that one cannot be a doctor without studying medicine, so how could they expect the children to be yerei Shamayim without teaching it? “In days bygone, this was absorbed at home, and the children saw it on the street. But times have changed. The only source for yiras Shamayim is the school, therefore it must be taught. “And giving the children 15 minutes a day to learn a mussar sefer of their choice cannot suffice at all. In fact, it sends a negative message, because the child says to himself that every other subject has a mandatory timeframe, from a specific book, and a special teacher is hired – so this topic must be inferior!” The Rebbe concluded the note, “Say this with a full breitkait (confidence), without fear, with a great tumult, with force. And Hashem will grant you success.” (Simpson Teshurah, Cheshvan 5771)
Machon Moreshes Ashkenaz
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I would like to bring to your attention a webinar which will take place on Sunday, Nov-21-2021 at 11:00AM EST which is 6:00 PM in Israel.
This webinar will present an international open study session discussing:
A Liturgy within a Liturgy: The German Torah Service in Past & Present.
This webinar is presented by the European Center for Jewish Music, The Institute for Music, Theater and Media in Germany, and the Jewish Music Research Center at the Hebrew University, Jerusalem.
Sunday, November 21, 2021; 17 Kislev 5782 at 11am (USA, EST); 17:00 (CET); 18:00 (Israel) https://huji.zoom.us/j/81667736324?pwd=Z0JNTS9LdGQvc3l4V2hnY2MwK3dudz09
Q:
Why do you oppose the study of secular subjects? Didn’t the Vilna Gaon study secular subjects?
A:
I didn’t mention secular subjects at all tonight. I did not mention it at all, so I’m innocent. However, on the question of secular subjects, there’s no question at all that knowledge of secular subjects comes in handy. No question at all; very handy. The problem however is where to get it from; that’s something else.
Rabbi Avigdor Miller, TAPE # 60
The Machpeilah Cave is the burial site of Adam and Eve, the first human beings; as such, it originally belonged to all humanity. In purchasing it, Abraham articulated G‑d’s intention that the mission originally given to humanity as a whole now be passed on to the Jewish people. By accepting this task, the Jewish people were fundamentally separating themselves from the rest of humanity and assuming the role of its mentors. It is our challenge to recognize this destiny today, as well. (Lubavitcher Rebbe, Daily Wisdom, Chayei Sara, First Reading)
Rav Avigdor Miller on The Kindness of Teshuva
Q:
Considering what you spoke about tonight, that our acts in this world are eternal, so what role does repentance play in our life? Does it reverse the act we did?
A:
The question is, in view of the fact that a person’s act is eternal how can teshuva reverse the deeds of wickedness?
Now, that you have to know is a very big problem. And that’s why teshuva is considered one of the great kindlinesses of Hashem. It’s a great chesed and a great neis. Teshuva means that Hashem is going to step into the process of history and He’s going to cause things to disappear from history.
Now that’s something that is beyond our ability to explain. That’s why when we say ברוך אתה השם הרוצה בתשובה – We thank You Hashem, the One who wants repentance, we have to understand the full impact of that blessing. That You Hashem are willing to accept teshuva! You are the One who makes teshuva because You erase the stain that we created on our souls. And it’s something that nobody can explain. Only that it’s one of the great miracles that Hakodosh Boruch Hu accomplishes and therefore we should appreciate how great is the kindness of teshuva.
TAPE # 378
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By studying the Torah regularly, we construct a “Tabernacle,” i.e., a dwelling for G‑d, in our personal lives. By commanding the Jewish people to encamp around the Tabernacle, G‑d teaches us that we should center our lives around this inner sanctuary. The innermost point of the Tabernacle was the Ark, which housed the Tablets of the Covenant, i.e., the Torah. When the Torah is the focal point around which our lives revolve, it can positively affect all facets of our lives, as it is meant to. Furthermore, once the Torah is illuminating and influencing our lives as it is meant to, its influence can spread still further outward, enlightening and refining all humanity and the entire world. (Lubavitcher Rebbe, Daily Wisdom, p. 429).
(Lubavitcher Rebbe, Daily Wisdom, p. 429).
Man must worship his Creator not only out of a feeling of absolute decree and coercion but also out of spontaneous variegated desire and aspiration which gladdens the heart. The Torah commands us to serve God with joy, with longing and yearning, enjoyment and happiness, unfettered pleasure, and the soul's delight. When man does not see God and sense His presence at every turn; when he thinks of God only out of fear of punishment, with a cool intellect, without ecstasy, joy or enthusiasm; when his actions lack soul, inwardness and vitality, then his religious life is flawed. At the same time, if man is not always aware of God, if he does not walk with God in all his ways and paths, if he does not sense God's touch on his stooped shoulders in times of distress and loneliness imparting a certain comfort and encouragement, the his service is likewise incomplete. (Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, And From There You Shall Seek in Mesorat HaRav Siddur, p. 77)
The more, indeed, Judaism comprises the whole of man and extends its declared mission to the salvation of the whole of mankind, the less it is possible to confine its outlook to the four cubits of a synagogue and the four walls of a study. The more the Jew is a Jew, the more universalist will his views and aspirations be, the less aloof will he be from anything that is noble and good, true and upright, in art or science, in culture or education; the more joyfully will he applaud whenever he sees truth and justice and peace and the ennoblement of man prevail and become dominant in human society: the more joyfully will he seize every opportunity to give proof of his mission as a Jew, the task of his Judaism, on new and untrodden ground; the more joyfully will he devote himself to all true progress in civilisation and culture--provided, that is, that he will not only not have to sacrifice his Judaism but will also be able to bring it to more perfect fulfilment. He will ever desire progress, but only in alliance with religion. He will not want to accomplish anything that he cannot accomplish as a Jew. Any step which takes him away from Judaism is not for him a step forward, is not progress. He exercises this self-control without a pang, for he does not wish to accomplish his own will on earth but labours in the service of God. He knows that wherever the Ark of his God does not march ahead of him he is not accompanied by the pillar of the fire of His light or the pillar of the cloud of His grace.
(Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, Collected Writings, Vol. VI, pp. 107-150, “Religion Allied to Progress”)
God has dispersed Yisrael among the nations as עבד and שפחה, as "servant" and "handmaiden," to labor on behalf of God's great work on behalf of mankind. Yisrael is called "a servant" to indicate the arduous labor inherent in its outward position vis-à-vis the nations, and "a handmaiden" to denote the joyous fulfillment of its life's task within the sphere of its own homes, families and communities. For the proper discharge of both these tasks Yisrael needs extraordinary spiritual and moral talents and energy; and it is for these faculties that Yisrael looks up to God its God even as a "servant" and a "handmaiden" would look up to their Master.
(Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch on Tehillim 123, 2)
When Abraham, the first Jew, was sent out into the world, he was commanded: 'Heyai bracha.' 'Be a blessing.' Unlike those self-centered others who seek blessings only for themselves, you are to devote yourself completely to your calling, namely, to become a blessing, to help increase the happiness and prosperity of those among whom you dwell, and to advance the work of God in your environment with every breath of your life and every ounce of your strength.
( Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, "The Educational Value of Judaism")
The more we understand that Judaism reckons with all of man's endeavors, and the more its declared mission includes the salvation of all mankind, the less can its views be confined to the four cubits of one room or one dwelling...The more the Jew is a Jew, the more joyously will he hail everything that will shape human life so as to promote truth, right, peace, and refinement among mankind, the more happily will he himself embrace every opportunity to prove his mission as a Jew on new, still untrodden grounds.
(Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, "Religion Allied with Progress)
And, indeed, if most of our brethren would live as true Jews, then most of the conditions that now bar the Jew from so many careers could be eliminated. If only all Jews who travel or who are active in business life were to insist on observing their duties as Jews, this insistence would bring about the possibility of fulfilling all religious requirements...Why, even in official institutions of civic and political life, enlightened governments and nations would gladly accommodate a loyalty of conscience which would represent a significant contribution made by a Jewish citizen to the overall society of fellow citizens among whom he dwells.
(Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, "Religion Allied with Progress")
At the end of Psalm 95 we were told of a negative aspect of our task while in Galuth, namely, of the errors from which we must guard ourselves during our long wanderings through exile. This Psalm, on the other hand, has as its theme the fulfillment of the great and blissful purpose of our journeys among the nations, namely the "wakening of awe" of God throughout the world, of which mention was already made in Verse 1 of Psalm 95. It is Yisrael's task to enter into the midst of the nations with a "new song" that is to "behold" God's greatness, and the "newness" of this song lies in the fact that in it, we read the call שירו לה' כל הארץ, summoning all of mankind to unite in "beholding" the greatness of the One God.
(Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, Commentary on Psalm 95)
All thy holy ones serve as Thy instruments to this end. Not only Israel but also the rest of mankind will benefit from the educational and moral influence of those among Israel who hallow their lives by faithfully observing this Law. These individuals tacitly serve as a light to all mankind, as models showing how man's sacred calling is to be put into practice. Though we are told above that even Seir and Paran, nations closely related to Israel, were not yet sufficiently mature to accept the Law, the revelation of the Law to Israel on Mount Sinai was intended to benefit all mankind. With and through Israel, the ground was prepared for the future gathering of all mankind to perform its duty toward God .... Only through the Law, whose bearer Israel became at Sinai, will the lessons imparted to the other nations by historical experience attain their purpose ....
(Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, Commentary on Devarim 33:3, translation by Gertrude Hirschler)
In order for this be a reality a prisoner must be allowed to maintain a sense that he is created in the image of God; he is a human being who can be a reflection of Godliness in this world. But when a prisoner is denied this sense and feels subjugated and controlled; never allowed to raise up his head, then the prison system not only fails at its purpose, it creates in him a greater criminal than there was before. One of the goals of the prison system is to help Jewish inmates and non-Jewish inmates ... to raise up their spirits and to encourage them, providing the sense, to the degree possible, that they are just as human as those that are free; just as human as the prison guards. In this way they can be empowered to improve themselves ...
(Lubavitcher Rebbe, “The Backstory of the Chassidim Who Got Criminal Justice Reform Done Inspired by the Lubavitcher Rebbe,” Dovid Margolin)
The true and complete Redemption depends on “bringing the entire world to recognize the sovereignty of G-d.” Every person must hasten this, and help prepare the world to serve G-d as one. Although one might think his interaction with non-Jews is mainly for economic purposes, a Jew’s real intention should be to guide and inspire them to fulfill their Seven Noahide Laws. The Seven Noahide Laws are not simply legal matters – they are principles which precede and give meaning to all other laws. Laws only apply to people who are living; once someone is alive, he can be told to follow the law. But true “living” means being connected to Torah, which is “our life,” and observing its Mitzvos, by which “we live”. So, first and foremost, one must see to it that his non-Jewish neighbor is alive!
(Lubavitcher Rebbe, 20 Menachem Av, 5745 • August 7, 1985, Disc 31, Program 123)
Egyptian society was steeped in the pursuit of self-serving carnal pleasure, which is reduced by circumcision. Thus, by having the Egyptians circumcised, Joseph subdued their obsession with carnal indulgence. Pharaoh himself instructed them to go along with Joseph’s condition; thus, even the living symbol of Egyptian corruption was willing to be refined, at least somewhat. We follow Joseph’s example by remaining spiritually uncontaminated by our materialistic environment and even refining it. By strengthening our own commitment to Judaism, we influence our fellow Jews to strengthen theirs. Moreover, we influence the broader community of non-Jews to keep the Torah’s laws that apply to them (the “Noahide” laws). Thus, we will ultimately transform the entire world into G d’s home. (Lubavitcher Rebbe, Likutei Sichot, vol. 10, p. 141.)
(On Nishmas prayer on Shabbos) Although this prayer has the same theme as the blessing of Yishtabach (“May your name be praised”), emphasizing God's attributes and the privilege given to us to praise Him, it is recited only on Shabbat and Holidays simply because there is not sufficient time to recite it during weekdays. It may be described as the great universal hymn of the salvation of mankind. A Jew is not satisfied with his redemption unless everybody will be redeemed with him; the Jew feels the beat of the heart of the universe. The Jew prays even for the cosmos. Once a month, he prays that God restore the diminution of the moon. The Jewish experience is all-inclusive, all-embracing, sympathetic to all.
(Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Days of Deliverance in Mesorat HaRav Siddur, p. 476-7)
He [Abraham] was a resident, like other inhabitants of Canaan, sharing with them a concern for the welfare of society, digging wells, and contributing to the progress of the country in loyalty to its government and institutions. Here, Abraham was clearly a fellow citizen, a patriot among compatriots, joining others in advancing the common welfare. However, there was another aspect, the spiritual, in which Abraham regarded himself as a stranger. His identification and solidarity with his fellow citizens in the secular realm did not imply his readiness to relinquish any aspects of his religious uniqueness. His was a different faith and he was governed by perceptions, truths, and observances which set him apart from the larger faith community. In this regard, Abraham and his descendants would always remain “strangers.”
(Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Reflections of the Rav, p. 169)
We certainly share the concerns of man in general, but at the same time we have interests and concerns of our own. We are part of humanity and at the same time, we are alone.
(Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, “Lonely Man of Faith: Trailer”)
“And you shall say to Pharaoh, 'So said Hashem: Yisrael is my eldest son.'” (Shemos 4,22) What the Almighty God said, בני בכורי, what is the conclusion that is to be drawn from it? If I say, “he's my oldest” or “he's my bechor”, it means that I have more children. He is the oldest, but there are many more children. When God told Moshe, “say to Pharaoh, Yisrael is my son, he is my bechor”, what does it mean? God has more children, He has many sons. Otherwise, the expression 'beni bechori' is inappropriate. If one has a single son he would say 'beni yechidi', like “your son, your only son who you love” (Bereishis 22:2). But now it's 'beni bechor'.
(Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchi, The Rav Thinking Aloud on Shemos, p. 50)
Every nation is a son of HaKadosh Baruch Hu.
(Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchi,k The Rav Thinking Aloud on Shemos, p. 50, See also Rabbeinu Ephraim, p. 176 and Chizkuni on the passuk)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CPzX7WN67r4
Famous admirer of Rav Hirsch and practitioner of Torah Im Derech Eretz
Here's a case of outright disagreement by two important figures of our generation. I don't know if these two opinions can be reconciled. We have Rav Joseph Soloveitchik on one side and Rav Avigdor Miller on the other. As you shall see, they completely disagree with one another on a subject near and dear to many who follow the Torah Im Derech Eretz path of life.
Rav Joseph Soloveitchik:
What the Almighty God said, בני בכורי, what is the conclusion that is to be drawn from it? If I say, “he's my oldest” or “he's my bechor”, it means that I have more children. He is the oldest, but there are many more children. When God told Moshe, “say to Pharaoh, Yisrael is my son, he is my bechor”, what does it mean? God has more children, He has many sons. Otherwise, the expression 'beni bechori' is inappropriate. If one has a single son he would say 'beni yechidi', like “your son, your only son who you love” (Bereishis 22:2). But now it's 'beni bechor'.
(Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchi, The Rav Thinking Aloud on Shemos, p. 50)
Every nation is a son of HaKadosh Baruch Hu. (See also Rabbeinu Ephraim, p. 176 and Chizkuni on the passuk)
(Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchi, The Rav Thinking Aloud on Shemos, p. 50)
Rabbi Avigdor Miller:
Question: The Rav said that only the Am Yisroel are the “banim” of Hashem. But doesn’t the posuk of “b’ni bichori Yisroel,” imply that while we are His bechor, but that the other nations are also considered His children?
Rav Miller: Look, he’s asking a good question. Nothing wrong with a little lomdus. If it says, “b’ni bichori Yisroel,” that they are my firstborn, that implies that the rest of the nations are not “bechorim,” but they’re at least “banim.” The answer is – No! Am Yisroel are “banim” and nobody else is “banim.” But not only are they “banim,” but they’re beloved like “b’ni bichori.” That’s what it means.
“Banim atem la’shem Elokeichem.” It doesn’t say, “bechorim atem la’shem Elokeichem.” Banim atem! Atem! Only you are “banim” to me. Nobody else. Only that, not only are you “banim,” but you are beloved to me like a bechor. Because a bechor is especially beloved. That’s all that it means.
TAPE #E-207
Note, Rav Miller does say elsewhere that if you were to put the entire physical universe on one side of a scale and a Fiji Islander on the other, the Fiji Islander would greatly outweigh the physical universe in importance. He says also, we don't hate the goyim, we just don't mingle with them. We are kindly toward everyone.
Rav Avigdor Miller on Mesivta High Schools
Q:
If studying Hashem's creation and the emunah is such an important subject, why isn't it studied in the high schools, the mesivtas, today?
A:
If studying the halachos of Shabbos and the halachos of brachos is so important, why isn't it studied in the mesivta today? The answer is the mesivtas today are based on an old system, an European system, and they took it for granted that by the time you entered the mesivta you had learned all the things. You learned halachos in the cheder. You had learned Tanach and Tanach is emunah. That's how it was in the olden days. They had learned Tanach, and Tanach is the study of creation. They learned Tehillim. When I was a boy, we learned Tehillim as a boy. Our rebbi taught us Tehillim; we learned barchi nafshi, the wonders of creation. You couldn't learn every little thing – a lot has to be left for the individual to do – but certainly if you learned Tanach, you learned a lot. And you learned a lot of dinim too. By the time you came into the mesivta you were ready for the big task of the Jewish male to spend his days in the cheker halachah, in the milchamto shel Torah.
But today the boys who are put into mesivta don't know anything; they know nothing about emunah, and therefore certainly they're losing out. It's very important that the Chovos Halevavos, Sha'ar Habechinah should be taught today. And I would give a suggestion. Instead of the English Departments of the high schools teaching goyishe things – and very many Jewish boys and girls are ruined in the high school department of the yeshivos and this I can tell you from first-hand experience; I happen to know that it's true – if the mesivtas meant business, they could utilize the high schools to teach them emunah. And the boys and girls would come to such a strong faith in Hakodosh Boruch Hu that the high school could even be more powerful in shaping their minds and characters than anything else could be; it's a big opportunity that's going lost.
TAPE # 407 (May 1982)
(On Nishmas prayer on Shabbos) Although this prayer has the same theme as the blessing of Yishtabach (“May your name be praised”), emphasizing God's attributes and the privilege given to us to praise Him, it is recited only on Shabbat and Holidays simply because there is not sufficient time to recite it during weekdays. It may be described as the great universal hymn of the salvation of mankind. A Jew is not satisfied with his redemption unless everybody will be redeemed with him; the Jew feels the beat of the heart of the universe. The Jew prays even for the cosmos. Once a month, he prays that God restore the diminution of the moon. The Jewish experience is all-inclusive, all-embracing, sympathetic to all. (Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Days of Deliverance in Mesorat HaRav Siddur, p. 476-7)
Some years ago I was grateful to locate and be able to post a photo of Gertrude Hirschler, one of the primary translators of Rav Hirsch's writings. Which reader of Hirsch hasn't read her fine translations?
"Gertrude Hirschler was a translator and editor of literary works, and was the leading translator of the works of the nineteenth century German rabbi, Samson Raphael Hirsch. The collection primarily consists of materials relating to Hirschler's publishing career, containing her publishing correspondence, as well as manuscripts, articles and miscellaneous writings by other authors that were sent to Hirschler for editing or translating. There is also a small amount of personal materials and original writings by Hirschler." Papers at YU
"Pagans, both ancient and modern, have a predilection for associating religion and religious matters with death and thoughts of death. For them the kingdom of God begins only where man ends. They view death and dying as the true manifestations of their deity, whom they see as a god of death, not of life; a god that kills and never revives, that sends death and its forerunners, sickness and affliction, so that men’s realizing the might of their god and their own impotence, may fear him. For this reason they set up their shrines near graves and the place of their priests is prominently near the dead. Death and mourning are the most fertile soil for the dissemination of their religion, and it seems that in their view, the presence, on their own flesh, of a mark of death, a symbol of death's power to conquer all of life, would be a sign of religiosity par excellence and, above all, the most essential attribute of the priest and his office.
"Not so the priests in Judaism, because the Jewish concept of God and the Jewish religion are not so. The God Whose Name assigns the priest his place among the Jewish people is a God of life, His most exalted manifestation is not the power of death that crushes strength and vitality but the power of life that enables man to exercise free will and to be immortal. Judaism teaches us not how to die but how to live so that, even in life, we may overcome death, lack of freedom, the enslavement to physical things and moral weakness. Judaism teaches us how to spend every moment of a life marked by moral freedom, thought, aspirations, creativity and achievement, along with the enjoyment of physical pleasures, as one more moment in life's constant service to the everlasting God. This is the teaching to which God has dedicated His Sanctuary and for whose service He has consecrated the ihbvf, the guardians of the basis and "direction" (Hebrew: ivf [priest] = iuf [direction] of the people's life.
"When death summons the other members of his people to perform the final acts of loving-kindness for the physical shell of a apb [soul] that has been called home to God, the ‘v hbvf ["priests of God"] must stay away in order to keep aloft the banner of life beside the dead body, to make certain that the concept of life; i.e., the thought that man has been endowed with moral freedom, that he is godly and not subject to the physical forces that seek to crush moral freedom, is not overshadowed by thoughts of death. Only when the realities of life require even the priest to perform his final duty as a husband, son, father or brother for the shell of a departed apb, or the presence of an abandoned body makes it necessary for him to take the place of the father or brother of the deceased, does his priestly function yield to his calling as a human being and as a member of a family. In such cases he is not only permitted but in fact commanded to have the necessary contact with the dead body. Under all other circumstances, however, priests must stay away from the bodies of the dead."
R' Hirsch on Genesis Emor 21:5
True Individuality
[Moses told the Jewish people that
in contrast to the rebels among them, who had died out,] “all of you who are
alive today are [lovingly] attached to God.” Devarim 4:4
One might think that the more we are
devoted to G-d, the more our personal individuality disappears. The Torah
teaches us here that the opposite is true: Our true individuality depends
directly upon the depth of our attachment to G-d. What we normally mistake for
our personality is really our secondary, animalistic side. Since we share the
same animal drives with the rest of humanity, the personality born of these
drives is, at best, a variation on the common theme by which everyone lives.
Thus, the apparent individuality of this aspect of our personality is in fact
an illusion.
In contrast, since G-d is infinite,
the avenues through which
His Divinity can manifest itself through us are also infinite; thus, it is only
our Divine personality that makes us truly unique. It follows that the more we
allow the animalistic side of our personalities to dissolve as we draw closer
to D-d, the more we allow our unique, Divine personalities to shine forth.
Lubavitcher
Rebbe, Daily Wisdom, p. 365
https://www.truetorahjews.org/ravhirsch
Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch devotes a long section of his book Horeb (pp. 460-461) to the obligation of Jews to seek the welfare of their government (Yirmiyahu 29:7). If this applied under the Babylonians, who exiled the Jews by force, all the more so in our current countries of residence, in which we settled by choice. If this applied in Babylonia, where Jews were sent for a pre-specified period of 70 years, all the more so today, when the length of our exile has not been revealed to us. For hundreds of years, Jews have honored and loved the rulers of the countries in which they took refuge, and followed all their laws faithfully.
Israel’s nationhood does not depend on a common land, writes Rav Hirsch. Even when the Jewish people lived on its own land, it was not the land that united them. The land and the external trappings of statehood were only a means to better fulfill the obligations of the Jews. The Torah was not given for Eretz Yisroel; Eretz Yisroel was given for the Torah!
The Alter Rebbe of Chabad paskens that one should not quarrel over performing a mitzvah. As we find about the lechem hapanim, that the refined kohanim would step aside to avoid quarreling with the aggressive ones who grabbed the bread, even though it was a mitzvah midoraisa.
“At that time, when you were to go forth to take possession of a land inhabited by mighty men experienced in warfare, I did not drill you in the use of weapons. I did not make you study plans of war and military strategy. I did not make you replenish your arms and other materials of war. I did not appoint captains or generals for you. Even at the moment when you are about to subdue nations and conquer lands, you should have only one concern; how to realize the Law of God in your own midst as faithfully and punctiliously as possible. The observance of God’s moral law is sufficient to conquer the world. Let Israel only attain the standard set by the ideal of its Divinely-ordained purpose and leave it to God to defend its position before the world.”
Rav Samson Raphael Hirsch, Devarim
1: 18.
It was not the land that Moses had been commanded to proclaim to his people at the outset of his mission as מורשה, as the inheritance they were to preserve (Ex. 6,8). The Law, to be translated into full reality upon that soil, was to be the true מורשה, the one true, everlasting inheritance, the one true center around which the nation and its leaders were to gather as one united community. Herein lay the goal and the destiny, the character and the significance of the people.
https://web.stevens.edu/golem/llevine/rsrh/m_breuer_tide.pdf
The "Torah -1m-Derekh-Eretz" of Samson Raphael Hirsch BY MORDECHAI BREUER
“The scientists of today think deeply instead of clearly. One must be sane to think clearly, but one can think deeply and be quite insane.”
― Nikola Tesla
“Those who are able to see beyond the shadows and lies of their culture will never be understood, let alone believed, by the masses.”
― Plato
מ
[Balaam
said] How goodly are your tents, O Jacob, your dwelling places, O Israel!
(Bamidbar
24:5)
The lesson
for us here is that we must never think that it is important to be concerned
only about the “larger” issues of modesty and intimacy, but that we can be lax
about the “smaller,” “innocent” details. Even the smaller details are important
– important enough to be able to transform a curse into a blessing (or an
accursed situation into a blessed one).
Lest we
think that this alertness to the details of modesty is only required in our
day-to-day behavior but not in temporary situations (such as when we are on
vacation), we see here that the tremendous power of even the minor details of
modest conduct was demonstrated when our forefathers lived in tents, their
temporary homes in the desert.
The Lubavitcher
Rebbe, Likutei Sichos, vol. 13, p. 84.
