Joseph Judah and Bibi Netanyahu

Moshe Kempinski

The conflict between Yosef (Joseph) and what he represents and Yehuda (Judah) and what he is meant to represent runs as a continuum throughout Jewish history. A continuum wherein Yosef becomes the prototype of the sons of Rachel and Yehuda representing the traits of his mother Leah. Throughout history the two sides struggle against each other and at times one side comes out in control and at others the other side becomes the prevalent force. Rachel the beautiful and activist of the two sisters was Yaacov's (Jacob’s) first love and the one that he intended to marry. Leah, the more submissive and quiet one was the one that he married regardless.

Yaacov, being Yaacov, is drawn to the self assured and activist Rachel and therefore becomes very connected to Yosef her son who shares some of her attributes. The sons of Leah have difficulty with the aggressive ego and self assured activism presented by Yosef and throw him into the pit. Two sons of Leah, Reuven and Yehuda try to minimize the crime and fail, leading one of them at least into depression and feeling a need to abandon his whole family. Yet Yosef after experiencing the humbling experience of slavery and his successful passing of the tests laid before him becomes fitting to become the leader of the nascent Israelite nation. He rules them in Egypt just as his dreams prophesied.

Yet it is a descendant of Leah, Moshe (Moses) who takes them out of slavery. Following that a descendant of Rachel, Yehoshua ( Joshua) brings them into the land. The pendulum swings both ways until Saul, a descendant of Rachel becomes the first king. He loses that kingship to King David whose reign seemingly will last forever. Yet it is David's grandson that loses part of his kingdom to Yerovam a descendant of Rachel. The kingdom he establishes is destroyed and is dispersed ,yet the remnant of all twelve tribes gather in Jerusalem and the struggle continues until the reign of David will truly last forever.

What lies in the deeper levels of this struggle. What can we learn from this struggle about lasting leadership. The Lubavitcher Rebbe writes that the struggle represents;" the conflict between growth and self-fulfillment on the one hand, and subservience and commitment on the other. Rachel, "of beautiful form and of beautiful appearance," embodies the drive for self-fulfillment and self-realization, while the humble, submissive Leah represents our capacity for servitude and self-effacement. "

It is clear that both forces are critical for the formation and continuation of this people. Yet the drive of Rachel and Yosef could easily be thwarted into self centered arrogance. The submissive attributes of Leah could lead to inaction and weakness. Yosef needed to go through the experience of Egypt as did all of his family to refine the balance. Yehuda on the other hand had to go through the difficult experience with Tamar to find his own balance.

Tamar his daughter in law gives him back the power to live up to the secret power of his name. When she is taken to be burned she declares "..'By the man, whose these are, am I with child'; and she said: 'Discern, I pray thee, whose are these, the signet, and the cords, and the staff.' " (Breishit/Genesis 38:25) She does not declare whose they are but allows Yehuda acknowledge his responsibility .

In Hebrew he is Modeh/ axcknowledges his part and the word modeh forms the basis of his name Yehuda." And Judah acknowledged them, and said: 'She is more righteous than I; "( ibid 26). It is that strength of character he bequeathes to his descendant David. King Saul would not acknowledge his failings and loses the kingdom;

And Saul said unto Samuel: 'Yea, I have hearkened to the voice of HaShem, and have gone the way which the LORD sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the devoted things, to sacrifice unto HaShem thy God in Gilgal.' ( Shmuel 15: 20-21)) .

Yet David did and with that established his eternal monarchy.

And David said to Nathan: 'I have sinned against HaShem.' And Nathan said to David: HaShem also has put away your sin; you shall not die. ( Shmuel II 12:13)


Binyamin Netanyahu is very far from being a Yosef or a Yehuda but he is poised for leadership. Throughout his political career he has been plagued by one problem. That problem was Binyamin Netanyahu.

He was so filled with drive and a sense of vision that he constantly stumbled over his ego. He was strong willed and sure of himself but he would easily be weakened by pundits and opinion polls. That is the failure and weakness of self centered visionaries, capable of so much but hampered by worrying if it looked good. The disastrous agreement in Hevron was a result of that weakness as well as his failings at Wye.

Yet despite that he is being made ready to lead the people of Israel soon. What Binyamin Netanyahu needs to do is to reach deeper into himself as Yehuda was forced to do. His problem is not about coming on strong but rather about coming across more human and humane. All that he would need to do is to sincerely acknowledge past mistakes. It is something that is hard for him it seems. It may be also something his political advisors warn him against because it might weaken his image.

They are wrong.

That simple change of approach and style would cause a paradigm shift in his own awareness. This is especially true because it would almost instantly endear him to a people looking for real leadership. That acknowledgment is not about groveling and pandering but about the ability to grow from mistakes and move more humbly onto the path of destiny.

It is a path he must consciously decide to embark on.

THE POWER OF DREAMS

Moshe Kempinski

Since the first handshake with the arch terrorist Arafat on the lawn of the White House we have been living in a strange almost surrealistic nightmare. Truthfully the nightmare has been going on for a very long time. It actually began with the destruction of the Temple and the long night of exile. A long night that included pogroms, crusades, forced conversions, expulsions and gas chambers. Yet when an Israeli Prime Minister shook the hand of the devil in Washington, the nightmare became even more intense and frightening. The handshake symbolised the beginning of a time when nothing made sense anymore. The enemy ceased to only lie in waiting outside the ghetto walls or in the other part of the village. The dangers began from within the very body of the Jewish people.

The mystery and power of dreams lies in the fact that all things can coexist in a dream. Emotions that contradict each other can permeate a dream where even the impossible co-exists with the possible. They seem to come out of the deepest parts of our souls and whisper of hopes and hidden desires. Yet at the same time they rage with the passion of the greatest fears along with the most delicate of hopes.

The first exile of the Jews began with dreams. The dreams of Jacob followed by the dreams of Joseph and pharaoh all culminated in the long exile of Egypt.Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi , the Baal haTanya explains that exile was born out of a succession of dreams because exile is the ultimate dream.

It is in this world of spiritual exile wherein white is seen as black and black is seen as white. It is a situation where opposites reign and seven fat cows in Pharaoh’s dream can be eaten by seven lean cows and the lean remain lean. It is a state that, in our days ,allows a politician whose life has become embroiled in petty theft and illegal activity to continue to believe that he retains the right to be a the Prime Minister of this country. Rabbi Yehoshua of Ostrova said that s vain person is worse than a liar. A liar knows he is lying, whereas someone who is absorbed in his self-image of greatness, firmly believes in his delusions.
Spiritual exile is exile from simple unadulterated truth just like a dream. It is a dream that is cluttered with unwarranted exaggeration, muddled and confused metaphors with consistent inconsistency. In essence this dream state describes painfully the state of affairs in the world in general and in Israel in particular. In such a state, the Defense Minister of Israel can call the not responding to daily acts of violence against Israel's citizens as a moral and courageous stance. In such a spiritual environment the Prime minister can decry the actions and jail young people passionately in love with their land calling them a threat to Israel's democracy while releasing blood stained terrorists from jail even though they are a threat to its very existence. A woman running for Prime Minister can arrange for a song “Livni-boy” to be created by her staff and not be mortified that is but a pathetic copy of a successful ploy of Obama's campaign.

Everything is possible in a dream.

Yet as Rav Kook writes everything is possible in a dream, both the negative and the positive. A single dream may contain conflicting messages, since it reflects the conflicting qualities within each soul.Such is true of the collective soul of a people as well. When the wine butler tells Pharaoh about the unusual slave he met in prison called Joseph he says;""Just as he interpreted, so (my dream) came to be" [Gen. 41:13]."

This prompted our sages to declare a fact that has been increasingly adopted by modern psychology; "Dreams are fulfilled according to the interpretation" [Berachot 55b].

The interpreter does not refashion the future but rather he reaches into the positive depths of each conflicted dreamer and empowers the dreamer to live up to those qualities. There are those in this country that will interpret the dream that is our reality with predictions of doom and gloom. There are others , though, who will reach deeper and find the qualities of hope and vision that will lead this people into safe harbor.

In a time of elections where confusion reigns, search out for the dreamers who interpret the strengths of this people and not their weaknesses. Reach out, not to those who tear down and declaim even if their motives are pure, but rather those who have not lost hope. Leaders who may not all be cognizant of the spiritual heart that burns within them , yet nevertheless offer voice to those exact yearnings. Look to the dreamers who may be found in all the vrious political parties and constellations. People like Uri Ariel , Rabbi Hillel Horowitz ,Aryeh Eldad , Benny Begin and Uri Banks are deeply aware that the future is all in the hands of the interpreter of the dream.

A Song of Ascents When HaShem brought back those that returned to Zion, we were as dreamers ( Psalm 126:1)

" You can take the Jew Out Of Exile...."

Moshe Kempinski

The latest media frenzy around the list of candidates chosen in the Likud primaries was at first infuriating to listen to and it soon became simply became embarrassing . It seems that the "guard dogs" of democracy, our media, were foaming at the bit, waiting with articles dripping with sarcasm and hatred even days before the Likud Primaries. They were probably disappointed when Moshe Feiglin only achieved reaching the number 20 slot, but that would not stop their yelping and barking. They pointed to the list of people who were elected, describing it as a "Feiglin list" even though Feiglin was not connected to the list and is held in disdain by many of those voted in at the primaries. The list of people chosen by the electorate were the people suggested by many groups like Matot Arim , the residents of Jerusalem , Judea and Samaria and by the expellees of Gush Katif and all those who love this land and are inspired by its past and its future

I am not a supporter of Moshe Feiglin and yet I am happy that he got in as well and am incensed at Netanyahu’s childish attempts at rebuffing him. I am not a supporter, even though some of the main points of his Manhigut Yehudit faction, mirrors some of my own beliefs. This country does need a more faith based leadership. This people do need to regain courage and stamina to shake off the effects of the disease called Political Correctness. Yet I am not a supporter, because regrettably Moshe Feiglin has adopted the tact that got us into the mess we are in. All of us in the Land of Israel camp are guilty, because we have been so sure of our views and so self assured in our vision that we have slipped into self righteous rage at times. Instead of trying to co-opt and engage our opponents we have belittled them and/or ignored them. The "B'Ahava NeNatzeach-With Love We Will Win" campaign prior to the expulsion of Gush Katif failed not because it was inherently false but because it was too little and too late. We cannot assume that leadership will be ours simply because our cause is right. We cannot assume that everyone will agree with us simply because our vision is so clear. If great effort is not made to win the hearts and minds of the Israeli people we will continue to be maligned and ignored.

It is true that the hate spewed against the Land of Israel faithful will happen in any event but our obligation is not to calm the haters but rather to reach out to people of Israel who are still yearning for courage and vision, and they remain the silent majority and they are not our enemy. If we forget that we lose our right to be part of the miracle of rebuilding.

To understand the venom being spewed by the media one must simply read the noted pundit Ari Shavit in his article called An Israeli Tragedy published in Haaretz ;(http://www.haaretz.co.il/hasen/spages/1045664.html)


" Last month the world entered the Obama era, but Likud members paid no attention. The result is intolerable. Even though most Israelis are sane and moderate citizens capable of dialogue with a sane and moderate world, Likud's extremist majority seeks to drag them back to a dark and dangerous extremism."

There it is. The classic Jewish response of the Jew in exile. We cannot believe what we are we are meant to believe. We cannot feel what we are being made to feel. Why is that? It is because the rest of the "sane” world doesn't see it that way. The same "sane " world that has lost its direction and purpose and has lost the courage to battle evil. The Ari Shavits want so much to be loved by the Obamas of the world in much the same way the Jews in exile wanted to be loved by their landlords and bishops.



After Jacob our forefather fights the Angel of Esav and prevails he is blessed by the angel of G-d and recievs the name of Israel.

Shortly after Shimon and Levi avenge the kidnapping and rape of their sister Dina and Yaacov is very concerned and he says to them; "...... 'You have troubled me, to make me odious unto the inhabitants of the land, even unto the Canaanites and the Perizzites; and, I being few in number, they will gather themselves together against me and smite me; and I shall be destroyed, I and my house.'( Breishit 34:30)



What happened to Yaacov ? Where was “Israel”? The answer seems to be centered in the words "being few in number". According to Rav Hillel MiShklov, the Gaon of Vilna explains the importance in the numbers of Jewish population



"I asked Rabbeinu what to do if it would be physically possible to bring all the Jews to Eretz Yisroel at one time. So many questions and difficulties would arise regarding the arrangement of the settlement..After much thought, Rabbeinu answered, "If it becomes possible to bring 600,000 to Eretz Yisroel at one time, it should be done immediately because there is a great and total power in the number 600,000, and that could defeat Samae"l in the gates of Jerusalem.

The Zohar explains that Yaacov was concerned, that without the number of 600,000 the newly forming people of Israel were in danger and were to be live temporarily in a type of exile mentality, even in the land of Israel. It was with the mighty number of 600,000 that the people of Israel were finally redeemed from Egypt.



Rav Menachem Kasher, in his introduction to Kol HaTor in HaTekufah HaGedolah, mentions two statistical records in this regard;

The year 5708 (1948) was the first year in centuries that there were 600,000 Jews living in Eretz Yisrael and the State of Israel was born..The year of 5727 (1967) was the first year in centuries that there were 600,000 Jewish males of army age above the age of 20 living in Eretz Yisrael.In 1967 the city of Jerusalem was reunited and the process of redemption was hurled forward.



If one is sensitive to those numbers one knew how to act like a Yaacov in exile or knows that it is time to stand up like an Israel in the land of promise. It is harder to take the exile out of the Jew than it is to take the Jew out of exile but that is what needs to be done. The people of Israel must be given back the power to be who they are meant to be.

Those Angry Youth

Moshe Kempinski


When the news first broke of the police expulsion of the residents of the Peace House I was overwhelmed by a wave of anger pain and disgust. Memories of facing the horsemen at the street corner demonstrations during the early Oslo years, , standing against the cold lifeless faces of the soldiers in Kfar Maimon, and driving helplessly along the roads by the Gaza strip trying to find a way in , all came up like poisonous bile. Memories of the water cannons, the grey shirted Yassam thugs and the brutal forces at Amona all chilled my heart again .

Nothing seems to have changed and nothing seems to have been learnt. Just like in Amona the possibility of an agreed upon solution was discarded in favor of confronting the "powers of evil" as a way of lifting the political prospects of our Minister of Defense.

No...the powers of evil were not the terrorists holding Gilad Shalit. It wasn't the murderers lobbing death missiles into Sederot. It wasn't even radical Islam which murdered so many good souls just this last week.

It was a stand off against young ideological and faithful Jews living in a house that they legally purchased.

Yet the expulsion on Thursday was not the worst of the crime . The media defamation and hateful lies regarding the settlers of this house and of all the Biblical heartland was horrific. Reports were repeated about a soldier blinded by acid poured on him. Just as in Gush Katif this news story proved to be false. Suddenly young religious Zionist youth were all branded as homeless toughs with no controls. The young families in the Peace House represented the greatest threat to Israeli democracy since the Altalena. Reshet Bet news correspondents described the people demonstrating in the street corners as "thrill seekers". Psychologists and pundits wondered on radio talk shows “ why these youth were so angry.”

Lets see if I can help.

You arrested them as they sat in intersections in a cry of anguish after terrorist murderers.

You threw 14 and 15 year old kids into jail for long periods of time as you were releasing terrorists murderers as a "gesture"

You ran over them with your horses and you attacked them with water cannons

You brutalized them with hooked batons and heavy clubs in Amona.

You threw them out of their homes

You blamed them for everything from Rabin's murder to the spread of world wide Islamic terror.

You called them thugs and wild weeds and yet let them die for your ill planned wars in Lebanon.

You threw stun grenades and tear gas canisters at them when you wanted to evict them AGAIN from a home they purchased

And you wonder why they are angry and mistrustful of you…

Abraham Isaac and Jacob in Mumbai

Moshe Kempinski
The concept of Zechut Avot (the merit of the forefathers) in Jewish thinking refers to the concept that,when all else fails, the Jewish people can at times depend on the merits of their forefathers, Abraham Isaac and Jacob”. The simple understanding of that concept might lead one to assume that one’s direction and determination in life would be decided based upon the greatness and sanctity of others. That simple understanding would be inconsistent with Jewish understanding . We each stand before our Creator armed with the decisions we make , the character of our souls and the yearnings of our hearts.

What then is Zechut Avot?

The Ramban describes that "the deeds of our fathers are a signpost for the children." And that this is a cardinal rule of Jewish history.In his commentary on Parshat Lech Lecha he writes;
" I will tell you a rule to be applied throughout the parshiot of Avraham Yitzchak and Yaakov. The Rabbis stated this rule as “everything that happened to the fathers is a sign for the children”. The Torah tells stories, at length, about journeying or well digging ...one might think that these are meaningless detail but in reality they reflect something of the future. When an event occurs to one of the prophets who are our forefathers, he will understand that a form of these occurrences will occur as well to his descendants.”

Can this give some insight to the concept of Zechut Avot?

I believe the merit of our forefathers Avraham Yitzchak and Yaacov is that within every one of their descendants, a seed has been embedded deeply in every heart. We all carry within us a fragment of the qualities that each one of the fathers developed and revealed in this world. It is to those fragments we turn to for empowerment or guidance when reality comes crashing around us.

Each one of the forefathers became a master of a differing and powerful attribute. Abraham is identified with the divine attribute of Hesed: of kindness, of giving to others without limitations. Yitschak is connected with Gevura, the strength coming from self imposed rigor and disciplined limitations. Yaacov is connected with Emet, the truth that melds the two previous attributes into an ongoing walk of faith in difficult and threatening circumstances. Yaakov’s name implies that steady and consistent walk forward (Okev)


It is these attributes that lay ensconced within every one of their descendants waiting to blossom forth and be revealed. It is in the merit of these spiritual gifts left to the children that a small and fragile people can venture into and survive the difficult waters of human history.

It was Avraham's quality of Hesed and faith that led Rabbi Gavriel Noach Holtzberg and his wife Rivka to leave the comforts of their American home and travel to the dusty and chaotic port city of Mumbai, to open a Jewish outreach center. They worked tirelessly to run a Chabad house serving homemade kosher meals to their many guests and strengthening their connection with God. Much like Avraham's tent their "house” was open to the traveling seekers and the needy souls.

According to the Zaka volunteers who entered the bullet ridden ruins of the Chabad house,they found six badly damaged bodies. Yet Rivka's body was covered with a tallit. It seems that her husband in the midst of the terror and despite his wounds gathered the emotional, spiritual and physical strength to cover his wife before he succumbed to his own wounds. That was the attribute of Gevura working through him. The attribute revealed by Yitzchak who even when faced with his own impending death on Mount Moriah accepted the binding by his father. It is the attribute that gives the spiritual strength that enables one to continue to concern oneself with spiritual concerns even when confronted with extinction.

It is the Emet or truth of Yaacov that enabled the young couple to continue forward despite the previous tragedy of losing a child to a genetic disease. It is also that truth that will give his family and the rest of the Jewish people the empowerment to move forward and rebuild , eventually to recreate the tents of Avraham every where they need to be set up.

Yet it is also the truth of Yaacov that finally gave our forefather the strength to become Israel. The Yaacov who must become Israel does not turn another cheek but will strive with G-d, that is alongside G-d, to face, confront and vanquish evil.

In such a fashion the memories of all six victims of this hatred,Rabbi Gavriel Noach Holtzberg 29 years old and his 28 year old wife Rivka 38-year-old Leibish Teitelbaum, 50-year-old Norma Shvarzblat Rabinovich , Yocheved Orpaz, 60, and Bentzion Chroman, 28, will truly be for a blessing

Jacob's Journey

Moshe Kempinski ....

We read an unusual verse in Isaiah that says;

Therefore thus saith HaShem, who redeemed Abraham, because of the house of Yaacov: Yaacov shall not now be ashamed, neither shall his face now wax pale;( Isaiah 29:22)

The Midrash Tanchuma related to Parshat Toldot explains

Rav Shmuel son of Yitzchak says Abraham was saved from the fiery of furnace ( according to our tradition Nimrod threw Avraham into the furnace because he was afraid that his faith would deter his royal plans) . He was saved only on the merit of Yaacov. For the judgment came forth before Nimrod that Avraham be burned and it was known before HaShem that Yaacov was to be Avraham's descendant and G-d declared it was important that Avraham be saved on the merit of Yaacov ;

We need to understand the meaning of this Midrash.

Is it saying that without Yaacov, Avraham should have been burned?

Were all of Avraham's deed, greatness and incredible faith and faithfulness all for naught?

The text " Yifat Toar" explains that Avraham's great faith and his faithfulness that led him in the past into the unknown would have led to Avraham desiring to sacrifice his own life in order to sanctify G-d's name and to make the ultimate sacrifice and declaration of faith . This was Avraham's way. The importance of Yaacov's birth kept him away from that option.

If so the next question that needs to be asked is :

What did Yaacov introduce into the world that could not have been realized through Avraham ?

Why did the creation of the Jewish people have to wait until Yaacov and did not start with Avraham?

The secret of the survivability of this people and their eternal destiny was fully revealed within the character of Yaacov a process only begun with Avraham.

HaRav Kook writes the following in his book " Midbar Shur"

There are two paths in worshiping HaShem. One is spontaneous revolutionary and radical.

Avraham that broke into pieces all that was his past. Avraham battled the kings in spontaneous response to an evil that was perpetrated .The man who accepted the command to do the Brit Mila and even went unto the ends of human ability when he undertook the task of the binding of Yitzchak .This was the way of Avraham

Yaacov on the other hand was a simple man who dwelled in the tents .Yaacov as his name hints is the man who moves forward ( OKEV )step after careful step climbing the ladder of Yaacov ,rung after every rung

According to the Mystics of Judaism the purpose of mankind and the goal of every soul is to reach higher and higher with deliberate effort and spiritual work. All this so that they would not have to be nourished by the NEHAMA KISUFA the bread of shame? This bread of shame is based on the shame
of :" receiving without giving" .... About receiving from the Divine source with no spiritual endeavors"

That is the deeper understanding of the verse

Therefore thus saith HaShem, who redeemed Abraham, because of the house of Yaacov: Yaacov shall not now be ashamed, neither shall his face now wax pale;( Isaiah 29:22)

This is the secret of the Jewish people ensconced within Yaacov . The secret that " The Eternal People Have No Fear of The Long Voyage"

The journey that Avraham began with his "Lech Lecha ( go forth) " into the unknown, continued with Rivka the mother of Yaacov who told Eliezer, Avraham's servant " I will go" not knowing to where she was headed.

Yaacov forced to leave Israel wanders into the unknown and into his destiny.

Ruth the daughter of Moab who becomes Ruth the grandmother of King David when she declares to Naomi" wither you go I shall go"

The step by step journey into the unknown is the constant strength of Yaacov and of all his descendants.

I had the great merit recently of joining in the simcha celebrating the release of a young Jewish man from prison where he served a sentence for being involved in anti Disengagement activity that may have been illegal .Yet they were actions that came out of a deep passion and love for the people and the land of Israel. He is soon to be married and by so doing they will place another brick in the building of Jewish destiny. Another step in the long road of Jacob's journey.

As the world sinks deeper into the unknown and into confusion our people will continue to move forward and upward.

(from the Torah drasha at the Bar Mitzva of my son Baruch Eliyahu)

Walking In The Valley

As I was leaving the Western Wall recently, after evening prayers, I suddenly saw a group of young women students of one of the Ulpanot/ religious high schools burst unto the Kotel plaza. They were all wearing white sweatshirts and some were carrying Israeli flags , while others were draped with the flags. They exploded into singing and dancing. In essence they were whirling and jumping seemingly driven by some inner passion and joy. They seemed like starving wanderers who had finally reached an oasis filled with sparkling life giving waters.

In fact that is exactly what they were.

They had just returned from the wasteland of Europe, visiting the concentration camps and the historic Jewish communities that were no more. Nothing could contain their joy at that moment.


Several weeks later I was walking by the ancient Cardo Street in the old city, I saw some students from another school sitting and singing spiritual songs amidst the ancient pillars. Suddenly another group wearing different colored sweatshirts came running through the narrow entrance into the Cardo plaza and the two groups merged together with shrieks and hugs. The same scene that I had witnessed so many times at the Kotel plaza with other groups of Yeshiva boys and Ulpana girls was recreated as they burst into song and dance as well

Upon investigation I learned that the first group in the Cardo had been half the class that had decided to travel the length and breadth of the land of Israel. Their journey culminated in the old city of Jerusalem. The second group was the other half who had decided to make the trip to visit the destroyed synagogues and the death camps in Poland. They met together in the center of the world, in the Old city of Jerusalem.


In this world G-d speaks in images.

One needs to learn how to listen with one's eyes. There was great comfort in the images I was seeing. In a world of uncertainty and confusion certain images and metaphors stand as an anchor in seas raging with concern and doubt.


My son recently led a group of students from Yeshivat HaKotel to a trip through Poland and Austria. As the group stood in front of the horrific memorial in the death camp of Maidanek he handed every one of the students a page with the prophecy of Ezekiel printed out on it. The memorial in Maidanek is a small mountain of ashes and bones culled from the crematoriums that attempted to burn and destroy the memory of the Jewish people. A mountain of pain and hopelessness.


Ezekiel says in chapter 37;

1 The hand of HaShem was upon me, and HaShem carried me out in a spirit, and set me down in the midst of the valley, and it was full of bones; …… 5 Thus said HaShem G-D unto these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live. 6 And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am HaShem.' …. ….. 11 Then He said unto me: 'Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel; behold, they say: Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are clean cut off. 12 Therefore prophesy, and say unto them: Thus said HaShem G-D: Behold, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, O My people; and I will bring you into the land of Israel. 13 And ye shall know that I am HaShem, when I have opened your graves, and caused you to come up out of your graves, O My people. 14 And I will put My spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I will place you in your own land; and ye shall know that I HaShem have spoken, and performed it, said HaShem.'


My son then said to his students, these are the dry bones and you, the young people learning torah in Israel are the fulfillment of the end.


Interesting thoughts to ponder as we watch our frantic Prime Minister trying to promote a suicidal peace negotiation. This , being done either out of vengeance or out of desperation. These thoughts will be the anchor when other ministers in the government mount a hate campaign against young Jewish settlers and residents of the Biblical Heartland. It will bring some comfort when even in the nation that has proven to be a great friend of Israel in the past is experiencing new and dangerous changes.

The process of Destiny continues in spite of the small efforts of men to deter it

THE SIGN ON THE FOREHEAD

Moshe Kempinski.....

Israel is surrounded by enemies but the greatest threat lies within.

The dark clouds in the skies of our world are quickly gathering and seem ever more menacing. The clarity that seems so prevalent when the sky is blue and the sun is blazing seems to be dissolving in a frightening pace. The world is in intent on continuing its spiral into chaos and confusion. Axioms and understandings that were once anchors in our human voyage have been uprooted. Evil has become a relative and amorphous word while the word Good seems to have become a limited definition of whatever it is that fills one's own individual needs.

Rav Nachman of Bratslav tells the story about a king and his servant. The servant tells the king that there was a terrible plague with the new crop of wheat . It was contaminated and anyone who would eat of it would go insane. There was nothing else for the people to eat .But the servant assured the king that he had set aside enough of last year's wheat for the two of them. They could eat the old wheat and not go insane.

The king refused to eat anything other than what his subjects were eating, explaining that if the world goes insane and the two of them remain sane, they would be viewed as the insane ones., "You and I will eat what everyone else eats. However, we will mark our foreheads with a symbol, so that when I look at you and you look at me, the two of us will know that we are insane!"

The world has been suffering from such contaminated crops of wheat for some time now. A plague that seems to have swept across the European continent has landed on the shores of the Untied States in time for their elections. This land of Israel was not spared and has been overrun since the failed Oslo Peace process with the Palestinian terrorists was begun.

What then is the sign on the foreheads that we need to look for in order to re-establish balance.

During the darkening months of Heshvan it may be hard to remember the comforting glow of Tishrei. It may be difficult at times to reconnect to that incredible feeling of safety and protection we all felt as we sat under the clouds of Glory in our Sukkoth. Yet the instructions for re-entering the world of the "crazy wheat" were given during the festival of Sukkoth as well. On the Shabbat of Chol Hamoed Sukkoth we read the following from the book of Exodus

“And HaShem said unto Moses: 'I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken, for you have found grace in My sight, and I know you by name.' And he said: 'Show me, I pray Thee, Your glory.' And He said: 'I will make all My goodness pass before you, and will proclaim the name of HaShem before you ; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy.' And He said: 'You cannot not see My face, for no man shall see Me and live.' And HaShem said: 'Behold, there is a place by Me, and you shall stand upon the rock. And it shall come to pass, while My glory passes by, that I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and will cover you ( VeSakotee) with My hand until I have passed by. And I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back; but My face shall not be seen.'(Exodus 33:17-23)

Though we may be finding ourselves alone in a cleft or crevice during the coming passing storms, we will hearken back to the memory of the covering of Sukkoth . It, like the covering of Hashem's hand ,"and will cover you ( VeSakotee) with My hand until I have passed by" will give us the stamina and vision to see all that needs to be seen and understand all that needs to be understood . Only after experiencing the passing of and sensing the impact of the ever developing hand of Divine destiny, will history ever achieve real meaning.

A decision seems to have been made in Israel 's government to stoke the fires of hatred in the land. In the inner chambers of the crumbling and faltering cabinet it would seem that a decision was arrived at regarding the villifying of the settlers and their children. That would explain the sudden outpouring of “concern" and consternation regarding the remarks and actions of some teenagers on the windswept hilltops of Judea and Samaria .

Massive amounts of weapons are still being smuggled into the Gaza strip. Missiles are still being fired into Israel from the ruins of Jewish settlements in Gush Katif. Leftist Israelis, European anarchists and Palestinians are staging a weekly violent demonstration at Bilin, wounding soldiers and civilians. Several terrorist incidents in Jerusalem have recently been thwarted. Yet the Government held urgent discussions on “the recent bout of violence directed towards security forces in West Bank by Jewish extremists" All this coincidently timed to occur around the date of the commemoration of Yitzchak Rabin's murder.

Defense Minister Ehud Barak declared: "These riots and public disturbances are extremely grave, and their objective is to undermine the authority of the state and its ability to impose order on its citizens. There is an attempt here by a group of extremists to fracture the authority of the state and its representatives in the field, the IDF and the police, born of their pretension to dictate to the state the patterns of behavior seen in Judea and Samaria."

One needs to remember we are talking about a handful of teenage boys and girls who dared to resist the violent demolition of the Federman house near Kiryat Arba.

Vice Premier Ramon bellowed recently that "Several hundred unruly Jewish hooligans are running amuck in the Territories, beating IDF officers, breaking bones, (sic) and trying to assassinate Professor (Ze'ev) Sternhell( sic). And the government stands before them trembling and helpless, and all the law enforcement agencies explain why nothing can be done against them. I am convinced that if these were Palestinians, they would all be behind bars by now,"


One needs to remind Ramon that had they been Palestinians they would be immediately released from prison as a "goodwill gesture" as opposed to the young Jewish girls who sat in Jail with no recourse for months.

It may very well be that the orders to destroy the Federman house in the accompaniment of the violent Yassam thug unit may have been given to stir the pot and create the reactions and enhance the image of "violent settlers".



Why all this effort?



Our Prime Minister, Olmert, is being charged or suspected of common thievery. Our Minister of Defense, Barak , lost his position in a landslide vote after having been a failure as a Prime Minister. Our Vice Premier, Ramon, has been convicted of sexual misconduct. Their coalition government is in tatters and their only defense from the scrutiny of the Israeli public is an offense. Setting up the settlers as Public Enemy #1 and then "cracking down" on them, may be the antidote to help cover over their own failures and incompetence.



With the media completely backing them up in the effort, one might wonder how the nationalist camp expects to withstand the renewed attack from their fellow countrymen. The press, the judicial system, the political leadership and the world has already prejudged each and every resident of the biblical heartland. Resisting such an onslaught seem to be a feat more impossible that withstanding the terror attacks and missiles of those who are clearly identified as the enemy.



An interesting insight into the torah portion of Lech Lecha might give us some direction.

And, behold, the word of HaShem came unto him, saying: 'This man shall not be your heir; but he that shall come forth out of your own loins shall be your heir And He brought him forward , and said: 'Look now toward heaven, and count the stars, if you are able to count them'; and He said unto him: 'Thus shall be your children .' And he believed inHaShem; and He counted it to him as righteousness.( Genesis 15:4-6)

G-d tells Abraham to go out and count the stars though He also tells him that that is an impossible task. Then G-d says "'Thus shall be your children ". The simple understanding of the verse explains that Abraham is told that his children would be as numerous as the stars. The deeper understanding says much more.

G-d tells Abraham to do an impossible task and then we see a pause. At the end of that pause G-d begins to speak again and says "'Thus shall be your children ".

What did Abraham do during that pause? Clearly he went out and started counting the stars just as G-d had asked him to do. At that point G-d tells him that it is that characteristic that will exemplify his children. They will endeavor to do even the impossible because that is what their beloved G-d asked them to do.

It is that passion and faith that is so infuriating people who have no passion except for themselves and no faith except in their own power. It is that vision and commitment that so angers people who have lost the ability to see.

These young people are being condemned by the press and the leadership as agents of hatred and discord. Yet the reality is so clearly different. It is these young people who have withstood the truncheons and horse at Amona and the fists and batons in Kiryat Arba that represent simple unconditional love.


Love for the land of Israel and love for the vision of what the people of Israel will yet grow to become. That is what will be the sign on the forehead, love for
the G-d of Israel, the people of Israel and the land of Israel

SUKKOTH: Heaven and Earth

by Moshe Kempinski

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Drive through many streets in any city in Israel and you will find colorful stands selling the spiritual tools of Sukkoth, lulavim etrogim and assorted decorations for the sukkah dispersed throughout
.
Our Torah tells us;
"And ye shall keep it a feast unto HaShem seven days in the year; it is a statute for ever in your generations; ye shall keep it in the seventh month. Ye shall dwell in sukkoth seven days; all that are home-born in Israel shall dwell in sukkoth ;that your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in sukkoth , when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am HaShem your G-d.( Vayikra 23:41-43)


Our sages disagree as to the meaning of the verse "that your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in sukkoth ". What is it that they were supposed to remember? According to Rabbi Eliezer, the word "sukkoth" refers to the clouds of glory with which God protected the Jews. Rabbi Akiva teaches that it refers to the actual booths that they lived in during their time in the wilderness.. ( Sukkah 11b).


The understood principle in all such disagreements is " these and these are the words of living torah"


What then is the core of their disagreement? The essence of the festival of sukkoth is that it is the culmination and fulfillment of the redemptive process began in the month of Elul . A process that then moved through the Days of Judgment of Rosh Hashana and on through the crucible and purifying fire of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.


The days of Sukkoth which should have been celebrated during the month of their Exodus from Egypt, Nissan, is instead celebrated here in the month of Tishrei following the Days of Awe. The Vilna Gaon writes that the heavenly clouds of glory that protected the people were restored on the 15th of Tishrei after having been removed following the sin of the golden calf in the month of Nissan.


What then is the connection between the Clouds of Glory and Tishrei?


During the days of Elul and Tishrei each individual soul undergoes a spiritual voyage that is unparalleled in its intensity and awesome in its implications.


It is in the month of Elul that we begin again the courtship with the Beloved, The letters of Elul standing for the first letters of the verse " Ani Ledodi VeDodui Lee-I Am My Beloved's and my Beloved is Mine. The soul clothed in the physicality of reality then enters into the day of Judgment .Yet on this day the focus seems not to be on the judgment but rather on the simple and awesome act of declaring G-d to be Ruler and Majesty of the earth. Only after comprehending the fact of that Rulership can the soul move on through the intensity and supreme focus of the ten days of repentance.


Eventually on the Day of Atonement the soul attempts to disconnect from the physicality of his existence .A day that is spent attempting to mirror the existence of angels. We desist from actions that speak of our physical existence, eating , washing ourselves, the wearing of comfortable shoes and intimate relationships between husband and wife. All this is done in order to remove the spiritual impediments that stand in the way of our relationship with our Creator. Eliminating the sins that impede the intimacy of true connection with the Divine. Yet the process of that purifying and self-inspection leaves our hearts and souls as seared and broken vessels.


The only way to mend a seared and fractured heart is with Joy. The feast of Sukkoth is the antittode as it is the feast of Joy.”VaHayitem Ach Sameach- and thou shalt be altogether joyful” (Deuteronomy 16:15) G-d is not commanding us to be happy. G-d is telling us that we will be!


What then is the greatest Joy. It is the ability to give to one’s true beloved what it is that beloved truly desires. After leaving the intensity of G-d’s very throne room on Yom Kippur we are then told what our Beloved’s desires are.


“And ye shall take you on the first day the fruit of goodly trees, branches of palm- trees, and boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook, and ye shall rejoice before HaShem your G-d seven days. And ye shall keep it a feast unto HaShem seven days in the year; it is a statute for ever in your generations; ye shall keep it in the seventh month. Ye shall dwell in booths seven days; all that are home-born in Israel shall dwell in booths; that your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am HaShem your G-d. And Moses declared unto the children of Israel the appointed seasons of HaShem. (Leviticus 23:40-44 )


Throughout Jerusalem and throughout the country Jews have spent intense energy and many shekels to find the perfect gift for their Beloved. One of the agents that I deal with in our Old City shop with who represents a large Judaica company told me that for the first time he was meeting with a incredibly heightened desire and need for Sukkoth Judaica all over the country." Not just in Jerusalem or in Bnei Brak. It is happening all across Israel. “he said” There is something new in the air, it is palpable. "


He is right, the feeling is palpable and powerful. There is a great stirring in the land. Despite the dangers from without and the decay within the stirring is blossoming like a tender shoot.

It is that stirring that will bring the Great stirring in the Heavens as well.
This then explains the disagreement between Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Akiva . They were disagreeing as to which stirring must come first? Which stirring is the most critical? Was it the fact that the Israelites built Sukkoth in the wilderness and then trusted G-d to protect them from the ravages of the barren desert? Was it in fact the Clouds of Glory that first surrounded the people and empowered them to trust?

In Israel we see that a great stirring has begun here amidst us. It instigates or mirrors a great stirring in the Heavens. It is that stirring that brings a clear melding between our earthly Sukkoth and the Heavenly clouds of Glory.A melding of the views of Rabbi Akiva and Rabbi Eliezer.

" these and these are the words of living torah"

The Mysterious Rashi Commentary

Moshe Kempinski

Anybody that has visited the Old City of Jerusalem these last several weeks would have been touched by a fascinating and incredible phenomenon. The streets and plazas of the old city are filled, all night, with people of all types walking hurriedly towards the Western Wall for Selichot prayers . Young and old, observant and those Jews who were less so ,were walking together in the same direction. As my wife and I were driving home late one such night from the Western Wall we stopped at the intersection at the foot of Mount Zion. The policeman guiding traffic at the corner turned to us and said,” Everybody is suddenly religious in these days. They all think about Him now.” He said with a sparkle in his eyes. As we drove off I said “Baruch HaShem- Thank G-d”. He smiled and looked up and mouthed a “Yishtabach Shmo- May His Name be Praised”. We crossed the intersection carefully trying not to hurt all those people walking together with such similar purpose.

In the Torah portion ' VaYelech “that is usually read before Yom Kippur we read the following;

"And Moshe went and he spoke the words to the Children of Israel." ( Deuteronomy 31:1)

Rashi, the classic Jewish commentator highlights the first words of the verse "And Moshe went " and offers as an explanation, the cryptic word "etc" and nothing more.

The question that Rashi was attempting to answer was "To where did Moshe go to? In the previous torah portion, Nitzavim, we read that Moshe addresses the whole nation. Why then did Moshe have to go anywhere to speak to the people? They were already arrayed before him.

Rashi's answer to that question was simply, "etc"?!?

Perhaps that simple explanation points to a great spiritual truth. Moshe was delivering his last message to the Jewish people. These were the last 24 hour of his life. Moshe had shepherded these people for forty years. He had carried them through difficult and tumultuous times. He was approaching the end of his mission but that did not stop this man. Rash's use of the word veGomer or "etc" was that the words "And Moshe went " indicated that Moshe never stopped moving and never stopped growing even during the final 24 hours of his life. That had been his spiritual strength throughout his life and it was the spiritual strength he had imparted to his descendants.

Rav Yekusiel Yehudah Halberstam (January 10, 1905-June 18, 1994) the founding rebbe of the Sanz-Klausenberg Hasidic dynasty lost his wife and ten of his children in the flames of the living hell called the Holocaust. Throughout those years of terror and horror, Rabbi Halberstam continued to try to spiritually uplift and encourage his fellow prisoners despite his own personal losses. In the fall of 1945, after the liberation of the camps , the Rebbe moved to the new DP camp of Föhrenwald, On Yom Kippur of that year, General Dwight D. Eisenhower visited the camps in an attempt to "asses the state of the Jewish DP's". On that same day the Rebbe was speaking to the tattered remnants of his people.

The Klausenberger Rebbe dressed in a white kittel, the white linen robe traditionally worn on Yom Kippur, and wrapped in a large tallit, looked angelic and pure

With tears in his eyes he began by thanking God for saving the lives of those standing before him from the Nazi hell. He then pointed to his kittel – and began to speak slowly, deliberately, tearfully:

"One of the reasons we wear this kittel is because it is the traditional burial garment, in which we wrap a body before laying it to rest in the ground, as we do when we bury our parents and those that came before us. Wearing a kittel on Yom Kippur thus reminds us of our final day of judgment when we will be laid to rest. It therefore humbles and breaks our hearts, stirring us to do complete Teshuvah (return). The white, linen kittel is a symbol of purity that we achieve through our introspection and efforts to repair all our wrongs.

"Since the kittel reminds us of the burial shroud of those that passed on before us," continued the Klausenberger Rebbe , "why are we wearing a kittel today? Our parents and loved ones were just slaughtered without tachrichim (burial shrouds). They were buried, with or without clothes, in mass graves, or in no graves at all…"

Suddenly, the Klausenberger Rebbe began removing off his own kittel . "No kittel!" he cried out in an anguished voice. "Let us be like our parents. Let us remove our kittels, so that they can recognize us. They won’t recognize us in kittels, because they are not wrapped in kittels…"

He continued expounding on the following words from the traditional Yom Kippur prayerbook.

"Ashamnu - Did we sin? Bagadnu - Were we unfaithful?… Were we, God forbid, unfaithful to God and fail to remain loyal to him? Gazalnu - did we steal? From whom did we steal in Auschwitz and Mühldorf? … Maradnu - We rebelled.. Against whom? …we are guilty of sins that are not written in the machzor… How many times did many of us pray, Master of the Universe, I have no more strength, take my soul "?… We must ask the Almighty to restore our faith and trust in Him. ‘Trust in God forever.’… Pour your hearts out to Him."

The Jews, young and old, religious and those that had lost faith all broke down in tears. The utter sadness, the excruciating pain and the humiliation of the past years came pouring out in wailing and sobbing.

General Eisenhower, visibly moved by the words he heard from the translator, approached the Rebbe later. He asked him if there was something he could do for him. The Rebbe simply asked that he help them find lulavim and etrogim for the upcoming festival. The general was taken aback by the simple request and immediately instructed his lieutenant Berl Smith to arrange for the items to be flown in from Italy.

The general of the mighty victorious army confronted with a simple request of faith. Even after the horrors of turmoil of the valley of Death the Klausenberger Rebbe simply wanted to continue with a simple Mitzva .In that simple request lay the spiritual fortitude that bespoke of a power that was greater than the mightier armies.

The spiritual power expressed by Rashi's simple statement of "etc"

The Jewish people in our days are entering another Yom Kippur. They will be entering the Throne room of the Almighty armed with nothing but " a contrite and broken heart" . Dressed in white kittels wrapped in large tallitot, they will be spending intense and intimate time with their Creator. The experience is exhilarating, awesome and yet frightening. The incredible spiritual journey ends with a mighty Shofar blast. Every Jew walks home tired with a sense of Holy contentment mixed with earthly anxiety.

Yet within a very short period of time they will be out on their porches and balconies building their Succoth. They will be out on the streets buying a lulav and etrog. They will be walking in search of the simple Mitzva. That is the spiritual strength of this people. They move forward past the tragedies of their history and continue through the uncertainties of the future. The spiritual power of "and Moshe went" continues.

Each of us in our individual lives must go through the trials and uncertainties of our existence. The secret is to continue on the voyage. Our people in the land of Israel have had to endure the insanity of the Gush Katif upheaval and the brutality of Amona. The secret is to continue on the voyage.

The voyage includes the standing against those that try to thwart the voyage but the secret is in the voyage and not the destination.

You Stand This Day- Rosh Hashana

Moshe Kempinski

Generally on the Shabbat before Rosh Hashana, the days of judgment of the world, this dramatic verse from the Torah portion of Nitzavim is read in the synagogues.

"You stand this day, all of you, before HaShem your G-d: your heads, your tribes, your elders, your officers, and every Israelite man; your young ones, your wives, the stranger in your gate; from your wood hewer to your water drawer." (Deuteronomy 29:9)

Rabbi Moshe Sofer known as the Chatam Sofer asked what is meant by the words "You stand this day,... ". Were they not standing before G-d earlier at Mount Sinai? Were they not standing before Him at the shores of the Reed Sea?


In reality the Israelites could not muster the spiritual courage to " stand before G-d". They implored Moshe to stand for them in their stead " Go thou near, and hear all that HaShem our G-d may say; and thou shalt speak unto us all that HaShem our G-d may speak unto thee; and we will hear it and do it.' ( ibid 5:23)


G-d responds favorably to their request and tells Moshe " But as for thee, stand thou here by Me, and I will speak unto thee all the commandment, and the statutes, and the ordinances, which thou shalt teach them, that they may do them in the land which I give them to possess it.' ( ibid 5:27) .

The words we hear in the Torah portion of Nitzavim were the words spoken in the last 24 hours of Moshe's life. Moshe is telling his people that he has suffered as the sieve or protective covering for them for forty years. Now that they are about to enter the land, they must be prepared to enter the next phase of their Divine mission. Until "this day" they had been the tools that G-d had been using to reveal His involvement in this world. After "this day" they were becoming active participants in that very revelation. They were about to enter the land of Israel without Moshe standing between them and G-d any longer. Henceforth they were going to stand themselves before HaShem their G-d . They were to do that in the land where Divine involvement with the world is more visible than in any other place in this world.


That thought should have been a daunting almost frightening thought., Could they live up to the task and the expectation?


The Baal Shem Tov related that whenever the word " HaYom - this day" is mentioned it refers to Rosh Hashanah. We too stand before HaShem our G-d on this very day .That thought too should be daunting and frightening. A true understanding of the implications of such a "stand" should be enough to overwhelm our spirit and silence our tongues. What could we say at such a moment. Could we develop the courage to look upward and forward without being daunted by feelings of inadequacy.


The words HaYom-This Day " are used elsewhere as well.


" And it fell on this day( Vayhi HaYom ), that he ( Elisha the prophet )came thither, and he turned into the upper chamber and lay there. And he said to Gehazi his servant: 'Call this Shunammite.' And when he had called her, she stood before him. And he said unto him: 'Say now unto her: Behold, thou hast been careful for us with all this care; what is to be done for thee? wouldest thou be spoken for to the king, or to the captain of the host?' And she answered: 'I dwell among mine own people.' (Kings II 11-13)

The writings of the Zohar ( parshat Beshalach) offer another level of understanding to theencounter between the prophet and this simple woman. It explains that the prophet Elisha asks this woman if he can intercede on her behalf on "this day" that was Rosh Hashana before the "King" who is none other than the ultimate King.


Her answer gives insight and inspiration to all of us who are cognizant of our own stand before the King on this Day of Judgment. She answered " I dwell amongst my own people". Though I may feel inadequate to stand before HaShem on this or on any day, I wish only to be judged together with the entire people of Israel. Only when I become part of the corporate soul that is the people of Israel can I receive the empowerment to "stand before HaShem". Only in the unity of the people is our judgment tempered with ultimate Divine mercy.


That is the deeper meaning of the verse "You stand this day, all of you, before HaShem, your G-d":


That is the secret of Rosh Hashanah. Before we enter into the days of Atonement and repentance we enter into the Palace of Rosh Hashanah and together, as a people, declare G-d to be Ruler and Majesty of the Universe. Within that corporate purpose lays the empowerment for individual growth. The eternal concept of Klal Yisrael gives each member of that Klal the ability and courage to become the individual he needs to be.
That is the purpose of the Jewish people as it is the purpose of every community of faith as we enter the days of judgment of the whole world.



During the months preceding these Holy Days , NefeshB'Nefesh planeloads of young and old Jewish families arrived in this land in order to begin the new adventure of Aliyah. The hidden strength of these people, and of those that already live here and also of those that yearn to live here is their connection to Klal Yisrael . That connection has more overcome their preoccupation with their more individual lives. It is these types of souls that will stand before the King with unified purpose also on behalf of those who have not attained that awareness. Yet that unified stand will also serve to hasten that awareness to cover the whole world " as the waters cover the sea." (Isaiah11:9)

Farmers and Priests

Our generation has seen a miracle unfold before our eyes. A battered and struggling people came into the swamps and desolate valleys of this land and became the agents of its flowering. Furthermore their pioneering efforts were imbued with miraculous and idealistic passion. Regardless of what they claimed to believe or not believe these early pioneers of Israel were active partners of Divine revelation. Yet only one or two generations later , the descendants of these same great pioneers became mired in self serving politics and small minded leadership. The great visionaries spawned heirs with no vision.


What Happened?


The ancient sage called the Sifri declared that " The Creation of the world occurred in the merit if the commandment of Bikkurim-First fruits.” That statement is so powerful in its simplicity that it demands to be explored.


After a year of toiling, planting, watering, tending, and caring for the produce man has grown, he enters his field. He sees the first ripening fruit of one of the seven species and he ties a band over this fruit and declares “This is for Bikkurim (the ceremony of first fruits)" Later, when it ripens, he places it in a basket. These baskets were then brought to the Beit HaMikdash in a festive procession. In all parts of Israel they would gather in the middle of their towns in special gatherings called Maamadot. They awoke after spending the night in the open are when an appointed individual announced “Arise and let us go up to Zion and the house of our L-rd." The groups would then in a festive procession to Jerusalem singing, "I was happy when they said to me let us go to the house of the L-rd" (Psalms Ch 122). The procession included a bull to be used as a thanksgiving sacrifice, adorned with gold and a wreath of olive branches, with the whole procession led by the music of flutes. As they stood within the temple, the one offering the Bikkurim states to the priest in the Temple,"I proclaim this day to the L-rd thy G-d that I have come unto the land which the L-rd swore unto our fathers to give them." The person then declares the Vidui recanting the travails of the Israelites till they arrived in the land, settled it and now have succeeded in gathered in its fruits.

As the procession would walk through the streets of Jerusalem, all the workmen , laborers and scholars would stop what they are doing and stand in honor of these farmers bearing Bikkurim. The Torah commentator Bartenura raises an interesting question. According to another Jewish law, It is obligatory to stand in honor of a Torah scholar when he passes This is done not so much to honor the scholar as it is to honor the Torah that this " living torah scroll "represents. Yet that Jewish law continues that craftsmen do not have to stop their work to stand up for such a scholar as this would interrupt their work and livelihood. Such is not the case with the law regarding these farmers bringing the first fruits. “Why”, asks the Bartenura, is that so?

The reason seems to be that these farmers, in this situation, during these festive times act as high priests. They are examples of G-d's revelation within nature. In the land wherein Heaven touches the earth the very fruits carry a Divine message. The return of G-d's Glory, Kavod HaShem back into awareness and revelation is symbolized by the fruits and blossoms of the land. Kavod or G-d's Glory is the manifestation of G-d's Presence that necessitates man to reveal and declare it. When the prophet Ezekiel describes G-d's Glory leaving the Temple Mount (Ezekiel 11:23). , he is describing a people going into exile with the Glory of G-d going into exile with them as a result. G-d’s Presence never left but His Glory did.

Yet Ezekiel describes the return of the people from Exile in the following way; "But you, O mountains of Israel, will produce branches and fruit for my people Israel, for they will soon come home."(ibid 36:8 ) . Every fruit, every tree, every flower is a testament to G-d's promises. That then becomes the role of these simple farmers. They are the vessels through which G-d's Presence is revealed and glorified. That as the Sifri pointed out is in essence is the purpose of creation.

That helps explain what happened to the generations that followed the early pioneers of this newborn state. The visionaries who built this land were all farmers. It is difficult to be a farmer, especially in the land of Israel and not be imbued with a deep mystical sense of the inner harmony of this world. Whether they could or would have the insight to identify G-d in their passion, their passion was G-dly nonetheless.

Their children and grandchildren ceased to be farmers and became obsessed less with how to make the land blossom and grow but rather how to do that with their bank accounts. Without the anchor and compass of faith they have lost the Divine impetus of their mission in this land. As a result they falter and fail and will be replaced by young men and women of vision.

The Redemptive Power Of Memory

12 Elul 5768, 12 September 08 01:27

by Moshe Kempinski

The Ba'al Shem Tov, the founder of modern day Hassidism, said, "Forgetting is the beginning of Exile; remembering is the beginning of Redemption."

President Shimon Peres said, in an interview with David Hume (2000), the following chilling words, "You know, they say the Jewish people have a long memory. What we need is a rich imagination today, because the things that are going to happen - or did happen already - are so revolutionary that the past becomes pale, irrelevant."

We are living in a world that glorifies the present and denies its responsibilities of the past. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is head of a political party that boasted that they had no ideology and were "not prisoners to any legacy." It is not surprising, then, that he has fallen into the state wherein he is in now being accused of bribery and corruption .This is the inevitable result of having no sense of memory and purpose. Olmert, in fact, believes that the memory of Israelis is so short that they will yet forgive him for any of his own past misdeeds. That is the reason he is so intent on creating some diplomatic and political event that will sway the short attention span of modern Israel.

That is not the spirit of Judaism that is blowing in the wind, but rather the noxious breeze of Amalek.

Amalek, a small tribe descending from Esau living in the Negev region of Israel, attacks the Israelite nation as they leave Egypt. They may have been the first, but were definitely not the last. They may have been cruel, but were not the most brutal. They may have inflicted damage on the new people leaving slavery, but the destruction pales in comparison to the damage inflicted by the Romans, Babylonians and Edomites. Yet, it is the nation of Amalek that becomes the prototype of evil.

Remember what Amalek did unto you by the way as you came forth out of Egypt; how he then happened upon you by the way, and smote the hindmost of you, all that were enfeebled in your rear, when you were faint and weary; and he feared not G-d. Therefore it shall be, when HaShem your G-d hath given you rest from all your enemies round about, in the land which HaShem your G-d gives you for an inheritance to possess it, that you shalt blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven; you shalt not forget. (Devarim 25:17-19)

The Zohar asks, "What is the reason that the war that Amalek waged against Israel was singled out for remembering by the Holy One Blessed Be He, more than all the wars that all other nations waged against Israel?" (Zohar, Shemot 194b) The answer is that the war battled by Amalek was not only physical, but spiritual. The essence of the battle of Amalek can be understood by understanding one word in the Biblical text:"...how they happened upon you [asher karcha] by the way, and smote the hindmost of you."

The word karcha does not make sense. The Amalekites could not just have happened upon the Israelites, as they were living a very great distance from where the Israelites were wandering. So if the attack was premeditated, then what then does the word karcha mean? Rashi on that verse gives three possible explanations for the word, all three of which give great insight into Amalek and their mission. We will focus on one of them. The word karcha comes from the word mikreh - "happenstance"

In the words of Reb Tzadok HaCohen, "The whole essence of Amalek is random happenstance... and as it is written 'how they happened [asher karcha] upon you': since Amalek attributes all things to random chance."

That is the reason the descendant of Amalek, Haman, decided to throw lots to determine the date of the Jewish people's destruction, rather than destroying them the moment he had the chance. It was more important for him to solidify the belief in random happenstance when confronting the Jew than it was to eradicate the Jew immediately. That is the reason that Amalek attacked the Israelites immediately after the miraculous exodus from Egypt. The exodus from Egypt had achieved one of its stated goals in impressing the nations of the world that the world was being ruled with Divine purpose and was not, in fact, run by randomness.

The woman Rahav of Jericho says to the two spies that Joshua sent into the land:

...and she said unto the men: 'I know that HaShem hath given you the land, and that your terror is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land melt away before you. For we have heard how HaShem dried up the water of the Red Sea before you, when you came out of Egypt; and what you did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that were beyond the Jordan, unto Sihon and Og, whom you utterly destroyed. And as soon as we had heard it, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more spirit in any man, because of you; for HaShem your G-d, He is G-d in heaven above, and on earth beneath. (Joshua 2:9-11)

Amalek did away with that memorable history. Amalek, who in Gematria is equivalent to the Hebrew word safek or "doubt," ignored those memories because Amalek was to be a nation with no memory. Amalek was a nation that lived simply in the here and now; past events and experience was irrelevant. In so doing, he was following in the footsteps of his ancestor Esav, whose name comes from the word asui - "fully made." Esav and Amalek did not need to grow and change, they were what they were. Jacob was all about memory. Jacob, by virtue of his name, was all about following forward - le'akov.

That is the reason that the Jewish people are bidden to remember and never forget Amalek. They are bidden to blot out their remembrance. To blot out the remembrance of a nation with no memory. If the Jewish nation does not succeed in that task, then Amalek will have succeeded in tainting their spiritual core. Without a deep sense of history , a clear vision of the reality around them, and a spiritual vision of destiny, the Jewish people will lose direction and falter. This is what has already happened to our leadership and continues to threaten to engulf the rest of Israeli society.

Yet, deep historical memory, open-eyed awareness of reality and spiritual vision has not died in this country.

This week, I participated in a wedding among the ancient ruins of the Talmudic village of Katzrin on the Golan. A son of friends who had settled in the community of Nov, on the Golan, was marrying the daughter of one of the founding families of that community. As we guided the groom towards his bride with singing and dancing through the narrow alleyways of the ruins of the Katsrin village, I was struck by an overwhelming thought.

Here we were, two thousand years after the destruction of this village, singing, "There will yet be the sound of the groom and the bride...." And I imagined that behind the dark stones of the ruins were hiding the souls of all the ancient residents singing and rejoicing with us. The descendants of those same souls never forgot their past and, after two thousand years, came back to reclaim it. These young people with their whole future unfolding before them decided to cement that future by declaring their faithfulness in the ruins of an ancient synagogue.

One of the secrets of the Jewish people is that there is no such thing as a twenty-, forty- or sixty-year-old Jew. Every Jew alive today is three thousand years old.

That is the power of memory. "Forgetting is the beginning of Exile; remembering is the beginning of Redemption."

A Holy System Of Government

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A Holy System Of Government
Moshe Kempinski

Attitudes towards the rebirth of Jewish commonwealth in Israel are very similar to the old adage “ do you see the glass as half empty or as half full”. That is to say do we look at all the foibles in the state? Do we bemoan and wail how what we see has become such a caricature of what is meant to be in this land .Or do we understand and see the seeds and blossoms of a new thing..



Our judicial; system seems to be stricken with peripheral vision.Our police rife with corruption and small mindedness. Those that claim to be the levites of our nation seem to have forgotten the rest of the people and the vision that has once led this people into their destiny seems to have waned.



The torah portion of Shoftim essentially deals with the establishment of four such bodies whose roles are to provide governance and guidance in the land of Israel. These words and instructions regarding these institutions are being delivered by Moshe 36 days before his death. These systems seem to be so important that Moshe makes them a critical part of the intricate legacy he bequeaths his people before he leaves this world.



The four bodies are Shoftim VeShotrim, judges and officers (Deut. 16:18),Kohanim or levitical priests (18:1 ),a Melech or the king (17:14) and the Navi ,the prophet (18:15).Each of these individual bodies or people represent a different function and purpose. The first is a judicial system that any nation needs to institute., The second represents a system of national and individual worship ,while the third, the king points to leadership that binds them all together. Yet the fourth the Navi, the prophet or those who bear those prophetic words represents the vision and direction that this nation must follow in order to thrive and survive.




Why such a cumbersome system? Why would Moshe spend so much time focusing on its establishment during these last critical days of his life? Is it to uplift this nation and give it prominence in the world?



Behold, I have taught you statutes and ordinances, even as HaShem my G-d commanded me that ye should do so in the midst of the land whither ye go in to possess it. Observe therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples, that, when they hear all these statutes, shall say: 'Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.' For what great nation is there, that hath G-d so nigh unto them, as HaShem our G-d is whensoever we call upon Him? And what great nation is there, that hath statutes and ordinances so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?
(Deuteronomy 4:5-8)


Is it all related to that? That the nations of the world would realize that "Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.” Is it about the Jewish people being extolled ?That seems more like a by product than a goal. The answer seems to be related to a declaration made by G-d through the prophet Isaiah.



Thus saith G-d HaShem, He that created the heavens, and stretched them forth, He that spread forth the earth and that which cometh out of it, He that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein: "I HaShem have called you ( the children of Israel) in righteousness, and have taken hold of your hand, and kept you, and set you for a covenant of the people, for a light of the nations ( Ohr HaGoyim) "(Isaiah 42: 5-6).



Note that it says a light of the nations not a light to the nations as is usually translated.Yet tody that seems like a goal much to high to be attained and much too fraught withdangers, animosity and pitfalls.This is a people that would undergo peaks and valleys. .This is a people that would experience great achievements and also fall in to great disappointments and tragedy. These are people with human frailties and fears .As a result many individuals would not or could not on their own be a light to any one even unto themselves.



Yet G-d declares " HaShem did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because you were more in number than any people; for you were the fewest of all people; but because HaShem loved you, and because he would keep the oath which he had sworn unto your ancestors." (Deuteronomy 7:7, 8) .



This is a people that would be used to create a new reality in the world, not because they deserved it and not because they were so important. Their worthiness and their importance comes from one source, and that is G-d. That fact is the sole purpose of this people and their divinely chosen message. That is the reason for the cumbersome system. This people living in their own land would be the greatest statement of G-d's Rulership in this world.



" and you shall be unto Me a Mamlechet Kohanim VeGoy Kadosh- a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation .'(Exodus 19:6).



A Mamlechet represented by the king, a system of worship represented by the kohanim and levites, a Goy or developed nation represented by law and order and the holiness embodied by the vision of a prophet." Only in such a fashion will this people on their land succeed in becoming a " Light of the Nations". Any compromise in any of the spiritual and divine requirements of any of this system would simply prove to be , G-d forbide , a desecration of G-d's name.



Only the reestablishing of spiritual vision, of true justice, of heaven directed worship and a leadership that binds all those together will bring about the reestablishment of a Mamlechet Kohanim VeGoy Kadosh- a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation. So is the cup half empty or half full.It may be more than half empty but it is in the process of being filled.In spite of the hardships and the threats surrounding us something is blossoming. In spite of the fears and antagonism of segments of our own people something is growing. Look into the eyes of the young people and you will find the vision. Search the actions of all those people involved in acts of charity and lovingkindness and you will see the seeds of true justice and order. Listen to the roar of prayer Friday night at the Western Wall.and you will sense the new sense of worship and prayer.



As for a king. We are in the month of Elul, 'haMelech BaSadeh..the King is in the field"

The Power of Loving-Kindness

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The Power of Loving-Kindness
by Moshe Kempinski

Where does one find the real Israel?

How we see ourselves determines how others end up seeing us. If you believe that you are as insignificant as a grasshopper in someone else's eyes, then you necessarily believe that he can crush and subdue you on a moment's whim.
We live in a world where reality seems to be determined to prove our insignificance. Falling prey to that can prove to be very dangerous. A leadership that loses its sense of self or its vision could lead to disaster anywhere, but Our enemies speak in gloating and glowing terms of their ongoing march towards victory.much more so here in the spiritual center of the world.


Prime Minister Ehud Olmert declared, following the terrorist bulldozer incidents, that retaining Jerusalem as the undivided capital of Israel would lead to more terrorism: "Whoever thinks it is possible to live with 270,000 Arabs in Jerusalem must take into account that there will be more bulldozers, more tractors and more cars carrying out attacks." US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice recently told Palestinian officials that she would pressure Israel against initiating any Jewish construction in eastern sections of Jerusalem.


Furthermore, on a different issue, the Israeli cabinet held three separate votes and decided on the release of over 200 prisoners, including two prisoners with "blood on their hands." The "others" include 26 people who were sentenced to terms of 10 to 16 years for attempted murder, like shooting attacks or bombings. According to Olmert, "Releasing prisoners as a gesture does not attest to weakness, but rather is a sign of strength." And Mark Regev, Olmert's spokesman explained, "We want the Palestinians to understand that we want to live with them in peace. We are ready for historic reconciliation."

Is it any wonder, then, that our enemies speak in gloating and glowing terms of their ongoing march towards victory?


This was clearly evident when one saw the glee and posturing of the Palestinians when the terrorists were released. It is also evident when Palestinian spokesmen declare that Jerusalem is not "that important for the Jews."


The bottom line is that both the Arab world and the world in general can smell weakness and defeatism. They sense that the Israeli leadership see themselves as grasshoppers facing menacing giants. It is that weakness that each of them, for their own reasons, would like to exploit. The Arab world would simply want to destroy Israel in They sense that the Israeli leadership see themselves as grasshoppers facing menacing giants.their unfolding violent messianic fervor. The Western world would like to pare Israel down to a more manageable size. A smaller, weaker Israel could be better managed and thereby more easily controlled.


Based on the public Israeli face that the world sees, they are right. Yet, the public, official Israel is not Israel. It lacks the vision, faith and determination of the real Israel. It lacks the hesed and compassion that has characterized Israel from its birth in Abraham's tent. The public face of Israel lacks the courage and sense of sacrifice that has kept this people alive through thousands of years of persecution.


Then where does one find the real Israel?

One had a glimpse of the real Israel in the battlefields of Lebanon. One can be inspired by the vision of the real Israel if one ventures into the settlements of Judea and Samaria, or the farms and villages of what is termed "the periphery" of this country.


Yet, the most powerful component of Israel's survival and power is in the compassion of its people. It is in the quality of hesed, or loving-kindness, that is so clearly juxtaposed with the selfishness of its political leaders.


That, then, is the secret that separates weak men like Prime Minister Olmert from courageous men like Major Ro'i Klein. That is the stuff that makes up the character of the young settlers on the hilltops - so different than the character of "yes-men" like Tzipi Livni and Sha'ul Mofaz. That is the essence of the Divine attribute that runs through the veins of the "real Israel" and that seems to be so lacking in the present leadership of this country.


"Olam chesed yibaneh" - "The foundation of the world is loving-kindness." (Psalms 89:3)

Those who have learned the secret that giving of oneself is the greatest source of inner strength are the ones who will have the courage to build and refashion the world. Those whose focus remains on receiving are doomed to forever live a life victimized by the turns and twists of reality.


"Many are the sorrows of the wicked; but he who trusts HaShem, loving-kindness shall surround him." (Psalms 32:10)


This past week, as I was descending the steps of the Jewish quarter to pray my afternoon prayers at the Western Wall, I heard loud and exuberant singing. The song I heard was called Ivdu Et HaShem Be'simcha, "Serve G-d With Joy". As I turned the corner, I saw many buses parked in the Western Wall plaza, which hid from me the throng of people who were singing with such excitement and passion.


As I entered the Western Wall plaza and walked past the first bus, I saw hundreds of young people singing and dancing. A little less than half of them were in wheelchairs, or on the shoulders or in the arms of the other half of the group. Regardless of the severity of some of the handicaps that were so evident on the bodies of many of These young people have been empowered by loving-kindness.these young people, their faces and especially their eyes reflected complete freedom and happiness. Regardless of the physical difficulty that those who were accompanying the more challenged youngsters must have experienced, they seemed to fly above and around the wheelchairs with angelic powers.


These were buses of the Kav Lachaim ("Life Line") organization. The stated goal of the organization is "to help every sick child in Israel recover easily and quickly, and to offer chronically ill children and their parents a broad range of services and activities which include outings, entertainment, books, medical counseling and financial support."


Organizations such as Kav Lachaim dot the landscape of Real Israel. The volunteers of this group and the physically challenged children with them represented the true strength of this country, regardless of their age or their limitations.


These young people have been empowered by loving-kindness and they, as opposed to our leadership, will not see themselves as grasshoppers. These faithful young people, like many others throughout the country, have become giants; and it is before them that the evil designs of our enemies will fail.

26 Av 5768 / 27 August 08