Avodah Mailing List

Volume 25: Number 394

Mon, 24 Nov 2008

• 1. RSRH on How to Raise Children (Prof. Levine)
• 2. Lessons From Jacob and Esau (Prof. Levine)
• 3. Re: a troubling halacha (Arie Folger)
• 4. Re: a troubling halacha (T6...@aol.com)
• 5. Difference Between Mitzvos, Chukim, and Toros (Yitzchok Levine)
• 6. Re: Difference Between Mitzvos, Chukim, and Toros (Micha Berger)
• 7. Rivkah's Intention (Yitzchok Levine)
• 8. Re: Downloading: An Essay for the MTA Academy News (Micha Berger)
• 9. Re: Rivkah's Intention (T6...@aol.com)
• 10. Re: a troubling halacha (Micha Berger)
• 11. Re: Rivkah's Intention (T6...@aol.com)

 From the new translation of RSRH's commentary on the Chumash.

Bereishis 25:27  When the lads grew up, Esav was 
a man who understood hunting, a man of the field, 
and Ya?akov was a totally dedicated man, living in tents.

Each child should be guided in accordance with the path intended
especially for him, the path that suits the qualities and tendencies latent
in the depths of his personality, and thus he should be educated, both
as a man and as a Jew. The great Jewish task is basically one, but the
ways of its fulfillment are manifold and diverse, as human character
traits and paths of life are manifold and diverse.

When the sons of Ya?akov gathered to hear their father?s blessing,
and he visualized in them the future tribes of Israel, he saw not only
Kohanim and teachers of the Law. Standing around him were the tribe
of Levi?im , the tribe of kingship, the tribe of merchants, the tribe of
farmers, the tribe of warriors. Standing before his eyes was the whole
nation, with all its manifold characteristics and diverse ways of development.
And he blessed all of them, Ish asher k'birkaso, beirach osom (below,
49:28), each according to his own special qualities. For the covenant
that God established with Avraham is intended for a healthy, whole,
and vital nation. The purpose of the covenant is to build a complete
national life with all its manifold forms, all for the one great task, leshmor
derech  Hashem la'asos tzedakah umishpot. There, 
strength and courage, no less than
thought and emotion, are to have their champions in the service of
God, and all the people, in various callings, are to fulfill the one great
common task.

Precisely for this reason, each child must be brought up al pi darko;
educate him to the one great goal, according to his own unique way,
in keeping with his potential. To attempt to educate a Ya?akov and an
Esav together in the same classroom, in the same routines and in the
same manner, to raise both of them for a life of study and contemplation,
will inevitably mean to ruin one of the two. A Ya?akov will draw
from the well of wisdom with ever-increasing interest and desire,
whereas an Esav will hardly be able to wait for the day when he can
throw away the old books and, together with them, a great life-mission,
of which he was taught in a one-sided manner, totally unappealing to
his nature.

Had Yitzchak and Rivkah delved deeply into Esav?s nature; had they
asked themselves at an early stage how even an Esav ? with the strength,
skills, and courage latent within him ? could be harnessed for God?s
service, then the future gibor would not have become a gibor tziyid but a
true gibor lifnei Hashem. Ya?akov and Esav, 
despite their different natures, would
have remained twin brothers in spirit and in way of life. Early on, the
sword of Esav would have entered into a covenant with the spirit of
Ya?akov, and who knows what turn world history would have taken!

To see Rav Hirsch's complete commentary of this Pasuk, please go to
http://www.stevens.edu/golem/llevine/rsrh/25_27_28_bereishis.pdf

Yitzchok Levine
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Toldos deals in part, of course, with the birth 
and upbringing of Yaakov and Eisav.

The following is from RSRH's essay "Lessons From 
Jacob and Esau" that appears on pages 319 - 331 
of his Collected Writing VII. This volume deals 
with his thoughts on Jewish Education.

Down to our present day we have been able to 
observe the disastrous consequences of a 
one-sided approach to the unique task of being a 
Jew. Many a son of a pious talmid chacham has 
been totally lost to Judaism because his father 
insisted on training him to become a talmid 
chacham without considering whether his 
personality and inclinations truly lay in that 
direction. Thus he is exposed to Jewish life in 
only one context: that of a quiet existence of 
study and meditation for which he has neither 
talent nor desire. What attracts him instead is 
the busy, colorful life of the world outside. But 
as a result of the narrow view of life in which 
he has been trained he gets the impression that 
in order to participate in the active, variegated 
life for which he yearns, he must give up his 
mission as a Jew. He consequently abandons his 
Judaism in order to fling himself into the 
maelstrom of excitement and temptations offered by the world outside.

The story of such an individual might end quite 
differently if only, instead of forcing him into 
the mold of a talmid chacham, his father would 
raise him from the very beginning to become a man 
of the world who, at the same time, is faithful 
to his duties as a Jew; if only that father would 
teach this son that the activities of the world 
outside, too, have their place in God's plan, 
that it is possible to preserve and to 
demonstrate one's complete loyalty to Judaism 
even as a sophisticated man of the world. He 
should make his son understand that, as a matter 
of fact, many, if not perhaps the most important, 
aspects of Jewish living are intended primarily 
to be practiced amidst the conditions and 
aspirations of everyday life, in the midst of the 
world and not in isolation from it. He should 
make his son understand that the Taryag 
Mitzvos  are not meant to be observed in the 
klaus [Judeo-German equivalent for a small 
synagogue. (Ed.)] or in the beth hamidrash but 
precisely in the practical life of the farmer or 
the public-spirited citizen. If only that father 
would make it clear to his son that the spirit 
and the happiness of Judaism are just as 
accessible to a Zevulun "in the world outside" as 
they are to an Issachar "in the tents,"?who knows 
whether that son might not stand by his father's 
deathbed and gently close his father's eyes as a loyal, pious Jew?


For the rest of this most insightful essay on 
Chinuch, see 
http://www.stevens.edu/golem/llevine/rsrh/lessons_jacob_esau_col_vii.pdf


Yitzchok Levine
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RAM wrote:
> I totally agree with everthing you wrote, the only exception being how
> relevant it is to Life In The Old Days. I would be very surprised to learn
> that in the Mechaber's day, so many people lived so far from their families
> that the standard halacha was "They have no family to mourn with, so let's
> withhold the info so they can follow the easier halachos."

On the contrary, Mahari Qaro lived around teh time of the Inquisition, with 
lots of people moving around looking for better pastures. That is how Tzfat 
became so popular.

But beyond that, I'd like to point out that it seems that shidukhim between 
shtetls that were at least one day solid walking away, or even several days 
walk, was a standard occurence. FWIW, in each successive generation, my 
ancestors on the paternal line (the Galicianers) lived in a different city, 
ostensibly because their respective wiveswere from different cities. My bet 
is that they saw each other rarely.

Kol tuv,
-- 
Arie Folger
http://ariefolger.wordpress.com
http://www.ariefolger.googlepages.com

 
 
In a message dated 11/23/2008, afol...@aishdas.org writes:

>>But beyond that, I'd like to point out that it seems that  shidukhim 
between 
shtetls that were at least one day solid walking away,  or even several days 
walk, was a standard occurence. FWIW, in each  successive generation, my 
ancestors on the paternal line (the Galicianers)  lived in a different city, 
ostensibly because their respective wives were  from different cities. My bet 
is that they saw each other  rarely.<<

Kol tuv,
-- 
Arie  Folger



>>>>>>
If you read a lot of Jewish history  you can't help but be struck by the fact 
that throughout the  centuries, Jews were /constantly/ on the move, either 
traveling for  business, or traveling to learn in a yeshiva in another city 
(e.g., Rashi  learned in Germany), or they were running away from war or from 
pogroms, or they  were expelled from here and had to go there, but then they were 
expelled from  there and had to go somewhere else.  Our whole history is a 
history of  moving, moving, moving.  Wherever Jews landed they tried hard to 
achieve  stability and permanence, but inevitably after a while they had to pull 
up roots  again.  "A while" could be anywhere from a few months to a few years 
or  even a few generations, but nothing was as inevitable as Jews moving.  Not 
 for naught do we have the timeless image of the "Wandering Jew" and BTW my  
Wandering Jew plant is the only plant in my garden that thrives despite my  
neglect.  It just can't be killed off.
 
And speaking of shidduchim, my grandmother and my grandfather were cousins  
who lived in Polish towns a day's travel away from each other  (before  cars, 
obviously) and they never met each other until they were  adults.  When they 
met they got married.  Also when my grandparents  moved to America, my 
grandfather's brother moved to Argentina and it was decades  before they saw each other 
again.  They only saw each other once or twice  again in their lives.
 
The constant wandering and moving is the fulfillment of the curse (and  
hidden blessing) of "ve'eschem azareh bagoyim" (Vayikra 26:33) -- the curse  being 
that we are constantly scattered and scattered again, we are never  secure 
anywhere in the world, we can only rest for a while but never really put  down 
roots -- and the blessing being that wherever in the world a Jew has to run  to, 
there are Jews already there waiting to take him in and help him.  This  
cosmic aspect of Jewish history was already foreshadowed (ma'asei avos siman  
labanim) when Yosef went down to Egypt to pave the way for the Jews to survive  
there in galus.
 


--Toby Katz
=============
"If you don't  read the newspaper you are uninformed; 
if you do read the newspaper you are  misinformed."
--Mark Twain
Read *Jewish World Review* at _http://jewishworldreview.com/_ 
(http://jewishworldreview.com/) 
**************One site has it all. Your email accounts, your social networks, 
and the things you love. Try the new AOL.com 
today!(http://pr.atwola.com/promoclk/100000075x1212962939x1200825291/aol?
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Please see RSRH's commentary on Bereishis 26:5 at 
http://www.stevens.edu/golem/llevine/rsrh/26_5_bereishis.pdf

Yitzchok Levine 
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On Sun, Nov 23, 2008 at 04:27:06PM -0500, Yitzchok Levine wrote:
: Please see RSRH's commentary on Bereishis 26:5 at 
: http://www.stevens.edu/golem/llevine/rsrh/26_5_bereishis.pdf

The six sections of Horeb are
    Toroth: Fundamental principles relating to mental and spiritual
            preparation for life
    Edoth: Symbolic observances representing truths which form the
           basis of Israel's life
    Mishpatim: Declarations of justice towards human beings
    Chukim: Laws of righteousness towards those beings which are
            subordinate to man; towards earth, plant, animal towards
            one's own body, mind, spirit and word
    Mitzvoth: Commandments of Love
    Avodah: Divine Service

The distinctions can be seen not only by explanation, but by example.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             I long to accomplish a great and noble task,
mi...@aishdas.org        but it is my chief duty to accomplish small
http://www.aishdas.org   tasks as if they were great and noble.
Fax: (270) 514-1507                              - Helen Keller 

What was Rivkah's intention when she told Yaakov to pretend to be 
Esav and get the brachos from Yitzchok?

RSRH gives a brilliant insight into the entire incident. Please see 
http://www.stevens.edu/golem/llevine/rsrh/rivkah_brochos.pdf

Yitzchok Levine 

On Fri, Nov 21, 2008 at 03:59:16PM -0500, Yosef Gavriel Bechhofer wrote:
: Please note that this is not /carte blanche/. This logic will not permit:
:   1.  Uploading music to such sites.
:   2.  Copying from CDs or DVDs.
:   3.  Selling the downloaded music to others or sharing it with people
        who cannot access it themselves over the Internet.
:   4.  Downloading music from hacking sites.

5. Placing oneself in a situation where chilul Hashem is a real
possibility.

In http://www.aishdas.org/avodah/vol07/v07n058.shtml#13 I repeated my
notes of a "lunch-n-learn" hosted by the OU given by R' Zev Reichman
(then of YU's Kollel Elyon). In short, he identified the following
issues:

1- Dina demalkhusa
2- The Shoel uMeishiv recognizes a chiyuv to comply to local moral
   standards (See also
   <http://www.aishdas.org/avodah/vol07/v07n058.shtml#04>)
3- Hasagas gevul
4- Geneiva

I added
5- Hezeq
and
6- Chillul Hashem

I would also add the chillul Hashem issue is not fully separable from the
SuM's concern.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             You will never "find" time for anything.
mi...@aishdas.org        If you want time, you must make it.
http://www.aishdas.org                     - Charles Buxton
Fax: (270) 514-1507

 
In a message dated 11/24/2008, Larry.Lev...@stevens.edu writes:

What was  Rivkah's intention when she told Yaakov to pretend to be 
Esav and get the  brachos from Yitzchok?

RSRH gives a brilliant insight into the entire  incident. Please see  
http://www.stevens.edu/golem/llevine/rsrh/rivkah_brochos.pdf

Yitzchok  Levine 



>>>>>
I wrote about this last year, quoting Hirsch.  In brief, she wanted to  show 
Yakov how easily he could be fooled and came up with a scheme that  would 
prove to him that he could easily be deceived -- a simple trick that  would 
quickly be discovered.  She was always telling him that Esav was  deceiving him but 
he never believed her (she knew the truth because she knew her  brother Lavan 
and recognized the type).  Now he realized she had been  right all along -- 
which is why he trembled -- and immediately said, "Gam baruch  yiheyeh" -- 
reaffirming mida'as the bracha to Yakov which he now recognized was  rightfully 
Yakov's.  Wisdom of Rivkah demonstrated several different ways  -- knowing her 
kids and knowing how to show her husband the truth as well as  getting for Yakov 
the bracha he really deserved and needed for his eternal  mission.
 


--Toby Katz
=============
"If you don't  read the newspaper you are uninformed; 
if you do read the newspaper you are  misinformed."
--Mark Twain
Read *Jewish World Review* at _http://jewishworldreview.com/_ 
(http://jewishworldreview.com/) 
**************One site has it all. Your email accounts, your social networks, 
and the things you love. Try the new AOL.com today!(http://pr.atwola.com/pr
omoclk/100000075x1212962939x1200825291/aol?redir=http://www.aol.com/?optin=new-dp
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On Sat, Nov 22, 2008 at 10:44:52PM -0000, Chana Luntz wrote:
:                                             The only place we seem to apply
: it l'halacha is vis a vis an avel, and that would seem to suggest it is avel
: specific.

While I agree with your thesis, I'm not sure this makes the point.

The severity of the news is related to who is receiving it. 

Jumping back a bit in RnCL's post:
: Note that thr Meiri appears to believe that this applies to the general
: telling in relation to an adam gadol and not specifically in relation to
: telling a relative about somebody who may not fall within that category...

To the relative, the loss of Peloni Almoni is quite likely a greater
tragedy than the loss of Moreinu haRav haGaon Manhig haDor.

So, it *could* be about the speaker, that he shouldn't give bad news, as
opposed to keeping the recipient from getting it. However, the definition
of "bad news" depends on the recipient.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             I slept and dreamt that life was joy.
mi...@aishdas.org        I awoke and found that life was duty.
http://www.aishdas.org   I worked and, behold -- duty is joy.
Fax: (270) 514-1507                        - Rabindranath Tagore

 
 


>>I wrote about this last year, quoting Hirsch.  In brief,  she wanted to 
show Yakov >>how easily he could be fooled 


>>>>>
I meant to say that she wanted to show  Yitzchak how easily he could be 
fooled.
 

--Toby Katz
=============
"If you don't read the  newspaper you are uninformed; 
if you do read the newspaper you are  misinformed."
--Mark Twain
Read *Jewish World Review* at _http://jewishworldreview.com/_ 
(http://jewishworldreview.com/) 
**************One site has it all. Your email accounts, your social networks, 
and the things you love. Try the new AOL.com 
today!(http://pr.atwola.com/promoclk/100000075x1212962939x1200825291/aol?
redir=http://www.aol.com/?optin=new-dp
%26icid=aolcom40vanity%26ncid=emlcntaolcom00000001)
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