Avodah Mailing List

Volume 05 : Number 115

Tuesday, September 5 2000

• Hayorei V'rach Halevov/Yefas To'ar
• Chu"l Vs. EY
• Re: Chu"l Vs. EY

An interesting vort from the (first) Belzer Rebbe (known as the Sar
Sholom) zt'l on last week's sedra (Shoftim 20:8) - where the Torah
says that those soldiers '...hayorei v'rach halevov - yelech v'yoshov
l'vesoh..."

Rashi brings (b'shem R' Yossi Haglili) '...hayorei m'averos sh'beyodoh..'

The BR asks - such a person, who admits that he is a baal aveiroh and
is therefore afraid of going to war, admitting that he has done wrong -
aderaba - shouldn't he be considered a Baal Tshuvah - and be considered
an ideal soldier?

He answers that the trop on "yelech" is a (comma-like) 'tipchoh'
indicating a hefsek between 'yelech' and 'v'yoshov' - giving us a pshat
that indeed, such a person who is 'yorei m'aveiros sh'beyodo" should
'yelech'- go to war and - the Torah assures him - 'veyoshov levesoh' -
he will return alive to his home...

(I realise that there are some questions on this pshat <the strongest
being that the 3 other categories of returnees mentioned in the earlier
psukim have exactly the same trop... - but remember it is only a drush,
and I don't think the BR said it Halcoho L'maaseh...)

[Moderator's note, humorous bit moved to Areivim. -mi]

-
On a more serious note, I saw b'shem Rav Yechezkel Abramski zt'l - that
the fact that the Torah permits a "Yefas Toar" is proof that every Jew
can and has the "koach" to be mekayem all the Mitzvos.

How? Because here we see that the Torah had a chashash that someone will
not be able to resist his Yetzer Horah in taking a YT (as per the above
Rashi: "sh'im ein HKBH matiroh, yiso'enno b'issur") - so the Torah gives
a method - bederech heter - for him to marry her.

Lehodiachoh - that regarding all other Mitzvos and Aveiros - where
there are no Heterim available, the Torah is convinced that we can
fulfill them...

SHLOMO B ABELES
mailto:sba@blaze.net.au

Just spent an interesting Shabbos in the Chabad community in Postville,
IA.  Based on my observations, and more especially, communications, I
believe that the Chabad Hashkofo, based on Ha'alos Nitzozos and Hafotzas
Ma'ayonos, is that while officially EY is the holiest place for everyone,
this should not be construed as a mandate for any and all Jews to live
there: Where one's tikkun olam (not a Chabad phrase, but captures the
point) is to be found is where one should be found. This tikkun is
sometimes Kiruv, but may be limud, tefilla, chesed, anything.

KT,
YGB

Yosef Gavriel Bechhofer
ygb@aishdas.org, http://www.aishdas.org/baistefila

In a message dated 9/3/00 11:00:20pm EDT, sbechhof@casbah.acns.nwu.edu writes:
> the Chabad Hashkofo, based on Ha'alos Nitzozos and Hafotzas
>  Ma'ayonos, is that while officially EY is the holiest place for everyone,
>  this should not be construed as a mandate for any and all Jews to live
>  there: Where one's tikkun olam (not a Chabad phrase, but captures the
>  point) is to be found is where one should be found. This tikkun is
>  sometimes Kiruv, but may be limud, tefilla, chesed, anything.

There is the famous Vort from the BSH"T on M'Hashem MItzadei Gever, and the 
Vort of the Tzemach Tzedek, "Mach Doh Eretz Yisroel" .

Kol Tuv, KVCT,
Yitzchok Zirkind

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