Repentance 101

Hi,

A simple thought for today:

"A wrong cannot be repaired until one recognizes the wrong."

Thus the children of Korach, who rebelled against Moshe, are described in the Talmud as repenting their rebellion by declaring, "Moshe is true, and his Torah is true."

(R' Yechezkel Levenstein, cited in Lekach Tov to Parshat Korach)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Morning Energy

Hi,

"A person should strengthen himself like a lion to rise in the morning for the service of his Creator, so that he will awaken the morning [rather than have the morning awaken him]."

(Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 1:1)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Learning Torah with Music

Hello,

Singing is generally taken, in the Talmud, as synonymous with happiness [although the Talmud does discuss funeral music as well]:

"R' Shefatyah said, citing R' Yochanan: Regarding a person who reads Torah without pleasantness [Rashi: such as the musical notes of the trop], and one who learns Mishnah without song, it is written [Yechezkel 20], 'I have given them laws that are not good, and statutes by which do will not live.'"

(Talmud, Megilah 32a)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Torah, Love and Purity of Purpose

Hi,

"Rabbi Meir said: One who studies Torah for its own sake...loves Gd and loves all of Gd's creations."

(Pirkei Avot 6:1)

Rabbeinu Yosef Yaavetz explained: "Such a person does not desire any of this world's profits, for he adheres to his Creator. Therefore, he will love all creatures; he has no reason to hate, and people naturally love each other when they are not distracted by jealousy, desire and honor."

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Respect for others

Hi,

"It is written in the book of Ben Sira:

"I have weighed everything on a scale, and found that there is nothing lighter than coarse grain. And yet, I have found that a groom who lives in his in-laws' house is even lighter [i.e. more frivolous, more disrespectful] than that.

"And even lighter is a guest who brings an additional guest into his host's home.

"And even lighter than that is a person who responds before he has heard a person out, as it is written (Proverbs 18), 'One who responds before he has heard, this is foolishness for him, and an embarrassment.'"

(Talmud, Bava Batra 98b)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Close friendships

Hi,

"When a person has a beloved friend, the relationship is even closer than that of siblings, even when the two are not together. We find this stated in the verse (Samuel I 18), 'And Jonathan's soul clung to David,' which describes a situation in which David and Jonathan were physically separate. Jonathan's soul still clung to David.

"Friendship is greater than sibling ties because sibling relationships begin with their common origin, and the siblings' love comes from their existence together. If they are separated, that is lost. Friends always cling together."

[Of course, siblings can become friends, creating a dual relationship!]

(Vilna Gaon on Proverbs 18:24)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Arrogance

Hi,



"Rav Mari said: A person who is arrogant will not even be acceptable to his own household, as it is written, 'An arrogant man, who will not enter the abode (Habakuk 2).'"

(Talmud, Bava Batra 98a)



Have a great day,

Mordechai

Israel and the Economy

Hi,

"Our sages taught: One may not leave Israel unless the economy has detiorated to the extent that two se'ah measures of flour cost one sela coin.

"Rabbi Shimon said: This is only true if one cannot find any flour to purchase; if one can find flour to purchase, then even if just one se'ah costs a whole sela coin, one may not leave Israel!"

(Talmud, Bava Batra 91a)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

The Equality of Mankind

Hi,

"Rabbi Yochanan would eat meat and share it with his servant, drink wine and share it with his servant, citing this biblical sentence (Job 34), 'The womb that made me, made him as well.'"

(Talmud Yerushalmi Bava Kama 8:4)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Pleasantness = Tzedakah!

Hi,

"One should greet every person with a pleasant expression.

"This teaches that a person who gives another person all of the great gifts in the world, but with a depressed expression, is as though he had not given anything.

"However, a person who greets another person with a pleasant expression - even without giving him anything [tangible] at all - is as though he had given the other person all of the great gifts in the world."

(Avot deRabbi Natan 13:4)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Administration and Leadership

Hi,

"Rav Chanan bar Rava said, citing Rav: It is written (Chronicles I 29), 'He [Gd] elevates all leaders.' This teaches that even the administrators of the irrigation ditches are appointed from Heaven."

(Talmud, Bava Batra 91b)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Humility in Judgment

Hi,

"Rabbi Yishmael, son of Rabbi Yosi, said: Do not judge cases on your own; the only one who can judge on his own is The One.

"Don't insist to your fellow judges, 'Accept my view;' the authority to do so is with them, not with you."

(Pirkei Avot 4:10)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

The seriousness of Business Ethics

Hi,

"Rabbi Levi said: The sin of employing corrupt weights and measures is more harsh than the sin of immoral sexual relationships... One can adequately repent for the latter, but one cannot adequately repent for the former."

(Talmud, Bava Batra 88b)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

The future of righteousness

Hi,

"Rabbi Chiyya bar Lulyani taught: What is the meaning of the biblical sentence (Psalms 92), 'A righteous person will flower like a date tree, he will grow tall like a cedar of Lebanon?' If the appropriate comparison is to a date tree, why introduce a cedar? If the appropriate comparison is to a cedar, why introduce a date tree?

"Had the passage only mentioned a cedar tree, I would have said that a righteous person will not necessarily produce fruit, just as a cedar does not produce [edible] fruit. Therefore, the date tree is mentioned.

"Had the verse only mentioned a date tree, I would have said that a righteous person will not regrow after he falls, just as a date tree does not regenerate after it is chopped back. Therefore, the cedar is mentioned."

(Talmud, Bava Batra 80b)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Faith, Heresy and Mistakes

Hi,

"Every Jew must believe that the contents of the Torah are entirely true; one who denies any of what is found in the Torah, knowing that this is the Torah's opinion, is called a kofer (denier)...

"However, one who holds on to the Torah of Moshe and believes its principles, and is fooled in his analysis when he comes to examine the Torah logically and through his understanding of the text, such that he misstates one of the Torah's principles, or his analysis misleads him to deny that principle altogether... or he thinks that a fundamental principle is not truly fundamental and he thinks it is like other non-essential ideas that appear in the Torah... such a person is not a kofer. He is in the category of Jewish sages and pious people, even if he is mistaken in his analysis. He sins accidentally, and must atone."

(R' Yosef Albo, Sefer haIkkarim I 2)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Acknowledging one's errors

Hi,

"Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai said: Fortunate is the nation whose prince brings a korban [Temple offering] to atone for his errors!"

(Talmud, Horiyyot 10b)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Divine Control, Human Control

Hi,

"If a person truly belives that he is engineers the ultimate results of his actions, it is as though he had said, 'My strength, and the power of my hands, created all of my wealth [Deuteronomy 8:17].' It is forbidden to say this regarding either material or spiritual matters."

(Sichot Mussar, R' Chaim Shmuelevitz 5732:13)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Miracles

Hi,

"Rabbi Yannai said: One should never put himself in a dangerous position and say, 'They will perform a miracle for me,' lest they not perform a miracle for him - and even were they to perform a miracle for him, they would also reduce his merits."

(Talmud, Taanit 20b)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

One more pre-Shavuot email

Hi,

"Rabbi Elazar said: When the Jews committed to fulfill the Torah before they had even heard what was in it, a voice emerged from Heaven and said to them, 'Who revealed to My children this secret of the angels?'

"For it is written [Psalm 103], 'Bless Gd, His mighty angels, who do His bidding, to hear His words.' First they do, and then they hear."

(Talmud, Shabbat 88a)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

No Pain, No Gain

Hi,

"Ben Hei Hei taught: The reward received matches the pain invested."

(Pirkei Avot 5:23)

Rambam (Maimonides), known for his rigorous approach to study, noted: The only knowledge retained is knowledge which comes through strain and work, and respect for the teacher. Enjoyable reading, performed while resting, neither lasts nor benefits.

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Applying the lessons of Torah study

Hi,

We are taught, 'Make your Torah study permanent, and practice what you learn.'

This refers to the practical application of the lessons one has studied. One should not be lenient for himself and strict for others, or the reverse. Rather, apply your learning evenly, and so your learning will be permanent, for yourself and for others.

(Binyan Yehoshua on Avot d'Rabbi Natan 13:1)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

The respect of teacher for student

Hello,

"Just as a student is obligated to show respect to his teacher, so a teacher is obligated to show respect to his students, and bring them close. The sages instructed: The honor of your student should be, to you, as your own.

"One must be careful in dealing with his students, and he must love them, for they are the children who benefit him in this world and in the next."

(Rambam {Maimonides}, Mishneh Torah, Laws of Torah Study 5:12)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Torah study, korbanot and the Mind of Gd

Hello,

"Torah study is more beloved before Gd than burnt offerings, for a person who studies Torah knows the Mind of Gd, as it is written (Proverbs 2:5), 'Then you will understand awe of Gd, and you will find the Mind of Gd.'"

(Avot d'Rabbi Natan (I) 4)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Yom Yerushalayim

Hi,

In honor of the forty-first anniversary of the reunification of Yerushalayim:

"A song of steps, of David. I rejoiced when they said to me: 'Let us go to the house of HaShem.'

"Our feet stood at your gates, Jerusalem. A built-up Jerusalem is like a city united together, where the tribes ascended, the tribes of HaShem, a testimony to Israel to give thanks in the name of HaShem.

"For there thrones sat for justice, the thrones of the house of David.

"Pray for the peace of Jerusalem; may those who love you prosper. May there be peace within your walls, prosperity within your palaces. For the sake of my brethren and companions, I will say, 'May there be peace within you.' For the sake of the house of HaShem our Gd, I will seek good for you."

(Psalm 122)

Have a great day,
Mordechai