Mitzvah priorities

Hi,

"When one spends his money for a mitzvah, he should examine which mitzvah is of greater importance before Gd... And especially one who does not have the means to spend in great ways, he should see to it that he spends his money for the more important mitzvah, like a good merchant who seeks to clothe his money in the most profitable merchandise."

כשמוציא מעותיו לדבר מצוה יעיין איזו מצוה היא יותר חשובה לפני המקום... ובפרט מי שאין ידו משגת לעשות פזר גדול, יראה במה מוציא את מעותיו שיהא למצוה היותר חשובה, כסוחר טוב שמבקש להלביש מעותיו בסחורה שיש בה ריוח יותר.

(Rabbi Eliezer Pappo, Pele Yoetz, ערך)

Have a great day,

Mordechai

The greatest chesed is for yourself

Hi,

"Even greater is the obligation to perform chesed [generous kindness] for one's self and body; Proverbs 11:17 says, 'One who gives to himself is a man of chesed.' And as they said of Hillel the Elder: When he dined he said, 'I will go perform chesed for my guest,' meaning his soul…"

וביותר ויותר יגדל החיוב עשות חסד עם עצמו וגופו, "וגומל נפשו איש חסד" (משלי יא) וכמו שאמרו על הלל הזקן שכשהיה הולך לאכול היה אומר אלך ואגמול חסד עם אכסניא שיש לי דהיינו נשמתו...

(Rabbi Eliezer Papo, Pele Yoetz חסד)

Have a  great day,

Mordechai

So many opportunities!

Hi,

"Anyone who has the power to act should act; there is no difference between a lot and a little, one is fulfilling a biblical mitzvah. For example: opening a door for one who knocks, or giving change for one's money, or extending an item to someone. There are many opportunities for kindness which are simple, to the point where one side gains and one side loses almost nothing. And yet, people denigrate these opportunities, not knowing what they lack and how great they are!"

וכל איש אשר בכחו לעשות יעשה, אין חילוק בין רב למועט, מצוה דאורייתא קעביד כגון לפתוח הדלת לדופק על הדלת וכגון להחליף מעות בפרוטות וכגון להושיט דבר לחבירו וכדומה, כמה דברים יש שהם קלים לעשות חסד עד שכמעט זה נהנה וזה אינו חסר ובני אדם מזלזלים בהם ולא ידעו מה שהוא חסר ומה רב טובו!

(Rabbi Elazar Papo, Pele Yoetz: Chesed)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

The pursuit of righteousness

Hi,

"This is the behavior of a person who is a Jew, whose soul desires to serve Gd:

"Regarding whatever he knows to be a sin, or to be a proper path, he will wage war against his nature [lest it drive him to sin] using various strategies, and he will strengthen himself with great power and effort, with all of his ability, to guard it."

(R' Eliezer Papo, Pele Yoetz, Chozek)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Divine control and Free will

Hi,

An interesting approach to the problem of believing in both Divine self-determination and Human free will:

"Effort is greatly required for any positive accomplishment, whether in mundane matters or in spiritual matters. Although everything is in the hands of Heaven, I have already declared that sometimes the Divine wisdom decrees that a certain event will occur based upon a person's effort and care."

(R' Eliezer Papo, Pele Yoetz, Hishtadlut)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Change your mind

Hi,

Regarding changing one's mind, when one had intended to withhold aid from others, or to harm them:

"This is the rule for a good person: He recants and nullifies his own [negative] view in the face of the opinion of others based on the needs of the moment, and he is appeased by the requests of others."

(R' Eliezer Papo, Pele Yoetz, "Hen Tzedek")

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Proper memorials

Hi,

Regarding the practice of reciting Kaddish, leading davening or reading the Haftorah in memory of a relative, I am often asked whether it is acceptable to hire someone else to do those things. Here is an interesting note along those lines:

"It would be appropriate for a son who would honor his parent to know his place and not trust in himself to recite Kaddish, Haftorah or davening until he goes to a learned person first to examine him. If he cannot do these things, it would be better for him to hire a learned person to learn and recite Kaddish and lead davening for the memory of his father and mother."

(R' Eliezer Papo, Pele Yoetz, Kibbud Av va'Em)

Have a great day,
Mordechai