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PINCHAS
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This week we will be reading the Torah portion of Pinchas. “Pinchas son of Elazar son of Aharon the Kohen (Gadol) turned back my anger from upon the Jewish people, when he zealously avenged me among them, (Many people had started relationships with non Jewish women which had also brought them to serve their idols. When Pinchas saw Zimri, leader of the tribe of Shimon going, with a non-Jewish woman, he killed both of them. Many people were killed as punishment for their sins. After Pinchas killed Zimri the people came to their senses and realized how wrong they had been.) So I did not consume the Jewish people in my vengeance. (24000 people died as a result of the sin. After Pinchas killed Zimri the plague stopped). Therefore say: Behold! I give him my covenant of peace. (Although he was a grandson of Aharon he had not been a kohen until then. When Hashem gave priesthood to Aharon and his descendants, only those descendants who had yet to be born were included with the exception of Aharon’s sons. Pinchas was not included for he had been born already. As a reward for killing Zimri he received priesthood which is referred to as peace.) Being that we find ourselves in the ‘3 weeks’, the haftarah we will read this week will be about Yirmiyahu’s prophecies concerning the tragedies that were going to< befall the Jewish people if they wouldn’t improve their conduct. Before the actual prophecy there is an introduction in which Yirmiyahu relates how he was appointed as a prophet. “The words of Yirmiyahu son of Chilkiyahu one of the priests … Hashem spoke to me as follows: “Before I formed you in your mothers womb I knew you and before you were born I sanctified you and I appointed you to become a prophet for the nations.” And I answered back: “...but I am only a child!” And Hashem said: “ Don’t say that! Because wherever I will send you, you will go and whatever I will tell you to say you will say. Don’t be afraid of anyone for I will be with you.” There are several connections between the haftarah and the Torah portion. For one there is the similarity in how Pinchas and Yirmiyahu are being described. By both their family history is mentioned. The reason for that is because both were being ridiculed by the people for being descendents of non-Jews. Pinchas was a descendant of Yitro and Yirmiyahu was a descendant of Rachav. The Jewish people were not ready to accept deeds or words, no matter how holy, from a ‘stranger’. The Torah therefore lets us know that they were also descendants of priests. Another connection is the situation in which the Jewish people found themselves at the time. In both instances the people had gone astray and was there a need to arouse them to return to the ways of the Torah. Another prophet who spoke about the destruction of the temple was Yeshayahu. The difference between Yeshayahu and Yirmiyahu is in how they tried to wake up the people from their spiritual slumber. Yeshayahu mainly talks about the positive and good that would be if only the people would repent; Yirmiyahu points out the negative that would happen if the people would NOT repent. Their style is connected with their names and the times they lived in. Yirmiyahu contains in it the word ‘mar’ bitter, Yeshayahu comes from the word yeshua, salvation. Yeshayahu lived in a time of ‘revelations’; Yirmiyahu lived in ‘dark’ times. Therefore Yeshayahu had a positive attitude when reprimanding the people and Yeshayahu a negative one. This is another connection between Pinchas and Yirmiyahu. Pinchas chose to bring the people to repentance through performing a NEGATIVE act because he too lived in a ‘dark’ time where everyone was transgressing the word of G-d. Concerning Pinchas’ reward a simple question comes to mind. We find that Hashem gives him an eternal reward for taking away His anger by giving him priesthood for all generations to follow. Over the past few weeks we have read about the many times that Moshe convinced Hashem not to punish the Jewish people and to have mercy on them. Also in this weeks parsha, we read about Moshe asking Hashem to appoint someone to lead the nation after his passing. The medrash tells us that he suggested his sons as possible candidates. Hashem decides otherwise and appoints Yehoshua, the devoted student, instead. Why was Pinchas rewarded with priesthood for all generations to come as a reward for ‘calming’ Hashem’s anger. Yet Moshe, who did this many times, couldn’t even obtain leadership for his own sons? The difference between Moshe and Pinchas: Moshe changed Hashem’s decrees through
PRAYER. Plagues would stop as a result of
Moshe praying for it, but Hashem did the actual ‘stopping’. At one point Moshe suggests to Hashem to have his name erased from the Torah if He doesn’t forgive the Jewish people. This can be considered a SPIRITUAL self-sacrifice. When Pinchas killed Zimri, a leader of a tribe, the tribe members wanted to kill him. Only when Hashem made it clear that it had been His will, did they hold back. (The Talmud relates the many miracles that took place then.) That was PHYSICAL self-sacrifice. In general we can say that Moshe worked from
‘up to down’ and Pinchas from ‘down to
up’.
Moshe went UP to Hashem on Mt Sinai and brought the Torah DOWN into
the world. He
prayed to Hashem UP in heaven to forgive the people DOWN here.
Light expels darkness. The spiritual light of Torah expels spiritual darkness. However, just like when a physical light is turned off, the darkness returns, so does spiritual darkness return when the revelation from above gets discontinued. The only way to ensure the light remains, is by making the previously dark place capable of remaining light. Pinchas transformed the physical into a vessel
for spiritual light by doing a
PHYSICAL deed. The stage that people reached by coming to their
own understanding of
their mistakes was of a more lasting nature than the revelations
that took place by Moshe worked mainly with the spiritual power of his SOUL, therefore we find by him a divine service connected to spiritual self-sacrifice. Pinchas’ divine service was mainly connected to transform the physical BODY into a vessel for spiritual light therefore by him we find a readiness to physically give up his life. Moshe did not make lasting changes in the physical realm therefore he did not get a lasting reward in this world. Pinchas who transformed and elevated the world to a level where it could remain light, received an everlasting reward in this world. Moshe and Yeshayahu lived in times of spiritual revelations. Their dealing with darkness was therefore also in a way of light. Moshe brought the Torah into the world and Yeshayahu prophesized about all the good things that will happen to the Jewish people. Pinchas and Yirmiyahu lived in a time of spiritual darkness. The darkness they had to deal with started with themselves, as they were both descendants of non-Jews. (As opposed to Moshe who was as a baby already lighting up his house with his shiny appearance) With that (and as a result of that) they had to deal with a negative attitude towards them.
“But Who am I to go out and deal with the world?” you may ask. “I am not strong enough myself to be able to inspire others!” The introduction of the Haftarah deals with that problem. First we are told that Yirmiyahu was (not only a descendant of a non-Jew but also) a kohen. We may have our own ‘non-Jew’ inside us but we also have a neshoma, a spark of G-d. Hashem then tells Yirmiyahu, and every Jewish soul before its descent: “My dear soul, don’t be afraid to go down to the world. I know you from before you were formed in your mother’s womb. I.E. the source of your soul is higher than the world you are entering. Not only that; I also sanctified you before you were born. I.E. I prepared you in your mother’s womb to face the world and taught you the entire Torah there. The soul answers back: “But I am only a little child! It might be true that on a spiritual level I stand higher than the world but in the real world I don’t feel that”. To that Hashem says: “Don’t say that! Because wherever I will send you, you will go and whatever I will tell you to say you will say. Don’t be afraid of anyone for I WILL BE WITH YOU!” Our sages say: “Pinchas is Eliyahu.”
Eliyahu is the prophet who went up to heaven
with his physical body. He managed to refine and transform it to
the extent that he
could take it into the spiritual worlds with him. [Note that Moshe
was born as a full
term baby after a 7 months pregnancy, the shortest time possible
and Eliyahu after 12
moths, the longest pregnancy possible. Moshe worked mainly with
his soul; Eliyahu
(Pinchas) with the body.]
It will also be Eliyahu who will notify us of the coming of Moshiach.
Moshiach comes
when we complete our work in exile of transforming the darkness
into light. Then the
light will shine forever. |
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This week's section features an unusual sentence. Moses, knowing that he is not to enter the land of Israel, asks G-d to appoint a new leader to replace him in order that: "THE CONGREGATION OF G-D WILL NOT BE LIKE SHEEP WITHOUT A SHEPHERD." (27:18) At first glance this is not a nice thing to say. Why compare the Jews to animals? Why not liken them to travelers without a guide or a man without sight? In fact why use a metaphor at all? G-d certainly knew that the Jews cannot exist without a leader, why did Moses add this comparison? Here is a story that might help us understand. Five foot three, sixty five
years old, bespectacled and a bit bent-over Mr.
Brown (fictitious name) was depressed.
It happened gradually. For the first twenty years it had been
a completely
Jewish area in Brooklyn but then gradually the blacks began to
move in and
the Jews started leaving. The Goldmans, the Bernsteins, the Fishers;
his
best customers were gone and more were on the way out. Things
looked bad.
The merchandise wasn't moving off the shelves and when it did
he didn't But he built it up from nothing and he didn't want to leave and begin somewhere else, and he certainly did not want to retire. But on the other hand he was losing his desire to wake up in the morning. Then one day he saw an article in the paper about a Rabbi in Brooklyn called the Lubavitcher Rebbe giving advice to people and he decided to give it a try. He took the subway, got off at Kingston and Eastern Parkway, walked up the subway stairs to the street and then to the large red-bricked headquarters of the Lubavitcher Chassidim. Bearded young men with pleasant eyes were bustling around in the halls and the song of Torah-learning filled the air. Someone shook his hand, three people said 'Shalom Alechem' and in no time he was in the office making an appointment, in three weeks he would have a private audience. The night arrived. He was supposed to enter the room at eleven P.M, he arrived at ten. but it wasn't until three in the morning that his turn came. The Rebbe's large room was brightly lit and unusually quiet. Full bookshelves lined the walls. The Rebbe was seated behind a large, mahogany desk, a few stacks of letters books and papers here and there before him. Mr. Brown handed him the letter he had prepared. The Rebbe took it, read it carefully, looked up and asked quietly. "Do you want to leave the store or not?" Mr. Brown began to explain the pros and cons but when he finished the Rebbe again looked at his letter and asked, "But what do YOU want? Do you want to leave or not?" "No!" Mr. Brown answered as semi-emphatically as he could. "I don't want to leave. I want to stay. But I'm afraid." The Rebbe waited for him to continue. "I'm afraid of the blacks and I'm afraid there won't be any customers left. But I don't want to leave. That's why I'm here." The Rebbe looked at him earnestly, smiled and said. "There is nothing to be afraid of. Don't be afraid of the people. And don't worry about making money; you can make money there also. May G-d bless you and give you much success and good news." Mr. Brown returned home a new man. He told his wife what the Rebbe had said and the next morning he went down to the store, began to order new stock and clean the place up. In a week he reopened and sure enough, little by little people began to trickle in. There were more Jews left than he thought and a lot of blacks wanted to buy kosher products as well. Everything seemed to be working out… until…the robbery. There he was, Mr. Brown in the newspaper! It was a small picture of him standing with two huge policemen, one scratching his head in wonder looking at the bullet holes in the ceiling of the market. The caption read 'Rabbi Routes Robbers' and underneath was an interesting story. One evening, when Mr. Brown had just emptied the cash-register in his mini-market in Brooklyn and was about to come from behind the counter and close up, two huge black men suddenly pushed their way in and closed the door behind them. One pulled out a gun while the other leaned over the counter and opened the cash register. When they found it empty they began pounding and kicking the counter and even tried to reach over it and grab the old man. But he just took a step back, out of their reach and emphatically declared, "Get the hell out of here, the both of you or I'll call the police! You aren't getting a penny!!' The other robber, to prove he meant business, pointed the gun in the air, fired two shots and began screaming, "Give the money or I'll blow your brains out!! I'll kill you." But it didn't work. The owner didn't budge, people started gathering outside and in the distance a police siren was heard. The robbers looked at one another and fled out the door knocking a few people over as they went. The article concluded with a quote from Mr. Brown explaining how he kept his cool in the face of death; "I just did what that Lubavitcher Rebbe said. He said that I shouldn't be afraid. See! He was right!" On the other hand look what Rabbi Mordechi Eliyahu, the past Chief Rabbi of Israel, said after his visit to the Lubavitcher Rebbe. "I saw that no secret is hidden from him, and I mean that simply and explicitly. He knows all of the Talmud, Poskim (legal precedents) and in the Mystical works his understanding is VERY VERY deep. He is the master of light. He is a master of all the Torah. And is an expert on everything that is happening in Israel. His face shines like an angel of G-d and he himself is higher than any angel. He is the greatest Torah master in our generation and no one is even close to him. And together with this he worries for every Jew in the world." This is the reason that Moses gave G-d the example of a shepherd and sheep. A shepherd is on a completely different level of consciousness than his flock; he is human and they are animals. But simultaneously he is totally devoted to benefiting each and every one of them. In fact, the reason that myriads of sheep can be led by just one shepherd is that the sheep somehow sense that it is for their own good to follow him; that there is something better than being a sheep. That is what Moses was requesting
from G-d; that he should be replaced with Just like the Lubavitcher Rebbe was on a completely different level as the people, many even believe him to be the Moshiach we have been waiting thousands of years for (see the Moshiach essay at www.ohrtmimim.org/torah) but still was able to inspire myriads of people like Mr. Brown to surpass their own natures (and he is still inspiring them). True, it's not pleasant to realize you are a sheep, but on the other hand to know its possible to be raised toward the level of Moses (There is a spark of Moses, and of Moshiach in each of us) and no longer be an animal makes it all worth while. This is the goal of the Jewish people that only the Moshiach will accomplish. Then, not only the Jewish people but the entire world will realize the true oneness of G-d as we say thrice daily in 'Alenu'; "All the dwellers of the earth will know and realize…..there is nothing except G-d."
Moshiach NOW!!
This week we once again read the story of how a simple brave Jew called Pinchas saved the entire Jewish people from G-d's wrath by killing an evil Jewish leader called Zimri who tried to lead the people into licentiousness. But Rashi tells us that, strangely, Pinchas' heroism brought him only criticism and ridicule from the Jewish people. It seems that Pinchas' mother's father, (the famous convert Yisro after whom an entire chapter of the Torah is named), had been a master idolater. Now everyone jeered at poor Pinchas saying; "His grandfather used to fatten calves to sacrifice to idols. Who is he to go killing Jewish leaders?!" If so, we can ask three questions: 1) Zimri's sin was done brazenly before the entire Jewish nation, why was Pinchas the ONLY one that took action? 2) The existence and power of the Jewish people comes through Moshe. [As we later see in our section (27:17); the Jews, despite their talents and wisdom, without Moshe are like lost sheep]. How could it be that Pinchas surpassed Moses when Moses was the source of everything? 3) Why did the people make fun of him after he saved them? And why was he ridiculed in such a strange way; that his grandfather fattened calves for idolatry? To answer all this, here is a story. The Fourth Rebbe of Lubavitch, the Rebbe Mahara'Sh (an abbreviation for Our Master Rabbi Shmuel) even when he was a young child was unusually serious but often a bit mischievous. The story is told that when he was just six or seven years old he once, in search for a quiet place to a quiet place to sit and learn Torah, decided to try the women's section of the Synagogue. He was right. In the middle of the week the Shul (Synagogue) was empty and there on the second floor was a perfect place for study. He had been sitting learning for a few hours when suddenly the silence was broken by sound of the side door opening followed by the weeping of a woman. He silently walked to the balcony and peeked down to the Shul to see that a woman was standing before the Aron HaKodesh, (the Ark where the Torah scrolls are kept) weeping uncontrollably. "G-d, please help me!" she moaned "I'm alone! I've tried to work, I've tried everything but the house is bare and my children are starving!! Please…..Please help! Please answer my prayers! My husband is dead, all I have is You. G-d please help me." her body shook with heart rending sobs. Little Shmuel felt he had to do something; she was disturbing his learning and besides, he couldn't stand to see suffering. He ducked down behind the low wall and said in the lowest voice he could conjure up. "Lady! Lady!! Do not worry!!" The high ceiling of the empty Shul created a sort of heavenly echo that made it seem as though his voice was coming from everywhere. The woman fell to her knees, looked up at the ceiling, raised he hands to heaven and moaned "Ohhhhh! Thank you!!!" When he saw it was working he continued; "Do not cry! You will have money. I am giving you the power to heal! When you want to heal someone just take a glass of water, make the 'She'ha'kol blessing (the standard blessing of thanks before drinking water), drink a bit and then bless that person. People will pay you much money and you will never be needy again!!" The boy paused dramatically for a moment and said. "But remember! Never tell anyone where you got this power!" "Oh, I won't. I promise!!" She innocently replied. "Thank you HaShem Thank you!! I won't tell a soul. Ohhhh this is wonderful!" She stood, backed out of the Shul drying her eyes, certain that at least an angel had spoken to her, and returned home. The next morning she got to work spreading the word that she could heal, and that very day someone brought their sick father to be cured. She felt a bit strange but she did as the voice had told her the day before and amazingly…… it worked!! The man actually felt better! The news spread like wildfire and in no time people were lined up at her door, and she transformed from a pauper to a fairly wealthy woman in just a few weeks. The years passed and some 25 years later the child, Shmuel, became the Rebbe of Chabad renowned throughout Russia for his genius and his holiness. Thousands flocked to his place in Lubavitch to obtain his blessings and his advice. But one cold winter it looked like it was all over. He caught a cold and what began as a simple sore throat developed into a large festering boil deep in his thoat that was endangering his life. The doctors, afraid to cut because of its delicate location, tried various treatments but they all failed and things rapidly were deteriorating; the Rebbe developed a high fever and it looked like there was no alternative but to operate. Then someone suggested that maybe, as a last resort, they should try Bubba (Grandma) Sarah. It seems there was this old Jewish lady in Vitebsk that had some charm for healing people and because there was no other choice she was brought, trembling with awe at the thought that she was actually in the same room with the holy Lubavitcher Rebbe, to heal him. The Rebbe was lying on his back, his head propped up by a large pillow breathing with great difficulty and in obvious pain. But before she could even begin he asked, "I want you to tell me what is the source of this healing?" "Ohhh Rebbe!" moaned the old woman "Please don't ask me to do that. I've promised that I wouldn't tell. Please Rebbe!" But the Rebbe insisted. "I promise that nothing will happen to you or your remedy" he continued. "After all, HaShem also tells me things that are secret. So He won't mind if I know your secret also. In any case I'm not taking your treatment until you tell me." That was enough to convince her. She told him the entire story of how 25 years ago a heavenly voice spoke to her in the shul. Suddenly the Rebbe realized that it was he himself that had given her the blessing and he began to laugh.. It was painful because of the boil, but the more he thought about it the harder he laughed, he simply couldn't stop himself. His family, hearing the noise from where they were in the next room, thought the Rebbe was having some sort of attack and rushed into the room after sending for the doctor. The Doctor arrived just in time to see that the Rebbe's laughter had split the boil open and now all that remained was to clean the wound. In just days the Rebbe was back on his feet, a completely healthy man!! This answers our questions. Sometimes simple people can do things that even the Rebbe or Moshe can't do. Old Sarah of our story is the perfect example and Pinchus is another. They were able to save those who were the source of their power, and for some reason G-d chose that the salvation should come through them. But it's not so simple. Before we begin saving the day we must be sure that our motives are proper. Or do we? Probably when you read the story of the woman crying, the thought entered your mind that it was a cruel thing for young Shmuel to fool the woman just to get rid of her. But after the story it seems that that wasn't his motive at all. Rather he gave blessings because he was a Rebbe and the nature of a Rebbe is to help people. Similarly Pinchus; the people were angry at him because they questioned his motives. Did he kill Zimri because he wanted to do G-d's will, or perhaps he did it from sheer cruelty? After all, his grandfather had fattened cows up, not because he loved animals, but in order to kill them for idolatry!! In other words they accused Pinchas doing exactly what they wanted to do; follow their natural tendencies. But really they were wrong. His motives were pure, and in fact they were not really an issue. The main thing was that he stopped Zimri and saved the entire nation. That is the lesson our section teaches; sometimes it takes one simple person or even one simple act to save the entire world. And in such a case, if the actions are proper, the motives are not so important. In fact in such cases the goal insures that the motives will be pure. Similarly today, the Lubavitcher Rebbe announced that now we must direct all our energies and talents to bringing Moshiach. It means we have to learn as much as we can and then do as much as possible to make the world a better place so that Moshiach will be revealed even one second earlier. And when Moshiach arrives there will be no more war, strife, disease or hatred in the entire world. It all depends on us simple
people; even one deed can change everything and actually bring... Rabbi Tuvia Bolton Torah Online Site: http://www.ohrtmimim.org/torah It was Tuesday afternoon and
the Janitor was the only one walking around This is the lesson we can learn from Pinchas: We are much more than we think we are. Last week’s Torah Portion
(Balak) ended with a very bizarre story: This week’s Portion begins
with G-d informing us that Pinchas’s reward for this gruesome
act was that he and his offspring got a ‘Peace Pact’
and This is all very difficult
to understand! Second, what is so great about
becoming a Cohen? Why didn’t G-d make him the leader of a
tribe, (there was a vacancy in the tribe of Shimon.) First let us understand why
Pinchas murdered Zimri. The novelty of Judaism is
that its goal is to ‘Unify G-d’; to make even the Therefore the sexual act is
of ultimate Holiness because, besides being the Now, the Torah tells us that everyone present, including Moshe, knew that according to the Torah Zimri must be stopped, but they froze for a moment. Pinchas’s greatness was
that he realized that the entire world is hanging on So he risked his life, jumped
from obscurity into immediate action and ended up saving all of
Israel (and the entire world). He gave the world new life. These two rewards; becoming a Cohen and getting Eliyhu’s soul are fitting to his deeds. It is explained in the writings
of Chabad (Lekuti Torah Korach 55:3) that This is all very important
today. Today, as then, the Jewish people are in Each of us must take an example
from Pinchas and do something to save the situation. We can no
longer wait for the Holy people or the leaders to do it. Rashi (Balak 25:6) tells us
that the reason that everyone except Pinchas The Lubavitch Rebbe informed
us that G-d is waiting for our self-sacrifice WE CAN change this world into a blessing; before we know it we will see that Eliyahu has already arrived and announced the arrival of the Moshiach, and the world will be transformed into a paradise of good and true Peace. With …Moshiach NOW! Tuvia Bolton-Yeshaiva
Ohr Tmimim This week's section explains
how the Land of Israel was to be divided 1) The largest tribe got the
largest area. This doesn't seem to make sense. If the land is allocated according
to population, what was the point of Even more importantly; what
has all this got to do with us today? We I want to answer with a story. A very successful businessman,
a Chabad Chassid by the name of Rabbi Rabbi Gutnick refused on the
spot. True, he had a pleasant voice, but he Two weeks later he was surprised
to see in his mailbox a letter from the "What could this be?"
he said to himself as he put on his jacket and The Rebbe wrote that he was
disappointed to hear that Rabbi Gutnick (The community in Adalide got Rabbi Gutnick's name from the head Rabbi of Sydney, who also advised them to write the Lubavitch Rebbe if Rabbi Gutnick refused.) Needless to say, he took the job. When he arrived in Adalide
the morning before Rosh Hashanah, the first After everyone had left, he
sat down in the back of the quiet Synagogue, About two hours later he heard
the door slowly open, and turned to see a He pointed to the Ark in the
front of the room, she thanked him, went She led her silently down
the aisle toward the Ark, and when they reached "Please G-d, send me
a sign. Please, send me a sign. If you are there, After a few minutes she stood
up, dried her eyes on her dress sleeve, and The room seemed a hundred
times more silent than before, until the "Oh, it must be one of
those Egyptian Jews" he said to Rabbi Gutnick Suddenly the Rebbe’s
words flashed in his mind "Egyptian Jews". He ran That evening Rabbi Gutnick
led the Rosh Hashanah services, and after they were finished,
the Synagogue president requested of him that they stand by the
door and bless everyone as they exited. The only people that didn't
file past, were a group that sat silently in the back corner waiting
for "Oh, those are the Egyptian
Jews," whispered the president when he The next day, after the morning
prayers, Rabbi Gutnick didn’t wait for Seven days later, the evening before Yom Kippur, the phone rang in Rabbi Gutnick’s hotel room. "Hello, are you the Rabbi?"
said the voice on the other end, "I am the When she didn't call back he phoned the president, somehow got her name and phone number and called her back. "Yes?" A man answered,
"Who is it please?"
"Hello, this is Rabbi Gutnick
and...." As soon as he said his name, the So he decided to take things
into his own hands. Although it was already When it opened he put his foot
in, and insisted that they let him enter When Rabbi Gutnick explained what had happened, and how the Lubavitcher Rebbe told him to visit the Egyptian Jews in Adalide, they were stunned speechless; they had never heard of this Rabbi, how could he have heard of them? And who were they that he should even think about them? But the girl began weeping and
whispering, "This is my sign! Thank you After several minutes, her mother,
with tears welling up in her eyes, "We fled from Egypt about a year ago, and almost as soon as we arrived in Australia, my husband and I found work here in Adalide. The only problem was finding a school for Betty. You see she is blind, and the only school we could find for her in this area is run by priests. "At first it wasn't so
bad" her father continued. "Tuition was low, Betty "But then things changed,”
her mother continued. "They began suggesting, "I'm a Jew", Betty
said with tears streaming from her colorless eyes, "Then one day they said
that she should stop coming to school," her "That's when my parents
started pressuring me" whimpered Betty. "They "But what can we do?" Said her weeping mother. "You can't just sit around
in the house!!" said her father "Of course we "So one day last week when my parents were at work" Betty continued, "I asked the neighbor, and she took me to the Synagogue. I just had to pray to G-d to send me a sign what I should do." "Then, the miracle happened!
A few days later, my relatives told me that At that point even Rabbi Gutnick
was not succeeding in holding back his He dried his eyes, picked up the phone and called the president again. "What!!?? It’s twelve
midnight!!" Shouted the president over the phone. "So come in your pajamas," he answered. "You can come any way you want, but if you aren't here soon, you can find a replacement for Yom Kippur." A half hour later he arrived in the girl's house, and in no time they had a list of ten telephone numbers to call after the Holiday. The story had a happy ending;
the president found a place for Betty, and The next time that Rabbi Gutnick
was in "Yechidut" (private audience with This answers our questions: The Lubavitcher Rebbe explains
that "Entering Israel Day" is the most The attitude that each person
takes to this service of G-d is like Logic; we must use all our intellectual
abilities, like Rabbi Gutnick Holiness; we must arouse our
emotional and spiritual feelings in Above logic; we must be attached
to real Tzadikim. Like Rabbi Gutnick Only by using all these three
in our service of HaShem, will we soon be As Mimonidies says in the end
of his great work, that ONLY MOSHIACH will And it all depends on US to bring Moshiach NOW! Rabbi Tuvia Bolton |
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