Category Archives: Oral Torah

HaShoavah Blog, Judaism, Oral Torah, Returning Israel, Tanach Study, Torah, Torah Sedar

Parashat Va’yigash Genesis 44 – 47

Parashat Va’yigash

Genesis 44 – 47

יח   וַיִּגַּ֨שׁ אֵלָ֜יו יְהוּדָ֗ה וַיֹּאמֶר֮ בִּ֣י אֲדֹנִי֒ יְדַבֶּר־נָ֨א עַבְדְּךָ֤ דָבָר֙ בְּאָזְנֵ֣י אֲדֹנִ֔י וְאַל־יִ֥חַר אַפְּךָ֖ בְּעַבְדֶּ֑ךָ כִּ֥י כָמ֖וֹךָ כְּפַרְעֹֽה׃

יט אֲדֹנִ֣י שָׁאַ֔ל אֶת־עֲבָדָ֖יו לֵאמֹ֑ר הֲיֵשׁ־לָכֶ֥ם אָ֖ב אוֹ־אָֽח׃

As we approach the city of Jerusalem moving to its rightful place in the world, the capital of Israel, and the light of the world, and as Judah moves closer to bring the Torah to its rightful place in the nations. We face a world full of hate for the Jewish people and our religion.

Our sages tell us that one day Judah will approach Joseph and they will embrace each other. As Jews pray daily for the return of Ephraim and the lost tribes we hope the meeting will be one of great joy and salvation for Klal Israel.

As we approach the seventh anniversary of Israel as the homeland of the Jewish people. I would say, that the last ten years have been one of great growth, and knowledge for those outside of Judaism. The nation has been learning the Oral Torah, and Kabalah, and Jewish philosophy from some of the greatest Jewish Rabbis we have to offer. This is from Hashem because He is close to making this world His dwelling place.

Much progress has been made, but still, there is a gulf between those who say, they love Israel, and the Jewish people, and their willingness to trust our Rabbis and Hashem, to save us, without following something that our forefathers never knew or were told to follow.

As Judah approaches its redemption, my prayer is that the nation would do their job and help us, the Jewish people, be the best Jews we could be, instead of trying to convert Jews to a religion that can only take us further away from  the covenants of promise, trust the God of Israel, that He will keep His promise to us and save us.

Instead of bow and sword and horseman, try Hashem and baseless love.

 Hosea1:7 But I will have compassion upon the house of Judah, and will save them by the LORD their God, and will not save them by bow, nor by sword, nor by battle, nor by horses, nor by horsemen.’

And Judah approached….

Where will you be?

HaShoavah Blog, Judaism, Literature, Oral Torah, Returning Israel, Tanach Study, Torah, Torah Sedar

Parashat Miketz Genesis 41 – 44 א 

Parashat Miketz

Genesis 41 – 44

א וַיְהִ֕י מִקֵּ֖ץ שְׁנָתַ֣יִם יָמִ֑ים וּפַרְעֹ֣ה חֹלֵ֔ם וְהִנֵּ֖ה עֹמֵ֥ד עַל־הַיְאֹֽר׃

ב וְהִנֵּ֣ה מִן־הַיְאֹ֗ר עֹלֹת֙ שֶׁ֣בַע פָּר֔וֹת יְפ֥וֹת מַרְאֶ֖ה וּבְרִיאֹ֣ת בָּשָׂ֑ר וַתִּרְעֶ֖ינָה בָּאָֽחוּ׃

 

וַיְהִ֕י מִקֵּ֖ץ  And it was in the end”.
Have you ever questioned, why you had to endure such challenges in your life?
Why has my life been lived in such a way, that it has brought about all the things that has to lead me to this place? A place of uncertainty and unrest. A place of questions and lost in space.
What is life truly about?
משלי
Proverbs 14:23 “In all labour there is profit, But the talk of the lips tendeth only to penury”. Midrash Rabbah Mikketz 2

And it was in the end that I knew the journey.  

HaShoavah Blog, Israel: Culture, Judaism, Oral Torah, Returning Israel, Torah, Torah Sedar

Parashat Va’yeshev Genesis 37 – 40 וַיֵּ֣שֶׁב יַעֲקֹ֔ב

א  בְּאֶ֖רֶץ מְגוּרֵ֣י אָבִ֑יו בְּאֶ֖רֶץ כְּנָֽעַן׃ 
ב אֵ֣לֶּה ׀ תֹּלְד֣וֹת יַעֲקֹ֗ב יוֹסֵ֞ף בֶּן־שְׁבַֽע־עֶשְׂרֵ֤ה שָׁנָה֙ הָיָ֨ה רֹעֶ֤ה אֶת־אֶחָיו֙ בַּצֹּ֔אן וְה֣וּא נַ֗עַר אֶת־בְּנֵ֥י בִלְהָ֛ה וְאֶת־בְּנֵ֥י זִלְפָּ֖ה נְשֵׁ֣י אָבִ֑יו וַיָּבֵ֥א יוֹסֵ֛ף אֶת־דִּבָּתָ֥ם רָעָ֖ה אֶל־אֲבִיהֶֽם׃
Where is Chanukah in the Torah? (see commentary at the end of the article).
Why do Sephardic Jews and Ashkenazi and all other Jews treat each other with such disdain?
Where is the Beit Hamikdash?
Is Yerushalayim the light to all nations?

And he (Israel) settled in the end. (וַיֵּ֣שֶׁב יַעֲקֹ֔ב)

The Torah is a blueprint for the cosmos and our world. With Chanukah just a week away. The question may be asked? Who will we be fighting in the future to free our spiritual lives? Yaakov wrestled with a man. (Himself)

Just as the Greeks tried to remove our spiritual connections to Hashem and His Torah. So, the world is busy trying to distract us from our heritage and culture as Jews.

How do we bring the light of Judaism to a world that is steeped in darkness when we as Jews continue to hate each other without a cause.

The story of Yosef is the axis for many of our pains as Jews. Today we fight between Ashkenazi and Sephardic and the many different sects within our Jewish communities.

Will our enemies ask us, when they try to destroy us, are your Sephardic or Haredi or Mizrachi, conservative or reform?

Please listen to the song “Echad”.

We, are Klal Israel, and we must make Tikkun in the end where our forefathers failed. We can not settle in the end, the way our Torah portion begins with baseless hatred for each other.

Jews must be that shining light to the nations and bring them close to Torah and Hashem. We must teach them, that, Torah is the only blueprint that Hashem has given to mankind to fix our lives.

We do not need some “heavenly escape plan” as some outside of Torah Judaism say, but we must see that our world can not survive with each one us only concerned about him or herself. We must stop this baseless hatred and bring the miracle of Or HaGanuz, “the hidden light.”

So, let us rededicate ourselves, to this hidden light, that was always there from the beginning. Let us light the light of Chanukah as we are told in Vayikra 24:”1 And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying: 2 ‘Command the children of Israel, that they bring unto thee pure olive oil beaten for the light, to cause a lamp to burn continually. 3 Without the veil of the testimony, in the tent of meeting, shall Aaron order it from evening to morning before the LORD continually; it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations. 4 He shall order the lamps upon the pure candlestick before the LORD continually.

(By the way what festival comes after Sukkot? Chanukah)

Let us settle, Chanukah/Dedication, in the end with giving (אהבה). Love and Torah.

Judaism, Oral Torah, Tanach Study, Torah, Torah Sedar

Vayishlach | וישלח | “He sent “

Parashat Va’yishlah

Two portion that are connected Vayetse Yaakov meets Rachael

“…ויגש יעקב ויגל את האבן מעל פי הבאר וישק את צאן לבן אחי אמו: וישק יעקב לרחל…”. “האבן” = חן = 58. “הבאר” = יצחק = 208. “צאן” = 141. “וישק” = “רעה צאן” = “יצחק יצחק”. “רחל” = 238. “וישק” = “רחל” + “חפץ” = “יצחק יצחק”.
 How do we close the cycle of life? How do we correct our sins?  How do Ismael and Esau return to Am Israel? Many times in life do we have to go to the opposite side of things to achieve what we want to accomplish. What is it that you must go to on the opposite side to make the (apple) open and satisfy the desire of those around you?

Genesis 32 – 36

ד וַיִּשְׁלַ֨ח יַעֲקֹ֤ב מַלְאָכִים֙ לְפָנָ֔יו אֶל־עֵשָׂ֖ו אָחִ֑יו אַ֥רְצָה שֵׂעִ֖יר שְׂדֵ֥ה אֱדֽוֹם׃

ה וַיְצַ֤ו אֹתָם֙ לֵאמֹ֔ר כֹּ֣ה תֹאמְר֔וּן לַֽאדֹנִ֖י לְעֵשָׂ֑ו כֹּ֤ה אָמַר֙ עַבְדְּךָ֣ יַעֲקֹ֔ב עִם־לָבָ֣ן גַּ֔רְתִּי וָאֵחַ֖ר עַד־עָֽתָּה׃

Judaism, Oral Torah, Tanach Study, Torah

Bible Codes Revealed at Yiboneh with Rabbi Moshe Zeldman

Many people say that Kabballah is something that has its origins in the minds of men and was something that had nothing to do with Hashem.

Many claims that the Jewish people have formulated  Kabballah out of “witchcraft” or white magic. They write ugly things, about our faith as Jews, and say that we are following men/Rabbis who make up laws out of thin air to control the Jewish people.

Over the last several years in my studies, I have been learning from one of Israel greatest Kabbalist (on-line) and have seen how many of our laws can be proven through Bible codes and here are few example: The claim is The Six Hundred and Thirteen Laws are man-made and have no proof in the Bible. Well, come and see.

Oral Torah, Tanach Study, Torah, Torah Sedar

Vayetze | ויצא | “He went out ” Torah: Genesis 28:10-32:2

Parashat Va’yetzeh

How does one water the sheep when a great stone is in the way? How do the nations drink from the well when there is no Rabbi to teach them the way of Torah? There are many secrets that must be revealed in this weeks Torah portion and only Chazal have the answers. Their students are waiting for the sheep to gather and in the meantime, many Rabbi’s are watering them from the well and there they are kissing each other and bring chesed to the world.

Genesis 28 – 32 Beit El

י וַיֵּצֵ֥א יַעֲקֹ֖ב מִבְּאֵ֣ר שָׁ֑בַע וַיֵּ֖לֶךְ חָרָֽנָה׃

יאוַיִּפְגַּ֨ע בַּמָּק֜וֹם וַיָּ֤לֶן שָׁם֙ כִּי־בָ֣א הַשֶּׁ֔מֶשׁ וַיִּקַּח֙ מֵאַבְנֵ֣י הַמָּק֔וֹם וַיָּ֖שֶׂם מְרַֽאֲשֹׁתָ֑יו וַיִּשְׁכַּ֖ב בַּמָּק֥וֹם הַהֽוּא׃

יב וַֽיַּחֲלֹ֗ם וְהִנֵּ֤ה סֻלָּם֙ מֻצָּ֣ב אַ֔רְצָה וְרֹאשׁ֖וֹ מַגִּ֣יעַ הַשָּׁמָ֑יְמָה וְהִנֵּה֙ מַלְאֲכֵ֣י אֱלֹהִ֔ים עֹלִ֥ים וְיֹרְדִ֖ים בּֽוֹ׃

Judaism, Oral Torah, Torah Sedar

Toldot | תולדות | “Consequences”

Parashat Toldot

Is being blind such a bad thing? Can we assume that Yitzach made so many bad decision? Who is Yitzach and what was his motivation in our Jewish history? Yitzach was an expert in finding water where there seems to be no water. Have you ever have seen a man who digs in the rocky desert for water? Yitzach was a great man of strength to dig for the answers of life and the deep waters of Torah. So being blind can help sharpen one’s senses if you are sensitive to Hashem’s ways.

Sometimes having your eye open can lead to doing Hashem’s will.

Genesis 3: 7 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; they sewed fig-leaves together, and made themselves girdles. 8And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden toward the cool of the day; and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden. 9And the LORD God called unto the man, and said unto him: ‘Where art thou?’

Can you see where you are? Faith is knowing what your eyes do not see and not knowing what your eyes do see. Faith is not blind. 

Genesis 25 – 28

יט וְאֵ֛לֶּה תּוֹלְדֹ֥ת יִצְחָ֖ק בֶּן־אַבְרָהָ֑ם אַבְרָהָ֖ם הוֹלִ֥יד אֶת־יִצְחָֽק׃

כ וַיְהִ֤י יִצְחָק֙ בֶּן־אַרְבָּעִ֣ים שָׁנָ֔ה בְּקַחְתּ֣וֹ אֶת־רִבְקָ֗ה בַּת־בְּתוּאֵל֙ הָֽאֲרַמִּ֔י מִפַּדַּ֖ן אֲרָ֑ם אֲח֛וֹת לָבָ֥ן הָאֲרַמִּ֖י ל֥וֹ לְאִשָּֽׁה׃