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Here is the dvar torah JayMatt emailed me before Shabbos to post now:
The Machlokes of Korach
The Mishna in Pirkei Avos (5:17) compares the
machlokes, argument, of Korach to that of Shamai
and Hillel. The Mishna states that the difference
between the two was that the machlokes between
Shamai and Hillel was leshaim shomaim, for the
sake of heaven, while the machlokes of Korach and his people was
not.
1. The Midrash Shmuel asks why does the mishna say “Korach and his group” and not “Korach and Moshe” the way the mishna says “Shammai and Hillel”?
He answers that Moshe was l’shem Shamayim, it was only Korach and his people who were not l’shem shamayim.
2. Why does it say “Korach and his group”? This is because even within the group there was different kavanas for each person. There was no real unity, they just united for this single cause (to argue with Moshe). That itself shows us their debate was not l’shem shamayim. (Me’or V’Shemesh in the name of Noam Elimelech)
3. It says Shammai and Hillel as opposed to Beis Shammai and Beis Hillel since Hillel and Shammai were certainly argued l’shem shamayim without any other factor involved. Whereas the talmidim might have had minute amounds of other intentions (e.g. my Rebbe is greater than yours) nevertheless it was still l’shem shamayim, though not on the high scale of a Shammai and Hillel.
4. How do we know Korach’s debate was without the correct intentions? The were arguing on their Rebbe. And anyone who argues on their Rebbe it is as if they are arguing with the Shechina. Therefore its obvious it was not l’shem shamayim.
R’ JayMatt: well done! great DT!
chofetzchaim: nice DT there!
Jaymatt, great points!
Parshas Korach (seen in the Mayana shel Torah)
Dasan and Aviram were not the best of characters in the desert. In fact, it seems like wherever there was trouble, those two would be there.
So why did Moshe go out of his way to call Dasan and Aviram to speak with him in an effort to create peace?
There is no chazaka by machlokes. One cannot say that these two have a reputation which precedes them, therefore nothing can help. One needs to constantly try, every little effort helps. As such Moshe once again went out of his way to go speak to Dasan and Aviram.
I’m sure I do not need to emphasize this point more than I have already. Every little bit with every type of person helps more than you know.
Welcome back Jaymatt! Nice DT. Short, sweet and definitely to the point!
JayMatt19: really nice one buddy!
I can do Wednesday if you have np me emailing it to you earlier on in the day and then you posting it. Or else, I can just post it during the day.
kapusta: very nice indeed!
*******************Jax’s Tuesday D’var Torah*************************
“Ki eshmira Shabbos, K-ail yishmeraini…” – Zemiros L’Shabbos.
“When I safeguard the Sabbath, G-d will safeguard me…” – Sabbath Liturgy
when you have such a passion for a mitzvah, Hashem protects you, illustrated by this wonderful story:
David, an observant Jew was at Logan Airport getting ready to board United Flight 175. He was going to LA on an important business trip and had to make this flight. He boarded the plane, watched the doors close, and sat down.
Suddenly he remembered that he left his tefillin in the terminal boarding area. He politely asked the stewardess if he could go back and retrieve his tefillin, which were sitting just a few feet from the gate.
She told him that once the doors of the plane closed, no one was allowed off the plane. Not about to take this sitting down, he asked if he could speak to the pilot to obtain special permission. Surely the pilot would understand. The pilot did not comply. He simply restated the policy.
David was not about to lose this precious mitzvah, or let the holy tefillin get lost like that, so, not knowing what else to do, he started screaming at the top of his lungs, “I am going to lose my tefillin.” The crew asked him to be quiet, but he refused to stop making a fuss – a rather loud fuss.
Finally, he was making such a ruckus and a tumult that the flight crew told him that they would let him off the plane, simply because he was a nuisance. In fact, even though it would only take about 90 seconds to run out, grab his tefillin, and run back – they were not going to wait for him.
No matter. David was not about to lose his tefillin, even if it caused him great inconvenience or cost his business a loss. He left the plane, never to re board.
This flight was United #175. The second plane to reach the WTC. David’s devotion to a mitzvah saved his life.
The consequences of David’s actions do not end there. Originally the terrorists wanted both towers struck simultaneously to maximize the explosive carnage. Later it was learned that due to this whole tumult, the takeoff was delayed, causing a space of 18 minutes between the striking of the two towers. This delay made it possible for thousands more people to escape alive from both buildings.
Literally thousands, if not tens of thousands, of lives were spared because one Jew would not forsake his beloved tefillin.
OMG Jax! What an amazing story! I have chills running up and down me! WOW! WOW! WOW!
mepal: thank you for taking the time to read it!
72: please check your email, i just sent you my homework! 😉
72: thank you!
ames: your very welcome! i too loved this amazing story!
Jax: Astoundingly awesome Story!
A very important message.
Thanks!
********** Dvar Torah for Wednesday, Parshas Korach **********
“And Moshe sent to call Dasan and Aviram the sons of Aliav, and they said, we will not go up.” (Bamidbar 16:12)
Rashi cites the Talmud that from here we see the principle that one should not keep up a quarrel. Moshe took the initiative to go after them to make peace.
Rabbi Yitzchok of Vorki commented: The Sages said there is no chazakah in a quarrel. A chazakah means that since a situation is a certain way we assume that it was that way before and will remain that way. But if you try to make peace when there is a quarrel, never say that since you have already tried and have not been successful it will be impossible for you to make peace. Even if you have not been successful in the past, there is always the possibility that you will be able to make peace now.
Even if someone seems very obstinate and many people have tried to reason with him and have failed, it is always possible that a new approach or a new strategy might work to bring about peace.There is no guarantee that any two people will be able to be the best of friends, but at least from a distance people should be on peaceful terms with each other. Disputes and feuds are so destructive that it is always worthwhile to keep doing all you can to make peace.
One very important principle for bringing about peace is a willingness to apologize to someone. There are some people who refuse to apologize to others even if they are clearly wrong. They are very stubborn about the matter and this keeps quarrels going for much longer than necessary. Other people are willing to say they are sorry when they realize they have made a mistake. But they still refuse to apologize if they feel that they are right and the other person is wrong. This, too, can needlessly prolong disputes. A person who sincerely loves and seeks peace will be willing to appologize to someone who feels hurt even if he thinks that he really did not do anything wrong. While this should not be done in situations when someone will take advantage of you, in most instances you lose absolutely nothing and gain much in terns of harmony and peaceful relationships by saying, “I am sorry.”
-Growth Through Torah, R’ Zelig Pliskin
Mepal, that was very nice.
I was wondering, Did you like my DT I gave this past Sunday?
mepal: that was great! keep up the great DT’s while i’m gone!
bein_hasdorim: your welcome! glad ya liked it! you ever up to doing a D’var Torah here?!
Jaymatt, yes, I liked it very much. The point you made was so relevent, I had to reiterate it 😉
I apologize. I must’ve forgotten what you wrote when I was looking for a DT. Do you also get yours from there?
If I recall, I saw it in the mayana shel torah.
nice to know people REALLY like some of the things I post 😉
JayMatt, I wouldn’t say I liked it if I didn’t. The shorter DT’s for sure, since you just read them quickly and go on to the next thing. I dont always have the time to read through the long ones. Yours are just perfect. Like I said once; short, sweet and to the point!
Keep them coming!
Here we go again…….. i’m not sure if i have enlightened u on the “source” of my divrey torah (not the “source” ur thinking of jaymat!!!), pretty much i see a vague idea somewhere and then i just “develop” it, and so on the one hand i don’t want ppl to think i actually thought of it all on my own, on the other hand i don’t wanna quote where the source is, cuz more often than not, by the time i’m done with it it actually has nothing to do with the original idea i saw. so let’s just call them “very loosely based divrey torah”!
Hashem instructs moshe to erect a serpent, which will help bring the ending of the plague, and hashem adds a very interesting detail into this commandment, he asks moshe to build the serpent out of his OWN money! huh?
Let’s backtrack a bit, why did the entire plague begin? cuz bney yisroel spoke badly against hashem and moshe, “blaming” them for taking bney yisroel out of mitzrayim just in order to die in the midbar, and so , at least partially, the reason the ppl were being punished was cuz they did moshe bad, and so why in the world would he have to suffer a financial loss in order to stop their suffering? they should be the ones to pay! in fact they should pay for the serpent and give him 10000000 dollars (not that much these days, cuz of the dollars situation, does that mean america is on it’s way down? NAH impossible, i mean it is such a huge superpower it can never fall apart right? just ask the egyptians, romans, greeks, mongols and soviets………) in damages. So what exactly was the meaning of this quite perplexing request hashem made of moses?
How bout we try this:- we (i.e me) make a very serious mistake in a very common situation, when we see someone do bad we immediately hate the person as apposed to hating his actions, we fail to realize that as jews we r supposed to understand that deep down each person is good, and it’s just the outer coating which sometimes gets rotten.
And this too:- we also make a very big mistake when we apologise for something we did wrong, we apologise as part of the apologising ceremony, very rarely actually meaning it, very rarely actually regretting the original back action which we did.
Now put those 2 factors together…..and what do u get? 2 totally unrelated factors!!!!
And so that is what hashem was requesting from moshe- hashem “realized” that in this case bney yisroel make a sincere apology, they fully understood the severity of their actions, they fully understood that they were being punished cuz they sinned, and they truly regretted and felt bad for what they said against hashem and moshe. As a result of that moshe had no right (not that earlier he had a right, and obviously not that earlier he actually bore a grudge) to bear a grudge to bney yisrol, so much that he should be willing to even suffer a loss just in order to ensure their return to health and safety!
This idea goes both ways- when u apologise to someone (whether g-d or someone who just thinks he is g-d) u have to do it in a way so sincere that the person ur apologising to will feel comfortable giving u money for something related to the very bad action which they did towards u in the beginning, u should make it such a true apology that the person u hurt should feel as if the wrongdoing which u originally did never even happened. Only that type of apology can be considered a true apology!
But the same goes for the opposite situation where someone is apologising to u! u have to realize that the person is truly apologizing (and even if he isn’t u have to try your best to feel as if he is) and u have no right, need or point of being annoyed anymore, to the degree that u would even be willing to pay for his recovery from the punishment he suffered for what he did to u in the first place.
But we have to take it even further, and not just “not bear a grudge” but to realize that there really is absolutely no reason to be angry anymore, after the person apologized there is no “bad” around anymore, a superficial bad action was done by an internally good person, and as soon as that person removed the dirty speck from his surface…….. all that is left is good.
That is what hashem was trying to teach us via moshe, and moshe obliged without any problems cuz he understood that in reality after bney yisroel apologized and realized their wrongdoing there really was no reason to be angry/annoyed at them at all!!!!! not easy…..but so so important!!
Parshas Chukas:
?? ?????–??? ???? ??? ?????, ???; ???? ????, ???? ???? ??????, ???? ??-??-???? ????, ??-????. ??-?? ????? ??????, ??? ?????;
The Gemarra in Bava Basra Explains this Passuk:
?”? ????? ?? ???? ?”? ????? ??? ????? (????? ??) ?? ?? ????? ??????? ???’ ??????? ??? ??????? ????? ???? ????? ???? ????? ?????? ?? ???? ???? ???? ???? ???? ???? ????? ???? ?????
How can we understand how chazal make a such a drush from this passuk? (That this refers to the yetzer hara?)
R’ Yonasan Eibushitz explains to us what the city of “Cheshbon” means. It was a simple city in Moav. Had the king of Moav properly protected it with guards, it never would have fallen into the hands of Sichon. However, since it was neither a large nor an important city, therefore the king of Moav did not feel the need to protect it as well as he could have. Thus it fell, quite easily, into the hands of Sichon (which enabled him to conquer all of Moav).
Chazal tell us (in the above quoted Bava Basra) that this is identical to our battles with the Yetzer Hara. If the yetzer hara tries to get us, even on a “mitzva kalla” or a seemingly little aveira, we still must fight with all our strength, lest our yetzer win. For if it wins, it becomes much easier for it to continue winning (just like Sichon vs. Moav).
Parshas Balak (Welcome back to the cycle bnei chutz l’aretz)
?? ?????, ?? ???-???? ????, ???? ???, ????
Obviously we know why Balak mentioned Bilam’s power to curse, but why mention the power to bless?
Two Pshatim (both seen in the tallilei oros)
1. (M’lo HaOmer) The Zohar writes that in order to do damage to someone with an Ayin Hara, one first needs to praise the one the hope to inflict (say a few nice things etc.) in order for the ayin hara to be effective. So Balak is saying ?? ?????, ?? ???-???? ????, I know that when you bless the one who is blessed (e.g. Klal Yisroel), only after can we effectively ???? ???, ????, cause the damage.
2. (Or HaChaim)Where do we see that Bilaam had the power to bless? In reality, he did not! Bilaam was a massive rasha, and he saw things via the mazalos,(stars) astrologically. Rather than tell the person what was destined, he’d bless them that it would happen, until the point it happened. The one who got blessed would then believe it happened due to the bracha of Bilaam (when in reality he had no thing to do with it).
This was how it was with Balak. Bilaam saw that Balak was going to rule over Moav. Sensing the opportunity, Bilaam went and blessed Balak until he successfully ascended to Moav’s throne in order to trick Balak into believing that it was all the work of Bilaam’s brachos.
Excellent DT, 72! Great point!
Are you all booked for the week? If not, maybe I’ll post sometime later this week.
even when we are all booked, we always have room for more. Thanks. YW Moderator-72
Here is last week’s dvar Torah that I missed posting:
Mussar HaTorah
5 Tamuz, 5769 Vol. 10, No. 35 Parashas Korach
mepal, for some reason I remember hearing something about Jax going away for the summer. So why not give tomorrow night (Tuesday) just in case I am right.
moderator, for some odd reason, I remember hearing Jax make a deal with 72 that he’ll do his homework first and send in DT’s for the days he’s gone. So first confirm that you dont have a DT for tonight yet.
Chafetz Chaim posted 7 hours ago. That counts for Monday
Thanks 72. So I’m back to doing something the end of the week.
Am I on duty for tonight? No one told me…
Mondays DT from kapusta:
A Never Ending Story
Balak, the King of Moav saw that the Jewish nation was camped near his land and he became frightened. He employed the greatest sorcerer of the generation, Bilaam, to curse the Children of Israel, but alas, Hashem ensured that all potential curses were turned into blessings. In one of the early attempts to curse the Jews, Bilaam erected seven altars with sacrifices. He set out to accomplish his mission but he failed. Instead of cursing the Jews, Bilaam blessed them and longed for their eternal fortune.
Great DT, kapusta!
You have a son in fourth grade by any chance?! 😉
Thanks jax! Beautiful peice, inspiring lesson!
Thank you 72 for posting!
-Dvar Torah-
The mysterious ceremony of the “Para Aduma,” the Red Heifer, whose ashes mixed with water are able to purify one who came in contact with the dead, is the prototype “chok”, a law not understandable by human intelligence. Even the wisest man that ever lived, Shlomo Hamelech, said, “I thought that I would become wise, but it remains far from me. What was is far away, deep, deep and who can find it (Koheles 7:23-24).” The Midrash expands on this: I investigated and searched through the whole Torah, says, Shlomo, and found a reason for everything, until I got to the section of the Para Aduma. Then I said, ‘I thought that I was wise, but it remains far from me. What was is far away. . . .'”
The expression, “What was is far away,” needs explanation. A parable will help.
A man decided he wanted to go on a journey to the end of the world. He made all of his preparations, got a good carriage ready, got his assistant to join him, and set off. After a long day’s trip they stopped off at an inn, and, along with the other guests at an inn, joined a conversation about everyone’s travels. When he is asked, “Where are you travelling, near or far?” he replies, “My journey is a long, long one.”
Let us take a close look at the traveler’s reply. When he says his journey is a “long, long one,” he really means that even though there is still a long journey before him, it is shorter than it was when the day began. For one who traveled a hundred miles during the day, his journey to the end of the world is hundred miles less than it was when the day began.
Shlomo Hamelech tells us that he wanted to travel to the end of the world – to understand even the deepest secrets of the Torah. “I thought I would become wise.” The reason behind the Para Aduma still evades him, though, as he says, “It is still distant from me.” However, one might have compared Shlomo Hamelech’s progress to that of the traveler in the parable. You might have thought that even though his goal is still distant, it is still not as far away as it was when he began his journey – he still made some headway into understanding the Para Aduma. Here they differ. Shlomo is still as far away from his goal as he was when he started investigating the Para Aduma. This is what he added by saying, “What was is far away.” It is just as far away as it was when he began.
Often we say when learning about the reasons behind the mitzvot, “After all we have understood, we have only scratched the surface.” With regards to understanding the Para Aduma, says the Dubno Maggid, we do not even scratch the surface.
Was that DT for Tues or Wed?
No mepal, we are waiting for your DT to fulfill our Wednesday obligaion
NP. Later tonight, K? IY”H.
Looking forward
Here goes. Mepals DT for Wednesday night. A bit long but interesting point!
**********Parshas Chukas – Balak**********
All Pain, No Gain
by Rabbi Mordechai Kamenetzky
It is not so easy having a brother like Esav. We ask one little favor, it wouldn’t cost him a dime. We wanted to pass through his land on the way to Canaan. In fact, he would be able to make some money off the venture. But he says no. And he does not just say no the way they tell you to just say no, this no is a resounding exclamation that warns of war. If you follow the chain of events, it is important to note that the Jewish pleas for mercy and understanding were met with such vociferous antagonism.
Moshe first sent emissaries from Kadesh to the king of Edom – “So said your brother Israel – You know all the hardship that has befallen us. Our forefathers descended to Egypt and we dwelled in Egypt many years, and the Egyptians did evil to us and to our forefathers. We cried out to Hashem and He heard our voice; He sent an emissary and took us out of Egypt. Now behold! we are in Kadesh, a city at the edge of your border” (Numbers 20:15-17).
After Moshe defines the hardships and trials that the Jews endured he makes one small request. “Let us pass through your land; we shall not pass through field or vineyard, and we shall not drink well water; on the king’s road shall we travel — we shall not veer right or left — until we pass through your border.”
The commentaries explain that Moshe promised not to use the water from the miraculous well, rather they would purchase water from the Edomites. In fact, Moshe was willing to pay for any amenity that the Jews used. But it did not help. Edom was not satisfied and turned his back on his cousins. More so, he responded with a threat. “The king of Edom said to him, “You shall not pass through me — lest I come against you with the sword!” (ibid v.18)The Children of Israel said to him, “We shall go up on the highway, and if we drink your water — I or my flock — I shall pay their price. Only nothing will happen; let me pass through on foot.” Edom replied, “You shall not pass through! Then Edom went out against him with a massive throng and a strong hand.” The Torah concludes that Edom refused to permit Israel to pass through his border, and Israel turned away from near him. (see Numbers 20:18-20)Rashi quotes the Midrash Tanchuma Beshalach Esav was irked by that detail of the Jew’s narrative, “We prayed to Hashem and he heard.” And so he responded: You pride yourselves on the “voice” which your father bequeathed you as a blessing, saying, “And we cried unto the Lord and He heard our voice” (cf Rashi on v 16); I, therefore, will come out against you with that which my father bequeathed me when he said, (Gen :27:40) “And by thy sword shall thou live.” It seems that despite the story of oppression, once the Jews mention their spiritual proficiency, Esav balks. Why is there a vehemence directed at Yaakov’s declaration? What irked Esav when he heard about Yaakov’s successful supplications?
I heard this Soviet Union story during the height of Brezhnev’s reign back in the 1970s.
After a two month hiatus, the monthly potato shipment to Moscow was supposed to finally arrive the next morning. Two hours before dawn, a throng of people began queuing up in the Russian winter’s frostiness, in front of the market. After half an hour the official stepped out of the shop. I am sorry we will not be getting enough potatoes to service all of you. All Jewish comrades must return home. There will be none for you.
The rest of the crowd smirked as they continued waiting in the bitter cold for the anticipated delivery. Two hours later, the proprietor emerged. “One of the trucks broke down. All non-communist party members should go home. They too trudged off into the cold. It was only another three hours later when the storekeeper emerged again, this time breaking the news to the remaining party faithful. “I apologize, but the trucks have broken down and will not be delivering potatoes this month. All of you should go home.
This time there was only frustration, “Those cursed Jews have all the privileges!”
The Torah tells us how Edom reacts to Yaakov’s misfortune. When the Jews talk about their long captivity, there is no emotion. When they mention the torture and affliction there is no compassion.
But the minute the Jews allude to even a minor success, one that alleviated their torture and pain, “we prayed to G-d and he stopped the oppression,” Edom snarls.
He retorts, “Jew are you boasting about your spirituality. I, too, have my talents I live by the sword and I will greet you with it!” He forgets that our prayers did not advance our position. It did not cause us to inflict undue harm on other nations. It just let true justice be served on our tormentors. One thing our enemies ought to learn. If you don’t appreciate our pains, at least admire our gains!
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