Jewish, Jewish, Everywhere, & not a drop to drink
Friday, May 23, 2003
WORDS OF REBUKE AND PROMISE:
THEN AND NOW.
________________
In this week's, May 24 th , weekly Torah portion, one is struck by the absolutely amazing words of the Torah as being as relevant to Jews today, especially those dwelling in Israel, as it was over 3,300 years ago when Moshe wrote it down for the first time:
Rewards for Obedience:
"If you follow My laws and are careful to keep My commandments, I will provide you with rain at the right time, so that the land will bear its crops...I will grant peace in the land so that you will sleep without fear...You will chase away your enemies, and they will fall before your sword...I will turn to you, making you fertile and numerous, thus keeping My covenant with you." (Leviticus, Ch.26. vs. 3-13.)
Punishments for Disobedience:
"And if you do not listen to Me, and do not keep all these commandments.If you denigrate My decrees, and grow tired of My laws, then you will not keep all My commandments, and you will have broken my covenant. I will then do the same to you. I will bring upon you feelings of anxiety...and making life hopeless...you will be defeated by your foes, and your enemies will dominate you.You will flee even if no-one is chasing you...I will bring a vengeful sword against you to avenge My covenant...and give you over to your enemies...you will eat but you will not be satisfied." (Leviticus, Ch.26. vs. 14-26.)
Destruction and Repentance:
...I will scatter you among the nations, and keep the sword drawn against you...You will thus be destroyed among the nations...But when the time finally comes that their stubborn spirit is humbled, I will forgive their sin. I will remember My covenant...I will remember the land...I will therefore remember the covenant with the original ancestors whom I brought out of Egypt in the sight of the nations, so as to be a God to them. I am God. These are the decrees, laws, and codes that God set between Himself and the Israelites at Mount Sinai through the hand of Moses." (Leviticus, Ch.26. vs. 27-46.)
Any religious Jew sees and understands the blatantly obvious words of the Torah as a clear and present warning about how dangers come to upon us.Why are we plagued by suicide bombers? Why are we being picked on by the nations of the world? Why is anti-Semitism still alive and well? Why must the Land of Israel be given away to its enemies? When will Arafat and his evil cohorts "go away" forever? When will real and true peace finally arrive? Can it arrive? When can Jews, especially in Israel, expect to have normal lives again?
For the religious Jew, it is not necessary to look further than the opening words of this week's Torah portion.
It's up to us, the ENTIRE Jewish People, Am Yisrael,including the secularist Shinui in Israel and those who are self-proclaimed Jewish atheists in America, to "shape up" and become "ship shape" in adherence to, and practice of, the Torah, the Jewish Bible, and its commandments. They can "turn their ship around",or else face the fate of constantly being "shipped out" or worse "being thrown overboard" in different ways that G-d may choose.
Ultimately the Torah assures the Bnai Yisrael, that they will return safely to "home port" having survived the "tidal waves and storms", and then be reunited with their long lost beloved who was waiting for them all the time, G-d Himself.
Thursday, May 15, 2003
PASSING OF A GREAT RABBI...
Arutz Sheva/ 27Feb 03
http://www.israelnn.com/
Thousands At Funeral Of Rabbi Yaakov Yisrael Fischer
Rabbi Yaakov Yisrael Fischer, head of the Eidah HaHareidit Rabbinical Court in Jerusalem, passed away this morning at the age of 78. His rulings and teachings were accepted throughout the religious world, and he taught in yeshivot in both the hareidi and religious-Zionist sectors. His funeral, attended by thousands of people, departed this afternoon from his home in the Zikhron Moshe neighborhood of Jerusalem towards Har HaMenuchot.
Eidah HaHareidit sources said that today is a "day of mourning and great loss for all of Israel." Rabbi Fischer was popularly known as the "fifth section" of the four-section Shulchan Arukh (Code of Jewish Law).
People in distress frequently consulted with him for solace, and Rabbi Fischer would often recommend that they pray at the Western Wall for 40 consecutive days. Many singles later credited this advice with helping them to marry.
Rabbi Fischer was born the day that Yisrael Yaakov De-Hahn was killed in what many said was the first political assassination in modern Land of Israel history. De-Hahn changed his lifestyle and became a hareidi Jew, and Aharon Fischer named his newborn son Yaakov Yisrael after him.
Rabbi Shlomo Aviner, rabbi of Beit El and head of Yeshivat Ateret Cohanim in the Old City, recently wrote the following:
"During the Arab massacres of Jews in 1929, on Friday, the 17th of Av, thousands of riled-up Arabs came out of the Mosque of Omar, after hearing speeches of wild incitement by the mufti, armed with knives and clubs. Most of them advanced towards the Meah She'arim neighborhood, screaming, 'Slaughter the Jews!'
Leading the mob was a sheikh wielding a large sword and calling upon the mob not to spare even women and children in the jihad. As they approached the Italian Hospital, two young hareidim emerged from the flourmill at the southern edge of Meah She'arim and marched towards the mob. One of them, with his sidecurls slipping out from under his hat, pulled out a gun and shot a bullet straight into the mouth of the mob leader, who fell in his tracks.
"The mob then began to panic and ran back towards Damascus Gate, with the two hareidim running after them. They threw a grenade, killing three more of the mob, and other Arab would-be killers were trampled to death. The hareidi who fired the first bullet was the righteous Reb Aharon Fischer, father of the Gaon Rabbi Yisrael Yaakov Fischer…
To say that the hareidim did not 'sacrifice themselves' for this Land is grave slander. [The hareidi neighborhood] Meah She'arim was established in an area where robbers and thieves roamed; the hareidim dedicated themselves and their safety on behalf of the Land, or to be more exact, on behalf of G-d's command to settle the Land."
HAMODIA 24 ADAR II , 5763 / MARCH 28 , 2003
AGUDATH ISRAEL LETTER OF SUPPORT TO
PRESIDENT BUSH
The Honorable George W. Bush
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C.
Dear Mr. President:
Just a short note to convey to you, on behalf of the rabbinic and lay leadership of Agudath Israel of America, our strong sense of solidarity with you and the vital mission America and its allies have undertaken in Iraq.
We are well aware that there are those in religious communities across our great nation who are opposed to military action as a matter of religious conviction. From the perspective of classical Jewish thought , however, waging war against an implacable foe whose evil designs pose a clear and present danger to the security and well being of his own country and the rest of the world may well be the only moral and just course to pursue.
“There is a time for war,” Ecclesiastes tells us. That time, it would appear, is now. We have been deeply moved by your fortitude and conviction, and even more so by your humility and faith. Please know that you are in our thoughts and prayers constantly.
May G-d be with the brave soldiers who are risking their lives to advance the cause of Iraqi freedom and world wide peace. May He continue to grant you the courage and strength to confront evil in whatever guise it may appear.
Sincerely,
David Zwiebel
Executive Vice President for Government and Public Affairs
Agudath Israel of America
Wednesday, May 14, 2003
HOLOCAUST THOUGHTS FOR TODAY
___________
SimShalom :
Hi, how are you doin ?
7 :
good. you?
SimShalom :
Ok thanks.
7 :
cool. it was nice here, too
SimShalom :
yaa, it was cool and "cool" at the same time
7 :
lol!
SimShalom :
I was thinking...you write with clarity , as opposed to some who just beat around the bush and you never quite know what they are really saying
7 :
thank you
SimShalom :
The one about the Holocaust was the one a really read thru..you put a lot of stuff into a "modern" context
7 :
how so?
that one was a school assignment, and a well-done one, I thought.
SimShalom :
Yes it was very well done. You made the Holocaust seem like it could be happening to you and your own family (God Forbid) and how unbelieving your family would be of it..sort like how lot's of people are unbelieving of the Holocaust itself
7 :
I've been reading Holocaust books for years now. I just took what I knew and wrote.
SimShalom :
Yes, but it took a kind of "real time" imagination to take the Holocaust of the past and put it into a place so "close to home"...as a kind of warning or fear that it COULD happen again (God forbid)
7 :
those who fail to remember history are doomed to repeat it. as long as we never forget...
SimShalom :
so tell me how many kids know THAT ?
SimShalom :
you must be the lonely "prophet" in your town
7 :
I'm not
SimShalom :
What kinds of Holocaust books have you read..like Anne Frank?
7 :
anne frank's diary... memories of anne frank, reflection of a childhood friend... seeds of (something, forget the title), the devil's arithmatic... everything I could get my hands on
7 :
I don't remember titles very well. kris's war. lisa's war.
7 :
whatever that one is about the wall, told from the nazi view...
7:
behind my bedroom wall! that's the one!
SimShalom :
You think you will watch the upcoming series on the rise of hitler..?
SimShalom :
ok..take your time..
7:
what series?
SimShalom :
It's going to be on TV one of these days, a two part show on the rise of the early hitler
7 :
what channel?
SimShalom :
i don't recall the channel but i see it advertised in the papers
7 :
oh
SimShalom :
it's gonna be on one of these days...
7 :
well, if you see it mentioned again, could you tell me?
SimShalom :
ok, i will look now...hold on
BRB
7 :
k
SimShalom :
Couldn't find the ad in the paper, so I did the next best thing, a search on Google..so here is something about it..It's gonna be on CBS THIS coming Sunday the 18th on
Hitler: The Rise of Evil Sunday, May 18, and Tuesday, May 20, 9 to 11 p.m.; CBS.
http://www.newyorkmetro.com/nymetro/arts/tv/reviews/n_8689/
7 :
thank you.
SimShalom :
Hitler : The Rise of Evil: CBS Sunday May 18 and Tuesday May 20
9 to 11 PM
7 :
I saw.
SimShalom :
Some people from the Simon Wiesenathal center , do you know them , were worried it would make hitler look a little too sympathetic
7 :
never heard of it
SimShalom :
Oh, its THE MOST Important Holocaust Center in The USA, it also has a Museum , it's named for Simon Wiesanthal who is the most famous 'Nazi Hunter" in the world (he is still alive in his 90s and lives in Austria and has captured many fugitive Nazis
SimShalom :
http://www.wiesenthal.com/
7:
the museam in DC?
SimShalom :
They also fight modern hate and prejudice against Jews
SimShalom :
Not in DC, that is the largest Holocaust MUSEUM,
But the Wiesenthal Center is active Anti Nazi organization that fights anything that looks like Jew hatred.
It's like making the Holocaust "lessons' relevant to people in the here and now.
7 :
oh. k. cool.
SimShalom :
The Hebrew University in Jerusalem in Israel also has a huge program to study the Holocaust, take a look at :
http://jewishhistory.huji.ac.il/Internetresources/holocauststudies.htm
7 :
later.
SimShalom:
There is a lady on AOL who has one of the most complete sites on the Holocaust that I have ever seen ...
At :
http://members.aol.com/TeacherNet/Holocaust.html
7 :
k
SimShalom :
And one of the UTMOST best is the NIZKOR (which means "Let us remember") at
http://www.nizkor.org/Dedicated to the millions of Holocaust victims who suffered and died
at the hands of Adolf Hitler http://www.nizkor.org/hweb/people/h/hitler-adolf/ and his Nazi regime
SimShalom :
It can keep anyone busy for a long time...so take your time..as I do to..
7 :
lol! okay, I will
SimShalom :
I like NIZKOR's motto/slogan a lot:
"Given the evidence ... why do people deny the Holocaust?"
7 :
because people think it is too horrible to be more than a scary story. they refuse to see the truth. they block it out of their minds and refuse to see.
SimShalom :
And NIZKOR gives an answer as :
The cynical truth comes to us by way of an obscure extremist group , which boasts:
"The real purpose of holocaust revisionism is to make
National Socialism an acceptable political alternative again."
SimShalom :
And yes you are VERY correct as well, sadly...
7 :
I know. I hope, as time goes by, people will come to see...
SimShalom :
Nizkor is a Hebrew word which means "We will remember."
7 :
I like it
SimShalom :
Look at this nutty one on
http://www.nizkor.org/encouragements/ scary...
Tom Metzger is the leader of a group called White Aryan Resistance , or W.A.R. In a taped phone-in propaganda message, Mr. Metzger calls his followers' attention to "Zinkor on the Internet."
In reference to those of us who maintain this project, he suggests that his followers "locate them, confront them, and that will be the end of that."
We are taking this threat seriously, because of Mr. Metzger's history of violence: he was found liable, in a civil suit, of inciting three skinheads to beat an Ethiopian immigrant to death. As described in the book Hate Crimes:
Moving up behind Seraw, [Mieske] repeatedly struck him in the back of the head with a baseball bat, while Strasser and Brewster kicked all three black men. When it was over ... Seraw was pronounced dead on arrival. He had died as a result of a fractured skull.
Metzger's reaction to the verdict was to promise more violence : "we will put more blood on the streets than you've ever seen..."
7:
omg...
SimShalom :
There are people that are walking around America really thinking and acting like that..waiting for their time "to come"...bunch of baloney heads that they are..
7:
stupid. it's people like this that make some hide their religion.
SimShalom :
http://www.nizkor.org/ftp.cgi/people/m/metzger.tom/metzger-warns-of-violence"It took only hours for Tom Metzger to publicize his defiant response to the verdict against him. In a recorded message on his hate-filled hotline, the head of WAR issued a warning to his 'new' targets everywhere. In an emotional statement of purpose, he proclaimed that 'we will put blood on the streets like you've never seen and advocate more violence than both World Wars put together...We have a new set of targets to play with. So if you're white and work for the system, watch your step. Whether you be a system cop, a controlled judge, or a crooked lawyer, your ass is grass.[5]" (Levin, 103) [5] Southern Poverty Law Center, "Metzger Warns of More Violence." Work Cited Levin, Jack & Jack McDevitt. Hate Crimes: The Rising Tide of Bigotry and Bloodshed. New York & London: Plenum Press, 1993
7:
scary
SimShalom :
yea, sure is, and the way people think is very, very common today...the Holocaust has driven many Jews more underground than just regular "assimilation".
But it doesn't help them it's like the ostrich sticking it's head in the ground as the lion gets ready to attack it...
The haters will dig out anyone with the slightest Jewish background , just as Hitler did, at least that is how they think.
Anyhow, let us hope to God that it never happens..
7:
yes, let us hope
7 :
night, and lol and thanks.
SimShalom :
Good.
Ok, tell me if you see that TV show.
have a good night.
of Judaism_Section (PALTALK)
