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Essays on the weekly Torah portion, the holidays and Jewish thought.
Parsha Beshalach – All the King’s Horse When G-d created the world, Kabbalah teaches us, He did so by using the letters of the Hebrew alphabet, which are actually divine instruments, or the DNA of creation. These “letters” are forever vested within creation. And if G-d would withdraw them, the world would revert to its original state of n Parsha Beshalach – Be Silent! There are times when we are preoccupied with lofty matters such as prayer, literally or figuratively. G-d then says to us, “Be silent, stop praying, get up and help another person split their sea.” BESHALLACH BESHALLACH Parsha Beshalach – Double Praise In the future Redemption, after living through thousands of years of exile, we, as a people, did not and will not lose our faith and trust that G-d would redeem us and bring Moshiach. Even in the Death Camps, thousands of Jews went to their deaths singing, yes singing, the melody to the words “I bel Parsha Beshalach – Fear of Philistines We are now standing on the threshold of a new age, the Age of Redemption, which parallels the Exodus from Egypt. We must be mindful of the threat that comes from the modern day Philistines; from those who deride and mock all attempts at our liberating ourselves from the shackles of exile. BESHALLACH Parsha Beshalach – Leaders and Heroes Moses’ greatness is not measured by what he was, i.e., his knowledge, piety etc., but by what he was not. Moses was so close to G-d that he was totally self-effacing. He had completely surrendered his ego, not by falsely denying his own qualities, but by recognizing how everything he possessed was f Parsha Beshalach – Move-On! The entire process of the Jewish people being in Egypt and then leaving with its wealth was intended to “liberate” the sparks of holiness embedded in Egypt. The principal goal of liberating these sparks was to set the stage for the ultimate giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai, which enables us to tra Parsha Beshalach – Perish the Thought! For close to 2,000 years, the Jewish people collectively have not forgotten that their real home is in G-d’s home; in the Land of Israel, in Jerusalem and the Holy Temple. We have never—as a people—even harbored a fleeting thought that we belong anywhere other than in His home. For close to two thou Parsha Beshalach – Raising Moses’ and Moshiach’s Hands Moses’ role in the war against Amalek was no longer going to be channeling a Divine revelation as he did for the Exodus. Now, Moses had to ignite the spark of Moses within each and every Jew. No Divine staff could do this. Moses had to inspire the Jews to change and direct their hearts heavenward by Parsha Beshalach – Sea and Land (Copied and slightly adapted from an essay by Yanky Tauber based on a talk of the Rebbe.) The Exodus set them free from the paganism of Egypt. It removed the shackles of "landism" from their souls, exposing them to the all-consuming spiritual truth of the sea. The Exodus liberated them from the pris Parsha Beshalach – Sea Transformed Into Dry Land or Dry Land Becoming Sea According to Rambam, there will be no fundamental changes to the nature of the world in the initial stage of the Messianic Age. However, with the advent of the Resurrection of the Dead, a period of radical change to nature, there will be changes in the way we relate to Torah knowledge as well. In th Parsha Beshalach – Sing Along Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi (the founder of the Chabad- Lubavitch movement, known as the Alter Rebbe) once remarked: “Speech is the pen of the heart, song is the pen of the soul.” This means that while one can express one’s ideas and even feelings by way of speech, one cannot express one’s inner s Parsha Beshalach – Ten Plague Therapy (3) The “eye” represents the way we look at things. There are two general perspectives to everything. One is the view that is the natural outgrowth of the “land,” i.e., the day to day exigencies of life. And then there is the perspective that comes from wisdom; specifically Divine wisdom that is embodie Parsha Beshalach – The Essence of Joseph Moses, knowing that ultimately the Jewish people will be going through a long and arduous exile—symbolized by their journey through the desert —prepares them for the journey by taking Joseph’s essence (literally: bones) with him. No matter how far and how long the exile, no matter how far a Jew may Parsha Beshalach – The Respectful Sea and the Nature of Nature One approach to miracles is that when a person devoted to G-d wants to realize his divine mission, the general rule is that nature itself will accommodate that effort. This is so not because nature will change, but rather because nature itself was so programmed at the very time of creation. And whil Parsha Beshalach – The Song of the Future Shaloh quotes the Midrash that says: “In the future, Israel will sing praise in the future.” As soon as the news of the Redemption is announced, they will sing praise for the future miracles even before they will happen. Just by hearing that the Redemption with its attendant miracles are imminent wi Parsha Beshalach – The Three Pronged Attack Torah study is the antidote to the aspect of Amalek that sows doubt and confusion in our lives. Torah gives us clear direction. Indeed, the word Torah itself means guidance. Torah is always associated with light because it shines the light of truth and exposes the true meaning and purpose of everyon Parsha Beshalach – The Twelve Tunnels It is axiomatic in Judaism that a community is considerably more than the sum total of its components. There is a special holiness that is introduced into a community that is infinitely greater than the any of its parts. For example, a minyan, is much more than just a collection of ten people in one Parsha Beshalach – Transforming the Irrational Hatred The Rebbe often referred to the phenomenon in recent times whereby hidden forms of good and evil have surfaced in the world at large and within individuals. This phenomenon, the Rebbe stated, was a symptom of the Messianic Era. Hidden evils are now surfacing, but, at the same time, hidden levels of Parsha Beshalach – Two Right Hands A wedding today is a combination of two features: It is a reenactment of the first union of Adam and Eve that miraculously brought together two opposites, just as in the miracle of the splitting of the Red Sea. It is also a portent, a sample and a taste of the wedding of the future, where the unity Parsha BESHALACH – VIVE LA DIFFERENCE The lesson from the narrative of the Jews going into the sea is that in times of crises there is no time to stand on ceremony. True, in times of peace there must be a system of priority, who goes first and who follows. Each tribe is entitled to vie for the responsibility and honor of being first. When it comes to times of crises, even Benjamin, the youngest of the tribes can override the system and jump into the s