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Tehillim – Chapter 94

Thursday, July 31st, 2008

Every day I am amazed at the Psalms I open up to. Sometimes I just pick up my book of psalms and open to a random page. I am often amazed how pertinent to my life at the time I read them. Today I was inspired by the words of Psalm 94. I have copied it here:

1. The Lord is a God of retribution; O G-d of retribution, reveal Yourself!
2. Judge of the earth, arise; render to the arrogant their recompense.
3. How long shall the wicked, O Lord, how long shall the wicked exult?
4. They continuously speak insolently; all the evildoers act arrogantly.
5. They crush Your people, O Lord, and oppress Your heritage.
6. They kill the widow and the stranger, and murder the orphans.
7. And they say, “The Lord does not see, the G-d of Jacob does not perceive.”
8. Understand, you senseless among the people; you fools, when will you become wise?
9. Shall He who implants the ear not hear? Shall He who forms the eye not see?
10. Shall He who chastises nations not punish? Shall He who imparts knowledge to man [not know]?
11. The Lord knows the thoughts of man, that they are naught.
12. Fortunate is the man whom You chastise, O Lord, and instruct him in Your Torah,
13. bestowing upon him tranquillity in times of adversity, until the pit is dug for the wicked.
14. For the Lord will not abandon His people, nor forsake His heritage.
15. For judgment shall again be consonant with justice, and all the upright in heart will pursue it.
16. Who would rise up for me against the wicked ones; who would stand up for me against the evildoers?
17. Had the Lord not been a help to me, my soul would have soon dwelt in the silence [of the grave].
18. When I thought that my foot was slipping, Your kindness, O Lord, supported me.
19. When my [worrisome] thoughts multiply within me, Your consolation delights my soul.
20. Can one in the seat of evil, one who makes iniquity into law, consort with You?
21. They band together against the life of the righteous, and condemn innocent blood.
22. The Lord has been my stronghold; my G-d, the strength of my refuge.
23. He will turn their violence against them and destroy them through their own wickedness; the Lord, our G-d, will destroy them.
This psalm is so inspiring to me. I hope it gives you strength to defeat the enemies which challenge you.
muman613

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Tehillim – Chapter 44

Sunday, July 27th, 2008

The book of psalms express such a range of emotions. I was thinking of Tehillim Chapter 44 over this last Shabbat. In it, the sons of Korach, describe the feeling of being in Hashems protection. Even though at times it seems the L-rd has forsaken us we must remember that he really is with us and we will see our salvation.

1. For the Conductor, by the sons of Korach, a maskil. 2. God, with our ears we have heard, our fathers have told us, of the deeds You wrought in their days, in the days of old. 3. You drove out nations with Your hand, and planted [Israel in their place]; You afflicted peoples and banished them. 4. For not by their sword did they inherit the land, and their own arm did not save them, but by Your right hand, Your arm and the light of Your countenance-for You favored them. 5. You are my king, O God; decree the salvation of Jacob. 6. Through You will we gore our adversaries; with Your Name we will trample our opponents. 7. For I do not trust in my bow, and my sword cannot save me. 8. For You have delivered us from our foes, and You shamed those who hate us. 9. In God we glory all day, and forever thank Your Name, Selah. 10. Though You abandon and disgrace us, and do not go forth with our armies; 11. You cause us to retreat from the oppressor, and those who hate us plunder for themselves; 12. You deliver us like sheep to be devoured, and scatter us among the nations; 13. You sell Your nation without gain, and do not set a high price upon them; 14. You make us a disgrace to our neighbors, the scorn and derision of those around us; 15. You make us a byword among the nations, [a cause for] nodding the head among the peoples; 16. all day long my humiliation is before me, and the shame of my face covers me 17. at the voice of the reviler and blasphemer, because of the foe and avenger- 18. all this has come upon us, yet we have not forgotten You, nor have we been false to Your covenant. 19. Our hearts have not retracted, nor have our steps strayed from Your path. 20. Even when You crushed us in the place of serpents, and shrouded us in the shadow of death- 21. did we forget the Name of our God, and extend our hands to a foreign god? 22. Is it not so that God can examine this, for He knows the secrets of the heart. 23. For it is for Your sake that we are killed all the time; we are regarded as sheep for the slaughter. 24. Arise! Why do You sleep, my Lord? Wake up! Do not abandon [us] forever! 25. Why do You conceal Your countenance and forget our affliction and distress? 26. For our souls are bowed to the dust, our bellies cleave to the earth. 27. Arise! Be our help, and redeem us for the sake of Your kindness.

May Hashem assist us in all times of distress…

muman613

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Documents

Sunday, July 27th, 2008

Here is the document “Rebuilding Americas Defenses”.

This document outlines how the “Project for the New American Century” recommends to make America strong going into the 21st century. Some call it the ‘neo-con’ screed or the outline for the military industrial complex.

The project describes itself thusly:

Established in the spring of 1997, the Project for the New American Century is a non-profit, educational organization whose goal is to promote American global leadership. The Project is an initiative of the New Citizenship Project. William Kristol is chairman of the Project, and Robert Kagan, Devon Gaffney Cross, Bruce P. Jackson and John R. Bolton serve as directors. Gary Schmitt is executive director of the Project.

“As the 20th century draws to a close, the United States stands as the
world’s most preeminent power. Having led the West to victory in
the Cold War, America faces an opportunity and a challenge: Does
the United States have the vision to build upon the achievement of
past decades? Does the United States have the resolve to shape a
new century favorable to American principles and interests?
“[What we require is] a military that is strong and ready to meet
both present and future challenges; a foreign policy that boldly and
purposefully promotes American principles abroad; and national
leadership that accepts the United States’ global responsibilities.

“Of course, the United States must be prudent in how it exercises its
power. But we cannot safely avoid the responsibilities of global
leadership of the costs that are associated with its exercise. America
has a vital role in maintaining peace and security in Europe, Asia,
and the Middle East. If we shirk our responsibilities, we invite
challenges to our fundamental interests. The history of the 20th
century should have taught us that it is important to shape
circumstances before crises emerge, and to meet threats before they
become dire. The history of the past century should have taught us
to embrace the cause of American leadership.”

LINK: Rebuilding Americas Defenses

The Augusts 6th Presidential Daily Briefing

LINK: Presidential Daily Briefing August 6th, 2001

———————
Original post by muman

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What is Lashon Hara

Friday, July 25th, 2008

Someone, who will remain nameless {but lives in Burbank, CA} , wrote to me and called this blog Lashon Hara. It is obvious to any reader of my blog that there is no Lashon Hara going on here. All one needs to do is study what the meaning of the words Lashon Hara and the halacha involved and you will realize this is not Lashon Hara.

Lashon Hara is when a person speaks derogatorily about a fellow Jew. This statute is derived from the Torah, which relates not to be a talebearer amongst your people. I started this blog as a rebuke to the sin of Charles who despite constant attempts to make peace on this issue of Hashems hand in creation persisted in leading people astray.

Whoever sent me this comment is obviously a heretic who doesnt care about the word of Hashem and is looking to be a talebearer against me. If he or she is Jewish she is bearing a sin.

The bulk of the content on my site is purely Jewish thought and not concerned with the sins performed by Charles and his gang of haters.

Several Torah passages contain mitzvahs related to proper speech:

  • Deut. 24:8 – “Take heed concerning the plague of leprosy” because it is a punishment of Lashon Hara.
  • Deut. 24:9 – “Remember what the L-rd your G-d did unto Miriam by the way as you came forth out of Egypt.” Specifically, she spoke against her brother Moses.
  • Lev. 25:17 – “You shall not wrong one another” which the Talmud (Bava Metzia 58b) explains that this means saying anything that will insult or anger someone.
  • Deut. 19:15 – “One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity or for any sin” because, unlike in a court for monetary matters, the testimony of a solitary witness is not binding, so that his testimony damages the defendant’s reputation without any beneficial result.

  • Ex. 23:1 – “You shall not utter a false report.” Acceptance of a false report also follows from this.
  • Lev. 19:14 – “Before the blind do not place a stumbling block.” This applies to both the speaker and the listener since they are helping each other violate the commandments.
  • Lev. 19:12 – “You shall not hate your brother in your heart,” referring to contradictory behavior such as acting friendly but then speaking negatively about him behind his back.
  • Lev. 19:18 – “You shall not take vengeance or bear any grudge against the children of your people,” such as speaking against someone in anger and for something that was done against the speaker.
  • Lev. 19:17 – “You shall rebuke your neighbor and you shall not bear sin because of him.” This verse contains two mitzvot: (1) stop someone from speaking Lashon Hara (among other interpretations), and (2) don’t embarrass him in the process. (Note: rebuke is not a simple topic, especially because the one being scolded may not always listen. This is covered in some detail in the second section of the book, Hilchot Rechilut.)
  • Lev. 19:18 – “Love your neighbor as yourself.”
  • Num. 17:5 – “You shall not act similar to Korach and his company” who sustained a dispute.
  • Deut. 10:20 – “To Him [and (by implication) his wise ones] shall you cleave.”
  • Ex. 23:2 – “You shall not follow a multitude to do evil.” The above two commandments refer to keeping good company, which includes those who will refrain from improper subjects in their discussions.

I suppose the only thing which may be construed as evil speech would be the name of my blog. It is named as such to remember the reason for its creation. The fact that a bunch of haters of Hashem attacked the very act of creation is the reason for lgfsucks.wordpress.com. This is not Lashon Hara, this is righteous rebuke for the sinner.

muman613

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Parsha – Matot

Friday, July 25th, 2008

It has been an interesting week. Once again it is Shabbat and I am looking forward to a wonderful Shabboton with my favorite Rabbi the Head Rabbi at Touro university and a wonderful teacher whom I admire.

Parsha Matot, the book of Numbers 30:2-32:42, starts off with the laws of vows. Since the human power of speech is considered Holy by Judaism it is important to Do what you Say and Say what you Do. Sometimes someone takes a vow to do something with good intentions but the task is too much. In these cases there is a way to annul a vow. As it is written:

2. Moses spoke to the heads of the tribes of the children of Israel, saying: This is the thing the Lord has commanded. 3. If a man makes a vow to the Lord or makes an oath to prohibit himself, he shall not violate his word; according to whatever came out of his mouth, he shall do. 4. If a woman makes a vow to the Lord, or imposes a prohibition [upon herself] while in her father’s house, in her youth, 5. if her father heard her vow or her prohibition which she has prohibited upon herself, yet her father remains silent, all her vows shall stand, and any prohibition that she has imposed upon herself shall stand. 6. But if her father hinders her on the day he hears it, all her vows and her prohibitions that she has imposed upon herself shall not stand. The Lord will forgive her because her father hindered her. 7. But if she is [betrothed] to a man, with her vows upon her or by an utterance of her lips which she has imposed upon herself, 8. and her husband hears it but remains silent on the day he hears it, her vows shall stand, and her prohibition which she has imposed upon herself shall stand. 9. But if her husband hinders her on the day he heard it, he has revoked the vow she had taken upon herself and the utterance which she had imposed upon herself, and the Lord will forgive her. 10. As for the vow of a widow or a divorced woman, whatever she prohibited upon herself will remain upon her. 11. But if she vowed in her husband’s house, or imposed a prohibition upon herself with an oath. 12. and her husband heard and remained silent, and did not hinder her, all her vows shall stand, and every prohibition she imposed upon herself shall stand. 13. If her husband revokes them on the day he hears them, anything issuing from her lips regarding her vows or self imposed prohibitions shall not stand; her husband has revoked them and the Lord shall forgive her. 14. Any vow or any binding oath of self affliction, her husband can either uphold it or revoke it. 15. However, if her husband remained silent from day to day, he has upheld all the vows and prohibitions she has assumed; he has upheld them since he remained silent on the day he heard it. 16. If he revokes them after having heard [them], he shall bear her iniquity. 17. These are the statutes which the Lord commanded Moses concerning a man and his wife, a father and his daughter, in her youth, while in her father’s house.

Rashi comments on the words “He shall bear her iniquity” on line 16 that this is the basis for the understanding that a person causes his fellow to stumble into sin bears his punishment in his place. It seems that a young girls vows are influenced by her father and he is able to uphold them or annul them.
(more…)

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Regarding my previous post

Tuesday, July 22nd, 2008

I have learned something profound in the last six hours. That an internet audience is extremely hard to please at all times. I am also learning the boundaries which exist between people from different backgrounds. I must admit that if I were not the Jew I am now, I most probably would be offended by my last posting. That being said, I am not feeling very happy about the outcome of my writings.

I don’t know why Arutz Sheva {IsraelNationalNews} published that article at this particular time. I read their Rabbis every day and study the weekly Parsha in light of Israel politics on their site. Yesterdays encounter on JTF combined with reading this anti-missionary piece on A7 news culminated in my wanting to bring light onto this subject. It has caused me much pain in the long run. What I wrote may have lost me a good number of readers who had come to my site for the reason of discussing the problems at LGF which I share with them. Honestly, this was not my intention.

I am motivated to write only what I feel Hashem places into my hands and mind. Life is a learning experience and it is not supposed to be easy. I spend a good amount of time battling the Nazi and Islamic anti-semitic ideals in cyberspace. Sometimes I worry that our enemies may be looking for me personally {Don’t worry mom!}. I do not fear them, as I believe my date with destiny will come when it will. I often say that I try to learn the wisdom from Pirkie Avos of “Be like Aaron, a man of peace. Seek peace and pursue it”.

One of the paradoxes in this world is that every thing has an equal but opposite factor. The fact that one strives for peace will inevitably cause one to enter into a situation where force is the only way out. Peace doesnt always mean doing things which please everyone. All a Jew needs to do is read last weekends Parsha of Pinchas to learn that the man of peace needs to rise to the occasion when it is needed. A similar Jewish kabbalistic concept is that the middah of Chesed must be tempered by the middah of Gevurah. In english this means that the trait of Kindness & Mercy must be tempered with Strength & Restriction.

As a human being I know that the people of the whole world are made in Hashems own image. We are all his creation. Adam was neither Jew or Gentile, he was Adam HaRishon. He was the first human made with the same strengths and weaknesses you and I have. When one reads the story of Bereshit does anyone think for a second they would not have eaten from the forbidden tree?

What I learned is that I need to consider who I am talking to before I say what I want. The power of speech, which the Jew believes is the most powerful instrument G-d gave to his creations, is potentially a dangerous weapon. It was wrong for me to post this in a forum which is read by a mixed community.

Anyone reading this who thinks I should remove it please send your comments.

Thank you,

muman613

PS: A very interesting link about the differences of approaches of Hillel and Shammai @ http://www.sichosinenglish.org/books/beacons-on-the-talmud-sea/01.htm

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The Real Messianic Jews

Tuesday, July 22nd, 2008

I found the following article on IsraelNationalNews and wanted to reprint a part of it. Recently I have gotten into a little issue with a non-Jewish member of JTF who insists on posting images of his favorite idol, the J-man. It is offensive to me, as it should be to any Jew, to see a person post an image of something which they believe is divine. It is such a sin that the 2nd Commandment of the 10 commandment explicitly forbids the creation of images of anything divine.

Personally he is entitled to believe anything he wants. If he wants to believe that a tree or a rock is G-d, so be it. From a Jewish perspective it is very wrong as Idolatry is one sin a Jew should die before he bows to an idol. But in a Jewish forum it reveals a certain amount of Chutzpah. As a Jews are bound by the 10 commands it is good to know what they are. Just for a refresher, here are the 1st five commanments:

Shemos 2:2-11

1 : 2 I am the LORD thy God, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.

2 : 3 Thou shalt not make unto thee a graven image, nor any manner of likeness, of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; 4 thou shalt not bow down unto them, nor serve them; for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate Me; 5 and showing mercy unto the thousandth generation of them that love Me and keep My commandments.

3 : 6 Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh His name in vain.

4 : 7 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. 8 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work; 9 but the seventh day is a sabbath unto the LORD thy God, in it thou shalt not do any manner of work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, nor thy man-servant, nor thy maid-servant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates; 10 for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested on the seventh day; wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

5: 11 Honour thy father and thy mother, that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.

Our forefathers were forced to bow to images of the Jman and convert to their false belief that Messiah has come and that he was divine. The fact that Jman did not fufill any of the messianic prophecies seems to make no difference to the devout xtian.

From A7 News

The Real Messianic Jews

by Yosef Ben Shlomo Hakohen

As we know, Christianity deifies Jesus and also views him as the promised Messiah; thus, some Jews who have adopted Christian beliefs in recent years have begun to call themselves “Messianic Jews.” We need to remind ourselves, however, that they are not entitled to this title, for it belongs to the Jews who have remained faithful to Judaism and who are therefore awaiting the true Messiah.

One major reason why Jews who have adopted Christian beliefs, including the deification of Jesus, should not be called “Messianic Jews” is because our sacred scriptures define the Messiah as a human being. For example, the Prophet Isaiah describes the Messiah as a man who descends from Jesse, the father of David:

“A staff will emerge from the stump of Jesse, and a shoot will sprout from his roots. The spirit of God will rest upon him – a spirit of wisdom and understanding, a spirit of counsel and strength, a spirit of knowledge and awe of God.” (Isaiah 11:1,2)

The above passage clearly indicates that the Messiah is an enlightened human being who is in awe of God, but who is not God. The Christians, however, call the man they view as the Messiah “God and Savior” – a belief which contradicts the following Divine proclamation: “I, only I, am God, and there is no Savior aside from Me.” (Isaiah 43:11)

Another major reason why Jews who have adopted Christian beliefs should not be called “Messianic Jews” is because Isaiah reveals in the following passage that the true Messiah will inaugurate an age of world peace and spiritual enlightenment when he comes; moreover; in the age of the Messiah, God will also gather in all the exiles of Israel:

“They will neither injure nor destroy in all of My sacred mountain; for the Earth will be filled with knowledge of God as water covering the sea bed. It shall be on that day that the descendant of Jesse – who stands as a rallying banner for the peoples – to him shall the nations inquire, and his peace shall be with honor. It shall be on that day that the Master of All will once again show His hand, to acquire the remnant of His people who will have remained from Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, Cush, Elam, Shinar, Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. He will raise a banner for the nations, and assemble the castaways of Israel; and He will gather in the dispersed ones of Judah from the four corners of the earth.” (Isaiah 11:9-12)

The above prophecies were not fulfilled during the life of Jesus; thus, to view him as the Messiah is a betrayal of the prophetic tradition. The real Messianic Jews are those who await the true Messiah who will inaugurate the age of peace and spiritual enlightenment for Israel and the world. In this spirit, they proclaim the following principle of our faith: “I believe with complete faith in the coming of the Messiah, and even though he may delay, nevertheless, I wait every day for his coming.”

As I sit in my Jerusalem home, I pray that our lost brothers and sisters who have adopted Christian beliefs will return to their One Loving God, to their life-giving Torah, and to their people, which was given the Torah and its interpretations.

It is not incumbent on a Jew to try to persuade a non-Jew to believe in Hashem. As I said before whatever you personally believe is your own business. But it is important to be considerate of others and not impose your idols on others.

PS: I work with people of all races and religions. There is nothing wrong with working with people of other religions. I simply feel uncomfortable around Buddha and Jman idols.

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/8121

PS: I removed an inflammatory sentence from this article. I did it in an attempt to rectify any animosity I generated by making that statement.

PPS: Here is a link to the laws of Moshiach as written by RAMBAM {Maimonides} http://www.sichosinenglish.org/books/mashiach/09.htm .

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Tehillim – Chapter 4

Tuesday, July 22nd, 2008

Another installment of my favorite Tehillim. My soul consumes these words and they give me solace in times of distress.

1. For the Conductor, with instrumental music, a psalm by David. 2. Answer me when I call, O God [Who knows] my righteousness. You have relieved me in my distress; be gracious to me and hear my prayer. 3. Sons of men, how long will you turn my honor to shame, will you love vanity, and endlessly seek falsehood? 4. Know that the Lord has set apart His devout one; the Lord will hear when I call to Him. 5. Tremble and do not sin; reflect in your hearts upon your beds, and be silent forever. 6. Offer sacrifices in righteousness, and trust in the Lord. 7. Many say: “Who will show us good?” Raise the light of Your countenance upon us, O Lord. 8. You put joy in my heart, greater than [their joy] when their grain and wine abound. 9. In peace and harmony I will lie down and sleep, for You, Lord, will make me dwell alone, in security.

I have faith that all will be revealed in the end and Hashems truth will fill the world. May we all be blessed.

muman613

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Parsha – Pinchas

Thursday, July 17th, 2008

Well Shabbat is right around the corner so it is time to write the weekly Parsha talk. This week we read Parsha Pinchas (Numbers 25:10-30:1).

Last week we ended the Parsha with Pinchas zealously killing two sinners who were fornicating before Moshe with a non-Jew. In this parsha G-d tells Moshe that what Pinchas did was righteous and he should promote Pinchas to the title of Kohen {priest}. According to Midrash 12 miracles were performed in the merit of Pinchas {see links for more information}.

Chapter 25
10. The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 11. Phinehas the son of Eleazar the son of Aaron the kohen has turned My anger away from the children of Israel by his zealously avenging Me among them, so that I did not destroy the children of Israel because of My zeal. 12. Therefore, say, “I hereby give him My covenant of peace. 13. It shall be for him and for his descendants after him [as] an eternal covenant of kehunah, because he was zealous for his God and atoned for the children of Israel.” 14. The name of the Israelite man who was killed, who was slain with the Midianite woman was Zimri the son of Salu, the chieftain of the Simeonite paternal house. 15. And the name of the Midianite woman who was slain was Cozbi the daughter of Zur, a national leader of a paternal house in Midian. 16. The Lord spoke to Moses saying: 17. Distress the Midianites, and you shall smite them. 18. For they distress you with their plots which they contrived against you in the incident of Peor and in the incident of Cozbi their sister, the daughter of the Midianite chieftain, who was slain on the day of the plague [that had come] because of Peor.

Hashem now orders Moshe and Elezear to perform another census on the Jewish people. The reason for the census is to know how many men of fighting age are in the Jewish people.

Chapter 26
1. It was after the plague, that the Lord spoke to Moses and to Eleazar the son of Aaron the kohen, saying: 2. Take a census of all the congregation of the children of Israel from twenty years old and upwards, following their fathers’ houses, all that are fit to go out to war in Israel. 3. Moses and Eleazar the kohen spoke with them in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho, saying: 4. “From the age of twenty and upward, as the Lord commanded Moses and the children of Israel who had come out of Egypt.”

After counting all the families the census finds a total of 601,736 men of fighting age. Now Hashem reveals how the land will be divided between the tribes.

Chapter 26
52. The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 53. You shall apportion the Land among these as an inheritance, in accordance with the number of names. 54. To the large [tribe] you shall give a larger inheritance and to a smaller tribe you shall give a smaller inheritance, each person shall be given an inheritance according to his number. 55. Only through lot shall the Land be apportioned; they shall inherit it according to the names of their fathers’ tribes. 56. The inheritance shall be apportioned between the numerous and the few, according to lot.

Now the Torah explains the request of the daughters of Zelophehad concerning their inheritance. According to the laws which Moshe recieved it was not clear what should happen to a tribes inheritance when the patriarch died and didnt leave any sons. Women were not normally considered for inheritance but Moshe took the question to Hashem. Hashem tells Moshe to allow the daughters to inherit their fathers property.

Chapter 27
1. The daughters of Zelophehad the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, of the families of Manasseh the son of Joseph, came forward, and his daughters’ names were Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. 2. They stood before Moses and before Eleazar the kohen and before the chieftains and the entire congregation at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting, saying, 3. “Our father died in the desert, but he was not in the assembly that banded together against the Lord in Korah’s assembly, but he died for his own sin, and he had no sons. 4. Why should our father’s name be eliminated from his family because he had no son? Give us a portion along with our father’s brothers. ” 5. So Moses brought their case before the Lord. 6. The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 7. Zelophehad’s daughters speak justly. You shall certainly give them a portion of inheritance along with their father’s brothers, and you shall transfer their father’s inheritance to them. 8. Speak to the children of Israel saying: If a man dies and has no son, you shall transfer his inheritance to his daughter. 9. If he has no daughter, you shall give over his inheritance to his brothers. 10. If he has no brothers, you shall give over his inheritance to his father’s brothers. 11. If his father has no brothers, you shall give over his inheritance to the kinsman closest to him in his family, who shall inherit it. This shall remain a decreed statute, as the Lord commanded Moses.

Hashem now tells Moshe that his time alive is running out. Moshe will be gathered in like his brother who died a painless and righteous death. Moshes first thought is that the Children of Israel will need a leader in his absence. Hashem tells Moshe that Joshua, his most favorite student, will take Moshes place of leadership.

Chapter 27
12. The Lord said to Moses, “Go up to this mount Abarim and look at the land that I have given to the children of Israel. 13. And when you have seen it, you too will be gathered to your people, just as Aaron your brother was gathered. 14. Because you disobeyed My command in the desert of Zin when the congregation quarreled, [when you were] to sanctify Me through the water before their eyes; these were the waters of dispute at Kadesh, in the desert of Zin. 15. Moses spoke to the Lord, saying: 16. “Let the Lord, the God of spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the congregation, 17. who will go forth before them and come before them, who will lead them out and bring them in, so that the congregation of the Lord will not be like sheep without a shepherd.” 18. The Lord said to Moses, “Take for yourself Joshua the son of Nun, a man of spirit, and you shall lay your hand upon him. 19. And you shall present him before Eleazar the kohen and before the entire congregation, and you shall command him in their presence.

So Hashem tells Moshe how to pass on his leadership role in the Jewish people. Moshe took Joshua to the Kohen before the entire congregation and laid his hands on Joshuas head. Moshe bestowed some of his majesty on Joshua. As the Midrash relates, Moshe glowed like the sun and Joshua glowed like the moon.

The rest of the Parsha lists the sacred days, the yom tovim, and their associated offerings. This list includes the Shabbat and Passover. This has been a very exciting Parsha. The story of Pinchas, Zelophehad daughters, and the passing of the leadership from Moshe to Joshua.

LINKS

Pinchas: A Man For All Eras And All Places : http://www.torah.org/learning/ravfrand/5768/pinchas.html

Zealotry is like Radiation : http://www.torah.org/learning/ravfrand/5764/pinchas.html

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Jackie Mason – Obama Flip-Flop? Oy!

Thursday, July 17th, 2008

My favorite mensche Jackie Mason is spot on in his video blog.

Here he is!

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Posted in Barack Obama, Election 2008 | Comments Off

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