Year: 2021

אל תצחק! זה לא מצחיק! – הרב אלישיב אמר לעשות *הכל* לעצור את הגירוש מגוש קטיף

מרן הגרי”ש אלישיב הורה לעשות הכל למניעת גירוש גוש קטיף

Aug 28, 2012

משא מרן הג”ר שמחה הכהן קוק שליט”א בבית הכנסת הגדול חורבת רבי יהודה החסיד בעיר העתיקה ירושלים [יום ראשון ח אלול תשע”ב].

לכתבה המלאה באתר אגודת חלמי”ש – חרדים למען יהודה ושומרון: http://www.associationchalamish.022.c…

מתוך דבריו:

בזמן שגוש קטיף היה קיים שמחתי תמיד לבקר והתגעגעתי אליו בכל פעם שביקרתי. כל פעם בתום הביקור אמרתי ‘אני צריך לבוא עוד פעם’. פתאום קמה מדינה ומגרשת את העם שלה, ומחריבה את הבתים עד היסוד.

אני לא מאמין שבהיסטוריה של עם ישראל הייתה עובדה נוראה כזאת שעם מגרש את בני עמו, זה קורה עכשיו בסוריה אבל בעם ישראל שמחריב את הבתים של עצמו זה דבר שהוא לא יאומן.

אנו מחכים לימים שנחזור לבתי הכנסת בגוש קטיף ונברך מציב גבול אלמנה.

אני הייתי אצל הרב אלישיב, שאלתי אותו: לנסוע ולראות לבטל את הגזירה? הוא אמר: מה שאתה יכול תעשה! כל דבר תעשה!

אנו נמצאים כאן [ביה”כ חורבת רבי יהודה החסיד] במקום שמסמל חורבן ובנייה מחדש, בעזרת ה’ הבניה תחזור על עצמה.

הראי”ה קוק הוזמן לכנסיה הגדולה של אגודת ישראל בחו”ל, ולאחר שהשתתף שם פרצה מלחמת העולם הראשונה. הראי”ה שהה באנגליה (שנת עזר”ת, 1917) ומדינת אנגליה השתתפה במלחמת עולם הראשונה נגד גרמניה ובנות בריתה.

הרב כתב להרב הראשי של אנגליה, כדי לבקש ממנו סיוע במניעת גיוס בני הישיבות והרבנים [אגרות הראי”ה ח”ג עמ’ פח-צב]:

הישיבות הם נשמת היהדות, קיומה של היהדות תלוי בישיבות. וכמו שממשלת בריטניה לא יכולה לומר לנו לשרוף את בתי הכנסת ואת ספרי התורה שלנו רח”ל, כך לא תוכלו לסגור את הישיבות. ביטול הישיבות בעם ישראל הוא שמד!

גם כאשר אבותינו עמדו במצב צבאי נמרץ, בכיבוש א”י בימי יהושע, הוכיחו את יהושע מפני ביטול תורה (עמ’ פט, ע”פ מגילה ג ע”א).

אסא המלך נהיה חולה (מל”א טו, כג) מפני שעשה אנגריא בתלמידי חכמים (עמ’ צ’ ע”פ סוטה י ע”ב).

גם אברהם אבינו נענש על שהשתמש בתלמידי חכמים (נדרים לב ע”א). והרי היתה אז מלחמת מצוה.

“תלמידי חכמים העוסקים בתורה, בזכותם המלחמה נוצחת, והם מועילים למדינה יותר מאנשי חיל הלוחמים” (שם, עמ’ צא). וחזר על זה בסוף האגרת: “על כן תלמידי חכמים העוסקים בתורה הם הם המגינים על הארץ ועוזרים להצלחת הנשק, לא פחות וגם יותר מכל החיל הלוחם”. אלו דברי הרב.

כיום אין את עולם הישיבות שהיה בחו”ל, איפה נשאר התורה, רק בארץ ישראל!
אם חלילה יעלה על הדעת שהדבר הזה יקום, ירא אני מפני העתיד. כל זמן שיש לנו בני תורה אני לא מפחד, מפני שכל החוזק שיש לאומה נובע מהם.

בעזרת ה’ יתברך נראה בשיבה לגוש קטיף, וכל המתנחלים בארץ הקודש יתרבו, והלואי שנוכל להכפיל ולשלש אותם.

כולנו ממתינים ממש, בדריכות עצומה, לבוא ולראות בבנינה של כל ארץ ישראל כולה בעזרת השי”ת, שנבנית והולכת בקדושתה, מתעטרת מתייחדת ומתקדשת לחיי עולמים.

ברוכים הבאים בשם ה’ ברכנוכם מבית ה’.

כנסו לאתר אגודת חלמי”ש: http://www.chalamish.022.co.il
אתר דעת תורה: http://www.daattorah.022.co.il

מאתר יוטיוב, כאן.

Can Your English &\Or Hebrew Use Improvement?

I suggest subscribing to Linguabits@gmail.com.

You will get fascinating lessons written in both languages, explaining collocations, etc.

Here is an example from a recent mailing:

How to Use “How”

Hi!
Israelis often make the  mistake
of leaving out the word “how”
in English.
הרבה פעמים ישראלים טועים
ולא משתמשים במילה “how”
מכיוון שמתרגמים ישירות מהעברית.
In Hebrew:  בעברית:
אני לא יודעת לשחות.

In English:
I don’t know how to swim.
NOT
I don’t know to swim.

More examples:

הוא לא יודע לנהוג.
He doesn’t know how to drive.
NOT
He doesn’t know to drive.

There are times Israelis use איך”“.
יש פעמים שבעברית כן משתמשים ב”איך”:

אני לא מבינה איך היא עושה את זה.
I don’t understand how she does it.

 אני לא יודע איך לעזור לך.
I don’t know how to help you.
The difference is that in English the word “how”
must always be used preceding a verb describing
ability or knowledge.

ההבדל הוא שבאנגלית חייבים להשתמש
במילה how במשפטים שמתארים

ידע או יכולת.
I don’t know how to play soccer.
אני לא יודע לשחק כדור רגל.

She knows how to draw animals.
.היא יודעת לצייר חיות

He knows how to have a good time.
.הוא יודע להנות

What the Ofakim Community Is Like

Torah and Pashtus

Yehoshua Goodman, Ofakim

I grew up in Queens and my wife is from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Though we met and married in chutz laAretz, it was clear to us from the start that we would move to Eretz Yisroel. We both come from a more Modern Orthodox background, and our families always had a sense of connection to Israel. Our parents and most of our siblings now live here as well.

We came to Yerushalayim after my wife finished her college studies in America. I became a member of the Gruss kollel, where I learned for three years. Almost all of its members come here for just a few years before going back to America, but we were here to stay. I eventually found work in Yeshivat Eitan, an Israeli yeshivah ketanah, and we moved several times to various communities here in the wake of the yeshivah’s relocation(s).

We first bought an apartment in Neve Yaakov, a nice and more-affordable neighborhood on the outskirts of Yerushalayim with a sizeable percentage of Americans. When the yeshivah moved to Yavne’el in Eretz Yisroel’s north, we followed. We were in Afula for a short time as well. When the yeshivah moved to Moshav Shalva in the vicinity of Kiryat Gat in Eretz Yisroel’s south, we looked for a suitable community in the area. We were referred by Rav Weinbach zt”l of Ohr Somayach to the community of Ofakim, where we have been happily living for over ten years already.

We sold the apartment we owned in Neve Yaakov, and with that money bought a large private house in Ofakim – and were even left with a considerable amount of “change.” When we bought the house, it was over 2300 square feet, with a large backyard including fruit trees and a nice pergola, and two huge balconies. We recently built one of those balconies into two bedrooms, a bathroom, and a machsan (storage room), which we may rent out as a separate unit. The house already includes a small rental unit as well, which helps us with parnassah. Altogether it’s about 270 square meters – close to 3000 square feet – not including our 500-square-foot sukkah balcony. We really love the ability to live with privacy and enough living space. Such a property (before our new construction) went for less than 1.3 million shekels when we bought it about seven years ago, and also today such properties are still considerably less than an apartment in even the more-affordable neighborhoods of Yerushalayim. A spacious private house here with a big yard may be similar in price to a four-bedroom apartment in Ramat Beit Shemesh.

My wife works from home as an accountant for a firm based in Ramat Beit Shemesh. For me, it’s a pleasant 25-minute commute to Be’er Sheva, the major metropolis in this area, where the yeshivah is now located. There are plans for a new road which will cut travel time even more. There is also frequent public transportation available.

There are also ruchniyus-related reasons for which we love Ofakim, obvious if you know anything about the city. If we would sum up what Ofakim stands for in two words, it would be “Torah” and “pashtus” (simplicity). For anyone looking for that, Ofakim is a truly amazing place. The mara d’asra is the son of Rav Shimshon Pinkus zt”l, who preceded him as the rav here, and who had a profound influence on the atmosphere here.

What I like most is that there is a real sense of community here. There is a strong feeling of achdus, and of being a significant part of something bigger. One example of this that comes to mind is that in response to a suggestion by Rav Steinman zt”l to the community to be mekabel Shabbos a bit earlier, all the various minyanim – without exception – rescheduled minchah of Erev Shabbos to five minutes earlier than their previous time, whatever time that may have been. The kehillah is under the firm leadership of the rabbonim, and they are the ones who establish what happens here. I am also very impressed with the mosdos chinuch here, especially with the way they deal with issues and challenges.

The community has experienced tremendous growth over the last ten years; it may be more accurate to say “explosive” growth. There is the natural growth of the established families here, and there are many young couples from other areas moving in as well. Some live in exclusively Chareidi sections of the city, including the Kiryah Chareidit (also known as Kiryat HaYeshiva), the Chazon Ish neighborhood, and the new development (known as the “Proyect” – project). There are other areas of the city that are undergoing a transition of character as more Chareidim move into them, including Shechunat HaRif (the Rif neighborhood), where we live.

The Chareidi population here is comprised mostly of Litvish and Sephardi bnei Torah. A high percentage of the kehillah are full-time kollel yungeleit, so the kehillah’s growth has led to the opening of many new kollelim. Two new chadorim – an Ashkenazi one and a Sephardi one – were established as well. There are a handful of professionals – a doctor, a lawyer, some handymen, electricians, etc. and there are many mechanchim (like myself). Many families run businesses selling goods from home, such as shoes, disposables, etc.

Aside from Chareidim, the city’s populace includes Dati-Leumi (National Religious), traditional, and irreligious Jews. B”H everyone gets along.

Positive Atmosphere

We absolutely love it here in Ofakim; we are happy with the atmosphere here and the positive impact it has on our children.

There are a handful of English speakers here, but they are mostly children of olim. There are some who, like us, are themselves olim, but even they socialize primarily in Hebrew. There is no American atmosphere here; it is a regular Israeli Chareidi kehillah, and anyone looking for that will iy”H be very happy here.

Taliban: The Enemy of My Enemy…?

Yes, the Taliban’s extreme, but I secretly welcome this defeat of the US ideology of globalism, liberalism and consumerism

19 Aug, 2021 10:52
Get short URL

Brett Sinclair is an author, artist, historian, op-ed writer and blogger who has worked for several national magazines in Canada and international media.

Afghanistan’s new rulers represent the opposite to the neoliberalism that foists transgenderism, feminism, LGBTQ+ and CRT ideology on us. Afghans don’t want or need all that – and neither do we.

As I write, blue- and pink-haired Silicon Valley tech workers are desperately scrambling to determine what is acceptable for us to say on social media about Afghanistan.

“What can we permit them to think?” they are wondering. Perhaps they are waiting for their overlords to tell them what is going to be permissible or not.

I would guess that their eventual course of action will be to ban and disfavour algorithmically (for our own good, of course) any positive remarks towards the Taliban, as well as any criticism of the flood of Afghan refugees into Western countries. Indeed, accepting refugees will be the priority for liberal media, citing among other reasons the Taliban’s oppression of women, despite the evidence from photographs showing that thevast majority of those fleeing the country in a hurry are male.

While the US operates a hegemonic empire, it is not hegemonically of one opinion. A large section of Americans are not supportive of foreign invasions and occupations to begin with, and many now view their politicians with great mistrust and bemusement.

They rightly view the speeches and actions of these politicians as occurring within a closed bubble of increasingly insane terminology, such as the State Department’s demand that the Taliban form an “inclusive and representational government.”  

Around the world, the reaction to the US withdrawal is similarly unsympathetic (as it was to the initial invasion), and both Russia and China have stepped in to offer tentative ties to the newly liberated nation of Afghanistan.

However, how can a Westerner like me feel sympathy for the Taliban? Believe it or not, there are many who view the recent dramatic turn of events with an observer’s dark joy. Those who are tired of seeing their own culture and religion eroded from within, and who feel a kind of secret relief at seeing someone successfully resist globalism, feminism, LGBTQ+ and critical race theory (CRT) ideology. They can see that their society has been turned into something dark by a manufactured value-system, promulgated by political elites and the money-power behind them.

When you are robbed of national pride, have no faith in your leaders, have no control over citywide riots or crime epidemics, and when the cornerstone of civilization itself (the family) is degraded by your own government, then you cannot so easily root for the home team in foreign engagements.

Continue reading…

From RT, here.

News: Seeing the Unseen

Seeing What Others Do Not Part One

By Gary Hoover – Sep 21, 2009
Continuing each Monday an excerpt from my 2001 book:
Be Skeptical
As we consume information, we first need to cultivate a healthy skepticism. Don’t trust or believe something just because you read it in a book, saw it on television, or heard it from an expert who tosses out statistics. Take a few seconds to compare what you hear with what you know. When it comes to data, official statements, assertions, and opinions, it’s hard to beat that old Missouri slogan, “Show me.”
Don’t confuse skepticism with cynicism. I have friends who believe that everything that comes from the major networks is filled with liberal bias, and other friends who think the media is full of “corporate bias.” None of these people are likely to gain a deep understanding of the world around them. If you suspect hidden agendas and dark motives in everything you hear, you’re probably assuming way too much about our information providers.
In my experience, most of the bad information we get comes from people who are inexperienced, who are “innumerate”—that is, illiterate when it comes to numbers—or are just poor observers.

Looking Behind the Headlines

Although I believe our free American press is one of our country’s greatest assets — in fact, one of the world’s greatest assets — it has one inherent problemm as a source of ideas and information. Journalists are normally focused on news, and news is often not very important.
A central truth in the life of a news editor is something called the “news hole.” There are so many pages of newsprint that have to be filled with news each day, so many minutes of radio time, so many hours of television time. No matter what happens in the world, the news hole must be filled. If nothing of note happens, the newspapers and airwaves still have to be filled.
If you watch CNN Headline News (one of my favorite sources of leads for information), you know that it used to place state headlines at the bottom of the screen, rotating through all fifty states. I’m confident that the CNN editors were working hard to pick the most important stories. But on some days, nothing much happens. Consider these headlines, all taken from CNN on the same day (February 21, 2000):
  • Ohio: Springfield auto dealer uses cannon to deal with pesky crow problem
  • Illinois: Proposed Hooters restaurant stirs controversy at Peoria Waterfront
  • Tennessee: State equine population third in nation, after Texas and California
  • Texas: New video cameras installed in 214 cruisers used by Lubbock police
  • Indiana: Evansville to get Doppler radar two years early
  • Alabama: Birmingham man’s unwanted coffin is Goodwill’s strangest donation
Even when the headlines really are important, like “Vicente Fox wins Mexican presidential election,” the big news is often not what follows the page one headline but the story that ran a year earlier, probably buried on page fifteen: “Former Coke executive makes bid for Mexican presidency.” The people who write the news, who live by the daily headlines, naturally tend to focus on the most recent event, when the real story includes events that happened at many times and in many places. It’s often left up to us to piece it together.
When headlines reading “Greyhound declares bankruptcy” appeared some years ago, the real story occurred several years before: “Congress deregulates airlines.” When Boeing took over arch-competitor McDonnell Douglas in the 1990s, much of the real story dated from forty years earlier, when Boeing got its 707 passenger jet into service a year before Douglas launched the DC-8.