The Next Jewish Frontier: Prophecy

First, what is “prophecy”? Fools and madmen are a mere “taste”. Nor do I speak of Divine Inspiration, of various levels. Nor of asking a school boy what he learned that day. Nor… No. I mean the actual legal (halachic) category.

The true “Navi” is one who is accepted by a Jewish court for having performed a miraculous sign in the presence of two kosher Jewish witnesses.

This is not a joke.

See Maimonides, Foundations of the Torah, chapter 7, end:

Not everyone who performs signs or wonders should be accepted as a prophet: only a person who is known to be fit for prophecy beforehand; i.e., his wisdom and his [good] deeds surpass those of all his contemporaries. If he follows the paths of prophecy in holiness, separating himself from worldly matters, and afterwards performs a sign or wonder and states that he was sent by God, it is a mitzvah to listen to him, as [Deuteronomy 18:15] states: “Listen to him.”

It is possible that a person will perform a sign or wonder even though he is not a prophet – rather, the wonder will have [another cause] behind it. It is, nevertheless, a mitzvah to listen to him. Since he is a wise man of stature and fit for prophecy, we accept [his prophecy as true], for so have we been commanded.

[To give an example of a parallel:] We are commanded to render a [legal] judgment based on the testimony of two witnesses. Even though they may testify falsely, since we know them to be acceptable [as witnesses], we presume that they [are telling the truth].

Considering these matters and the like, [Deuteronomy 29:28] states: “The hidden matters are for God, our Lord, but what is revealed is for us and our children,” and [I Samuel 16:7] states: “Man sees what is revealed to the eyes, but God sees into the heart.”

Jews must seek prophecy anew. This is not mere preference. We need a prophet for the various upcoming stages of Jewish history, such as building the Temple, establishing priestly lineage (“yichus”), waging wars, kingship, identifying the true Messiah, and more.

Originally one prophet would teach another, in special schools for this purpose.

See Derech Hashem Part Three 4:2, “On Prophecy”:

ענין המתלמדים בנבואה

וממה שצריך שתדע שהנה לא יגיע הנביא אל המדריגה העליונה בפעם אחת אבל יעלה מעלה אחר מעלה עד הגיעו אל הנבואה השלימה. ויש בדבר התלמדות כמו כל שאר החכמות והמלאכות שיעלה האדם במדריגותיהם עד שיעמוד על בורין. וזה ענין”בני הנביאים” שהיו עומדים לפני הנביא להתלמד בדרכי הנבואה מה שהיה מצטרך לזה.

But can it be done all alone, in our orphaned age, without teachers who are themselves prophets?

I think so. We simply cannot wait until Techiyas Hameisim (the Resurrection of the Dead). The temple will be rebuilt before the Resurrection of the Dead, see Rabbi Brand‘s proofs here (towards the end)!

Restoring true prophecy is a DIY (Do It Yourself) project. This is no different than the renascent Sanhedrin project, and maybe better.

So? Forget yeshivas for Kabbalah. Who wants to be the first to open “Yeshivat Bnei Hanevi’im”? The line between madness and ‘vision’ is always thin.

Come on… You know you want to!

Does Ritual Parchment (Klaf) Require a Hechsher?

Sofer Offers Refund or Free Replacement

As a Sofer, I have always used certain types of klaf that were easier to write on, in the belief that certification made the klaf of a higher standard, yet was not essential. I relied on the factories to use only G-d fearing, Jewish labor when processing hides designed for use as STaM klaf.

Upon hearing of the Elul 5766 scandal, I turned to leading Rabbinic authorities from both Israel and the Diaspora, all of whom ruled that the “regular” parchment was of doubtful validity. There’s a high probability that the lime-soakage was done by Gentiles who are always considered to lack the needed intention (lishma), rendering the parchment completely unkosher.

I must now either fully reimburse my customers, or rewrite all my work on hechsher-bearing klaf. My customers can reach me at the number below. In the meantime, none of my work may be used, including tefillin, mezuzos, etc. I hope this notice suffices.

__________________________________________________
Clarification
Regarding the overwhelming response to my previous notice entitled “Sofer Offers Refund or Free Replacement”, I’d like to clarify a few points:

(a) It has been brought to my attention that quite a few prominent Poskim, among them Av Beis Din Zichron Meir Rabbi Shmuel Wosner, Badatz Eidah Hachareidis and tens of Rabbis from America had by Teves 5761 already issued a ruling to the effect that the use of unsupervised klaf is absolutely forbidden and that 86 well known Rabbis had said the same thing a hundred years ago.

(b) Distinguished rabbis have contacted me to offer encouragement in withstanding this trial of great monetary loss.

(c) In the wake of this scandal, I confronted the person who’d instructed me in the art of writing upon certain klaf that is easier to write on even though it lacks Kosher certification. We asked a great Posek who should be responsible for the free refunds. The ruling was that my teacher, the sellers, and I all should share the reimbursement expenses. The Posek also showed us no less than six pamphlets concerning this very subject. My teacher was shocked and agreed to help pay my customers.

Shmuel Nesanel Blum, Sofer STaM, Bet Shemesh

(Formerly of Kiryat Yoel, NY)

Grandson of the Kashoi Gaon zatzal

011-972-2-991-0591

Pray for Israeli Government, State, or Nothing?

Misgivings about the Prayer for the State of Israel-Interview with Rabbi David Bar-Hayim

TUESDAY, 12 JULY 2016 18:27
Should we be saying the prayer for the State of Israel every Shabbath? In the following video interview Machon Shilo’s Rabbi David Bar-Hayim assesses this prayer:

In English:

:בעברית

LAST UPDATED ON TUESDAY, 12 JULY 2016 18:34

From Machon Shilo, here.

There is No ‘Scale of Offenses’ Against the State

The Penalty is Always Death

electric-chairYesterday, the NYPD opened fire on an unarmed suspect in Times Square. Luckily for the suspect, the NYPD has terrible aim. Not so lucky, were the two innocent bystanders struck by taxpayer funded bullets flying indiscriminately through the polluted urban air. This all started because the NYPD allegedly saw the man stumbling around on 8th Avenue. Moments later, they started spraying bullets in his general direction, in one of the most crowded places on the planet.

I can think of no better opportunity to take the chance to point out, that the penalty for disobeying agents of the State, is always death. I’m borrowing the title from a 2008 article by Mike Gogulski on NoState.com, but what follows are my own thoughts, and it’s a point I’ve been making for a long time, that everyone, or at least, every anarchist, on some level, knows is true.

Whether you stand accused of stumbling, smoking marijuana, ignoring threatening letters, driving too fast, or parking too long, the outcome is always the same, threats of violence. If, when the armed thugs come to extract their vengeance, you become compliant, true enough, you are likely to survive the encounter. If however, you treat them like the criminals they are, they too will display their true nature, and kill you where you stand.

Continue reading…

From ChristopherCantwell.com, here.