Old Antinomian Article by Rabbi Shlomo Aschkenasy – Plus Comments

Fire Control

By Harav Shlomo Aschkenasy

We are coming out of Pesach after long weeks of meticulous preparation climaxed by the holiday of self-restraint. Even those who spent these holy days in a five star hotel in some exotic vacation spot, certainly were very careful not to eat gebroks and have only shmurah matzos. Some of us even wore a kittel at the Seder just as they do on Yom Kippur. It is a truly exhilarating experience from which we can walk away thinking, Now we are holy.  Oh it’s true. The seeds of holiness have been implanted but we have a long way to go before we get the final product. The seeds of holiness need to be cultivated so that they blossom, grow and flourish.

I didn’t know five-star hotels were about restraint. Actually, Pesach’s holiness derives from destroying the Chametz, but no longer any need, because We The Enlightened now invented a loophole unknown to Chazal (e.g., Chulin 4) of “selling” everything to a Goy.

We count up! We make an effort to do acts which show that we want to really improve. We don’t merely “count the Sefirah.” Chassidim of yore had astonishing expectations and grandiose plans for the Sefirah. They said that if you let a day of Sefirah go by without doing something which is an expression of the middah of that day, it is as if you haven’t counted and the bracha made is tantamount to a bracha levatala.

Keeping halacha is “merely” and a “Bracha levatala” to boot?!

Every day has its avodah. The holy Arizal revealed that every day has special energy which we can tap into and use to improve our middos. Every day has its exercises which we can do to strengthen our spirituality so that we are fit to undertake the responsibilities of kabbolas haTorah. Sefarim say that the “forty-eight ways to attain Torah” which are enumerated in the sixth perek of Pirkei Avos correspond to the days of the omer. The 49th day is designed for summary and consolidation.

Arizal’s “energy exercises” and revelations are for all Hamodia’s readers?

We have our work cut out for us. But we also have a stockpile of siyatta diShmaya available for use. As Chazal say, Yagata umatzata, “If you struggle, you will find.” Finding means that you have come upon a metziah, much more than you expected and bargained for. You will attain unexpected heights and reveal the hidden spiritual treasures of these special days.

The rabbi falsifies the Torah. “Yagata umatzata etc.” refers to remembering one’s Torah study, and not the Arizal’s “Avoda”.

Parashas Shemini teaches us a similar lesson in an awesome way. But before we say anything about Nadav and Avihu we have to preface it with a principle I learned from my Rebbe Rav Chaim Shmulevitz, zt”l.

He taught us that whenever we learn a parashah in the Torah (including Torah shebaal peh – Oral Torah) we should not take it at face value, in simplicity. The Torah isn’t merely a report; it is as it is called – Torah, to teach a lesson. It isn’t just a picture or painting of a scene; it’s a vehicle to transmit a message. The most stark example of this is when Hashem says to Avraham that “I will go down” (Bereishis 18:21) to see what was happening in Sedom. Although for Hashem there is no such concept as “going down”, Rashi says that the Torah writes this to instruct us how judges should behave. Before passing judgment they should see things for themselves.

So, Hashem didn’t go down to Bavel; did Yaakov and his sons go down to Egypt, at least? I want to believe Rabbi Aschkenasy’s own personal, later choices make him misremember what he heard (I didn’t check Rabbi Shmuelevitz inside). Or maybe the parentheses above regarding “Torah sheba’al peh” are Rabbi Aschkenasy’s own addition. What does he do with all the “Giluy Milsa” from pesukim in Shas?

Moshe Rabbeinu testified that Nadav and Avihu were the greatest people in Klal Yisrael. What did they do wrong? Chazal give various explanations, none of which shed light in an understandable way as to how such great people could sin in such a way. One thing is clear: that it was their unprecedented height of sanctity that brought on their demise. It might be because they were so great that the smallest deviation was too much for them.

Wait, I thought it’s called Torah, to teach us lessons?! So, the only lesson is that holy sins at the holy hotel stem from our “unprecedented height of sanctity”, which we fix by imaginary “Avoda” we attribute to the Arizal during the Omer?

The sins Chazal ascribe to them aren’t to be taken at face value, as Chazal say about Reuven and David Hamelech. Yet there was a whisk of something asunder, which Chazal understood as a message for us. If such great people could be mistaken on their level, we certainly should double check ourselves even if we are on a “spiritual high”.

While the Torah is “explicit” regarding David and Reuven, Chazal explain it differently. But the Torah is vague regarding Nadav&Avihu, while Chazal elaborate. How can we then water down Chazal, as well?! Be a consistent Karaite. And if Chazal say something is halachically out, is that, too — how does he put it? — “a whisk of something asunder“?

How can ex-Litvaks fall so low as to imagine “spiritual highs”, a universal human experience everywhere and always, indicate anything Ultimate? Since Chazal’s words are too rarified for the Hamodia reader’s delicate ears, let’s censor them out altogether; being the same reader self-deluding himself (herself, more likely) with Arizal “Avodah”.

The clearest guidelines for that is to verify that whatever we do is within the framework of halachah. Because even for the holiest, the end does not justify the means.

The Chasidiot entertains the knuckle-headed notion that “because they were so great the smallest deviation was too much for them“. But, the Torah has no “Ends” and no “Means” (with an added framework of inexplicable, insipid restrictions). No, rather the holier a person, the more zealous about all of God’s word!

In light of this we can appreciate the fact that the Torah’s restrictions against inebriation prior to doing the avodah follow the tragedy. Intoxication with love of Hashem may not come from outside sources. The Torah itself should be our soul source of inspiration.

Does Rabbi Aschkenasy mean “sole”? Are mixed hotels with Yichud stumbling blocks (like Ginos on the mo’adim), too, “outside sources”? “Intoxication with love of Hashem” is all?

On the heels of this command, Aharon receives the code of kashrus for animals. Chazal say that one should not say, “I detest non-kosher animals.” On the contrary, we should say, “I’d love to eat them but what can I do, Hashem prohibited them.”

Rav Chaim Shmulevitz commented that Chazal aren’t merely referring to culinary tastes and preferences. They meant even in the spiritual dimensions. If someone abstains from non-kosher food because he comprehends its spiritual damage, he is not properly fulfilling the command. That is why Aharon was chosen as the conduit for these laws. In order to impress the message upon us not to make the same costly mistake his children made. Our decision to do or not to do should be based solely on the will of Hashem and His decree. May we always have the presence of mind to abide by it no matter how fired up we may be.

End.

No depth; he speaks out of both sides of his mouth.

Enough said.

קול החינוך גליון 153#

יו”ל ע”י ‘ועד הורים’ – בהכוונת גדולי התורה שליט”א

[קול החינוך עוסק במלחמת מדינת ישראל בחינוך יהודי עצמאי.]

* למסירת מידע ומשלוח מסמכים בס”ד 03-691-5752, טלפקס: 6915752@okmail.co.il

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Reprinted with permission.

Josh Shalet: How to Improve Davening

My shul pet peeves, some emotional, some halachic

1. Multiple people saying multiple Kaddishim.

If there are a number of mourners, or Yethomim, they should be split up according to the rules set by the Mishna Berura. There is absolutely zero Halachic obligation to say the Mourner’s Kaddish or the Rabbis’ Kaddish more than once per day.

2. Bochurim without Talleithim: zero Halachic justification nowadays.

Older bachelors look like children when they attend Shacharis.

It is a silly custom that must be done away with post haste.

3. Saying Aleinu after Minchah.

Superfluous and redundant: adds a Kaddish needlessly and interrupts the natural flow between Minchah, Kabalath Shabbath, and Arvith.

German, Yemenite, and Italian congregations have kept the original Minhag, there is no reason other communities can’t follow suit other than purely emotional excuses.

4. Depressing or boring tunes for Lechaw Dodi and El Adon.

There are literally hundreds of tunes that a Chazzan could learn and teach the Tzibbur to sing, but alas, we are stuck with the same old basic melodies.

5. Most modern-day Shul tunes lack any depth and are mostly either kvetchy or schmaltzy.

6. People taking off their Tallith after receiving a Kibbud: you’re supposed to leave it on until after Kedushah.

7. The inaudible Hazzan: try opening your mouth!

It helps PROJECT the volume.

8. The wimpy and nervous Bar Mitzvah boy leining; tedious and embarrassing.

There are no standards these days.

When I was taught my Parshah, I received voice coaching and tuning

9. Hazzan is clueless about Hebrew grammar: most congregants don’t have a clue either, so it’s all good by them.

10. The worst offence: God’s name slurred or pronounced completely wrong outright, thus opening a halachic can of worms whether one is yotzi or not.

When I point out this error, I often hear the catchphrase: “There are other opinions/customs/traditions” or “Maybe your hearing is off”

I think ten pet peeves are enough for now.

Jonathan Pollard: Don’t Worry, Israeli Security Situation Normal… for PRISON, That Is!

Jonathan Pollard: Israel is heading to disaster

‘I’m waiting for a real Jewish leader.’ Pollard slams government, compares life in Israel to his time in prison. ‘This never ends well.’

Jonathan Pollard

After all the years I spent [in prison], the natural inclination is to try to focus on rebuilding my life. That is what my beloved wife Esther and I tried to do during that one year of grace we were given together here, and that is what I am trying to do now after I lost her.

But the clear knowledge of the disaster that we are leading ourselves to, with the images of the past few months, and in particular the gut-wrenching massacre in Elad, leave me no peace.

I simply cannot remain silent any longer.

For decades, Esther went in my stead to be with the families of fallen IDF soldiers and terror victims during their most difficult moments. I don’t understand how she was able to stand it. Ever since her passing, I have been trying to follow in her footsteps, but I am haunted by the faces of relatives who have lost everything, and I tremble with a handshake; a hug at a funeral leaves my body and soul trembling, especially since, like them and like everyone else, I cannot flee the knowledge this loss could have been prevented.

During the 30 years I was in prison, I lived with incredible fear and concern for my life. I had to have eyes in the back of my head. I couldn’t sleep at night, concerned that someone would enter my room and stab either me or my roommate to death. I had to always carry a knife and be prepared to use it without hesitation. I constantly had to witness the horrible deaths of other people-especially my friends, that occurred suddenly and without warning. In prison, the most frustrating thing of all had to do with the fact that the officials in charge of protecting us, were basically scared of the violent prisoners and accommodated them as much as possible.

Put plainly, our administrators wanted peace at any cost, even if it meant that innocent people were murdered without serious consequences to those who attacked them.

We couldn’t even rely upon the guards to protect us because they didn’t want an inmate injured by them taking them to court. I quickly learned that we didn’t have a right to self-defense under any circumstances. People can’t believe me when I tell them that we were always wrong if we tried to defend ourselves. And those who did were always punished excessively in order to make the point that they were no better than their assailants. It was total insanity.

I prayed that when I came home, I wouldn’t have to live this way. I was wrong. Indeed, given what I’ve seen over the past year, it’s even worse now for me because this time it’s not about one or two people getting randomly killed, but about an entire nation being traumatized by an army of cold-blooded anti-Semitic psychopaths, who the authorities are afraid of “provoking”. I’ve seen this movie before, and it never ends well.

In prison, I had one or two good friends who watched my back and I watched theirs, and I lived under G-D’s grace and tried to remember that you fear no one but G-D, and strike first. Here, incredibly, I’m living with a whole country that is either scared to death or in denial. We are all suffering on account of a group of intellectually challenged political and judicial elites who have an infinite capacity to tolerate the suffering of our citizens, all the while insinuating that we are somehow responsible for all the violence we are experiencing.

I see the faces of the captured terrorists after their carried out the terrible massacre in Elad, and I see clearly how they aren’t afraid of prison. They know that they will get conditions many times better than what any common criminal would face, and a stipend from the Palestinian Authority in honor of the murders they committed, etc.

I know perfectly well what a prison designed to deprive a prisoner of his will to live looks like. But here, the conditions for the jailed, despicable murderers only encourages more terrorists to join the club. How can we let this situation continue for even a minute longer?

I’m tired of this. I’m tired of seeing our so-called leaders taking our flag, and washing out the blue, and leaving only the white of surrender. I’m waiting for somebody, a leader, a true Jewish leader, to come forward and put the blue stripes and the Magen-David back on our flag.

I’m waiting for a leader that will put the fear of G-d into our enemies. I’m waiting for a leader who will act without any concern about what anybody else outside our country thinks. Whether it be the United States or the European Union, the UN, or anybody else who believes they can tell us where we can live or how we are to defend ourselves.

We know why we are here. G-D gave us this land; not the British Empire, the League of Nations, Washington, or the UN. But despite this fact, it is sad for me to realize that our holy mission of reestablishing the Third Jewish Commonwealth is not even halfway done. And this is because of our own fear and trepidation, not the result of our enemies’ actions.

We still don’t have our land back. We don’t have our self-respect back, we don’t have our independence back the way we should have after 2000 years of pogroms, crusades, inquisitions, and genocidal attempts to eliminate our people. I’ve spent 30 years in prison hoping and praying that I would come home to a state that would defend me. Was I wrong? It certainly feels that way.

A story my father often told me comes to mind. He said that a soldier’s principal duty is to protect the lives of his comrades, not to let them down because some high-ranking officer was too scared to order a necessary, but politically incorrect, action. As I see it, our lives have essentially been reduced to such a battlefield, where our citizens, my brothers and sisters, are forced to defend themselves and those around them, not only from the enemy but from our own government, which is too scared to do what is required to eradicate the terrorist threat. This state of affairs is totally unacceptable!

We desperately need to get rid of this ‘galut’ mentality that prioritizes the need to ‘understand’ our enemies over the security of our people. We simply can’t think like the ten spies, who attributed to others what they felt about themselves – namely, that they were like grasshoppers. Well, I’m not a grasshopper, and neither are my brothers and sisters in this country.

We are the descendants of proud and noble warriors, who feared only G-D and never hesitated to defend our land from some of the greatest empires the world has ever seen. But over many years our leaders have relentlessly tried to have us forget this fact in favor of our adopting a more liberal post-modernism, where we ‘share’ our land with those who openly seek to destroy us. No more! We must reject this type of cynical defeatism before it kills us.

It is time for us to regain both our individual and collective self-respect. It’s time for our nation to demand that our leaders care about us rather than their foreign masters. It’s time for our elected representatives to finally eliminate once and for all those groups and countries who seek to destroy us. Lastly, we want the army high command to wake up and stop pretending that ‘managing the enemy’ is an acceptable strategic doctrine. It isn’t. It’s a form of appeasement that preserves our opponents while making us look weak and stupid.

I know we can enact these essential reforms. If we actually want to be an independent country, we have no other choice. Indeed, these goals should be seen as sacred obligations we must embrace not only for our sake, but also for the sake of our future generations. May G-D grant us the wisdom and strength to do so.

A Hebrew version of this piece appeared in today’s edition of Yedioth Aharonoth.

From Arutz Sheva, here.