B parashat hashavua b parasha : korach

IN THE CHEMED RELIGIOUS SCHOOLS: Thirsting for Knowledge in Kiryat Shemona

by the Center for Religious Education in Israel

The prophet Amos had a vision that "they will move from sea to sea, and from the north to the east the people will wander to seek the words of G-d" [8:12]. In our days, this is becoming a reality. And this week we will indeed go to the north. The unique method of teaching Talmud that was developed by Rabbi Shabtai Sabbato, Rosh Yeshiva of Netivot Yosef in Mitzpeh Yericho, - expert study of a large number of tractates, with the aid of flowcharts and summary tables - has now reached the northernmost part of the country.

Next year, a new yeshiva high school will open in Kiryat Shemona which will attempt to extend the success of this technique to more students who thirst for knowledge. The students of the local Hesder yeshiva will adopt the new pupils for personal tutoring, under the guidance of the rabbis of the city, Rabbi Tzefania Drory and Rabbi Shalom Levy.

A unique educational program has been developed, with the objective of teaching graduates who are experts in both Torah and good customs. In addition to study of Talmud, the program includes expert study of all of Tanach and all of the Mishna, so that the graduates will have a good knowledge of the basic volumes needed for Jewish study, with a strong link to the nation and the land of Yisrael, all learned through the Torah of Bnei Yisrael.

This type of innovation, coordinated with the individual needs of modern students, is the response of the religious Zionist educational system to the current problems of youth and society within Israel. The Center for Religious Education commends the idea of opening this type of yeshiva high school in the north.

More details are available by phone: [phone] (Yaniv), and 067-625200 (Boaz).

(See: www.chemdat.moreshet.co.il)

TALES OF ERETZ YISRAEL: A Controversy that Will Not Last

by Zev Wallack

"Are Givat Chaim Ichud and Givat Chaim Me'uchad the same kibbutz?" My son Oded asked me this as we drove north through the area of Emek Chefer. And my reply was a short "No," since I did not want to go into the upsetting affair of the disintegration of the kibbutzim. At that point, he accepted the answer, but then we continued on our way, and in the Jordan Valley we encountered Ashdot Yaacov Ichud and Ashdot Yaacov Me'uchad. Oded said to me, "Abba, I understand that these are two separate settlements, but why do they have the same name?" And now I could no longer avoid answering, and against my will I answered, "It is because they were once a single settlement, but they divided into two."

After we spent some time at the Kinneret, we turned towards the Yizrael Valley and passed Ein Charod Ichud and Ein Charod Me'uchad. And now my son had a very logical question: "Abba, if they divided into two separate towns, why do they call themselves names that mean the opposite? Ichud and me'uchad mean to be together!"

Indeed, today it is not easy to understand. The pioneers of that era had joined together in an effort to develop the land of our heritage and to establish a society based on complete equality. But they became involved in such heated debates that the result was the breakup of about twenty kibbutzim of the Kibbutz Hame'uchad. To understand, we have to go back to the basis of the split, in the first days of the state, when ideological fanaticism was the rule of the land. It is a well known fact that this is the most likely emotion to cause sharp controversy and high emotions.

What was the basis of the heated debates in these communal societies? Among other things, the controversy included the concept of "the whole Eretz Yisrael," in the form of the Partition Plan, which was accepted by the Mapai Party, led by David Ben-Gurion. Today it is hard to believe that it was the leftist wing of the party, those members of the kibbutzim that wanted to emulate Stalin's Soviet Union, that took a hawkish stand and violently opposed the partition.

According to Tzvi, who was about 30 years old at the time of the separation, "in a meeting on the subject of the essence of education in the kibbutz, one of the members declared, 'We want to establish a Marxist-Leninist school here.' Another member added, 'We have two fatherlands, one is Russia and the other is Eretz Yisrael.' Such talk accelerated the division. The debate reached the level of the children. One group would attack the other, shouting such cries as, 'Your mother and father are traitors.'"

Levi described the situation in the dining room. "They set up a dividing curtain in the middle, and two separate kitchens provided food for the two halves. It was terrible... This was a huge dining room, and in the middle there was a boundary that nobody would cross. When members sat on the two sides, they would not even dare to look at each other. This was simply amazing, as in this kibbutz there were many people who had lived together and worked together for many years."

Time has passed, and a changed situation leads to weakened fanaticism. About thirty years later (in 1979), the Takam was established (an abbreviation of "The United Kibbutz Movement"), and this served to reunite the two factions. Thus, we can see that this was indeed a controversy that was not destined to be permanent.

(Source: Amalia Liblich, "Kibbutz Makom")

JEWISH WEB SITES: The Game Room

Note: this is a repeat of an earlier column, with the internet address now corrected. Thanks to the only reader who caught our mistake. We apologize for any inconvenience.

It seems to be against the lofty ideals - to use a computer for games instead of for useful purposes. It would be better to go outside for a more active pursuit, such as working up a sweat on a basketball or soccer field. If, however, you still choose to sit opposite a screen and play solitaire or other games, here is a site that - as of the present - has 358 games.

The site has not only games of chance but also includes thought-provoking games and amazing tricks with graphics. I can already hear the mother of the house crying out, "Get up already, and do something useful!" And how right she will be!

The URL: www.soguy.com

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2 - MACHON MEIR

MACHON MEIR - http://www.virtual.co.il/education/machon-meir/parasha.htm

Message for Today

The Holiness of Time, Place and Person

Korach and his assembly complain against Moses and Aaron: “You have gone too far! All the people in the community are holy, and the L-rd is with them. Why are you setting yourselves above the L-rd’s congregation?” Seemingly they are right. After all, the Jewish People had previously been told, “You will be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation to Me” (Exodus 19:6). Likewise, it says, “Your people are all righteous” (Isaiah 60:21). Yet Korach and his assembly, in their pursuit of honor, spoke only a half-truth, and as we all know, a half-truth is worse than a lie.

It is true that the Jewish People are all holy and all righteous. Yet within the Jewish People there are different levels. There are kohanim [priests], Levites and Israelites. There are different jobs. There are political leaders and spiritual leaders.

Whoever tries to blur the differences and the spiritual levels within the Jewish People not only brings about anarchy but is trying to blot out the different levels within Creation, as in Rashi’s exposition on Moses’s words:

“‘In the morning the L-rd will show that He knows who is His and who is holy, and He will bring them close to Him’ (Numbers 16:5): Moses said to them: G-d set up His world with boundaries. Just as you cannot change morning to evening, so you cannot nullify, ‘Aaron was set apart, that he should be sanctified as most holy’ (I Chronicles 23:13).”

The aim of the arguments of Korach and his assembly was to blur the differences and the boundaries within the Jewish People. Today as well, those arguments are heard, in the form of arguments setting out to blot out the sanctify of time, place and person. Some argue that there is no difference Sabbaths and holidays, on the one hand, and weekdays on the other. They thus allow themselves to publicly profane Sabbath and festivals. Others blot out the distinction between Eretz Yisrael and all other lands. They permit themselves to leave the Land or to partition the Land, G-d forbid. Likewise, still others blot out the Jewish identity, saying there is no difference between Israel and the nations. They believe that the State of Israel has to be “a state of all its citizens.” It shall never be!

Yet all of these views, with all their insincerity, are akin to the arguments advanced by Korach and his assembly. Ultimately they will be blotted out. In their place, Israel and the world will all recognize that it is G-d who “distinguishes between the holy and the profane, between light and darkness, between Israel and the nations, and between the Seventh Day and the Six Days of Creation” (Havdalah). For “He created us and we our His, His people, the flock of His pasture” (Psalm 100:3).

Looking forward to complete salvation,

Hrav Dov Bigon

The Temple Mount is in our hands.

Rabbi Shlomo Aviner

Question: Should we go up onto the Temple Mount or not? If we do not go up, how will we take possession of it? Surely it is a mitzvah to conquer the Land! During the War of Independence we conquered the country, and seemingly we have to do the same with the Temple Mount. It’s not enough that the army be there. We also need to show a civilian presence. After all, the State of Israel is not just the army, but also Aliyah and settlement. Perhaps we have to do the same regarding the Temple Mount. We have to go up there, establish a synagogue, found a yeshiva – obviously the things we do there must be in keeping with the enormous holiness of the site.

Answer: No. Not all things are comparable. Eretz Yisrael is meant to be conquered and settled by the Jews. By contrast, access to the Temple Mount depends on the Divine Presence coming to rest on earth. When the Divine Presence rests upon us, we will be able to go up to the Temple Mount. “They shall make Me a sanctuary, and I will dwell in their midst” (Exodus 25:8). Not “I will dwell in IT,” but “I will dwell in their midst.” If G-d does not dwell in our midst, there can be no Temple.

It is the same with the Temple Mount. This is not just any mount but the Temple Mount. This mountain has no function other than as a seat for the Temple. It is the mountain upon which the Temple is erected. It is not a mountain on which to establish a synagogue or a yeshiva for study or prayer. We have no business going up there other than to worship G-d in the Temple. If we go there for any other purpose, that is called “purposeless ascent.” If there is no Temple, there is no Mount. We will return to the Temple when the Divine Presence rests there. Likewise, we will return to the Temple Mount when the Divine Presence rests there.

One might ask: Is this not exactly what the Haredim argued about Eretz Yisrael, that if we keep Torah and mitzvoth and repent, G-d will then bring us to our land, and that we mustn’t move there or conquer or settle it?

Indeed, regarding Eretz Yisrael, it is not enough to pray and to do mitzvoth. We must conquer as well. Yet the Temple Mount is different. Not everything has to be identical. Sometimes in Judaism we make distinctions. Shabbat is not Yom Tov and Rosh Chodesh is not Chanukah. The Temple Mount is not just another part of Eretz Yisrael. With Eretz Yisrael, Aliyah, settlement and conquest are imperatives. With the Temple Mount, everything depends on the Divine Presence.

Rambam rules that we are considered to have attained Eretz Yisrael through conquest during Joshua’s day, and through the receiving of permission during Ezra’s time. Yet we did not merit access to the site of the Temple through either conquest or the receiving of permission, but through the Divine Presence having come to rest there (Hilchot Beit HaBechirah 6:16), and it is through the Divine Presence resting amongst us that we will once more merit access there. Every mitzvah, every good deed, brings us closer to the Mount and to the Temple. Following the Six Day War, the Ateret Kohanim Yeshiva renewed its studies in the Old City of Jerusalem and twenty years ago a practice was inaugurated of making a procession around the outside perimeter of the Temple Mount, in fulfillment of “Go round about Zion. Circle it” (Psalm 48:13). At every Temple-Mount gate we would stop and learn Torah.

What was most relevant to learn? Seemingly one might think Tractate Midot, regarding construction of the Temple. Yet we instead studied good “midot” [character traits], and the book “Chafetz Chaim,” about avoiding forbidden speech. There is a connection between these things. By virtue of good “midot” we will reach a stage in which Masechet Midot has immediate relevance.

The Prophet Ezekiel describes the shape of the future Temple, yet does not command us to gather materials or to draw up plans. Rather he implores us to repent: “You, son of man, tell the House of Israel of the Temple, that they may be ashamed of their sins” (Ezekiel 43:10; see Nefesh HaChaim, Sha’ar 1, Ch. 4).

The key is repentance, not premature entry into the site. One doesn’t get married on the first date. First one must build up a bond. “‘On the day of his wedding, the day of the gladness of his heart’ (Song of Songs 3:11): This refers to the Temple” (Midrash). Good character comes first.

One might ask: Yet in the meantime, the non-Jews are not waiting! They are on the Temple Mount!

That is truly an unparalleled scandal. Whoever enters the Temple Mount incurs a divine death penalty. This is a heinous sin. Let us hope that they repent. In the meantime, there is a difficult situation in which non-Jews are desecrating the site of the Temple. Yet the solution is not that we should enter as well. Does the fact that they are desecrating it mean that we should too? Is the seriousness of one desecration blunted by another? This is not the way! The Temple Mount is the apple of our eye. If someone gets a speck of dust in his eye, he doesn’t remove it by means of tongs, but by means of tears.

We have to stand at a distance, to circle the site, to weep, to miss it, to long for it and to repent. Does this sound Haredi? I already answered above that there is no comparison, as our master Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak Kook explained in his profound responsum about the prohibition against ascending the Temple Mount (Mishpat Kohen, Tzav). He likewise explained to the British Commission of Inquiry that Eretz Yisrael can be divided into two parts: Eretz Yisrael up to the Western Wall, and from there onward. Up to the Western Wall, we take valiant initiative. Beyond the Western Wall, we look forward to a miracle. Isn’t it said that we don’t rely on miracles? The Temple Mount is an exception. The Temple is a celestial entity destined to descend from heaven (Rashi and Tosafot on Sucah 41a [yegaleh veyavo]; Rashi on Rosh Hashanah 30a). The Temple Mount, as well, is a miraculous site in which there were constant miracles (Avot 5:7).

Sometimes people wonder: “Why doesn’t G-d do a miracle for us? Why does He leave the work for us?” The answer is that G-d performs miracles through us and from amongst us! So people ask, “But we want a real, open miracle!” The answer to this is that there will be such miracles involving our spiritual core, the Temple Mount and the Temple.

As for the fact that the non-Jews are desecrating our Holy Site, by doing so they are sealing their fate for evil, but we will not do that.

One time a prominent Jew with an enormous record of financial support for building up the Land ascended the Temple Mount. He entered it in a canopy, carried by non-Jews, innocently thinking that this was a permissible way, yet the sages of Israel forcefully excommunicated him. When it turned out that his sin had been inadvertent, they forgave him. Rabbi Kook wrote, “One small trespass on the holiness of our eternal Temple neutralizes the merit from the establishment of millions of settlements in Eretz Yisrael” (Igarot HaRe’iyah II:285).

We have to internalize the fact that the Temple Mount is a different world, a different planet. Not everything is the same! We have to increase holiness and purity and detour around the Temple Mount with reverence for that which is holy.

Rabbi Kook (Mishpat Kohen, page 203), mentions in relation to the Temple Mount the principle of “distance creating intimacy.” Mentioning G-d’s name too often, cheapens it, and does not bring one closer to G-d (Guide to the Perplexed 3:47).

This mountain is ours. It is the holiest place on earth. It belongs to us alone and to no one else, and it will return to us. In our day, before our eyes we are seeing the fulfillment of the words of the Zohar (at the end of VaEra), that after the Land falls temporarily into the hands of the Ishmaelites, it will be returned to us. Now it is returning to us, and the Temple Mount will return to entirely as well. We need pay no attention to those temporary aliens. We need not take them into account. We mustn’t get agitated over them or provoke them. We are nothing but “G-d’s assistants against the mighty men” (Judges 5:23) in our efforts to return to our mountain, through our fulfillment of “Go round about Zion. Circle it” (Psalm 48:13). We stand from afar, in reverence of the holy.

The more we fill ourselves with purity and holiness, refinement and good character traits, the more the Divine Presence will rest amongst us and we will return to our mountain. The Temple Mount is “in our hands.” That is, it is up to us to return to it through increasing our good traits and our fear of G-d. May it be soon in our day!

Korach’s Intelligence

Rabbi Ya’akov HaLevi Filber

In Gittin 55b, the Talmud lays the blame for Jerusalem’s destruction on “Kamtza and Bar Kamtza” and it explains:

“There was a man whose friend was Kamtza and whose enemy was Bar Kamtza. He made a feast and he told his servant, ‘Go bring me Kamtza,’ yet the servant brought him Bar Kamtza. The man came and saw Bar Kamtza sitting at the feast and he said, ‘You hate me! What are doing here? Get out!’ Bar Kamtza resisted, saying, ‘Since I came already, let me stay! I will pay for everything I eat.’ Yet the man refused, grabbing him and throwing him out.”

The question is asked: Why did the Talmud see fit to blame Kamtza when he wasn’t even present at the incident that led to Jerusalem’s destruction?

Some derive from this that if a good friend of yours makes a celebration and doesn’t invite you, you should come to the celebration even without having received an invitation. Had Kamtza done that, the Temple would not have been destroyed.

Maharal explains (Netzach Yisrael, Ch. 5) that even Kamtza was linked to the destruction in the following manner: Jerusalem was destroyed due to the controversy and groundless hatred that spread amongst Jewish society. Yet a solitary individual cannot start a controversy unless he has the backing of friends and acquaintances. The man making the feast dared to hate only because he felt he could rely on the support of Kamtza. Thus, Kamtza as well was a partner in Jerusalem’s destruction.

This principle, that increased controversy depends on a supportive environment, was known by Korach as well. Korach had a personal interest in his controversy. He was seeking greatness for himself, yet he was unworthy of it, as we learn in Sotah 9b: “Korach had his eye on that which he didn’t deserve. That which he sought, he did not attain, and that which he had before, was taken away from him.”

Seemingly, Korach’s sin was that he hurt Moses. Yet Moses did not see Korach’s sin that way, but precisely in the disgrace to Torah inherent in the deed, as we learn in Midrash HaGadol (Bamidbar 16:28):

“Moses said to G-d: Master-of-the-Universe! I was silent over their heaping scorn on me and my brother, but I cannot remain silent in the face of their disgracing the Torah.” When an unworthy person seeks to replace Moses and to become the earthly representative of the Torah, there can be no greater disgrace to the Torah than that.

Rashi justly asks: “What made Korach, who was an intelligent man, engage in such foolishness?” Rashi’s answer is this: “His eye led him astray.” Man’s greatest enemy is his “big eyes.” It was they that made Korach sin already at the start of his path. In Egypt, when Korach’s brethren were groaning over their wracking labor, he sought and attained for himself a position in charge of Pharaoh’s household. In his lust for wealth, he made sure that the keys to Pharaoh’s treasure house would be in his hands (Bamidbar Rabbah 18:15).

This passion for wealth continued during the Exodus as well. When Moses was busy looking for Joseph’s bones, Korach was successfully hunting down the treasures that Joseph had hidden in Egypt (Sanhedrin 110a). It was with that wealth that he fanned the flames of controversy, attracting others to his side (see Targum Yonatan ben Uziel on Numbers 16:19).

Even after Korach had decided to become Israel’s spiritual leader and G-d’s representative on earth, he knew that if he stood alone, no one in Israel would choose him, not in terms of his own merits, and certainly not as a replacement for Moses. He therefore organized himself a cheering section, as Rashi comments, “ ‘Korach took’ (Numbers 16:1): He attracted the chiefs of the Sanhedrin by fine words.” Midrash Yelamdenu teaches: “He attracted all the luminaries of Israel and drew them towards himself.”

After attaining the support of the great spiritual luminaries of Israel, he knew that the whole deal would flounder unless he also had the backing of politicians experienced at controversy. He therefore attached Datan and Aviram to his group as well, regarding whom our sages said (Yalkut Shimoni, Shemot 167): “Anything that can be blamed on these two evildoers SHOULD be blamed on them.” They were Moses’s antagonists already in the days when Moses went out to his brethren in Egypt, and they continued their opposition throughout the time spent in the desert. As the Midrash teaches (Shemot Rabbah 1:19): “It was they who left over manna. It was they who said, ‘Let us select a chief and return to Egypt.’ It was they who rebelled at the Sea of Reeds.”

This same group did not support Korach because they thought he was suitable. Rather, each was motivated by personal interests. Each of the 250 men wanted to be the high priest, whereas Datan and Aviram supported Korach only to hurt Moses.

For this reason, our sages said (Avot 5:17), “It was called ‘the Controversy of Korach and his Assembly’ because the controversy reigned within Korach’s assembly itself.”

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3 - NYCI (Block)

NCYI Weekly Divrei Torah, From:Kenneth Block ([e-mail])

Rabbi Yitzchak Wyne Young Israel of Las Vegas, NV

One of the incredibly potent messages of this week's parsha is how destructive and enticing machlokes is. Korach was no amateur. He was one of the gedolie hador, a Torah scholar with unique insight into life, extremely wealthy, and he had a significant family.

Something compelled Korach to give it all up and go head to head with Moshe. What was the fight over? A political appointment. Yes. It is a little more complicated than that, but in essence that is what it was.

The Ohr HaChaim explains that Korach and his followers really believed that G-d agreed to the appointment of Aaron as Kohen Gadol; their contention was that his appointment originated with Moses, not G-d. It never was Korach's contention that Aaron was not fit to be the High Preist. He just thought that other people were equally suitable. Moshe has a very special relationship with G-d; if Moshe suggested his brother, and he was a suitable candidate, then G-d would agree to the appointment. Korach thought that it would also be acceptable to G-d if the Jews decided to appoint someone else, or set up a rotation, or eliminate the office altogether and have a few different people officiating at the same time. "It is too much for you! For the entire assembly – all of them – are holy and G-d is among them; why do you exalt yourself over the congregation of G-d?" (Numbers 16:3)

The Midrashim teach us that Korach's rebellion began with a dispute over the appointment of his cousin, Elzafan ben Uziel, as the head of the Kehas family of Levites. Korach's grandfather, Kehas, had three sons: Amrom, Yizhar, and Uziel. Allowing for the double portion awarded the first born, Amrom, there would be no argument that his two sons, Aaron and Moses, deserved special treatment — priesthood and leadership. But the next in line should have been the descentdant of Yizhar, the second born. As Yizhar's son Korach reasoned that he should have been appointed the head of the Kehas family instead of Elzafan, who was the son of Uziel, the youngest of the three brothers.

The Ohr HaChaim tells us that this was not mere jealousy. Korach reasoned that appointments should be based on something substantial. Either they should be based on personal merit, in which case everyone was deserving, as the entire congregation was holy, or they should be based on lines of descent, which is also an objective criteria. To allow Moshe to use discretion and position to make appointments as he saw fit, based on no objective criteria, was not appropriate.

So important was this concept to Korach that he was willing to risk all that he had to fight with Moshe. This was the hill he was willing to die on, and he did. Didn't he realize that he couldn't fight the one who destroyed Egypt and Pharaoh, led the Jewish people out of slavery, delivered them to Mt. Sinai, gave them the Torah, fought wars and still remained the "father of all prophets" and most humble of men? What possibly was going through Korach's mind? And for what? What was he actually going to gain even if he was to be successful?

So irrational and enticing are the emotions which bring a person to machlokes; many people literally ruin their lives and the lives of the one's they love the most, simply by giving in to the desire.

I have known several talented, intelligent people who have ruined their careers by involving themselves in either a fight that wasn't theirs or a fight not worth fighting. Long time friendships that have dissolved over "the principle of the thing".

It is well known that one of the most important concepts in raising children is peace in the home. When parents argue in front of their children, and even behind closed doors, it strips the home of a sense of security and warmth. It undermines the parent's ability to influence their children and sometimes leads to even more disastrous and permanent damage.

The evil of machlokes is not restricted to us on a personal level but also applies an a national level as well.

The gemora relates that in the times of Ahav, even though he was a wicked kind who polluted the land with idolatry and other immoral behavior, he did not lose a war.

Conversely, Sancherev destroyed the righteous King Hezekiah, who brought Torah study and observance of mitzvot to unparallel levels. Why? Because in the days of Ahav there was a social contract amongst the Jewish people that allowed them to get along and trust one another. That peacefulness between each other didn't exist in Hezekiah's day.

The Yerushalmi in Berachos explains, "There is no better vessel to hold blessing other than peace". If we want blessing to flow from Heaven upon us as individuals and as a nation we must learn from Korach what not to do. To understand that the pursuit of shalom and avoidance of machlokes is the key to our success in every aspect of our lives.

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