The Story Of Irene Gut Opdyke, The Polish Nurse Who Saved Countless Jewish Lives During The Holocaust

 https://allthatsinteresting.com/irene-gut-opdyke?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=atinewsletter

The Story Of Irene Gut Opdyke, The Polish Nurse Who Saved Countless Jewish Lives During The Holocaust

and here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJDIHurg14Q

kneged culam

 בבא בתרא ט׳ א:י״ב

וְאָמַר רַב אַסִּי שְׁקוּלָה צְדָקָה כְּנֶגֶד כׇּל הַמִּצְוֹת שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר וְהֶעֱמַדְנוּ עָלֵינוּ מִצְוֹת וְגוֹ׳ מִצְוָה אֵין כְּתִיב כָּאן אֶלָּא מִצְוֹת

And Rav Asi says: Charity is equivalent to all the other mitzvot combined, as it is stated in that verse: “We also established mitzvot upon ourselves.” A mitzva is not written here, but rather mitzvot, in the plural, thereby teaching that this mitzva is equivalent to all the other mitzvot.

Jewish national survival - Rav Schwab

 וַיְהִ֤י בַבֹּ֨קֶר֙ וַתִּפָּ֣עֶם רוּח֔וֹ וַיִּשְׁלַ֗ח וַיִּקְרָ֛א אֶת־כָּל־חַרְטֻמֵּ֥י מִצְרַ֖יִם וְאֶת־כָּל־חֲכָמֶ֑יהָ וַיְסַפֵּ֨ר פַּרְעֹ֤ה לָהֶם֙ אֶת־חֲלֹמ֔וֹ וְאֵֽין־פּוֹתֵ֥ר אוֹתָ֖ם לְפַרְעֹֽה

"Now it came to pass in the morning that his spirit was troubled; so he sent and called all the necromancers of Egypt and all its sages, and Pharaoh related to them his dream, but no one interpreted them for Pharaoh." (Bereishis 41:8)

In commenting on these posukim from parshas Miketz, Rav Shimon Schwab z’tl asks why Pharaoh should be so troubled by a dream. He knew most dreams are just the result of daytime musings and not to be taken seriously. 

He explains that Pharaoh relied on his military might for confidence. In his mind, victory went to the powerful, so he had no need to fear his people since the army was in his command. However, his dream contradicted his way of thinking. In his first dream, emaciated cows consumed fat ones, and in his second dream withered stalks consumed healthy ones. 

This caused him to panic as he took it as a message from his gods. The dream couldn’t have emerged from his mind. On his own, he would never entertain the thought of the weak conquering the strong. He feared a rebellion and summoned his advisors to strategize. 

Rav Schwab notes that it is fitting that we read parshas Miketz during Chanukah where we thank Hashem for delivering “the mighty into the hands of the weak.” During Chanukah, the mystery of Jewish national survival is demonstrated once again. Hashem protects the nation despite the odds and against the postulations of military analysis on who appears weak and who appears strong.

'Bleeding, muscle and neurological problems.' - Arutz Sheva

 A study by the Israeli Health Ministry found that the mRNA COVID vaccines used since December 2020 can cause serious long-term side effects, MIT Professor Retsef Levi said.

Speaking with Radio 104.5 FM Tuesday, Levi, a frequent critic of the Israeli government’s handling of the COVID pandemic and its mass-vaccination campaign, slammed the Health Ministry’s initial failure to offer a system for reporting side effects from the vaccine.

“Despite what the Health Ministry declared, that it was closely checking side effects, until the end of 2021 there wasn’t even a system operating to report side effects. Only at the beginning of 2022 did the Ministry establish such a system, allowing people to report side effects.”

“So only a small portion of the reports were actually collected.”

Since then, a team of researchers hired by the Health Ministry analyzed those side effects reports which were collected, finding, Retsef claimed, serious and in some cases enduring side effects.

“The team that was selected did excellent work; it did its research and reached worrisome conclusions.”

“Despite what has been claimed, that the vast majority of the side effects are short-lived and mild, the research team found long-term side effects – problems involving bleeding, muscle problems, neurological problems.”

“The research shows that there is a causal relationship between the vaccine and the side effects; in other words, these aren’t just random reports.”

This June, the report was submitted to the Health Ministry, which held a deliberation on the report’s findings.

Leaked recordings from the meeting revealed concern among officials the Ministry could be held legally liable for injuries suffered as a result of vaccination, due to the mass-vaccination campaign.

"Not only did the Health Ministry not show all of its data, they also took their data and manipulated it to give people the impression that [the side effects] were very, very rare, even though they are not that rare. Not only did they not let the public know, they continued to encourage young people and children to get vaccinated."

"Today there is no question that this vaccine has side effects, though some of the side effects are not apparent, meaning a person may not even notice them."

“It took the Health Ministry a little longer, but I am happy that finally people are starting to realize that COVID is not the be all and end all of health – there are other things that we need to start paying attention to. Perhaps the actual pandemics among children of depression and eating disorders, and many other problems which unfortunately no one is dealing with.”

https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/364406

TIDE from the Lubavitcher Rebbe

The Rebbe's advice for a young woman on how to regain meaning in her life

Watch

Chanukah

Most of us generally associate Chanukah with the nisim of the military victory and the oil as well as various mitzvos and minhagim surrounding them. However, looking deeper, we see other inyanim at play, in particular tefillah, the unity of Hashem, and the identity of Klal Yisroel. It starts with tefillah. Not only do we today add special tefillos for Chanukah that commemorate the events of the past, but the Avos themselves davened for the welfare of the yidden for the events that would take place in the future. Rav Elimelech Biderman, shlita, brings Rav Menachem Nochum Twersky of Chernobyl (18th century) to explain. At the akeidah, Avraham said, וַיֹּ֨אמֶר אַבְרָהָ֜ם אֶל־נְעָרָ֗יו שְׁבוּ־לָכֶ֥ם פֹּה֙ עִֽם־הַחֲמ֔וֹר וַאֲנִ֣י וְהַנַּ֔עַר נֵלְכָ֖ה עַד־כֹּ֑ה וְנִֽשְׁתַּחֲוֶ֖ה וְנָשׁ֥וּבָה אֲלֵיכֶֽם (Bereishis 22:5). “Then Abraham said to his servants, “You stay here with the ass. The boy and I will go up there; we will worship and we will return to you.” The word כה has the numerical value of 25, hinting at the 25th of Kislev, when Chanukah begins. 

Yosef HaTzadick offered similar tefillos. We see this in the posuk וַיִּשָּׂ֣א עֵינָ֗יו וַיַּ֞רְא אֶת־בִּנְיָמִ֣ין אָחִיו֮ בֶּן־אִמּוֹ֒ וַיֹּ֗אמֶר הֲזֶה֙ אֲחִיכֶ֣ם הַקָּטֹ֔ן אֲשֶׁ֥ר אֲמַרְתֶּ֖ם אֵלָ֑י וַיֹּאמַ֕ר אֱלֹהִ֥ים יׇחְנְךָ֖ בְּנִֽי (Bereishis 43:29). “Looking about, he saw his brother Benjamin, his mother’s son, and asked, “Is this your youngest brother of whom you spoke to me?” And he said, “May God be gracious to you, my boy.’” יחנך, be gracious, alludes to חנוכה. 

So not only do our tefillos to Hashem connect us to our ancestors who battled the Syrian Greeks, but they connect us to the Avos who davened on behalf of their descendants in their struggle against the Syrian Greeks. Our tefillos on Chanukah take us all the way back to the Avos. We all meet, with the Avos going 1,600 years into the future, and we going 2,161 years in the past. We are one nation, not only in any one era, but across eras. Hashem Echad, the unity of Hashem, is reflected in the unity of His people across time and space. 

To be a Jew is a sum of our life's mission

 "Judaism is not a mere religion, the synagogue is not a church, and the rabbi is not a clergyman (priest). Judaism is not an appurtenance to life, and to be a Jew is not part of the mission of life. Judaism encompasses life in its entirety. To be a Jew is a sum of our life's mission-in synagogue and in kitchen; in field and in counting-house; in the office and on the speaker's platform; like father, like mother, like son, like daughter; like servant, like master; as man, as citizen, in thought and in feeling, in word and in deed, in times of pleasure, in hours of abstinence; with needle as with chisel or with pen. To be a Jew--in a life which in its totality is borne on the word of the Lord and is perfected in harmony with the will of God-this is the scope and goal of Judaism. Since Judaism encompasses the whole of man and in keeping with its explicit mission, proclaims the happiness of the whole of mankind, it is improper to confine its teachings within the "four ells" of the house of study or of the home of the Jew. Insofar as the Jew is a Jew, his views and objectives become universal. He will not be a stranger to anything which is good, true and beautiful in art and in science, in civilization and in learning. He will greet with blessing and joy everything of truth, justice, peace, and the ennobling of man, wherever it be revealed He will hold firmly to this breadth of view in order to fulfill his mission as a Jew and to live up to the function of his Judaism in areas never imagined by his father. He shall dedicate himself with joy to every true advance in civilization and enlightenment. But all this on condition that he be never obliged to sacrifice his Judaism at any new level but rather fulfill it with even greater perfection." 

R' Samson Raphael Hirsch, 1854

Quoted in Guardians of Our Heritage, p. 290

and their performance

Akeidat Yitzchak 51:1:7

הנך רואה איך טרח ומצא אדוננו דוד עליו השלום והכין לפנינו הדרך הישר להיות לנו המצוות האלהיות והלמודים התוריים לעסק מיוחד בו נחיה תמיד עד שיהיו שמורות בלבנו ונקנות לנו לנחלה ויוכרע לבנו אליהם בנטיה טבעית אשר אי אפשר ליפול בהם השכחה כשכחת הימין או השמאל והוא הדרך עצמו שאמר החכם באותו לשון שכתבנו למעלה בעבור רוב גודל התמדת חיות בהם מאושרי'. והוא מה שאמר דוד במקום אחר (שם) לעולם לא אשכח פקודיך כי בם חייתני. אמר כי אחר שנתנם לו לעסק מיוחד אשר בו יחיה תמיד יחוייב שלא ישכחם בשום פנים כי אי אפשר לבא לידי שכחה אם לא שיסכים בלבו להבטל מהעסק ההוא ולהרחיקו מעליו שזה יהיה מאד מפורסם אשר לא יפול עליו התנצלות…

The upshot of all this (David's outpourings in Psalm 119) is that mitzvah performance must become as automatic to us as life itself. Therefore, the Mishnah in Avot 3, 10, says that "whosoever forgets part of his studies has sinned gravely," since the Torah has provided memory joggers. The word "Talmud" in that Mishnah refers to knowledge of the commandments and their performance. Unless a person has tried and failed to remember, he is guilty of a sin. If he did the latter, he is subject to the saving grace of pen yassuru mi -levavcha, lest they depart from your heart…

more sports wisdom

Iverson said, he wished he had listened better to Brown (Larry) in the early years of his playing career.

“I just felt if I had a slight regret to anything that has anything to do with my career, I wouldn’t have been playing tug-of-war with him early in my career,” Iverson said. “You know, like I said, I didn’t know any better. I was trying to mature as a player and as a man.”

The two had very public ups and downs at the time, but Iverson told Maxwell that the player and coach shared common goals.

“He wanted everything that I wanted for myself and for our team, and I didn’t take constructive criticism the way that I was supposed to — and that’s definitely a lesson to be learned for any young dudes out there, is that if they have a great coach, like I had, [listen],” Iverson continued.

“Once I started buying into everything that he was selling, it took me from just a talented player to obviously a Hall of Fame MVP. And our team got a lot better as I grew.”

humble and effective

How to be humble and effective. See Barry Sanders the football player. In this interview. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFTqKokC6KA

And talked about here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmR2epMU_xU

One commentor wrote:

"It’s weird to see a player who was so dynamic and exciting on the field, be such a low-key, mild mannered and genuinely humble dude off the field."

What he's getting at is that Mr. Sanders was an usually exciting player. He ran all over the place, cutting left and right, defenders tripping over their own feet trying to catch him. He had such an explosive style. Yet, he was a very humble man. He never spiked the ball in the end zone. He handed the ball to the referee and sat down on the sidelines. In this interview, he joked that it was because he didn't have enough 'rhythm' to put on a good dance, but we know from other comments of his that he did this out of respect for and as influenced by his father who told him to act with dignity. Act like you have been in the end zone before. Even here he doesn't boast about that or pontificate as it would be a criticism to nearly all the other players who do dance around in the end zone.

Amazingly, Sanders is only five feet and eight inches tall, which is smaller then the average man and tiny for a football player. Maybe that helped along his humility. But it could have produced a Napoleon complex as well, where the short guy acts brashly as if that would make him seem taller. But that's not what Barry did.

You can do this is a yid too, be very humble but get a lot done, even be a leader. Moshe rabbeinu did that. Avraham did too. Those would be the prime examples. But since none of us have met them, I show Barry as a kind of living example of a humble yet dynamic person in his way. The wise man learns from everything.

In a way, it's easier for a gentile to be humble. Harder and easier. It's easier because he has a simpler life. He can just work and fish. It's harder in that their souls, while still in God's image and capable of greatness, are not as lofty or connected to Divinity. So there's a challenge to middos. But a Jew is capable of such greatness, and he senses it. Arrogance can follow. Today, where yidden in general are less connected to Hashem, there are many with arrogance problems. Particularly, as the frum world is based in New York and Israel, arrogance has become a part of the style of many. So it's helpful to see good examples of humility from wherever they may come.\\

Here's another, Dale Murphy, a baseball player. He won 5 golden gloves and 2 consecutive Most Valuable Player awards. He hit just under 400 home runs. He was a tremendous player. Yet, he too was very humble. Hear it here; (note he is wearing shorts, for those who may find that immodest.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1QLtGqVI3I

No surprise, Dale is a religious man.

 

"Murphy's clean-living habits off the diamond were frequently noted in the media. A devout member of the Church of ... of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church),[11] Murphy did not drink alcoholic beverages, would not allow women to be photographed embracing him, and paid his teammates' dinner checks as long as alcoholic beverages were not on the tab. He also refused to give television interviews unless he was fully dressed. Murphy had been introduced to the LDS Church early in his career by teammate Barry Bonnell.[3]"|

For several years the Atlanta Constitution ran a weekly column, wherein Murphy responded to young fans' questions and letters. In 1987 he shared Sports Illustrated magazine's "Sportsmen and Sportswomen of the Year" award with seven others, characterized as "Athletes Who Care", for his work with numerous charities, including the Make-a-Wish Foundation, the Georgia March of Dimes and the American Heart Association.

One of his more memorable incidents was reminiscent of a scene from the classic black-and-white baseball film The Pride of the Yankees:

Before a home game against San Francisco on June 12, 1983, Murphy visited in the stands with Elizabeth Smith, a six-year-old girl who had lost both hands and a leg when she stepped on a live power line. After Murphy gave her a cap and a T shirt, her nurse innocently asked if he could hit a home run for Elizabeth. "I didn't know what to say, so I just sort of mumbled 'Well, O.K.,' " says Murphy. That day he hit two homers and drove in all the Braves' runs in a 3–2 victory.[12]

He was ultimately granted several honors because of his integrity, character, and sportsmanship, including the Lou Gehrig Memorial Award (1985), "Sportsman of the Year" (1987), Roberto Clemente Award (1988), Bart Giamatti Community Service Award (1991), and World Sports Humanitarian Hall of Fame (1991 induction). (Wikipedia)

These are exceptions of course. Many athletes are not what you'd call humble people. They brag, they throw the ball at each other's heads. In general we don't look there for role models.  

look at what they have done to the kosel

 

Compare to the har habayis

electric bike strikes again

 A middle-aged woman was walking on the sidewalk on Monday morning when she was hit by an electric bicycle rider on Ben Tzvi Sreet in Netanya. Worried relatives called United Hatzalah’s Dispatch and Command Center who immediately alerted nearby EMTs and other medical personnel.

https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/363610

More kneged culam

 

וכן בכל המצות, ובפרט מצות הצדקה, ששקולה כנגד כל המצות

Iggeret HaKodesh, Epistle 30

To return now to the opening teaching — that whoever is accustomed to come to the synagogue, and one day did not come, G‑d inquires after him. This does not apply only to the communal prayer of which the Gemara speaks; rather:

וכן בכל המצות, ובפרט מצות הצדקה, ששקולה כנגד כל המצות

The same applies to all the commandments, and especially to the precept of charity, which is3 “balanced against all the commandments.” Thus, if the above teaching applies to prayer, it surely applies to charity: If a person retreats from his customary charitability, “G‑d inquires after him.”

הגם שהיא בלי נדר, חס ושלום

Though [one’s regular giving] is not bound by a vow, heaven forfend, for one should of course see to it that an accustomed mitzvah should not become subject to the legal force of a vow,4

How to handle wild kids from the movie Hoosiers

Player - It feels like we're in the army.

Coach - You are. You're in my army. Every day between three and five. [Some local men try to sit in on the practice.] Listen, guys, practice is closed to outsiders. I don't want any distractions.

Men - Outsiders? Coach Tidd never closed practices.

Coach - That was Coach Tidd. This is something else. [Large farmer enters the gym with his teenage son.] Yeah?

Rollin Butcher - Hi. I'm Rollin Butcher. My son's got something to say to you. [The son had earlier opposed the coach and walked out on practice.]

Son - Sorry, Coach, about walking out. I'd be obliged if I got myself another chance. Won't happen again. You're the boss.

Coach - OK. There's still an hour of practice. Get dressed.

Rollin - My boys get a little mixed up. You get any trouble from Rade or Whit, let me know. [Rollin addresses the local men.] Coach here says he's closing practice to outsiders. You ever...

Coach - I'll handle this.

Rollin - No, I got this. This man's got a job to do. He wants you outta here. You'd better be on your way.

----------------------

I'm not saying any of this applies when kids have questions or their own personalities or a little spunk. But if they are bullying little children, if they are breaking laws, if they are all chutzpah, that's when it applies. There have to be consequences. 

The morning blessings

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe, Who gives the rooster understanding to distinguish between day and night.

This signifies intellectual discernment, the ability to think, to use your own mind. That's how you start your day (after Modeh Ani, which is a testimony of your innate connection to Hashem - see Chabad literature for more on that.)

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe, Who gives sight to the blind.

Using facts, seeing things as they are, not as twisted by ideologies. 

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe, Who releases the imprisoned.

Using your mind will free you.  

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe, Who straightens the bent.

Using your mind will straighten you out, make you honest and upright.

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe, Who clothes the naked.

It will give you dignity as clothes dignify a person and raise him above the animals. It will make you human.  

Blessed are You, Adonoy our God, King of the Universe, Who gives strength to the weary.

You'll have energy. 

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe, Who spreads the earth above the waters.

You'll see that there's a big world  out there.

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe, Who prepares the steps of man.

You'll be able to move about this world to accomplish.  

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe, Who provided me with all my needs.

You'll become aware of Hashem as He helps you. 

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe, Who girds Israel with might.

You'll find you have now the self-control that eluded you before. Chastising yourself didn't do the trick. You needed intelligence and dignity. 

Blessed are You, Adonoy our God, King of the Universe, Who crowns Israel with glory.

Now you'll be honored for what you have become.  

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe, Who did not make me a gentile.

You'll be a real Jew.  

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe, Who did not make me a slave.

No longer a slave.   

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe, Who did not make me a woman.

You'll be a real man. And when there a real men, women can be women for whom all of this applies as well.

All of this is because you used your mind, applying reason to facts! Now doesn't this contradict the current popular mantra of shutting off your brain and obeying the 'experts' on everything as if anyone else can be an expert on your life? 

More reason not to move to Israel

The daily schedule of the Mesivta of Philadelphia is 8 AM to 5:30 PM, Monday through Thursday. Sunday and Friday are until 12:30 PM. And that includes limudei kodesh and limudei chol. September to June. https://www.themesivta.org/_files/ugd/b582bf_1d64503aaecd476bafaa5d4565a67a28.pdf

The daily schedule of a typical Charedi yeshiva katana (mesivta) in Eretz Yisroel is 7:30 AM until 10 PM, Sunday through Thursday, half day on Friday, and some have obligatory Motzei Shabbos as well.  September to July. This is Gemara only.

That's 8.5 hours a day versus 14.5 a day (the latter with a 2 hour break that many bachurim don't take because they are stuck at the yeshiva.) 5 days a week versus 6 days a week. So do the math, 41 hours a week versus 78.5 hours a week, the latter being all intensive Gemara study. 

There's strange and there's crazy. What goes on in Israel is crazy. The Mishnah says to start learning Gemara at age 15. Here at 16, they have them going morning till night struggling with Gemara, Rashi, Tosfos, and 4 to 5 more mefarshim. Then go home and go right to bed, get 6 to 7 hours of sleep and back to the grind. I know one place that is proud that it has a group of boys who learn until midnight! I imagine there can be individuals who can handle this. I imagine that there are very few. 

Rabbi Avigdor Miller asserts that boys must get 8 hours of sleep. 

Q: What should somebody do when he is annoyed by depression and sadness and doesn’t know what the reason is?

A: I want to tell you one thing I do know from experience. Many times boys in the yeshiva cause an upset in their nervous system because of a lack of sleep. In the dormitories you can’t go to sleep early. Even if he gets into bed, somebody comes in at 1 o’clock and doesn’t let him sleep. 

I once told a man about this problem and he went and took his boy out and put him in a separate room. He was a wealthy man and he paid money to the dormitory for a separate room, so his son should be able to sleep.

It’s very important to sleep. I myself know two cases of boys who didn’t go to sleep on time and they went insane, nit eingedacht. Yes, it happened. They ruined their lives. 

Also, married women who have babies, they must take care of their sleep. Without sleeping sufficiently your nervous system is upset. 

Now, once a person gets into a depression it’s not so easy to get out of it. And therefore an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. So try with all your efforts not to upset your system and get your sleep every night. 

Now some people say, “Well, I’m a porush. I want to be a masmid.” We’ll, I’ll tell you what the Chofetz Chaim said. Once the Chofetz Chaim came into the yeshiva in Radin at night, and he saw boys learning late so he said to them “Gei shlufen. Morgen is oich a tug.” He told the boys to go to sleep. “You can learn tomorrow,” he said.

And that’s the sensible way. That’s saving the lives of people by advising them, “Learn by day and sleep at night.”

Now, sometimes there are other factors, but one of the most general factors that I know from my experience, is this one of not sleeping sufficiently. 

TAPE # E-10

These are vulnerable kids, who don't understand the concept of driving oneself to a nervous breakdown, who are just trying to obey their ambitious yeshiva heads, many of whom want to make a name for himself for having the "top" yeshiva. When you sit behind closed doors with many (not all hopefully) of these rabbis who are running many of the yeshivas in Israel, you hear again and again how they want to have the top place. I have witnessed this many times. They want to produce gadolim, blah, blah, blah. When boys leave either the yeshiva or the religion, does anyone check on their welfare? Not too likely. I have never heard of this happening. In America, I didn't hear this kind of talk; although I imagine it happens there too. I recall there was a palpable sense of concern in many places for the welfare of the bachurim, that they stay frum and productive. I actually witnessed conversations like that. Israel is a whole different scene. There's something inhuman about it. Yes, some of the yeshiva katana heads see the grueling schedule as a good thing, as a devotion to Limud Torah. But still bochurim need sleep and need to feel human, normal. 

What's the connection to Torah Im Derech Eretz? In TIDE, we try to live a balanced and dignified live, with devotion to mitzvos certainly, with dedication to study certainly. But it shouldn't feel crazy. 

In TIDE, there is no imperative to live in Israel. TIDE applies wherever you live. And you try to live in places where TIDE is possible, probable. I won't say it's impossible in Israel, but it's pretty difficult to do that here. 

 

Rav Avigdor Miller on Depression and Sleep

Posted on February 9, 2022by TorasAvigdor

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Q:
What should somebody do when he is annoyed by depression and sadness and doesn’t know what the reason is?

A:

I want to tell you one thing I do know from experience. Many times boys in the yeshiva cause an upset in their nervous system because of a lack of sleep. In the dormitories you can’t go to sleep early. Even if he gets into bed, somebody comes in at 1 o’clock and doesn’t let him sleep. 

I once told a man about this problem and he went and took his boy out and put him in a separate room. He was a wealthy man and he paid money to the dormitory for a separate room, so his son should be able to sleep.

It’s very important to sleep. I myself know two cases of boys who didn’t go to sleep on time and they went insane, nit eingedacht. Yes, it happened. They ruined their lives. 

Also, married women who have babies, they must take care of their sleep. Without sleeping sufficiently your nervous system is upset. 

Now, once a person gets into a depression it’s not so easy to get out of it. And therefore an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. So try with all your efforts not to upset your system and get your sleep every night. 

Now some people say, “Well, I’m a porush. I want to be a masmid.” We’ll, I’ll tell you what the Chofetz Chaim said. Once the Chofetz Chaim came into the yeshiva in Radin at night, and he saw boys learning late so he said to them “Gei shlufen. Morgen is oich a tug.” He told the boys to go to sleep. “You can learn tomorrow,” he said.

And that’s the sensible way. That’s saving the lives of people by advising them, “Learn by day and sleep at night.”

Now, sometimes there are other factors, but one of the most general factors that I know from my experience, is this one of not sleeping sufficiently. 

TAPE # E-10

“NOT ONLY FOR THE JEWS, WE PRAY FOR ALL PEOPLE…”

 https://twitter.com/i/status/1594824835989110784

"On the Jewish new year, we pray not only for Jews but for all people." Lubavitcher Rebbe

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Pirkei Avot 1:17

שִׁמְעוֹן בְּנוֹ אוֹמֵר, כָּל יָמַי גָּדַלְתִּי בֵין הַחֲכָמִים, וְלֹא מָצָאתִי לַגּוּף טוֹב אֶלָּא שְׁתִיקָה. וְלֹא הַמִּדְרָשׁ הוּא הָעִקָּר, אֶלָּא הַמַּעֲשֶׂה. וְכָל הַמַּרְבֶּה דְבָרִים, מֵבִיא חֵטְא:

Shimon, his son, used to say: all my days I grew up among the sages, and I have found nothing better for a person than silence. Study is not the most important thing, but actions; whoever indulges in too many words brings about sin.

G-d and G-d alone

 “… it has always been G-d and G-d alone Who has given us, and still gives us to this very day, that good in which we have had cause to rejoice; and that for future good, too, we may look to none other but G-d, and none besides Him.” (R' Samson Raphael Hirsch)

Here's why Torah Im Derech Eretz didn't develop in Russia

And it's why I chuckle when Breslovers wonder why I haven't been to Uman, the Ukraine being similar to as Russia.

https://nypost.com/2022/11/15/barbaric-conditions-await-brittney-griner-at-russian-penal-colony-ex-prisoners/

 

Brittney Griner’s grim penal colony fate: ‘You’re starved just by the food’

By 

Joshua Rhett Miller

CCTV footage purportedly showing Moscow customs searching a woman they Brittney Griner will endure merciless conditions inside a Russian penal colony — where rancid food, extreme isolation and tyrannical wardens await the WNBA star, former Russian prison inmates, their relatives and penitentiary experts told The Post.

Former US Marine Trevor Rowdy Reed, who spent nearly 1,000 days detained in Russia, was freed in April in exchange for Konstantin Yaroshenko, a Russian pilot serving a 20-year prison sentence for conspiring to smuggle more than $100 million of cocaine into New York.

Reed was accused of assaulting two Moscow police officers in August 2019 and spent 11 months in a pretrial detention center in Moscow until a Russian court meted out a nine-year sentence in 2020. He was later shipped 350 miles away to a penal colony in the remote Russian republic of Mordovia, where he survived nine agonizing months until he was swapped this year.

“You gotta understand, the labor camps in Mordovia, these are pre-Stalin-era prisons, these were literally referred to as gulags,” Trevor’s father, Joey Reed, told The Post. “And even though there’s a federal authority for prisons, each warden has wide leeway to do whatever they want until it makes someone angry or leads to bad press.”

Reed, 62, said his son often described a dour, medieval atmosphere inside the penal colony where Trevor, now 31, lived in crude barracks built of brick and sheet metal. He routinely curled up near hot water pipes or piled on extra clothes during frigid nights in the desolate Mordovian plains, where January temps average in the low teens. When guards threatened to forcibly disrobe his son, Trevor threatened them back, his father said.

“They said they would take them off him and he said, ‘I will take you out trying,’” said Reed, of Granbury, Texas. “But the guards never beat or abused him because they knew he was on the trading block.”

“To a certain extent, you’re starved just by the food that they give you. We didn’t show any public photos of my son for about a month and a half because he looked like a concentration camp victim.”

Joey Reed, the father of Trevor Reed, who served nine months in a Russian penal colony

The defiant Marine vet wasn’t beaten by jailers for those bold stands, but he did lose about 50 pounds from his unimposing frame due to the “horrible” food, his father said.

The sparse grub consisted primarily of potato soup or some kind of fish, which was typically filled with “crunchy bones” — so foul that even the barracks’ stray cats didn’t eat it, Reed said.

continue reading
https://nypost.com/2022/11/15/barbaric-conditions-await-brittney-griner-at-russian-penal-colony-ex-prisoners/

 

Prayer

 

“Prayer is one of the greatest opportunities of exercising the Free-Will. In the realm of actual deeds we are limited by circumstances: we are not wealthy enough to feed all the needy and to heal the sick, or to erect enough Torah institutions and to maintain them. But in the real of T’fillah we are not limited. We can ask Hashem’s help and entreat Him for everyone, and we thus activate our Free-Will and demonstrate our desire to help all the poor and rescue all the afflicted.” (R’ Avigdor Miller)

 is one of the greatest opportunities of exercising the Free-Will. In the realm of actual deeds we are limited by circumstances: we are not wealthy enough to feed all the needy and to heal the sick, or to erect enough Torah institutions and to maintain them. But in the real of T’fillah we are not limited. We can ask Hashem’s help and entreat Him for everyone, and we thus activate our Free-Will and demonstrate our desire to help all the poor and rescue all the afflicted.” (R’ Avigdor Miller)

“If a man with his physical brain is to approach the innermost reaches of sanctity, this may be achieved by ‘the service of the heart, which is prayer.’ And this in turn springs from an awareness of G‑d’s sublime exaltedness, and from meditating and ‘gazing upon the glory of the King.’”  (6th Lubavitcher Rebbe)

תלמוד תורה כנגד כולם

 

What do we mean by תלמוד תורה כנגד כולם?

DH: What do we mean by תלמוד תורה כנגד כולם?

Rabbi Soloveitchik: It is not that this mitzvah is equal to all the mitzvos, but rather that it brings the person to do all the other mitzvos. The whole purpose of the limud is that it comes to asiah and asiah is the ikur.

The Rav Thinking Aloud, p. 69

And From There You Shall Seek, p. 104

Bottom line: Hashem acts, so we must act. 

Q:
Why is learning Torah so important that we say תלמוד תורה כנגד כולם, that it’s equal to all other mitzvos?

Rabbi Avigdor Miller:

Torah is considered one of the most important of mitzvos because it makes you. It changes you.

Now, a mitzvah also makes you.  למען תזכרו ועשיתם את כל מצוותי והייתם קדושים – You do mitzvos and you become holy. Every mitzvah makes you kodosh.  But the mitzvah of talmud Torah changes your mind.  And when your mind is changed, that’s the greatest kedusha of all.  And therefore, תלמוד תורה כנגד כולם.  

When you think like Hakodosh Boruch Hu thinks, that’s the greatest perfection of a person; it’s the most tremendous change you can make in yourself. And when you’re learning Torah, you’re learning the thoughts of Hashem. That’s how Hashem thinks and He wants you to think that way.  

And therefore, learning Torah means you put into your mind the machshavos of the Borei Olam and that’s the greatest of all achievements.  Even when you’re learning Bava Kamma, arba avos nezikin, Hakodosh Boruch Hu is thinking how important it is that every Jew should avoid damaging somebody else’s property and you’re thinking in those details of Hashem’s thoughts.

You’re thinking about how you have to be careful when you go into a synagogue; you want to open the window? Don’t push against the windowpane.  You might push it out and break the pane.  You’re a mazik.  You have to pay for it.  Hakodosh Boruch Hu doesn’t want you to be a mazik.  And you learn that idea not to be a mazik to your fellowman’s property!  How big an ideal that is! You’re thinking like Hakodosh Boruch Hu thinks.  And that’s why תלמוד תורה כנגד כולם; because you’re changing your mind into a mind that thinks like Hakodosh Boruch Hu.

TAPE # E-1 (February 1995)

Q:
What does it mean to learn Torah lishmah?

A:
To learn Torah lishmah first means, like everybody knows, that you’re motivated because you want to know, “What does Hashem request of me? What does he desire of me?” That’s number one.  

But it doesn’t mean that you should merely have a good intention. You have to put in the labor because to understand what Hashem wants of you , you must have a certain achievement of the intellect.  It’s never easy to know מה ה’ אלוקיך שואל מעמך.  Don’t think it’s easy to know.

That’s why when the ger came to Shamai and said, “Teach me on one foot how to become a Jew,” Shammai said, “Get out of here! On one foot you want to learn the Torah?!” 

And even when he came to Hillel and Hillel said, “Come, I’ll tell you,” Hillel didn’t really tell him.  He only said, “You have to know that if you’ll study the rule I’m giving you, that’ll be the foundation. I’m giving you a rule: ‘What you don’t want others to do to you, don’t do to others.’ Now, that’s the rule,” Hillel said, “and the rest is an explanation. ואידך פירושא – study the rule because it needs explanation; so go learn.”

So Torah lishmah requires effort.  And the more effort you put in, the more it’s lishmah.  Don’t make any mistake about it.  Lishmah doesn’t mean you learn superficially.  It has to be with the motivation to do the will of Hashem, but it must be with yegiah, with effort to learn Torah.  And every Jew who puts in effort will succeed in gaining the will of Hashem more.  Hashem’s ratzon, His favor, is upon those who seek His will; those who seek to know His will.

TAPE # 900

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Rabbi Y. Ginsburgh on Converts

 "The bottom line is that the world was created not just for righteous souls of Israel but for righteous converts. The Moshiach can only come from righteous converts."  47:00 

"The most amazing phenomenon in the world that Hashem created for His glory is a righteous convert." 48:02

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WC6_15UWo6k

story about a nice gentile celebrity

Read this on Quora:

But I’d like to share a story about Buddy Ebsen. My daughter worked for a law firm in LA where Buddy was a frequent client. He made it a point to know the employees personally, even the “lowly secretaries”. My daughter’s friend/co-worker had an unsightly huge birth mark on her face that she’d had since birth. After starting a conversation about it a couple of times and gleaning what info he could, Buddy paid for the medical bills to have it removed.

My daughter mentioned me to him, because I was a HUGE fan, also told him I was auditioning for the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. He asked her to mail me an autographed photo with a personal letter to me, wishing me good luck on the audition. Down the line, I did get to meet him, in fact sit with him during the premiere performance of his musical “Turn to the Right”, because he remembered me from my daughter’s conversations at the law office. What a truly kind man he was! I cried when he passed away.

 

Rav Avigdor Miller on Voting in Eretz Yisroel

Q:
To participate in voting for a memsheles Yisrael lifnei bi’as haMoshiach, a Jewish government in Eretz Yisroel before Moshiach comes, is that against the Torah? 

A:
My friend, I am not somebody to pasken such shaylos. Some gedolim hold that even though it’s forbidden to have a Jewish Commonwealth, a Jewish government, before Moshiach comes, nevertheless once there is a kehillah, even a kehillah of reshaim, we have to try to get along with them and try to utilize them in order that we should build up Torah. That's how some gedolim say. You can't just say that it's nothing and we ignore them and we'll kiss Arafat and be his good friend. No. We want to build up Torah in Eretz Yisroel as much as we can. There are a lot of tzaddikim in Eretz Yisroel, beautiful kehillos, so you do the best you can; you try to get along with these reshaim for the sake of the frummeh. That's what some say. I'm not saying that you have to love them or give them too much respect but when it comes to voting some say you should vote in order to get the best benefits. 

Others say no; they say you don't vote. You don’t vote at all in order to show that you don’t support the government. 

I'm not mixing in such a question. I'll leave it for the manhigei Yisroel. But it's not a simple question. It's a complicated question and I'm not trying to persuade anybody to do anything one way or another.

TAPE #E-147 (July 1998)

Rav Avigdor Miller on Marrying a Convert

 

Posted on February 11, 2019by Toras Avigdor

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Q:
Based on what the Rav spoke about tonight, about how Avraham Avinu was careful to take a wife for Yitzchok only from his family and not from any of the converts he had made, would the Rav say that it’s proper to avoid being mishadeich with a giyores?

A:
Let me tell you something. To my knowledge, there have been sometimes cases of a giyores who have produced the best families of talmidei chachomim. Many fine, beautiful families began with a giyores. 

Only that Avraham Avinu, at that time, was concerned with the future of a nation that didn’t even exist yet. He was creating a new nation. And therefore, it was imperative that he choose the best mother possible to be the mother of that entire nation. 

But today, the nation exists already. The Am Yisroel already exists and therefore it’s different. And Rus is the model of a giyores that produced one of the best. If not for Rus, you wouldn’t have Tehillim and you wouldn’t have the Beis Hamikdash. It was Dovid Hamelech who was the one who made the plans for the Beis Hamikdash. And if not for Rus, you wouldn’t have Shlomo and you wouldn’t have Mishlei. So many of the wonders of our nation – Tehillim, Mishlei, Koheles, Shir Hashirim are all because of a giyores. And many other achievements as well.

So today, there’s no problem with marrying a giyores. And many times you’ll find that she was one of the best. The very best! 

However, if all things are equal and there are plenty of other choices and you can marry a girl who comes directly from Avraham Avinu, then naturally that’s first. That’s the first choice. But sometimes your best shidduch will be the giyores who has chosen out of her own free will to join our People. And you’ll be successful raising a fine family with a wife who is a giyores. 
TAPE # E-165 

https://torasavigdor.org/rav-avigdor-miller-on-marrying-a-giyores/

All People Matter

 

All People Matter

 

Rabbeinu Yona of Gerondi (d. 1264)

 

Mishnah: “Rabbi Chanina, the Deputy High Priest, says: Pray for the welfare of the government, for were it not for the fear of it man would swallow his fellow alive.” (Pirkei Avos, 3:2)

 

יוֹנָה בֶּן־אַבְרָהָם גִירוֹנְדִי :זה הענין ר"ל שיש לאדם להתפלל על שלום כל העולם ולהצטער על צער של אחרים. וכן דרכן של צדיקים כמו שאמר דוד ע"ה (תהלים ל"ה י"ג) ואני בחלותם לבושי שק עניתי בצום נפשי שאין לאדם לעשות תחנוניו ובקשתו לצרכיו לבד אך להתפלל על כל בני אדם שיעמדו בשלום ובשלומה של מלכות יש שלום לעולם

 

Rabbeinu Yona: “This matter is wanting to say that a person should pray for the peace of the whole world and be in pain about the pain of others. And this is the way of the righteous ones, as David, peace be upon him, stated (Psalms 35:13), "As for me, when they were ill, my dress was sackcloth, I afflicted myself in fasting." As a person should not make his supplications and his requests for his needs alone, but rather to pray for all people, that they be at peace. As with the welfare of the government, there is peace in the world.”

 

Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch (1808-1888)

 

"Compassion is the feeling of sympathy which the pain of one being awakens in another; and the higher and more human the beings are, the more keenly attuned they are to re-echo the note of suffering, which, like a voice from heaven, penetrates the heart, bringing all creatures a proof of their kinship in the universal G-d. And as for man, whose function it is to show respect and love for G-d's universe and all its creatures, his heart has been created so tender that it feels with the whole organic world… mourning even for fading flowers; so that, if nothing else, the very nature of his heart must teach him that he is required above everything to feel himself the brother of all beings, and to recognize the claim of all beings to his love and his beneficence." (Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, Horeb, Chapter 17, Section 125)​

 

“God has dispersed Yisrael among the nations as עבד and שפחה, as 'servant' and 'handmaiden,' to labor on behalf of God's great work on behalf of mankind. Yisrael is called 'a servant' to indicate the arduous labor inherent in its outward position vis-à-vis the nations, and 'a handmaiden' to denote the joyous fulfillment of its life's task within the sphere of its own homes, families and communities. For the proper discharge of both these tasks Yisrael needs extraordinary spiritual and moral talents and energy; and it is for these faculties that Yisrael looks up to God its God even as a 'servant' and a 'handmaiden' would look up to their Master.” (Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch on Tehillim 123, 2)

 

“The more, indeed, Judaism comprises the whole of man and extends its declared mission to the salvation of the whole of mankind, the less it is possible to confine its outlook to the four cubits of a synagogue and the four walls of a study. The more the Jew is a Jew, the more universalist will his views and aspirations be, the less aloof will he be from anything that is noble and good, true and upright, in art or science, in culture or education; the more joyfully will he applaud whenever he sees truth and justice and peace and the ennoblement of man prevail and become dominant in human society: the more joyfully will he seize every opportunity to give proof of his mission as a Jew, the task of his Judaism, on new and untrodden ground; the more joyfully will he devote himself to all true progress in civilisation and culture--provided, that is, that he will not only not have to sacrifice his Judaism but will also be able to bring it to more perfect fulfilment. He will ever desire progress, but only in alliance with religion. He will not want to accomplish anything that he cannot accomplish as a Jew. Any step which takes him away from Judaism is not for him a step forward, is not progress. He exercises this self-control without a pang, for he does not wish to accomplish his own will on earth but labours in the service of God. He knows that wherever the Ark of his God does not march ahead of him he is not accompanied by the pillar of the fire of His light or the pillar of the cloud of His grace.” (Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, Collected Writings, Vol. VI, pp. 107-150, “Religion Allied to Progress”)

 

“When Abraham, the first Jew, was sent out into the world, he was commanded: 'Heyai bracha.' 'Be a blessing.' Unlike those self-centered others who seek blessings only for themselves, you are to devote yourself completely to your calling, namely, to become a blessing, to help increase the happiness and prosperity of those among whom you dwell, and to advance the work of God in your environment with every breath of your life and every ounce of your strength.” (Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, "The Educational Value of Judaism")

 

“And, indeed, if most of our brethren would live as true Jews, then most of the conditions that now bar the Jew from so many careers could be eliminated. If only all Jews who travel or who are active in business life were to insist on observing their duties as Jews, this insistence would bring about the possibility of fulfilling all religious requirements...Why, even in official institutions of civic and political life, enlightened governments and nations would gladly accommodate a loyalty of conscience which would represent a significant contribution made by a Jewish citizen to the overall society of fellow citizens among whom he dwells.”  (Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, "Religion Allied with Progress")

 

“At the end of Psalm 95 we were told of a negative aspect of our task while in Galuth, namely, of the errors from which we must guard ourselves during our long wanderings through exile. This Psalm, on the other hand, has as its theme the fulfillment of the great and blissful purpose of our journeys among the nations, namely the 'wakening of awe' of God throughout the world, of which mention was already made in Verse 1 of Psalm 95. It is Yisrael's task to enter into the midst of the nations with a 'new song' that is to 'behold' God's greatness, and the 'newness' of this song lies in the fact that in it, we read the call שירו לה' כל הארץ, summoning all of mankind to unite in 'beholding' the greatness of the One God.” (Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, Commentary on Psalm 95)

 

“All thy holy ones serve as Thy instruments to this end. Not only Israel but also the rest of mankind will benefit from the educational and moral influence of those among Israel who hallow their lives by faithfully observing this Law. These individuals tacitly serve as a light to all mankind, as models showing how man's sacred calling is to be put into practice. Though we are told above that even Seir and Paran, nations closely related to Israel, were not yet sufficiently mature to accept the Law, the revelation of the Law to Israel on Mount Sinai was intended to benefit all mankind. With and through Israel, the ground was prepared for the future gathering of all mankind to perform its duty toward God .... Only through the Law, whose bearer Israel became at Sinai, will the lessons imparted to the other nations by historical experience attain their purpose ....”  (Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, Commentary on Devarim 33:3, translation by Gertrude Hirschler)

 

Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the 7^th Lubavitcher Rebbe (1902-1994)

 

“In order for this be a reality a prisoner must be allowed to maintain a sense that he is created in the image of God; he is a human being who can be a reflection of Godliness in this world. But when a prisoner is denied this sense and feels subjugated and controlled; never allowed to raise up his head, then the prison system not only fails at its purpose, it creates in him a greater criminal than there was before. One of the goals of the prison system is to help Jewish inmates and non-Jewish inmates ... to raise up their spirits and to encourage them, providing the sense, to the degree possible, that they are just as human as those that are free; just as human as the prison guards. In this way they can be empowered to improve themselves ...”  (Lubavitcher Rebbe, “The Backstory of the Chassidim Who Got Criminal Justice Reform Done Inspired by the Lubavitcher Rebbe,” Dovid Margolin)

 

“The true and complete Redemption depends on 'bringing the entire world to recognize the sovereignty of G-d.' Every person must hasten this, and help prepare the world to serve G-d as one. Although one might think his interaction with non-Jews is mainly for economic purposes, a Jew’s real intention should be to guide and inspire them to fulfill their Seven Noahide Laws. The Seven Noahide Laws are not simply legal matters – they are principles which precede and give meaning to all other laws. Laws only apply to people who are living; once someone is alive, he can be told to follow the law. But true 'living' means being connected to Torah, which is 'our life,' and observing its Mitzvos, by which 'we live'. So, first and foremost, one must see to it that his non-Jewish neighbor is alive!”  (Lubavitcher Rebbe, 20 Menachem Av, 5745 • August 7, 1985, Disc 31, Program 123)

 

“Egyptian society was steeped in the pursuit of self-serving carnal pleasure, which is reduced by circumcision. Thus, by having the Egyptians circumcised, Joseph subdued their obsession with carnal indulgence. Pharaoh himself instructed them to go along with Joseph’s condition; thus, even the living symbol of Egyptian corruption was willing to be refined, at least somewhat. We follow Joseph’s example by remaining spiritually uncontaminated by our materialistic environment and even refining it. By strengthening our own commitment to Judaism, we influence our fellow Jews to strengthen theirs. Moreover, we influence the broader community of non-Jews to keep the Torah’s laws that apply to them (the 'Noahide' laws). Thus, we will ultimately transform the entire world into G‑d’s home.” (Lubavitcher Rebbe, Likutei Sichot, vol. 10, p. 141.)

 

“By studying the Torah regularly, we construct a 'Tabernacle,' i.e., a dwelling for G‑d, in our personal lives. By commanding the Jewish people to encamp around the Tabernacle, G‑d teaches us that we should center our lives around this inner sanctuary. The innermost point of the Tabernacle was the Ark, which housed the Tablets of the Covenant, i.e., the Torah. When the Torah is the focal point around which our lives revolve, it can positively affect all facets of our lives, as it is meant to. Furthermore, once the Torah is illuminating and influencing our lives as it is meant to, its influence can spread still further outward, enlightening and refining all humanity and the entire world.” (Lubavitcher Rebbe, Daily Wisdom, Ha'azinu, p. 429.)

 

“The Machpeilah Cave is the burial site of Adam and Eve, the first human beings; as such, it originally belonged to all humanity. In purchasing it, Abraham articulated G‑d’s intention that the mission originally given to humanity as a whole now be passed on to the Jewish people. By accepting this task, the Jewish people were fundamentally separating themselves from the rest of humanity and assuming the role of its mentors. It is our challenge to recognize this destiny today, as well.” (Lubavitcher Rebbe, Daily Wisdom, Chayei Sara, First Reading)

 

Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik (1903-1993)

 

(On Nishmas prayer on Shabbos) “Although this prayer has the same theme as the blessing of Yishtabach (“May your name be praised”), emphasizing God's attributes and the privilege given to us to praise Him, it is recited only on Shabbat and Holidays simply because there is not sufficient time to recite it during weekdays. It may be described as the great universal hymn of the salvation of mankind. A Jew is not satisfied with his redemption unless everybody will be redeemed with him; the Jew feels the beat of the heart of the universe. The Jew prays even for the cosmos. Once a month, he prays that God restore the diminution of the  moon. The Jewish experience is all-inclusive, all-embracing, sympathetic to all.” (Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Days of Deliverance in Mesorat HaRav Siddur, p. 476-7)

 

“He [Abraham] was a resident, like other inhabitants of Canaan, sharing with them a concern for the welfare of society, digging wells, and contributing to the progress of the country in loyalty to its government and institutions. Here, Abraham was clearly a fellow citizen, a patriot among compatriots, joining others in advancing the common welfare. However, there was another aspect, the spiritual, in which Abraham regarded himself as a stranger. His identification and solidarity with his fellow citizens in the secular realm did not imply his readiness to relinquish any aspects of his religious uniqueness. His was a different faith and he was governed by perceptions, truths, and observances which set him apart from the larger faith community. In this regard, Abraham and his descendants would always remain 'strangers.'” (Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Reflections of the Rav, p. 169)

 

“We certainly share the concerns of man in general, but at the same time we have interests and concerns of our own. We are part of humanity and at the same time, we are alone.” (Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, “Lonely Man of Faith,” Trailer)

 

“And you shall say to Pharaoh, so said Hashem: Yisrael is my eldest son.” (Shemos 4,22)

 

“What the Almighty God said, בני בכורי, what is the conclusion that is to be drawn from it? If I say, 'he's my oldest' or 'he's my bechor', it means that I have more children. He is the oldest, but there are many more children. When God told Moshe, 'say to Pharaoh, Yisrael is my son, he is my bechor,' what does it mean? God has more children, He has many sons. Otherwise, the expression 'beni bechori' is inappropriate. If one has a single son he would say 'beni yechidi', like 'your son, your only son who you love' (Bereishis 22:2). But now it's 'beni bechor'.” (Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik, The Rav Thinking Aloud on Shemos, p. 50)

 

“Every nation is a son of HaKadosh Baruch Hu.” (Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik, The Rav Thinking Aloud on Shemos, p. 50, See also Rabbeinu Ephraim, p. 176 and Chizkuni on the passuk)

 

“There are religiously committed Jews who are indifferent to the concerns of the larger non-Jewish society. They are content to reside in isolated communities with unconcern, if not actual disdain, for the Gentile world and for the problems which afflict humanity. This introversion can be explained as a reaction to the centuries-old derision and persecution which have been the Jewish historical experience and to which they were subjected with particular ferocity in modern times. Nowadays, there are particular aspects of moral perversion afflicting the general society which are repellent to Jewish sensibilities. Nevertheless, this insularity cannot be vindicated as authentic Judaism even if it can be understood and justified in particular historical periods and situations.

 

“The fullest realization of Jewish history will be achieved in Messianic days. The Jewish vision of the Messianic era includes tranquility and fulfillment for all mankind, not only for the Jewish people. The Yalkut writes:  'Every people or nation which did not oppress Israel will partake of the Messianic era' (Bo, 212). A universal brotherhood will accompany a restored and vindicated Israel, and a worldwide regeneration was foretold by prophet Zechariah: 'And the Lord shall be king all over the earth; in that day shall the Lord be one and His Name one' (14:9). Isaiah elaborated on this universal theme: 'And many peoples shall go and say: Come, let us go up the Mount of the Lord, to the House of God of Jacob, and He will teach us His ways and we will walk in his paths (2:3).'” (Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik, “Man of Faith in the Modern World,” “The Universal and the Covenantal.”)