Rabbi L. Scheinbaum

“For the place upon which you stand is holy ground.” (3:5)

Moshe Rabbeinu’s curiosity was piqued when he beheld a thornbush on fire, which continued to burn without being consumed. Upon closer inspection, the phenomenon before his eyes became even stranger. Hashem spoke to Moshe, instructing him to remove his shoes, because he was standing on holy ground. Such was the custom in the Bais HaMikdash, in which even the Kohanim were not permitted to wear shoes. The relationship between man and the Exalted must be unimpeded. One’s feet must be planted firmly on the ground. Horav S.R. Hirsch, zl, explains Hashem’s statement to Moshe concerning the exalted sanctity of the ground,…

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Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5771, Shemos

And Moshe was shepherding the sheep of Yisro. (3:1)

Chazal teach us that Hashem tests a tzaddik, righteous person, in small areas, the little things, which so many of us gloss over. If the tzaddik passes the test, if he demonstrates an affinity to doing small things, to caring about the “little guy,” the fellow whom no one seems to consider important enough to give his time, then the tzaddik can be a manhig, leader, of Klal Yisrael. Two of our greatest leaders stand out in this area, and Chazal underscore their acts of caring about small things. Moshe Rabbeinu and David Ha’melech were both tested by how they shepherded…

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Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5771, Shemos

It happened in those days that Moshe grew up and went out to his brethren and observed their burdens. (2:11)

Although raised amidst the majesty and splendor of Egyptian royalty, Moshe Rabbeinu remained the son of Amram and Yocheved. Raised as an Egyptian prince, but cognizant of his Jewish roots, Moshe remained totally committed and sensitive to his Jewish brethren. When he matured, growing up into a position of responsibility, he made it a point to go out and see – to observe – the plight of his brethren, to see their suffering and grieve with them. What is meant by “seeing” their suffering? Is it not sufficient simply to be aware of the misery? Does observing it firsthand make a difference?…

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Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5771, Shemos

She opened it and saw him, the child, and behold! A youth was crying. She took pity on him and said, “This is one of the Hebrew boys.” (2:6)

What about the infant’s cry indicated his Jewish pedigree? Do Jewish children cry differently than gentiles? All babies cry the same – or do they? Horav Mordechai Chaim, zl, m’Slonim posits that all babies do not cry alike. Something is unique and special about the way a Jew cries. A gentile weeps out of desperation, hopelessness, depression and pain. A Jew’s cry is one of hope. A ben Yisrael understands that, even at the moment when everything appears hopeless, it is all a façade. Hashem can turn things around in the flash of a second. His cry is of a temporary…

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Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5771, Shemos

And it was because the midwives feared G-d that He made them houses. (1:21)

Hashem rewarded the Jewish midwives with “houses.” Rashi explains that this is certainly not a reference to bricks and mortar, but rather to spiritual legacies which are, in fact, houses: the Houses of Kehunah and Leviyah, descending from Aharon HaKohen, and the House of Monarchy, descending from David Ha’melech. We wonder why Chazal do not mention Houses of Torah, which have been exemplified by such leaders as Moshe Rabbeinu and Betzalel, architect of the Mishkan, descendant of Miriam HaNeviah. Horav Eliyahu Mishkovsky, Shlita, notes a similar disparity in Sefer Tehillim (135:19,20), “Bais Aharon, the House of Aharon, bless Hashem; Bais…

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Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5771, Shemos

The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, of whom the name of the first was Shifrah and the name of the second was Puah. (1:15)

Jewish enslavement did not occur overnight. The Egyptians could not have controlled the Jews had the Jews not willingly given up their sense of dignity and their sense of pride, essentially becoming “honorary Egyptians.” Horav Tzvi Elimelech, zl, m’Dinov, explains that Pharaoh knew that the Egyptian midwives were not going to listen to his order to kill the Jewish male babies. Their high moral values would not have permitted them to commit such a heinous act. In that case, why did he bother? The Torah tells us that the names of these women were Shifrah and Puah. Rashi teaches that they…

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Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5771, Vayechi

“So now, please forgive the spiteful deeds of the servants of your father’s G-d.” And Yosef wept when they spoke to him. (50:17)

Yaakov Avinu had passed from this world. Feeling a sense of foreboding, the brothers asked Yosef to forgive them for what they had done to him. They recalled the suffering which had resulted from his sale to a degenerate nation that relegated him to live in miserable dungeons with individuals of base character. Their choice of words (“so now”) intimates that from now on – since Yaakov’s death – they will be seeking Yosef’s forgiveness. What does Yaakov’s passing have to do with the need for forgiveness? In his volume, A Vort From Rav Pam, Rabbi Shalom Smith quotes the Rosh…

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Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5771, Vayechi

Reuven, you are my firstborn…water-like impetuosity – you cannot be foremost… Shimon and Levi are comrades, their weaponry is a stolen craft. (49:3,4,5)

Yaakov Avinu’s blessing to his sons commenced with words of rebuke to his first three sons. The reproof was not pretty – but then, it never really is. It was succinct and to the point, focusing on their errors, expressed without embellishment. It must have hurt. These were grown men, leaders of distinction, from whom the future Klal Yisrael would descend. To their father, however, they were sons, as such, he was obligated to rebuke them. It was not a time for coddling or sugar-coating. Yaakov told it like it was. Chazal laud the brothers’ reaction to their father’s critique. In…

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Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5771, Vayechi

“But as for me, when I came from Paddan, Rachel died on me… and I buried her there on the road to Efras.” (48:7)

Yaakov Avinu explains to his son Yosef, why he did not bury Rachel in the Meoras HaMachpelah. It was Hashem’s decision that Yaakov bury Rachel on the side of the road, so that the exiled Jews would pass by the Matriarch’s grave on the way to Bavel. Her neshamah, soul, would weep and pray for their safe passage and eventual return. Rachel’s heartfelt prayers will effect a positive response from Hashem. But, we wonder why Rachel was selected for this mission? Clearly, she was virtuous and saintly, and her prayers would have great efficacy, but is that all? Horav Dovid…

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Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5771, Vayechi

“But as for me, when I came from Paddan, Rachel died on me in the land of Canaan on the road… and I buried her there on the road to Efras.” (48:7)

Earlier, Yaakov Avinu had asked to be buried in the Meoras Ha’Machpeilah. In all fairness, how could Yaakov expect Yosef to do something for him which he himself had not done for Yosef’s mother, Rachel? Sensing that this might be bothering Yosef, the Patriarch explained his actions: It was not his choice to bury the Matriarch on the road, when they were only a short distance from Bais Lechem. Hashem had commanded him to bury her there in preparation for the future, when she would be a source of solace to the Jewish People being led into captivity, following the…

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“For the place upon which you stand is holy ground.” (3:5)

And Moshe was shepherding the sheep of Yisro. (3:1)

It happened in those days that Moshe grew up and went out to his brethren and observed their burdens. (2:11)

She opened it and saw him, the child, and behold! A youth was crying. She took pity on him and said, “This is one of the Hebrew boys.” (2:6)

And it was because the midwives feared G-d that He made them houses. (1:21)

The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, of whom the name of the first was Shifrah and the name of the second was Puah. (1:15)

“So now, please forgive the spiteful deeds of the servants of your father’s G-d.” And Yosef wept when they spoke to him. (50:17)

Reuven, you are my firstborn…water-like impetuosity – you cannot be foremost… Shimon and Levi are comrades, their weaponry is a stolen craft. (49:3,4,5)

“But as for me, when I came from Paddan, Rachel died on me… and I buried her there on the road to Efras.” (48:7)

“But as for me, when I came from Paddan, Rachel died on me in the land of Canaan on the road… and I buried her there on the road to Efras.” (48:7)

YEARS

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