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Home -> Bamidbar -> 5775

איש ראש לבית אבתיו הוא

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In 5775, Bamidbar

A man who is a leader of his father’s household. (1:4)

The census was taken with the participation of the leader of each tribe, an individual who was acutely aware of the lineage of each of the members of his tribe. In a homiletic rendering of this pasuk, the commentators say that the ish, man, who became the tribe’s rosh, leader, should have achieved this position on his own personal accomplishments. It should not be the result of his avosav, ancestors. One must be deserving by virtue of his own merit. Pedigree is a wonderful quality; illustrious lineage is meritorious, but only if it augments an already distinguished individual who has…

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Home -> 5775 -> Balak

ויצמד ישראל לבעל פעור

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Balak, 5775

Yisrael became attached to Baal Peor. (25:3)

The attachment of Klal Yisrael to the Peor idol is described by Chazal (Talmud Sanhedrin 64a) as k’tzamid pasil, “Like a lid clings to a jar.” They become one with the pagan god. This is highly unusual and something which we would never expect from an intelligent people. The worship of Peor was carried out by degrading oneself in its presence, such as relieving oneself in front of the idol. Is there anything more humiliating for the idol than this? A Jew who worshipped Peor in such a manner was liable for the death penalty. What kind of person would…

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Home -> 5775 -> Balak

וישב ישראל בשיטים ויחל העם לזנות את בנות מואב

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Balak, 5775

And (the) Yisrael dwelled in Shittim, and began to sin with the daughters of Moav. (Bamidbar 25:1)

One of society’s more difficult anomalies is interfaith marriage. We live in a time when even marriages which seem perfect on paper fail dismally. Why would anyone in his right mind start married life with someone who is of an opposing faith? I use the word opposing by design, since, for the most part, the Jews have been the world’s sacrificial lamb, having been abused, persecuted, tortured, hounded and murdered by anyone who felt they had the right to lord over them. Why would anyone marry into a religion whose elders and doctrine revile us? They say love conquers all…

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Home -> 5775 -> Balak

הנה העם היצא ממצרים ויכס את עין הארץ עתה לכה קבה לי אתו

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Balak, 5775

Behold! The people coming out of Egypt has covered the surface of the earth. Now go and curse it for me. (22:11)

In Parashas Balak, we are introduced to a new type of enemy, and, consequently, a battle which is of a completely different nature. Our standard classical enemies, such as Egypt, Amalek and others which followed them, came out to annihilate or persecute us with soldiers, weapons, and a battle plan. Balak and Bilaam did no such thing. Theirs was a battle waged on spiritual terrain, a battle between: the forces of tumah, spiritual defilement, and taharah, spiritual purity. It was the base, immoral Bilaam, a degenerate of epic proportions, who was hired by Balak, an evil misfit in his own…

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Home -> 5775 -> Balak

ועתה לכה נא ארה לי את העם הזה

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Balak, 5775

So now – please come and curse this people for me. (22:6)

Humility is much more than a positive character trait. It is a characteristic which is absolutely vital to one’s success in life. It is an indicator of adherence to the truth. One who is arrogant is simply not a truthful person. Indeed, life is one long lesson in humility, without which life would be a sham, with the greatest fool being the one who lords himself over others. At the end of the day, he knows that he is only fooling himself. Having said this, we turn to the Haftorah in Parashas Balak, which recalls Balak’s attempt to curse the…

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Home -> 5776 -> Yisro

אנכי ד' אלקיך... לא יהיה לך אלהים אחרים על פני

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Yisro, 5776

I am Hashem, Your G-d. You shall not recognize the gods of others in My Presence. (20:2,3)

The first two commandments exhort us to believe only in Hashem. No other power, however real or purported, has any validity. Only Hashem is One. He is our G-d, and the G-d of the entire universe. We understand that we may not turn to any other source for salvation, since only Hashem has the power to save. The Alter, zl, m’Novorodok was wont to relate the following story in support of this idea. A poor man had reached the limits of degradation. He had no one to whom to turn. He had exhausted every avenue of “income.” Depressed and dejected,…

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Home -> 5776 -> Yisro

ויסעו מרפידים ויבאו מדבר סיני

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Yisro, 5776

They journeyed from Refidim and arrived in the wilderness of Sinai. (19:2)

Rashi asks why the Torah found it necessary to relate from whence they journeyed. We already know that they had previously encamped in Refidim. He explains that the Torah reiterates their journey from Refidim to teach that, just as they came to Har Sinai in a state of teshuvah, repentance, in preparation for the receiving of the Torah, likewise, during their journey from Refidim they were in a state of teshuvah. Having said this, we wonder why teshuvah seems to be a prerequisite for receiving the Torah – to the point that they were in a state of teshuvah on…

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Home -> 5776 -> Yisro

וישלח משה את חותנו

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Yisro, 5776

Moshe sent off his father-in-law. (18:27)

Shlomo Hamelech says, Lev yodea moras nafsho u’b’simchaso lo yisarev zar; “The heart knows the bitterness of his soul and in his celebration a stranger shall not mix” (Mishlei 14:10). Hashem said, “My children were enslaved with mortar and stone, while Yisro was sitting comfortably in peace and calm in his land – and now he wants to see (and take part in) the celebration of the (Giving of) the Torah” (Yalkut Shimoni, Yisro). The Yalkut implies that the Revelation of the Giving of the Torah was reserved for those who had suffered in Egypt. Yisro had been in Midyan…

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Home -> 5776 -> Yisro

ואתה תחזה מכל העם אנשי חיל יראי אלקים אנשי אמת שונאי בצע

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Yisro, 5776

And you shall discern from among the entire people, men of accomplishment, G-d-fearing people, men of truth, people who despise money. (18:21)

Ramban explains that the phrase, sonei batza, “people who despise money,” refers to improperly obtained money. Moshe Rabbeinu is searching for those individuals who are of sterling character, G-d-fearing men who are not swayed by offers of material abundance. Money means nothing to them. Such people can be judges. We wonder why someone who is a person of accomplishment, G-d-fearing and honest, would still have to prove that he despises money gained inappropriately. If he is an ish emes, honest person, false money would be abhorrent to him. Why is it necessary to underscore that the judge must have proven…

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Home -> 5776 -> Yisro

והודעת להם את הדרך ילכו בה ואת המעשה אשר יעשון

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Yisro, 5776

You shall make known to them the path in which they should go and the deeds that they should do. (18:20)

Haderech yeilchu bah, “The path in which they should go.” Yeilchu, “they should go,” is a reference to visiting the sick. By virtue of simply “going” to visit someone who is ill, even if he does nothing, the individual has already fulfilled the mitzvah. What is it about simply visiting that provides mitzvah fulfillment? Obviously, the optimum mitzvah is spending time, talking. Calming the patient– encouraging and engendering hope — is what the patient needs, but the mitzvah at its basic is fulfilled merely with a visit. Perhaps by understanding the immediate consequences of illness we can better comprehend why…

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