Commitment – Page 13 – Peninim on the Torah

וימת הרן על פני תרח אביו... באור כשדים

Sruly Schnair In Noach, 5782

Haran died in the lifetime of his father… in Uhr Kasdim. (11:28)

Rashi quotes the Midrash that interprets the word al pnei as mipnei to mean “because of” Terach. Terach produced idols. His son, Avraham, saw the folly of idol worship and decided to do something about it. So, he smashed Terach’s wares. Fatherly love was trumped by both economics and fidelity to the evil king Nimrod. Terach felt that his son needed to be taught a lesson. Nimrod was only too happy to comply. Avraham Avinu was sentenced to be burned to death in the fiery caldron. Haran, Avraham’s brother, was challenged to choose between Avraham and Nimrod. Not being a…

Home -> 5782 -> Bereishis

לא טוב היות האדם לבדו

Sruly Schnair In Bereishis, 5782

It is not good that man be alone. (2:18)

Chazal (Berachos 17a) ask: “Through what deeds do women merit eternal life? [Since they do not have the mitzvah of limud haTorah, to study Torah, they are unable to earn the merit that is ancillary to it]. Through going through the trouble of bringing their children to the synagogue to study Torah, and through sending their husbands to the bais hamedrash to study Torah, and for waiting for their husbands until they return home from the bais hamedrash.” Chazal (Yevamos 63a) “If the man is worthy, the woman will be an eizer, helper; if he is unworthy, she will be…

Home -> 5781 -> Shoftim

מי האיש הירא ורך הלבב ילך וישב לביתו

Sruly Schnair In Shoftim, 5781

Who is the man who is fearful and fainthearted? Let him go and return to his house. (20:8)

Torah is our source of life. The individual who commits himself to a life of Torah is assured that his observance of Torah and mitzvos will never be the cause of anything negative happening to him. On the contrary, his observance of Torah and mitzvos will protect him. This is why Rabbi Yossi HaGalili contends that one who fears that he might have sinned does not go to war. Without the spiritual fortitude engendered by mitzvah observance, one does not feel secure. While this does not mean that one who is observant should stand in harm’s way, it does posit…

Home -> 5781 -> Re'eh

והיה כי יבאך ד' אלקיך אל ארץ אשר אתה בא שמה לרשתה ונתתה את הברכה על הר גריזים ואת הקללה על הר עיבל

Sruly Schnair In Re'eh, 5781

It shall be when Hashem, your G-d, brings you to the Land to which you come to possess it, then you shall deliver the blessing on Har Gerizim and the curse on Har Eival. (11:29)

As the nation prepared to enter the Land, Hashem instructed them to initiate a new covenant upon entering Eretz Yisrael. One does not enter Eretz Yisrael unless he first prepares himself with the appropriate sense of submission born of awe. Kabbolas haTorah, receiving the Torah forty years earlier, carried them along their journey through the wilderness. A new generation was preparing to enter the Land. In the Plains of Moav this new generation also received an induction into kabbolas ol Malchus Shomayim, accepting upon themselves the yoke of the Heavenly Kingdom. The covenant into which the nation was now entering…

Home -> 5781 -> Eikev

ויאמר ד'... ראיתי העם הזה והנה עם קשה ערף הוא

Sruly Schnair In Eikev, 5781

Hashem said… “I have seen this people, and behold! It is a stiff-necked people.” (9:13)

Stiff-necked, otherwise known as stubbornness, obstinacy, is usually incompatible with uprightness and righteousness, because a stubborn person makes up his mind and sticks to it – even if his conduct is less than desirable. He has made up his mind, and he will stick to his guns. Hashem informs Moshe that the nation’s stubbornness is not conducive to their spiritual growth. He will send an angel to lead them. Hashem wants no part of an obstinate people. If we look back to the original redaction of the sin in Parashas Ki Sisa (Shemos 34:9), however, Moshe beseeches Hashem, Yeileich na…

Home -> 5781 -> Va'eschanan

וזאת התורה אשר שם משה לפני בני ישראל

Sruly Schnair In Va'eschanan, 5781

This is the Torah/teaching that Moshe placed before Bnei Yisrael. (4:44)

V’nasan lanu es Toraso, “And Hashem gave us His Torah” is the motif that should accompany each Torah learning session. When we study Torah, we are hearing the words of Hashem and carrying out His will. He gave us His Torah, so that we should learn it, learn from it, observe its precepts and lessons. It is from the Torah that we, as Jews, receive and accept our guidance concerning our derech ha’chaim, way of life. The Jew that lives his life with the Torah as his lodestar has the ability to navigate the murky, stormy waters of life, to…

Home -> Devarim -> 5781

ד' אלקינו דבר אלינו בחרב לאמר רב לכם שבת בהר הזה

Sruly Schnair In 5781, Devarim

Hashem, our G-d, spoke to us in Chorev, saying: Enough of your dwelling by this mountain. (1:6)

Rashi quotes the Midrash which defines rav, enough, as abundance. This refers to the abundance of reward and achievement that Klal Yisrael gained during their one-year layover at Sinai. At Sinai, they received the Torah, built the Mishkan with its accoutrements, and Hashem designated the Zekeinim, Elders, as the leaders of the nation. Now, it was time to move on. The Nesivos Shalom offers an alternate exposition, with a homiletic twist. Chorev may be translated as destruction, referring to the churban, destruction of the Bais Hamikdash. Does this mean that we as a nation in exile are finished? Do we…

Home -> Devarim -> 5781

ויפנו ויעלו ההרה ויבאו עד נחל אשכל

Sruly Schnair In 5781, Devarim

They turned and ascended the mountain and came until the valley of Eshkol. (1:24)

“Never allow the sadness of the past and your anxiety concerning the future to cloud the happiness of the present moment.” Chazal teach that Eshkol was the name of one of Avraham Avinu’s three friends, whom he consulted when he was commanded to have a Bris Milah. Anar advised against the procedure, claiming that it was too dangerous to chance at his advanced age. Mamreh told him to follow Hashem’s command. Eshkol concurred with Anar and added his own negativity, suggesting that Avraham’s enemies would take advantage of his weakened state. Horav Elie Munk, zl, sees an analogy in the…

Home -> 5781 -> Balak

ויאמר מלאך ד' אל בלעם לך עם האנשים

Sruly Schnair In Balak, 5781

The angel of Hashem said to Bilaam, “Go with the men.” (22:35)

Hashem originally instructed Bilaam not to go with the Moavite emissaries. Then, He changed the message. He could go with them. Rashi explains this based upon the Talmudic dictum, B’derech she’adam rotzeh leilech bah molichin oso, “The path that a person chooses to follow, they bring him (and allow him to go) down that path.” In other words, Bilaam indicated that he would like to join the officers of Moav. When Hashem saw that Bilaam yearned to accompany them, He said, “Go!” Chazal’s statement leaves us with a question about the text. What is the meaning of the word bah,…

Home -> 5781 -> Shelach

שלח לך אנשים ויתורו את ארץ כנען

Sruly Schnair In Shelach, 5781

Send forth men, if you please, and let them spy out the land of Canaan. (13:2)

In a shmuess, ethical discourse, he gave in memory of his father, Horav Eliyahu Svei, zl, attempts to show how generations decline spiritually. His father survived World War I, during which Jewish life drastically changed. Entire communities were obliterated. Extreme hunger became a way of life. People were compelled to eat grass just to have some nutrients in their bodies. He studied in Kollel Slabodka until the material pressures were too much to handle. The next step was to move to America, which in and of itself was a spiritual challenge of immense proportion. Nonetheless, he lived in this country…

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Back to Home -> Noach ->

וימת הרן על פני תרח אביו... באור כשדים

Haran died in the lifetime of his father… in Uhr Kasdim. (11:28)

לא טוב היות האדם לבדו

It is not good that man be alone. (2:18)

מי האיש הירא ורך הלבב ילך וישב לביתו

Who is the man who is fearful and fainthearted? Let him go and return to his house. (20:8)

והיה כי יבאך ד' אלקיך אל ארץ אשר אתה בא שמה לרשתה ונתתה את הברכה על הר גריזים ואת הקללה על הר עיבל

It shall be when Hashem, your G-d, brings you to the Land to which you come to possess it, then you shall deliver the blessing on Har Gerizim and the curse on Har Eival. (11:29)

ויאמר ד'... ראיתי העם הזה והנה עם קשה ערף הוא

Hashem said… “I have seen this people, and behold! It is a stiff-necked people.” (9:13)

וזאת התורה אשר שם משה לפני בני ישראל

This is the Torah/teaching that Moshe placed before Bnei Yisrael. (4:44)

ד' אלקינו דבר אלינו בחרב לאמר רב לכם שבת בהר הזה

Hashem, our G-d, spoke to us in Chorev, saying: Enough of your dwelling by this mountain. (1:6)

ויפנו ויעלו ההרה ויבאו עד נחל אשכל

They turned and ascended the mountain and came until the valley of Eshkol. (1:24)

ויאמר מלאך ד' אל בלעם לך עם האנשים

The angel of Hashem said to Bilaam, “Go with the men.” (22:35)

שלח לך אנשים ויתורו את ארץ כנען

Send forth men, if you please, and let them spy out the land of Canaan. (13:2)

YEARS

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