Category: Teachings on Berashit (Genesis)

Fear of HaShem – Genesis February 13, 2009

Rashi in his commentary on the book of Genesis brings down on the first verse of the Torah, the words of Rav Yitzchak – “Why did the Torah begin with the story of creation instead of beginning with the first commandment we received as the Jewish nation – the Mitzvah of declaring the new moon (Rosh Chodesh). If we look deeper into the teachings of Rav Yitzchak he was asking – why does the Torah invest the entire book of Genesis and the beginning of the second book of Shmot discussing our forefathers and the birth of the Jewish nation? Isn’t the most important goal receiving the Ten Commandments and the rest of the Torah? Why must we learn all the stories of our forefathers and the birth of our nation first? The answer lies in one verse in the book of Psams 111:10 “The fear of Hashem is the beginning of wisdom” The first and foremost step in receiving the Torah is the fear of G-D! The Talmud in the Tractate of Shabbat brings down on page 31b the following parable” Rabba Bar Rav Hunah says any man that has Torah and does not have the fear of Hashem is likened to a treasurer that was given the keys of the inner chamber but not the outer chamber- How is he going to get in? Rabbi Yani declared how unfortunate this man is that made a gate to a house but the house he never built! Rav Yehudah says that G-D did not create the world only for us to fear him. As it says in Ecclesiastics 3:14 “God has done it, that men should fear before him.”

If we look deeply into the words of these Rabbis we see that the purpose of creation was for us to fear G-D. The study of Torah is supposed to be a means to bring us to this highest goal of fearing Hashem. The first book of the Torah which accounts the stories of our forefathers brings us close to Hashem by teaching us to have faith and fear G-d by their lofty examples in dealing with all the tests placed before them. Only after this are we ready to receive the Torah.

Today we live in a world of intellectualism. Just like people enjoy a good meal and to have fun they enjoy a nice Daf Yomi or any other intellectual experience. We must never forget that the major goal in learning Torah is to bring us and the world to a higher spiritual level of fearing G-D. The intellectual experience, challenges and enjoyment of learning are not the goal of our study. Obviously it is fantastic that one enjoys studying the word of Hashem and takes pleasure in the intellectual experience since this will enhance his incentive to study more Torah – but let us remember why we are studying! The Torah that was given thousands of years ago, way before any secular code of etiquette, is the backbone of the entire world; it is our job to raise this banner and bring light unto the nations.

Shabbat Shalom Rabbi Moshe Golsmith, Itamar

Vayeshev- Mikaytz December 26, 2008 Last week in parashat Vayeshev we began the stories of Yosef and his brothers. The Torah portion begins with the following verses: “Now Jacob lived in the land where his father had sojourned, in the land of Canaan. These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brethren; and the lad was with the sons of Bilhah, and with the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives: and Joseph brought unto his father their evil report.” [Genesis 37:1-2] The commentaries note that there is a difficulty with the usage of the word generations here. Since one would expect to find a listing of generations of Jacob. The same way that we find a listing of Esau’s children and descendents in the previous chapter after the word generations is brought down. “And these are the generations of Esau the father of the Edomites in mount Seir: These are the names of Esau’s sons; Eliphaz the son of Adah the wife of Esau, Reuel the son of Bashemath the wife of Esau.” [Genesis 36:9-10] Why then does the Torah begin to talk about Yosef instead of listing the generations of Jacob? Rashi explains that in regards to Esau in the previous Parasha the Torah chooses to list the names without going into detail since Esau is not important in the eyes of Hashem. On the other hand, when the Torah talks about Jacob it doesn’t want to only list his offspring but it wants to go into greater detail to relate the various events and happenings that the family went through until they established themselves. The medrash brings down a different explanation that reads the verse differently by connecting the two sentences together. “These are the generations of Jacob – Josef”. In other words, the Torah is emphasizing that Yosef is the offspring of Jacob. Why was Yosef singled out? The medrash teaches us that Yosef’s facial features resembled his fathers. In addition everything that happened to Yaakov happened to Yosef: This one was hated, and the other was hated; this one’s brother is seeking to kill him, and the other’s brothers are seeking to kill him. One may ask that in truth every child is similar to his father in many ways. It wouldn’t be too difficult to find similarities between the other brothers and Jacob as well. There must by some important message that the medrash wants to relate to us by stressing the likeness of Yosef to his father. In my opinion, the medrash seems to be emphasizing the point that Yosef is similar to his father because at first glace one may think otherwise. Yosef was definitely different from his brothers. Our rabbis teach us that he did things that were childish; he fixed his hair, and touched-up his eyes so that he should appear handsome. He would walk around with his heals up in pride. As the Torah mentions directly, he chose to hang out with the children of the maidservants Zilpa and Bilha instead of the children of the Matriarch Leah. Yosef also brought evil reports to his father about his brothers which can give one the notion that he is trying to stir of trouble. All this gave the impression that Yosef was heading in the wrong direction and that he was not fit to be part of the family just as Yishmael and Esau were cast out. The Torah, therefore, had to go out its way to teach us that Yosef is not, G-D forbid, like Yishmael and Esau. Although, on the outside he may seem to be problematic, one must look deeper into his inner essence and not judge a book by its cover. His brothers weren’t yet able to realize this and wanted to do away with him by throwing of Yosef into the pit and selling him to Egypt. The Torah gradually unravels the greatness of Yosef and shows us that he is indeed his father’s son. Jacob dreamt about the heavens and the earth in his dream of the ladder. “He had a dream, and behold, a ladder was set on the earth with its top reaching to heaven; and behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it [Genesis 28:12]. Yosef also dreamt about the earth and the heavens. He said to them, “Please listen to this dream which I have had; for behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and lo, my sheaf rose up and also stood erect; and behold, your sheaves gathered around and bowed down to my sheaf.” [Genesis 37:7]Here Yosef is dreaming about the earth as sheaves grow on the on the earth. Now he had still another dream, and related it to his brothers, and said, “Lo, I have had still another dream; and behold, the sun and the moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me.” [Genesis 37:9] Here we see that Yosef is dreaming about the heavens. The only thing that seems to be missing at this point is something that connects the heavens and the earth. This connection is brought down later in the story of Yosef and the wife of Potifar when Yosef reveals his secret ladder to the heavens. It came about after these events that his master’s wife looked with desire at Joseph, and she said, “Lie with me.” But he refused … [Genesis 39:7-8] If one looks at the Biblical musical note (Hataam) that is on the word “refused” it is quite rare and only appears three times in the Torah! It is called a Shalshelet meaning a chain. It is expressed by going up and down three times, just like Jacob saw angels going up and down. This is the secret ladder of Yosef. Yosef is able to overcome the temptation of Potifar by revealing his holiness and thus showing us how connected he really is to Hashem and avoids falling in the trap of earthly desires. It is for this reason that Yosef is called the Tzaddik. It is here that the likeness of Yosef and his father begin to become clarified. In this weeks portion, Mikaytz, the ladder of Yosef to the heavens is revealed even more. It is only Yosef who has the spiritual connection to Hashem that can interpret the dreams of Pharaoh and prepare the world for a time of famine. It is Yosef’s ladder to heaven that brings down the abundance to man. Shabbat Shalom Rabbi Moshe Goldsmith

Vayeshev December 18, 2008 What can we say about Yosef other than his being simply “successful” in all realms. He is talented, beautiful, and distinguished looking. He finds favor in everyone’s eyes, is a man of understanding who knows just about everything. He is a dream interpreter and mind reader, a genius on economics and a fair ruler. His personality demonstrates balance and he is above all a paragon in standing up to temptation. This is obviously why he is called the “Tzaddik”. He is not sitting with angels in the upper worlds but fixes this world, better known today as “tikkun olam”. In the sphere of his brothers, his hierarchy was so apparent, it caused problems. He became the giver, they- the receivers. All of his dreams come to fruition. It is not by chance that we read in this parsha about Yehudah taking a wife under strange circumstances. Mashiach ben Yosef is a prerequisite to Mashiach ben David, the great great grandson of Yehudah and Tamar. Yosef comes up from Chevron to seek his brothers; David receives kingship there. In Kabbalah, the last 2 spheres – Yesod (Yosef) and Malchut ( David ) sit directly one on top of another. They are inseparable. Bounty and Blessing come down to the world through this “pipeline” to a final and permanent location. When all the physical foundations have been perfected by the power of the tzaddik, the King (Mashiach) will then proceed to reveal G-dliness in a permanent location. King David was the brainchild of a permanent House of G-d. (for more information see Samuel 2 24:24 and Rashi). Yechezkel 37 best describes the inseparable match between Yesod and Malchut.- “Thus says the Lord G-d, Behold I will take the stick of Yosef which is in the hand of Ephraim and will put it together with the stick of Yehudah to form one stick and they shall be one in my hand.” Dear Readers, For all the people discouraged by whatever current events that get you down and out- I always found the rest of the passuk very encouraging! – “and I will take the children of Yisarel from among the nations into which they have gone and will gather them from every side and bring them into their own Land and I will make them one nation upon the mountains of Israel (where do you think the mountains of the prophet are exactly?- maybe you should send a letter to Clinton, Carter, Bush, Baker and even the candlestick maker) and one King shall be over them all! Shabbat Shalom Leah Goldsmith

Vayishlach December 12, 2008 Our forefathers didn’t have it easy, to say the least. Ya’akov Avinu never experienced leisure or rest. He was born into hard times, and even before so, had difficulties in the womb, struggling with his brother. He had the ill fortune of spending his early years in his unfavorable company. He knew trouble at every corner. This mischief eventually snowballed into Ya’akov having to flee for his life. He disembarks unto the threshold of the House of Lavan, a notorious swindler and master of the dark arts. Do you think Ya’akov’s life was any easier now? That answer we all know. We also know what a pure and spiritual man Ya’akov was and that he had the savvy from life’s experiences to deal with Lavan. Ya’akov was deceived and victimized for 20 years in the house of Lavan. It was “uphill work” all the way. This house was blessed because of Ya’kov, the source of blessing and prosperity. Finally, he was homeward bound. The booty that he took with him- his wives, children, livestock and everything he had was merited to his attachment to G-d and goodness. Through truth he was able to turn material wealth into something pure. Ya’akov the humble man, metamorphoses into Yisrael, the advanced and progressed man. On the way to freedom though, a feeling of fear and apprehension foreshadows the meeting with Esav. He prepares himself in all the necessary ways, sending even angels to greet him. The struggle continues and Ya’akov wrestles with Esav’s angel all night. At dawn he prevails. The challenges Am Yisrael have had to face through history are represented in the struggles we read about. There was no rest for our patriarchs. There is no rest for the wandering Jew. The husks that reside in Esav try to lead us away from serving Hashem with all our hearts (negative desires). The husks that reside in Lavan try to rule over our domain of thought (intellectual secularism). However, from the start, the Torah prepared and protected us through time in dealing with the “dark side”. G-dliness is the solvent to unG-dliness. Redemption is about to dawn on the world, and Yisrael will prevail! Shabbat Shalom Leah Goldsmith

Vayetzeh December 5, 2008 How the house of Israel originated, sprouted forth and gave form to the kingdom of the Jewish people, was a process of refinement. As each Tzaddik was extracted from his generation, he layed the foundations for the embodiment of righteousness and faith that would be the emblem of Beit Ya’akov (the house of Jacob). The first was Avraham, the son of an idol worshiper who was the first to believe in G-d. For his mercy and loving kindness Hashem promised him:”I will give you and your descendants the Land you dwell in- all the Land of Canaan for an eternal heritage.” (Genesis 17:7) Yitzchak, the son of Avraham, who was willing to be offered as a sacrifice, an olah temimah, maintained the faith of his father unlike his brother, Yishmael who had fallen from grace and cast out of the house. Hashem promised him :”And I will fulfill the oath that I promised your father, Avraham.” (genesis 26:3) In this parsha, Hashem promises the Land of Israel to Ya’akov Avinu, the third father on the triad of the Patriarchs. :”I Hashem, the G-d of Abraham and Yitzchak will give you the Land you lie upon I will give to you and your offspring” (Genesis 28). In kabbalah, Ya’akov is on the sphere of Tiferet- beauty and truth (Emet). The Land of Israel could not be conquered and settled until the complete level of Emet was attained. He was detained for 22 years in which most of his house (11 of the 12 tribes) were born and bred. Only when reaching the open doorway of the Land of Israel is his name changed to Israel. The name of the Land then becomes the Land of Israel. Ya’akov’s adventures in Lavan’s house come to a climax when Yosef is born and immediately when this happens he asks to return home to his Land. There, in the Land, he and his now complete house bring to fruition the objective of the fulfillment of prophecy. We continue into the next parsha to elaborate with them in their progress. They have made a noise in the world!!! The question is, do you hear it still ringing? Shabbat Shalom Leah Goldsmith

Vayera- Chayei Sarah November 11, 2008–11–16 “The nerve of her!.” when someone says that about you it usually is not a compliment. In fact being nervy and chutzpahdik is a bad trait. It is the antithesis of the personality of the true Jew- merciful, shy and doing loving-kindness. Rabbi Nachman of Breslov in his discourse on this parsha spends much effort in explaining the need a person has for HOLY chutzpah. In order to merit in Torah and holiness one must have it. What is holy chutzpah? Almost everything a person wants to accomplish in life is most probably accompanied with obstacles and frustration. Often we are even brought down to our knees. Without holy chutzpah we wouldn’t be able to jump over or break through the barriers. If a person has a “nebuch” attitude and have fear and doubt every time he had to climb to the next level in his life, he wouldn’t be able to succeed. By no means should he say, “I can’t do it.” This goes within the realm of worship too. You should have faith in yourself that you (yeah, little you!!) are precious in Hashem’s eyes and that everything you do in life is important to Heaven. When you know that what you do is only for heavens sake then the very idea of false pride, nervy chutzpah (bearing no resemblance to holy chutzpah) is not even muttered in his thoughts or feelings. You stand like a pillar rooted into the ground, nothing can topple you. When King David came to fight the giant Goliath, he probably looked like a grasshopper. His own brothers had no belief in his ability to win this battle. How did it look? Probably ridiculous- “Hey kid! Off the stage!” everyone called to him. He didn’t need their approval because he wasn’t there to prove to his macho self a personal win. He was there fighting Hashem’s battle. Many times we see this unfortunately in many realms of our lives, teachers who don’t believe in the special qualities of our kids, parents who don’t believe in their kids, governments that don’t see the power and potential of certain groups that can influence for goodness and propriety. Having ayin tova, a good eye on people is a G-dly attribute. This applies not only to people but to circumstances. In Genesis 18, “And Sarah laughed (inwardly)”… upon hearing that at the age of 99 she would conceive. For Sarah, a person so humble and small, it was hard to believe that she would indeed bear a child. Certainly there is nothing Hashem can’t do. Here our Rabbis have an axe to grind with her. She needed to have holy chutzpah and believe that Hashem can do anything. Even when salvation seems very far away. Sarah is answered, “Hepaaleh mehashem davar?” “Can anything be too miraculous for Hashem?” The Haftara also stresses the same lesson as the Shunamite (Kings 2:4) totally believes that Elisha will revive her son and stands in holy chutzpah against all the odds. Therefore, we witness the child coming back to life in the merit of his mother’s holy chutzpah. (the Zohar states that he later becomes the prophet Chabakuk). A person is never allowed to give up hope. That is pure faith. There is another element of holy chutzpah that many of us are faced with and that is of his Torah identity in a secular world. It has become a custom for only the last 200 years (out of 2,000) to whitewash any traces of kedusha or distinct holiness that we hold in the secular world. Our leaders here in Israel feel it is better to “blend in”. To look and act like the rest of the world, they believe, will bring lasting peace (as the bombs are dropping on shopping centers in Ashkelon today). Why do they so have an aversion to settlers? Because we have holy chutzpah. These are the lands that, yeah, are being spoken about in the parasha. These are our garments and we wear them proudly. They are Jewish garments and no, we don’t want to blend in. When yang, the flame that ignites the soul, is cooled down with too much yin in order to “walk with mankind”, the dark side of humbleness is revealed. A Jew should be proud of his real and eternal roots, his Torah, his look, his being. He should look into the face of the world with the truth of holy chutzpah and illuminate. Our matriarch Sarah (as well as Rivka and Leah and the avot) are buried in the heart of Chevron. Who would turn their backs on their grandmothers in order to “blend” and create a “new middle east” (Shimon Perez) Who, against the odds (because the world aint wantin’ us there) says that Shechem, Chevron and Yerushalayim are my eternal roots in Holy Chutzpah? Dear Readers, (and they shouldn’t say the nerve of her!) I have put together 2 parshas this week because we will be going all the way to the Golan to our son’s completion of training in the military. He is a happy and proud Jewish soldier serving his country. I must put in some holy chutzpah requests from our dear readers this week. Itamar as you know is growing in leaps and bounds. It is the only community that boasts 8 hilltops. Because of the tremendous resources that we need for upkeep and further continuing in these vital projects, we turn to you for immediate help. We are in a deficit that is demanding your assistance. We thank you already for being there for us and know that without your holy chutzpah in our joint mission here in the holy land, it just wouldn’t succeed. All tax deductable checks to “Friends of Itamar” and addressed to: Lester Goldsmith 1483 East 34th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11234 USA. Shabbat Shalom Leah Goldsmith

Lech Lecha November 6, 2008 People like to be in control of their lives. They have their date books all planned out, their weeks scheduled and like to know what will be… But there are so many factors involved pertaining to the outside world (ranging from hurricanes, to a stopped sink, to a cancellation, to a surprise party, a new neighbor moves in, etc…) that at best we can choose to feel in control in response to whatever happens with a heaping spoonful of faith in our coffee every morning because in reality we really don’t know what will be. Every so often there are political changes on a wider sphere, economic changes on a global domain; here in Israel you never know if rockets will be falling on the south, if the Hizballah are planning to attack the north, if your car will be rocked on the way home from the dentist, or if your government is for you-or against you (and what they could do to you!!!) Belief in Hashem and knowing that He brings about the actualization of everything can indeed bring a sudden feeling of completeness in our lives even if we really don’t know what will be. We give credit to our first patriarch, Avraham Avinu for being the pioneer in faith, by being excited and emotionally charged by belief, being the first person to know G-d .Hashem says to Avraham, “Go to a Land that I will show you…” (Lech Lecha) The language being used here is in a future tense. Avraham doesn’t know what land, where it is, what it looks like, who lives there, or when he will arrive. He just follows the path there in pure and simple faith. Hashem commanded, he followed. All along his journey he is sure that Hashem will continue to direct him to his destiny. He feels connected in an uncomplicated way. When a person feels this connection to Hashem, as Avraham Avinu did without any tangles and snarls and intrigues along the way of his life, he feels fulfillment. This is called pure faith, or emunah temimah. “to a Land that I will show you…” , a person lacking the knowledge of what will be can use uncertainty as a vessel that he fills with the knowledge that Hashem has paved the road to his destiny and is always there guiding him, like the way Hashem guided Avraham Avinu. We live in a world of asiyah, the lower world where people are active participants in a world of deeds. We have to use our efforts to achieve our goals, as we see with the stories of the patriarchs and matriarchs. When a person reaches the level of emunah temimah, when he feels Hashem standing there right behind him- then he can move heaven and earth. How many times in the Torah are we witness to this? Hashem promises the Land, yet we have to conquer it. (Joshua) Hashem promises the Land, yet we have to purchase it (Abraham in Chevron, Jacob in Shechem, King David on the Temple Mount). Hashem promises the Land, yet we have to fight in wars (all of our husbands and sons here today in Israel). We do, Hashem does for us. And when we feel something lacking- then it’s time to pray and ask for G-d’s help. Shabbat Shalom Leah Goldsmith