Podcasts about tehilim

Podcast Jajam Shlomo (Sally) Zaed Cuando se puede decir Tehilim de noche? Conferencia

We learn in Lessons in Tanya chapter 35 with the concept of Hashem's Shechina dwelling in our life, the mashal of the candle. Our generation with the war with Iran brings out this special level even though Benonim can reach of Bital Hamitziut by doing Torah Mitzvot... Making a unification between Hidden and Revealed Torah, Torah and Tefilah through Tehilim, The Mazel are Twins of Sivan bringing the Chizzuk from Shavuot, Simchas HaDaas, Smile

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!Length: 1 hour 1 minutesSynopsis: This Wednesday evening (6/11/25), in our last Tehilim shiur of the 2024-2025 season, we ended up doing a chaotically orderly experimental Chumash exploration instead of Tehilim. If you've ever looked at English translations of the siddur, you may have noticed that the word "Ashrei" is translated differently by different people in different contexts. Tonight, we conducted a survey of the various sources at our disposal to see if we might be able to get at "the real meaning." Our analysis focused on the first instance (or instances) of Ashrei in the Chumash, and we went through a ton of meforshim, classifying each of their interpretations. Did we arrive at a conclusion? Not exactly, but we DID walk away with a set of findings, some old and some new.-----מקורות:תהלים א:א; פד:ה-ו; קמד:טו; קיט:א-בBDBArtscrollKorenRabbi Lord Jonathan SacksRobert AlterJPS (1985)Everett FoxKlein Dictionaryמנחם בן סרוקר' יונה אבן ג'אנח - ספר השורשיםרד"ק - ספר השורשיםבראשית ל:יגתרגום אונקלוספשיטתארס"ג תפסירר' יהודה אבן בלעםרשב"םאברבנאלספורנור' נ"ה וויזלר' י"ש ריגייוהכתב והקבלהשד"לר' ש"ר הירשמלבי"םנצי"בר' דוד צבי הופמןרש"י - תהלים א:א-----Summer is almost here, and I'm planning to level up my Substack game. In addition to my weekly article on the parashah, I've got a ton of other topics I want to write about, many of which are experimental (or spicy) enough to keep behind the paywall. I'm looking for sponsors and I'm willing to offer an insane deal: for every WEEK of Torah content you sponsor, I'll comp you a full YEAR of paid subscriber access to my Substack. This offer is good through the end of June or until all my summer content is sponsored, whichever comes first.-----If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweissYouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweissInstagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.comOld Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/WhatsAp

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!Length: 1 hour 1 minuteSynopsis: Tonight (6/4/25),  in our Wednesday night Tehilim shiur, we started and finished (?) an extremely short perek about an unfortunately relevant topic: How should we approach Hashem when we, the Jewish people, are held in contempt by the nations of the world in our exile? Since this perek only had four pesukim, we managed to conduct a full analysis and arrive at some beautiful and practical ideas. We'll see if we want to continue our analysis next week or take up a different topic.-----מקורות:תהלים קכגרש"י - דברים ג:כגמצודת ציון/דודרד"קמאירי-----The Torah content from now through Isru Chag Shavuos is sponsored by Rabbi Chaim and Sara Weiss in honor of the yahrzeit of our beloved rebbi, Rabbi Morton Moskowitz zt"l (on the 28th of Iyyar). May his Torah continue to illuminate the minds and hearts of future generations.-----If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweissYouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweissInstagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.comOld Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0HAmazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel

CURSO TEHILIM- MIZMOR- 134 by Rab Shlomo Benhamu

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!Length: 57 minutesSynopsis: Tonight (5/28/25),  in our Wednesday night Tehilim shiur, we concluded our experimental learn-through of Sforno and R' Elia di Nola on our perek. We began by clarifying Sforno's nuanced take on Torah u'Mada, then explored his view of the role Moshiach will play in educating humanity. We wrapped up with a summary of the perek's purpose, the flow of the four Bnei Korach maskilim we've studied over the past few months, and an operational definition of what a maskil is. This three-part series may not have been our typical Tehilim fare, but I certainly found it interesting, and I hope you did too!-----מקורות:תהלים פרק מהספורנור' אליה די נולהשבת דף קמה עמוד ב - קמו עמוד א-----The Torah content from now through Isru Chag Shavuos is sponsored by Rabbi Chaim and Sara Weiss in honor of the yahrzeit of our beloved rebbi, Rabbi Morton Moskowitz zt"l (on the 28th of Iyyar). May his Torah continue to illuminate the minds and hearts of future generations.-----If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweissYouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweissInstagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.comOld Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0HAmazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel

CURSO TEHILIM- MIZMOR- 133 by Rab Shlomo Benhamu

CURSO TEHILIM- MIZMOR- 132-02 by Rab Shlomo Benhamu

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!Length: 57 minutesSynopsis: Tonight (5/21/25), in our Wednesday night Tehilim shiur, we continued our experiment of learning through Sforno (and R' Elia di Nola) on Tehilim 45! After a recap and a re-pitch of the perek, we continued on, making past the pivot point into the next section. It was ... interesting! We definitely gained some ideas about how to engage in debate, as well as a unique model of Torah u'Mada that I've never seen before, but which resonates with me. Next time, we'll get into the Moshiach stuff and aim to wrap up the perek.-----מקורות:תהלים פרק מהרמב"ם - משנה תורה: ספר שופטים, הלכות מלכים ומלחמות יב:ד-השם ספר המדע: הלכות תשובה ט:גספורנור' אליה די נולה-----The Torah content from now through Isru Chag Shavuos is sponsored by Rabbi Chaim and Sara Weiss in honor of the yahrzeit of our beloved rebbi, Rabbi Morton Moskowitz zt"l (on the 28th of Iyyar). May his Torah continue to illuminate the minds and hearts of future generations.-----If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweissYouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweissInstagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.comOld Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0HAmazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel

This week, we had the honor of sitting down with Ayelet Samerano, mother of hostage Yonatan Samerano. Ayelet opened her heart and shared with us the essence of her son—creative, ambitious, hilarious, charming, the life of the party, and deeply talented.She also spoke candidly about life since October 7th: the pain, the strength it takes to keep going, and the deep faith that's been carrying her through. Her connection to Hashem, the signs she sees, and the stories she tells will move you, inspire you, and stay with you.Please daven for Yonatan Mordechai Ben Ayelet and say chapter 23 of Tehilim. Follow @bringyontihome on Instagram suchagoodcall@gmail.com @suchagoodcall on instagram

CURSO TEHILIM- MIZMOR- 132-01 by Rab Shlomo Benhamu

CURSO TEHILIM- MIZMOR-131 by Rab Shlomo Benhamu

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!Length: 58 minutesSynopsis: Tonight (5/7/25), in our Wednesday night Tehilim shiur, we did something experimental. Instead of learning the next perek the way we usually do, entirely from the ground up, we started with the commentary of Sforno (and that of his student, R' Elia di Nola) and focused on THEIR approach. (I explain my reasons for doing this at the beginning of the shiur.) We finished their introduction and got a few pesukim in, and so far, it's exciting! I can't wait for next week!-----מקורות:תהלים פרק מהספורנור' אליה די נולהמצודת דודרש"י - קהלת ד:יג-יד; ט:יד-טז----------The total cost of producing my five podcasts in 2024 came to $1,455—an expense I would have otherwise had to cover myself. I'm deeply grateful to the generous sponsors who helped shoulder that cost and supported my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweissYouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweissInstagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.comOld Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0HAmazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel

We continue learning Hilchos Sefirah discussing the Time Period beginning Sunday Night Monday Hod the 5th week of Sefirah climaxing with Hod of Hod Lag Bomer. The Halacha of making weddings and haircuts Permitted this special day and most follow the custom leading up to Shavuot to end the Hilchos Mourning of the Sefirah. We mentioned Hilchos Shavuot and began the extensive learning of Hilchos Yom tov. The Inner message we began and end with is Learning Torah whenever including Weekly in the Office leads straight away to increased Inner Peace & Joy. Simchat Yom Tov Ochel Nefesh will be a huge Avodah going ahead... will continue hopefully from the Office in London...BH Cover Photo is the Tolna Rebbe & Rachmastrivker Rebbe with the Tehilim from The original R Dovid Tolner Zya at his Hilula Tish Jerusalem last night Netsach ShbeNetsach. Unity Inspires Projects - United Souls 53 - One Flame Festival, True Freedom & Elevation is Making Space for the Mashiach Flow! https://eligoldsmith.substack.com/p/unity-inspires-projects-united-souls-b8e #unitedsouls #unityprojects #oneflamefestival #truefreedom #mashiachflow

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!Length: 58 minutesSynopsis: Tonight (4/30/25), in our Wednesday night Tehilim shiur, we finished the perek! This was due, in part, to the fact that I didn't have my usual chavrusa this week AND didn't have time to prepare shiur. Nevertheless, we reviewed what we did last time and refined the theory I came up with, running it through the whole perek and bringing it down to the level of the practical. We found support in Saadia Gaon and got some nice Tehilim methodology from Hoil Moshe. I'm happy with how our analysis turned out, and I'm eager to start whatever we take up next!-----מקורות:תהלים פרק מדמצודת דוד - תהלים מד:כא-כברד"ק שםדברים ח:ז-כהואיל משהפירוש רס"ג-----The total cost of producing my five podcasts in 2024 came to $1,455—an expense I would have otherwise had to cover myself. I'm deeply grateful to the generous sponsors who helped shoulder that cost and supported my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweissYouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweissInstagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.comOld Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0HAmazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel

CURSO TEHILIM- MIZMOR- 128 by Rab Shlomo Benhamu

CURSO TEHILIM- MIZMOR- 129 by Rab Shlomo Benhamu

CURSO TEHILIM- MIZMOR- 130 by Rab Shlomo Benhamu

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!Length: 57 minutesSynopsis: Tonight (4/23/25), in our Wednesday night Tehilim shiur, we began a new chapter of Tehilim. Yeah, yeah, I know that we had STARTED Tehilim 42 last time and didn't even get to the analysis, but that was over a month ago, and most of the shiur attendees wanted to start something new. Plus, I started learning this perek over Yom Tov and I was REALLY excited to dive deeper into it! As usual, we spent most of the time working on the translation. We then identified the pivot point(s), which was relatively easy. Finally, in the last five minutes of the shiur, I revealed my subversive theory about the perek - or should I say, my theory that the perek IS subversive! We'll have to wait until next time to see whether my theory is supported by a closer reading of the text and the meforshim.-----מקורות:תהלים פרק מדArtscrollRobert Alter-----The total cost of producing my five podcasts in 2024 came to $1,455—an expense I would have otherwise had to cover myself. I'm deeply grateful to the generous sponsors who helped shoulder that cost and supported my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweissYouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweissInstagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.comOld Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0HAmazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel

***CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT*** Welcome to a special edition of Perek Shira. In the introduction to Perek Shira , it says about David Hamelech, that when he finished sefer Tehilim , זחה דעתו עליו/ He became a little proud, and said, Hashem, is there any creature in the world that says more songs than I do? At that moment, a frog appeared, and told David, אל תזוח דעתך עליך , Don't be proud, I say more songs than you do. I'm involved in a great Mitzvah. On the edge of the river, there is a certain creature, and when he's hungry, he eats me, and that's the Mitzvah that I do. That's the basic message of Chazal. Very strange. What exactly is going on over here? The frog is greater than David Hamelech? What does that mean? The Zohar HaKadosh, in Pinchas 232B cites this story as well, but with a different response from the frog, which is, " David, don't be proud. I do more than you, because I was Moser Nefesh on the command of my Creator. When it came to the plague of frogs, I jumped into the ovens, and I was Moser Nefesh ." The frog actually does sing all day, it's croaks all day. It could be that in the merit of his Mesirut Nefesh, he's the ultimate singer. The Mabit , in his commentary, brings this down as well. The Zohar says at that moment, David Hamelech said this song in Tehilim 131,1 lה' לא גבה לבי, לא רמו עיני, My heart is not arrogant, my eyes are not lifted up . So let us understand, what is this great song of the frog? The sefer Imrei Emet on Parashat Vaera brings down from the Tanna D'veh Eliyahu , that the Hebrew word for frog צפרדע Sefardea , is a contraction of two words, ציפור, a bird , that has דעה , that has understanding . It's Bird because the frog is always flying around, but what is his דעת ? The Imrei Emet says that the ultimate level of Da'at , the highest level of intellect, is when a person is Moser Nefesh , when he jumps into the fire. Avraham Avinu was the one that recognized his Creator, and he was the first one to jump into the fire. What does that mean? The Meshech Chochma in Shemot 35,30 explains something fascinating. The chief architect of the Mishkan was Betzalel Ben Ouri, Ben Chur. And what happens to him? Hashem filled him with all knowledge in the world. Why was he zocheh to that? Says the Meshech Chochma, Mesirut Nefesh . When a person jumps into a fiery furnace, it is the ultimate shutting off of one's brain- not thinking, just trusting Hashem. Hashem says it's right, so I'm doing it. Chur was Moser Nefesh at the Chet HaEgel . He made a protest and they killed him. This is not something philosophical. Philosophically, would you say, For this one second, I'm giving up my whole life and all the things that I could do ? No . The Chasid Yaavetz says that in the times of the Spanish Inquisition, those that were tainted by philosophy did not withstand the test and became Moranos. The simpler people jumped in, because with too much philosophy, you're not going to do it. But, says the Meshech Chochma , that is the ultimate Da'at . The ultimate level of understanding is knowing, I don't understand, I'm going to dive in and do what God says . That's why Chur had a great-grandson, Betzalel , who was so full of wisdom. So, ציפור דעה, the message of the frog is, he jumps in and he is Moser Nefesh , and that's the greatest Shira . Furthermore, the sefer Shem M'Shimon quotes from a sefer Baalei Chayim by Rav Klonimus, that says that the frog did something earlier in history that caused it to merit to be the first creature in the plagues, after the blood. When Nimrod threw Avraham into the fiery furnace, the frogs jumped in and squirted water to try to cool down the fire to save Avraham. Additionally, when Chananiah, Mishael and Azariah questioned whether they should jump into the fiery furnace, they said, " If the frogs did it, surely we should do it." So the frogs are the messengers of Moser Nefesh . The chiddush here is that the song of creation is not necessarily the outward , loud song. Mesirut Nefesh, even in privacy, creates a great song. The Midrash tells us that there were two approaches (Bereshit 71,5) The approach of לאה was called פלח הודיה. She took the unit of praise, and out of her came Yehuda who praised, David Hamelech who praised, and Daniel…all of her children were praisers. Rachel, on the other hand, took the unit of being quiet. She didn't say when the signs were given over to Leah. Her child, Binyamin his stone is ישפה ,. יש פה He could have revealed the sale of Yosef, but he didn't. Esther, who comes from Shaul, and Shaul…They're quiet, undercover people. Whose Mesirut Nefesh is greater? Interestingly, when it comes to the splitting of the sea, Nachshon, who comes from Yehuda jumps in and splits the sea. But behind the scenes we know, that it says, the sea saw something and ran . What did it see? It saw the bones of Yosef. It says, the sea ran away because he ran away, and the sea split. So who split the sea? Nachshon, yes, on the outside. But behind the scenes, the quiet, self-control, Mesirut Nefesh of Yosef did it. As the Rambam in Yad Hazaka , in the laws of Yesodeh HaTorah , chapter 5, Halacha 10, says, that when a person does a sin in public, it's called Chillul Hashem B'Rabim. And he says, But קול הפורש מעבירה, someone that stays away from a sin, and does it, not out of fear, not for honor, but only because God said so, like Yosef HaSaddik, that controlled himself from the wife of his master, this is a kiddush Hashem. So there are two types of Kiddush Hashem. There's a Kiddush Hashem in public, and there's a Kiddush Hashem in private. The Mesirut Nefesh that doesn't make the big, loud noise, still does something. That's the message of the frog. Yes, there are great songs that we hear, but there are songs that we don't hear, of those people that just jump into the fiery furnace. There's a great story that is told over, of a man, Joe, who was a very successful Israeli, the son of Holocaust survivors. He rose from a childhood of poverty, in the mid-80s, and built up a huge, successful high-tech company. One day, his wife called, asking to pick up some meat on his way home from the office. He stopped at a trendy take-out place, to order what they called in, Israel Basar Lavan/white meat, which is code for חזיר, pork. As he stood in line, he began to feel uneasy. He began to remember a story he had heard from his parents. He always knew the story, but now it took on a heightened meaning. Joe's maternal grandfather was Rav Shraga Feivel of Hungary. Rav Shraga Feivel was captured by the Nazis, about a year before the war ended, and imprisoned as a slave in a slave labor camp. After a year, Rav Shraga Feivel was about to be freed. The war was over, and the Allied forces were going from camp to camp, liberating the prisoners. They could already see the smoke of the Allied forces marching their way. Freedom was mere hours away. At that moment, the head SS officer gathered the Jewish prisoners together and announced, The war has ended. In a few hours, you'll be free. All but you, he said, pointing to Rav Shraga Feivel. You must pass one more test. You must eat this piece of pig's meat. Only then will you be allowed to go free. Refuse it, and I'll shoot you in the head right here and now. The tension was so thick, you could cut it with a knife. Rav Shraga Feivel had been meticulous all through his days at the camp, not to eat unkosher meat. He didn't even eat soup, which might contain meat. Rav Shraga Feivel proclaimed, I will not eat chazir-flesh /I will not eat pork. A shot rang out, and Rav Shraga Feivel soul was returned to its creator. And now, 40 years later, Rav Shraga Feivel's grandson stood thinking to himself, I'm waiting in line to pay money to eat that which my grandfather gave his life not to consume? All he had to do was eat that one small piece of pork, and he'd be set free! He'd be allowed to return to his family, yet he wouldn't do it. I have everything. I'm free to live with my family. I have anything I want, yet I'm about to purchase this meat?Either my grandfather was crazy, or I'm crazy. And I cannot believe that he was crazy, thought Joe, as he got off the line and went to buy dinner elsewhere. When he got home, he spoke to his wife about his feelings and the emptiness he had been experiencing. They both had to acknowledge that despite all their material prosperity, a certain spiritual emptiness gnawed at him. They were missing something, but never knew exactly what. They spoke for a long time about values and what is important in life. They decided to attend an Arachim seminar. Joe was enthralled by the seminar. It penetrated the murky mysteriousness of God, Torah, and Judaism. It rocked his world and shook his soul. Who was that Joe? That Joe was well known as Yossi Wallis. He eventually became the CEO of the Arachim organization and built it to a huge movement of Baaleh Teshuva. Tens of thousands of Jews have already come back. We ask ourselves, what did this man, Rav Shraga Feivel, accomplish by dying and not living the rest of his life for that moment of Kiddush Hashem, shutting off his brain? He got a grandson full of Da'at and Chochma . And that's the Song of the Frog. *If you're interested in learning more about Yossi Wallis, there's a book written about him written by Rav Nacan Seltzer called Incredible , a bestseller by Artscroll. Have a wonderful day.

the Rebbes insights on chapter 124 tehilim

Welcome to our Bitachon class. We now discussing the Haggadah of Pesach. We're in the stanza of Yechol Rosh Hodesh, that we might have thought that the right time for the Seder is Rosh Hodesh. And the pasuk says, ב יום ההוא, B'Yom HaHu/on that day. Well, that day , may mean during the day . And as we said last class, anytime we have a thought, there has to be a basis for it. We don't just say maybe. The fact that we even thought that the Seder should be on Rosh Hodesh Nissan means there's a strong reason to think so. And the fact that we thought that the time to do it is during the day and not the nighttime means there's a strong reason to think that as well. So what happened during the day of the 14 th of Nissan that would warrant saying the Hagaddah of Pesach during the day ? The answer is, that's the day when they slaughtered the Korban Pesach. What was the ultimate revelation that caused the need to do the Haggadah? You might have thought it was the Korban Pesach. So exactly what does the Korban Pesach symbolize and teach us? This is very important information-The Egyptians worshipped the sheep. That's why it was considered an abomination to be a shepherd in Egypt, as is clearly stated in the pesukim. Furthermore, Moshe told Paroah that they could not slaughter the sheep in the local town of Egypt; they'd have to go out to the desert, because they'd be stoned if they were seen slaughtering sheep, the Egyptian god. Why did the Egyptians worship the sheep? It wasn't random. There are 12 symbols in the horoscope. These 12 symbols are not just for palm readers or the newspaper horoscope column. These are real concepts rooted in our Torah literature. The Ramban, for example, tells us that the symbol of Tishre, Libra is a scale , which he says is a sign in the heavens that we're being judged that month. And the Mazal of Adar is a fish, or Pisces, as fish are above the Ayin Hara.. The Mazal of Elul אלול אני לדודי ודודי לי, I am to my beloved, and my beloved to me is Virgo, which is a young maiden. All of these symbols are real and have to do with specific times. The sheep is the head of all 12 Mazalot . That's why Rabbenu Bachye says this month is called Aviv/ אביב is a contraction of אב י"ב, the father (or chief) of the other 12. Therefore, the Egyptians worshipped the sheep as the so- called Bechor , or first born of the Mazalot . (After the sheep comes the ox, the Taurus. One of the commentaries say the reason why the Jewish people worshipped the golden calf was because they said Now that we brought down the sheep, we have to go on to the next symbol, which is the ox. ) So the Egyptians worshipped the sheep and felt it had a power in the heavens and when we slaughtered the sheep, our actions down here were impacting the mazal of the sheep in heaven. We were going to overcome the mazal , based on the principle of אין מזל לישראל/ We Jewish people are not impacted by the horoscope. We're not impacted by any of these signs. As Hashem told Avraham, Go outside. Says Rashi , this means leave your soothsayers, leave all of that stuff. We the Jewish people are above all that. God tells Avraham, Go in front of Me and you will be perfect. And that's the Brit Milah. And there's another Mitzvah later on, which is תמים תהיה,Tamim Tihyeh be perfect with Hashem and go away from all the soothsayers and stargazers. So the Brit , the deal that we made with Hashem was to be Tamim , to be complete with Him , to rely on Him and to be above all that nonsense. We're above nature, we don't follow nature. Today we'll call mazal nature . So that was the symbolism. We slaughtered the sheep down here and the mazal of the sheep in the heavens comes down and everything falls with it. Additionally, the Jewish people tied the Korban to the bedposts on the 10th of Nissan, which was Shabbat HaGadol. It was a miracle, it says, that the Egyptians did not kill them when they did that. The midrash says further, quoted by Tosafot, that the pasuk in Tehilim lומכה מצרים בבכוריהם / Hashem hit the Egyptians with their firstborn. Shouldn't it be, He hit the firstborn Egyptians ? Tosafot explains that when Moshe announced that we'd be slaughtering the sheep, a civil war broke out among the Egyptians. The Egyptian first- borns all said, Let them out already! What are you doing , and there was a civil war between the firstborn and the rest of Egypt, about whether they should let them out before the 14th, before they slaughter the sheep. Why were the firstborn so concerned? The Maharsha says, because there was a connection between them, almost like the concept of a voodoo doll , a little doll that is supposed to resemble a particular person and if you stuck pins in the doll's ankle, suddenly that guy would get a pain in his ankle. Likewise, the firstborn sheep was like a voodoo doll of the First born Egyptians. How so? When you slaughter the sheep down here, it impacts the mazal in the heavens of the firstborn, and the firstborn would die. That's why slaughtering the sheep was actually the impetus of Makat Bechorot . That's why the firstborn said, Don't let them slaughter the sheep! It's going to bring us down. And that was what the war was about. So Korban Pesach illustrated, in a very vivid way, the power of the Hashem over the mazal, but En Mazal L'Yisrael. We ignore Mazalot . The Ramban, in many places, discusses the important rule of תמים תהיה. In Bereshit 17,1, he quotes the pasuk in Devarim 18,13, and says that This is one and the same, which is, יאמין בלבו, believe in your heart. כי הקדוש ברוך הוא לבדו, הוא בעל היכולת בתחילה ובסוף,. הוא יכול לעשות, לבטל. Only God is in charge. He can do or annul. And therefore, when you hear any soothsayer or any predictor, לא יאמין שיבואו דברים על כל פנים, don't say it has to happen. When you hear predictions, financial, health or otherwise, you should say in your heart, הכל ביד עליון, עליונים. It's all in the power of God. And he says, וכפי שיתהלך אדם לפניו, and the more I connect to Him, מפרוטות, I will undo these signs , and he says that's what it means when Hashem told Avraham Avinu, in Shabbat 156a, Leave the soothsayers. He repeats this in Devarim 18,13, where he says, When you hear what they say (tariffs or anything else), you know what your response should be? הכל בידי שמים, it's up to God. הוא אלוהי אלוהים, He's the God above all, עליון על הכל. And believe, שכל הבלות תהיינה, everything that happens to me is כפי יתקרב אדם לבדו תול, the more I connect to God in His service. This is an important rule, and this is the message of the Korban Pesach. And lastly, he says this in his השגות on the Sefer Mitzvot , Mitzvat Aseh 8, where he discusses things that he believes should be on the list, that the Rambam left out, and he believes that תמים תהיה was one of the 613. We have to believe that He alone does everything, He knows what's going to happen in the future, and if we have a problem, we look to Him. He says, שכל הכל תהיינה, We have to believe that all forces happen, as we connect to Him. And this is why we might have thought, מבעוד יום, " The message of the Korban Pesach? wow, we should make the סדר right then and there!"

Harav Yussie Zakutinsky Shlita

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!Length: 57 minutesSynopsis: Tonight (3/19/25), in our Wednesday night tefilah shiur, we began learning the perek before the one we did last time. We had seen opinions that 43 is part of 42, and the proof definitely seems to be in the pudding, so we're going to proceed on that assumption. The translation was a bit quicker than usual, since so many phrases were familiar. We only got a little bit into our analysis, noticing the difficulties of the perek and voicing some intuitions about its themes. Next time we'll engage in some REAL analysis! (בג"ה)-----מקורות:תהלים פרק מבArtscrollRobert Alterרמב"ם - משנה תורה: ספר המדע, הלכות יסודי התורה ב:א-ברמב"ם - משנה תורה: ספר המדע, הלכות תשובה י:ב-ג-----The Torah content for this week has been sponsored by my friend, Rabbi Dr. Elie Feder. His latest book, Happiness in the Face of Adversity: Powerful Torah Ideas from a Mom's Parting Words, shares the wisdom of Shani Feder a"h, a true Eishes Chayil. This is the kind of Torah I wish more people knew—ideas that directly impact our experience of life. Available now on Amazon.-----If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweissYouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweissInstagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.comOld Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0HAmazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel

**Today's Halacha is dedicated f or the refuah and haslacha of Ronnie, Sharon, Eli and all the children of CARE** On Purim morning, one should make an effort to wake up extra early and recite Tehilim. This is based on the Hida (Rav Haim Yosef David Azulai, 1724-1807), who writes in his "Devash L'fi" that there are five special days during the year that one should arise at "Hashkama"-extra early: Tisha B'ab, Shabuot, Rosh Hashana, Hoshana Rabba and Purim. He says that this is alluded to in the word "AVRaHaM" in the verse "Vayashkem AVRraHaM BaBoker"-Avraham arose early in the morning. The letter "Aleph" of Avraham, hints to "Echa" which is read on Tisha B'ab; the "Vet" refers to Shabuot on which the Torah was given, and the Torah begins with the letter "Bet;" the "Resh" refers to Rosh Hashana; the "Heh" alludes to Hoshana Rabbah; and the "Mem" hints to the Megillah of Purim. *** The special Tefila of "Al Hanisim" is inserted into the Amidah of Purim. If one forgot to do so, he does not have to go back and repeat the Amidah. Nevertheless, it is preferable to recite the "Al Hanisim" at the expense of prolonging his Amidah and missing the Kedusha with the Sibbur, than to skip it and finish earlier. *** The Torah reading for Purim is "VaYavo Amalek," in Parshat B'shalach. Since it only has nine verses, the accepted custom is to read the last verse twice to complete the requisite ten verses need for a public Torah reading. It is important for everyone to hear this Parasha. Those who missed hearing Parashat Zachor can fulfill the Misva with this reading, if they have intent to do so. The Kaf HaHaim (Rav Yaakob Haim Sofer, Baghdad-Israel, 1870-1939, Ch. 693:25) writes that if someone cannot attend Bet Knesset on Purim day, he should read this passage by himself at home with the Ta'amim (cantillation). After reading the Torah, the Tefila continues with "Ashreh" and the beginning of "Uva Lesion." The Megillah is read before the Pasuk "V'atah Kadosh." In the morning, "Shehecheyanu" is not recited on the Megillah, according to the practice of the Sepharadim. The Sefer Torah is kept out until after the Megillah is read, because the Megillah states, "LaYehudim Hayta Orah V'simcha, V'saon V'y'kar"-the Jews had light and joy and happiness and glory. The Gemara understands that Orah (light) refers to the light of the Torah. One should not take off his Tefilin before the completion of the Megillah, because the same verse says that the Jews had "Y'kar"-glory. The Gemara understands that it is referring to Tefilin. In fact, the custom is to kiss the Tefilin when that word is read. If there is a Brit Mila, some say that it is performed prior to the Megillah reading to correspond to a word in that same Pasuk "Sason"-joy, which the Hachamim understand to be Brit Mila. However, the accepted practice is to conduct the Mila after Shaharit. *** There is no obligation to recite Hallel on Purim. One reason for this is that the reading of the Megillah, which tells the story of the miraculous events, takes the place of Hallel. Therefore, if one cannot hear the Megillah, there are Poskim who hold that he should recite the complete Hallel. This should be done without a Beracha, as there is a difference of opinion on the matter. After the Shir Shel Yom (Psalm of the Day), the Mizmor (Tehilim 22) "Al Ayelet Hashachar" is added. Esther was referred to as "Ayelet Hashachar," and this was the prayer she offered upon approaching the King's private chamber. *** It is prohibited to eat even a small amount before hearing the Megillah on Purim morning, even if one has already prayed. Therefore, one should insure that his wife and children hear the Megillah promptly, so that they can eat. *** Immediately after Shaharit, the Matanot LaEvyonim are distributed. Performing this Misva early is not only a fulfillment of "Zerizim Makdimim L'Misvot," but it also enables the recipients to use the money to buy what they lack for the holiday. *** The Shulhan Aruch rules that the Beracha of Shehecheyanu is not recited before reading the Megillah in the morning. This applies even if one did not fulfill the Misva of Megillah the previous night. One should have in mind to include the other Misvot when he hears the Beracha at night. *** The Hida (Lev David, Ch. 30) brings a custom for both men and women to light two candles in honor of Mordechai and Esther on Purim. After lighting the candles, one should give Sedaka and offer heartfelt prayers and requests in their merit. There is a widespread custom to don costumes on Purim. The Hida mentions this specifically regarding the Seudah. The Ben Ish Hai (Rav Yosef Haim of Baghdad, 1833-1909, Ateret Tiferet) brings a custom for women to adorn themselves with their fanciest jewelry, even more than Shabbat and Yom Tov. This custom has its origins in the Kabbalah. This should only be done within the confines of her own home and not to go out publicly, so as not to breach the standards of modesty.

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!Length: 56 minutesSynopsis: Tonight (3/5/25), in our Wednesday night Tehilim shiur, we successfully and SMOOTHLY "landed the plane"! Not only did we get the main idea and purpose of the perek, but we explained nearly every phrase in the perek - except for the very last phrase, which we decided we can't fully understand without learning the previous perek. This short perek proved to be HIGHLY relevant to our current situation, and is a great way to showcase how Tehilim is critical for forming a relationship with Hashem.-----מקורות:תהלים פרק מגרב ש"ר הירש - תהלים כב:אמאירי - תהלים מג:אתרגום כתובים - תהלים מג:גר' אליה די נולהספורנו - ישעיהו כז:א-----The Torah content for this week has been sponsored by Rifka Kaplan-Peck in tribute to the Bibas family. May Hashem avenge their blood and may He grant Yarden Bibas and the extended family comfort in the love of Am Yisroel who mourn with them.-----If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweissYouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweissInstagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.comOld Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0HAmazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!Length: 59 minutesSynopsis: Tonight (2/26/24), in our Wednesday night Tehilim shiur, we continued our analysis of the short perek we began last time. After reviewing our translation, our pivot point theories, and our questions, we came up with a few ideas and approaches. I presented the findings that my chavrusa and I came up with, which I think carry real promise. The central idea we developed today is fundamental in our relationship with Hashem, as individuals and as a nation. I THOUGHT we'd manage to wrap it up this time, but I think there's still one more session to go!-----מקורות:תהלים פרק מגרד"קאבן עזראתרגום כתוביםספורנורב ש"ר הירשRabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, "Fate and Destiny"-----The Torah content for the entire month of February has been sponsored by Y.K. with gratitude to Rabbi Schneeweiss for providing a clear and easily accessible path to personal growth via his reliably interesting and inspiring Torah content.-----If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweissYouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweissInstagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.comOld Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0HAmazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel

Les Psaumes , Tehilim et ses remèdes by Rav David Touitou

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!Length: 58 minutesSynopsis: Tonight (2/19/24), in our Wednesday night Tehilim shiur, we began a new and (to us) unknown chapter towards the beginning of Book II. I chose it because it was unfamiliar, short, and looked like it might help us to cope with the current situation Israel is in, and the despondent feelings of many Jews around the world. We spent much of the time going over various translations, then discussed where the pivot point might be, and concluded with a series of questions. Next time (בג"ה) we'll see if we can come up with a theory, with or without the meforshim!-----מקורות:תהלים פרק מגמצודת ציוןArtscrollRobert Alterהואיל משה - תהלים מג:אתרגום רס"גתרגום כתובים (trans. Prof. Edward M. Cook)פשיטתאSeptuagint (trans. Sir Lancelot Charles Lee Brenton)-----The Torah content for the entire month of February has been sponsored by Y.K. with gratitude to Rabbi Schneeweiss for providing a clear and easily accessible path to personal growth via his reliably interesting and inspiring Torah content.-----If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweissYouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweissInstagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.comOld Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0HAmazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!Length: 58 minutesSynopsis: Tonight (2/12/24), in our Wednesday night Tehilim shiur, we attempted to "land the plane" - and I believe we succeeded! We reviewed our analysis from last time, honed in on the key questions we intended to resolve, then managed to synthesize the steps we took, thanks to one new step which tied everything together. We emerged with a solid understanding of the main idea of the perek and its application. This is yet another example of how enriching it can be to learn an unfamiliar perek of Tehilim! Now the question is: Which perek should we learn next?-----מקורות:תהלים פרק סהמצודת דודרד"ק - תהלים קטז:יד-----The Torah content for the entire month of February has been sponsored by Y.K. with gratitude to Rabbi Schneeweiss for providing a clear and easily accessible path to personal growth via his reliably interesting and inspiring Torah content.-----If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweissYouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweissInstagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.comOld Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0HAmazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel

Before one immerses a new utensil, he recites the Beracha, "Baruch Ata…Asher Kideshanu Be'misvotav Ve'sivanu Al Tebilat Keli." If he immerses more than one utensil on one occasion, then he recites "Al Tebilat Kelim," in the plural form, instead of the singular form of "Al Tebilat Keli." Nevertheless, if one mistakenly recited the Beracha in the plural form for a single utensil, or in the singular form for multiple utensils, he has fulfilled his obligation and does not repeat the Beracha. While reciting the Beracha, one should preferably hold the utensil in his right hand. Furthermore, it is proper to stand while reciting the Beracha, just as one should stand whenever he recites a Beracha over a Misva. Some Rabbis found an allusion for this Halacha in the verse (Tehilim 33:11), "Asat Hashem Le'olam Ta'amod" (literally, "the counsel of God shall always endure"). The letters of the words "Asat" and "Le'olam" are "Ayin," "Sadi," "Tav," "Lamed," "Ayin," "Lamed" and "Mem," which represent the words, "Erub," "Sisit," "Tefilin," "Lulab," "Omer," "Lebana" and "Mila." This verse thus alludes to the fact that when one recites the Beracha over these Misvot, "Ta'amod" – he must stand. This applies to Tebilat Kelim (immersing utensils), as well. Nevertheless, if a person sat while reciting the Beracha before immersing a utensil, he has fulfilled his obligation and does not repeat the Beracha. Tebilat Kelim differs from other Misvot in that it is not an outright obligation; one is not required to immerse a new utensil unless he wishes to use it. As such, there is greater room for leniency, and thus one who mistakenly sat while reciting the Beracha does not repeat the Beracha. One must not speak after reciting the Beracha until he finishes immersing all the utensils he intends to immerse. One may speak in matters related to the immersion, such as asking somebody to bring him another utensil or the scraper to remove stickers. If one spoke in matters unrelated to the immersion after he recited the Beracha and before he began immersing the utensils, he must repeat the Beracha. While immersing a utensil, one should hold it with a loose grip, in order to allow the water in the Mikveh to come in contact with the entire surface of the utensil. Alternatively, one may wet his hands before immersing the utensil, in which case he is allowed to hold the utensil with an average grip during the immersion. Since his hands are already wet, the part of the utensil that he holds will come in contact with Mikveh water by touching his hands. One may even wet his hands with water from a sink for this purpose, as this water will obtain the status of Mikveh water once it enters the Mikveh (due to a Halachic concept known as "Hashaka"). Many people use baskets with holes in the bottom and sides when immersing several utensils at once. They lower the basket into the Mikveh, and the water in the Mikveh enters the basket through the holes and touches the utensils. This is certainly permissible, but on condition that one places the utensils alongside one another, as opposed to on top of one another. When utensils rest on top of one another, the weight of the top utensil might prevent the water from touching the upper surface of the lower utensil. One must therefore ensure that the utensils are lined across, next to one another, without any utensil on top of another. Summary: Before immersing a utensil, one recites the Beracha of "Al Tebilat Keli" (or "Al Tebilat Kelim" for multiple utensils), preferably while standing and while holding the utensil in his right hand. He should not speak in matters unrelated to the immersion until he finishes immersing all the utensils. One should hold the utensil with a loose grip, or wet his hands prior to the immersion and then hold the utensil with an average grip. Perforated baskets may be used to immerse several utensils together, provided that no utensil is placed on top of another.

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!Length: 56 minutesSynopsis: Tonight (2/5/24), in our Wednesday night Tehilim shiur, we continued our analysis of the perek we began last week. Day 2 of learning a new perek is like a box of chocolates: you never know what you're going to get. I was actually a bit worried that we wouldn't get ANYWHERE tonight, as sometimes happens on Day 2, but I was pleasantly surprised. We came up with three general approaches which all overlapped, and we developed a few other ideas as well. I'm encouraged by the progress we've made and I'm fairly confident we'll continue developing these ideas next week when we start looking into the meforshim.-----מקורות:תהלים פרק סהרד"ק - תהלים סה:אמלבי"ם - תהלים סה:אThe Torah content for the entire month of February has been sponsored by Y.K. with gratitude to Rabbi Schneeweiss for providing a clear and easily accessible path to personal growth via his reliably interesting and inspiring Torah content.-----If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweissYouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweissInstagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.comOld Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0HAmazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel

1)     Many Sidurim have a list of verses corresponding to people's names, to be recited before stepping back at the end of the Shmone Esrei. I found some of those verses to be difficult for my younger pupils. Can I recommend a simpler verse instead?[1] 2)    Is playing football on Shabbos permitted?[2] 3)    A non-frum Jew kindly lent money to my Beis Chabad, but he wrote the cheque on Shabbos. May I deposit the cheque?[3] 4)    Why does Chabad not say א-ל מלך נאמן before Shema?[4] 5)    Following on from discussion about the issue of Nolad in making whip-cream on Shabbos; may one make soda-water on Shabbos?[5] 6)    When visiting small communities ahead of Purim, should I read theMegila for them?[6] 7)    I ate a meaty supper. I then saw a tasty bun, said the brocho, and was then alerted that the bun is milky. May I eat a drop of the bun in order to avoid a brocho in vain?[7] 8)    Is there value in saying Birkas haMozon in Hebrew from a transliterated text?[8] 9)    I share an office with a non-Jew. On a recent vacation trip to Egypt, he picked up some antique artefacts and has displayed them in our office. May I pray in that office?[9] 10)  Feedback on saying Tehilim on the eve of Shabbos Mevorchim:[10] [1] במאמר הר' ישראל חיים שטעסל (מח"ס שיח תפלה, ונספח לסידור 'תפלת ישראל, י. קרויס, תשע"ד, ע' רלא) מוכיח שיש להעדיף פסוקים אלו דוקא. [2] דיון מדין מוקצה – בשו"ע סי' שח סמ"ה ובשוע"ר שם ספ"ג. ואילו בסי' שלח ס"ו חשש להשוויית גומות. ונ"ל דשם מיירי במשחק גולות וכיו"ב. [3] איסור מעשה שבת (בר"ס שיח) לאחרים רק עד מוצ"ש, אף למי שבישל בשבילם. וש"נ לסי' תקג סי"ב שהתבשיל אסור לכל אנשי ביתו לעולם. ויל"ח בין שבת דחמירא בעיני אינשי, משא"כ יו"ט, ולכך החמירו שם. [4] דבר זה הובא בשוע"ר סי' סא ס"ד. ובהע' צויין לתקוני זהר. ב'סדור' הורה להכפיל התיבות "'אה"א'. בס' דרכי חיים ושלום (אות קמג) מביא מהאשכול והרמב"ן שאמירת 'א-ל מלך נאמן' הוי' עניית אמן על ברכת עצמו, דהוי מגונה (לבד מ'בונה ירושלים'). אכן בזמנים עברו היה הש"ץ מברך בקול ברכות קר"ש, והקהל ענו 'אמן'. או שענו 'א-ל מלך נאמן'. אבל מי שמברך בעצמו 'אהבת עולם' אין לו לומר 'א-ל מלך נאמן'. ולהעיר ממנהגנו (ספר המנהגים ע' 11) שהש"ץ מסיים ברכת 'אהבת עולם' בלחש – מחשש הפסק ב'אמן'. אע"פ שיש דעות בראשונים לענות שם אמן על ברכת עצמו. [5] בס' שמירת שבת כהלכתה פי"א סל"ו מתיר הדבר. ואילו בפסקי תשובות (סי' שכ אות טו) מביא מצדדים לכאן ולכאן. [6] מבואר באו"ח סי' תרפח ס"ז. [7] בס' פסקים ותשובות (יו"ד סי' פט אות ה) מקיל לטעום מעט לאחרי שעה מאכילת הבשר, ויש מקילים בתוך השעה, אך בקינוח ידיו ופיו.  ולענין תענית ראה שערי תשובה סי' תקסח סק"א. ובפסקי תשובות (שם אות ב) תלוה הדבר בפלוגתא אם ברכה לבטלה אסורה מדאורייתא או מדרבנן. [8] ראה שוע"ר סי' קפה ס"א ואילך. [9] ראה שוע"ר סי' צד ס"י. [10] ראה ליקוט דיני ומנהגי ראש חודש (לר"ח רפפורט, קה"ת נ"י תש"נ) פ"א הע' 26. הערת ר"א קיעוומאן נ"י: א) אחרי תשמ"ח לא הי' מיקרופון לברכה לתמימים בערב יו"כ; ב) כשחל יו"ט בערב שבת, לא היתה התוועדות בערב שבת. ומשמע שבגלל שהרבי הדליק נרות, לא סמך על אי-קבלת השבת מיד.

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!Length: 57 minutesSynopsis: Tonight (1/29/24), in our Wednesday night Tehilim shiur, we began a new perek! I chose this one because of the famous opening line (which is central to the Rambam's writings about praising Hashem). As usual, we spent much of this first session reading and translating the perek, and BOY WAS IT A TEETHBREAKER! The words, grammar, and syntax in this perek are NOT simple! Still, we hobbled together a translation, then stuck with Robert Alter's translation for our analysis. We identified a viable pivot point and raised a bunch of questions. Next time (בג"ה), we'll try to develop a theory about the theme or the main idea, either on our own or with the help of meforshim.-----מקורות:תהלים פרק סה-----The Torah content for the rest of January is sponsored by Avital, “to continued growth, learning and clarity IY”H. Thank you for all your guidance!”-----If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweissYouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweissInstagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.comOld Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0HAmazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel

The blessing of Birkat Ha'gomel (which one recites after emerging from a situation of danger) must be recited in the presence of ten people. The authorities debate the question of whether one must repeat the Beracha if he recited it when ten people were not present. The Shulhan Aruch applies to this case the famous rule of "Safek Berachot Le'hakel," which means that one should not recite a Beracha in situations of uncertainty. One who mistakenly recited Birkat Ha'gomel while not in the presence of ten people therefore should not repeat the Beracha in the presence of ten people. Preferably, if he finds somebody who will be reciting the Beracha in the presence of ten people, then he should listen to the Beracha and have the person reciting the Beracha have in mind to fulfill his obligation, as well. Alternatively, he can repeat the Beracha in the presence of ten people but omit the phrase, "Hashem Elokenu Melech Ha'olam." Preferably, at least two Torah scholars should be present for the recitation of Birkat Ha'gomel. It is uncertain whether these two scholars should be among or in addition to the ten people – that is, whether there should be ten in addition to the scholars, or ten including the scholars. In any event, when possible, one should arrange to recite Birkat Ha'gomel in front of a group that includes at least two Torah scholars. However, one should not delay Birkat Ha'gomel for this purpose. If a person is in the synagogue with a Minyan but no Torah scholars are present, he should recite Birkat Ha'gomel despite the absence of Torah scholars, rather than delay the recitation to another day. One should recite Birkat Ha'gomel while standing, and the people listening should preferably be seated. The verse (Tehilim 107:32) speaks of praising God for one's salvation "Be'moshab Zekenim," which literally means, "among the sitting elders," implying that the people in whose presence one recites the Beracha should be sitting. After the individual recites Birkat Ha'gomel, the people listening answer "Amen" and then respond, "Mi She'gemalach Kol Tub Hu Yigmulcha Kol Tub Sela." This means, "He who has granted you all kindness shall [continue to] grant you all kindness." The Ben Ish Hai (Rabbi Yosef Haim of Baghdad, 1833-1909) writes that after the congregation answers with this response, the individual should then say, "Amen Ken Yehi Rason," expressing his wish that their prayer for him shall be fulfilled. Summary: Birkat Ha'gomel must be recited in the presence of ten people. If ten people were not present at the time of Birkat Ha'gomel, one nevertheless does not repeat the Beracha. It is preferable to have Torah scholars present for Birkat Ha'gomel, but the Beracha should not be delayed for this purpose. During the recitation, the individual reciting the Beracha should be standing and the audience should be sitting.

1)    Siyum on Rambam Sefer Nezikin. 2)    In error I sent £1000 to a Tzedoko account. Is the Tzedoko's manager permitted to reimburse the money to my account?[1] 3)    I've heard of a Segula: to recite Chapter 20 of Tehilim during pregnancy. Please enlighten me:[2] 4)    Some Sefardim are lenient re. chazarah and permit placing food from the fridge onto the hotplate on Shabbos. May an Ashkenazi eat from this?[3] 5)    A nozzle-extension to a tap, does it need to be toivelled?[4] 6)    In our (Central European) city, it's only at this time of the year that we can buy beeswax candles (for a fraction of the price in heimishe stores). May we buy them?[5] 7)    I'm travelling during Chanukah. Is there value in lighting Menora at my host after Plag haMincha with a lot of oil, and then rush away to the airport for our evening flight?[6] 8)    A Chuppah was held during Bein HaShmoshos. When does the week of celebration end?[7] 9)    A balebos was asked by a church to rent a property of his. Is that permitted?[8] 10)  I have a tattoo from before I became frum. I'm embarrassed with the inappropriate image on my body. May I have a tattoo done to obliterate the present image?[9] 11)  Feedback: number of Tevilos[10]; removal of name from cake - why it isn't borer; leftovers of Mayim Acharonim. https://us02web.zoom.us/j/9764852268?omn=8473670146 [1] ראה רמ"א יו"ד סי' רנח ס"ב; צדקה ומשפט פ"ד ס"ז. [2] ראה קובץ מנהגי חב"ד - בענייני הריון, לידה, ברית, פדיון הבן ולידת בת, ע' 13; מדרש תילים מזמור כ. [3] בס' ילקוט יוסף לסי' שיח (סנ"ז) מתיר לספרדי ליהנות ממעשה אשכנזי שחימם מאכל לח שנצטנן, אך לא לגמרי, אע"פ שלדעת השו"ע זה אסור. והוא משום ס"ס: אולי הלכה כהרמב"ם שאין בישול אחר בישול בדבר לח, ואולי ההלכה כרמ"א להקל בלא נצטנן לגמרי, ע"כ. וא"כ י"ל גם איפכא, בספרדי שחימם תבשיל עם מיעוט רוטב, להתיר לאשכנזי לאוכלו, משום ס"ס: אולי הלכתא כהרמב"ם, ואולי יש להתיר למיזיל בתר רוב המאכל. הגר"מ אליהו (דרכי הלכה על קצש"ע סי' פ הע' ד) אוסר הנחת פשטידא קרה על הפלטה (שנראה כמבשל), כ"א מול המדורה. [4] ראה ס' טבילת כלים פ"א הע' טז שכל ששימושו עם הקרקע אין צריך טבילה. [5] בשו"ת שבט הלוי (ח"ב סי' נז) מתיר הדבר, כי אין הקדש לע"ז (אף שכתוב מפורש על החבילה שהוא מיועד לחג הנוצרים). ואילו בשו"ת חלקת יעקב (ח"ג סי' ל) כתב שאין זה הידור מצוה, ואפילו לצורך השמש שאינו מצוה. ואולי באינו מפורש יודה גם הוא. [6] בשו"ע או"ח (סי' תערב ס"א) מתיר להדליק מפלג המנחה ולמעלה "ובלבד שיתן בה שמן עד שתכלה רגל מן השוק". ב'אור ישראל' (יח) מאריך הרב חיים אבערלאנדער נ"י אודות הנוסע מארה"ב לאירופא בחנוכה, אם ידליק אחר פלג המנחה טרם נסיעתו לנמל-תעופה או שידליק ע"י שליח. אך לא נחית למצב שיוצא מבית מארחו, ואז – בהגיע עיקר הזמן, בשקיעת החמה – אין זה ביתו. [7]  ברמ"א אה"ע סי' סב ס"ו נפסק שמתחילין מיד לאחר ז' ברכות שבירך בראשונה. [8] ראה שו"ע יו"ד סי' קנא ס"י; ש"ך שם ס"ק יז; דרכי תשובה שם אות כז. [9] ראה נשמת אברהם יו"ד סי' קפ א:3 בדבר איפור קבוע לאשה שחסרו לה גבות עיניים או למי שיש לו צלקת על עורו, שלמסקנת הגר"ע יוסף ז''ל יש להתיר בנידון, כי הרי"ף והרא"ש פסקו כר"ש (מכות כא ) שרק בשם ע"ז חייב, ואף להרמב"ם שפסק כת"ק, י"א דהיינו רק כשעושה הקעקוע לשם ע"ז, וזה לא שייך בנדו"ד, ואדרבה. גם אין כאן כתב, ודמיא לטשטוש צלקת שהתיר הגר"ע. אגב: שם דן על כתיבה עראית על בשר האדם. ולהעיר מדין הסגרת נגע צרעת, שי"א דהיינו ע"י דיו (רא"ש, בטור הארוך, ויקרא יג, ה); עובדא של אדה"ז עם אחיו בבירור שיעור גריס (שו"ת שארית יהודה יו"ד סי' יג). [10] ציטוט מקונטרס 'שופר לאור החסידות', לב לייבמן, אלול תשפ"ג. ואילו בס' 'המזכיר' ח"א ע' 158 – הסדר להיפך!

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!Mishlei 15:11 - The Grave, Destruction, and Kal va'Chomer Human Hearts (Part 1)שְׁאוֹל וַאֲבַדּוֹן נֶגֶד י"י אַף כִּי לִבּוֹת בְּנֵי אָדָם:Length: 46 minutesSynopsis: This morning (12/11/24), in our morning Mishlei shiur, we learned a strange pasuk which looks like it belongs in Iyov or Tehilim rather than in Mishlei. We came up with a few approaches, some in need of more work than others, and we reviewed some important methodology points. Tomorrow (בג"ה) we'll try on our own again before delving into the meforshim.-----מקורות:משלי טו:אתרגום רב הירשמצודת ציוןתרגום רס"ג-----This week's Torah content has been generously sponsored by Ann, a dedicated supporter of the Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund. Thank you, Ann, for your ongoing contribution, which enables me to make my Torah available and accessible to everyone!-----If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweissYouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweissInstagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.comOld Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0HAmazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel

Rabbi Daniel Kalish

In this week's Parasha , Noach was commanded to bring into the Teva two of every kind of animal that existed in the world to keep it's species alive. The sefer Birkat David quotes from studies that were done investigating how many species exist in the world. It said there are 10 kosher animals, 5,300 non-kosher animals, 18,000 kinds of reptiles, 9,000 kinds of birds and hundreds of thousands of insects. As big as the teva was, it was mathematically impossible for all of those animals to have fit on it. Furthermore, Noah and his family were given the job of feeding those animals. Even if every one of them would have spent all of their 24 hour days feeding the animals, they still wouldn't even come close to reaching every animal each day. Moreover, where was all that food stored ?Just the elephant alone eats approximately 300 pounds of food a day. Obviously this must have been accomplished by way of a miracle from Hashem. If that's the case, the Ramban asks, why did Hashem instruct Noah to build such a big Teva ? Anyway, it wasn't going to fit everything. He answered, Hashem wanted the miracle to be minimized as much as possible. And then he added, this is the way of all miracles. Man has to do all he can. And then Hashem does the rest. This is how it is with everything we do in life. We go through the motions, doing what we can, and Hashem is the One who gets things done. With this knowledge, if a person ever runs into a situation where it doesn't seem possible for him to accomplish his goal, but he knows it's the right thing to do, his job is to proceed with it, and he can then leave the rest to Hashem. Rabbi Avraham Salem, a mohel in Israel, told the following story about himself. Some years back on a hot day in the month of Elul, he had many brit milas scheduled in Netanya and the surrounding areas. The second to last one of the day was scheduled for 7:00 PM in one location. And the last one was in a different location pretty far from there, with sunset being at 7:15. This meant the mohel would have less than ten minutes to get there and do that last brit milah . He had no other choice. That was the only possibility for him to get all of them done on that day. While he was driving to that last brit milah, he saw smoke coming from underneath his car, and he quickly pulled over. He saw one of his tires was completely flat. It was too late to first call a taxi. He made a tefila to Hashem, "Please help me get this Mila accomplished." It seemed impossible to get there and complete it before sunset. But this rabbi knew he had to put in the effort and Hashem would decide what happens. So he waved down the next car driving by and begged the driver to help him. The driver was apprehensive, not knowing who this man was. The rabbi already started thanking him and got into his car and told him, "Please just go. I assure you we are doing holy work. I'll explain on the road." It was about a five mile drive to the next place, and there was nine minutes to go until sunset. The rabbi told the driver who was not religious, "You are Hashem's messenger. I am trying to get a brit mila done by the end of the day. I'm going to say Tehilim now and you just drive" When they arrived at the address, the rabbi was afraid to look at his watch. The driver told him you still have more than four minutes to go. The rabbi ran into the shul and was able to finish the mila before sunset. When he came out, he told the driver, you have no idea how great of a mitzvah you just did. The driver then said, "My name is Shimon. And if I just did a great mitzvah and you are a rabbi, please give me a beracha that I should get married. I'm 45 and I'm still single. I'm so lonely." The rabbi then put his hands on Shimon's head and gave him a heartfelt beracha and concluded by saying, "B'ezrat Hashem, I will have the merit to circumcise your first born son." The rabbi concluded this story by saying it was just one year later when Shimon called him in tears telling him that he got married two months after that episode, and now they had their first baby boy and were hoping he could come do the brit milah. That day that the rabbi tried to do all of those brit milas it seemed like he hit a roadblock and wasn't going to be able to complete the mission. Yet he kept going, because he knew that he just had to make the efforts, and it will be Hashem who actually gets things done. Shabbat Shalom.

Podcast Jajam Shlomo (Sally) Zaed Enseñanzas de Tehilim 27 Conferencia

Navigating Spiritual Highs and Lows: Insights from Rabbi Nachman and the TorahThis script offers an in-depth analysis of the spiritual and emotional journeys inspired by Rabbi Nachman and the Torah. It emphasizes the significance of introspection during Elul, the impact of B'Kurim, and the analysis of Psukim, focusing on the roles of Tehillim and Tshuva in personal and collective redemption. Key teachings from Likutei Moharan and the Tanya are discussed, highlighting the necessity of experiencing both spiritual highs and lows, the importance of recognizing emotions, and the profound truths found in Sefer Tehillim. The insights presented aim to guide individuals in finding comfort and purpose in their unique spiritual paths.Kollel Toras Chaim was established to learn Rebbe Nachman torah in depth and to live with his torah for several months with chaburas in various cities learning together. Download our learning pamphlet here, our special English version here feel free to reach out to us by email or by WhatsApp. Subscribe to our WhatsApp status for exclusive updates, short clips and more. We are also available on Youtube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts.Chapters00:00 Introduction and Gratitude00:59 The Struggle of Avoda02:14 Dealing with Adversity04:23 The Importance of Embracing Challenges11:04 The Role of Tehillim in Tshuva12:58 Understanding the Process of Growth13:52 The Concept of the 50 Gates of Tshuva23:43 The Power of Crying Out to Hashem44:17 Struggling with Perfection45:30 The Essence of Tshuva45:59 Facing HaKadosh Baruch Hu46:30 The Power of Direction47:22 Inspiration and Effort49:34 Personalizing the Journey55:59 The Role of Tehillim58:29 Connecting Through Tshuva01:01:56 Final Reflections and Encouragement

R' Micha Golshevsly Torah 73 Pt. 1The Power of Tehillim in Achieving TeshuvahThis episode explores the concepts of Teshuvah and Tehillim and their deep, interconnected significance. The discussion begins with the common challenge of people's lack of urgency in doing Teshuvah, often stemming from feelings of despair. Using the metaphor of a general in despair after a loss, it emphasizes the importance of Tehillim in rekindling one's desire and ability to perform Teshuvah. Through various scenarios, whether someone is clueless on where to begin or cannot follow through despite knowing the steps, Tehillim is presented as a guiding and transformative tool. The script also highlights different stages of Teshuvah, the spiritual orientation needed for the Jewish New Year, and the inspirational story of a girl whose adherence to Shabbat brings about a miraculous change in her family's faith. Ultimately, the power of Tehillim is celebrated for its ability to bring individuals closer to their spiritual mission and help them achieve true transformation.Kollel Toras Chaim was established to learn Rebbe Nachman torah in depth and to live with his torah for several months with chaburas in various cities learning together. Download our learning pamphlet here, our special English version here feel free to reach out to us by email or by WhatsApp. Subscribe to our WhatsApp status for exclusive updates, short clips and more. We are also available on Youtube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts.Chapters00:00 Introduction to Teshuvah and Tehillim00:46 Overcoming Despair with Tehillim01:37 Finding the Path to Teshuvah03:10 The Power of Prayer and Tehillim04:35 Spiritual Orientation and Rosh Hashanah07:19 Transformative Stories of Tehillim10:00 Levels of Teshuvah and Continuous Growth

We Learnfrom the Fruit of the Earth to Reinvent Ourselves in the Month of Elul so thatWe Will Be New Creatures at Rosh HaShanah Based onShvilei Pinchas – Rav Pinchas Friedman I canstart with the story Can aperson be reborn? Lastnight Chantelle took me along to an Emunah Dinner. I say Chantelle took mebecause if she didn't make me come out, I wouldn't. She lights the fire. Herfriends Liz Gindea and Fran Hirmes have been very involved with and generouslysupportive of the organization for years. Emunah funds a number of children'shomes in Israel, along with schools, an arts college, daycare services andthese days many mental health programs. My son in law, Daniel's brother Michaelthrough his organization Kol HaNearim also works with these children'shomes. Chantelleand all of my kids have volunteered and worked in some of these homes over theyears especially with Yehuda Kohen of Bet Elazraki. At thedinner, a young lady spoke and shared her very moving story. She grewup in the north of Israel in no mans land. Her mother did nothing and herfather raised goats. She was one of ten siblings. They had no rules, nodiscipline, no money, sometimes no food and ran amok. The kids sometimes foughtand often got in trouble. When shewas ten, social services showed up. After investigating, they took some of heryounger siblings to be raised outside the house. She convinced them that sheshould stay. But her situation went from bad to worse and a few months laterthey came back and took her as well. She wasplaced into one of Emunah's homes and was angry with her situation and everyonearound her. She was angry that she had been taken from home. She was angry thather parents had not provided a real home. She was angry to be told when to wakeup and when to go to sleep. She was angry to be sent to school. She was angryto be pressed to do homework. She was angry that she was subject to structureand in her mind lost her freedom. She was depressed and alone in the world. Ateleven years old, she had reached rock bottom. Butwithin a few weeks, things started to change. The people at the Emunah homemade her feel loved and wanted. She made friends in the home and at school. Thesocial workers and teachers encouraged her and in a short time she began tosoar as a phoenix rising from the ashes. She wasencouraged to pursue drama studies and loved it. In 2013 she joined the armyand became a combat paramedic assisting injured soldiers and people in thefield, sometimes under fire. When she completed her army duty, she continuedher studies focusing on drama. She eventually went to work for channel 12 newsin Israel. She currently heads their social media team and pursues feel goodstories to help lift people. Emunahbecame her family. Her goal is to raise her own family and break the cycle. Her storywas very moving. Chantelle noted that she wished she could have her share herstory with our own community children in school. She would surely touch someand encourage others. Some might be lifted and others might consider assistingin the homes one summer. Perhaps we can get a video from Emunah and share that. There isa beautiful story told of Rav Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev, a renowned Hasidicmaster, who was known for his compassion and ability to find sparks of holinessin every soul. One day, a poor, troubled Jew came to him, feeling hopeless andconsumed by darkness. The rabbilistened attentively, then began to tell a story: 'In the summer, when thesun shines brightly, the grasshopper sings a beautiful song. But in the winter,when snow covers the earth, the grasshopper's song is silenced. Does this meanthe grasshopper has lost its ability to sing?' The manshook his head. 'Ofcourse not!' the rabbi exclaimed. 'The grasshopper's song is stillwithin, waiting to emerge when the seasons change.' The rabbilooked deeply into the man's eyes: 'Similarly, within you, there is aspark of divine light, a song waiting to be sung. Though darkness may surroundyou now, it's temporary, like winter's snow. Your task is to find that innerlight, nurture it, and let it shine forth.' The man'sface lit up with newfound hope. In thisseason of Elul, we hope to be born again. We canimagine ourselves as caterpillars, hoping to shed our cocoons and emerge asbutterflies. Sometimesthough we think that success is based on achieving perfection. But isthat really what Hashem demands or even wants from us. There isa story, I heard from Rabbi Joey Haber, of a man seeking perfection in his ownlife. His rabbiasks his profession He is anartist, Hisfavorite painting is of sunset. Histeacher suggests taking a picture of a sunset and that will be a perfectreproduction. theartist explains the painting has imperfections and thats what makes it special. Theteacher explains, same with us Angelsmay be perfect, but our imperfection makes us special. imperfectionsadd uniqueness and value, both in art and in life. Thisweek's parsha is Ki Tavo. Based onthe teaching of the Shvilei Pinchas, Rabbi Pinchas Friedman, I would like toshare with you a connection of our efforts in Elul and the mitzvah of“bikkurim,” bringing the first fruits, which we open the perasha with The SefatEmet quotes the Chiddushei HaRim, zy”a. Heexplains why the month designated for teshuvah is named Elul based on thepassuk (ibid. 100, 3 דְּע֗וּ כִּֽי־ ה֮ ה֤וּא אֱלֹ֫קים הֽוּא־עָ֭שָׂנוּ (ולא) [וְל֣וֹ]אֲנַ֑חְנוּ עַ֝מּ֗וֹ וְצֹ֣אן מַרְעִיתֽוֹ׃ If onelooks in the book of Tehilim the word Loh is spelled Lamed alef or No But inthe siddur when we read this psalm each morning as Paslm 100 Miszor LeDavid wechange the aleph to a vav —know thatHashem, He is G-d; it is He Who made us and we are His—His nation and the sheepof His pasture. Traditionteaches us that the word “v'lo” in this passuk is written as ' ולא ',with an “aleph”; yet, it is read as ולו' ', with a “vav.” With an“aleph,” the passuk suggests that we are unworthy and inadequate to be Hispeople; with a “vav,” it means that we merit being close to Him. Heexplains that in reality both the way “v'lo” is written and the way it is readcomplement each other and achieve the same goal. By recognizing our lowlystature and the fact that we have sinned and failed to serve Hashemadequately--' ולא אנחנו עמו ' (the way the passuk is written)—we aremotivated to draw closer to Hashem by means of sincere teshuvah and attain thestatus of-- ולו אנחנו עמו' ' (the way the passuk is read) again. Bothprocesses enable us to achieve the goal of being ' עמו ', HKB”H'speople. This is alluded to by the name אלו'ל ; it combines thetwo spellings of the word “lo”-- ל'א and ל'ו . This teaches us thatour goal during the month of Elul is to combine these two processes, to correctall of our wrongdoings by means of complete teshuvah and to regain the statusof ' .'עמו Lets turnto the Gemara (Makkot 24a): 'וכברהיה רבן גמליאל ורבי אלעזר בן עזריה ורבי יהושע ורבי עקיבא מהלכין בדרך...The first story tells about the Goyim. Then the gemara continues Now Iimagine these stories take place following the rebellion of Bar Kochba and theedicts of Hadrian Yimach Shemo שׁוּב פַּעַםאַחַת הָיוּ עוֹלִין לִירוּשָׁלַיִם, כֵּיוָן שֶׁהִגִּיעוּ לְהַר הַצּוֹפִים קָרְעוּבִּגְדֵיהֶם, כֵּיוָן שֶׁהִגִּיעוּ לְהַר הַבַּיִת רָאוּ שׁוּעָל שֶׁיָּצָא מִבֵּיתקׇדְשֵׁי הַקֳּדָשִׁים, הִתְחִילוּ הֵן בּוֹכִין וְרַבִּי עֲקִיבָא מְצַחֵק. אָמְרוּלוֹ: מִפְּנֵי מָה אַתָּה מְצַחֵק? אָמַר לָהֶם: מִפְּנֵי מָה אַתֶּם בּוֹכִים? אָמְרוּלוֹ: מָקוֹם שֶׁכָּתוּב בּוֹ ״וְהַזָּר הַקָּרֵב יוּמָת״, וְעַכְשָׁיו שׁוּעָלִים הִלְּכוּבּוֹ, וְלֹא נִבְכֶּה?! אָמַר לָהֶן:לְכָךְ אֲנִי מְצַחֵק, דִּכְתִיב: ״וְאָעִידָה לִּי עֵדִים נֶאֱמָנִים אֵת אוּרִיָּההַכֹּהֵן וְאֶת זְכַרְיָה בֶּן יְבֶרֶכְיָהוּ״ – וְכִי מָה עִנְיַן אוּרִיָּה אֵצֶלזְכַרְיָה? אוּרִיָּה בְּמִקְדָּשׁ רִאשׁוֹן, וּזְכַרְיָה בְּמִקְדָּשׁ שֵׁנִי! אֶלָּא:תָּלָה הַכָּתוּב נְבוּאָתוֹ שֶׁל זְכַרְיָה בִּנְבוּאָתוֹ שֶׁל אוּרִיָּה. בְּאוּרִיָּהכְּתִיב ״לָכֵן בִּגְלַלְכֶם צִיּוֹן שָׂדֶה תֵחָרֵשׁ״, בִּזְכַרְיָה כְּתִיב ״עוֹדיֵשְׁבוּ זְקֵנִים וּזְקֵנוֹת בִּרְחֹבוֹת יְרוּשָׁלִָם״. עַד שֶׁלֹּא נִתְקַיְּימָהנְבוּאָתוֹ שֶׁל אוּרִיָּה הָיִיתִי מִתְיָירֵא שֶׁלֹּא תִּתְקַיֵּים נְבוּאָתוֹ שֶׁלזְכַרְיָה, עַכְשָׁיו שֶׁנִּתְקַיְּימָה נְבוּאָתוֹ שֶׁל אוּרִיָּה – בְּיָדוּעַ שֶׁנְּבוּאָתוֹשֶׁל זְכַרְיָה מִתְקַיֶּימֶת. בַּלָּשׁוֹן הַזֶּה אָמְרוּ לוֹ: עֲקִיבָא נִיחַמְתָּנוּ,עֲקִיבָא נִיחַמְתָּנוּ. Once,Rabban Gamliel, Rabbi Elazar ben Azariah, Rabbi Yehoshua and Rabbi Akiva weretraveling on the road . . . When they reached Har HaTzofim, they tore theirgarments. When they came to Har HaBayis, they saw a fox emerging from KodeshHaKodashim, and they began to cry; however, Rabbi Akiva smiled. They said tohim, “Why are you smiling?” He responded to them, “Why are you crying?” Theyanswered him, “A place about which it is written (Bamidbar 1, 51): ‘Thenon-kohen who comes close shall be put to death,' and now (Eichah 5, 18) ‘foxesare walking about there,' should we not cry?” He saidto them, “This is why I am smiling . . . In the prophecy of Uriah, it iswritten (Michah 3, 12): ‘Therefore, because of you, Tziyon will be plowed likea field etc.' In the prophecy of Zechariah, it is written (Zechariah 8, 4):‘Old men and old women will yet sit in the streets of Yerushalayim.' As longas the nevuah of Uriah had not been fulfilled, I feared that the nevuah ofZechariah would not be fulfilled. Now, that the nevuah of Uriah has beenfulfilled, it is apparent that the nevuah of Zechariah will be fulfilled.” Theyresponded to him in these words, “Akiva, you have consoled us; Akiva, you haveconsoled us!” Itbehooves us to analyze Rabbi Akiva's reactions described above. Why did helaugh and smile upon seeing proof of Zechariah's nevuah related to the futuregeulah? Without a doubt, the other sages also believed wholeheartedly in theveracity of the prophecies concerning the future geulah. Nevertheless, whenconfronted with the extent of the churban—witnessing a fox exiting from theKodesh HaKodashim—they were overcome with grief and cried. So, what possessedRabbi Akiva to react so differently to the same disturbing sight? Additionally,why did he require seeing the fulfillment of Uriah's nevuah concerning theextent of the churban in order to substantiate that Zechariah's nevuahconcerning the geulah would be fulfilled? Toexplain the matter, the Maharal teaches us a basic principle. HKB”H created theworld such that there is always void and nullification prior to renewal.Furthermore, the degree of renewal relates to the degree of absence and divineconcealment. In other words, the greater the absence and void, the greater therenewal will be. TheMaharal asserts that HKB”H revealed this phenomenon to us at the beginning ofthe Torah (Bereishis 1, 1): 'בראשית ברא אלקים את השמיםואת הארץ, והארץ היתה תוהו ובוהו וחושך על פני תהום ורוח אלקיםמרחפת על פני המים, ויאמר אלקים יהי אור ויהי אור'. theMaharal interprets Rabbi Akiva's profound message. Uponseeing the fox emerge from the chamber of the Kodesh HaKodashim, he smiled. Hehad no doubt that the nevuah of Zechariah would come to pass—that old men andwomen would sit in the streets of Yerushalayim. However, he had no idea howgreat or grand the revival and renewal of Yerushalayim would be. The foxemerging from the Kodesh HaKodashim represented an extreme degree of “hesterpanim”—divine concealment. Therefore, he had cause to rejoice. For, heunderstood that the degree of churban and absence of the divine presencereflected on the commensurate greatness and glory of the renewal ofYerushalayim at the time of the geulah. InNetzach Yisrael (Chapter 30), the Maharal applies this incredible principle toexplain the galut in Mitzrayim that preceded Yisrael's entry into Eretz Yisraeland, for that matter, all the exiles that have preceded the future geulah. Theyall represent the void that precedes the new state of existence, like thedarkness of night that precedes the light of day. Therefore, HKB”H subjectedYisrael to the galut in Mitzrayim—which constituted a process ofnullification—prior to taking them into Eretz Yisrael. Thisexplains very nicely the following passuk related to the galuts in Mitzrayim(Shemos 1, 12): 'וכאשר יענו אותו כן ירבה וכן יפרוץ'—but as much as they afflict it, so it will increase and so it will burst forth. Here theTorah teaches us that the suffering and affliction in Mitzrayim constituted thevoid that gave rise to Yisrael's renewal and rebirth. After the exodus, theyreceived the Torah at Har Sinai and entered Eretz Yisrael. That demonstratesfor us magnificently how all of the galuyot constitute the absence and voidthat is destined to produce the incredible renewal of the future geulah. Its difficult to read this and not think of the Holocaust andthe miracles of 1948 and 1967 RabbiPinchas of Koretz—defines the state of nullification and void as ' אַיִן', which always precedes the state of renewal, referred to as '.'יֵשׁ.' Hecompares this concept to seeds of wheat or other fruit and vegetation that isplanted in the ground. Their growth only starts after the seed decays intoalmost nothingness -אַיִן'- '. Only then, from this state of nearnothingness, the seed begins to grow and sprout and renew itself. As he writes in Imrei Pinchas (Tishah B'Av 384): When grainis planted in the ground, it cannot grow unless it first decays and actuallybecomes nothing. In that void, remains a tremendous potential that can producean entire stalk. This is a type of metamorphosis. At the precise moment that itis virtually nothing, it immediately takes shape. There is a Hasidic story of a couple who come to their Rebbefor a blessing for a child. He asks for an exorbitant pidyon. They return,unable to raise it. He tells them that he can't help. They leave dejected andoutside his home they realize they can only turn to hashem. When the rebbehears that he calls them in and tells them they will be blessed with a child. We havelearned an important principle in the Mishnah (Avos 6, כלמה שברא הקב'ה בעולמו לא בראו אלא לכבודו' :( 11 '—everything that HKB”H created in His world, He created solely for His honor.That being the case, why did HKB”H create the world in such a way that nothingcan be renewed or revitalized without first undergoing a process of void andnullification? How does this enhance His honor? RabbiYisrael of Ruzhin, zy”a, explains regarding the following statement from DavidHaMelech (Tehillim 13, 2): 'עד אנה תסתיר את פניך ממני,עד אנה אשית עצות בנפשי' —how long will You hide Your countenance from me?How long will I continue to seek counsel within my own spirit? Heexplains that David HaMelech wished to teach us a vital lesson regarding ouremunah and trust in Hashem. When a Jew wants to receive salvation from Hashem,he must first understand that he is totally helpless on his own; his salvationdepends solely on Hashem. As long as he believes that he has a solution of hisown, his emunah and trust in Hashem are lacking. So, DavidHaMelech asks: How long will You continue to conceal Your presence from Me? Heanswers his own question: So long as I delude myself into thinking that I amcapable of resolving dilemmas with my own counsel and devices, the “hesterpanim”—divine concealment—will continue; however, as soon as I recognize withcertainty that I in fact lack any such wisdom or ability, the “hester panim”will cease, and Hashem's salvation will arrive instantaneously. Only whenI accept that I don't have all the answers Thus, it appears that this explains why HKB”H created theworld such that every renewal—situation of ' יש '–must be preceded bya state of void and nullification—situation of אין' '. It is becausesuch a difficult transformation causes man to understand that he does not havethe wisdom or resources to emerge from the darkness and void alone withoutHashem's assistance. As soon as he says to himself: “How long will I continueto seek counsel within my own spirit?”—he will succeed in emerging from thevoid to a state of renewal. In perekShirah Everythingin nature has a song And thesong sung by the wheat in Perek Shirah (Chapter 3): 'שיבולת חיטים אומרת שירהמעלות ממעמקים קראתיך ה'' —the stalk of wheat says (Tehillim 130, 1):“From the depths, I call to You, Hashem.” It isimportant to recognize that the term “lechem”—bread—encompasses all of man'sfood and nourishment. This is evident from the prayer of Yaakov Avinu(Bereishis 28, 20): 'ונתן לי לחם לאכול'—and He will give me bread to eat. Similarly, another passuk says (ibid. 47,12): 'ויכלכל יוסף את אביו ואת אחיו ואת כל בית אביו לחם לפי הטף'—Yosef provided his father and his brother and all of his father's householdwith food (“lechem”) according to the children. It is precisely for this reasonthat the berachah “hamotzi,” which is recited over bread, covers all the foodthat one consumes during a meal; it is because all other food is consideredsecondary to the bread. Weexplained above, that we learn from the growth of the wheat, from which breadis made, the vital principle that nothing can grow or be renewed without firstundergoing a stage of nullification—i.e. nullification of its current state.Therefore, only after the seeds of wheat decay and achieve a virtual state ofnothingness--' אין '—do they begin to grow and develop into a newentity. At that very moment, when they are in the ground and achieve the stateof » אין «, they pray to Hashem from the depths of the earth not to decaycompletely, to survive and grow into a new stalk of grain in the field above. We cannow appreciate and comprehend the song of the stalk of wheat. It recalls thechesed Hashem performed on its behalf whilst it was still deep in the ground ina state of decay. To express its gratitude to Hashem, it sings: 'שיר המעלותממעמקים קראתיך ה'' —thanking Hashem for hearing and responding to its pleafrom the depths of the earth. This iswhy David HaMelech instituted this psalm; so that we would join the stalk ofwheat in expressing gratitude to Hashem. For, we recognize all the kindness Heperforms on our behalf when we are in states of nothingness and helplessness.For instance, after every night of sleep, He returns our neshamos to usrevitalized. Itappears that we can suggest another reason that every situation of renewalrequires a prior state of nothingness. TheYosher Divrei Emet cites his Rav, the Maggid of Mezritsch, zy”a. He explainsthat this principle applies to spiritual matters as well. A person who wants torenew and revitalize his service of Hashem must first nullify his presentcircumstances—his ' יש '. This is accomplished by recognizing how farhe still has to go to serve Hashem properly. Through humility, submission andrecognition of his unworthiness, he will succeed in serving Hashem on a muchhigher level. Until he acknowledges his shortcomings in the service of Hashem,he will be unable to renew his spiritual self. We nowhave cause to rejoice! This illuminates for us the insight provided by theChiddushei HaRim, zy”a, concerning the name אלו'ל . As explained, itcombines the two spellings of the word “lo”-- ל'א and ל'ו . Thus, thename Elul reminds us that we must recognize that we have acted improperly andare not truly worthy of being Hashem's people--' .'ולא אנחנו עמו As aresult of this recognition and by mending our ways and attitudescorrespondingly, we will once again be deserving of the status of ' ולו אנחנועמו '. Let us explain this process in terms of our current discussion. Atthe end of the year, during the month of Elul, it is incumbent upon us to pushour personal reset buttons, so to speak. In order to create ourselves anewprior to Rosh HaShanah, we must nullify our old selves during the month ofElul. By recognizing that we are unworthy to be called His people--' ולא אנחנועמו '—we will succeed in transforming ourselves and taking on a newpersona in the new year consistent with the depiction--' .'ולו אנחנו עמו Followingthis glorious path, let us now address the opening pesukim of this week'sparsha discussing the mitzvah of bikkurim: “It will be when you enter the landthat Hashem, your G-d, gives you as an inheritance, and you take possession ofit, and dwell in it, that you shall take of the first of every fruit of theearth that you bring in from your land that Hashem, your G-d, gives you, andyou shall put it in a basket and go to the place that Hashem, your G-d, willchoose, to make His name rest there.” The KliYakar provides a rationale for this mitzvah. After conquering the new land,Yisrael were liable to become arrogant and attribute the conquest to their ownpowers and strategies. In particular, after working the land and growingvarious produce and fruit, they might think to themselves (Devarim 8, 17):' כוחי ועוצם ידי עשה לי את החיל הזה '—my strength and the might of myhand have generated this wealth for me. To eliminate this false belief, HKB”Hcommanded Yisrael to take the first of every fruit of the land, to take it upto the kohen in Yerushalayim and to recite an explicit expression of gratitudeto Hashem for giving us this land. This procedure was designed to fortify ouremunah in Hashem. Let usinterject a spicy tidbit. It is written (Tehillim 37, 11): וענוים יירשו ארץ''—the humble will inherit the earth. This passuk clearly implies that thequality of humility is propitious for inheriting Eretz Yisrael. For, we knowthat the kedushah of Eretz Yisrael is due to the presence of the Shechinah.This was especially true when the Beis HaMikdash was extant and operational. Asit is written (Shemos 25, 8): 'ועשו לי מקדש ושכנתי בתוכם' —they shallmake Me a sanctuary (Mikdash), so that I may dwell among them. Now, weknow that a prerequisite for the presence of the Shechinah is the midah ofhumility. In the words of the Gemara (Sotah 5a): 'לעולם ילמד אדם מדעת קונו,שהרי הקב'ה הניח כל הרים וגבעות והשרה שכינתו על הר סיני' —a personshould always learn from the good sense of his Creator—for behold, when HKB”Hgave the Torah, He abandoned all the great mountains and hills and insteadrested His Shechinah on Har Sinai (a lowly, unimpressive mountain). Additionally,they taught (ibid.): 'כל אדם שיש בו גסות הרוח, אמר הקב'ה אין אני והוא יכולים לדורבעולם' —concerning any person who possesses a haughtiness of spirit, HKB”Hsays: I and he cannot dwell together in the world. Therefore, HKB”H commandedthat upon entering the land, Yisrael would bring the bikkurim “to the placethat Hashem, your G-d, will choose, to make His name rest there.” This wouldinculcate in them the knowledge that HKB”H only rests His name in Eretz Yisraelin the merit of the midah of humility. Asexplained, the mitzvah of bikkurim is designed to shatter the klipah of “mystrength and the might of my hand have generated this wealth for me.” We willnow endeavor to explain why HKB”H used this mitzvah to hint to us theimportance of the midah of humility; for, this is the vital lesson we aresupposed to learn from the first fruit if we want to enter the land, keep itand endure in it. וְהָיָה֙ כִּֽי־תָב֣וֹאאֶל־הָאָ֔רֶץ אֲשֶׁר֙ ה אֱלֹקיךָ נֹתֵ֥ן לְךָ֖ נַחֲלָ֑ה וִֽירִשְׁתָּ֖הּ וְיָשַׁ֥בְתָּבָּֽהּ׃ וְלָקַחְתָּ֞מֵרֵאשִׁ֣ית ׀ כׇּל־פְּרִ֣י הָאֲדָמָ֗ה אֲשֶׁ֨ר תָּבִ֧יא מֵֽאַרְצְךָ֛ אֲשֶׁ֨ר יְהֹוָ֧האֱלֹהֶ֛יךָ נֹתֵ֥ן לָ֖ךְ וְשַׂמְתָּ֣ בַטֶּ֑נֶא וְהָֽלַכְתָּ֙ אֶל־הַמָּק֔וֹם אֲשֶׁ֤ריִבְחַר֙ יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֔יךָ לְשַׁכֵּ֥ן שְׁמ֖וֹ שָֽׁם׃ “It willbe when you enter the land that Hashem, your G-d, gives you as an inheritance,and you take possession of it, and dwell in it, that you shall take of thefirst of every fruit of the earth that you bring in from your land that Hashem,your G-d, gives you, and you shall put it in a basket and go to the place thatHashem, your G-d, will choose, to make His name rest there.” HKB”Hinstructs Yisrael: 'ולקחת מראשית כל פרי האדמה אשר תביא מארצך' . Letus expound: ' ולקחת '—you must learn a vital lesson— “lekach”—fromthe “first” yield of “every fruit of the earth.” When those fruits were yetseeds deep in the earth; they could not grow or sprout until they decayed intoa state of virtual nothingness— ״אין״ . In similar fashion, if you wish toremain in EretzYisrael, you must constantly humble yourselves, which is a type ofnullification and expression of nothingness. You must acknowledge how far youare still from serving Hashem properly. Only then will you be able to startanew, serving Hashem properly in His royal palace in Eretz Yisrael. Let usadd a valuable detail. When Moshe Rabeinu sent the meraglim to survey the land,he said to them (Bamidbar 13, 20): והתחזקתם ולקחתם מפרי הארץ' '—youshall strengthen yourselves and take from the fruit of the land. According tothe Zohar hakadosh (Shelach 158a), the meraglim did not want to enter the land,because they perceived that they would not maintain their elite status asprinces and leaders in Eretz Yisrael. This motivated them to speak ill of EretzYisrael, so that they would maintain thestatus of princes that they held in the midbar. In other words, the meraglim'sfailure is attributable to the klipah of arrogance— “ga'avah”; they feared thatthey would lose their prominence. Thus, itseems that this is what Moshe was hinting to the meraglim: ' והתחזקתם'—fortify yourselves against the yetzer of “ga'avah” that instills in youthe fear of losing authority and control; ' ולקחתם '—learn a vitallesson (“lekach”); ' —'מפרי הארץ from the fruit whose seeds cannotgrow and produce within the depths of the earth until they decay and achieve astate of nothingness. You, too,must fortify yourselves by achieving a state of virtual nothingness by totallyrelinquishing your prominent status as princes. By doing so, you will achieveyour complete tikun in Olam HaZeh and rise higher and higher in the service ofHashem. We cannow suggest the following. After the original generation of the midbar alldied—who were influenced by the meraglim, failing to learn the lessonconcerning the midah of humility from the fruit of the land—Moshe announced totheir children who were about to enter the land: “It will be when you enter theland that Hashem, your G-d, gives you as an inheritance, and you takepossession of it, and dwell in it.” He waswarning them that if they intend to enter the land and to prosper and survivein it, and not to suffer the fate of their fathers, who were not allowed toenter the land: 'ולקחת מראשית כל פרי האדמה' —be sure to learn thislesson (“lekach”) from the first yields of the fruits of the land—in contrastto their fathers who neglected to heed Moshe's warning: 'והתחזקתם ולקחתם מפריהארץ' —fortify yourselves and take (learn a lesson) from the fruit of theland. Thelesson relates to the avodah of the month of אלו'ל , whose name is formedby the two spellings of the word “lo”-- ל'א and ל'ו . As wehave explained, it is incumbent upon us to achieve a state of nothingnessthrough the midah of humility; we must acknowledge that due to our behavior, weare the embodiment of ' ולא אנחנו עמו '—we do not truly deserve to beHis people. Yet, withthis acknowledgment, we are able to renew ourselves through total teshuvah andreclaim the status of ' ולו אנחנו עמו '. In this merit, we willfinally deserve to be redeemed from the trials and tribulations of galus; aswe've learned, galus is the void and nothingness that must precede theflourishing growth of the future geulah—swiftly, in our times! Amen.

It is customary to conclude the Selihot service with "Kaddish Titkabal," the Kaddish which is normally recited after the repetition of the Amida. This Kaddish includes the phrase, "Titkabal Selot'hon U'ba'ut'hon De'chol Bet Yisrael," in which we ask the Almighty to accept the prayers we had just recited. It is therefore normally reserved for after the Hazzan's repetition of the Amida, and the question arises as to why we recite it following the Selihot service. The Lebush (Rabbi Mordechai Yaffe, 1530-1612) suggests that "Kaddish Titkabal" is indeed an appropriate conclusion to the Selihot service because this service is structured in a manner resembling the normal prayer service. We introduce Selihot with "Ashreh," and some communities add other chapters from Tehilim, as well. This introductory section of Selihot thus parallels "Pesukeh De'zimra," the series of chapters from Tehilim which we recite as the first stage of our daily prayer service. The main body of the Selihot service is the recitation of the "Yag Midot," or thirteen attributes of divine compassion, which, according to the Lebush, parallels the Amida prayer. Thereafter, we recite "Le'David," just as we do following the Amida prayer. Thus, since the Selihot service was structured in this manner, it is only fitting to conclude Selihot with "Kaddish Titkabal," just as we conclude the regular prayer service with this Kaddish. Divergent customs exist concerning the recitation of "Va'ya'abor" and the thirteen attributes of divine mercy in the Selihot service. The practice in the Bet-El Yeshiva in Israel, based on the teachings of Kabbala, is to recite this section four times during the Selihot service, corresponding with the four letters in the Divine Name of "Havaya." We, however, follow the custom to recite this section five times, corresponding with the five books of the Humash. We recite during the Selihot service, "Re'eh Be'oni Amecha Yisrael, Refa Kol Holeh Amecha Yisrael" – "Behold the destitution of Your nation Israel; heal all the ill of Your nation Israel." What connection is there between these two clauses – "the destitution of Your nation Israel," and the request that God "heal all the ill of Your nation Israel"? Rabbi Haim Palachi (Turkey, 1788-1869) explained the connection based on a comment in Masechet Derech Eretz that if one does not give money to charity, then he will ultimately be forced to give money to a physician. The money that a person failed to give to charity, the Sages teach, will be given to cover extra medical costs, Heaven forbid. Accordingly, we cry to the Almighty to "behold the destitution of Your nation Israel," to look upon the charitable donations that we have made. In that merit, we beseech Him to "heal all the ill of Your nation Israel," as the great merit of Sedaka has the power to save us from illness. Summary: It is customary to recite "Kaddish Titkabal" at the conclusion of the Selihot service, since Selihot is structured just like the daily prayer service, in which "Kadidsh Titkabal" is recited after the Amida. The custom in our community is to recite the section of "Va'ya'abor" and the thirteen attributes of mercy five times over the course of the Selihot service.