Tetzave: The Purpose of the Kohanim

by Rav Yehuda HaKohen, visionmag.org

By submerging individual identity into the collective Hebrew nation, the kohanim work to cleanse the children of Israel from all transgressions and to inspire the people with a powerful show of kedusha.

Listen to the audio/read the transcript here (8 min)

Story: The Awesome Power of Purim

by Rabbi Shmuel Holshtein, translated by Hillel Fendel

It is known that the most important aspect of the holiday of Purim is happiness and joy – and sometimes, the very insight into Divine Providence alone is more joyous even than rescue and salvation!

Some rabbis have a particularly deep connection to specific holidays – and for Reb Tzvi, the Grand Rabbi of Mezhiditchov, it was Purim. This was the holiday in which his emotions of joy came to the fore, emphasizing his special and unique service of G-d. His followers would often tell of the copious preparations that took place every year in the days before Purim in his home and among his helpers – preparations both spiritual and material. No end of cakes piled up, together with meat, fish, fine wines and more, for distribution for Mishloach Manot [gifts of food sent on Purim among friends and neighbors] – and for the traditional grand Purim feast that the Rebbe held for his followers. That annual feast was one thing that everyone made sure not to miss!

But perhaps most splendid of all were the costumes. Alongside from the many cooks engaged in preparing the Purim feast were a host of righteous women busy sewing the holiday attire and get-up for the community leaders to wear. This was in keeping with Jewish custom to masquerade on the holiday – showing that, just as the topsy-turvy Purim story itself, things are not actually as they appear on the outside. These costumes were not of the regular type that Jewish children around the world either prepare or have their parents purchase. Rather, the Rebbe himself would draw up a list of costumes to be prepared that year and for whom. He also gave precise instructions as to how to sew the apparel – for one set had to be fit for a king, quite literally, and others had to be prepared for the king's ministers and advisors. 

What Is Emuna & How To Get It

by Rav Haim Avihu Schwartz, author of works on the philosophy of Rabbi Tzvi Yehuda HaKohen Kook, yeshiva.org.il, translated by Hillel Fendel

I. Emuna - the Very Essence of Life

In the Aleinu prayer, we recite this cardinal Torah verse: "And you shall know today, and take it to your heart, that G-d is the Supreme Being in the heavens above and on earth below" (D'varim 4,39). This arouses an important question: How is it possible to know G-d, given that, as the Kabbalah teaches, "no thought can contain Him"? 

Teruma: Mystery of the Kruvim

by Rav Yehuda HaKohen, visionmag.org

What can the Mishkan teach us about the ways Divine revelation is channeled into our world?

Listen to the audio/read the transcript here (8 min)

Q&A: How Can We Know That There Exist Desirable Deeds?

Q. At the beginning of the book The Kuzari, after the Philosopher lays out his concepts, the King of Kuzar rejects it with two claims:

1. “Your words appear quite logical as such, but they do not provide a reply to my question, because I know of myself that my soul is pure and my actions are just and conform to the will of the Creator, but in spite of this, I was told that my actions are not desirable, although the intention is. This means that there definitely exists a certain action that the Creator desires not as a means of purification of the heart, but as an end in itself.” 

The King of Kuzar is certain that there is a desirable act, that is – there is truth in the world because he was told so in his dream: “Your intention is desirable to the Creator, but your deeds are not desirable” therefore there exists a desirable deed. He is an honest and good man, just as the Philosopher claims he should be, but he is still told in a dream that his deeds are not desirable, and the King of Kuzar is certain of the truth of his dream.

But this is a conclusion that stems from the “plot” of the story, not from life itself. Perhaps the King of Kuzar can be sure that there is a truth in the world because that is what was told to him in a dream, and therefore he personally can reject the words of the Philosopher, who claims there is no correct act, and that the main thing is to transcend [in the mind], but what do we answer the Philosopher? Certainly we would not rely on the dream of the King of Kuzar when it comes to the Jewish worldview. So from where do we prove that there is a specific truth, and through that, that the words of the Philosopher are incorrect?

2. “If this were not so, then why does Christianity wage war on Islam, and they divide the world between them? Although each of them purifies his soul and wishes [communion with] G-d, practices continence, fasts and prays, etc…”

The Kuzari’s answer to the Philosopher is that there are religions [that call for moral action, not just moral intent] that have a huge impact on the world, and people cling to them with all their might as if it’s a matter of life and death. Therefore, according to him, truth is found in any religion, as opposed to the Philosopher, who says there is no particular truth. But does the fact that people behave in a certain way prove that it is truth? Certainly not, even if many people act that way. Certainly popular things should be taken seriously, but it does not prove that they are the truth.

So what is the Jewish response to the Philosopher?

I would like answers that are not based on Jewish sources, but rather on life itself, since I am coming to examine and build emuna from the ground up, from scratch. (Basing it on sources that require already having emuna is beyond the level where I am currently holding.)

What Israel Suffered in History - and Why

by Rav Zalman Baruch Melamed, yeshiva.co, translated by Hillel Fendel

Soon, the Nation of Israel will be greatly raised up and completely redeemed in the Full Redemption that we eagerly await – and we will all then understand, retroactively, the critical task that Israel played in history during its centuries of Exile. 

It will become clear why the Jewish Nation suffered more than the other nations, and why it became a wretched symbol of degradation among the Gentiles. The situation was such that they mocked and ridiculed us by saying: "You claim that you are closer to G-d than anyone else, and yet look at you! The lowest of the low! Doesn't G-d watch over those who are close to Him, and even grant them extra favors? What a disgrace!"

In the future, all such questions will disappear. Everyone will realize that Israel's long-lasting suffering was not because we were lacking, but rather the opposite: Our high stature was the reason for all we went through. 

Yitro: Israel's Universal Mission

by Rav Yehuda HaKohen, visionmag.org

Why were the Hebrew so surprised by the sudden news that they would receive the Torah in the form of a set of laws and a mission for the rest of humanity?

Listen to the audio/read the transcript here (14.5 min)