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Moshe Rabbeinu tells the Yidden that they have the ability to keep the Torah and mitzvos!
Do you think it’s too hard to do the mitzvos? Do you think that you’ll never be able to keep all of them?
No! Moshe tells the Yidden. It’s not too hard! It’s not like a treasure hiding all the way across the world! It’s not only in Shomayim for Tzadikim! It’s not only for when you live in Eretz Yisroel!
Ki Karov Eilecha Hadavar Me’od, Beficha Uvilvavcha Laasoso! Keeping the mitzvos is something that you CAN do, wherever you are!
Hashem didn’t just give us the Torah and tell us to figure it out, we have the Torah Shebaal Peh too, to teach us how to keep it!
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Today’s Tehillim is the 15 “Shir Hamaalos,” kapitelach Kuf-Chof through Kuf-Lamed-Daled. All of these kapitelach start with the words “Shir Hamaalos” or “Shir Lamaalos.” We also say three kapitelach for Chodesh Elul — Ayin-Tes, Pey, and Pey-Alef.
Kapitel Kuf-Chof-Vov is the Shir Hamaalos we say before bentching on Shabbos and Yom Tov, or a day with no Tachanun. It talks about when Moshiach will come, and it says that Golus is like planting a field — a person puts seeds in the ground and cries that Hashem should make it rain. Then he is so happy when his plants grow!
Golus is like that too, we “plant” lots of mitzvos and cry to Hashem that they should “grow.” When Moshiach comes, we see all that our mitzvos did, and we are so happy!
That’s the posuk “Az Yemalei Sechok Pinu” — “then our mouths will be full of laughing” — because we will be so happy that Moshiach came!
The Rebbe tells us that we need to have lots of simcha now, to practice since Moshiach is almost here!
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TANYA
Igeres Hakodesh Siman Yud-Ches
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In the first chelek of Tanya, the Alter Rebbe explained to us how we can have Ahavas Hashem. In the letter which we are learning today and tomorrow, the Alter Rebbe tells us how we can “earn” a feeling of love for Hashem through our hisbonenus, davening, and giving tzedakah. We can also get a higher kind of Ahavas Hashem, even more than we deserve!
There are things we get because we work hard to get it — like we get a good grade on a test if we learned and did chazara well. But sometimes we get a surprise: Our teacher or parents will give us a present that we don’t really deserve!
The same thing is with chayus we have in living the way a Yid should.
There is chayus which we have because we deserve it. We learn and daven and do mitzvos the best way we can, and we have chayus in what we do! That is very special and we deserve it.
But sometimes we just feel a special chayus that just comes like a surprise. We didn’t do anything so special to deserve to feel SO much chayus. It’s a present from Hashem!
Even though it’s a present, we only get it if we first did our best. Then Hashem gives us even more than we really deserve! First we need to make sure to live just the way Hashem wants from us, and only listen to our Yetzer Tov. Then we can get a chayus in Yiddishkeit from Hashem that is much stronger than the chayus we deserve from what we did!
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Today we learn about the partnership Yidden have with Hashem, with Gashmius and Ruchnius.
The Alter Rebbe once said something very special about Yidden:
We do something amazing! We live in a Gashmius world, but we are still able to live a Ruchnius life and stay connected to Hashem by doing what He wants!
It’s like we work together — Hashem makes Gashmius out of Ruchnius, and we take the Gashmius and make it into Ruchnius by using it the way Hashem wants us to.
This inyan is very connected with Rosh Hashana, which will be very soon! This is one of the inyonim of Rosh Hashana, that Hashem paskens to give Yidden all of the Gashmius things that we need, and we accept the Malchus of Hashem, to make the Gashmius into Ruchnius.
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Today we learn 3 mitzvos in Sefer Hamitzvos:
1) (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #63) We are not allowed to make a Chillul Hashem. The Rambam tells us 3 kinds of times when a person needs to keep this mitzvah:
- A person must give up his life Al Kiddush Hashem for ANY mitzvah or minhag if someone is trying to wipe out Torah and Yiddishkeit, called a Shaas HaShmad. If he doesn’t, that is a Chillul Hashem.
- If a person does an aveira for no reason, just to show Hashem he doesn’t care, that is called a Chillul Hashem.
- A Talmid Chochom or respected Jew can’t do anything that doesn’t look right, even if it isn’t an aveira.
2) (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #65) We are not allowed to destroy any part of the Mishkan or Beis Hamikdash. This mitzvah also teaches us not to erase Hashem’s name.
3) (Mitzvas Asei #172) We need to listen to a Navi, even if he tells us to not keep a mitzvah for a certain amount of time. (If he tells us to never keep a certain mitzvah again, we don’t listen to him.)
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RAMBAM
Hilchos Yesodei HaTorah
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Perek Zayin: In today’s Rambam, we learn about nevuah. A Yid has to believe that there ARE neviim who hear things right from Hashem! A Navi can tell us these things so we know what Hashem wants from us at a certain time.
Perek Ches: We learn the signs of how we know someone is a Navi. One of the ways we know is if he predicts the future. But that is not why we listen to what he says — we listen to him because Moshe Rabbeinu gave us this sign in the Torah! That’s why, even if he does predict the future, there are times we wouldn’t listen to him anyway, like we see in the next perek.
Perek Tes: If a Navi tells us that a mitzvah isn’t important anymore, we know he is not a real Navi! All of the mitzvos of the Torah are FOREVER, and even if sometimes we might need to stop keeping a mitzvah for a short time if a Navi tells us to, no mitzvah ever goes away forever!
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At the end of a person’s Nezirus, he has to bring certain korbanos. The money he uses to pay for them, and the animals that he brings, get a special kedusha! So if he paid too much money in the Beis Hamikdash for his korbanos, the money has kedusha and he can’t just get change back!
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The whole Chodesh Elul is special, but there is something extra-special about the days of Selichos!
The days of Elul are so special! The Melech is in the field, Hashem is so close to us, helping us get ready for a Shana Tova.
Now it is also Yemei Haselichos, the days where we say Selichos to prepare for Rosh Hashana. What is special about these days?
The Baal Shem Tov teaches that during the year, Hashem gives us many brachos. Some of them are based on what we deserve, but others Hashem gives us as a loan — for us to “pay back” through our good behavior.
As we get closer to Rosh Hashana, we might look back at all the brachos Hashem gave us this past year and realize that we didn’t deserve them all! Oh no! How can we ever pay back that loan?
That’s what the Yemei Haselichos are for. During these days, Hashem gives us selicha, and is mochel our loan. Hashem tells us that it is okay, we can pay back whatever we can.
This way we will be able to go into Rosh Hashana happily, knowing that our debts to Hashem are taken care of!
See Shaarei Hamoadim, Chodesh Elul, p. 289, from Shabbos Selichos Tof-Shin-Lamed-Daled
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In shuls around the world, on Rosh Hashana, the Rav will get up and make a longer speech than usual. He will try to inspire everyone in shul to do better with our connection to Hashem and Kabolas Ol for the year.
In a Michtav Kloli for Rosh Hashana, a letter from the Rebbe addressed to every Jew, the Rebbe gave a lesson to everyone who is giving a speech on Rosh Hashana, and for every Yid to tell themselves:
Don’t get too excited about the big problems in the world, and how the world needs to change. The main thing is to change OURSELVES, and that will change the world!
This is one of the messages of the shofar: The shofar is not a very musical instrument. We blow a very simple sound. We don’t blow many shofros at the same time, we only blow one — one sound at a time.
On Rosh Hashana, we also need to follow this lesson of the shofar. Don’t think you need to do something big — make one simple, practical hachlata at a time to make your connection to Hashem stronger throughout the year.
When we change ourselves and make ourselves better, that will bring the Geulah for the whole world!
See Michtav Kloli for Rosh Hashana, 5723 and 5731
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On the second night of every Yom Tov, we make a Shehecheyanu for this new day of Yom Tov. But on Rosh Hashana, there is an opinion that we don’t say Shehecheyanu on the second night!
Most Yomim Tovim are one day long in Eretz Yisroel, and two days long in other parts of the world, because of a sofeik about the day of Yom Tov (“sfeika deyoma”).
Rosh Hashana is different! Even in Eretz Yisroel, we keep two days of Rosh Hashana. There is an opinion that Rosh Hashana is considered one long day (“yoma arichta”), not two separate days. If the whole Rosh Hashana is part of one day, how could we say the bracha Shehecheyanu twice for the same day?
The final halacha is that we do say Shehecheyanu on the second night of Rosh Hashana anyway. But to follow the other opinion also, we try to wear new clothes or eat a new fruit on the second night of Rosh Hashana. We have it out and keep it in mind when we bentch licht on the second night (for women) or when we make kiddush (for men). This way our Shehecheyanu follows ALL of the opinions.
See the Alter Rebbe’s Shulchan Aruch, siman Tof-Reish
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לעילוי נשמת הרה״ח ר׳ דניאל יצחק ע״ה בן ר׳ אפרים שי׳ מאסקאוויץ
שליח כ"ק אדמו"ר נשיא דורנו למדינת אילינוי
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Here’s what the Rambam says about the Sanhedrin in the time of the Geulah:
When the Beis Hamikdash was built, the Sanhedrin would gather in the Lishkas Hagazis, a part of the Beis Hamikdash. (This room did not have the same level of kedushah as other parts of the Beis Hamikdash, so the Sanhedrin was allowed to sit down there.)
When the Yidden stopped behaving properly, the Sanhedrin went into Golus. They traveled from place to place, to 10 different parts of Eretz Yisroel. The last place they stopped was in Teveriah.
Since then, the Sanhedrin has never gotten together. The Rambam says that we have a kabbalah (tradition) that when Moshiach comes, the Sanhedrin will first gather in Teveriah, and go from there to the Beis Hamikdash.
See Rambam, Hilchos Sanhedrin, perek Yud-Daled, halacha Yud-Beis
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לע"נ התינוק זאב ארי' ע"ה בן יבלט"א הרה"ח ר' שניאור זלמן שי' גליק
נפטר ב' מנחם אב ה'תשע"ג
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