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CHUMASH
Parshas Netzavim - Shishi with Rashi
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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-Tes
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We learned before that Chachomim like Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai and the Arizal taught us about a level of Hashem that was even higher than Moshe Rabbeinu’s nevuah! But there was a very big difference: Moshe Rabbeinu’s nevuah was in a very clear way, like someone who SEES something with their eyes. But Chachomim like the Arizal taught about levels of Elokus which they understood in a less clear way.
The main purpose of the Torah is the 613 mitzvos. That is how the Chochmah of Hashem comes all the way down into Gashmius!
Moshe Rabbeinu saw this Chochmah in his nevuah, very clearly. That is why Moshe Rabbeinu was the one to give us the Torah, because he could see the Chochmah of Hashem so clearly and give it over to us properly!
Tomorrow we will IY”H see what Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai and the Arizal revealed to us in Pnimius HaTorah.
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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 two mitzvos about who is not allowed to eat Terumah, which is holy!
1) (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #133) Anyone who isn’t a kohen is NOT allowed to eat Terumah or Bikurim.
This Mitzvas Lo Saasei includes not only Terumah or Bikurim which belong to the kohen, but also not to benefit from anything that belongs to the Beis Hamikdash or from korbanos, called Me’ilah.
2) (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #134) Even someone who works for a kohen is still not allowed to eat Terumah.
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In today’s Rambam, we continue learning the halachos about who can’t eat Terumah.
Perek Zayin: Now we learn about the mitzvos we’ll learn TOMORROW in Sefer Hamitzvos — that a kohen without a bris or a kohen who is tamei is not allowed to eat Terumah.
Perek Ches: The daughter of a kohen is allowed to eat terumah… unless she gets married to someone who is not a kohen! If a girl from a non-kohen family gets married to a kohen, she is allowed to start eating terumah because of her husband. We learn more halachos about this.
Perek Tes: Even though someone who lives in the house of a kohen can eat Terumah, that doesn’t last forever. If the kohen is not married to his wife anymore, she can’t eat Terumah anymore. If the slave goes free, he can’t eat Terumah anymore either. Animals also can only eat Terumah when they BELONG to the kohen.
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This perek teaches us what we do if people argue about if they sold or bought something. Who needs to prove that it belongs to them? The halacha is, “Hamotzi MeChaveiro, Alav Haraya.” The one that has it now doesn’t need to prove anything — the other person, who wants to take it away from them, needs to prove that it is theirs.
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The Torah has 613 mitzvos. But many of these mitzvos can’t be kept during Golus! In fact, only 87 mitzvos out of the 248 Mitzvos Asei are able to be kept properly even nowadays.
Still, even when we can’t keep a mitzvah the way the Torah teaches, we keep it the best way we can!
For example, there is a mitzvah to bring korbanos every day. Since we don’t have a Beis Hamikdash, we can’t bring korbanos the way the Torah tells us to.
But the Chachomim showed us a Ruchnius way to keep this mitzvah: We can daven! Our davening is like bringing a korban to Hashem.
Shemitah is another mitzvah that most of us aren’t able to keep properly nowadays. During Shemitah, farmers stop working in their fields, and spend the year learning Torah.
It is only a mitzvah in Eretz Yisroel, and most of us don’t live in Eretz Yisroel. And even for people who do live in Eretz Yisroel, these days most people aren’t farmers and aren’t changing how they spend their year during Shemitah.
Still, we are able to keep this mitzvah in a Ruchnius way, even if we aren’t farmers in Eretz Yisroel, by learning extra Torah during a Shemitah year!
This year, Tof-Shin-Pey-Gimmel, is a Hakhel year.
In the year after Shemitah, the Yidden would have to stop learning Torah all day and go back to working in their fields. So at the beginning of the year, there would be a big Hakhel gathering for all of the Yidden. Men, women and children would all come to the Beis Hamikdash and hear the king reading the words of the Torah about how to act in Eretz Yisroel. This would give all of the Yidden a feeling of Yiras Shomayim which would help them when they go back to work!
Nowadays, we don’t have a Jewish king and we don’t have a Beis Hamikdash. Still, we do the mitzvah of Hakhel the best way we can! Yidden can gather together and bring out a feeling of Yiras Shomayim. This is one way that we can keep the Ruchnius idea of Hakhel even nowadays.
Now is the time to think about how we can use the Hakhel year to unite together and strengthen our Yiras Shomayim!
See Michtav Kloli, Chai Elul 5740
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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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We are coming to the end of 5782, which is a Shemitah year. Before Rosh Hashana, we make a Pruzbul.
What is Pruzbul?
In a Shemitah year, the Torah tells us that we need to let the land rest. We don’t plant or work in the fields. This is called Shemitas Karkaos. This is only kept in Eretz Yisroel.
There is another part of Shemitah that we need to keep anywhere in the world: Shemitas Kesafim. In a Shemitah year, all loans are forgiven, and don’t have to be paid back anymore.
Unfortunately, some people didn’t want to give loans to each other anymore, because they might not get paid back! The Chachomim wanted to make sure that Yidden felt comfortable lending money to each other. So the Chachomim set up a Pruzbul so that the person can still get his loan paid back, even after Shemitah passes. This gives the loan to the Beis Din, so it can still be collected during or after Shemitah.
According to the Alter Rebbe, the loans are forgiven right at the beginning of the year. So if any man or woman lent money, they should be sure to make a Pruzbul before Rosh Hashana at the beginning of Shemitah.
But in case of loans made DURING the year of Shemitah, and also to fulfill the opinion that Pruzbul is done at the END of the Shemitah year, we do Pruzbul again now, before Rosh Hashana at the end of Shemitah.
The best way to make a Pruzbul is to say the words to a Beis Din, which men do during Hatoras Nedarim on Erev Rosh Hashana. If someone can’t do that, they can sign a form with the text of the Pruzbul. (You can fill out a Pruzbul form online at Chabad.org/pruzbul.)
For more details and exactly how to do Pruzbul, see Day to Day Halachic Guide by the Badatz of Crown Heights
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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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Over the past few months, we have been learning many of the nevuos about Moshiach! We finished learning the last sefer of Navi, Malachi, and the nevuos he said about the Geulah.
Malachi lived in the time of the second Beis Hamikdash. After Malachi, nevuah left the Yidden, and there were no more Neviim.
The Rambam tells us, based on the nevuah of Bilaam, that nevuah will come back to the Yidden! The Rambam explains that Bilaam’s nevuah even tells us the date that nevuah will return!
Bilaam said:
Ka’eis — Like this time,
Ye’amar L’Yaakov Ul’yisrael — It will be said to Yaakov and Yisrael:
Ma Pa’al Keil — “What has Hashem planned?”
The Rambam explains that “Ka’eis,” “like this time,” means that this will happen after the same amount of years as the year Bilaam said this. Bilaam’s nevuah was said in the year 2488, the year that the Yidden entered Eretz Yisroel!
Bilaam was saying in his nevuah that another 2488 years later, nevuah will return to the Yidden! This means the year 4976.
That is actually what happened! Around that year, there were great tzadikim who saw the future and said true nevuah! For example, R’ Shmuel Hanavi, the father of R’ Yehuda Hachassid, R’ Elazar the author of the Rokeach, the Ramban, the Raavad, R’ Ezra Hanavi, and R’ Yehuda Hachassid. They all said nevuah and did many nissim!
This also brought back nevuos about the Geulah in our time, which we will IY”H learn about tomorrow!
See Likutei Sichos chelek Beis, p. 588 and sources there
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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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