Kahane Codes - Part Two

‫לא‬--‫ נב הזאת‬-‫כז נואים‬ 27 If despite this you will not heed me and behave . ,‫יע ימי‬ ‫כו נה כל נכ התםכב תק ירי‬;‫ילי‬ toward me with casualness. ,‫ית נש נמעו‬ ‫ ; נו יי כס נר יתיתק ירי‬-‫ כב נח כמת‬,‫כח נו הה כל נכ יתי יע המ הכם‬ 28 I will behave towards you with a fury of for .‫ כח הטא יתי הכם‬-‫ הש כבע כעל‬,‫אניי‬-‫הא נת הכם אף‬ casualness I will chastise you seven times your sins. (Vayikra 26:27,28) The spiritual leaders even more than the laymen must be sensitive to the times and see the 'Divine' in the events of history. If the people were prepared to sacrifice for their own Nation, and the Land of Israel itself was blossoming and becoming green again with the arrival of its people, the spiritual leadership should not have made war against the 'Divine' current. At such a time of impending doom, and the Exodus dream coming true, its is not a time to be causal about these events. A story is told in Rabbi Nachum Kahane's book 'With All Your Might' of a woman who asked him why the Rebbe in her village in Europe forbade people to make aliya? The only time her father disobeyed the Rebbe was to take her and the family to Israel. When he had asked the Rebbe for a blessing, he tried to convince him to stay and said it was forbidden to go to the Zionist State. Everyone in her village was murdered except for her family. The two letters that add up to 360 are shin and samech or 'Shas' which is an acronym for the whole Talmud. There have been many devout Rabbis that have known the whole 'Shas' by heart. There is a positive and negative connection. In the negative it is as if the whole Talmud is meaningless if it takes the non-observant to teach us what all of these books failed to impress in our hearts. The whole Torah was burned in the Shoa. On the other hand all of those who were sacrificed are 'kedoshim' and are all holy. Just as in our Parsha Moshe picks up the pans and uses them forever in the Temple service. These sacrifices also built the Land of Israel and inspired our very being. Every visiting dignitary is taken to Yad Vashem to understand the background that gave birth to the modern State of Israel. The next State; Judea will not have this negative connotation for we will have matured and become more unified as a people. ‫ = יד ושם‬Yad Vashem = 360 ‫ = שס‬Shas = 360 The Future – The Sons of Korach The anti-Zionist attitude still exists today but is slowly changing. There are two types of teshuva (repentance)that are needed. The first is easier than the second. The first teshuva is for the unobservant Jews to become more observant and G-d fearing. The second, and more difficult teshuva is for the Charedim to become Zionists. The second teshuva will occur and the irony is it will be from the children of Korach. I believe the 151

catalyst for this final teshuva before Moshiach will be the State of Judea. It is alluded to in our Parsha. ‫ נלכו נו ינ נל הכה‬,‫ הה העם‬-‫ יד כו היא המר נשמו יאל האל‬14 Then said Samuel to the people: 'Come and let ‫ כה נמלו הכה‬,‫ כה יג נל הגל; ו ננ כח ידש השם‬us go to Gilgal, and renew the kingdom there.' (Samuel 1 11:14) -‫ הא נק הרא האל‬--‫ כהי הום‬,‫ יח יטים‬-‫ יז נהל הוא נק יציר‬17 Is it not wheat harvest to-day? I will call unto -‫ יכי‬,‫ נו יי יתן הקל הות ו המ הטר; ו נדעו ו נראו‬,‫ ניה הוה‬the LORD, that He may send thunder and rain; and ye shall know and see that your wickedness is ,‫ניה הוה‬ ‫נב יעי יני‬ ‫כר הבה נא השר נע ישי התם‬ ‫הר כע נת הכם‬ great, which ye have done in the sight of the ‫ המ הלך‬,‫הל הכם‬ ‫יל נשא הול‬ LORD, in asking you a king.' (Samuel 1 12:17) Here is where we see the 'tikun' of the Charedim when they will be the 'first' to choose Nationalism. Gilgal is close to Bet El where there is controversy today regarding the destruction of buildings in Ulpana. The Nation will rise up and conquer Yehuda and Shomron from those who feel pressured to give it away to our enemies for a false promise of peace. Those who lack faith will find their faith while those who have faith will discover their Nationalism. Yet even after this victory the leaders of Judea will respond like Shmuel who was against Nationalism for its own sake. It is a sin to want to be a Nation like the other nations, only if we understand that we are a Holy Nation and our constitution is guided by the Torah will we be blessed. Shmuel was a descendant of Korach and in the future the very same sons of Korach will bring the final redemption with the condition that our nationalism is based upon the Torah. ,‫ ניה הוה‬-‫ הא נק הרא האל‬--‫ כהי הום‬,‫ יח יטים‬-‫ יז נהל הוא נק יציר‬17 Is it not wheat harvest to-day? I will call to Hashem, that He may send thunder and ‫ הר שע כת תכם‬-‫ יכי‬,‫ו נראו‬ ‫ו נדעו‬ ;‫ו המ הטר‬ ‫נו יי יתן הקל הות‬ rain; and you shall recognize and see that ‫ המ הלך‬,‫ יל נשא הול הל הכם‬,‫ כר הבה נא השר נע ישי התם נב יעי יני ניה הוה‬great is your wickedness that you have perpetrated before the sight of Hashem, in asking for a king.' (Samuel 1 12:17) ‫ הר שע כת תכם‬-‫ = יכי‬your wickedness = 760 ‫ = כהנא‬Kahane x 10 = 760 I pondered what the connection might be here. I believe that when the State of Judea is born, Rabbi Kahane will be remembered in the same way Hertzel is remembered in Israel. He was the one who founded the 1st congress of the State of Judea. No one at the time took this very seriously, but time will tell if his last actions in life were not prophetic. 'Your wickedness' is also in the fact that you destroyed Rabbi Kahane who could have brought you redemption many years earlier with the State of Judea. 'Your wickedness' also alludes to the constant rebuke that he gave to the Nation for it to rise to its calling and be a Religious Nation, and to throw out those who lead us to destruction while circumcising our hearts once again and demanding of us to live up to his expectations of the Holy people we are. 152

Who is Korach Today? The Heavenly Court usually does not impose a penalty until a sinner reaches the age of 20. But in Korah’s dispute, even one-day-old babies were consumed by the fire and swallowed up by the earth. For Bamidbar 16:27 says, “with their wives, and their sons, and their little ones.” (Midrash Tanhuma Korach 3.) Korach knew and observed the entire Torah. He succeeded in convincing the entire Jewish nation, including the rabbis, to follow him and he even had the power of prophesy. And nevertheless he was completely wrong! What is this coming to teach us? If he was wrong then what hope Have we got? – RvTuvia Bolton on Korach There are different kinds of disagreements. The tragic consequence of Korachs disagreement is that not only the evil doers suffered but many innocents along with them. The punishment for Korach was a punishment that was most unusual; the ground opened up and closed and he was swallowed along with all of his wealth, as if he never even existed. Abarbanel explains that the unusual punishment is actually 'measure for measure'. They opened their mouths to devour and destroy the master of all prophets so they themselves were destroyed by the mouth of the earth, the lowest place. Their denial of reality caused their own reality to disappear. After the punishment the test of staffs was administered and we see that Aarons staff blossomed. Why couldn’t this test have been done before instead of the tragic test of the incense offering? Wouldn’t that have been enough to stifle the complaints of Korach and his followers? The Midrash says that he saw great Prophets coming from his lineage including Shmuel, so how could he be so wrong? The Parsha of Korach is followed by the Parsha of Chukat. The Midrash tells us a secret about Chukat, that it is a symbol for the Jewish people who are like a sacrifice. The Red Heifer is burned completely, even its dung, to symbolize the various elements of the Jewish people from the highest to the lowest elements. All of these are taken together as ashes that mixed with water cause the impure to become pure again. So who is Korach today? Well I have a theory. Where do we see in our times a punishment where many innocent children perish? Where do we see such a strange punishment that has swallowed whole communities and made them disappear as if they never existed? The Shoa of course. Thriving communities that once existed perished in a few years and when one returns to many of these communities there is no trace of them, as if they never existed. So who is Korach? What was the ‫( יפרח‬ifrach) 'fire pan test and test of stave’s?' The gematria of the 1st three letters of Ifrach ‘to blossom ‫ יפרח‬is similar to ‘Aretz’ –Land . The extra letter ‘Chet’ - ‫ ח‬also means ‘sin’. ‫ = יפר‬blossom – 290 ‫ = ארצ‬land - 291 Read: The sin (‫ ) ח‬of disregarding the blossoming of the Land. As Rabbi Teichtal writes in Eim Habonin Semaicha, the sin of the religious leadership in the years before the war was that they saw the blossoming of the Land of Israel, but they refused to heed the divine call to return home. They saw the impending dangers but they must have also seen the future 153

Jewish leaders that would come from them, and they trusted that Hashem would save them. Zionism and its leadership was banned. The modern day Moshe’s like Jabotinsky who tried to save the Jewish people, were not allowed to even speak. And so Parsha Korach is followed by Parsha Chukat and the death of Miriam. The death of the Tzaddikim atones for the Nation. Of course millions of Tzadikim perished, and of course their sacrifice atones for us, but was there also a sin or a mistake in calculation? Today the charedi might respond to this by reminding us of what happened to the religious Jews of Yemen who came to the Zionist state and were stripped of their Judaism. However, if great numbers of the religious world, had been encouraged by their leaders to return home, then maybe they also could have made a great influence in the building of the modern day Israel, and the Yemenite story might not have existed. One would think that the love of the Land of Israel would be found greatest among the observers of the Torah, but the sin of the past continues today and the vast majority of the religious Jewish world is still burning their incense in lands of foreign milk and honey. More on the Nature of Scorn ‫ ו הפ נצ התה הה נא הד המה‬,‫ נב יריאה יי נב הרא ניה הוה‬-‫ ל נו יאם‬30 But if the LORD make a new thing, and the ,‫ נא השר הל ההם‬-‫ הכל‬-‫ יפי הה ו הב נל העה הא התם נו האת‬-‫ האת‬ground open her mouth, and swallow them up, with all that appertain unto them, and they go ‫יכי ינ נאצו‬ ,‫ יוי כד נע התם‬--‫נש הא הלה‬ ,‫כח ייים‬ ‫נו הי נרדו‬ down alive into the pit, then ye shall understand ‫ ניה הוה‬-‫ הה נא הנ ישים הה יא הלה האת‬that these men have despised the LORD.' (Bamidbar 16:30) ‫ = ינ נאצו‬they have despised = 147 ,‫ כו כת כהר; כו ית הרא יכי הה הר התה‬,‫ הה הגר‬-‫ ד כו הי הבא האל‬4 And he went in unto Hagar, and she conceived; and when she saw that she had conceived, her ‫ כו ית כקל נג יב נר התה כב ןעי תני הה‬. mistress was despised in her eyes. (Bereshit 16:4) ‫= כב ןעי תני הה‬when she saw = 147 What could be the connection to scorn here? If Korachs followers were religious men accused of despising Hashem what is the connection to Hagar? I suggest that maybe there is a feeling among a segment of Charedim that feels a little like Hagar. They have children while Sarah is barren. Why does Avraham still love her more? Why did Hashem love the secular Israelites enough to make their deserts green and bless these people who are barren of mitzvot? If Hashem is not angry, does that mean that anger at those fulfilling National mitzvot is a little like despising Hashem? 154

‫הה נא הנ ישים נב היד הושו שי נח יזיקו‬ - ‫טזוכ ייתנ כמ נה המה‬ 16 But he lingered; and the men laid hold upon ‫ יא נשת הו ו נב כיד‬-‫ו נב כיד‬ his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon ‫ נב הח נמ כלת ניה הוה‬,‫נב הנ התיו‬ the hand of his two daughters; the LORD being ‫נש יתי‬ ‫ ימחוץ הל יעיר‬,‫ הע הליו; כו הי יצ מאהו כו כי ינ מחהו‬merciful unto him. And they brought him forth, and set him without the city. (Bereshit 19:16) ‫ = שו שי נח יזיקו‬laid hold = 147 Although a whole generation was wiped out in the Shoa many survived by a miracle. Each must have felt the hand of an angel that pulled them to safety. Before it was impossible to leave Europe there were many years where those who warned of the approaching doom (like Zev Jabotinsky) were scorned and banned. Today as well the tides of antisemitism grow daily. To many the thought of making aliyah not even on the list of priorities. In Europe those who saw past the scorn and controversy and sensed not to linger were saved. ‫יאמ הו;שו יי כמ הצא‬ ,‫ יח יטים‬-‫י כו יי הלך נראו יבן יבי ימי נק יציר‬ 14 And Reuben went in the days of wheat harvest, ‫ ילאה‬-‫ האל‬,‫ כו הי יבא הא התם‬,‫דו הד יאים כב הש הדה‬ and found mandrakes in the field, and brought them unto his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to ‫ ימדו הד יאי‬,‫ הנא ילי‬-‫ נת יני‬,‫ ילאה‬-‫ האל‬,‫ כו התא המר הר יחל‬Leah: 'Give me, I pray thee, of thy son's ‫ בנניך‬mandrakes.' (Bereshit 30:14) ‫ = שויי כמ הצא‬and found = 147 As we spoke about in Parsha Vayetzei the Dudaim I suggest are related to the Monarchy. Reuvain was the 1st born, and like the older Charedi world could have been the natural one to lead. Reuvain however was willing to sell this opportunity and willingly allowed the mother of Yoseph to lead. After the fact, this bothered him and he was resentful. ‫ כה הבנ הות נב הנ כתי‬,‫ כי נע הקב‬-‫ מג כו כי כען הל הבן כו היא המר האל‬43 And Laban answered and said unto Jacob: 'The ‫ כא התה‬-‫ נו הכל נא השר‬,‫ נו כה הב ינים הב כני נו כה הצאן הצא יני‬daughters are my daughters, and the children are my children, and the flocks are my flocks, and all ‫יל כב ןני תהן‬,‫הל יא הלה‬ ‫נו יל נב הנ כתי‬ ;‫הוא‬-‫ילי‬ ,‫הר האה‬ that thou seest is mine; and what can I do this day ‫ הא בע השה‬-‫המה‬ ‫ נא השר הי הלדו‬, ‫ א הו‬,‫כהי הום‬ for these my daughters, or for their children whom they have borne? (Bereshit 30:14) ‫ = יל כב ןני תהן‬their children = 147 Laban made a pact with Yacov not to harm his children. Of course Yacov would guard his children in 155

fact they would be much safer and loved dearly. What was Lavan really saying? Maybe here is another connection with the word scorn ( ‫) ינ נאצו‬. Lavan lived outside of Israel and enjoyed the blessing that Yacov brought him. Yacov had a calling that Lavan did not share. The name Yacov gives to the place where they made their pact is a Hebrew name Galeed. Lavan calles it by its Aramaic name Jegar- sahadutha. The gematria of Jegar-sahadutha 929 has the same gematria as the word 'abhor'. ‫ נו הה ייי הת יח הרם‬,‫ יבי התך‬-‫ הת יביא ת הו יע הבה האל‬-‫ כו נולא‬26 And thou shalt not bring an abomination into thy house, and be accursed like unto it; thou shalt ‫כת שת נע תבנו‬-‫ יכי‬, ‫נו כת יעב‬ ‫נת כש נק הצנו‬ ‫הכ המהו; כש יקץ‬ ‫יח הרם הוא‬ utterly detest it, and thou shalt utterly abhor it; for it is a devoted thing. (Devarim 7:26) ;‫ כי שגר הש נהדו התא‬,‫ל הו הל הבן‬-‫ מז כו יי נק הרא‬47 And Laban called it Jegar-sahadutha; but ‫ הק הרא ל הו כג נל יעד‬,‫ נו כי נע הקב‬Jacob called it Galeed. ‫ = כת שת נע תבנו‬abhor = 928+1 = 929 ‫ = כי שגר הש נהדו התא‬Jegar-sahadutha = 929 I suggest that maybe there is a hint of the quarrel of modern day Zionism and the traditional religious leadership in these passages. The 'pact' that was made at the beginning of the State with Ben Gurion was to preserve the Bnei Torah with a stipend that allowed them to defer army duties and receive benefits for their Torah study. For many years it was quite a successful arrangement giving the secular State of Israel the great zchut (merit) of being the greatest benefactor of Torah study that there ever has been. Although this pact was established beneath the surface there has been great animosity on both sides. One side calls this pact by a Hebrew name, while some may see it from the other side as an arrangement made with idol worshipers that they abhor. The concern for our children is a noble concern, however the concern for Hashems commandments is of a higher order as was demonstrated by Avraham with Itzchak. We also learn that one must honor their mother or father, however if they command you to break the Shabbat, the Shabbat takes precedence. In the chapter of the Meraglim the pretext for the concern for the children became a punishment. The children were blessed and made aliyah, while their parents were cursed for failing to trust in Hashem's protection. Rabbi Nacham Kahane writes in his book 'With All Your Might' how he personally lived through the miracles of the six day war. He also noted how each day in the weeks preceding the war, he saw Yeshiva students from chul being whisked away in airport taxis to their concerned parents arms demonstrating that faith is not always represented by the religious. 'These men have despised the Lord' says Hashem to a group of men who would not dare see a woman's uncovered hair. (See Midrash regarding On son of Peleth whose wife protected him by sitting with her hair uncovered outside his tent) 156

‫ נבת הוך‬,‫ ז נו יה ינה נא כנ נחנו נמ כא נל ימים נא מל ימים‬7 for, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood ‫;ינ הצ הבה‬ round -‫ נו כגם‬,‫ נו יה ינה הק המה נא מל המ יתי‬,‫כה הש הדה‬ upright; and, behold, your sheaves came ‫ כו ית נש כת נח הויןה‬,‫נו יה ינה נת מס הבי הנה נא מל המ יתי הכם‬ about, and bowed down to my sheaf.' ‫כל נא מל המ יתי‬ (Bereshit 37:7) ‫ = ינ הצ הבה‬upright = 147 Yoseph had a dream and saw that his sheaf stood upright and the other sheaves bowed to his. Korach also saw the future and knew prophetically that from his progeny would come prophets and leaders. His vision was correct but it would not unfold in the way that he thought. In our own time, the heads of Jewish leadership were always pious and learned Rabbi's. That changed in the turn of the century when Jewish Nationalism arose and the head of the Jewish people became a Prime Minister. In the end Korach's vision and the Torah vision will coincide, however not in the way they had assumed. The hated and the object of hatred will both be transformed. ‫שו שי יצ ןלהו‬,‫ימ הי הדם; כו היא המר‬ ,‫כא וכיישנמכע נראו יבן‬ 21 And Reuben heard it, and delivered him out of ‫לא כנ הכנו הנ הפש‬ their hand; and said: 'Let us not take his life.' (Bereshit 37:21) ‫ = ושישצילןהו‬delivered him = 147 ‫ = ינ נאצו‬they have despised = 147 We spoke above regarding the pact of Lavan and Yacov. Although there may have been animosity between Lavan and Yacov, the pact itself contained the cure. If part of Am Israel wanted to destroy Yoseph there was a Reuben that had second thoughts and diminished the hatred. Although there has been a divide between the Torah world and the secular world we cannot say that they did not influence each other. The cries of the Torah world have prevented many catastrophes from going too far. The Charedi world has saved Israel from destruction not only by Torah and mitzvoth but by its political cries that prevented many destructive decisions by the government. However on the other hand much more could have been done. 157

‫ כו יי נשאו יעי יני ההם‬,‫ הל החם‬-‫ הל בא הכל‬,‫ כה כו יי נשבו‬25 And they sat down to eat bread; and they lifted ‫ נו יה ינה הא נר כחת יי נש נמ יעא ילים הבאה‬,‫ כו יי נראו‬up their eyes and looked, and, behold, a caravan of Ishmaelites came from Gilead, with their ‫ ננ הכאת ו נצ יריימ יג כל העד‬,‫; ו נג כמ ילי ההם הנ נש יאים‬ camels bearing spicery and balm and ladanum, ‫ נלה הו יריד ימ נצ הר ני המה‬,‫ה הו נל יכים‬--‫ הולט‬going to carry it down to Egypt. Bereshit 37:25) ‫ = ימ יג כל העד‬Gilead = 147 This seems to me to be a hint of the pact at Galeed that we wrote about above. Yoseph went down to Egypt in a caravan of sweet smelling spices. Although Reuvain softened the blow and in this passage added a sweet scent to the exile, it was and continues to be an exile. All of our modern Torah may have softened the blow and perfumed the pain of the exile but it has not prevented Yoseph from being sold into slavery. Within the hatred the ‫ ינ נאצו‬there is a pact that ties us together from the destruction of the Shoa until today. We are united by the fact that we are persecuted together however within our persecution the solution will be found from repairing this hatred. The tikun will grow naturally from the influence we have on each other. The revelation of Yoseph the king and Korach's descendants will certainly occur. The sooner we no longer despise Hashem by despising his Torah or despising His Statehood then real faith will be expressed by the religious and Torah will be studied by statesmen. I showed these gematrias to my friend Yacov BenChaim who is an expert of gematria. He immediately pointed out that 147 = Zman Hageula (the time of redemption) as well as Pesach with the kollel. I told him that this is exactly the point. If one is standing in the time of redemption and he is indifferent not only will he lose the blessing, the blessing will turn into a curse. Pesach was a time of redemption yet at the same time a great portion of out people died in the darkness. Preceding this event. The Mathematics of Provocation (2016) It is interesting to note that if you add two zero's to the gematria of provocation (147) you can see that this provocation resulted in 14,700 deaths. The zman geula can be hurried or delayed depending on our own vision. Either we lack faith and see ourselves as 'too small', or we are blinded by Gevura and see ourselves as 'too important'. This anger at Zionism misrepresents the Chesed that Hashem demonstrates as the Land blossoms and welcomes its people regardless of their level of observance. 158

The Curse that is Called Blessing (2017) The Torah relates that the splitting of the waters introduced divisiveness into creation and as a result in the following days of creation the fruit trees failed to oblige G-d’s command to produce bark and wood tasting like its fruit, and the moon which originally had its own illumination complained about the sun and thus lost its internal light. Because of the dispute that came about from separating two equally great bodies of water the upper waters and the lower ones we see the word 'tov' (good) is not written on the second day of Creation. The story of Korach warns us of the danger of machloket (dispute). Just as there was no 'good' in the dispute on the second day of Creation; there was no good in the dispute of Korach and it brought a great destruction and a plague upon its followers that even swallowed innocent children. There is an opinion* that Korachs dispute in fact is connected to the dispute of the waters. Just as Hashem had caused a separation of the water so did He command in last week's Parsha that the generation of the meraglim would be separated from the Land. Korach's dispute in a way was opposite to Nadav and Avihu who were criticized for being too spiritual so that their souls left their body. Korach on the other hand misunderstood the physical. He accepted the physical punishment of Hashem and concluded that it is His desire for Israel to perform Torah and Mitzvot in the desert. The desire to uplift the world and alter its course was something only Hashem could decree while our job was to continue with Torah and Mitzvot in the place that was decreed for us. In the dispute of the water we see that the third day water was also mentioned however there it says it was 'good'. The dispute between equals that brings destruction eventual leads to a better world once we understand the nature of the dispute and resolve it. Although dispute is bad a better good was being created through this dispute. We also see this hinted at with Korach's progeny Shmuel that we read about in our Haftorah. The dispute we have discussed above we can see in our own times. One might say that the Korach attitude that we have discussed relating to the Shoa is also demonstrated in the response to today's looming disasters. There are many devout Bnei Torah that live in galut and have no desire to come to Israel neither for 'love' of the Land or 'fear' of potential disaster. Galut is not a 'punishment' but a desirable place. Their feeling is that if Hashem has placed us in this 'desirable' place He will decide when to bring Moshiach and return us to Eretz Israel. The desire for the Land, whether from love or even fear is not felt. If it is felt somewhat, other considerations outweigh it. I always felt uneasy with this attitude when I lived in the Galut. People would ask me why I don't move to the Jewish neighborhood and settle down. I would answer that this is not my place to settle down. One day I will build my home and garden in Israel. I was reminded of this recently when I visited a cousin in Binyamina. She made aliyah from the USA and married an Israeli who did very well in business. I visited her in her new home that looked like a castle with three floors, a basement , elevator and swimming pool. In addition there was a large study room with Torah books and a picture of the Lubavitcher Rebbe. She said to me she felt embarrassed and that its not really her. Her and her husband were hippies once and now that he has done well plus they have a large family they decided to built a beautiful home. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- *Sicha from the Lubavitcher Rebbe on Korach 159

I explained to her about what people used to tell me in the Galut and how I would answer. If she was building a mansion in Galut to settle down to raise generations in the exile I would agree with her that I too would feel embarrassed. It would not feel right. Building in Israel, however, I replied, is a completely different story. Here in Israel the 'physical' is spiritual. In fact it is the 'most' spiritual. Look at how the UN gets up in arms almost every day because a Jew built another home. A Jew added a porch or made an extension and the United Nations condemns it. Why is this? Because building and settling in the Land of Israel is the most spiritual activity today. It is a Kiddush Hashem. How the nations tried to destroy us, and look how Hashem rewards us! This made her feel better about her beautiful home. On the third day water is mentioned and it was 'good.' The dispute was rectified. All of the tragedies of the Shoa and the tragedies looming today are caused by our apathy and misguided desire for an exile that Hashem is bringing to an end. Another Korach manifestation we see today is the anger and rebellion of the reformists who were not able to change the Halachic status of the Kotel. Even though they have no intention of moving to Israel they want Israel to accommodate their assimilated condition. Before the Shoa many religious factions were forbidden to make aliyah because the state was too irreligious. Today the reformists refuse to make aliyah because Israel has become too religious. Whatever the rebellion the cure is found in the Land of Israel and the curse will become even more so as there is strife between the waters and anger at the rock of Israel which is our salvation. Just like transforming the Land is not easy transforming oneself is also not easy. It is difficult to make the movie. However the more that one desires the Land or even recognizes the danger that exists, the more doors will open and solutions will be found. It begins by understanding where blessing lies and remembering the old saying ' When the Jews stop making Havdalah, the nations start making it'. Its time to come home. The Last Supper (2019) Shabbat Kiddish A week after my sixteenth birthday in Israel my Shabbat home, the Chabbad Bet Knesset of Nachalat Binyamin was about to disappear like Korach, never to be seen again. The eighty year old history of this tiny 50-60 square meters of space has filled volumes of books of great spiritual leaders and emissaries that built Chabbad all over Israel. It was now about to vanish. A few remnants of this ancient history are the old wooden table that serves as the alter for our shabbat kiddish and the wooden bench that I always sit on. This bench to me was always a living symbol of how the spiritual world infuses and defies the physical world. The bench had long ago worn out its physical properties but like the dust of Adam this physical remnant carried a much greater spiritual purpose. The property owners were tearing down the building and promising a new renovated space in a year or two or three while the congregation would move temporarily a few blocks away to the Yavne Bet Knesset. Rav Manke Lipskur (one of the old timers) said a L'Chaim and proclaimed that instead of being imprisoned in a tiny space like Egypt (Mitzrayim from Meytzar – narrow), we should return and 160

be a spacious and prominent landmark. Rav Butman (the 85 year old founding father) said a L'Chaim. He along with Manke had been praying there for fifty years. Sitting next to Rav Butman was a guest who came for the last supper. He was a contemporary of Rav Butman and the Rabbi remembered a story that the guests father had told him as a young boy. He said to the young Rav Butman 'we know that a small drop of water over time can make a hole in a stone, but what is the difference of that drop of water falling on a stone and the same drop falling on a horse? Will it make hole in a horse too?' The Rav understood he was referring to him. The man continued and explained that after a million drops of water an impression starts to be formed in the stone. The difference is when one drop falls on a horse, the horse shakes it away, so there is never more than one drop. I also said a L'Chaim and thanked everyone for giving me a Shabbat home for sixteen years and being a tiny part of this great history. Although I have sat among the leaders of Chabbad I have always been a Chassid of Rav Kahane and this was always reflected in my questions at the kiddish table. I said that it is not by coincidence that the move was taking place during the Parshas of Shlach (last week) and Korach (this week). As a consequence of the evil report said by the spies we had a duty now to create a minyan of ten each time we pray. The people of Korach were part of a similar rebellion that called 'Egypt' the land of Milk and Honey and distorted the Torah. As an antidote, the mitzvah of gathering Jews for minyan (as was done daily here) has great power. I have always believed that decrees made or annulled by kings unbeknown to them were influenced by the kiddish tables of Jewish kings in holy Bet Knessets. Personally, it was the merit of the Minyan that gave me a home in Israel. For years in chul I went out in the street looking for Jews for a minyan. When I arrived in Israel with no money and prayed to find a way to stay and make aliyah, measure for measure, I was approached on the street by a Rabbi asking me to join a minyan. Later he asked me to help him build his yeshiva and offered me a place to stay there if I made aliyah, which of course I did. So I can understand the feelings of the Meraglim who found it difficult to leave their home and and go into the unknown as Hashem commands us. The proof of Korachs mistake is the staff that blossoms in an unnatural yet natural way. He may have seen the prophet Shmuel Hanavi coming from him in the future however his conclusion was incorrect. To me the Torah is not a history book with moral lessons but rather a book of truth that explains our current situations as well. So how do I understand the story of Korach today? What are these blossoms that grow miraculously and how does the miraculous exist within the order of nature? I know a number of great chassidim who are settlers in Yehuda and Shomron. They build on every hilltop. Their structures are then torn down by the army and they are thrown in prison. They return and they build again. Over and over again they are persecuted and over and over again they return and build. An interesting point about some of these particular individuals and leaders (some of whom I know personally) is that some of them have grandparents and great grandparents that were great Torah leaders in Europe who forbade their congregations to go to Israel. Israel was considered a non-kosher place due to the Zionists and they forbade their people to go there. The same curse that fell upon Korach happened in Europe where the earth swallowed up whole communities that existed for thousands of years as if they never existed; men, women, and children. Just like Korachs vision those who said 'what do we need the extra techelet of Zionism for when we wear all techelet' may have been over zealous in their animosity. Maybe underneath the fervor was the emotional difficulty to leave behind so much history and go forth into the unknown. 161

Today we are not discussing the move from chul to Israel but rather from one location in Israel to another a few blocks away yet it is still very emotional. We know how emotional this 50-60 meters is to us. Imagine those attached to communities thousands of years old? May it be that the descendants of those who were sacrificed in the Shoa, may they continue to settle and build greater than their grandparents who refused the original physical building on principle, and greater than the Zionists who persecute them today for doing it. May it be that as a Jewish shepherd in Yehuda and Shomron sharpens his stone against Goliath the construction workers in Tel Aviv cut the stones of a more spacious Bet Knesset and may the Temple be rebuilt alongside them both speedily in our time. 162

Kahane in the Parsha Chukat 163

Chukat – The Shoa – and The Birth of Israel It appears to me that there is a connection between Parsha Chukat, the Shoa and the birth of modern day Israel. The apparent illogical process of the Para Aduma which purifies while causing impurity in the process is not so illogical when one stands at our viewpoint of history and looks backward. The sin of the snakes, which punishes as well as cures, is also a similar concept. The Shoa too was a punishment that contains within it the cure that we must come to understand. We learn another difficult idea in this Parsha that the death of the spiritual leaders of the generation, atone for the generation by their death. Let us examine for a moment the mistakes of the people and the spiritual leadership that resulted in tragedies and the consequences of these tragedies that resulted eventually in purity coming from impurity, and new life coming from death. In the Haftorah we see the rectification of histories mistakes that lead to the conquest of Biblical Israel and also guide us today with the answers that we still are searching for; answers that have taken a devastating toll on the Nation to discover. There is a Midrash that tells us that the Para Aduma is a symbol of Nation of Israel. Each part of the cow represents a different part of the Nation, from Torah scholars, to those who support the scholars, even the dung of the cow which represents the lowliest parts of the Nation. All are placed together and burned on the Alter, and from this sacrifice comes the elixir that purifies the Nation. What were the faults of the Nation that led to the national tragedy? It is through understanding the difficult questions of our time, which was similar to their time that we can come to understand these ideas and produce the elixir that purifies. The Rebirth of the Nation Why were the greatest leaders of the generation denied entrance to the Land? What were their mistakes and the mistakes of the generation? The Midrash tells us that the generation of the dessert were not only condemned to die in the dessert but were also commanded to dig their own graves (a familiar image). How could a people on the verge of such glory as they left Egypt end up in such tragic circumstances? How could it be that after praying thousands of years for the rebirth of Israel that our own generation failed to see its doors opening even to save their lives? And what gave birth to the new generation that conquered the Land if not for the tragic mistakes of their fathers? The Rock One of the keys to understanding this catastrophe lies within understanding why Moshe was punished for hitting the rock. Chazal tells us many reasons, some of the more famous ones are: Moshe hit the rock instead of speaking to the rock. He got angry when Hashem wasn’t angry. He and Aaron were being punished for the previous sins of the golden calf and the spies. Moshe had an opportunity to raise the consciousness of the nation which he failed to do. If we think back to the generation that entered Israel in our own times before the Shoa and the response of the spiritual leadership then which still echoes in our own time, we might understand these ideas clearer. 164

Was Hashem really angry at the Zionists for their complaints? If the religious leaders spoke to the nation and showed them that water was coming from the rocks of the land of Israel and that the re-birth of the Nation was a clear sign of Hashem’s blessings, maybe millions of Jews might have gone to Israel when they could have. Instead there was a war between the lovers of the Land and the guardians of the religion. It’s interesting to note that the rock that Moshe hit, according to the Midrash, was the same rock that gave water to Hagar. This seems to indicate that there is connection between the rock that sustained Ishmael and that which sustains Israel. The punishments inflicted on the Nation of Israel in the past and in our own time seem to be due to our rejection of the desirable land. Ishmael on the other hand is sustained by the very rock that is rejected by the Israelite Nation. The Cure In Parsha Pinchas Hashem says a second time that the reason the leadership is being denied entry into the Land is because they failed to sanctify His name. In the same Parsha Yehoshua and Calev are distinguished for doing the opposite. It seems that the general rule is that leadership that appeases the people as Aaron did with the golden calf, or Moshe did, in the episode of the spies, will eventually lead to the long road of redemption, while those who stood against the mob like Calev, Yehoshua, and Pinchas, were rewarded by bringing the people into the land. In Parsha Devarim which often falls during Tisha Bav the sins that lead to National catastrophe are further explained. The Meraglim who were great leaders of stature, we are told, slandered the good Land and had a powerfully negative influence on the Nation. In the Haftorah of Chukat Hashem tells us what He despises most - Mendacity amidst assemblage; piety that masks lack of faith. ‘He shall make war for you, like everything He did for you in Egypt, before your eyes. And in the Wilderness, as you have seen, that Hashem your G-d, bore you, as a man carries his son, on the entire way that you traveled, until you arrived at this place. Yet in this matter you do not believe in Hashem your G-d, Who goes before you on the way…(Devarim 29-33). One can be a very pious Jew, but still it is in this way that we lacked faith then, and today. We are told that Calev and Yehoshua believed in Hashem fully!. We didn’t believe fully that Hashem would walk in front of us and lead us into the Land. Instead we slandered the Land and because we were afraid to forge our destiny as we were commanded to do, we exchanged it instead for a set of rituals called Judaism. This piety that lacks faith has resulted in terrible tragedy. Chukat describes the inevitable punishments of running away from our destiny and the mistakes of leadership. The rectification which begins with the new leadership of Yehoshua and Calev and the zealous acts of Pinchas affected the cure that was finally resolved in the end of history by the Haftorah of Parshat Chukat. Former Jewish enemies resolved their differences in order to repel an enemy of the newly formed Jewish Nation. The enemy of the Jews at that time offered a peace treaty in exchange for land, the same claim as today. They bargain with the Jewish conquerors, that they wont make war, if only these conquerors would give them back Land that they felt was theirs previously. But the Jewish leadership and people had changed. They no longer saw these enemies as giants and themselves small, but rather as Calev and Yehoshua saw them – Goliaths who’s time of retribution had 165

come. In the end, the answer they received was the same answer we will give one day to both villains and imposters of piety. ‘All that your god gives to you he has given you, all he has given us he gives to us (Shoftim 11:24).' End of story. Chukat 2012 Secrets of the Para Aduma Spiritual mistakes lead to physical death – Physical death leads to spiritual re-birth. To me this encapsulates the concept of the Para Aduma. I heard from Rabbi Glazerson that according to the Kabbala the Para Aduma represents the people of Israel, from the head to the dung, they are all burned. Like the Shoa which did not distinguish between religious or political beliefs, all were taken together and burned, so the Para Aduma from the head to its dung are burned. From these ashes comes a remedy from the defilement of death. Two Cows The Midrash tells us that the Para Aduma is connected to the Chet Haegel. It is as if the mother cow is coming to clean up after her baby. The spiritual sins that began with the Chet Ha Egel climax with the maligners of Israel the Maraglim, which seal the physical fate of the whole desert generation. The spiritual mistakes from the leadership down to the Erev Rav affect the physical well being of the whole generation. Outside the Camp The spiritual leadership that brings life from these ashes become defiled in the process. The whole ritual is done from outside the camp. The blood of the Para is sprinkled towards the Temple and the ashes are collected far from the Temple itself. There are spiritual leaders that try to save the Nation from itself and become martyred in the process. They bring light from these ashes. Rabbi Teichtel who wrote Em Habonim Somecha was one of these leaders who saw the remedy when it was too late for him and the Nation, but the remedy was preserved for future generations to study and understand. Chur was also a spiritual leader that tried to prevent the Chet HaEgel and became a martyr. His life of self- sacrifice was rewarded in his grandson Betzalel, the architect of the Mishkan. Many who inspire the Nation and try to lead it forward in the direction that is demanded from Hashem often suffer persecution by our own people. Leaders like Hur of the past who was murdered by wild mobs. Rabbi Kahane in our own time was ostracized and persecuted by a knesset who feared his rising popularity. It is these leaders who correct our sins that are pushed outside the camp and become impure like lepers to be disassociated with. While it is they who administer the elixir of life from the ashes of our unnecessary deaths. Mistakes of the Gedolim Fixed by the Katonim The mistakes of our leadership both physical and spiritual are fixed only by those with the ability and self-sacrifice to stand alone against a sea of adversity. Moshe understood this when Jewish informers forced him to become a fugitive and wanted man for his noble acts. The man who most resembles Moshe of the past is Rabbi Kahane today, who also was beaten and imprisoned countless times for his Jewish activism. Yet this is the spirit that is required and brings redemption to the Jewish people. They must learn from their leaders what is demanded of them. David Hamelech also began with a small 166

group of followers that were considered fugitives and rebels by the State but loved by the people. Copper Snake and Two Cows The copper snake made by Moshe is a similar idea to what we have already spoken about. We need to understand that our suffering comes by our own hands. So many tragedies did not need to result in our being turned into ashes if we had acted upon what we knew instead of being willfully blind. Spiritual mistakes cause physical death. Physical death causes spiritual re-birth. We have the choice of an easy birth or one with terrible labor pains. The difference between the Tzadik who administers the antidote with the Paras Aduma and the antidote of the snake is one of proximity. In the first example the Tzadik is banished and not part of the camp. In the case of the snakes the Tzadik brings the antidote from within the camp. The difference is that the we slowly incorporate the Torah that heals as opposed to the Torah that causes our destruction. For example in Rabbi Kahane's time, if he had not been ostracized and banned and persecuted by the rulers who feared for their positions good things could have happened. The people would have been allowed to vote and elect him to power. He would have proceeded to throw out our enemies and rebuilt the Temple. He would have given us the faith and courage that we lack. Because we threw him out side the camp so that he could only throw the blood of the Paras Aduma towards us from a distance he was left in a pit like Yoseph and we continue to suffer with no solution. Chazal tells us that the death of the Tzadikim bring atonement similar to the Para Aduma. This is why the death of Miriam is recorded just after the description of the Para Aduma. How does their death bring atonement? When the leaders are no longer around to fight for us, then there is only ourselves. We must become a little bit more like those we feared to follow lest we be labeled extremists. As more people take up the mantle then one may not be considered quite as extreme as he might have been twenty years earlier, when now a few members of knesset proudly admit that Rabbi Kahane was their Rabbi. The blood that was thrown towards the Temple is now a copper snake that is erected from within the camp, to demonstrate to the people so that they will begin now to understand and internalize the Torah of healing that is needed. The Poison Antidote It is the poison that we have for each other that causes the snakes to bite. The hatred of the Charedim against the Zionists and the Zionists against the Charedim is the poison that creates a rift in the Nation and strengthens our enemies. Rabbi Kahane was one of the few leaders that had adamant followers among both the religious and non-religious. There were many charedim who secretly admired Rabbi Kahane although he was banned by their Rebbe's and many non-observant Jews who became more observant because he spoke to their hearts and demanded of them self-sacrifice. He instilled a new Jewish heart that was not fearful and guilt ridden but proud of their heritage and ready to fight for Jewish freedom. Unlike the majority of Rabbis who say the Shoa is beyond our understanding, the Rabbi explained that this explanation in itself drives people away from the religion. If we say that even the smallest thing is decreed from Heaven but this terrible tragedy we cannot explain then it makes God out to be cruel and we are simply lambs led to His arbitrary slaughter. When we understand the Shoa as a punishment or consequence of our actions in addition to the many mystical views, then it affirms the many admonitions in our Torah and reaffirms the redemptive passages as well. When Moshe went running through the camp and erected the copper snake within the camp, those who looked up were cured. Instead of the remedy coming from outside the camp (Para Aduma), now it was coming from inside the camp. I suggest the difference alludes to the evolution of the Tzadiks Torah. There are those 167

who bring the relevant Torah of their times into being but pay the ultimate sacrifice for this. Rabbi Teichtal was such a man and so was Rabbi Kahane in his time. Sometimes it takes many years for this relevant Torah to be internalized within the Nation. When I go to Har Hamenucha for the Rabbis Haskara there are always bus loads of Breslovers going to visit Israel Berodesa who has the same Hascara. Rebbe Nachman died before he reached thirty with a handful of followers and today there are many thousands of Breslover Chassidim around the world. A Tzadik lives long after his years. The most relevant Torah of our times is the explanation of the Shoa of the past and learning the lesson of the future. Rabbi Kahane's famous slogan 'Never Again' does not mean that never again can it not happen, but rather never again will we be complacent. The 400 soldiers outside the camp ‫כנ שחש כנ החשת‬-‫ כו ני יש ימהו כעל‬,‫ת‬ 9 And Moses made a serpent of brass, and set it upon the pole; and it came to pass, that if a serpent --‫ יאיש‬-‫כה הנ החש האת‬ had bitten any man, when he looked unto the ‫ט כו כי כעש המ השה‬ ‫ הנ כשך‬-‫ יאם‬,‫כה ינס; נו הה היה‬ ‫ הו החי‬,‫ ננ כחש כה ננ הח השת‬-‫ נו יה יביט האל‬serpent of brass, he lived. (Bamidbar 21:9) One can see within the letters that the poison that kills and the poison that cures are one and the same. The serpent reflected upon above cures the serpent that physically kills below. The word for 'snake' and 'copper' are the exact same letters except for the addition of the letter 'Taf'. I submit that the 'Taf'' alludes to the Torah. The more that one understands the 'authentic' or 'living' Torah, the more one is cured. It is important to differentiate between 'authentic' and 'living' because the same Torah can be used to separate and cause 'controversy' among Israel and become the very poison that kills. Copper is also known for its healing qualities but can also rust and be poisonous. ‫ כה ינס;ת‬-‫ כו ני יש ימהו כעל‬, ‫ט כו כי כעש המ השה ננ כחש ננ הח הש‬ 9 And Moses made a serpent of brass, and set it upon the pole; and it came to pass, that if a serpent -‫ נו יה יביט האל‬--‫ יאיש‬-‫ הנ כשך כה הנ החש האת‬-‫ יאם‬,‫נו הה היה‬ had bitten any man, when he looked unto the ‫ הו החי‬,‫ ננ כחש כה ננ הח השת‬serpent of brass, he lived. (Bamidbar 21:9) The 'Taf' also is the gematria Four Hundred. This number is written about in a number of places in the Torah. The first time we see it, it is in regard to Esav and his Four Hundred men that are coming to potentially attack Israel. ‫ הבאנו‬:‫ ילא המר‬,‫ כי נע הקב‬-‫ האל‬,‫ כה כמ נלא יכים‬,‫ ז כו הי משבו‬7 And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying: ,‫ נו כגם הה ילך יל נק הרא נתך‬,‫ יע השו‬-‫ האל‬,‫א יחיך‬-‫' האל‬We came to thy brother Esau, and moreover he cometh to meet thee, and four hundred men with ‫ ןמאוהת‬-‫יאיש יעמ הוא כר שבע‬ ‫נו‬ him.' (Bereshit 32:7) It was from this threat that Yaacov divided his camp into three. One camp would try to bribe Esav, one could escape and the third camp do battle. The first two camps have been the status quo for two thousand years of exile. The third camp that is prepared for battle is the camp we are in today with the re-birth of the Modern State of Israel. The other place that the number four hundred appears is referring to David HaMelech, the King of Israel. Before he became king he led a revolution that began with four hundred men who would have 168

been considered in their time as outcasts and extremists. ;‫ נמ הע כרת נע מד הלם‬-‫ כו יי המ ילט האל‬,‫ א כו יי הלך הד יוד ימ השם‬1 David therefore departed thence, and escaped to ‫ כו יי נרדו יא הליו‬,‫ יבית א יביו‬-‫ כו יי נש נמעו הא החיו נו הכל‬the cave of Adullam; and when his brethren and all his father's house heard it, they went down ‫הש המה‬ thither to him. ‫המצוהק‬ ‫ יאיש‬-‫ב שו יי כת שק כבצו ןא הליו הכל‬ 2 And every one that was in distress, and every -‫כו הכל‬ ,‫לוה הנ תשא‬-‫ יאיש נא תשר‬-‫כו הכל‬ one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented, gathered themselves unto him; and ‫ תנ תפש‬-‫ נל השר;יאיש שמר‬,‫ כו ני יהי נע ילי ההם‬, he became captain over them; and there were with him about four hundred men. ‫ נכא כר שבע ןמאוהת יאיש‬,‫כו יי נהיו יעמ הו‬ -‫ ימ נצ יפה מ הואב; כו היא המר האל‬,‫ ג כו יי הלך הד יוד ימ השם‬3 And David went thence to Mizpeh of Moab; and ‫ כעד‬,‫ הנא א יבי נו יא ימי יא נת הכם‬-‫ יי יצא‬,‫ המ הלך מ הואב‬he said unto the king of Moab: 'Let my father and my mother, I pray thee, come forth, and be with ‫ ילי באל יהים‬-‫ כי נע השה‬-‫ כמה‬,‫נא השר יא כדע‬ you, till I know what God will do for me.' (Shmuel 1/ 22:1-3) This ragged force of outcasts that manages to be victorious over the well trained armies of Esav as well as the backstabbing from his own countrymen is not unprecedented. It is most always like this. Itzchak Shamir who passed away this week was on Winston Churchill's 'most wanted' list. Shamir was the leader of Lechi which was considered a terrorist group in its time. Israel did not come into being from a United Nations vote, but from a grass roots revolution that carried out enough 'price tag' actions that the British decided eventually to leave Palestine. As Shamir writes: \"It is permitted to liberate a people even against its will, or against the will of the majority,\" he said, explaining Lehi's decision to eject the British from the Jewish homeland against the expressed desire of the community's leaders. \"When we fought for freedom, the establishment of a Jewish state, we didn't send a questionnaire to the Jewish nation asking if it wanted a Jewish state.\" Indeed, he said \"Zionism is a revolutionary process. And in a revolution you must be ready not to think too much about sentiments or human weaknesses...\" (The Jerusalem Post July 3rd, 2012) History is not made by the majority but by a handful of determined, courageous and righteous individuals who's love for their Nation inspires them to take a stand and sacrifice for a higher cause. People often criticized those who followed the Rav as being unstable and unbalanced. As we see throughout history from the time of David Hamelech to our own times Zionism is a revolution and revolutions don't always attract those who are well respected and powerful. Almost every citizen of Israel sacrifices by either being in the army or being part of a population that is constantly targeted by bombs and missiles. I am sure that because of this Hashem spreads His protective wings around us. Those who are guided by an even higher authority and fight for the direction of our National identity and to this end may be ostracized, beaten, or imprisoned have to be of a certain type that can bear this additional weight. It is not easy to stand alone and their sacrifice, may be viewed from the outside as the men of David Hamelech were viewed in their time. In the future however these same men would become Prime Ministers and leaders of the Nation like Itzchak Shamir. Again in our Haftorah we are reminded of the type of people that bring redemption and conquest; the 169

very ones whose lives we had embittered and persecuted. ;‫ כו יי השב נב הא הרץ ט הוב‬,‫ ג כו יי נב כרח יי נפ התח ימ נפ יני הא החיו‬3 Then Jephthah fled from his brethren, and dwelt in the land of Tob; empty handed men gathered ‫נא הנ ישים ןרי יקים‬, ‫ יי נפ התח‬-‫האל‬ ‫כו יי נת כל נקטו‬ about Jephthah, and they went out with him. ‫ כו יי נצאו יעמ הו‬. (Judges 11:3) It is these very men that we must thank for sparking change and creating history. This is the symbol of the Chanuka Menorah whose pure light spread throughout the Nation as it does throughout Chanuka increasing the light each day from the original holy spark. ‫ ו ימאה ימ הכם‬,‫ ח נו הר נדפו ימ הכם נח ימ השה ימאה‬8 And five of you shall chase a hundred, and a ‫ הל הח הרב‬,‫ נר הב הבה יי נר הדפו; נו הנ נפלו הא ני יבי הכם יל נפ יני הכם‬hundred of you shall chase ten thousand; and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword. (Vayikra 26:8) Just as Israel is tiny compared to the Nations yet they are the active ingredient that propels civilization, so too within this light is an inner light that is the root and motivating factor that ignites change within Israel and are the essential sparks of history. This pure vile of oil that remains when the rest of the oil has been contaminated may seem on the surface to be rough, extreme and of no significance. It is however this purity of purpose that ignites the rest of the Nation and puts into motion the equation above where five will chase a hundred and one hundred will chase ten thousand. I am not a mathematics major but four hundred would not only chase forty thousand but based on the first ratio probably much more. Remember how only thirty three evil men destroyed America on September 11th. Imagine how much evil four hundred men of David or Yiftach could destroy and consequently how much light would fill the space that evil had overshadowed with their cruelty. Another metaphor for this purity is the Kiddish wine. Once this wine has been blessed one need only add a drop into other cups and spread this wine endlessly to those that shared the same intention to bless and be blessed. There is a classic debate between Rabbi Kahane and Rabbi Dershowitz. Rabbi Dershowitz assures the crowd not to worry because (so-called) extremists like Rabbi Kahane are a tiny, tiny, tiny, minority. Rabbi Kahane using the same mocking gesture and responds 'is this really the way to measure the truth? If so, there are billions of Muslims and Christians around the world, so who are we to proclaim the truth of Israel when we are a tiny, tiny, tiny minority?' Our greatness has never been in numbers but rather in our purity. Purity comes from the willingness to sacrifice for a cause. The less sediment, the better the oil and the better the wine. ‫ נמ ישי יבים‬-‫ יאם‬,‫ יז נק יני יג נל העד‬-‫ ט כו היא המר יי נפ התח האל‬9 And Jephthah said unto the elders of Gilead: 'If ‫ נו הנ כתן ניה הוה‬,‫ כא התם א הו יתי נל יה הל יחם יב נב יני כעמ הון‬ye bring me back home to fight with the children of Ammon, and the LORD deliver them before ‫ הא נה היה הל הכם נל הראש‬,‫א הנ יכי‬--‫ נל הפ הני‬,‫א הו התם‬ me, I will be your head.' ‫ יי נה היה‬,‫ ניה הוה‬:‫ יי נפ התח‬-‫ האל‬,‫ יג נל העד‬-‫ י כו היא נמרו יז נק יני‬10 And the elders of Gilead said unto Jephthah: ‫ יכן כנ נע השה‬,‫לא יכ נד הב נרך‬-‫ יאם‬--‫' הש ימ כע יבינ הו יתינו‬The LORD shall be witness between us; surely according to thy word so will we do.' 170

‫ כו הי ישימו הה העם‬,‫ יז נק יני יג נל העד‬-‫ יא כו יי הלך יי נפ התח יעם‬11 Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, ‫ א הות הו נע ילי ההם נל הראש ו נל הק יצין; כו ני כד יבר יי נפ התח‬and the people made him head and chief over them; and Jephthah spoke all his words before the ‫ כב ימ כצ הפה‬,‫ נד הב הריו יל נפ יני ניה הוה‬-‫ הכל‬-‫האת‬ LORD in Mizpah. (Judges 11:9,10,11) There is something parallel in both stories of Daavid and Yiftach. Both of them have a small group of outcasts that follow them and it is these outcasts that change the day and write the pages of history and bring glory to G-ds Name. They both begin to lead their band of freedom fighters to take up Israels cause from Mitzpah (gematria 215). There must be some significance to this name and so below are a few ideas related to Mitzpah. ‫ = מיצכ הפה‬Mitzpah = 215 -‫או ירי הבן‬-‫ נב כצ נל יאל הבן‬,‫ הק הרא יתי נב ישם‬,‫ ב נר יאה‬2 'See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah; ‫ נל כמ יטה ניהו הדהחור‬, (Shmot 31:2) ‫ = חור‬Chur = 214+1 (kollel) = 215 Chur stood alone against the rebels of the Golden Calf and he was murdered by the rabble. He led a life of sacrifice and gave the ultimate sacrifice in the end. Hashem does not overlook the sacrifice of those who are close to Him. From the seed of Chur comes Betzalel who is endowed with the understanding of the deepest secrets of the Temple. His talent is connected to his grandfather Chur and this is why it Chur's name is mentioned in association with Betzalel. ,‫ יתי נראון‬-‫ כת כע נרצון נולא‬-‫ לא‬:‫ נא יל הכם‬,‫ כט הו הא כמר‬29 Then I said unto you: 'Dread not, neither be ‫ ימ ההם‬. afraid of them. ‫ הוא יי הל יחם‬,‫ ל ניה הוה באל יהי הכם כה הה ילך יל נפ יני הכם‬30 The LORD your God who goeth before you, --‫ נב ימ נצ כר יים‬,‫ נכ הכל נא השר הע השה יא נת הכם‬:‫ הל הכם‬He shall fight for you, according to all that He did ‫ נל יעי יני הכם‬for you in Egypt before your eyes; ‫ נא השר ננ הש נאך ניה הוה‬,‫ נא השר הר יאי הת‬,‫ ו כב ימ נד הבר‬31 and in the wilderness, where thou hast seen -‫ נב הכל‬--‫ נבנ הו‬-‫ יאיש האת‬-‫ ככ נא השר יי השא‬,‫ באל ההיך‬how that the LORD thy God bore thee, as a man doth bear his son, in all the way that ye went, until ‫ כה המק הום‬-‫כעד‬ ‫ הב נא הכם‬-‫כעד‬ ,‫נה כל נכ התם‬ ‫נא השר‬ ‫כה הד הרך‬ ye came unto this place. ‫ כה הזה‬. ,‫כמ נא ימי ינם‬ ,‫ יאי ננ הכם‬--‫ כה הזה‬,‫לב ו שב הד הבר‬ 32 Yet in this thing ye do not believe the LORD your God, ‫ באל יהי הכם‬,‫כביה הוה‬ (Devarim 1:29-32) ‫( = ו שב הד הבר‬Yet in this) thing = 214+1 (kollel) = 215 171

From Kesser.org Our Sages taught: [Berachos 34b] \"There will be no difference between the current age and the Era of Moshiach except [our emancipation from] subjugation to the [gentile] kingdoms.\" The simple meaning of the words of the prophets appears to imply that the war of Gog and Magog [Yechezkal ch. 38] will take place at the beginning of the Messianic age. Before the war of Gog and Magog, a prophet will arise to rectify Israel's conduct and prepare their hearts [for the Redemption], as it is written: [Malachi 3:23] \"Behold, I am sending you Eliyah(u) before the advent of the great and awesome Day of G-d].\" He will not come [in order] to declare the pure, impure, nor to declare the impure, pure; nor [will he come in order] to disqualify the lineage of those presumed to be of flawless descent, nor to validate lineage which is presumed to be blemished. Rather, [he will come in order] to establish peace in the world; as [the above prophecy] continues [Malachi 3:24], \"He will bring back the hearts of the fathers to the children.\" The only difference between our time and the time of Moshiach is how we relate to the non-Jewish nations and how we relate to our G-d. Do we really believe G-d is stronger than Washington? Rabbi Kahane came to teach us about the ingredient that was missing in our souls, from the secular to the Charedi world. With all our religion do we really believe that our G-d is stronger than America and the United Nations? Like Eliyahu the Rabbi prepared our souls and like David and Yiftach who began their battles in Mitzpeh; they both corrected this eternal flaw by their actions. Rabbi Kahane gave birth to a new Jew who isn't overly concerned about pleasing our allies. 'In this way' his students are separated from other Torah students as they really believe G-d is fighting with them when they go to war. In addition they do not base their survival on compromising their beliefs in order to please their so-called friends. If the measure of ones actions is 'what will they say?' then one lacks faith. Even one who labors each day in Torah lacks faith in G-d 'in this thing'. It is 'this thing' that is essential in understanding who our G-d really is and what He really demands of us. --‫ הצאן יי נתר הו הח נתנ הו‬-‫ הה היה הר העה האת‬,‫ א ו המ השה‬1 Now Moses was keeping the flock of Jethro his ,‫ כה הצאן א כחר כה ימ נד הבר‬-‫ הכ יהן ימ נד הין; כו יי ננ כהג האת‬father-in-law, the priest of Midian; and he led the ‫ הח ןר הבה‬flock to the farthest end of the wilderness, and ‫ כהר הה באל יהים‬-‫ כו הי הבא האל‬came to the mountain of God, unto Horeb. (Shmot 3:1) ‫ = הח ןר הבה‬Horeb = 215 Some of the definitions for Mitzpe (215) are - lookout, observation point, watchtower, pre-settlement. From Mitzpe Yiftach began to clarify the false claims of 'Land for Peace' with his band of outcasts. From Mitzpe David formed his group of freedom fighters that were also outcasts and men of 'embittered spirit'. It was similar men that escaped the Shoa and built the pre-settlements of Israel and continue to build the pre-settlements of Yehuda and Shomron. The temperament of those who fought under Begin and Jabotinsky and Kahane today, that stand up to the Pharaohs of the past and create revolution. Horeb was also a symbol of revolution that inspired the masses to stand up and leave their oppressive 172

exile. It is the place where the vision of one man became a reality that a whole people understood having experienced the oppression, the desire to be a free people and the miraculous divine intervention that each one felt personally having been pulled out of the fire where most of the Nation perished. From Horeb one could look back and see the G-d of Israel directing history 'in this way' where politics and spirituality become one thing. How many rabbis would disregard Kahane as 'politics' that should not interfere with 'Torah study'. They are two separate things. How many secular politicians attacked and banned Kahane for his 'Messianic' views that are politically 'incorrect' and labeled 'racist'. Authentic Judaism is both spiritual and political. The Torah is not a 'religious book' to be studied only in yeshivot; it is a constitution of the Holy Nation of Israel. The State of Israel will never be a 'secular' state of Jews because the soul of the Nation cannot be exchanged. Since the inception of the State the Torah viewpoint is often brought into political problem solving. The political process which is a spiritual process has been the active ingredient in the building of the modern State of Israel just as it was in the Mitzpeh of David and Yiftach and the inspiration that Horeb brought to the Jews of Egypt. From Jabotinsky to Begin to the settlers that anger the Pharoahs today both gentile and Jewish; it is the spirit of those in the wilderness, at the edge of society that arrive at the mountain of G-d. If we are lucky we also arrive their later as a Nation inspired by these pioneers. The desire of many Charedim to be part of the Israeli society and desire of many secular Israeli's to increase their spiritual connections is a process that is continually blossoming. Rabbi Nachum Kahane writes: The agony of the secular Jew in Eretz Yisrael stems from his inability to realize the great dream of secular Zionism – to finally be able to live like a goy. In the lands of our dispersion, despite our huge efforts to be like the Gentile – to talk like him, to dress like him, to sit in his parliaments, and even be anti-Semitic like him for the singular purpose of being accepted in the hollowed halls of his countries and fraternities – we did not succeed. So the last hope of the secular Zionist was to create his own goyishe society in our historic homeland. However, despite all his efforts, he is not permitted to forget the unhappy fact of his Jewish birth, because all around him are the inescapable signs of Torah and mitzvot. The food he eats has not one hechsher, but at least two – the badatz and that of the chief Rabbinate. He has difficulty finding chametz on Pesach, and frequently is forced to enter some Arab village to get a succulent piece of pita. He cannot escape the announcement on the radio when Shabbat begins. He would climb the walls in his madness, but then the chances of being treated by a doctor with a kippa returns him to his unhappy state of sanity. ..he cannot escape his failure to be a Hebrew-speaking Gentile, because before his very eyes a generation of youth is growing up, the likes of which the Jewish nation has not seen since the days of the Macabees. (With All Your Might – Rabbi Nachum Kahana pg748-749) --‫ נה ינ נמ הצא הכ הזה‬:‫ נע הב הדיו‬-‫ האל‬,‫ לח כו היא המר כפ נר העה‬38 And Pharaoh said unto his servants: 'Can we find such a one as this, a man in whom the spirit of God is?' ‫באל יהים ב הורוחש‬ ‫ נא השר‬,‫יאיש‬ (Bereshit 41:38) 173

‫רו שח‬,‫ הדן‬-‫ נל כפ נעמ הו נב כמ נח ינה‬,‫ניה הוה‬ ‫ כה כו הת החל‬25 And the spirit of the LORD began to move him in Mahaneh-dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol. ‫ ו יבין הא נש הת האל‬,‫יבין הצ נר העה‬ (Shoftim 13:25) ‫ = רו שח‬spirit = 215 There is a different 'spirit' among those who sacrifice for our Nation and return it to its source. This same 'ruach' is also used to describe David and Shaul and Betzalel and the heroic leadership of Otniel ben Kenaz in the period of the Shoftim (Judges). The Copper Snake and Moshiach Returning once again to the copper snake which contains the same letters (‫נחשת‬, ‫ ) נחש‬we learn that our national suffering is reflective of our actions. We are bitten by our own poison.When we reach the Mitzpeh, the place where we begin to see the cause and effects that brought about our tragedies and glories we can make wiser choices. The word for snake is also related to Moshiach. Moshiach is the one who destroys evil and brings a new age of redemption. Once we begin to see clearly and act accordingly then instead of being part of the poison we are part of the cure and already are living or at least 'viewing' the times of Moshiach. ‫ = נחש‬snake = 358 ‫ = המשחה‬anointing = 358 Even Gedolim Make Mistakes ,‫ ימ יל נפ יני ניה הוה‬,‫ כה כמ הטה‬-‫ ט כו יי כקח המ השה האת‬9 And Moses took the rod from before the LORD, ‫ יצ הוהו‬,‫ ככ נא השר‬as He commanded him. ‫ נפ יני‬-‫ האל‬--‫ כה הק ההל‬-‫ האת‬,‫ י כו כי נק יהלו המ השה נוא נה הרן‬10 And Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly --‫ הנא כה המ ירים‬-‫ יש נמעו‬,‫ כה הס כלע; כו היא המר הל ההם‬together before the rock, and he said unto them: 'Hear now, ye rebels; are we to bring you forth ‫ נ הו יציא הל הכם המ יים‬,‫ כה הס כלע כה הזה‬-‫נה ימן‬ water out of this rock?' ‫ כה הס כלע‬-‫ כו כיך האת‬,‫ היד הו‬-‫ יא כו הי הרם המ השה האת‬11 And Moses lifted up his hand, and smote the ‫ כו ית נש נת‬,‫ כפ נע המ יים; כו יי נצאו כמ יים כר יבים‬--‫ נב כמ יטהו‬rock with his rod twice; and water came forth abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their ‫הה יע הדה ו נב יעי הרם‬ cattle ‫ כי כען‬,‫א נה הרן‬-‫ המ השה נו האל‬-‫ האל‬,‫ יב כו היא המר ניה הוה‬12 And the LORD said unto Moses and Aaron: ‫ נל כה נק ידי יש יני נל יעי יני נב יני‬,‫ הה בא כמ ננ התם יבי‬-‫' לא‬Because ye believed not in Me, to sanctify Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye ,‫כה הזה‬ ‫ כה הק ההל‬-‫ לא הת יביאו האת‬,‫ הל יכן‬--‫יי נש הר יאל‬ shall not bring this assembly into the land which I ‫ הנ כת יתי הל ההם‬-‫ נא השר‬,‫ ההא הרץ‬-‫האל‬ have given them.' 174

‫ יי כש הר ןאל‬-‫ הרבו כב ןני‬-‫ נא השר‬,‫ יג יה המה ימי נמ ירי הבה‬13 These are the waters of Meribah, where the ‫ הבם‬,‫ כיה הוה; שו יי הק ןדש‬-‫ תאת‬children of Israel contended with Hashem, and He was sanctified through them. (Bamidbar 20:9-13) This passage is very interesting. What is described above is the sin of Moshe and Aaron yet the conclusion in the end can be read that 'the Children of Israel sinned and Hashem was sanctified through them'. According to Chazal the them is not clear. Rashi says it refers to Moshe and Aaron, while Rambam say it refers to the 'waters of strife'. I suggest that the them are the Children of Israel. Let me explain with a story. A woman came up to Rabbi Nachum Kahane and told this story. She was a little girl in Poland and her father asked the local Rebbe one day for a blessing because he wanted to take his family and make aliya to Israel. The Rebbe forbid him and told him that Israel is not a good place to go to because of the Zionists. It is not a 'kosher' environment and its best to stay here in a Torah environment. It was the only time her father didn't follow the Rebbe's advise and he made aliya despite his warnings. Because of this she and her family survived but their whole town was murdered, every last one of them. Why did the Rebbe give such advise she wondered all her life. It seems to me that this story answers the above question of Moshe. Hashem was sanctified through them not through Moshe. His mistaken anger caused their deaths. ‫ נפ יני‬-‫ האל‬--‫ כה הק ההל‬-‫ האת‬,‫ י כו כי נק יהלו המ השה נוא נה הרן‬And Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock, and he said unto them: ‫המ ירים‬-- ‫כה‬ ‫ הנא‬-‫יש נמעו‬ ,‫הל ההם‬ ‫כו היא המר‬ ;‫כה הס כלע‬ 'Hear now, ye rebels; are we to bring you forth ‫ נ הו יציא הל הכם המ יים‬,‫ כה הס כלע כה הזה‬-‫ נה ימן‬water out of this rock?' (Bamidbar 20:10) ‫ = המ ירים‬Rebels ‫ = ימ כר הים‬Miriam Miriam was the source of water, yet after she passed away this source became the focus of dissension. She had gone into the sea singing with her tambourine and now the new singers are called rebels. In other words, the source of our inspiration has always been returning to Israel. The Torah was the water that quenched our thirst. Even those who didn't observe the Torah like David Ben Gurion proclaimed that this was our deed and right to settle the Land. It was this rock that had provided for Hagar the mother of Ishmael that was now being struck by Moshe. In speaking to the rock Moshe could have sanctified Hashem but instead he caused a rift that led to destruction. In our times if the Gedolim had said 'Look at Israel, it is becoming green. The Land is speaking and welcoming its sons and daughters. We should learn from our brothers and sisters that are running to sacrifice for the Land of Israel. See how Israel is responding? If it responds to them who are not observant how much more so will it respond to us. Let us join this new National movement so we can influence it in the ways of Hashem.' If these were spoken instead of 'hear ye rebels' how many millions would have been saved from the Shoa? 175

Healing Waters What I have written about above may be encapsulated in one phrase. Hidden inside the letters of the 'healing waters' is both 'The Laws' as well as 'The State'. The laws of the Torah without a State are insufficient and lead to wandering and destruction. The State without the Laws of Torah are also insufficient and lead to constant wars. When both are mixed together then there is life and a cure from the animosity that separated us. When we begin to understand the past then we can create a healing for the future. There is a relationship between the animosity we may have for each other and our external enemies. When we begin to heal the rift between brothers then we will be increasingly victorious against our external enemies. ‫ נו יה יני כח‬,‫ יאת יא הפר כה הפ הרה‬,‫ ט נוא כסף יאיש הטה הור‬9 And a man that is clean shall gather up the ashes ‫ נב המק הום הטה הור; נו הה ני התה כל נע כדת‬,‫ ימחוץ כל כמ נח הנה‬of the heifer, and lay them up without the camp in a clean place, and it shall be kept for the ‫ כח הטאתןמי ינ הדה‬-- ‫נל‬ ,‫נל ימ נש המ הרת‬ ‫ יי נש הר יאל‬-‫נב יני‬ congregation of the children of Israel for a water ‫ יהוא‬. of sprinkling; it is a purification from sin. (Bamidbar 19:9) The Laws = ‫( ןמי ינ הדה = ה הד יני ןמ‬water of sprinkling) State, Land, Country = ‫( ןמי ינ הדה = ןמ הדי ינה‬water of sprinkling) The Rock The Cow and The Future They say Hashem always creates a cure before sending a plague. The Rock is the Plague; the Cow is the cure; and Iftach is the future. Iftach means open Mitzrayim closed - the problem of Geula is vision. It is easier to take the Jew out of the Galut then take the Galut out of the Jew As we mentioned before the cow represents the Shoa's of the past and present . All of Israel was burned and from these ashes comes a cure. We mentioned that one of the reasons for Hashems anger is our own anger. The rock represents a mistake in spiritual leadership which has physical ramifications. Moshe 'misrepresented' Hashem by being angry when Hashem Himself was not. In our own time sometimes the animosity against the Zionists in the past and today sometimes does not accurately reflect Hashems anger. In the Talmud (Kedushin 41) they say it's easier for a man to live without a woman than a woman without a man. A woman will take a lesser man rather than to be alone. When I learned this page it seemed to me to be speaking also about the Land of Israel. Even if the Zionists were coming home lacking Torah and mitzvot and rebellious she was happy not to be alone and the desert turned green. What then is the sum total of the anger of those who refused to come to the wedding and the groom who lacks faith? We see the sum total in the following passages after the rock. The Nation of Israel will plead and grovel before the nations to enter this way or that way and pay any price as they do today to Turkish terrorists to appease the nations. In the end various nations attack anyway and we destroy them in battle. We are ‘reluctant’ conquerors. The sum total of too much anger and too little faith is a partial Geula; a reluctant one. It is the Geula of Mitzraim the short sighted Geula and not the 176

Geula of Iftach which is the future Geula when our eyes are open and our heart is circumcised. Binyamin brings down the essential lesson that we learn from Iftach who answered in his time the demand of land for peace. All that the god of Chemosh gave to Amon is there's and all that the God of Israel gives to us is ours (Shoftim 11:24). You don't like this? You want to make war? Go ahead. It is clearly understood however, to all of Israel and to the world that this is not about our security needs or any other political reason. This is a war against our God and we will prevail. How does an Iftach appear and from where? How is the vision transformed from Mitzrayim to Iftach? Only here in the Land of Israel. The ashes of the Shoa are mixed with the water of the Torah in a place where the pure become defiled and the defiled become pure. Through the sprinkling of this water the death of exile is removed and there is life. The secret of the Para Aduma is hidden within the letters of this strange mixture called Mai Niddah. Shlomo was perplexed about the secrets of the Parah Aduma however Shlomo did not live in our time. If one looks closely at the letters of the Mai Nidah one can see the secret clearly. The same place where the pure are made impure and the impure are made pure the place where together they influence each other and must solve their collective problems is here in the Mai Nidah. On closer inspection the very same letters spell Medina. The Rebbe and the Rock (2017) What is the connection between this Parsha and the passing of the Rebbe of Lubavitch? If you ask a Chassid of the Rebbe he will say the Rebbe is still here and may tell the story of the previous Rebbe who was miraculously relased from prison into a short exile at this time; an analogy of his Torah being released into the world. I understand their feelings as I also see the Torah of Rav Kahane continuing to grow and flourish and shape the Nation of Israel. Nothing happens without reason and there must be lessons to be learned from his departure at this time. I also wrote about Rav Kahane and his passing at the funeral of Sarah who was the first to acquire the Land. So what might be the connection here? I have written above about Moshe and Aaron and the sin of the rock being connected to anger that misrepresented Hashem. This anger I suggest can be seen reflected in our times with the animosity against the rebellious nature of Zionism towards the Torah. Chabbad which comes from the Charedi camp still has much of this sentiment on one hand but on the other hand does more than any other group in terms of outreach to a non Charedi world. It has greatly sweetened the bitter waters between brothers. They have made a great tikkun from the Torah of the rock yet it still waits for Moshiach to return and does it's work mostly on the pnemiut; the internal development and rekindling of each Jewish soul. There have been some political incursions in a subtle manner for example in the six day war encouraging the Israeli government to continue to Damascus or creating a national education day in the USA. Controversial issues like building the Temple and throwing out our enemies however, are left to a future messianic time. These very mitzvot Rabbi Kahane wrote about in detail as these mitzvot are sorely lacking in our time and hold within them the cure for our suffering as well as the key to our redemption. Rabbi Kahane 177

writes about the willingness of many Orthodox Rabbis to give up Land for the sake of Pekuach Nephesh, which completely negates the Torah mitzvah of Milchemet Mitzvah. Hashem commands us to conquer our Land and drive out our enemies. This obligatory war, like all wars is inherently dangerous yet is a command which we cannot undo as the ten spies attempted to do. They said it was a good Land but the people are giants and we are but grasshoppers. The Rabbi writes: It is not a simple thing, this total faith. But without it, we have nothing. Without it, Judaism degenerates into a sham, a collection of rituals and social mores. That which lifts the Jew, elevating him to sanctity and holiness, is his ability to sacrifice and give totally of himself – his complete belief in the Omnipotence and uniqueness of his G-d. We do not really believe. We are little more than deceitful practitioners of Jewish folklore, and we echo the words of the nationally known Orthodox Jewish leader who said to me: “Of course faith is important, but let us be practical...” There, right there, lie the tragedy and the cancer. A faith that is a luxury, to be patted and embraced and endorsed when times are good and the living is easy and it is never needed. But the moment that truth is called into play; when crisis strikes; when danger looms; when faith becomes a meaningful thing – that is precisely the time when we recoil from the danger, when we drop the pretense, when we betray faith in the All Mighty for “practical” fear of flesh and blood. There is NO Judaism without true faith. It is a corpse, dead and cold. No amount of ritual can resurrect it; no posturing and prayers and study can ever be more than a requiem for it. “And the righteous one shall live through his faith,” said the prophet Habakkuk (2:4), and our Rabbis declare that all the 613 commandments stand on that one (Makkot 24). “The exiles will be gathered only through the merit of faith,”say the Rabbis (Mechilta, B'shalach, Vayehi 6), and the redemption will ONLY come in that way. We have no faith. We play games with our faith. We substitute some twisted kind of “frumkeit” for it, that sees sheitels and chandeliers and glatt kosher Puerto Rican gambling trips emerge as some many-headed evil Hydra of “Judaism.” We have no faith and betray our Judaism at every turn of the gentile screw. (Rabbi Kahane: Beyuond Wotrds Vol 2 Pg. 564) Returning to Chabbad, this time is often commemorated by relating the story of the miraculous release of the previous Rebbe from prison to a short exile. This (it seems to me) may accurately portray the strength of this chassidut; to release us from prison into a short period of exile (that is sweetened) until Moshiach arrives. It seems that Hashem may have chosen this Pasha as a bookmark to understand the Torah of the Rebbe that remains in the exile along with Moshe. The Torah of chassidut is also a bridge that repairs the rift between brothers and repairs Moshes own sin that may have added to this rift and consequent suffering of the Jewish people. The rock that was struck was the rock of Israel which sustained even Hagar and Ishmael. This rock which is the Land of Israel, is essential to join Heaven and Earth. Sarah understood this and threw out Ishmael and elevated and acquired the Land. By doing so this also preserved the pnimiut and purity of the continuity of the family of Israel. I suggest that both Chassidut are working towards the same goal - one from the desert of exile and another by removing the exile mentality from the Land. 178

Forty Two Journeys (Chukat, 2019) There were forty two encampments in the desert generation. A pillar of cloud was always seen resting above the mishkan. When the pillar of cloud began to move, after a few months or a few years, the people understood it was time to pack their things and journey once again into the unknown. Personally I encamped for sixteen years at the Bet Knesset down the street and this Shabbat I felt the pillar of cloud beckoning me to go forth into a new journey. Living among the tribes of Israel one becomes more sensitive to these types of things and one looks forward to every the new adventure. The eighty year old congregation I had frequented had relocated temporarily due to construction and I was not sure I wanted to follow. Then the phone rang with an invitation out of the blue. To my surprise I discovered that ten minutes from my house the historic Bet Knesset of Rav Cook stands and its walls were beckoning to be saved from the wrecking ball. A pillar of fire led me to a place where souls had been collected from the heartland of the country, Jerusalem, Bat Ayin and Gush Katif. Only ten minutes from my house a new world was forming and a wonderful new adventure. I reflected on the good fortune I have had to have always been in places of creativity and spirituality in the formative stages from after-hours clubs where musicians met to abandoned Bet Knessets that became a lighthouse to Jewish sailors. Before these places became established and tourists began coming, the pillar already took me on to the next adventure. Rav Shemesh who led the makeshift congregation was the gabbai of Shlomo Carlbach’s Bet Knesset for many years and his confidant. Although I was escaping the Chabbad Bet Knesset I had frequented much of the discussion was about the Rebbe as it was his yortzeit - Parsha Chukat. It seems the Rebbe follows me even when I try and leave him. Being a loyal chassid of Rav Kahane however just as I brought his ideas into the discussion at Chabbad, I also brought a little of him here. Rav Shemesh reminded me of the story of Shlomo Carlbach who when paying Rav Kahane back $100 that he had borrowed he said he was giving him only $90 because all of Israel owed Rabbi Kahane and he always wanted to remember to feel this debt we all owe to the Rabbi. Another story he told me is how he saw the great love these tzadikkim had for each other. He was with Rev Shlomo when they bumped into Rav Kahane in Jerusalem and he saw how they hugged each other. He overheard one of Rav Kahanes student say ‘but Rabbi he touches women,’ the Rabbi shrugged as if to say, you don’t know anything, you have no idea who this Tzadik is.’ Imagine the scene. An abandoned Bet Knesset and sitting around the Shabbat table where simple servants of great leaders and hovering above us were Rav Cook, Rav Carlbach, Rav Kahane and the Rebbe. Rav Shemesh spoke about prophetic times of long haired Rabbis on bicycles and I felt a new doorway opening among this holy rag tag group that travelled miles to an SOS call emanating from a building ten minutes from my door. I heard also that the Bat Ayin music festival was being revived this week after being dormant for many years. I had in fact performed there in one of my previous adventures. Something was happening up in Heaven and the angels were being assembled below. The pillar of cloud was moving people from different directions to a new project that had been designed by the Great Architect. The chukim and mysteries belong to Hashem, why and where times are born and depart or renew are part of the unknown things that we can only encounter and participate in. All that is asked of us is the sensitivity to hear the call and to bring what each can bring. Hashem has ordained times above and 179

below beyond our understanding. However standing inside the groove that we create by following our footsteps and letting our actions make an impression on our hearts, as Rav Shemesh pointed out, this is where the deeper understand lies. It is within this journey of following that pillar of cloud that one encounters magical things, and sometimes understands things beyond our understanding. The souls we encounter along the way and discussions and adventures actually build the world in a spiritual way long before the construction arrives and the physical world is established. The seeds of these great rabbis have been sown for many years and now there are very sweet fruits that you can taste and beautiful new blossoms on the trees. It seems to me that this new journey can only follow previous ones as the solid roads that were constructed and adhered to can now meet in one place and benefit from the multitude of differences that unite us and make our light shine that much brighter. 180

Kahane in the Parsha Balak 181

Balak 2012 The 400 and the Atom Bomb They say that Moshe's power was of the light, while Bilaam's power was of darkness. Moshe sailed like an eagle in the sky, while Bilaam was like a bat who could navigate the night. Atom bombs come from refining and separating atoms. The destruction caused by an atom bomb is too terrible to imagine. There is an opposite atom bomb however, that gathers separate parts and joins them together. Walk into any large yeshiva in Jerusalem and you will feel the energy of Jews who have come from around the world, learning out loud in all their various languages. The energy of this learning is like a tremendous force field equal to a positive nuclear energy. Imagine the destruction that 33 Arabs caused when they practically destroyed America on September 11th. We still live in the after shocks. Imagine what the 400 men of David or Yiftach could bring to the world in a positive effect. While Iran, the home of Bilaam's descendents build their atom bomb, we are building our forces of creation. Our light will destroy their darkness with the flick of a switch, like turning on a light bulb in a dark room. Moshe knew about the light while Bilaam was expert about the dark. More on what we wrote about the 400. The refined 400, although they appear as rabble those 400 with the right intention can destroy much evil and bring a new reality as Lechi did in 1948. Atom bombs come from refining and separating atoms to such a point that they can cause this huge explosion – Iran is learning this refinement for evil, while we learn this refinement for good. To Curse or Not to Curse My brother Gavri told me a cute story on the Parsha. Recently Rabbi Ovadia Yoseph launched a verbal attack against Rabbi Stav a candidate for the Ashkenazie chief rabbinate. Rabbi Ovadia Yoseph called him 'an evil man'. This was in the news this week during Parsha Balak. Shai Agnon, the Israeli writer who won the Nobel Peace prize for literature commented on the above story and related it to the Parsha. He said that in Bilaams time, he was paid to curse but he blessed for free. In our day its upside done. Our Rabbis get paid to bless but they curse for free. There is something to this joke. There is a passage in this weeks Parsha that always jumps out at me. ‫ לא‬,‫ לא כק הבה יאל; ו המה הא נז העם‬,‫ ח המה הא הקב‬8 How can I curse? - God has not cursed. How ‫ הז כעם ניה הוה‬. can I anger? - Hashem is not angry. (Bamidbar -26:27,28) How is it that a Gentile that wants to curse us cannot, because of God. Yet we read last week that Moshe superseded God to be angry at Israel when Hashem, Himself wasn't angry? ‫ נפ יני‬-‫ האל‬--‫ כה הק ההל‬-‫ האת‬,‫ י כו כי נק יהלו המ השה נוא נה הרן‬10 And Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly --‫ הנא כה המ ירים‬-‫ יש נמעו‬,‫ כה הס כלע; כו היא המר הל ההם‬together before the rock, and he said unto them: 'Hear now, ye rebels; are we to bring you forth ‫ נ הו יציא הל הכם המ יים‬,‫ כה הס כלע כה הזה‬-‫ נה ימן‬. water out of this rock?' 182

(Bamidbar -23:8) It seems that what the Nations cannot do to Israel we can only do to ourselves. As much as the nations try to destroy Israel they cannot. In the end they only make us greater. This is like a law written into the design of the creation. So how is it that Israel is constantly persecuted and practically annihilated? What Billam could not do by force he succeeded in doing by the power of influence. He suggested a plot to Balak to send harlots to the Israelite camp and drive a wedge between them and God. His plan succeeded and God became angry at Israel because of their indecent behavior and He took away His protective shield. The nations may influence Israel to stray from their God and in this way weaken Israel. Our leaders have the influence to bring us back together and restore our shield. But their influence may also cause further damage that may lead to terrible tragedy. The Billams of the world will try to curse us but end up blessing us. Our leaders, on the other hand, may try to bless us and end up cursing us. Bilaam didn't succeed to curse us, but he did succeed in influencing us to our detriment. Our spiritual leaders that do not succeed in blessing us, and bringing us back to Torah, rather than cursing us and causing more division, have the power to influence that can counteract the Bilaams of the world. The more division and animosity among the children of Israel, the weaker and more defenseless we become. I have said this before but imagine what would have happened at the turn of the century if the spiritual leaders saw water flowing from the ancient rock of Israel and told their followers it is time to come home rather than hit the rock? How many would have been saved? How much more spiritual influence their would have been in the State of Israel? Even today we are hitting the rock and Torah is pouring out. But it is Torah of the exile and bitter, not Torah of Israel and conquest and love of the Land of Israel. I see my view reflected in the words of the Prophet in this weeks Haftorah. ,‫ הי כעץ הב הלק המ הלך מ הואב‬-‫ הנא כמה‬-‫ נז הכר‬,‫ ה כע ימי‬5 O My people, remember now what Balak king ,‫ כה יש יטים‬-‫ ימן‬--‫ נבע הור‬-‫ יב נל העם הבן‬,‫ הע הנה האת הו‬-‫ ו המה‬of Moab plotted, and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him; [despite the sin of the spies ‫ כד כעת יצ נדק הות ניה הוה‬,‫ נל כמ כען‬,‫ כה יג נל הגל‬-‫ כעד‬. dispatched] from Shittim [I nevertheless split the Jordan for you when I brought you] to the Gilgal,that you may know the righteous acts of Hashem ( Michah 6:5) Despite our indecent behavior, or the bad influence that the exile and the various Billam's and Balaks have had on us, it is time to come home! The cure for all that ails us is right here in Israel, when we are all together. The Land itself will heal us. I have seen it happen. Even the Rabbi in the synagogue today told me he swears that my soul is different today than it was ten years ago when I first arrived here. He is probably right. 183

The article below should really be in Parsha Nitzavim, but I put it here because Billam understood the hour that Hashem became angry and these articles have to do with this anger and its cure. The Potential Holocaust and Future Redemption - Part One The original redemption from Egypt is described in the following manner. ‫ כב היד נח הז הקה‬,‫ימ ימ נצ כר יים‬ ,‫ניה הוה‬ ‫כוי הו יצ יאנו‬ ‫ח‬ 8 And Hashem took us out of Egypt with a strong hand, and an outstretched arm, and with great ‫ו יב כז הר שע כנטו היה‬,‫ו נב האת הות‬--‫ ו נב המ הרא הג הדל‬, terror, and with signs, and with wonders. ‫ו נב המ נפ יתים‬ (Devarim 26:8) In the future there will be another redemption that in many ways will mirror the original one. After being expelled twice the third redemption which we are currently in the process of, will include both the strong hand and outstretched arm, but also the anger that is still existent from the first expulsion. The description of Hashems anger (Chamat) which caused us to be expelled from Israel is an anger that continually burns from that time forward when we repeat these sins (see Bechukotai) ‫ ילי; כו נה כל נכ התם‬,‫לא ית נש נמעו‬--‫ נב הזאת‬-‫ כז נו יאם‬27 And if ye will not for all this hearken unto Me, ‫ נב הק ירי‬,‫ יע ימי‬but walk contrary unto Me; ‫ הק ירי; נו יי כס נר יתישב נח שמת‬- ,‫כח נו הה כל נכ יתי יע המ הכם‬ 28 then I will walk contrary unto you in fury; and ‫ הש כבע‬,‫א יני‬-‫הא נת הכם אף‬ I also will chastise you seven times for your sins. ‫ כח הטא יתי הכם‬-‫כעל‬ (Vayikra-26:27,28) In the Haftorah of Bechukotai we are told that the fire Israel ignited at the Churban (our expulsion) is eternal. ,‫ ו נבך ימ כנ נח הל נתך נא השר הנ כת יתי הלך‬,‫ ד נו הש כמ נט התה‬4 You will be forced to withdraw from the -‫ הבא הרץ נא השר לא‬,‫ הא ני הביך‬-‫ נו כה נע כב נד יתיך האת‬heritage that I have given you, and I will cause you to serve your enemies in the land which you ‫עוה הלם‬-‫ שעד‬,‫נב כא יפי‬ ‫נק כד נח התם‬ ‫ יאש‬-‫יכי‬ : ‫יה הדענ הת‬ know not; for you have ignited a fire in My ‫ תוקהד‬nostrils, which shall burn for ever. (Yermiyahu 17:4) We see that this fire burns even until today. ‫ נבאף‬,‫ כז כו יי נת ישם ניה הוה ימ כעל א נד המ התם‬27 and the LORD rooted them out of their land in anger, and in wrath, and in great indignation, and ‫ הא הרץכב ןח המה‬-‫ו נב הק הצף הגד הול; כו כי נש יל יכם האל‬ ‫ו‬ cast them into another land, as it is this day'. ‫ שכיוהם שה תזה‬,‫א הח הרת‬ (Devarim 29:27) This Chamat (Anger) is related to Hashems 'Mighty Hand' that is described in the original redemption. Rav Binyamin Kahane writes: 184

With a mighty hand. God had to direct His strength against the Jews, too, in order to bring them out, for they did not want to leave! And indeed, God killed all those who refuses to leave. As Chazal say, four-fifths of the Israelites died in the plague of darkness (see Rashi at the start of Parashat Beshallach, Ex. 13:18). But those who did eventually leave, did so unwillingly: God said, “For with a mighty hand shall he [Pharoah] send them away, and with a mighty hand shall he expel them from his land” (Ex. 6:1). Rashi writes there: “He will drive Israel out against their will.” Chazal's commentary on the verse, “They did not listen to Moses, due to the anguish of spirit and hard labor” (Ex. 6:9), is truly astounding: Is there any man who receives good tidings and does not rejoice? ...But they found it hard to abandon their idol worship. (Mechilta, Pis'cha 5, end of 1st paragraph) ….The truth is that the Jews were never ready to leave exile of their own free will, and when they have been able to assimilate, they did. But all these attempts were to no avail. On the contrary precisely when the Jews tried to be accepted by Gentile society by blurring their unique, separate identity, their hated towards them only increased. Such was the case in Egypt as the Psalmist said: “He turned their [the Egyptians'] hearts to hate His people, to conspire against His servants” (Psalms 105:25). So too has it been throughout the generations. And even those who do eventually leave, do so only out of necessity. Slavery, pogroms and holocausts forces some of them to realize albeit grudgingly, that there is nothing for them there – and then they ascend to the Land of Israel, as witnessed in our generation. Chazal identifies the mindset in the following words: “And among those nations you will not know peace and you will not find rest for your feet” (Deut 28:65) – had Israel found peace, they would not have returned. (Genesis Rabbah 33:6) That is to say if the Jews will not return to the Land of Israel willingly, then God will inflict such troubles on them, that they will be forced to return. And in our days, in spite of all that has happened, most Jews have not learned the lesson. Eventually either they will leave the exile at the last moment, or they will perish in the exile, God forbid – whether in an openly anti-Semitic holocaust, or in the terrible wars between the nations at the end of days, in which “the nations will be utterly laid waste” Isaiah 60:12. And it is precisely the Jews in the most comfortable of exiles, living in the sweetest of delusions, whose end is liable to be the most gruesome. This has been proven by history time and time again. The Midrash expresses this as follows: It is like a thorn bush: one who puts his hand into it is not harmed, because all the thorns are bent downwards; but when he comes to take his hand out, the thorns ensnare him and prevent him from taking it out. Thus it was with Egypt: in the beginning they welcomed Israel, but when they wanted to go out, they did not let them. (Yalkut Shimoni 169) (above from The Haggada of the Jewish Idea – Biyamin Zev Kahane Pg. 40,41) 185

The Potential Holocaust and Future Redemption - Part two We have discussed how the Shoa gave birth to Israel and the great mistakes of that generation. It is easy to look back on history and wonder how they could have allowed themselves to be slaughtered like lambs. Could they not have seen it coming? Are we wiser than they were? I suggest that the tragedies that accompanied the birth of Israel will also accompany (hopefully in a lesser degree) the birth of Judea and the final redemption. Although I am critical of the leadership of the past as well as the present, one cannot say that six million people died for their sins. Without a doubt those who die sanctifying Gods name earn the highest reward in Heaven and are considered as saints that offered their souls. I am able to be critical of the past however, because I live in the present and read the signs today. On September 11th I realized that the clock is ticking and it took me eighteen months (chol Hamoed Pesach) to leave the exile. I read the signs. I saw the strong hand of Hashem with my own eyes, as I exited and was brought to a new Land, to redeem my heritage. None of the victims of September 11th were sinners, as none of the six million were sinners in the Shoa. They were innocent people killed by evil people. The problem is the leadership that could have prevented tragedy by inspiring the Jewish people instead of persecuting those who tried. The only voice today that sounded the alarm and tried to wake up the Jewish people and save them in our time was Rabbi Meir Kahane. His Torah is the antidote for the fire that continually burns. ,‫ ו נבך ימ כנ נח הל נתך נא השר הנ כת יתי הלך‬,‫ ד נו הש כמ נט התה‬4 You will be forced to withdraw from the -‫ הבא הרץ נא השר לא‬,‫ הא ני הביך‬-‫ נו כה נע כב נד יתיך האת‬heritage that I have given you, and I will cause you to serve your enemies in the land which you ‫ ןאש כק שד כח תתם כב שא יפי‬-‫יכי‬-‫ כעד‬, :‫יה הד נע הת‬ know not; for you have ignited a fire in My ‫ע הו הלם תו הקד‬. nostrils, which shall burn for ever. (Yermiyahu 17:4) ‫ ןאש כק שד כח תתם כב שא יפי‬-‫ = יכי‬nine hundred seventy six 976 (+1 kollel) = 977 Meir David Ben Yecheskel Shraga = 977 ‫מאיר דוד בן יחזקאל שרגא כהנא‬ Eleven years before September 11th Rabbi Kahane spoke in New York and tried to encourage aliyah. He spoke a few miles away from ground zero on a mission that he called project ZERO (Zionist Emergency Rescue Operation). He was murdered that night by the same Alkeida thugs that could have been stopped had we not despised Hashems messenger. Why particular victims are chosen and taken as sacrifices are hidden things between God and His creations. What is revealed however, is for us to understand the signs and prepare ourselves, as some did before the Shoa and as I did by leaving the exile today. The safest place to be is in the fire, in the Nation of Israel, which is also the Ark. The flood and the Redemption come at the same time. The Ark was not built in one day. Hashem sends us messengers and signs and warnings before tragedy strikes. September 11th occurred during Parashat Nitzavim in which we read: 186

‫ באל יהינו; כוהשני כגלת‬,‫ כליה הוה‬--‫כח כה ינ נס הת הרת‬ 28 The secret things belong unto the LORD our -‫כהל‬-‫ אהת‬,‫ כל נעשוהת‬- ‫ה הלנוה הוה כל ה הב הןנ הי הנו כעד ע הו הלם‬ God; but the things that are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we ‫ יד נב ירי כהת הו הרה כה הזאת‬may do all the words of this law. Rashi tells us: Regarding those [matters] revealed to us however and to our children, [we are obligated] to destroy the evil from our midst. If we do not administer judgment over them, the majority will be punished. There are dots [in the Hebrew text] over “to us and to our children” to indicate that even with regard to the secrets, the majority were not to be punished until they crossed the Jordan. From having taken upon themselves the oath in Mt. Grizim and Mt. Eibal they became pledged for one another. To me the dots over these words have an important significance. There were eleven of these dots, alluding to the 11th of September that occurred exactly at the time the Jewish world was studying this Parsha (Nitzavim). I hope others will be inspired to return home, as I was when I read the signs unfolding around me. Israel is becomes increasingly isolated but there is much greater danger outside of Israel. As in the past Hashem will bring us home against our will when the hour is very late. From past experience we know that it is much harder to leave during war time than it is during peace time. On September 11th within a matter of minutes all travel was forbidden. It didn't matter how much money you had, no airplane was permitted to leave. These words may sound paranoid but as the Rabbi would answer 'Paranoid Jews live longer.' The Talmud brings down a passage in reference to the future redemption. :‫ לא ית נה היה‬,‫ ההי הו‬--‫רו נח הכם‬-‫ כעל‬,‫ לב נו הה הע הלה‬32 and that which cometh into your mind shall not ‫ ינ נה היה ככג הו יים נכ ימ נש נפח הות‬,‫ נא השר כא התם הא נמ ירים‬be at all; in that ye say: We will be as the nations, as the families of the countries, to serve wood and ‫ יעץ הוא הבן‬,‫ נל הש ירת‬--‫הה נא הרצ הות‬ stone. ‫לא כב היד‬-‫ יאם‬:‫ ננ מאם נא הד הני ניה יוה‬,‫א יני‬-‫לג כחי‬ 33 As I live, saith the Lord GOD, surely with a ‫ ו כב ןח המה‬,‫נח הז הקה ו יב כזרוה שע כנטו היה‬ mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with fury poured out, will I be king over ‫ הא נמל הוך נע ילי הכם‬--‫ כשפו הכה‬you; (Yechezckel – 20:32,33) We see that it resembles the original redemption of Egypt with the addition of the Chamas (anger) that has been kindled ever since the Churban. It is my hope that we begin to understand what brings about this anger and learn to transform it by defeating our physical and spiritual enemies. The Talmud after bringing down this quote adds a similar hope. 'R. Nachman said: Even with such fury let the Merciful rage against us, but that He redeem us.' (Sanhedrin 105a) In the future we will be returned with a combination of the exodus and the churban. In part it is the redemption of Egypt over again and in part it is the fury of being thrown out of the Land as well. Let us hope that as we progress Hashems anger will become more tempered as we slowly begin to learn the lessons of His Torah. 187

Pinchas and Noach It seems to me there is a connection between Parshat Pinchas and Noach. Both Parshas are split and continue from a previous Parsha. On both Parsha's there were sinners that were destroyed and a new world order began with Noach and Pinchas. One of the major differences however are the fact the it was Hashem Himself who brought the flood upon the earth that destroyed all of the sinners. In Parshat Pinchas it is Pinchas who yields the sword against the sinners and then leads Am Israel into battle to bring vengeance into the world. Hashem created the world first in thought and last in deed. In other words the intention of Creation is for their to be a Torah that is accepted by a people and that they build His kingdom on earth and become the representatives of His hand bringing justice and peace in the world. This intention and goal was the purpose of Creation that takes time to unravel just as a child grows over time to become a man. Hashem created the world incomplete and left a part for us to perfect in order for the symmetry to exist between Heaven and earth. Just as a Jewish child is completed by the Brit Mila, the earth itself will have a Brit Mila performed on it by the Jewish people. This Brit Mila began with Avraham and evolves through time from the individual to the collective. Israel is the point where this perfection will occur and continues to evolve. This evolution continued from the individual Brit of Avraham and Itzchak and the family of Israel to the world around them in Schem where 24,000 were killed (by Shimon and Levi) to avenge Dinah. This mirrors the 24,000 from Israel that died in a plague instigated by the sin of Zimri (from the tribe of Shimon). This internal and National 24,000 continues with the students of Rabbi Akiva who began the revolution of 'return' to the Medina. In the future the final Brit will take place when our hearts will be circumcised in Parshat Nitzavim. It is interesting to note that David Hamelech was born complete (circumcised). It is in this Parsha where all seems dark from where the sparks of the Kingship of David are born. Balak himself is Ruth' ancestor who is the maternal ancestor of David Hamelech. We understand in the Parsha that even the devil himself will give us the greatest blessings as every curse turns to joy. The Shoa inspired the self sacrifice to fight and give birth to Israel and the many soldiers and scholars of Israel have been raised with the qualities of Pinchas that lead the Nation into its ultimate goal of bringing Justice and Peace into the world. Peace which has become convoluted by the Bilaams and Zimris of the world must first be clarified. Peace does not mean coexistence with evil but rather separation and destruction of evil. Then good will prosper and be rewarded. It is this continuation that appeases Hashems wrath from the time of Noach to the time of Pinchas to our own time. Hashem's anger is kindled when we lose the path and mix evil and good together. When we worship foreign gods and seek lovers that lead us away from our calling we bring upon ourselves our own destruction. From within this same convolution comes David Hamelech and Ruth who purify and clarify our confusion and lead us back to the correct path. In doing so they appease the wrath of Hashem that only the Jewish people themselves can kindle by their desire for foreign worship. The process of the Birt Mila and refinement of the world evolves in time from Noach to Pincah to a future world where it is clear what the true terms Love and Peace really mean. 188

On Plagues and Cures (2017) What is the connection between the 24,000 students of Rabbi Akiva that died in a plague, the 24,000 from Schem* and the 24,000 from the tribe of Shimon that died in this weeks Parsha? In order to answer this we must ask another question. How is it that such deep secrets and prophecies in this Parsha are revealed to us through vicious anti-Semites that seek our destruction? It is interesting that non-Jews, even with the greatest of gentiles prophets could only do Hashems will despite their hatred. We see this reflected in Bilaam’s donkey. If Hashem could make a donkey talk temporarily He could also make the evil Bilaam a great prophet. To understand this we need not look further than our own century. Life and death for millions was temporarily in the hands of Nazis however the Germans who zealously sought to destroy us ultimately brought about a much greater revelation of Israel in the world by inspiring the creation of the Sate of Israel. Their curse brought about the greatest blessing that we have longed for; the return of the Jewish people to Zion. Was this blessing worth the price? Of course this blessing could have come about without this curse and 24,000 of Zimri's tribe may also not have had to perish . What is the lesson to be learned? As we explained, the nations do not have the same 'free will' as the Jew. The fate of the Jew is dependent on his relationship with Hashem and the dialogue between Hashem and His people. He protects us from danger and sometimes removes this protection dependent upon the actions of Israel. As we wrote earlier in this chapter regarding the difference between Bilaam and Moshe; Bilaam said he could only say what Hashem put in his mouth. However according to Rambam Moshe was punished because he was angry which 'did not' accurately reflect Hashem who was 'not' angry. Our misrepresentation is the underlying cause that allows the reflexive gentile world to cause us harm and delays our redemption. The underlying cause of this misrepresentation has to do predominately with the degree to which we are assimilated to the gentile world and disconnected from our own. The three day journey and forty year journey is in our hands. Ulterior motives that cause subtle misrepresentations eventually lead to brash ones which results in plagues. The issue of Shimon had to do with inclusivity versus exclusivity. The issues of exclusivity and inclusivity go back to the first 24,000 as some mystical books say which was the number killed by Shimon and Levi in Schem. One might say that among Rabbi Akiva’s students there was also an issue of exclusivity and inclusivity however for a very different reason as they were unwilling to accept one another's opinions, and did not treat their fellow scholars with respect. There is a thread that connects these ideas however. If we go with the opinion that the students of Rabbi Akiva fell in the fight of Bar Kochba which was an attempt to 'rebuild' and 'return' Israel to its former glory. We can look at the generation of the Shoa and see that underlying the great destruction was a rift between those who demonstrated a love of the Land and those who scorned them as being idol worshipers, they refused to join and forbid their followers to ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- *See Megaleh Amukot, Vaetchanan aspect 88, who reports this teaching in the name of the Ariza\"l; Rav Naftali Bachrach, Emek Hamelech Gate 5 chapter 69; Yalkut Reuveni (Avraham Reuven Hoshke (Sofer) (died April 3, 1673), Parshat Balak; Rabbi Menachem Azarya DeFano, Sefer Gilgulei Neshamot section 20. 189

join which sealed their fate in the Shoa. There were other scholars however like Rabbi Cook and Rabbi Teichtal that did not share this animosity. The disrespect of opinions may be reminiscent of Rabbi Akiva's students who were all tzadikim and also perished with their uncompromising opinions. Why do we continue to mourn them today unless their disputes and attitudes hold relevance to our own times. I suggest that before the Shoa there was an underlying cause to the dispute. Underlying the scorn then and today for that matter is the justification of lack of love of the Land and relying too much on the kindness of the gentile world. Although we mourn the great physical destruction there is a second silent Shoa that is leading us towards a new plague. How many millions of Jews have disappeared spiritually not from Nazis but from assimilation? How many millions have been lost through intermarriage? As we said earlier ulterior motives that cause subtle misrepresentations eventually lead to brash ones. Today’s generation does not ban Israel for not being Jewish enough but protests Israel for being too Jewish. Secular Israeli's have no problem visiting the Kotel and respecting Jewish tradition there. To diaspora Jews however, next to their reformist and assimilated culture Israels traditional Judaism seems extreme. This is how far they have fallen and this is a recipe for destruction As the gentile world again goes through changes and Jewish life in the galut is less and less secure ultimately these changes (against the will of Jew haters), will bring a greater good to Israel. In the interim it is time for Jews to see the writing on the wall and make preparations to leave the exile while the doors are still open. The greatest prophecy that is placed in Bilaams mouth is the cure for all our ills and it is this point that Rabbi Kahane brings down on this Parsha. 'Hen Am Levadad' – Behold it is a Nation that will dwell in solitute. (Bamidbar 23:9) We are a nation that dwells alone. What we consider a curse is a blessing. This is the underlying cause that creates the plagues that we find ourselves in the middle of. When we embrace our uniqueness and cherish it with the required faith to stand alone then that which we fear will no longer have relevance. On that day the world will stand with the Jewish people when the Jewish people stand with themselves. As Rav Kahane wrote in an article in 1989 called No Rest in the Exile, the ultimate halachic decision will come not from a Rabbi but from the gentile who forces us to be what we were born to become. 190

Kahane in the Parsha Pinchas 191

Pinchas The small letter ‘yud’ in Parshat Pinchas is connected to the small ‘hey’ added to Yoseph’s name. ‫( יהוסף פינחס‬Psalms 81) These letters were given to them as gifts from Hashem for their zealotry on His behalf. (for more detailed analysis see Shnei Luchot Habrit, and Zohar on Parshat Pinchas). Yospeh was zealous in not allowing himself to be tempted by Potiphora, and Pinchas was zealous for not allowing licentiousness prevail among the Nation. They both earned crowns because of their holiness and great love of Hashem. Only one who is jealous for Hashem, can appease Hashem who is a ‘jealous’ G-d. ‘..for the very Name of Hashem is ‘Jealous One’, He is a jealous G-d.’ (Shemot 34:14) It is the reward of these tzadikim that they raise the level of awareness among the whole Nation and bring them back to the place they should be. Their ‘truth’ awakens those who were lulled to sleep, and shatters the idols that the Nation had been worshiping. They have the courage to expose the lies of fraudulent leaders both politically and spiritually and by doing so risk their own lives, but preserve the honor of a G-d who is silent but quietly waits for one to stand up for His honor. It is the actions of these men that bring out the ‘yud’ and ‘hey’ in the people as well, who are immediately raised to a higher level of consciousness from their heroic actions. This is one of the hidden aspects of the ‘yud’ and ‘hey’ that are added in Parsha Pinchas to each tribe. Our rabbis tell us that the ‘yud’ and hey’ added to each tribe signifies the inherent holiness within each tribe. For example: ‫שלנה י‬ ‫משפחת‬.....‫יהודה‬-‫בני‬... The children of Yehuda from the family of Hashelani. (Bamidbar 26:20) Each tribe is listed with the (Yud) and (Hey) in the beginning and ending of their name. The Shla makes the connection between Pinchas and Yermiyahu in their willingness to stand up while others remained seated. Yermiyahu was persecuted for daring to say things that were politically incorrect, and despite his warnings, the churban happened. Yecheskel’s prophecy continued 11 years later where Yermiyahu left off, with the hopeful signs of a rebuilt future. ‘The people that seeks You expounds each generations fate.’ (Song of Glory –Anim Zmirot-Siddur) The great leaders stood alone against the masses, but had the support of Hashem who also stood alone. He who is ‘One’ is comforted by those whose love is also ‘One of a kind’ and because they care only for the honor of Hashem despite being targeted and isolated, Hashem attends to 'their' honor and writes 'their' name in His book. Moshe became a fugitive and had to run for his life from the thankless ones he tried to save. Despite 192

their ingratitude, Moshe was prepared to give his life so that this Nation would survive, despite the fact that he alone carried the merit of the whole Nation. While the Nation was busy asking for gold and silver from their Egyptian neighbors, Moshe was busy bringing the bones of Yoseph from Egypt. Moshe understood Yoseph for he also carried the Nation on his shoulders. The Shla mentions an idea in the Zohar that connects Moshe’s earlier refusal of the Israelite mission, to the willingness of Pinchas to carry out that mission at the time of Zimri, and as well in the future as Eliyahu Hanavi, who will proclaim the Moshiach. In addition by Moshe saying : ‘Please , my L-rd, send through whomever You will send’ (Shemot 4:13) There is an allusion that Yehoshua bin ‘Nun’ will succeed Moshe in entering the Land while Moshe would not enter it. We see these allusions in the words ‘please send’ ‫נא‬-‫שלך‬ The ‘Na’ was also connected to Pinchas who was willing and able to fulfill the mitzvah of the day, and to raise the consciousness of the people by correcting the flaw that could have destroyed them. In so doing he also corrected the flaw of Nadav and Avihu, who are represented by the ‘Nun’ and ‘Aleph’ of ‘Na’. They were reincarnated in Pinchas through his act of vengeance which was in fact was an act of mercy (see Shla and Zohar on Pinchas). When Moshe said ‘please send’ he was also referring to Yehoshua Bin Nun who would be the one to conquer the Land of Israel. Yehoshua was from the tribes of Yoseph and the Nation now had come of age similar to Yosephs brothers when they finally understood why they had suffered. Chazal tells us that all of those who died in the plague in Parshat Pinchas, were the last to die in the desert. Parshat Pinchas in a way describes the times of Moshiach, for this was that perfected generation that would enter the Land and fulfill the objective of creation, namely to build heaven below to reflect the heavens above. The physical conquering of the Land of Israel by the descendant of Yoseph parallels the concept of Moshicah ben Yoseph who precedes the Moshiach ben David in setting the background and raising the level of the people to the point where they desire a Moshiach. As we have said in many places, it is this jealousy of these Tzadikim for Hashem that assuages His anger against the people. It is their sacrifice and willingness to act that is eternally rewarded, for through them the merit of the Nation increases by following their example and they are forgiven. We see that the roots of the eternal reward of Pinchas is seen in the line. ‘He brought vengeance for his G-d by his sacrifice.’ The words for his god can be rearranged to spell ‘Eliyahu’. ‫ נב ירית נכ מה כנת‬,‫ יג נו הה ני התה ל הו ו נל כז נרע הו א נח הריו‬13 and it shall be unto him, and to his seed after -‫ כעל‬,‫ כו ני ככ יפר‬,‫ נא השר קינןא ןלאלההיו‬,‫ כת כחת‬--‫ ע הו הלם‬him, the covenant of an everlasting priesthood; because he was jealous for his God, and made ‫נב יני יי נש הר יאל‬ atonement for the children of Israel.' (Bamidbar 25:13) ‫ = ןלאל ההיו‬for his God ‫ = ןלאלי ההו‬to Eliyahu 193

‫ = כוכשהה נהא‬and Kahane From here we see the connection with Pinchas and Eliyahu. Because he had the same character trait as Hashem who is a Jealous G-d, (jealous of the Nations obsessions with non-gods), he could appease Hashems anger in a way no other could. Like the first Hebrew, Avraham, who destroyed his fathers idols because his passion for truth was uncompromising, the G-d of Truth looks down with a special love for this one and rewards him by associating Himself with such a person. Hashem’s seal is ‘Truth’. Whether one brings down the mighty with a single blow as Pinchas did, or one orchestrates the truth as Yoseph did with his brothers, or is persecuted as Yermiyahu was, it is to those who are zealous for Hashem’s truth that Hashem is closest to, and it is on their account that Hashem forgives or punishes the Nation. The shalom that will come as a result of this truth is written with an amputated vav in the Torah scroll. Chazal tells us that this vav is diminished to allude to a future time, when Eliyahu is practically forgotten. This is precisely when he will appear to herald the coming of Moshicah. Rav Kahane was an example in our time of one whose words were so sharp they had the ability to shatter empires, and they did. He almost single-handedly, brought Russia to its knees and had millions of Jews released from behind the iron curtain. His Torah brought fraudulent Jewish leaders down from their pulpits and almost destroyed the political cliques that govern Israel. He paid the price for breaking the idols of our day by being banned, persecuted and finally assassinated. His son continued his legacy and his Torah, and was also assassinated 11 years later. The eleven years that separate their murders is connected not only to September 11, but to the 11 years that separated the prophecies of Yermiyahu and Yecheskel, the idol smashers of their day. But a Tzadik remains alive long past his death, while the reshayim are dead while they are alive and are then forgotten. Pinchas Past and Present Who is Pinchas today? It seems to me that in every generation there is a Pinchas that steers the nation and saves it through acts of self sacrifice. There may be many that feel the righteous wrath and zeal of Pinchas but do not have the courage to stand up to great adversity and put their lives on the line for the benefit of truth and freedom. It seems to me that the antithesis of Pinchas is not Zimri, but rather Korach. Pinchas did an act of self sacrifice that even went against his own character (hence the small yud in Pinchas 25:11). Because he did an act that put himself in grave danger for the love and honor of Hashem, Hashem rewarded him with priesthood. Korach on the other hand 'desired' the priesthood and was rewarded with Gehennom. As we mentioned in Parsha Balak, the story of the rock was recorded in the chapter preceding Balak. The rift within our family takes away our protection and strengthens our enemies. What our enemies could not succeed in doing we end up doing to ourselves by our internal dissent. If the story of the rock had ended differently Billam would not have had such success. There is a very practical reason for this. Due to the self-imposed segregation within our tribes we are fewer in number and weaker, and on the other hand there is a holy influence that is lacking. By the absence of this holy influence there is fertile ground for the plague of the Midianites. To illustrate this we can use examples in our own times. 194

Pinchas + Korach = Meir Kahane and Charedi Leadership According to Chazal they wanted to kill Pinchas because he had murdered a Prince in Israel. They called him an outsider who did not have the same roots as they did. How dare he meddle in the affairs of Israel and kill one of its great leaders? Yet it was he who saved Israel and stopped the plague from killing more Israelites and was rewarded with the priesthood of peace. Their are some interesting gematria's here. ‫ = זמרי‬Zimri = 258(+ letters ) = 262 ‫ = רבין‬Rabin = 262 Meir David Ben Yecheskel Shraga = 977 +1 = 978 ‫מאיר דוד בן יחזקאל שרגא כהנא‬ ‫א נה הרן כה הכ יהן‬-‫ הא נל הע הזר הבן‬-‫( יפי ננ החס הבן‬+letters) = 978 With these gematrias in mind the Pinchas story comes to life and we see that the Torah is not just a history book. It's not a coincidence that these gematrias allude to a story in our modern times. The man who assassinated Rabin was inspired by Rabbi Kahane who is considered by many in the mainstream as an outsider meddling in the politics of Israel. In the leftist Israeli media the American zealots inspired by Kahane are considered a danger to Israeli society as they settle in Judea and Shomron and infuse their radical Zionist ideology on a people that has lost its connection to its source. Who are these Americans that come to teach 'Zionism' to Israeli's? Who is this Pinchas whose family fattened cows for idol worship?' Just as Pinchas brought Israel back to its roots, and stopped a terrible plague, so does the Torah of Rabbi Kahane today as it matures within the Nation. Their may be bitterness towards the Pinchas of the past and the present, but this bitter medicine has the power to heal both the plague of the Midianites and the animosity of the Charedi rock hitters. The Divided Parsha I have often wondered why Parsha Pinchas is divided into two. It seems to me that there is a similar question that is asked in Parsha Bechukotai. ,‫ נע הון נא הב התם‬-‫ נע הו הנם נו האת‬-‫ מ נו יה נת כודו האת‬40 And they will confess their sin, and the sin of ‫ הה נלכו יע ימי‬-‫ נא השר‬,‫ נואף‬,‫ יבי‬-‫ נב כמ נע הלם נא השר המ נעלו‬their forefathers, for the treachery with which they betrayed Me, and also for having behaved toward ‫נב הקריי‬ Me with casualness. ‫ נו יה יבא יתי‬,‫ יא ילך יע המם נב הק ירי‬,‫ נא יני‬-‫ מא אף‬41 I too will behave toward them,with casualness ‫ נל הב הבם‬,‫אז יי הכ כנע‬-‫ נב הא הרץ הא ני יבי ההם; א הו‬,‫ הא התם‬and I will bring them into the land of their enemies – perhaps then their unfeeling heart will ‫ נע הו הנם‬-‫ יי נרצו האת‬,‫ נואז‬,‫הה הע ירל‬ be humbled, and they will gain appeasement for their sin. (Vayikra 26:40-41) 195

Chazal asks a question here. If they have returned then why are you still punishing them? The answer given is that their teshuva is not the complete. We spoke about this in Parsha Bechukotai but it seems to be reflected here as well. The generation of Parsha Pinchas were the last to die in the desert. After these 24,000 died, no more would die and the nation would now enter the Land. I suggest the 24,00 here are related to the 24,000 students of Rabbi Akiva. They are one and the same, or a tikkun of each other. These 24,000 represent the forces that rebuild the sovereign Nation of Israel and ultimately its Temple. These are the forces that do not lead to the destruction of Israel and its exile but its re-construction and ultimate unification. The concept of Moshiach is divided into two elements; Moshiach ben Yoseph and Moshiach ben Dovid. Moshiach ben Yoseph conquers the Land (the body) while Moshiach ben David rebuilds the Temple (the soul) of the Nation. Both factors are always at play and working together, but in different stages. Both Yoseph and Dovid were considered outlaws deserving of the death penalty long before they were understood and recognized as the tzadikim they truly were. The students of Akiva were also outlaws as they rebelled against Rome to reconquer Israel. He left his seeds to sprout through Shimon Bar Yochai and the Kabballah of the scholar warrior. The fires of Lag Bomer would continue to burn throughout the long exile signaling our return to Nationhood that began again in the Warsaw ghetto. The men of Betar and Begin were also outlaws but later recognized as the builders of the State of Israel. The students of Rabbi Kahane are often considered outlaws and persecuted. Yet the seeds of the hilltop youth sprout from the Torah of the Rav and will bring the final revolution that will conquer Judea and Shomron. It is these shepherd kings along with their brothers in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem that will lead us back to the Temple and rebuild it again; not in some far distant spiritual future but physically in our times G-d willing. Although Hashem brings us back to the Land He still punished us in this in-gathering to teach us and educate us as to the sins that caused our original exile. The same question in Bechokotai can be asked here. If we have been returned why are we still being punished? The answer is that although Hashem brought us back because he decided to end the exile, we still do not understand the sins that caused and still cause our affliction. The medicine is in the Torah of Rabbi Kahane who points out the main flaws in both the secular world and the religious world. He explained the sins that led to the Shoa and continue to keep us in the physical and spiritual exile. Korach led a rebellion against Moshe's leadership, yet the descendents of Korach were great scholars and prophets. Shmuel Hanavi who crowned the first king of Israel, was a descendant of Korach. The Torah relates the sins of our ancestors not to embarrass them but to teach us about ourselves today. The Charedi empires that were swallowed up in Europe, like Korach, with no trace, have yet to admit their mistake. Once the sin is admitted, then the healing can begin. The tikkun I believe will take place like in the time of Shmuel in the State of Judea which the Charedi soldiers will support. The sin as I have mentioned many times before is 'hitting' the rock rather than 'speaking' to it. Imagine if the Charedi leaders had said in the 1920's: 'It seems like Hashem has chosen to end the exile. Although our brothers may not be observant of the Torah and may have some animosity towards it, it seems that the Land itself is turning green because of them and welcoming them home despite their lack of observance. It is a sign from above that it is time to come home. Let us go now and influence our brothers by joining them. If the Land turns green for them then even more so for we who preserve the Torah. They demonstrate love for the Land of Israel, 196

should we not learn from them and also join in this rebuilding?' Miriam, Rebels, and Bitterness The root of the great divide within our Nation is hidden within four letters. Miriam – ‫מרים‬ Bitterness – ‫מרים‬ Rebels – ‫המורים‬ Miriam came running into the sea with her drum ready for salvation with complete faith. That faith was destroyed by Moshe at the rock. Many observant disciples of the Torah were taught to have animosity towards Jewish settlers. Those who wanted to join the settlement of Israel were called rebels. Even today in Israel in some areas a Torah observant Charedi soldier needs police protection for his neighbors spit at him and call him a traitor. It is interesting to note that the sin is described as 'a lack of faith'. ‫ שי שען‬,‫א נה הרן‬-‫ המ השה נו האל‬-‫ האל‬,‫ יב כו היא המר ניה הוה‬12 Hashem said to Moses and Aaron: 'Because ‫ נל כה נק ידי יש יני נל יעי יני נב יני‬,‫ תה מא שמ כנ תתם יבי‬-‫ לא‬you did not believe in Me, to sanctify Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you will ,‫כה הזה‬ ‫ כה הק ההל‬-‫ לא הת יביאו האת‬,‫ הל יכן‬--‫יי נש הר יאל‬ not bring this congregation to the Land that I have ‫ הנ כת יתי הל ההם‬-‫ נא השר‬,‫ ההא הרץ‬-‫האל‬ given them.' (Bamidbar 20:12) The irony is that it is the 'religious' that lack the 'faith' of the simple Jew who wants to rebuilt his homeland as his God had commanded him. The rebels of Korach would taunt Moshe and say we who wear all techelet, do we also need one thread of techelet? Moshe answered yes, you do. The thread of Zionism, of conquering our Land was absent and libraries full of books and observances is meaningless without this small thread. The argument continues in our times although things are changing and evolving for the better. In the end the bitterness will become sweet as the Torah of wood is thrown into the bitter waters and a new Torah emerges from the difficult lessons we had to learn along the way. At Marah we also studied the laws of Chukat which seem to have no logical explanation. The impure (Zionist) heals the pure (Charedi) and the pure becomes impure as the Nation turns to ashes and is reborn again. The Torah of Chukat is something engraved on each of us, like a tattoo that cannot be erased, or a stone tablet that is etched into the heart of each Jew. We cannot escape our destiny, but we can shape it. The Torah of Rav Kahane takes some of the bitterness away and makes it sweet again for it demands of us action to change that which is in our power and that which seems to be not within our power - to create a political change - this takes real faith. The Root within the Root The root letters within the above three words is Mar (Mem, Resh). The month of Cheshvon is called Mar Chesvon (bitter Cheshvon) for a number of reasons. One of them is because there are no holidays in this month. Another reason for 'Mar' Cheshvon is because this is the month we read Parsha Noach which relates the story of the destruction of the world. Noah is like a survivor of the Shoa who must have tortured himself with the question, 'Could more have been done?' 'Did I do enough?' 'Maybe its better just to try and forget and accept that this is a question that we have no answer for. 'It was Hashem's decision.' Not only is their bitterness for the physical catastrophe that happened, but for the 197

spiritual question of where was God? The criticism of Noah in the Midrash is not 'Where was G-d?' but 'Where was Noah?' 'Could he indeed have done more?' Alternatively we ask the question if we were in his time maybe we would have done much less. If Noah lived in our time, maybe he would have done much more. The main lesson of Rabbi Kahane's Torah is 'never again'. Not 'never again' will there be tragedy, but never again will we sit idly and accept evil decrees without protesting and shaking the world and causing political change. In Parsha Noach I wrote that Mar Chesvon has an additional significance that the Rabbi was assassinated in this month. It was a bitter month when we lost him alluded to in Mar (bitterness) and (Mem,Resh) (Rav Meir). According to the Midrash on the same day we mourn the destruction of the Temple (Tisha b'Av), the Moshiach is said to be born. There is something similar to this idea here in the month of Chesvon. In this time that is the root of bitterness, the Torah of Rabbi Kahane was released into the world. His Torah is the medicine for the many doubts of faith from the Shoa to present day conflicts that addresses the flaws that prevent us from being a unified nation of scholarly warriors rather than appeasing a remorseless enemy. His Torah is now planted firmly in the Nation and is growing from Gush Katif to the Knesset to Yehuda and Shomron. Just as Pinchas was eternal, his Torah was eternal and is passed to tzadikkim in every generation continuing to revive the nation and keep the fire burning. Perhaps the missing holiday in Chesvan is waiting for a time when this rift is healed. This maybe alluded to by the yortzeit of the Rabbi 18 Chesvan which is the gematria of 'life' (Chai). Chai Chesvon - Kahane Chai. Maybe in this bitter time a new life will be born, possibly the day of independence of the new Kingdom of Judea. Defense against Amalek Mar is also the gematria of Amalek (240) and Doubt (240). The Amaleks that seek nothing but our destruction like the Nazis of the past or our Arab enemies of present are counteracted by the Torah of the Rav that clears the doubt that incapacitates us leaving us prey to our enemies. The doubts of our legitimacy, the doubts of our power and faith, the doubts that lead to compromise and betrayal of our brothers and our God are refuted by the Rav. We have always been our own worst enemy, but that does not always have to be. His Torah alludes to another gematria Spirit of God – (240) - ‫רוח יהוה‬ The Rav gave us a new heart, a new way of thinking and responding to those who pressure and persecute Israel. The only difference between the times of Moshiach and today is in our consciousness. It is the way that we perceive ourselves and our mission that determines the outcome. Mar is also in the word America, which also has the letters Keri (indifference) which we spoke about in Bechokotai. The current President 'Obama' is also the same gematria as America as well as Pharaoh (with kollel). It is possible that the final confrontation will involve America that tries to prevent Jewish destiny from unfolding. With the Torah of the Rav we will be able to stand against all odds and to the surprise of the world the two state solution will finally be implemented. The surprise is that the second State will not be Palestine but Judea. 198

Warning Signs In addition to the Shoa of the past the Rav warned about a potential Shoa again in America and Europe. We see today how the animosity towards Israel and supporters of Israel (the Jewish people) increases every year. The animosities of the past recur in the present because we need to learn the lessons and understand the correct response. Because we have not learned the lessons of the Shoa, Holocaust deniers sprout up telling us it never happened. The Rav's Torah is a wake up call for us to come home and as Jabotinsky once said 'liquidate the exile before the exile liquidates you'. The sins of the Shoa still linger and our reluctance to join Israel and be part of the light and strong arm of Israel is still a plague of assimilation that hurt us. Our divisions and doubts weaken us. The self sacrifice demonstrated by Pinchas is the remedy that is needed, even if there was a small Pinchas within our destiny will unfold without tragedies and needless suffering. Pinchas went against his nature because he could not be idle next to such desecration. The Rav also went against his nature to save Israel. We must also go a little against our nature to stand up and be counted. This is the secret of our survival and the coin of redemption that must be earned. The sins of the lovers of Midianites and the rock hitting lovers of exile is the great flaw that the Torah of Rav Kahane addresses and by addressing brings healing and rectification. There is much in our destiny that we can shape however our independence was ultimately brought about by God whether we deserved it or not. Now we must learn in retrospect why we are free and yet not free, imprisoned yet no longer enslaved. This would be a good point to share an article the Rav wrote in 1973 called Kiddush Hashem. Kiddush Hashem – By Rav Kahane Every year, on Yom HaAtzmaut, the Day of Independence in the State of Israel, the same dispute erupts. Is the Hallel, the religious thanksgiving that is traditionally said on all holidays as well as on Chanukah, to be said on this day? Essentially, what is in dispute here is whether the Day of Independence is to be considered a miraculous day, spawned by G-d, a day of deliverance as say, Chanukah? In turn, what is at the heart of the disagreement between those who say that the day is a miracle of G-d and those who say it is not is the question: Can this be the true deliverance, can a state be considered the hand of G-d when it is established, controlled and run by people who are non- observers, disbelievers, or worse? It appears to me that the question is totally irrelevant to the dispute and that the argument is based on a question that has nothing to do with the meaning and Divinity of Independence Day. It appears that most of us do not grasp the essence of the day. It is, therefore, important to consider exactly what independence is for the Jew, not only because of the true light that it sheds upon the technical place of Yom HaAtzmaut within Jewish tradition and observance, but because it teaches us that which we must know about the context of Jewish history in which we live and because it opens our eyes to the essence of the real meaning of Kiddush Hashem, Sanctification of G-d, and its absolute corollary — Jewish honor. The source for the concept of Kiddush Hashem is found in the third book of Moses, Vayikra (Leviticus 22:32), wherein it says: \"You shall not desecrate My holy name, but I shall be sanctified within the midst of the Children of Israel, I am the L-rd who sanctifies you.\" 199

The verse is immediately followed with the words, \"who took you out of the land of Egypt. . . \"and the obvious question is: what connection is there between Kiddush Hashem and the going out of Egypt? Certainly the going out of Egypt is clearly tied to certain mitzvot that logically flow from it (i.e., the Sabbath, which allows us to rest when we could not, as slaves in Egypt; the admonition against mistreating a convert who is a stranger in our midst because we too, were strangers in Egypt). But there appears to be no logical and direct connection between the going out from Egypt and the commandment to sanctify the name of G-d... Let us understand clearly and exactly, what the essence of Kiddush Hashem sanctification of G-d's name, is. When G-d's name is sanctified, then His greatness and omnipotence become absolutely and abundantly clear to the nations of the world, to those who know him not. It means that the converse — profanation of G-d's name, Hillul Hashem — is the situation whereby G-d's name is mocked, not recognized, not known, not respected and humiliated. If so how does one achieve Sanctification of G-d's Name? How is G-d's greatness and omnipotence clearly seen and understood? Conversely, how do we profane, shame and drag His name in the dust and cause it to become a mockery and disgrace? In only one way. The Name of G-d is profaned and spat upon by taunting, laughing and mocking gentiles when the people of G-d, the people Chosen by Him, that is identified with Him, that carries His zeal into ideological battle, is beaten, defeated, scorned and humiliated. The humiliation of the Jew is the humiliation of G-d; the desecration of the Jew is the profaning of G-d, His maker. The Prophet Ezekiel, in a magnificent and soul-shattering, fundamental explanation, speaks (Chapter 36:19-24) of the wrath of G-d directed at the Jews because of their sins and His driving them into Exile: \"I scattered them among the nations. . and when they came to the nations, into which they came, they desecrated My holy Name, in that men said of them, 'These are the people of the L- rd and they are gone out of His land!' \"But I had pity on My holy Name, which the House of Israel had desecrated among the nations, into which they came. \"Therefore, say to the House of Israel, thus says the L-rd: I do not do this for your sake, 0 House of Israel, but for the sake of My holy Name, which you have desecrated among the nations, to which you came. “And I will sanctify My great Name which was desecrated among the nations, which you have desecrated among them; then the nations will know that I am the L-rd G-d, when I become sanctified IN YOU before their eyes. For I will take you from among the nations, and gather you out of all lands, and I will bring you to your own land.\" Jews! Read these words and understand. Understand just who we are. Understand the essence of Desecration and Sanctification! Do you want to know how the Name of G-d is desecrated in the eyes of the mocking and sneering nations? It is when the JEW, His people, His Chosen, is desecrated! When the JEW is beaten, G-d is profaned! When the JEW is humiliated — G-d is shamed! When the Jew is attacked — it is an assault upon the Name of G-d! 200