בס״ד Virtue, Vice, and Vision compassionate, understanding entitled Re'eh, "See," is a Blessings and curses. Stirring and benevolent eye. How do we perennial reminder to all of us Weekly stuff from the Bible this week view the good fortune enjoyed that even our vision can bring as Moses again cautions his by others? Are we happy for virtue or vice. Let us look at the them, or do we look at them world correctly and invite the August 9-15, 2020 congregation. The great 19-25 Av, 5780 prophet reminds them that with begrudging envy? How do blessings of G-d into our lives. living a life of goodness will we look at ourselves and our By Yossy Goldman Why Torah: Re'eh: Deuteronomy bring them blessings while own shortcomings? Are we Didn’t G-d Specify the 11:26 - 16:17 ignoring the Divine call must objectively truthful or Haftarah: Isaiah 54:11 - 55:5 subjectively slanted? "He is a Location of the Holy inexorably lead to a cursed Temple? Preparing the existence. Moses prefaces his stingy, rotten good for nothing. PARSHAT RE’EH Me? I am just careful about Jewish people for their entry admonition with the Hebrew We have Jewish word Re'eh, "See." See, I how I spend my money." "She into the Promised is a bore of bores, anti-social. Land, Moses paints a Calendars. If you present before you today a would like one, blessing and a curse. But why Me? I just happen to enjoy harmonious picture of one please send us a "see"? What is there to see? Did staying at home." "He is as place where all will gather to letter and we will he show them anything at all? stubborn as an ox! Me? I am a celebrate and serve G-d: “And send you one, or The Torah does not use determined person." Clearly, you shall cross the Jordan and ask the the manner in which we look at settle in the land the L-rd, your

Calendars flowery language just because Rabbi/Chaplain to it has a nice ring to it and our world and those around us G-d, is giving you as an will have a major impact on the contact us. sounds poetic. What was there inheritance… And it will be, way life will treat us. Quite to behold? Why Re'eh? One that the place the L-rd, your Do you have family answer is that how justifiably, Moses says, "See." G-d, will choose in which to For how we see things in life on the outside we look will, in itself, establish His Name there you will undoubtedly affect life's struggling? determine whether our lives shall bring all that I am Please contact or will be blessed or cursed. How outcomes. The sixth Lubavitcher , commanding you: Your burnt have them contact do we look at others, at offerings, and your sacrifices, ourselves? Our perspective, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak our office to learn (1880-1950), your tithes, and the separation more about our how we behold and see things, by your hand, and the choice will result in our own lives once told how when he was a family programs. young child he asked his father: of vows which you will vow You and they are being blessed or, G-d forbid, to the L-rd. And you shall the opposite. The saintly "Why does a person Family Programs Family not alone, we are rejoice before the L-rd, your Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of have two eyes?" "The right here to help. eye," his father replied, "is to be G-d you and your sons and

Berditchev once chanced upon

a strong, young man who was used lovingly, when looking at your daughters and your

We offer free Grape brazenly eating on Yom a fellow Jew; the left eye is to menservants and your Juice and Matzoh Kippur. The Rabbi suggested be used discerningly, when maidservants, and for you to be able to that perhaps he was feeling ill. looking at sweets or other the Levite who is within your objects that are not that Matzah make the blessings The fellow insisted he was in cities.” (Deuteronomy 12:10- important in the grand scheme every Shabbos. the best of health. Perhaps he 12) The pilgrim festivals are of things." (When I was Please have your had forgotten that today was the central to this portion. holy day of fasting? "Who in yeshivah, the same building The Torah commands us how chaplain / Rabbi also housed a synagogue where contact us to enroll doesn't know that today is Yom and with whom to celebrate, Kippur?" responded the young we would often interact with but there is a glaring (available to all the adult men who would come

Grape Juice & & Juice Grape man. Perhaps he was never omission: although mentioned prisons). to the daily minyan. One taught that Jews do not eat on more than 10 times in particular gentleman, may he this day? "Every child knows Hyman & Martha Rogal Center rest in peace, always seemed to the parshah, “the place the 5804 Beacon Street that Yom Kippur is a fast day, us rather cantankerous, what L-rd your G-d will choose” is Pittsburgh, PA 15217 Rabbi!" Whereupon you might call a grumpy old left unnamed. Moses spent 40 412-421-0111 Rabbi Levi Yitzchak raised his years teaching Torah and Fax: 412-521-5948 eyes heavenward and said, man. I cannot remember www.alephne.org whether he was actually a bit passing on the mitzvot with "Master of the Universe, see intricate detail. He transmitted [email protected] how wonderful Your people cross-eyed or not, but we referred to him as "left-eyed the highly detailed laws of the are! Here is a Jew who, despite sacrifices, including everything, refuses to tell a lie!" Sam" because he always everything from which types The Berditchever was always seemed to be looking at us able to look at others with a students with that proverbial of animals may be used to the left eye.) The Parshah that is IN JEWISH HISTORY location on the Temple where the animals should be offered. Sunday, August 9, 2020 --- 19 Av, 5780 Yet the place where all this would happen is undisclosed. Why Passing of Rabbi Yaakov Culi (1732) did Moses keep the location of the spiritual capital a secret? Born in Jerusalem in 1689 (5449?), Yaakov Culi moved to Why does the name of the city where the Holy Temple will be Constantinople, , where he found adequate facilities and built remain a mystery? suggests three financial backing to publish the scholarly output of his learned possibilities: grandfather, Rabbi Moses ibn Habib, including classics such as If the surrounding nations would know the future site of the Get Pashut and Ezrat Nashim. Holy Temple, they would fortify the place with their strongest The brilliant young scholar quickly came to the attention of the armies in an effort to stymie Jewish worship there. chief rabbi of Constantinople, Yehuda Rosanes, the undisputed If the current residents of the Temple Mount would realize the leader of Sephardic Jewry at the time, and he was appointed to the spiritual significance the place has to the Jewish people, they (rabbinical court). would do all they could to destroy and deface it. Upon the passing of Rosanes, Rabbi Yaakov edited and published The third reason (which Maimonides favors as the “strongest”) his late teacher’s writings with his own additional glosses: is that the Temple mount is in the portion Mishneh Lamelech on Maimonides’s and Perishat of Judah and Benjamin. If the other tribes would know that it Derachim. would not be in their portion, they would begin to quarrel over Toward the end of his own short life, Rabbi Culi began work on that spot, each one wishing to host G-d in their own territory. the Mea’am Loez, a compendium of rabbinic lore and G-d solved this problem by only revealing His chosen location commentary on all books of Scriptures. He wrote in Ladino, then after Israel was ruled by a king who would be able to maintain the common language of the Sephardic diaspora. peace even as some tribes were elevated over others. (Guide to Unfortunately, he never completed his project and passed away the Perplexed, 3:45) on 19th Av, 5492 (1732), having only completed the book Genesis A more spiritual answer can be found in the verse where the and most of Exodus. However, subsequent scholars used his phrase “the place the L-rd, your G-d, will choose” is used for extensive notes to finish the work. Popular to this day, the Mea’am the first time: Loez has been translated into many languages, including Hebrew, “But only to the place which the L-rd, your G-d, shall choose English, and even Arabic. from all your tribes, to set His Name there; you shall seek His presence and come there.” (Ibid. 12:5) Monday, August 10, 2020 --- 20 Av, 5780 “You shall seek His presence,” says the Torah. G-d will Zohar Published (1558) choose Jerusalem only after the people themselves choose a First printing of the Zohar, the fundamental work of the place they feel is appropriate for His home. Only the Jew, who (Jewish esoteric and mystical teachings), authored by the is part and parcel of the physical reality, can create a permanent Talmudic sage, Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai. dwelling place for G-d in this physical world. Only after King Passing of R. Levi Yitzchak Schneerson (1944) David chose the site of Jerusalem, did G-d, through the prophet, Av 20 is the yahrtzeit (anniversary of the passing) of the agree with the choice, establishing Jerusalem, and the Temple Lubavitcher Rebbe's father, Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Schneerson Mountain, as the spiritual capital of the world. The holiness of (1878-1944), in Alma Ata, . Rabbi Levi Yitzchak was every place G-d chose for Divine revelation was temporary. The Chief Rabbi of Yekaterinoslav (currently Dnepropetrovsk), and physical location of Mount Sinai, for example, did not retain its was arrested and exiled to Kazakhstan by the Stalinist regime as a holiness. The one place chosen by humans (who did not wait for result of his work to preserve Jewish life in the . a sign from on high, but fulfilled the command to “seek His presence”) was the place that achieved permanent and Tuesday, August 11, 2020 --- 21 Av, 5780 everlasting holiness. Passing of R. Chaim Brisker (1918) What is the lesson for us? To become the person we want to be, Passing of Rabbi Chaim Soloveichik of Brisk (1853-1918), we cannot wait for inspiration from above. Inspiration alone will outstanding Talmudic scholar and Jewish leader. not change us for the better, unless we choose to get involved, to become a partner, to contribute to the effort, to do our part to Wednesday, August 12, 2020 --- 22 Av, 5780 “seek His presence.” G-d will choose to send you Divine Passing of R. Mordechai ben Hillel (1298) inspiration and success, but it will have a permanent effect only R. Mordechai ben Hillel was a prominent scholar who lived in after you do your part in building your spiritual Jerusalem. Nuremberg, Germany. He authored a famous halachic Inspired by the teachings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Likutei compendium known as Mordechai, included in all standard Sichot vol. 30 p. 120. By Rabbi Menachem Feldman printings of the . R. Mordechai, his wife, and five children were killed in the notorious Rindfleisch massacres on 22 Menachem Av, 5058 (1298).

Friday, August 14, 2020 --- 24 Av, 5780 Hasmonean Holiday (circa 100 BCE) The Hasmoneans reinstated the rule of Jewish civil law, replacing Hellenist secular law, and declared this day a holiday.