Dedicated in memory of Rachel Leah bat R' Chaim Tzvi

Volume 6 Number 31 Brought to you by Naaleh.com Tree of Life: The Centrality of Torah Study- True Dveykut Based on a Naaleh.com by Rebbetzin Tziporah Heller Torah is the force that gives us the ability to On the deepest level we know emunah, that up, to make him face many possible fight against the yetzer hara. Everything is an everything is connected. That should evoke a challenges and to say no to evil. Man is meant extension of Hashem’s will and contains a response within us that leads to making to strip away the layers of impurity and get at spark of divinity. If we dig deep enough inside changes. But it won’t happen without mitzvot. the tov. The Torah will help man do this, as it ourselves, we find goodness. But the only teaches us how to transform bad to good. The way to access it is through Torah. In the King David refers to chochma chitzonit negative mitzvot say, “Don’t do use this trait for creation narrative the Torah says, “Hashem (secular knowledge) as eitz hadaat tov v’ra, evil.” The positive mitzvot teach us how to use saw it was good.” Creation was meant to be the tree that gives us access to good and evil. it for good. We can attain perfection by taking unlocked by the Torah. The word tov is Chochma chitzonit by its nature tends to keep what’s bad in ourselves and turning it around. repeated six times in the first chapter of the one in the world of partial pictures. It’s the A jealous person can ask himself, “Am I Torah. If we multiply the gematria of tov by six observable little kernel of truth that is within jealous of what he owns or how he looks?” we get the same numerical value as emunah. one’s frame and range, with no sense of That’s going to fade. If I move inward I can This tells us that the essential good inherent source and purpose. It’s seeing everything say, “No, I’m jealous of who he is in essence. I in active creation opens our hearts to within one’s own limitations and defining want his key to being excellent and emunah. limitations as truths. This is the opposite of distinguished.” He could move even further emunah. Staying within the flat picture of and say, “I’m going to out- tzadik this tzadik There are three facets to emunah. The first is reality and not looking beyond makes for an and out-learn that learner – not in a way that’s recognizing that everything comes from easy life. There are no demands spiritually or hypocritical, phony or irrational, but in an Hashem. The second is believing that emotionally. But it’s as if one is dead while ambitious way. This is taking envy and moving everything was created with compassion. The alive. it to good. third is recognizing that everything leads us to tikun – self rectification and rectification of the The verse says, “Titen emet l’Yaakov.” Yaakov On the sixth day when Hashem created Adam, world. So when we say the Torah is emunah actualized the Torah. He chose holiness. He He said, “Tov me'od.” There was something we mean that it teaches us how to affirm took the Torah, the connective emunah, the beyond good there. When we learn Torah and these realities. When we celebrate the tzadik part of him, and developed the ability to access that spark of eternal light, there is no holidays or make a blessing on food, we see where it was all meant to go. The main limit to how far and how high we can reach. should realize that everything has one source. purpose of the yetzer hara is to lift a person Overcoming Adversity: Don’t Sell Yourself Short Based on a Naaleh.com shiur by Hanoch Teller One early predawn morning Rav Lazer Yudel learn, we’ll make a yeshiva just for you.” This Finkel, of the , came meant constructing more buildings to house Rav Nosson Tzvi had this tremendous into the room where his young great nephew the ever expanding student body. Whenever compulsion to get the boys to learn as much slept. Rav Nosson Tzvi didn’t let on that he Rav Nosson Tzvi would finish another as possible. One program started by Rav was awake as he watched his great uncle go structure it would fill to capacity. And then he’d Lazer Yudel was to learn 12 hours a day over to the Shas on the bookshelf in his room start on the next project. He would be present uninterrupted. Rav Nosson Tzvi posted and kiss each volume. The profound love Rav when they would pour the cement and he’d sign-up sheets and said, “I want to see Lazer Yudel displayed for Torah made a deep beam with joy, he knew the building would be everyone’s name there.” But Dovi, who had impression on him. another citadel of Torah learning. This all never quite made it in yeshiva, didn’t sign his meant raising enormous amounts of capital. name. The rosh yeshiva grabbed his hand and When the mantle of leadership passed to Rav By nature he was a bashful person, not the held it firm and said, “I want to see your Nosson Tzvi, he felt unworthy of the position. type to ask people for tremendous sums of name.” So Dovi said ok with the greatest bli Not long after that he married off his son and money. With a budget of $23 million a year he neder. The chances of him learning 12 hours Rav Shlomo Wolbe came to the wedding. Rav raised the staggering figure of over a half uninterrupted was like a chicken sprouting Nosson Tzvi was taken aback. He was a very billion dollars in his tenure as rosh yeshiva. teeth. But he sat down and learned. And again young rosh yeshiva at that time and a famous the next day, until he managed to pull off a full mussar personality had come to grace his Rav Lazer Yudel’s philosophy was that week of uninterrupted learning. On the 8th day wedding. Rav Wolbe explained, “From yeshivos should be open for everyone. In fact he ran to the beit midrash and said, “Rosh responsibility you grow.” And that became he had the doors of the Mirrer yeshiva yeshiva! I want to tell my parents and high Rav Nosson Tzvi’s raison d’etre. He himself removed to show that anyone and everyone school but they won’t believe me. Last grew and he had no problem taking young was invited to learn there. Rav Teller recounts, night I dreamed about learning.” The rosh people and giving them responsibility so they “I distinctly remember coming in to the yeshiva drank a lechaim, took Dovi’s hand, would also grow. doorless yeshiva on a rainy day and encounter- and despite his severe medical condition did ing a shallow lake.” Years later the Knesset his best approximate of a crazy dance. Dovi The sages say, “A person will learn best when passed a law that for security reasons every went on to fulfill his commitment of learning 30 he learns a topic he likes.” Rav Nosson Tzvi building must have doors, and the yeshiva days uninterrupted. would tell his students, “Whatever you wish to doors were finally replaced. visit us online at: www.naaleh.com | for questions, suggestions, or dedication opportunities, email [email protected] 1 Dedicated in memory of Rachel Leah bat R' Chaim Tzvi

Volume 6 Number 31 Brought to you by Naaleh.com Cancelled Agreements Based on a Naaleh.com shiur by Dayan Shlomo Cohen A number of halachic questions related to should have made a condition that if the river he didn’t, he doesn’t get paid. If neither side agreements arose during the recent Israeli dries up the workers wouldn’t get paid. If he knew he would get ill, then the rebbe loses and security situation. The first question came didn’t do this he would have to pay them half would not get paid. from a storekeeper who was renting a shop in the normal wages. But if the workers knew, Ashkelon, a city that came under heavy fire. then they should have made a condition that In the case of the teacher whose student left He signed a contract at the beginning of the the boss would still pay them. If they didn’t, for the states, the teacher wouldn’t get paid year with the owner. But then because of the they wouldn’t be paid anything. If neither of since extraordinary circumstances caused the war situation, people were afraid to leave their them knew it would happen, the workers will boy to leave. In the case of the school tuition, homes to go shopping. He requested a lose because they cannot prove that they no one knew the war would break out so the reduction on his rent. deserve payment. If they were paid up front, school loses and would not be paid tuition. however, they would not have to return the However, a special halacha applies in the case The second question came from the parents money. When both the farmer and the workers of a national crisis. When a large amount of of a boy in Sderot. Because of the missile knew, the workers would not get paid. The people are affected by an extraordinary event, attacks, school had been cancelled and they Rama adds that this rule applies to any onus the loss must be borne equally by both sides. wanted to know if they were obligated to pay that happens during the time of employment. However, the Rama adds, if it’s possible to fix tuition for the time their son was home from the situation in some way, one must try to do school. The Rama discusses a different case of so. If one doesn’t, then the special halacha someone who rented a house for a year and doesn’t apply. It also means that either side The third question came from a private died. He notes that the heirs would not be can cancel the agreement for the future. So if teacher in . He was tutoring a obligated to pay the rent for the second half of school closes because of a national crisis the young boy every afternoon and because of the year. However, the Rashba disagrees and loss has to be split between the parents and the situation, his American parents left with says that when you rent property, it is as if you the school. him to the US. Were the parents obligated to bought it for that period of time and you cannot pay the tutor until the end of the year or could cancel the agreement no matter what happens In the case of the parents who left for the US, they cancel the agreement? in the interim. The Shach notes that even if the exemption wouldn’t apply because they renting is like buying, who says you bought it decided of their own free choice to leave. It In a normal situation, although beit din can’t for the year as one unit? Maybe each day is can’t be said that the national crisis made force both parties to keep a verbal agreement, counted as one unit and you could get out of them return to the US. All that would apply they are morally expected to do so. One is the arrangement if there’s an onus. The would be extraordinary circumstances that considered mechusar emunah, an unfaithful halacha is that whoever can prove that his prevented the boy from learning, such as person, if one backs out. But when the opinion is correct gains. Anyone renting out an illness. The rebbe wouldn’t be paid from the situation changed after the verbal agreement apartment should know that if an extraordinary time the boy left, unless he was paid before- and before the contractual act one is allowed situation happens and the renter backs out of hand, in which case he wouldn’t have to return to cancel. Therefore, where the security the agreement, he won’t be paid for the full the money. situation changes unexpectedly and it is no contract. And if the renter paid in advance, he longer feasible to keep an agreement, one would not receive his money back. Regarding the shop in Ashkelon, it seems the would be allowed to back out if the hiring or loss would have to be split between the renter renting hasn’t yet started. However, when it The Shulchan Aruch says, if parents hire a and the owner. But it’s not so simple. While the already started the halacha is different. rebbe to teach their son and the son becomes home guard closed the schools, they did not ill, if the parents knew beforehand that their close shops. The national crisis didn’t directly The Gemara relates a case of a farmer who son was sickly and he occasionally wouldn’t be affect the shop, it affected the area. So it is hired workers to water his field by gathering able to learn, they should have made a possible to claim that the shop shouldn’t be water from a nearby river. In the middle of the condition that they wouldn’t pay the rebbe dealt with as a national crisis in which the day the river dried up. The workers had during those times. If they didn’t, they have to losses are split. Still it would be correct for the nothing left to do. Is the employer obligated to pay him. If the rebbe would rather be teaching landlord to reduce the rent. In all cases, it is pay them? The Shulchan Aruch says it then doing nothing, there’s no deduction in his certainly appropriate for people to come to depends on who should have realized that the wages. If the rebbe knew the child could get ill, compromises and not stand on midat hadin. river would dry up. If the farmer knew, he the rebbe should have made the condition. If

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