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This edition is dedicated in the memory of: Stan Kahn z"l (a staunch supporter of TMT in Cape Town) Yechiel (Jerome) Schostak z"l (father of Tzv i Schostak, founder of TMT Detroit and former president of TMT )

Emor - Behar | 20 Iy y ar 57 7 5 | May 9th, 201 5 | Issue 588

Reuven Kolton

Former Avrech in Memphis (2006-09) Teaching Assistant in Ben-Gurion University and Sapir Academic College

Oh Snore, a bore, It's

The combination of daylight savings time and my son being an eager reader have led to the recurring situation where I find him dozing off regularly during reading. Unfortunately, I know that waking him is hopeless, since he's already made the profound, and to a certain extent, uncontested claim that is boring. While I don't share his belief, I cannot help but understand that for a child, and for many others, it's the stories that make it interesting. There are two events in the entire book of Vayikra. The first happens to be the pinnacle of the mishkan (tabernacle), and one of the highlights of the Torah – The tragic inauguration of the mishkan, severely blemished by the death of Aharon's two sons, Nadav and Avihiu. The second story is situated somewhere at the back end of this 's parsha, and the only details known about the main character is his mother's name and that his father was Egyptian. The whole story is all of 3 verses long (Ch. 24, 10-12) with the verdict announced a couple of verses later. The story reads as follows: "And the son of an Israelite woman, whose father was an Egyptian, went out among the children of Israel; and the son of the Israelite woman and a man of Israel strove together in the camp. And the son of the Israelite woman blasphemed the Name, and cursed; and they brought him unto . And his mother's name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan. And they put him in ward, that it might be declared unto them at the mouth of the L-RD… 'Bring forth him that hath cursed without the camp; and let all that heard him lay their hands upon his head, and let all the congregation stone him."

At first glance it would seem that this episode is out of place, yet the fact that it was able to make it into Vayikra is not merely impressive, it also deems the verses worthy of a second look. Both stories in our sefer involve individuals who are primarily known by their parents. In the other story, the main characters go into the Holy of Holies, from among the children of Israel, in complete contrast to the above story, where the son of the Israelite goes into the camp and encounters a man of Israel, with whom he quarrels. The formers try to get too close to Hashem warranting death by a heavenly fire, while the latter curses Him, requiring that all those who heard him partake in his execution.

Inevitably, we should conclude that not only does this story belong in Vayikra, but that without it – Vayikra itself might lose its place in our life. The first word describes the calling out of Hashem to Moshe, flesh and ,ויקרא ,of Leviticus blood. The many mitzvoth which comprise this Sefer include the most delicate requirements of the holiest person on the holiest day in the holiest place, as well as precepts regarding kashrut, shemitah, tumah, and business. Hashem can be sought after in the Holiest of Holies, where the sons of Aharon found their death, yet He is also present in the midst of the people of Israel, where everyday quarrels can occur – which is what brought the particular individual in the story to rebuke His Name. Yet while the role of the people in relation to the death of Nadav and Avihu was to mourn passively, the public was held responsible to punish the "scolder", perhaps indicating that in the future they must take preventive measures that will ensure that Hashem be perceived amongst the people as Blessed, and not the opposite. This short event may be the short glimpse, though through the negative, of how to advance from 'Hashem Kadosh' to 'Kiddush Hashem' – from the Sanctity of Hashem to Sanctifying His Name.

For centuries we have prayed to be able to yet again witness the Holiness of Hashem as in the Tabernacle. However, we mustn't let the anticipation to speedily see the Glory of Hashem cause us to overlook His presence around and within us. These days we celebrate the gathering of the exiles and the re- establishment of the Jewish homeland as the center of the Jewish nation. While it is possible to passively wait for the subsequent miracle to occur, it seems that the story from our parsha implies that it is our responsibility to actively create 'Kiddush Hashem', to go out and take charge of the public domain and make sure that Hashem is well represented and noticeable, truly everywhere.

Rabbi Hanan Schlesinger

Executive Director and Community Rabbinic Scholar of Dallas Kollel

The – Nature and Nurture Parashat Behar

Our people have a long-standing and illustrious connection with the Land of Israel. And not only Jews have a particular religious affinity for this land; Christians as well consider it to be ‘the holy land’. But what makes it holy? As we have just celebrated Israel's Independence Day, when we are celebrating 67 years of modern Jewish sovereignty in our ancient homeland, and are thereby involved in renewing our connection to the State of Israel and to the Land of Israel, it may be fitting to ask ourselves some questions as to the nature of the sanctity of our new/old land. We will be reading in shul this shabbat a portion towards the end of the called Behar. Among other things, it focuses on the commandment of the Sabbatical Year: once every seven years there is a prohibition in the Land of Israel against plowing, planting and reaping: The land must lie fallow. We are to eat only of the produce that grows on its own. The reason given by the Torah for this is that there be ‘a Sabbath of solemn rest for the land’, ‘a year of solemn rest for the land’. Strange – the Torah does not usually concern itself with agricultural advice. But if this is not written for the purpose of ensuring sound agricultural procedures, what is it about; what could be the meaning of providing rest to the land? Does the land need to observe a Sabbath?

Another mystery is the apparent divergence between these verses in Leviticus and a parallel discussion of the Sabbatical Year in the . There, in chapter 23 the Torah says: “Six years you shall sow your land and gather in its produce, but on the seventh year you shall disengage from the land and let it alone, that the poor of your people may eat”. Here it is not about the land celebrating a Sabbath but rather about man refraining from harvesting so as to leave the produce of the field to the poor. What we have here are two different presentations of the mitzvah of the seventh year, reflecting two different aspects of the sanctity of the Land of Israel. As in a myriad of instances, the Torah presents divergent versions of the same commandment in order to highlight multiple hues of the divine light, all of them true and all of them crucial for a full understanding of the message of the Torah.

Leviticus represents the mystical truth of the inherent and a priori sanctity of the Land of Israel. Yes indeed, the Land needs to celebrate a Sabbath. This Land conforms, in its very essence, to the primordial pattern of creation – six units of labor and then a seventh unit of rest. From the very moment of creation this Land was set apart from all other lands. This is why the cities of Sedom and Amora were destroyed for their sins while other cities outside of the Land were not similarly punished, for this Land adheres to a higher Divine standard; it cannot tolerate evil upon it. The Book of Leviticus says as much when it warns the that if they will engage in iniquity in the Land, the Land will vomit them out just as it vomited out the Canaanites before them. This is the land which, according to the , is polluted and defiled by the spilling of innocent blood. Murder is an affront to the Divine image in man, but more than that – it is affront to the land itself.

But this notion of primordial holiness is not the only truth concerning the sanctity of the Land of Israel. In the discussion of the Seventh Year in Exodus there is no mention of a ‘Sabbath of solemn rest for the land’, but rather only a commandment to refrain from withholding the produce of the land from any poor person who might wish to come and eat of it. Once every seven years the bounty of the earth is equally available to all. The foundation of this legislation as presented here is social and not metaphysical. God did not choose the Land because of its inherent qualities but rather in order to construct upon it a just society. Holiness is not built into the Land from the outset; rather it is engendered by the divine imperative and by the ensuing human response to that imperative.

What we have therefore are two different perspectives on the holiness of the Land of Israel. One you could say locates it in the hardware – the Land of Israel itself is essentially different from any other land on the face of the earth. The other approach postulates no necessary divergence between the essence of our homeland and any other land – rather you might say that the holiness of Eretz Yisrael is all in the software. This is the land upon which special divine mitzvot are to be fulfilled, this is the land that has been sanctified by our lives and by our deaths for thousands of years, this is the land that has been designated for us to build upon her a model society of justice, righteousness and mercy.

Both approaches are true - both are found in the Torah and both are reflected in later Jewish thought. The sanctity of Eretz Yisrael is both presented to us on a silver platter, and at the same time constitutes a challenge for us to measure up to. But however you look at it, by nature or by nurture, this is our Holy Land, our eternal inheritance upon which the lifeblood of our nation depends.

Kollel Munich's Activities

Yom Ha'Atzmaut! A visit by our partner, Prof. Neria Guttel President of the Orot Israel College

Fondue night Young women's for students learning group

ISRAtag Arik Speaker

'Lilmod' Coordinator and Head of European Desk in Torah MiTzion

The Scroll of Fire monument is an impressive work of the sculptor Nathan Rapaport, a Holocaust survivor known mainly for statue of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising, which is now located in the city of Warsaw with a copy in the main square of the Yad Vashem Museum.

The monument is located in the hills of , and is part of the "Forest of Holies (Ya'ar HaKdoshim), a forest containing roughly 6 million trees which were planted in memory of the Holocaust victims. The entire forest and the monument are a joint initiative of the American Bnei Brith and the JNF.

The monument itself consists of two bronze pillars shaped like Torah scrolls, with one pillar symbolizing the horrors of the Holocaust and the other one symbolizing the rebirth of the nation in Eretz Israel.

The really fascinating part is the connection point between the two pillars, where one can see the survivors arriving in Israel by ships, aided by the local Tzabar Jews. It advances towards the the establishment of the state until the liberation of the Western Wall during the Six Day War. It also incorporated hints of the Final Redemption, featuring King and the prophet Ezekiel.

The artist Nathan Rapoport is a native from Warsaw, whose entire family perished in the Holocaust. After the war he returned to Warsaw and created a monument to commemorate the Warsaw Ghetto fighters. An interesting fact about him is that he was an democratic artist, meaning that he would create two different versions of his works and would leave it to the members of his Kibbutz to decide which version was better.

Yasher Koach to Raffi Hatuka

for providing the correct answer

Where was this photo taken? Please send answers to - [email protected]

The answer, further information about this location as well as the name of the first person to recognize this site will be published in next week‘s edition.

Torah MiTzion was established in 1995 with the goal of strengthening Jewish communities around the globe and infusing them with the love for Torah, the Jewish People and the State of Israel. Over the past nineteen years Torah MiTzion's shlichim have inspired and enriched their host communities through a wide range of high impact formal and informal educational programs.

We invite you to learn about and support a project initiated by our alumni Shlomo Blass (Cape Town, 1997-98)

Zionism in Animation

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