YNA Newsletter 1 of 10 In This Issue Parshat Vayigash Remembering HaRav Aryeh Bina zt"l Part IV HaRav Nebenzahl on Parshat Vayigash Staff Dvar Torah By Rav Ami Merzel Netiv HaChinuch - For Parents and Teachers Petuchei Chotam on Parshat Vayigash HAKARAT HATOV Picture Gallery, Visitor Log, A special thank you to Tzvi (5763-64) and Gali Goodman for hosting this past weeks Mazal T ov' s, T ehilim List, alumni chug with Rav Yoel Rackovsky in Riverdale. May Hakadosh Baruch Hu repay you NEW PICTURE GALLERY many times over for your chesed and kavod haTorah. Join Our List UVILECHTICHA BADERECH Links Rabbanit Malke Bina´s Parsha Glimpse (On Vacation) Rav Ginsburg Giving Shiur From The US at 5 AM (12 PM in Israel) ~~~~~ SHABBAT WITH RAV SHAI GERSON & FAMILY 4:10 PM Candlelighting 4:30 PM Mincha in the Beit Midrash followed by Kabbalat Shabbat on the Porch 6:00 AM Vatikin at the Yeshiva 8:30 AM Second Shacharit 4:00 PM Mincha YNA.EDU | Ask Rav Nebenzahl | Suggestion Box YNA Newsletter 2 of 10 Contact Us | Alumni Update Form | Parsha Archives Rav Aryeh Bina zt"l The following is a translation from an Israeli newspaper of an article about HaRav Aryeh Bina z"tl published during the week of his yahrzeit. Part IV A Yeshiva in Goshen With his great vision and courage, Rav Bina was responsible for the establishment of many Yeshivot, among them Yeshivat HaKotel, Yeshivat HaGolan, Maale Adumim, and Maalot. He even established a Yeshiva known as Yeshivat Goshen named after the portion of land where the Jewish people lived during their sojourn in Egypt. It was based on the other side of the Suez Canal when that was in Israeli hands, and many soldiers took advantage of their free time and learned there. HaRav Chaim Sabato relates that as a young student in Yeshivat HaKotel, Rav Bina placed his hand on his shoulder and said: "tomorrow you are going to establish a Yeshiva." Rav Bina went out with his young student into the desert in the oppressive heat of the month of Tamuz. "He ran like a young boy and pointed: "here will be the Beit Midrash, over there will be the dining room with hundreds of students." Rav Binas main focus of his life, however, was Yeshivat Netiv Meir. HaRav Tauber points out that the main challenges facing the Yeshiva, which has undergone difficult times from the day Rav Bina took ill until his passing on 21 MarCheshvan 5755, are to continue the spirit of the Yeshiva as it was in the past. HaRav Tauber who understands the educational system of Netiv Meir, as a student, as a Rav and as Rosh Yeshiva, says that today as well, the basis for all discussions and educational decisions in the Yeshiva are how to raise aspirations and fulfill them. "If Rav Binas mission was to unite the Torah world of Mir Chutz laAretz with the religious high schools of Eretz Yisrael, todays discussions center around creating a world of goals and accomplishments in the midst of todays emphasis on comfort and pleasure. This challenge facing Netiv Meir faces all educational institutions wishing to educate to greatness. As Rav Tauber says: "the next generation also requires leaders." HaRav Nebenzahl on Parshat Vayigash HaRav Nebenzahl asks that his Divrei Torah are not read during Tefillah or the Rabbi's sermon. We are still in need of donors to cover the remaining costs of publishing Yerushalayim beMoadeha - Shabbat Volume III. If you would like to take part in this mitzvah of harbatzat Torah please email [email protected]. Donations of $5,000 will entitle you to a dedication page. LEARNING TORAH - MORE PRECIOUS THAN PEARLS HONOR FOR PHARAOH'S PRIESTS Towards the end of Parshas Vayigash, Yosef purchases land for Pharaoh from the Egyptian people. The Torah then narrates: "Only the land of the priests he did not buy, since the priests had a stipend from Pharaoh, and they lived off their stipend that Pharaoh had given them; therefore they did not sell their land." (Bereishis 47:22) A few psukim later, the Torah repeats - "Only the priests' land alone did not become Pharaoh's." (Ibid. 26) Why does the Torah inform us of this detail and why is it emphasized by repetition? One explanation is that the Torah wishes to stress a kal vachomer: "If Pharaoh accords such honor to his idol-worshipping priests, by providing them with food and not confiscating their land, how much more so must we honor our Kohanim who serve Hashem in the Beis Hamikdash!" (see Bereishis Rabbasi Parshas Vayigash). The way we provide for our Kohanim is by giving YNA Newsletter 3 of 10 them matnos kehuna - the priestly gifts. The Gemara (Bechoros 26b) tells us, "Kohanim, Leviim, and the poor, who help in the house of the shepherds, the threshing floor, and in the slaughterhouses, we (the owners) do not give them trumah or maaser as a reward. If they do so, they have desecrated them. Regarding them the pasuk states, 'You have corrupted the covenant of Levi,' (Malachi 2:8) and another pasuk further states, 'Sanctities of the Children of Israel you shall not desecrate, so that you shall not die.' (Bamidbar 18:32)" Conversely, a Kohen may not offer any form of assistance to the one who has given him trumah; doing so incurs the death penalty. A Yisrael may suggest that his fellow Yisrael give his matnos kehuna to a particular Kohen, and the Yisrael who gives the priestly gifts is permitted to accept compensation from the Yisrael who asked him to do so. The Kohen or Levi himself, however, is forbidden under any circumstances to give any form of compensation to the Yisrael who gave him trumah or maaser. According to the above Gemara, payment may not even be made discreetly, such as by assisting the owner with some of his tasks. Why is this so? Does Judaism not encourage a person to have hakaras hatov - recognition and gratitude - for the good another has done for him? With so many Kohanim to choose from, should the recipient Kohen not be grateful that he was chosen above all the others? He may even have received a large share which otherwise would have been divided among many Kohanim. Is some show of appreciation not called for? Hakaras hatov is such an intrinsic part of Judaism that Chazal tell us that one who lacks hakaras hatov toward his fellow human being will eventually have no gratitude to Hashem. As the Torah tells us, Pharaoh at first "did not know Yosef," (Shmos 1:8) and eventually proclaimed, "I do not know Hashem!" (Shmos 5:2, see Shmos Rabba 1:8) If hakaras hatov is so basic to our belief, why should the Kohen or Levi who wishes to express it be punished? The Torah provides us with the reason why the Kohen and Levi are given gifts. "For it is a wage for you in exchange for your service in the Tent of Meeting." (Bamidbar 18:31) The Kohanim and Leviim are not being given handouts; they are salaried employees of the Beis HaMikdash! If they were to show appreciation to those who gave them matnos kehuna, for example by assisting them, that would be like declaring that working in the Beis HaMikdash was not sufficient cause for compensation! This amounts to disdain for their work, and it is said of one who does so: "You have corrupted the covenant of Levi." (Malachi 2:8) Recently I came to the understanding that perhaps this explains the nature of the sin committed by Korach and his followers. Moshe Rabenu asked them, "Is it not enough for you that the G-d of Israel has segregated you from the Assembly of Israel to draw you near to Himself, to perform the service of the Tabernacle of Hashem, and to stand before the Assembly to minister to them? And He drew you near, and all your brethren, the offspring of Levi, with you - yet you seek priesthood as well!" (Bamidbar 16:9-10) Should Korach not have been praised for yearning for a higher degree of spirituality and wishing to serve as a Kohen? His method of demanding it - by publicly degrading Moshe Rabenu and his prophecy - may leave much to be desired, but what is wrong with the actual wish to serve alongside the Kohanim? Is this just cause for punishment? Based on what we have just discussed, the answer is clear. The work of the Leviim was of great significance, as we can deduce from the Rambam's words: "Just as the Leviim are warned against performing the work of the Kohanim, so too the Kohanim are warned against performing the work of the Leviim." (Rambam Hilchos Klei HaMikdash 3:10) Korach was in fact declaring that being a Levi was not honorable enough for him and he wished to climb one step higher and become a Kohen. Holding the tasks of the Leviim in contempt amounts to "corrupting the covenant of Levi," an offense punishable by death. The matnos kehuna as compensation for services rendered is not just a mere philosophical idea. The Ktzos HaChoshen (243:4) claims that it has legal implications. The Gemara (Yevamos 99b) tells us that trumah may be given to a Kohen who is under age. How is this possible? After all, a child does not halachically take possession of gifts which are given to him, so how does a person who gives trumah to a child Kohen fulfill the mitzvah of giving trumah? The Ktzos HaChoshen explains that although a child may not make an ordinary acquisition, he may be compensated for a job done.