STRENGTH & COURAGE – CHAZAK V’AMATZ

           Of the normal fears that people have, one of the most insidious is the fear of failure. ‘What if I don’t succeed? What if I will be perceived by others and my myself as a failure?” How do we ask ourselves these questions. They come up in major life decisions all the time – for example:” Which profession should I enter? Where should I live? To which school should I send my children?” We usually ask these questions in trepidation wondering if our choices will lead to success or failure. 


 The Torah clearly addresses, for us throughout the ages, the prescription for overcoming fear and doubt when Moshe Rabbinu reassures his disciple Yehoshua saying: (Parshas Vayeilech 31: 7-8) “Chazak v’ematz,” – “Be strong and courageous! Rav Samson Raphael Hirsch explains: “Remain firm in taking the knowledge of your tasks from the Torah and be strong in overcoming all obstacles in carrying them out. Firm in principles and strong in carrying them out are the first demands made on a leader.” This means we need to put our full trust (strength) in Hashem’s Torah acknowledging that everything that transpires emanates from His will. Only then can we successfully overcome all obstacles.

   This Torah section then continues with the words: “…, for you shall come with this people to the Land that Hashem swore to give them, and you shall cause them to inherit it. Hashem – it is He that goes before you; He will be with you; He will not release you nor will He forsake you; do not be afraid and do not be dismayed.”  An obvious question arises when pondering these pasukim. How, after such assured statement of security that Hashem will cause them to inherit the Land, go before them, be with them and not forsake them, is there any room for possible fear or dismay?

 Perhaps the Torah here is teaching us all a deep psychological   insight about human nature that even substantive intellectual knowledge will not automatically eliminate fear and anxiety. Therefore, the Torah directs us to be strong in following its teachings and courageous in fulfilling it, in that case Hashem promises us that He will be with us; He will not let go of us, nor will He forsake us. This foundational paradigm should serve as a pillar of idealism to all of us that in any task that we are assigned in life, we will be able to approach it fearlessly and courageously putting all our trust in Hashem.


            Let us now continue to highlight some unusual words or phrases in-order to bring us to a higher awareness of how these pasukim can also apply to us in our lives.

                   The first question is why the Torah begins with the word       Vayikra – And Moseh summoned Yehoshua, rather than simply saying Moseh said to Yehoshua before the eyes of all Israel¼? To this we will bring a comment from the Ramban on the first word of Parshas Vayikra. ‘After the Mishkan had been completed as the dwelling for the (Shechinah) Divine radiance, Moseh Rabbanu was fearful to enter it due to the its holiness; therefore Hashem called out to Moseh to reassure him that the Mishkan had been made to benefit them through their entering and doing the proper (avoda) service’. So perhaps we can say that the choice of the word Vayikra here too was to reassure Yehoshua that his active role in leading the nation was desired by Hashem. 

              Let us now ask what is the difference in meaning between the words  Chazak V’Amatz – be strong and courageous? Strength is a great virtue but when it stands alone it can be kept at a level of confinement only being used as a protective attribute. Courageous on the other hand is a proactive (meda) attribute but doesn’t necessarily contain within itself the quality of strength; therefore Moshe blessed to Yehoshua to be able to unite both these qualities so as to be successful in his duties as leader of the Jewish nation.


           The Torah’s declares that not only will we be successful if we follow the Torah, but ‘Hashem will cause us to inherit it; it is He that goes before us; He will be with us; He will not release us or forsake us’. We can see this as a reassurance to all of us, that if we listen and adhere correctly to the will of Hashem, he will lead and guide us through our challenges in life.

          There is also another profound thought woven in these words of the Torah. If Hashem leads us and assures us that we will conquer all our enemies, then what are we actually doing? To this the Torah tells us to be strong – in following the Torah and courageous – in overcoming our inner personal fears, anxieties and doubts. That is to say that the strength and courage that the Torah is referring to is in cultivating the proper (emuna) faith and (betokanan) belief in Hashem. This means realizing, that on our own the nations of the world and natural cause and effect would swallow us up, but by being attached to Hashem through the Torah, He will fight our battles, making us successful.


          At the end of the Parsha (in pusack 23): Hashem commands Yehoshua ben Nun through Moshe saying: “Be strong and courageous, for you shall bring the children of Israel to the land that I have sworn to them, and I will be with you.” In the Sifri on Sefer Yehoshua 7:10 it is Yehoshua leadership that will cause them to inherit the land, which seems to mean that only if Yehoshua will go before them will they will succeed. The obvious question is why should the success of conquering and inheriting the land be so dependant on Yehoshua? If he failed to fulfill his duties, Hashem could simply replace him with another and yet the commentators imply that he is irreplaceable.

            This question we will answer with an extremely powerful lesson in ones personal obligation in life. In the mention of Yehoshua’s specific unique role in conquering and inheriting the land in Parsha Va’eschanen chpt. 3 pasukim 25 – 28, Parsha Vayeilech chpt. 31 pasukim 7 – 8  and in Sefer Yehoshua chpt. 7 pasuk 10 the commentators say that Yehoshua’s personal initiative was absolutely necessary and that if he relied on others to do the job, he would not have Divine assistance.                              This declaration of personal obligation is something that we all can gain tremendous value from. Each one of us has been brought into this world to fulfill a unique purpose therefore it behooves us to


 approach that uniqueness as if the success or failure of it is dependant on our efforts, with of course the help of Hashem.

         Perhaps another explanation of why specifically Yehoshua was designated to lead the Nation into the Land and then conquer it can be seen in his name. Yehoshua is a contraction of two words meaning: Hashem will save us. This is let us know that the battle for holiness can only be successful through our recognizing and accepting our dependence on G-d’s help. This means we have to make our best effort but simultaneously realize that all our power and success comes from Hashem, then He will guide and protect us in all our ways.

            May we all imbue our lives with the true strength of faith and courage of belief only in the Torah, thereby serving Hashem with all our hearts, with all our souls and all our possessions.

All articles appearing on this blog are copyrighted by Rabbi Yehoshua Binyamin Falk. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to share/download/copy this information as long as it is accompanied by the copyright. Separately authored/copyrighted materia

AN ELUL – THISREI TIME TRAVELERS MANUAL

     

           We Jews are ancient, expert travelers in time.  We are given special times, from our holy Torah and wise Sages, in which we can help mend, renovate and elevate the entire creation. The whole month of Elul along with the first twenty two days of the month of Tishrei are a case in point. To the rest  of the nations these days are merely times on a calendar that hangs  on a wall, destined  to be marked off and discarded. For us, these sanctified days are our “time machine” that transports us to new levels of holiness (kiddusha). If we program this “time-craft” of opportunity carefully according to the laws (halachas) and  customs (minhagim), fill it with the fuel of enthusiasm and adjust our trajectory by keeping our proper spiritual focus, we can strive to reach into the “stratosphere” of kiddusha undeterred by the pull of  the atmosphere around us.

THE COUNT DOWN  – T minus 30 Days:[1]   

ALL CHODESH ELUL : Take on board sefarim on Musar and Chassidus to inspire thoughts of teshuvah. Sefardim begin saying Slichos and blowing the shofar, Ashkenazim blowing the shofar and many are reciting additional Tehilim. We now have a unique opportunity to prepare for our new journey:  (The space shuttle is launched in two stages.  At liftoff, it uses boosters and main engines.)

 

T minus (minimally) 4 days: (Main engines ignite in staggered intervals.)  Ashkenazim begin to say Slichos the Motzei Shabbos before Rosh Hashanah which can fall no less than four days before Rosh Hashanah in order to allow for final countdown preparations. A small reminder of the power of these days:  {These engines provide 1.2 million pounds of thrust and the boosters provide 6,600,000 pounds of thrust.} 

 

T minus I day:   (Main engines commanded to lift off position.)

EREV ROSH HASHANAH.  It seems that there could not possibly be sufficient time to achieve what needs to be accomplished before we set off.  However, through various minhagim and halacot such as:  hataras nedarim, fasting until chatzos, toveling in the mikvah and other Yom Tov preparations culminating in halacot narot, we are then able to reach the necessary level of energy and preparedness for our holy mission. Erev Rosh Hashanah is the last moment before take-off :{In order to attain orbit,  the space craft has to accelerate  from zero to eighteen thousand miles per hour and travel at an altitude higher than most of the Earth’s atmosphere.}

 

T minus 0 seconds: Rosh Hashanah seen as the lift off for the New Year :       ( Onboard computers ignite solid rocket boosters; three main engines at 100 per cent thrust level. Ground launch sequence terminated, lift off.) 

ROSH HASHANA:  All of the external preparations – the Yom Tov clothing, the festive meals and the internal preparations of introspection, learning halachas, making resolutions- are done, and here we are.  We lift up our machzorim and feel the weight of the awesome and spectacular task that lies ahead of us.

Rosh Hashanah, the – rosh – head, is truly the beginning of the new year, setting the trajectory which in turn sets the course for the whole year.  Using delicate instruments consisting of  halachot and minhagim, it fine tunes the three essential dimensions of  person-nefesh, place-makom and time-z’man.

The first tikun in the dimension of nefesh is when upon concluding our tefillos on Rosh Hashanah eve we greet and bless our friends and families with the wish that they be inscribed for a good year. 

One of the first unique tikunim achieved for the dimension of place on Rosh Hashanah is when, at our table, which halachically is designated our– makom seuda – the place where we partake of our festive meal – we dip our challah and apple into – d’vash – honey. Perhaps this symbolizes that our produce – a moshal for the ‘fruits of our efforts’ should be sweetly accepted by the Creator, Who is referred to as HaMokom.

The tikun achieved for the dimension of time—z’man is through the sounds of the shofar.  The sounds of the shofar are halachically regulated by the length and number of the notes which help to rectify the dimension of time. These holy customs and laws are infinitely more powerful than the following moshal: {At lift off the shuttle with its boosters and fuel weighs 4.5 million pounds and takes eight seconds to accelerate to a speed of one hundred miles per hour.  After one minute,  the craft is traveling at 1,000 miles per hour and has used more than one and one half million –pounds of fuel.}

 

T plus 2 days: Solid rocket boosters separate.

ASERES YIMAI TESHUVA: Rosh Hashanah with its stirring tefillos,  awe inspiring melodies and soul searching shofar blasts proclaims Hashem’s Kingship. Now it is the fast day – Tzom Gedalia, the third day of the ten days of repentance. Even during the fast we are still continuing to ascend:  {When it reaches an altitude of twenty eight miles, and is traveling at 3,000 miles per hour, it jettisons its boosters.} 

————————————————————————————————————

T plus 9 days:  (The three main engines continue to fire.)

EREV YOM KIPPUR. Sometimes we feel distant from the process, as if the judgment is going to happen to someone else, but as Erev Yom Kippur arrives we all become very involved, feeling the day of awe and hope is soon to be with us. This dichotomy within us also exists in the creation:  {The engines burn liquid hydrogen – which at  minus 423 degrees Fahrenheit is the second coldest liquid on earth – with liquid oxygen. When they unite and burn the mixture can reach a temperature of 6,000 degrees Fahrenheit – higher then the boiling point of iron.}

 

T plus 10 days:  Space Craft  attains preliminary orbit.

 YOM KIPPUR.  We are now shaping the path and direction of the coming Year. We are accelerating very quickly because we must break out of the physical atmosphere and move into a very unique spiritual zone.

To do this we need let go of those habits and thoughts that have weighed us down and taken their toll upon us in the past year. This is a critical moment, allowing for our final stage of being freed from the past:  {After that period of time, the space craft, in an ovoid (oblong) orbit, reaches a speed of five miles per second.  The engines shut down, the external fuel tank is jettisoned and the shuttle will have consumed more than 3.5 million pounds of fuel}.

       T minus 14 days:  (Orbital maneuvering system engines are fired.) 

 SUKKOS.  We now are dwelling in our Sukkas.  For an entire week we live inside this unique mitzvah where we rebalance ourselves and establish our course for the year, free of the gravitational pull of our daily lives.  We wave the lulav, esrog and two other species in all six directions suggesting an empowerment over all of the spatial orientations and also symbolizing the Heavenly gift of freedom from attachment to the – teva – nature through our deepening connection with the Creator. Our avoda on Succos is essential for our spiritual growth in the upcoming year.   :  {If nothing more was done, the space craft would begin to descend and re-enter the atmosphere.  However, about a half hour after the main engines have shut down, usually as the shuttle reaches the highest point in the ovoid orbit, the two orbital maneuvering system engines, are fired for about three minutes. This causes the spacecraft to travel in a circular orbit that stabilizes it at a safe altitude above the atmosphere.}

    From this elevated position which spiritually parallels Shimini Atzeres/ Simchas Torah we are truly free of  the gravitational pull of this world.  We enter a euphoric / blissful state of “free fall” sustained and supported by rapturous song and ecstatic dance while embracing the holy Sefer Torahs.         

             These first twenty-two days have been given to us as a blessing to assure our proper and safe “take off” directing us properly to our new set of goals for the New Year.   May we all travel together, returning in joy and peace to our land, with the advent of the Mashiach soon in our days.

 

 



[1]  The data for the space shuttle reported here is provided by the National Space Agency. It is in no way meant to minimize our days of holiness or limit them to the physical world. These figures are only here to help alert us to the awesome power of these days and the advoda in them.

All articles appearing on this blog are copyrighted by Rabbi Yehoshua Binyamin Falk. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to share/download/copy this information as long as it is accompanied by the copyright. Separately authored/copyrighted materia

ELUL – AN IDEAL TIME TO ENHANCE OUR INVESTMENTS

“When a man departs from this world, neither silver nor gold, nor precious stones nor pearls escort him, but only Torah study and good deeds…” . “…Mine is the silver and Mine is the gold, says Hashem, Master of Legions.”  Avos 6:9

                         

                 Like someone who counts and recounts their most valuable financial holdings, the Almighty counted and then recounted us again in the Torah, as Rashi reveals to us: that because of G-d’s love for our nation, He counted us frequently. The Ramban says: it was also a great honor for each person to give their name as an individual to Moshe and Aharon. The Sforno adds: that everyone’s name was Divinely inspired to indicate each person’s personal virtues. Let us attempt to derive from the census taken three times in the midbar of the shevatim, together with the names of their princes and the position of each shevet in relationship to each other, a paradigm of our Nation as the Creator’s most valued “asset”.

          Taking the liberty to use investment parlance in parallel to our Nation will make more visceral our comprehending the uniqueness of our role in this life. It is generally recognized that in order to maximize one’s investment returns, a preferred strategy is to diversify one’s assets. This is achieved by choosing a wide variety of stocks and bonds from various  economic and geographical  sectors. Many financial institutions have created  “fund families” that do this for the investor by buying  stocks, bonds and other assets that correspond to the various  goals  of  the investor to increase his holdings, maximize future potential and minimize risk. An individual portfolio is the sum total of his or her financial investments.

      Just as proper financial investing needs structure and diversity, so we clearly find with the Torah’s delineation of each the various Shevatim. Each Shevit can be seen as corresponding to  a specific “fund sector” with all of the Shevatim together making up the entire gamut of a potentially perfect supernal “investment portfolio” for the Creator. The princes of each Shevit/fund therefore can be seen as corresponding to the “fund managers”, while the members of each Shevit corresponding to the individual “shares of stock” allocated to each of the funds which, B’H, split many times over the ensuing centuries. The marching positions of each Sheivet could be seen as parallel to the various “economic sectors” in which each fund is invested and the resting position corresponding to the “geographical  market” in which the fund is located.  

            And now let us ask how is the  value of these “funds” measured? – It is through the “production” of  mitzvoth and ma’asim tovim that the value of  the  “stock”  increases and the overall Heavenly “portfolio” grows.   

   Unfortunately at various junctures in the historical road map for “investment strategy” parts of our nation’s performance was not always sterling causing our “assets” being downgraded. This has in turn caused a weakening in some of our investment “sectors” due to our inability to fulfill certain mitzvoth while in galus.  However, fortunately the “C.E.O” of the entire creation has never “sold us short” and even as we function with a less than ideal portfolio – ie. without our Beis Hamikdash with its many precious mitzvoth – causing our “financial statements” to be less than ideal, we have remained the Creator’s chosen possession and  with His help there is always the opportunity for us to make good our loses and thereby regain our previous spiritual  “market position and value”.  

           Armed with these “investment” strategies, we can use our distinctive capabilities to maximize our spiritual assets and thus enhance our “global position” with the goal of restoring the crown of Torah soon to its proper position.

               True, as the pesukim quoted above state: the silver nor gold and other treasures of this world do not accompany us to the next, but the Creator’s most precious treasure – our mitzvoth performed with ahavas Hashem, together with His  gold which we acquire through adhering to the mitzvoth of restraint demonstrating our yerias Hashem do in fact accompany us.      

   May we all merit to “invest” all our energy and capabilities profitably at each stage of our journey through life..  

All articles appearing on this blog are copyrighted by Rabbi Yehoshua Binyamin Falk. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to share/download/copy this information as long as it is accompanied by the copyright. Separately authored/copyrighted materia

ADDING SUPERNAL FEATURES ESPECIALLY IN ELUL

               Modern technology has brought many advantages with it, especially when it comes to making our material life more convenient and efficient. Telecommunications is certainly no exception, and since everything that exists in the physical world has a spiritual counterpart, it is worthwhile trying to understand what we can learn from the now commonplace telephone and its wireless counterpart – the cell phone from a fresh Torah perspective.        

          Speed dialing or automatic redialing can help us to better appreciate the value of each second as Rabbi Tarfon’s said: “The day is short and …the task is abundant …” Pirkei Avos: 2:20.

           Call forwarding can remind us of that which the Baal Shem Tov said that “a person is where their thoughts are”.

            Storing and erasing information, at the push of a button, can help us to understand that we all have the power to retain valuable thoughts and delete undesirable ones.

             The flash button, which enables us to put a call on hold until we are ready to speak further, can serve as a reminder of the wise words of Pirkei Avos 3:17, that “… a protective fence for wisdom is silence.”

             Caller I.D, which screens our calls, can be seen to teach us that we all have the ability to “monitor” our thoughts.

             Being able to make calls at any time can make us more aware that how much more so are our tefillos are receivable at anytime.   

             Wireless phones can help us to better understand that our tefillos certainly do not need any physical connection to reach their destination.

            Limited calling plans that become exorbitantly costly if one exceeds their quota  reminds us the value of “weighing and measuring” our words..

            Dialing 911 for emergency services can be seen to correspond to the “Heavenly hot line” available whenever we “call out” from the depths of our hearts.

             Three-way calling can help us to realize that all of our conversations are “three way” as it is written: “… He Who implants the ear, shall He not hear …”  (Tehillim 94)

                And last but not least we can certainly come realize that since there exists unlimited unrestricted calling plans between friends and family how much more is our “calling plan” between us and our Father in Heaven limitless and unrestricted.

          All year long these and other “supernal features” are available but Codesh Elul is a time that is especially fitting to upgrade our lines of communication.

 

 

 

 

All articles appearing on this blog are copyrighted by Rabbi Yehoshua Binyamin Falk. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to share/download/copy this information as long as it is accompanied by the copyright. Separately authored/copyrighted materia