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Thursday, May 31, 2012

You Know You're A Yerushalmi When...

Erev Shabbath Qodesh Parashath Naso 5772


See if you can relate to any of the following….

12. You know you're a Yerushalmi if you've ever taken bus nos. 5, 9, 12, 16, 17, or 33.

11. You know you're a Yerushalmi if you regularly ride the Jerusalem Light Rail,and rave about how great it is.

10. You know you're a Yerushalmi if you emphatically refuse to ride the Jerusalem Light Rail, and rant about how awful it is.

9. You know you're a Yerushalmi when you know the difference between Qiriyath Yovel, Qiriyath Menahem, and Giv'ath Masso'a.  (They're not all just Qiriyath Yovel.)

8. You know you're a Yerushalmi when you can find your way around Nahla'oth, without getting lost!

7. You know you're a Yerushalmi if you know that the Nahalath Shiv'a neighborhood is called Nahalath Shiv'a.

6. You know you're a Yerushalmi if you don't live in Har-Nof, Rehaviah, Nahla'oth, Ma'aloth Dafenah, Qatamon, German Colony, or Baq'a(Of course, there are Yerushalmis in these neighborhoods, but…well, you know.)

5. You know you're a Yerushalmi if you've ever eaten at Leiberbaum's, Marziano's, Allo Teiman, the old Mervad HaQ'samim, Sushya on Betzalel Street, Tzidqiyahu's in Giv'ath Sha'ul, Eli's in Beis Yisro'el, anywhere in the Bukharim Quarter, or in Mahaneh Yehudah (sitting down, more than five times, and Aroma Café does NOT count!).

4. You know you're a Yerushalmi if you've ever gone to Shalom Falafel on Betzalel Street, ONLY to buy hilbeh or raw falafel dough.

3. You know you're a Yerushalmi if you hang out on Nissim Bechar-Beit Ya'akov Street, Ben-Sira Street, or in Talpiot, NOT Ben-Yehudah Street, Cats Square, or Emek Refa'im Street.

2. You know you're a Yerushalmi if your friends hold their weddings in Talpiot or Giv'ath Sha'ul, and NOT at the Great Synagogue.

...and the number one reason that you know you're a Yerushalmi is when...

1. ...when someone mentions an Anglo rabbi, expecting you to know who he is, and you have no idea who he's talking about.

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Haveil Havalim #361: The Post-Shavu'oth 5772 Edition

8 of the Third Month 5772

Founded by Soccer Dad, Haveil Havalim is a carnival of Jewish blogs -- a weekly collection of Jewish & Israeli blog highlights, tidbits and points of interest collected from blogs all around the world. It's hosted by different bloggers each week and jointly coordinated through our Facebook GroupThe term 'Haveil Havalim,' which means"Vanity of Vanities," is from Qoheleth, (Ecclesiastes) which was written by King Solomon. King Solomon built the Holy Temple in Jerusalem and later on got all bogged down in materialism and other 'excesses' and realized that it was nothing but 'hevel,' or in English, 'vanity.'
Let's get right to this week's edition!

Shavu'oth

Shira Salamone at On The Fringe seems to think that the second day of Yom Tov in the diaspora has a different halakhic status that the first day.  Does it?  See what she has to say in Splitting Hairs, So To Speak: Shampooing on Yom Tov.  Personally, I believe that the easiest solution regarding this issue would be to move to Israel.

At Esser Agaroth, I ask "What Did Ruth 'Cling' To?"

The Shiloh Muse asks "Was Ruth A Contemporary Of Chana?"


Yom Yerushalayim

The Real Jerusalem Streets presents Jerusalem Day - 45 Years United.

The Shiloh Muse explains how The Door Was Slammed In The Moshiach's Face.

Anthony Reich at The Israel Situation tells us about Keeping Jerusalem Unified.


Israel
News
Sad news comes to us from Tomer Devorah, Pure Souls Have Ascended.  But, she also brings us some upbeat, Torah news in Mazel Tov to the OU and "TT."  For anyone who doesn't know, "TT" stands for "Torah Tidbits."

Tel-Chai Nation reports that the PLO has arrested more reporters and bloggers.

Rafi at Life In Israel reports on The Haredi "Draft Haredim" Plan.

Julie at Walkable Jerusalem reports on the anniversary of the Versailles wedding hall disaster in A Memorial To Bad Urbanism on Derech Beit Lechem.

Life In Israel
A Soldier's Mother gives Advice To New Army Mothers.

In 60 Days to Redemption And Genivat Daat..., An Aspiring Mekubal clarifies the positions of some rabbis, and defends them against the actions of [yet another] possible nut.

Ariel at The Torah Revolution celebrates Rosh Hodesh with Orwellian Language, Another Hostile Step, and Holy Torah Words, May The Rabbi Be Blessed!

Bat Aliyah brings us G-d Work., learning to feel closer to HaShem.

Trip'n Up Mommy tells us about her Home.

At Esser Agaroth, I ask "Does Rabbi Kahane Need Defending?"


Outside Of Israel
News
Tomer Devorah, thinks They'll blame it on the Jew(s), "it" being what Facebook could do to the U. S. economy.

An Aspiring Mekubal gives his Thoughts On Asifa.

Slice Of Life
Susan Esther Barnes, posting at TCJewFolk.com, shares her thoughts on a song in Eternity Utters.

Jennifer at Adventures In Mama-Land presents an Interview With A Jewish Homeschooler.


Wrap-Up
Well, that's a wrap!

Next week will be hosted by Northern Lights & Reflections.  You may submit your posts to her directly at kosherfrugal@gmail.com.  I recommend that you give our on-line submission form a shot first, so that we can get in the habit of using it.

Would you like to host?  Would you like to connect with fellow bloggers and fans?  Join our Haveil Havalim Facebook Group!




Friday, May 25, 2012

Does Rabbi Kahane Need Defending?

Erev Shabbath Qodesh Parashath Bamidbar 5772


A  friend from yeshiva asked me to help defend Rabbi Me'ir Kahane  hy"d.

He was referring to the comments made on some post on Gil Student's blog (now, more than one post)

What's the point?  I know it's sad, but I have long given up on the same ol', same ol' Jews, be they modern orthodox, Litvaks, or Satmar, buried to their necks in galuth (exile), and in the galuth mentality.

Yet, truth be told, though, the main reason I write Esser Agaroth is because of the crazy idea that I can help one more Jew escape galuth, and that (OK, I'll say it) un-Jewish mentality.

So, I guess I really haven't given up; I'm just pessimistic and frustrated, and want to give up.  But, I can't.
לֹא תַעֲמֹד עַל-דַּם רֵעֶךָ - שמות יט,טז
Do not stand idly by the blood of your neighbor - Ex. 19:16

But, why should I bother defending Rabbi Kahane hy"d?  These clowns* aren't going to listen?  They have already made up their minds, most them not having read a single one of his books.  And, those who have undoubtedly, refused to accept anything he says, even though backed with halakhic sources.  If it doesn't fit into their hashqafas, then it couldn't possibly be correct, right?  (See below, for the use of the word "clowns.")

The next question is does Rabbi Kahane NEED defending?

Jews will either listen, or they won't.  They will either get on the plane, or they won't.  Funny thing is why Jews, religious Jews, feel a need to debate a rabbi who has been dead for 20 plus years.  My theory is that they need to justify their Western ways, and/or their belief in the acceptability of making a permanent residence in a "strange land," a land not their own.  they need to justify their "feelings," in perfect Western progressive fashion.  They need to discredit Rabbi Kahane, to prevent the onset of the greatest cognitive dissonance they have ever to experience.

Rabbi Kahane quoted halakhah, believed that Jews should follow halakhah, and that halakhah takes precedence over contra-Torah laws of the State of Israel.  No one has yet been able to refute his positions by applying halakhic sources, particularly the issues of goyim residing in Israel and the distinguishing between Israeli Law and halakhah.  They are not identical, as the mamlakhti (undying state loyalists) would have you believe.

Everyone who has tried, has done nothing but apply their "feelings" to a situation, sometimes calling it "facing reality," and has picked and chosen various halakhic sources out of context, not in the least bit shayach, and have quoted random pesuqim to support their "feelings."

The Rabbinical Council of America [RCA] is a good example, when it has criticized rulings of Rabbanim such as Rabbi Shmu'el Eliyahu shlit"a, and yet has insisted that Israeli rabbis stay out of its business.  Go figure...

Clearly, they have forgotten where the capital of Torah is, treating physical boundaries made up by goyim as relevant.

Rabbi Me'ir Kahane's primary "crime," as it were, was to dare to quote verses from the Tana"kh, as well as from halakhic sources, while speaking in the Knesseth.

He was demonized a racist because of it, and because of his second crime: He differentiated between the Torah-true, Jewish mentality and the Western/assimilationist un-Jewish mentality.  He taught Jews that one was correct, and the other was not. 

The recent ruling of Rabbi Shmu'el (ben Mordechai) Eliyahu , the Chief Rabbi of Tzfat, that one may not rent apartments to Arabs, even though they are "Israeli citizens," incurred the same demonization.  The Rabbinical Association of America, which can't stand it when Israeli rabbis but into its affairs, did not hesitate to condemn his rulings as well. Its representatives used Western "logic," rather than halakhic sources, which basically boiled down to "What will the goyim say?"

The wives of prominent rabbis in Israel incurred the same when they came out against Jews dating Arabs.  Yet, even the so-called "Reform" movement discouraged it.

Rabbi Kahane also encouraged us to take a serious look at ourselves. 

Were we acting like good little Jewish boys and girls, hoping that the goyim would see that we're just like them, and thus gain their acceptance?

Or, were we concerned with how The Holy One, Blessed Be He, sees us?

Were we comparing ourselves with non-Jews in our countries of birth?

Or, were we comparing ourselves with ourselves with our scholar-warrior forefathers, and striving to live up to their examples?

Were we taking pride in what good American (or British or French) citizens we were?

Or, did we take pride in being Jewish, and that we now had sovereignty over our true homeland, and needed to become part of the only solution by making aliyah?

Rabbi Kahane had the courage to teach us that when there is a setirah (conflict) between the Torah and Israeli, and takes precedence over Israeli law.  He taught us so, even in the face of the sniveling lap dogs of the Israeli Government.  These puppets with kippoth could not sufficiently counter him with any halakhic argument, so instead they called him names, and buried their heads in their mamlakhti (undying State loyalist) hashqafah.

He was known for quoting the Ramba"m, in particular the following from the Laws of Kings and Wars (I wonder how many Jews even know that there is such a thing.), to support his assertion:

ג,י  [ט] המבטל גזירת המלך בשביל שנתעסק במצוות, אפילו במצוה קלה--הרי זה פטור:  דברי הרב ודברי העבד, דברי הרב קודמין.  ואין צריך לומר אם גזר המלך לבטל מצוה, שאין שומעין לו.

3:10 [9] One who cancels the decree of the King for the sake of occupying himself with misswoth, even a misswah considered to be light – is exempt [from punishment].  The words of a rabbi and the words of a slave, the words of a rabbi take precedence.  And one does not [even] need to say [that] if the king decreed the cancellation of a misswah, that one does not heed him.

He could have cited this halakhah until he was blue in the face.  It didn't matter.  Those silly Jews who insisted that the K'nesseth was even a stand-in for a king, could not get their head around this extremely clear, Jewish source.  Rather they preferred to cling to their Hellenist democracy, not as a temporary system of administering a Jewish state, but as a "Look!  We're just like the goyim!" system of government.  The system of government pointed to by the Torah, was just foreign to them as the fact that Jews killing Jews, led us to the first Hanukkah.

At around the same time that Rabbi Kahane was attempting to convince Jews to think and act like Jews, Rabbenu Tzvi Yehudah Kook ztz"l, Rosh Yeshiva of Merkaz HaRav Kook, taught that one "…should do everything in order to prevent and delay the evacuation of Jewish strongholds" (Rb. Z. Melamed, Bet El; Rb. Elitzur Sege"l, Ofra)  He himself put his money where his mouth was, and planted himself in the Jewish town of Shavei Shomron to prevent its demolition. He, too, showed that following the Torah takes precedence over State laws which ran contrary to the Torah.  I doubt that anyone in the Religious Zionist communities would dare call Rabbenu Tzvi Yehuda an "extremist," like they would Rabbi Kahane.

Rabbi Tzvi Yehuda Kook ztz"l and Rabbi Me'ir Kahane ztz"l hy"d at the Kotel (Western Wall)
 *Rabbi Kahane said that he would never forget Rabbi Ya'akov Filber's shocked face, when Rav Tzvi Yehudah asked him to take their picture together at the Kotel.
Years later, Rabbi Dov Lior and Rabbi Zalman Melamed were barricaded within the beth k'nesseth (synagogue) of K'far Darom, making the last stand in the Jewish control areas of Azza.  The actions of these rabbis spoke louder than words, clearly demonstrating their belief that Torah and Israeli law were not one and the same, and that Torah took precedence over the other.

The previous Bostoner Rebbe ztz"l also cited halakhah, indicating that it was forbidden to give up Azza to the Arabs, contrary to the actions of the Israeli government, led by Ariel Sharon.

Rabbi Avraham Shapira ztz"l, the next Rosh Yeshiva of Merkaz HaRav Kook, after Rabbeinu Tzvi Yehuda, and former Chief Rabbi of Israel, told IDF soldiers that when confronted with choice of throwing Jews out of their homes (in Gaza, 2005), or sitting in jail, one should not only sit in jail, but to take pride in it.  In other words, he sent the message that Torah Law takes precedence over any State decrees which violated the Torah, just like Rabbi Kahane.

Rabbi Kahane also suggested that one of the requirements for being called "rabbi" is having sat in jail on behalf Israel, which he did.  So has Rabbi Yisra'el Ariel shlit"a, head of the Temple Institute, along with several others, many of whom I doubt you have ever heard of, there goals not including fame and notoriety.  Many years later, Rabbi Kahane's son Rabbi Binyamin Kahane hy"d did as well.  I wonder how many of those criticizing Rabbi Kahane have fulfilled this requirement.

So, does Rabbi Me'ir Kahane need defending?  I think not.  Although, it appears that some very unlikely rabbis have already attempted to do so.

*********

*clowns - From Eicha Rabba, among other sources.

"The "clowns of the generation," which our Sages describe are people with a purpose.  In order to nullify the truth, which they cannot accept, they grasp onto certain points and make a joke out of them.  But as time passes, all the ideology and seriousness that once cloaked them becomes undone, since their goal was to undermine the truth in order to continue in their ways of sin and falsehood.

-Rabbi Binyamin Ze'ev Kahane hy"d
on Parashath Toledoth

What Did Ruth Cling To?

Erev Shabbath Qodesh Parashath Bamidbar 5772

The recounting of Creation in the Book of Genesis follows a pattern.  The description of each day concludes in the same way:
בראשית א,ה וַיְהִי-עֶרֶב וַיְהִי-בֹקֶר, יוֹם אֶחָד
Genesis 1:5 ...And there was evening and there was morning, one day.
בראשית א,ח וַיְהִי-עֶרֶב וַיְהִי-בֹקֶר, יוֹם שֵׁנִי
Genesis 1:8 ...And there was evening and there was morning, a second day.
etc.

But, on the sixth day, the pattern changes slightly:
בראשית א,לא וַיְהִי-עֶרֶב וַיְהִי-בֹקֶר, יוֹם הַשִּׁשִּׁי
Genesis 1:31 ...And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.
All of a sudden, a letter "heh" appears in the pattern, where it had been absent until now.  RaSh"I explains this "heh" to mean one of two things, or perhaps both.  The gematria (numerological value) of the letter "heh" is 5.  He suggests this to represent the five books of the Torah.  The alternative is that "the sixth" day is the sixth day of the month of Sivan, in other words, on Shavu'oth, when we received the Torah at Mt. Sinai.

The world was created, at least in part, in order to give Am Yisra'el the merit of receiving the Torah.  And, we see this hinted to, already within the recounting of it Creation in the Book of Genesis.

The sudden appearance of the "heh" here cries out for an explanation.  My guess is that RaSh"I received a tradition regarding this "heh" and passed that tradition onto us.

In the Scroll of Ruth, read publicly or privately by most Jews on Shavu'oth, a non-Israelite woman leaves her people, her family, and her religion, in order to enter Klal Yisra'el.

Ruth's mother-in-law Na'omi attempts to convince her to return to her family after her husband dies.  Her sister-in-law Orpah is convinced.  Ruth is not.
רות א,יד  וַתִּשֶּׂנָה קוֹלָן, וַתִּבְכֶּינָה עוֹד; וַתִּשַּׁק עָרְפָּה לַחֲמוֹתָהּ, וְרוּת דָּבְקָה בָּהּ
Ruth 1: 14 And they lifted up their voice, and wept again; and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law; but Ruth clung to her. 
The traditional p'shat, or surface meaning of this verse is that Ruth either grabbed Na'omi's garment, or clung to her figuratively.  As we say in English, she "stuck by her."  Applying RaSh"I's take on the letter "heh" here, and suggest that here, too, it represents the Torah.  In addition to being represented by the number 5, Torah is grammatically feminine, albeit so is Na'omi.

And, although, I may be pushing it, I'll just suggest that it is a nice "d'rash," and that two verses later, Ruth, herself states her intentions:

רות א,טז-יז וַתֹּאמֶר רוּת אַל-תִּפְגְּעִי-בִי, לְעָזְבֵךְ לָשׁוּב מֵאַחֲרָיִךְ:  כִּי אֶל-אֲשֶׁר תֵּלְכִי אֵלֵךְ, וּבַאֲשֶׁר תָּלִינִי אָלִין--עַמֵּךְ עַמִּי, וֵאלֹהַיִךְ אֱלֹהָי.בַּאֲשֶׁר תָּמוּתִי אָמוּת, וְשָׁם אֶקָּבֵר; כֹּה יַעֲשֶׂה יְהוָה לִי, וְכֹה יוֹסִיף--כִּי הַמָּוֶת, יַפְרִיד בֵּינִי וּבֵינֵךְ
Ruth 1: 16-17 And Ruth said: 'Entreat me not to leave you, and to return from following after you; for where you go, I will go; and where you sleep, I will sleep; thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God; where you die, will I die, and there will I be buried; the LORD do so to me, and more also, that [only] death separate us.'
 In other words, she intends to cling the ways of her mother-in-law's people, the way of the Torah.

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Haveil Havalim #360 Is Up!

3 of the Third Month 5772

Haveil Havalim Blog Carnival Edition #360 is up at Bat Aliyah!

It's Bat Aliyah's Maiden Voyage Edition, so go check it out!

Find your fellow Jewish Bloggers on the Haveil Havalim Facebook Group!

To submit a post, visit the Haveil Havalim on-line submission site!

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

A Letter To A Fellow Immigrant To Israel

24 of the Second Month 5772

Below is a cleaned up version of a message I sent to a relative strange who posted a message on Facebook, which was then circulated.  He seemed down about life in Israel, particularly as a single man, and was wondering if making aliyah was the best decision.

Even though he posted it semi-publicly, and it's made the rounds, I still don't feel comfortable publishing his name or his original post.

Let my Esser Agaroth be applicable as a general response to such quandaries.

Hey, "Re'uven,"
(not his real name)

Your post on Facebook was being passed around.  Please take this act as people caring about a fellow Jew, and not something negative.  Israel is the only true homeland of the Jewish People.  I'm not sure how long you've been here, but I guess the honeymoon's over.   

I, too, came here alone (and without a trust fund either).  You're right about the need to find a community. You can do anything with a community supporting you.  Personally, I never lived in the "ghetto." (ie. an exclusively English speaking community).  That's not for everyone, of course.  But, it worked for me, even though it was hard.   It's hard to break into native Israeli circles of friends, even in yeshiva or in the army, especially when many of them have known each other from Kindergarten through army service.  

You were wondering why you did not find Anglos sticking together.  I can't really say why, because I always thought they did, in those predominantly English-speaking communities I mentioned.  Those aren't for me, but I now recommend them, if that's how olim (immigrants) feel best about finding that sense of community.

I've been here almost 15 years, and it's actually the "Anglos" who have taken advantage of me, rather than the [native] "Israelis," I, unfortunately, often hear Anglos complain about.  I really try to stay away from anything that suggests "us and them."  I may not be considered "Israeli," but I am a Jew living in Eretz Yisra'el, just like "Israelis," and that's how I identify.

The first few years were hard.  I then found years 3, 5, 7, and10 also to be hard.  Then, I realized that my difficulties ceased to be difficulties related to living in Israel, but just plain ol' difficulties.  The country where I was living didn't matter.  

Our Sages z"l state that three gifts were given to Israel, but only through suffering: Torah, Eretz Yisrael, and the World to Come (Talmud Bavli, Brekhoth 5a).  As far as Eretz Yisrael is concerned, I have seen, and experienced, the "suffering" as adapting to a new culture, a new language (even though it's our language), a new form of bureaucracy, a new standard of living and economic situation.  I find that most people who don't "make it," are the ones who can't deal with different standards of living.  I believe this is evidence of just how materialistic Anglos can be.

Psychological research has shown that immigration to a new country is number three, after death and divorce (לא עלינו) on the list of the most stressful events incurred in life.  At least, that was the case 15 years ago, when I first hear the study.  Obviously, only you can decide what is right for you.  I was told by the shali'ah in Los Angeles, 16 years ago, that 50% of North Americans return "home" within five years of making aliyah. It's a shame that North America is still referred to as "home," both by the shali'ah , and by many olim.  But, that's not the point right now.  Fifty percent is a lot.  I hope it's gone down since then. 

You don't know me, but I felt compelled to write, and figured that the worst thing that could happen would be that you'd blow up at me, telling me to mind my own business, or just delete this.  Please note, I'm not giving you advice.  I'm just sharing my experience with you.

I'd say "hang in there," but maybe that would also be considered advice.  Nonetheless, I hung in here, and I'm still here, and happier than I would have been in the U. S.  I'm not sure what was promised to you by Nefesh b'Nefesh, or by anyone else.  But if it turned out to be..."incorrect," then that should definitely be corrected.

Let me know if I can help with anything.  I can't promise anything, like finding you a wife (the shidduch/shadkanit scene is a horrific mess, both in Israel AND in the U. S.  But I could try or point you in the right direction.

Take care,
Ya'aqov

Haveil Havailm #359 Is Up!

24 of the Second Month 5772

Haveil Havalim is up this week at To Kiss A Mezuzah.

If you would like to be considered for inclusion in future editions, please use our new, "bug-free" on-line, submission form!

Saturday, May 12, 2012

Shalom Bayit Myth #1: Shalom Bayit Means To Give Your Wife Whatever She Wants


Shalom Bayit = Giving your wife whatever she wants.

Whether it's a $4,000 sheitl, a trip to Miami, or where to send the kids to school, giving into your wife is NOT shalom bayit.

It fact, this shalom bayit myth is one of the fundamental reasons this blog was founded.

The female dominated shadkanut industry, the so called "rebbetzins" in women's "sems," the emotionally castrated men who allow themselves to be walked all over like doormats, and their rabbeim are to blame for this ab

The word rebbetzin was not even used as extensively or how it is used now, as recently as 15 years ago. It is another piece of evidence of the growing infiltration of feminism into the Litvish world.  The liberal movements of Judaism make no bones about how they hold regarding the role of women in their communities.

The Litvish world, on the other hand, flatly denies the existence of their defacto, female "rabbis" and "poskot" halacha, even though they are glaring us in the face!

They debate halakhot, which are not shayach to women at all, with their male shidduch clients, successfully manipulating them, because their husbands are in complete denial of the seriousness of what their wives are doing, their denial stemming from this very myth regarding shalom bayit.

Their rabbeim tell them to "pull their noses out of their wives business, and stick it into a sefer where it belongs."

Furthermore, this approach is disrespectful to women.  

Men and men should discuss things PRIVATELY, not making a scene in front of guests, yet another strategy of manipulation women sometimes employ.  Of course, something else the "shadkaniot" don't tell you.  It's the MAN's responsibility to educate his wife. The man is the man of the house, not the other way around.  The wife follows HIS customs.  How can she know his customs, unless he educates her?

Maybe some women like being ignored, as long as they get everything they want.  But, we at the Yiddishe believe that women have more substance than that, at least the women who are worth marrying.

Those men with their noses in a sefer, as a means of escape, are living in a world, completely devoid of reality.

Friday, May 11, 2012

Samaria Settlers AND IsraelNN.com Do Not See The Real Threat

Erev Shabbath Qodesh Parashath Emor 5772

I found the following article to be both bizarre and disturbing, but not for the same reasons my leftist friends also undoubtedly found the article to be bizarre and disturbing. 

Read on....
IsraelNN.com: Samaria Jews Take On IDF Function as Terror Mounts
Israeli civilians are taking over for the IDF as commanders fail to tackle PA terror threat.

Maayana Miskin, May 11, 2012
 
In light of a wave of attacks and carjackings on Judea and Samaria highways, civilians in the area have begun taking over from the IDF. A newly established group of Binyamin-area Israelis aims to protect the roads where the military has failed, Tatzpit reports.

The group conducts routine patrols and has its own vehicles on the road to show a stronger security presence.

The volunteer guards expressed hope that they would not permanently replace the IDF, but rather, would serve as a temporary back-up while the army prepares to handle the threat itself.

This is an unfortunate attitude.  Sure, it would be nice to have a truly, Jewish army defending the People and the Land, loyal to HaShem and His Torah over any other contradictory authority.  But, we currently do not have such a thing.  These settlers have very short, and faulty, memories.  Not even seven years ago, setters in Azza entrusted their personal security to the Israeli Defense Forces [IDF].  Where did it get them?  Homeless and wandering....
“The army is obligated to protect the junctions, and the brigade commander promised to do so,” said Motti Yogev, deputy head of the Binyamin Regional Council. “That is the army’s job, and I hope it will take full responsibility for it.” 
This is a very naive statement, assuming we have an accurate depiction of Yogev's perspective.  More and more, we have been shown that the job of the IDF is to throw Jews out of there homes, and to execute the handing over (ie. mesirah) pieces of our God-given Homeland to goyim, and not just goyim, but goyim who want to annihilate us.
But in the meantime, Binyamin-area Jews cannot afford to wait, residents said. “We aren’t going to gamble our lives or our families’ lives,” said Viki Ezra of Dolev. “As long as the Binyamin region commander isn’t prepared to handle this mission, we will do it voluntarily.”

He suggested that similar groups be set up elsewhere in Judea and Samaria.

Last week, a Palestinian Authority gang used multiple cars to trap Israeli drivers in the Binyamin area by surrounding them, then slowing down while honking, flashing lights, and intermittently breaking. The Israeli drivers managed to break free, and following the incident the IDF increased nighttime security on local highways.

Last Tuesday, an Israeli woman from Nerya barely escaped a carjacking, managing to get away by ramming her attackers’ cars as a PA man attempted to break into her vehicle.

What I find bizarre about this article is that it seems to be written in a way which suggests that this is the first time such an idea has ever been executed.  The first settlers in any area any of Israel have always guarded their towns.  Only recently, have more and more Jewish towns in Yehudah and the Shomron (Judea & Samaria) have jumped on the "privatization" (We're above such labor) band wagon, and have hired outside security companies to do the jobs for them.

What I find disturbing is that this article failed to mention the desire of other settlers, albeit a minority, to do ALL of their regional guarding by themselves, knowing full well that the deployment of the IDF or the employment of private security companies to do the guarding is to make way for future expulsions of Jews from our land and homes.  Most of these security companies restrict employees from serving in their your towns.  Hmmm...  because maybe they won't take orders to throw their neighbors out of their homes when the time comes?

And, the time WILL come.

"No Loyalty, No Justice" Found In The Israeli Supreme Court

Erev Shabbath Qodesh Parashath Emor 5772

YNET: MK To Be Held In Contempt For 'Defamatory' Posters? 
Courts administration seeks investigation against MK Ben Ari for distributing posters depicting judges wearing keffiyehs. MK Ben Ari: 'Keffiyeh isn't an insult'

Aviad Glickman, May 9, 2012 (with Itamar Fleischman)

An adviser to the courts administration urged Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein on Wednesday to launch an investigation against Knesset Member Michael Ben Ari (National Union), who was responsible for the distribution of posters that allegedly disparaged the High Court of Justice.

In a letter obtained by Ynet, Attorney Barak Lazer claimed that the posters, which were hung across Jerusalem, depicted High Court justices wearing keffiyehs and featured the slogan "If there is no loyalty, there is no justice."

Lazer posited that the ads were made in protest against the court's decision to deny the State's petition to postpone the eviction of the residents of Ulpana, a neighborhood built on contested land in the West Bank settlement of Beit El.
Contested, huh?  I wish, for once, that an MK would stand up in the K'nesseth, and say, "The Land is not contested.  It is ours, and we are commanded to maintain sovereignty over it," and then quote halakha (Jewish Law).  I'm not holding my breath for this to happen again.

MK Uri Ariel has mentioned similar ideas in the K'nesseth, but it just seemed to fall on deaf ears.  Actually, Rabbi Me'ir Kahane did quote halakhah and verses from Tana"kh, and they banned him soon afterwards for being a racist, simply because he chose not to play with Jewish Law, like the puppets of the Israeli government like to do, yet another example of how the system is not a Jewish system of government, let alone not even a democratic one.

 הכרזה. שופטי בג"ץ עם כאפיות 'No loyalty, no justice.'

The poster Lazer wrote that the posters appear to incite mutiny, and could warrant a contempt of court charge. "The leveling of such defamatory statements and incitement against the Supreme Court – the institution and the judges – is outrageous and intolerable," he wrote. "(…) An attempt to delegitimize the courts system and its judges, and to ascribe inappropriate intentions while slandering judges due to a decision that was made at their professional discretion, must be viewed gravely – all the more so when it is done by a public official." 

What is considered to be "incitement against the Supreme Court" in Israel, would be considered an expression of freedom of speech in the U. S. A., the poster child for modern day democracy.  Still think Israel is a democracy? (See MK Ben-Ari's final quote below)

It really frustrates me that my fellow Israelis continue to think that anything is going to change, that anything can change, with the current system of government.  More and more the true colors of the Israeli Supreme Court are being revealed.  Sure.  We've always known them to be biases toward the Left.  But, now, anytime the elected government of Israel proposes to change the manner in which supreme court justices are appointed, the Israeli Supreme Court justices have tantrums, threaten political warfare, or both.  

Without getting into whether the Israeli Supreme has any authority at all, according to Jewish Law, and whether democracy has any place in a truly, Jewish Government, I thought that the K'nesseth was supposed to be the voice of the people, empowered by the people.  Thus, if the K'nesseth wants to reform the Israeli justice system, and justice commited to the execution of democracy shouldn't have a problem with it.

Instead, justices sitting on the Israeli Supreme Court, decry various issues to be un-Constitution, simply because they do not approve of them.

How do I know this?

It's simple.  Israel doesn't have a Constitution; therefore, nothing can really be un-Constitutional.

Clearly, Israeli is a deMOCKracy, not a democracy.

'Courts are racist'
MK Ben Ari dismissed the accusations.

"I don’t understand what's wrong with putting a Keffiyeh on a judge," he said. " The thought that a keffiyeh is some kind of an insult indicates that the spirit of racism has reached the courts administration.

"I wish the police would open the investigation; it would allow me the opportunity to teach the courts administration a lesson in democracy," he added. "It's funny that the same court officials who fight for the freedom of expression are seeking silence when it comes to legitimate criticism of judges." 

Well, MK Ben-Ari has got them here.  Just there's one problem.  The Courts have yet to demonstrate the application of normal logic.  The will undoubted have no clue as to what Ben-Ari is talking about, nor care.  In their minds, if it doesn't fit in with Western (so called) progressive sensibilities, then it must be wrong.  Because, after all, they [think that they] know better than everybody else.

Our only hope is that their own gaivah (pride) will bring themselves down, sooner rather than later.  Various prophesies suggest that's what will happen to the non-kosher birds [temporarily] in power over the Land of Israel (Em HaBanim S'meicha).

I'm just impatient.

Wednesday, May 09, 2012

Shidduch Myth #2: Same Language, Same Age, Perfect Match!


He is an English speaker; she is an English speaker.  They are around the same age.

They are perfect for each other!

OK.  So, many of us in Israel have had to endure this often awkward, sometimes painful experience, due to the good intentions of our Hebrew speaking friends.

It's a bit less awkward when the he and the she immediately see what's going on, and immediately share their suspicions with each other by simultaneous facial expressions.  It's usually at a Shabbat meal, and sometimes a stealth shidduch attempt.  The forced couple leave the Shabbat meal together, with forced smiles on their faces.  Then, when safely around the corner, deep breaths are released, sometimes with a little laughter.  Once in a while, they look at each briefly, as if to suggest that maybe they should go out once.

Nah!

Then they come to their senses, say, "nice meeting you," and part ways, never to see each other, until the next time it happens.

Sometimes, though, it doesn't end as well as the above scenario.  Sometimes, it's a complete disaster.

Disasters ensue when one of the couple, is flattered by the suggestion of a shidduch, or smitten at first sight.

When this happens, the expression "The road to Hell is paved with 'good intentions'" lives up to its full potential.

Yet, those 'good intentions' are exactly why we are not being too hard on our native, Hebrew speaking friends.  This post should be written in Hebrew.  But, for now, we will have to settle with warning those new to Israel, new to the dating scene, or new to both, so that you can prepared for when you receive that innocent, Shabbat meal invitation, from those friendly neighbors you don't know very well.

When you do get to know them well enough, you can take on the responsibility for letting them know, gently, that English speaking Jews around the same age cannot be assumed to be perfect for each other.

That is a myth.

Shidduch Myth #2.

Monday, May 07, 2012

Haveil Havalim #358 Is Up!

ט"ו לחודש השני תשע"ב

This week's edition of Haveil Havalim, the largest Jewish/Israel-related blog carnival is up at Beneath The Wings.

Sunday, May 06, 2012

Aviner Is At It Again

ט"ו לחודש השני תשע"ב

(Yeshiva World News) Rav Aviner: Don't Protest Expulsion From Beit El Homes
While Beit El residents continue davening, the government is still planning to evict the families residing in the Ulpana neighborhood of the Shomron community as was reported by YWN-ISRAEL.

Rav Shlomo Aviner Shlita, a posek in the dati leumi community and resident of Beit El is quoted as telling the tzibur that he will not take part in any protests against such a move should it be actualized chas v’sholom. The plan calls for expelling families from five buildings, each home to six families.

News1 quotes the rav, who told mispallalim during a Friday night drasha that if security forces are sent to remove the families from their homes, he would not take part in a protest. Aviner did not chas v’sholom side with such a plan, but explains that even if the government moves ahead with this “evil act”, then we are compelled “to lose with honor”. He cites three reasons for his hashkafa; (1) A protest is designed to influence others, primarily decision-makers and this is not relevant in this case; (2) Another reason is to instill fear in the other side, and this too is not applicable, as was seen during past expulsions. “The IDF is not afraid of tens of thousands of Jews or 30 million Arabs; (3) A protest is to express one’s dissent and this picture, one of Jews opposing Jews is not the sight we wish to send to the international media.

The report adds that two mispallalim got up and walked out as the rav delivered his drasha. A third mispallel waited until the end of davening and then shouted at the rav, explaining that his words simply weaken their battle against another expulsion.

YWN-ISRAEL NOTE: The Ulpana neighborhood is inhabited for 13 years. Residents purchased their homes legally, with government subsidized bank mortgages. Government agencies funded the construction and infrastructure of the community, now declared illegal by the High Court of Justice
Even I am not sure that I can argue with Aviner's points 1 and 2.  Maybe he's right. We already know what is going to happen.  Why waste our times with these strategies.

Shlomo Aviner
Plus, maybe people who continue to trust in a government over and over again, which throws its own people out of their homes, and hands over Jewish land to goyim, even though the Land isn't the Israeli Government's to give away, and sends their sons to IDF to participate in the destruction, deserve what they get.

מידה כנגד מידה

Point no. 3 is what the mamlakhtim (undying State loyalists) MUST get their heads around already, if they expect to hold onto ANY remnants of Yehudah and Shomron (Judea & Samaria).

Mamlakhti "rabbis" like Shlomo Aviner are holding the Jewish People hostage with threats of "what would the goyim think" if they see us behave this way or that towards our own army, government, and brothers.

Let me tell you something.  The goyshe, Ukrainian Yassa"mnikim (riot police), who actually GET OFF on beating up Religious Jews, settlers and Haredim, are NOT, I repeat NOT, MY brothers!

If Jews were to protest the expulsion of fellow Jews from God-given, Jewish Land, the goyim would see Jews standing up and defending their principles.  They would see Jews standing by the authority of The Holy One, Blessed Be He, over the human authority attempting to pull the wool over the sheeple's our eyes.

That's what the goyim would see.

"Rabbi" Aviner is considered the (State-approved) rabbinic authority in half the town of Beth El.  While in the northern half of Beth El, Rabbi Zalman Melamed, the Head of the Beth El Yeshiva, is considered by most to be their rabbinic authority.

The current piece of Land and apartment complexes are in the northeast of Beth El, a town of over 1,000 families.

Beth El apartment buildings set for destruction (חו"ח).  "Settlement" of suburb? You be the judge.
Many of the people in Beth El B' should know better. Their rabbi, Rabbi Z. Melamed, has approved of protests, and of refusing IDF orders to throw Jews out of their homes. He, himself, was barricaded in the K'far Darom (Gaza) synagogue, with Rabbi Dov Lior of Hevron, in a last stand against the expulsion of Jews from there in 2005.

Other Beth El B' residents have experienced first hand, and have testified to, the betrayal of the YeSh"A Council collaborators.

Aviner & Uri Bar-Lev on Expulsion Day from Gush Qatif & the rest of Azza: "A picture is worth a 1,000 words."
 The following video shows "Rabbi" Aviner's collaboration with the government in the expulsion of Jews from their homes in Gush Qatif/Azza (תשס"ה/2005).



But, of course, ALL of the above reasons for ignoring "Rabbi" Aviner are completely irrelevant.

It has already been forbidden, al pi din, to ask for his guidance regarding ANY issue for over six years.

Below is an English translation of the p'saq din instructing the religious public not to rely on Aviner for anything.  This p'saq din still stands, and will continue to stand until Aviner comes forth to answer questions about his rulings regarding tohorath mishpahah (family purity).



By writing a letter to Rav Mordechai Eliyahu ztz"l, in his own hand (shown above), most authorities have held that Aviner has, indeed, accepted the authority of Rav Eliyahu and Rav Shapira's ztz"l beth din.

Not showing up, when he said that he would, created a problem that the rabbanim (listed below) could not ignore.  When Aviner continued to rule on issues of tohorath mshpahah (family purity), even after accepting the beth din's direction not to do so

Jews make the excuse, "We shouldn't get involved in mahloqoth haRabanim."

Shouldn't get involved?  So, don't get involved.  But, you need to decided who to listen to.

For me, that's easy.  I listen to the rabbanim who provide relevant, halakhic sources to back up their rulings, sources which can hold up to scrutiny.  Those who are simply charismatic, and are skilled at giving an exciting and inspiring speech, filled with popular hashqafic notions which people want to hear, do not do it for me, nor should they do it for you.

When one makes decisions solely based on hashqafah, he is no better than those Jews who identify with non-Torah-based, "pick and choose" communities.

I would be very wary of any "rav" or community which is completely blind to the existence of stiroth (conflicts) between the Torah and Israeli Law

*********


Rabbinic Announcement to the Torah Public, 5766

The following Rabbis wrote and signed their names to the following announcement to the public. The original Hebrew letter can be found below.





Rabbi Dov Lior

Rabbi and Chair of the Rabbinical Court of Qiriyath Arba-Hevron

Rabbi Ya'acov Yosef
Rabbi, Giv'at Moshe, Jerusalem, Rosh Kollel and Rabbinical Court Chair

Rabbi Avraham Yitzhak Kalev
Judge, Jerusalem Area Rabbinical Court

Rabbi Eliyakim Levanon
Rabbi of Elon Moreh

In addition, the following rabbis have publicly stated their agreement with said public announcement:

Rabbi Nissim Karlitz
Rabbi and Rabbinical Court Chair, B'nei Braq

Rabbi Dov Levine

Rabbinical Court Chair, Jerusalem

Rabbi Shlomo Fisher

Rabbinical Court Judge, Jerusalem


To our brethren in the Torah observant community

More than a year has passed since the Bet Din (Rabbinical Court), comprised of three of our greatest rabbis, was appointed to investigate the many complaints lodged against the instruction of Rabbi Shlomo Aviner. With the presentation of explicit evidence, it was made clear that with regard to the issues of menstruation and marital relations (the areas which were checked), he has been permitting things which are completely prohibited under halacha (Jewish Law) And this is not one the issues which carry differing opinions amongst adjudicators and experts, but rather is among the very serious and clear Torah prohibitions which have never been matters of disagreement; and not just one incident, but rather a systematic removal of family purity from amongst those who inquire of him and listen to his instruction. Accordingly, it has become clear that the Bet Din stands by its ruling, yet the aforementioned individual continues to mislead those who make inquiries of him regarding these matters.

To our regret others have arisen, who without having clarify the facts very well and without having approached any members of the Bet Din, have come to strengthen his position against the Bet Din's ruling and to clarify "his approach," and who have been misled by him through various distortions about which there is insufficient room to elaborate them. And, Indeed, it is very difficult for anyone who knows the aforementioned as one who strikes at the Torah and at the very Fear of Heaven, to accept that there is a such personality here, who on one hand brings Jews back to Torah with contradictory language, and on the other hand maliciously teaches the transgression of prohibitions, punishable by excommunication. You cannot judge a book by its cover.

And, here in the conclusion of the Bet Din, the explicit halacha is that regarding one who causes the public to stumble through his teaching on issues punishable by excommunication, one is not to listen to his teachings or guidance on any other matter.

Therefore we are warning every Torah-observant community, those who are interested in the sustenance of Israel in its land through the Word of the Almighty, not to ask nor to accept any instruction or guidance from the aforementioned individual, and thus, not to rely on any of his books or articles. We also turn to all institutions and organizations, and to all who allow the teachings and guidance of the aforementioned written or verbal, and all those who give him validity and public power, not to share in any activity with at all, and not placing any stumbling block before the public, Heaven forbid.

With this, we call on those, who up until now have innocently followed his teaching and guidance, not to be discouraged, inasmuch as they have been innocently following, should adhere to other rabbis from now on. to be truly strengthened in the the path of the Almighty and in the Fear of Him.

We have come to this by the virtue of our obligation to remove a stumbling block from the path of our people and "...for the ways of the LORD are right, and the just do walk in them; but transgressors do stumble therein." (Hoshea 14:10) He who hears will hear, and he who does not will not. May it be the Will of the Holy One, Blessed Be He that He implant a pure spirit from on high upon the entire community of His people Israel, and speedily bring forth for us a complete redemption.




(Click to enlarge)

Thursday, May 03, 2012

More Co-Dependent Idiocy From The Israeli Government

12 of the Second Month 5772
Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Israel offers to send humanitarian aid to Syrian civilians
 4 Mar 2012

Israel contacted the International Committee of the Red Cross and suggested that it help transfer Israeli humanitarian aid to Syrian civilians

Acting under instructions of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Avigdor Liberman, the MFA Deputy Director General for International Organizations and the United Nations Evyatar Manor contacted the International Committee of the Red Cross and suggested that Israel transfer humanitarian aid to Syria under Red Cross auspices. The Committee’s representatives in Israel stated that they will respond with an appropriate reply once they have examined the population’s needs and requirements.
FM Lieberman stated that “The Jewish State cannot sit by and do nothing while these atrocities are taking place in a neighboring state and people are losing their entire world. Even though Israel cannot intervene in events occurring in a country with which it does not have diplomatic relations, it is nevertheless our moral duty to extend humanitarian aid and inspire the world to put an end to the slaughter.”
Esser Agaroth:
In the words of U. S. President Obama...

Yes, we can!

...sit by and do nothing.  HELLO?!  FM Lieberman has never heard of a milhemeth misswah.  Duh!  Aiding the enemy??

I would tell him to go learn more Torah, but he would just end up learning from one of the State's puppets Rabbinic liaisons to the people, which wouldn't change anything.

Seriously.  When bodies leave galuth (exile) behind, why can't most of us manage to leave our galuth mindset behind.

Very frustrating.