Haveil Havalim #295 Is Up!

6 of the Tenth Month 5771

#295 of the Haveil Havalim Blog Carnival is up at Frume Sarah's World.

It's the And,...It's Tevet edition

The Jewish Fist Punches Back!

6 of the Tenth Month 5771

Last week, my friend The Jewish Fist posted one of his best, responding to Shmuely Boteach's bemoaning the Israeli Chief Rabbinate's ruling to refrain from interfaith dialogues with Christians.

This audio post is a MUST HEAR.

Click here to go to The Jewish Fist's post, and download the audio file (1.5 MB).

Even liberal Jews will appreciate the voice of reason from an Orthodox Jew regarding the dangers of fundamentalist Christians, they have been warning about for years!

THE JEWISH FIST: A Call to Resurrect the Jewish Scholar-Warrior of Old.

The purpose of this blog is to act as a fist to the face of the Jewish conscience and to jar Jews out of their oblivion. It is a call to return to the Torah, to start the process of tshuvah gemura, and to rid the collective body of the infectious "shtetl syndrome" which corrodes it. The Jewish Fist is also a warning to the enemies of the Almighty, whether it be the Arab Amalakites, or the mixed multitude within the Jewish community. The Jewish Fist has risen, and when it descends, G-d help you!

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For more on this danger, check out this blogger's “The Kiss Of Esau.”

Havdallah!

Rosh Hodesh of the Tenth Month-Hanukkah 5771

Recently, a number of my friends were sending around a video of a woman with a guitar singing Havdallah, the berakhoth (blessings) said, or sung, at the conclusion of Shabbath. She gives an introduction to Havdallah first, suggesting that as we separated Shabbath from the rest of the week, we should remember to separate ourselves from several other things:

To separate ourselves from hatred, indifference, and violence,...and to promote peace, caring, fairness, and love.

Sounds like good stuff, doesn't? I'm confused, though. So, I decided to respond.

For any number of reasons, I am not posting the video in question on my blog. If you really MUST view it, then click here. Just make sure you leave a comment.

Here is my response:

Here is the text of birkhath Havdallah:

המבדיל בין קודש לחול, בין אור לחושך, בין ישראל לגוים (לעמים*), ובין יום השביעי לששת ימי המעשה

...who distinguishes between Holy and profane, between light and dark, between Yisra'el and the other nations, and between the Seventh Day and the six days of work...

Separation from hatred? Too vague. True, we are not to hate fellow kosher Jews. We are not to hate tinoq shenishba. Yet, we are not supposed to stand idly by, while such Jews do great harm to Am Yisra'el, both physically and spiritually. Furthermore, we are supposed to hate our enemies. We our supposed to hate evil, and evil doers. We are supposed to hate avodah zarah. And, according to Rav Avraham Yitzhaq Kook ztz”l, we must hate the evil within those Jews who do not know Torah, before we can make attempts to bring them back.**

So, which hatred is this woman talking about? Hatred which is forbidden? Or all hatred,...hatred according to her? Is it OK to hate Jews who live in Yitzhar, Havath Gil'ad, Hevron, and Havath Ma'on?

Indifference? Indifference toward whom? Hungry Jews in Israel? Jews expelled from their homes and land in Yehudah, Shomron, & Azza? Then, I would certainly agree. Unfortunately, my guess, and it's only a guess, is that she's referring to indifference to the "suffering" of our Arab enemies.

Violence? First off, we see from the examples of Hamas that violence works. And, what do you know? Violence has its place in Torah, too. Violence is what our Arab enemies understand. There are, after all, Yisma'el. Just check out each time Yishma'elim are mentioned in Tana"kh or by HaZa"L, and you will see that they are thieving, marauding, and murdering. And, let us not forget rape. As HaZa"L points out, ...אין זנות כזנות ישמעאל... "There is no promiscuity, like the promiscuity of Yishma'el."

Rather than go on and on about each line of her introduction to Havdallah, I will give you my alternative, one which is in line with Torah:

As we separate Shabbath from the six days of work, Holy from profane, light from dark, and ourselves from goyim, let us...

Separate ourselves from non-Jewish values.

Separate ourselves from galuth (diapora).

Separate ourselves from galuth mentality.

Separate ourselves from gaivah (pride).

Separate ourselves from Yishma'el (Arabs).

Separate ourselves from Esau (The West/Christians).

Separate ourselves from denial of Torah sheb'al Peh (Oral Torah).

Separate ourselves from distortions of Torah.

Separate ourselves from attempts to pass off Western concepts as Torah.

Separate ourselves from feminism.

Separate ourselves from sham conversions.

Separate ourselves from “reformed,” “reconstructed,” “renewed,” or “conned and served” excuses for what Judaism really is.

...and in honor of Hanukkah...

Let us Separate ourselves from all additional forms of Hellenism and Hellenist Jewish influences!

Hanukkah Same'ah!

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*alternative versions

**From Kitvei HaRav Kook, rescued from the genizah of Yeshivath Merkaz HaRav Kook by Rav Y. Shapira.

More On WikiLeaks And Israel

Rosh Hodesh of the Tenth Month 5771

This a follow-up to WikiLeaks And Israel.

Far be it from me to believe ANYTHING which comes out of Defense Minister Baraq's mouth....

Nonetheless, perhaps this is an example of what is meant by HaShem speaking through "idiots and imbeciles."

Assange Arrested In Britain; Vows to Fight Extradition
David Lev, IsraelNN.com, 30 Kislev 5771/December 7, 2010

One of the most wanted men on two continents, Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, was arrested Tuesday afternoon by British police, at the request of Swedish authorities, who issued an international arrest warrant for him. Meanwhile, Defense Minister Ehud Barak said Tuesday that the United States' preoccupation with Wikileaks has led to a reduction in U.S. efforts to pressure Israel into agreeing to another building freeze in Judea and Samaria.

Baraq could be right. The embarrassment on the U. S. is so great that it really appears to be rattling everyone.

If this is all it takes to embarrass the U. S., just think of what could be accomplished.

On second, this makes me wonder all the more, what kind of information Jonathan Pollard has been holding secret to embarrass the U. S. No wonder why the powers that be in the U. S. (and in Israel?) do not want him to be released.

Food for thought.

Haveil Havalim #294 Is Up!

30 of the Ninth Month-Hanukkah 5771

The 293rd edition of the Haveil Havalim Blog Carnival is up at West Bank Mama.

It's The Lots of Latkes Edition.

More On Renting To Arabs

30 of the Ninth Month-Hanukkah 5771

The following is a follow-up to Rabbi Okays Renting Apartments To Arabs. It is a guest post from a friend of mine, "Our Man In Qiriyath Sefer."

I'd make the point that it was clearly Hazal's intention that we try to get nochrim who are not "shayach" to Am Yisrael by way of accepting the Torah and the 7 Misswoth B'nei No'ah to leave the country. Why did the halacha permit renting houses? It's only sto...rage facilities, not homes mamash, and those are permitted because without fields back then a person had no permanent parnassa, so their stay would be temporary.

Clearly what Rabbi Sherlow is saying goes completely against this. Where on earth does this concept come from that "Jewish sovereignty cannot exist without caring for foreigners living among us?"??? Its certainly not a Jewish concept. The people we are obligated to care for, are clearly described in halacha, and even the most lenient opinion would not include the Arabs in Eretz Yisra'el today. I think this statement of his is some poor attempt at injecting modern statecraft into the halacha, but Sherlow is even more ignorant of the former as he is of the latter. I would point the esteemed rabbi to modern democratic countries like Japan, where citizenship is limited to those with a Japanese father and where sale and rental of property to non-Japanese citizens (ie, anyone without a Japanese father) is strictly limited.

What a wonderful model we could use!

Replace Japanese father with Jewish mother, and we have a wonderful citizenship law for Israel.

Proudly Defending Eli Yishai!

30 of the Ninth Month-Hanukkah 5771

It is interesting that "right-wing," religious Israel National News reports on calls for religious Interior Minister, Rabbi Eli Yishai (Sha"S) to resign. Yet, left-wing YNET News' reports do not focus on one of its favorite targets. It simply questions his actions, as well as the actions of other government officials, perfectly reasonable scrutiny from the press. YNET News also includes an opinion piece, supportive of Yishai.

Why are their calls for Minister Yishai to resign?

Israesl National News
...the Jerusalem Post reports that the International Fellowship of Christians [IFCJ] and Jews wanted to donate eight firetrucks to Israel, but that Minister Yishai refused to accept the donation because of the organization’s evangelical ties. In 2004, former Chief Rabbis Shapira and Eliyahu signed a religious ruling urging followers not to accept money from the group, which was said to have accepted money from groups involved in missionary activity.

No doubt, Sha"S's spiritual leader former Chief Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef concurred with the above ruling. Nonetheless, Minister Yishai followed the ruling of the gedolim of the day, unlike other people an institutions.

Women In Green's Ruth Matar publicly blasted Rabbi Simcha Kook's special Chief Rabbinate committe's ruling (2007) against participation in a particular interfaith, women's conference. Not only did the "Religious" Zionist Israel National News publish her open, scathing letter, one of its talk show hosts actually called Rabbi Kook a "ghetto rabbi" on air.

National Religious Party [NRP] leaders went to Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu ztz"l to ask whether it was permissible for them to include a woman on their party's list of candidates. When Rabbi Eliyahu's response was an emphatic "No" The NRP put Gila Finkelstein on its list anyway, stating the lame excuse for picking and choosing halachah that they "have other rabbis."

Certainly, people have asked what about piqu'ah nefesh (the saving of Jewish lives)?

Well, first off, this question can be addressed to the secretaries of Rabbis Shapira and Eliyahu ztz"l. Their rulings are a matter of public record. You could also ask Rabbi Simcha Kook, who I understand is very approachable.

Minister Yishai did what he could. He obtained NIS 100 million from the Finance Ministry for fire fighting efforts (easily confirmable). In addition,...

Israel National News
Eight years ago, I asked the government to renew the Israel Air Force's fire-fighting activities; all the ministers, except those of Shas, voted against.” (also easily confirmable)

Say what you will about Minister Yishai, but cannont deny that on this issue he has been consistent. His Sha"S Party, Hassidei Gur, and [not even all] leftists seem to be the only ones who have awoken to the serious, spiritual and psychological dangers of dealing with Christians.

And, who exactly is calling for Yishai to resign?

Reporters.

No surprises there.

Now what I would like to know is, why doesn't anyone seem to be asking about the IFCJ's ties to missionaries?

Good question!

Actually, Jewish Israel, which has reported extensively on the IFCJ.

It is no surprise that this was even mentioned by Israel National News and the Jerusalem Post. Both are known or suspected of having close ties to Christians and their money. The Jerusalem Post even has a Christian Edition.

Rabbi Okays Renting Apartments To Arabs

Erev Shabbath Qodesh Parashath Miqeitz/Hanukkah 5771

Rabbi Okays Renting Apartments To Arabs

Following rabbinical ruling against renting out flats to Arabs or migrant workers, head of Petah Tikva hesder yeshiva says 'Jewish sovereignty cannot exist without caring for foreigners living among us'

Kobi Nahshoni, 11.28.10 / YNET: Israel Jewish Scene

Renting out apartments to Arabs has been forbidden by Safed's rabbis, Rabbi Ovadia Yosef has also pointed out that it is forbidden, and many other rabbis remain sheepishly silent on grounds of political correctness and admit that "there is nothing to be done, this is halachic law".

One person who disagrees with these rabbis is the head of the Petah Tikva hesder yeshiva, Rabbi Yuval Sherlo, who states that "it is right and correct prefer renting out apartments within our own nation, but it is not right to ban renting out apartments to Arabs." (Read more...)

Granted, the likes of YNET news media enjoy creating, and emphasizing mahloqoth (disagreements) between groups of religious Jews. Granted, Rabbi Sherlo's sources are not presented in this article for scrutiny.

Nonetheless, the "halachic" opinion of this Head of the Petah Tiqwah Hesder Yeshiva makes no sense whatsoever.

Caring for the stranger? First off, the status of ger toshav (resident stranger), is reserved for only for those non-Jews accepting upon themselves , and only during the time when the misswah (commandment) of Yovel (Jubilee Year) is in effect.

There is an opinion that Muslims would qualify for this status. However, that opinion was from 500 years ago. Certainly, today, their countless murders of Jews, and their lack of justice to punish and to prevent such murders would disqualify them from the status of B'nei No'ah, the precursor status for Ger Toshav status.

רמב"ם הלכות עבודה זרה פרק י
ד [ג] אין מוכרין להם בתים ושדות, בארץ ישראל; ובסוריה, מוכרין להם בתים, אבל לא שדות. ומשכירין להם בתים בארץ ישראל, ובלבד שלא יעשם שכונה--ואין שכונה, פחותה משלושה. ואין משכירין להם שדות; ובסוריה, משכירין להם שדות. ומפני מה החמירו בשדה: מפני שיש בה שתיים--מפקיעה מן המעשרות, ונותן להם חניה בקרקע

Ramba"m: Laws of Foreign Worship 10
4 [3] One does not sell them houses or fields in Eretz Yisrael; but in Suriyah one may sell them houses, but not fields. One may rent them houses in Eretz Yisrael, provided that one does not make them a neighborhood -- and there is no neighborhood with less than three [households]. One does not rent them fields; but in Suriyah one rents them fields. And why were they strict regarding fields? For two reasons -- [because they would] expropriate the tithes and be allowed to settle the land.

The above "do not make a covenant with practicioners of foreign worship" stems from the negative commandment "do not have mercy on them."

דברים ז,ב ונתנם יהוה אלהיך, לפניך--והכיתם: החרם תחרים אתם, לא-תכרת להם ברית ולא תחנם

Deuteronomy 7:2
and when the LORD thy God shall deliver them up before thee, and thou shalt smite them; then thou shalt utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor show mercy unto them.

In any event, caring for the stranger" who wants to kill us is not a misswah, quite the opposite, in fact. According to the Ramba"m, Muslims are not [technically] ovdei avodah zarah. Nonetheless, Arabs would further be disqualified from B'nei No'ah status, due to their lack of acceptance of the entire Torah as truth. Furthermore, the halachah does not distinguish between individual members of an enemy people, in a milhemeth misswah (obligatory war).

Rabbi Sherlo's logic completely escapes me. Perhaps, if his sources when his sources become available to me, I would form a different opinion. But, that seems highly unlikely.

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Please also read More On Renting To Arabs.

For additional information on these negative commandments, you can download the audio shi'urim given by Rabbi David Bar-Hayim, part 1 and part 2.

Lighting Hanukkah Candles Outside

Erev Hanukkah 5771

Most every Jew living in Israel, who lights Hanukkah candles, lights them outside. Jews who focus on a miracle involving oil light candles outside. Jews who focus on the killing of fellow Jews who fell in with the Greeks, their anti-Torah beliefs and culture, light candles outside. Jews who want to pretend that the war leading up to Hanukkah was a spiritual war only, light candles outside.

Even many of the totally misguided Jews, who fantasize that Hanukkah is a nationalistic holiday, absent of any Torah, light candles outside.

There are only a few hold outs, who light candles inside their homes, some not even near a window.

So, why do we in Israel light candles outside? Certainly it is the ideal place to light them, according to most halachic authorities. In galuth, (exile) we got used to lighting them inside, first, due to fear of anti-Jewish violence, and later due to local fire regulations.

But, as Jews, living in our own, proper Homeland, there is nothing to stop us from lighting candles outside, not even the Eruv Rav-controlled government,...yet.

Even the window box, Hanukkiah holders we use to protect the candles from blowing, and the fire from escaping, are inexpensive, and last for years.

We light Hanukkah candles outside,...because we can.

This simple act is so subtle that we do not even think about how it unifies those of us all living in Eretz Yisra'el, Haredi, Religious Zionist, and secular Jews.

This simple act reminds us all that we have inched just that much farther away from Galuth, and that much closer to Ge'ulah (Redemption), whether we want to acknowledge it or not.

Hanukkah Same'ah!

WikiLeaks And Israel

Erev Hanukkah 5771

So, everyone seems to be talking about WikiLeaks, the right, the left, and the in between. And, as well they should be.

Many government officials now have egg on their faces, because of WikiLeaks.

Personally, I fear for WikiLeaks founder Jullian Assange's life. You never can tell with some of these politicians. Everyone knows of the particular dangers involved with dealing with a wounded animal. But, such dangers pale in comparison to those stemming from a wounded politician!

Reaching across the world, not surprisingly, WikiLeaks has touched Israel, exposing some of the idiocy of the Israeli government, and its illustrious officials, such as Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, and opposition leader MK Tzippy Livni (Kadima).

Some of the scandalous, juicy bits are right on, and should not be an embarrassment to the speaker at all, such as PM Netanyahu describing Kadima as a "phony party." Good one, Bibi!

One juicy bit,...one disgusting, juicy bit needs to be mentioned here. There is too much of a risk that it will escape under the radar:

YNET News:
Netanyahu also said that President Shimon Peres had confessed to him that Oslo was based on a false premise.

The question about the Oslo Accords was never concerned with whether they would work or not. Anyone who was not naive, or entrenched in the idea that applying non-Torah, Western sensibilities toward the dealing with Arabs, KNEW that it would never work.

No. The question about the Oslo Accords was whether their architects really believed in it, or were really just evil, plotting Israel's destruction from within.

I believe that we now have final confirmation of the answer to our question.