Kindness and kind deeds are a general category that include many individual mitzvot like charity, marrying off a poor girl, visiting the sick and comforting mourners.
Truthfully, the potential for kind deeds is immeasurable. Anything one does for his fellow man, even offering a single kind word, is part of the kindness that builds the world.
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7/26/2019
Israel trust G-d only and NOT America!
The assimilation and gentilization of our leaders have caused them not only to leave the paths of Jewishness, but to disastrously place their faith and the future of the nation on the US. And worst of all, to betray Jews in their folly.
We once trusted in France and she betrayed us and we trust today in America and she will betray us, because in the end her self-interest will lie not with us but with our enemies and oil will become more precious than friendship with a small, poor state.
We, the people who survived a hellish Exile of two millennia only because of our deep and unshaken faith in G-d, now forget Him, ignore Him, term Him irrelevant.
Those who do not believe that it was He and only He who brought Israel into being, do not believe also that He and He alone will sustain it.
The words of the Psalmist, "Trust not in princes, in the son of man in whom there is no salvation", are not for them, and they will suffer for it.
We once trusted in France and she betrayed us and we trust today in America and she will betray us, because in the end her self-interest will lie not with us but with our enemies and oil will become more precious than friendship with a small, poor state.
We, the people who survived a hellish Exile of two millennia only because of our deep and unshaken faith in G-d, now forget Him, ignore Him, term Him irrelevant.
Those who do not believe that it was He and only He who brought Israel into being, do not believe also that He and He alone will sustain it.
The words of the Psalmist, "Trust not in princes, in the son of man in whom there is no salvation", are not for them, and they will suffer for it.
7/24/2019
The Love of G-d
Fearing G-d, without which man cannot merit holiness or purity, is itself a prerequisite to loving Him, the second stage of man's spiritual growth as he proceeds to accept upon himself the yoke of Heaven.
Loving G-d is a more exalted stage, as our sages said, (Sotah 31a), "One motivated by love for G-d is greater than one motivated by fear."
Fear ensures man's separating himself from evil, making it infinitely easier for him later on to attain reward.
As King David said, "Turn away from evil and do good" (Psalms 34:15). Fear of G-d distances man from evil, whereas love of G-d ensures that he will do good, out of desire and craving for G-d and His commandments.
Loving G-d is a more exalted stage, as our sages said, (Sotah 31a), "One motivated by love for G-d is greater than one motivated by fear."
Fear ensures man's separating himself from evil, making it infinitely easier for him later on to attain reward.
As King David said, "Turn away from evil and do good" (Psalms 34:15). Fear of G-d distances man from evil, whereas love of G-d ensures that he will do good, out of desire and craving for G-d and His commandments.
7/22/2019
Jews and Violence
The Jewish Establishment's concepts of violence and nonviolence are too often derived not from Jewish sources but from assimilated liberal ones.
Too many of our lay and also, incredibly, "religious" leaders derive their knowledge and concepts from foreign, not Jewish, sources.
Our rabbis have told us that "the actions of the fathers are a sign (direction) for the sons", and it behooves us to search Jewish history and Jewish tradition for the proper Jewish response to evil and oppression.
What a Jew must and must not do for other Jews who are suffering is predicated upon the great idea of Ahavat Israel, love of Jews.
This magnificent concept is stated simply, forcefully, and unequivocally in the Torah (Leviticus, 19:16):
"Thou shalt not stand idly by your brother's blood."
The talmudic commentary on this verse is quite as clear (Sanhedrin 73):
"How do we know that one who sees his comrade drowning in the sea or threatened by a wild beast or by armed robbers is obligated to save him?
"We are taught: Thou shalt not stand idly by your brother's blood.
"How do we know that if one sees someone pursuing his comrade with the purpose of killing him, that he is free to save a life through killing the pursuer?
We are taught: "Thou shalt not stand idly by.....".
What we have inherited as Torah Halakha is hardly a theorical thing. From the days that our father Abraham went to battle against the four Kings in order to save his nephew Lot to the moment that Moses smote an Egyptian rather than create a committee to study the root causes of Egyptian anti-Semitism; from the wars of Joshua and the Prophets (Ehud, Déborah, Gideon, Samson, Yiftach) to the battles of David; from the Maccabees to the students of Rabbi Akiba who were sent from their studies to fight with Bar Kochba's army---Jewish leadership has taken an active and violent part in the struggle for freedom.
Too many of our lay and also, incredibly, "religious" leaders derive their knowledge and concepts from foreign, not Jewish, sources.
Our rabbis have told us that "the actions of the fathers are a sign (direction) for the sons", and it behooves us to search Jewish history and Jewish tradition for the proper Jewish response to evil and oppression.
What a Jew must and must not do for other Jews who are suffering is predicated upon the great idea of Ahavat Israel, love of Jews.
This magnificent concept is stated simply, forcefully, and unequivocally in the Torah (Leviticus, 19:16):
"Thou shalt not stand idly by your brother's blood."
The talmudic commentary on this verse is quite as clear (Sanhedrin 73):
"How do we know that one who sees his comrade drowning in the sea or threatened by a wild beast or by armed robbers is obligated to save him?
"We are taught: Thou shalt not stand idly by your brother's blood.
"How do we know that if one sees someone pursuing his comrade with the purpose of killing him, that he is free to save a life through killing the pursuer?
We are taught: "Thou shalt not stand idly by.....".
What we have inherited as Torah Halakha is hardly a theorical thing. From the days that our father Abraham went to battle against the four Kings in order to save his nephew Lot to the moment that Moses smote an Egyptian rather than create a committee to study the root causes of Egyptian anti-Semitism; from the wars of Joshua and the Prophets (Ehud, Déborah, Gideon, Samson, Yiftach) to the battles of David; from the Maccabees to the students of Rabbi Akiba who were sent from their studies to fight with Bar Kochba's army---Jewish leadership has taken an active and violent part in the struggle for freedom.
7/19/2019
Hadar, Jewish Dignity and pride
Hadar, dignity and pride.
The concept of Hadar, a concept which the great Jewish leader Zev Jabotinsky attempted to instill in the oppressed and degraded masses of Eastern Europe, is still a principle that we carry within us at all times.
The hatred and contempt of the anti-Semite is an attempt to degrade the Jew. It is an attempt to instill within him a feeling of inferiority.
It is an attempt which all too often succeeds in promoting Jewish self-hatred and shame and the attempt to escape one's Jewishness.
Hadar is pride. Hadar is self-respect. Hadar is dignity in being a Jew.
The words of Jabotinsky echo in majesty:
"Hadar! A Jew, even in poverty remains a prince.
Wether servant or serf you were created the son of Kings,
Crowned with the diadem of David;
In light or in darkness, remember the crown...
The concept of Hadar, a concept which the great Jewish leader Zev Jabotinsky attempted to instill in the oppressed and degraded masses of Eastern Europe, is still a principle that we carry within us at all times.
The hatred and contempt of the anti-Semite is an attempt to degrade the Jew. It is an attempt to instill within him a feeling of inferiority.
It is an attempt which all too often succeeds in promoting Jewish self-hatred and shame and the attempt to escape one's Jewishness.
Hadar is pride. Hadar is self-respect. Hadar is dignity in being a Jew.
The words of Jabotinsky echo in majesty:
"Hadar! A Jew, even in poverty remains a prince.
Wether servant or serf you were created the son of Kings,
Crowned with the diadem of David;
In light or in darkness, remember the crown...
7/17/2019
Make alyah, go up to Israel.
What a glorious challenge you have been given!
The gauntlet has been thrown down before you, and you must climb the heights of greatness!
Alyah, going up to the land, this is the task at hand.
Leave behind the dust of Exile, the terrible fate that awaits us, our enemies of the Diaspora who thirst for our blood and plan yet another Auschwitz.
Make your plans and leave the graveyards of Galut and live in our own land--free, a majority, alive.
Guarantee the preservation of your children and children's children.
The gauntlet has been thrown down before you, and you must climb the heights of greatness!
Alyah, going up to the land, this is the task at hand.
Leave behind the dust of Exile, the terrible fate that awaits us, our enemies of the Diaspora who thirst for our blood and plan yet another Auschwitz.
Make your plans and leave the graveyards of Galut and live in our own land--free, a majority, alive.
Guarantee the preservation of your children and children's children.
7/15/2019
Young Jew, Israel is your home!
Young Jew, Baruch, whom I have never met, come home.
Return to your people and their destiny. It is beautiful. You are young and for you, return is simple.
And know that your life can only be lived in one place. Home. The Land of Israel.
It is a large land. Extending from the Mediterranean to the Jordan, from Hermon through Sinai to Eilat.
It stands, capable of absorbing millions, many millions of its sons and daughters who have not yet come.
It is the land where one cannot move without colliding with the Jewish past.
This is the land where Abraham walked and Isaac and Jacob traveled; where David and Saul fought the enemy and Deborah and Samson smote the foe; where the Prophets raised their eyes unto the heavens and spoke to the people; where the Maccabees preserved Judaism with the sword and where the Sanhedrin and Ben Zakai continued it with the book; where Bar Kochba died and where his children will return.
Here is Eretz Israel; here is your home.
Return to your people and their destiny. It is beautiful. You are young and for you, return is simple.
And know that your life can only be lived in one place. Home. The Land of Israel.
It is a large land. Extending from the Mediterranean to the Jordan, from Hermon through Sinai to Eilat.
It stands, capable of absorbing millions, many millions of its sons and daughters who have not yet come.
It is the land where one cannot move without colliding with the Jewish past.
This is the land where Abraham walked and Isaac and Jacob traveled; where David and Saul fought the enemy and Deborah and Samson smote the foe; where the Prophets raised their eyes unto the heavens and spoke to the people; where the Maccabees preserved Judaism with the sword and where the Sanhedrin and Ben Zakai continued it with the book; where Bar Kochba died and where his children will return.
Here is Eretz Israel; here is your home.
7/14/2019
Violence: Is This Any Way For A Nice Jewish Boy To Behave?
Once upon a tine, the Jew was not a member of the liberals--neither in form nor in spirit.
It was not in the role of Mahatma Ganghi that the Jews fought at Massada; the men of Bar Kochba and Judah Maccabee never went to a Quaker meeting.
The Jews of old--when Jews were knowledgeable about their religion, when they turned the page of the Jewish Bible instead of turning the Christian cheek--understood the concept of the Book and the Sword.
It was only in the horror of the ghetto with its fears, neuroses, and insecurities that the Jew began to react in fright rather than with self-respect.
That is what the ghetto does to a Jew.
It was not in the role of Mahatma Ganghi that the Jews fought at Massada; the men of Bar Kochba and Judah Maccabee never went to a Quaker meeting.
The Jews of old--when Jews were knowledgeable about their religion, when they turned the page of the Jewish Bible instead of turning the Christian cheek--understood the concept of the Book and the Sword.
It was only in the horror of the ghetto with its fears, neuroses, and insecurities that the Jew began to react in fright rather than with self-respect.
That is what the ghetto does to a Jew.
7/12/2019
Trust in the G-d of the Jews
It is faith, belief and trust in G-d which make up the key to the Redemption.
Faith in the Jewish destiny, in the belief that if the Jew remains true to his G-d and to his heritage, he can never be destroyed.
Belief in the power and the will of his G-d to destroy the enemy.
Faith and belief that all the horses, chariots, Jets and nuclear weapons in the world are as nothing before the G-d of history; that the rational and logical and obvious and pragmatic wither away before the power of the Creator and Destroyer the G-d who shapes and forms.
Faith in the Jewish destiny, in the belief that if the Jew remains true to his G-d and to his heritage, he can never be destroyed.
Belief in the power and the will of his G-d to destroy the enemy.
Faith and belief that all the horses, chariots, Jets and nuclear weapons in the world are as nothing before the G-d of history; that the rational and logical and obvious and pragmatic wither away before the power of the Creator and Destroyer the G-d who shapes and forms.
7/10/2019
Message to the Christian Americans
President Trump is trying to divide the land of Israel to build a Muslim "Palestinian" State in his so called "deal" of the century.
American Christians: "Let the others speak to you of oil and trade and interests.
They come with a sword and a spear and a shield but we, the Jewish people, come in the name of the L-rd of Hosts, the G-d of the armies of Israel.
If you, the Christian, really believe in the Bible, in the prophecies that are written therein,
American Christians: "Let the others speak to you of oil and trade and interests.
They come with a sword and a spear and a shield but we, the Jewish people, come in the name of the L-rd of Hosts, the G-d of the armies of Israel.
If you, the Christian, really believe in the Bible, in the prophecies that are written therein,
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