Author: moshe

Parsha Va’era 5770: Reconnecting the Jewish Soul

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by Moshe Burt

At the conclusion of Parsha Shemos, Moshe and Aaron are confronted, upon exiting Pharoah’s Palace, by the B’nai Yisrael who are in deeper despair than before because of the increased workload, i.e. finding their own straw while the quotas remain the same, which resulted from Pharoah’s fury at Moshe’s first effort to secure their freedom and exit from Mitzrayim.

Our Parsha begins with the dialogue which Moshe Rebbeinu has with Hashem prior to again speaking to the B’nai Yisrael. And so, after Hashem rebukes Moshe for his complaint and reassures him that redemption is at hand, Moshe again addresses the B’nai Yisrael as to his meeting with Pharoah; read more

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Parshat Shemos 5770: Assimilation and the Evolution of Jewish Enslavement — Then and Now(?)

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by Moshe Burt

To sufficiently comprehend the evolution of the enslavement of B’nai Yisrael in Mitzriyim, it would seem that one needs to comprehend the closed nature of the two preceding Parshiyot; the concluding posuk of Vayigash;

And Yisrael dwelt in the land of Mitzriyim in the land of Goshen, and they acquired property in it and… multiplied greatly

and the first posuk of Vayechi;

And Yaakov lived in the land of Mitzrayim for seventeen years…

We need to understand the gist of the Kli Yekar; that the Sh’vatim, the Am, knowing that they were to be in Mitzriyim for a definite period of time beyond their lifetimes thus perceived a permanence. Therefore, they adapted themselves to living in Mitzriyim long-term and were thus vulnerable to Mitzri “encouragement” to melt, to assimilate into Mitzri society, to work for the nation, etc. The B’nai Yisrael began to accumulate wealth, land, assets, material possessions as they grew in numbers from 70 souls to 600,000 during Yaakov’s 17 years in Mitzrayim, as stated in the Judaica Press Chumash volume 3 re: Parsha Vayechi. read more

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Yaakov, The Sh’vatim and The End of Days

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by Moshe Burt — Special Erev Shabbos Edition

This author heard a vort on Parshat Vayechi this past Thursday night at Mishmar which could be understood to amplify on a topic repeated on this blog several times over the past few weeks — that Jewish unity is prerequisite to bringing about a Halachic, Just State of Israel, the prerequisite to bringing about the Geula Shlaima — the Ultimate Redemption.

As he was completing his shiur on Parshat Vayechi, Rabbi Harry Greenspan said over a vort from some 40 years ago in the name of his Rebbe in Yeshiva University, R’Nissan Alpert z’l. R’ Alpert was a Shul Rav on the Lower East Side and gave shiurim at YU. It is said that he was the top Talmid of R’Moshe Feinstein, z’l. read more

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Parsha Vayechi 5770: Battling the Evolution of Enslavement, Persecution

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by Moshe Burt

This author recalls a commentary by the K’li Yekar (Judiaca Press Chumash, Vol.3, page 600) on the first posuk of Parsha Vayechi which is leyned this Shabbos.

The K’li Yekar explains the lack of a space between the end of the previous sedra Vayigash and our parsha as meaning that the two poskim are understood together. The final verse of Vayigash reads;

And Yisrael dwelt in the land of Mitzriyim in the land of Goshen, and they acquired property in it and… multiplied greatly.
 read more

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Parsha Vayigash 5770: Jewish Unity, Critical but Ever Elusive

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by Moshe Burt

Parsha Mikeitz records the whole affair between Yosef and the brothers when they came to Mitzrayim to buy food and were accused by the Viceroy of being spies. We learned how after hearing their story and family history, Yosef demanded that they bring their youngest brother to him and incarcerated Shimon as insurance that the brothers would indeed return with Binyamin, their youngest brother. We learn that in the middle of Parsha Mikeitz, with the imprisonment of Shimon, the brothers recognized and attributed their predicament to the sin they had committed earlier by throwing Yosef into the pit and then selling him to the Mitzriyim. Yosef heard and understood their conversation and left their presence to cry silently. (Perek 42, posukim 21-24) read more

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Parshat Mikeitz/Shabbos Chanukah 5770: Awaiting Hashem’s Miracle Cure for Modern Hellenism

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by Moshe Burt

In previous years, this author wrote about Yosef’s being thrown in a bor (pit) seething with snakes and scorpions — yet emerging unscathed, his being sold, his ensuing journey to Mitzrayim and his slavery, his imprisonment and his liberation and ascendency to the position of Viceroy, second only to Pharoh. And this author wrote a vort based on Jay Shapiro’s book “Almost Midrash.”

Shapiro encorporated the story of Yosef into a fictional story entitled “Duaf of Memphis” and this author dealt with the contrast of Yosef in Mitzrayim, the years after Yosef and the other brothers were niftar, the ensuing long period of cruel bondage; with the persecution and the dialogue of Page 13 A & B of Gemora Megillah Esther (the dialogue between Achashveirosh and Haman resulting in the evil decree against the Jews). The point of the Torah Vort at that time was that with longevity in Shushan and throughout Achashveirosh’s Empire, as in Mitzrayim, the Jews were disparaged as either useless or too powerful. In both cases, the antagonists conveniently forgot about Yosef while the Jews got comfortable, complacent, sought to own property and saw where they were at the time as home, rather than Galut. They then forgot and lost track of who and what they are. read more

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Yehudah & Tamar, Halacha and Justice Minister Yaakov Ne’eman

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Amidst the story of the brothers selling Yosef as a slave, his ending up in Mitzrayim in the home of Pontiphar, his subsequent imprisonment and eventual meteoric rise to the position of Viceroy — 2nd only to Pharoah, is the story, conveyed in thumbnail below, of Yehudah and Tamar.

We learn of Yehudah’s two sons who, unbeknownst to Yehudah, were evil and died after marrying Tamar after which Yehuda promised the 3rd son to Tamar but never delivered. We learn about the veiled Tamar who waited “many days” (Breish’t Perek 38, posuk 12) before hearing that Yehudah, who had been in mourning for the passing of his wife, had shed his mourning clothes and began going to watch the sheepshearers. read more

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Parshat Vayeishev 5770: Yosef and the Brothers vs Hellinistic Israeli Regimes’ War on Yiddishkeit

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by, Moshe Burt

Three years ago, just before Chanukah, a short article appeared on the INN website entitled; “Mortar Shells Filled With Chanukah Light” which told about the Menorah made from some of the spent Islamic mortal shells which were launched on Neve Dekalim over the years.

Reading about this special Menorah which was lit at one of the Jerusalem hotels which temporarily housed many former Neve Dekalim residents, took me back in time to Philadelphia, in “the “old country” and to a point made by Rav Yehoshua Kaganoff about the pit in which Yaakov was thrown. The point bears repeating. read more

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Construction Freeze Lame and False Pledge #2: Bibi: Read My Lips…

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On Thursday, The Jerusalem Post’s first report regarding prime minister Netanyahu’s meeting with Yehuda and Shomron leaders carried these excerpts:

We are not enemies, and if there things that need to be amended – we will fix them, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu was cited by Israel Radio as telling settler leaders, as the two-hour meeting in Tel Aviv on the building moratorium came to its end on Thursday afternoon.

Netanyahu also took great efforts to reassure the Judea and Samaria mayors that the building freeze would not surpass the designated time framework. Read my lips, it will not be longer than 10 months, the prime minister reportedly said. read more

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The Provocation That Islamic, Western and Israeli Leftist Media Gloss Over

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It was reported by Reuters, as well as by Islamic media (thus the deceptive caption atop the video above) that a Jewish driver is being investigated and may be charged with car assault for allegedly “driving over a Palestinian who was lying wounded at a… gas station following an incident in which the settler’s [the driver’s] wife was stabbed.”

The last 1 1/2 lines of the above quote give hint as to the provocation which seems glossed over and which seemingly led the event depicted in this version of the video as shown on Israeli TV as well as in the above video. read more

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