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Rabbi Yehuda {Leonard} Blank MS, BCC
Vice President of Professional Development and External Affairs
Chair of the Chaplaincy Commission
Rabbinical Alliance of America/Igud HaRabbonim
917-446-2126 rablenblank@gmail.com
****May 2nd, 2024, Nisan 24, 5784****
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Pesach the Yom Tov of Customs, Jewish Law and of Freedom.
It is a Yom Tov of Emunah and Bitachon, of Faith and Trust in H.
The explosion of anger, of violence and open words of destruction against the Jewish people, of the USA and Israel is no longer being seen or heard behind closed doors. It is out in the open with those who are in power to take action to stem this terrible hatred are not doing so to quash what is happening at schools of higher learning. On the other hand, there are well known leaders who have taken a strong stand and have spoken out not only against the violence, but in protection of our fellow Jewish men and women who might be in harms way physically or verbally. Our tefilos to Hakadosh Baruch Hu must remain strong for Klal Yisrael throughout the world. Our support for our brethren must be strong and always with sanctity in H making a Kiddush H in whatever we do or say. We must remain united with achdus. We must remember the essence of Am Yisrael Chai, of Chaveirim Kol Yisrael and Shalom Al Yisrael. We must not forget our Torah and most of all, the love the Ribono shel Olam has for us and our love for Him. We must convey the importance to be proud to be a Jew and that no one can ever take our Judaism and our Torah away from us. I want to commend the NYPD requested to bring law and order at Columbia University with tremendous restraints and professionalism under challenging situations.
I have chosen several parts of Reb Reuven Feinstein on the Haggadah by Rabbi Avrohom Meir Weiss. Unger Family Edition Artscroll Series, Mesorah Publications Ltd. to share aspects Klal Yisrael can learn from. I recommend my readership to read all of Reb Reuven Feinstein’s valuable insights and thoughts in his new Haggadah. It includes many fascinating anecdotes about his father, Reb Moshe ztk”l. There is much to gain from this sefer that can be applied throughout the year not just for Pesach.
(Page 92) “Separate from foreign culture and realign with the values of the Torah;
Cease any sinful behavior;
Understand teshuvah-that it is both possible and necessary;
Understand the potential of a Jew;
Begin to perform mitzvos optimally;
Develop to a point where his previous improper actions are not recognizable when looking at him.”
In every society, no matter how much we strive to block it out, the values of the surrounding culture invade the sensitivities of Klal Yisrael, The examples of this are literally too numerous to count. Say a person lives in a place where the sport of boxing is popular. Even if he himself shuns the sport and really has nothing to do with it, the general culture around him will have a certain tolerance for physically hitting another person. And although the sport of boxing does not affect a person on a daily basis, the way society views the hitting of another person does. Slowly, a person’s regard for this kind of behavior shifts from the Torah’s attitude of rasha, lama sakeh rei’echa (Shemos 2:13), which identifies one who strikes his fellow as wicked, to his society’s take on it, which is, “hitting another can, and does, happen in a myriad of different ways. The very fact that we have in our own society the concept of “the American dream,” and how closely we associate this with a real goal is proof positive that we, too, suffer this malady of adopting, by osmosis, the attitude of the culture in which we reside. It becomes impossible to be properly tuned to the Torah when we do not accurately share in how the Torah views the world, and our own lives and goals.
(Page 252) The maror reminds us of the suffering we were subjected to in Mitzrayim at the hands of the Egyptians.
The first fundamental lesson of maror is that the Torah commands us to eat it together with the matzah and the korban pesach. This alludes to the fact that H does not ever do something that is truly “bad.” There is always a greater good, and the maror we experience is to be viewed together with the goodness He provides for us. Because of the maror, H ultimately brought a greater degree of goodness. In Mitzrayim, the avodas perech allowed us to leave 190 years early.
The second lesson from the maror is that the Mishnah (Pesachim 39a) tells us that chazeres is the best type of maror-even though it is not so bitter. Why? To teach us that H does not want us to suffer. If we get the messages He is sending us when the maror is “light,” He will have no need to send stronger messages.
A third lesson from maror is that experiencing hardship gives us the perspective of how good things normally are, which allows us to live with appreciation and purpose.”
(Page 255) In Every Generation, It is One’s Duty to Regard Himself as Though He Personally Had Gone Out of Mitzrayim.”
We must feel as though we ourselves went out of Mitzrayim. This means that we must be ready and eager to leave all influences in our lives that are not from the Torah, but rather from the cultures which surrounds us, and cling only to the Torah.
Additionally, we must feel the same emunah and bitachon that our forefathers did when they actually departed from Mitzrayim, as if all of H’s salvation happened to us.
We must understand that true freedom is the unfettered ability to live with the ideal that is most important to us- the services of H and the observance of His Torah.
(Page 262-263) When Yisrael Went Forth.
It is not only what we need that H gives us. We see from how He treated us in the Wilderness that He also cares about us and wants us to feel comfortable.
Even more so than the makkos, the care He showed for Klal Yisrael in the Wilderness expresses His love for us.
If we read the paragraph of Betzeis Yisrael carefully, we see that it demonstrates a higher degree of care for Klal Yisrael than did the makkos in Mitzrayim. For the idea of the makkos was, primarily, the salvation of Klal Yisrael, and later, the decimation of Pharoh and his country, but the ideas expressed here in Betzeis Yisrael are examples of miracles that H performed for the comfort of Klal Yisrael.
H split the Yam Suf and the Yarden for us, and we were able to walk through on dry land. The mountains that moved from before the Ananei HaKavod cleared the terrain before us as we trekked through the Wilderness, which also allowed for more comfortable travel. And, of course, the Be’er Miriam provided water for us on our journey.
On the surface, it may seem as though these were “extras,” when compared with the redemption from Mitzrayim. Were they really that important?
And the answer is a resounding “Yes!” H made the experience comfortable and beautiful for us. This is the level of care He expresses for His beloved people, and we can ask Him not only to meet our basic needs, but to make it wonderful for us!
(Pages 300-301) I love Him, for H Hears My Voice, My Supplications.
We look back on the aid H has granted us in the past to fortify our belief that He is with us in the present and can save us from our current troubles.
Therefore, we must not panic in situations of peril, but rather, we must recall H’s past kindness towards us, and believe in Him.
The lens through which David HaMelech sees his past salvations, and therefore, continues to have bitachon in the future, is his victories over his enemies. Most of us are not fighting wars, and that sense, may not relate to this. But we all see the salvation of H daily. Especially as an older person who has difficulty with balance I can tell you that there are many times that I see H’s salvation in the fact that I have, bli ayin hara not fallen, or been harmed by a fall.
(Page 322) For Even One of the Thousand Thousand, Thousands of Thousands, and Myriad Myriads of Favors That You Performed.
If H is performing billions of miracles why are we not aware of them?
If we pay attention, we will see that H is with us every second, helping us. And for every miracle we recognize, there are tens of thousands we have not even thought of that are happening all the time.
We proclaim to H that even if we had all of the capabilities this world has to offer, we could not even properly thank Him for a single one of the many miracles He has performed for us and our forefathers. How many? Alef elef alfei alafim is a thousand thousands (one million) multiplied by a thousand (one billion), and again by a thousand, which totals one trillion. And ribel revavos means ten thousand times ten thousand, which equals a hundred million. So, we are saying that H performs an astronomical number of miracles for us. I would challenge the reader to recall the last miracle they witnessed. If there are billions of miracles happening, you should be able to mention one, right? And even though Klal Yisrael’s existence and survival through the ages has been nothing short of miraculous, how many miracles is that? It is surely a lot, nut a million is a big number; and a billion is a very big number, never mind a trillion. So, what does it mean when we say that there are many miracles occurring all the time?”
We are witnessing thousands of young men and women following the directions of foreign ways to the detriment of society. Instead of seeking peace, they are being influenced in harmful ways and sinful behaviors.
We in turn can find goodness even in difficult situations. We can find comfort and happiness with our belief in G. We can find more than one miracle that G does for us every single day and night. We can find goodness and kindness in our fellow Jew from all backgrounds including the unaffiliated. They are our brothers and sisters who we should care about and appreciate. We can shower our brethren with the love of H and our Torah with gentleness and sweetness. We all must do whatever is possible to pray for and protect our fellow Jewish brothers and sisters on the campuses throughout the USA. We must reassure them that they are not alone. Whether they are proudly wearing the Jewish star or as some call it the Star of David, or their Kippah, or their tzitzis or their Jewishness in their hearts, they are our brothers and sisters. We are mispallel that the Ribono shel Olam and our Torah will guide us in the right direction and we will be zoche to continue to see many miracles.
Let us be mispallel to the Ribono shel Olam to continue to be an inspiration and encouragement to all those who seek our advice and guidance as chaplains, rabbis and rebbetzins. To everyone, a listening ear and a shoulder to lean on when appropriate can be of tremendous help.
May we be zoche to the coming of Mashiach Tzedkeinu Bemheirah Beyameinu Amein Selah.
From: The Gentle Weapon
Prayers for Everyday and Not- So- Everyday
Moments
Rebbe Nachman of Breslov
Jewish Lights Publishing
IN THANKS
Loving. Caring G,
all the happiness and fulfillment
in my life
come only from You.
Knowing how absolute
Is my dependence on You
I find peace of mind.
Your presence
suffuses my life,
caressing me with
hope, joy and love.
I’ve tasted your love,
I’ve known Your compassion,
I’ve experienced Your patience
and I am filled with
gratefulness.
Sincerely, Rabbi Yehuda Blank