How did Yaakov make such a fatal step of showing favoritism to Yosef?
ANSWER:
Yosef was entirely deserving because when Yosef demonstrated his concern for the ideals of his family, by supervising the activities of the brothers, and bringing the reports to the father, any accusations or complaints. So Yaakov saw that this was a man who carried the responsibility of the nation on his shoulders; he didn't say it's none of my business.
Yosef was concerned, and even small things, small blemishes he reported to the father in order to make sure that the family remained perfect. When Yaakov saw that Yosef was born for leadership, the true leadership is a man interested in preserving the ideals of our family and our nation, so he gave him a garment of authority. V'asa lo ksones passim, he gave him a varicolored coat, a coat of royalty, to show that he's a leader.
He wanted thereby to arouse competition among the brothers. Kinas sofrim tarbeh chochmo, envy for good things causes wisdom to flourish. Don't teachers l'havdil in the classroom give prizes to children who excel in learning? Because they want others to be envious and to try to outdo this one, and that was Yaakov Avinu's motivation. However, the fact that it backfired is a lesson for us. The Gemara says therefore we learn: never give a gift to any of your children unless you give it to all of them, this we have to learn.
So you people that are young and don't have children, and those of you that have children, don't give any gifts to your children unless everybody gets the same. Now if one child happens to need a bigger gift, tell him to keep his mouth closed. Make him solemnly promise, because it will cause the greatest trouble. Don't think that the other children don't care.
The Gemara says, l'olam al yeshane adam bno bein habonim, never show a preference for one child among the other children. When you give gifts, don't give any gifts or give everybody. And the Gemara says because of that we went into exile. We went down to Egypt because of that, and we have to learn that lesson.
Yaakov didn't have a Chumash yet, we have a Chumash, it's our job to study the Chumash and to benefit by the lessons.
Good Shabbos To All
This is transcribed from questions that were posed to Harav Miller by the audience at the Thursday night lectures. To listen to the audio of this Q & A please dial: 201-676-3210
ועשו סייג לתורה
(Avos 1:1) Make a fence for the Torah
The Torah instructs us (Vayikra 18:30), "You shall safeguard My commandments." Chazal extrapolate from this verse the requirement to make a fence for the Torah. A fence prevents people from trespassing into restricted places. Accordingly, we are commanded to erect barriers lest we come to transgress the Torah commandments.
In Avos D'Rebbi Nosson (chap. 1, 2) this dictum is discussed at length. It enumerates numerous people who made fences to preclude the possibility of transgressing Torah prohibitions. Among those mentioned is Adam Harishon who told Chava that Hashem forbade them not only to eat from the eitz hadaas but also to touch it. He erected a fence lest Chava sin; for if she can't even touch the tree certainly she won't come to eat from its fruit.
Additionally, Avos D'Rebbi Nosson mentions how Chazal erected a fence, as mentioned in the very first mishna of the first Mesechta (Brachos). Although the Torah allows for the mitzvah of reciting the evening krias shema to be fulfilled at any point of the night, Chazal instructed that it be recited before midnight lest one fall asleep and end up not fulfilling the Torah commandment.
It is clear from the fact that both the written Torah and the oral Torah begin with erecting fences, that taking such precautions is an integral part of the Torah. This idea is highlighted through an interesting story recorded in the Gemara (Sukka 52a).
The great Amorah Abaya once overheard a man tell a woman, "Let's get up early tomorrow and set out on our way together." Abaye thought that he had better follow them to prevent any improper behavior and thus he trailed them for three parsaos (about eight miles) until they reached a fork in the road. At that point, they parted ways and one of them mentioned to the other how it's too bad that they have to part ways since the companionship along the rest of the journey would have been enjoyable.
Abaya lamented that had he been in that man's shoes, he would not have overcome the temptation to sin with the woman. Consequently, he was quite despondent until an elderly man informed him that a person's yetzer hara is directly proportionate to his spiritual level. The temptation is larger when the person is greater. Thus, the man who set out on the journey was not as great as Abaye and as a result did not have the powerful yetzer hara that Abaya did. Therefore, it would be a mistake for Abaya to gauge his spiritual level in comparison to this man's behavior.
The phenomenon mentioned by this elderly man, brings us to a very basic question. If the Tannaim and Amoraim had such a tremendous yetzer hara, why don't we find that they ever faltered with illicit relationships? The answer is that they never slipped because they never walked on ice in the first place! Abaya would never have set out on a journey with a woman! The Tannaim and Amoraim all erected fences and guidelines. Their great fear of the slightest possibility of transgressing any sin prompted them to take all necessary precautions.
Rav Wolbe related that when he was learning in the Mirrer Yeshiva in Poland, the bochurim noticed a habit of the Rosh Yeshiva, Harav Eliezer Yehudah Finkel zt"l. He would never walk on the main street in Mir; rather, he preferred taking the side and back streets of the town. Truth be told, in the early twentieth century there was no pritzus even on the main streets of the city. Nevertheless, the Rosh Yeshiva opted for a more circuitous route since he did not want to take even a remote chance of beholding an inappropriate sight.
Every day we beseech Hashem, "Do not place us in a situation where we will be tested." If we are serious about our entreaty, the very least that we should do is to ensure that we do not put ourselves into similar situations.
Ask yourself and answer: Do I daven in a place which is not conducive to speaking to my Creator? Do I work in an office which has pitfalls of kedusha? Do I bring into my house technology or reading material that present a test for members of my household?
והעמידו תלמידים הרבה...
(Avos 1:1) Develop many disciples...
Last week we explained how every single Jew can fulfill Chazal's directive to "develop many disciples" in a passive manner: Through one's behavior, he acts as a teacher to all those who observe him. Yet, there is also an active way of teaching that each of us can employ to educate others.
Chazal make a most intriguing statement about Shlomo Hamelech. The pasuk states (Melachim I, 5:11), "Vayechkam mekol ha'adam - He became wiser than all men" and Chazal explain "Afilu min hashotim" - He even became smarter than the fools. What does this mean? What type of compliment is it to say that he was smarter than imbeciles?
Rav Elchanon Wasserman offers a beautiful explanation of this Chazal. The mishna in Avos (4:1) states, "Who is wise? He who learns from every person." Chazal were revealing to us that even the fools aided Shlomo in becoming more knowledgeable. Accordingly, "Vayechkam mekol ha'adam" should be translated in a very literal way: "He became wiser from every man." Every person has a unique facet to his personality that can be used to enlighten mankind, and thus Shlomo gathered wisdom even from the fools.
If even fools have something to teach, then every person who was granted intellect certainly has something to offer others. Just as Hashem grants a person monetary affluence to enable him to help others by dispensing charity, likewise, Hashem's gifts of good middos, talents, knowledge and areas of expertise were given to a person for a similar reason. In light of this idea, the Anshei Keneses HaGadolah are instructing us, "Develop many disciples" i.e. share your talents with others, thereby providing as many people as you can with added utensils for their avodas Hashem.
Reb Nochum Stillerman Shlit"a, is known as "the man with the plan" (as dubbed by Rav Yissachor Frand Shlit"a at the Twelfth Siyum Hashas). Not only did he map out a twenty three year plan for finishing Shas with five chazaros, he has a systematic plan for just about everything he does. He worked as a fundraiser for many years and he raised nearly half a billion dollars during his career.
One day he was stopped in his tracks by Mrs. Wolfson (wife of renowned Reb Zev z"l). She bluntly reminded him that all his talents and know-how will we buried along with him after 120 unless he begins teaching others the tricks of the trade. Since then, he has been teaching his fundraising methods to community kollels and numerous other organizations. There could be no better use of one's talents than to transmit them to others in a way that enables them to increase the glory of Hashem.
If a person's informing others of his techniques will detract from his ability to support his family, then he certainly has no obligation to pass on such information. However, often one only stands to gain from teaching others the tricks of the trade. Any growth in avodas Hashem that is achieved through his instruction gets accrued to his account.
Rav Wolbe would cite the Chovos Halevovos' analogy to two merchants who bought shoes for ten dollars. The first merchant sold one pair of shoes for a hundred dollars, netting a sizable profit of ninety dollars. The second merchant sold each pair of shoes for a mere twenty dollars, but he sold thousands of pairs thereby netting a profit far greater than his counterpart. Likewise, one who invests only in himself will net a sizable reward, yet it doesn't begin to compare to the reward merited by one who also helps others grow in their avodas Hashem. Could there be a better investment than that?
Ask yourself and answer: What unique talents or knowledge did Hashem grant me? How can I dispense this information to others and thereby aid them in their ruchniyos?
How can we apply the Mizmor Shir to our own experiences in our own lives?
ANSWER:
And you have to know that this question demonstrates the necessity of this lesson. The fact that you are able to come here, is enough reason why you should say a Mizmor Shir.
Can’t you recall people of your own age who are not able to come here? Who will never able to come anywhere? On every level of our lives - boys, young men, middle age - some people have been left behind. Death always claims victims at every age level, and you survived. So you could sayl’Dovid Hashem heolisa misheol nafshi, You took my life out of the grave.
So what’s your job from now on? This is the job: you have to apply yourself to the great career of Hashem Elokei l’oilam odeka. If you want a concrete method, every time you walk in to a synagogue, or you walk into a yeshiva - you think a yeshiva is a place where you learn gemara… sure it is! But first and foremost, the yeshiva is a place to thank Hakadosh Baruch Hu for what He did for you, that you are alive.
Gemara is nothing but a song, it’s a song of gratitude to Hashem. Mizmor shir, it’s a song. Zemiros huyou li chukecha, your laws are songs of gratitude, that’s how to understand a Yeshiva. Don’t get lost in the details! Rav Simcha Zisel said, learn to be mafshit es hatzura, learn to take off the externalities and see the heart of the thing.
You come into a shul. Well a shul is to daven, you have to put on a tallis and tefillin, you have to say things… And so remember first and foremost, you know what a shul is for! Hashem I thank You. In case you don’t know the meaning of the words, or if you do know the meaning, it’s saying over and over again in many variations, I thank you Hashem. Modeh ani l’fanecha, that you gave me life today, and You gave me all the wherewithals of life.
Therefore it’s not difficult for us to find reasons why we should follow the same system as Dovid.
Good Shabbos To All
לעילוי נשמת אבי מורי זאב בן אברהם יהודה
This is transcribed from questions that were posed to Harav Miller by the audience at the Thursday night lectures.
To listen to the audio of this Q & A please dial: 201-676-3210
והעמידו תלמידים הרבה...
(Avos 1:1) Develop many disciples...
This piece of advice is practical for a Rabbi or Rebbi. How does it apply to a person who spends his days in the workforce or even a fellow learning in Kollel? How are they expected to find disciples to teach and develop? The same question can be asked regarding our impassioned entreaty in birchos Krias Shema where we ask Hashem to give us insight, "to understand, comprehend, hear, learn and teach." Who exactly is the average Jew expecting to teach that should warrant his praying to this end on a daily basis?
There are two practical ways for every person to fulfill this dictum of the Anshei Kenesses HaGedolah; one passively and the other actively. We will first discuss the passive mode of teaching. Even without doing anything out of the ordinary a person has the ability to teach others, since his actions speak volumes.
The story is related of a Jew in Haifa who passed by a billboard and instinctively turned his head so as not to behold an indecent picture. He then quickly made his way into the nearby Beis Hamedrash. A nonreligious fellow Jew beheld the sight and was stunned by the man's reflex reaction. "How could it be that I live for staring at these indecent sights, and here is someone who has no interest in them at all? It must be that what he has, gives him even greater pleasure than staring at the billboard" he mused. He followed the man into the Beis Hamedrash; a move which turned out to be the first step in the process of turning around his life and becoming religious.
Did the Jew know that by not looking at the billboard he was teaching someone? No. He did not know then and, quite possibly, he will not find out until he reaches the Heavenly Tribunal and they reward him for causing a fellow Jew to return to his Maker. All the mitzvos done by this Baal Teshuva and his offspring will be credited (to a certain extent) to the account of this unassuming fine Yid. Rav Wolbe (Alei Shur vol. II p. 201) relates a similar story of a man who was inspired to become religious due to the cheerful smile and good morning wishes offered to him daily by the only religious man in his community.
The truth is that behaving in a way that teaches others the beauty of the ways of the Torah is the ultimate achievement. As mentioned in the final mishna in Pirkei Avos, everything in the world was created to give glory to Hashem. Accordingly, man was placed in this world with a mission of enhancing Hashem's glory on Earth. When someone observes a person who behaves in a refined manner, he perceives in his behavior an expression of godliness that reveals the Creator of the world. Chazal relate a case in point:
Rebbi Shimon ben Shatach once bought a donkey from an Arab. After bringing it home, his disciples noticed a precious gem hanging from its neck and they happily informed their Rebbi about the tremendous blessing that Hashem bestowed upon him. Rebbi Shimon ben Shatach responded, "I bought a donkey, not a precious gem" and proceeded to return the gem to the donkey's original owner. When the gem was returned to the original owner the Arab exclaimed, "Blessed is the G-d of Shimon ben Shatach!" (Devarim Rabbah 3:3)
Why did the Arab bless Hashem? Shimon ben Shatach was the one who returned the stone to the Arab and he should have been the one to get the credit? The answer is that his actions revealed the Creator, because such a deed could only have been executed if there is a Creator to Whom Shimon ben Shatach was totally committed.
Indeed, each and every one of us is a teacher. We teach via the way that we behave in our house, in our shul and in the office. This mishna is instructing us to act in a way that has the ability to produce many disciples. One's behavior should exude spiritual refinement to the point that people will be able to recognize the Creator through his actions.
Ask yourself and answer: Is my behavior at home a good example for my children? Are my attendance at davening and my learning sessions a model for those looking to grow in their avodas Hashem? Has my conduct in the workplace enhanced Hashem's glory in the eyes of my colleagues? Does the way that I walk down the street or drive my car prompt people to exclaim (see Yoma 86a), "Praiseworthy is his Rebbi who taught him Torah?"
Why was there so much turbulence in Yaakov's life?
ANSWER:
Why is there so much turbulence inside of a washing machine? If there wasn't turbulence, then your clothes would come out the same as when you put them in, but because there is turbulence in the washing machine the clothes come out white. You have to be tumbled; and that's what's good for us, we are tumbled in life in order to make us better.
You know what Yaakov accomplished? When Yaakov was in his father's house he was sitting in tranquility. He certainly was making progress. Even his mother was a great Rosh Yeshiva, he learned from his mother too; there was a lot to learn from his mother. Shma b'ni mussar avicha v'al titosh toras imecha, don't forsake the teachings of your mother! He had a great mother and he learned from her.
He also learned from Shem v'Ever, a great Yeshiva, fourteen years. But you know when he came out of Lavan's house, he was the best that he ever was. Lavan's yeshiva was the very best place, because in Lavan's yeshiva he's being tumbled, he's subject to a turbulent environment. The trouble with Lavan made him great.
It says Vayhi li shor v'chamor tzon v'eved v'shifcha. When he came out of Lavan's house he had a shor, that's bchor shoro hadar lo, that's Yosef, the chamor, that's moshiach, oni v'rochev al chamor, tzon, is tzon Yisroel, eved, Moshe Rabbeinu eved Hashem, shifcah, that's Rus l'bais Dovid, all these great things happened to him because he was in the house of Lavan. He took the drubbing that Lavan gave him, he took the difficulties of Lavan's character, and he utilized them to become great.
He said everything is for the good. When he was in Lavan's difficult house and he served Lavan, bchol kochi avadti es avichen, with all my koach I served you, by day and by night, in the heat of summer or the cold of the winter, he took it because he knew Hakadosh Baruch Hu was giving him the best, that's why he became the best.
Don't think Yaakov was unhappy, he wasn't unhappy, he enjoyed the difficulty, he rose to meet the challenge, and he conquered. Ki sarisa im elokim anashim, you conquered, elokim means the yetzer horah, anashim, and you conquered men, that's Eisav and Lavan, vatuchal, and you won out. And that's why you're called Yisroel, because you utilized the difficult circumstances and you became great.
Therefore whatever happened to Yaakov was for Yaakov's benefit. But above all realize, Yaakov understood it; Yaakov knew it. He realized it and therefore got the full benefit.
Good Shabbos To All
This is transcribed from questions that were posed to Harav Miller by the audience at the Thursday night lectures. To listen to the audio of this Q & A please dial: 201-676-3210
(א', א') ונביאים מסרוה לאנשי כנסת הגדולה. הם אמרו שלשה דברים: הוי מתונים בדין...
The Prophets transmitted [the Torah] to the Men of the Great Assembly. They said three things: "Be deliberate in judgment..."
Regarding the necessity to proceed slowly in avodas Hashem, Rav Wolbe would quote Rav Dessler who compared the Yetzer Hara to a spring. If one pushes down slightly there will be no abrupt reaction when he lets go, but if he pushes down too hard, then when he lets go it will spring back in his face. In this regard, I once heard a story from a well known Rav.
There was a boy who spent his days in Yeshiva clowning around. One day he took his life into his hands and decided that he was going to get serious about his learning. The next morning he came into the Beis Medrash and learned for the entire seder (learning session). The same scene repeated itself during the afternoon and evening sedarim. At the end of the day, the Mashgiach of his Yeshiva called the boy into his office. When the boy entered, the venerable Mashgiach turned to him and said, "Grow up!"
Here is a boy who finally began to take his attendance in Yeshiva seriously and after the very first day of his turnaround his Mashgiach buries him! What was the Mashgiach thinking? The answer is that the Mashgiach understood human nature while the boy did not. Maturing does not mean seriously altering one's conduct in a split second. There is no way that someone who habitually wasted day after day could possibly turnaround 180 degrees in a single night. Thus, realistically, there was no way that the boy's well meaning decision could last.
Moreover, such behavior could backfire and leave the boy wounded to the point where he might possibly never want to open a sefer again for the rest of his life. A day or two later after the inspiration begins to wane he might think to himself, "Hey, I really tried and it simply did not go." Consequently, he would conclude that obviously learning is just not for him, and permanently leave the Beis Medrash in search of other pastures.
In this regard Rav Wolbe would cite the pasuk, "A man's foolishness corrupts his way, and his heart rages against Hashem" (Mishlei 19:3). The Gra explains that sometimes people try advancing in their avodas Hashem and when they are unsuccessful they blame Hashem for not aiding them in achieving their goals. "Doesn't Hashem see I'm trying so hard to do His will? Why doesn't He help me?" they grumble. However, the fault is no one's but their own. They proceeded too quickly, and thus as they tried bounding up the ladder of avodas Hashem two steps at a time they ended up falling through the rungs. The proper way to advance in avodas Hashem is slowly but surely.
Rav Wolbe gave classes in Torah hashkafa to nonreligious Jews on various occasions (which he subsequently compiled and published as a sefer called Bein Sheishes La'Asor). After delivering one such class to a group of generals in the Israeli Army, someone asked him how it went. "They are already all wearing tefillin" he responded wryly. Rav Wolbe was not a sarcastic type of person, but he felt the need to convey this most important message: Real change does not happen in a single day, and one should not expect to see a difference after a single class.
Although I have not been able to verify this story, the lesson is certainly apropos for Rav Wolbe who would often say that there are no crash courses in Yiddishkeit.
The truth is that this idea is stated quite succinctly by the Torah. The Leviim were required to train for five years before beginning the avodah in the Bais Hamikdosh. Chazal deduce from this directive that five years is ample time to master a vocation. Accordingly, they conclude that a disciple who studies Torah for the duration of five years and sees no success in his learning, should opt for a profession instead of learning Torah full time. Chazal felt that a few months, or even a few years, was not enough time to gauge a person's success. They didn't give up until five years of continuous effort failed. Yet, we often decide after a few weeks of unsuccessfully trying to master a middah to throw in the towel?!
Ask yourself and answer: Does failure in the realm of avodas Hashem cause me to give up? Do I really put in all my effort when trying to improve my middos? What was the longest amount of time that I spent attempting to advance in any single area of Yiddishkeit? Am I expecting too much of myself?
The Philistines that robbed the wells, what does that story tell us?
ANSWER:
It's a prophecy; our forefathers lived prophecy. They didn't speak prophecy, but they lived the prophecy.
The prophecy was that we would come to countries and we would invest our efforts to build up those countries, to build up their commerce, industry, and even sciences, but we should know that eventually it's not for us. The goyim will come and seize it from us. As we did in Germany, in France, and in Spain, and other countries, and finally they expel the Jews, and all their efforts that they expended for their country were lost to them.
And so the Philistines seized the wells that were dug by the Avos, to show us that portent.
Good Shabbos To All
This is transcribed from questions that were posed to Harav Miller by the audience at the Thursday night lectures.
To listen to the audio of this Q & A please dial: 201-676-3210
ANSWER:
Now I am not a man of deep reasons, so I have to tell you shallow reasons.
The reason for burying the dead is to show respect for the body; that we shouldn't see how a body decays, and I'll explain that briefly. The yesod of all our emunah is Olam Habah - we're here to prepare for the next world. Olam hazeh domeh l'prosdor b'fnei Haolam Habah, this world is just a vestibule to prepare for the world to come.
Now, it's easy to say these words. With some effort it's not too difficult to have this belief in Olam Habah, but one of the things that explodes this belief is when you see a dead body. A dead body is like a punch in the eyes. It's difficult. If you see a dead body of somebody you knew, chalila lo aliechem you see him dead, it's a convulsion, it's like a collapse of your emunah of Olam Habah. He's dead! Like this you think he's alive, when the time comes he'll walk across the boundary, he may even skip and jump across the boundary into the Next World and he'll go on living a happy life there. But now you see it's not so, he's dead.
Death is the biggest contradiction to the emunah. Of course it's nothing, death is merely taking off the old overcoat and putting it down here, whereas the person who wore the overcoat now keeps on walking. When the spring comes you take off your old overcoat and you walk into the street without an overcoat. So what happened? You're certainly the same person, the overcoat remained behind; but that needs seichel.
But if you look at a dead body, it's hard for your seichel if it's weak, to overcome that, especially if the dead body decays. As long as the dead body is lying there and it looks nice, so you could still think that maybe he's asleep! But after a while you are reminded by the odor, by the decay, that it's nothing but garbage now. Oh, that's a tragedy to the emunah, the little bit of emunah that most people have crumbles away under the onslaught of death. That's why quickly, kovod hameis, the honor of the dead body means, the honor of the living people. As soon as possible put him underground, bury him. Get him out of sight, immediately, because a dead body is a lie! A dead body teaches the untruth.
You know there is mus and mush (מות או מוש), mus means to die and mush means to move away, lo yomushu mipicha. Mush means to move away, that's all it is, it's only moving. But when you see mus, you don't think about mush anymore, about moving out of the world, you think that's it. Therefore we hurry and bury him, get the lie out of sight, because it's false. When a man sees too much he stops seeing the truth, sometimes seeing too much makes you oblivious of the truth, and therefore as soon as possible get him out of sight. Always keep in mind the picture of the meis as he was when you saw him lying peacefully, as if he were asleep, he even had red cheeks maybe.
Get him out of sight quickly before he changes, and you'll always remember him as he was before he decayed. That's how you should remember him, because that's important for the emunah, and that's why kevurah is important.
Good Shabbos To All
This is transcribed from questions that were posed to Harav Miller by the audience at the Thursday night lectures. To listen to the audio of this Q & A please dial: 201-676-3210
If a yeshiva man is sitting on a crowded bus and an elderly priest or nun is standing, should he get up and give them his seat?
ANSWER:
I say yes, and I'll tell you why. The mitzvah of kiddush Hashem is a priceless mitzvah, and you're going to get in return a lot of goodwill from the world. When you stand up for somebody who has a good excuse to get your seat, he's elderly, so forget about the fact that he represents avodah zara, he represents errors. Still you do it because you want to uphold the banner of kavod Shamayim. It's a smart thing always.
That's why I always say, if you're in a subway and a panhandler gets on with small glasses and a tin cup, and he's looking through the glasses to see who's a good customer, and nobody does anything, nobody even responds with a penny. You take out one penny, not more, make sure it's a penny, and drop it in the cup with the loudest possible clink, and lean back and bask in the glances of everybody in the car. Everybody is admiring you now, especially if you have a beard, a black hat, or a yarmulke, that penny has earned you a thousand dollars in kavod Shamayim. Don't drop in more than one penny however, unless one cannot make enough noise, then you should do it. Kavod Shamayim is too precious an opportunity to let go by.
I once saw on Church Avenue, there was a panhandler walking by and nobody stopped. A poor little Bais Yaakov girl fourteen years old stopped, she took out her little purse and she dropped something in his cup, it made a very big hit. In the big crowded street, nobody stopped except one little Bais Yaakov girl. Whether she should've done it or not, but it made a kiddush Hashem, and it was worth the money. You should always keep in mind to look for opportunities.
That's why frum Jews should always show that they are patriots. Frum Jews at every occasion should try to do things that will make the world approve of you.
Good Shabbos To All
This is transcribed from questions that were posed to Harav Miller by the audience at the Thursday night lectures. To listen to the audio of this Q & A please dial: 201-676-3210
Was Lot a tzaddik? If he was, then wasn't he just as good when he left Avrohom?
ANSWER:
Lot was a great tzaddik even when he left of Avrohom, no question about it. You know that when Lot went to Sodom, and the malochim came to him and Lot welcomed them into his home, he was risking his life! He was a big tzaddik. Would you risk your life for hachnasas orchim? Lot did it! But you have to know even the greatest tzaddik, when he takes a step in the wrong direction, we don't care what he is, we look where he's headed too.
You know, there are a lot of people who are not frum, not religious, not observant, but they are on the way in. There are a lot of people that are observant but they are on the way out. And Hakadosh Baruch Hu is going to judge a man for the direction where his nose is pointing. Here is an Orthodox man with two long payos, with a kapoto. He looks like a real, genuine chossid, but his wife tells me that he's on the way out. Here is a young boy, doesn't know anything yet, he just put on a yarmulke, he walked in from the street, but his heart is turning towards Hashem; he's on the way in. Now if they would be matched together, he's a nobody, he doesn't know a thing! This man is knowledgeable, this man practices everything, this boy comes from a home where nothing is practiced, he barely keeps kashrus.
No. It depends in which direction you're headed, the man who's headed to Hakadosh Baruch Hu, that's the one who's going to be chosen. Everything depends on the direction where a man is headed.
Good Shabbos To All
This is transcribed from questions that were posed to Harav Miller by the audience at the Thursday night lectures. To listen to the audio of this Q & A please dial: 201-676-3210
When we speak about the great blessings of rain, shouldn't a person be happy over the rain on those days when it rains only when everybody is at home late at night?
ANSWER:
Certainly. When it rains at a time when people must travel, we sympathize with them; however the phenomenon of rain is always an opportunity to utilize. When the rain comes pouring down, we shouldn't let that opportunity go, no matter when it happens. Of course we're happier when it happens at night. When the rain comes down everybody should realize that it's a miracle that's taking place, only because he is habituated to it, that he doesn't see the miracle. Rain is no less a miracle than mon falling from the sky.
Do you know what rain is? Rain is seawater. Seawater is bitter, it's full of chemicals, iodine and salt, and other chemicals. It's brackish, it's full of infusoria* of microscopic organisms, and now it has turned into pure clear water, and the system is distillation. A marvelous system. Hakadosh Baruch Hu doesn't raise water from the oceans in the form of a liquid, it's transformed into a gas. And when it becomes a gas, water vapor, it leaves behind all the impurities. That's one of the great manifestations of Hakadosh Baruch Hu's perfect plan. As the water rises to the clouds, it's already cleansed of all the impurities.
Actually when you drink water, it's a good chance it was already urinated by somebody else. You're drinking water that was part of somebody's body. He died and the liquids passed into the atmosphere and it became rain.
We are drinking the same water that was drunk before, a thousand years ago, over and over. There is no new water, no new water comes on this globe; all the water is reused constantly. And so certainly the water was once in a dead elephant, the water was once swamps, whatever it is, when the water rises to the sky it's purified and it starts its career all over again. That's one of the miracles of rain.
When it's in the clouds how does it come down? How do you get it from the clouds to come down here? It's such a simple matter, people think they understand it. But when it does come down, it comes down exactly in the right size drops. If it would come down in big globs, it would break the crops and injure people! A big glob of water falling from a big height is almost like a stone, but it falls in tiny raindrops.
It's remarkable how useful the rainfall is in this method. It's harmless, and it comes down and gives the benefit without doing any damage.
There is a lot to think about in this phenomenon of rain, and just to stare at the rain through the windows on a rainy day is a good deed. It makes you aware of the abundance, the bounty of the Creator.
Good Shabbos To All
*FYI: Infusoria is a collective term for minute aquatic creatures.
This is transcribed from questions that were posed to Harav Miller by the audience at the Thursday night lectures. To listen to the audio of this Q & A please dial: 201-676-3210
ANSWER:
And this I'll answer as follows. At first you have to be a hypocrite. You have to do it superficially; you have to say the words. And that's what we do when we daven, we're talking to Hashem but actually, korov Ata b'fihem vrochok m'kilyoseihem,the Navi said, You are close in their mouths but You're far away from their kidneys. Which means You're far away from their insides. That's the truth. That's what davening is. It's only if a man sincerely embarks on a career of learning to speak to Hashem that his davening finally becomes meaningful. After a while when he says Ato, he feels he's talking to Somebody. When that great day comes, you have arrived.
And so, first you're superficial, you're a hypocrite. Of course it's a good hypocrisy; you're doing it to train yourself. You talk to Hashem, and you say "I thank you Hashem that You have made me healthy." When you see a man hopping in the street with one empty trouser's leg, with crutches, and you have two good legs, you have to stop and think: Baruch Ato Hashem that I have two legs. You see a man walking on the street and oneempty sleeve pinned to his pocket, you have to thank Hakadosh Baruch Hu that you have two.
And so little by little you get accustomed to saying the words, and after a while you're going to feel that there's Somebody actually listening, that the Mesillas Yeshorim says.
At first you say it, and after a while the realization enters your mind, because you have an instinct that all human beings have, that Hashem actually is there and is listening.
Gmar Chasima Tova To All
An extra moment with Rabbi Miller
I would tell you, if you're a frum Jew, walk into a fruit store and stand there for three minutes, and look around and let your eyes drink in the glories of Hashem's summer. While you're there, take out your hand and bang yourself on the breast, don't care that they're looking at you.
Ashamnu, bogadnu, gozalnu...aah ribono shel olam..look what You're doing for me, I repent...
I am going to keep my mouth closed and watch what I am saying
I won't waste my evening's anymore
I am going to go to shiurim, and on Shabbos I am going to come to learn in the afternoon instead of sleeping all day in bed
I am going to give more tzdoko
I am going to keep my mouth closed when I get home and not to bother my wife when she's in the kitchen
I won't talk loshon hora on my neighbors
I'm going to be mekayeim mitzvos with more zrizus
I'll daven with more kavana
All of those things you can say as a result of v'achalta v'savata, that's what it's intended for
This is transcribed from questions that were posed to Harav Miller by the audience at the Thursday night lectures. To listen to the audio of this Q & A please dial: 201-676-3210
The summertime precedes the Yom Hadin; it precedes Rosh Hashana. Why wasn't Rosh Hashana at Pesach time, or at Chanuka time, or in middle of the winter, asara b'teives, the cold months? That's a wonderful time for teshuva! Nobody's interested in the streets, and traveling to the mountains. It's cold outside, everyone is indoors; they come hear droshos in a warm building. That's the most suitable time it seems for repentance!
ANSWER:
Hakadosh Baruch Hu is the architect who planned this universe according to the Torah, and therefore He made Rosh Hashana follow the summer. Just when you took in all of your crops, just at a time when everything is ripe, and you study the greatness of Hashem, and now is the very best time to do teshuva.
I'll repeat what I told you recently. You know Elul, up till recently, was considered the month of teshuva. Elul was the month which the Jewish nation utilized to prepare for Rosh Hashana. Today they prepare for Rosh Hashana, Rosh Hashana evening. A frum Jew is mehareir b'tshuva when he has to go to maariv on Rosh Hashana. If he has good sense, before he leaves the house he says to his wife, "Forgive me for everything…" and she says to him, "Forgive me too for everything..." By the way it's a good idea, only the wise people did it a little earlier.
The Alter of Slabodka in the middle of the month of Av, he forsook his beloved Yeshiva of Slabodka where he was the mentor, he was the teacher, and he went to his old 'alma mater' so to speak, in Kelm. Kelm was the source of the old balei mussar. And he sat there as a disciple. He was an old man, but he sat as a disciple for the half month of Av, preparing for Elul! Because Av is the glorious month of happiness which is suited forteshuva.
The highest teshuva is the teshuva when people can see the hand of Hashem, when it's most active, when it's most bounteous, when the cornucopia of Hashem's blessings is shedding all of the happiness upon mankind. People may not think so, because they are accustomed to griping all the time, and complaining "it's hot", and they talk to each other about their sufferings, and the heat wave and so on.
Each heat wave causes nature to make another spurt. The apples are baking on the trees; you don't have to bake the apples, they are baked already by the time you buy them. They are being baked by the summer heat. You don't complain when your wife is baking a cake, look how hot it is! You can't bake a cake in the refrigerator; you can't bake apples in the wintertime! You have to bake apples in the summertime. Hakadosh Baruch Hu isbaking the apples, He's baking everything else, enjoy it.
Landlords don't have to pay for oil in the summertime, and most dentists have less business, because there are no tooth aches in the summertime, people don't go to the dentist because of good sense, they go when there is a toothache, and in summertime toothaches are more rare. Arthritis sufferers enjoy the summer sun, it bakes their old bones and it makes them happy.
Therefore, summer is a time for gratitude, the summer also is a time where all nature is alive, and therefore that's the time to do teshuva. It's a new idea, but it's an old idea, it's Hakadosh Baruch Hu's idea, and that was His purpose at the beginning of the world.
Good Shabbos To All
This is transcribed from questions that were posed to Harav Miller by the audience at the Thursday night lectures.
To listen to the audio of this Q & A please dial: 201-676-3210
Parshas Nitzavim - Vayeilech
Starting at the Finish Line
By Rabbi Yaakov Wolbe
"Giving up smoking is the easiest thing in the world. I know because I've done it thousands of times." - Mark Twain
Is it easy to change behavior? Is it easy to repent? In Parshas Nitzavim we see conflicting stances on this matter. In one verse (30:2), repentance is described in a similar way to martyrdom: "And you shall return (repent) to Hashem your God, and you shall hearken to his voice as all that I command you today, you and your sons, with all your hearts and with all your soul." Reb Chaim Volozhiner notes the overlapping word usage with the verse in Shema, "And you shall love Hashem your God... with all your soul", which Chazal explain to mean that we must even forfeit our lives for the love of our Creator. By utilizing the same verbiage for repentance, the verse is hinting that changing behavior and adopting a new way of life is akin to the ultimate self-sacrifice. Walking away from ingrained character and behavior demands similar courage, resolve and intestinal fortitude as allowing oneself to die for God. Apparently, repentance is pretty hard. That sentiment is likely shared by those who are intimidated by the myriad components and draconian conditions necessary for complete repentance of Rambam's "Laws of Repentance" and Rabbeinu Yonah's "Gates of Repentance."
Contrast that with a string of verses (30:11-14) later on in the chapter, describing an inordinately easy mitzvah: "This mitzvah that I command you today - it is not hidden from you, nor is it distant. It is not in the Heavens that you may say, 'who will ascend to Heaven, and take it for us, and teach it to us, so that we may do it'. Nor is it across the sea that we may say, 'who will cross the sea for us, and take it for us, and teach it to us, so that we may do it'. Rather, the matter is exceedingly close to you, in your mouth and in your heart to do it." While the verses themselves do not explicitly identify which mitzvah is being referenced, the great commentaries do. Rashi explains that it refers to the mitzvah of Torah. Ramban disagrees and interprets the verse to be referring to the mitzvah of repentance. How can we understand labeling repentance as being so easy - "In your mouth and in your heart"? Also, how can it simultaneously be exceedingly difficult?
Another point to ponder is the characterization (30:6) of repentance as "circumcision of the heart." What is intended by this odd classification?
What is the essence of repentance? There is a misconception that repentance is exclusively sin-centric: To repent you must act in opposition to the sin. My grandfather, Rabbi Shlomo Wolbe זצוקללה"ה, explained that this was precisely the miscalculation of the ma'apilim (Bamidbar 14:44), the Jews that defiantly attempted to ascend to Israel after the Almighty decreed that the nation will languish in the wilderness for 40 years due to the sin of the Spies, only to be slaughtered by Amalek. Their decision was not without reason. They assessed that the core of the sin of the Spies was resistance to enter the Land of Israel and even proposing to return to Egypt (14:4), and therefore attempting to enter Israel in disregard of the entailed dangers can be the only remedy. But they were mistaken. Repentance, Teshuva, means to return to the Almighty and to His Will. At that time His Will mandated that they remain in the wilderness for 40 years, and thus accepting that was the correct avenue to repentance. My grandfather would also invoke this notion with regard to the repentance of Rosh Hashana. The days of Rosh Hashana make up the first two of the "Ten Days of Repentance" yet unlike Yom Kippur, there is nary a mention of sin. At its root, repentance is returning to your Creator. On Rosh Hashana that is manifest by us coronating Him as King of the world, and on Yom Kippur the same objective is approached from a different angle by addressing sin.
Given that repentance is about man achieving closeness to his Creator, the process of repentance is bridging the gap between man and the Almighty, between the created and the Creator. Hence, the degree of difficulty in achieving it is contingent upon the distance between the two. In essence, the question of, "Is repentance easy or hard?" is precisely the same question as, "Is man close or distant from the Almighty?" The answer to the latter question hinges upon which of the disparate elements of man is being referenced. The "body" of man, the physicality, the ephemeral - has no commonality with the Almighty. However, our Neshama (Soul) is very similar to its Creator. In one teaching in the Talmud (Brachos 10a), five parallels between the Almighty and the Neshama of man are enumerated; another (Niddah 30b) plainly equates the purity of the two. As such, we indeed have an element of our being that is already extremely close to the Almighty and thus repentance for it is natural and seamless.
With this understanding, the conflicting messages about the difficulty of repentance can be reconciled. It is true that repentance is really difficult. By default we identify as an ephemeral body, and in that state repentance is unachievable. To repent we must shed ourselves clean of that attitude and identity. That is a painful process, akin to martyrdom. However, once we identify as our true and lasting element of self, our Neshama, we are already in close proximity to our Creator, and have achieved repentance. This process is illustrated by the circumcision of the heart. We already have everything that is needed to be close to the Almighty, it is just concealed. All we must do to reach our goal is to peel away the inhibiting factors, and reveal our true self that was all ready to go, lying dormant and awaiting liberation.
This is a helpful and heartening thought to take with us during the season of repentance. It is very difficult to repent. But it is comforting to know that all we are really doing is clearing out the path for our true self to shine. It may be back-breaking labor to dig out buried treasure, but it's made easier knowing that the treasure is there, and it is complete, and once it is unearthed it's yours.
Note: Bais HaMussar would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to Rabbi Yitzchok Caplan for his many years of writing the weekly dvar Torah! We wish you much hatzlacha in all your endeavors! Henceforth, the dvar Torah will be written by Rabbi Yaakov Wolbe, Houston, TX.
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Those of us who were fortunate enough to spend time in a yeshiva invariably encountered a grave problem. The greatest mitzvah of all is the study of Torah and it is the sole occupant of a yeshiva curriculum. Students are expected to spend double-digit hours poring over Talmud, probing and pondering its depths. What happens when someone does not feel motivated or inspired to study? Worse, the study becomes cumbersome instead of novel, the Torah stale instead of enlightening. What can be done to ensure that Torah study is full of passion and zest?
Perhaps we can suggest a solution to this problem from our Parsha. Immediately prior to the outlining of the Blessings for those that uphold the Torah and Curses for those who reject it, we find a puzzling verse: "Moshe, the Kohanim the Levites spoke to all of Israel saying 'hearken and listen O Israel, on this day you became a nation for Hashem your God'." The Talmud (Brachos 63b), asks the obvious question. This statement was said forty years after the Exodus, and thus forty years after the formation of the nation. It would seem inaccurate to label that day as when the nation was founded. The Talmud answers that we should strive to maintain the same joy and vibrancy studying Torah every day as if it were the first day that we received it. There is some formula through which the inspiration and joy of Torah does not dissipate. When we approach Torah study today, it is possible to recapture what it would be like to study Torah at Sinai the very day Torah was given. Thus the verse's words "on this day you became a nation" can indeed be true 40 or even 3000 years after Sinai.
The Talmud reveals the secret formula with a surprising insight: For someone who studies Torah every day, the Torah is as fresh and beloved to him as the day it was given at Sinai. Daily, ongoing, committed action of engaging with Torah is the secret to assuring that the transcendental experience of Torah as it was given Sinai is perpetuated. The Talmud proceeds further by saying that if someone recites the Shema twice daily for years, but neglects to say it one day, it is as if he never said Shema in his life. This too follows the same principle that ironclad commitment makes what could be a daily ritual come to life. Someone who neglects the Shema for even a day displays a lack of commitment that reveals that even the preceding recitations were just that, recitations wholly devoid of meaning. The study of Torah when coupled with inflexible commitment will result in capturing the experience at Sinai with its unbridled joy. (This would also explain the verse's juxtaposition to the Blessings and Curses. The Blessings are a form of adding commitment to the relationship formed at Sinai. It is a deepening of the binds that connect us to Torah. It is thus apropos to teach us the insight of maintaining the newness of Torah immediately prior to showing how it is done.)
In a particularly dramatic and striking anecdotes found in Chazal, the Midrash describes a scene at the bris of Elisha Ben Avuya (later derogatorily dubbed "Acher", a great scholar who abandoned Torah). Present at the bris were the greatest men of Jerusalem, including Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Yehoshua. Amid the festivities, Rabbi Eliezer said to Rabbi Yehoshua, "these are engaging in their craft, and these are engaging in theirs, let us engage in ours (let us study Torah)", and they proceeded to study Torah. The Midrash depicts the scene: The words of Torah were "as joyous as when they were given at Sinai, and a ring of fire enveloped them (as occurred at Sinai)." These great rabbis indeed succeeded in studying Torah as if they were present at Sinai, as the Talmud says is possible. And here too the secret formula for maintaining the degree of joy present at Sinai is outlined. The Torah was their craft. It was what they did. It was who they were. Each day that a heightened commitment to Torah is manifest, the experience mimics that of Sinai and thereby a fulfillment of "on this day you became a nation."
In the very first chapter of Alei Shur, my esteemed grandfather Rabbi Shlomo Wolbe זצוקללה"ה conveyed this insight. Torah study can and ought to be a pleasuresome, inspirational, and joyous experience. That is the way it was at Sinai, and we are exhorted to recapture it. But that demands commitment to study irrespective of desire or pleasure. With the investment of commitment, the pleasure and joy will invariably ensue.
If simchah is not a goal in this world, so why does it say in the Torah, in the tochocho, that whatever will happen is because you didn't serve Hashem with simcah?
ANSWER:
Now look at these words that you yourself quoted, tachas asher lo avadata es Hashem Elokecha b'simchah, you didn't serve Him with simchah. It's talking about serving with simchah. So simchah is not the goal, it's the serving Him, the simchah in the service. When you're happy when you're serving Hashem, that shows that your heart is in it. Tachas asher lo avadata es Hashem Elokecha b'simchah, now there's another meaning to that pasuk, if we have time I'll soon explain. But first the way you quoted, because you didn't serve Hashem with simchah. Serving with simchah demonstrates that your heart is in it.
Let's say you ask your boy to go to the grocery store for you, and he goes. He goes with a heavy heart, he drags his feet, it's like he has shoes made of lead; his heart is not in it. But if he skips down the stairs, it shows he's happy to do the mitzvah of kibud av v'eim. Therefore the simchah demonstrates how you love the mitzvah, how you love Hashem.
There's another meaning there, an entirely different meaning and both are true. Because you didn't serve Hashem when you were living in simchah; when you had everything. In the time of simchah, a man should be grateful, and demonstrate his gratitude by serving Hashem. When I gave you everything, I gave yousimchah, u'btuv leivov mierov kol, why don't you serve Me? That's the meaning of that pasuk in the second aspect. So we'll sum up the two meanings.
One meaning is why didn't you serve me with the simchah? To demonstrate how happy you were. Like when King David was going to the beis hakneses, he's going to the synagogue, he was happy. Somachti b'omrim li beis Hashem neileich, I was happy when he said let's go to the house of Hashem. When he heard these words, he was full of joy; that's where he wants to go!
When a man opens the Gemara in the Yeshivah and the first thing in the morning, he gives a big yawn, thatshows that he's not happy. Nobody yawns when he's happy, it's his duty to come and learn. But when a man comes in with fire, with enthusiasm, this is his place of success, then that's serving with simchah.
The other meaning is, when things are going well, when you're still healthy, when you're still young, or when there's still peace in the world, when you're still a citizen of your country and you're not persecuted and harried, when everything is going smoothly, then you have to serve Hashem in gratitude for that simchah.
And both meanings are true.
Good Shabbos To All
This is transcribed from questions that were posed to Harav Miller by the audience at the Thursday night lectures. To listen to the audio of this Q & A please dial: 201-676-3210
If one prays, is it wrong to have trust that his prayer will be answered?
ANSWER:
If a man prays, he should have trust that his prayers are going to be answered, but it doesn't mean it'll be answered in the way he wants. I will give an example. Suppose you have a prescription, and so you go into a big drugstore and it happens that everybody's out, there's nobody there. So you want it, you can't wait, and you think you'll take it yourself and later you'll send in a check to pay for it. So you go to the shelves behind the counter and you choose whatever you think is for yourself. That's a dangerous business; you might never live to send that check.
The same is when we ask Hakadosh Baruch Hu for certain things; it could be it's the very worst thing for you, and frequently it's true. However we do ask Him because that's human nature. And there is a reason why we should ask Him, because otherwise we'll think we got it by ourselves, you have to ask Him to know that when it comes, you'll know He gave it to you.
But you have to have an understanding that what He gives is going to be for your benefit, not what you want is for your benefit. Now suppose you don't get what you asked for? Here is a man who asked, Ribono Shel Olam make me the owner of a chain store, I will be satisfied let's say with just 50 stores. And Hakadosh Baruch Hu doesn't give him one.
Now that man has to realize that it could be - to be an executive manager of one store is a very big headache, and many people succumb; high blood pressure, there are a lot of worries if you have to manage employees. Incoming merchandise, setting the prices, government regulations, all kinds of problems.
If a man is not built in a way that he could delegate responsibilities, he takes it all into his own head, if he's going to have more than one store it could kill him. If Hakadosh Baruch Hu doesn't give this man what he asks for, it could be it's the very greatest benefit.
So you ask whatever you want to ask for. What should you trust in Hashem? That He'll listen to your prayers, He'll do for you what's best for you; not what you think is best.
Good Shabbos To All
This is transcribed from questions that were posed to Harav Miller by the audience at the Thursday night lectures. To listen to the audio of this Q & A please dial: 201-676-3210
If one prays, is it wrong to have trust that his prayer will be answered?
ANSWER:
If a man prays, he should have trust that his prayers are going to be answered, but it doesn't mean it'll be answered in the way he wants. I will give an example. Suppose you have a prescription, and so you go into a big drugstore and it happens that everybody's out, there's nobody there. So you want it, you can't wait, and you think you'll take it yourself and later you'll send in a check to pay for it. So you go to the shelves behind the counter and you choose whatever you think is for yourself. That's a dangerous business; you might never live to send that check.
The same is when we ask Hakadosh Baruch Hu for certain things; it could be it's the very worst thing for you, and frequently it's true. However we do ask Him because that's human nature. And there is a reason why we should ask Him, because otherwise we'll think we got it by ourselves, you have to ask Him to know that when it comes, you'll know He gave it to you.
But you have to have an understanding that what He gives is going to be for your benefit, not what you want is for your benefit. Now suppose you don't get what you asked for? Here is a man who asked, Ribono Shel Olam make me the owner of a chain store, I will be satisfied let's say with just 50 stores. And Hakadosh Baruch Hu doesn't give him one.
Now that man has to realize that it could be - to be an executive manager of one store is a very big headache, and many people succumb; high blood pressure, there are a lot of worries if you have to manage employees. Incoming merchandise, setting the prices, government regulations, all kinds of problems.
If a man is not built in a way that he could delegate responsibilities, he takes it all into his own head, if he's going to have more than one store it could kill him. If Hakadosh Baruch Hu doesn't give this man what he asks for, it could be it's the very greatest benefit.
So you ask whatever you want to ask for. What should you trust in Hashem? That He'll listen to your prayers, He'll do for you what's best for you; not what you think is best.
Why is the human face the most glorious object in the universe?
ANSWER:
Because Hakadosh Baruch Hu says so: ki b'tzelem Elokim asa es ha'adam, He made man in His image. Now we know that's a form speech, He's not talking about a man's hands, He's talking about his face. Now we understand to a certain extent that the face is like a screen, upon which a movie projector, the soul, projects an image.
Emotions, noble emotions are expressed on the face. The face expresses yearning - for greatness, for the unknown, a desire for exploration, to discover things that are not known to us. People are yearning for something; it's all on the human face. Even an ordinary human face has some reflections of this greatness. Hakadosh Baruch Hu said openly, a man's face is tzelem Elokim.
Therefore we have to train ourselves, instead of following the silly people who make jokes about human faces - especially cartoonists. They exaggerate certain features, a longer nose, longer chin, and make people's faces an object of jest and ridicule, we have to despise them.
A human face after all is the most glorious possession mankind has. Physically there is nothing more important than a human face, we have to honor the human face. The Gemara says in Sanhedrin (58:): hasoter luo shel Yisroel, somebody who slaps his fellow man's face, it's like slapping the face of Hashem! We have to teach ourselves that.
When you look at your neighbor's face, you should think you're looking at a mirror reflection of Hashem, that's to remind you of Hakadosh Baruch Hu. By looking at the faces of other people, you're reminded of Hakadosh Baruch Hu.
Constantly we have to train ourselves in that concept until it becomes second nature to us.
Good Shabbos To All
This is transcribed from questions that were posed to Harav Miller by the audience at the Thursday night lectures.
To listen to the audio of this Q & A please dial: 201-676-3210
Important Numbers
