RABBI ARTHUR SEGAL:HANDBOOK TO JEWISH SPIRITUAL RENEWAL:Guardian of Israel

 RABBI ARTHUR SEGAL:HANDBOOK TO JEWISH SPIRITUAL RENEWAL:Guardian of Israel

 

 

JEWISH SPIRITUAL RENEWAL:SHABBAT 6/13/09 TORAH, TANAK .TALMUD ETHICAL AND SPIRITUAL VIEWS

 

Shabbat Shalom my beloved Talmidim v' Chaverim:

 

I urge you to consider reading this week's d'var Torah as you will learn some interesting insights into Judaism and its views on witch craft. Many will be surprised on what you learn.

 

With President Obama visiting Cairo and with many Jews believing he and/or the USA has abandoned Israel, I would like to give you to quotes to ponder.

 

Some Kabbalah: Zohar (The Book of Radiance) Shemot (Numbers) 17a :'' There is no exile that is as difficult for Israel as the exile of Ishmael. '' With all of the exiles the Hebrew/Jewish people have had, starting with the Egyptian, moving into the Babylonian, and still having half of us living in the Roman, Israel will never have a peaceful homeland from its galut (exile) until Ishmael (the Arab, aka Muslim nation, now Palestinians specifically), have a peaceful home and an end to their galut. Whether we believe that the Zohar was written in a cave in Judea by Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai circa 130 CE or in Safed, Israel, after the Spanish exile, our rabbis could foresee the troubles of living with neighbors, in an unequal situation.

 

Some TaNaK: Psalm 118:9 ;''It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes.'' If you look at our long history, whenever we made alliances with other nations, we got royally (no pun intended) given the shaft. Israel is safest when it is self dependent and dependent on God. I am 57 and every election since I was old enough to remember, Jews were worried if ''this'' president was good for the Jews or Israel, or not. What is good for the Jews is Judaism and Torah. When Jews stick together and put aside silly sectarian differences, we stand strong. ''The Guardian of Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps."(Ps. 121.1)

 

Some TaNaK (from our Haftarah):  Zech: 4:2-3: "I see a menorah all of gold, with a bowl above it. The lamps on it are seven in number and the lamps above it have seven pipes; and by it are two olive trees, one on the right of the bowl and one on the left."

 

Now Zechariah is confused with this vision. So he then is told the famous quote that we hear twice a year, circa June, and 6 months later during the Shabbat of Chanukah:

 

More TaNaK: Zech 4:6:  "This is the word of the Lord : 'Not by might and not by power, but by My spirit, said the Lord of Hosts.'" 

 

Zechariah did not understand the prophecy, as Israel was just coming out of its Galut.

 

Some modern Rabbinic thought: Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik (20th century United States) says: "the menorah, symbol of the Jewish collective, restored to its place in the sanctuary ...indicates that the Jewish people's historical fortune will begin to rise again… But Zechariah does not understand the vision. He knows that, politically, Israel is still enslaved… They are poor and surrounded by enemies. The menorah of political destiny is far from shining… The menorah represents a new sort of bravery, of self-worth, a new feeling of pride and importance that will not express itself in the political-military domain, the realm of the profane, as much as in the religio-spiritual plane, the realm of the sacred. If this bravery exists, political freedom will develop as a consequence." (Days of Deliverance, pp. 139-140)

 

These words in our Haftarah from the TaNaK, delivered in the early years of Israeli independence, at a point where the destiny of the nation was still an uncertainty, are still relevant today. The Jewish nation cannot exist without the religious and spiritual dignity symbolized by the light of the Menorah. This dignity, guided by God's vision, will allow us to overcome the very serious challenges which face the Jewish people both in its homeland and in the Diaspora. The recapturing of our Judaism via Jewish Spiritual Renewal (www.JewishSpiritualRenewal.org) is a major scheme in keeping Jews in the USA and elsewhere safe, as well as keeping Israel safe.

 

[One can reclaim their Jewish Spirituality by working the simple step-by-step process in the Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal:A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew Rabbi Arthur Segal : (001) The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal ].

 

Some Torah: Num 11:11-15  "Why have you afflicted your servant, and why have I not found favor in Your sight, that You have laid the burden of this entire nation upon me? Did I then conceive this people? Did I give birth to them, that You should say to me, Carry them in your bosom, as a nurse carries a suckling child, to the land which You promised to their fathers… If this is what You are doing to me, please kill me, if I have found favor in Your eyes, and let me not see my own suffering."

 

Now the above is said by Moses to God and it is from this week's Parasha. And it is a plea that many a pulpit rabbi has made to God for 3300 years, starting with Moses. We Jews are a tough audience. I am not  a pulpit rabbi. I am an academic. I can teach, write, do life cycle events IF the local full time rabbi is not available, do rabbinic counseling (mashpiah ruchanit) and at these I excel. Put me on a bimah as a congregational rabbi, and someone will be shot by L'Chol Dodi, most likely moi. I have deep respect to those that are pulpit rabbis.

 

So it is with this in mind that I pay homage to yet another rabbi leaving his pulpit for what we hope are greener pastures for him and his family. I write specifically of Rabbi Mark Covitz, of Temple Beth Yam, heading to the Chicago area. May it be ha Shem's will that Rav Covitz and his family are lead toward shalom, and have their footsteps placed toward shalom, have them guided toward shalom, and have them reach their desired destination for life, in gladness and shalom. May his four daughters grow to be like Sarah, Rachael, Rivka and Leah and may Stacey, his beshert, be an Echet Chayil to him and her household. Amen.

 

We have discussed the Talmudic and halachic Shaliach Tzibur. In its most modern usage he is a cantor.  Its translation is an emissary of the community. This title is used because in some congregations, the cantor does the prayers, the congregations listens, and says amen. But in Talmudic times a Shaliach Tzibur was  man in the community who knew how to pray, and would lead the prayers. He was to be humble, and never to arise onto the Bimah. Rabbis were not leading services as we see today in many Temples or Synagogues. They taught, advised, studied, wrote and gave semikah-ordination to new rabbis, as well as decided on points of Jewish law. In Judaism, Rabbis were not Shaliach Tzibur.

 

But a Shaliach Tzibur has to be honest, shomar shabbat, follow kashrut, etc. The legendary gaon and hero of Holocaust rescue, Rabbi Michoel Ber Weismandel, was in Yemen during Sukkoth. And as you're aware when one buys an etrog, one examines it very carefully to make sure it has no blemishes and that the stem is not broken.

 

On the following morning, as a congregant stepped forward to serve as the Shaliach Tzibur , another man exclaimed angrily, "Yesterday, he told an untruth — how dare he serve as  Shaliach Tzibur  !"

R' Weismandel reflected, "True, we seek to acquire an etrog which is free of the minutest blemish. Are we as meticulous in our demands for truth, that a person who represents us before our Creator should be without a blemish of falsehood?" While R. Weismandel was moved by the congregants correct ideal that a Shaliach Tzibur or a rabbi for that matter need to be of 'clean hands and of clean heart,' he did take the fellow aside, and teach him about the grievous sin of embarrassing another as being tantamount to murder in Talmudic law.

Some Talmud:  Bavli Tractate Shabbat 119b: ''The world only exists because of the breath of children learning Torah in school. '' One of the major functions of any synagogue is a Beth Midrash, a house of study. We all know too well, that Temples are used for Beth Knesset, houses of getting together, i.e social halls. But it we do not teach our children a minimum of 6 hrs a week, after their regular school, they will know more about soccer, than they will know about ethical and spiritual Judaism. Every summer, and it is starting already, moms call me when their kids are home from college, because they are dating Christians, going to church with them, and have discovered the ''God of love and compassion on Sunday'', and are dumping the Hebrew God of smiting and rules that they learned on Friday nights, or Sundays mornings. And they want me to fix a problem that was started when they didn't go to services on Saturday (Shabbat day), didn't demand from their lay leadership or rabbinic leadership Tuesday and Thursday afternoon Religious school, and didn't start their meals off with a simple motzi. As we have learned, Judaism's God is universal and of love, compassion, forgiveness, mercy, etc and is the foundation of Christianity.

Some Midrash:Genesis Rabba Parsha 11: Shabbat said before the Holy One: Every day was given a partner, but You did not give me one. The Holy One answered: Your partner is the community of Israel. And when Israel stands on Mount Sinai, the Holy One will say, "Remember the Sabbath to hallow it." (Exodus 20:8) Remember that I said to Shabbat that the community of Israel is your partner. 

Some more Talmud: Bavli Tractate Shabbat 10b 'A good gift have I for Israel and Shabbat is her name. Go and tell them.' 

Two more bits of Talmud and we are done:Talmud Bavli Tractate Shabbat 118a: One who celebrates Shabbat will be given an inheritance without, indeed beyond, limitation.

Talmud, Bavli Tractate Beitza 16a: Resh Lakish said that on Shabbat Eve one is given an extra soul, and when Shabbat leaves, it is taken from him.

The third of three uses of a Temple is a Beth Tephela, a house of prayer. As a rabbi, I teach. I don't preach. Each individual is responsible for doing what they wish. We do not live in a ghetto with a beth din that will take a Jew who continually breaks Shabbat and publicly flog him (makkoth). Shabbat is a gift. If one wants to ignore a gift, one can do so. But, our Synagogues need to be open on Shabbat for those Jews who wish to pray. By locking a temple on Shabbat, we are forcing Jews who wish to do the mitzvoth associated with Shabbat, the inability to do so. This is called lifne iver. It literally means putting a stumbling block before the blind and forcing them to fall. Lifne iver forces Jews to fall , i.e. sin. If 90% of a Temple's membership doesn't want to come to temple on Saturday, that is no reason to lock the doors. The sin of lifne iver is one of Juaism's worst. When it is done by someone who was taught what was correct, and still teaches or allows wrong to be done, the Talmudic rabbis would call this person an apikoret.  We must always remember that the Temple is not the membership's building. Any money that we put into it, from our hard work, is all a loan from God.  It is God's House.

Shabbat Shalom:

Rabbi Arthur Segal
Via Shamash Org on-line class service
Jewish Renewal
Jewish Spiritual Renewal
Hilton Head Island, SC, Bluffton, SC, Savannah, GA

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A Short Snap Shot of Rabbi Arthur Segal

Rabbi Arthur Segal

United States

I am available for Shabbatons, and can speak on various aspects of Jewish history, (from the ancient past to modern day, and can be area specific, if a group wishes), Spirituality, developing a Personal Relationship with God, on the Jews of India and other 'exotic' communities, and on Talmud, Torah and other great texts. We have visited these exotic Jewish communities first hand. I adhere to the Mishna's edict of not using the Torah as a ''spade'', and do not ask for honorariums for my services. I am post-denominational and renewal and spiritually centered.

 I am available to perform Jewish weddings,  and other life cycle events, ONLY IF, it is  a destination wedding and the local full time pulpit rabbi is unavailable, or if there is no local full time pulpit rabbi,  or it is in my local area and all of the full time pulpit rabbis are unavailable.

 My post-doc in Psych from Penn helps tremendously when I do Rabbinic counseling. My phone number and address will be made available once I am sure of one's sincerity in working with me.

Rabbi Segal is the author of three books and many articles on Torah, Talmud and TaNaK and Jewish history. His books are : The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew, A Spiritual and Ethical Compendium to the Torah and Talmud, and  Spiritual Wisdom of our Talmudic Sages. The first two are published by Amazon through their publishing house, BookSurge.

For information on how to purchase these, please contact RabbiSegal@JewishSpiritualRenewal.net and visit WWW.JewishSpiritualRenewal.Net.  OR CLICK ON THE IMAGES BELOW. 

 Todah Rabah and Shalom v' Beracoth. Rabbi Arthur Segal ,( Dr. Arthur Segal )RabbiASegal@aol.com . 

 

Click to Order	THE HANDBOOK TO JEWISH SPIRITUAL RENEWAL: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew Rabbi Dr. Arthur Segal distills millennia of sage advice into a step-by-step process to reclaim your Judaism and your spirituality in a concise easy-to-read and easy-to-follow manner. If you find yourself wishing for the strength to sustain you through the ups and downs of life; if you want to learn how to live life to its fullest without angst, worry, low self-esteem or fear; or if you wish that your relationships with family, friends and co-workers were based on love and service and free of ego, arguments, resentments and feelings of being unloved...this book is for you. Price: $19.99 254 Pages Published by: Amazon's BookSurge
Click to Order	A SPIRITUAL AND ETHICAL COMPENDIUM TO THE TORAH AND TALMUD Rabbi Dr. Arthur Segal dissects each of the Torah's weekly sections (parashot) using the Talmud and other rabbinic texts to show the true Jewish take on what the Torah is trying to teach us. This companion to The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew brings the Torah alive with daily relevance to the Modern Jew. All of the Torah can be summed up in one word: Chesed. It means kindness. The Talmud teaches that the Torah is about loving our fellow man and that we are to go and study. The rest is commentary. This compendium clarifies the commentary and allows one to study Torah and Talmud to learn the Judaic ideals of love, forgiveness, kindness, mercy and peace. A must read for all Jews and deserves a place in every Jewish home. Price: $24.99 494 Pages Published by: Amazon's BookSurge

Welcome to Rabbi Arthur Segal's Jewish Spiritual Renewal bookstore. We invite you to create an account with us if you like, or shop as a guest. Either way, your shopping cart will be active until you leave the store.

You can purchase each book individually, but if you purchase them together as a set with the Tzadakkah Bundle, I will donate a portion of the sales price in your name to a tzadakkah of your choice, such as your synagogue.

Simply provide the donation information in the "Special Instructions" box during checkout. When doing so, please include the following:

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(001) The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal

In The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew, Rabbi Dr. Arthur Segal distills millennia of sage advice to reclaim your Judaism and your spirituality.

• Price : $19.99

(002) A Spiritual and Ethical Compendium to the Torah and Talmud

A Spiritual and Ethical Compendium to the Torah and Talmud dissects each of the Torah's weekly sections (parashot) using the Talmud and other rabbinic texts to show the true Jewish take on what the Torah is trying to teach us.

• Price : $24.99

(003) Tzadakkah Bundle

The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal and A Spiritual and Ethical Compendium to the Torah and Talmud. Purchase both books as a set, and I will donate a portion of the sales price in your name to the tzadakkah of your choice. -- Rabbi Segal

• Price : $44.98

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