This week continued with the Bush-Bashing of the State of Israel. Once again, we bear witness to President George Bush and the State Department of the United States continuing its long policy of dictating to Israel what we should and should not do, where Jews should and should not live. The pull-string, banana republic the State of Israel has become only increases the great Chilul HaShem, which all of this boils down to.
Last week, we heard from the US that we have to give up our nuclear weapons. This week, it is to destroy the Jewish settlements in its heartland. And the small-minded leaders we have today, the faithless ones, turn to Washington for salvation and not to the G-d of history, the G-d of Israel.
This week's parsha, Tazria, teaches us what should be said and who should be dictating to whom: "When the plague of tzara'at is in a man, then he shall be brought to the priest... and the priest shall pronounce him unclean, and shall shut him up, for he is unclean." Here, the Torah gives over the power of speech to the Cohanim, to proclaim if the person who comes before them is clean or unclean. By the power of his declaration, the person goes home or is locked away.
We find that this power of speech is not limited to the Cohen, but is in the hands of all of the Jewish people. When two witnesses see the New Moon, they then go up to Jerusalem, to the Holy Temple, and give their testimony before the Sanhedrin, who will then proclaim the new month. As we say on the holidays: "Blessed be You... who makes holy the people of Israel and the times." It is Israel who determines the "times", and not Heaven. Even if our account is wrong, so be it, the hand of Israel will change the times in Heaven.
In the Talmud, we find a dispute between Rabbi Yehoshua and Rabbi Eliezer. Rabbi Eliezer proclaimed: If I am right, let the walls of the study hall cave in - and so they did. He then said: If I am right, let the waters of the river run upstream - and they did. Still, the rabbis he was disputing said: It's not in Heaven; we here decide the law. And so, the law in question is according to Rabbi Yehoshua.
With this power of speech, it is in our hands to find solutions in Jewish law that might seem out of reach to us today. Take the Holy Temple, for example. Many good Jews who pray every day for the Temple will proclaim that, with its many problems, we cannot build it today. Where will be the altar? Who will be a cohen? What will they wear? We are all unclean. No matter! With the power of speech given over to the Jewish people, we can and have come up with the halachot that can answer all of the problems. If HaShem has given us a commandment to fulfill, then there must be halachic solution for it to be carried out.
Yes, the power of speech has been given over to the Jewish people to fulfill the word of HaShem in this world. Not as the Esavs and the Bashers, who use their power of speech to dictate to us our destruction, we will use our power of speech for the opposite purpose - to rise up high, and for the sake of Kiddush Hashem.
Last week, we heard from the US that we have to give up our nuclear weapons. This week, it is to destroy the Jewish settlements in its heartland. And the small-minded leaders we have today, the faithless ones, turn to Washington for salvation and not to the G-d of history, the G-d of Israel.
This week's parsha, Tazria, teaches us what should be said and who should be dictating to whom: "When the plague of tzara'at is in a man, then he shall be brought to the priest... and the priest shall pronounce him unclean, and shall shut him up, for he is unclean." Here, the Torah gives over the power of speech to the Cohanim, to proclaim if the person who comes before them is clean or unclean. By the power of his declaration, the person goes home or is locked away.
We find that this power of speech is not limited to the Cohen, but is in the hands of all of the Jewish people. When two witnesses see the New Moon, they then go up to Jerusalem, to the Holy Temple, and give their testimony before the Sanhedrin, who will then proclaim the new month. As we say on the holidays: "Blessed be You... who makes holy the people of Israel and the times." It is Israel who determines the "times", and not Heaven. Even if our account is wrong, so be it, the hand of Israel will change the times in Heaven.
In the Talmud, we find a dispute between Rabbi Yehoshua and Rabbi Eliezer. Rabbi Eliezer proclaimed: If I am right, let the walls of the study hall cave in - and so they did. He then said: If I am right, let the waters of the river run upstream - and they did. Still, the rabbis he was disputing said: It's not in Heaven; we here decide the law. And so, the law in question is according to Rabbi Yehoshua.
With this power of speech, it is in our hands to find solutions in Jewish law that might seem out of reach to us today. Take the Holy Temple, for example. Many good Jews who pray every day for the Temple will proclaim that, with its many problems, we cannot build it today. Where will be the altar? Who will be a cohen? What will they wear? We are all unclean. No matter! With the power of speech given over to the Jewish people, we can and have come up with the halachot that can answer all of the problems. If HaShem has given us a commandment to fulfill, then there must be halachic solution for it to be carried out.
Yes, the power of speech has been given over to the Jewish people to fulfill the word of HaShem in this world. Not as the Esavs and the Bashers, who use their power of speech to dictate to us our destruction, we will use our power of speech for the opposite purpose - to rise up high, and for the sake of Kiddush Hashem.