Parshas Tazria-Metzorah

 

Hey there kinderlach!
This week I tried to do something I’ve never done before. Not only have I never done it before, I’ve never even thought of doing this, and if I had thought of doing it, I would haven't even known what I should do. Have I lost you yet?
Maybe I should start from the very beginning. You see the other week I was out on mivtzoyim and I kinda got carried away. You know it happens sometimes that you don't know what the time is and you were busy doing something, and before you know it, it is time to do something else, but since you are so busy doing the first thing you were doing you don't realize that it is already time to be doing the second thing? I mean I’m sure that must have happened to you once or twice. The thing is that it has happened to me one hundred or two hundred times. And that is in a week!
Since Mrs Getzel has been married to me more years than I can remember, she is already used to this small problem I have, and she never lets it bother her. She always has a Plan B ready in case things don't go according to plan. According to Plan A that is. So when Mrs Getzel saw that it was already half an hour after I was supposed to have come home to take her for an appointment and I still hadn't arrived, she called a car service and went herself.
Now that, dear kinderlach is where the problem started. You see I hadn't managed to tell Mrs Getzel yet (I’d forgotten you see) that I’d lost my keys to the house. I had also not managed to find my cell phone since the last time I had lost it (which is why Mrs Getzel hadn't managed to call me to remind me about the appointment). So when I finally remembered that Mrs Getzel was waiting for me (or actually she wasn't), and I went home, I was locked out the house.
As hashgocho protis would have it, I’d never got around to fixing the latch on my office window. Well, I thought to myself, the Omer is supposed to be all about climbing to new levels, so with a bang and a bash and a tumble and a mumble, instead of being locked out of the house, I was locked in my office. Which set me thinking, if it was so easy for me to get into my office, it would be even easier for someone else. After discussing the problem with my good friend, the local Police Chief, I decided to buy, and fit, some locks on the windows. Which may sound easy to you, but let me tell you it wasn't easy for me. Especially since I didn't even know that window locks existed a week ago.
So why did I try it kinderlach? Well as I said, coming as we are from Pesach, and climbing as we are to Shavuos, it is time to try to climb to new levels. Of course mainly in ruchnius, but in other ways too.

Good luck with your climbing, kinderlach!
Dr Getzel

 

ב‘ אייר

The fourth Rebbe, ר‘ שמואל Schneersohn, known as the רבי מהר“ש , was born in the town of Lubavitch on ב‘ אייר תקצ“ד (1834). His father, the צמח צדק once remarked that ר‘ שמואל 's birthday, which falls on the 17th day of the עומר , is described by קבלה as תפארת שבתפארת (Beauty of the Beauty).

Even though ר‘ שמואל was the youngest of ר‘ מנחם מענדל 's seven sons, he was chosen to become Rebbe after his father passed away.  He lived in the town of Lubavitch. Besides leading his חסידים , guiding them and giving them advice in both their רוחניות and גשמיות lives and writing many מאמרים , the רבי מהר“ש travelled a great deal around Europe, meeting with government and business leaders to put pressure on the Czar and the government to stop bringing about pogroms against the Jews of Russia.

The רבי מהר“ש passed away at age 47 on י“ג תשרי תרמ“ג (1882).

 

תזריע

Having children, which is discussed in this week's פרשה , is one of three very special things. These things are special because they are the only three things which man needs, that ה‘ Himself looks after and has not given to מלאכים to take care of.

The other two things are rain and תחיית המיתים which will happen in the days of גאולה .

מצורע

The מצורע (one who has צרעת ) is compared the בני ישראל in גלות and the גאולה . When he is sent outside the camp, it is compared to the בני ישראל being sent into גלות . When he is healed and he returns, it is like doing תשובה .

The כהן who announces that the מצורע is טהור , is like ה‘ , Who tells us that the time for גאולה has come. He then takes two birds - which stand for משיח בן יוסף and משיח בן דוד , the final משיח . The three species (עץ ארז , איזוב , and red wool) stand for the אבות . The purification is done with the bird together with the three species - משיח with the זכות of the אבות . The bird is then set free to fly all over the fields, which stands for משיח ruling over the entire world. And the return of the מצורע to the camp stands for the return of בני ישראל to ירושלים and the בית המקדש - may we merit this right NOW!

 

In משנה ב‘ we are told: “עשה רצונו כרצונך ” - Fulfil His (ה‘ ’s) will as you would your own. Why couldn’t the משנה just tell us to do ה‘ ’s will?

There was once a wealthy father who had an only son whom he loved very much. When he got older he appointed someone to take care of his money and instructed him, “When I die, give my son as much as you want and keep the rest for yourself. When the wealthy father passed away, the greedy man kept 95% for himself and gave 5% to the son. The son was very upset. He couldn’t believe that this was really what his father wanted so he took the greedy man to a דין תורה . The רב listened carefully and decided that the man should give 95% to the son and keep only 5% for himself. He explained, “The father was a very wise man. He said, ‘Give my son whatever you want and keep the rest for yourself.’ Since you showed that you would really like 95%, that must be the amount that the father wanted you to give to his son.”
The משנה is showing us the proper way to behave and tells us that what we actually do for ה‘ should be the same amount as we would like to do for ourselves. Since we would really like to spend the most money on things that we need and want, we should spend less on ourselves and more on תורה and מצוות . And just like we would work very hard to get something we want, we should put a lot of effort into our רוחניות .

(Adapted from ‘Vedibarta Bam’)

 

There was once a rich חסיד of the בעל שם טוב . We will call him ר‘ יעקב . One day, ר‘ יעקב was standing before the בעל שם טוב almost in tears.

"I can't understand it" he moaned "Everything I do is failing. I used to have such business sense. It's as though I've been cursed! Has someone cursed me?"

The בעל שם טוב said nothing. ר‘ יעקב tried to wait but the silence was unbearable. "Every time I make an investment, it fails. Every guess is wrong. I'm losing money left and right! What should I do?!"

The בעל שם טוב looked up at him sadly and said. "Do you have a snuff box?"

"Of course!" he replied as he nervously fumbled in his jacket pocket producing a small, finely decorated, golden box that he proceeded to open.

But the בעל שם טוב paid no attention and continued. "About a half year ago you were sitting in shul with some of your friends. You took that box out and offered them snuff. Do you remember?

"I... I don't.. that is...almost every day some of us we sit together after שחרית and...”

"Do you remember about a half a year ago that you took out your snuff box and offered everyone to take a bit of snuff but when you saw the Isaac the shul beggar stand up from his seat in the corner and approach to take some, you closed it and put it back in your pocket. Do you remember?"

ר‘ יעקב was deep in thought. He tried not to remember but suddenly it was clear as day. He didn't want that dirty man to get too close. He looked disgusting.

"Well", concluded the בעל שם טוב "Maybe it meant nothing to you at the time because your success and wealth hardened your heart! But you really shamed that man. So it was decided in heaven that all your money will be taken from you and be given to him!"

ר‘ יעקב was stunned, he couldn't believe his ears! But it was happening, it was true! He was losing everything so quickly and now that he thought about it, Isaac the beggar seemed to have disappeared. It was a curse all right; but it was he that had cursed himself!!

As if in a dream he looked at the בעל שם טוב and stammered. "Is there any way I can.."

"There is only one way you can get your money back" the בעל שם טוב said. "You have to reverse the process. If you ask him for a pinch of snuff and he refuses you... then he will lose it all, just as you did, and your wealth will return. But if not, everything is lost."

ר‘ יעקב returned home and within a few weeks he had lost everything including his house and belongings just as the בעל שם טוב said he would.

He also discovered that that shul beggar had, in fact, miraculously become a rich businessman 'overnight'. He was now making huge investments and was surrounded by some of the wealthiest men in the country.

Several times ר‘ יעקב considered just going up to him when he left his house in the morning and asking him for snuff, but decided against it. He would wait for a better opportunity.. a time when he was busy.

And finally it came. One morning, on the shul bulletin board was pinned an open invitation to everyone in the city to the wedding of....Mr. Isaac's daughter! It would be in two weeks in the massive town square. This would be the perfect opportunity, ר‘ יעקב thought.

Two weeks later ר‘ יעקב was there with a plan that he thought couldn't fail.

The wedding ceremony was just about to begin, the band played serious music and then stopped as the couple stood under the wedding canopy with hundreds of people gathered around. The Rabbi finished all the blessings, the groom broke the glass cup, the band broke into joyous playing and everyone began dancing, shaking the hand of the groom and the father of the bride, slapping them on the shoulders and yelling מזל טוב .

And at that very moment, at the height of the festivities, ר‘ יעקב ran up to Mr Isaac, tapped him on the shoulder and said "please give me a pinch of snuff!"

Mr. Isaac looked at him strangely, hesitated.. turned back to the person that he had been speaking to. (aha! He was ignoring ר‘ יעקב !) said 'excuse me' .. turned around, snuff box in hand and offered it!

ר‘ יעקב fainted. A doctor was called. He was carried to a side room and after a few minutes, Mr. Isaac appeared.

"He'll be alright" said the doctor. "Maybe it was too warm or something."

"But why is he crying?" Mr. Isaac asked.

"I'll tell you why" ר‘ יעקב replied. “Remember me? I'm the rich man that refused to give you a pinch of snuff months ago in shul and because of that I lost all my riches and you gained them. Well, just now when you didn't act selfishly as I did back then, I lost my only chance to regain my wealth." And he continued crying.

But the story has a happy ending.

When Mr. Isaac heard the story, he calmed ר‘ יעקב down, invited him to the wedding feast and assured him that he had nothing to cry about. He would provide him with a home and a job for the rest of his life.

 

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