Video Study for Parsha Shoftim : The importance of 'Justice'

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Shalom JTF readers,

It is Wednesday once again and time to start the video study thread. This week has been very tumultuous for me with the earthquake and stressful 'new job' interviews and all, and yet I don't miss a day of Torah study. This week we are reading the portion of Shoftim (Judges) which deals with appointing judges and ensuring that the justice system is fair and impartial.

The commands concerning which Israelite is exempt from a war is in our portion this week, along with the prohibition of wanton destruction of fruit trees (and other valuable items) during a siege. We also find the command of eglah arufah which requires the leaders of a community to, in case a man is murdered between towns, to absolve themselves of being involved with the persons death... This is a very interesting command and it shows how sensitive we should be to make sure our familys and friends are safe when on our property.

From Chabad's Parsha in a Nutshell:

http://www.chabad.org/parshah/article_cdo/aid/2278/jewish/Shoftim-in-a-Nutshell.htm

Moses instructs the people of Israel to appoint judges and law enforcement officers in every city. “Justice, justice shall you pursue,” he commands them, and you must administer it without corruption or favoritism. Crimes must be meticulously investigated and evidence thoroughly examined—a minimum of two credible witnesses is required for conviction and punishment.

In every generation, says Moses, there will be those entrusted with the task of interpreting and applying the laws of the Torah. “According to the law that they will teach you, and the judgment they will instruct you, you shall do; you shall not turn away from the thing that they say to you, to the right nor to the left.”

Shoftim also includes the prohibitions against idolatry and sorcery; laws governing the appointment and behavior of a king; and guidelines for the creation of “cities of refuge” for the inadvertent murderer. Also set forth are many of the rules of war: the exemption from battle for one who has just built a home, planted a vineyard, married, or is “afraid and soft-hearted”; the requirement to offer terms of peace before attacking a city; and the prohibition against wanton destruction of something of value, exemplified by the law that forbids to cut down a fruit tree when laying siege (in this context the Torah makes the famous statement, “For man is a tree of the field”).

The Parshah concludes with the law of the eglah arufah—the special procedure to be followed when a person is killed by an unknown murderer and his body is found in a field—which underscores the responsibility of the community and its leaders not only for what they do, but also for what they might have prevented from being done.

As my custom is to post Rabbi Richman videos first, here is Rabbi RIchmans latest video on our portion:

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Rabbi Levi Chazen, from an undisclosed location somewhere in Judea (I assume)...

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Now for a Chassidic/Kabbalistic lesson on this portion from the great Rabbi Trugman from Ohr Chadash..

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Rabbi Shafiers short shmuz on the parsha.

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Last year Rabbi Richman spoke for 20+ minutes on the portion.

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Wow, Rabbi Mizrachis shuir from last year runs 2hr 49min... I'm sure he is going to tell some stories and stray from the topic (as he always does)...

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http://www.naaleh.com/videos/documents/ToratImechaVolume6Number29ParshatShoftim.pdf

Torat Imecha- Women's Torah
Knesses Yisrael
based on a Naaleh.com class by Rabbi  Moshe Weinberger
 
 
The parsha of, "Atem nitzavim hayom..." is always read before Rosh Hashana. This is hinted at in the word
hayom which Chazal say refers to Rosh Hashana, the day of man's creation. The heh hayidiah alludes to the day that is known as it says, "This is the day of the beginning of your actions, a remembrance of the first day." On yom tov we not only remember what happened long ago, but are once again given the ability to tap into the powers of the day.
 
There are many people who won't stand before Hashem on Rosh Hashana. There are Jews who don't even know they're Jews or that's it Rosh Hashana. Even those who do know, may not feel connected. The Alter Rebbe (Rav Shneur Zalman of Liadi) says, "Atem nitzavim hayom..." The preparation to stand in the presence of the Creator on Rosh Hashana depends largely on strengthening the connection to knesset Yisrael, the body of klal Yisrael. Regardless of where a Jew will be on Rosh Hashana, whether in shul, or at home, or in the office, every spark of nishmat Yisrael returns to the central flame of knesset Yisrael, to the root of its existence in heaven.
 
The Tanya says there are 600,000 nishamot klaliyut, general souls. These souls of the generation are the roots which divide further to 600,000 sparks. Every nishmat Yisrael contains a spark. A tzadik is a neshama klaliyut and his presence rests within each of the souls of klal Yisrael in his generation and on a deeper level in all generations. He vitalizes, invigorates, and strengthens every spark. In the verse of Atem nitzavim, the Torah reveals ten levels of Jews which corresponds to the ten sefirot (attributes) within every Jew. Three levels correspond to the intellect-chacham, binah, daat, while the other seven levels relate to the emotions. The entire Jewish people down to the smallest Jew are like one body called klaliyut knesset Yisrael, the ingathering of Yisrael consisting of different organs. The leaders and great tzadikim correspond to rasheichem, the head and einei haedah, the eyes of the people.
 
For everything in this world that is holy, there is something counteracting it. The Gemara says that the seir l'azzel was thrown off the mountain and smashed limb by limb. This symbolizes the fate of Esav and Amalek. His limbs will fall apart one from the other. Esav symbolizes the world of division and separation while klal Yisrael comes from the world of oneness which corresponds to the seir l'Hashem. The Torah lists ten types of Jews in the verse of Atem nitzavim, among them woodchoppers and water carriers. This corresponds to the 10 powers of the soul. Within every spark of klal Yisrael, there exists all of klal Yisrael. Every Jew is bound to the entire knesset Yisrael through the ten supernal sefirot with which Hashem created the world. To understand oneself, one has to understand the 10 powers of the soul, the atzemecha, of how Hashem created the world and how He is revealed in the world through the 10 sefirot. Knowing yourself is knowing the Elokut (divine part) of oneself, that which makes one special. Everything else is an outgrowth of it. People are drawn to things which are rooted in their dominant sefira. Trying to break that causes suffering to the soul. Even if one works at making a different attribute dominant it will never become natural. Man comes from the root of chesed while women stem from the root of gevurah. Still within every one, there's a quality of the other, so that there's an interfacing of the sefirot.
 
Every Jew is a specific organ, an extension of the spiritual reality of the unified soul of klal Yisrael. Therefore in halacha we find that, "Kol Yisrael areivim zeh lazeh." Every Jew is responsible for the actions of his fellow Jew in his generation and on some level in all generations. In the source where all souls come from, they are gathered together and attached one to the other as one metziut. On Rosh Hashana even the lowest Jew rises up to the root of knesset Yisrael. The Torah lists the 10 levels which correspond to the 10 sefirot that together form knesset Yisrael to teach us that even the lowest of the Jews, even the water carrier becomes one with his people. On a deeper level even the lowest parts of ourselves rises up on Rosh Hashanan and stands before Hashem in the place called klaliyut knessset Yisrael to be reunited once again with its source.

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http://www.torah.org/advanced/sfas-emes/5765/shoftim.html

Parshas Shoftim   
Shoftim 5631/5635

This parsha begins: "Shoftim ve'shotrim ti'tein le'cha be'chol she'areetcha asher HaShem Elo'kehcha no'sein le'cha ..." (ArtScroll: "Judges and officers shall you appoint in all your cities [literally, gates] which HaShem, your God gives you ..."). The Sfas Emes tells us that his grandfather had his own way of reading this pasuk. The Chidushei HaRim would focus on the phrase " ... the gateways that HaShem, your God, is giving you ..." He would then comment that the Torah here is telling us a basic -- but often forgotten -- fact of life. We should keep in mind that the gateways -- she'arim -- that permit access to HaShem are themselves a gift from Him. Like any gift, this access to HaShem should not be taken for granted.

Continuing, the Sfas Emes presents what he refers to as the pshat (the plain/simple meaning) of the pasuk. In that mode, he reads the pasuk as a command that we place judges and "enforcers" at all the points of access to our senses. Thus, we should monitor our eyes, so that we do not see what we should not see. Similarly, we should monitor our ears, so we do not hear what we should not hear (e.g., music from the jungle).

Thus far, I have been presenting the Sfas Emes of 5631. Four years later he elaborated on this theme, explaining that the "shoftim" (the "judges") to which this pasuk refers are our "chochma veda'as" (wisdom and knowledge). He adds that sometimes our chochma veda'as suffice to induce us to do the right thing. But we must also conduct ourselves properly in cases "she'ein ha'seichel mas'kim" (in which our intelligence does not concur).

Living life intelligently -- and doing the right thing -- requires yishuv hada'as (calm reflection). But often we are not able to be calm and reflective. In such circumstances, our seichel does not do the job. On the contrary, our judgment becomes an unreliable compass for navigating life.

The Sfas Emes notes that such cases often occur. That is, many times ("harbei zemanim") a person is not priviledged to be in a state of yishuv hada'as, and thus to reach proper judgments about proper behavior. In such cases, the Sfas Emes tells us, the "shoteir" ("enforcer") -- is needed to coerce us to do the right thing. In our context, what might fill the role of shoteir in cases where our sei'chel is not giving us accurate decisions? Two candidates come to mind. Peer pressure (from the right peers!); and firm adherence to policies that were decided in an atmosphere of yishuv hada'as.

Continuing with his ma'amar in 5631, the Sfas Emes closes the circle. Thus, he tells us that placing overseers on our senses can help us live life more reflectively. And living life with yishuv hada'as, we are better able to perceive the world as governed by HaShem rather than by immutable Nature. Finally, to the extent that we live our lives with prior reflection, the sha'ar of access to HaShem will be opened wider for us. Note : we are back to that key word and that key feature of life : namely , "gateway". ( In reality, we are not "back " to it ; for with the Sfas Emes's singleminded focus, we never left it. )

The Sfas Emes concludes this discussion by citing a zemira ( song ) which the Arizal wrote for the Shabbos evening se'uda. The Sfas Emes quotes the zemira to enable us to see the link between : song (shira) and access (sha'ar).. We say in this zemira, "Aza'meir bish'va'chim lemei'al gav pisc'hin ..." ( "I sing praises of HaShem, and thus may enter through the sha'ar to gain access to HaShem. )

In fact, singing praise of HaShem can remove the Hester behind which His Presence is often hidden. The Sfas Emes elaborates on the idea that song (zemira) can help us in our avoda (service), To do so, he calls up a secondary meaning of the Hebrew root ZMR -- namely, "to cut away". Working with that meaning of ZMR, the Sfas Emes explains the objective of the "pe'su'kei de'zimra" ( "the verses of song" that we recite before we begin the formal Shabbos Shacharis davening). By singing praise of HaShem, we can cut away the sitra achra -- the power of evil -- that constantly tries to interpose itself between HaShem and His people. Thus, the Sfas Emes can now read " azameir bishevachim " as "I will cut away with praise". Sounds right.   

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http://www.byisrael.net/

Doing that which is upright in the Eyes of G-d
by Rabbi Yisrael Kaniel - August 31, 2011
 
In the Babylonian Talmud, Arakhin 16a, we learn that there are two forbidden actions, murder and lashon hara (tale bearing), for which atonement cannot be achieved through regular sacrifices – other means are necessary.  The example given of the atonement for murder is the Eglah Arufah (Decapitated Calf), concerning which we read at the end of the Torah section of Shoftim (Devarim 21:9), “And you shall eradicate the innocent blood from your midst by doing that which is upright in the eyes of G-d.”

The simple understanding of the aforementioned verse is that by performing the procedure of Eglah Arufah one is “doing what is upright in the eyes of G-d” and thereby one achieves atonement for the sin of the innocent blood being spilled.

In his commentary on the Torah, the medieval Torah great R. Abraham Ibn Ezra (1089-1164) offers a novel alternate interpretation of the aforementioned verse.  Ibn Ezra suggests the verse be read as an admonition: You should do that which is upright in the eyes of G-d, i.e. fulfill G-d’s commandments in general.  Consequently, G-d will see to it that no innocent blood is spilled in your midst.  Ibn Ezra cites this as an application of the principle “the reward for a mitzvah is another mitzvah“.  The verse could then be understood as admonishing the Jewish Court to keep all G-d’s commandments in order to prevent the spilling of innocent blood in our midst.  If the righteous, the scholars and the elders do as they are expected, then chances are improved that the rest of society will behave accordingly and innocent blood will not be spilled in the land.

This can be likened to a remark quoted in the name of R. Yisrael Salanter (1809-1883): “When lashon hara [gossip] is spoken in Vilna, the consequence is chillul Shabbat [desecration of the Sabbath] in Paris”.  Vilna was considered the “Jerusalem of Lithuania” and Lithuania was seen as the “Land of Israel of Europe”.  Vilna was known as the home of great scholars and Torah leaders and its inhabitants maintained a high level of observance.  Nevertheless, people were want sometimes to lapse into gossip about fellow Jews.  Laxity, however, in Vilna would have an effect on the rest of the Jewish world such as in Paris (which was already known then for lax behavior) where the consequence would be sins of even greater magnitude, such as Sabbath desecration.

Similarly Ibn Ezra interprets the aforementioned verse: If we wish to avoid the spilling of innocent blood, then we must elevate everyone around by “doing that which is upright in the eyes of G-d.”

Often we hear complaints of the moral decline of society and the usual reaction is that it is something outside our purview and our control.  But if more of us would pay closer attention to how carefully we truly follow “that which is upright in the eyes of G-d,” then the behavior and attitude of others may follow suit.  By adhering to “doing that which is upright in the eyes of G-d,” we will not only improve ourselves but can also improve the face of those around us.

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http://www.torah.org/learning/perceptions/5774/shoftim.html

Parshas Shoftim   
By Rabbi Pinchas Winston

Preparing for Rosh Hashana and Shmittah

Judges and police you must establish in all your communities . . . (Devarim 16:18)

Rosh Hashanah is only three-and-a-half weeks away, b”H. We still don’t know how this year will end or how the next one will begin, but we now know how it might have begun: with a terrible and tragic attack against the Jewish people.

In case anyone has already forgotten, the kidnapping of the three Israeli teenagers led to a house-to-house search in Chevron and many arrests of Palestinians. That in turn led to increased rocket attacks by Hamas out of Gaza against Israel, which provoked an Israeli operation in Gaza. It was this incursion that, quite miraculously, led to the eventual discovery of dozens of terror tunnels. Apparently, they were waiting to be used this Rosh Hashanah to confuse, kidnap, and murder countless Israelis. It could have brought the Israeli government and Jews around the world to their political and emotional knees.

It was all ready to go. The attack had been coordinated with other Palestinians already in Israel and perhaps even with Hizbollah up north who have their own system of tunnels to clandestinely enter Israel. Israeli Intelligence, apparently, was unaware of the plan, which had a frighteningly good chance of success. Had God not thwarted it, it would have been a very different Rosh Hashanah this year, and a whole different future for the Jewish people and the world. We owe the “Guardian of Israel” a tremendous amount of thanks.

At the same time, we lost dozens of soldiers, Hy”d. Jews lived in fear of missile attacks for weeks on end having to run to their shelters every time a siren went off, with some in the south barely ever leaving those shelters the entire time the war continued. Chunks of life have been “stolen” from children who will never be the same again even after the war is over.

In the meantime, the problem is no longer only in this part of the Middle East. ISIS (Islamic State In Iraq and Syria) has become a force with which to be reckoned, in Iraq and now around the world, forcing President Obama to backtrack on a campaign promise of getting out of Iraq for good. No such luck. In fact, making good on his promise is what created the military void that allowed ISIS to move in so powerfully in the first place. Let’s see how he deals with his own version of Hamas.

As if current history wasn't already “entertaining” enough, a different type of enemy is on the march and doing its scary damage: Ebola. The World Health Organization has already sounded the alarm about this plague that seems agile enough to skip borders and, God forbid, devastate the world population. We’re also waiting to see how this one is going to play out in the coming year.

In the meantime, there is all the local chaos as well, in just about every country around the world. Is it just a part of the human condition, or is it also part of the overall direction of history which seems to be getting worse before it gets better. Believe it or not, I’d much rather be upbeat about history and its direction. If someone can show me how while sticking to the facts about current events, please let me know.

Meanwhile, seemingly, most of what is happening has little or nothing to do with rising global anti-Semitism. That does not mean that it won’t in the future, given the “right” set of circumstances that allow a leader to redirect all that anger and frustration against a different enemy. That’s the way in worked in Germany in the 19030s and 40s.

How much more so might this be the case given the fragile state of the global economy. History knows only too well how failed gentile financial aspirations can easily be transformed into Jew hatred and pogroms. This was so even when the Jewish community was poor, so how much truer is it today when many Jews are quite affluent.

In short, we have what to pray for this Rosh Hashanah. Like a defendant who thinks that he is in court only to defend himself against a single infraction, only to find out that an entire dossier has been compiled against him that includes everything he ever did wrong, the Jewish people have a lot riding on this year’s judgment. Rosh Hashanah in the best of years is a solemn time. This year, it is particularly so.
I do think that it necessarily is an issue of what we pray, but more a matter of how we pray. The Machzor is the machzor, a long-standing tradition of prayer for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur and not subject to change. It was bequeathed to us over a thousand years ago, assembled by rabbis who, based upon the traditions they had received, knew how best to appeal God at this holy time of year. It is the structure of prayer that we have been meant to follow each year at this time.

However, the heart we put into our prayer is our own. We control that, and it is affected based upon what we think. If we perceive a happy situation, then we are moved to excitement. When we perceive a sad situation, then we respond with a heavy heart. When we perceive an awesome moment, then our hearts are humbled. It all comes down to how we perceive the opportunity of the moment, which can either be in step or out of step with reality.

The Talmud says:

Rebi Yosi says: Woe to people that they see but know not what they see, they stand but know not on what they stand. (Chagigah 12b)

It is one of the few places that the Talmud gets Kabbalistic, talking about the spiritual foundations of Creation. Rebi Yosi is pointing out how people go about their everyday lives with little or no appreciation of the world in which they live, and often abuse it for that matter. They see the world around them and everything in it, but they do not understand what is they are looking at, allowing them to belittle that which is very important and holy in God’s eyes.

The same thing is true of most of us on a daily basis. We see the world around us and what happens as it unfolds. We have no idea of what is going to happen the next moment, whether it will be enlivening or dangerous, a reason for joy or a reason for sadness. As people sat in cafes at the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, drinking coffee and reading newspapers, they had no inkling of what was transpiring just miles away from them, or what was about to happen just minutes into their futures.

We try to get this point across in the Usaneh Tokef prayer on Rosh Hashanah when we intone:

All mankind will pass before You like a flock of sheep. Like a shepherd pasturing his flock, making sheep pass under his staff, so shall You cause to pass, count, calculate, and consider the soul of all the living; and You shall apportion the destinies of all Your creatures and inscribe their verdict. On Rosh Hashanah will be inscribed and on Yom Kippur will be sealed, how many will pass from the earth and how many will be created; who will live and who will die; who will die at his predestined time and who before his time; who by water and who by fire, who by sword, who by beast, who by famine, who by thirst, who by upheaval, who by plague, who by strangling, and who by stoning. Who will rest and who will wander, who will live in harmony and who will be harried, who will enjoy tranquility and who will suffer, who will be impoverished and who will be enriched, who will be degraded and who will be exalted.

That’s also an amazing part of the entire idea. Events can occur at the end of the year that were decided on Rosh Hashanah the previous year. A person can find themselves in financial straits 10 months after Rosh Hashanah, only to unexpectedly to leave them a few days before the next Rosh Hashanah, all of which was decided during the previous “Days of Awe.”

There are families who last Rosh Hashanah sat down together to celebrate the holiday who this year will be sitting down missing some members of their families who passed away this year, for one reason or another, some late in life, some early. It will be a different type of Rosh Hashanah for them this year.

In general it is most important to never take anything in life for granted. That is true during the times of history when peace reigns, so how much more so when chaos looms around just about every corner. Anti-Semitism is on the rise, among other potentially explosive issues. We need to show God that we know that, and appreciate every ounce of protection that He is granting us. We need to be grateful for every aspect of success that we enjoy.

As the rabbis point out, the letters of “Elul,” the month before Rosh Hashanah, are the same as the first letters of the four words that translate as, “I am to my beloved and beloved is to me” (Shir HaShirim 6:3). We learn from this that Elul is a time that God ‘descends’ into our world to become more ‘accessible’ to man. It is a time to build a relationship with God, or to mend broken and damaged ones, in preparation for the Day of Judgment, for Rosh Hashanah.

We also learn that the relationship is a two-way street. Yes, God makes His Presence easier to feel during Elul, but only for the person who reaches out to God. If God is our beloved, then we become His. A person must yearn to improve his relationship with God to merit to have such a relationship.

Ironically, this is also a Shmittah year, which is less significant to Jews living in the Diaspora than it is to Jews living in Eretz Yisroel where its laws are kept. Many farmers will let their fields go unworked in the upcoming year, and many homeowners will only tend to their gardens minimally. Shopping for fruits and vegetables in Eretz Yisroel will be a little more challenging this coming year than it normally is during non-Shmittah periods.

Without question, keeping the Shmittah, even if only rabbinical today, is a challenge of bitachon and emunah, of trust and faith in God. Even just the knowledge that it is a Shmittah year, something that is far easier to be aware of in Israel than abroad, makes one more aware of God and how dependent we are upon him for survival. It increases ones potential to connect to God and remain close to Him.

However, Jews in the Diaspora who at least contribute financially to help the farmers in Israel who keep the Shmittah have a major portion in the mitzvah, and can gain some of the benefits of being in Israel while still in the Diaspora. There is no replacement for physically living on the Land. There are, however, Eretz Yisroel benefits, such as more intense Divine Providence, that a Diaspora Jew can enjoy if he commits himself to life in Eretz Yisroel as much as he can. At this time of history, that counts for a lot.