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PARSHAT KI TETZE - THE ULTIMATE OF SINS

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TorahZionist:
BS"D

YESHIVAT HARA'AYON HAYEHUDI
Jerusalem, Israel
HaRav Yehuda Kroizer SHLIT"A, Rosh Yeshiva

PARSHAT KI TETZE
11 Elul 5767/24-25 August 2007


THE ULTIMATE OF SINS

These are the days of teshuva - return; these are the days of the
blowing of the shofar, to awaken us from our slumber. It is during these
days that one can cry out to Hashem and be answered and forgiven. The Rambam
writes of how teshuva atones for certain sins, but for harsher wrongdoings
the Day of Atonement and suffering is needed, too. Still, there is one kind
of sin for which all of this is to no avail, and for which only the day of
death can atone. That, of course, is a sin which contains an element of
Chilul Hashem. Yes, Chilul Hashem is so severe that when an aspect of it is
attached even to a small matter, one must give up his life and not
transgress the commandment.

In the time of King David, his son Avshalom rebelled and proclaimed
himself king. David and his men, who feared for their lives, had to flee
Jerusalem. David thought that the people would be shocked at the distress he
suffered at the hands of his own son. They would blame the Al-mighty for
having dealt unfairly with him. Therefore, David said, when I arrive at the
top of the hill, I shall bow down to G-d in front of an idol, so that people
will be under the impression that I am prostrating myself before the idol.
They will then reason that G-d is punishing me for my sins.

When David’s counselor, Chushai, heard of the King’s plan, he rent his
coat, placed ashes on his head and voiced his protest: Why do you want
people to think that you, a righteous king, bow before an idol?

David said: Better I should prostrate myself before an idol and they
should say, David is not the tzaddik we thought he was, and deserves his
punishment, then, to desecrate G-d's Name by declaring that G-d's ways are
not just, that a righteous king was murdered by his own son. King David was
willing to go to the extreme of having people think that he, David,
worshipped idols, just to not have a Chilul Hashem through him. To this
extent one must check his deeds, to make sure that there is no aspect of
Chilul Hashem associated to them.

In the end, Chushai told the King: You need not worry that G-d's Name
will be desecrated. You married Ma'acha - the daughter of Talmai, king of
Gesher - who was a "yefat toar" (good-looking captive woman) as taught in
our parsha - a gentile woman captive, and Hashem placed the section of a
rebellious son after the "yefat toar" to hint that in a marriage to a "yefat
toar" a rebellious son is the likely product. Therefore, your suffering at
the hands of your son will corroborate the truth of the Torah and the
justice of G-d's ways.

In any event, man must run as far as he can so that none of his deeds
have a hint of Chilul Hashem in them. At the same time, we must be equally
concerned with the nation of Israel, and try our utmost to erase all aspects
of Chilul Hashem on a national level from daily life.

First and foremost, the Jewish people must leave the exile, as the
Talmud teaches us: When the Jewish people go into exile, there is no greater
Chilul Hashem than this! Could there be a greater Chilul Hashem than the
Holocaust, with its cry: Where is your G-d now, why does He not save you?
Let the Jew of the exile understand this well, for if one cares about not
being part of this great Chilul Hashem, let him leave now while he can.
About this, G-d cries out to His children: "For My own sake, for My own sake
will I do it, why should My Name be profaned?"

And in the Land of Israel, the daily rock attacks, shootings, and
rockets fired on Israeli cities are a great Chilul Hashem, which must be
stopped at once. And, of course, the great Chilul Hashem that is going on
on the Temple Mount, the holiest of sites that is left in the hands of the
infidels as they play soccer and picnic on the site where the High Priest
would enter on the Day of Atonement. The site of the Altar is defiled, as
the Jewish people are content to worship a wall! The government in Israel
must do all in its power to wipe out this horrible Chilul Hashem, and all
must help them in this matter. King David of old would rather have had
people think that he worshipped idols, just not to have a Chilul Hashem.

And you?

With love of Israel,
Levi Chazen

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