Re'eh 2021 Rabbi Moshe Goodman, Kollel Ohr Shlomo, Hebron בס"ד
לשכנו תדרשו
Discover the Holy Presence in Our Holy Land
Seek His Holy Presence
For close to ten years, we have been sharing with you divrei Torah related to Hebron, the Land of Israel, and the parsha. We have consistently titled our pieces “seeking/uniting/ discovering etc. the Holy Presence in the Holy Land.” Also, our newly published book is titled “Hebron: Uniting with the Holy Presence.” These titles are all inspired by the words of this parsha “you shall seek His Holy Presence and come there (location of the Temple).” Our Sages see the Holy Land as an extension of the Temple, as they call the Land of Israel the “House of Hashem” (see Hulin 92a). Just as we must face the Temple in our prayers directed towards the Holy Presence, so too, we must face the Holy land, Land of the Holy Presence, in our prayers. Hebron is a primary bridge and connector – Hebron meaning connection (hibur) – between Jews the world over and our Holy Land promised to our Patriarchs buried in Hebron. Hebron is also called the “depths of Hebron.” Thus, our dream is that all feel connected to our Holy land and Hebron in a deep way – to join us on a quest for the soul of the Holy land, the Holy Presence.
One way to learn about the Land of Israel is also to study the matters of the Temple, where the Holy Presence rests in a yet greater way. In this way, the qualities of the Temple can shed light on the qualities of the Land of Israel at their deepest source. Therefore, in the coming weeks, we will discuss matters of the Temple, first beginning with some matters of purity that are still relevant today in halacha.
One of these matters is the mikveh. The concept of purity is also greatly linked to the Land of Israel, as in the words of our Sages: ‘the Land of Israel is pure, and its mikvaot are (also) pure.’ These words teach us that one, the Land of Israel is pure and free of rabbinical impurity ordained on the lands of the Diaspora, and two, that a randomly found mikva in the Land of Israel is rendered a kosher mikvah (which is not the case in the Diaspora). Although the first rule about the Land, in general, is valid even today, the poskim note that the second rule about a mikva applies ‘only when Israel are present on their Land’. Therefore, in the Shulhan Aruch, written when a small portion of Israel dwelled in the Land, no stipulation is made, and all randomly found mikvaot are rendered invalid. With this, we shall leave the ruling upon the present situation when
Israel has been returning to the Land to competent halachic authorities. This purity of the Land is especially potent in Hebron, as we are taught in ‘Shaar HaHatzer’ (by R. David Ben Shimon zt’l) that one who learns Torah in Hebron rectifies the covenant and achieves purity.
Real Miracles: The Six-Day War
At 04.20, General Tal’s command group arrived at the memorial at the entrance to al-Arish. The Egyptian Mir Sukhoi / 7 planes aimed at firing that spot, which was a highly explosive tank-refueling center. Dozens of tanks at that time pumped fuel into their tanks. Suddenly, above the Mir Sukhoi/7 planes, two mirage Israeli planes appeared, and within a second, the two Sukhoi/7 planes vanished and were turned into marks of fire and smoke carried by the wind. “Exposed in the Turret” p. 231.