parnassah

Neo-Litvacks - you are second rate for not being in learning, but while you are there make lots of money to support yeshivas. If you insist, you also can make a kiddush Hashem by being honest (even as you try to become rich which strains honesty considerably.)

Hirsch - you can improve the world by making it a better place.

Chassidus - just being a Torah observant Jew in the work environment frees up sparks of holiness that were trapped when the world was created. You don't have to lose your mind being the super honest guy who at the same time tries to get to a position where he makes enough money to pay yeshiva tuition or to make yourself crazy trying to improve a world that mostly gets worse all the time. 

Chassidim do not hit

 

This is analogous to a compassionate, wise and righteous father who hits his son. Surely a wise son should not turn his back to escape and find himself help, or even an intercessor to his father, who is compassionate, righteous and kind (chassid).

The Rebbe Rayatz once remarked1 that when the Alter Rebbe first speaks of the father who punishes, he does not use the term “chassid”. (He uses it only later, in the context of the intercessor.) The reason, says the Rebbe, is that a father who smites his child may indeed be compassionate, righteous and wise — but he is not a chassid, for a chassid does not hit!

So what about all these "Chassidim" that hit kids in school? I guess they are not Chassidim. 

Marc Shapiro on Chabad and the Rebbe

 https://torahinmotion.org/podcast/the-making-of-my-most-recent-book-a-thirty-year-story-part-42  50:30

https://torahinmotion.org/podcast/the-making-of-my-most-recent-book-a-thirty-year-story-part-43  21:50

"(Reflecting on a long letter that the Lubavitcher Rebbe wrote to Professor Marc Shapiro's father, who is a historian) It shows you that someone he just met for a few minutes, but in writing a letter he's cognizant, he could have written just a short little letter, thank you, he goes into pages, expounding on this (that we have an advantage over earlier generations in having living proof of faith through Jewish history). And he had to think about this when he wrote it. That's the greatness of the Rebbe. Unfortunately, many people don't see this. They are always looking for negatives. What can you say about the Rebbe? He created a revolution in Judaism. So every time you have a revolution, you have certain dark spots and unfortunate things. (Shapiro had talked earlier about mashichist shluchim in India and Rutgers College). But what he accomplished in terms of the Jewish world, no one came close. And to the Rebbe's credit, and the Litvish don't like this but it's the truth, the Litivsh who were so opposed to kiruv and all these things, Shlomo Carlebach had to leave Lakewood because of that, now of course they are leaders in it, it's all because of the success of Chabad. If Chabad had not gotten into it, they never would have. And they do the exact same thing that Chabad did. They are in all these colleges now, the Litvish Charedim, and what do they do? They ask people, are you Jewish? Come, we're having a seder, we're having this and that. They do the same thing that Chabad did. Chabad I guess had to break the ice on it. This is the vision of the Rebbe. And there's a lot that can be said about the Rebbe, and just because you have some crazy shulchim in certain places, that doesn't take away from all the great things that shluchim do and what the Rebbe did. 

And the Rebbe's a thinker. Elliot Wolfson could not have, Elliot Wolfson who's so erudite, he's written so much, he's wouldn't have written a whole book on the Rebbe's kabbalistic ideas if the Rebbe wasn't a great thinker. And the fact that it's hard to understand one page of that book because all the jargon it's written in, derida and all this stuff,  post-modern stuff, doesn't take away from the fact that the Rebbe is not just a doer, he's also a thinker. And most thinkers are not doers and most doers are not thinkers. So the Rebbe is special. " 

Professor Marc Shapiro  https://torahinmotion.org/podcast/the-making-of-my-most-recent-book-a-thirty-year-story-part-43  28:35 - 30:02

Rebbe on the exemption

 "God divided the commandments. Some apply to both men and women. Then there are some commandments from which men are exempt so that they may focus more on those activities unique to their purpose. Likewise, there are commandments from which women are exempt to allow them to accomplish more in the areas entrusted to them. Now, you might think that the reward for the commandments is awarded only to those who actually perform them. But the Torah declares, as the Arizal explains: the fact that women are exempt from some commandments doesn't mean, God forbid, that they have no share in them. Rather, when the husband performs those commandments he does so on behalf of his wife as well. As it is with kiddush on Shabbos: when one person recites kiddush he exempts all those who are listening to him as well even though they are merely hearing it. The same applies to the commandments from which women are exempt like the commandment to write a Torah scroll for instance. God established that women do indeed share in the benefit. They were only exempted from performing the actual deed for when the man fulfills it, he does so as a representative and on behalf of his wife. 

But the question could be asked: Perhaps this only occurs after marriage when she has a husband? The Zohar states that this is incorrect. The souls of husband and wife were created like all souls in Heaven from which they then descended. In heaven they were created as one soul. They were separated into two bodies only when they descended into this world. And so Torah calls an unmarried man a half-body. And this is also true of the woman. And then, when the right time comes, God brings them together, for is He who ordains the match. This teaches us that even before marriage God knows that the half-souls of a young man and his future bride are part of one whole. So, even before marriage as the young man fulfills commandments in which only men are obligated he might not realize it. But God who gave prescribed commandments and their reward certainly knows that they are performed in part for him and in part for the woman, who, at the proper time, will be re-united with him to become one unit. So years before his wedding, and even during early childhood, when a boy performs a commandment incumbent only on men, it is done in part for his half-soul's female counterpart, and the same is true of the woman. (Lubavitcher Rebbe, Farbrengen of 26 Iyar, 5744, May 27, 1984 in "Two Halves of a Whole," Living Torah, 1657)

Manalism

"His greatness was Torah. His life was Torah. Everything about him was Torah. Nothing else mattered to him outside of Torah."

This is a terrible slander. Did God matter to him? Did Klal Yisroel matter? Did mitzvos matter? You are seeing here Manalism in action, that's militant neo-Litvish madness. 

https://yated.com/rav-chaim-ztl/

Did it start here:

"The idea of the highest form of Torah, this is what Reb Aharon brought to America. This highest form of sitting and learning l’sheim Shomayim. Sitting and learning and nothing else mattered. This is what he put and planted in America."  https://www.shemayisrael.com/ravaharon/rwolowitz.htm

The litvish slips in

 https://collive.com/what-the-rebbe-said-was-pikuach-nefesh-these-days/

He makes a mistake here, going into the Litivsh spiel. See my response below. 

Agudah

Take a Hike (collive.com)

Rav Avigdor Miller on Rebbes Are Ladders

 

Rav Avigdor Miller on Rebbes Are Ladders

 

Q: Why are the Satmerer chassidim fighting the Lubavitcher chassidim? Do you approve of this?

 

A: Now if you’re chassidim, you’re going to have to bear with me because I’m going to hurt your feelings. There is a basic weakness in all chassidim. The basic weakness is “My Rebbe” “My Rebbe” is a wonderful thing. It accomplishes a lot of good things – but it causes a lot of trouble too. Before chassidim, all Jews said “My Hakodosh Boruch Hu!” and that’s all. However, when the Ba’al Shem Tov saw that a lot of Jews had stopped saying that, so he said that it’s better to say “My Rebbe” than not to say anything at all. And if you say long enough “My Rebbe”, in the course of time you’ll say “My Hakodosh Boruch Hu” too. But there have been very many plain people who never graduate past the “My Rebbe” stage. And therefore “My Rebbe,” “Your Rebbe,” and they scratch out the eyes of each other. That’s a weakness.

 

If you advance beyond that stage, all rebbes are “My Rebbe.” All rebbes! The Satmerer Rebbe! Ahh! Zol ehr lang leiben!  A wonderful man. He’s a big warrior; and he accomplished for us so much. The Lubavitcher Rebbe, zol ehr lang leiben!  He accomplished so much and he is accomplishing. They should both be our rebbes.

 

But when someone says “only this one,” and the other person says “only this one,” then trouble comes. And that’s the basic weakness.

 

It shouldn’t be because people are supposed to graduate. A rebbe is only a ladder. You climb up on your ladder. The rebbe makes it easier to climb to Hakodosh Boruch Hu. But if a man just stands on the ladder and never reaches the shelf, then we tell him, “What are you standing there for?!” There are a lot of people standing on ladders. This one says, “My ladder is better,” and this one says, “My ladder is better.” So we tell them, “Get going already. Go higher!” And that causes trouble.

 

TAPE # 165 (April 1976), 1:06:46- 1:08:59

Far from farbrengen

 Last night I traveled 45 minutes, including the wait for the bus, to a so-called farbrengen. I walked in to hear a man shouting. He was stout, hairy, dark, Lou Grant with a beard and penguin clothes. He shouted, "tzadick hador." His voice was deep, loud, angry. He sounded like a raging father. He yelled and then dug deeper to yell louder. I felt as though I was being bathed in some kind of elemental anger. You could add it to the chart of elements, the 109th or whatever they are up to. We'll give it the symbol RR for Rabbinical Rage. I hoped it would pass, but he did it again. Grrrrrr. I waited 60 more seconds. He offered no content, no ideas, no material from a sicha. He just pounded his audience with a decree, the Rebbe -- apparently the Rayatz -- was the tzadick hador!!! I looked around the room. People looked scared. But they sat still. 

For all the criticisms I hear in Chabad of Polish Chassidus, at least they don't turn the Jewish world into a competition. They call their rebbes tzadickim. But "the tzadick." How would you know? Wouldn't only God know that? I suspect that the Chabad movement attracts lots of egomaniacs who want to feel as though they are the conquerors through their rebbe. Surely they can't do it alone. "We are the champions, my friend." We will rock you. Was this man really saying that he is the best? Was that what fueled his fist pumping, like some pathetic sports fan that feels as though he won the championship?

I thought it strange that the word tzadick should be shouted. I thought of the Rebbe saying that if students are alive with the influence of the teacher, then the teacher is alive too. But the teaching must be done “pleasantly and peacefully.” Is the teacher brought to life by bellowing?

I got up and left. I traveled an hour and half and stayed one minute. 

Mitzvos are an afterthought

I find the following very depressing. Mitzvos are an afterthought. The goal is perfection and you get that via discussing "two are holding a tallis." There's a pecking order, you'll never be like Yaakov Kamenetsky because he really could learn up that Gemara about the tallis, or the get, or the oath. And what do women do? They get it through you, by doing the dishes. Does this make any sense? The Gemara talks about mitzvos, but we don't care about them so much. We care only about the mind, but you must close your mind and mimic the thoughts of the leaders. It's a bundle of confused dogmas that contradict one another. The end product is king making. You serve the self-appointed kings. They do the Gemara all day long thanks to you slaving at the office and handing over your money, and the woman slaving in the kitchen. The kings get richer and richer. You watch them wave from the palace balcony like the Queen of England and Prince William.  He even quotes God. Hakadosh Baruch Hu says, he says. His words here are disguised as encouragement, but they are a wolf in sheep's clothing. He is devouring us.

Rav Avigdor Miller on The Best Merchandise

Q:
You’re speaking tonight about the greatness of learning Torah and how important it is for a person’s perfection. But don’t you think that some people are better off making achievements in other areas? Maybe they didn’t have the opportunity when they were younger to learn how to learn and now it’s too late?

A:

You’re living up to your reputation of asking good questions; very good, very good. And the answer is nobody is excluded from learning Torah because there's no such thing as not having the opportunity.  Now it doesn't mean that if you'll study Torah, you're going to become a chaver of Rav Yaakov Kamenetsky.  It doesn’t mean you'll sit next to the Steipler and talk in learning.  But you certainly can achieve in learning Torah.  If you're interested, join our telephone Torah program.  It's amazing what you can accomplish.  You'll learn a half possuk of chumash a day on your own with a linear translation.  After a while, you'll be amazed – you'll know two parshiyos of chumash.  There's no excuse for not doing that.  Then you'll start Pirkei Avos and eventually you'll know six perakim of Pirkei Avos.  Then you'll learn it without the nekudos.  You'll say six perakim of mishnayos without nekudos.  Then we'll put you on the gemara program, and you're on the straight way to greatness.  Everybody can do it!  

Now, this you could say.  Suppose somebody is not doing it and won't do it; are there no other avenues to achievement? Yes, there are also other avenues to achievement.  Yes, certainly we do not deny that.  There certainly are other opportunities for greatness but the prime achievement is the study of Torah. And if people want to know how to do it, we're happy to advise them privately and give them a program that's easy, that's available, and it’s a program that everybody can succeed in.

There are other things to do too, however, in addition to that.  People can grow great in emunah.  That's a big field! People can grow great in tefilah; a very big field.  People can grow great in tzedakah; a big field.  People can grow great in changing their middos of character.  A very big field!  There are other fields and branches, subdivisions of these fields.  There is a great deal of work to do in this world. Like it says hayom katzar, life is short, vehamelachah merubah, and there's a great deal of work.  And nobody is left out of opportunities.  

Only if you go into a store where you have a benevolent merchant – of course every merchant is benevolent to himself but imagine you have a benevolent merchant who really wants to help you – and you come in to shop and you have let's say a certain amount of money. So he's going to tell you, “Look, the best merchandise is this right here.  It might not be the most appealing to you.  It may not interest you most but I’m telling you that it will be the best you can get for your money.  However, if you want to turn down this offer, I have something else that's almost just as good or maybe much less valuable but it's good too.”

And therefore Hakadosh Baruch Hu says, “Look. You don't want to learn?  Then there are other things to do; there are a lot of good things to do.  But My beloved children I am holding out to you an offer.  I hope you'll accept it.  Ki lekach tov nasati lachem, I'm giving you the best thing to buy, torasi al ta'azovu, don't forsake the study of My Torah.

TAPE # 263 (May 1979)

Shlomo said, "The sum of the matter is this: all his heard, fear God and keep His commandments. This is the sum of the man."

That's like a different Torah from what Rabbi Miller is offering. 

Rabbi Moshe Weinberger and the Lubavitcher Rebbe

 http://www.gruntig.net/2020/06/rabbi-moshe-weinberger-and-lubavitcher.html

Rabbi Moshe Weinberger and the Lubavitcher Rebbe

Rabbi Moshe Weinberger interviewed last week on the  Meaningful People Podcast, relates a story he had with the Lubavitcher Rebbe. Today, the 3rd of Tammuz is the Rebbe's 26th Yahrtzeit, Zechuso Yagen Aleinu.

Rabbi Michael Eliezer Forshlager

  Rabbi Michael Eliezer Forshlager of Baltimore, a foremost student of Rabbi Avraham Bornstein, Rebbe of Sokhatchov (author Responsa Avnei Nezer) carried in his tallit bag a volume which consisted of Tanya and Nefesh ha-Hayyim bound together at Rabbi Forshlager’s special request.

grammar

This week's Living Torah talks about how the Rebbe opposed the whole world method of Hebrew instruction for children. He said instead to teach each letter with its vowels. He said this is the traditional method and it fosters emunah.

Something worse than the whole world method takes place today. It's the whole sentence method. When a school for baalei teshuva doesn't teach Hebrew grammar, the student learns whole sentences at a time. The rebbe reads an entire sentence and translates. Usually, he reads the Hebrew so fast the student can't even make out the words. He learns whole sentences at a time. 

You have to teach Hebrew grammar, at least once a week. 

tznius

 Reb Mordechai (Mottel) Levin was the educational director of the Beis Rivkah Seminary in Kfar Chabad. Once, at yechidus, the Rebbe urged him to impress upon the students the particular importance of modest dress. The Rebbe explained that since in the world at large this virtue is so widely neglected, when a girl “conquers herself” and dresses in a modest manner, this is evidence of her level of yiras Shamayim. The Rebbe directed Reb Mottel to consult with a famous educational authority in Bnei Brak in order to receive advice on how to cope with this educational challenge. )בת מלך פנימה ע' 19)

tznius

 Reb Uriel Zimmer had a yechidus with the Rebbe in Tamuz תשכ”אx(1961), and he inquired about the Rebbe’s much sought after opinion on the upcoming elections in Eretz Yisroel. The Rebbe replied that he didn’t wish to reveal his opinion about it yet, and went on at some length. The Rebbe mentioned a number of times during this conversation that action must be taken in the area of tznius, and he said: “This isn’t just election season but tznius season!”

(היכל מנחם ח"א ע' רב)

What about mitzvos? What about Hashem?

Litvish Judaism has taken over everywhere. Few are themselves anymore. Up in Breuer’s in Washington Heights, you see only a trace of the old Yekke sensibility. Sure, they are punctual. Sure, the synagogue is orderly. But the boys all go off to Lakewood. Rav Schwab himself, though Frankfurt born, went off to the Mir and came back talking about learning, learning, learning. He commented on baalei teshuvah how they start in goyish clothing, talking about goyish things, and then you hear them all excited about Torah study, by which he means Gemara lomdus.

What about mitzvos? What about Hashem? 

And then there’s the Sephardim. I used to visit a Sephardish beis keneses in Flatbush. They were more inviting than Litvacks, but they sure looked like them in their black suits. Yes, they still kiss the chocham’s hand. But they talk like Litvacks. Torah, Torah, Torah. I asked about this. Torah is gold, mitzvos but silver, said the rabbi smugly. I have a Sephardish acquaintance who tries to maintain Sephardish identity. He used to daven at the bi-weekly Shabbos only Sephardish minyan in Passaic. But you meet him on the street. He’s staiging in the meshecta. That’s all he talks about. 

What about mitzvos? What about Hashem? 

Chassidim too. I walked around a Boyan shul in Kiryat Sefer. I walked around the Beis Midrash of Vishnitz Monsey in Beit Shemesh. Gemara and Mishneh Berurah are all I saw in any hand, on any desk. Yes, they are warmer. Anybody but a Russian goy is warmer than a Litvack. But all they know is Gemara. Maybe they are not quite as caught up in the Brisker lomdis, at least not in Satmar. But it’s Torah, Torah, Torah, which means Yeshivisheh mesechtas and lomdus. 

What about mitzvos? What about Hashem?

As for the Litvacks, we all know about them. You go to a yeshiva dinner and hear about one thing, and it’s not God. It’s not mitzvos. You watch a video for a baal teshuva school. You hear about one thing. Yesterday, they were smoking on Shabbos. And today? They are learning Gemara. Wait, what about Shabbos? Oh, they don’t talk about that. They are so excited about their learning. You read an article about a deceased rav. It might very well be called “Nothing Else Mattered.” I have seen a few like that recently. He learned, learned, learned, and he had good middos too, allegedly. Nothing mattered to him but his learning.

What about mitzvos? What about Hashem? 

Dovid the King said: 

הַֽלְלוּיָ֨הּ | אַשְׁרֵי־אִ֖ישׁ יָרֵ֣א אֶת־יְהֹוָ֑ה בְּ֜מִצְו‍ֹתָ֗יו חָפֵ֥ץ מְאֹֽד:

 

Hallelujah. Praiseworthy is the man who fears the Lord, who greatly desires His commandments. (Tehillim 112:1)

 

I will pursue with delight Thy commandments which I have come to love. (Tehillim 119:47) 

Shlomo the king and wisest man said: 

The end of the matter, everything having been heard, fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the entire man. (Koheles 12:13)

 

My son, forget not My instruction, and may your heart keep My commandments for they shall add length of days and years of life and peace to you. (Misheli 3:1) 

Sounds like a different religion from what the Litvacks do. But what about the Vilna Gaon, their champion? He said: 

All God’s service is dependent upon the improvement of one’s character…The prime purpose of man’s life is to constantly strive to break his bad traits. Otherwise, what is life for? (Even Shelaimah 1:1-2) 

The purpose of Torah is mitzvos, just as the purpose of a tree is its fruit. (Even Shelaimah) 

So what do they do with that? Well, we have to go by today’s gadolim they’ll say. Now, that’s going to be a problem if their leaders have strayed from the basic principles. Say you lived in the Northern Kingdom as they engaged in idol worship, can you hear someone saying, doesn’t matter if the Chumash would call this idolatry, our gadolim say to do it. 

But Rav Soloveitchik said that the main thing is doing, not learning, the learning brings you to do. The Lubavitcher Rebbe talked endlessly about the goal being to create a dwelling place down here for Hashem and that requires doing.

No wonder the Litvacks were so vicious towards them. You can hear the hiss, they sound like angry snakes. Somebody is messing up their little plan.

Doesn’t that make sense, in the end of days, that even the Torah Jews would be off the mark? So it would go, that the group that is dominating everybody is preaching a false Judaism, one that takes us from Hashem?  The world is drenched in sheker, right? So us too. 

The Litvacks love to say that they have all the talmidei chochamim. This is so false. There are great scholars in every group. But if it were true, and if they have more, that’s in part because they have hijacked the people from the other groups. It’s like America attracting great scientists born in India and Greece. They are not American. Moshe Feinstein came from Chassidic stock. So did the Steipler and Rav Chaim Kaniefsky and Rav Ruderman. And the others? Could be sitra achra giving them a certain kind of success. I learned to talk like that from them. I have heard it said about Chabad and YU.

Like America, the Litvacks took over. Does that make America good? We know it’s all going to collapse, that it’s fake money at this point. America is the world's primary source of immorality and violence. Wasn't always like that and the Litvacks weren't always like this. They changed. 

Say what you want. I’m going with Dovid and Solomon. We seek Hashem and mitzvos, which includes Torah. Our engagement in both is dependent on Torah. Torah is central, but it’s not the most important thing. Hashem and mitzvos are the main thing. 

Start with that and see who honors it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gemara, gelt, and guilt

 this is from the parsha sheet of a litvish gadol this week:

in chabad the census is hashem's love for each jew and the importance of each jew, with litvish it's individual judgment

INDIVIDUAL JUDGMENT 

Take [Se’u]the sum of all the congregation of the bnei yisroel.(1:2) 

Se’ualso means “elevate”.The very fact that every Jew was included in the census and is not “swallowed up” within the public indicates how important each individual is. 

Each person has to “lift up his heart in the ways of Hashem” in the knowledge of how much Hashem yearns for his avoda. Each neshomohas come down to the world in order to fulfil a task that is uniquely his, based on his specific abilities. 

When a person will be brought before the Heavenly Tribunal after departing this world he will not be able to excuse his evil deeds by claiming that everybody behaved this way, because Hashem judges each individual for his private actions based on his specific abilities and irrespective of his society and environment.  

Each person has his own unique shoresh haneshomo and potential, and Hashem determines whether he has met it. If we have been given children as custodians in our capacity as parents or teachers, it is our duty to help them to maximize their specific potential. Once we are adults, we must do this on our own. 

with chabad, you connect to the tzadick, with litvish you must be mute and motionless before the tzadick

BROCHOS FROMTZADIKIM  

According to the number of names, a head count of every male from twenty years old and upward (1:18) 

The Ramban (on 1:45) cites a medrashthat Hashem told Moshe that when the heads of households would pass in front of him during the census he should behave regally and not engage them in conversation, and they, for their part, should conduct themselves with awe and respect. Why did they have to behave with awe and respect? 

The Ramban (ibid) says that when the Jews passed in front of Moshe and Aharon, Moshe and Aharon prayed for them. Rav Dessler explains that that is why they had to pass in front of them with awe and respect, because the blessing of a tzaddikis only effective if he feels that the person being blessed has a connection with him. Hence, the Jews who were receiving brochosas they were being counted had to behave with awe and respect, because if someone behaves lightheartedly in the presence of a tzaddikhis brochocan have no effect.  

with chabad every jew has a contribution to make, with litvish, you have a role and must obey the limits, and so many people don't

UNIQUE ROLES AND FIXED PLACES  

“The Bnei Yisroel shall encamp, each man by his own camp and each man by his division” (1:52) 

 

The Torah designated a specific place for each tribe to encamp in, warning each tribe not to camp anywhere else. When a person does not have a specific place and role within klal yisroelhe feels like a private person who lives for himself, and automatically loses the merits of the tzibbur. Hence, the Torah was particular that each tribe should only camp at its designated place, so that it should feel as part of the nation with its own unique role, and thereby become united with the entire nation and enjoy the merit of the tzibbur. 

In a similar vein, Chazaltell us that “Whoever fixes a regular place for his prayers, the G-d of Avrohom assists him” (Brochos6b). This quality may stem from the fact that in order to enjoy the advantages of prayer with a tzibburone has to feel a part of the public, and by fixing a regular place to pray, the person feels like a permanent member of the tzibbur, and not like a private individual who happens to be praying together with a group of other individuals. 

Unfortunately, not everybody follows Chazal’sinstruction to fix a regular place for prayers, and they thereby lose out on Chazal’spromise that anyone who does this will enjoy the assistance of the G-d of Avrohom. 

with the rebbe, anyone who wants to grow a bit each day, he's happy to call his chosid, with the VG, he only accepted those who would follow primarily him, and once again the rav becomes the real father

CREATING STUDENTS 

Rashi:Whoever teaches Torah to the son of his fellow man, the Torah regards it as if he had begotten him” (3:1) 

 

The Vilna Gaon said that this principle only applies if the teacher has been responsible for the spiritual development of the student, and the Gaon himself only agreed to accept students if they would derive their main spiritual stature from him. 

In a similar vein, Yehoshua is called bin Nunand not ben Nunbecause he was Moshe’s spiritual progeny and not his father’s. 

Gedolimare called the “father” of the nation since they take care of the nation’s needs like a father. Moshe Rabbenutoo saw to the entire spiritual and material needs of Aharon’s sons, and is therefore considered to have "created" them. 

with chabad, klal yisroel is one, even the lost souls have a place in the arba minim, and here's the litvish all caught up in their battle against the wicked, even killing their own relatives

FIGHTING THE WICKED 

“I have taken the Leviyim from among the bnei Yisroel in place of all firstborns” (3:13) 

 

When Moshe rabbeinu declaredmi laHashem elayafter the chet ho’egelonly shevet levirallied to his call, and had no hesitation in killing even relatives. Due to this act of self-sacrifice the Leviyimreplaced the firstborn in serving Hashem in the avodas hamikdosh. 

The Chofetz Chaim said that maybe we can judge favorably those who do not fight the wicked, but the same cannot be said of those who fawn to them.  

Rav Moshe Schneider used to say that even if we are not in a position to protest against the wicked, we are at least obliged to be anguished about the desecration of the Divine Name when the wicked become leaders of the nation, and the honor of the Torah becomes so besmirched. 

with chabad all jews have love of hashem deep inside, here the litvacks want to say everyone sinned except the small group

INNOCENT BY LACK OF ASSOCIATION  

In the time of the egelshevet levidemonstrated supreme dedication. The whole nation witnessed a golden ox, which had been created seemingly out of nothing, miraculously talking and eating. Nevertheless, only 3000 actually worshipped it and had to be killed for their sin. When Moshe rabbeinu declaredmi laHashem elaymost of the nation was reluctant to take up his call, because they felt that the miracles accompanying the golden calf had led the sinners astray, and only shevet leviseparated themselves from the rest of the nation, having no hesitation in killing even relatives. Due to this act of dissociation shevet leviwas counted in a totally separate census. 

During the time of the spies too, shevet leviwas the only tribe which did not send a representative, because they had complete trust in Hashem, and did not feel any need to investigate the country. All the other tribes were punished because they did not protest the statements made by their representatives, who acted as their agents. Only shevet leviwas spared the punishment of all male members more than 20 years’ old having to die before entering Eretz Yisroel. 

When faced with a choice between maintaining “peace” with erring brethren for the sake of “unity” and completely dissociating ourselves from them, we know which route to take, both for the sake of the nation as a whole, and for the sake of our own future.  

and here we go with the ben torah, bas torah talk

BAS TORAH 

Count the children of Levi… count all males from the age of one month and upward(3:15) 

 

The males of all the tribes were counted from age 20 upwards, but the members of shevet leviwere different. As soon as a boy was 30 days’ old, at which age it is presumed that he will stay alive (see Rashi ibid), they were already included in the count. As with any royalty, the next generation has to be inducted into their obligations from an early age, and be taught that they are obligated to serve in Hashem’s army. Similarly, anyone who wants his son to grow up to be a ben Torahmust start educating him from the earliest possible age, and inculcate the message that being a ben Torahcalls for a great degree of self-sacrifice and dedication.  

In the case of girls too, if a father wants to ensure that his daughter marries a talmid chochomhe must instill in her a love of Torah from the youngest age. Rav Dessler would call girls who want to marry a ben Torah"bnos Torah", and would bewail the fact that many bnei Torahdid not succeed because they married girls who were willing to marry a ben Torahbut were not bnos Torahthemselves yearning with mesirus nefeshfor their husbands to be immersed in Torah.  

In order to reach the level of a bas Torah, girls have to be educated from the earliest possible age to a life suffused with ahavas haTorahand that there is no greater happiness than having a husband sitting and learning, and nothing in the world should be greater in their eyes that they should want to give up their husband’s Torah for it. 

your purpose is to sit and learn, no mivtzaim

LIFE MISSION 

Count the children of Levi according to their fathers' house(3:15) 

 

            The descendants of the three sons of Levi were each assigned their own unique tasks, which were not interchangeable. For example, someone who was meant to sing could not decide that he was better suited to guarding the oron. 

            In the time of Rav Yosef Chaim Sonnenfeld there was a public activist who told him that he felt it was time to sit and learn without any disturbances, but Rav Yosef Chaim responded that that would not be a good idea, and he should continue with his current position, as that was his mission in life, unless he finds someone suitable to replace him. 

            Conversely, the task of a yeshiva bochurimis to sit and learn, and not to engage in activism. Their sole mission is to learn Torah and any askonusshould be left for after they get married. Hence, we bless a child at his bris, “Just like you have entered the covenant, so should you enter into Torah, chuppah, and good deeds”: good deeds are only mentioned after “chuppah”. Although there are many irreligious people, and we are obligated to take steps to save them and bring them closer towards religion, this cannot take place at the risk of endangering our own spiritual future. Whilst they are still bochurim, they have other opportunities for chesed, such as volunteering their time to teach other boys. 

torah, torah torah

WILLPOWER  

“The charge of Elozor… oil for lighting, the incense of spices, the continual meal offering, and the anointing oil; the charge for the entire Mishkan and all that is in it, of the kodesh and its furnishings” (4:16) 

 

The Ramban writes that although Elozor had to carry a very heavy load he was strong and courageous and “those who wait for Hashem renew their strength”. In other words, his physical strength was not enough without his faith in Hashem’s assistance, coupled with strong willpower. 

Rav Issser Zalman Meltzer said that his rov, the Netziv became conversant in the entire Torah not by virtue of his talents, but only due to an intense desire to master the entire Torah. Due to his self-dedication, he achieved success beyond his natural abilities.  

Alternatively, Elozor carried the heavy load on his own because he was worried that his task of being in charge of the avodas klei hamikdoshwould make him haughty. To prevent this, he wanted to engage in a physically difficult task duty on his own, to remind himself that the task he had been appointed to perform was not merely one that granted him honor, and that his actions should be for the sake of Heaven, not for his personal benefit. 

daven because it looks good on the torah

BEN TORAH 

“Do not cause the tribe of the families of Kehos to be cut off from among the Leviyim. Do this for them, so they should live and not die” (4:18-19) 

 

The task of the tribe of Kehoswas capable of killing them if they did not fulfil it properly, whereas if they did, it would be a source of life for them. Similarly, the Torah is either an elixir of life or of death (Yomo72b). Someone who learns Torah like a student without improving his midos, and without acting like aben Torahin his prayers and brochos, with fear of Heaven anddikduk bahalocho, not only desecrates the sanctity of the Torah, but also causes a chilul Hashem, since people will say that the Torah does not refine a person, and his punishment is great. 

Rav Schneider would always stress in his talks that only someone whose entire behavior is worthy of that title can be called a ben Torah,and not anybody who happens to be a “student” in yeshiva or kolel. 

that's everything in the parsha sheet, everyone of them sort of depressing to me, gemara, gelt, and guilt, like any cult, they cloak themselves in a feigned idealism, but at the heart of it, they are oppressing and exploiting you

Deifying

Think about all the ways that Litvacks have of deifying their 'geniuses.' "You could fit two Einsteins in him." "They don't come up to his ankles in learning." "He knows everything." 

Is this not idol worship? It's certainly exaggeration. I think it's idol worship.

Is there a problem?

 Hey crazed Litvack, you have a problem with this? 

Duties of the Heart on earning a living

Duties of the Heart says that your parnassah isn't dependent on a particular means. "One should not think that his livelihood depends on a particular means and that if these means fail, his livelihood will not come from a different means. Rather, trust in the Al-mighty, and know that all means are equal for Him." You will get what is decreed for you. You should choose for your parnassah a field that interests you. "One who finds his nature and personality attracted to a certain occupation, and his body is suited for it, that he will be able to bear its demands - he should pursue it, and make it his means of earning a livelihood." 

Thus, aiming for a high paying field is not proper if you will not enjoy that field. It will not bring you any more money. Often, those who live the contemporary Litvish mantra of the world standing on Gemara, Gelt, and Guilt can't imagine doing anything but studying Gemara lomdus. Then they can't imagine the purpose  -- for  those who "must work" as they say -- of doing anything but the most lucrative business because one needs money to support Torah and one word of Torah, blah, blah, blah. All the nuances of life are lost in this dogma. It is not the proper way to approach things. Going for the money against your nature is the same as seeing your occupation rather than Hashem as the source of the money. "If one's livelihood comes through one of the means he worked on, it is proper for him not to trust in this source, rejoice in it, intensify in it, and turn his heart to it, because this will weaken his trust in the Al-mighty."

Working in the wrong profession can destroy a person's mind. Likewise, abandoning your dreams can destroy your psyche. The Rambam said, "Seeing that the maintenance of the body in a healthy and sound condition is a God-chosen way, for, lo, it is impossible that one should understand or know aught of the divine knowledge concerning the Creator when he is sick, it is necessary for man to distance himself from things which destroy the body, and accustom himself in things which are healthful and life-imparting." (Hilchos Deos 4:1) If you destroy your mind,  you also will not be able to engage in spiritual pursuits.

All those who have eitzah, all those rabbis who tell people how to live, keep this in mind. Get to know the person who comes to you. What makes him tick? What is his nature? You don't have to divine it. Ask him and usually he'll you. If your practice is always to deliver the bad news, always to say no, always to say no you can't do it, you can't go there, if you deem your job to be Mr. Din, if like the old Marx Brothers song line "whatever it is I'm against it." know that you are going to ruin people. The result will not be more Torah study but less. 

Duties of the Heart:

55 Since it has been clarified the obligation for a man to pursue the means for a livelihood, now we will clarify that not every man is required to pursue every possible means. The possible means are numerous.

56 Some occupations are easy, requiring little strain such as shop keeping or light work with the hands such as sewing, writing, contracting businesses, hiring sharecroppers or workers, supervisors.

57 Some occupations require hard physical labor such as tanning, mining iron or copper, smelting metals, heavy transport, constant travel to faraway places, working and plowing land, or the like,

58 For one who is physically strong and intellectually weak, it is fitting to choose an occupation among those that require physical exertion according to what he can bear.

59 He who is physically weak but intellectually strong should not seek among those which tire the body but should instead tend towards those who are light on the body and that he will be able to sustain .

60 Every man has a preference for a particular work or business over others. G-d has already implanted in his nature a love and fondness for it, as He implanted in a cat's nature the hunting of mice, or the falcon to hunt smaller birds, the deer to trap snakes. Some birds hunt only fish, and likewise, each animal species has a liking and desire for particular plants or animals, which G-d has implanted to be the means for its sustenance, and the structure of its body and limbs is suited for that thing. The long bill and legs of a fish catching bird, or the strong teeth and claws of the lion, horns of the ox and ram (i.e. for defense - TL), while animals whose sustenance is from plants do not have the tools to hunt and kill.

61 Similarly you will find among human beings character traits and body structures suited for certain businesses or activity. One who finds his nature and personality attracted to a certain occupation, and his body is suited for it, that he will be able to bear its demands - he should pursue it, and make it his means of earning a livelihood, and he should bear its pleasures and pains, and not be upset when sometimes his income is withheld, rather let him trust in G-d that He will support him all of his days. And he should have intention when his mind and body is occupied with one of the means of earning a living to fulfill the commandment of the Creator to pursue the means of the world, such as working the land, plowing and sowing it, as written "And G-d took the man and placed him in Gan Eden to work it and to guard it" (Bereishis 2:15), and also to use other living creatures for his benefit and sustenance, and for building cities and preparing food, and to marry a woman and have relations to populate the world.

He will be rewarded for his intentions in heart and mind to serve G-d whether or not his desire is accomplished, as written "If you eat from the toil of your hands, you are praiseworthy, and it is good for you" (Tehilim 128:2), and our sages of blessed memory said "Let all your actions be for the sake of Heaven (to serve G-d)" (Avot 2:12).

63 In this way, his trust in G-d will be intact, undamaged by the toiling in the means to earn a livelihood, as long as his intention in heart and mind is for the sake of Heaven (to do the will of G-d that the world be populated and built up).

64 One should not think that his livelihood depends on a particular means and that if these means fail, his livelihood will not come from a different means. Rather, trust in the Al-mighty, and know that all means are equal for Him. He can provide using whatever means and at any time and however He so wishes, as written "for with the L-ord there is no limitation to save with many or with few" (Shmuel I 14:6), and "But you must remember the L-ord your G-d, for it is He that gives you strength to make wealth, in order to establish His covenant which He swore to your forefathers, as it is this day." (Devarim 8:18), and "Not by might nor by power, but by My spirit, says the L-ord of Hosts." (Zecharia 4:6).

Duties of the Heart 4:4

32 And likewise workers, merchants, and contractors are under a duty to pursue their livelihood while trusting in G-d that their livelihood is in His hands and under His control, that He guarantees to provide a man (as the verse "who gives sustenance to all flesh" - PL) and fully provides for him through whatever means He wishes. One should not think that the means can benefit or harm him in the least.

33 If one's livelihood comes through one of the means he worked on, it is proper for him not to trust in this source, rejoice in it, intensify in it, and turn his heart to it, because this will weaken his trust in the Al-mighty. It is improper to think that this source will be more beneficial to him than what was predecreed from the Creator. He should not rejoice for having pursued and engaged in it. Rather, he should thank the Creator who provided for him after his labor, and that He did not make his work and struggle result in nothing, as written "If you eat the toil of your hands, you are praiseworthy, and it is good for you" (Tehilim 128:2).

What's missing

Toras Dovid is a BT yeshiva in Monsey. It's the new incarnation of Ohr Somayach which closed down. It seems like a decent place as BT Litivish yeshivas go. It offers more than just Gemara. There are classes in Mishnah, hashgafa, and Hebrew. That already makes it light years better than Machon Shlomo. 

So any issues I'm about to identify in them don't make them worse than any other place. What I'm about to address is a typical problem. Here's the video.

https://torasdovid.org/#about

It's nice of them to be accepting of geyrim and to put them front and center in the video. That really is impressive. But watch them start the video by talking about Gemara, making a siyum, being able to lane the page. and then about middos. Here you have guys that are going from fry to frum, from pork chops to schita and there's no mention of mitzvos. How about we celebrate their learning that there is a God? How about we celebrate their keeping kosher for the first time in their lives? In the entire video, there's no mention of God. Tell me, is religion with God still religion? No, it's secularity. Atheists also stress good middos. That's part of making olam hazeh enjoyable. And Gemara without God is just law school. It's a chess club.

Once upon a time, the Satmar Rebbe criticized the Lub. Rebbe's tefillin campaign. But he warmed up to it in the end. He said, the Rebbe is a kluger yid (smart yid). It's not about the tefillin. It's about getting people to say that they are Jewish. 

Being Jewish doesn't mean pride in the Israel air force. The Jewish nation came to be at Har Sinai. God, Torah, and mitzvos is what happened there. Jewish pride means God, Torah, and mitzvos. Some of thes Litvish places miss two out of three and if you miss the first one you miss everything. 

Mitzvos don't mean things you will be punished for doing or not doing. Mitzvos mean connection to Hashem. 

Many mosdos seem to build the lives on Gemara, Gelt, and Guilt. What you do is Gemara. You need gelt for that. Guilt goes on those who don't study enough Gemara or give enough gelt for it. As mitzvos, they don't think about those so much. As one Litvish rabbi told a shiur, mitzvos are easy. Really? Easy? That tells me he doesn't take them very seriously. 

Again, I am not picking on this place. All the places are like this -- BT places, FFB places. The entire planet has become atheist. The frum world isn't much better. Could be we influence them as much as they influence us. 

It's not just them. Look at this Ohr Somayach video. It's all about learning Gemara, not much else. 

Now, it could be the video is like this, that the filmmaker is just very secular, but the yeshiva does stress other things. However, I doubt it, as I have been involved with these yeshivos for 35 years. There's not much spirituality in most of them, not much Hashem, not much in the way of mitzvos. Chumros yes, mitzvos no. There is a difference. 

Here's their About page:

About

Yeshiva Toras Dovid

Since its inception, Yeshivas Toras Dovid has aspired to create the warm, collegial and growth-oriented environment where ba'alei teshuvah can solidify and sustain their growth in Torah learning and Torah living. Named in memory of Dovid Winiarz zt'l, Toras Dovid's mission is to provide the support and skills that will enable our students to become b'nei Torah that are equipped to build Torah homes and contribute to the Torah community at-large. With this in mind, Toras Dovid offers a wide array of text-based classes ranging from a basic introduction to Gemara through advanced learning and rabbinic s'micha. Classes in halacha, hashkafa, Chumash and mussar provide a well-rounded curriculum to give our students both the knowledge and the skills to carry them through a lifetime of learning. Our staff of rabbeim have extensive experience dealing with ba'alei teshuvah and are uniquely equipped to help our students navigate the challenges and pitfalls - be it shidduchim, parnassah, family, shalom bayis or the like - that unfortunately can loom "larger than life" for the ba'al teshuvah who finds himself without a proper community or environment to reckon with those challenges. Our mission at Toras Dovid is to meet each of our students where they are at and to provide a healthy growth-oriented framework to prepare them for a successful and fulfilling life of the ben Torah.

You see the word God there? Has Torah replaced God? Ben Torah, Torah life. They can't seem to say the word God. Can't seem to say the word mitzvah. I don't know if you could pay them to say it.

Log b'omer just passed. I know some kids in litvish schools. What did they hear about log b'omer? They heard that they shouldn't go to Meron. It's bitul Torah. They heard that they are not allowed to go to log b'omer activities without school permission. All rules and threats.

Chabad had a parade and activities in the park. The Rebbe had all kinds of sichos about the meaning of log b'omer. 

The Treasuries of Ashkenaz blog, a yekke blog, gave its yearly post complaining about Meron and how lighting fires is a new custom. Hirsch was one thing, but Yekkes do an awful log of moaning and groaning about changing customs as if their customs go back to Bayis Rishon. Meanwhile, saying Baruch Hu u'varuch Shemo is a German custom. The Gra didn't keep it. Tashlich is a German custom. Tell a yekke you aren't doing Tashlich because it's a new custom. Hodu is a few hundred years old. Tell a yekke you aren't saying it because it's new. Can we focus on the meaning of Log B'omer please. Can we give people something believe in rather than rules about what not to do?

The Litvacks groaned about the dip in Gemara study. Chabad had a parade.

I heard a story that a certain Rosh Yeshiva in Brooklyn used to dance on Simchas Torah with a mesechta Avodah Zara. He'd say gleefully I'm dancing with my avodah zara.

One can take that as humor. One can take it literally. 

Talking with a Litvack

 

Went to a vort tonight with a book in hand, but when two men sat across from me I felt obligated to speak to them. Usually that’s trouble. One didn’t speak English so that was over fast, but the other did. Where are you from, I asked. I do that to start the conversation, nearly always complementing the man’s city and hoping he’ll talk about it. But what usually happens, happened. Montreal he said. Oh, that’s a nice place, I said. He grimaced and said, I’m glad I’m here now. Because the rule seems to be with frum people, at least yeshivish ones, that you aren’t allowed to say anything nice about the gentile world. And then if you live in Israel, you have to praise it. He said, all Jews should live here. I said, are you a Zionist? Oh no, it’s not that he said, but it’s the place for Jews. So since he’s in the yeshiva world he's obligated to deny being a Zionist, even though he’s a Zionist. I countered with something about strong Jewish communities in chutz also being good and that most Jews shouldn’t come here, blah, blah, blah. Where are you from he said? New York City. Where? Queens. Where? Flushing. The non-stop questions are also a feature of the frum world. What do you do, he asked. Another obligatory question that I really don’t like being asked by yeshiva people since the yeshivas don’t let the students get any job training. You won’t let me train for parnassah, so why are you asking me what I do? I mentioned that the man across from us spoke Russian and asked if he learned French in Montreal. Of course, he said. Feeling foolish, like I generally do when somebody says of course, I asked if he learned it well enough to speak. Yes, he said. I said something in French and said it’s a lovely language. He said, the French in Canada is low class. I’m thinking, it’s French, couldn’t be too bad. I said, is it like American English vs. British? He said, more like Tennessee, where he taught for a while. Again, he made a face showing disdain. So he doesn’t like Montreal, doesn’t like Tennessee, doesn’t like their accent, doesn’t like chutzeh l’aretz. I asked if met the Tosher Rebbe. He made another face, and said maybe once. I’m a Litvack he said, even though I come from Chassidim. Again, he made a face. So he doesn’t like Chassidim either. He told me he saw the Belzer rebbe in NY. I asked if he ever saw the Lubavitcher Rebbe. He made a face again. He said he lived in a Chabad neighborhood in Montreal but with a look of disdain and pride said didn’t go to shul there. Then he said that he went to a Lubavitch camp as a kid. I said, oh, did you learn any nigunim. He said, there’s one I remember. You might not want to hear it. I didn’t know what to say, but I was guessing that he was about to say something else negative. And sure enough, when he sang it to me it was a song about Moshiach being the Rebbe. He scowled again. Somehow he felt it was acceptable to condemn Lubavitch to me. It’s like a white guy looking around the bar and seeing no blacks feeling its OK to utter the n-word to the white guy next to him. Maybe he sensed my tiring of his complaining so he went to say something nice about Lubavitch which was that there were Chabad talmidei chochamim in Montreal. That’s the only possible complement with these people. I told him Rabbi Avigdor Miller studied with a Chabad Rosh Yeshiva, Rabbi Axelrod, in Baltimore, and that Rabbi Axelrod taught him for free an entire mesechta over the course of a year. The man nodded his approval. I said Rabbi Miller said that Rabbi Axelrod’s bentching took longer than his eating. At this point my dinner companion seemed to get the point that for his every condemnation I was going to say something positive. And from there the conversation died down because we were talking two different languages. I am not the world’s most positive person, but around these characters I’m Mr. Sunshine. They think it’s their job to hate everything that doesn’t take place in a Litvish yeshiva and assume that anybody who looks like them will go along with that.

So after the interaction, I open up my Cheyenu and here’s what I saw. The Rebbe notes that parshas Kedoshim which gives a general call of mitzvos to the Jews starts with a positive message: be holy. You might think that it would give a warning about violating commandments. However, the fear approach generally doesn’t work as well as giving people something positive to do. So what about Tehillim: turn from evil and do good? Says the Rebbe, read that as turn from evil by first doing good.

What a contrast.