by Rabbi Nachman Kahana | Mar 12, 2014
The angel Gavriel disturbed the sleep of Achashverosh because of Mordechai’s prayers, and said to him (Achashverosh) “Ingrate! Reward the man who did you a great service.” Mordechai, the Jew, had saved the king’s life, but had not been rewarded. As we will read in Megilat Esther in a few days, Achashverosh corrects that oversight and demonstrates his appreciation for Mordechai’s actions and wisdom.
Yet of all the many Chareidi yeshivot in Eretz Yisrael, I am quite certain that there is not even one in which the prayer for Tzahal is recited. Where is the hakarat hatov (thankfulness, appreciation, recognition) for the hundreds of thousands of men their age who give three years of their lives to keep our nation safe and the yeshivot open?
by Rabbi Nachman Kahana | Mar 5, 2014
The Gemara explains that King David drafted into his army only the most genealogically and spiritually suitable. David’s logic was that, in war, Hashem weighs the relative merits of the litigants.
How different are our thoughts from those of the great King David. Today’s yeshiva world might be prepared to accept the idea that those who are not learners be drafted, but certainly not the outstanding learners. In contrast, David and his advisors saw the Torah truth to be just the opposite – they knew that the best fighters would be the most gifted talmidei chachamim, bringing with them Torah and mitzvot as the efficient weapons for victory.
by Rabbi Nachman Kahana | Feb 26, 2014
It is superfluous to underscore the painful breach that exists within our society, because the debate and emotions are inescapable.
It is the result of “bad blood” which exists between the sides – “bad blood” because the issue is one of life and death, where one side spills its blood while the other does not. I am referring to the matter of military service for Chareidi yeshiva students. The gap between the sides appears to be at this time irreparable. The learners cannot concede because in their eyes they are fulfilling Hashem’s will that Jews should learn Torah and that their learning is defending the Medina. The earners, on the other hand, cannot perceive that learning Torah in an air-conditioned bet midrash and sleeping every night between two clean sheets is as effective in defending the country as dropping a two-ton bomb from an F-16 in Azza or laying in a mud-filled foxhole on the border in ambush for terrorists who are determined to murder as many Jews as they can.
by Rabbi Nachman Kahana | Feb 18, 2014
The last five parshiot of the Book of Shemot are: Teruma, Tetzaveh, Ki Tisa, Vayak’hel and Pekudai.
Teruma and Tetzaveh, deal with the Mishkan and its implements. The third – parashat Ki Tisa interrupts the sequence and describes the events of the iniquitous, disastrous episode of the Aigel Hazahav (the Golden Calf). And the last two – Vayak’hel and Pekudai, return to the subject of the Mishkan and its implements.
The schematic breakdown of the parshiot is: Mishkan, Mishkan, tragic episode of idolatry, Mishkan, Mishkan. Why did the Torah interrupt the sequence of the Mishkan with the episode of the Aigel Hazahav?
by Rabbi Nachman Kahana | Feb 12, 2014
When Moshe saw the sinners dancing around the Golden Calf in religious ecstasy, he called out to the faithful (Shemot 32:26-28): “Whoever is for the Lord, come to me.” And all the Levites rallied to him. Then he said to them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Each man strap a sword to his side. Go back and forth through the camp from one end to the other, each killing his brother and friend and neighbor.’ The Levites did as Moses commanded, and that day about three thousand of the people died.”
Let’s now learn about the avoda zara of today…
by Rabbi Nachman Kahana | Feb 5, 2014
On the question: What is Moshe most famous for? The consensus would probably be that He was HaShem’s agent in bringing and teaching the Torah to Am Yisrael.
That would be correct had the question been: For what is Moshe Rabbeinu (our rabbi) most famous?
However, the question is: what is the man Moshe most famous for? What did he do to represent the values and integrity of the son of Amram and Yocheved not the “eved HaShem” (the servant of God) who had no choice but to do the bidding of the Creator?
