JANUARY 29, 1999 VOL 2, ISSUE 19 12 SHEVAT 5759

Chabad of Northern Beverly Hills, 409 Foothill Road . Beverly Hills, CA 90210
Rabbi Yosef Shusterman 310/271-9063

PARSHAT BESHALACH

"This is my G-d and I shall glorify Him, my father's G-d and I shall exalt Him." (15:2) The Midrash states that at the splitting of the sea, after the exodus, each one pointed with his finger and said, "This is my G-d and I shall glorify Him." This means that there was a prophetic manifestation of G-dliness to the point of everyone being able to point a finger and say literally "THIS IS..!" The Midrash notes also that the children born under Egyptian servitude were the first ones to perceive and recognize that Divine manifestation.

"As in the days of your going out from Egypt, I shall show [the people] wondrous things." (Michah 7:15) Thus the Messianic redemption, too, will be marked by a Divine manifestation. In fact, the revelation of the future redemption will be even greater. The expression "This is.." appears but once at the time of the exodus; with the coming of Moshiach it appears twice, as it is written, "It will be said on that day, Behold, THIS is our G-d in whom we put our hope that He will deliver us, THIS is G-d for whom we hoped.." (Isaiah 25:9) Just as at the time of the exodus it was the children born under Egyptian servitude who recognized G-d first, so it will also be with the Messianic redemption: the children born in the harshness of this bitter galut, in the very depth of darkness - [for the darkest moments of the night are immediately before daybreak, and it is precisely then that the desire for sleeping is most powerful] - they will be the first to recognize the Divine manifestation. Thus it is written, "Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings You have established strength.. to silence foe and avenger." (Psalms 8:3)

The silencing of our foes is effected precisely by the mouths of children who study Torah in times when attempts are made to prevent that study, when difficulties and impediments are put in their way. These children who fortify themselves to overcome those obstacles will be the generation of redemption and the first to proclaim "Behold, THIS is our G-d.. THIS is G-d for whom we hoped. !" (From: Insights to Geula, Chabad in Cyberspace)

"And He said, 'If you will surely listen to the voice of G-d and do what is right in His eyes, hear His commandments, and keep all His statutes, then any of the diseases I placed upon Egypt I will not bring upon you; for I am G-d your healer.' " (15: 26) QUESTION? What is the connection between obeying Torah and Hashem being the healer? ANSWER: Unfortunately, there are people who refuse to fulfill mitzvot with the argument that they do not understand their purpose. The response to them is: When one, G-d forbid, is ill, he visits a doctor who prescribes medication. Though the patient is not a pharmacist and has no knowledge of the effect of the medication, he puts his trust in the doctor and eventually becomes healthy. Likewise, Hashem is our doctor. He "prescribes" Torah and mitzvot to keep us spiritually "healthy." We must follow His instructions regardless of whether we understand how they can benefit us.

"Moshe said to Yehoshua, 'Choose people for us to go do battle with Amalek'...Moshe, Aharon and Chur ascended to the top of the hill." (17:9-10) QUESTION: Why was it necessary to have a team consisting of Moshe, Aharon, Yehoshua, and Chur to fight Amalek? ANSWER: Under normal circumstances, when the Jewish people behave properly, Amalek is unable to attack them. However, he attacked the Jews in the city of Rephidim, whose name indicates two reasons for their vulnerability to attack: 1) "Rafu yedeihem min hamitzvot" -- their involvement in mitzvot became weakened." 2) "Pirud" -- lack of unity (see Keli Yakar). The first letters of the names "Aharon," "Chur," "Yehoshua," and "Moshe" form the acronym for "achim" -- "brothers." Moshe's call to the Jewish people was to act as brothers, live in brotherly harmony and be united in the study of Torah and observance of mitzvot. This would assure that Amalek would be unable to penetrate the Jewish camp.

"And he said: 'The hand upon the throne of G-d; G-d maintains war against Amalek from generation to generation.' " (17:16) QUESTION: Why is Hashem so angry at Amalek that He commanded us to wipe out his remembrance entirely? ANSWER: The Jews who left Egypt witnessed the glory of Hashem and the miracles He performed. This brought them to the highest level of emunah (faith in Hashem). Amalek's attack on the Jewish people was not merely intended to destroy them physically, but to detach them from Hashem spiritually. The name "Amalek" has the numerical value of 240, which is the same numerical value as "safek" -- "doubt." Amalek wanted to chill the Jewish people's enthusiasm for Hashem by putting doubts in their minds about Hashem. Since Amalek is our greatest adversary, Hashem swore He will not rest till he is eradicated. Whenever a Jew has doubts about Yiddishkeit, Amalek is at work. (From: VeDibarta Bam by Rabbi Moshe Bogomilsky)

LAWS OF LASHON HARA

Praising a person in a situation where someone present is likely to temper such praise with criticism is another form of avak loshon hora. It is forbidden to praise someone in the presence of anyone who is known to dislike him, as it is common for such people to respond by mentioning the person's shortcomings. Therefore, it is wrong to praise someone in the presence of a large group of people, since there is a reasonable chance that at least one person in the group dislikes him. Likewise, it is forbidden to praise a businessman in the presence of his competitors even if they claim to harbor no ill will towards him. Excessive praise should always be avoided for it can often cause people to respond negatively even when they have no particular dislike for the person being discussed. (From: Chafetz Chaim: A Lesson a Day by Rabbi Shimon Finkelman and Rabbi Yitzchak Berkowitz)

TU BISHVAT

"On the first day of Shevat is the new year for the tree according to Beit Shamai. Beit Hillel says it is on the 15th of Shevat." (RoshHashanah 2a) QUESTION: The Torah states, "ki ha'adam eitz hasadeh" -- "Man is like the tree of the field" (Devarim 20:19). The Jewish people have often been compared to different trees; what lesson can man learn from trees?ANSWER: Trees teach us the following:

1) A tree is planted by first putting a kernel (seed) in the ground. Afterwards it is necessary to constantly water the ground and remove all weeds. In each and every Jew, Hashem planted a Divine seed -- his soul. It is man's obligation to water it with Torah study and protect it by weeding out bad friends and influences.

2) A healthy tree continues to grow and grow. A healthy Jew must continuously grow spiritually. This is accomplished through studying Torah and performing mitzvot.

3) To assure that a young tree will grow straight, it is tied to two supports, one on each side. To ensure that a young child grows beautifully, the parents must always be at his side and constantly supervise him.

4) The strength of the tree depends on how well it is rooted in the ground. The root of the Jew is his emunah. The stronger our emunah, the better Jews we are.

5) The beauty of a tree is the fruit it produces. Mitzvot and ma'asim tovim -- good deeds -- are man's fruits. The more one does, the more beautiful a Jew one is. (From: Vedibarta Bam by Rabbi moshe Bogomilsky)

IT is up to each and every one of you to bring the ultimate redemption with your actions. It is in your hands to bring about the harmonious, perfect world of Moshiach.

-The Rebbe

Intellect and excitement are two separate worlds. Intellect- a world cold and settled; excitement- a world seething and impetuous. Man's avoda is to combine them, unite them. The impetuousness then becomes transformed into a longing, and the intellect into the guide in a life of avoda and action.(From Rebbe's Hayom Yom, Shevat 12).