​
 
Rabbi David Etengoff
 

 
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, and the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, Moshe ben Itta Golda, Yocheved Dafneh bat Dinah Zehavah, Reuven Shmuel ben Leah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
The mitzvah of the parah adumah (Red Heifer) is the focus of this week’s additional Torah reading. It begins with the following well-known words:

This is the statute of the Torah that the L-rd commanded, saying, “Speak to the children of Israel and have them take for you a perfectly red unblemished cow, upon which no yoke was laid.” … It shall be an everlasting statute for the children of Israel and for the proselyte who resides in their midst. (Sefer Bamidbar 19:2 and 10, this and all Bible translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)
 
The purpose of this commandment is to purify an individual who has become tamei (ritually impure) as a result of contact with a corpse. It is a mystifying commandment, as those who are tamei become tahor (ritually pure) through the sprinkling of the ashes of the parah adumah upon them, while those who assist in this purification process are paradoxically, rendered tamei. Little wonder, then, that this mitzvah is widely viewed by chazal as the ultimate example of a chok — a commandment whose rationale currently eludes us.
 
My rebbe and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), known as “the Rav” by his students and followers, presents the following trenchant analysis of how to approach chukim such as the parah adumah:

The laws concerning chukim were classified as unintelligible, enigmatic, mysterious… However, even though it is forbidden to ask for motivation, for the motives or the reasoning pertaining to certain Divine categorical imperatives, we may yet inquire into the interpretation of the law. There is a difference between explanation and interpretation. (This and the following citations, Derashot HaRav: Selected Lectures of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, summarized and annotated by Arnold Lustiger, pages 226-227, underlining my own)
 
At this juncture, the Rav focuses upon a crucial difference that obtains between explanation and interpretation of the mitzvot in general, and chukim in particular: “I believe that regarding chukim (as well as mishpatim) [mitzvot whose rationale are apprehendable] we must not ask the question of ‘why,’ because ‘why’ is in general a foolish question to ask, even in regard to mitzvos which in our opinion are quite meaningful.” (Brackets my own)  If “why” is an inappropriate inquiry regarding the mitzvot, what, then, may we ask? The Rav identifies “what” as the proper approach in mitzvot interpretation: “However, the question of ‘what’ can be asked. What is the meaning of this chok as far as I am concerned? What does the chok tell me? Not why did Hakadosh Baruch Hu ordain that law? [Instead,] what is the spiritual message that I can assimilate in my world view?”
 
The Rav continues to address the crucial distinction between explanation and interpretation, and, in so doing, teaches us what our approach to all chukim should ideally encompass:

We have no right to explain chukim — we have a duty to interpret chukim. What does the mitzvah mean to me? How am I to understand not the reason for the mitzvah, but the essence of the latter as an integral part of my service of God? Why the mitzvah was formulated we don’t know. But what the mitzvah means to me, how I can integrate and assimilate the mitzvah in my total religious consciousness, world outlook and I-awareness — that is a question that is not only permissible… I am duty bound to raise this question.
 
The question of “what does the mitzvah mean to me?” is writ large in the Rav’s works. Asking it before undertaking each commandment enables us to engage in authentic avodat Elokim (service of the Almighty). Unfortunately, if we fail to do this, we risk having our mitzvot actions reduced to the mechanical and formulaic performances that Yeshayahu the prophet decried so long ago: “… And the L-rd said: ‘Because this people has come near; with their mouth and with their lips they honor Me, but their heart they draw far away from Me, and their awe of Me has become a command of people (mitzvat anashim melumdah), which has been taught.’” (29:13)  The Rav formulated this concept in the following manner:

Avodas Elokim means not only to discharge the duty, but to enjoy, rejoice in and love the mitzvah. But the avodas Elokim is unattainable if the chok does not deliver any message to us. If there is no idea suggested by the chok, how can you be an oved Elokim [servant of the Almighty]? In order to offer God my heart and my soul, in order to serve Him inwardly with joy and love, one thing is indispensable — the understanding of the logos [human reason] in the ma’aseh hamitzvah [mitzvah action] We cannot experience the great bliss, the great experience of fulfilling Divine commandments if the logos is neutral, shut out of that involvement. (Brackets my own)
 
With Hashem’s help and our fervent desire, may we ever be focused upon the question, “what does the mitzvah mean to me?” May it lead us on the path of true avodat Hashem as we strive to encounter His Divine presence and fulfill His will. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom, and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and from all the nations of the world.
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:[email protected].
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.
 

 
Rabbi David Etengoff
 
 
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, and the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, Moshe ben Itta Golda, Yocheved Dafneh bat Dinah Zehavah, Reuven Shmuel ben Leah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
The final chapter of our Torah portion, Parashat Tetzaveh, contains the mitzvah to construct the mizbeach haketoret, the incense altar:

You shall make an altar for bringing incense up in smoke; you shall make it out of acacia wood. It shall be one cubit long and one cubit wide, a square, and two cubits high; its horns shall be [one piece] with it. You shall overlay it with pure gold, its top, its walls all around, and its horns; and you shall make for it a golden crown all around. (Sefer Shemot 30:1-3, this and all Bible translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)
 
Three chapters earlier, Parashat Terumah presents the commandment to build the mizbeach hanechoshet, the copper altar upon which korbanot (animal sacrifices) were offered:

And you shall make the altar of acacia wood, five cubits long and five cubits wide; the altar shall be square, and its height [shall be] three cubits. And you shall make its horns on its four corners; its horns shall be from it, and you shall overlay it with copper. And you shall make… all its implements of copper. (27:1-3)
 
The placement of these passages raises an essential question: “Why is the mizbeach haketoret found in our parasha, instead of in Parashat Terumah?” As Rabbi Michael Rosensweig, a rosh hayeshiva of Yeshiva University makes quite clear, this is an exegetical challenge with deep historical roots:

The conclusion of parshat Tezaveh delineates the laws and role of the mizbeach ha-ketoret. Many of the commentators (Ramban, Ibn Ezra, Seforno, Meshech Chochmah, Haamek Davar on Shemot 30:1) were puzzled by the fact that the Torah did not previously incorporate this crucial component in its otherwise comprehensive chronicle of the mishkan in parshat Terumah. (http://www.torahweb.org/torah/2005/parsha/rros_tetzaveh.html)
 
In his Torah commentary, Kli Yakar, Rabbi Shlomo Ephraim Luntschitz (1550-1619) examines the differences that obtain between the mizbeach hanechoshet and the mizbeach haketoret. In so doing, he helps us understand why they are not juxtaposed to one another in Parashat Terumah. He notes that while both altars were constructed to enable those who violated various laws of the Torah to attain expiation, they focus upon two completely different aspects of our being:

The mizbeach hanechoshet comes to atone for different physical matters, as the body has [metaphorically] stumbled on the stone of sin…[and] the animals that are offered [on this altar] are the equivalent of the animal-like soul in man (nefesh habehamit sh’b’adam) [that commits such sins]. This animal-like soul, therefore, needs to realize kapara (atonement) through the medium of an animal sacrifice (nefesh temurat nefesh) …as if the sinner had offered himself [upon the altar].
 
… the neshama [the higher-level soul of a human being that spiritually dwarfs the nefesh habehamit] also needs atonement, as it has become besmirched in the body that has stumbled [in sin]. It, however, cannot achieve kapara by offering the soul of an animal sacrifice, as these souls [the animal’s and humankind’s neshama] are not equivalent to one another… Therefore, the Living G-d commanded us to construct the mizbeach haketoret… in order to atone for violations of the spirit of man that [has the potential] to rise to the highest heights [of the Heavens] — just like the smoke of the incense [itself]… (Translations and brackets my own)
 
Rav Luntschitz’s analysis of the fundamental dissimilarity between these two altars (mizbachot) helps us understand why they are not found in proximity to one another: The mizbeach hanechoshet assisted in the process of achieving kapara for violations of physically based prohibitions (guf), while the mizbeach haketoret helped obtain forgiveness for violations of the spirit (neshama). Since these mizbachot address such divergent facets of humankind, it is little wonder they are not found in the same parasha.
 
My rebbe and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), known as the Rav by his students and followers, explains the depth-level significance of ketoret in a manner that complements Rav Luntschitz’s interpretation:
​
The incense represents the hidden and the intimate, the mysterium magnum [great mystery] of creation and the mysterium tremendum [terrifying mystery] of the Divine Presence in creation and beyond… Ketoret, incense, tells us a great story of the human craving for God, the quest and yearning for the makor [Ultimate Source], the beginning of all. Ketoret tells a marvelous story of the tragic human waiting for ecstatic unity with the Almighty… (Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Vision and Leadership: Reflections on Joseph and Moses, page 205, brackets my own)
 
For the Rav, ketoret “…tells us a great story of the human craving for God, the quest and yearning for the makor,” and, “a marvelous story of the tragic human waiting for ecstatic unity with the Almighty.” In sum, ketoret symbolizes humankind’s desire to achieve devekut (attachment and communion) with the Almighty, the highest rung on the spiritual ladder of existence. As the celebrated pasuk states: “V’atem hadveikim b’Hashem Elokeichem chayim kulchem hayom.” (“But you who cleave to the L-rd your G-d are alive, all of you, this day,” Sefer Devarim 4:4)  With Hashem’s help and our fervent desire may we, too, be accounted among those who are hadveikim b’Hashem, now and forevermore. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom, and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and from all the nations of the world.
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:[email protected].
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.
 

Rabbi David Etengoff
 
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, and the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, Moshe ben Itta Golda, Yocheved Dafneh bat Dinah Zehavah, Reuven Shmuel ben Leah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
The word, “terumah,” appears in the second pasuk of this week’s Torah portion and is the namesake of our parasha: “Speak to the children of Israel and have them take for Me an offering (v’yikaku li terumah); from every person whose heart inspires him to generosity, you shall take My offering.” (Sefer Shemot 25:2, this and all Bible translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach, underlining my own)  This terumah differs from the agriculturally-based offering that is given to the kohanim, as it consists of the various objects donated by the dor hamidbar (Generation of the Desert) for the construction of the mishkan (Portable Desert Sanctuary). The phraseology of our pasuk is of particular interest, since it could have been written v’yikaku terumah, rather than v’yikaku li terumah. Rashi (1040-1105), therefore, interprets “li” as the functional equivalent of “lishmi” — in My Name. In other words, this contribution was to be given in fervent dedication to the Almighty.
 
Midrash Tanchuma (Warsaw), Parashat Terumah, Chapter III, includes a passage that further advances our understanding of the term “li:”

“Speak to the children of Israel, and have them take for Me (li) an offering…” In all instances in the Torah wherein the Holy One Blessed be He utilizes the word “li,” it refers to a connection [that exists in] olam hazeh (this world) and olam habah (the world to come), between the Almighty and that which is mentioned. How so? “The land [of Israel] shall not be sold permanently, for the land belongs to Me (li) … (Sefer Vayikra 25:23) — this refers to olam hazeh and olam habah. [Another example:] “For all the firstborns are Mine (li) (Sefer Bamidbar 3:13) — this refers to olam hazeh and olam habah. [Another example:] “… and the Levites shall become Mine (li) — this refers to olam hazeh and olam habah. The Jewish people [are G-d’s holy possession] in both this world and the world to come. As it is written: “And you shall be to Me (li) a kingdom of princes and a holy nation… (Sefer Shemot 19:6).  Therefore the Torah states: “and have them take for Me (li) an offering…” — this refers to olam hazeh and olam habah. (Translation my own)
 
Herein we find five entities that are designated as belonging to Hashem in perpetuity (that is, in olam hazeh and olam habah): Terumah, the Land of Israel, the first born among the Jewish nation, the levi’im, and the Jewish people.
 
When did the election of the Jewish people begin? At first glance, one might think it began when Hashem took us out of Egypt: “…We were slaves to Pharaoh in Egypt, and the L-rd took us out of Egypt with a strong hand.” (Sefer Devarim 6:21)  In such a view, the Almighty, having conquered Pharaoh and his army, thereby “earned the right” to demand our loyalty as His people. My rebbe and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), known as the Rav by his students and followers, however, suggests an entirely different rationale as to how and when we became the am hanivchar (Chosen People):

The election of Israel in Egypt did not come about through conquest, through the mighty hand and the outstretched arm, through signs and wonders, but rather through the divine revelation of a still, small voice in the soul of the nation, through the fulfillment of “You shall take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood” (Ex. 12:22), through the sudden elevation of soul and spirit, through “And all the people bowed low” (Ex. 12:27), through the acceptance of the sanctity of Israel and of the commandments, … through being transformed into G-d’s Temple — and just as the sanctity of the Temple is never annulled, so too the election of Israel exists forever… (Festival of Freedom: Essays on Pesah and the Haggadah, p. 87, underlining my own)
 
We most often think of ourselves as having been chosen by the Creator to be His people. It might seem that we were passive objects rather than free-willed volitional subjects. This, according to the Rav, is simply not true. Instead, “The eternity of the Jewish people was not created through the signs and wonders of the mighty hand and the outstretched arm, but rather through the dipping of the bunch of hyssop in blood, through the heroic behavior of the Jews in Egypt when they brought the paschal sacrifice.” The Jews in Egypt were heroic figures! How so? They kept the Almighty’s commandment to sacrifice the paschal lamb, the god of the Egyptians, even though this act put their very lives in danger. The Rav is teaching us a truly novel idea — without our heroic actions, without our willingness to keep His commandments, we would never have become Hashem’s chosen nation! We needed to assert our spiritual and psychological independence from Pharaoh and his people, “…not by military force and not by physical strength…” (Sefer Zechariah 4:6), but rather, by beginning to live lives dedicated to the Torah and its mitzvot. As the Rav so beautifully states:
​
… the great sanctity of the night-of-watching [Passover] is grounded not in the miracles and wonders which G-d displayed that night, not in the acquisition through conquest accomplished with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, but rather through the divine revelation of a still, small voice. The Jews themselves created the greatest miracle: they raised themselves to the level of a holy nation. Only after that miracle took place did the redemption through conquest and miracles of a mighty hand and an outstretched arm first begin. Had the Jews not first redeemed themselves by self-sanctification on that night-of-watching in Egypt, the redemption through conquest would not have been complete. (page 88, underlining my own)
 
A new and deeper understanding of the Exodus and bechirat yisrael (the Election of Israel) emerges based upon a careful analysis of the Rav’s ideas, namely, our progenitors’ self-sanctification led to their redemption and, subsequently, to their election. This transformative process laid the foundation for our ancestors’ spiritual self-sacrifice and willingness to ignore potential physical danger in order to fulfill Hashem’s will. We must always remember that as great as Hashem’s role in the Exodus indisputably was, we had to act first in order to gain our physical freedom. We had to incontrovertibly prove to the Master of the Universe that we were committed to His goal of creating the world anew through the vehicle of His holy Torah. We had to demonstrate our belief that He, alone, ran the world. When we rose to this challenge and heroically offered the korban pesach (paschal lamb), we ensured our role as G-d’s chosen people for all time.
 
May it be His will and our heartfelt desire that we, like our ancestors of old, have the strength to be true spiritual heroes. May each of us become an unbreakable link in the great chain of Jewish being — now and for evermore. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom, and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and from all the nations of the world.
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:[email protected].
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.
 

​
 
Rabbi David Etengoff
  
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, and the refuah shlaimahof Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, Moshe ben Itta Golda, Yocheved Dafneh bat Dinah Zehavah, Reuven Shmuel ben Leah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
The first two chapters of our parasha focus upon mishpatim — laws that are crucial for the maintenance of a just, moral and righteous society. As such, the concluding pasuk of the second of these two chapters seems quite incongruous: “And you shall be holy people to Me, and flesh torn (basar treifah) in the field you shall not eat; you shall throw it to the dog[s].” (Sefer Shemot 22:30, this and all Bible translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)
 
The Ramban (Nachmanides, 1194-1270) suggests the following rationale for our pasuk’s position in our sidrah:

The reason for [the placement of] this verse is because until this point the Torah mentions the rationally apprehensible laws (mishpatim) and warns us against morally reprehensible matters. And now, however, when the Torah is poised to introduce its discussion of food-based prohibitions [that are found in later parshiot], it begins by stating “And you shall be holy people to Me.” It is fitting that a person should be able to eat anything that would enable him to live; and the only reason for the prohibitions is to maintain purity of the soul. The one who eats only spiritually clean foods will not develop inflexibility and arrogance of the soul. Therefore, it states: “And you shall be holy people to Me.” This means that I [Hashem] desire that you should be holy people in order for you to be fitting for Me, to cleave to Me, for I am holy… (Commentary on the Torah, translation my own)
 
In the Ramban’s view, the laws of kashrut are a spiritual shield that guard our soul’s holiness and purity. Intransigence, conceit, and haughtiness represent the polar opposite of kedushah (holiness). Perhaps the single greatest threat to kedushah is ga’avah (arrogance). Little wonder, then, that the Ramban, strongly warns us against this toxic middah(character trait) in his celebrated Iggeret HaRamban:
​
And now, my son, understand and observe that whoever feels that he is greater than others is rebelling against the Kingship of Hashem, because he is adorning himself with His garments, as it is written (Sefer Tehillim, 93:1), “Hashem reigns, He wears clothes of pride.” Why should one feel proud? Is it because of wealth? Hashem makes one poor or rich (Sefer Shmuel I:2:7). Is it because of honor? It belongs to Hashem, as we read (Sefer Divrei Hayamim I:29:12), “Wealth and honor come from You.” So how can one adorn himself with Hashem’s honor? And one who is proud of his wisdom surely knows that Hashem “takes away the speech of assured men and reasoning from the sages.” (Sefer Iyov 12:20) So, we see that everyone is the same before Hashem, since with His anger He lowers the proud and when He wishes He raises the low. So, lower yourself and Hashem will lift you up! (Translation, http://www.pirchei.co.il/specials/ramban/ramban.htm)
 
The Ramban is teaching us that human pride is antithetical to kedushah and constitutes rebellion against the Kingship of the Almighty. Wealth, honor, and glory are merely passing shadows that can be taken away from humankind, just as they are bestowed upon us, by the Creator. How, then, can we avoid the pitfalls of ga’avah, so that we may achieve kedushah and draw closer to Hashem? The Ramban provides us with very practical advice:
In all your actions, words and thoughts, always regard yourself as standing before Hashem, with His Shechinah [Divine presence] above you, for His glory fills the whole world. Speak with fear and awe... Act with restraint in front of everyone. When someone calls you, do not answer loudly, but gently and softly, as one who stands before his master. 
 
In sum, when we recognize we are always standing before the Almighty, we will act with humility before Him, and restraint and dignity toward others. 
 
The words of Michah, the eighth century BCE prophet, provide strong underpinning for the Ramban’s ideas: “Higid lecha adam mah tov, umah Hashem dorash memcha ki im asot mishpat v’ahavat chesed v’hatznayah lechet im Elokecha” (“He has told you O’ man what is good! What does G-d require from you except to perform acts of justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your G-d?” Sefer Michah 6:8)  Michah teaches us that good and, by extension a good life, are defined first and foremost by actions that embody justice in our dealings with others. This is an essential aspect of Jewish living. We are all created b’tzelem Elokim (in G-d’s image). As such, we are all the same in His eyes. By maintaining a constant awareness of the intrinsic value of our fellow human beings, we emulate Hashem (imitatio Dei). 
 
The next middah that is stressed by Michah is kindness. While this quality appears to be an “extra” in many quarters of modern life, Michah categorically states that it is part and parcel of what Jewish living should represent. As such, he urges us to love acts of kindness, and ardently practice these behaviors with all humankind. The navi concludes his famous words with the expression, “and to walk humbly with your G-d.” Anavah (humility) is one of the most important aspects of Jewish life. As the Ramban states in the Iggeret, when we act humbly, Hashem’s Divine spirit and glory rest upon us, and we merit Olam Haba (the World to Come). May we ever seek to draw near to Hashem in kedushah, and may His countenance shine upon us all. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom, and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and from all the nations of the world. 
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:[email protected].
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.