Don't Be a Menace to Elijah the Prophet While Worshipping Your Idols in the Hood

[Looking for feedback on this work in progress. Experimenting with "novelizing" segments of Tanach based on the understanding of Chazal and commentaries, to create quality Jewish "edutainment" and thereby increase Jewish awareness of genuine Torah information. Below is my first "installment" (in progress). Please comment!-Rafi Mollot]

"Choose for yourselves a bull!" Eliyahu called out to the crowd. Four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal had arrived in response to the challenge of the lone prophet of the One God.

"Prepare yours first, for you are many," Eliyahu instructed them, hardly concealing the tone of false deference, as though the Torah's appeal to give preference to a majority extended to these adversaries of the Torah.

"Call out in the name of your gods," Eliyahu continued, "but set no fire." Nearby, a crowd of thousands of Israelites had gathered upon the mount, the precipice of which held Eliyahu and his opponents in this contest to determine to whom the hearts of Israel should pledge their allegiance -- to the One God, or to Baal and his pantheon.

A rustle of voices emanated from the crowd of idolatrous prophets as a huddle of the leadership determined which of two similar cows to choose for their offering. After a brief murmur and shuffling of feet, a representative cadre of the prophets of Baal emerged from the mob and approached Eliyahu. Eliyahu stood back, gesturing toward the two bulls that stood dutifully and nobly together, awaiting their fate.

The Baalite group circled the pair of bulls, performing a careful perusal of the beasts with their eyes, assessing each creature's worthiness. One of the men put his hand out toward one bull, looking up as he did so to catch the gaze of his cohorts. They looked back toward him, understanding his gesture, and nodded their assent.

The man took hold of the rope dangling from the bull's halter and turned his back to Elijah, ready to proceed toward the waiting crowd of his fellows, and the men with him did likewise. He stepped forward, but as the rope grew taut, the bull, rather than follow, planted its hooves and resisted the prophet's pull. The prophet stopped, confused, and turned back to face the bull. He tugged again at the rope, more forcefully this time, but with the same result. The bull did not budge. A third, more forceful attempt, the prophet's face contorting in a reddish mix of frustration, indignation, and embarassment, could not overcome the bull's tenacity.

The Baalite prophet's companions, noticing the struggle, stopped to return to their friend's side. As the one pulled the rope, the others pushed at the animal's hind quarters, but to no avail.

Ashamed to look up at their opponent Eliyahu, they could nevertheless hear him stifle a chuckle. From his distant post, he stretched his arm forward warmly toward the second bull. As calmly and obediently as a faithful dog to its master of many years, the bull turned and trotted toward Eliyahu, allowing the prophet of God to caress its head and stroke its body as the animal drew itself up alongside the holy man.

A murmur came over the Israelite crowd as it witnessed the remarkable preference showed by the animals for the lone combatant.

But the matter was no wonder to Eliyahu. Given the choice of fates, to become an offering on the altar to the One True God, Creator, Sustainer and Master of the Universe, or to become the object of sacrifice to a false deity, and a disgrace to its Creator, what creature would choose the latter, or even go willingly if forced to do so?

The Baalites and their chosen beast remained locked in their contest of muscle and will. A second group of Baalite prophets dispatched themselves from the larger gathering to join their struggling cohorts. Taking up positions at all sides of the beast, they set upon it again, heaving with full force.

An audible crunch of gravel pierced the air as the bull, its breath heavy with resistance, began to slide forward, propelled by the combined force of its Baalite antagonists.

Desperate, the beast, letting out a mighty bellow, swung its horned head, throwing off those men restraining its front quarters. Upon seeing the ferocity of the beast aroused, those Baalites pushing at the animal's back acted instinctively, some swiftly retreating to avoid becoming victim to the animal's horns, others bracing the animal with even greater firmness. The latter group shortly regretted their bravery as the animal's hind hooves, propelled by the leverage granted the beast by its liberated front quarters, transformed them into projectiles.

The now ferocious beast spun around and began a charge toward Eliyahu. A gasp engulfed the crowd of spectators. Any Baalite prophet who lay on the ground in the aftermath of the bull's assault quickly scrambled before being trampled by the raging beast.

Eliyahu stood his ground calmly as the speeding animal swiftly closed the distance between them. Within just several bounds of Eliyahu's post, the beast slowed its charge, and with a placid stride, approached the prophet with its head bowed.

Carefully avoiding injuring Eliyahu with its horns, the bull pressed its head against the Man of God, and, with tearful eyes, buried its face in his cloak. As though to comfort it, the second bull slid itself alongside the first, leaning its head upon its beastly brother in compassionate empathy.

Eliyahu squatted down, placing his hands on the cheeks of either animal. Looking into the eyes of the bull chosen by the prophets of Baal, Eliyahu whispered, "Go. You will both sanctify the name of God today."

The beast returned the prophet's gaze. With a deep breath and an understanding look that seemed to belie its animal nature, the bull raised itself on its haunches, and, holding its head high, began the march toward the Baalite camp with a regal stride. The prophets of Baal accompanied it alongside, unsure now who was leading whom.

(Based on I Kings 18 v. 25-26 and Rashi's comments there.)

VIDEO: Appointment with Infinity

Spiritual Cartwheels

I must admit, when I first got married, I was a lazy bum. I didn’t help around the house at all, not with cleaning, not with cooking, not with laundry. I even remember having a conversation with my wife-to-be, during the period of our engagement, about who would change diapers when the time came, G-d willing, that we would have a baby. “No way,” I said. “No, Ma’am. There will be no diaper changing for me. That’s the mother’s job.” As a matter of fact, when the baby did arrive, I wouldn’t even get up at night when the baby cried. “The baby’s hungry,” I would say, “and I can’t really do anything about that myself.” I did like burping the baby, though. That was fun. As for the rest, well, “I just can’t do that stuff.”

Fast forward nearly nine years and four kids later, and over the course of time I learned that the key to success and happiness in marriage (and really all things) derives from hard work and sacrifice. And now, you wouldn’t believe it, but for the last two weeks I cooked the chicken for Shabbos (in fact, two weeks ago I made two kinds of chicken), and it came out absolutely phenomenal! So what changed?

Real life involves real challenges and a real man steps up to the plate and meets the challenge. There were those times that my wife got sick, or was wiped out after an exhausting week, or maybe just plain didn’t feel like cooking that day, when I, as the dutiful husband, had to just say, “I’ll take care of it.”  The same goes for cleaning house, doing laundry, or changing stinky poopy-pants. Nowadays, I do it all, and I’m gosh-darn proud of it!

Back to cooking. You know you’re a good cook when your kids start to compliment your cooking. I hear their excitement when I cook supper. “Tati (‘Daddy’ in Yiddish) is such a good cook!” One day my daughter watched me in awe as I prepared supper.

“Tati, how do you do that?” she asked, reverently.

“Talent,” I responded, arrogantly.

She paused, thoughtfully, then retorted, “But can you do a cartwheel?”

I was simultaneously stunned and shamed into silence. Indeed, despite all my arrogance, I cannot do a cartwheel, while my six-year-old daughter can.

Normally, an adult would brush off a comment like that from a child, but I am no normal adult. (Just ask anyone who knows me.) I take what kids say seriously, because kids are very honest; they haven’t yet learned the finer points of dishones-- I mean, diplomacy. So I try to take the kernels of truth from children’s innocent statements and apply them in order to live a more truthful life.

The normal reaction to such a statement from a child would go something like this: “Cartwheel? ME?? What do cartwheels have to do with me? I’m not a cartwheel kind of guy.” And we move on, with no introspection, and thereby, no attempt or effort toward change. While this makes sense (perhaps) for something like cartwheels, I believe we too often do this in much more important areas of life. “Judaism? It’s interesting, it’s cool, I like being Jewish, I’m proud to be a Jew, but actually practicing Judaism? That’s not for me.” “Learning? Torah? That’s not my thing.” “Shabbos? I just can’t.”

But imagine if I had kept that attitude throughout my marriage. I don’t think I would have the nine wonderful years and four beautiful children I now have to show for it. Because being in a real loving relationship means giving everything you have to one another. And if you’re not willing to do that, if you’re only willing to take, something’s missing from the relationship.

We must remember that we are in a relationship with G-d; we are His children, we are His beloved. Of course an infinite G-d doesn’t need anything from us, but if there was no give-and-take between us, there would be no relationship. G-d gives us everything we have in this world (not too shabby -- sight, sound, smell, taste, touch, arms, legs, ice cream, hot dogs, rainbows, waterfalls, sunsets -- you get the point), and He asks in return a few small tokens of allegiance. Again, not for His own benefit, but for ours, so that we can connect to Him and live our lives imbued with a feeling of closeness to G-d, whenever and wherever we are, no matter what we may be going through. And, truth be told, when we analyze the actions we are “commanded” to perform by G-d (Sabbath, dietary laws, marital guidelines, etc.), we find that they very much enhance our physical pleasures and enjoyment in life. So even when G-d “takes,” He continues to give and give.

Rosh ha-Shanah, the Jewish New Year, is a time for re-inaugurating our relationship with G-d and with our fellow man (or woman). Let us reflect upon some of the things we’ve learned this past year or any year past and thought, “I would like to do that, I really should do that, but I just can’t,” and realize that we really can. It’s not easy, it requires hard work and sacrifice -- but it’s worth it! The rewards in our lives will be great, if we are willing to work to achieve it.

So just as I once said, “I can’t, it’s not for me, it’s not my thing,” to cooking, cleaning, and changing, and yet I have proudly achieved them all since, it is my hope that one day I will look back once again and be able to proudly answer my daughter and say, “Yes, I can do cartwheels.” Perhaps not a physical cartwheel, but at least one in spirit.

This year, and in the years to come, may G-d grant all of us the strength to perform spiritual cartwheels, overcoming all of our self-imposed limitations, and may we merit to be inscribed in the Book of the Good Life in this world and the World to Come.

[Read more from Rafi Mollot at http://rafimollot.wordpress.com]

Jews of the World -- UNPLUG!

Great news item about getting "unplugged." Just wanted to share this one:

Company Pays Employees $7,500 to Go on Vacation – But No Texting, Email, Or Phone Calls

Great excerpt from the article:

Some of Lorang’s software engineers that have taken him up on his offer say while it was difficult initially going off the grid, they ended up loving their completely unplugged vacation.

If only people would realize that we Jews have the gift of the "unplugged vacation" one day out of every week! And our sentiment is the same -- initially it's hard, but in the end, we completely love it! Everyone should try it -- the rewards are very great!

[Posted by Rafi Mollot. To read more by Rafi Mollot, visit http://rafimollot.wordpress.com.]

Comic Reproof

This re-posted from the Dalai Lama by a friend of mine via social media with the title: "Listen to the guy... Extend your life":

"Like anyone else, I too have the potential for violence; I too have evil in me. However, I try to recall that anger is a destructive emotion. I remind myself that scientists now say that anger is bad for our health; it eats into our immune system. So, anger destroys our piece of mind and our physical health. We shouldn't welcome it or think of it as natural or as a friend."

I posted the following comment that I thought was worth sharing here as well:

"We didn't need the Dalai Lama (or scientists) for that -- we have the wisdom of King Solomon! Ecclesiastes (Koheleth) 11:10: 'Remove anger from your heart and cause evil to pass away from your flesh.' (You see here that Solomon knew that anger was BODILY unhealthy.)

An ironic story I must share: I was staffing a trip to New York for Jewish collegiates and one of our events was a night at a comedy club. Of course, realizing that there was a Jewish audience in the house, they provided plenty of 'Jewish' jokes. One joke involved a play on a Biblical event. At this joke there was no response from the audience. The comedian was so insulted that a Jewish audience didn't get a Bible joke, that, realizing (correctly) that it could only be due to a lack of knowledge of a basic Bible story, the comedian broke character, turned to the audience and declared, 'Jews! It's your Torah! Read it!' Wow, getting mussar (rebuke) from the guy on stage at a Manhattan comedy club. Surreal."

[Posted by Rafi Mollot. Read more by Rafi Mollot at http://rafimollot.wordpress.com]

Jealousy Incarnate

“All of the assembly in its entirety are holy and G-d is among them!” shouted Korach, poised at the head of the mob of rebels who had gathered to challenge Moses and Aaron. “Why do you exalt yourselves over the congregation of G-d!” (Numbers 16:3).

The Talmud records that Korach’s attacks against Moses were not merely political, but far sharper and more personal. According the Talmudic account, among other criticisms, Korach actually accused Moses of the crime of adultery!

While attacking Moses on the basis of his position of authority seems understandable, to malign a man of Moses' inimitable character and reputation with intimations that he had committed adultery enters the realm of the ridiculous! What is the meaning of this strange Talmudic teaching?

The answer to this mystery, as with many mysteries of the Torah, lies at the core of the history of Man.

“Let Us make Man…” (Genesis 1:26). The Almighty consulted with his council of spiritual ministers before creating Mankind. Our tradition teaches that these heavenly ministers objected to the Almighty’s plan, explaining that Man, as a being with physical elements, may succumb to material temptation, polluting the universe with sin. Man, therefore, deserves not any place in the kingdom of the Almighty. G-d overrides the opinion of his ministers and proceeds with the creation of Adam. Thenceforth, throughout history, as mankind failed to live up to the course of holiness prescribed for them by the Almighty, the angels would continually remind the Lord of their initial objection and His failure to heed their counsel.

Subsequent to Adam’s fall from grace, the Torah describes how Adam’s sons Cain (Kayin) and Abel (Hevel) vie for the Almighty’s favor. While Abel brings an offering from the fattest of his flock, Cain offers only the cheapest of his crop. The Almighty favors Abel’s offering, and in a fit of jealousy, Cain murders his brother Abel.

“G-d said to Cain, ‘Where is Abel, your brother?’ [Cain] said, ‘I don’t know. Am I my brother’s keeper?’ [G-d] said, ‘What have you done! The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to me from the earth! And now you are accursed from the earth that opened its mouth to take your brother’s blood from your hand!’” (ibid 4:9-11).

Our tradition further teaches that Cain’s jealousy of Abel stemmed not only from the Almighty’s reaction to their offerings, but from a number of other factors as well. Among them, Cain was born together with a twin sister who would become his wife, while Abel was born with two twin sisters who would become his wives. Cain thought, “Should the younger have two while the elder has but one?”

Subsequent to Abel’s murder, the Almighty’s heavenly ministers seize the opportunity to brag that they were right once again about mankind. “Look how this one murdered because of jealousy over such material desires!” G-d replies to them that so long as they, as spiritual beings, cannot be tempted by physical desire, they have no right to criticize those who suffer from such temptation. The Lord’s ministers, disgusted at the suggestion that something so lowly as the material could offer any allure to beings so pure as themselves, urge G-d to offer them the opportunity to prove themselves. The Almighty obliges, sending two of these spiritual beings to earth in physical form.

What follows? “The Sons of Eloh-im saw that the daughters of Man were good, and they took for themselves wives from whomever they chose” (ibid 6:2). According to Rashi, these “Sons of Eloh-im” were, “the ministers who act in the agency of the Lord,” i.e. G-d’s spiritual ministers who had been sent to the earthly realm. According to mystical tradition, the “daughters of Man,” here mean not merely women of the human persuasion, but the actual daughters of Adam, i.e. the two sisters of Abel. G-d tests those spiritual ministers who criticized Cain’s actions with the exact same stimulus that led Cain himself to commit his jealous murder. These spiritual beings too, now susceptible to material temptation, succumb to their newfound urge to take these woman as wives.

The visitors from the spiritual realm solicit the daughters of Adam for marriage. These holy women, not wanting to enter such an ill-conceived relationship, but knowing these beings hold the power to force the issue, concede, but on condition. The daughters of Adam stipulate that as these spiritual visitors hold the option to return to the heavenly realm at any time, they must teach these women the Name of G-d that would allow them to do the same in such an eventuality. The spiritual beings comply, teach them the Name, and immediately the daughters of Adam use the Name to ascend to the heavenly realm before any union can be realized. While the spiritual ministers remain below, wreaking the havoc that the Almighty predicted, these holy women remain above, seeking asylum from these destructive creatures.

According to mystical tradition, many generations later, during the ascendance of the Pharaohs of Egypt, these two women are brought back into the earthly realm, one as Bithyah, daughter of Pharoah, the other as Tziporah, daughter of Jethro. At that time as well, the souls of Cain and Abel are brought back into the world as Korach and Moses, respectively. The daughter of Pharoah, one of Abel’s former wives, rescues Abel, now Moses, from the Nile River, and raises him as a son. Moses later marries Tziporah, also his wife during his previous incarnation.

As Moses achieves ascendency over Israel, the soul of Cain, now Korach, undergoes the same trial of spirit to overcome his jealousy that he failed during his first incarnation. The Almighty has granted Korach the opportunity to achieve rectification for his tainted soul, yet Korach tragically allows his millennia-old jealousy to overwhelm him, mounting a rebellion against the man that G-d has favored once again.

But how does this help us understand Korach’s shocking accusation against the humblest of all men?

According to Torah law, if a man dies childless, his brother should marry the widow in order to grant continuity to the deceased brother’s legacy. In the case of Cain and Abel, since Abel died childless, the rights to marry Abel’s wives belonged to Cain. This was the substance of Korach’s accusation. As the reincarnation of Cain, these rights now belonged to him! Tziporah, then, formerly the wife of Abel, should be the rightful wife of Korach, not Moses. Ergo, Moses' marriage to Tziporah constituted an adulterous relationship!

Korach erred in his calculation, however, his raging jealousy blinding him to the elementary precept that, “one cannot fulfill a commandment through transgression of another commandment.” Since Cain’s obligation to marry Abel’s wives only came about through the murder of Abel, no such obligation actually took effect! In this case, Cain had no legitimate claim to Abel’s wives, nor did Korach have any legitimate right to marry Tziporah. Moses escapes any calumny laid upon him by Korach, while Korach must face the consequences of his missteps once again.

We can now gain a deeper appreciation of Korach’s bizarre demise. “The earth opened its mouth and swallowed them” (Numbers 16:32). Why was this the form of Korach’s destruction? Remember the words of the Almighty to Cain after the murder of Abel: “The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the earth! And now you are accursed from the earth that opened its mouth to take your brother’s blood from your hand!” Just as the earth opened its mouth to absorb Cain’s original sin, so would the earth open its mouth again to claim the perpetrator of that sin. And indeed, according to mystical tradition, the place where the earth “opened its mouth” to swallow Korach was the same exact spot where Cain had murdered Abel millennia earlier.

The Torah instructs us not to be like Korach and his assembly. Korach’s character flaws plagued him not only through two lifetimes, but for all eternity. Our Sages teach us that Korach remains forever suspended in the endless chasm born of his reticence to accept reproof for his recalcitrance, eternally declaring his regret. Learning not from his errors, he doomed himself to repeat them. Let us not be like Korach. Let us assert ourselves in a genuine effort to perfect our character, and instead of the legacy of strife left behind by Korach, may we merit to bring a legacy of everlasting peace to our world, to our posterity, and to all Israel.


(more by Rafi Mollot at http://rafimollot.wordpress.com

"I Believe with Perfect Faith..."

Question from a correspondent of mine:

"Would you say that all of Maimonides' Thirteen Principles of Faith are necessary for whatever you're practicing to be Judaism? I bet #12 (the Coming of the Messiah) and more so #13 (Resuscitation of the Dead) are probably pretty tough for a lot of people..."

Our answer:

The prophets predicted that certain exceedingly unlikely events would occur at some point in Jewish history (predicting likely events doesn't require a prophet), prophecies that remained unfulfilled for millennia. Imagine being a Jew living just a couple of centuries ago and trying to convince a non-believer of your faith. 

"We're going to return to our land from all of our exiles all over the world and the land that has been desolate all these centuries will sprout and become lush, fertile, productive! We will fly to Israel on the wings of eagles!" 

One would be laughed at! "There's no way for an ingathering of exiles of such proportion to occur! Give me break! That land is so desolate, nothing's going to take root there. And to fly there? You're crazy!"  

"Yeah, and the  nations of the world will unite to oppose us!" 

"Nations of the world unite? There is so much war in the world, no country can get along with its neighbor and you think nations will become united? How could this possibly happen?" 

"Yeah and the prophet says that an army of these united nations will besiege Jerusalem." 

"Why would anyone want to even go there? It's desolate! You think Jerusalem is going to somehow become important to the world?" 

"Yeah, and it says that this army will be destroyed with a fire that will burn them up in their tracks, melting them where they stand!" 

"What kind of science fiction is that? There are no weapons that can melt entire armies! You Jews are nuts! And my proof is that things have been this way for thousands of years. How can you possibly believe these constants will change? How utterly irrational!"

Yet just a couple of centuries later -- we are living messianic prophecy! The land of Israel has been greatly rebuilt, the Jewish people has returned en masse (Israel is projected to soon contain the MAJORITY of world Jewry over all worldwide communities combined). Israel produces some of the finest produce in the world, exported to many foreign markets, including prize-winning wines. We have airplanes today flying record numbers of people to Israel many times daily. There is today a United Nations that continually enacts resolutions against Israel (more than any other nation combined), and there is constant foreign pressure on Israel to give up its rights to its capital, Jerusalem, which the world community doesn't even recognize as the capital of Israel. (Two of my children were born in Israel and have American birth certificates that show their birthplace as Jerusalem, but without any country, because Jerusalem is still not officially recognized, even by the United States, as an Israeli city, let alone its capital.) Indeed, the only thing the nations seem united about is hatred for Israel. And now that weapons of mass destruction are a reality, it has become easy to imagine the horrid scenarios described by the prophets. 

Now, given that all these "impossible to believe" elements of Messianic prophecy have already come true before our eyes, is it such a leap of faith to trust the prophets on the rest? 

I believe, given this evidence, that it is irrational to consider all this a "coincidence" or "lucky guess." I'm certain the prophets were "on to something" and I'm hedging my bets with them. To do otherwise, to this mind, is simply unbelievable.

Sincerely,

Rafi Mollot


(read more from Rafi Mollot at http://rafimollot.wordpress.com)

Beyond Infinity's Threshold

(Dedicated in memory of מרדכי בן אליהו הכהן ע״ה)

Q: What is the reason that the Divine name “Sha-dai” is inscribed on the outside of a mezuzah scroll?

A: The Torah refers to G-d by a number of names. One ought to ask the more basic question: Why does G-d have so many names?

We cannot know the essence of G-d. As mere mortals, we cannot fathom His Infinity. However, we do experience the Almighty inasmuch as we are aware of His actions. The “names” of G-d function as labels for particular types of G-d’s interactions with the world

The Gaon of Vilna, in his commentary to the Book of Ruth (1:1), cites the teaching of our Sages that the name “Sha-dai” refers, in abbreviation, to “the One Who said, ‘Enough’” (“She-Amar Dai”). This name describes G-d inasmuch as He sets boundaries and limitations in the world, “laws” of nature, as it were. The Hebrew word “din,” meaning “law,” is based on the word “dai.” The laws of physics and the entire naturalistic system that guides our physical world emanate from this name.

Conversely, the four-letter Name, or Tetragrammaton, comprised of the letters “yud,” “heh,” “vav” and “heh,” which form the words “hayah” (“was”), “hoveh” (“is”), and “yihyeh” (will be), indicates G-d’s infinity and unlimited capacity, as One Who transcends even the bounds of eternity. G-d’s abundant will and capacity to give emanates from this name. This name appears within the sections of text inscribed on the inside of the mezuzah scroll.

Every human being has a dual capacity — that of the spirit and that of the body. One’s spiritual wealth derives from one’s relationship to G-d, through one’s fulfillment and study of the Torah. One’s physical wealth resides in one’s worldly assets and indulgences. One’s spiritual self is one’s “inner” being while one’s physical identity forms one’s “outer” being.

In elevating man above the animals, G-d’s plan calls for man to curtail his animal component, the body, and develop his G-dly component, the soul; he should limit his outer being and expand his inner being. Therefore, explains the Gaon, as a sign to mankind to follow this Divine directive, G-d commands that we install the mezuzah upon our doorways and gateways, the threshold between inside and outside. The inside of the mezuzah contains the four-letter Name, indicating our obligation to develop and expand our inner self in an unlimited fashion, forming as strong a bond to our Creator as possible. The outside of the mezuzah bears the name “Sha-dai,” reminding us to place limitations on our physical indulgences in order to elevate ourselves above the natural world. In combination, these two strategies lead to spiritual success and fulfillment of the human mission.

May we merit to internalize the message of the mezuzah’s design, crossing the threshold between outer and inner realms to realize the infinite potential within.

A True Story

Presented by Rabbi Rafi Mollot, of the Manhattan Beach Kollel.