11 July 2018

BIG MISTAKE

28 Tamuz 5778

The biggest mistake human beings make is in misinterpreting God's mercy for license. They think that if lightning does immediately strike them down when they sin, that no consequences will ever be forthcoming.

That's a lie straight from the serpent's mouth, "You will surely not die..."

Today is the anniversary of the last destructive earthquake to occur in Eretz Yisrael - 11 July 1927 - 91 years ago. 
THE LAST BIG ONE: THE JULY 11, 1927 JERICHO EARTHQUAKE
...Known as the 1927 Jericho Earthquake, the 6.25 magnitude quake lasted approximately five seconds and rippled from its epicenter in the northern Dead Sea region to Jerusalem, Jericho and Nablus, reaching Ramle, Lod and Tiberias – claiming 500 lives and injuring an additional 700 people. It also caused massive structural damage throughout the region.
This was also the last time an earthquake caused significant damage to Jerusalem. Over 130 people were killed and some 450 were injured.
Heavy damage was also sustained throughout the Old City including to parts of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre as well as the al-Aqsa Mosque.
...Nablus was the most heavily hit area, having the highest death toll of over 150 and 250 injured. The quake destroyed some 300 buildings in the city including the Mosque of Victory.
In light of the swarm of "minor" 'quakes observed over the past week, it's worth looking at what our sages said about the matter of earthquakes.

According to an op-ed written by Rabbi Shlomo Benizri and featured at the Kikar HaShabbat website (thanks Yaak), four reasons are given for earthquakes in the Talmud Yerushalmi, Brachot 9:
הגמרא שם גם מביאה ארבעה הסברים מדוע קורות רעידות אדמה: א. עם ישראל אינם נותנים תרומות ומעשרות כתיקונם. ב. פריצות והפקרות - התיאטרונים והקרקסים יושבים בטח ושאננים, בזמן שבית המקדש – בית ה' חרב. ג. בגלל אותם עוונות חמורים המשויכים לצועדים במצעדי הגאווה, התאווה והראווה. ד. מפני המחלוקת.
Translation: The Gemara there also gives four explanations as to why earthquakes occur: 1The people of Israel are not giving terumot and ma'aserot. 2. Immorality and lawlessness - the theaters and circuses are sitting in a safe and complacent manner, while the Temple - the House of God is destroyed. 3Because of the severe sins associated with marchers in the parades of pride, lust and demonstration. 4Because of machloket.

As is too painfully obvious, we stand guilty on all counts. However, numbers two and three are especially noteworthy, as this is both the time period during which the Holy Temple came under attack and was destroyed, and it is the time period during which the Pride and Lust Parades are being held across the country - something like six parades over six weeks, one each week.

What are we to do about this situation? What can we do?

12 comments:

  1. What else can we do? The autists pretty much summed it up but we are not listening!
    We must first stop what we are doing good and bad, see where we are going wrong, examples would be the foods and the ways we eat like American hot dogs, pizza, falafels, McDonalds style burgers, spoiled snacks every day, chips,
    Other examples would be modesty and even if the women are dressed modestly and covered, there arrogant other things that are not modest like the attitudes, thoughts, feelings ([do not get me started when the woman's feelings are not kosher and modest)] it ruins the family and seperates them, it harms the man, many Jews speaking much lashon hara all day long about everyone around them and directly to others and how others take sides to harm the opposition (see the eternal Jew) Jews threatening other Jews, lack of holiness, lack of modesty, almost no kindness, hard attitudes, the desire to be like the streets and make their own rules, the betrayal of other Jews, the split between Jews, the desire to take very immodest adventures and live among the nations instead of returning to Israel for moshiach, disloyalty of the Torah and the teachings of our ancient sages, do you want me to go on? Woe onto all of us and we see clearly why the gedolim (big rabbis) did not want to be here for the end and now we have no more gadol hador and almost no big rabbis to help us get through this and we are heading towards the end now and I can not guarantee that millions of Jews will not die so horifically like the shoah or worse but if this goes on, then we will be far worse off and there will be no next generation and if the shoah had not happened, then Jewry would have been completely extinct today and if any authentic Jews had remained, then they would have been hunted down but this is the last rectification and whoever makes it, great and who does not, will have to be taken back for cleansing but will return as innocent newborn babies without malice and the urge to do evil and this is after moshiach
    The multitude of horde will all get theirs and we will be rid of them forever and good ridden.
    Jack

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  2. Yes, what can we do? Who is/are the biggest rabbis that have suggested anything on this subject? We know about personal teshuva, which always helps/ Prayer always helps. But what can we do to directly oppose this filth? I oppose it on my facebook page but that is hardly enough. Who will be the first great rabbi to stand up against this and tell the serious, observant Jews what we should be doing about it? We desperately need a leader in this area!

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    1. There is an old saying that goes, "All it takes for evil to flourish is for good people to do nothing."

      I was there, along with my teen-aged son and a few Kach activists, to protest with signs at the very first parade on Ben Yehudah Street in Jerusalem. There was no security to speak of and I walked right up to the head of the marchers. But, when I approached carrying my sign the whole lot of them turned their backs to me. This was the reaction they had worked out in advance for such a situation. No one said anything. I walked up carrying my sign and walked back down giving everyone a chance to see it and then I left.

      I don't remember what was on the sign, but I do remember how sad I felt that it seemed like no one had cared enough to make the effort to oppose the public desecration of Jerusalem's sanctity.

      The rabbis reasoned that it was better to ignore it and not give it even more publicity, but this was a tactical mistake. Because had there been a massive opposition at the very first, it would have nipped it in the bud. Now, the organizers point to the fact that they have been carrying it off for 15 years as the main reason it must carry on from here on out.

      The government only responds to keeping the quiet. Those who make the most noise carry the day. For all we know the police would love for the chareidim to give them an excuse to shut down the parade, but it just never happened. And I have been to demonstrations of chareidim called by the big rabbis that brought out literally HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of people in Jerusalem. They seem to think they have to "pick their battles" and "save" their "political clout" for the most serious threats - like army service for yeshivah students.

      It's highly likely that HKB"H allowed the threat to the yeshivah students because all these calculations have been made rather than doing what the Torah requires in every situation and trusting Hashem for the outcomes.

      I attended a couple of other protests over the years, but for the most part, I stayed far away, thinking maybe the rabbis were right. I don't think that any longer however.

      I do not want to see holy souls exposed to what goes on at these events though. Maybe the best thing would be a separate protest just so the public, the world and Hashem will know that there are those who will speak up against the evil.

      But, for sure, it takes a leader.

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    2. You need a really strong stomach to deal with the leftist and Gays and I think the Rabbis are worried about their Students. The protests should be about the Leftist High Court that will allow anything to destroy Judaism and replace it with hiloni secularism.

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  3. It seems people are not listening to the messages, it could be that the gates of Teshuva are closing and the lines are being drawn. We need to support the more heavy duty kiruv Rabbis who are still showing success, the softly softly approach isn't working anymore.
    Eli

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    1. You might find this article interesting, as I did, since it seems to run along a similar line of thinking.

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  4. What about 1000 people quietly and peacefully sitting down in the street in front of the route of the toevah parades to block them? No fights, no conflict. Just a silent mass sit in in front of the route of the toevah march to block it's route.

    Just what would the iriyah do?

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  5. Think the simple answer to why the real Rabbis say and do little is that they are literally afraid. They're afraid of either their job security, the complete downgrading of the Rabbinate and most of all, literally, for their lives. With a supreme court with such hatred for Torah Judaism, they are capable of anything such as incarcerating, c'v, the Rabbis and to follow through with the evil agenda of complete deJudaization of the Land. Who knows!

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  6. I have one suggestion: Practicers of toevah are obligated to derekh eretz, as are all, even minimally functional, human beings (with appropriate exceptions, of course). We need to directly call them on it. They expect consideration from us; we expect it from them first! Particularly as they invade our fair city and others like it, whose norms they do not share, quite regularly and publicly. They don't have any right to do this to us!!!

    I'm developing a 2-part article on the topic, including them and many others. I hope this will help us carve out the space to take appropriate action.

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    1. I'm anxiously awaiting it. :-)

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    2. As you know, it's a lot of hard work and research. I'm planning, be"H, to give Part 1 a once-over tomorrow morning before posting. Then I'll be hard at work on Part 2.

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