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Date Posted: 20:27:15 07/03/12 Tue
Author: d
Subject: fb135


#504 Have the Strength to be Flexible

Flexibility is a very important tool in interpersonal relations. If you are rigid in your demands, you might frequently get your way -- but you will not have many friends.

Learn to differentiate between what is important and what is not. Someone who feels he must always get his way is telling himself, "If I give in to others, it means I am weak."

The Torah attitude is that honoring others is what makes a person honored.

(Rabbi Pliskin's Gateway to Happiness, p.139)


See Rabbi Pliskin's new book "Life Is Now"




13 Tammuz

Yahrtzeit of Rabbi Elchanan Wasserman (1875-1941), leader of eastern European Jewry before World War II. Rabbi Wasserman was born in Lithuania, and later became one of the closest disciples of the saintly Chafetz Chaim. He then became dean of the yeshiva in Baranovich, growing the student body from 60 to 500. Rabbi Wasserman authored a book of Torah perspectives on contemporary events, Kovetz Ma'amarim, and Talmudic discourses that were published as Kovetz Shiurim. He visited America in 1939, as the Nazi machine was beginning its slaughter of European Jewry. People begged Rabbi Wasserman to remain in America and avoid imminent catastrophe, but with incredible self-sacrifice he declined, saying that he must return to be with his students. He was martyred with them in July 1941, taken to a pit near Kovno and shot.



13 Tammuz

And it shall be if you will heed the commandments that I command you (Deuteronomy 11:13).


The Talmud teaches that the evil inclination - the insatiable desire within each of us to experiment with the forbidden - is not so foolish as to entice a person to commit a major transgression. It does not tell an honest person to shoplift; that would certainly meet with fierce resistance. Rather, "First the evil inclination tells you, `Do this,' then `Do this,' until it gradually works its way up to the point where you may entirely reject God" (Shabbos 108b).

The usual interpretation is that the first "Do this" is a seduction to commit a minor transgression, and then it gradually works its way up to more serious ones. The armed robber began by stealing a chocolate bar. Rabbi Yosef Schneersohn said that the yetzer hara is even more wily than that. He may begin by recommending "perform this commandment, because it is a perfectly reasonable thing to do," by urging the person to perform commandments because they are logical. "Observe the Sabbath because you need a day of rest after six days of hard work. Give charity because it is only right to help the needy. Keep kosher because kosher foods are healthier." A person thus trains himself to follow the dictates of his reasoning, rather than to do something because it is the will of God. The evil inclination's next step is, "This particular commandment is obsolete. It no longer has any logical validity."

The only way to avoid this trap is to avoid its first piece of advice. We do the right thing because it is right, not because it accords with our personal likes and desires. Therefore, we preface the performance of a commandment with a blessing that states, "I am doing this in order to fulfill the Divine command." While we should try to understand the commandments, to the best of our ability, our understanding of them should not be our main motivation for performing them.


Today I shall ...
...

observe all commandments because they are the Divine will, rather than only because I understand their purpose.


See more books by Rabbi Abraham Twerski at Artscroll.com


13 Tammuz

Alien Creatures

Now that traces of water have been discovered on Mars, I tend to believe that life could exist on other planets. I assume that traditional Judaism doesn’t say anything about alien life in outer space. What’s your opinion?
The Aish Rabbi Replies:

Actually, the Torah addresses every aspect of reality, through all ages and times. You just have to know how to uncover the pearls of wisdom buried within.

The Sefer HaBrit writes that extraterrestrial creatures could exist, but they would not have free will.

This would basically reduce aliens to highly developed monkeys in space ships shooting laser guns. That also means that you would not include them in a minyan, since aliens will not be obligated to pray. Furthermore, as with all creatures, you will not be allowed to feed space aliens anything that Jews are forbidden to derive benefit from – e.g. milk cooked with meat, or chometz on Passover.

As for a source of extraterrestrial life, the simple reading of Psalms 145:13 – "Your kingdom is a kingdom spanning all olamim (worlds)" – might imply the existence of extraterrestrial life, since if there were no existence on these other worlds, what kind of kingdom would God have?! (Rabbi Chasdai Crescas, 14th century)

However, the word "olamim" has two meanings. Not only does it mean "worlds," but it also means "eternities." Thus the verse can be translated as "Your Kingdom is a kingdom spanning all eternities." This reading does not imply extraterrestrial life.

Whatever the case, may the Almighty grant you long life on Earth!

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