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Dear
Naaleh Friend,
This week we feature a NEW class by Rebbetzin Tziporah Heller on this week's Parsha- Parshat Beshalach. The class Considering Return is from the Naaleh.com Parsha series Living the Parsha 5778. To learn more click on the image below to watch the class now.
This week's edition of our Torat Imecha Newsletter on
Parshat Beshalach is available on our
Newsletter page.
Click here
for the printer friendly version, to share at your Shabbat table! Be sure to visit the homepage as well, for many more inspiring Torah classes!
Shabbat Shalom!
-Ashley Klapper and the Naaleh Crew
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For Tehillim list please click here to view our Refuah Shleima page
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Parshat Beshalach: Silencing the Supplicant
Based on a Naaleh.com shiur by Mrs. Shira Smiles
Summary by Channie Koplowitz Stein
Sometimes we have our own agenda and pray that Hashem grant us this request instead of asking Him to help us in the way He deems best. Rabbi Bick notes that it seems
Bnei Yisroel
were expecting some sort of military victory or sudden death of the Egyptian hordes. Hashem's response was that they were praying for the wrong thing. Move forward and see what My plan is. I will split the sea, and watch what will become of the Egyptians.
Rabbi Bick explains why making matches is often compared to splitting the Sea People often request that Hashem give them a specific match. The appropriate prayer is to ask Hashem to match one to a suitable partner which may often be very different from what one has initially visualized.
The
Chasam Sofer
suggests that Hashem did not stop
Bnei Yisroel
from praying. Rather He was telling them to ask for direction what to pray for. The
Ohr Hachaim Hakadosh
notes that when the Accuser stands before God and points a finger at the supplicant, the supplicant requires both prayer and additional merit. At the Sea, the Accuser stood before God and declared, "These and these [both the Israelites and the Egyptians] worship idols," why should You save one at the expense of the other? Therefore
Bnei Yisroel
needed to pray for direction. By jumping into the Sea, they would prove their deep faith in Hashem and thus merit salvation.
Rabbi Eisenberger continues to explain that the gates of faith are always open even when we are undeserving. If one puts his trust in Hashem, He returns that trust. Even a thief who puts his faith in Hashem will not get caught, says Rabbi Bloch.
Bnei Yisroel
needed an act of faith in addition to their prayers. Nachshon ben Aminodov jumped into the Sea, but he did not stop praying even as the waters approached his very soul. Only then did Hashem split the waters. We always need to
daven
for Hashem's mercy, but we never know when the Accuser has closed the gates of mercy. Therefore, we need to constantly demonstrate our complete faith in Hashem and in His salvation. How often does our davening suffer, as we focus on an important business meeting during our prayers? Do your
hishtadlut (
efforts)
,
but put your faith in God. Yes, our heartfelt prayers full of faith have the potential to be extremely effective, but because it is so easy to be distracted, writes the
Aish Tomid
, we must also demonstrate our faith through our actions.
Rabbi G. Rabinowitz cites Rashi in stating that two things were necessary for the splitting of the Sea, the merit of our forefathers and faith in the Creator. Our Sages instituted the Song of the Sea as part of our daily prayer precisely to remind us daily of the necessity of constant faith in the Creator. With that faith, any sea can be split, from the Reed Sea to the sea of our daily troubles; without that faith, one cannot even cross the threshold of his own home. If you truly believe, demonstrate it in your daily actions as Nachshon ben Aminodov did at the Sea. As Rabbi S. R. Hirsch points out, the salvation was ready, but man had to take the first step.
The
Netivot Shalom
notes the partnership between God and Man. There may be an awakening of activation from Above or initiation that begins below. The redemption from Egypt was totally from Above. However, the splitting of the Sea required initiation from below through an act of faith. It required us moving beyond our nature, someone jumping into the Sea to be the catalyst for salvation. Sometimes in our lives prayer alone is not enough. We too must demonstrate self -sacrifice and move out of our comfort zones, even as we continue to pray, in order to activate the forces from Above.
When we can pray for the ability to sacrifice, for the purity and joy of
Yiddishkeit
, for the ability to sanctify His Name throughout our lives, Hashem will not silence our supplications, but will split the impossible sea for us.
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The Maharal tells us that there are two kinds of
hanhagot
or relationships with which Hashem conduct this world. The first is in accordance with the laws set forth in creation. You don't have to doubt if gravity is still working. It's there and it's unlikely to change. We call this
teva
or
hashgacha klalit
. The second type of
hanhaga
is specific and defined intervention which we call
hashgacha pratit
. The Maharal's quintessential example is a
shidduch
(match) where a heavenly voice calls out, "Ploni l'bat ploni, this man's daughter will marry this man." This is an area where Hashem reveals His presence.
When you ask your parents how they met, there's always a story behind it. I'll give you an example of my own parents meeting each other. My mother came from what she considered a well -balanced family. She was the youngest and in no hurry to get married. She loved her parents, she liked being home, she enjoyed her nieces and nephews. Her parents died in quick succession of each other and she went to live with her eldest sister. Her daughter, my mother's niece, became her best friend, although she was a lot younger than her. It was only after her niece got engaged that my mother realized where she was in life. She decided she had to get married. She lost weight and got some new clothes. That summer she took a bungalow with some girl friends at the sea shore. At same time my father, whose family had never taken a bungalow before, also rented a place there. My father was in no rush to get married either. He wanted to establish himself financially first. His parents were immigrants. He needed to demonstrate to himself that he had gone past them. Divine providence steered my parents to meet each other and they got married that summer. They were both 40 years old. WWII broke out shortly after. My father was sent to the European theater. It was years before they were reunited. I was born when my mother was 46.
We have to realize that divine providence and human effort are not a contradiction. It says explicitly in the Torah that Hashem hardened Pharaoh's heart. It appears he was an innocent victim. Why then was he punished? The Rambam tells us that Hashem hardened his heart as a result of the many choices he had made earlier. If a person does many negative things, the worst punishment that will happen is that Hashem will use him to be the stick that hits. He'll harden the person's heart. The Ramchal teaches that Hashem interacts with us in two different ways. The first is called
hanhagot hamishpat
, the way of justice. Whatever we do draws down a response. The second is called
hanhagot hayichud
, Hashem's interaction with us that leads towards our seeing His involvement and singularity within the world. Hashem created the world so that we may know Him. Therefore He will do things to make things happen above and beyond our choices. Yes, Pharoah chose his role. But Hashem would have performed the miracles in Egypt no matter what. If Pharoah wouldn't have chosen the way he did and ended up as Hashem's staff, there would have been someone else. It's worth it to be the one that Hashem chooses for good things and not evil things. That's where human effort comes in. Rav Elyashiv stated unequivocally that finding a mate is an area where you have to make the most efforts although your efforts are the least relevant. You have to make choices that show you are ready to accept. Hashem has someone for you anyway. He can bring that person to you however He sees fit. But you have to be open to it.
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In the Sefer Chassidim, Rabbi Yehuda Hachassid admonishes those who recite
brachot
without proper
kavanah
(intention). So often people go through the motions without paying attention to the words they are saying. We find in the
Poskim
3 different notions with respect to proper intent. First, one is supposed to have in mind specifically to fulfill one's particular obligation. For example, prior to to
bentching
one should have in mind to fulfill the positive commandment of, "
V'achalata v'savata
." Second, one should understand the meaning of the words of the blessing. That means looking at the translation while reciting the
bracha
. However if one happens not to understand one still receives credit for the blessing. It's always preferable to recite the
bracha
in Hebrew. But if one cannot, in most cases one may recite it in another language. The third aspect of
kavanah
is perhaps the most significant. Whereas in many cases, at least after the fact, if the first two aspects were missing, as long as the third aspect of
kavanah
was present, one receives credit for the blessing. One must recognize that one is speaking to Hashem. If a person is on auto pilot and is unaware of what he is doing, then even if one had the first two conditions in mind, a serious doubt exists whether one receives credit for the blessing.
There is a startling testimony told about the Chazon Ish z'tzl. When he would recite a
bracha
he put so much effort into it, that there was a time in his lifetime when he was forced to eat without a blessing. For him, the degree of concentration needed to utter Hashem's name was so great, that he physically couldn't do it.
At the very end of
Seif aleph
, after quoting from the Sefer Chassidim, the Kitzur concludes by suggesting a way in which one can effectively remember the aforementioned
kavanot
. If one recites the
brachot
out loud, it inspires greater feeling and proper intention as well. However one should be careful not to disturb others. If you are in a shul where everyone is
davening
quietly and you're the only one
davening
out loud, it is likely you are disturbing others and you should revert back to a low tone. If someone says a
bracha
using his eyes without speaking, the
halacha
is if one cannot do it any other way, it is permissible. However if a person has the ability to speak and doesn't, then he has not fulfilled his obligation. How loud does it have to be? The
poskim
write that for
shemone esrei
which is said quietly, one should say it loud enough for the person himself to hear it. For
shema
and other blessings, one can recite it even louder so that one's neighbor can hear it as long as it doesn't disturb anyone. The Kitzur quotes the Shla who recommends that it be loud enough to inspire greater devotion and concentration.
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Parshat Beshalach Salvation at Sea
Rabbi Hanoch Teller |
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| Physical Strength vs. Spritual Blessing Rebbetzin Tziporah Heller |
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Parshat Beshalach
Spiritual Emancipation Rabbi Hershel Reichman
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