• | Print |
•  Email

Parshat Va'eira
By: Rabbi Moshe Goodman, Kollel Ohr Shlomo, Hebron

בס"ד

לשכנו תדרשו

Discovering the Holy Presence in Our Holy Land

וידבר ה' אל משה לאמר

‘Master of the Universe, have compassion upon me and allow me to achieve the perfection of the Holy Tongue...’ (Likutei Tfilot 19)

The Holy Tongue, the Hebrew language, according to our Sages was the language God used to create the world. Indeed, so great is the merit of speaking in this language that the tannaic master R. Meir taught that all who speak this language, live in the Land of Israel,eat their produce in purity, and recite Shema twice a day, are considered ‘sons of the world to come’ (Yerushalmi Shkalim 3, 3). This said, there are sources which describe all speech used for the service of HaShem in Torah, prayer, etc. to be rendered like ‘the Holy Tongue’. The beginning of this weeks parsha elaborates much on the speech of Moshe, and how the right of speech was given to Aharon as Moshe’s speaker to the people. This week’s parsha also contains the first usage of the famous phrase ‘HaShem spoke to Moshe to say’, used close to eighty times in the Torah. All these matters highlight the choosing of Moshe as the ‘speaker of HaShem’ in this parsha.

Isaiah (62) proclaims: “For the sake of Zion, I will not be silent, and for the sake of Jerusalem I will not rest, until her righteousness comes out like brilliance, and her salvation burns like a torch.” Indeed, speaking for Zion and Jerusalem is tantamount to speaking for the Holy Presence of HaShem which rests in these holy places. Interestingly, some of the primary ‘speakers for Zion’ in history were named Moshe. Rabbi Moshe ben Nahman, Nahmanides, was one of the great masters of the Rishonim period who emphasized time and time again the great importance of the Holy Land in Torah. Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon, Maimonides, wrote the great halachic work the Mishneh Torah, which also codifies the many laws uniquely pertaining to the Land of Israel and to the Temple in Jerusalem, a matter that was very novel for a halachic work of his time (this is in great contrast to the unlearned misconception that Maimonides ‘disregards’ the Land of Israel to some degree, God forbid).

Both Nahmanides and Maimonides actually came to the Land of Israel, Maimonides in his earlier life and Nahmanides in his last years. Maimonides made pilgrimage to Hebron and made commemoration of this pilgrimage from year to year. Similarly, Nahmanides requested to be buried in Hebron and his tomb lies today at the Seventh Step of Maaras HaMachpela. Indeed, the Arizal says that these two masters are not just intertwined in many Torah discussions as is well known, but also that Nahmanides and Maimonides are closely and uniquely linked on a soul-level. In regard to these masters’ connection to Hebron, we should also note that according to the Midrash (Sifri Vezot HaBracha; see also Rokeach there) Moshe Rabeinu was taken from Mount Nevo in tunnels to be buried at Maaras HaMachpela, where he rests today.

Interestingly, in our age the leader of Israel’s return to Hebron was Rabbi Moshe Levinger. Indeed, the connection of the name Moshe to Hebron is highlighted when we notice that the initials of Maaras Sdeh HaMachpela spell ‘Moshe’.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Real Stories from the Holy Land #205

‘One Shabbos morning, I suddenly started to ponder the connection between Kiryat Arba and Netanya. It ‘turns out’ that the chief Rabbi of Netanya ‘happened’ to reside in Kiryat Arba that Shabbos, a matter that I had not known at all when I had these thoughts.’

Sources: Shaar HaGilgulim

Comments, questions, and/or stories,email  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.