Anti-Semitism

Found 4 Search results

1. Battling Empires and Battling Devils: Shmuel, Rav Chiya and Rebbi Yitzchak

   Chazal's Preambles to Megillat Esther: Part 1

   Rabbi Moshe Taragin | 17 minutes

   This short series looks at Chazal’s introductions to the Book of Esther. What is the real miracle of Purim? Although Israel has betrayed God and are exiled from their land—God will not abandon them. Purim is a template for Jewish History, and contains the first real instance of antisemitism. But just as the commemorations of Purim will never be abolished, the Jewish people will never be destroyed, and the covenant will never be nullified.

2. In the Lions' Den - Part 1

   Rabbi Yaakov Medan

   The phenomenon of Anti-Semitism did not exist during the first Beit HaMikdash period. The Babylonian conquest of Yehuda was part of a regional struggle, and not aimed specifically at the Jewish faith. The rise of Anti-Semitism during the Second Beit HaMikdash period may relate to the fact that the Jewish Nation was the first nation to be exiled and still retain its national spirit. Its people, as Daniel and his companions demonstrate, were shown to be courageous and talented. This was a threatening phenomenon, which might have given rise to hatred.

3. Confronting Anti-Semitism

   Rabbi Tzvi Sinensky

   Ezra-Nehemya is sub-divided into three major sections: Each of the three major segments evinces a similar organizational structure: (a) aliya, (b) a confrontation with antisemitism, (c) support of the Temple/Jerusalem, and (d) working toward ensuring the everyday functioning of society.

   On a local level, chapters 4-6 of Ezra neatly break down in similar fashion. The three chapters sub-divide into three sections. All three segments consist of the enemies’ efforts to stall the construction, a response from the Jews or king, and a resolution.

   The author of Ezra-Nehemya implies that although the events of Shivat Tzion transpired over the course of nearly a century, featuring varied monarchs, Jewish leaders, and gentile antagonists, fundamentally the story is the same. The major motifs in Shivat Tzion are recurring: the challenge of abandoning comfortable diaspora communities and returning to Judea; the need for proactivity in combating antisemitism and rebuilding; and the importance of confronting the social rifts in our community. By presenting the stories of Shivat Tzion in chronologically interwoven, structurally repetitious fashion, our author suggests that these challenges are universal to the era of Shivat Tzion, and possibly all eras as well.

4. As an Ox Licks

   Rabbanit Dr. Michal Tikochinsky