Divine Mercy

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1. The Jewelry and the Tent (Audio)

   Rabbi Chanoch Waxman | 21 minutes

   After the Sin of the Golden Calf, the Torah relates that the people took off their jewelry at Horeb. Why is this emphasized in the midst of Moshe's impassioned pleas on the people’s behalf? Is God's mercy inevitable? Determining where the jewelry comes from helps us to understand how casting the jewelry off symbolizes the crucial beginning of repentance and reconciliation.

2. The Testimony of Ha'azinu

   Rabbi Chanoch Waxman | 31 minutes

   What is the purpose of the text of Haazinu and the "heavens and earth" serving in a witnessing capacity? Haazinu presents divine justice - and reminds Bnei Yisrael that the "measure for measure" horrors during a time of "Hester Panim" - times when God hides His Face - are still bracketed by past and future Divine healing. Haazinu, juxtaposed with the "Luchot Ha-Edut" (Tablets of Testimony) is a testament to the eternal and lasting covenantal connection between God and Israel.

3. Eliyahu in Horev (Part 4)

   "He Announced Rebuke at Sinai, and Judgments of Vengeance at Horev"

   Rabbi Elchanan Samet

   God asks Eliyahu “why are you here?” The question can be interpreted to mean: why are you here in the desert away from the nation? Or, according to another possible interpretation: Why are you here at Horev, where Moshe asked for mercy for the nation, when you come with the opposite intention? According to both interpretations, Eliyahu holds fast to his point of view, disregarding the events on Mount Carmel as passing. Not only is he unable to ask for mercy for the nation, he also asks for the nation to be punished.

4. Eliyahu in Horev (Part 5)

   Revelation in a "Small, Silent Voice" (Part 2)

   Rabbi Elchanan Samet

   According to the metaphoric explanation of God’s revelation to Eliyahu, the way to reach the nation is not through harsh measures but rather through soft ones. According to the literal understanding of God’s revelation, there are the forces of destruction that God unleashes in order to punish His creations but those are not expressions of God. Therefore, Eliyahu should be praying not for punishment but for mercy.

5. Eliyahu in Horev (Part 7)

   The Mission (Part 1)

   Rabbi Elchanan Samet

   The three destructive forces of wind, earthquake, and fire in Eliyahu’s revelation parallel the destructive swords of Haza’el, Yehu and Elisha, which Eliyahu is instructed to appoint as a result of his zealotry. The forth element – the small silent voice – parallels God’s mercy on the core of people who are not defiled by idolatry and are therefore spared.

6. Prophet in Distress

   Rabbi Alex Israel

   Eliyahu had orchestrated a three-year drought that had brought the nation to its knees. This had culminated in the decisive religious contest at Mt. Carmel that had exposed the falsity of the Baal, bringing king and country to proclaim faith in God alone. It had been an excruciating process, with Eliyahu living in exile for three years. Indeed, he had succeeding in turning the king around. But now the entire project, this huge educational endeavor, lay shattered, in ruins. It was not Izevel's death threat alone. Izevel's confidence highlighted the understanding that she was in control, and that the transformation of national priorities would be a more arduous, complex, and protracted process. All of this leads to Eliyahu's feeling of dejection and his rejection of his role as a prophet. Unlike Moshe, he is unable to be zealous towards the sinner but to invoke God's mercy on the nation as a whole. 

7. Ramban on Rosh HaShana: What is the Secret of the Terua?

   Rabbi Ezra Bick | 30 minutes

   In the Torah, the holy day we call “Rosh HaShana” is referred to as “Yom Terua” and “Zikhron Terua”- a “Day of Loud Blasts” and a “Remembrance of Loud Blasts.” What does remembrance mean here? Ramban notes that “zikaron” means “to bring something to the fore,” suggesting that this is a day of bringing the Shofar to the fore. Ramban also, however, continues and says that blowing the shofar will facilitate a remembrance before God. The mitzvah of Shofar is compared and contrasted with the mitzvah of constructing silver trumpets. Ramban connects the loud blasts of the “terua” with war, which is connected to judgement. This is a day of judgement, but through the terua enveloped by the tekia (evocative of the short, simple, sound of the breath of the individual), we can accept God’s judgement but symbolically arouse remembrance, thereby tempering the strict judgement with mercy.

8. Sefer Yonah - Everyman's Teshuva

   Rabbi Mosheh Lichtenstein

   תאריך פרסום: תשע"ה | |

   Rabbi Mosheh Lichtenstein analyzes the “pshat“ storyline of Sefer Yona and brings midrashic sources, too, to tease out the big ideas about teshuva that come to the fore in this short book. What is the nature of teshuva? What is teshuva all about? What is considered legitimate teshuva and what is not? A pattern of teshuva of some sort, Divine salvation, and a dialogue between God and Yona ensues. Yona may yearn for strict judgment, but God takes account of human fallibility and tempers justice with mercy. On Yom Kippur afternoon, we plead for God to have mercy regardless of whether our teshuva is human and flawed, or objectively ideal.

9. God, Avraham, and Sodom: Defending Sinners

   Rabbi David Silverberg

10. Implications of the Akeida Part 8: Supernatural Transcendence

    Rabbi Ezra Bick | 30 minutes

    In this shiur we look at some more comments by the Sefat Emet. Why does the Torah mention that Avraham “saw the place from afar?” The Sefat Emet explains that we are not  dealing geographical distances, but with inner contemplation. Would Avraham be able to pass the test?  And why does God test Avraham?

    The word for “test” – nisa – can also mean miracle or mast. God raises Avraham up, as Avraham accomplishes the  extraordinary – the supernatural ability to transcend natural devotion to fulfill God’s command. The Sefat Emet sees Avraham’s extraordinary leap as the basis for God’s mercy toward the Jewish people, ensuring the miraculous continuity of the nation.

11. Implications of the Akeida Part 10: Mei HaShiloach and the Obscured Vision

    Rabbi Ezra Bick | 30 minutes

    In this shiur, we will discuss comments by the Mei HaShiloach on the Akeida – different from anything we have seen thus far. What was the big test of the Akeida? In the face of radical uncertainty, the challenge for Avraham was to eliminate personal bias or consideration from affecting his decision.

    According to the Mei HaShiloach, Avraham was unsure whether it was really God’s command to sacrifice his son – he had an unclear prophetic vision. He spent three days neutralizing his feelings to arrive at an objective stance. He had to completely negate his feelings for his son to determine what God was commanding.

    At times it can be difficult to know what to do – when mercy will lead to cruelty, and when harshness will lead to goodness. When in doubt, it is better to be wrong, but merciful – because that is the essence of the Divine.

12. Beha'alotecha: The Torah's Guide To Parental Love

    Rabbi David Fohrman |

    In this week's parsha video, Rabbi Fohrman delves deeper into the Priestly Blessing and its relevant lessons, challenging us to see the path of parental love laid out in the Torah.

     

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13. The First Tablets and the Second Tablets - The Differences Between Mishpatim and Ki-Tisa

    Rabbi Dr. Yoel Bin Nun

    In this shiur, we will compare and contrast a number of parallel passages in Parshiyot Misphpatim and Ki Tisa, focusing on the differences resulting from the sin of the golden calf, which took place in the interim.