Revenge

Found 6 Search results

1. The Rise of Pinchas

   Rabbi Chanoch Waxman

   Pinhas’s zealous and extra judiciary act opposes Moshe’s way of leadership and the justice Moshe attempted to enact in the sin of Ba’al Pe’or. Pinhas’s action is sanctioned by God because of the gravity of the situation. Eliyahu acts out of zeal and can no longer continue to be God’s messenger.

2. Vayehi: What if Yosef bears a grudge?

   Rabbi David Silverberg | 47 minutes

   What suddenly prompts the brothers to fear that Yosef will take retributive action against them? We examine a midrash depicting Yosef’s changed behavior, and we analyze different possible explanations for their mindset and for Yosef’s apparent changed behavior toward them.

3. Ramban on Vayishlach: The Massacre in Shechem

   Rabbi Ezra Bick | 40 minutes

   How Could the Sons of Yaakov Do What They Did at Shechem?

   Working with the assumption that the sons of Yaakov were generally righteous, Ramban asks how they could possibly kill a horde of ostensibly innocent people in Shechem, or even act deceptively with Shechem's deal in the first place. To answer this question, Ramban examines what was happening in the story and raises a number of possibilities. He points out that what Shechem did was against Torah law, but also against the law of the Land (and the Seven Noahide Laws)-- but nobody in his town was bringing him to justice. Did that make the rest liable to the death penalty, too? Where the sons of Yaakov seeking to exact justice, or revenge? Were there acts justified, or did they make a horrible mistake, even if they had good intentions? Or was Yaakov's reaction the one that was flawed?

4. Rashi

   Part 3 - The Moral and Educational Philosophy of Rashi (I)

   Dr. Avigail Rock

   Does Rashi explicate the verses only when he finds some difficulty in them, with the sole motive of clarifying the text, or does Rashi see himself as obligated not only to explain the verses, but even to educate the community and to transmit messages by way of parshanut when these opportunities arise?

   Regardless of the position we maintain regarding Rashi’s motivations, there is no doubt that Rashi — whether intentionally or unintentionally — has becomes one of the great developers of Jewish education throughout all generations.

   Rashi is directly responsible for shaping a significant part of the ethical and educational tradition of the Jewish nation, in a myriad of well know topics. Specifically, Rashi took a special interest in discussing the sin of Lashon Hara.

5. The Chizkuni — R. Chizkiya ben Manoach

   Dr. Avigail Rock

   The Chizkuni wrote a comprehensive commentary on the Torah, and his style is very clear and accessible.

   It appears that the Chizkuni had three aims in composing his commentary on the Torah:

   ·       To collect all the explanations in keeping with the peshat from the works of the commentators who preceded him.

   ·       To explain Rashi’s’ commentary by adding or changing to Rashi's words, by resolving difficulties in Rashi, and by pointing out inconsistencies in Rashi’s commentary.

   ·       To write an independent commentary on the Torah. Despite the fact that the Chizkuni utilizes many commentaries for the purposes of writing his work, there are more than a few original commentaries to be found in its lines, characterized mainly by his attempt to understand reality and the psychological motivations of the characters in each narrative.

6. You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge

   Rabbanit Dr. Michal Tikochinsky