Our Sages state: ''Peace is precious, for God altered the truth for the sake of peace between Avraham and Sarah. Sarah [in expressing disbelief that she would yet bear a child] said, "And my master Avraham is old" (Gen;18:12), but God, in relating her statement to Avraham, said, "And I ,Sarah, am old" (Gen.18:13).''
After Yaakov died, the brothers sent Yosef a message: "Your father gave orders before his death,saying, 'Thus shall you say to Yosef: O please, kindly forgive the spiteful deed of your brothers...'" (Gen: 50:16). We do not find anything in the Torah that Yaakov give such instructions, for he did not suspect Yosef of bearing any ill will toward his brothers. The brothers altered the truth for the sake of peace.
Peace is so precious, in war times, we must first seek peace, as it is written: "When you draw near to a city to wage war against it, you shall call out to it for peace" (Deut: 20:10).
Peace is so precious, that we end the Beracoth Kohanim (The Priestly Blessing), with " and may God establish peace for you" (Num. 6:26).
Peace is so precious, we conclude the Shemoneh Esrei aka the Amidah, as well as the Beracoth ha Mazon, the prayers after our meal, with : "God will give might to His people, God will bless His people with peace" (Ps. 29:18).
Traditionally, with the coming of Moshiach, the first announcements will be of peace. "How beautiful ascending the mountains are the footsteps of the herald, making heard, 'Peace!'" (Is. 52:7).
In all of us humans, there is a place in the heart the is only known to God. Most of us are unaware of it when we lives saying one thing and doing another. When we negate our egos, our defects of character, we become transparent. Then the Spirit of God, the Ruach Kadosh,the light of God in all of us, shines like a 1000 suns, bringing God's love and blessings to all we encounter.
Yet, we don't achieve a spiritual awakening and awareness with a lightening bolt from Above. The Path to Jewish Spiritual Renewal helps us teach ourselves, consistently, every day,as our eyes awaken from its slumber, to see life in a different way, and to be in Shlema, true Shalom, true serenity.
Whenever one begins to want to grow and to being to grow spiritually, our yetzer ha ra, our evil inclination, will put up road blocks. Since most folks are not living in shelma, even they will act in concord with your yetzer ha ra, and tell you this growth is a waste of time, or denigrate your teacher.
Living in true Shalom, leads to us doing true altruistic ahavath chesed, acts of loving kindness. Chesed then becomes our yetzer ha ra's target. It says to us: "You don't have to do this. Let someone else do it.'' We find ourselves being kind to only those we like, or worse, can get something back from in return. Humans are used as bank accounts. Making deposits, and then making future withdrawals with interest. If the 'funds' are not there when we come to make our withdrawal, we build a resentment.
The yetzer ha ra, also says to us: "You're better off not learning. That way, if you fail to live life correctly, it will be out of ignorance."
The Chofetz Chaim, Rabbi Israel Kagan, (d. 1933 Belarussia) presented an allegory of the above Jews' folly:
"A traveler embarks upon a road that is pocked with gaping holes. Another man stops him and warns: "I wouldn't walk that way if I were you. It's very dangerous. You could fall into one of those holes and be seriously injured."
"Oh, no problem!" the traveler confidently replies. "You see, I have a handkerchief."
"A handkerchief ? How is that going to help?" the man inquires.
"I'll just put it over my eyes, and that way, I won't see the holes. You see, if I fall in with my eyes open, people will laugh at me. But if I fall in with my eyes covered, they will realize that I couldn't help myself because I couldn't see."
Talmud Bavli Tractate Bava Metzia 33b teaches : "The lack of learning ultimately results in willful neglect." It is only when we become spiritually awakened, do we live a life of freedom, joyousness and true simcha each day.
Here is a bit of Chapter One for you to study, and a D'var Torah follows for the Shabbat of 10/31/09.
As we travel down this path together I find that a misunderstanding of God and of Judaism is a common obstacle for many of my students. The problem is that the God they have known, about whom they have been taught throughout their lives, seems not to be the kind with whom one would embrace a closer relationship. This is not their fault (Wow! Something that is not the Jews' fault!), nor is it surprising. Since the end of World War II, for obvious reasons of survival, Jewish education and thought has often placed greater emphasis on the State of Israel and the Holocaust than on true Judaic studies. And social activities at synagogues are put before spirituality.
Remember Hebrew school? As kids we were sent one, two, or three days a week after regular school to learn just enough to make our parents and grandparents proud when we became bar and bat mitzvah. Some of us did it to be on the bimah (pulpit) for Jewish confirmations. We were looking for a soft and easy way to get through Hebrew school and couldn't wait for the class to be over so we could go play with our friends. Few of us continued our Judaic studies any further. Hence, most of our Jewish education was at best on the level of an eighth grade dropout.
When thinking of God, today's adult Jew is too often thinking of the God of the Hebrew Cult as defined by the so-called Jewish Bible, or, more correctly, the TaNaK. Let me take a moment to define the TaNaK, as we will refer to it regularly throughout this book. The first part is known as the Five Books of Moses or The Torah Scroll. The TaNaK's other two parts are the Nevi'im (Prophets) and Ketuvim (Writings). For most Jews, Judaic study has been limited to parts of the Five Books of Moses and their bar or bat mitzvah Haftarah portion from Nevi'im.
The God to whom we are introduced in the Five Books is, to put it candidly, pretty ornery. This is the judgmental God with a bad temper and the one with a penchant for smiting people, even whole worlds, if they did not follow His ways. In the story of Noah's
The God described above is the God of the Hebrews. He is not the universal God to Whom we wish to be closer. While we can find passages in the Torah telling us that He is a merciful God and slow to anger, a reading of the text might lead one to think, "Well, that may very well be, but apparently He skipped His anger management classes!" And let's not forget that the God of the Hebrews also demanded animal blood sacrifices.
Are you starting to get the picture? The problem that my students face, and perhaps you as well, is that they are trying to live a happy, joyous, more spiritual life by getting closer to God, but they are not finding the merciful, loving God that they seek. The God they see is…well…intimidating to say the least. In addition, few are teaching them how to live a more spiritual life. There is very little prayer taught in the Five Books and a relationship with God was only accessible via the intercession of priests for the average Hebrew of that time. The exceptions were the Patriarchs: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Jacob's son Joseph, Moses and perhaps Noah and a few others. Few others had a personal relationship with God in the Five Books. Hebraism only allowed its followers to access God through the priests. These priest-intercessors heard God's messages only through Moses and later through the Prophets and Judges in the two other books of the TaNaK.
Judaism, as it was practiced post World War II, often became the occasional Shabbat service where we heard words of peace and of guarding our tongues. But moments later, while enjoying cake and cookies at Oneg Shabbats, many were gossiping and exchanging guileful talk. We celebrated the holidays in our homes, but spirituality was mostly absent. Almost every holiday was reduced to: "They tried to kill us, we won, let's eat!"
This is not Judaism, folks, and it has very little to do with the Jewish God. The unfortunate thing is that assimilated modern Jews don't know any better. We went to Shabbat services, saying and singing our prayers without a clue to their derivation or why we were asking for "rain in our season." We're not farmers after all, so why would we want God to rain out the Yankees – Red Sox game? If we were growing tomato plants in our back yards, we may have used the green ones for nefarious reasons such as lobbing them at the kids who called us "Hymies" while we walked from secular school to religious school. After services, some of us we went out to dinner and ate traif (non-kosher foods). We were told that the pork floating on top of the won ton soup was "special Chinese meat." We were good Jews, though, because we went to synagogue and Dad dutifully wrote a check to the United Jewish Appeal.
What we as a people used to know, because we were taught it, is that Torah is more than the Five Books of Moses. I need to explain this to you because, as we shall see, those who do not understand this will find themselves stuck in an ancient cult that is some 3,300 years old, and will not understand how this cult evolved into the religion known as Judaism.
(More from Chapter One next week.)
Shabbat Shalom,
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Parasha Lech Lecha: Genesis 12:01-17:27
Rabbi Arthur Segal
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"Goin' To A Go-Go"
This parasha's title takes its name from God's command to Abraham: "Lech Lecha!" (Go for yourself!). This sums up the choice that each of us has with our birthright of Judaism. As adults, no one is forcing Judaism upon us. No one is forcing us to live an ethical life. No one is demanding that we study Torah or read these or other D'varim. We have freedom of choice. We decide for ourselves to go or to do, or not to go or not to do. This is no different than the choice that Abraham had to make some 3,500 years ago.
The story of Abraham is the story of his trials. Mishna Pirkei Avot (5:3) says that "our patriarch Abraham was tested with ten tests and he withstood them all to show how great was our Patriarch Abraham's love for God." What were these ten tests?
1. In
2. He had to leave his homeland to settle in
3. He had to move from Canaan to
4. Sarah, his wife, was taken to Pharaoh's palace as a potential wife of Pharaoh. Abraham asked Sarah to call herself his sister to spare his life. The sages say that this was not a lie because Sarah was
5. The war with the kings to free his nephew
6. The covenant where Abraham was told of his children being promised the
7. Abraham undergoing self-circumcision at the age of ninety-nine years (Gen. 17:24).
8. Expelling his wife Hagar from his home (Gen. 21:10-14).
9. Expelling his son Ishmael from his home (Gen. 21:10-14).
10. The Akeidah – the binding of Abraham's son Isaac to be a sacrificial offering to God (Gen. 22:1-19).
How would we fare if we had these tests today? Do any of our lives' tests compare to these?
The Mishna calls these tests "neis." The Hebrew word for tests is "bechinah." Neis also means "banner." It is used in Psalm 60:6, "You gave those who fear a banner to raise themselves." The sages say a banner is something raised high to show its beauty. When we pass some of life's tests, we are lifted into a higher sphere so that we can go on to bigger tests. This is why we say "yasher koach" after a bimah honor. We wish people to "go from strength to strength." The Mishna's passage could be read: "And God exalted Abraham" instead of "God tested Abraham."
The last three of these ten tests take place in next week's parasha and will be discussed then. Nachmanides (the Ramban, Moshe ben Nahman Gerondi, 1194,
Ramban says that one is never given trials that he cannot deal with effectively, and that a person has free choice and he must find the wisdom and strength to choose correctly. If he chooses correctly, he grows as a person. He is not rewarded by Heaven for his successes. Success is his reward. As the parasha's title suggests, we do good things for ourselves and because it is the right choice to make. We do not do good in hope of reward from above.
What does it mean to be a Jew? We have a hint of this complex answer in Genesis 14:13. For the first time, Abraham is called an "Ivri." Some Torah scholars say this refers to Abraham being descended from Eber, which was six generations removed from Abraham. Would a fugitive from a battle in
Abraham indeed was an Ivri. The word is derived from "Ivar," meaning "the other side." Literally, Abraham did come from the other side of the
When God appeared to Abraham, renamed him from his old name of Avram, and gave him the commandment of circumcision, He called Himself El Shaddai (Gen. 17:01). This name of God means, "Who is sufficient." As Jews we need to realize that we can do without popularity if it means standing up for justice and ethics. It is interesting that God called Himself "sufficient" at the time He ordered brit milah (the covenant of circumcision). The brit is a symbol that we can do without sometimes, and that less can be more than sufficient if we stand up for what is right and just, even if it puts us on the other side. Perhaps this is a good definition of what it means to be Jewish, and a descendant of Abraham, the first Ivri and the first Hebrew.
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Rabbi Arthur Segal reveals the path to Jewish Spiritual Renewal - and happiness in troubled times... In His New Book: Rabbi Dr. Arthur Segal brings Judaism back to its roots for the millions of modern Jews who have become disenchanted with "normative" Judaism. In The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew, Segal reveals how Judaism leads you up the path to a happy, fulfilling life. And he casts aside the long, boring sermons and tedious litany of rules and regulations in favor of plain English, humor, and life examples that we can all relate to. "The Handbook To Jewish Spiritual Renewal by Rabbi Arthur Segal has given me the foundation to approach each day with honesty, reverence, hope and gratitude. I feel like I am having a personal conversation with a wise prophet with a jovial sense of humor." Diane Weinberg, Shalom. My name is Rabbi Dr. Arthur Segal, and in my years of rabbinic counseling I've met an awful lot of fellow Jews who are short on faith that Judaism can deliver the happiness and joy that it promises, especially in these turbulent times. Their emotions run the gamut: sadness, loneliness, bitterness; fearfulness of what the future holds for them. Some are just downright cynical and angry. But I found the way out. That's why I became a rabbi after retiring from my dental practice; to help others up the path to a life of joy and freedom that I couldn't find in "normative" Judaism. I want to show you that path today. "You lead the spiritual practices of the entire program and offer our followers a unique spiritual opportunity." Hune Margulies, Ph.D. In The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew, I distill teachings from our sages that have been passed along for thousands of years, along with lessons from the Torah and the Talmud. But unlike other Jewish spiritual texts that you may have read, or sermons you may have heard, this book presents these lessons in a concise, easy-to-read, easy-to-follow life transformation process that you can follow step-by-step at your own pace. And it is written in plain English with relevance to the modern world. I even threw in a few jokes to make it fun! This is stuff we were not taught in Hebrew school or in most synagogues, but it is what Judaism is really all about. "Wonderful stuff! I'm savoring it, bit by bit." Samuel Hughes, Senior Editor In The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew, you will learn: Or, do you spend your days worrying about the economy... ...in conflict with friends, family, and co-workers... ...stressed out about the future? If the latter sounds like you I'm not surprised. As I said earlier, I counsel many fellow Jews who are in the same boat, and they look to their Jewish faith to find a happier life. However... Some have trouble understanding what they read in the Torah and how it relates to their own lives. Others find that their synagogues are more about social climbing and fundraising and less about spiritual awakening. Many simply give up, believing that Judaism has failed them, and they walk away from their Jewish faith. In my book, The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew, I will show you that true Judaism has not failed them...or you...and that you can return to your Jewish faith and enjoy your life to its fullest, even when the news of the day keeps going from bad to worse. "I couldn't have written the book or expressed my pain and concern for the Jewish people returning to Judaism. Thank God that He put this desire in your heart." Janelle Vechi It's simpler than you may think, and you don't have to become a rabbi as I did. To give you an idea what I am talking about, here is an excerpt from The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew: We become so far removed from God, our loving Sovereign Parent, that when we pray, (if we pray at all), we pray to meet an immediate need. We desire an immediate fix, rather than to seek renewal (return) and the wisdom to work toward renewal. We are satisfied for a moment if our trivial need is met. We therefore never achieve happiness in the long term. We are constantly searching and striving for our secular notions of success and happiness. While in this all-too-common state our egos "lock horns" with the egos of others, putting us in a sustained state of human conflict and resentment. This is not the Jewish way to live; but most of us cannot find the way out. In this book, I will give a map to the tools of the process in simple terms and in language easily understood, to turn your life around to a much more pleasant state. If you follow the map faithfully and honestly, you will find that the journey is life-changing and life-affirming. Deepak Chopra's Intent.com Think about it… The teachings of the Torah and the Talmud all distilled into an easy-to-read, easy-to-understand, and easy-to-follow step-by-step process that will help you: I know it sounds priceless and in reality…it is. But I sincerely want to share what has helped me and countless others with you. In other words, I want to show you the path to the happy and joyous life that your were meant to live. So I want you to have The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew for only $19.99. "The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal is an invaluable resource for anyone who is searching for more in their life. I was involved with organized Jewish religion, but something was always missing. Using this guide, and taking each chapter to heart, has transformed my views and put me on the track my life is supposed to be on, filled with love, trust and emunah (faith). Thanks Rabbi Segal!" Ben Pincus Like I said, I've been where you are: in a life missing spirituality; seemingly unable to cope with life's difficulties; and unable to find peace and inner shalom. But I found it and now I want to share with you the path that I have found and passed on to others with consistent success. We are living in a historically turbulent time. Economic uncertainty, political corruption, threats of aggression, and religious conflict are everywhere. I know that I would find it difficult to find comfort without the peace and inner shalom that I have found through Jewish Spiritual Renewal. Many Blessings, P.S. Another thing that I've noticed over the years in my Rabbinic Counseling is that many modern Jews are not as familiar with the Torah and the Talmud as they might be. They find it difficult to understand and interpret in a way that makes sense and has relevance to their lives in the modern world. This is quite often the root cause of the kind of spiritual disconnection that I described earlier. So, as a companion to The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew, I have also written: "Very informative and timely. It allows many people to benefit from Torah lessons, where many of them may not otherwise have an opportunity receive such content." Mauricio Benzipporah A Spiritual and Ethical Compendium to the Torah and Talmud dissects each of the Torah's weekly sections (parashot) using the Talmud and other rabbinic texts to interpret its lessons. Rabbi Daniel Ben Shmuel A Spiritual and Ethical Compendium to the Torah and Talmud brings the Torah alive with daily relevance to the Modern Jew. All of Torah can be summed up in one word: Chesed. It means kindness. The Talmud teaches that the Torah is about loving our fellow man and that we are to ''go and study.'' The rest is commentary. A Spiritual and Ethical Compendium to the Torah and Talmud clarifies the commentary and allows one to study the Torah and the Talmud to learn the Judaic ideals of love, forgiveness, kindness, mercy and peace. It is a must read for those seeking Jewish Spiritual Renewal and is the ideal complement to The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew. Here is an excerpt from A Spiritual and Ethical Compendium to the Torah and Talmud: Since each parasha is the weekly Torah portion, you may read each of the chapters in the book during the course of a week while also reading the actual Torah portion. By doing so, you will learn a modern Jewish Spiritual view of each Torah portion. At the same time, your world will be open to the ethical teachings of the Talmud. While many read the Torah as a history book, or a deed to land, or see it as a boring book full of legalisms and ritual for a priesthood that no longer exists, this book aims to show you the spiritual ethical lessons in each parasha. In a sense this book will hopefully help you enjoy reading and understanding the Five Books of Moses, what we call Chumash from the Hebrew word for "five." You may even discover that you want to continue your study with the Talmud and other Jewish texts. Leslie Palma-Simoncek Complete your journey UP the path to Jewish Spiritual Renewal with a better understanding of the Torah's lessons through A Spiritual and Ethical Compendium to the Torah and Talmud for only $24.99... ...certainly a small amount to pay for the priceless wisdom contained within the Torah and the Talmud. Rabbi Dr. Arthur Segal's love of Judaism and his Ahavath Israel led him on his personal quest for Jewish Spiritual Renewal, beginning his studies after retirement from a successful oral medicine practice. Rabbi Segal graduated cum laude with BA and DMD degrees, Specialty, and Post-Doctoral studies in Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania in the 1970s. He is an author in these chosen fields as well. Rabbi Segal teaches classes on Jewish Spiritual Renewal and The Spiritual and Ethical Teachings of the Torah, TaNaK and Talmud via the Shamash online program. He teaches Torah, Talmud, and other great texts, such as Duties of the Heart by Ibn Pakudah of 1050 C.E. Spain, to adults in his hometown. Rabbi Dr. Segal does rabbinic counseling using the step-by-step process of Jewish Spiritual Renewal to help his fellow Jews achieve a spiritual life. ©2009 Dr. Arthur Segal, P.A. d/b/a Rabbi Arthur Segal Page header image is courtesy of Steve Greenberg (greenberg-art.com)
Is Joy and Happiness
Still Possible in
Times Like These? 
YES, it is possible. Even when the world seems to be turning upside-down, you can follow a simple, step-by-step process that will have you loving life every day no matter what is going on around you. It's no secret, but nobody's been talking about it for generations...until now.
THE HANDBOOK TO JEWISH SPIRITUAL RENEWAL:
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I've been there myself; stuck with a feeling of, "Is this all there is?"
Founder, Martin Buber Institute Reclaim Your Spirituality...And Your Life
Click to OrderTHE HANDBOOK TO JEWISH SPIRITUAL RENEWAL:
A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew
If you find yourself wishing for the strength to sustain you through the ups and downs of life; if you want to learn how to live life to its fullest without angst, worry, low self-esteem or fear; or if you wish that your relationships with family, friends and co-workers were based on love and service and free of ego, arguments, resentments and feelings of being unloved...this book is for you.
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A Question for You
Let me ask you a question: Are you enjoying life like the people in the cartoon at the top of this letter?
CaliforniaWhat Would You Say Something Like This is Worth?
Houston, TXIt took me many years of work and study, and rabbinic ordination. But it didn't have to. And it doesn't have to for you. You can travel the same path that I did, but you can do it in only 254 pages!
Please join me now.
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Rabbi Dr. Arthur Segal
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TO THE TORAH AND TALMUD
All of the Torah can be summed up in one word: Chesed. It means kindness. The Talmud teaches that the Torah is about loving our fellow man and that we are to go and study. The rest is commentary. This compendium clarifies the commentary and allows one to study Torah and Talmud to learn the Judaic ideals of love, forgiveness, kindness, mercy and peace. A must read for all Jews and deserves a place in every Jewish home.
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Staten Island AdvanceYou can purchase each book individually, but if you purchase them together as a set, I will donate a portion of the sales price in your name to a tzadakkah of your choice, such as your synagogue. Think of it as your first act of loving kindness in your spiritually renewed life!
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TO THE TORAH AND TALMUD
About Rabbi Dr. Arthur Segal
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