Torah

All of our nation’s suffering is rooted in the destruction of the Beit HaMikdash. More precisely, our suffering is rooted in what the destruction reflects – distance between us and Hashem.

Learning how to politely say no to opportunities that take us away from our top priorities and goals is essential for fulfillment and success. Moreover, once we neglect studying Torah, writes Arvei Nachal, we will lose motivation to study, leading to even more idleness.

Older Americans may remember one of the great betrayals felt by American military service members upon their return from fighting in Vietnam, when many were greeted with jeers and accusations. Indeed, the type of homecoming a soldier receives was found to predict PTSD up to 40 years later (Steenkamp et al, 2017).

The Land of Israel is the most desirable of all lands. Hashem watches over the Land constantly and more closely than any other land.

Getting up from a fall can often feel very difficult. Understandably, many think that after falling, they cannot rise again.

Generalizing from judges to general ethical advice, the Lubavitcher Rebbe suggests that getting another’s perspective is essential for self-improvement. We tend to have self-serving biases in either positive or negative directions that distort our self-assessment.

Even those less academic and studious can master the Torah and even those less disciplined have the capacity to fulfill all of their mitzvot.

Part of what makes each of us so important is that we are all unique... Hashem created us this way because we each have unique missions in this world.

Building a Mishkan, circumcision, tzedakah, and farming are not our only significant actions. Every good deed we perform, no matter how small, is important and impactful. Each of these deeds contributes to the betterment of the world and should be appreciated and recognized.

It’s time for all our people to stop using these rationalizations because any thinking Jew knows in their heart of hearts that every Jew should be in Israel, and these excuses have no basis. Our grandparents would have given everything that they own to have the opportunity that we have today to make aliyah and live in Israel.

We do not just resemble G-d. We also have a personal relationship with Him.

Angels emanate from and inhabit pure spiritual worlds above. G-d’s presence and their mission are both clear to them.

The Jews assumed that Hashem hated them because they saw themselves as unworthy of His love.

Presumably, even the lowly of spirit according to Maimonides is not purposefully self-denigrating and contains a healthy sense of self-worth (contingent on an awareness of G-d, not one’s own accomplishments).

Some research indicates that heroism during war or, maybe more specifically, the acknowledgement of a soldier’s heroism, might be beneficial to the soldier himself, as it is associated with lower levels of post-traumatic stress symptoms (Stein et al., 2020).

Baruch Hashem, we are witnessing a revolution in this area. Though no soldier can match the Vilna Gaon’s or P’nei Yehoshua’s piety, we have thousands of IDF soldiers who are both deeply committed to halacha and Jewish values and are genuine talmidei chachamim.

Even someone who openly performs wicked deeds should not be disparaged in totality.

Many associate the freedom Rebbe Yehoshua mentions with the exemption Torah scholars enjoy from taxes and other communal responsibilities (Avot 3:5 and Bava Batra 8a). We exempt scholars from these responsibilities so they can be free to focus on their studies.

The reverse is true of sin, continues Rabbi Hirsch. It removes you from the pure and loving presence of your Father in heaven. It will awaken within you the torturing pangs of conscience...

Many interpret the word tza’ar in the literal sense – pain or suffering. Our reward is proportional to the pain we endure.

We tend to define our own levels of wisdom, power, wealth, and honor by likening how much of these commodities we have in relation to others. According to psychologist Leon Festinger, when we make downward social comparisons, we tend to inflate our sense of self by reflecting on how much more we have than others.

Rebbe Yaakov’s teachings aim to help us develop the proper perspective on our world. We should realize that it and its pleasures are not the ultimate goal.

Unlike niddah calculations, which may impact real-life halacha, the doubts and calculations in kinnim are generally removed from practical ramifications.

The Gemara comments that the prophet’s list increases in severity, making captivity the worst, even worse than death or famine.

Being up at night without learning Torah is a misuse of the night. We work during the day and have free time at night; we should use this time to sleep or to learn Torah.

Identification with Hashem’s will affects both the form and scope of our avodat Hashem.

Wisdom is a broad term that can have numerous interpretations, including knowledge of Torah (Chazon Ish), spiritual ability to fulfill the Divine will (Rabbeinu Yonah), or a social intelligence wisdom (Sforno). Regardless of definition, wisdom needs the supplemental value of fear of G-d.

Torah is not the only pillar. Avodah is also important. Study alone is not enough to sustain the world and our existence.

We might ask, why are these two things – giving up hope and aveilus – connected? After all, the likelihood of whether the loved one has died, which may be the more intuitive factor for beginning aveilus, does not change based on the subjective metric of losing hope, so why should this determine the threshold for commencing aveilus?

Judaism is not just about individuals understanding and worshipping G-d. It is about belonging to a people who descend from and still identify with their avot and imahot.