Transcript
Good morning. Boker tov, welcome back to Parsha Perspectives for today. As always, we are grateful to our series sponsor, Becky and Avi Katz and family, in memory of their father and grandfather, David Grossman, לעילוי נשמת דוד בן מנחם מנוש le'ilui nishmas Dovid ben Menachem Manosh. Big thank you to our dear friends the Katzes. Also this morning shiur is sponsored anonymously with heartfelt gratitude to BRS for the inspiration, education that we impart. BRS's teachings have enriched this person's knowledge and contributed to their spiritual growth. We're very grateful to them for their generous sponsorship. A few housekeeping notes and then we'll jump into a double parsha. You don't give me double the time just because it's a double parsha. It's really not right. It should be two hours when it's a double parsha, but we'll do what we can. A few housekeeping notes. Next week, there's no parsha shiur because next Shabbos we don't read a regular parsha. Next Shabbos is Rosh Hashanah. So therefore next Tuesday there is no parsha shiur. But to make up for it tonight, 8:00 p.m. we are continuing our series on mastering our middos. Tonight, I'll speak about anger management, 8:00 p.m. in the social hall. It's also streamed online. You could find it on the YouTube channel. Also, tomorrow night, we are honored to host Rabbi Bentzion Twerski for an Elul chizuk shmuess, men and women. Thursday night, we meet again at the beach, late at night, 8:30 p.m. In Boca, that's late at night, for a little learning about hisbodedus and then spreading out across the beach to have private conversations with Hashem. That's Thursday night. Yesterday was the Mitzvah market. It's an entire week of incredible opportunities. פרשת נצבים Parshas Nitzavim page 1,086 in the Artscroll Stone Chumash. This week we read Nitzavim and Vayelech, action packed, so much to cover, so much to speak about. We'll see how far as we can get. So let's begin. אתם נצבים היום כולכם לפני השם אלוקיכם Atem nitzavim hayom kulchem lifnei Hashem Elokeichem. You're standing all of you. You're standing here today. ראשיכם שבטיכם זקניכם ושוטריכם כל איש ישראל Rasheichem shivteichem zikneichem v'shotreichem kol ish Yisrael. The Torah is the great equalizer. When it comes to Torah, Moshe turns to the people and he says, it doesn't matter your age, it doesn't matter your scholarship, it doesn't matter your socioeconomic status, it doesn't matter your יחוס yichus. None of it matters. טפכם נשיכם גרך אשר בקרב מחניך Tapchem nesheichem geirecha asher b'kerev machanecha. You could be a convert, you could be a newcomer. מחטב עציך עד שואב מימיך Mechoitev eitzecha ad sho'eiv meimecha. You could be a wood chopper or water carrier. You could be retired from the hedge fund manage management that you did. לעברך בברית השם אלוקיך ובאלתו אשר השם אלוקיך כורת עמך היום La'avrecha b'vris Hashem Elokecha u've'alaso asher Hashem Elokecha koreis imcha hayom. Because for you to pass into the covenant of Hashem in appreciation that Hashem your God seals with you today. We're all equally bound by Torah, we're all equally accountable to Torah, we're all equally united by Torah. Torah, מצוות mitzvos, יידישקייט Yiddishkeit is the great equalizer. The other things are external, they're window dressing, but in our פנימיות pnimius, in our core, in who we are, all of those distinctions and differences, they all fall away. We're equally bound, we're equally united, we're equally together in our relationship with Torah. And that's the ברית bris. לעברך בברית השם La'avrecha b'vris Hashem. למען הקים אותך היום לו לעם Lema'an hakim oscha hayom lo l'am, to be a people, והוא יהיה לך לאלוקים v'hu yiheye lecha le'Elokim. You are his people, we are his people, we serve him, we represent him, we are his ambassadors and agents and advocates here on earth, והוא יהיה לך לאלוקים v'hu yiheye lecha le'Elokim. And he's our trustworthy, faithful God. כאשר דיבר לך וכאשר נשבע לאבותיך Ka'asher diber lach v'cha'asher nishba la'avosecha, just as he promised, אברהם יצחק ויעקב Avraham, Yitzchak v'Yaakov. ולא אתכם לבדכם אנוכי כורת את הברית הזאת ואת האלה הזאת V'lo itchem l'vadchem anochi koreis es habris hazos v'es ha'alah hazos. And by the way, Moshe turns to those who are gathered and he says, not just you who are physically here today, not just you who can sign on the dotted line contractually, but את אשר ישנו פה עמנו עומד היום לפני השם אלוקינו ואת אשר איננו פה עמנו היום es asher yeshno po imanu omed hayom lifnei Hashem Elokeinu v'es asher einenu po imanu hayom. Those who are here and those are destined to be here, those who are present and those who will yet come. This isn't a contract where if you weren't alive or present, you shouldn't be bound by it. This is a constitution where all who will be born into it are bound by it. This is a covenant. It is a constitution. It is not a contract. And that is the answer to a young person who says, why do I have to keep Torah mitzvos? Why do I have to give up all that good food and give up my Saturdays? Why do I have to live this life and marry only Jewish? I didn't take this on. I didn't agree to it. I didn't sign on a dotted line. Why am I bound by it? And the answer is it may not be a contract, but it is a covenant, it is a constitution. It is who we are. It is what we are about. It's what it means to be part of this people. So there's so much to talk about. אתם נצבים היום Atem nitzavim hayom, we're all standing here. The names itself of all of ספר דברים Sefer Devarim is itself a message. We've spoken about that in the past. נצבים וילך Nitzavim Vayelech, standing and going. We don't stand, we go. אתם וילך Nitzavim Vayelech, we are person has to be on the move. We'll talk more about that. But why are we standing here? The Medrash tells us a reassurance. After last week's תוכחה tochacha, after the harsh rebuke and the dire warning, if we're disobedient to Hashem, what will happen, the Torah then says, but don't worry. Moshe says, relax, I know you're frightful, I know you're fearful, you're filled with anxiety. What if you're unworthy, you'll be wiped out? What if the תוכחה tochacha will be visited upon you? Relax. Don't worry. Got this. אתם נצבים היום כולכם Atem nitzavim hayom kulchem, even after that מוסר שמועס mussar shmuess, even after I screamed and yelled and rattled you and the wall shook, you came back the next Shabbos. It was kiddush. It's probably Kiddush club. אתם נצבים היום כולכם You nitzavim hayom kulchem. You're all here. It's all good. It's all good. What does Moshe trying to undo? What what is he doing? The whole purpose of the תוכחה tochacha was to motivate, was to inspire, was to incentivize. And now he just undoes that by saying, don't worry, you're here, you survived. It's all good. So the and the others, they say, Moshe was saying, you know, individually you're in trouble. That's the תוכחה tochacha. If you live life as an individual, you're on your own. But אתם נצבים היום כולכם atem nitzavim hayom kulchem. When you unite as a community, as a people, as a nation, when you're able to supplement and complement your shortcomings with other people's strengths, and you, your strength will complement their shortcoming. When we appear before Hashem united, a community loving, faithful, loyal, then we can survive, we can triumph even the harshness of the תוכחה tochacha of the rebuke. It is a strategy that is invoked over and over and over again. רבינו יונה Rabbeinu Yonah, ראשונים Rishonim, אחרונים Acharonim, בעלי מוסר Baalei Mussar, בעלי מחשבה Baalei Machshava, they all say one of the emphasis of this time of year when a person might recoil into their own merit, worthiness, try to organize their own argument to Hashem, coming before Hashem on the ימי הדין Yomei Hadin, but instead the answer is not to turn inward, it's turn outward. Be a person who the community is indispensable. איש הכלל Isha klal, of quotes be a person who is indispensable to the community. Be אתם נצבים היום כולכם nitzavim hayom kulchem. Don't find fault in the other, find what's right. Don't nitpick and criticize, compliment. Don't walk away and turn away and pretend you don't see. Reach out and care and invite and ensure no one's alone. It's when we are אתם נצבים היום כולכם nitzavim hayom kulchem, that's when we can overcome the תוכחה tochacha of last week's parsha. But the אמרות טהורות Amaros Tehoros, the הייליגע רחמסטריווקא רבי Helige Rachmastrivka Rebbe, זצ\"ל zatzal, who just passed away a couple of weeks ago, he quotes the עטרת ישראל Ateres Yisrael. Who is the עטרת ישראל Ateres Yisrael? Yisrael was a grandson of the מאור עיניים Me'or Einayim, the טשערנאבלער הייליגע טשערנאבלער רבי Chernobyler Helige Chernobyler Rebbe. איש שלא יחשוב ודאי מה אני כי אנוכי אגש להתפלל לפני השם יתברך בראש השנה Ish shelo yachshov vadai ma ani ki anochi agash le'hispallel lifnei Hashem Yisbarach b'Rosh Hashanah. A person might say, you know, those holy rollers, they come before God, they work all Elul, they shuckle, they daven, they learn, they attend all the teshuva lectures, they read, they sign up, they get the WhatsApp alerts, they're listening, they're learning, they're growing, and then they come and they daven from the bottom of their heart. Who am I? I'm a gornisht, I'm a nothing, I'm a nobody. Are you kidding? I'm not going to be so hypocritical and duplicitous that I struggle with my struggles and I battle my battles and I'm really empty and I'm really I'm really and then I'm going to come, הלא יודע אנוכי כמה אני רחוק מהשם יתברך halo yodea anochi kama ani rachok me'Hashem Yisbarach. I know how far I am from Hashem. ולא יאות לאיש שפל כמוני לעבוד את השם יתברך כלל Velo ya'us l'ish shafal kamoni la'avod es Hashem Yisbarach klal. Some lowly, distant, like me, I'm going to pretend to come before Hashem, I'm going to shuckle, I'm going to daven, I'm going to cry, I'm going to cry out. רק אנשים גדולים, תלמידי חכמים וצדיקים, בעלי מדרגה, הם ראויים לעמוד ולהתפלל לפניו ולפעול כל טוב בתפילתם Rak anashim gedolim talmidei chachamim v'tzadikim ba'alei madreiga heim re'uim la'amod u'lhispallel l'fanav v'lif'ol kol tuv b'filasam. I know I save the email, I know I read quickly. I got a lot to say. It's a double parsha. Listen on half speed. I'm doing the best I can. So you'll say only the people who are worthy, who are lofty, who are exalted, they can come and they can cry out and they can daven. אבל אנוכי בשפלותי כאיצד אוכל להתייצב לפני השם יתברך בראש השנה Aval anochi b'shiflusi keitzad uchel l'hiyatzav lifnei Hashem Yisbarach b'Rosh Hashanah. Me? I'm pathetic. I'm lowly. I'm disobedient. I can't get my act together. I failed Hashem, I failed myself, I failed my family. I can't fulfill one promise I made from one Rosh Hashanah since I'm alive. So what, I'm going to go through the motions this next year? I'm going to just do it all over again this Elul, this Rosh Hashanah, this Aseres Yemei Teshuva, this Yom Kippur? I'm just going to pretend this year is going to be different. אל יחשוב כן Al yachshov kein. כי אמיתי שאין זה נכון, אלא כל איש ישראל באשר הוא יכול לגשת לקרב אל השם יתברך Ki amisi she'ein zeh nachon ela kol ish Yisrael ba'asher hu yachol legashes l'kareiv el Hashem Yisbarach. Don't think that way. חס ושלום Chas v'shalom, never give up on yourself. Never see yourself as that reject, as that outlier, as that. Realize everyone, no matter where they are and where they're holding, it's not too late to become who you're meant to be. וזה שאמר הכתוב אתם נצבים היום V'zeh she'amar hakasuv atem nitzavim hayom, היום זה ראש השנה hayom zeh Rosh Hashanah. The Zohar says, היום hayom, אתם נצבים היום atem nitzavim hayom, you're standing here today, Rosh Hashanah. כולכם לפני השם אלוקיכם Kulchem lifnei Hashem Elokeichem, all of you. כל אחד ואחד מישראל יהיה מי שיהיה, יכול וראוי לגשת לקרב לפני השם יתברך להתפלל Kol echad v'echad mi'Yisrael yihiye mi sheyihiye, yachol v'ra'ui legashes l'kareiv lifnei Hashem Yisbarach l'hispallel. Whoever you are and wherever you're holding, you could step forward and you could open up your heart. You could feel his love. You could begin again. You could believe in yourself. אף אם הוא נחשב בעל עבירות רחמנא ליצלן Af im hu nechshav ba'al aveiros rachmana litzlan. Even if you spoke lashon hara in the lobby on your way into shul for Kol Nidre. No problem. So what? Don't give up on yourself. Start again. Decide now. הרי אנו מלא חטאים ואינני ראוי להתקרב. יאמין שעדיין יש בו חלק אלוקי ממעל Harei anu malei chata'im v'eineni ra'ui l'hiskareiv. Ya'amin she'adayin yesh bo chelek Elokai mima'al. I'm still a piece of God in me. It's still my father. and it's never too late to call home, it's never too late to come home, it's never late to come into the arms of your parents. והוא ראוי להתפלל ולצרוח להתפלל. ובדרך זה הכתוב לוודאי תבורך, תתפלל ותוושע. וזהו שממשיך הכתוב כי המצווה הזאת וכו'. V'hu ra'ui l'hispallel v'litzroach l'hispallel. V'derech zeh hakasuv l'vadai t'vorach, t'paleil v'tivasheia. V'zehu she'mamshich hakasuv ki hamitzvah hazos v'go. And that's what these psukim mean that we're going to get to momentarily. כי המצווה הזאת לא נפלאת היא ממך ולא רחוקה היא Ki hamitzvah hazos lo nifleis hi mimcha v'lo rechoka hi. We're going to talk about what mitzvah. The Torah in Parshas Nitzav says this mitzvah, don't worry, it seems so hard, seems impossible, seems inaccessible, seems difficult. לא בשמים היא lo bashamayim hi, it's not in the heavens, ולא מעבר לים היא v'lo mei'ever layam hi, it's not on the other side of the sea. כי קרוב אליך הדבר מאוד Ki karov eilecha hadavar me'od, it's right there. It's close. It's right under your nose. Where is it? בפיך ובלבבך B'ficha u'vilvavcha, in your mouth and of your heart. Mitzvah is from the word צוותא tzavsa. The word mitzvah, what does it mean the word mitzvah? So we translate the word mitzvah always as a command. First of all, that's not a very loving metaphor. That doesn't reflect a lot of affection and intimacy and love and communication and connection. Command. I command you, imagine the wife tells, I command you take out the garbage. I command you make dinner. I command you pay the bills. I command you. That's the relationship with Hashem. 613 commandments. On the one hand, yes. Hashem says jump, we say how high. He's the אדון adon where the עבד eved. He's the master where the slave. That's one image, but he's also the father and we're the child. He's also the spouse and we are the loving other spouse. And the word צוותא tzavsa comes from the word ציווי tzivui comes from the word צוותא tzavsa. מצווה Mitzvah, command is the wrong translation. Or it's only one level of a translation. The word מצווה mitzva also means צוותא tzavsa, התקשרות hiskashrus, it means a connection. It means, do you want to feel connected to me? Do you want me to feel connected to you? Would you please take out the garbage? Would you like me to feel connected? Would you mind making dinner? Do you want to feel connected? This is a need I have. This would help me, enrich my life. There are 613 connection points, connection opportunities, opportunities to offer a bid, a gesture to connect with the רבונו של עולם Ribono Shel Olam. דביקות בהשם יתברך לא נפלאת ממך Dveikus b'Hashem Yisbarach lo nifleis mimcha. 613 mitzvos, seems overwhelming. It seems impossible. It seems unrealistic. But it's not. When you're in love, there's nothing you won't do for the other person. Gemara says two people in love, if they're in love, they can sleep on the side of a sword. If they're not in love, the biggest bed in the world is not big enough to hold them. With the Kodesh Baruch Hu, if you're in love, 613 mitzvos is gornisht, it's nothing. No problem, I got it. I could do anything. It'll create a connection and affection. I'm in. It's לא רחוקה היא lo rechoka hi, לא נפלאת ממך lo nifleis mimcha. כל אחד ואחד יכול להתחבר ולהתקשר עם השם יתברך להתפלל ולצרוח לפניו, כי מחמת רוב אהבת השם יתברך לישראל, מקבל תפילת כל אחד ואחד Kol echad v'echad yachol l'hischaber v'hiskasher im Hashem Yisbarach l'hispallel v'litzroach l'fanav ki machmas rov ahavas Hashem Yisbarach l'Yisrael m'kabel t'filas kol echad v'echad. Hashem loves us and he believes in us. Go even farther, he needs us. And if we know that, then it's not too far, it's not too impossible. It's for every single one of us. And he goes on and on. האריך שם הרבה בזה He'arich sham harbei b'zeh, a גאנצע שמועס gantza shmuess. He has a long essay, a גאנצע שמועס gantza shmuess on this, that that's what this parsha is really all about. אתם נצבים היום כולכם Atem nitzavim hayom kulchem. Do not erase yourself, don't marginalize yourself, don't dismiss yourself, and don't excuse yourself. No matter where you are, no matter where you're holding in life, no matter who you are, no matter what you think you're capable of, יידישקייט Yiddishkeit, Torah, מצוות mitzvos is for every one of us. There's room and there's space, there's meaning, there's purpose, and Hashem needs each and every one of us, no matter who, no matter how we're born, no matter what we're born into, he needs. And it's לא נפלאת lo nifleis. If we understand a מצווה mitzva is not a command, a מצווה mitzva is an invitation, it's an opportunity. A מצווה mitzva is a connection. Then the 613, they're לא רחוקה lo rechoka. They're not far away, they're right there. The Toldos, the Amaras Tehoros quotes the Toldos. The Toldos was the talmid of the Baal Shem, who collected his teachings and spread them. ועוד הרבה ספרים יגעו בפסוק אתם נצבים היום כולכם, כי באמת ראוי לשים לב איך יכול אדם להתייצב לדין בראש השנה V'od harbei sforim yageu b'pasuk atem nitzavim hayom kulchem ki be'emes ra'ui lasim lev eich yachol adam l'hiyatzav l'din b'Rosh Hashanah. This whole parsha is advice. The whole parsha is a strategy and a methodology how to appear before Hashem on Rosh Hashanah. כי באמת ראוי לשים לב, איך אני יכול לעמוד בראש השנה? ומה יהיה לנו זכות קיום? רק העצה היא שנהיה באחדות ובהתכללות עם כל ישראל Ki be'emes ra'ui lasim lev, eich ani yachol la'amod b'Rosh Hashanah u'ma yiheyeh lanu z'chus kiyum? Rak ha'eitza hi she'nihiyeh b'achdus u'vehiskalelus im kol Yisrael. אתם נצבים היום כולכם Atem nitzavim hayom kulchem. As we mentioned earlier, it's all about אחדות achdus. This is the time of year, don't recoil, don't retreat into me, my destiny, my judgment. You know, if God forbid a person's preparing for a big trial, they're appearing before the judge, their life lays in the balance, and somebody says, can you have me for dinner Friday night? Say, are you out of your mind? I'm hunkered down with my team. I've got lawyers, putting together our arguments. I'm earning all my merits. Leave me alone. I can't do coffee, I can't have you for dinner, I can't write you a check. Are you out of your mind? I'm so busy. This is the opposite. Preparing for trial, lawyers, I'm sorry, I don't have time for you. An argument for myself, I'm sorry, I don't have time for it. What am I so busy with? I have to cook meals for others. I have to check in on others. I have to go visit and take care of and support and uplift others. I have to feel אחדות achdus. I have to love the people I don't like. I have to compliment the people I've been obsessed with criticizing. So sorry, I don't have time to prepare for my trial. That's the best preparation for this trial. And that's why it's אתם נצבים היום כולכם atem nitzavim hayom kulchem. And that's what the Mishnah says in Avos. Zik the Toldos, אל תהי רשע בפני עצמך al tihi rasha bifnei atzmecha. The Mishnah in the second perek of Avos says, don't be a rasha. פירוש, אל תהי רשע על ידי שתפרוש לעצמך Peirush, al tihi rasha al yedei she'tiferosh le'atzmecha. It's a new pshat, it's a new definition of the Mishnah. אל תהי רשע בפני עצמך Al tihi rasha bifnei atzmecha doesn't mean don't be a rasha in your own eyes. It means, don't be a rasha because you know what's wickedness? You know what would be wicked? בפני עצמך Bifnei atzmecha, if all you cared about was yourself. That's wickedness. אל תהי רשע בפני עצמך Al tihi rasha bifnei atzmecha. Don't retreat into yourself, don't only care about yourself, don't prepare with your team for yourself. Care about others. וזהו שאמר אתם נצבים היום, ראש השנה, כיצד תוכלו להתייצב V'zehu she'amar atem nitzavim hayom, Rosh Hashanah, keitzad tuchlu l'hiyatzav. So how can you stand Hashem before Hashem on Rosh Hashanah? אתם נצבים Atem nitzavim, you're going to stand and appear before the judge היום hayom, היום hayom, says the Zohar is Rosh Hashanah. What's the answer? What's the strategy? כולכם Kulchem. We're all in it together. We're a whole community. We're too big to fail. We're too big to fail. Individuals, a little neighborhood bank, done. We've seen that this year. A bank, a little individual neighborhood bank could go under. But too big to fail. So I'm part of a, we're too big to fail. We're eight minyanim, we're a thousand families, we're super interconnected with one another. We're intertwined. Our love, our loyalty, we're too big to fail. That's our argument to Hashem. We're too big to fail. And that's the winning argument. אתם נצבים Atem nitzavim when you stand in judgment, היום hayom, which is Rosh Hashanah, כולכם kulchem. Have an attitude of כולכם kulchem. That is the strategy. להתכלל עם כל ישראל L'hiskalel im kol Yisrael. Don't be apart, don't be divided, don't break away. Be united. The community. The answer to triumph before Hashem is community. The closer, the more connected you are to community, the more giving and selfless you are in community, the more you care and you see and you compliment others in community, the better shape you're in when נצבים nitzavim, when you'll stand before Hashem היום hayom and היום hayom is Rosh Hashanah. Okay. That is the opening pasuk. Moving right along, next page. Warning against idolatry, don't serve and worship idols. Of course, loyal remain loyal to Hashem. Page 1090, 1090. Top of the page, pasuk chaf ches. הנסתרות להשם אלוקינו והנגלות לנו ולבנינו עד עולם, לעשות את כל דברי התורה הזאת Hanistaros la'Hashem Elokeinu v'haniglos lanu u'levaneinu ad olam la'asos es kol divrei haTorah hazos. The hidden sins are for Hashem, but the revealed are for us and for our children forever. For us to fulfill, for us to perform, for us to live by, they are for us. Now, we spoke about this pasuk, I don't remember, last year, two years ago, three years ago, we spoke about this pasuk in the past, and we gave many, many explanations, and I'm tempted because they're all so great to repeat them every year, but we can't do that. I might as well just press play. So you could listen to the past. הנסתרות hanistaros, the hidden are for Hashem, the revealed are for us and for our children. So much to say. But I want to just tell you one new pshat, and that is from Rav Soloveitchik. Baruch Hashem, our parsha perspectives, we try to offer perspectives from the Rachmastrivka Rebbe. We've been bringing a lot of Chassidus to Rav Soloveitchik, to Rabbi Sacks, from all over, from all over. So Rav Soloveitchik says the following, the hidden things belong to Hashem, but the revealed things apply to us and to our children forever. A special covenant was made in order to affect the mutual ערבות areivus of all Jews for one another, continuing along the theme. This covenant received its expression in the blessings and curses on הר גריזים והר עיבל Har Grizim v'Har Eival. We are all mutually responsible for one another. We are all each other's guarantors. We don't live isolated. We don't live apart. We don't live alone. We are in it together. Our Chaim HaKadosh brings a mashal. We all know it. It sounds childish, and yet it's so childish that we adults still haven't figured it out. You're on a boat together and a person takes out a drill, starts to drill a hole under their seat. You say, what are you doing? The water's going to come in. He says, mind your business. I paid for this seat. This is my seat. What happens in the seat is my business. Get out of my way. Say, are you out of your mind? You drill a hole under your seat, you might have paid for that seat, but the whole boat's going down. And that's the attitude that we have to all have in our lives in the way that we care about one another and the way that we support one another, but also in recognizing the accountability and responsibility we have on our actions for others. There is a trickle down effect. It impacts others for good and for bad. We are guarantors one of the other. You know, the other night I was at a siyum. Donny Appenheimer made a siyum on ש\"ס משניות Shas Mishnayos. And he got up and he said, you know what inspired my siyum on ש\"ס משניות Shas Mishnayos? that two years ago I was at the siyum of Moshe Winergrad on Shas. And Moshe Winergrad at his siyum got up and he said, you know what inspired my siyum on Shas? That Rav Yoni Leven, the Rosh Yeshiva, Yeshiva of South Florida, he makes a siyum every year on Shas, Bavli and Yerushalmi. And you know what inspired Yoni Leven, Rav Yoni Leven's siyum on Shas? Everyone at their siyum gets up and talks about what inspired this siyum. And I was just listening and I was just connecting the dots and saying, wow, whoever made that first siyum, do they even know? They'll get upstairs and Hashem will say, שכוייח shkoyach, Shas was finished a billion times because of you. You say, I tried to learn as much as I can, I didn't hit a billion. They say, yeah, but do you know how many siyumim the trickle down effect? When you do something, someone watched you daven with kavana, they decided to daven with kavana. Someone saw you be kind and gracious and reach out and be friendly, and they were too. But the opposite's also true. You spoke lashon hara and that gave license and permission to the other to gossip and slander. You were negative and hypercritical and they joined too. You ate the wrong thing, they ate the wrong thing. You looked at the wrong thing and so on. Shared suffering finds its expression in the awareness of a shared responsibility and liability, says Rav Soloveitchik. During the Korach rebellion, Moshe and Aron pleaded with Hashem not to punish all of K'lal Yisrael for Korach's sin. Hashem agreed and punished only the congregation of Korach. But after entry into Eretz Yisrael, we were held responsible for the sin of our fellow. If it is in our power to rebuke him, to protest his behavior, and to induce him to repent, a collective ethico-halachic responsibility devolves upon the entire Jewish people. It's not an excuse to say, it's not my business. We don't have the luxury of looking the other way. We are not entitled to sit on the sidelines. If we see something, we have to say something. If we can get involved and influence and make a difference, we have to make a difference. The Halakha has declared that all Jews are guarantors for one another. Consequently, one who has already fulfilled a particular mitzvah can still perform the mitzvah for his fellow Jew who has not yet performed it, and thereby enable the latter to discharge his obligation. One is not himself exempt as long as his fellow Jew has not performed. Soloveitchik is referencing the Gemara. Gemara Brachos, Megillah elsewhere says, יצא מוציא yotzei motzi. Somebody who has fulfilled the mitzvah can still fulfill it for another. So, it's going to come Rosh Hashanah. I'm a ba'al tokeia. We only hear the shofar once this year. You know why? Because one of the days of Rosh Hashanah is Shabbos. So we'll only hear the Rosh Hashanah, the shofar once this year. I blow shofar, before we blow shofar, we make brachos. Let's say then I go to my neighbor's house who wasn't able to come to shul and I blow the shofar for them, they hadn't heard shofar yet. Now it's preferable they make the bracha with themselves. Let's say they can't. Can I make the bracha for them? I fulfilled the mitzvah already. Is that a bracha levatala? Aren't I taking Hashem's name in vain? How can I make the bracha if I already fulfilled the mitzvah? By the time I get home on a Shabbos morning, I've made kiddush five or six times. Not because I make kiddush hopper-goer. There are those people too. The difference between them and me is I also daven shacharis and musaf and heard leining. But why? Because after I spoke here, I made kiddush. Then I made the kiddush at the end of davening. Then I made the kiddush at the next kiddush. So, I come home, and let's say I, challah, I don't, let's say I had a child who had to be woken for lunch, and they hadn't heard kiddush yet. Can I make kiddush for them? It's good to be young. Can I make kiddush for them? What's the answer? Yes, why? I already made kiddush five times. How can I make kiddush for someone else? I already fulfilled the mitzvah. So the Gemara says, Chazal say, יצא מוציא yotzei motzi. You fulfilled the mitzvah, no problem. You could still be motzi someone else. Rashi says, how does that work? מן ערבות Midina arvus. Because we're guarantors one for the other. Still, how does that answer the question? If I fulfilled the mitzvah, how could I be motzi someone else? What's the answer? As long as there's a Yid, as long as there's a Jew who's not fulfilled their mitzvah, I have not completely fulfilled mine. Yes, I heard kiddush. Yes, I blew shofar. Yes, I heard Megillah. Yes, I, but if there's a Jew who didn't fulfill their mitzvah, I have not completely fulfilled mine enough so that I can still make a bracha, that I could repeat the bracha again. That's arvus. That's arvus. That's what it means. Shared responsibility. That's what it means. Shared responsibility is not merely a theoretical halachic construct, says Rav Soloveitchik. It is also a central fact in the history of the Jewish people in its respect to its relationship to the nations of the world. Our neighbors have always condemned all of us for the sins of one of us. A Jew lands on the front page of the paper, and the nations of the world say, all Jews are X, Y, and Z. All Jews behave A, B, and C. They've held us accountable one for the other. The identification of our actions of an individual with the people at large is a fundamental feature of our history. Our enemies will not allow the individual Jew to remain isolated in his own private, separate sphere. They regularly point to the behavior of the individual as a means to indict the entire community. Such censure applies only to Jews and not to other nations. You don't find an African-American, a Hispanic, an Asian, you don't find somebody else on the cover of the paper and you say, all X, Y, and Z. You don't say a Christian, a Muslim behaving in this way, all are that way. The Jew alone has that, bears that responsibility. The commandment of the sanctification of the divine name, the prohibition against desecration can be explained in light of this principle of shared responsibility. The actions of the individual are charged to the account of the community. Any sin besmirches the name of the Jewish people in the world. The individual must therefore answer not only to his own personal conscience, but also to the collective conscience of the people. We are responsible one to another. You make a Kiddush Hashem, someone sent me a newspaper earlier yesterday, someone sent me an article yesterday about a Orthodox Jew, a Chasidic Jew, who went to the bank and took out $5,000 and went home and counted it and had $6,000. So what did he do? He went back to the bank and he said, I got a thousand too much. And the bank said, who are you? What are you? What are you made of? Where do you come from? Isn't it amazing? People call me sometimes with such a shaila. I ordered on Amazon, they sent me two, I only paid for one. I ordered this, they sent me the more expensive, better edition. Do I have to return? Do I have to? So it's a complicated halachic question because g'neivas akum might be mutar, there's a big question. It's possible it's permissible to keep it, but I always encourage, I say call and call and say, hi, I received the order. I got two, I only paid for one. and as a Torah observant Orthodox Jew, my religion tells me the moral thing is to call and to say, should I send it back? Don't just say, should I send it back. Identify yourself. Use the opportunity to advance the Jewish people, the Jewish cause. Our religion teaches that God wants me to call you and ask you if I have to send it back, if I should send it back. Use it to make a Kiddush Hashem, because when you do that, and then an article is positive in the paper, everyone says, Jews are pretty honest. That's amazing. I want a piece of that. And if the article says something else, they say Jews are all terrible. That has the concept of areivus, says Rav Soloveitchik, it comes from our parsha. Perek lamed, pasuk yud-alef, bottom of that page, what we alluded to a moment ago. כי המצווה הזאת אשר אנוכי מצווך היום Ki hamitzvah hazos asher anochi metzavcha hayom. My friend, Avraham Fried, composed a beautiful song from these words. כי המצווה הזאת אשר אנוכי מצווך היום, לא נפלאת היא ממך ולא רחוקה היא Ki hamitzvah hazos asher anochi metzavcha hayom, lo nifleis hi mimcha v'lo rechoka hi. This commandment I command you today, it's not hidden from you, and it's not too distant. This is what we saw the Amaras Tehoros said, mitzvah mi-lashon tzavsa, hiskashrus. It's not a command. It's an opportunity. It's an invitation. It's a connection. This mitzvah, what mitzvah? This mitzvah. Which mitzvah? Torah doesn't say. Torah doesn't tell us. Ki ha-mitzva hazos, this mitzvah, whichever one it is that I'm not telling you explicitly, but a mitzvah you should know, it's not beyond you. It's not impossible. לא בשמים היא Lo bashamayim hi. It's not in the heavens. ולא מעבר לים היא Lo mei'ever layam hi. It's not on the other side of the sea that you could say, how am I going to cross the sea to do it? כי קרוב אליך הדבר מאוד Ki karov eilecha hadavar me'od. Another great friend, these are all people who have been behind the bima. You can watch these interviews and learn from them. They're great songs. Avraham Fried, Yitame Katz. כי קרוב אליך הדבר מאוד Ki karov eilecha hadavar me'od. Right to the neshama. כי קרוב אליך בפיך ובלבבך לעשותו Ki karov eilecha b'ficha u'bilvavcha la'asoso. It's in your mouth and it's in your heart to be able to do. כי המצווה הזאת Ki hamitzvah hazos. This mitzvah. Which mitzvah? This mitzvah. Which mitzvah? Which mitzvah? So, says Rashi, לא בשמים היא, שאילו הייתה בשמים, היית צריך לעלות אחריה ללמדה Lo bashamayim hi, she'ilu hayisa bashamayim hayisa tzorech la'alos achareha l'lomda. If it was in the heavens, you'd have to climb to the heavens to get it. But good news, you don't need a ladder. You could be afraid of heights. כי קרוב אליך Ki karov eilecha, it's right down here on earth, next to you. It's right under your nose. And what is it, says Rashi? התורה ניתנה לכם בכתב ובעל פה HaTorah nitna lachem b'ksav u've'al peh. Torah, written and oral. Torah. You know what the mitzvah is? Torah. All of Torah. Learning Torah, living Torah. Torah, Torah. That's the mitzvah. That's the mitzvah. In fact, the Gemara in Eruvin Nun Hey says, לא בשמים היא lo bashamayim hi. לא תמצא באדם שהוא מגביה דעתו עליה כשמים, ולא תמצא במי שמקיים דעתו עליה כים Lo timatzei b'adam shehu magbia da'ato aleha ka'shamayim, v'lo timatzei b'mi she'markiv da'ato aleha ka'yam. You won't be able to learn Torah if you are too distracted. לא תמצא בגסי רוח Lo timatzei b'gasei ruach. לא בשמים Lo bashamayim, ba'shamayim doesn't just mean in the heavens, what does it mean? Ba'shamayim, who thinks they're so high? Those who are arrogant. Lo bashamayim can mean if you're high, you can't learn Torah if you're high, live Torah if you're high, and you can't learn Torah and live Torah if you're too high on yourself, if you're too arrogant. Lo mei'ever. ים, לא תמצא לא בסוחרנים ולא בתגרים yam, lo timatze lo basachranim v'lo batagarim. If you're a sailor, if you're a merchant, if you travel, if you're obsessed and consumed by business, you can't learn, you can't live Torah. But the Gemara is learning, what's the מצוה הזאת mitzvah hazos? תורה Torah. Come along the רמב\"ן Ramban and the ספורנו Sforno on our פרשה parsha, and the רמב\"ן Ramban and the ספורנו Sforno say, what's the מצוה הזאת mitzvah hazos? המצוה הזאת Hamitzvah hazos is תשובה tshuva. And what's the ראיה raaya, what's the proof it's תשובה tshuva, repentance, repair, return? Says the רמב\"ן Ramban, where is this mitzvah found? It's not in the heavens, not on the other side of the sea, not too far away. Where is it? בפיך b'ficha, in your mouth, ובלבבך uvilvavcha, and in your, and in your heart. What mitzvah is in your mouth and in your heart? תשובה Tshuva, repentance. It's in your heart because you will to return. How is it in your mouth? The Rambam paskins, an indispensable part of תשובה tshuva is וידוי vidui. You have to confess, you have to admit, you have to articulate what you did wrong.So the אחרונים Acharonim ask, how could the רמב\"ן Ramban and the ספורנו Sforno say the מצוה הזאת mitzvah hazos is תשובה tshuva when חז\"ל Chazal already said it's Torah? Which is it, Torah or תשובה tshuva? The Torah itself, the parsha itself leaves it ambiguous. It's mysterious. It never spells out what is this mitzvah כי המצוה הזאת ki hamitzvah hazos. But חז\"ל Chazal say it's Torah. So who are the רמב\"ן Ramban and the ספורנו Sforno to come off saying it's תשובה tshuva? Good. So listen to this answer. It's in a beautiful sefer שערי נעימות יאמרו Shaarei Neimos Yomeiru, quotes from the נצי\"ב Netziv and others. The קלויזנבערגער רבי Klausenberger Rebbe in his שפע חיים Shefa Chaim, the Klausenberger asks similarly. A little bonus סידור siddur snippet for you. We're already up to the eighth ברכה bracha of רפאינו Refaeinu, but going back a couple, השיבנו אבינו לתורתך hashiveinu avinu l'sorasecha. Frag the Klausenberger, the שפע חיים Shefa Chaim asks the Klausenberger, השיבנו אבינו Hashiveinu Avinu, the ברכה bracha called תשובה tshuva. What do we say, Hashem? I want to return to you, I want to repair, I want to redeem myself. השיבנו אבינו Hashiveinu Avinu to what? Come on people, you say this ברכה bracha three times a day. השיבנו אבינו Hashiveinu Avinu לתורתך l'sorasecha. Why do I say return me to your Torah? That works if where I went wrong is Torah. I never learned Torah, I distorted Torah, I perverted Torah, I was מבטל תורה mevatel Torah. So now I understand השיבנו אבינו לתורתך hashiveinu avinu l'sorasecha, bring me back to your Torah. But what if where I went wrong was not with Torah? Why is the automatic השיבנו אבינו Hashiveinu Avinu לתורתך l'sorasecha? What does תשובה tshuva have to do with Torah? Learn Torah and then do תשובה tshuva. What do Torah and תשובה tshuva have to do with one another? Rav Chaim Volozhiner says in the holy נפש החיים Nefesh HaChaim, in the holy נפש החיים Nefesh HaChaim שער ד' Shaar Daled, פרק ל\"א Perek Lamed Aleph, the שער shaar, the נפש החיים Nefesh HaChaim says the following. Listen to these words. בא וראה כמה גדול כוחה של תורה Bo u'reh kama gadol kocha shel Torah, שמטהרת את פושעי ישראל בזמן שעושין תשובה shemetaheres es poshei Yisrael b'zman she'osin tshuva, אפילו מעבודת כוכבים שבידם afilu me'avodas kochavim sheb'yadam. Torah has the ability to repair, to purify, to purge. כי עיקר התשובה שלמה האמיתית Ki ikar ha'tshuva shleima ha'amitis, הוא רק על ידי עסק התורה כראוי hu rak al yedei eisek haTorah k'raui. If you want to do תשובה tshuva, you cannot do it without Torah. Why not? Why is Torah critical to תשובה tshuva? Because how do you do a self-reflection? How do you do an evaluation? What is the mirror you hold up to yourself to know where you went wrong if you don't have the absolute truth of Torah? Torah is the mirror, Torah is the barometer, Torah is the metric, Torah is the measure of knowing where you went wrong. And how do you know what to do to repair, what to fix, what to improve, how to go right if you don't have the formula, the blueprint for creation, if you don't have the instruction manual to get it right? And Torah is the answer. So תשובה tshuva is not just some theoretical, spiritual, lofty, I want to be better, I want to improve, you know, קומביה kumbaya, humanistic. Torah, the formula, Torah, the רצון השם ratzon Hashem, the diary of the Almighty, of the divine, Torah tells us is the, is the compass to help us navigate where we went wrong and how we can go right. So says Rav Chaim Volozhiner, עיקר תשובה שלמה אמיתית ikar tshuva shleima amitis, רק על ידי עסק התורה כראוי rak al yedei eisek haTorah k'raui. And that's why the Netziv in his Ha'amek Davar explains, which is it? Rashi, כי המצוה הזאת ki hamitzvah hazos, our parsha, כי המצוה הזאת ki hamitzvah hazos, is that Torah? Or the Ramban and the Sforno is it תשובה tshuva? And what's the answer? אזל בזך Azal b'zach. אזל בזך Azal b'zach. What does that mean? One and the same. Torah and תשובה tshuva are one and the same. You can't do תשובה tshuva without the compass of Torah. And every contact with Torah should cause you to do תשובה tshuva. Every parsha class, every Daf Yomi, every Amud Shavui, every Nach Yomi, every Emunah shiur, every time you learn Torah, it should cause you to say I want to be better, I can be better, I now understand this better, I'm now empowered and enriched to be better. Torah is תשובה tshuva, תשובה tshuva is Torah, there is אזל בזך azal b'zach, they are one and the same and that's why the נביא הושע Navi Hoshea says, שובה ישראל עד השם אלוקיך Shuva Yisrael ad Hashem Elokecha, כי כשלת בעוניך קחו עמכם דברים ki chashalta ba'avonecha k'chu imachem devarim. How do you do תשובה tshuva? By קחו עמכם דברים k'chu imachem devarim. What's the קחו עמכם דברים k'chu imachem devarim, what are the דברים devarim? אין דברים אלא דברי תורה Ein devarim ela divrei Torah. Learning Torah is the way to do תשובה tshuva. And that's why, suggests this beautiful sefer שערי נעימות יאמרו Shaarei Neimos Yomeiru, that's why we say every day right now פרק כ\"ז Perek Chaf Zayin. אשכנז Ashkenaz we say after שחרית Shacharis and מערב Maariv, ספרדים Sefardim after מנחה Mincha. But we say לדוד השם אורי וישעי L'David Hashem ori v'yishi. And in there we say, בזאת אני בוטח b'zos ani boteach. אם תחנה עלי מחנה לא ירא לבי Im tachaneh alai machaneh lo yira libi. אם תקום עלי מלחמה בזאת אני בוטח Im takum alai milchama b'zos ani boteach. I'm not worried. If I face enemies, struggles, battles, no matter what I face, no matter what adversity I confront, בזאת אני בוטח b'zos ani boteach. I'm not worried. Why? Because בזאת b'zos, in this, I rely. What is the בזאת, בזאת אני בוטח b'zos, b'zos ani boteach? What's the בזאת b'zos? Lots of דברי תורה divrei Torah, lots of גמטריאות gematrios. What's the בזאת b'zos? He says, בזאת b'zos, בזאת התורה b'zos haTorah. זאת התורה Zos haTorah אשר שם משה asher sam Moshe, בזאת אני בוטח, בזאת התורה b'zos ani boteach, b'zos haTorah. With all the variables, with all the things that change, with all the culture and pop culture, with all the מורי morei of, with everything that changes in the world, בזאת אני בוטח b'zos ani boteach. The thing that's a constant, what I can rely on, what I can immerse myself in, what protects me, בזאת אני בוטח b'zos ani boteach, בזאת התורה b'zos haTorah. Torah is תשובה tshuva, תשובה tshuva is Torah. So the Ramban and the Sforno are not disagreeing with the Rashi, they all agree. What is כי המצוה הזאת ki hamitzvah hazos? What is this mitzvah that's not in the heavens, it's not the other side of the sea, it's not so far away, it is accessible, what is that mitzvah? It is the mitzvah of Torah, it is the mitzvah of תשובה tshuva.Now the Ois HaPlos HaTorah quotes something fascinating. I mentioned the Gemara in ערובין נ\"ה Eiruvin Nun Hey. And the Gemara there darshans, לא מעבר לים היא lo mei'ever l'yam hi. You won't learn Torah, live Torah, you won't excel in Torah if לא תמצא לא בסוחרנים ולא בתגרים lo timatze lo basachranim v'lo batagarim. It can't be found among the sailors and the merchants. You're always traveling and flying on business, you're always pursuing and chasing the next deal, you're not going to succeed in Torah. So there was a great גאון gaon, רבי אברהם דנציג Reb Avraham Danzig. He was the great-great-great grandfather of Rebbetzin Moskowitz. The חיי אדם Chayei Adam, he wrote the חיי אדם Chayei Adam, the חכמת אדם Chochmas Adam. What did he do for a living? He was a big רב rav? Big אב בית דין av beis din? Big ראש ישיבה rosh yeshiva? Big דיין dayan? No. What was he? He was a big businessman. He was a big businessman. And he never wanted to earn a living, he wanted, never wanted to take an income from Torah. He had a, he had a פרנסה parnasa, he earned his livelihood from the business that he did. And he wrote the חיי אדם Chayei Adam, and he wrote the חכמת אדם Chochmas Adam. We quoted all over the Mishna Berura, and we quoted all over Halacha. We pasken all the time like the חיי אדם Chayei Adam and the חכמת אדם Chochmas Adam. So, ay, how could Rav Avraham Danzig consider himself a פוסק posek? How can he consider himself worthy of having learned Torah, to teach Torah, to pasken Torah, to author Torah? He was a traveling businessman, a merchant. I thought the Gemara darshans, לא מעבר לים lo mei'ever l'yam, you can't succeed in Torah if you're going to be in business. So, you know who answers it? The חיי אדם Chayei Adam himself. In his introduction, in the הקדמה hakdama to his ספר חכמת אדם Sefer Chochmas Adam, here's what he writes. Listen up, business people. הנה ידעתי כי יסלח השועל עלי ויאמרו הגם שאול בנביאים הלא זה האיש ידענו בו שהיה מסוחרי ארץ פרנקפורט ולייפציג יוסר מט\"ו שנים Hinei yadati ki yislach hashual alai v'yomru hagam Shaul ba'nevi'im halo zeh ha'ish y'danu bo shehaya misocharei eretz Frankfurt v'Leipzig yoser mi'tet vav shanim. He says, I know what you're all going to say. I'm publishing this sefer and the critics, the haters, they're all going to say, \"This businessman, this person who earned a living traveling for 15 years, Frankfurt, Leipzig, this יקה yekke, ותורתו אימת נעשית v'Toraso eimas na'asis. When did he learn Torah?\" Whatever he's writing, who did he plagiarize? And if he's writing, does it have any authority? Who is he to write this, to author this? התורה העידה לא מעבר לים היא שאינה מצויה לא בתגרנים ולא בסוחרנים HaTorah he'idah lo mei'ever l'yam hi she'einah metzuya lo b'tagranim v'lo b'sachranim. דע לך אחי Da l'cha achi, says the הגאון חיי אדם ha'gaon Chayei Adam, know my brother, כי נסעתי למרחקים לא היה לקבץ אושר חלילה ki nasati l'merchakim lo haya l'kabetz osher chalila. When I traveled long distances, it was not pursuing wealth, God forbid. יעיד עליו אדון הכל Ya'id alav adon hakol, the Almighty Himself can testify, רק לפרנס בני ובני ביתי rak l'farnes banai u'vnei beisi. I was just trying to earn a living. I wasn't chasing wealth, I just wanted to get by. וירושה בידי מאבותי הקדושים Yerusha b'yadi mei'avosai ha'kedoshim, אדוני אבי זקני הרב הגאון המפורסם בדורו הצדיק תמים מורנו הרב שמואל בעל מחבר ספר נחמת ציון adoni avi z'keini ha'rav ha'gaon ha'mefursam b'doro ha'tzadik tamim moreinu ha'rav Shmuel baal mechaber sefer Nachamas Tzion, חתן הגאון רבי יחיאל מיכל אב\"ד קהילת קודש שאטלן פלאך עיר דנציג chasan ha'gaon Reb Yechiel Michel av beis din kehilas kodesh Shatlan Plach ir Danzig. ולרוב צדקתו נסגלה בשמים שנה אחת קודם שיצא הדבר רחמנא ליצלן ונרדם בלימודו על ספרו ובא אמו זקנתו שאז היתה צדקת גדולה ואמרה לו דע בני שניגזר הדבר רחמנא ליצלן והרבה תהיו חללים בהרעב על כן סע מן העיר U'lerov tzidkaso nisgala b'shamayim shana achas kodem sheyatza ha'dever rachmana litzlan v'nirdam b'limudo al sifro u'va imo z'keinaso she'az haysa tzaddekes gedola v'amra lo da b'ni she'nigzar ha'dever rachmana litzlan v'harbei tihiyu chalalim b'hora'av al kein sa min ha'ir. He says, \"I have a tradition from my זיידע zeide, who heard from his זיידע zeide, that there was a pandemic, an epidemic that was coming, and he fell asleep on his sefer and his mother came and woke him and she said, 'You should know, this epidemic is coming, you need to leave the city.'\" למחר גילה זאת וניצולו כל השומעים לו L'machar gila zos v'nitzlu kol ha'shomim lo. He revealed it and everyone was saved. זה היה דרכו כך שלא נהנה מן התורה Zeh haya darko kach shelo nehenah min haTorah. He never benefited from Torah. היה לו עשרה בנים Hayah lo asara banim, he had ten children, וכלכל את כולם בכבוד מיגיע כפו v'kilkel es kulam b'chavod mi'yegia kapo. He supported all his children by earning a living. והיה דורש תמיד לרבים דברי מוסר V'haya doresh tamid l'rabim divrei musar. And he nevertheless always was teaching and inspiring through Torah. ובאת כסף לא לקח כי אני הלכתי בעקבותיו U'v'es kesef lo lakach ki ani halachti b'ikvosav. So that's my מסורה mesora, my great זיידע zeide went around speaking and preaching and teaching and inspiring and he never took a penny for it. He earned a living and he supported his ten children, his family with it, and that's my מסורה mesora. והייתי מוכרח לקבל עלי עול הרבנות V'hayisi muchrach l'kabel alai ol ha'rabbanus. וברוך השם אשר נתן לי נפש הזה בלתי אהבת ממון U'varuch Hashem asher natan li nefesh hazeh bilti ahavas mamon. ברוך השם Baruch Hashem I don't love money, I don't chase money, I don't pursue money, I don't count money. I earned enough to take care of my family. I don't want to take money for Torah, but I've earned it and I've, הקדוש ברוך הוא יתברך HaKadosh Baruch Hu yisbarach will testify it's never impacted or influenced or distorted or compromised my ability to learn and my ability to publish this sefer, enjoy the חכמת אדם Chochmas Adam. So it's all based on our pasuk, לא מעבר לים lo mei'ever l'yam, that the Gemara darshans לא בסוחרנים ולא בתגרים lo b'sachranim v'lo b'tagarim. Don't get too occupied and preoccupied with your occupation. And חיי אדם Chayei Adam testifies even though I earned a living, it was not, I never got confused between earning a living and living. Never get confused between earning a living and living. He says I never got confused and therefore this sefer is worth of publishing and this sefer is worth of learning.פרק ל' פסוק ט\"ו Perek Lamed Pasuk Tes Vov. ראה נתתי לפניך היום את החיים ואת הטוב ואת המות ואת הרע Re'eh nasati l'fanecha hayom es hachaim v'es hatov v'es hamaves v'es hara. Says the Torah, I have placed before you today, Moshe Rabbeinu turns to the people and he says, ראה re'eh. Give a kick, look, see, observe. I have placed before you today the life and the good, the death and the evil, אשר אנכי מצוך היום לאהבה את השם אלקיך ללכת בדרכיו ולשמור מצותיו וחקותיו ומשפטיו asher anochi metzavcha hayom l'ahava es Hashem Elokecha laleches bidrachav v'lishmor mitzvosav v'chukosav u'mishpatav. That which I've commanded you to follow Hashem's ways in his footsteps, Hashem will bless you. But if you'll get distracted, if you'll turn away, אם יפנה לבבך ולא תשמע ונדחת והשתחוית לאלהים אחרים im yifneh l'vavcha v'lo sishma v'nidachta v'hishtachavisa leilohim acheirim, הגדתי לכם היום כי אבד תאבדון higadeti lachem hayom ki avod toveidun. I promise you today you will be destroyed, you will be eliminated. The heaven and earth testify, החיים והמות נתתי לפניך hachaim v'hamaves nasati l'fanecha, life and death are placed before you, הברכה והקללה habracha v'haklala, blessing and curse, ובחרת בחיים u'vacharta bachaim. Choose life. Moshe says, I'm telling you, I promise you, I'm giving you two choices. The two lives you could live, I'm begging you, I'm pleading with you, ובחרת בחיים u'vacharta bachaim. Choose life. Choose life. I got a lot to say on this. Choose life, ובחרת בחיים u'vacharta bachaim. Says the הגאון ha'gaon הגרא ha'Gra, the גאון gaon, everybody's heilige. I get criticized if everybody's heilige, nobody's heilige. They're all heilige. They're all holy. They're all holy. Says the Gra, somewhere. Sorry, bear with me. Oh. חפץ חיים Chofetz Chaim brings the name of the Gra in the הקדמה hakdama to ליקוטי הלכות Likutei Halachos on סדר קדשים Seder Kodshim. In the הקדמה hakdama, the introduction to ליקוטי הלכות Likutei Halachos on סדר קדשים Seder Kodshim, the חפץ חיים Chofetz Chaim brings from the Gra. Why does it say בלשון יחיד b'lashon yachid? ראה Re'eh, not ראו re'u. You, the individual, see. מדוע נכתב הפסוק בלשון יחיד Madua nichtav ha'pasuk b'lashon yachid? אלא להודיעך שאפילו תהיה בדור כזה שאינו הגון כראוי ואפילו לא תועיל תוכחה אין זה נוגע ליחיד ועליו להתחזק לדבוק בהשם יתברך יחידי גם כן ואפילו יהיה לבדו אז ברית התורה Ela l'hodiacha she'afilu tihiyeh b'dor kazeh she'eino hagun k'raui v'afilu lo to'il tochacha ein zeh nogea l'yachid v'alav l'hischazek l'davok b'Hashem Yisbarach yechidi gam kein v'afilu yihiyeh l'vado az bris haTorah. Because even though we just said ניצבים כלכם nitzavim kulchem, it's incumbent on all of us, we're all in it together, but you need to know that if everyone around you is not doing it, if everyone around you has abandoned it, if everyone around you is violating the Torah, ראה re'eh, still, look, you the individual, Hashem is entering this covenant with you. He still has expectations of you. He still needs you, he still loves you. So says the Gra, that's why it's in the singular, so every singular individual realizes it's for each and every one of us. רבי יחזקאל לעווינשטיין Reb Yechezkel Levenstein, the משגיח mashgiach, adds on, when, when his grandson came from America to visit him in ארץ ישראל Eretz Yisrael, the great משגיח mashgiach Rabbi Yechezkel said, ראה נתתי לפניך היום את החיים ואת הטוב ואת המות ואת הרע ובחרת בחיים re'eh nasati l'fanecha hayom es hachaim v'es hatov v'es hamaves v'es hara u'vacharta bachaim. It's a mistake to think that חיים ומות chaim u'maves are equal. Unless you think, well, I could choose life or I could choose death. שכן גם אם אדם לא בוחר בחיים הוא בוחר במות She'kein gam im adam lo bocher b'chaim hu bocher b'maves. הבחירה הזו היא בחירה תמידית Habechira hazu hi bechira temidis, כי בלעדיה הטבע מוריד את האדם לדוכנא נקדיס ki bil'adeha ha'tevah morid es ha'adam l'duchna nikdis. It's not that they each present themselves equally before me and I can stay in neutral, and from the position of neutral, I can choose life or I can choose death. No. What does the pasuk mean? It means death is the default. I need to choose life if I want to be offsetting death. If you're not going up, you're going down. Where do you see that in the world? Rabbi Yechezkel didn't bring this mushal, but others do. Everything in the world is a mushal. All of גשמיות gashmiyus is a mushal for רוחניות ruchniyus. All of, every truth in the physical world is a glimpse, an insight, is a mushal for a truth in the metaphysical world. So you'll say, why can't I just hold this cup? ברוך אתה אדוני אלוהינו מלך העולם שהכל נהיה בדברו Baruch ata Adonai Eloheinu melech ha'olam shehakol nihiyeh bidvaro. I want to hold this cup over here, and what should happen when I let go? It should stay where it is. Won't go higher, won't go lower, won't go sideways, won't go the other way. I'm not going to show you because it's still filled with water. But if I let go, it should stay where it is. Instead, what happened? A little something called gravity. Gravity. Ah, that's not so logical. Why should the default be that it falls? No one cares about your logic. Your logic is not what's true. What's true is the principle of gravity. And just like physically everything is going down and you need to exert effort to fight gravity, to lift it, so so too in this world, רוחניות ruchniyus, spiritually, everything is being brought down. We're being tempted and seduced and distracted. We're being compromised and corrupted and contaminated. Everything's being brought down unless we're fighting to lift it, to give it meaning, to give it purpose, and to give it height. And that's why وبخرت بחיيم u'vacharta bachaim said Reb Yechezkel to his einekel, it doesn't mean they present equally, whichever one you want and if not, you could stay in neutral. מות Maves is the default. Death is the default unless you are choosing life. Says Reb Moshe, writes Reb Moshe Feinstein, therefore the pasuk says, ראה נתתי לפניך היום Re'eh nasati l'fanecha hayom את החיים ואת הטוב es hachaim v'es hatov. העידותי בכם היום Ha'idosi bachem hayom. Over and over again we keep talking about today. I got it, today, not yesterday, not tomorrow, I got it. Why do we keep repeating היום hayom, today? Because every day you got to fight gravity. You can't say I fought gravity yesterday. Today I want to live gravity-free. There is no gravity-free. Unless you go to outer space. You don't have, we don't have the right, we don't have the chance, we don't have the opportunity. You can't say I'm tired. I fought spiritual gravity yesterday, so today I'm just going to be a neutral. There is no gravity-free in spirituality. So therefore if you're not ובחרת בחיים u'vacharta bachaim, the default is you're choosing מות maves and a person has to be careful. Says the אמרות טהורות Amros Tehoros, אמרות טהורות Amros Tehoros, back to the אמרות טהורות Amros Tehoros, back to the holy רחמסטריווקא רבי Rachmastrivka Rebbe, we're getting the hang of that. He quotes the פני יהושע Pnei Yehoshua. Who is the פני יהושע Pnei Yehoshua? The בעל הפלאה Baal Hafla'ah, רבי פנחס הלוי הורביץ Reb Pinchas HaLevi Horowitz. Says the בעל הפלאה Baal Hafla'ah, ראה נתתי לפניך re'eh nasati l'fanecha, he says, the Gemara in Berachos tells us, לעולם ירגיז אדם יצר טוב על יצר הרע l'olam yargiz adam yetzer tov al yetzer hara. If you ever feel tempted, distracted, seduced to indulge some instinct that's not good for you, you want to eat unhealthy food, you want to look at what's going to corrupt your soul, you want to speak slander, gossip of others, so what are you supposed to do? ירגיז אדם יצר טוב על יצר הרע Yargiz adam yetzer tov al yetzer hara, inspire the יצר טוב yetzer tov to defeat the יצר הרע yetzer hara. So, נצחו מוטב nitzcho mutav. If your יצר טוב yetzer tov was able to overtake the יצר הרע yetzer hara, good. But what happens if not, it wasn't enough? יעסוק בתורה Ya'asok b'Torah, learn Torah. If it worked, good. If not, יקרא קריאת שמע yikra Krias Shema. That worked? Fantastic. If not, contemplate your יום המיתה yom ha'misa, the day of death. There's a Gra that says that's the pshat in the pasuk we say every morning, רבות מחשבות בלב איש ועצת השם היא תקום rabos machshavos b'lev ish, v'atzas Hashem hi sakum. There are many thoughts in the heart of a person. The baby's crying in the middle of the night, and the father and the mother are debating who has to wake up, who has to take care, who has to give the bottle, who has to change the diaper. ועצת השם V'atzas Hashem, Hashem says, היא תקום hi sakum, she should wake up. No, that's not the pshat in the pasuk. Not the pshat in the pasuk. You don't have to send me the emails. He should get up, he should do everything, 100%, fine. But says the Gra, רבות מחשבות בלב איש rabos machshavos b'lev ish, we have a lot of יצר הרע yetzer hara. A lot of יצר הרע yetzer hara. It's the age of the יצר הרע yetzer hara. There's billboards and cookies and pop-ups and there's an age of the יצר הרע yetzer hara. The יצר הרע yetzer hara is mighty and strong, fierce, ferocious, more than it's ever been. The יצר הרע yetzer hara is psh. So רבות מחשבות בלב איש rabos machshavos b'lev ish. We got a big יצר הרע yetzer hara. What's the antidote, what's the answer? עצת השם atzas Hashem, Hashem's advice is תקום sakum. תורה Torah, קריאת שמע Krias Shema, מיתה misa. Drag it to the בית המדרש beis medrash, learn Torah. If that doesn't work, קריאת שמע Krias Shema, read שמע Shema. And if that doesn't work, contemplate the day of death. Contemplate our mortality. Contemplate how little we're here on earth and we never know and can't predict what the day will bring. But לכאורה קשה l'chora kashe, back to the Rachmastrivka, back to the Amoras Tehoros, back to the Pnei Yehoshua. מכיון שיש לו עצה של יום המיתה, שמואל אז בפרך Mei'keivan she'yesh lo eitza shel yom ha'misa, shmuel az b'feh harech. So I understand, if the third answer, עצת השם היא תקום atzas Hashem hi sakum, סקום sakum, מ' mem is מיתה misa, so skip right to it. Right? If that's the most effective, if that's the nuclear option, go right to it. Why do you have to first go through יצר טוב yetzer tov, Torah, קריאת שמע Krias Shema? Just go right to it. And the answer is because רק אם אינו יכול על עצמו אז ישתמש בעצה זו rak im eino yachol al atzmo az yishtamesh b'eitza zu. טעם הדבר כי העצה של זכירת יום המיתה Taam ha'davar ki ha'eitza shel zechiras yom ha'misa מביא את האדם לידי עצבות mevia es ha'adam l'dei atzvus. ועצבות מונעת את האדם מעבודת השם V'atzvus monas es ha'adam mei'avodas Hashem. עצבות Atzvus is bad for us. Sadness. It's very somber. It's very sad. Contemplate mortality? Think about the day of death? That's so sad, that's so down. Who wants that? So we only do it if there's no alternative. It's the nuclear option only if we've exhausted every other one. And that's the pshat in the pasuk. יש כאן עצות להכניע את היצר הרע Yesh kan eitzos l'hachnia es ha'yetzer hara. There are things called חיים וטוב chaim v'tov. So, נתתי לפניך nasati l'fanecha, I'm giving you the tools how to fight the יצר הרע yetzer hara. There's חיים chaim and טוב tov, which is Torah is חיים chaim, it's called טוב tov, אין טוב אלא תורה ein tov ela Torah. There's קריאת שמע Krias Shema, which is all מלכות שמים malchus shamayim, so that's חיים וטוב chaim v'tov. Torah and קריאת שמע Krias Shema. But if that doesn't work, ובחרת בחיים u'vacharta bachaim choose that. And if that doesn't work, then there is יום המיתה yom ha'misa as the final alternative, as the last resort, but only as the, only as the last resort.פרק י\"א פסוק כ\"ה Pasuk Yud Aleph Pasuk Chaf Hey. ובחרת בחיים U'vacharta bachaim. ובחרת בחיים U'vacharta bachaim. Free will. ובחרת בחיים U'vacharta bachaim. Choose free will. Rav Wolbe writes on these words, choose free will ובחרת בחיים u'vacharta bachaim, then we've got to save a few minutes for Parshas Vayelech. Got to do something from Parshas Vayelech. Rav Wolbe says, what's ובחרת בחיים u'vacharta bachaim? What's ובחרת בחיים u'vacharta bachaim? The most elementary aspect of בחירה bechira, of free will, is people have the ability to choose, to save themselves from death in this world and the next. And throughout the generations, listen to this insight by Rav Wolbe. He writes in עלי שור חלק ב' Alei Shur Chelek Beis, and he writes it as well in his ימי רצון Yemei Ratzon, מאמרי ימי רצון Ma'amarei Yemei Ratzon. He writes, אמונה בחטא emuna b'chet. His whole essay called אמונה בחטא emuna b'chet. He says, throughout the generations, there have been all kinds of heresy, heresy in God, heresy in the Jewish people, heresy in our chosenness, heresy in truth, there's all kinds of heresies. But you know what we're living through? We're living through a new heresy. And is the heresy that denies free will. It's a כפירה kfira that says that people don't have choices. Don't blame them, it's their upbringing, it's their genetics, it's the way the mother treated him, it's the way the father spoke to him. Come lie on the couch, tell me everything, nothing's your fault, you're not accountable, you're not responsible, there's no merit-based system to get in anywhere, there's no merit-based system, we'll wipe out debt, there's no merit-based system, we won't arrest you if you shoplift because it's not your fault. It's the neighborhood you grew up in, it's the parents that you had, it's your genetics that you were born with. And all of that takes away your free will. So how can we hold you accountable if you have no free will? Says Rav Wolbe, all of this is a כפירה kfira. He didn't even see any of it. What I just described, he passed away already a long time ago. He didn't see. He didn't see the letting shoplifters run around and eliminating merit-based to get into college, all everything that we're living through today, he didn't see. And yet in his time, he wrote about אמונה בחטא emuna b'chet. You have to, it takes faith to believe there's such a thing called חטא chet. Faith in the whole institution of sin. Like, why is anyone ever accountable? Why is anyone ever accountable? You know, someone shared with me, I should say, I should save this for an article, for another, someone just shared with me, someone did something that hurt them and they called them out on it and the person said basically as a way of excusing themself, \"I'm doing the best I can.\" And the person said to me, said, \"This is just the new thing that can offset everything.\" For now on forever, like, you know, you murdered my loved one, \"I'm doing the best I can.\" You stole my money, you hit my car, you took my job, \"I'm doing the best I can.\" And that's like to get out of jail free card. I'm doing the best I can. If you knew my upbringing, if you knew what I faced, if you know what I have, that doesn't, we should, I spend a lot of time talking about sympathy, empathy, compassion, care, love, support, all of that. We have to offer all of that, provide all of that, but at the end of the day, there is no world, there are no relationships, there are no people if there's no free will. Free will is the building block of life. And that's Rav Wolbe says, ובחרת בחיים u'vacharta bachaim. This pasuk, the whole process, Elul, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Neilah, it's all about ובחרת בחיים u'vacharta bachaim. You can't believe in Yom Kippur if you don't believe in אמונה בחטא emuna b'chet. We are responsible for our actions, we can be accountable for our actions, they mean something. אמונה בחטא Emuna b'chet, they mean something. It's not a get out of jail free. I'm doing the best that I can. It deserves a lot more, but that is the insight of Rav Wolbe. Okay, I had more I wanted to tell you, but let's just get over to Parshas Vayelech. Let's say something in Vayelech. Have to say something in Vayelech. Ach, we had so much to say on Vayelech. Something on Vayelech. וילך משה וידבר את הדברים האלה אל כל ישראל Vayelech Moshe vayidaber es had'varim ha'eleh el kol Yisrael. ויאמר אליהם משה Vayomer eileihem Moshe, Moshe went and he said all these things to the Jewish people. What's וילך משה Vayelech Moshe? Throw back to Rav Druck. Rav Druck, איש תם ish tam, the great Rav Druck. וילך משה Vayelech Moshe. Says the תרגום יונתן בן עוזיאל Targum Yonasan ben Uziel, אזל משה למשכן בית אולפנא ומליל ית פסגם גמייא האילין עם כל ישראל azal Moshe l'mishkan beis ulpana u'malil yas pisgam gamaya ha'ilein im kol Yisrael. So the question is, where'd he go? וילך משה Vayelech Moshe. And Moshe was off. Where was he off to? Where was the destination? What did he plug into Waze? Or Google Maps, or whatever your choice. Where did he go? וילך Vayelech. Where'd he go? So the Targum Yonasan says, he went, where'd he go? למשכן בית אולפנא L'mishkan beis ulpana. He went to the beis medrash. He went to the אוהל בית מדרש ohel beis medrash and he shared all this from there. He went to the בית מדרש beis medrash and shared all this from there. And the Ramban explains on this, and the Ramban says, משה הלך ממחנה לויה למחנה ישראל Moshe halach mimachaneh Leviya l'machaneh Yisrael. And Ravbeinu Bachya says similarly, אור החיים הקדוש Or HaChaim HaKadosh says, we're not sure where he went. One opinion. The others, he went to say goodbye. It was the end of his life, it was the end of his years, he went on a goodbye tour, וילך Vayelech. He went, he went. Forty days, the אור החיים הקדוש Or HaChaim HaKadosh says, ארבעים יום קודם הפטירה נשמת אדם הולכת ויוצאת ממנו arbaim yom kodem ha'petira nishmas adam holeches v'yotzes mimenu. Forty days before a person dies, the נשמה neshama already begins to exit. It already begins to be extracted, it already begins to ascend. וילך משה Vayelech Moshe, רוח חיים שלו ruach chaim shelo, Moshe's נשמה neshama already began to exit, it already began to ascend, וילך Vayelech, it already began to go. The כלי יקר Kli Yakar has a different pshat. שרוצה משה לומר לא אוכל עוד לצאת ולבוא She'rotzeh Moshe lomar lo uchal od latzeis v'lavo. I wanted to get into this, we don't have time. How do you read this pasuk? Moshe says to them, \"I'm 120.\" ויאמר אליהם בן משה Vayomer eileihem ben Moshe, פסוק ב' pasuk beis. ויאמר אליהם בן מאה ועשרים שנה אנכי היום Vayomer eileihem ben meah v'esrim shana anochi hayom, I'm 120 today, לא אוכל עוד לצאת ולבוא lo uchal od latzeis v'lavo, I can't continue to come and go, והשם אמר אלי לא תעבור את הירדן הזה v'Hashem amar elai lo sa'avor es haYarden hazeh, and Hashem said I'm not going in. So is this all one sentence? Does it all go together? Is it broken into separate parts? Come back to the Rav Druck, maybe another year. Moshe says three things in this pasuk. He says, \"I'm 120. I can't come and go anymore, and Hashem's not letting me into the Yarden.\" So Rashi says, one of them is an explanation for the other. When he said, \"I can't go over the Yarden, I'm not going into Israel,\" the reason I can no longer go is not because I'm weak, but Hashem has not given me permission to go in. My going and coming is over because I'm not allowed to go in. Forced retirement. So I'm done. Other commentators learn, the last two are really two separate statements. And besides for the fact that he was physically weak, letzeis v'lavo, Hashem also didn't allow him in. I'm old, I'm retired, I can't go and come anymore. And also I'm not allowed to go in. So are these all one sentence, cause and effect? Or are they separate? Sforno explains all three. On the words בן מאה ועשרים שנה אנכי ben meah v'esrim shana anochi, Moshe was telling them not to be sad about my death, because בטבע b'teva a person dies. Nobody's immortal, no one lives forever. I'm 120 and it's natural I'm going to die. And says the Sforno, what do you see from here? What is the maximum one can live? 120. Then in the words, לא אוכל עוד לצאת ולבוא lo uchal od latzeit v'lavo, Moshe is saying even if I had continued to live, I would not be able to continue as your leader. And finally, והשם אמר אלי v'Hashem amar eilai, and Hashem said to me, I can't cross the ירדן Yarden, and even if I could continue to be a leader, Hashem said, I can't enter the ירדן Yarden. So it's clear from the Sforno that the three statements are independent. But why did Moshe have to introduce them by saying I'm 120? So people say to each other, עד מאה ועשרים ad meah v'esrim. Some people write a letter, Dear so and so, עמו\"ש amush, עד מאה ועשרים שנה ad meah v'esrim shana, an acronym, עמו\"ש עד מאה ועשרים שנה amush ad meah v'esrim shana. We wish another, happy birthday, should live to 120. Sounds even better in the Yiddish. We say, and that's the old joke. What do you say to somebody on their 120th birthday? Have a good day. Have a nice day.Where did such a thing come from? Where did it come from until 120? So based on the Sforno it could be, you learn it from here. Moshe was hinting this is the max. Rav Weinfeld שליט\"א shlita says he has another source at the end of פרשת בראשית Parshas Bereishis. There are mysterious פסוקים psukim. ויהי כי החל האדם לרב על פני האדמה Vayehi ki hechel ha'adam larov al pnei ha'adama, ויראו בני האלהים את בנות האדם vayiru bnei ha'elohim es bnos ha'adam. ויאמר השם Vayomer Hashem, the הנפילים היו בארץ hanefilim hayu ba'aretz. There were these נפילים nefilim. So there are non-rabbinic sources that suggest Hashem put a cap on human life. A person can't live past 120. But it's difficult to understand because there are people who did live past 120, notably, such as Avraham and Sarah, who lived past 120. Rashi explains the פסוק pasuk. The רמב\"ן Ramban on that פסוק pasuk that 120, it's complicated. But Rashi explains the פסוק pasuk, the מבול mabul was going to come in 120 years, but according to this explanation, it's referring to putting a cap on human life. So how do you understand that people live past 120? Are they really human? Is there a piece of them that is beyond human? So what does it mean, the ברכה bracha, to 120? Are we saying they shouldn't live past 120? We're out of time. But anyway, Rav Weinfeld has a whole essay on this. I wanted to get into, וילך משה Vayelech Moshe, where did he go? A person is never done. וילך Vayelech, the last day of his life. Could be on the last day of your life, וילך vayelech, but you got to be moving. The angels stand still, נצבים nitzavim. וילך Vayelech, the human being is going. Perhaps Moshe's greatest act of being רבנו rabbeinu, our teacher, is וילך vayelech. He was never done. He was never finished. He was always on the move. Rav Yisrael Salanter once walked by a tailor who was working deep into the night. And he said, \"You know what time it is? Why are you still working?\" And he said, \"As long as the flame of the candle flickers, there's work to be done.\" Rav Yisrael Salanter learned from there, as long as the candle flickers, there's work to be done. As long as one is alive, וילך vayelech, there's work to be done. There's work to be done. וילך משה Vayelech Moshe was וילך vayelech. And then we have the end of the Parsha. ועתה כתבו לכם v'ata kisvu lachem, the 613th commandment, write a ספר תורה sefer Torah. But how is writing a ספר תורה sefer Torah given to us? Write? It doesn't say write a ספר תורה sefer Torah. כתבו לכם את Kisvu lachem es השירה hashira. What is the Torah called? A? Why is the Torah called a song? It's such beautiful ideas. That has to come next year. Have a fantastic day. Don't forget, sorry, Tuesday night. Tuesday night we have the anger management, 8:00. Tomorrow night, tomorrow morning, you got 10 minutes of meeting, Live with אמונה emunah, and tomorrow night, we have רב בן ציון Reb Ben Tzion טווערסקי Twersky. We also have tomorrow night Behind the בימה Bima with David Fishoff. Anyone who doesn't know David פישוף Fishoff, you're gonna find it a fantastic, fantastic conversation. Stay happy, stay healthy, and stay holy.
