העורך Editor

Aliyah: Tapping Into Eternity

Read an interview with a Jewish mother who made the move (Naava Kodesh)…

Some highlights:

Someone recently said to me “You don’t leave; you lead.” I thought that was such a beautiful way of thinking about leaving family – you’re not leaving them, you’re paving the way.

I often quote Rav Moshe Taragin: All the Jewish people were meant to come back to Eretz Yisrael; this is where it’s more accessible to fully live by the Torah and in connection with Hakadosh Baruch Hu. We’re here to do what all Yidden are supposed to do and where we’re all supposed to be. We’re not unique because we made aliyah – this is what it means to be a Jew, this is what you do.

…

If you have the means then direct them toward Eretz Yisrael: give tzedakah toward Eretz Yisrael, take your vacations here. I heard one Rav say to make sure you come every three years. I know that, practically speaking, people will say they can barely afford life in America, and that is valid. But if you are taking vacations anyway, maybe save up for a trip to Eretz Yisrael. If you’re not here, it’s hard to sustain the feeling for something you’re not seeing, breathing, or living.

This is important:

I really feel that where in the States I was anchored by family, here I’m anchored by friends. The chizuk that we give each other here is beautiful and it’s necessary.

Reproaching the Irreproachable Socialist – Some Notes on Albert Einsten

I’ve wanted to write a critique of Einstein’s socialist economics myself for a long time, but never found the time. And now, ‘my labor is done for me by others’, not via socialism, but freedom.

Here’s the best excerpt (by George F. Smith):

In 1949 he authored an essay, Why Socialism?, that detailed his opposition to capitalism and promoted not just socialism but global socialism.  It is rife with naive fallacies and gross misunderstandings: “Production is carried on for profit, not for use. There is no provision that all those able and willing to work will always be in a position to find employment; an ‘army of unemployed’ almost always exists.”  “Unlimited competition leads to a huge waste of labor, and to that crippling of the social consciousness of individuals . . .”

To his credit Einstein closed his essay realizing the danger inherent in his proposal:

The achievement of socialism requires the solution of some extremely difficult socio-political problems: how is it possible, in view of the far-reaching centralization of political and economic power, to prevent bureaucracy from becoming all-powerful and overweening? How can the rights of the individual be protected and therewith a democratic counterweight to the power of bureaucracy be assured?

 

 

That Obvious Pious-Forgery From Yesterday…

Before posting the collection about covering one’s head with a Tallis during davening, I skimmed the main section, saw an interposed screenshot, which started by mentioning some chassidic rebbe, and thought, “Never mind, can’t be too terrible. Positive it’s fine,” and posted as-is.

But, Aha! Now I did read it, and it’s not silly or funny at all. It’s a black mark on the Jewish people’s collective soul and intelligence (although some of us deserve extra shame).

Read, not after eating:

Does anyone think for two seconds this tale is true about Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakai quoting Eliyahu Hanavi regarding Shimon Ben Kuziva and a Tallis? Don’t they know anything about anything? This trash contradicts the Rambam, his actual example aside (ואין ראוי לישראל שהם חכמים מחוכמים להמשך בהבלים אלו.). Do Chassidim have any critical thinking at all?!

Of course, the main point, as supported by actual sources, still stands.