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אל המקום אשר...
Hoshana Raba 5782
שנת שמיטה
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Re Rabbi YY Jacobson Simchas Torah/Shavuos Essay.
Joshua Bell's Violin—and the Music of Jewish History
The Story of a Stradivarius which Escaped Nazism
Lichvod Rabbi Jacobson
Some comments...
In several posts in my blog Shemittahrediscovered.blogspot.com, I compared Eretz Yisroel to a precious Violin and the Torah to musical notes and Am Yisroel to the virtuoso violinist.
September 06, 2005
How it began... How I became interested in shemittah.
There is poetic justice that the name of the latest owner of this Stradivarius violin is Joshua Bell whose very name "rings a bell"! :)
Joshua, Yehoshua is mentioned in the Torah reading of Shemini Atzeret in Israel and Simchat Torah in the Diaspora.
"Joshua" in the time of Moses was the quintessential student, the G-d Chosen successor to Moshe Rabbeinu. He is the leader chosen to lead the Nation of Israel to conquer the Land.
On Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah we read
9 And Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, because Moses had laid his hands upon him. And the children of Israel obeyed him, and they did as the Lord had commanded Moses. ט וִֽיהוֹשֻׁ֣עַ בִּן־נ֗וּן מָלֵא֙ ר֣וּחַ חָכְמָ֔ה כִּֽי־סָמַ֥ךְ משֶׁ֛ה אֶת־יָדָ֖יו עָלָ֑יו וַיִּשְׁמְע֨וּ אֵלָ֤יו בְּנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ וַיַּֽעֲשׂ֔וּ כַּֽאֲשֶׁ֛ר צִוָּ֥ה יְהֹוָ֖ה אֶת־משֶֽׁה:
And the name "Bell" alludes to the Liberty Bell. The Liberty Bell has a verse from Leviticus, Vayikra 25:10 Parshat Behar engraved on it that talks about the Jubilee year.
This particular verse follows several verses talking about Shabbat Haaretz, the Sabbatical year that comes every 7 years.
10 And you shall sanctify the fiftieth year, and proclaim freedom [for slaves] throughout the land for all who live on it. It shall be a Jubilee for you, and you shall return, each man to his property, and you shall return, each man to his family.
Blessing for the upcoming year:
May our Precious Violin the Precious Holy Land Of Israel be recognized and treated with the proper respect in accordance with its inherent value.
May this Precious Land only be in the hands of virtuoso violinists, the Nation of Israel, playing the proper notes, the Holy Torah, so that the entire world can enjoy its Heavenly music!
ושם נשיר שיר חדש, וברננה נעלה