G-d help us from our leaders from ourselves. RED FLAG for Mishpacha Magazine.

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Mishpacha Magazine arrived this morning.  We all look forward to this wonderful magazine...but....

 

Point of View by Rabbi Moshe Grylak  Editor in Chief of Mishpacha Magazine is entitled Barack Obama and the Prophets.  page 12

 

 

The side bar reads "We also look at our fellow man and see him lonely and isolated, swamped by a sea of media messages, and hear his silent cry for change.  "Stand for Change," says Barack Obama, and it's no wonder the American collective is flocking after him. 

 

The other side bar is Food for Thought "Master of the Universe, I ask of You, redeem the Jewish People, And if You won't do that, then redeem the non-Jew (-Rabbi Yisrael, the maggid of Kozhnitz)

 

The last paragraph of Rabbi Grylak article is

 

"And this is the focus of our fascination at this moment.  For, if the evidence is not deceiving us, and America has freed itself of its mental block against a black man as their leader, that is proof that established norms can change.  If this can happen, then we shall surely also see the total change of human consciousness that our Prophets declared would occur, as explained by the author of Michtav Me"Eliyahu, ztz"l

 

The phenomenon of Barack Hussein Obama serves as a wonderful illustration of this truth."

 

The article describes Obama as a gifted speaker, maybe the best in the Democratic Party, drawing an ever-increasing following.  The article continues to ask Are the American people so inspired by his elegant outward appearance that they aren't bothering to look too deeply at what he actually has to offer his country in terms of policy on the issues?

 

The article however doesn't bother to address Obama's policy on the issues. 

 

Good Question Rabbi Grylak. Did Rabbi Grylak bother to investigate what Obama's policy might be regarding the establishment of a Palestinian State?  How about Obama's inner circle, the ones most likely to define his foreign policy.  The advisors that have history of aligning with anti-Semites.  I suppose such information was better left unsaid for reasons I can not really figure out.  I suppose the establishment of a Palestinian State is no big dea to Rabbi Grylak.  Neither was the expulsion from Gush Katif in 2005 prior to the disengagement to Rabbi Grylak. At that time I personally wrote Rabbi Grylak a letter begging the Gedoilim to speak out and he responded that we must follow the guidance of the Gedoilim even if we don't understand the whole picture. 

 

So, in my opinion this portrayal of Barack Obama put him in a very positive light. After all, he's quite a popular guy. 

 

Then on page 21 in Mishpacha magazine there was an article regarding Fidel Castro.  It quotes Rabbi Meir Lau.  "Fidel Castro is one big riddle to me.  He was very opposed to anti-Semitism, but on the other hand, he joined hands with our greatest enemies"  Rabbi Yisroel Meir Lau.  There is a nice picture of Rabbi Lau viewing a box of Cuban cigars with Castro in their 1994 meeting. The article states, "As dictator of a country noted for atheism, Castro, surprised Rabbi Lau with his grasp of the Bible, displaying curiosity as to how seventy Jews could multiply into a nation of 600,000 in just 210 years in Egypt. "

 

The article ends with the paragraph

 

"Castro refused Rabbi Lau's request for permission to import kosher meat because he thought it would be showing favoritism to the Jews, in a country where meat is rationed, but he did permit a shipment of matzos, because matzos are "a religious product and not food."

 

Rabbi Lau. Is Castro really a big riddle?  Was Castro a bad guy  or a good guy?  The article portrays him as human just like the rest of us.  I suppose good and evil is really not that important anymore.

 

There was no mention in this page of being anti Israel. In fact the article puts Castro in a very human light. There is no indication that he was indeed our enemy.  In contrast an article by Hillel Fendel in A7 was much more negative.  Please visit http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/125304 .  Here is an excerpt of the article.

 

" In October 1973, during the Yom Kippur war, not only did Castro break diplomatic relations with Israel, but he deployed thousands of Cuban soldiers, including helicopter pilots and tank crews to fight alongside the Syrians, The next year, Castro gave the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) an expropriated Jewish community center in Havana - and awarded the visiting Yasser Arafat with Cuba's highest award, the Bay of Pigs Medal. "

 

This is a red flag regarding Mishpacha Magazine.  Editor in Chief, Grylak is involving himself with politics and is not focusing on Torah.  Yet he has the title of Rabbi and the backing and support of the Chareidi Rabbanim.  He is the number one promoter of listening to Daas Torah.  We might get confused that all this politics is actually Daas Torah.

 

When a chareidi women was asked who she will vote for, she said, whomever I'm told to. 

 

We have been brainwashed not to think for ourselves. Our understanding of Torah is not as clear as our Gedoilim. 

 

So if Rav Perlow and Rav Malkiel Kotler and Rav Shmuel Kamenetsky and Rav Belsky etc. names are on a poster banning an all separate seating concert, a real evil that must be exorcised from our midst, that must take priority on the establishment of a Palestinian State putting the lives of hundreds of thousands of Jews in danger.   But what do I know? I'm just a female.

 

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Vehaya Machanecha Kadosh! Banning the Lipa Shmeltzer Concert in Madison Square

Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Vehaya Machanecha Kadosh! Banning the Lipa Shmeltzer Concert in Madison Square.

 

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Why was this concert targeted rather than the Hasc Concert or others?  I understand that the fear was that Lipa adapts his music from Goyish Music and this might affect adversely on his fans, many from the insulated and sheltered chareidi community and will give them a taste for Goyish music. 
 
Which Mitzvah DOrayta, Biblical commandment, is being violated? According to the poster they quote the Mitzveh "Vehaya Machanecha Kadosh" , and your camp shall be holy. The source is Devarim/Deuteronomy 23:14-15  The Torah is referring to a military camp.  "You shall have a shovel in addition to your weapons, and it will be that when you sit outside, you shall dig with it; you shall go back and cover your excrement.  For Hashem, your G-d, walks in the midst of your camp to rescue you and to deliver your enemies before you, so your camp shall be holy, so that He will not see a shameful thing among you and turn away from behind you." (Stone Edition translation).
 
This verse is specifically referring to a military camp that needs to be free of sin in a time of war so that Hashem will find us worthy to rescue us from our enemies.

 

So why are the Rabbanim focusing on the Mitzva of " Vehaya Machanecha Kadosh?"  Perhaps this Mitzva is precisely the one they should be focusing on.  Our enemies are surrounding us.  There is an arsenal of weapons that is being smuggled and now openly being brought to Gaza and Lebanon.  The military will attest to this.  The Hizbollah has restocked in the north and Al Qaeida and Hamas have stocked up in Gaza.  Sederot is daily being attacked and  within close rocket range after the expulsion of Gush Katif and anti missiles are ineffective at such close range.  The Rambam states that a Milchemet Mitzvah, a war that is a commandment, is one which we are obligated to fight when we are attacked.  So perhaps the Rabbanim could be focusing on seeing to it that the Machana, the military camp, remains Kadosh, holy in a time of war.  Nachal Chareidi (the Chareidi battalion) does that.  Women are not  allowed in combat or in military positions that would compromise on Tzniyut (modesty) , distracting the soldier from doing his job.  There are the laws regarding covering excrement, etc. It is the job of the Rabbanim to advise us on the many Halachoth (laws) regarding these  matters.
 
Speaking out against the present Israeli Government, the American Foreign Policy and Bush's Roadmap and the 2 State Solution in a United Torah Roadmap Campaign signed by these same 33 Gedoilim seems like Daas Torah, a Torah perspective,  to me. In fact "VeHaya Machanecha Kadosh" is the perfect theme.  

 

abridged version.
 

 

 

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Vehaya Machanecha Kadosh! Banning the Lipa Shmeltzer Concert in Madison Square.

bs"d

 

This past week posters were plastered around Boro Park and Flatbush banning a concert that was to take place March 9th in Madison Square Garden to benefit needy couples that were to be wed in Eretz Yisroel.  I understand an ad was placed in Hamodia as well, banning this concert.  The ban also included any media advertising this concert .

 

Why then was this concert targeted rather than the Hasc Concert or others?  I understand that the fear was that Lipa adapts his music from Goyish Music and this might affect adversely on his fans, many from the insulated and sheltered chareidi community and will give them a taste for Goyish music.  However, these Rabbanim did not simply advise their people not to attend,  they publicly declared this concert  against Daas Torah and it seems from the text of the ban that all such concerts are not allowed following the rulings in Eretz Yisroel by Gedoilim (which banned Simchat Beit Hashoeva concerts).

 

Now, Is this really Daas Torah? 

 

What we have to ask is how come all these Rabbanim are publicly blasting a separate seating concert where it is hard to find which Mitzvah DOrayta is being violated. They quote the Mitzveh "Vehaya Machanecha Kadosh" whose source is Devarim 23:14-15  The Torah is referring to a military camp.  "You shall have a shovel in addition to your weapons, and it will be that when you sit outside, you shall dig with it; you shall go back and cover your excrement.  For Hashem, your G-d, walks in the midst of your camp to rescue you and to deliver your enemies before you, so your camp shall be holy, so that He will not see a shameful thing among you and turn away from behind you." (Stone Edition translation).

 

This verse is specifically referring to a military camp that needs to be free of sin in a time of war so that Hashem will find us worthy to rescue us from our enemies. I wonder seriously if it was referring to  going to a separate seating concert with only Jewish music to raise up our spirits.  And if you say it is forbidden to dress up Goyish music and turn it into Jewish music, then why is the Levush of these same communities adapted from 1800 Polish Nobility?  And would it be so terrible if on the way to the concert, perhaps on the subway, a boy met a girl and eventually actually became engaged and went on to build a Bayit Neeman Beyisroel filled with Kedusha.  But Tzepast Nisht.  I suppose the way Yaakov Avinu met Ruchel Imeinu and the way Moshe Rabbeinu met Tsipporah was Tsepast Nisht as well. Maybe it's because that was before Matan Torah.  Now we know better.

 

So why are the Rabbanim focusing on the Mitzva of " Vehaya Machanecha Kadosh?"  Perhaps this Mitzva is precisely the one they should be focusing on.  Our enemies are surrounding us.  There is an arsenal of weapons that is being smuggled and now openly being brought to Gaza and Lebanon.  The military will attest to this.  The Hizbollah has restocked in the north and Al Keida and Hamas have stocked up in Gaza.  Sederot is daily being attacked and  within close rocket range after the expulsion of Gush Katif and anti missiles are ineffective at such close range.  The Rambam states that a Milchemet Mitzvah is one which we are obligated to fight when we are attacked.  So perhaps the Rabbanim should be focusing on seeing to it that the Machana, the military camp, remains Kadosh.  Nachal Chareidi does  that. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Netzah_Yehuda_Battalion   Women should not be allowed in combat or in positions that would compromise on Tzniyut, distracting the soldier from doing his job.   The Mitzvoth of covering excrement, etc. It is the job of the Rabbanim to advise us on the many Halachoth regarding these  matters. 

 

How come the Rabbanim have united to come out with a Public Statement regarding a Jewish, all separate seating concert, yet these Rabbanim were silent when the property of 10,000 people, were stolen, destroyed, for no reason in Gush Katif?  Dead bodies were interred to other places.  Shuls and communities destroyed.  Families torn apart. Parnassa lost with no easy way to reestablish and retrain in another profession. Kids uprooted from their homes, the family structure undermined.  Once stable successful teenagers now suicidal, depressed and/or on drugs.  How come these Rabbanim are not focusing on Pikuach Nefesh and Al Taamod Al Dam Reiacha and the shameful abandonment of the government of Israel to the people in Sederot ordering the army not to fight back effectively. Let us not forget that this situation is a direct result of the Government's policies to uproot the settlements from Gush Katif.  Not learning a lesson, the government is still pursuing the evasive dream of "peace" with their desire to establish a State of Palestine and slice away Yerushalayim like one slices a salami leaving the rest of Israel, including Chareidi population centers, to become like the next Sederot.

 

Are these Rabbanim uniting to pressure Shas to leave the gov't?  Are they working to unite with parties that are against territorial concessions to the Arabs and in fact promote a government based on our Torah Heritage and Torah values and  Torah based Judicial system?

 

Speaking out against the present Israeli Government, the American Foreign Policy and Bush's Roadmap and the 2 State Solution in a United Torah Roadmap Campaign signed by these same 33 Gedoilim seems to be more like Daas Torah to me. In fact "VeHaya Machanecha Kadosh" is the perfect theme.  

 

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BEIT OROT Promotes JMINTHEAM who promotes Malcolm Hoenlein who promote Palestine

bs"d

 

Hurrah!  THERE IS A NEW FLOOR AND CONSTRUCTION ON HAR HAZEITIM.  I would love to believe that this is all good.  In fact there was a super crane overlooking the area showing to all that there is now construction going on in this part of Jerusalem.   And JMINTHEAM deserves a lot of the credit for bringing Yerushalayim into the minds, hearts and souls of all of its listeners.  Shlomo Zwickler could not say enough good things about JMINTHEAM.

 

I too promote JMINTHEAM for their wonderful Jewish music and wonderful promotion of worthy Jewish Institutions such as Hebron and Beit Orot, Rachel's Children and for wonderful speakers such as Rabbi Benjamin Yudin etc.

 

Every year for the past several years my husband has been sending in $72 to JMINTHEAM in honor of my birthday. I love their T shirts and wear them all the time (they are long sleeves and comfortable and were for free) I love their free CD's.  There is lots that I love about JMINTHEAM.  Nachum Segal is a fantastic host and promoter and the entertainment is first class.

 

Yet, I am not blinded to other very serious matters about JMINTHEAM that I find very disturbing and dangerous to Am Yisroel.  They have been quiet along with mainstream Jewish Media about being critical of the American Foreign Policy in promoting the establishment of a the Two State Solution in accordance with President Bush's Roadmap Plan and the policy of the State Department.  So while Nachum Segal will promote Hebron and Beit Orot, he will at the same time promote Malcolm Hoenlein who will speak out against anti-Semitism yet is busy negotiating for a Palestinian State Chas Vechalila which has been the number one cause for anti-Semitism throughout the world. 

 

I was at the Beit Orot Dinner where Nachum Segal was honored and was the MC.  While we all stood at attention singing Hatikva yet there was not one mention at that Dinner regarding the dangers of the establishment of a Palestinian State and the evil destructive policies of the Olmert Administration to the settlers and the girls from the hilltop youth that were in jail. I don't remember them being critical of the Israel gov't for allowing the Kassam rockets to continuously fall on Sderot.  Why mar an elegant dinner?

 

Also the Hebron dinner was MC'd by Nachum Segal.   We saw the Mesiras Nefesh of all the Jews living in Hebron and in Beit Hashalom.  Who in America could even compare the Mesiras Nefesh for Eretz Yisroel than the Jews in Hebron and the Jews Beit Orot.   I myself included can not compare with the Mesiras Nefesh of these Holy Jews in Hebron.

 

Maybe we can say the Young Israel is the best of Jewish Mainstream groups in the States to speak out for Jerusalem.

 

Yet none of these organizations have united to publicly condemn American Foreign Policy and the establishment of a Palestinian State.

 

Yes, Beit Orot has a nice new floor and a big crane showing everyone that yes there is now construction going on in East Jerusalem, Yes, finally Beit Hashalom now has windows and the women and children and babies don't have to freeze anymore and they can now save the $30,000 a month on heating bills. And yes the Young Israel just accepted a large donation from the Jewish Agency for their educational programs.

 

And yes the Silence regarding the establishment of a Palestinian State and the two state solution "Roadmap" continues.  So what will having a new floor and several new buildings in East Jerusalem and even a warm Beit Hashalom building accomplish, if within the year there is the establishment of a Palestinian State and we know from experience that the bulldozers can destroy new and old construction within a few hours.  It doesn't even have to take a bulldozer.  An earthquake can be equally as effective. 

 

What about the Torah Roadmap?  If I was on the dark side I would say to myself, whatever the price for installing a temporary  new floor for Beit Orot and new windows for Beit Hashalom and the new educational programs for Young Israel, it's a steal in order to SILENCE all opposition to the greater goal of establishing a New Palestinians State (hurrah) (hu ra).  Cause once WE get into power, there will be no Beit Orot and no Hebron.  When we Silence the Pioneers themselves, then effectively we Silence them all.

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Enougt! LIKE PARTIES UNITE!!!! SURVIVAL!!!! No more each for oneself

bs"d

 

Why wasn't Moshe Feiglin invited to speak at the Jerusalem Conference?  I would email this to all the participants that are like minded and ask them this question.   What's with the New Jewish Congress that was initiated on the Day of Annapolis?????? (see attached)  There are those out there that would like nothing better than to see the right divided.  It is perhaps their intentions that the internal politics will hopefully destroy one another.  I am afraid that they are chas vechalila succeed unless we take serious intervention. They will fund each party separately and it is their interest that there be strong opposing forces in the right camp in order to destroy themselves.  Perhaps their strategy is, let the right fight it out and neutralize each other. 

 

Why can't Benny Elon, Moshe Feiglin, Tsafrir Ronen, Paul Eidelberg, MK Eldad unite in a unified voice for Eretz Yisroel. This is an appeal to Women in Green and Matot Arim to insist that like minded parties unite because that is our only hope for a collective survival. 

 

Each wonderful Settlement, Yishuv, Yeshiva, Organization must stop working only for themselves.Let us focus on the source of the evil confronting us rather than simply go from symptom to symptom that is manifested.  Why is Sderot only talking about Sderot?  Why are the people for Gush Katif only promoting building up the lives of the people of Gush Katif?  Why is Hebron only talking about Beit Hashalom.  Every Dinner promotes their own institution. True each organization has their particular focus.  But each is based on our rights to Eretz Yisroel based on Torah, our common denominator.  

 

There is American Friends of Beit El, and American Friends of Hebron, and the American Friends of Itamar and the American Friends for Gush Katif, and the American Friends for Sderot etc. etc. etc. yet they have yet to join together and make a joint statement based on the Torah for our collective survival.   Why is there a Tsafrir Ronen talking about the "Land of Israel"  but fails to unite with Moshe Feiglin of Manhigut Yehudit that basically agrees with him as well as Benny Elon from NRP or visa versa.    

 

In a message dated 2/24/2008 10:24:13 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, stevenshamrak.e@gmail.com writes:

Jerusalem Conference – What a Waste!

by Steven Shamrak.

I visited and reviewed an official website of the Jerusalem Conference which took place last week. The only thought that came to mind was "What a waste!" The waste of time, human and financial resources and the waste of opportunity to set the agenda for reaching a Jewish National Goal and uniting Jews and our true friends around the world behind it.

The site stated: "The Jerusalem Conference openly deliberates core issues that will determine Israel's future as a viable modern democratic Jewish State. The Jerusalem Conference provides a broad public forum for diverse viewpoints to freely discuss issues of national importance. Topics range from national affairs and security to social welfare and economics, from Jewish education to Aliyah, Israel as a Jewish State to its functional relationship with its neighbours and nations of the world."

Very fine words, but only words!  While I was reading an itinerary of the conference, I recalled the conversation between Alice and scarecrow in "Alice in Wonderland". She asked him which road to take, but did not know where she was going. His answer was: "Take any, it will get you there!" For many years, the leadership of the Jewish people has lost the vision of the modern Zionist pioneers and, unfortunately, has been pushing Israel toward self-destruction!

The Jerusalem Conference discussed wide range of topics: Strategic Threat from Iran, Syria, Lebanon & Gaza; Importance of Aliya, Jewish migration to Israel; Israel's and the World's Economy; even the possibility of the World War III was discussed. Arab terrorism, the Palestinian Media and Education, The Winograd Commission, the new wave of anti-Semitism and anti-Israel Media bias also were mentioned.

I was surprised that one subject, which has been completely neglected and even sabotaged by governments of Israel for decades, was correctly defined: "Hasbara: Just Confused or Deliberately Non-Existent?"

Nobody booed Tzipi Livni or left in protest when the foreign minister of Israel told participants that she talks with Palestinians with "tears of paratroopers at the Western Wall" in her mind. "Time is not on Israel's side, and we will eventually have to concede parts of the country" she said. I wonder, were they crocodile tears? It is her government which, by exhibiting a total lack of self-respect and an absence of any determination to pursue the Jewish National Goal, has made "Time is not on Israel's side" a current ugly reality. She has no interest in and is completely ignorant of the fact that any reality can be changed by the setting of objectives and an enduring determination to achieve them!

Livni continued with her scare-mongering tactic saying that Israel would be faced with giving up its identity as a "Jewish, democratic and secure state" if it does not agree to a land-for-peace deal with the PA. She and all of those political hypocrites dishonour the memory of the Israeli paratroopers who liberated Jerusalem!

There were many distinguished people at the conference. Some of them tried to impress others with 'innovative' idiocy such as US Senator Sam Brownback who advocated a confederation of Judea and Samaria, historical Jewish land, with Jordan. He does not care how detrimental it would be for the future of the Jewish people to lose all hope for reunification of Eretz-Israel. No one had pointed out to him that neither Jordan nor the PA is interested in this stupidity, but they are quite focused on the destruction of Israel. Alternative ideas like the Sinai Option or organising a transfer of all of the hostile population from all Jewish land to Arab and Muslim countries were not even raised.

How can we reach our goals if we are not even setting them? How can we find the best solution to a problem if we are not considering all options? So many important people attended the Jerusalem Conference – What a Waste!

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