Summarizing the writings of Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch
…וְיִשְׁכֹּן בְּאָהֳלֵי שֵׁם… … He will dwell in the tents of Shem… _____ Other religions teach what man must do to attain closeness to God in the next world. Judaism teaches what we must do to so that God draws near in this world. In Beraishis Rabbah, 19:7 we are taught the great principle of …
Continue reading “Beraishis 9M Closeness to God on Earth עיקר שכינה בתחתונים”
Beraishis 3D עיקר שכינה בתחתונים Beraishis 9M Closeness to God on Earth עיקר שכינה בתחתונים
The original, natural state of the world is one in which God’s proximity is felt directly by Man, here on earth. It is only due to Man’s sin, for Man’s education, that God withdrew Himself somewhat from Man. Whenever in history God has communicated directly to Man, to our Avos, Moshe, the Nevi’im or when …
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Man’s Mission: Form Godly Families and Society Beraishis 12I – אברהם קראו הר, יצחק שדה, יעקב בית See Beraishis 28:10, page 598: Yakov goes forth in order to establish a Jewish home, and to achieve this he needs only the resources inherent in his own personality. Thus begins the story of Yaakov, for everything that …
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Avram passed through the land until the place of Shchem, until the grove of Moreh, and the Canaanite was already there in the land. God appeared there to Avram and said: To your seed I will give this land. Avram then built an altar there to God Who had appeared to him. Avraham entered the …
Continue reading “Beraishis 12G – Hashem Appears to Avraham at Shechem – Elon Moreh”
Avraham’s contemporaries were the first ones to give expression to the idea of נעשה לנו שם – disregarding the individual’s unique relationship to God, caring only about the advancement and achievements of the community. (Nimrod, a cunning dictator, convinced the masses that this was the way of progress and better for them. He, however, put …
Continue reading “Beraishis 11C The Jewish Mission: לקרא בשם השם”
God (using the name of Divine Providence that ensures the future of mankind) came down, examining the motives of the collective effort to build the city and tower. God chose to intervene to ensure that ultimately the Divine presence will be able to dwell with man on earth – עיקר שכינה בתחתונים). If the community …
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זכר ונקבה בראם ויברך אתם ויקרא את שמם אדם ביום הבראם He created them male and female, and He blessed them and called them Adam, on the day they were created. The division of roles between man and woman are not arbitrary. From the very beginning “man” – אדם – was created male and female. …
Continue reading “Beraishis 5B Male and Female, both called Adam”