Impassioned Ahavat Yisrael in the Land - Rav Kook’s Eretz Chefetz 8:1 by Rabbi Aaron Goldscheider

all right good morning everyone Booker to and uh very very nice to see everyone this morning thank you for uh for joining together in our learning of Rook a very very special to be studying Rook together and uh I'd like to begin by thanking those that are sponsoring this year this morning we have an annual sponsor and that is and we have a uh a special sponsor this morning sponsored by Ethel Fischer my aunt Ethel in memory of her husband Eugene M Fisher on his six yard site which will be this to bishvat in a couple of days yob Ben yud may hisama have an alyah so it's a very special for me for uh for my uncle to be able to uh to learn this morning in his memory and he was a very special person in my life as well so very special to uh to learn this morning and especially tat eritel in his memory okay so this morning we uh we continue our study of Ru cook and um what we're going to look at this morning is a uh a topic within rev cook which I think is one of his most beloved ideas and uh one of the reasons why we love Riv cook and that is the idea of aus the idea of unity the idea of AAS ISAT Isel the love that he had for Jews and the love that he believed every one of us should have for our fellow Jew and this is certainly an area that Riv cook put great emphasis in terms of the importance of of loving one another and there's no question that the days that we're in right now this is one of the themes one of the ideas and one of the things that we're we're feeling these days in terms of the Aus and some something that was sorely missing here in AR Israel in terms of the Jewish people in terms of am Israel and something that we are with all the all the difficulties and all the challenges turn this off I'll turn it back home with all the challenges of these days what we are seeing these days is uh the beautiful sense of AK andas Isel so let us um let us look at the following the following piece from R cook we are studying eret um on the top of page one and those that have been with us for the last year and a half or so we are beginning now chapter8 which is you see the very top of the page the name of this chapter which was named by rapo he named it or Yeshua the light of redemption and we're going to be looking over the next few weeks at pieces from um from this section from the eth chapter of eret so let's begin here here and uh this piece originally is found in a letter of R cook we have hundreds if not thousands of letters of rev cook and here we get a sense of um of the emotion that rev cook has in terms of the the feeling of the Jewish people returning to the land of Israel so let us follow along here we're the top of page one we'll Now read from rook and uh there's really one idea that I want to highlight in particular yesu this feeling this emotion that we have of or Yeshua that we're we're we're sensing the light of salvation of redemption MK it's it's it's ringing like a bell all the boundaries of the land of Israel all of them om cavod all of them are speaking of honor the honor of Hashem the honor of the Jewish people returning to the borders the and they're calling out the land itself is calling out to usit to awaken to a spiritual awakening and also physical in terms of our material life as well that it's bringing back that there's a great joy that there's a Great Awakening of the Jewish people as they are returning to the land of Israel again I always find this you know striking that Ru cook is writing this early 1900s he's not seeing what we're seeing today but he's feeling he's sensing this great return this Great Awakening of and this voice this sound of the Jewish people returning is only going to get stronger from day today it's only going to strengthen we peric Le peric from time to time that this vision is going to Roar this is a vision that is wondrous that is eternal this is a from the because the time has come that he senses that the time is coming this beginning of the return and the secret of the creation of the world that it's there just beneath the border the the boundary or just beneath the surface it's ready to to flower to break through with light from the darkness we are filled with song and a drunkenness of comfort and return there are going to be battalions groups are going to be coming together I mentioned last week and I saw another advertisement for another organization that's working on not just bringing Neeses bringing people but how to bring communities as a whole to ER Israel to pick up an entire congregation a sh and everyone go together to eritis I just uh a family member just who who's doing it there are two different organizations Simon aorf shiman aist dorf just started an organization I saw an ad for another organization that's now working not with people but with communities you know 60 at a time 100 at a time you what do you call what are they called what are they called I I forgot the I forgot the names one of the rabbi Shimon abor it's it's uh bringing them home or something like that is the title again I saw it ad for a different organization as well they did that years ago you're right oh you talking about R Riskin and those yeah that's right that's right yeah yeah yeah so Rook says again he's sitting there in in ER Israel sitting here in ER Israel almost 100 years ago over 100 years ago that he's writing y it's going to happen that groups are going to come battalions that is as shs as communities we're going to be making our way to Isel they're going to come from the other side from a to rebuild to rebuild the Brokenness that's found in the land of Israel the ruins of our eternal love okay so here just reading this you get a sense of the who Ru cuk was and in terms of his his passion in terms of the emotion in terms of his bond with ER Israel and as some point out some asked the question did ruk attain a level of navua did he attain a spark of Prophecy well I don't know if we know the answer to that but when I read a paragraph like this and see the way the ruk is seeing the Gula unfolding I don't know it it seems like maybe he did he saw something he's he he did see a vision and here we go the this one more line from rook and here this is where I want to highlight a uh an idea the idea of of AAS or he writes also that there's a light of kindness that there's going to be a greater sense of of kindness that's going to strengthen throughout the world and he says as the Jewish people are returning to the land of Israel that there's going to be a is a love for one another that's that is going to continue to grow that's going to be a flame that's going to be passion it in the very core of the soul of of Kess Israel the Jewish people and the and the streams the sweet streams the street this the Sweet Waters will sweeten all the bitterness all the bitterness that we've had in the past all the troubles all the pain will be will be uh will be sweetened as we're returning to Israel she that will activate a great strength that will lift the voice of yob with the strength of Hashem so here we see this is classic R cook to some degree in terms of his his poetry and um and his language and the question is what is RI cook speaking about if we can kind of you know kind of dig a little bit deeper and the question that I had when I read this piece is the statement that he makes about the it that it becomes even stronger when the Jewish people return to the land of Israel and why is that the case and is that the case and I thought aad Isel is aad Isel wherever you are whether in you're in New York or Baltimore or California right Jews there's avad Isel everywhere that we love one another but R cook seems to be making the claim here that there's going to be a a a more passionate avad Israel that's found only in the land of Israel when the Jew Returns the land of Israel so so I want to point out the following yeah please yeah I think I mean I think you have to in each case you have to look at look at the context and you're right sometimes Israel is the Jewish people sometimes Israel but again it's usually ER Israel but again I think it's not yes yes y it could be there are times that it's uh maybe refers to both or it has both connotations so where do we find this idea and by the way I I would say this idea can be can be captured in in in a phrase that we're all familiar with and that is or which means that we are all we're all connected with one another we all love one another we're all responsible for one another so that is an idea that's really a very basic idea the question is when did that when did that come into play in other words when even halachically or maybe from from the hashkafic point of view as well when did that happen now I was was all always under the impression that well maybe the Jewish people always had that I mean maybe going back to aam to the family of AR is and Yakov I would think from Hari when the Jewish people receiv received the Torah at Hari that at that moment and that famous P that the Jewish people that there was a Oneness of the Jewish people when they came to that place and famously right by Yan in the in the singular that at that moment that there was a Unity of am Israel but we're going to see something really f fascinating and that is not until the Jewish people enter the land of Israel does the idea of arut or arut of of responsibility for one another only comes into play at that time now that sound that sounds a bit surprising and I was surprised by that idea as well like why should that be the case words if you're talking about a Jewish people and you're talking about a Jewish people that receives the Torah at harini and everybody is now responsible for one another we care for one another why why doesn't it happen at that moment and why do we have to wait so to speak so look at the following PUK look at the following PUK this is a p that comes towards the very end of the Torah the PK itself is a difficult PK just in terms of translating and understanding the PUK and I want to share with you the Rashi what Rashi says so here's the PUK the PUK says the following this is number two on your souri and this is says the following and you probably this probably rings a bell what that you have it yeah yeah very good very nice and it also I think the Trum and and it's and it's uh I don't it kind of stands out people remember this P the question is what does it mean by the way there's something else in rash is going to address it a very strange thing that's found in this pug is that over letters and you see it here on the page there are dots over every single letter of those two words and that's found in a safer Torah as well and what those dots are but before we get to those dots let's just translate the the PK itself the translation is that which is hidden is to God to the Lord Our God and that which is revealed is for us and for our children forever to do to do all the words to the Torah you see it's a very difficult P right well I mean what what's going on here the hidden things are for God the revealed things are for us and they are to be done and to and to do all the words of the Torah or to observe all the words of the Torah so there by the way there are many many different interpretations of what this means many interpretations and let me share with you what Rashi says let me just share with you for a moment outside I'll just want to want to read a few words of Rashi with you Rashi says what are n what are nlot what they refer to are the actions of other people of other Jews around you and that you have an obligation or the question is do you have an obligation to respond to that in other words when you see somebody else that's doing something wrong do you have an obligation to respond and we know and in this also it says that which we see right that which is nigla again not not an easy P but this is how Rashi is going to interpret the PUK right that which is known about another person if they're desecrating a you know a Mitzvah transgressing a Mitzvah that they should be doing or they're doing an AA do we do we have an obligation so the PK is saying yes we have an obligation to respond how about the nista road those things that we do not know about another person right that which is done in a in a hidden way is there any obligation to that or how can we possibly respond to Something That We're unaware of the PK says hanist wru right that which is hidden that is in God's domain right we're not able to to really do anything about that but that which we know about other people you have a neighbor that's um not keeping chabas not keeping kosher is there any that you can do to kind of bring that person along that which we know about our our friend about our neighbor that is our responsibility it's for us that's the way the Rashi interprets the P by the way many other interpretation you could see how that almost is like a difficult interpretation let me read to you the following this is from the Rashi itself so Rashi if you go to the middle of the Rashi I think I have a little arrow there where it says Al luuu so they're little dots now what do those dots represent the dots represent according to Rashi words that are there but could also not be there it was a way of Crossing out words if you didn't want to if you didn't want to cross out the letters themselves or the words he just put dots on top of it and that was a sign that those words should really not appear does that make sense at all I mean it's kind of like in other words instead of erasing so you just make like a mark on the page and that Mark will tell you that those words are really not meant to appear there so now we have this interpretation that those words lanu are words that really should not appear in this PK they do appear they don't appear the question is what does that mean exactly yes you put a do something you really want to see the do would highlight what you would want to like to to emphasize okay yeah it's a good question I mean the words themselves are there we know that all the letters and the words they're there to be read how do we how do we identify or highlight a word so in some way we wrote it already but we don't again I know it does it sounds a bit strange a word that's there that's not there fully okay this is or should not be read so this is what Rashi says and I'll read now we can see the words of Rashi you don't have to trust anything that I just said now we'll see it inside aluu there are dots over the words lanu vanu for us and for our children in the stic text to indicate that we are to expound that even for the revealed sins he did not punish the many okay until the Jewish people crossed the Jordan until they enter the land of Israel only once the Jewish people came to AR moav and they came to harim and haral and at that moment moment when they entered the land of Israel they took a shua that moment of accepting the Torah again accepting an oath of Hashem only at that point and here look at the last words of Rashi only once the Jewish people entered the land of Israel did this of is come into effect when they were in the midbar even when they received the Torah they did not have that obligation yet only once they enter the land of Israel so you could that's and that's what it means here without getting you know too entrenched in this in this uh in this comment lanu you could really remove that because it's true it was not true at that moment when the Jewish people who were outside the land of Israel it's only going to come into play when they enter the land of Israel because at this time they're not in the land of Israel they're still in the midbar and therefore lanu that obligation that it's upon us and our children did not exist yet so those words are read and they're not read because the obligation was not there yet yes it sounds a little bit confusing sounds a little bit confusing but let's what's that okay um I think that's yeah I think it's a a it's a complex issue the question is taking somebody's life may be a punishment it may not be necessarily based on the idea of irot that you have an obligation to one another but yeah some something something to think about yeah it's it's an interesting point so here we have the following idea and this is this is the idea that I want to highlight the idea is as Rashi says and this is I I would say this is a novel idea this may come as a bit of a surprise and it did to me as well as I was learning this material that that basic idea that fundamental concept of AR ofus of the obligation that we have the interconnectedness that we have with one another as a Jewish people that it did not exist until the Jewish people people enter the land of Israel in the fullest sense does that mean that we didn't care for one another does it mean that Ley does it mean we cared for one another there was a concern for one another but the full sense of interconnectedness of the Jewish people of am Israel according to Rashi right according to Rashi the Rashi that we have on the not an obscure Source you have that obligation of that you have an obligation to your fellow Jew whatever your fellow Jew is doing that you have an obligation towards that person only once you enter the land of Israel that is uh that's how rashan persists the marala prag asked the question why is that the case and here we're going to see the words of the maral pr so here this is from of the this is Source number five three lines down in the bracket and again the question is what is unique about entering the land of Israel that had created this special status of arvut Kasher once the Jewish people enter the land of Israel we are not one nation the wholeness of the nation until we enter the land of Israel and what is the proof before they cross the Jordan River before they enter the land of Israel they were not punished for those sins of you know that were done privately those sins that we were unaware of of other Jews until the Jewish people enter the land of Israel until the Jew enters the land of Israel we do not have that full status what is the term AR what does it mean that we are bound with the our fellow Jew that we are interconnected with with our fellow Jew that we did not become one nation the Oneness of our people in the fullest sense only once we enter the land of Israel and one place who is so this is the the maral explaining this idea in Rashi that the nation of Israel although the nation received the Torah at harini and in a sense at that moment you would think that they now have a a full sense of responsibility it does not become the fullest sense of responsibility until land of Israel and even that concept that we all are familiar with that we quote K according to Rashi according to the it does not happen it does not actualize until the Jewish people enter the land of Israel there's uniqueness to the Oneness of am Israel in the land of Israel where we function as a nation are we a nation outside the land of Israel as we're living in LA and Baltimore and Hong Kong your son was in Hong Kong right for a while as a rabbi yes so you're Rabbi in Hong Kong a beautiful Community is that a nation is that a nation outside the land of Israel do we love one another do we care for one another absolutely yes is there Co is arim Rashi says no the marala prag says no not until we enter the land of Israel at that moment we are bound to one another right we are interconnected with one another we are now functioning as a nation and we are we all know that today yes please well since that was the lesson I told him last very very nice laar lazor so yes so that is unique to ER Israel and here I believe maybe this is what perhaps this is what R cook is referring to as well when we come back to the land of Israel the sense of aat Isel changes right it it goes up a few bars when we're here in as much as there is Av Israel outside the land of Israel but the true aru the true interconnectedness of the nation or of a Jew to a Jew is here in Eric T we can turn to the second side of the page I want to share with you the following yes please we know that it's applying today maybe they back then when when we were first entering right I I think the principle stands I mean it was true at that time and I think as I said I think it's true today as well the the idea it doesn't say that right doesn't no ites doesn't say that it doesn't say that it could be that once what's that doesn't have an expiration doesn't have an expiration date that that's right but again the way the marala Prague is explaining it that's not it's it's not based on on on the history or ancient of ancient times of the Jewish people entering the land of Israel that's the reality of what it means to be a nation in the land of Israel so look at s we turn the page now and this very much speaks to our uh of our mat the mats that we're in today in terms of when the Jewish people are going through a difficult time and what it means to care for one another so I I just came across this gamar I thought it was a very very beautiful gamarra and this is s this is from Tinus DAV Alf Al and it says the following and I'll just read the Hebrew you have the translation of art scroll here turn when the Jewish people are in a time of distress which we are in today and one Jew decides just to kind of go off and do his own thing there are two that are with a person and that those put their hands on that person's head and they say to that person this individual who left who walked away from the community that they're not Shar that they're not part of thear of the community they're not going to be a part of the they're not going to feel the joy when the day in is uh is going to arrive I was thinking about this this past uh this past week or two you know in America there's what's called now the ISA break or the ISA week where they're where they're on vacation and um so I saw a lot of ads I guess on Facebook and other places of like going town going down to Miami and S Shiva week and to you know the beautiful pictures of South Beach and Miami and so I don't I don't know the answer I actually saw a very um a very well-respected Rabbi who's again he's he's he's speaking at a program at a ski vacation this week as well so I don't know I I don't know what what a Jew is supposed to do but a Jew is supposed to according to the gamarra should be thinking very seriously about when it's a time of Sara it's a time of distress for the Jewish people to be a part of it and how is one a part of that time of of distress and the the gamar says if you're not if somehow you step away from it this's interesting language here that they malim that put their hand I always think about it as AA but here it's not a braa it's actually a bit of a um a curse that if you're not part of it so then you're not going to be a part of the either yes EV yeah no no you make a you make an excellent point that the word AR in AR is more than just responsibility and maybe that's the difference between what it means as the speaks about in Rashi that outside the land of Israel we do have that sense of responsibility for one another we care for one another but to be a guarantor as you as you said very beautifully right to be to be um a rave that we are interconnected T you know T is in SM you study tar for six months tarov is the mixture of milk and meat that's that you spent six months on that issue studying to be a rabbi and uh all the AL that relate to to you know when the milk falls into the drop of milk falls into chalant does that ever happen I know we we study that for a long time in the it happens so what's that mean what's what's T what is that t means it's mixed in right that it gets that milk there's no way of taking it out now what happens right what can you do with that is it TR is a kosher so T when we talk about AR Ze it's only in the land of Israel that you have that you know that that it's not just responsibility not just care it's that we are interconnected with one another exactly so let's read on in this gamar so the gamar says the following um reading now the second paragraph on the First Column when the community is going through a difficult time a person should not say let me go to my own house let me eat and I'll drink right in my soul you know Shalom AE right every let me just let me just get to a safe place let me kind of block out everything else that's going on and let me live in uh with some Serenity he says you should not be doing that the top of the second column yes a person has to feel the pain the this is what we find with that he felt the pain of the now where do we see that this is with the war with a appropriate to be speaking about war with aik and what happens that he placed a rock below him and he sat on that rock and that's where he prayed look at what what the gar says he didn't have a mattress or he didn't have a pillow he couldn't find a more comfortable place they couldn't bring a pillow for MOS to an old man to sit down and be more comfortable Moshe MOS said if the Jewish people are going through a difficult time I'm also going to feel that pain as well I'm praying here on the mountain and they're fighting below and I shouldn't be comfortable here I should feel that pain as well where did mosh raenu learn this from so this a very beautiful a beautiful vort and uh that takes us back to the beginning of the life of mosenu as he's coming to the mountain and he sees the SN and hasem says to MOS right take off the shoe that you that you are wearing because Adas KES because this is Holy Ground so the kakar has the following explanation he says why does Hashem and many interpretations why does hasem ask him to take off his shoes in order to feel the rocks in order to feel the pebbles in order to to feel the sharp Stones right you're here you're at a distance right from the pain that your brethren are in you need to feel that as well and then says the kakar then it's admas KES that's holiness Holiness is to feel the pain the burden of others and that's what mosh who has taught that lesson right away that we need to feel the pain of others that's part of what it means AR what it means call yeah I'll take on the back and then yes ofn in the marathon yeah no that not even a handful but to feel connected to that's okay so this is this is a and my own family I it bothers me tremendously okay so this is this is an important lesson this is what the gamar says you can quote this gamar in Tinus what it means to what it means to feel the pain of others um we spoke about we spoke about this idea of of so look at source number three so this is the gar uses this language it's found in sh we'll look at just that first paragraph and we spoke a moment ago about that word arvus and what the word means arvus means that you are that you're mixed together that you're a guarantor that you're an obligation to one another laab rebi brings one other interpretation of what the already brings a few interpretations but to highlight this AR what is the word AR he says the word AR also means sweetu ASAS which we say every morning that the aror should be sweet the word AR also has that meaning as well says right why do we why do we care for one another not that we have a responsibility and a guarantor we love one another we're sweet the sweetness of a Jew right we love one another there's a deep love and Brotherhood that we have one for another right why do we why are we concerned about others because we care about others right is not about finding a fault in somebody else it's you want the best for the other you want the person to experience shabas you want the person to experience what it means to be part of am so that's another nice a nice idea around around um arus laabi says that it relates to the word the sweetness that we feel for one another R cook as we open with this morning speaks about the AHA a great sense of AA is going to return AA Israel is going to return to the Jewish people when we come back to the land of Israel and Bash we're seeing even though we struggle with that at times and especially in the last before the war we were struggling with that but something that we're seeing today and a new track that we're taking please God from uh from this time forth but the flip side of a lack of a Isel of course is the and this is something that Rook is famous for where he speaks about if that was the reason for destruction of the temple so we need to add even greater love and the gamarra says As We Know Why did we have the destruction of the second bdash so it says that there was that there was a that there was a a hatred a baseless thank you a baseless hatred and the story that is told there's one story that is told to highlight that and I'm sure you're familiar with that is Kam baram right that is the famous story and that's found in the gar in gon and it tells the story of a man who is having a celebration who's having a party we've all heard this story he invited kamsa he invited his friend kamsa but somehow the invitation went to not his friend but went to baram it went to this other fellow and he makes his way to the Celebration he walks into the wedding right it almost sounds comical it's so petty right the story itself and I think that's part of what the gamar is trying to convey to us the pettiness of that kind of somebody else showed up at your Simka you didn't want that person to be there and the gamar says that he begged and begged to stay even offered to pay for some of the party or for the entire party and the guy literally picks him up and throws him out and that's the story that the Torah that the gar tells Tama tells us about what it means yeah please yeah please yes the part that also really B that whole story makes me so ill yeah but part that really bothers me is he said that the rabbis were sitting very good that is part of the story I left that out but that is part of the story and the gamar says as that story is unfolding it says the rabbis were present the rabbis saw what was happening there were great rabbis present at that party and they also don't don't don't say anything they don't respond I want to share with you one idea that's found and something that I never thought about the language of the gamarra is and you can see it on your on the source sheet the language of of the gamarra is it says because of the story of kamsa that yalim was destroyed the marala prag asked the following question and now we can turn to page three the marala prag asked the following question the maral says why should we always remember the story and remember this incident this is the top of Page Three we'll read a couple lines from the maral in his why um why do we remember the story as a story of kamsa and bar kamsa now kamsa didn't do anything wrong right bar kamsa I don't know if he did anything wrong either but certainly kamsa right he was he was just this fellow that was supposed to be invited to the W to the wedding to the to the Celebration and the other this other fellow there was a mixup and bar kamsa made his way in so why do we mention and that's like the title We Know kamsa bar kamsa that that we know that it's the story of kamsa and bar kamsa what did kamsa do wrong that that's the question that the maral of Prague asks look at the uh look at the maral this K this is page three the maral one of his great contributions is his commentary yes which is the one that came toy the bar barsa came to the party kamsa was his buddy he wanted kamsa there the invitation got lost in the mail and made it to baram's house and um so that's his question yes not yeah yeah Kam is not even in the story so this is what the maral writes and we'll just read a few lines in the maral what this is the maral prag and it's where the right in the middle of the uh there two paragraphs is an arrow V he says you should think about the following question and what's his sin in other words why does every Jew know and we know this for you know the last 2,000 years the the the destruction of the B mdash is that we're going to say because of it's Kam and bar that the that was destroyed says the you should know the following because in general there was this kind of enmity and people not liking one another there were clicks says the they took friends how did you choose your friends in that EnV ironment you choose your friends based on not necessarily who you liked about but people that were on your side and people that would take the other side people that you had your enemies I'm going to my click is going to be this this group of people not necessarily out of friendship but out of a you know out of a certain position right that they were on on the same team as uh as I'm on and that's why he befriended that kind of friendship is not a real friendship that's a friendship of divisive divisiveness and the marala prag says the following what is the word Kam mean like a Kaman and he says whenever we have words like this in a Gad they have meaning as well not only there are names what's a kamson anybody know stingy that's right there was a stinginess a stinginess in who we chose as friends a stinginess in terms of our hearts right in terms of who we wanted to be friend that was the environment and Kamas to some degree says the maral must have been guilty as well of that and that whole friendship their friendship with one another and the fact that they didn't bring baruma into that friendship that really reflects the kind of the kind of relationships that we have with one another and that really is a question for us today and that's what the gamar is saying to us right do we are we choosing our friends or our the camaraderie that we have only with people that see you know see the world the same way that share the same positions as we right are we able to be friends with those people that take uh that take another position that see things differently so that's the comeon that you're you're a cson in terms of the way that you treat one another yes please question yep I don't hate them but yes you know I'm it's a problem no no it's not so simple it's not a uh it's not a excuse me no it's not a simple not a simple thing it's a a complex issue but we have to begin with this with this understanding with this sensitivity with this approach in terms of trying to find trying to find a way to make peace and this now brings us to uh to the end of our the end of this year in terms of Ru cook himself did not only teach this did not only write about this idea but it was very much a part of his life very much a part of who he was and I want to share with you um just three three examples of uh in the writings of rook and a story or two of rook in terms of the aat that he had the avat Israel that he speaks about in terms of what it means for a Jew to be in the land of Israel to return to the land of Israel to appreciate what it means to have a nation here in Israel so this let's go to the bottom of the page this is Source number three I'll just read it to you share it to you in the Hebrew with the translation is actually from a volume called I have the name of the sa herea which is a book which is a collection really of oliv of cooks the love that he had for for am Israel and for his fellow Jew this comes from you see on the very bottom of the page R yob lein which is a son ofin the famous so he tells the following Al ruk would carry the Jewish people the nation of Israel on his heart in his heart he felt the pain he felt their pains as if it were were his own pains his heart was filled with there was one incident that his love of the Jewish people that he noticed he took note of this overwhelming love that he had forel my father of my father he was is very much moved by this love that he saw that R had for the nation and he asked how do you achieve real he answered the following just follow the which is theah to emulate and what does it say it says it says in the P that we the Jewish people are the children of ofm he this is an attribute of that we are called okay if you follow in the so just as Hashem sees every Jew as them that I see every Jew that way as well that just as Hashem acts as a father to his children so too I should have the Rahim I should have the mercy of a father to my children how could one not love their children and that's how he answered that's how he answered rarin to see every Jew as your own child and the way that you love every child no matter what that child does and asem that's a Mida of AEM turning now to the last the final page this is four on the top of the page is marea Raya and this is I think a pretty well-known statement that R cook makes about the way that we are to see one another and he speaks about different terms that are used for Jews in those years this is the top of page four in those years they would use I think like we use um we have and I don't know if they use that word in in the early years I think they called them K but there were two words that they used right for the religious community and the non-religious community and ruk was not happy about that was not happy the idea that there were any labels on Jews and he writes he says there are really three don't talk about two camps there really three camps of Isel there is a ancient that we have it's that the word that the word if you look at each letter and that really stands for sikim that is the Jewish community that we are one seore everybody is part of that seore but he writes you know what those terms are they're terms that we are to think about in terms of our own actions never to place those labels on anybody else that's for us to determine are we a sadik are we benoni are we a Russ God forbid as the gamar says that even people are calling you a sadic and say you're righteous you should see yourself as not being so righteous that You' you have a lot to improve on where should you be putting your effort think about yourself think about your your own actions don't be judging right everybody else we're very good at judging every other community and every other person but think about your own actions make that and you should look at your M look at your what's missing in your life right your mistakes right that which is that can be improved but always with a good eye to see others and here classic of cook and really classic and that is there may be hidden things you don't necessarily see it but in every single person that there's there there's hidden righteousness and potential so when you look at others see the potential in others when it comes to yourself so that's where you should be doing your and those terms terms we should not be using any terms yes you have aore but those are that's aad but that's just about yourself right just a way to evaluate yourself am I in the sadic camp I'm the B Camp Maybe I need to improve and not be in the Russia Camp one more one more uh line or two from of cook and I'll end with the following story this is from aota kodesh we go to the very bottom of the page and this is from one of the great works of uh of R cook which was compiled by the Nazir of daken it's a very very large work of all the philosophy of R cook and here R cook also speaks about I think this speaks to the idea of what it means for the Jewish people to return to the land of Israel and why there's a greater here that we find in the land of Israel a person must should free himself from personal concerns and preoccupations we should be thinking less as R cook about ourselves right think less about all of our problems all the issues that we're having and rather that fill all of our being right we begin to think more about and put more emphasis on our own lives what's right about our lives what's missing in our lives all the issues that we're facing but he says try not to think so much about that kind of move away from from all the personal preoccupations and personal concerns then you go into really like a small small way of thinking about life and about yourself and if you're going to be thinking about yourself and the focus is more on your personal self that becomes kind of selfish and uh it actually actually brings about a certain kind of uhur right it it I don't know it becomes like painful as you're thinking about all of the all the different pains and all the things that we're each of us are facing says than think less about that that all of your thoughts and all of your desire you should be thinking more about the sake of the nation and the to embrace all the where you can make your contribution to others what can you bring to the world around you that's what we should be thinking more about to others theum to all of the entire universe right to be focusing more on what can I do for others what can I add what can I bring to somebody else how can I help how can I be a help to others and through this it's low no sorry yes like B it'll be established for that person then you will establish your own personal life you'll create your own personal uh your personal path in the most positive way and I think that's part of what Ru cook has in mind when he speaks about aat Israel that's here in the land of Israel then we come to the land of Israel we are more concerned we tend to be more concerned with the nation that we're tied into to what's happening to the nation of Israel to Ben Israel to am Israel in uh in in the bigger sense of the the bigger sense of the word so R cook says yes we should try to focus as much as we can on on others let me conclude with uh with the following story this is a there's a book I'll just I'll just share it there's a rabbi here in Israel Kanan Kanan Morrison who's written a lot on R cook this is a these are stories of R cook stories from the land of Israel very beautiful collection of stories and he has the following the following story of Riv cook I think it was the year 1919 when Riv cook had what was called the masach Chua that he took a group of rabbis and he spent a number of weeks on the road as he was visiting the new kibuts the new settlements in the north specifically in the North of Israel and he wanted to connect with that community that in itself is already a KES if you think about what it means for a great Rabbi for a chief Rabbi to leave his world at the base medish and to go literally to go on the road and spend time and and we know many of the stories where he spent time in places that were not Sher shabas where it was not easy for him and for the group of rabbis that was there but to meet the people where they were and to show and to extend to them the love and appreciation the admiration that he had for them so a story is told there was a night in a uh in a kibuts called pora I don't know if it still exists today says near Taria and he was there in aot chabas he spent chabas in one kibuts he made his way to that kibuts to spend time again these were the the early Pioneers that were coming to khim as they were working the land of Israel they were coming back to the land of Israel many of them were not religious and he came and they were what they would often do they didn't have uh they didn't they didn't have internet and their iPhones in those days so at M shabas they would all get together they would sing together they would tell stories together did people ever do that people did that right you can do that yeah that something like that you can do today so that's what they did so he came there were a group of people they were together the the workers theim and uh he joined them he joined them in their singing in telling stories and at one point he asked two of the these fellows that were there to kind of come with him over to the side and he brought them to the side and he said if you don't mind could you can we change clothing with one another I'd like to put on your they were AIA AIA like the like the Arab dress like the Arab headgear that they would wear these the early settlers and they had rifles as well so of cook put on this Kia is that how you pronounce it Kia and and and he and he puts the uh and he puts the rifle around him and he comes back into the circle and he's now dancing now he's dressed as great Rabbi this this Rabbi who wor wore a strial right he's now dressed with his Arab gear on his head and with a rifle on his back and he's dancing and he's singing and he introduces one of his songsu that we should purify our hearts to serve Hashem and at that moment he turns to the group and he says you see that I'm not any different than you are right that you are you're wearing this dress but it's a dress that I wear as well in terms of you're bringing security and and how much you care for Amel right we are really we're really the same we're really not that different from one another and he said to them that just as you are shrim and that's who he took these these guards that he took the the rifle and and theia from these guards he says that I'd like you also to guard not only am Israel but if you could guard the Nish the soul that you have inside of you as well that you also have a great legacy that you come from Ab Y and yov and I want you to guard that as well so this is R cook who who extends his love who sees the who sees the best in one another I just I don't know think about like rabbis today for you know rabbis out of mayaram or wherever may be Ben and to to change clothing with a with a secular Jew that's what R that's what R cook did that evening and this was uh this was the this was the beauty of of his teaching the beauty of his life and what he believed to be one of the great things that will happen to Amel as we return to the land of Israel a greater sense of avat Israel a greater sense of love and concern of really feeling the Oneness the bond with uh with every Jew we should be Z we should be Z to feel that not only in war time we should feel that every every single day a great love and a great concern empathy and connectedness to one another wish everyone a uh a good day and a good week if anybody has any other comments or questions what good yes yes and a happy Tu bishvat to everybody enjoy tuat