Parshat Ki Tisa 5784 by Rabbi Baruch Taub

good evening everybody let's get started partis I sent in another sheet I didn't think I had enough material for tonight so I I'm I have David is going to um going to put it on the screen I think um we get to it let's go to one through five it's really a one to four is a preparation for beautiful thought from rutner and uh we have of course the story of the P AEL the golden caffin this week's para so number one you have a brief review of what went on V lorett Min and the people saw that mosha delayed in coming down the mountain and they they approached make us Elohim make us a God who will lead us we don't know what happened to he was late in coming back play on the word b she was like six hours late they they had made a miscalculation in any case he wasn't coming back they felt said to them take off all your golden jewelry which the women are wearing the earrings your sons your daughters bring everything to me they they did what they were told they gathered together the gold and they brought it all toon he took it from them he made anel a calf a a calf from mineral this is going to be the god lowercase G that's going to take you out of Egypt V was afraid the fun of he built him his he wanted to offer a Corb to a hoping that God will understand what he did and a called out to the people and he said tomorrow question is why did he say m there was a a whole Rush here bringing the gold bringing it together miraculously he made this AEL and all of a sudden he says tomorrow why we come back to this so they brought they brought sacrifices the people celebrated number of interpret ations of what it means we'll take a simple that that we're celebrating now God says to Moshe go down remember Moshe is up for 40 days receiving the Torah he tells him to go down because the people who you took out of have fallen okay so that's the first that's a little bit of an overview of the agel and of course mosha comes down and he breaks the luos right skip forwards number two the par which is the dedication of the Mish on the eth day of dedication mosha calls and his children the and the elders the benar another AEL again an AEL right remember the AEL of he tells him take an AEL take a calf is for a sin offering take a lamb for an offering offer to offering they skip down to PK Zion the second last PK so um go to the offered his come close to the Altar and offer your sin offering your burnt offering and you will find atonement you'll receive atonement for yourself and for all of Israel this and you will be forgiven offered on the and he theel the calf the agle of sin offering AO Rashi number three what's going on here how do we how do we connect these two situations there's there's something going on here first of all our question about marar why and told them M we'll come to that later but there's an obvious correlation here between the AEL that they made the golden calf and that Aon received received atonement for the people through offering anel a calf Raj says this teaches usel sha that through this agel that he was offering this was a quidd pro wo because of the AEL the calf that he offered this was a forgiveness for the agel of next rashan four come to the m was embarrassed he was afraid to come forward why are you embarrassed this is for what you were chosen for right atel Ben bard take this AEL Ben bakar this is what you were chosen what does what does Moshe mean this is what you were chosen for to bring this AEL why was Ain chosen to bring this agle which seems to be an atonement for the travesty of the golden calf of the worshipping of the golden calf what does tomorrow have to do with it okay so now let's see rev hutner this was a really by way of an introduction now this number five is a lengthy essay of rev hutner where he discussed is the Dual role of the Dual roles of Moshe and Aon Moshe represented D Moshe represented Law and Order Arin represented AA both elements were necessary in raising the Jewish people both elements you have to be strict you have to give them the D and you also have to so tell them a a sense of of AA you know today I I had a visit from a very uh rashash who happened to come come by and we were talking about K today and the problem in he says in in education today most most rash most teachers they're concerned about giving over the gamar giving over the lesson the din you have to learn you have to learn but you know it's it's like somebody once said about doctors the tragedy sometimes the doctors is they treat the medicine they treat the illness they don't treat the patient sometimes you have to see that a boy a student a girl a student something's bothering them what's wrong are you okay today you have to deal with both you need a Moshe you need an Aon every M every rebi has to be a little bit of both Moshe and Ain but in terms of the division of labor in CLA Israel this was it what it was so here in this paragraph he's really going to flesh out the uniqueness of aon's AA and how it developed and he brings out really a beautiful idea in in Chua he says many times I have discussed this in the ofner says b the the possibility of chuva the possibility of a person receiving forgiveness B is built on a foundation that there's something left in that person that is still clean that the person who's coming to the Reon he sined and he wants forgiveness his forgiveness is based many way in many in many ways on the fact that he's not 100% guilty there's something there's a Saving Grace in the person right which makes Chua possible for a sinner like this but a person who's completely covered in sin there's no hope for him there's no nothing he'll never come back if he's full of sin it's like he's worshiping idols but but the Saving Grace of a person's ability to do chuva is that there is a saving grace that there's there's some small some small measure of cleanliness in this person left in this person hesitation with the sin of the golden calf why were we ultimately forgiven from this terrible travesty the sin of the golden calf because there was a small a small something Saving Grace what was that that Ain wanted to stall and to put it off tomorrow you will celebrate with the golden calf and they accepted it they they has hesitated they didn't do it right away this was ain's hope to see at least they wouldn't rush into it Fools Rush In Aon was hoping that they would take the bait and they'd wait a day that showed that there was certain still a certain hesitancy on their part to make this terrible mistake this tomorrow is a contradiction to the sin of the golden calf and they're wanting to do it the whole the whole episode of the the tomorrow waiting tomorrow is a is a steer it's a contradiction in everything they wanted to do they were going to wait they rushed in they Mish rushed in six hours late right he put it off he wanted to put it off to sin till tomorrow this was an act of Love on the part of he revealed something to the Ron that there is a place in the heart of the Jewish people that is contrary to the sin that they want to do they're open there's a possibility of Chu and this is the reason the entire foundation of the forgiveness of the sin of the AEL this was done by Ain that's number two rash as Rashi says at the beginning of we we quoted that Rashi that come Ain you do this you you offer this as a you're gonna get a kapora here an atonement moshe's role was totally different mosha smashed the he came down he smashed the Torah he took a totally different approach while Israel had to see both they had to see the severity of what they did but they also had to see some kind of an opening an opening in a in a needle that Aon showed them MOS commanded you have to kill all the people who worshiped Idols who worshiped the idol that had to be done there was a great great Slaughter of people 3,000 people that were killed that was moshe's Role judged them not only that many of the laws of confession we learn from Moshe the the ability to say I'm sorry please have to say every you have to be one has to be very specific on the days of it's a right he's in a process of of judgment okay we're not in that mode now but just at the end here he quotes from the the source of Rashi this last paragraph is the source of the Rashi we read and it brings out a little more it's in the Tora Arin you come you come to the m AR was embarrassed he was he hesitated why are you hesitating this is what you were chosen for meaning all of our efforts mosha says to Aon to keep the to keep the divine presence amongst the Jewish people to keep the Jewish people on the right track we knew that there was going to somehow be forgiveness for the my brother Aon many it's you my brother better it should come from you deserve to bring about the atonement for the through your giving anel will stay with us amongst the Jewish people and that hasem chose us in other words Ain was privileged to be the one to offer the corbon which was a Corbin that was offered to as a an atonement of forgiveness for CLA Isel for their chuva he was Aon was chosen be at the inauguration of the mishkan the mishan was inaugurated we were given the mishan how after the AEL is not going to be a more mishkan but the mishkan was built the mishkan was given to us was returned to us that we would have the mishkan because of aon's pushing off his hesitation is creating a day of delay and demonstrating that the Jewish people were willing to wait that there was that that that nuda that holy spark in the Jewish people not to completely sin okay this is a few examples that this is not an isolated situation you know Ren points out that the Torah says that the punishment of makot of makos of Stripes of uh right is arim 40 Lashes but we only give 39 why do we only give 39 lashes the Torah says 40 so many answers to this but says very beautifully says because Torah assumes that every Jew every a that he does there's a little bit of hesitation there's a little bit ofes right AA sometimes you have to hesitate right the story about the stier gone father Kim keski that when he was in the Russian army as a young man he had to do guard Duty in Siberia the guard was given a very heavy coat to wear was you can imagine the Siberian winter and the coat was never checked for Shotz and he didn't want to put it on so he stood guard below below below zero weather he said another five minutes he waited for another five minutes another five minutes and he never put it on right I heard a similar story about reel Yosi re Yos when he in his at the end near the end of his life he had very difficulty walking and he sat and learned all day right and people came to see him he pin shilas he was running clail posting a door and the family was very concerned he had a walk a little bit so they they took a student and they made up with him he's got to go in and tell him that he wants to walk with him he has to discuss something with him so they set up this whole thing and he went into R Yos and Ros was sitting and learning and he said what how can I help you he says listen Reby he said um I spoke to the doctors and they said you should walk a little bit you have to walk a little bit Let's Take a Walk So said okay soon few minutes later right a few minutes later right okay you want to learn a few minutes later somebody once said the Al froma once said that he would know the he would study his talum he'd see the greatness in their in his students not by the way they they opened the gamorra when they came in to learn but when they closed the gamorra at the end when it was time to go to lunch how they closed the gamor and went out of the base matter need that's how he saw the greatness of his students okay um second said wait till tomorrow tomorrow was when mosha came down correct correct very good at least one of three times right no mo came down mar car also very nice very nice very nice okay let's go to page two there was the third page that I gave you that I gave I think David is going to um go I somehow it this appeared oh here it is okay let's do page two and then we'll get to page three page two is from the safer iash from haash altar from the G rashash ra alar a beautiful idea here um had a golden thing that he used to say if the Jewish people would have not have sinned with the the would be shining within every single Jew it uninterrupted right without the Mish right without having the Mish to give us that sense of of in us right that sense of a in every Jew we would have had it if we wouldn't the sin right listen there's a mistake that people make listen to what he's going to saying to rash the whole building of the Mish we know that it was after the it was it was after the C we needed we needed something we needed a place for K to come and reside to to recreate the spirituality that was so necessary after that terrible moment idol worship according to many that they they they said they let's say he wants to say they what the Jewish people did is they replaced the Reon with physicality with material physicality a golden calf right right it was an Embrace of of this world whereas Theon wants to take us to the better worlds right is hidden what the really is is not clear what it is it's very hard to discover God in this world right God is hidden in this world right very hard to see right we're living through a time now where it's very challenging right to see what the ronam is is is doing what his plan is very hard to see what that plan is in this world this world is it's it's not it's not it's not good right God's presence you don't really see in a building in a physical building El in the mishkan you won't really see him in a you build the greatest beautiful mishkan build the sh build the you won't see the [Music] Reon you only see God in the in the hearts of of the Jewish people and that was the tragedy that that he says if not for the the golden calf it would it would be in their hearts right okay there was a necessity after the to build something powerful spiritual in in a physical sense for what purpose listen to what he says mikash we have this is what's really being said it's not that mikdash Mish a tabernacle is being built to restore the Holiness of God in that building because it was lost in the hearts of the Jewish people at the time of the idol of the golden Cal don't make a mistake that's not what's going on here we didn't bring this F build this fancy beautiful holy Tabernacle holy mishan to bring back the kadha in there that we're lacking in ourselves after the don't think that left the hearts of the Jewish people now only in the in the Mish is going to be God's presence false false you're going to tell me that the hearts of the Jewish people were empty of the presence of God late no such thing God says that God Lives within every single Jew right he never left us we left him we didn't recog recogniz our spirituality but Theon he built that mishkan so that we would be involved in the aish to recognize and to awaken within ourselves the the sh that is still within us that we have we have put to sleep the next column the holy the command is build a mishkan so I will dwell amongst them but doesn't say build the Mish and I will live right amongst amongst the Jewish people singular right plural you build that physical Mish it's just going to and do what you're supposed to do there it's going to bring back the presence of Theon within each and every one of you even after the sin this this basic fundamental did not change the presence the divine presence of is within the heart of every single Jew sometimes there are layers and layers and layers that you know we all know stories about people we've seen these stories in the last three months of people who are so far removed from Torah and mitv and something happens and they they open up in a an overwhelmingly spiritual way there was last Shabbat there was a a shabas in y that was arranged by an organization a very special organization of women who learn with thousands of non religious women an organization I forget the name of it it's not important but they they've done a tremendous amount of inspiration in the completely secular Kil world and they did The Impossible they planned a Shabbat for the hostage families and they brought the hostage most of the hostage families came for Shabbat there was a lot of resistance whatever it was they're coming to convince to convert US it was an incredible experience and one person who was an observer said that by one of the great one of the greatest scenes was at luus Neighbors when they lit shabas candles it was an incred the crying the doing the the waking up of hearts for people shabas the experience that people had the commitment people made after that without being told we want you to get we we're not telling you to do shabas we just want you to experience what we're about and we should get to know each other we're not far apart so is always within the Jew sometimes it's dormant sometimes it's sleeping so the idea that that uh that Fus said that the Jews would have the Jewish Soul would have been awake in every Jew if not for theel he didn't mean that it's not there anymore that the mishkan was necessary the Mish was necessary not to give us a place of of of sh but to bring the sh back from from ourselves all the presence that God gives us it's forever it's Eternal God gives us something he gives us a doesn't take it away from us says whatever next he says in in the heart of every single Jew there is the dwelling of God's presence even after he sins we change become more physical more materal and we we don't see we're blind and with our physical eyes which are are cloes which are we ask Where's God Where's God we don't feel him in our hearts the truth is the presence of God is just is like it was before the sin before we Sinn before theel it's there and he quotes the I think we quoted this a few weeks ago is the said somebody asked the K where does live he said in he says wherever you let him in lives wherever you open the door and let him in he lives everywhere but after the there was a necessity for building a physical Tabernacle in order for us to recognize and feel that the Holiness is actually within us right said okay I wna the next I'm going to skip the next two things I want to do another another page three is it up on the screen do you have the page okay this is a piece from my Hebrew safer canona on this week's para and there's some interesting things here we have the beginning of the paraa we have we have the Mak right we we were given the Commandment to offer everybody had to bring a donation uh three times we brought three for three different things one one was for the building of the the Mishka one for the carbonis the other is for the sockets that brought held everything together and he he says I want you to tell people how am i counting them I'm counting them not by head I'm counting them everybody has to bring a a a a 50 cent piece at a half a shek and that's how I'm going to count them so um Rashi alar d so Rashi says he showed him a um a coin on fire right coming out of the the way you make a coin it's right weight was a half a this point that I'm minting now I'm showing you that's what you have to right as I point out there three times altoe where he's commanded in this okay let's go down one two three about 10 lines down I'm sorry I put something in here this I this was a rush job David I appreciate you're putting it up he's asking a question to mosenu the question is why did he have to show why did God have to show him the money show me the money right why did he have to show him the money it seems that that they were aware of this coinage the last line in that first paragraph why do you have to show it to him why couldn't he just tell them right tell M so here's what we say here one way to answer this question ISO was on uncommon denominator in the rest of the world the rest of CLA Israel the rest of the world certainly he was not involved in the physicality of the world concept of money silver coinage didn't it didn't speak to him money didn't speak to him understand it money is you know what makes the world go around in the physical world it's all about money right it's all about checking the stock market the first thing in the morning it's all about money right how is it possible that CL is is going to be counted and the of the importance of every individual Jew they should be counted through money he didn't understand it showed showed him a coin on fire to explain to that gmas physicality the material world can dovetail and enhance the spirituality they they come together the Goof and the Nish come together the physical world money if it used properly has a holy purpose and that's what I'm GNA prove to you this great MIT of I'm going to show you what it demonstrates is the utility of the Holiness the potential Holiness in phys in the physical world not just in what we perceive to be purely Torah and Mitzvah but in the physical world also so here I want to bring out here at to drive it home a mission this is teaching us a tremendous tah is the bridge it's the synthesis between the physical world and the spiritual world right it's not physicality is not a contradiction to the Tor does not have to be a contradiction to Torah if you have the pr attitude you can bring physicality into the highest level of spirituality here's the idea in a listen well to the mishna if someone is taking a trip he's on the train and he's sitting with a safer and he's learning he's sitting on the train by the window and he's learning and he interrupts his learning and he says he looks out the window and he says how beautiful is that he sees a beautiful farmer tree how beautiful is that plow field he's guilty of death right's going on here what did he do he took a minute minute to breathe to look out the window why is he guilty of death for this right so listen to the explanation that meim give to this mishna what he did wrong right the simple understanding of this is superficial way of looking at this mission is he's worthy of death because he stopped learning Torah and he's looking at the trees and the nature and the sunset right he says he explains completely different guys's on a trip he should keep learning he shouldn't be involved in something else it's just the opposite it's just the opposite means to interrupt doesn't mean to stop learning to interrupt to to interrupt let me let me put it in my own words right let me put this my own words too in HEB but let me put in my own words in English if a person does not look out that window and see the Nexus the connection between the beautiful natural world that gave us that beautiful tree and the gor that I'm learning here sitting in my train then he's failed this is he has to see the the relationship between the physical world and the spiritual world that's the tragedy that's the what they what the Mion is saying metaphorically if a person is traveling and he's learning and he sees the and he says he's interrupt to see nature he doesn't see the connection between the beauty of the world around him the beauty of humanities the beauty of science the beauty of the world that he's living in the physical world together with the world of Torah this person is not alive he's worthy of death means he's not really living because that's not that's not life right final paragraph Torah is connected to the world see the relationship between science and the world and Torah if he doesn't see the connectedness he doesn't really see what the world is all about right so this is a beautiful idea and that's really the lesson that mosha was given by showing him the money mosha viewed money as being the antithesis represents all the physical world Theon is showing that this can be used for a holy purpose now