Parsha Perspectives for Today (Ki Savo, 5784) - Confronting Mortality

good morning B welcome back to paraa perspectives for today we have the privilege of reading and learning Paras kiso extracting some lessons and perspectives to inspire our life today I want to thank as always our generous series sponsors Becky and aviats and family in memory of Becky's Father David grman our learning is L nishas David Ben I'm also excited to dedicate this morning sheer to noan Burger and mikal Raskin who I believe just got engaged today in Israel no only last week completed his miluim his service fighting on the front lines of the Jewish people and met no on WhatsApp and honored that we learned together online apparently listens to the sh very excited a hug build a beautiful and a big big mazov to them both okay kavo is Page 1068 in the AR Stone Kish and the par begins and it happens when we enter the land that God gives us we should possess it and we should settle it inhabit it we should live there perhaps there's a Mitzvah in the Torah to live in Israel is a big debate is there a formal Mitzvah is it a prerequisite and an assumption is that a Mitzvah like a Mitzvah kumus you fulfill it if you do it but maybe notus you're obligated a big discussion but what's clear is the centrality of Israel in our lives we are here outside of Israel temporarily it's impermanent it's a stopover we're just just we're on our way the destination where we really belong where Judaism really comes together Tel the three are integrated most hashem's design and formula for our lives is in the land and therefore the Torah takes it as an assumption this is moshe's Soliloquy is monologue to the Jewish people when you enter the Land There is a Mitzvah and what's that Mitzvah take a first of every fruit on the ground that you bring into the land um put it in the basket and bring it to that place that the that God is a sh an accessible close neighbor chooses to dwell and as we've alluded to many times Torah here does not give us the address does not give us the coordinates does not give us exactly where that place is because the Torah wants us to search to yearn to Inuit it to be spiritually attuned and magnetically pulled to to find that place so doesn't tell us y explicitly doesn't say where the B mikdash is just tells us to the place that God chose and then the Torah goes on and gives us the specifics put in the basket come to the co present the basket lift it shake it and a certain recitation a certain formula that we recite something that we say so I want to begin we've discussed this many times in the past each year we try to bring New Perspectives could listen to previous years's para it's the same para the same topics but hopefully bringing some New Perspectives para begins with this Mitzvah of B the farmer has to bring the first fruit so the farmer is tracking that bud the first fruit that's presenting from a tree the farmer ties a ribbon around a bow around therefore designates it identifies it and when the time comes to pluck that first fruit to bring it the bdash present to the co and make the special Proclamation the MRA the med tells us that in the Merit of three things the world was created the Merit of three things and one of them is Mitzvah Bikur why how does Bikur make the list we have 613 Mitzvah and Bikur is lovely the image of the first fruit and gratitude for our first and bringing it to and the ceremony that accomp accompanies it it's a beautiful image but it's one of 613 why in that Merit was the Torah given such an exciting Mitzvah that drives creation and moreover Theus wonders why do we read the Mitzvah of BM specifically before rashash what are we supposed to take away from this Mitzvah that helps Orient and anchor this time of year helps us get ready and look forward to rashash and the year that will be so I want to share with you an Insight a little bit my own a little bit I've seen in others a little bit from the Garita a beautiful beautiful Insight that he adds to this as well in this Proclamation and we're all familiar with the proclamation that the farmer says when he brings the first fruit where do we know it from not only because we read each year but we're familiar with it from the PES seder the farmer doesn't just present the the fruit and Express gratitude he goes all the way back to the beginning my forefather yov settled in Egypt and then there was oppression and persecution then there were miracles of MIT and then he took us into Israel then I got this Farm why do we go all the way back why don't we just pick up with thank you for the fruit I have a first fruit look at my mango look at my orange look at my grapefruit thank you Hashem I don't take it for granted that this tree produced the fruit I think all the way back to Creation six days God created the world and then my great great grandparents were born and then we went through this and then we went there and then we migrated here why are we adding too much why are we adding too much so we've spoken in the past an answer to that question that gratitude is not only about that moment gratitude is a bigger and broader picture and when I mentioned this in the past I gave the example often at a family Sim often at a family Sim when the grandparents speak they'll talk about not just the bar mitzvah boy not just the couple the chevas they'll talk about their parents and their grandparents what we escaped where we lived when we immigrated how we rebuilt don't think this moment this isolated moment came on its own see it as part of a bigger picture see as part of a bigger perspective understand and know where you come from and what it took to get here and the Gratitude is not just for this bar mitzvah and the Gratitude is not just for the chevas the Gratitude is for your great great grandparents surviving what they survived coming here and where we are we've said that past in the past but I want to give a different answer there's an anomaly in this Mitzvah the farmer didn't just FedEx some fruit he doesn't throw the fruit in the back of the car and drop them off he doesn't call a reverse Uber eat to bring his fruit to the mishna and Bikur describe a lengthly celebratory ornate elaborate ostentatious ceremony it's filled with Pomp and Circumstance the people would line the streets and there was an Entourage and they would escort the farmer the animals in the parade would be adorned in Gold instruments and a band and a symphony would come and they would play you'd hire one or two or three of the most famous and popular je music singers of the day and there was an entire it's like a typical wedding now but there was an entire ceremony and pump and Circumstance for the bringing of this little first fruit a little fig a little figa not all first fruit I gave some bad examples before but a fig we're talking about the meim the honor and distinction awarded the otherwise Anonymous farmer is very beautiful but why only for this Mitzvah of where is the parallel Parade When the farmer harvests all that grows on his field and separates truma and maos takes the tithe when you add up all the tithing responsibility truma gadola Myer myani Meer sheni depending on the year the farmer is taking approximately 20% of his or her income and giving it to charity and when the farmer harvests their field takes 20% and designates it for others you know who's watching nobody you know who's playing music nobody know who's uding and caring absolutely nobody So 20% nobody cares and a little fig because you tied a little ribbon and you brought it we make a parade and an Entourage and pump in circumstance and Glory what is the difference what is the difference between the two alter also expands on these questions theal in writes when you enter the land and the medish understands we entering the land in the in the Merit of the mitah ask asks what do you mean you Merit entering the land because of the Mitzvah you can't fulfill the Mitzvah Bikur until when you enter the land so it's circular logic how can you say we inherit the land we we Merit the land because of the Mitzvah we don't fulfill the Mitzvah until we're in the land another question and asks some more in this comparison to truma which is also called racist it's also called first both may be eaten only by Kim but the locations are different truma can be eaten where all over Israel any place with the sanctity of Israel whereas Bikur the first fruit have to be eaten exclusively where only in y truma is only taken from produce that has been detached from the ground once you've harvested the field now you separate the truma whereas bikum is set aside from the very beginning of its growth you identify that first Bud that first growth you tie that ribbon before it's separated before it's ripened before it's fully grown another difference another distinction between the two between the two fruits become Bikur and are swallowed up at the very beginning of their existence before the owner can enjoy their crop and until truma separated all the produces forbidden as T so when you tie the ribbon around that first fig all the other figs you can enjoy pluck take eat enjoy but truma all the food is considered te until you separate the truma the rest of the food is forbidden so there are three four five six fundamental differences between B to separate that first fruit and all these other rules and laws of separating something for the farmer and bringing it to the land why the difference between so the answer lies in a difference between M and Bikur and the difference I would suggest to you this morning is the following one is retrospective and one is prospective when Myer is given and truma is given and when the Bikur are offered are fundamentally different when do you give truma and Myer after harvesting after collecting after Gathering after bringing the income in for the season so you sit with your accountant and you say I have this many dunam I have this many acres I have this many fields and here's the Harvest that my Fields yielded this year so I need to separate this goes to this that one goes to that 20% goes but what are you left with it's not complicated math people thank you you're left with 80% so yes up to 20% is distributed but 80% is in front of you is extand you take home you enjoy you benefit from and you see it what about person goes down to the field sees a fig first blossoming ties a ribbon around it designates it and pledges I'm bringing this to the B mikdash I'm giving this to the coin this is for God and What Does the Farmer know he's getting at that moment at that time what else does he see or have grin nothing nothing all there is is the beginning of the first fig and in that moment not knowing what else they're going to get not knowing what else they'll Harvest not knowing what other income they'll bring in not knowing what else they'll have will there be a hurricane will terrorists come take their land raid their field where pestilence destroy the crop when the farmer brings Bikur they have no confidence or certainty no idea what the future will bring and they bring it nonetheless and yet the Torah says without security without knowing what the future holds stop and take your first fruit and celebrate that moment and most importantly what is at the core of BM be grateful stop pause and say I don't know what will be I don't know what will happen I don't know what I'll bring in I don't know what I'll have I don't know what will happen but for this fig it's worth stopping to say thank you and not only for this fig because you know my family went down to Egypt my family survived the Holocaust my f family were expelled from a country my family came and lived through the Great depression my family had to survive getting fired every shabus when they refused to work not just for this first fig but what did it take what were the odds that I would be here right now and in this moment and so true in contrast to truma and mea to the tithing where 80% yeah 20% I'm giving away but you're not a hero you don't get a parade no musical accompaniment you know why because you get to take home 80% of that paycheck you know what you're going to have you know how you could live you can set up your life for that year but when it comes to beur from that first fig you have no knowledge and you're willing to give it away anyway you stop and you pause and you say thank you without knowing what is to come with gratitude for everything it took to get you there wow we want to watch we want to applaud we want to play music we want an Entourage and a parade we want to promote that attitude that mentality that philosophy that with uncertainty and with unknown we stop we pause and we are grateful and maybe that's what it means the world was created in this because the world our personal world needs gratitude and appreciation even or especially when we Face uncertainty when we look back at the challenges and the hardships and the struggles and the sadness and the loss on the one hand it makes us sad but on the other hand it makes us all the more grateful for the little fig of life for the little moments for the little micro moments of gratitude no matter how small no matter how big no matter how Bountiful no no matter how plentiful no matter how puny no matter how pathetic if it's just as fig but what were the odds we would be here so we pause and we say thank you and that farmer that farmer looks at his new fruit he doesn't just see new fruit he sees everything it took to get him and feel grateful for that and I would suggest to you different when this Fus answers that maybe maybe that's why we read B before rashash because we're that time of year that there's so much uncertainty so much anxiousness of what the future holds we don't know what comes next but it's D in this moment this precipice this transition point between the past year and the next year that we stop and we say thank you we say thank you and if that's true in every year all the more so that's true in this year think about last rashish none of us could have imagined when we D last rash what we were daving for none of us could have pictured her 7eventh in almost 12 months almost a year now that hostages wouldn't be home the longest soldiers have fought in a war in Israel's history the stretch none of us could have imagined none of us knew none of us and what do we know about what the year ahead will bring please God so much better only good things only boros toos we do good news but none of us know and it's this moment of uncertainty that the lesson and the message of Bikur is nevertheless pause and stop and say thank you for the little things but here's the thing we don't just say thank you there's a the Torah commands us and here's the formula here's the recitation here is the text here's the Liturgy here's what we say answer and recite and Rashi and our based on the gar explains the word could have just said recite say the formula why refers to don't just whisper in a loud voice scream thank you don't just say thank you thank you could be some of my kid what do you say thank you no thank you thank you a big thank youas why does it have to be BAS we don't have this when it comes to other things there's no obligation when to make a when you say is the silent and yet the scream it out of you know he says the following he says you know when people scream out when they're in a crisis Hashem I need you it's an emergency there's a crisis bring the hostages let the soldiers be victorious someone is sick give them someone wants to get married someone's trying to have children there's a crisis there's an emergency Hashem we need you when do we scream the koram when there's an emergency urgency a crisis and when it comes to afterwards we tend to thank you if we remember at all we just move on so the the context of is that our thank you has to be as loud as our I need you usually we scream our I need you and we whimper we whisper our thank you our thank you has to be as loud as our I need you so that's on the cusp of rashash that's why we read M when we do and how we do and that's why it explains explains that's why the differences between these laws and as Alesha he says when you separate TR a person gives Hashem a portion of his produce and after that their Affairs are settled they know what they have but Bikur is prospective bikum you don't yet know what you're going to have so he uses that difference to explain all those differences in the truma could be eaten anywhere in Israel because it's holy consecrated food could be eaten has to be in Israel but across Israel but BM is special you don't yet know what you're going to have that is reserved for y the sanctity of Y and truma only when it's separated even when it's attached and all these laws can be explained with this special understanding of the difference between it and concludes Thea we have to take this lesson to heart we do our best to serve Hashem properly and fulfill all of the mitzvos but sometimes we do it for the wrong reasons our honor our COV our child we don't want to be punished we do it for the wrong reasons so teaches us reminds us to do it for the right reasons we're doing it and we're gifting it to Hashem racious this is the beginning of everything this little fig Hashem I put in my oil I planted I plowed I watered I nurtured and then I take the result and I give it to you I don't even get to enjoy because it's all for you I was created to serve you it's all for you and that's what it is about and that explains in the beginning of our paraa this opening this difference and why there's so much surrounding why there's so much surrounding the Mitzvah of bikum now in understanding bikum it's important to not only see the beginning of our Para but as we often do Theos the ju the position the contrast the Continuum of where something appears relative to what comes after it and what comes before it so what came before bikum the end of last week's para what's the end of last week's paraa don't forget what aik did the evil Wicked nefarious amalik who snuck up on you and when you read last week at the end of kavo they came and they attacked us from behind who did they go after the women and the children the innocent and the vulnerable and the amalik of our timeas the htis Omar theas members of our time the the amalik of our time equally who did Kamas go after they went after the vulnerable the fragile and the children whom they still have and we D for their return so what's the connection between amalik at the end of last week and B the beginning of this week are we do we extrapolate do we learn do we derive lessons from where the paros fall out even according to the one who holds we're not Dar he agrees that in M Tor we're even though in the first four books don't derive too much from where things appear even that opinion says in the fifth book in the book of we do learn from the Jos so everyone agrees in the fifth book of the Torah we do learn so what's there to learn what's the connection the end of the Jews are attacked by amalik the P proceeding this event says and then immediately it follows that we asked and we wondered is God amongst us is God amidst us or not and then right after we demonstrated doubt right after we expressed a little crack a little doubt that's when amalik pounced that's when amalik attacked and Rashi there explains the connection says I am always among you and I am always providing for you so when you the comes and bites you the dog bites you and you wonder where I am like a person who puts their child on their shoulders and they go on the way so the child sitting on his father's shoulder sees an object in the ground and says Dad bend down lift that up give it to me he gives it to his son the second and the third time meet someone then the child on the shoulder says have you seen my father what do you mean have you seen my father you're riding on my shoulders I just bent down three times to give you things so what does the father do so the father throws the child off of his shoulders and says you're on your own and a dog comes and bites the child for carrying you on my shoulders protecting you providing for you bending down for you you ask the Str has you seen my father that's what Hashem says I've been carrying you on my shoulders I protect you I secure you I provide for you and you have the to say has anyone seen God he says has anyone seen God you know what I'm out you're on your own let's see how it goes and when Hashem withdraws and he says you're now exposed and you're on your own who comes and attacks amalik amalik that says Rashi is the is the connection is the connection amalik attacks when we have a lack of recognition so says Weinfeld says Weinfeld his new sa for is going to come out soon fantastic the essence of the Mitzvah B is what we explained is an exercise in gratitude asash says on our when you say MRA what are you saying God I'm not an ingrate I'm not an ingrate a little fig I don't know what else is going to come I have no idea what will be but for the Fig alone I'm grateful I'm grateful for the Fig alone I'm grateful the mitvah is placed immediately after the Mitzvah remembering amik says rafeld to teach us that we are supposed to have a car for all the good that God does because when we feel unworthy then we are thankful and are filled with gratitude and if we feel a sense of entitlement and worthiness then we won't be thankful aik amalik are all about chance and Randomness and happen stance and there is no God and so Malik are all about no gratitude because in order to feel grateful what do you have to be humble famous teaching of rutner we've shared many times we have the same word in Hebrew and mod mod means you say Goldberg you owe me a 100 bucks I say a mod what does mod mean there I admit I concede I admit mod Al means I'm so grateful to you for that kindness that you showed me so why do we have the same word for gratitude and admission says rautner because they're Z they're a synonym they're the same thing every time someone expresses gratitude they are admitting I needed you I benefited from you I am enriched by you and a person who's Hy and arrogant person who insists on feeling independent and doesn't want to say I needed you I benefited from you an arrogant person struggles to say thank you gratitude is an exercise in humility a humble person says I have no problem saying thank you thank you you helped me you enriched me my life is better because of you I couldn't have done it without you every thank you and is an admission I needed you so it's the same word in Hebrew the same word aik who think there's no God I exist on my own I'm independent on the Orbiter of my destiny I'm responsible for My Success the world is filled with random and chance there is no God amalik can't say thank you the antidote to amalik the end of last week's para remember what amalik did is the Mitzvah ofurum this week the antidote to amalik no gratitude because of arrogance be humble say thank you even for the simple fig reinfeld points out parenthetically the side not what's the translation Rashi quoted the farmer brings the Bikur and says I'm not a Kao to I'm not an ingrate what is the translation of the word kafui I'm not kafu to I'm not an ingrate what does the word kafu mean so sometimes people mistakenly think kafu here is from the word cofair cofair I'm I'm a heretic I'm I'm a denier I'm denying that you did good but that can't be that can't be what it means because then the word wouldn't be Ka it would be connected to kof so Weinfeld explains there are two meanings toar inar we we say when someone's grateful we describe them as having recognizing the good one is recognizing the good and the second is recognizing the benefactor of that good if one lacks that recognition then whatever is bestowed upon Him is like being forced upon him because he doesn't understand that it's good so it comes from the L of Koso Koso means that you force someone you coers someone has a big discussion someone doesn't want to give a get can we coers them to give a get someone doesn't want to give sta what they should be giving the we're entitled to coers them to give the proper percentage of sta they should be giving the word kofen means to coers so what it means is when a person's cway Tove explains Weinfeld and doesn't recognize what's happening to him as good he doesn't recognize the good being bestowed upon him the good is being forced on him he's Ka to the good is forced on him and he's not receiving receiving it and accepting it and experiencing it and expressing gratitude for it could come from the word kofen like it's forced the good is being forced on him almost against his will we shouldn't be we shouldn't be so the juxtoposition of amalik last week's par and then MRA what came before am Malik in last week's paraa have honest weights and measures we spoke about on chabas if you don't have honest weights and measures if you don't report your taxes honestly if you cheat business if you cut Corners if you Market ruthlessly or compete ruthlessly if you're dishonest to hasem it's an Abomination to God it is repulsive dishonesty is deviant behavior in God's eyes he rejects it he rejects it and then comes a Malik and then comes B what's the connection of a Malik to dishonest weights and measures the me says if you're dishonest in Commerce in transactions in your weights and your scales then a Malik will come attack you the N was bothered in the desert did we have Commerce were we transacting did we have a Marketplace did we have weights and measures and scales no we had the M that fell from heaven we were sitting in string learning in K and we travel for 40 years so what was the Torah saying because you had dishonest weights and measures that's why Amal came and attacked that's the question of the on last week's para the has an amazing the NV says why are dishonest weights and measures considered to it's deviant it's repulsive it's an Abomination to God why why why and why is the law writes in Mish not only are you not allowed to use dishonest weights and measures that are calibrated incorrectly inaccurately you're not even allowed to own them you cannot own a scale in your house that's not calibrated accurately so significant so severe why not so then says the following and S says you know somebody leaves a dollar on the table and you have nothing to eat and you're tempted to take that dollar to go to a vending machine it's wrong it's immoral but you were driven by a momentary Temptation by your hunger pay and you took the dollar did something wrong you're accountable you're liable there are consequences but there was a a momentary urge that you gave into dishonest weights and measures is institutionalized fraud it means a person says to themselves running a business but I'm afraid I'm not going to earn enough I want more and so I need to cheat I need to I need to compromise and corrupt my scales and measures I need to be dishonest in business because I want more and I'm afraid I won't have enough and I didn't just give into an urge of the moment I've institutionalized it I've made it built it into my business that says the NV that's bad that's an Abomination to God why it's unethical to to man but it's also heresy to God why because the person who lives with a and believes that Hashem created the world and everything in it and he's in charge of my life I'm not afraid he'll give and he'll provide exactly what I need I have to work hard I have to take my initiative but in the end of the day on rashash it's decided what my income will be for the year Hashem decides Hashem decides you think you're going to cheat God because you you cheated the weights and measures you're denying God's role in your life and you're denying he can and does provide everything we need if all of a sudden we affect the weights and measures what's the antidote so you have dishonest weights and measures so answer then it's if it's true in the midbar in the desert we didn't have weights and measures Commerce transactions but we did have kir we did have heresy and a failure to see God and that's what the medish meant a failure to see God leads to a Malik who don't see God you want to create a Community you want to create a culture that's Randomness and chance welcome to a world of amalik of Randomness and chance if you want a world of God's Providence then live a life create a community and a culture of faith and surrender and submission to God what's that world look like a world of bikum that we take that first fig and make our way all the way to and make a big parade and not knowing what else is to come have the ability to stop and pause and say thank you thank you Hashem for this gift it is extraordinary thank you for what you've given me we have this formula any the formula we're familiar with it from the P we're not going to repeat right now who is the Aran Ari an aramean tried to destroy my forefather who's the arami lvan did Lan try to kill yov not so here we sit at the Seder and we say an aramean tried to L tried to trick him he was dishonest with him but he didn't try to kill him so what do we mean so I'll leave that for the S we went and we live there what are the words mean we live there come on people you say it the S every year twice we live in gas you could also cheat and just look at the art girl we lived in Egypt few in number and then we lived in Egypt persecuted oppressed few in number and then we grew to become a great nation what are the words few in number but there ma means few what's the root of the word Miss so says the following man is both a weak and a strong being he's a master of his environment as well as prisoner of the same environment he's wise as well as foolish he possesses fortitude in the at the same time as a frightened being his main preoccupation is fear of death the word m is used to refer to a man as mortal being IR missim means the town of Mortals missim portrays man as weak helpless transient who's here today and tomorrow in the grave shortlived perplexed horrified by the vision of death and seeing Extinction B denotes few Mortals poor earing immigrants our anthropology poy is a dialectical one man is a big to imagine that salich only learned English when he came to America when you read the way he wrote and spoke you just can't feel any stupider the man immigrated at an advanced adult age didn't speak English came here and then our anthropology is a dialectical one people for whom English is their first language need a dictionary to look up what the r is talking about man is a big lie a non-being he's also a being could rise to the Stars man is both weak and Powerful he SS but he also illuminates and he shines the missim who left Egypt Rose to dizzying Heights a few months later when they responded to God's challenge Nas vishma the word comes from the word MCE death you know what makes us humble confronting mortality My article this week I wrote you know Trump very defiantly posted on Twitter succinctly on Sunday after surviving a second assassination attempt all he wrote was0 for two very trumpian that was his tweet o for two that's what that's all he wrote zero das2 oh for two we would say he clearly is not we must have a red Bendle tied around his wrist former president Trump he's not worried about aara he wrote 0 for two but the truth is you don't have to be targeted for assassination to confront mortality we all do when people love we love and around us pass away parents family members person gets a diagnosis just the fear a new term what they call Fogo you heard of fomo Fogo is fear of growing old when we confront our age and our mortality a person confronts mortality so it could be debilitating confronting mortality it can be paralyzed in confronting mortality if you stop and you say well what's the point of it I'm all gonna die I don't know when I'm G to die what's the point what's the point but kazal saw exactly the opposite confronting mortality is not is not morbid and it's not debilitating it's inspiring it's invigorating it's motivating when you confront mortality when you think about death how impermanent we are you're ready to fully Embrace Life and live life yum Kipper is a dress rehearsal for death I give you 10 examples but we don't have time now but from karus and killing the chicken on our behalf to reading about the the to wearing a k which is literally what we're going to be buried in it is literally a dress rehearsal for death from fasting because we don't even have a body it's as if we've died and we're just a soul everything about y Kipper is a dress rehearsal for death why because it's such a depressing sad miserable day no the opposite because when we spend one day every year as a dress rehearsal for our death we emerge ready to fully live life that's why kazal said that a person when they are in the throws of their passion and Temptation you're about to give in and indulge the worst part of yourself listen to your if it doesn't work learn Torah that doesn't work say shma and if that doesn't work you know what the nuclear option is think about when you're going to die Picture Your Grave picture your funeral think about your day of death and that that's the nuclear option to try to motivate you to live life or mortality confronting mortality is not a bad thing it's a very healthy thing it's a very good thing it's a very inspiring and motivating thing it's why we do it once a year on and that's what means here continuing Torah goes on with this formula we're turning the page and the Torah says the following you separate the Trum and Myas the farmer separates all the tides and when he does and he comes and he declares he says to God he says I took care of I eliminated I obliterated everything that wasn't supposed to be in my house I distributed all the all the tithes the L the I did everything exactly the way you told me I didn't forget anything I didn't violate anything I did I did everything perfectly I I'm perfect I hate to say it I'm perfect what do we call this formula what do we call this recitation V this is called the confession of the farmer and every year we ask what kind of a confession is that every year I present it to you the same way imagine I come on today and I say I have a confession to make she says oh a confession what is it what is it did you gamble our money away did you do something wrong what's the confession I have a confession to make I'm perfect I do everything perfectly I got everything perfect I'm a perfect husband and a perfect father and I'm the perfect person I hate to confess but I must confess I confess I'm perfect that's essentially what the farmer says we call it VI the mishna calls it Vier s it's called VI confession and what's the confession when we take a closer look the confession is I'm perfect what kind of a confession is I'm perfect what kind of a confession is this what kind of a confession is this so I'll tell you rafeld first in the past we've given interpretations of this confession I shared with you Rabbi Salva confession the confession is not I'm perfect in everything the confession is I did this perfectly and if I could do this perfectly I could do everything perfectly if I could do this I could do other things I was not a good student when I was a child I was a classic underachiever I did not do well it's possible there are people here who could attest to that who saved and filed my report cards I never ever want to see them but I was not a good student I didn't do well I didn't do well but every now and then you'd be in trouble and the teacher your parents they'd meet and they'd say you know this is it you need to perform you need to step up you need to double down you need to study so then you really double down because of fear you're going to be grounded you're going to be in trouble you're g go lower your class something's gonna happen so you double down and you really studied and you get your test back and you did well what's the reaction of every parent and every teacher on the planet you see if you apply yourself you see if you work hard you see you can do well so don't tell me I have no patience and I can't pay attention and I'm not smart enough and I don't have a memory and it's not for me look when you try you succeed so the problem is when you try and succeed why is it a problem because it's m of you now you've created evidence that when you try you can succeed now you better try in everything because you could succeed and you don't have an excuse that's why this called because the farmer doesn't say I'm perfect in life says I got this perfect so that's a confession because if you could get this perfect if you could get a good grade on Distributing your tithes what else could you get a good grade on R Weinfeld Weinfeld has a different interpretation I didn't violate any of your mitzvos nor did I forget nor did I forget the lab we're gonna say in we describe right on R we have the longest of the year in in remembrances we say you remember everything that is forgotten so I'm here in front of you and I've conveniently forgotten a lot of things that are not worth remembering but here I am it's time to pay the piper I appear for you on the on the day of judgment and you're you remember everything so the was bothered this is a little sitter snippet for y a little Russ sitter snippet I'm building into the par perspectives why do we describe God as just God you have impeccable Perfect Memory you remember everything why do we describe him as remembering everything that's forgotten just say you remember listen to what says he says you know what God remembers he remembers what we choose to forget so if we forgot the good things that we did we don't harp on it we don't repeat it we don't show off about it we don't flex about it we don't feel entitled because of it we're not looking for Honor because of it if we forget the good things we've done then Hashem remembers them then Hashem remembers them but if we remember them then Hashem forgets them and conversely if we forget the mistakes we've made God remembers them if we remember them because we want to improve them and work on them and repair them then God chooses to forget them so Hashem is described not as remembering everything Hashem says let me see and choose what to remember and how does he choose what to remember he looks at what we forget and based on what we forget he chooses to remember so if we forget the good things Hashem says let me remember but if we forget the bad things he says let me remember it all comes down so based on this kous Ley of Weinfeld suggests maybe that's what this p means if individual is confessing I didn't violate any of your mitos and I remember and I tell everybody and I deserve to be honored and I flex and I show off about it and that's why it's called a confession the confession and the mistake of the farmer is not because they got something wrong but because they remembered how right they were and we shouldn't remember yes we should be proud yes we should feel good about things we got right yes we should Excuse me yes we should want to get more right but we shouldn't harp we shouldn't Flex We Shouldn't post we shouldn't glorify ourselves so I forgot to forget the good things that is called a confession that is how R Weinfeld understands why it's called VI even though the farmer is saying the says something else says something else Rashi here on the words says what is I separated the tithes and I didn't forget to make the blessing I didn't forget to make a we've got a problem Houston we've got a problem blessings are they biblical or rabic they are Rabin we're not biblically obligated to make blessings on mitzvas that we do so shaking the log that comes from the Torah making a blessing before that was the rabbis putting on that comes from the Torah making the blessing before that comes from the rabbis the bras that we say are rabic how could Rashi interpret that what the farmer is confessing is I didn't even forget to make the BR I remember to make the how could the Torah be alluding to something that the rabbis are only going to introduce later SOI there are opinions that perhaps are really maybe this is a source really they are biblical there's a lot of literature and a big discussion about it but I want to tell you says he says to fulfill a Mitzvah when the Mitzvah arrives when you're obligated in it that's not a what special is the relationship we have with the Mitzvah not at the moment of fulfilling the Mitzvah but are we excited do we look forward do we live for the Mitzvah to we Orient our lives around the Mitzvah who's excited for chauffeur who's excited to sit in the Suka suas is late this year in Florida so we're have a shot at a decent Su who's I'm excited I can't wait to pick my little vess I can't wait to blow the chauffer can't wait to sit in the sucker I can't wait for this coming shabas I can't wait for tomorrow to put on my fill in again I can't wait it's not just the moment of when I do the Mitzvah but we're measured by how much we anticipate how excited how much looking forward to the Mitzvah to the Mitzvah and that's what the BR represents so says the shin doesn't mean the actual text of the bra that's only rabic but the idea that I make a br before I do a Mitzvah the notion that there's something I do with excitement to prepare to get ready beforehand that is a Biblical idea and that's what the farmer is saying I didn't forget to get excited even in advance I didn't forget to get excited even before I did it to look forward to get excited to get pumped to get psyched to get ready that's I didn't forget even to get excited about doing the we say in the morning Ash we say in the S praiseworthy blessed is a person so this goes way back in s Snippets we're closing in on 600 and we're starting today but way back in way back in the beginning it's got to be among the first ones that we ever did we say it every morning as praiseworthy blessed is the person what do those words mean what do they mean who listens to Mitzvah what do you what chauffer you happen to listen to most mitzvas my aren't talking to me Su is not talking to me the lul is not talking to me stuer box not talking to me the answer is if you're listening they're all talking to you they're calling out to you every day there are Mitzvah that are calling our name Stu checking in on someone doing making a the Mitzvah are calling our name the Mitzvah are calling out to us listen if you listen and you live your life all throughout your day Mitzvah are calling out to us the only question is are we listening are we listening can we pick it up moving right along we have a new commitment a new bris we formed with observe all the Mitzvah God says that I'm giving you today when you cross the yardan you're going to put up great Stones you're going to write on them we've discussed this in the past has a huge mza as you enter that's what the Torah is describing here enormous Stones what are you writing the Ten Commandments all of Torah big discussion could listen in the past we've gotten into it but when you cross the Jordan River and you enter the land of Israel you know when you land in megoran and you come down that ramp used to just be excitement now you walk by posters NE of hostages but when you get right before you go through customs on that doorpost is like the world's biggest mza it's like as tall as I am you know what I'm talking about that mza it's kmak you see that Ma I'm in the Jewish homeland I am entering into Customs the Homeland I'm here I'm home it's amazing that Maza so on the Jordan River here the Torah is describing you're putting up enormous Stones Torah is written on them and these Stones these rocks these Boulders are like the muuza of entering into the land of Israel and here in this context it tells us the Torah y z rather Sorry God speaks the blessings and the curses on the other side here we have the blessings and the curses on har and haral once we pass these Stones we pass into the land and then we have the Torah says why can't I find this I wanted to quote again from oh yeah God wants to be your God I'm sorry going back that's why God says I want to be your God and you will walk in my way and observe all of my Commandments and listen to my voice so listen to my voice my Commandments that I get what does mean so writes the foundation of our mortality of our morality is walking in his ways we imitate God man like God is often faced with to utter desolation he does not know where to begin he doubts his ability to say ye or let there be light it seems the world can never be illuminated such is the prevailing Gloom yet man is bidden by the principle of IM create be a partner in y and fashioning form out of Chaos means imitate God how do we imitate God he's kind you should be kind he clothes the naked you should clothe the naked we imitate God we walk in his ways but the ultimate imitation of God is God Is Creative we should be creative God makes order out of chaos we should make order out of chaos God illuminates the light through the darkness we should illuminate the light through the darkness man must be creative both in material and spiritual Realms there are diseases to conquer rivers to control miseries to exate the Torah tells us that particular territories were assigned to each Nation for them to develop according to the creative genius while Isel was assigned to the Jews conquering and settling a Israel are Commandments that require creativity there is also a mandate to be creative in the spiritual realm build Yeshiva inhospitable territories a form of yor education and fulfillment of and you shall teach them to your sons creativity par excellance a formless undirected child is transformed into a refined Torah scholar an undisciplined child without any identity a to V is gradually changed into a spiritual personality introducing a child to the biblical narratives about Abram and Sarah and later on to tamic discourse and Concepts such as H andha are acts of fashioning a soul the highest level of here God says be like me imitate me and what is the highest form of imitating God creativity physical creativity conquering his world advancing the world making breakthrough in the world and spiritual creativity teaching and learning Torah molding and shaping B Torah a world of ideas so no it's not enough to say I work I get to the end of the day I pay my bills I Collapse on the couch I drink my beer I binge watch my shows and I'm done a Jew is obligated as long as there's breath in our lungs be a creative being repair the world illuminate the world with light or or is a concept that comes from it comes from the Nai others seem to have usurped that phrase but it's a Jewish concept when he spoke in our many years ago he said you'll notice that we only use the words T to repair the world in God's image we don't have Tik for TI's sake know they say the joke about the Federation Mission to Israel one of the participants on the mission asked the tour guide how do you say Tik in Hebrew Tik is such a motto and catchphrase and bumper sticker how do you say tikin in Hebrew it's not just tiken based on our own human creativity and the environment and humanism and social justice it's a how do we repair and redeem this world to make it conform to God's plan God's design God's image God's moralities God's boundaries that's we're agents and ambassadors of his it's why we're here we're here for a mission and if we just are living for ourselves and If all we're trying to do is for ourselves our happiness our pleasure we are stealing from God it is not why we are here it is a violation of our very essence and our very purpose our motto and our mission statement is the to follow in his ways that is why we are here we're also here to cover the rest of this material which we're running out a time and we're not even going to get close I'll just tell you on the M and the priests speak to the Jewish people and they say what does the word mean be attentive and listen today you've reentered a covenant today you became a people for godma means to hear what is the word has has means again you could cheat look at the art scroll be attentive and hear why do we have to told be attentive in here if I'm hearing I'm attentive to what I'm hearing so the on these words says on what does the word mean imagine draw an image in your thoughts draw an image in your thoughts and he quotes a POS from Amos and proves that the word means imagine picture in Vision says from here this is an incredible lesson for anybody who wants to break through and grow in any area of life so a person wants to have a breakthrough you know how it starts you have to have a picture of who you want to be and what you want to do stop and says thisno imagine imagine imagine the husband or wife the mother or father you could be have a picture of you being patient spending time enjoying company what do you look like having the best doing of your life what does your best learning of your life look like what is your best volunteering and of your life look like the greatest athletes we have will tell you that they've worked with coaches and psychologists and mental professionals who train them had a picture and have a vision of what they're about to do so the batter who hits the 100 m hour fast ball Aaron judge will tell you you know how much time he spends not only in the batting cage but picturing what it will be like what it's like when that ball is coming in deciding between a curve ball and a fast ball Tiger Woods will describe what it was like in his a day picture he stands behind sets the ball on the te takes three steps what is he looking at what is he looking at just set the ball 350 yards straight what are you looking at because he's painting a picture in his Mind's Eye he's seeing it Roger feder is seeing hitting ball before he ever hits it based on this says the same thing if Aid wants to break through you have to first picture who you want to be you have to have an imagination paint a picture in your mind in your mind we're entering that new year what does your best year look like what does your best week look like what does your best day look like what is your best life look like if you have no idea what your best life looks like I could promise you this you will never live it you will never live it if you have no idea what your best day looks like life looks like you'll never live it so that's the message first paint that picture and then you'll be able to take it from there we have the blessings and the curses the harsh page 1076 first With the blessings you'll be blessed when you come and you'll be blessed when you go what the blessings in the coming and the going when you leave the world you should be as Sin free as pure and pristine as when you entered the world and that's called a be blessed when you come be blessed when you leave be as blessed when you leave as you were when you come asks I understand if you leave this world sin free that's a blessing but when you enter the world sin free is that a blessing it's not a blessing it's just the way it is you are born a clean slate you're born a BL Blank Slate you're born we're born a pure Soul so we're sin free so what's the yes there's a if you could leave the world sin free but where's the so he says the following has a particular particular Divine assistance excuse me someone who's About Cha is called a who is returning to Cha it's much easier to go back to something you once knew and you did than it is to create it to begin with it's much easier to return and to restore and to reboot and to go back to who you were then it is to create something new to begin with so therefore everyone is born in this world without any but it is also in some extent predetermined whether we're going to be aad or a Russ so how do we understand this maybe our predisposition was created in the womb what we were inclined for was created in the womb but whether we actually violate it that doesn't happen that expression of the Free Will until we're in this world the blessing the we have is even if we have predispositions even if we have nous inclinations we come into this world a blank slate so we have the ability to return when we do chuv in this month of el leading up to rashash and we're trying to go back to a place of Purity we're not going someplace we've never been before we're trying to restore to the factory setting of where we once were and it's much easier to restore and to go back to a factory setting than it is to try to erase and Achieve something that's never been done before so the the blessing of having been born that way is that it's easier to go back to the factory setting I really wanted to get to because I wanted to get to it last year the year before and the year before also and we never got to it so someone remind you please godo tough to start with the end because the Torah the to says why do we pay the piper why do we suffer this harsh harsh rebuke because because we weren't happy we weren't happy all these curses because we weren't happy since when is being unhappy a cardinal sin the answer is it is I but how can I be in char of my happiness that's an emotion the answer is it isn't it's a decision there's a lot more to say about it and please God we will in the future until next time help us may we hear yes