See No Evil | Parshas Toldos

okay so one time a rabbi a priest and a minister were golfing together and the group ahead of them was going very very slow and holding up their game so finally they asked the groundskeeper what's going on why is the group in front of us moving so slowly so the groundskeeper said oh don't you know who they are the rabbi the priest and minister they said no we don't know he said they're heroes those are firemen who retired now because they were injured on the job they actually rescued children from a burning orphanage and the smoke burnt their eyes and they became blind and we allow them to come golf they used to golf and now they golf but they're blind from the smoke in their eyes and that's why it takes them so long so the priest said that's so moving the minister says I'm gonna write a sermon about this the rabbi says why can't they golf at night okay you got it anyways why do I like to tell such jokes okay anyways this week's parsha parshas told Isis everything is in Taylor it says by he keys knocking it's and it was when get shocked Isaac became old this is right before the blessings to young given ace of Jacob and Esau but that the hell naw ain't of and his eyes became dim Mae Royce from seeing Rashi addresses the question why were gets Huck's eyes dim why couldn't he see well why was he blind - he gives three interpretations the first one of which is Basha non shall i loo through the smoke of those meaning the wives of a sub show her you mush noise who mocked eros la Vida Zara they used to raise smoke and like incense to foreign gods so the smoke of the idolatrous incense damaged youths fox eyes and that's why he went blind now russia gives two other interpretations another is that at the time of the akkada of the tears of the angels dimmed his eyes another is that really it was just a divine intervention Hashem made him go blind in order that he should be able to be fooled and give the blessing to the other son but let's let's focus on the first shot in Russia that Yitzhak went blind because of the idolatrous incense the smoke from the idolatrous incense simple question I mean this is shot Rashi is giving the simple concrete meaning and I understand there's something lacking in each interpretation which is why he gives three interpretations nevertheless each one of them has to be grounded in literal meaning it's not simply you know homological in other context sometimes we we give interpretations that don't have to be so grounded in the literal concrete meaning but but Rashi is for the simple meaning of every verse so simple question about Yitzhak going blind from the smoke of the idolatrous incense I have a very simple question a subs wives a subs wives were lighting smoke to idols yeah making incense titles simple question simple question you know what the simple question I have is if the fumes the smoke we're really so noxious as to damage your eyes how can we only hear about your talk being damaged from it what what why what I did first of all should have damaged ASOS wives they were right there they were lighting it was right in their face but it didn't damage anybody only its hook so when I tell you story story is about one of the Talmud about shem tov who was then later a talmud of the medici Magath the great knock'em chernobyl a story is like this now from Chernobyl er was once sitting at his desk learning and he had an attendant and he asked the attendant to bring him a drink of milk the attendant came while the Nahum was learning and he put the glass of milk on the table and some time went by and the rebbe menachem said to the attendant when are you not to bother you but when are you bringing the glass of milk the attendant said I brought the Rebbe his glass of milk a long time ago I read nothing say I didn't see it so he looked didn't see the other the milk the attendant thought this is very strange he took the milk away and as he was leaving somebody said don't give that ever the milk it's not colonies at all it wasn't milked with a Jew watching the the law is that a Jew has to supervise has to watch the milking in order for it to be what we call colonies at all and the wording which is pertinent to the punchline of this story is call of milk that a non Jew milked the throw the a nice throw rug a who and they yes well a Jew did not see it that's how it's called in Mishnah and in show Honora for a Miss Rhoda a who and a Jew did not see it meaning see observed the milking process so the attendant came back in and he said that bed the milk was it called visceral and AB knocking said oh well that makes perfect sense then because milk that a Jew didn't see the English Rhoda a who a Jew see right meaning the doctor the Chicano duck says that you didn't see it it's describing a fact I would see us that a Jew did not observe the the milking he interpreted like you won't see this milk it's not on his radar it doesn't register it's not it wasn't for him so he didn't see it this was the level of the Holy dove now from chernobyl ER it wasn't that he saw something that he couldn't have and he grappled with it if he couldn't have it he didn't see it okay so now when I tell you another story and I'm not gonna lend any interpretation to this story I'm just gonna tell you the story this story I told you with an interpretation because when the rabbit told the story the story was given with an interpretation in other words the reason that I've nothing didn't see the milk is attributed to the fact that he simply did not see anything that wasn't fitting for a Jew now I'm gonna tell you a story and I'm not gonna give an interpretation why because I don't have that authority I'm just telling a story okay it's just a story you can do with it whatever you want it's a story about a famous Jew a think he won the Nobel Prize for Literature but he wasn't a an author actually interesting a songwriter who won the Nobel Prize for Literature know who that is a Jew Bob Dylan very good Bob Dylan wrote lyrics that have been lauded by those who study and observe American culture he's considered a cultural icon and he's Jewish and the fact of the matter is that he came to 772 the obovata svabrin ins and several occasions and I want to tell you a story about when he came to the rabba there was one foe bragging Bob Dylan came to the Fabri in and oh how do I know the story by the way I know the story from rabbi manis Friedman who was then of Minnesota and that's how he knew Bob Dylan because Bob Dylan originally is from Minnesota and I asked her - the story and he told me exactly how it happened at the Phou bragging during the new gun him during the musical interludes the Deborah would say lehayim to everyone present usually you'd lift your little cup of wine and wait and that ever would one we're not just you know one plate that like their ever had his own order how he would notice people and acknowledge them and then every word given out of the head or he was motion like to drink and he would give each person that I contact in that moment where they knew that ever is registering their presence there in the crowd so Bob Dylan's holding his cup and he's waiting for the rabbit to acknowledge him and to say look I'm Bob Dylan says he's waiting he's waiting is waiting at one point that ever looks to the guy right next to him on the right and clearly he sees this guy have his moment then a little bit later than ever looks of the guy right there on Bob Dylan's left and he has his moment and Dylan is waiting and waiting waiting but it never happens it never happens that ever would look at him acknowledge him and say look I am very strange after the FOB rang in Bob Dylan is walking down the street that - says he was like half in tears he was broken and he says this is the third for bringing him by the river I'm holding my cup to the river and he won't acknowledge me he won't say look I him to me it's interesting was Bob Dylan who said his famous lyrics how does it feel to be on your own with no direction home like a complete unknown a complete unknown he's standing at the fabrini the devas acknowledging every single neshama he's getting nothing he was heartbroken now I want to tell you at the exact same time as Bob Dylan's having his conversation with rabbi Friedman the rabbit came out of the fabric that ever went to his room and as he was entering his room he was speaking to the mosquitoes to the Secretariat and he mentioned to Rabbi Krinsky as vendo there is Inga Dylan is a vendor he was here the rabbit was aware that a famous singer who was very influential had a lot of influence on a lot of people was present at the forbidding he'd been told now the Deb is asking he was here he was here very strange so every Krinsky told Robbie Friedman you know that that bit was asking was Dylan even here so early Friedman says you know it's very strange he says I don't know if there's any connection but you know for a while I've been wanting to say something to Dylan and I haven't really felt comfortable but you see there was an issue at one point I think it was in the 70s Bob Dylan actually come on oh it's lon he converted to Christianity and it was baptized and practiced that religion for a few years and then he you left that you left that and he was returning to Yiddish kite the thing is if somebody God forbid a Jew converts to another religion god forbid it's not so simple it's a it's a serious serious transgression and it's the only transgression actually for which there's something in Halawa called it Vilas about Chava an immersion in a mikveh and it's similar to and it has similar stringency to the tavella to the immersion that that a Gerrits addict that a convert undergoes to become Jewish meaning it's an actual immersion in a kosher mikvah with a best in with a rabbinic tribunal and the person has to again except upon themselves the yoke of mitzvahs and the tabula is a sort of a renunciation of that previous life and contact so remember Friedman said to said the dill and he says you know a number of years ago you'd been involved in Christianity come on oh it's lon there's something called feels about chill they explained it to him he says you should do it so they made a best in in Crown Heights you lied to a mikvah and he did he did the ritual next day comes to 770 and he was waiting for the debits come davon Mincha and he was standing among the crowd of people and they walked in quickly that I was always walking quickly Deborah was born on a net of Shabbos and that ever said ed of Shabbos everyone's moving quickly so since I was born in an air of Shabbos I'm always moving quickly that was always moving quickly even even in his 80s as 90s that I was moving quickly so that ever came out to go to mink land that I was walking quickly and he's walking past the people very quickly eyes forward directed toward you know the end of the path and all of a sudden as I was walking quickly by the crowd that ever stops turns looks right at Bob Dylan gives him a big smile and a gesture with the hand and continues walking and at that moment Bob Dylan was flying high he said finally he got his acknowledgement from their ever okay like I said I'm not offering any interpretations I'm not saying what happened I'm just telling you the story as it transpired and you could figure out or decide for yourself and what was actually going on at any rate now we can answer our question about Yitzhak why was yet Scott uniquely affected by the smoke of the incense of idolatry of aces wives it wasn't that it was so noxious that physically speaking that it damaged everybody it was the Yitzchak was already on a level where he didn't see if it was negative he didn't see it and since it was all around so he became blind effectively he wasn't able to see anything and that's why later on yes and the next parsha when in precious Valley eight say when yankov has his dream and it says Mohini Hashem knits of all of that Hashem was standing over yankov the Yammer and Hashem says to yank him on ehm I am the Lord alakay of ROM of the favela que its hook the god of of ROM your father meaning grandfather and the god of Yitzhak and Rashi right there and that PASOK says Rashi has the answer hold on a second I thought the term alakay so and so the god of so-and-so was only used for tsadikim after their passing mr. Russia's Alfa pecially Messina by micro although we have not found anywhere else in Scripture she have had a Kurdish border hoosh Murat tsadikim that a Shem connects his name to a particular topic the hay and while that Sadiq is still alive lift a velak a plane he to say God of so-and-so but I am in their lifetime why not machinima because it says it's a puzzle from here from job hey Mikey - of Li I mean he doesn't believe even in his Holy Ones meaning as long as someone is alive even if he's holy he still has free choice so he may choose the wrong path right nevertheless Khan here in this instance yes my Elliot's Hashem does attach his name to Yitzhak why and now she gives a few reasons Lafitte shikaku ain't knows because his eyes became dim the call of a bias and he was locked up in the house ride a hookah mace he was if he was already dead the it's a hot opossum me man oh and his yet Sahara already left him those are actually all one thing what does it mean his eyes were dimmed he was stuck in the house he if he was already dead has yet to hunter left him it meant that although everyone else while they're alive they still have free choice to sin because they see the temptation in front of them Yitzhak he was like someone who already graduated from that he didn't see the negativity it wasn't that he had to struggle with the right choice and that gay pivot he simply wasn't an option it wasn't on his radar now everything we learned we try to have a practical application how we gonna have a practical application from lofty I mean this is absurdly lofty stuff I mean what's how does this apply to us so I want to tell you one more story and we can try to take this take this home this is the what we call the doggy bag you know Jews they go to restaurant ass at the asked for a doggy bag they don't have a dog but ask for a doggy bag right who are they full at anyway okay so here here's here's the take-home 1967 springtime and the the eve of the Six Day War tensions were running extremely high in the Holy Land and the Rebbe announced the myths at fill in the filling campaign that by putting on tefillin it will strengthen the security of Jews everywhere particularly in the Holy Land I heard this story from a closeted who was a teenager at that time he was about 15 16 years old and growing up in fact Abad which is a Habad village outside of Tel Aviv and when there ever said put on tefillin with with as many Jewish men as you can in order to strengthen Jewish security in the world he took his felon and he went to Tel Aviv and he stood on a street corner and he said because the tensions of the war ramping up were so thick he said he literally had a line around the block like around the corner he had one after the other these were men without yarmulkes completely not religious but everyone was looking for something and they saw this yeshiva bucker sixteen-year-old kid standing there with his fill and saying who wants to put on fill-in and he literally had a line around the block he said for because as soon as one guy would get out of line we've finished wrapping him another way another guy would get in line so he says he's going for hours going for three hours Phil and after filling after till he said he must have put on thousands at the phone that day at one point after a few hours a religious Jew comes by and he says to him what are you doing he says I'm putting on trimming the little bow should not be said what's the problem with it he said no no I'm not gonna have a problem with that a problem with where you're doing this is what street corner where else should I find people assistant bucker you don't see what you're standing look look you see that billboard and he points up it's Tel Aviv there's a billboard an advertisement and it's very not modest he says you can't stand on a street corner in front of that billboard with that picture putting on tefillin lavaca says you're right and he calls out everybody we're moving we're going through the other we're going to the other corner and the whole line of hundreds of guys to get out of we get out of line and they all reassemble on the other corner and as he's leaving he says to the ISIS by the way I want you to know something you're a hundred percent right and that's why I'm moving but I want to know one thing I'm standing here three hours I didn't see that billboard you just walked up two minutes ago [Laughter] can you imagine a 16 year old boy a 16 year old boy everyone knows what that means shouldn't see an immodest picture but that's the point maybe we're not on the level of Yitzhak not seeing the smoke or knocking Chernobyl or not seeing the milk or the Lubavitch Arab they're not seeing Bob Dylan until he did his chuhwa but each and every one of us if we're for annulment if we're preoccupied with good things when you're in that zone of doing good things and looking for good things especially looking how to help another Jew you don't see evil so we should all be occupied in good stuff and only see good things