Nothing New Under the Sun by Rabbi Shmuel Goldin

last week we took a a bit of a detour in terms of our study in bra sheet we spoke about the ways in which safer braet really uh foreshadow so many of the events that are occurring around us so many of the difficult events we're now going to return to where I believe we left off last year um if anybody knows better than me you'll let me know my memory is not as good but we're going to start off with Yakov vinu in the darkness of the night as he prepares to come back or as he is coming back as he is going to I'm sorry the house of Loven and he beds down for the night at bethl beel and as you as we know he dreams his famous dream of ladder stretching heavenward and Angels coming up and down and when he wakes up he makes vow and we're going to focus on that vow today because it seems problematic lore yov and it's also appropriate for us to talk about midor as we're heading to the day that begins with call with God will be with with me and he gives me food and he gives me clothing and I return shalom in peace to the home of my father then God will be my God and this stone that I've erected is going to be a mat for Hashem and I will give a tenth of everything that I receive to you what's the problem why did he have a question whether God be why does he even question that God will be with him and we're we're going to make that that concern even deeper but there's a there's a real problem here besides his questioning whether God will be there what's his what's the problem conditional right he's making his belief in God apparently conditional if God is with me and he does all those things then the Lord will be my God and Shalom if not right if if I'm not happy with the way things go then what's going to happen he won't be my God so the muarim are are are struck by this difficulty and they actually point out that it's deeper than we've said because the very very things that Yakov seems to be questioning are the things that God promised him already in the dream that he just dreamt take a look at the bottom compounding the problem page one children God promises him in this dream at the top of the ladder I'm sorry I will guard you be with you protect you wherever you go and I'll bring you back so he's already heard God promised just a few moments ago in a dream the very things that he seems to be questioning and kazal are are struck by this very difficult passage so turn for a moment to the second page we're going to take a a side issue because I think it's a beautiful thought and then we'll come back to our essential question to our central question he says that he's going to make this mat Bim it's going to be a a stone through which or at which he will worship hasem in in book of which we read just a week and a half ago one of the things that God says says to is is do not worship God and a because God hates that now what is a mat mat the difference between a mat and a m is that a mat is one stone a pillar that you just erect m is what is an altar that you build so God is saying you should worship me through worship at an altar at a m not a but wait a minute but Yakov had a Mata and other Matos are found in the patriarchal era why is it that it was okay to have a mato at that point and not not not okay when are preparing to enter the land okay before matoro correct that's correct U and and putting aside the medish that they kept tag mitos which we could argue about but the question is what shifts with Matan Tor what is it that creates a shift where on a symbolic level matot are now suddenly forbidden yeah centralized worship that's true that's correct switched for that as well but why not have a mat in the B right why not what is it about a Mata that becomes problematic sorry a well AAR but miss was used for AAR as well right all the places that yes a Mata a marker a Mata is a monument a monument which like marks something it could it depends in this case in this case it's a stone that yov says he will worship on the stone we at the stone so what is it that allows that and encourages that the patriarchal era and in the era of the community the era of theor matot suddenly become forbidden so Shan Rafel HS has a beautiful beautiful explanation which I'll take a step further so as I often say whatever you like is his and whatever you don't like it's mine right um says first the difference between a mato and M is what they each testify to what they each symbolize a Mata is simply God's Rock it's a rock that you do nothing with it you don't improve it in any way you just leave it there is something you have to build the patriarchal era say of hsh the challenge was to Simply announced the existence of God and his and his power over the world that was the job of the Patriarchs that was the job to to to be a him to be witnesses that would cultivate belief in one God when you get Matan Torah things shift the job of the Jew is not simply to testify that there's a God and not simply to do what God says to do job of the Jew becomes a partnership becomes a a a partnership in which you take hashem's Torah and you take the and you make it your own and as we said last week that's why M Sora should be properly understood as you get from past era you make it courses through you and then it goes to the next era and when it courses through us we are Partners the flavor of of Yus so much of what we do and so much of what we think are are aspects of yadus that have developed over the years as we said last week the filter fish isn't in the Torah chulent is not in the Torah all right these are aspects of Jewish life that have been accepted by the Jewish community and the testimony at this point is not to God's existence but to God's partnership with us and what he demands from us as partners in the process of of M and why does a m represent that because a m you have to build a Mata You're simply taking God's Stone and you're erecting it that's it you're you have to build and therefore the m is what symbolizes as a partnership between man and God okay so that's a that's a side side thought explaining a diff difficult passage in B him now we come back to our central question what is it that characterizes this vow of Yakov how are we to explain what seems to be a conditional acceptance of God's of God's La so take a look on on page number two the second second section rebi AO and re yonasan had a debate one of them said that the para is telling us events out of order remember last week we spoke about not being the exception it's unusual really in reality it follows a a uh coherent way coherent path when it comes to this to this section though one of these great rabbis says no I have to say it's mixed up I have to say that the paraa does not flow as it is written because of what we pointed out a moment ago yov would not question what God just promised him so therefore the dream had to come after the promise of M of the Mata and and the other aspects of jakob's worship and if it comes before the if it comes before the the the dream then under those circumstances basically he's asking God to to take care of him and Hashem then sends the angels with the dream and makes the promise vow a condition that he will take it the other the other the other um and the the Mish doesn't tell us which which Sage said which right just says two sages one of them said X and one of them said y the one who said why says no para goes in order and we have to deal with this vow and we have to deal with the vow as it occurs after the dream and we have to try to understand it so there are a number of different approaches you take a look on page three you have Rashi does something very very powerful he takes the very promises that God gives and gave to Yakov and he makes them part of yakov's vow he says if God does what he says he would do if he will guard me as he said as he does what he said he would do take a look at the underlined section which of course is a problematic sentence is not that I will accept God as my God it's I if God grants me the the ability the ability to have complete worship within my family that there will not be Su in my Zari it will not be any any one of my progeny who would not observe the MIT of the of the Torah or not observed at least at this point it's before the Torah or is given would would not want a relationship with God and is that I have that wholeness if I have that wholeness then I will be complete so it's not conditional it's simply another request another request something that he wants from a KES take a look at the rash B on the next page the rashbam on the next page basically says the rasham I pointed out to you is my favorite classical commentary because he sticks close to P shot of the text he also happens to be rashi's son-in-law right what son-in-law grandson uh rashbam is his son-in-law I think all right that's my recollection I Was preparing for CER Dre there was a source that spoke about it says is simply a request shii that he should help me in all that I'm trying to do it's a request it's not conditional the sorno sporno has a a fascinating approach he says the word Elohim is used for various different phenomena right for God Elohim but Elohim also refers to a judge is refers to people in in powerful positions and therefore the sparno says take a look at the underline passage the bottom of page four what he says is the following if God watches me and takes care of me and does all of those things then I am inviting a to put me on in trial to put me before the judge I'm asking Hashem leim God will be a judge of my actions and I'm inviting that to happen because I'm telling you that if God takes care of me I will what I will do all the things I promise and you you'll testify to that fact these and other interpretations are offered for The Vow but it's the ramban the ramban who takes the vow in it on a on a in a direction that is powerfully appropriate for our gathering right lanan says you're punctuating The Vow incorrectly you're making part of his request or part of the condition is a promise of his own to concerning his own actions what is he promising he's promising the following God really told gave him two promises in the dream one was he would be with him wherever he goes and the other is what he will bring him back to this land now we have to understand that those two those two promises are not necessarily peaceful in coexistence what was what was the first first saying I'm not tied to this land I will go with you wherever you go I will guard you wherever you go I will be with you this is a a a a huge Revolution by the way in terms of religious worship at that time because at that time the belief was that gods were connected to locations right to certain places and and and that Yakov now leaving ER Israel would have to somehow accept the god of the place where he's going so God says no no I'll be with you wherever you go now the second problem is well if you could be with me wherever I go maybe I'll stay right it's okay maybe maybe I'll stay where I'm going so K says and I will bring you back to this land so says this I promise you God that if you take care of me and enable me to do this I will what I promise you I'll come back and I will worship God completely because the only place that where I can worship God completely I will recognize is where in erit trial soim is God will fully be my God because I'm going to come back it's powerful and it it it underscores this moment for yankov as he prepares to leave AR Israel with the promise that not only will God be with him where he's going but God will bring him back and his promis is I'll come back and I'll recognize that God is my godem isim fully only where in ER to STW this ties in with the ramban's approach to Mid vot in general it's very powerful take a look at this section that I have next session on the page familiar passage second second paragraph of the shma and what do we find we find the following connection you will right what's the connection what's the connection between the threat of Exile from the land and the promise of observance of Mito what's the connection between those two those two PUK so the medish makes an astounding statement which the ran literally accepts here on Page Six even though I am going to Exile you from the land continue to practice the mitzvot even though you're going to be exiled from the land why so that you'll be familiar with them and you'll be able to do them right when you come back wait a minute the mitzvot that we're talking about are not mitzvot that are tied to ER isal right there are mitol that are tied to ER to trial truma putting on filling is not tied to ER to trial why does it say do it in Exile as practice so you'll know how to do it when you come back so the Raman says this medish I take literally the truth is says the ramban that every Mitzvah we perform is complete only in the land of Israel it's a revolutionary approach putting on fill in in Englewood New Jersey where I was a Rapp was what I was supposed to do but every time I put on Fillin according to the ran I what I was performing an incomplete Mitzvah and the only time that it becomes complete is when I return here and therefore how does he now explain the the the the fow says ramban I will recognize that in fullness God will be my God only when I come back and I'm going to I I promise to come back so that becomes a very diff different thrust and this moment in yacob's life is is is one that's really very very powerful and very very frightening he's leaving the land that he's been that he's grown up grown up in he's leaving the land where God is fully his God and he's promising to God please let me succeed so that I'll come back and I promise you I'll come back what finally happened what were these all the mitv all the mitv even even Nots the question is he gives us an explanation that when you return they will not be a novelty to you right correct what about York everything in other words that those two they will not but then you're not going to perform them oh I see what you mean I understand your question after all right that's very your question is very good because what we're really saying is why if if you have to practice then you should practice schita in in in Englewood New Jersey right in other words if you have to practice don't just don't just PR practice the things that are not practice those too the ramban would say no you don't you don't do schita in inle expanation that they will not be to right right they will be they will be a novelty to you because those are bids that you're only going to perform there and there's no guarantee anybody would know what to do that's correct that's correct and uh but ran basically says T MIT aside from those that are Chu barits you're making an excellent point tag mitzvot are only complete in erro you wouldn't be able to practice because you don't have the uh having the extra right the TRS you have to can only take place in AR Royal correct what that's good all right all right now yov is promising God something right he's promising that if God takes care of him he's coming back what finally happens take a look at page six the resolution we are now at the point where Yakov has worked for lovon repeatedly over over many many years as a family and is in loved one's house and he sees that Lon is not looking at him the way he did yesterday that that he's upset because they had made some deals about about sheep and and and how how who would get what and Yakov actually becomes very wealthy and and actually does better than lvon so lavon's not a happy camper and Ben laavan Ben laavan are murmuring yov is stealing every everything that belongs to our father is taking away our inheritance we said God Appears to yov at this particular juncture and says go back what does that mean that if God had not appeared to him he WI state so what we see is that even Yanko vinu the great patriarch when it comes to the question of Aliah right has has his issues has his issues and has found Comfort excuse no problem problem have that's okay um so so yov basically is comfortable in spite of in spite of the the difficulty that he perceives with the with Lon and the family he's not anxious to go back and then something yes who said he's comfortable Hashem told him you're going to go right and maybe he was waiting forem to tell him to come back maybe he wasn't sure when it was time well I think I think that comfortable well comfortable the truth is there there are countries in the world today where Jews live that are not very comfortable but they that's where they lived that's where they are that's their home at this point yov needs the push he was supposed to go on on his own Heim right I'll go back I promise you God I will go back says the ran if that's the case what what what why does God have to appear to him and tell him to go it's time he knows yes what about the two wives right in other words uh he was supposed to have one wife in the uh I don't where maybe that's a medish I'm not aware of that Pro probably is okay I'm not aware of that maybe he understood that uh he wouldn't be able to right be married to could be could be could be I I'm not sure all right let's let's focus though what we're saying is the following that yov is not with willing wasn't planning to go back until God told him to go back and then he does something very very specific he calls the two wives and he he now has to convince them to come on Aliah right and so what does he do he tells them that he had a dream another dream not the same dream that he had when he left parish's Royal but another dream and by the way it's not clear in the text whether he actually had this dream or this is the way he wants to couch the challenge to his wives right if he says I had this dream then maybe it'll be easier or or perhaps he had it but the Torah does not testify to this dream independent of yakov's statement Yakov is the one who tells us about the dream and what does he say I'm looking right before the underlined section this is he says I'm I'm dreaming and what am I seeing in my in my maybe this is where the concept of counting sheep when you're trying to sleep comes from right I never thought of that just thought of that today all right so the point being what does he say well I'm Dreaming I'm dreaming about sheep I'm and what what about the Sheep Am I Dreaming well I had made certain PR agreements With Love on that speckled one would go to me this one would go to him so that's what I'm dreaming about and what happens God appeared to me in a dream and I said here I am he says lift your eyes up and see all the speckled and spotted and striped sheep because I see what L's doing to you he's trying to cheat you listen to the words here right and this is why I believe that that the Torah is testifying to the fact that Yakov needed the bush what happens is he says I'm the I'm the god of of betel where you did what you made a promise you made a vow you told me you're coming back I now it's time for you to return and in a sense this is a he's he's scolding Yakov right with these statements because he's saying what he says I'm The God Who you promised to I'm the God who you said you would do this to very beautiful commentary on on the dream was offered by by um to my to my knowledge by Rabbi Miller who A was a RV that had a place in Yu's you universities which Miller uh which Miller um one from one not what no not the one from England Israel no no no no no Rabbi Israel oh Israel Miller correct Rabbi Israel Miller he said the following what's the connection between we turn the PO down what's the connection between the dreaming of sheep and the Commandment to leave said said Rabbi Miller when you stop dreaming of angels and you start dreaming of sheep it's time to go all right so so that's the connection that's the connection between the sheep and the dream in reality what are you dreaming about now what are you thinking about now and when it says right and when it says Hashem says I see what Lan has do is doing to you that takes on a deeper meaning because it's not I see lovan that's cheating you financially but I see what living in the house of Lan is changing you he changing you and therefore he is pushed to go back so the resolution is that that Yakov does not fulfill The Vow until he is pushed by a baraku to go back now there is a a series of events that occur in the aftermath of this whole story right we're we're coming now to the point where Yakov is coming back to arod Israel and it says yov went on his way and he encountered Angels encountered him he experiences this vision of the angels and he names the place where the vision occurred M now what word is is is sort of strange there right the truth is we had vka earlier in the same story look at the second right he encountered the place this is talking about B where he gave did the did the vow right and what he's saying is that the saying is that he encountered the place but look what's happened subject and object have changed when he leaves erus Royal before he fulfills all of the Challen meets all of the challenges he's about to meet in Lan's house he encounters the place he is the one who encounters the place looms above him and he encounters the place when he comes back having successfully retained his character now even spite of maybe a little slippage but still still his Yakov what does it say angels are encountering him he's not encountering the angels and coming to him they're coming to him and and that seems to be it it explains see there is a problem with this Revelation here because there is no indication as to what the angels are representing what they don't say anything to him just simply calls the place Bay it's not usual for you to have a a a vision of a KES on some level without a without there being substance and a purpose to the visit if what we're saying is correct the purpose of the visit was to show Yakov how he how he had changed and what and to recognize that meeting those challenges has allowed him to rise to a new level of existence all right now what happens last week when we were talking about Yakov there was number of questions that were raised about his name change that also occurs in the aftermath of the the events we've SE spoken about yakov's name is the only name in the Torah that changes twice and doesn't seem to change at all right two separate occasions either through or or or or directly changes yakov's name to Israel and yet very often he is continually called Yakov in the text so let's leave that last piece off for a moment that that it didn't change we'll come back to that let's talk about the two-fold change of yakov's name when does the first occur anybody remember in the in the struggle with the Mal correct if you take a look we we actually dealt with this passage last week when we spoke about his encounter with asov I'm looking at the end and he says the angel says yov is no longer the name by which you will be called that's interesting no it's not he's not saying your name is changing to Israel people will no longer call you isra call you yob and why is it couched in that way because in reality yov has not fulfilled all of the challenges yet what still yov right correct still called yov so what it is referring to as it's representing the physical challenges that he that he has risen above and that is only partially his challenge the challenge was that he had to go back to beel and he had to worship AES right in other words so if you take a look again God Appears to himim this is after the encounter with asov that we spoke about last week right what what do we see from here that Yakov not only has to be pushed to make to come back to AR Israel but he has to be reminded and pushed to fulfill the other aspects of The Vow that he promised and therefore his name change has to take place again because the first one wasn't complete and even now look at the last line on the page your name isov so again the language is very strange God says to him your name is yov right that won't be called You're not going to be called Yakov so what's going on here Yakov is the last of the Patriarchs lives a very a very turbulent life at least until now and Yakov in the minds of kazal is the patriarch who is the most complete and who represents in his life challenges that the nation will will experience and therefore the name change of Yakov is not simply a name change it's almost a name addition where God is saying there are going to be times in your life where you're going to be Yakov and there going to be times in your life when you're going to be is trial and those times will mirror your experience during the times of your life that you are that you were challenged where you're being pushed where where you are being threatened where you're being you'll be called Yakov and your children will be Yakov in those in those in those circumstances however little by little you will persevere and your name will change from yov to Israel and completely that will happen only when history reaches its end right you will by the time of mashia you will be fully Israel and it's a way of using Yo's life and Yo's experience as a lesson for what for B Israel what what we experience and how we've experienced across the face of History there are times when we are Israel there are times when we are yov and we have to connect with under all circumstances that's the end of the end of yob well when it says the one could argue that just saying you you're not going to be referred to in that way anymore is referred to that's correct so there he's saying there'll come a time when you will not be referred to I I I sort of understand these two name changes as symbolic of our return to ER Israel our return to ER Israel on one on one level the very existence of mid isra very existence of our return has changed us from yov to Israel and the world sees us differently unfortunately not not the way we like but the world the world sees us differently because of the fact that we're successful but says a your job isn't finished you've got to make the Medina a reflection of Jewish thought and Jewish law and and Jewish experience and you have to unite the the nation in that Enterprise and therefore you are going to be challenged to become Israel and we we have fought with the angels we fought with the the world the outside world and they are no longer calling Uso they're calling us is Royal they're recognizing that we're strong that there's a strength but at the same time we haven't fulfilled our internal Challenge and that internal challenge confronts us every day as we live here and it's our job as as members of the the Jewish people to try to build Bridges try to build Bridges not just I'm just saying we say to say that what with other Jews with other Jews with each other and even though we may not always agree we have to find a way to disagree and we need to find a way to to Bing a KES into our experience in a in a positive way and that means that the creation of the Medina was a a Monumental event but not the complete event we have we have work yet to do right not when we are weaker I think most [Music] times that's that's correct that's correct and that's what that's what we mean when we say that that is serving as a template for the experience of the entire nation that there are times when we will be aov and then there are times where we'll be and and and I don't know fix but the reason we is really just practice then how does that impact the BR all right so the answer is when we when the medis say practice it so you'll do them completely when you come I don't think it negates the importance of doing it where you are and you fulfill some of the Mitzvah in other words what we said was the completeness of the Mitzvah is dependent upon your place in AR Israel but you your obligation to do these things there Still Remains right and and and that it will help you when you come back but but also it has its own intrinsic value where you are um since the Arabs do not want us here and they want to take over completely uh ER Isel they want to wipe us out um why would they the more anti-Semitism that they create the more Jews want to come here and make alah so they're in a way working against themselves because all right they're getting all the Jews here and they don't want the Jews here all right no it's not it's not convincing everybody to come it's not it's not convincing everybody to come I think what's no I think I it look I I think they want to destroy the Jewish people wherever they are and I don't think in other words but they want Isel they don't no they don't want the land of Israel just say don't want us on the land they want all right it's just that they don't want us on the land they they this land is not as as precious to them as it is to us but he they don't want us here all right anyway so today we've taken a look at a a problematic vow on the surface that through the ramban's approach becomes a very powerful teaching tool that Yakov promises to come back God will completely be my God Only In the Land of Israel and and and the text seems to indicate that Yakov in spite of that promise has to have a push right has to have a push to come back what yeah times where he needs to push right right correct [Music]