Transcript
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Everyone is always saying that we need
you know to go into the Palestinian
Authority and take out all the terror
incitement and Holocaust denial from
their history books and from there the
the books in their classrooms that the
kids are all studying and learning and
being brainwashed by that we should go
and you know westernize them that we
should moderate them but what if that is
not what this is really about what if
the goal isn't about changing then at
all
what if the goal isn't about changing
their history books but more about
bringing forth our own
reading our own great history books our
own Bible our own Torah the story of
King David and Goliath every single
student should know it by heart it
should be a part of them the stories of
The Maccabees every student should know
that is who they are
what if the goal isn't about changing
the other about changing the jihadists
one of the goal is about changing us and
changing ourselves because first of all
on the most practical human level trying
to change other people is just a waste
of time show me one time in human
history that such a thing has worked
long term
without oppressive coercion we have you
know limited energy in this life and the
only chance we have at changing anyone
in this world
is changing ourselves and that in itself
is a gargantuan task that we need Divine
assistance for and we can only have
success
if we Channel all of our energy and
focus into that
into changing ourselves if we're still
dividing our energy up between changing
ourselves and changing others as well we
are destined to fail we don't even have
a chance and by the way I think that
this is actually the central idea that's
being conveyed in this week's Torah
portion because the portion starts off
with the words
which means on the simplest translation
if you will follow my decrees and my
Commandments and perform them
right then these things will happen
points out that the simplest reading of
this which he seems to imply yeah I
think if I understood him correctly is a
misreading altogether basically makes
Hashem sound like a strict school
teacher
or do everything that I tell you to do
and you'll get good marks and you won't
get in trouble where if someone says
that the a truer meaning comes from a
deeper understanding of the Hebrew
language
he points out that the word the huko Tai
comes from the word
which is true it means engraved
he teaches that you could approach God
God's laws as externalized outside
superficial imposed on us from an
outside sort of authoritarian place that
we you know from like a place of fear we
keep it from a place of fear or or
you could engrave God's will into your
very own into your very own soul
etch it deeply and irrevocably within
your soul into the depths of your
Consciousness you could you know engrave
the words of Hashem like the Ten
Commandments were engraved upon the
tablets all the way through
so you can either follow the laws or
engrave them in our hearts and the word
right
usually defined as if you know if you
keep the Commandments if you keep these
laws but eem is usually defined as if
well the midras teaches here that the
word in is used in this term as it's
used in many other places with the
lashon of time meaning the a language of
pleading of of begging or beseeching
then that that is what the words
mean according to our where
someone was telling us Hashem is saying
if one
if one could say you know that Hashem is
pleading with us Hashem is saying please
please don't keep these laws from a
place of superficiality or fear no
please engrave them into your soul etch
them so deeply into your essence that we
will always be connected in the deepest
way hashan wants a connection with us a
heart connection with us
and you know so whether you see the
beauty is I do in those words it's hard
to debate the underlying message we all
agree that Hashem doesn't want us acting
from a place of empty rote actions that
is a type of hypocrisy that he hates he
wants our hearts and while giving our
hearts to Hashem is the greatest joy
imaginable and arguably the purpose of
our existence in this world it's also
the greatest and most challenging
Mission because it means Real gross
real Evolution real change to ourselves
that is hard work
