Yeshiva Week - Ask the Rabbi

Yeshiva week is coming up people go away on midwinter vacation they go on trips with their families um considering the situation in Israel um should people consider canceling their trips this year or canceling their vacations even if it's not a trip their outings um and somebody wants to know in his community they're taking up a collection there's a actually a charity has taken up a campaign to provide families with money to go on midwinter trips because their kids are so mortified that they can't afford a trip out of town um that they don't want to go to school after midwinter so is that a noble cause to support um trips to Orlando trips to um Mexico or whatever it is so that the kids shouldn't be embarrassed when they come back that they did not go to some exotic local and just went to local Zoo well the second question I'll address first first I definitely I think it's very wrong to make a collection like that this is that's actually supporting this whole craziness of people going away on exotic trips and even when there's no uh difficulties in land of Israel it's a wrong thing to do to get become more more popular to a kids don't have to feel have to go ex local Zoo should be good enough kids should be B to to be conservative about what how they spend the money and where they go but it's an excellent time to train the child children that don't have to be like everybody else we are very good Jews and we listen to the Torah and uh the Torah doesn't want us to be exotic with and and and and and spend a lot of money for things that are not important and uh tell the kids that we go back to school they start where did you go we stay at home home we uh we studied t with our parents a little bit and we went local trips and we're happy with that and we don't have to go give them the STS give them the surprise of what they're doing and that they shouldn't feel NE that they didn't do the crazy things other kids are doing I think it's a very good good way to uh even the kids might show in the beginning that they're not happy with that but it's little by little it'll go into their heads into their hearts and uh it'll be a good for their future that they don't have to live on on expense of be like everybody else keep up the Joneses like they say and the same to everything so the kids come them back to school because kids are all latest fashioned clothes they having so we have to buy we have to copy them make a collection for that I think it's terrible to do that make a collection for that we don't kids should feel confident and and the way the parents dress them and feed them and take them and and not take use the fact you don't to do what everybody else does you treat train like that they grow up like that too so everything everything the ders do they have to keep up with them with fancy cars and fancy everything and this is very bad and as far as the first person question is concerned uh whether people should not go on trips because with the situation in in Israel now it certainly is a very Noble thing to do he can't say that's forbid to do it it's very Noble uh even the the non-jewish people know presid president rean when had the non-jewish person when they went to war that time with part of the world and he's a command in Chief of the of the of the of the of the of the of the Army Navy and of the of the of of of America the commander and chief and when they go to war he's the one tell him to go so he took upon himself not to play golf for for the all the time that there he even understood that that American people are under pressure our parents kids are going to the war so he took upon himself to something difficult for him to do so it's a thing that we all should do something like that to something on a on ourselves to uh make things not so convenient when the Jews are suffering over the imagine what those passages are suffering it's unbelievable what they're going through and all the the parents of those hates families of hat are so nervous the the people are taking medicine medical medicine there by by droves so nervous people are so upset and uh and and people are nervous in general about what's going to happen over there so we're nervous over here too so not like them but a certain extent so certainly would be a noble thing to upon ourselves to do something to take take away from something that we'd like to do and think about difficult times that our brothers and sisters are suffering that is real but if something a person going now they needed for their health reasons people need a vacation sometimes maybe they're pressured in the job or pressured whatever they're doing and they depend on this winter vacation what they call it and needed for the health they come refreshed and be able to take the challenges of life better and the blood pressure go down a little bit and uh they'll be able to to function better able to PR better to better they need it for their for the health and and not to not matter life and death but something that will alleviate pressure that they're going through I would say that they should cancel if that's the reason we going if this if it's for a pleasure trip then it makes a lot of sense cancel it this year and feel for our Brethren and and and Israel but if they have a a good reason to go because of uh not just for the pleasure of going there and showing up their friends they went there but they're doing it for definite purpose for the benefit so then would be uh nothing wrong with going