Shabbat Shavuot

Dedicated in Honor of Our New Grandson, Sammy Saadia

By the Saadia and Zeitouny Families

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Parashat Shavuot

Shavuot is referred to in our prayers as Zman Matan Toratenu—The Time When Our Torah Was Given. This holiday commemorates the momentous occasion when the world achieved the purpose for which it was created: the acceptance of the Torah. According to the Chatam Sofer, Shavuot isn’t the typical holiday only serving as a commemoration of something, but rather a celebration of receiving Hashem’s gift, of Matan Torah taking place again every year.

It says of Bnei Yisrael when they journeyed through the desert, “Vayachanu bamidbar, vayichan sham yisrael neged hahar—And they camped in the desert, and he camped there opposite the mountain (Shemot 19:2).” First, the passuk writes “they camped” in the plural form, and then it switches to singular.

Rashi comments on the usage of the singular form, “K’ish echad, b’lev echad — Like one man, with one heart.” Bnei Yisrael was so united at Har Sinai that they were like one person. This gave us the merit to receive the Torah. Just as a father loves seeing his children enjoy close companionship, Hashem wants nothing more than to see Bnei Yisrael unified in harmony as one close nation.

Harav Moshe Hayim Luzatto mentions several times in Derech Hashem that the holiday cycle is more than just a series of anniversaries commemorating historical events. Instead, just as the Heavens opened up and great spiritual powers were given to the people of Yisrael as they camped at Mount Sinai 3,300 years ago, these gifts are made available to us every year on this date. If we learn and grow in Torah, we make ourselves worthy to achieve those gifts.

A family was once driving somewhere when they noticed one of their relatives speed-walking on the sidewalk. The car moved slowly alongside him as they exchanged greetings and goodwill and then continued. Suddenly, the young daughter screamed from the backseat, “Wait!! There’s room for him in the car! Poor thing! Look how much he is sweating! Why don’t we give him a ride?”

Of course, the family started laughing. Because obviously, the relative was dressed to exercise. He wasn’t stranded outside needing a ride; exercise was his goal. He wasn’t struggling to get somewhere; he was working out because he knew that the more he exerted himself, the more fit and healthy he would become.

The same is true when it comes to toiling in Torah study. The learning itself is the objective. The Torah is our connection with Hashem. Just as one needs to work and sweat to be physically in shape, so do we need to toil and labor to become spiritually healthy. Labor and toil refine the soul, transforming a person’s essence to being united with the Torah, so he can become polished and purified by it.

Hashem showed His love for the Jewish Nation through the gift of the Torah. He gave us the Torah to elevate us to strive for holiness and righteousness and become a light unto all the other nations of the world.

Avraham ben Avraham

Rabbi Elimelech Biderman wrote in Torah Wellsprings, that the second day of Shavuot is the yahrtzeit of the ger tzedek of Vilna, Reb Avraham ben Avraham, ZT’L, who was killed al kiddush Hashem. His father, Count Pototski, was extremely wealthy and renowned throughout Poland and Europe. When his son became a ger—convert, it was a great embarrassment to the church. The government arrested Avraham ben Avraham and sentenced him to death.

Becoming a Jew meant forgoing the vast wealth of his father's home. Someone once asked him why he did this. He replied, “Friday night, when the candles go out, they give off a special scent. That smell is more enjoyable than all the wealth I had previously enjoyed.”

The ger tzedek knew who reported him to the government, ultimately leading to his death, but he said he wouldn't take revenge. He explained with a parable. A young prince was at the beach, creating a picture of a person in the sand. But then, someone came by and cruelly messed up the picture.

The prince went to his father, crying that someone had broken his artistic work. The king listened to his son, but he didn't do anything. The prince thought to himself, ‘Why isn't my father doing anything? When I grow up, I will take revenge on this person who ruined my sculpture.’ And what happened when he became an adult and a king himself? He didn't take revenge because he realized the felony was nothing. Avraham ben Avraham said, “Similarly, I'm not taking revenge in this world; do you think I’ll take revenge in the next world?”

Reb Avraham ben Avraham had been a student of the Vilna Gaon, ZT’L. The Vilna Gaon told him that he had the ability (using spiritual powers) to save him, but the ger tzedek replied that he preferred to die al kiddush Hashem.

Reb Alexander Zuskind, the author of Yesod Veshoresh HaAvodah, went to the square where the stakes were prepared to burn the ger tzedek; he wanted to answer amen to the blessing the ger tzedek would say right before being moser nefesh al kiddush Hashem. If someone would have caught him, they were liable to punish him as well. But he wanted to be there and answer amen to this unique and holy beracha, said at a time of the ultimate kiddush Hashem.

Reb Shlomo Zalman Aurbach said that he heard directly from the Vilna Gaon that when Avraham ben Avraham recited the blessing, a fire came out from beneath the Ma’arat HaMachpelah and burned up all kelipot. And that if there was a minyan there answering amen, the world would be perfectly rectified, and Mashiach would have come.

The Angels Protested to Hashem

Rabbi Mansour spoke about a Midrash that says that when Moshe Rabbenu went to Heaven to receive the Torah, the angels were so upset that they wanted to lynch Moshe. They didn’t want him taking the Torah to give to the Jewish Nation because they didn’t think humans were worthy. The Midrash says that as they were complaining to Hashem, Moshe’s face morphed into the face of Avraham Avinu. When the angels saw this, Hashem asked them, “Have you no shame? Didn’t Avraham wait on you and serve you? How can you complain like this?” At that point, the angels acquiesced, allowing the Torah to be released to Moshe for the Jewish people. Why did this answer satisfy the angels?

Rabbi Mansour explained this Midrash and said there are two types of tzaddikim. The first one is a tzaddik nistar—a hidden righteous person. But it’s not the hidden that we would assume. This person is someone who learns Torah and then goes about his day without sharing it. Then there is a tzaddik nigleh—a revealed righteous person. This person learns Torah, and then he has the strength to close the book and go out, to influence and elevate others.

It is written about Noach, “Ish tzaddik tamim.” He went out to the immoral people of his generation, attempting to help them do teshuvah. At a certain point he gave up because the challenge was too great, and he could not influence them to be better. Unfortunately, that is when he lost his title of “tamim.” Hashem later refers to him as a “tzaddik.” Judaism can only thrive and continue when our rabbis share the Torah they learn with the people. They must be temimim.

Shem lived at the time of Avraham Avinu. He was a great scholar and tzaddik. So why did Hashem pass him over and choose Avraham to lead his generation? The Rambam answers that it’s true that Shem lived at the same time as Avraham, and he too was a great tzaddik. But if one wanted to learn from Shem, he had to go find him to request his wisdom, whereas Avraham specifically went out and taught the people.

When Avraham was in his tent after his milah, he was conversing with Hashem, the highest level possible that a human can reach. But when he saw three men passing by out of the corner of his eye, he told Hashem he must attend to his guests instead of telling the men that he was busy. At every opportunity, Avraham sacrificed his own spiritual growth for the good of the people.

The Torah says that when Moshe came down from the mountain, he went “to the people.” Rashi says he left his “asakav—business” and went straight to Bnei Yisrael. What kind of “business?” Moshe just received the Torah straight from Hashem. He could have spiritually elevated himself more and studied in his tent, but he went directly to the people to give it over to them immediately. Moshe’s face morphed into Avraham’s up on the mountain because they both sacrificed their own spiritual elevation to better influence the Jewish Nation! We only deserve the Torah because of this quality. Tzaddikim, like Avraham Avinu and Moshe Rabbenu, proved to the angels that humans can achieve greatness and be worthy of the Torah. We learn from this that we all have an obligation, not just to learn Torah, but to teach it over, to share the wealth, and elevate others!

Chessed

Rabbi Biderman shares a story in the Torah Wellsprings about Reb Shimshon Wertheimer zt’l of Vienna, a wealthy torah giant who was close to the king of Austria. One day the king asked Reb Shimshon, "Why are the Jewish people persecuted more than any other nation?" Reb Shimshon replied, "They are being punished for their hatred and for their jealousy." The king wasn't satisfied with that answer. He said, "I'll give you three days to tell me the real reason the Jews suffer so much. If you don’t give me a satisfying answer in three days, I will banish every Yid from Vienna."

That night, Reb Shimshon Wertheimer received a message in his dreams. He was told, "Don’t retract your words. You answered correctly. Jews suffer in galut—exile because of hatred and jealousy. Soon, the king will recognize that you told the truth."

At that time, it was the beginning of winter. The king went with his officers to hunt in the forest. When the officers wanted to return, they looked for the king but didn’t find him. They assumed that the king had already gone home with other officers, who had left earlier, so they also left the forest. The king was left alone in the forest, deeply engrossed in his hobby. He didn’t realize that he was alone in the forest until it turned into nighttime. In the dark night, he couldn’t find his way out of the forest. He tried to find a path home, and he reached a river. He saw lights on the other side of the river, which meant that there was a town nearby.

The king knew how to swim, so he took off his coat, left his horse behind, and swam across the river. The king knocked on the first house he encountered and sked permission to come in. They refused to let him in. They thought he was a demon. The same occurred at the other homes the king knocked on. He decided to look for a home with a mezuzah. He thought, "The Jewish people are a compassionate nation. They will surely help me."

He found such a home and was given dry clothing and a satisfying meal. The king was still cold, so the Jew lent him his fur coat. The wife suspected that the king was a thief. She told her husband, “Send this man out of the house before he steals everything we own – including the fur coat you just gave him to wear.” The husband replied that he didn’t suspect his guest, but just in case, he would remain awake all night and make certain that the guest didn’t steal anything.

In the morning, the king asked his host how far it was to Vienna and how much it would cost to hire a wagon to get him there. The host said that he could drive him there for four forties (a currency). The king agreed to the price and said, "Please let me wear your fur coat until we arrive, because I’m still under the weather." The Yid agreed. The king asked to go to the king's palace. (He didn’t yet reveal that he was the king, because he was sure that no one would believe him.) The Yid said, "We could get in trouble if we go to the king’s compound without an invitation." "Don’t worry about that. I’ll take care of it," the king replied.

When they arrived in front of the king's palace, the king jumped out of the wagon and ran into the palace. The Jew sat in the wagon, shocked. "My wife was right, after all," he thought. His passenger didn’t pay him for the trip, and he ran off with his fur coat, too. His biggest problem was that he was on the palace grounds without an invitation. Just then, an armed officer arrived and said that the king wanted to see him in the palace. The Jew shuddered, wondering what libel would be thrown on him.

When he stood before the king, the king asked him, "Do you recognize me?" He didn’t. The king was dressed in his royal clothing, sitting on his throne, and he didn’t look at all like the same person he had saved the previous night. "Well, I know you very well. I even know what your home looks like," and he described the house he had slept in the previous night. "Who can compare to the king's wisdom!" the Yid replied.

"It isn't wisdom, I was there last night. I’m the person you saved. I didn’t tell you before that I was the king, because I knew you wouldn’t believe me. But it is true, I am the king of Austria, and I want to reward you for hosting me and for helping me. I will grant you whatever you want."

The Jew was silent. The king said, "If you want a forest, I will give it to you. If you want an entire city, it's yours. Anything at all, ask for it, and I'll give it to you." The Jew was quiet. The king became impatient. "If you aren't going to tell me what you want, I will just pay you the four forties you asked for, and that’s all."

The Jew replied, "There is something I want. I'm a traveling merchant. I go from town to town selling my wares. Recently, someone began competing with me. I request that the king should decree that this man may not go to the cities where I work."

The king said, "Your request is granted. Your competitor will no longer go to the cities you are accustomed to going to. But you must know that I never saw a greater fool than you! You had the opportunity to ask for so much more, but because of your jealousy, all you care about is that your competition shouldn’t make money." The king summoned Reb Shimshon Wertheimer, and he said, "You were right. The Jewish people are punished because of their jealousy and hatred."

Rebbe Meir of Premishlan zt'l would say this story every year before reading the Torah on Shavuot morning. The foundation of the Torah is middot tovot, and we must cleanse ourselves from hatred and from jealousy, and in their place have love toward our fellow man, to have a good eye, and to look to help others.

As we learned from the camps at the foot of Har Sinai, the Jewish people are bound to one another. And on Shavuot, Ruth teaches us the importance of being compassionate and of doing chessed for someone in need. As we celebrate the acceptance of our holy Torah, the greatest gift any nation could ever receive, may we always be concerned for the welfare of our fellow Jews. The passuk says, “Ve’ahavta lere’acha kamocha — Love your friend as you love yourself!” Let’s continue to learn from Ruth, do chessed, and unite Bnei Yisrael, not only as one nation, but as one heart.

Shabbat Shalom and Chag Sameach!



Rabbi Amram Sananes, written by Jack Rahmey

Discussion Point:

• Tell an inspiring story about an act of chessed that someone has done for you.

This book is a compilation of Divre Torah from the weekly parasha classes from Rabbi Sananes’ teachings over the last 10 years along with my own experiences in those classes which has stimulated my Torah growth. I’ve included many pertinent stories and life lessons to grow from at your Shabbat table. There’s also questions and discussion points at the end of each Parasha to stimulate a Torah conversation at your Shabbat table for the whole family to participate in. Also, included is a holidays section at the end of the book to use for all of our special holidays and Yomiim Toviim.  Now available in all Jewish bookstores and Amazon! Scan the barcode on the right to purchase from Amazon.

Rabbi Sananes and I look forward to hearing your feedback.

Sincerely, Rabbi Amram Sananes and Jack E. Rahmey

AmramSananes@me.com and jrahmey@rahmeyfinancial.com (917-226-6276)               

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Le’ilui Nishmat…

Eliyahu Ben Rachel

Rabbi Shimon Chay Ben Yaasher

Avraham Ben Garaz

Sarah Bat Chanah

Esther Bat Sarah

Avraham Ben Mazal

Shulamit Bat Helaina

Rabbi Meyer Ben Chana

Rahamim Ben Mazal

Batsheva Bat Sarah Esther

Rafael Ben Miriam

Ovadia Ben Esther

Rav Haim Ben Rivka

Moshe Ben Mazal

Moshe Ben Yael

Yitzchak Ben Adele

Avraham Ben Mazal

Meir Ben Latifa

Chanah Bat Esther

Yaakov Ben Rachel

Malka Bat Garaz

Moshe Ben Garaz

Avraham Ben Kami

Yaakov Ben Leah

Mordechai Ben Rachel

Chacham Shaul Rachamim Ben Mazal

Natan Ben Rachel

Saadia Ben Miriam

Eliyah Ben Latifa Simhon

Margalit Bat Mazal

Ovadia Haim Ben Malaky

Rabbi Aharon Chaim Ben Ruchama

Luratte Bat Masouda

Esther Bat Menucha

Uri Ben Rahel

Rivka Bat Dona

Shalom Ben Zahra

Rachel Bat Sarah

Shalom Ben Zahra

Chava Yvette Bat Jamile

Yehoshoua Ben Batsheva 

Aharon Ben Matel Yehudis

Yitzchak Ben Mazal 

Refuah Shelemah…

Rachel Bat Devorah

Gimol Sarah Ester Bat Batsheva

Haim Ben Miriam

Rachmim Ben Leah

Anyone interested in dedicating this Divre Torah Le'ilui Nishmat or Refuah Shelemah or In Honor of someone, can email me at

jrahmey@rahmeyfinancial.com. Checks can be made out to “A Life of Torah” for $101 and mailed to 2387 Ocean Ave Suite 1G, Brooklyn, NY 11229 (please put in the memo “Divre Torah”). Anyone interested in past parshiot please go to the website ParashaPerspective.org