Secrets From the Shadow of God- A review of Rav Bezalel Naor's The Legends of Rabbah Bar Bar Hannah with the commentary of Rav Kook

With the book launch for Rav Bezalel Naor’s “The Legends of Rabbah Bar Bar Hannah” based on Rav Kook’s commentary, coming up on December 10^th in Teaneck, this is an opportune time to share my thoughts on Rav Naor’s latest masterpiece. (Click here to view the Facebook event page)

This is not my first review of one of Rav Naor’s sefarim. Most recently, I reviewed his Rav Kook siddur. I’ve been blessed to not only learn from Rav Naor’s writings, but also from him in person. It is no exaggeration to say that he is like no teacher of Torah I’ve met before. While he is perhaps known as one of the biggest experts on Rav Kook’s Torah, his encyclopedic knowledge covers much more than “only” Rav Kook. He has published dozens of books on all sorts of subjects, which cover all areas of Torah, both nigleh and nistar. Those of us who have merited to learn from him in person, are continuously amazed by his grasp of Shas, halacha, machashava and more.

Rav Noar’s latest work is no exception. The Rabbah Bar Bar Hannah stories, found in Bava Basra 73a-74a, are as wild as they are enigmatic. RBBH meets all sorts of interesting people and sees mythic creatures. While the uninformed reader may see these stories as “tall tales” or mythology, through the eyes of a talmid chacham, they contain great secrets. Famously, the Vilna Gaon wrote a commentary on these stories, which became well known through Rav Aharon Feldman’s The Juggler and the King. Through the GRA’s grasp of all of Torah, these stories are revealed to have the greatest depth. Long before he became the Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi of Palestine, while still living in Eastern Europe, where he served as a rav, a young Rav Kook also wrote a commentary on these gemaras.

Rav Naor’s new book contains the commentary in Hebrew, as well as in English with extensive endnotes, which k’darko b’kodesh, reveals Rav Naor’s encyclopedic knowledge, and fascinating analysis. Rav Naor shows how a young Rav Kook already possessed a thorough knowledge of nigleh and nistar, the latter of which he refers to directly, something which is different from Rav Kook’s later works. As if that wasn’t enough, there are 11 appendices included on fascinating topics including Rav Kook’s thoughts on mussar, Chabad chassidus, his connection to the Ramchal, and his understanding of what must happen for Moshiach to come.

While I loved nearly everything about this book, I was surprised by its cover, as well as the artwork which accomplishes each new section of aggadeta. Rav Naor’s name does not appear on the cover, and the title, referring to the aggdeta as “Legends”, as well as the artwork might well lead to someone thinking that this is a children’s book. Of course, it is anything but. It would be a shame if people judged this work by its cover. It is the latest in the incredible writings of Rav Naor, and as with all of his sefarim, it deserves to be studied by talmidei chachamim.

I am grateful to Alec Goldstein of Kodesh Press for making this work available to those who yearn for Rav Kook’s Torah.

Hashkafic Man- An open letter to Rabbi Aryeh Lebowitz about producing the next generation of rabbis

Dear Rabbi Lebowitz,

I recently read an interview you did after you were hired as the director of the semicha program at RIETS. One particular answer stood out. When you were asked about the importance of investing in the rabbis of tomorrow, you said:

“It’s actually pretty simple. To get the most “bang for your buck,” it makes sense to invest time and energy in the influencers of society. If we want an educated and genuinely inspired community, it is critically important to develop the kind of leaders that can help teach, guide and inspire people in a meaningful way. When I visit other communities, in the United States and in Israel, I see my friends from my days at RIETS making a major impact.

Thousands of young men and women in yeshivot and seminaries in Israel are being influenced by my RIETS classmates. Hundreds of communities, shuls and schools are being lead today by my RIETS classmates. It follows that if we want to determine the direction of the community in two decades from now, we should look at the current students in RIETS.” (Underline added)

Although I am not a musmach of YU, I greatly appreciated this response. As someone who was and continues to be influenced by many rabbeim from YU, as well as someone with 20+ years in chinuch, I’ve thought a lot about what the next generation of Jews needs. I would suggest that there is one critical change to the semicha program which needs to happen in order for your goal to be achieved.

While there are many ways that YU semicha has changed over the years, and requires more than “just” learning and mastering Gemara and Halacha, there is still no requirement for YU musmachim to learn through at least one major work of machshava. Please allow me to explain why I think this should change.

While there may have been a time when it was enough to teach students about the “What?” of Judaism, that is certainly no longer the case. The Piaseczna Rebbe already recognized 100 years that students needs had changed, and that students required a different type of chinuch. If we want to produce students who are loyal to the Ribono Shel Olam and his Torah, and are passionate about their Judaism, we must also teach the relevance of the Torah which we teach. I have personally seen how much students, as early as 7^th grade respond to the ideas of great thinkers like the Rambam, Ramchal, Rebbe Nachman, and The Rav, and many others.

Although there are certainly some musmachim who learn these or other thinkers in depth, it has been my experience that many, perhaps even most, do not, never having gone through an entire sefer of this kind in depth. I am aware that some YU Roshei Yeshiva do bring some of this content into their shiurim, that is still a far cry from having worked deeply through these ideas. It is not uncommon to meet musmachim who can discuss a sugya in depth, or give a high level halacha shiur, but who cannot give over hashkafic ideas on a similar level.

You correctly note that we need an educated and inspired community. I would contend that a requirement to learn, either in a formal shiur or an in-depth chavrusa, at least one sefer machshava, will produce mechanchim (and rabbonim) who can help produce that community.

Sincerely,

Pesach Sommer

What's In A Name (Part V)- Am I Still Pesach Sheini?

From time to time (although it's been a long time since the last one), I will be writing about my reasons for choosing "Pesach Sheini" as the name for my blog. The more I have thought about the name, the more I have felt that it chose me and not the other way around. What follows is the fifth installation. To read the first four click here. 

Dear Rabbi _________________,

After a recent discussion by email, you sent me an email where you spelled out your philosophical and theological views, and asked me to respond in kind; “And you, Reb Pesach -- how do the pieces of your worldview fit together?”. I responded that I was not sure whether I wanted to try and summarize my beliefs, but I would think about it. After much thought, I have decided to respond, with one caveat.

I cannot tell you how the pieces of my worldview fit together, as a unified theory is not something I seek to produce. I’m not sure if anything more than being mine, is what holds them together. One thing which came across quite strongly in your email is that your beliefs are long-held. I suspect, and please correct me if I am mistaken, that you could have used the same words to describe your beliefs five years ago, and probably much earlier than that. I cannot say the same for myself.

When I first started my blog “Pesach Sheini”, the name seemed to make sense. It was my way of saying that I had come through a long, complicated, and painful religious struggle, and that what emerged was a new me. While that was in many ways correct, I made the mistake of thinking that whereas before I had subscribed to certain philosophical and theological beliefs, which, like yours, I would call for lack of a better word, rational, now I had new beliefs which no longer fit that term. What I did not realize was that though I may not ever need a Pesach Shelishi, my new beliefs were not just different, but were also much more fluid.

By way of thinking about how to answer your question, I took a look at the sefarim on my bookshelf. I not only noticed the sefarim which get frequent use these days, those of the Piaseczna Rebbe, Rav Kook, and R’ Hillel Zeitlin, I also noticed the sefarim which I haven’t used much in a bunch of years, although they were helpful to me in the earlier stages of “Pesach Sheini”. Among those sefarim were those from R’ Isaac Breuer, Rabbi Eliezer Berkovits, and Rav Amital. This is not to dismiss any of them as having importance to me. Rather I use to point out that my hesitancy in answering your question is due to the fact that my religious understanding is anything but static. In fact, if you had told a year or two ago me that ideas from The Baal haTanya and Rav Hillel Paritcher would be part of my religious experience, I would have looked at you like you are crazy.

Please don’t mistake this as meaning that there are no core beliefs. I would be surprised if the Piaseczna Rebbe and his Torah ever stops being of great importance to me. I don’t think I could ever be a chasid, but if the Piaseczna Rebbe was alive, who knows. The same goes for Rav Kook’s and Hillel Zeitlin’s Torah.

As for specifics, beyond the fact that my worldview is mostly mystical, I’ll just share a few brief thoughts. While I understand the reasons why you and others try to take a more rational approach, that worldview has very little appeal to me. Ultimately, no how much we try to rationalize religion, it is anything but rational. It ultimately stands on a relationship with a God, who cannot be touched by the world of rational thought. As such, I take God at his word in the Torah, as did the rabbis in the Talmud, that tefillah is real communication, and that God is directly involved in our lives. While you are correct to note that this approach raises questions, all approaches do.

To sum it up as well as I can, and I do realize that I have left quite a bit unsaid, I try and stand in serious relationship to HKBH, and believe with every fiber of my being that it is a real two-way relationship. Does it all fit together? It does in the sense that this is me. I have no desire to convince anyone else of the correctness of any of my views and beliefs. My desire is nothing more than continuously try and think about, develop, and grow in my relationship with God.

Pesach

Daughters of Queens- On producing the next generation of religious women

There was something powerful, and disconcerting (in a positive way) about watching 93 Queen as one of only a handful of men in a room filled, almost entirely, with Modern Orthodox women and teenage girls. As I watched the movie, I often found myself thinking about what those around me were thinking. I grew noticeably uncomfortable while seeing how the many men in the movie often stood in the women’s way, often in a heavy-handed manner. While the movie, which deals with the attempt of Ruchie Freier and a group of primarily chassidish women to start an all-women’s Hatzolah unit, was excellent, and I highly recommend it, I’d like to address the movie from a religious/sociological perspective. Specifically, I’d like to use my experience to think about some questions I’ve been thinking about on women and orthodoxy. In my next post, I hope to address a different aspect of the film.

As a father of three girls, and a teacher of many teens and pre-teens I constantly wonder about the future of Orthodoxy in general, and Modern Orthodoxy in particular, when it comes to women. What future is there for these groups (and others more to the right as well) in terms of holding onto the minds and hearts of women, in a world where women are more or less accepted as equals in pretty much every area of society? To put it differently, why would girls and women choose to be part of a world where they face restrictions of many kinds, when a world with few limits exists around them, and is easily accessible?

One perspective is to push Orthodoxy as far as it will go (according to various yard sticks) in an attempt to make it as egalitarian as possible. While I know people who take this approach, it doesn’t seem to me to be such a successful approach. No matter how liberal a yardstick one uses in attempting to move halacha in this way, they are assured of falling far short of anything remotely approaching egalitarian society. A lower mechitzah is still a mechitzah. Partnership minyanim still show the fact that women can’t lead the most significant parts of davening.

93 Queen seemed to gently suggest another possibility. What particularly moved me, and stood out to me about the women in the film, was the fact that they had a strong sense of knowing what they wanted, and what they had every reason to expect to get, while at the same time feeling strongly at home in, and comfortable with their community. As I watched the story unfold, seated in a Modern Orthodox girl’s high school, I couldn’t help but wonder about how the girls around me were seeing these women, as well as whether they could identify with women who identify so strongly with their religious community, restrictions an all. In particular, I found myself wondering whether there could be aspects of the more yeshivish and even chassidish girl’s educational system, which could be incorporated into the Modern Orthodox education system (to be clear, I have similar questions about the boy’s educational system as well).

I was moved by the strong women portrayed in the film. As I watched, I couldn’t help but hope that we in the modern world are providing a complex and nuanced enough education to our daughters to allow them to look at women from a very different part of the Orthodox world as heroes and role models. Where there are clear and obvious ways where we will part ways in how we educate young women, I hope that a high dividing wall is not being built to keep the two worlds apart.

Ilu Haya Li- My pilgrimage to see Rav Dov Zinger

אילו היה לי רבי כמו שלכם הייתי הולך אליו ברגל,

ובחזרה הייתי רץ לעבוד אותו יתברך עם מה שקבלתי מרבי

If I had a Rebbe like yours, I would travel to him on foot,

And on my way back, I would run, in order to serve The Blessed one, with what I received from my Rebbe

Rav Avraham of Tolchin

I’ve tried to write this several times over the past few weeks. I’ve written, deleted, written again, edited, and edited some more. This is unusual for me. Usually, I know what I want to say, and can find the words to do so. My struggles to express what I want to, speaks to how deeply meaningful this experience was for me. I almost wonder if my challenge in finding the right words should be taken as an indication that I shouldn’t write about it. Some things cannot be shared. Still, I try, with the hope that what I write may be of use to even one person.

There are many stories told him about a chassid leaving home for  an extended period of time to visit his rebbe in a far off location. These stories often end with the chassid returning home having learned something of great importance. What is often implicit in these stories is the fact that getting to the rebbe involves all sorts of challenges including financial loss and time away from the family and work, but that what he gains is worth far more than anything he loses.

I don’t know how common it is these days for chassidim to make a pilgrimage to their rebbe, but many people are familiar with the fact that each year, many Breslov chassidim, chassidim of various stripes, and non-chassidim travel to Rebbe Nachman’s kever in Uman for part or all of the Yamim Noraim. Among the criticisms levied at those who go (and for good and bad, there are many) is that they leave their wives and children home to spend the Rosh Hashana and/or Yom Kippur by themselves. If I’m to be honest, as much as I would like to go to Uman, this is the only reason which would prevent me from going for the Yamim Noraim. Still, I’d like to share as much as I can find the words to do so, about a recent pilgrimage of sorts that I made, as it leaves me believing that certain tradeoffs may be worthwhile.

Less than a year ago, I merited to meet and develop a connection with Rav Dov Zinger, the Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivat Mekor Chaim, and author of Tikon Tefilati, an incredible sefer on tefillah. In the brief time that we had together it was clear that I had not just met a teacher, or even just a rabbi. I had found a mentor, or to put it better, a rebbe. As you can imagine, I was very happy to spend more time with him in Israel this past summer, and thrilled that my son who joined me, was taken by him, and by his yeshiva as well. I left Israel wondering when I’d get to see Rav Dov again. I was deeply excited when I was invited by a friend to come to Cleveland for a weekend where Rav Dov would be speaking and teaching.

I won’t pretend that there were major obstacles standing in my way. My wife was fine with my being away for a few days, and I received permission to miss work, as I would be learning things which I could use in and out of the classroom. Still, after agreeing to go, I discovered that from a family perspective, that weekend was not an ideal one for me to be away. I even considered cancelling.

As I drove west on route 80, I imagined myself as the proverbial chassid leaving his little village to see his rebbe. The dark grey sky and stunning fall foliage further lifted my spirits, something that even a massive storm which accompanied me from one end of Pennsylvania to the other, could not ruin. As I drove, I listened to Yosef Karduner soulful singing on my phone (click here for his amazing rendition of the quote at the top of this post). I couldn’t help but feel that this was all part of the pilgrimage. As excited as I was, I was alsonervous. Was I getting my hopes up to high? Could this weekend be all that I hoped it would be?

What can I say? It was better than I could have possibly hoped. Not surprisingly, the Torah was great. Each shiur and schmooze touched me deeply. I took copious mental notes making sure that I could share his ideas with others. Still, none of that was a surprise. I’d heard enough of Rav Dov’s Torah to know what to expect.

What made this experience so deeply meaningful was everything else. The conversations, the hugs, the jokes, the non-verbal communication, the lesson in hisbodedus put into practice late on a freezing night, and a wonderful walk in the woods, and, and, and.

I can’t find the right words to describe it, and I’m not sure I should try. I can only say that I imagine that many rabbeim have concentric circles around them, with some chassidim all the way on the outside, while others get the opportunity to discover a closer more intimate side of their rebbe. I don’t think I can point to a specific moment, but at some point during our time together I realized that it wasn’t just that I viewed Rav Dov as a rebbe, but that he had allowed me access into a deeper more personal side of himself.

Of course, at the end, in two stages, in Cleveland and New York, I had to say goodbye again, for an undetermined amount of time. It was hard, and I was sad, but it had to happen. Not just in terms of Rav Dov having to go home, but in terms of the ratzo v’ashov, which doesn’t just describe the back and forth relationship we have with God. There is an intensity I experience being in Rav Dov’s presence. In those moments, I don’t quite feel like myself, as fear, excitement, happiness, and trepidation combine to take me away from myself. I don’t think I could handle like living like that all of the time, trying to daven in his presence while trying to watch and not watch his davening, as I hopelessly try to have kavana, or sitting at a meal hoping that my comments are worth sharing, and my jokes appropriate, funny, but not crossing a line.

Most of all, there’s a sense that when I’m with him, I’m not walking on my own, but rather being held up like a child learning to take his first steps. It is only by letting go, by letting there be some distance, that I get to be who I am, taking the so many things I learned from him, not all of it Torah in its most narrow sense, but all of it holy; and trying to implement it in my life.

While I don’t pretend that my travels were particularly long or difficult, or my time away a major sacrifice, I can still say that I strongly believe that whatever was lost in my being away from home, is more than made up by what I returned with as I came back home. I dare say that my time away has the chance to make me a better husband, father, teacher, and Jew.

Can MO High Schools learn From The year In Israel? Some thoughts on the movie Unorthodox (Part III)

[This is the third part of a three-part series on the movie “Unorthodox”. In this post, I address ways for Modern Orthodox high schools to replicate some of what makes studying in Israel so powerful. To read part I, where I addressed how Israel schools have changed, please click here. To read part II, where I addressed how communities can work to better serve high school students, please click here].

“My So-Called Life” and “Freaks and Geeks” are probably the two best TV shows I’ve ever watched about life as a high school student, and its challenges, and I’m not alone in my praise. Both were critically acclaimed, and developed cult-like followings after they went off the air. Each, however, was off the air after only one season. There was something that made people uncomfortable about the realistic portrayal of the struggles of high school students. Viewers were hesitant to revisit their own high school years, even through the lens of a TV show.

If you know a teenager who attends a Modern Orthodox high school, ask them how often they learn something in their Judaic studies classes which seems relevant to their lives right now. Although it has been a number of years since I taught high school, my guess is that most students will struggle to come up with instances when Torah seemed relevant or meaningful to them. While schools have done a good, or even great job of improving their guidance departments to help those like Tzipi and Chaim, who struggle with complicated issues in high school, on the Torah side of things, the Judaic studies curriculum still often seems out of touch. Students continue to spend the majority of their time studying and analyzing a small number of texts.

There are many aspects of the year in Israel which cannot be replicated by high schools. Among them is the time away from home, the older age of the students (at a time when they are more reflective about life), very high-level rabbeim and morot, as well as the atmosphere which exists in many Israeli religious communities. Still, there is what to be learned and copied.

Many students encounter Jewish thought for the first time during their year in Israel. One rebbe told me that his students come back from Israel wondering why they never learned Rav Kook’s Torah before. I do not blame him for not having taught it, but I do wonder why it is that our students are not being exposed to his thought by someone. Of course, it’s not just about Rav Kook. Many students discover that they are inspired by chassidus, or love the Ramchal during their year in Israel. How is it possible that high students are not learning that many of their biggest questions on faith have been addressed by many great thinkers? How is it, that many students leave high school, and too often, observance, thinking that Tanach and gemara (but only the halachic parts) are the only thing that Judaism has to offer?

Additionally, many yeshivot and seminaries offer classes, chaburot, or speakers on issues dealing with real life challenges, both as currently faced, or ones which are on the horizon. Students discover that Torah speaks to real life as lived, and not just to hypothetical situations as discussed in the gemara or Shulchan Aruch. In short, Torah goes from a book of laws, history, and stories, to a Torat Chaim.

Learning these lessons are important for a number of reasons. Why should only the students who go to Israel get the benefit of Torah being exciting meaningful and real? In fact, I suspect that were they given such exposure, more students would want to continue their Jewish education. Even for those who would go straight to college, I believe that fewer would be so quick to throw off the shackles of their Modern orthodox upbringing, if Jewish life was made more meaningful in high school.

If I am correct that high schools are not for the most part learning these important lessons, why is this the case? In too many schools, the teachers are too monolithic. If every rebbe attended one of several yeshivot in Israel or America, they are less likely to be capable of delivering classes which move beyond the standard texts taught in yeshiva. If every morah has a similar outlook on what a frum woman needs to be like, they are unlikely to be able to reach the student who needs something else.

“Unorthodox” did a really good job of showing the value of the year in Israel, and how it can meaningfully change lives. Rather than simply viewing it as a couple of hours of thoughtful entertainment, let’s think about what practical ideas can be learned to help all of our students think meaningfully about what it means to be a Jew, even before they figure out what to do after high school.

Finding God in the Lincoln Tunnel- a brief thought on my daily commute

I was astounded upon doing the math, to realize that I spend nearly 20 full DAYS a year driving to and from work.

I'm in the car on average 2 1/2 hours a day, and multiplied by 180, that means I spend about 450 hours in the car. Not only in the car, but quite often in traffic, covering a distance that in Iowa would likely take me 20-30 minutes at most. It's pretty much the only part of my job that I don't love, but how do I make peace with this?

The Piascezna Rebbe has a powerful piece in what is known as Aish Kodesh (he called it Derashos Mishnos Ha'zaam) where he riffs off of the words:

אל תחלוק על המקום

Do not argue with, or maybe, don't dispute God.

He read these words to say don't argue on the place where you are. It's particularly powerful as he said these words on a Shabbos, while in hiding from the Nazis. He taught that wherever you are is a place where you are connected to God.

So what do I do while I'm tired and stressed, and sitting in bumper to bumper traffic? On a simple level, I try to listen to shiurim, podcasts and music, but that only a beginning. That's just the Litvak in me worrying about bitul zman and bittul Torah.

Can I really be at one with God in the ugly dreariness of the Lincoln Tunnel? Can I be as connected to Him at that moment as I am while hiking in nature, spending time with my family, or learning a piece of the Rebbe's Torah? Because if I'm really to learn from the Rebbe, that is indeed what he taught. That the world truly is filled with God's glory, and that if I'm not feeling it, it's not because God is not there, but rather because I'm not opening myself up to him, indeed to reality.

It's a battle but I try and speak with him while driving and to feel his presence even as a taxi is cutting me off to get a fare.

Both meanings of the words אל תחלוק על המקום are connected. If I can make peace with where I am, I am together with HaKadosh Baruch Hu no matter what surrounds me.