Parshas Re'eh (5779)
There is a beautiful Midrash that is quoted by the Tur (an important Halachic code compiled by Rabbi Yaakov ben Asher 1270-1340) in the Laws of Shabbos Chapter 290:
The Torah said in front of the Holy One, Blessed be He: “Master of the Universe! When the Jewish people will enter the Land [of Israel], this [one] shall run to his vineyard, and this [one] shall run to his field; [as for] me, what shall happen to me?†[G-d] said [to her]: “I have the [perfect] match for you, and its name is ‘Shabbos’ … for on Shabbos, the people are not busy working and will have time to study youâ€.
What the Midrash is teaching us is that while Shabbos is certainly a “Day of Rest†(and, according to Jewish tradition, one who sleeps on Shabbos will even be rewarded for this mitzvah), it is so much more than that. It is a time to be spent reconnecting with one’s family, with oneself, and, most importantly, with our Father in Heaven through the study of His Torah – something that we often haven’t enough time to do during the busy workweek.
Now there are some Jews who will say that Torah study on Shabbos or anytime is not for them because they are not ‘religious’. Or maybe they’ll say that even on Shabbos when they are not in the office they simply have too much else going on to spend even a little time studying Torah.
Well, then, I have some news for them … Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is also not ‘religious’ - and he is also incredibly busy running a country – yet even he finds time to study Torah with his family on Shabbos.
As we see in the following recent article – excerpted from Yeshiva World News.
Netanyahu surprised the crowd at a religious Zionist conference in Givat Shmuel on Tuesday evening by beginning his speech with his religious practices rather than the expected political commentary, according to a Kikar Shabbat report. He described how he spends Shabbos in his home: “Toward noon on Shabbos, I learn with my son Avner. We put kippahs on our heads and we read the Parsha, Haftorah and Pirkei Avos.†Perhaps noticing skeptical looks in his audience, Netanyahu continued by adding, “Well, sure, that’s what he says here. No, it’s the truth. And when I want to delve further, I learn a few shiurim [classes] with Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz.†“I don’t need to tell you that Sara is mafrish challah [performs the mitzvah of ‘removing a piece of dough’ for the kohen],†Netanyahu continued. “She comes from a home where her father, my father-in-law Shmuel Ben-Artzi, was a Tanach [Bible] scholar and teacher, her brothers were Tanach contest winners. This is what they absorbed in their home.†“People ask me how I deal with everything, if I have a place I can get away from everything. I answer – yes, I have a Seudas Shabbos [meal] with Sara and our sons. I get away from everything by [spending time with my] family, walking, and in most of my free time —and there isn’t much —I read.â€
So there you have it folks! Even the Prime Minister of Israel studies Torah every Shabbos! Who knew?
This Shabbos we begin the Hebrew month of Elul, which means that we are only 30 days away from Rosh Hashanah, the “Day of Judgmentâ€. And we all want to have another good year – but we have to ‘earn’ it by showing G-d that we are changing for the better.
One way of doing that is by taking upon ourselves – individually or as a family – something extra special to do for the entire month of Elul up until Rosh Hashanah. And I have the perfect idea for you …
There are five Friday nights between now and Rosh Hashanah (starting from tonight). On each of these Friday nights, the family should gather together (in the dining room at the formal Shabbos meal, or, if you don’t do that, then, informally at wherever in the house works for you) and each person should bring along with him a short but interesting Torah insight that they read online (at Torah.org, Aish.com, Chabad.org, etc. etc. etc.) and printed out.
One of the group should be designated to first recite the traditional Birchos HaTorah, “Blessings on the Torah†(see your local Siddur, Prayer Book, for more details), and then, one-by-one, each person should share the Torah insight that they brought to the table with the rest of the group and discuss.
Hey, if Bibi studies Torah with his family every Shabbos, then we can too!
http://www.torchweb.org/torah_detail.php?id=580