Rabbi Levin's Blog

  Korach was a prophet!  Reading the verses as they are written, it seems as if he was just a rabble rouser who staged a rebellion against Moshe.  But when we look at the Oral Torah, which of course is necessary to understand what the Written Torah is really saying, we see a very different picture.  Yes, Korach was a rabble rouser who staged a rebellion against Moshe, but he was a prophet, and described by the sages as a “Pikeach” – a brilliant man.  He was also a very prominent leader among the Levites, and the wealthiest man in the nation.  (There is a well-known Yiddish saying: “Reich vi Korach” - as rich as Korach.) Korach had a prophetic vision of his illustrious descendants - the great prophet Shmuel and many other very prominent and holy Levites.  He understood that to mean that he and his family had a bright future, and was therefore not afraid of failing in his rebellion.  (In the end, when he and his family were swallowed up in the earth...

Why on earth would Moshe agree to send spies to scout out the land of Canaan?  Didn't he realize that the mission was fraught with danger?     Just to very briefly summarize the story:  The Jews left Egypt and received the Torah, and it was time to go and capture the land of Canaan and transform it into the Holy Land of Israel.  Moshe sent 12 spies to scout the land, and ten of them reported that the people in Canaan were strong, the cities were fortified, and that it would be impossible to capture the land.     The people cried all night asking why Hashem had taken them out of Egypt, and Hashem decreed that they would spend 40 years in the desert, until that generation died out.   So why did Moshe send the spies?  First of all it was dangerous for the spies themselves, and in fact Hashem miraculously arranged for diversions so that the natives should not notice them.  (Rashi says that wherever they went there were funerals, so...

  The tribe of Levi occupied an exalted position in the Jewish community.  Within the tribe itself there was the family of Aaron, the Kohanim (loosely translated as priests), and the rest of the tribe were called the Leviyim or Levites.   To this day Kohanim and Leviyim are recognized for their lineage.  Kohanim give the Priestly Blessings, are called to the Torah first, redeem the firstborns and are given preference in other areas of Jewish life.  Leviyim are called to the Torah right after the Kohen, are charged with washing the Kohanim’s hands before they bless the people, and are recognized as a distinct group.   In the times when we had the Sanctuary and the Temple, in the good times when the Temple services were observed, the Leviyim had some very important functions in the Temple and throughout the land.   One of the subjects in this week’s Parsha, Beha’alotcha, is the designation of the Leviyim and special servants of Hashem....

  Do you jump up and take the initiative or wait and see how things develop and then step in?  I have had the opportunity to work on many worthy community projects over the years.  Those projects often involve garnering support from a wide group of people.   x Our community is generous, and Tzedakah is a high value for us, especially when it comes to bringing Torah and goodness to the world, so there are always people who will step forward and take part in a Mitzvah.   I have found that in every project there are three types of donors.   There are those I call the Visionaries.  These are the people who see the concept and step up to provide the initial funding to get the project off the ground.  These people provide the fuel that helps the project develop before there is anything tangible to show, they make it possible to bring dreams to fruition, and their inspiration motivates the next group to give.   The second group is made up ...

What happened to Moshe’s children?  There is a strange verse in this week’s Parsha, Bamidbar (3:1):  “These are the descendants of Moshe and Aharon…,” and then it lists Aharon’s children, not Moshe’s.     Rashi’s commentary explains why Aharon’s children are called the descendants of Moshe:  “They are considered descendants of Moses because he taught them Torah. This teaches us that whoever teaches Torah to the son of his fellow, Scripture regards it as if he had begotten him.”     That still doesn’t answer why Moshe’s children were not listed.   We know that Moshe had two sons.  We also learn that Moshe asked Hashem to allow his son to take over the leadership, and instead Hashem gave the leadership to Yehoshua.  The fact that Moshe, known as the “faithful shepherd” of the Jewish people, made the request, tells us that his son was worthy of the position.  So it seems perhaps unfair that the greatest leader of all time sho...