Thursday, November 12, 2009

Spiritual & political leaders sometimes fail


Vayikra Rabba(37:4):Yiftach made a request from G‑d in an improper way and he was answered improperly. Yiftach said that if he were victorious that whatever came out of his house he would offer as a sacrifice (Shoftim 11:31). G‑d said if a camel or donkey or dog had come out would he have offered it as a sacrifice? Therefore G‑d answered improperly and caused Yiftach’s daughter to come first out the door. Shoftim (11:35), And when Yiftach saw his daughter he ripped his clothes. But why didn’t Yiftach have his oath annulled by going to Pinchas? That is because Yiftach felt that since he were the king that Pinchas should come to him. So why didn’t Pinchas go to Yiftach? That is because Pinchas felt that since he was the High Priest and the son of a High Priest it was not proper for him to go to an ignorant man. Therefore between the two of them an unfortunate maiden perished and both bore the responsibility for her death. Pinchas was punished by the loss of his holy spirit (ruach hakodesh). Yiftach was punished in that his limbs fell off and they were buried separately…

1 comment :

  1. With all the recent exposes on kashrus, I don't think the 5 Towns Vaad should be immune from criticism either.

    There is a freye newspaper on Long Island called Jewish World. The paper is dropped off at Nassau County bakeries, supermarkets, restaurants, under both the 5 Towns Vaad & the Queens Vaad. One printing of the newspaper this summer was dedicated to promoting toyave among Yidden, rachmunne litzlun! The front page and several articles inside had different angles on how it's normal for Jews to do abominations.

    The Queens Vaad is in gantzen a waste of time, so someone called the 5T Vaad to complain. After some shul rabbonim there conferred, their cop-out terutz was that we think it's disgusting "but there's nothing we can do about it." The chutzpenyaks compared this to when frumaks complain about goyishe music being played. The 5T Vaad was told not to make it a condition of hashgocho but to just poshut tell the baal habatim of the establishments of the content, and most of them will zicher remove the papers on their own. They refused to do even that much. They insulted the caller by volunteering him to go around himself to make a tummel in all the stores in the county.

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