Dear Friends:
Six years ago this week, we launched an effort to encourage parents of no-longer-observant children to consider inviting them home for Pesach.
We made and posted the 2 videos below and conducted workshops with parents and their adult children, encouraging both parties to collaboratively craft a set of "House Rules" that promote mutual respect and Shalom Bayis.
With Hashem's help, many families spent Pesach together in 2017 for the first time in years.
Since then, we have been reposting those 2 videos on social media each year, along with a narrative conveying the same message.
This year, we are leveraging the digital platform of our Instagram pages to carry that message to a wider audience by conducting an Instagram Live @yakovhorowitz Thursday evening, March 23, at 8:00 pm Eastern. We will use this email list to disseminate the video to you.
Yakov
Thursday, March 23, 2023
Did Stormy Daniels Admit Fabricating Donald Trump Affair?
https://www.newsweek.com/fact-check-did-stormy-daniels-admit-fabricating-donald-trump-affair-1789595
While Daniels, in a statement in January 2018, said that she did not have an affair with Donald Trump, she later rescinded those comments, saying that she was forced to release the statement after the hush money story first came to life.
In an interview with Anderson Cooper, Daniels said she was told her life would be made "hell in many different ways" if she didn't sign the statement.
Wednesday, March 22, 2023
Meet the Sulamot organization
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/367992
We have to inspire the children. We need to bring the material that will be deep but will speak in their language," he explains the organization's vision, adding that by thinking out of the box, new solutions can be found to connect the youth to the Torah.
Gabai-Zada explains how the Sulamot turns the vision into a reality, "We provide programming for all different audiences. Ratzim Lemishna, for instance, which are action videos that develop the Mishna, tell the story of the Mishna, are catering to children." She explains that the videos aim to make those subjects accessible in an inspiring way that also enables the child to see the text as something that's relevant. "Relevance is all about what we do, it's about providing access and making it relevant and meaningful to our personal lives."
Persuading republicans and democrats to comply with mask wearing: An intervention tournament☆
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9021555/
Many people practiced COVID-19-related safety measures in the first year of the pandemic, but Republicans were less likely to engage in behaviors such as wearing masks or face coverings than Democrats, suggesting radical disparities in health practices split along political fault lines.
Of course there Is no Arab “Palestinian” People and there never was an Arab “Palestine.”
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/369077
Open an Encyclopedia pre-dating 1964, and look up “Palestine.” Identify the name of any Arab Muslim who ever was the “King of Palestine,” the “Sheikh of Palestine,” the “Emperor of Palestine,” the “Prime Minister of Palestine,” the “President of Palestine.” Name a “Palestinian” painter of note, a soccer team. There never was an Arab anything called “Palestine,” no coinage, no currency — and never an Arab people by such name. Any statement otherwise is a lie and a fraud on a society that easily can be fooled when mass media decide to partner in a Big Lie.
After 81 years, a Virginia military base sheds its Confederate name
https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2023/03/21/confederate-name-change-army-base-virginia/
Why the fort was first named for Pickett, a U.S. Military Academy graduate from Richmond who fought for the Confederacy and helped lead an infamous, ill-fated charge at the Battle of Gettysburg on July 3, 1863, is still something of a mystery in these parts.
Yes, masks reduce the risk of spreading COVID, despite a review saying they don’t
The review starts with an assumption that masks provide respiratory protection, which is flawed. An understanding of these differences should inform both studies and reviews of those studies.
The authors of the Cochrane Review acknowledged compliance with masking advice was poor in most studies. In the real world, we can’t force people to follow medical advice, so RCTs should be analysed on an “intention to treat” basis.
For example, people who are prescribed the active drug but who choose not to take it should not be shifted to the placebo group for the analysis. But if in a study of masking, most people don’t actually wear them, you can’t conclude that masks don’t work when the study shows no difference between the groups. You can only conclude that the mask advice didn’t work in this study.
Tucker Carlson ‘enraged’ private texts revealed; ‘I love Trump’
Fox News host Tucker Carlson said he is angry that his private text messages about former President Trump to fellow network employees were made public as part of an ongoing defamation lawsuit facing the company.
“And I think this is in the text, and those were all grabbed completely illegitimately, in my opinion um in this court case, which I guess I’m not allowed to talk about, but I’m enraged that my private texts were pulled,” Carlson said Tuesday during an appearance on WABC Radio.
House GOP uses its new power in extraordinary effort to shield Trump from indictment
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/03/21/politics/republicans-trump-playbook/index.html
The strategy of House Republicans is familiar. Trump has long launched fierce and preemptive attacks on institutions, in government or the law, that seek to hold him to account as he’s tried to blur clarity about his conduct or culpability and ignite a political storm that taints their conclusions in advance.
But the use of government power to advance political ends appears to mirror exactly the behavior Republicans, in their new subcommittee on the weaponization of the federal government, are accusing the FBI, the Justice Department and other government agencies of.
Tuesday, March 21, 2023
Don't Tell: The leniency of the Rema of not revealing previously unknown mamzerim
update - limitation on non revealing the information
The issue was raised regarding the producing of mamzerim through the giving of an invalid Get. Isn't this really a non-issue since if the mamzer is not revealed - there is no prohibition of marriage and therefore everyone is presumed to be kosher?
The issue was raised regarding the producing of mamzerim through the giving of an invalid Get. Isn't this really a non-issue since if the mamzer is not revealed - there is no prohibition of marriage and therefore everyone is presumed to be kosher?
I am presenting the Rema which is the source for this view. It is clear that if in fact the information can definitely be concealed then there is no problem. However it seems obvious that with a growing awareness of the regularity that invalid Gittin are being given - that the chezkas kashrus of divorced people disappears. As Rav Sternbuch has noted, at some point when there is a systemic problem there will be a need to investigate each case of the offspring of a divorced couple. The only issue seems to be whether we have reached that point or will reach it in the near future. The leniency of the Rema applies when there are only isolated cases. In addition - even when in general the information can be concealed - but there will always be cases where the information is inadvertently revealed and then the problem of mamzerus spreads through the family like a nuclear chain reaction.
Shulchan Aruch (E.H. 2:5): If a family of cohanim has a definite challel amongst them then every woman of that family is prohibited until she is checked and if she marries she must be divorced. The same applies if there is a family that a sofek mamer or definite mamzer. Rema: However all of this applies only if it is definitely known to be true. However a family that has a person who is invalid for marriage – but it is not public knowledge- since he has been successfully mixed in then let him remained so. Someone who knows about this invalid person – is not allowed to reveal the information but the family members are to be left with their presumption of validity (chezkas kashrus). That is because all such families which have an unknown invalid person amongst them will be declared as fully kosher in the Messianic Era. Nevertheless is appropriate to reveal this information to those who can keep a secret (This is implied by the Ran). However this ignoring of the information is only when the invalid member is successfully mixed in and concealed from public knowledge. But as long as he is not mixed in then we reveal the invalid members and publicly announce it so that unblemished people will avoid marriage with them. See Choshen Mishpat 25 as to who is believed to testify about a families pedigree.
Edios (8:7): Rabbi Yehoshua said, I have received a tradition from Rabban Yochanon ben Zakkai who heard it from his rebbe and his rebbe heard it from his rebbe as a halacha l'Moshe m'Sinai (Tradition given from Sinai) that Eliyahu will not come to declare unclean or to pronounce clean, to put away or to bring near. But rather he will put away those brought near by force and to bring near that who have been put away by force. The family of Beis Zerephah was on the other side of the Jordan and Ben Tzion put it away by force. And there was already another family there and Ben Tziion brought it near by force. For such people Eliyahu will come to declare unclean or to pronounce clean, to put away or to bring near. Rabbi Yehuda disagreed and said Eliyahu will bring near but not put away. Rabbi Shimon said that will come to resolve disputes. The Sages disagreed and said that Eliyahu will neither come to put away nor to bring near but rather to make peace in the world. As is stated in Malachi (3), Behold I will send Eliyahu the Prophet to you... And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children and the heart of the children their fathers.
Bartenuro (Edios 8:7): It is a halacha L'Moshe m'Sinai that G-d showed Moshe at Sinai... that Eliyahu will not come to declare unclear or clean or to make distant or bring close to clarify doubts concerning which individual are problematic who have been mixed in the family - but these doubts will be left and they will be kosher in the future. The halacha is that a family which has posul individuals successfully mixed in and unidentified- they will remain unidentified as posul. ... those families where posul individuals have been successfully mixed in and they are not know as posul individuals but are presumed kosher - Eliyahu will leave them that way.
However the following claims that the prohibition of revealing information is only when it is based on rumors - but not on the testimony of two witnesses.
Chelkas Mechokek (2:5.9): One who knows that there is a mamzer is not allowed to reveal this information – But it is stated in Shulchan Aruch (EH. 2:3) that two people had testified that a family has a mamzer or challel. How can they do this since they are violating the halacha of not revealing this information? However saying they shouldn't testify also presents a difficulty since we pasken in this sif that if there is a doubt whether there is a mamzer in a particular family that someone who marries a member of that family needs to get divorced – so why isn't it a mitzva to reveal this information because today or tomorrow witnesses will come and testify that there is a mamzer in the family and consequently the children of this family will be considered sofek mamzerim? A possible answer is that concerning the Ran on which the leniency of the Rema is based, he could be talking about a case where it is not clear that a member of the family is actually a mamzer – but merely that there is a rumor. Perhaps it is only such a case where the Ran is saying that there is no need to reveal this information except to modest people [who won't spread the information]. However when two witness know for certain that a mamzer assimilated into this family it is very difficult to claim that they should not testify since the children of this family - once the information becomes public that there is a mamzer who is mixed into this famly –will henceforth be sofek mamzerim.
Edios (8:7): Rabbi Yehoshua said, I have received a tradition from Rabban Yochanon ben Zakkai who heard it from his rebbe and his rebbe heard it from his rebbe as a halacha l'Moshe m'Sinai (Tradition given from Sinai) that Eliyahu will not come to declare unclean or to pronounce clean, to put away or to bring near. But rather he will put away those brought near by force and to bring near that who have been put away by force. The family of Beis Zerephah was on the other side of the Jordan and Ben Tzion put it away by force. And there was already another family there and Ben Tziion brought it near by force. For such people Eliyahu will come to declare unclean or to pronounce clean, to put away or to bring near. Rabbi Yehuda disagreed and said Eliyahu will bring near but not put away. Rabbi Shimon said that will come to resolve disputes. The Sages disagreed and said that Eliyahu will neither come to put away nor to bring near but rather to make peace in the world. As is stated in Malachi (3), Behold I will send Eliyahu the Prophet to you... And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children and the heart of the children their fathers.
Bartenuro (Edios 8:7): It is a halacha L'Moshe m'Sinai that G-d showed Moshe at Sinai... that Eliyahu will not come to declare unclear or clean or to make distant or bring close to clarify doubts concerning which individual are problematic who have been mixed in the family - but these doubts will be left and they will be kosher in the future. The halacha is that a family which has posul individuals successfully mixed in and unidentified- they will remain unidentified as posul. ... those families where posul individuals have been successfully mixed in and they are not know as posul individuals but are presumed kosher - Eliyahu will leave them that way.
However the following claims that the prohibition of revealing information is only when it is based on rumors - but not on the testimony of two witnesses.
Chelkas Mechokek (2:5.9): One who knows that there is a mamzer is not allowed to reveal this information – But it is stated in Shulchan Aruch (EH. 2:3) that two people had testified that a family has a mamzer or challel. How can they do this since they are violating the halacha of not revealing this information? However saying they shouldn't testify also presents a difficulty since we pasken in this sif that if there is a doubt whether there is a mamzer in a particular family that someone who marries a member of that family needs to get divorced – so why isn't it a mitzva to reveal this information because today or tomorrow witnesses will come and testify that there is a mamzer in the family and consequently the children of this family will be considered sofek mamzerim? A possible answer is that concerning the Ran on which the leniency of the Rema is based, he could be talking about a case where it is not clear that a member of the family is actually a mamzer – but merely that there is a rumor. Perhaps it is only such a case where the Ran is saying that there is no need to reveal this information except to modest people [who won't spread the information]. However when two witness know for certain that a mamzer assimilated into this family it is very difficult to claim that they should not testify since the children of this family - once the information becomes public that there is a mamzer who is mixed into this famly –will henceforth be sofek mamzerim.
There is no such thing as a Palestinian people
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-734835
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich dismissed the existence of a Palestinian people in a speech he delivered in Paris on Sunday.
“There is no such thing as Palestinians because there is no such thing as a Palestinian people,” said Smotrich who heads the Religious Zionist Party.
“Who are the [real] Palestinians? I am Palestinian,” he said.
Astrology
Shulchan Aruch (Y.D. 179:1–2): 1) It is prohibited to ask about the future from an astrologer or by using a divination technique. Rema: Because of the prohibition of be tamim with your G-d (Beis Yosef citing Tosfos based on the Sifri) and it is surely prohibited consult with magicians and diviners of all types. 2) The accepted practice is not to start something new on Monday or Wednesday and not to get married except while the moon is increasing [i.e., first half of the month]. Rema: This is why it is customary to start the new period of Torah learning on Rosh Chodesh because even though we don’t consult divination we do utilize propitious signs. If a person knows that some activity is against mazel he should not do it and have to rely on a miracle. That is because the prohibition is only to seek out this information because of be tamim with your G-d [but one should utilize the information if he has acquired it].
One-fifth of Fox News viewers trust network less after Dominion lawsuit revelations
Asked whether the lawsuit’s revelations have impacted their belief in the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election, 13 percent of Fox News viewers say their minds were changed and that they now do not believe the 2020 election was stolen. Fifty percent said the revelations had no effect and that they still believe the election was stolen.
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