Parasha Vakel (Shemot - Exodus 35,1-40.38)
Shabbat Shalom!
"And Moshe gathered the whole congregation of the Bnei Yisrael and said to them: These are the things that Hashem commanded to do. For six days you will do your work and on the seventh
"This day will be holy to you, a Shabbat completely for Hashem, and anyone who does any work will be put to death" (Shemot 35:1)
The great Sages explain to us in the Haggadah: From the beginning of the Torah to the end,
There is no other Parasha that begins with the verb “to gather.” Hashem said to Moshe: Make a great Assembly and you will expound the laws of Shabbat in public, so that future generations will learn from you, to gather every Shabbat in the Batei Midrasht (houses of study) to study and teach the words of the Torah, 'what is permitted or forbidden,' and so that My Great Name will be praised by My children.
The great Sage Jafets Jaim warns us:
I have heard something terrible. It seems that the Shabbats and the feast days, which were set to be days of Holy convocation to spread the Torah and the fear of Heaven, as it is written: “Remember the Shabbat day to sanctify it.” And this has become the cause of numerous sins: all the
On the eve of Shabbat and the Holidays, newspapers are published with twice the thickness of those published on weekdays, and the press and journalists go to great lengths to fill them with all kinds of frivolity, mockery, and vulgarity. These copies are printed on the eve of Shabbat and the Holidays, and many
Some of our brothers, the Bnei Israel, spend the entire day of the Holy Shabbat reading such frivolities.
Woe to the ears that hear and woe to the eyes that see such contempt for the sanctity of the Sabbath and the Festivals, since even on weekdays it is forbidden to read such things!
The same punishment that will be meted out to those who mock will also be meted out to those who write and print them. But for anyone who hears such a thing and remains silent, the Sages have said that Hashem's anger will fall upon him, and even more so upon those who drag along thousands of people.
They are sinners, who make others sin and will not be able to repent!
The Jafets Chaim concludes by saying: It strikes me as odd that righteous people among our brothers, the Bnei Yisrael, who believe in Hashem and His Torah, who know the gravity of sin, allow themselves to be drawn and seduced by the words of the evil instinct and spend many hours every day reading them. They know the gravity of sin.
Because they do not realize the negligence in the study of the Torah, as well as
of the terrible sin of mockery? They also take on a part of the public's sin, because the mass of simple people, who observe that the right people also read the newspapers, cause them to also
They are allowed to do so. It also strikes me that they themselves are the ones who daily multiply their requests and supplications to Hashem to send us the Prophet Elijah and the Messiah.
How can they make such requests? Can they possibly receive the prophet Elijah while immersed in mockery and frivolous topics?
Is this the way to prepare for his arrival?
Their faces will not be filled with shame when the Prophet Eliyahu finds them.
in such a situation? (From the letters of Jafets Chaim)
It is no coincidence that in this Parasha we are reminded of the Holy Day on which Hashem commands us to stop and leave our vanities and draw closer to Him.Everything that happens around us is a message that the Creator Himself sends us to return to Him. It's enough to take a few minutes and analyze everything that is happening in this world to realize that the call is very clear! "The time to prepare for Redemption is running out."
(Dedicated to the healing of all the sick in Am Israel and throughout the world, for a speedy restoration, success and blessing for all who spread the message of Emunah)
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