Back in 1996, Rabbi Finman was asked to speak to the niece of one of his students. After spending many hours answering her questions, the woman gave Rabbi Finman her e-mail address. Rabbi Finman wrote the woman a note and included in it a short insight into that week's Parsha and a short Chasidic story.

Realizing that this was something no one was yet doing,, Rabbi Finman sent the missive to his mailing list of about 30 people. Requests from recipients friends came pouring in. The next week Rabbi Finman sent the e-Parsha to 100 people. Within a year more than 2000 people were receiving it. Today, more than 14,000 receive the e-Parsha weekly and the requests keep coming in.

Vayeitzei 5786
Toldos 5786
Chaya Sora 5786
Vayera 5786
Lech 5786

Chaya Sora 5786

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This week's YouParsha Chaya Sora http://youtu.be/9uwwPlJ5FM0 a very engaging Parsha.

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This week's Parsha is Chaya Sora, Genesis 23 - 25:19. The Parsha begins with the death of Sora and her burial. Avrohom purchased a field with a cave for a tomb. It is interesting to note that the three most contested sites in Israel, Chevron, Shechem and Jerusalem were all purchased. Avrohom purchased Chevron for a burial site, Yaakov purchased Shechem and King David purchased the Temple Mount.

Avrohom paid 400 pieces of silver for the land. The land of Israel is 400 parsangs square. From the time Avrohom purchased the field until the conquest of the land by Joshua was 400 years. Avrohom informed the inhabitants of the land that he was "a wanderer and an inhabitant of the land." Wander implies passing through. Inhabitant implies living. According to Rashi, Avrohom informed them that they should treat him as a guest and allow him a place to bury his dead. If not, he was an inhabitant and would take the land by force. Avrohom was also telling them that he was a totally righteous person and was thus just passing through this world onto the next.

The number 400 also represents the soul and the body. The numerical value of the word haneshama - the soul, is 400. The body occupies four amos (somewhat related to the Hebrew for 400, four maos). This concept also alludes to the saying that since the destruction of the Temple, The Almighty may only be found in the four amos of Jewish law.

Divine will is conveyed by physical things; tefillin with physical leather, tsit tsits with physical wool, Shabbos candles with a physical candle. It is possible to meditate and understand the greatness of Hashem but meditating accomplishes nothing. We live in the realm of action. Our performance of the commandments through these physical objects allows us to tap into the highest levels of Divine will.

A friend of mine once spent Pesach in a resort. After he finished his seder, he walked around the hotel to see what else was happening. One of the ballrooms featured the "Kaballist", a neo-freaked out California based who knows what. In the center of the room sat the leader. He was the seder plate. In his hand, he held a matzoh (a shmura matzoh, no less) and was meditating on the word matzoh. He kept repeating the word matzoh over and over as did all of the participants. This man would have done much better had he just put the matzoh in his mouth. Thinking and speaking are OK, action is the most important.

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The Mezritcher Maagid, successor to the Baal Shem Tov, lived a very simple life. Before he was appointed Rebbe, he earned a meager livelihood as a teacher of small children. One day, a boyhood friend was passing near the village of Mezrich and decided that he would look up his old friend. This man had gone into business (buy cheap - sell expensive) and had done very well for himself.

He located the house of the Maagid and was shocked at the conditions. The Rebbe, an illustrious scholar, and his entire family occupied a one room shack replete with dirt floor. The Maagid was sitting on a tree stump and all of his students were sitting on logs. The Maagid told his friend that he was very happy to see him but he was busy with the children. "Come back after nightfall," he instructed his friend.

The friend returned that night and the two engaged in deep scholarly discussions. The friend was most perturbed. The logs that had been the desks for the students were now the beds for his children. Finally, the friend asked the Maagid, "Why don't you have any furniture in your house?"

The Maagid calmly replied, "Where is your furniture (figures he would answer a question with a question)?" The friend replied, "I am traveling. If you come to my house, I will show you a table and chairs, beds, etc." The Maagid replied, "I too, am traveling. This world is one in which one merely 'journeys'. When I come to the next world, there you will see all that I have acquired."

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