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From:         Rabbi Ariel Bar Tzadok
Subject:       Ruchani Eye On Israel - Parashat Vayehi - The Secret Identity of Shiloh
To:            heb_roots_chr@hebroots.org


B"H
Ruchani Eye On Israel

Parashat Vayehi
Identifying Shiloh - The Secret Soul of the Mashiah

By Rabbi Ariel Bar Tzadok
Copyright  2001 by Ariel Bar Tzadok. All rights reserved.

"The staff shall not depart from Yehuda, nor the scepter from between his feet, until Shiloh comes, and the obedience of the people be his." (Bereshit 49:10)

In this week's parasha, Ya'aqov Avinu blesses his sons before his death. With regards to Yehuda, Ya'aqov makes reference to "Shiloh." Yet, no explanation is given as to who Shiloh is.

According to Onkelos, Midrash Rabbah and Rashi, the name Shiloh is a reference to the future Melekh HaMashiah.

Belief in Mashiah and awaiting his coming is one of the Thirteen Principles of the Jewish Faith. It is a core belief of Torah. Yet, study about the coming of Mashiah, how this is to occur and what this is to mean for mankind is not widespread.

RaMBaM writes about the coming of Mashiah in his Hilkhot Melakhim. Yet he emphasizes there that what he writes are his own opinions and not necessarily the only way to understand the subject. On the other hand, the mystical literature of the holy Mekubalim is rich with material about the topic of Mashiah, who he is, why he is and what he is to accomplish. This material however is rarely made available to outsiders of the Mekubalim schools, all the more so available in a language other than Hebrew. While this topic rightly deserves to be covered in depth in a book of its own, let it suffice for now just to skim the surface and learn who Mashiah really is and what we can do to help speed his coming.

Concerning the name "Shiloh", the Ba'al HaTurim notes that its Gematria (numerical value of the letters) is the same as that of the name Moses. While the Ba'al HaTurim does not elaborate on this, the master Mekubal Rabbi Haim Vital does, in his Sha'ar HaPesukim (Vayehi 20B). There has always been an interesting mystical relationship between Moses and the Mashiah. One was our first redeemer and the other will be our last. The question is whether this relationship goes any further. Moshe Rabbeynu and Mashiah, what is their relationship? Rabbi Haim tell us:

"It has already been referred to in the Zohar (1,25B), Ra'aya Mehemna (Pinhas 246B), and the Tikunim (21,52B) that [the name] Shiloh is numerically equal to [the name] Moshe, for it is he who is Mashiah Ben David. Now, regarding Mashiah Ben David, it is written, "Behold, my servant shall be enlightened, he shall be extolled and exalted, and be elevated immensely" (Yishaya 52:13). [He shall be] "extolled" more than Avraham, "exalted" more than Yitzhak, "elevated" more than Ya'aqov and "immensely" more than Moshe. This is the explanation, Mashiah Ben David will merit the Neshama of the Neshama, that which not even Moshe merited to receive. We thus find that the first shepherd, Moshe, he himself will be the final shepherd, even as our Sages have referred to in the Midrash ..."


Shabat Shalom.

Yeshivat Benei N'vi'i
P.O. Box 59700
Chicago, IL. 60659.

Tizku L'mitzvot!!

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From: Moshiach.com
To:   heb_roots_chr@hebroots.org
Subject: Moshiach.com Newsletter - Vol. II No. 6

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Vol. II No. 6 / Parshas Vayechi

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    The Temple Mount - The Debate


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THE TEMPLE MOUNT

As these lines are being written, the fate of Bill Clinton's proposal for a peace treaty in the Middle East is still unknown. Ehud Barak has basically said "yes" and Yasir Arafat has basically said "no", but that will probably change numerous times over the next day, week and month.

An agonizing debate is raging within the Jewish community on whether to yield our sovereignty over the Temple Mount--the site of the first and second Temples in Jerusalem and the most sacred place on earth to the Jewish people. (The "Western Wall" is holy to us because--and only because--it marks the outside boundary of the Temple Mount).

At the heart of the debate are two misconceptions. The first misconception is that if we decide to give away extensive portions of the very heart of the Jewish homeland, we will achieve peace with our Arab neighbors. The second misconception is that the choice is ours to make.

Several weeks ago, the Qatar-based Arabic news channel, Al-Jazeera, hosted a debate on "The Future of the Intifada and the Palestinian State." Three leading Palestinian figures participated in the program, representing the full spectrum of viewpoints of the Palestinian public today, from the moderate "peace camp" to the most uncompromising extremists. PA Minister of Information, Yasser Abd Rabbo represented the PA's official position; Deputy head of Hamas' political bureau, Musa Abu Marzuq represented the position of the militant Islamic movement; and Bilal Al-Hassan, an analyst with the London-based daily, Al-Hayat, represented the position of the Palestinian left.

The crux of the discussion was: assuming that all the Palestinians' official demands are met, including the "Right of Return" and the establishment of a Palestinian state on all of the territory conquered by Israel in 1967 (including East Jerusalem and the Temple Mount), what then? Will this state coexist peacefully with the State of Israel?

What do you think the Islamic militant and the leftist journalist said? And what do you think Yasir Arafat's official representative said?

A summary of their debate, including many direct citations, can be viewed on line at http://www.memri.org/sd/SP15500.html WARNING: If you believe that territorial compromise will perhaps lead to peace, and you do not want to be rudely awakened from this admittedly pleasant dream, DO NOT FOLLOW THE ABOVE LINK.

The second misconception is that Israel's government can decide to hand over the Temple Mount to the Palestinian people. The Temple Mount belongs not to Mr. Barak, not to the Jews living in Israel today, not, even, to the world Jewish community. It is the possession--indeed, the most important of all physical possessions--of the Jewish people, religious or secular, Israeli or Italian, of this generation and of all past and future generations.

Even if Mr. Barak had a majority of the Knesset behind him (he has, at last count, less than a fifth); even if he enjoyed the support of a majority of Israeli Jews (the latest polls show a
very small, and daily shrinking, minority); even if every Jew alive today agreed to give away their most sacred birthright--they have not the right to do so. It is not theirs to give.

The Temple Mount was restored to our possession 33 years ago not by our choosing. We did not want to fight a war with six Arab nations in June of 1967. We were forced to occupy Jerusalem and other parts of the Holy Land in order to repel our enemies' intention to destroy us completely. With open miracles, the likes of which we have not experienced for thousands of years, G-d chose to put the place He calls His home in our trust.

It is ours to revere and protect; it is not ours to give away.

By Yanki Tauber


All contents c 2001 by Moshiach Online Inc.

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