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(7) Remember the days of old,
Consider the years of ages past;
Ask your parent, who will inform you,
Your elders, who will tell you:
Gods they had never known,
New ones, who came but lately,
Who stirred not your forebears’ fears.*Who stirred not your forebears’ fears Meaning of Heb. uncertain; Arabic sha‘ara suggests the rendering “Whom your forebears did not know.”
And do not forsake the instruction of your mother;
(א) ירושלים, ישראל, אייר תשע"ב
(ב) לז. מסלול מותר לכהנים בהר הרצל
(ג) שאלה:
(ד) אני אחראית על הסיורים החינוכיים המתבצעים בהר הרצל ומוזאון הרצל. בסיורים משתתפים לרוב בני נוער וחיילים. חלק מהם כהנים, ורבים מהם מסרבים להשתתף בסיור מחשש שמא יכנסו למקומות האסורים בכניסה לכהנים. אודה לכם על תשובתכם והדרכתם בנושא זה.
(ה) תשובה:
(ו) מבוא
(ז) מדינה יהודית עצמאית היא חלק בלתי נפרד מעולמו הרוחני השלם של עם ישראל. לצערנו רק במשך זמן קצר יחסית מתוך היסטוריה ארוכת שנים זכה עם ישראל למתנה זו מידי הקב"ה.
(ח) במאה השנים האחרונות זכה עם ישראל להתגשמותם של חלקים גדולים מחזון הנביאים ולחזות עין בעין בשיבת ציון, היינו כחולמים. לנגד עינינו מתרחש נס "תחיית מתים" לאומי. מי שזכה להניע את התהליך כאיש חזון ומעשה היה בנימין זאב הרצל. לכן חובה לחנך את הדורות הבאים ולהביא להם ממורשתו כדי שיבינו את רוחב חזונו והעומק שבו.
(ט) המשך קיומה וחיזוקה של מדינת ישראל תלוי גם בהכרת השורשים והמעשים שהביאו בסופו של דבר להתרחשות הנס, בבחינת "זכור ימות עולם, בינו שנות דור ודור, שאל אביך ויגדך, זקניך ויאמרו לך" (דברים לב, ז), ו וכדברי יגאל ידין: "מי שאין לו עבר – אין לו גם עתיד".
על כן עלינו ללמוד וללמד על האנשים והתהליכים שהביאו להקמת המדינה, ומצווה להשתתף בסיורים בהר הרצל המלמדים על כך.
(י) לכן יש לדאוג למסלול סיור בהר שאף כהנים יוכלו להשתתף בו.
(יא) מכיוון שמדובר בתכנון מסלול לציבור הרחב ולשנים רבות, קבענו את המסלול על פי נקודות ברורות בשטח, כדי שלא יבואו כהנים להיכשל באיסור טומאת מת. אף על פי כן, בעוד כעשר שנים יש לערוך שוב בדיקה בהר כדי לוודא שלא חלו שינויים בשטח המצריכים את עדכון המסלול.
(יב)
על הנהלת הר הרצל לדאוג לכך שכל המדריכים בהר יעברו הדרכה בנושא וילמדו את המסלול המאושר לכהנים. כמו כן יש לחלק לכהנים הבאים לבקר בהר דף הנחיות המפרט את המסלול המותר להם.
(יג) עקרונות הלכתיים...
Jerusalem, Israel, Iyar 2011. Is a tour permitted to Cohanim on Mt. Herzl?
Q: I am responsible for the educational tours that take place at Mount Herzl and the Herzl Museum. The tours are mostly attended by teenagers and soldiers. Some of them are Cohanim, and many of them refuse to participate in the tour for fear that they will enter the places forbidden to priests. Thank you for your answer and guidance on this matter.
A: Introduction
An independent Jewish state is an integral part of the complete spiritual world of the people of Israel. Unfortunately, only for a relatively short time out of a long history did the people of Israel receive this gift from God. In the last hundred years, the people of Israel have had the privilege of seeing the fulfillment of large parts of the vision of the prophets and seeing eye to eye the return of Zion, that is, as dreamers. A national "resurrection" miracle is happening before our eyes. The one who had the privilege of driving the process as a man of vision and action was Benjamin Ze'ev Herzl. That is why it is imperative to educate future generations and bring them his legacy so that they understand the breadth and depth of his vision.
The continued existence and strengthening of the State of Israel also depends on knowing the roots and the actions that ultimately led to the miracle taking place, considering "Remember forever, between the years of generation and generation, your father asked and your elders told you, and your elders said to you" (Deuteronomy 32, 7), and according to the words of Yigal Yadin: " He who does not have a past does not have a future either." Therefore, we must learn and teach about the people and processes that led to the establishment of the state, and we are commanded to participate in tours of Mount Herzl that teach about this.
That is why it is necessary to arrange for a tour of the mountain that even cohanim can participate in.
Since this is about planning a route for the general public and for many years, we determined the route according to clear points in the field, so that no cohanim would come and fail to prohibit dead defilement. Nevertheless, in about ten years, an inspection must be conducted on the mountain again to make sure that there have been no changes in the area that require the route to be updated.
The management of Mount Herzl must ensure that all guides at the Mount receive training on the subject and learn the approved route for cohanim. Also, the cohanim who come to visit the mountain must be given a sheet of instructions detailing the route they are allowed to take.
Halachic principles .....
[Detailed guidance follows for visiting Herzl, heads of the World Histadrut, Herzl's children, Gedolei HaUma (great leaders), Jabotinsky, monument to the victims of the hostilities and the monuments to the refugees graves.]
Responsa
Author:
Responsa consisting of Halakhic inquiries received by the members of Kollel Eretz Chemda from rabbis in Jewish communities around the world. These fascinating responsa, many of which deal with our developing modern world, have been collected in a series of books entitled "B'Mareh HaBazak".
Composed: Jerusalem, Israel (c.2007 - c.2017 CE)
וְהִתְקִינוּ, שֶׁיְּהֵא אָדָם שׁוֹאֵל אֶת שְׁלוֹם חֲבֵרוֹ בַּשֵּׁם, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (רות ב) וְהִנֵּה בֹעַז בָּא מִבֵּית לֶחֶם, וַיֹּאמֶר לַקּוֹצְרִים ה' עִמָּכֶם, וַיֹּאמְרוּ לוֹ, יְבָרֶכְךָ ה'. וְאוֹמֵר (שופטים ו) ה' עִמְּךָ גִּבּוֹר הֶחָיִל. וְאוֹמֵר (משלי כג) אַל תָּבוּז כִּי זָקְנָה אִמֶּךָ.
וְאוֹמֵר (תהלים קיט) עֵת לַעֲשׂוֹת לַייָ הֵפֵרוּ תוֹרָתֶךָ. רַבִּי נָתָן אוֹמֵר, הֵפֵרוּ תוֹרָתֶךָ עֵת לַעֲשׂוֹת לַייָ:
(The Sages also instituted that one should greet another in the name of God, i.e., one should mention God’s name in his greeting, as it is stated: “And presently Boaz came from Bethlehem and said to the harvesters, The Lord is with you, and they said to him, May the Lord bless you” (Ruth 2:4). And it says: “And the angel of God appeared to him and said to him, God is with you, mighty man of valor” (Judges 6:12). And it says: “And despise not your mother when she is old” (Proverbs 23:22), i.e., one must not neglect customs which he inherits. And lest you say that mentioning God’s name is prohibited, it says: “It is time to work for the Lord; they have made void Your Torah” (Psalms 119:126), i.e., it is occasionally necessary to negate biblical precepts in order to perform God’s will, and greeting another is certainly God’s will. Rabbi Natan says another interpretation of the verse: “Make void Your Torah” because “it is the time to work for the Lord,” i.e., occasionally it is necessary to negate biblical precepts in order to bolster the Torah.
Explanation: The sages also decreed that it was permitted, and even worthy, to greet one’s fellow human being by using the name of God, as did Boaz and the other reapers. Usually decrees are meant to change a prior practice. Here the historical background is slightly unclear. My guess is that earlier generations thought that it was improper to use God’s name in greeting a mere human being. In contrast, according to the sages, since human beings were created in the image of God, there is a little bit of divine in every human being. In a sense then, greeting one’s fellow human being by using God’s name is like greeting God by using God’s name. Hence it is not only permitted, it is encouraged. The final two midrashim are not specifically related to the two decrees mentioned above but are rather general exhortations to heed the decrees of the sages. “And do not despise your mother when she grows old” means that one should learn from the elders and one should learn from what previous generations did. The last midrash is brought because of Rabbi Natan’s interpretation of the verse. Rabbi Natan switches around the order of the verse. When others, such as the Sadducees, have broken God’s laws, it is time to act for the Lord by making decrees.
English Explanation of Mishnah Berakhot 9:5:5 Dr. Joshua Kulp
And where did He command us? Since it is from their words.
מַתְנִי׳
מָקוֹם שֶׁנָּהֲגוּ לַעֲשׂוֹת מְלָאכָה בְּעַרְבֵי פְסָחִים עַד חֲצוֹת — עוֹשִׂין. מָקוֹם שֶׁנָּהֲגוּ שֶׁלֹּא לַעֲשׂוֹת — אֵין עוֹשִׂין. הַהוֹלֵךְ מִמָּקוֹם שֶׁעוֹשִׂין לְמָקוֹם שֶׁאֵין עוֹשִׂין, אוֹ מִמָּקוֹם שֶׁאֵין עוֹשִׂין לְמָקוֹם שֶׁעוֹשִׂין — נוֹתְנִין עָלָיו חוּמְרֵי מָקוֹם שֶׁיָּצָא מִשָּׁם וְחוּמְרֵי מָקוֹם שֶׁהָלַךְ לְשָׁם.
וכבר אמרו ז"ל בני בישן נהוג דלא למיתי מצור לצידון במעלי שבתא. אתו בניהו לקמיה דר' יוחנן, אמרי ליה: אבהתן נהוג, אנן לא אפשר לן. אמר להן: כבר קבלו עליהו אבהתכון, וכתיב: שמע בני מוסר אביך וכו'.
The people of Bet Shean customarily did not travel from Tyre to Sidon on Friday. Their sons came before R. Yohanan and said to him: “Our fathers had this practice, but it is intolerable for us.” He said to them: “Your fathers have already accepted it upon themselves, and it is written: ‘Heed, my son, the discipline of your father…’ (Mishlei 1:8).
The Emergence of Ultra-orthdoxy - The Invention of a Tradition, Michael K Silber in
The Uses of Tradition: Jewish Continuity in the Modern Era Hardcover – January 1, 1993
Edited by Jack Wertheimer
Of all the branches of modern-day Judaism, ultra-Orthodoxy is undoubtedly the most tradition-oriented. Its rallying cry is "All innovation is prohibited by the Torah!" חדש אסור מן התורה a clever wordplay on a Talmudic ruling first coined by Rabbi Moses Sofer in the early nineteenth century that captures the essence of its conservative ideology. And yet, like other antimodem conservative movements, ultra-Orthodoxy itself is clearly a recent phenomenon. Belying the conventional wisdom of both its adherents and its opponents, it is in fact not an unchanged and unchanging remnant of pre-modern, traditional Jewish society, but as much a child of modernity and change as any of its "modem" rivals.
Ultra-Orthodoxy offered its own response to the challenges posed by secular education, linguistic acculturation, national identity, religious reforms, and minority status. They were troubled that tradition, as it was understood by the mainstream, often did not prove up to the task of providing a forceful response.
Tradition and the past were interpreted, shaped, filtered, and recast to better serve the cause of traditionalism. …. And providing the underlying rationale for these halakhic innovations was a freshly constructed worldview which pulled together often marginal elements of the existent tradition (whether halakhic, aggadic, or kabbalistic) into a consistent "myth" of what authentic Jewishness and Judaism were…
What strategy should be adopted on halakhic issues in an age increasingly lax in traditional observance? When the hold of tradition was still strong, leniency or severity was often a matter of the individual authority's personal inclination. Where tradition came to be challenged, however, it often became a matter of policy and general tactics. Should one eschew a stringent approach for fear of further alienating a not entirely committed congregation, or on the contrary, defiantly embrace a hard line, and thus prod a hesitant flock into making a firm commitment? The Hatam Sofer had already established the principle that "it is proper to make a fence around the Torah, to be stringent and not add lenient rulings.
…. "It is not that we do not know [how to rule leniently]. On the contrary. But we do know very clearly that in the present state of decline of our poor generation, faith is endangered on all sides. And everyone must admit that a weak, sick body needs more care and protection than a healthy body." Therefore, instead of seeking ways to lighten the burden, rabbis should find reasons to cling to even the most inconsequential traditions. "In this orphaned generation it is a holy obligation incumbent upon each and every one to root in his heart from the earliest years to keep and fulfill not only all the commandments, but even the most trifling customs which we received from our ancestors."
Several stratagems were employed. One way which the Hatam Sofer sought to arrive at stringent rulings was to collapse the differences between the various levels of precepts. "It is good to elevate a prohibition!" By this he meant to ground a stringent ruling in a new rationale, as well as to "promote" the prohibition to a higher level (e.g., to claim that a rabbinic prohibition was actually a biblical one).4? Since all elements of the tradition were equally sacred, there was no point in distinguishing between its various strata; that could only lead to its relativization. This was precisely the ploy of the reformers, who eagerly sought to differentiate between the authority of biblical precepts, rabbinical ordinances, and recent customs recorded in the Shulhan Arukh.
"Every rule in the Shulhan Arukh," stated Schlesinger, "is equal to the Ten Commandments; and every Jewish custom is equal to the Ten Commandments!"
The Talmud (Yebam. 90b) stated that at times to abrogate the Torah is to preserve it. If this was said in favor of issuing a lenient ruling, argued Lichtenstein, how much more must this hold true regarding a stringent ruling!
This tendency to over-justify clearly betrayed a basic insecurity, an uneasy sense that the halakhic rationale for both the traditional bimah and huppah stood on rather shaky ground. And indeed the Orthodox were faced with the embarrassing fact that on both issues the Shulhan Arukh was undeniably open to liberal interpretation.
By and large, the ultra-Orthodox ignored the mechanism which had guided Jews over the centuries in sifting, weighing, discarding and reconciling the multiplicity of aggadic statements that were often sharply at odds with one another. If in fact there is reason to designate ultra-Orthodox Judaism "fundamentalist/' it is precisely because of its tendency to ignore the "tradition" of these traditions in favor of a literal reading. Thus, any one strand of tradition could always be seized upon and cited, no matter how extreme or marginal, because it did after all appear in the written sources.
Division of Labor
The tactic of the ultra-Orthodox in delegitimizing the filtering mechanism was to espouse a strand of tradition which historically was quite marginal, and to pass it off as the only relevant and authoritative one.
This was what can be called the idea of division of labor, and it is in fact with this notion that Schlesinger opens his Lev ha-Ivri. God created different types of men, each endowed with a different purpose in the scheme of creation. The vocation of non-Jews is to master nature, to explore science, and to invent useful technologies. The vocation of the Jew, on the other hand, is to devote himself solely to the study of Torah. Each to his own, and any attempt to rebel against one's assigned vocation and infringe upon another invited dire consequences.
Here is an opportunity to see how Schlesinger manipulated his sources. He began with a reference to a well-known Talmudic passage: "R. Johanan said: A heathen who studies Torah deserves death, for it written, 'Moses commanded us a law for an inheritance' [Deut 33:4]; it is our inheritance, not theirs" (Sanh. 59a).
Just as a gentile who studies Torah deserves to die, he [Schlesinger] argued, "so too did the Torah decree conversely" that an Israelite must study only Torah and not the wisdom of the nations. "And if he transgresses," he added, "he deserves death."
"Someone once asked: why, if we have to be cautious concerning the customs of our forefathers, should we utilize new, useful things which gentile scientists have invented in our times? They answered him: In matters of human affairs, certainly the new is preferred over the old, for all that is new adds benefit; a rule which does not apply in the conduct of religion, whose source is God."? The division of labor created a useful mechanism which enabled the Jew to benefit from modern civilization as a consumer, but the ambition to be a cultural producer had to be unambiguously renounced.
Shalem
Yet precisely these seemingly nonconfessional elements were invested by the ultra-Orthodox with supreme religious valence. "These are the things which our saintly forefathers transmitted to us as the very root of Jewishness [shorshei ha-yehudut]," wrote Schlesinger, "name, language, and dress." Following the Hatam Sofer, these three, shem, lashon, and malbush in Hebrew, were called by their acronym shalem, meaning complete, whole, intact, unimpaired, safe. The acronym alluded to the experience of Jacob who had successfully withstood the cultural temptations at Laban, his father-in-law, and "Jacob arrived intact [shalem] in the city of Shekhem" (Gen. 33:18).
see: https://www.academia.edu/1829696/The_emergence_of_ultra_orthodoxy_The_invention_of_a_tradition