The Har Nof Massacre – Is There Any Lesson to Learn?

Rabbi Elazar bar Avina said: Calamity befalls the world only due to the sins of the Jewish people...

(1) ואני אקשה AND I WILL ALLOW [PHARAOH’S HEART] TO HARDEN — Since he has wickedly resisted Me, and it is manifest to Me that the heathen nations find no spiritual satisfaction in setting their whole heart to return to Me penitently, it is better that his heart should be hardened in order that My signs may be multiplied against him so that ye may recognise My divine power. Such, indeed, is the method of the Holy One, blessed be He: He brings punishment upon the nations so that Israel may hear of it and fear Him, as it is said, (Zephaniah 3:6, 3:7) “I have cut off nations, their corners are desolate etc. … I said: Surely thou wilt fear Me, thou wilt receive correction” (cf. Yevamot 63a). Nevertheless, in the case of the first five plagues it is not stated, “The Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart” but “Pharaoh’s heart was hardened” (Midrash Tanchuma, Vaera 3).

(70) (Yevamos 63a) “Misfortune comes to the world only on account of Israel”, as was mentioned, that they are the cause of impoverishment, war, violence, murder, and destruction of the entire world. And because of our many sins, we were witness, to all that is written in the Tikunae Zohar, not only that, but this “strict justice” (violence, murder, etc.) occurred to the best among us, as is written (Bava Kama 60a) “and it initiates upon the righteous first”. From all the beauty that the Jewish people had in Poland and Lithuania, etc. only a remnant survived, in our Holy Land, and it now becomes incumbent on us survivors, to correct this severely warped situation (not engaging in the internal aspect of the Torah). Each of us, the survivors, should accept upon themselves in all their capacity, to elevate from now on, the internal aspect of the Torah, to accord it its rightful place, above the external aspect of the Torah. As a consequence of this, each one of us will merit to heighten the internal within, the Israel within, magnifying the soul above the external, [above] the nations of the world within him, [meaning above] his spiritual body (the desire to receive). This energy will spread throughout the Jewish people, who will come to recognize and acknowledge the prominence of Israel’s sages, to listen and obey them. Moreover, the internal nations of the world, the righteous nations, will resiliently overpower the external among them, the destructive ones. So too, the internal of the entire world, the Jewish people, [their values] in all their glory and majesty will be preferred over the [values of the] other nations. At that moment, all the nations will recognize and acknowledge the greatness of Israel. And the following verses (Isaiah 14:2) shall be fulfilled: “And the House of Israel shall inherit them on the land of the Lord”, and (Isaiah 49:22): “they will bring your children in their arms, and your daughters on their shoulders”. This is what is stated in the Zohar Naso, page 124b, “through this book, the Zohar, they (Israel) will be redeemed with compassion”, as was explained. Amen so be His will.

(7) And I thought that she would fear Me,
Would learn a lesson,
And that the punishment I brought on them
Would not be lost on her.^-e
Instead, all the more eagerly
They have practiced corruption in all their deeds.

Rebbi Jeremiah in the name of Rebbi Abbahu: (Is. 55:6) “Seek the Eternal where He is to be found”. Where is He to be found? In synagogues and houses of study.

(5) A person should be especially careful not to utter words of mockery or tale-bearing in the synagogue, for the dwelling place of the Shechinah is in the synagogues and study halls. When people are not careful to refrain from jocularity, lightheadedness, tale-bearing and derogatory speech in the synagogue it causes the Shechinah to depart from Israel. In this connection the Zohar (Tikkun 6, 22b) ascribes to the Shechinah the verse, “And the dove found no resting place” (Bereishis 8:9). As a result of this sin numerous synagogues have been destroyed, to our chagrin, because people allowed the Side of Evil to mix into the camp of the Shechinah, which was to have been entirely holy. It is not good to bring foreign matters into places of holiness. Therefore a person should be careful whenever he engages in holy matters not to cause malignant spirits to mix in, Heaven forbid.

(8) A man should select a fixed place in the synagogue to pray, next to a good neighbor, someone who is upright and honest. Conversely, let him distance himself from a bad neighbor so that he will not come to stumble through emulating his ways, Heaven forbid. If it is impossible to distance himself from a bad neighbor because no other seats are available, let him rebuke him daily. Perhaps he will find a favorable moment in which his rebuke will be accepted and perhaps in this way his colleague will benefit through him. But if he sees that the man is evil-natured and lawless and unbending in his wickedness, let him abandon his place and go in peace.

(80) Also included in this area is honoring the synagogue and the house of study (Orach Chaim 151). For not only must one refrain from acting frivolously there, but he should act with all kinds of honor and fear in all of his conducts and actions. Whatever he would not do in the palace of a great king, he should not do in them.

(2) In the place that one concluded the three steps [backwards], he should stand and not return to his place until the prayer leader reaches Kedusha, or at least until the prayer leader begins to pray out loud. Rem"a: The prayer leader [after finishing his silent Amidah and taking 3 steps back,] stands [in place] the amount of time it takes to walk four cubits before he returns to his place to pray out loud. [Responsum of the Rashb"a - siman 436]. And similarly, a person praying alone should stand in the place where he concluded his [three] steps, this amount of time, before he returns to his place. [Beit Yosef in the name of Rabbeinu Yerucham and the Yerushalmi]. An individual who is praying with the congregation and finishes his prayer before the prayer leader is forbidden to turn to face the congregation until the prayer leader finishes his prayer.[Beit Yosef in the name of Shibolei Haleket]

(9) 9. (not turning ones face is based on) So they don't suspect him to having have skipped (therefore finishing earlier) (Levush). However once the repitition of shemona esrie begins one is permitted to turn his face but may not return his place until kedusha like I said before. This explanation is not like the Bach, see there (he holds turning ones face and taking three steps forward should both be at the same time so the rulings seem to contradict each other).

(18) Whoever causes the multitudes to sin, they do not give him the ability to repent... Jeroboam, sinned and caused the multitudes to sin, [therefore] the sin of the multitudes is hung on him.

Furthermore: Whoever causes the public to sin has almost no ability to repent... On the other hand, whoever causes the public to sin has almost no ability to repent...

An example of this is tefillah which rises up to Heaven.

One should learn specifically halacha in depth. By doing this he will vanquish and be saved from his evil inclination.

(4) One must be cautious to refrain from chatting from the moment he begins Baruch Sheamar until after he concludes the Eighteen Benedictions (The Amidah). And even if it is for the sake of performing a mitzvah one may not talk between Baruch Sheamar and Yishtabach (Beit Yosef quoting the Kol Bo)(see below 53 and 54).

...From when he starts Baruch Sheamar until after the end of Shemoneh Esrei , it is forbidden to interrupt by speaking, even in Hebrew - and so too, any place [in davening] where it is forbidden to interrupt, it is forbidden even in Hebrew...

You should remain silent and concentrate on what is being said by the chazzan and the congregation, and this will be accounted to you as if you had responded and fulfilled your obligation;⁵²

(2) Once the reader began reading from the Torah, it is forbidden to speak even words of Torah, and even between one aliyah and the next, and even if one already finished the parsha. And there are some who permit learning quietly. And there are some who say that if there are ten men who are listening (meaning, they are paying attention) to the Torah reading, then it is permitted to discuss [words of Torah] (Beit Yosef in the name of Mahari"a). And there are some who permit it for those for whom Torah is their profession. And some permit it for one who turns his face away before they open the Torah scroll, who [by doing so] indicates that he does not wish to listen to the Torah reading, but rather [wants] to learn, and he may begin learning. And to recite "Shnayim Mikrah, Ve'echad Targum" (ie. the practice of "reading [each verse] twice, and [the aramaic] translation once") during the Torah reading is permitted. And all this is not regarding Parshat Zachor and Parshat Parah which must be read with [a quorum of] ten [men] due to them being Torah level mitzvot that one must concentrate and hear from the reader. And it is proper that for all the parshiot [throughout the year], it is fitting to be scrupulous with these things and pay attention and hear them from the reader.

(8) Once the reader has begun to read, the entire congregation is forbidden to indulge in conversation even about Torah subjects. Conversation is forbidden even between readings. It is forbidden to leave the synagogue while the Torah is being read. But, between readings, when the Seifer Torah is rolled up one may leave if the need is great.

(12) 12. One must not talk when 'Vayechulu' is being said nor when the chazan says the one blessing that encapsulates the seven.

(3) It is forbidden to speak when the Maftir is reading from the Prophets until he finishes, just like with the Torah.

(3) 3. One must concentrate on listening to the blessings recited by those reading from the Torah and the blessings of the maftir, and respond Amen to them. [This will benefit the one who responds, since his responses] enable him to reach the required sum of 100 blessings [to be recited daily]. (On Shabbos, he is lacking the required number of blessings,29 and responding Amen to these blessings can compensate for that lack).

(4) It is forbidden to speak when the maftir reads the haftarah.

One should be exceedingly careful not to converse during Kaddish or Kedushah. The following story is written in Sefer Chasidim:

There was once a pious man who passed away and appeared in a dream of another pious man sporting a large stain on his forehead. He said because I would speak at the time when the sheliach tzibbur was saying 'Vayechulu', 'Magein Avos' and 'Yisgadeil'...