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New Evidence for the Burial Place of Rashi Hakodosh
Has a nine-hundred-year-old mystery finally been resolved? Between the pages of an ancient manuscript in the Oxford library, an ancient and very clear source was discovered, testifying explicitly that the Master of Jewry, Rabbenu Shlomo Yitzchaki, Rashi HaKodosh, is buried in Troyes in France, near the graves of his ancestors. Alongside this discovery, additional testimonies from various French archives such as maps indicating the presence of a Jewish cemetery in the city, and other findings of the location serve to confirm veracity of the site.
The Rav of the Kosel, HaRav Shmuel Rabinowitz shlita On Kosel News
From a halachic and topographic aspect, where, indeed, do the experts and poskim place the exact site of the Kodesh Hakodoshim?
The Rav's eyes lit up. He deliberated for a moment and then said:
"I will disclose to you something which has just been publicized these very days. Up until now, we believed that the site of the Mikdosh and the Azara were located under the Dome of the Rock. According to this assumption, a beis knesses was established in the Kosel Tunnels by my predecessor, HaRav Meir Yehuda Getz, at a distance of 97 meters off the site of the Kodesh Hakodoshim."
And he notes, incidentally, "It is interesting that the Moslems themselves do not hold their prayers there but rather in the Mosque on the southern side of the area which Herod added."
Rom Braslovsky was seized on that horribly historic day and taken to Gaza as a hostage. Nothing was known about his fate for a long time. Rom had been a soldier on leave from his army release, working as a security guard, when he was kidnapped and kept under very austere conditions.
He does not have a 'religious' background whatsoever, but in the course of his captivity he underwent a radical change. His understanding that he had been kidnapped because he was a Jew caused him to be strengthened in emunah and even to withstand difficult ordeals, when his captors demanded that he embrace Islam. When he finally returned home, he was furthered fortified in faith and love for Hashem, and this week, he took another significant step by removing the tattoos which covered his body.
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Part III
This series was first published in 1992, or, 24 years ago.
A Career as a Forger
The forgery enterprise shifted into high gear with the publication of Lahiss' Sefer HaTikkun, described for us by HaRav Meir Dan Plotzky: "It is full of unparalleled mockery and imitates the Shulchan Oruch with its dinim and commentaries. It also mimics the language of the Zohar in some foolish phrases. Anybody who has not seen this piece of fraud for himself would never believe that a ben Torah could say such outrageous things.
"What is especially conspicuous is his mockery of chassidus in general, and of their conduct since the time of the Ba'al Shem Tov z'l. Believe me, I could not contain my disgust for long enough to finish looking at all of it."
The author's name as it appears on the title page is, Leibish'l chossid, third gilgul after Zusske Rachel Lahiss and Shlomo Yehuda Leib, Av Beis Din of Milhausen. Later on, in 5649 (1889), his commentary on the Tosefta appeared.
The following thirteen years provided a long enough break for all the meticulous planning necessary for his forthcoming project, which this time would be on a massive scale. Lahiss suddenly became transformed into a Sephardi, Shlomo Ya'uda, of the Algazi family. His father: HaGaon MaHaRa"M zt'l. His brother: Morenu HaRav Eliyahu S'T, friend of Rebbi Yaakov Kobi.
Later on, he had a brilliant idea: ...
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Outstanding Articles From Our Archives
Home and Family
NOSTALGIA: Who Says What?
by Yisca Shimony
An old kitchen and an even older one...
It was Thursday, and I had had a very busy day; my feet were hurting terribly. I was expecting guests for Shabbos and in my little kitchen, it seemed harder than ever to cook, and clean up the mess afterwards. In my eyes, any small dish made the place look more cluttered. I reached a point where I had to take a break.
In the airy living room, the newspaper awaited me. I settled down in a comfortable chair and laid the paper in my lap. "DO YOU BELONG TO THIS GENERATION?" an ad exclaimed. "UPDATE YOUR HOME! START WITH YOUR KITCHEN!" Along with these words were pictures of beautiful, brightly lit kitchens -- spacious and convenient. A feast for the eye and an ache for my poor pocket. This was not doing me any good at all.
I got up and went back into my kitchen, looked the place over and what I saw was a tinier kitchen, all crowded, walls tiled with old fashioned white, so completely outdated. Still holding the ad in my hand, I kept comparing the ad and the room I was standing in. The kitchen in the ad was so inviting! How I longed to have a roomy, modern kitchen just like that one! How awful and depressing my kitchen made me feel.
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Opinion & Comment
To Want -- More!
by L. Jungerman
"And you shall love Hashem your G-d . . . and with all your soul -- Rashi: Even if He claims your soul . . . "
Rabbenu Elozor Azkari zy'o explains in Sefer HaChareidim, chapter 9, that the commandment of "With all your soul" is a daily exercise. "One should ponder it when he recites the Shema and reaches the words "bechol nafshecho" and "bechol nafshechem." He should also be fully prepared that if such an opportunity (of relinquishing his soul and possessions) presents itself to him, he should be able to do so willingly, even joyfully, like R' Akiva and the sons of Chana.
"[By conjuring this up as he prays daily], he is credited with having actually done so in practice. This is what is referred to in the verse, `For we have been killed for Your sake every day; we have been regarded as sheep designated to the slaughter.' Is it possible for a person to be killed every day? Rather, Hashem credits tzaddikim as if they truly submitted themselves to the slaughter every single day. Indeed, in their hearts, they are fully prepared for this. This follows what is taught in Zohar, Parshas Tzav: `Repent a day before your death.' How? Every day, a person should prepare to transmit his soul to his Maker.
"Maseches Brochos tells how R' Akiva was taken out to be killed precisely when it was time to recite the Shema. The Romans raked his flesh with iron prongs but he accepted the torture with love and concentrated his whole attention to declaring his allegiance and love to Hashem. Seeing him thus, his disciples asked, "Rabbenu -- to such an extent [is one required to show love]?" He replied, "All my days I was troubled over this verse of bechol nafshecho which requires that we love Hashem even if He is claiming our soul. And now that the opportunity to fulfill this commandment actually presents itself to me -- should I not do so with alacrity?' And as he came to `echod,' his soul departed."
The question arises if one can actually think such thoughts in a pragmatic way. How can one gauge one's future reaction to such a test and be convinced that when the time comes, he will truly relinquish his soul joyfully? When one is taken up with the effervescence of life, can he possibly conjure up a vivid, lifelike situation of self- sacrifice? The end of self existence?
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