From Our Archives

A Middos Workshop: Cooling Down the Angry Fires

Based on Shiurim of Rav Dovid Siegel

These articles are better than your average middos articles!

In previous articles we examined the challenging problem of haughtiness (ga'avoh), our basic human tendency to feel more important than others. We learned several techniques for eliminating this trait from our lives, most importantly to concentrate on the reality that Hashem's view of us far outweighs what we or our peers think of us.

Now that we have scraped off the first layer of pride from our hearts, we can analyze its direct offshoot, anger. Simply put, anger is the expression of ga'avoh in severe proportions.

"His blood was boiling." "She blew off steam." "In the heat of the moment."

Have you ever noticed how many cliches relate anger to heat?

Principles of the Teaching Profession: Let Us Create Worlds!

by HaRav Tzvi Shraga Grossbard, zt"l

"Noach found favor in the eyes of Hashem" (Bereishis 6:8).

The Seforno (ibid.) comments that Noach's finding favor in Hashem's eyes, "is what saved his sons and daughters. He himself [i.e., his own zechus] was incapable of saving them but his finding favor in Hashem's eyes helped them. This is as the posuk writes: `Though these three men [referring to Noach, Doniel and Iyov -- see v. 14] were in it, as I live, says Hashem Elokim, they shall deliver neither sons nor daughters; they alone shall be saved' (Yechezkel 14:16). [Their inability to save others] is because they did not teach those living in their times to recognize Hashem as Avrohom, Moshe, Shmuel, and those like them, did. It is as Chazal (Pesochim 87a) write that `Eilom [Doniel -- see Rashi, s.v. zu Eilom, and also Noach and Iyov] were zocheh to study but were not zocheh to teach.' Likewise Noach, although he rebuked [his generation] about their corrupt social behavior, he did not teach them to acknowledge Hashem's existence and walk in His ways. Although Noach was a complete tzaddik in what he thought and did, a tzaddik who perfects only himself can only save himself. If, on the other hand, someone perfects others too, he is capable of saving others. In such a case there is hope he will inspire them to do teshuvoh . . ."

The Settling of Migdal Eder

by Yated Ne'eman Staff

`And you, Migdal Eder, the hill of the daughter of Tzion, unto you shall it come. To you the former dominion shall come, the kingdom of the daughter of Yerushalayim.' (Michah 4:8)

Nowadays it would create a storm: a new neighborhood in the greater Jerusalem area? The world would be up in arms! Seventy-five years ago, it was the Arabs who supported this initiative while the Zionists, who would like to build today but are not allowed to, did everything they could to prevent, disrupt, and interfere. They did not offer any assistance to the new settlement, since it was to be chareidi.

This is a story of a chareidi settlement in the Chevron hills: Migdal Eder. Seventy-five years of building the land and the story of its suffocation by the Zionist leadership.

Seventy-five years ago, in 5687 (1927), the media reported the settlement of the Zichron Dovid organization on one thousand two hundred acres of mountainous land in the Chevron hills. The newspaper Davar wrote as follows: "After various adventures, the Zichron Dovid Association has begun settlement on a new spot in the Jerusalem area on the way to Chevron, a place which until now has been barren of any Jewish settlement. The Association has received ownership rights (kushans) for the time being for an area of 1,200 dunam. The Arov wellspring, which is rich in water, is part of this land.