"Pride Parade" - Aftermath

According to a recent article in Israel National News, though the "Pride Parade" took place, as scheduled, the post-parade "party" was cancelled due to a firefighters strike. After three petitions against the "parade" were rejected by the "Supreme Court" in Israel, including petitions by Jerusalem Mayor Uri Lupoliansky and Shas MK Eli Yishai, the Court finally cancelled the post-parade party due to a last-minute petition filed against the party due to a firefighters strike. The post-parade party would have almost inevitably been worse than the parade itself as the participants would have likely been more lewd than while marching in the parade. So, many people were opposed to the parade and HaShem orchestrated things to occur in a manner whereby the post-parade "party" was cancelled. We should never give up and never surrender until we win the war against promiscuity completely.

A short distance away from the parade of perversion, which, according to the news, netted 2,000 participants, l'havdil, there was a peaceful prayer rally in another part of Yerushalayim, in spiritual opposition to the anti-Torah "pride parade". This pro-Torah gathering, in opposition to the "pride parade", netted 3,000 people.

It is very interested that 7,000 policemen were sent in to "protect" the participants in the "pride parade" - that would be 3.5 policemen for each participant in the parade. Is that overdoing it? It might seem to be the case, but, perhaps not. For, we see, that HaShem protects The Jewish People when they don't doing things which would drive His Presence (Shechinah) away from their midst. The people who were at the prayer rally, I believe, did not have any "protection" from the police - protection from HaShem is far superior any day. However, to protect the "pride parade" the police set aside 7,000 policemen for the "protection" of 2,000 "pride" marchers. This simply follows that which we learn in our Holy Torah, as it says, "For HaShem your G-d walks in the midst of your camp to save you and to place your enemies before you and your camp shall be holy and there shall not be seen a thing of nakedness in your midst [lest] He turn from behind you." (Deuteronomy: 23; 15) On the above pasuk from The Torah, the Chofetz Chaim, zt"l, writes that immodesty drives the Divine Presence out of the Jewish camp. With the constant threat of terrorism, chas v'shalom, among many other things, we constantly rely on HaShem's protection, whether or not we are cognizant of that. Therefore, we should continue to fight against lewdness and fight on improvement of our Torah observance, as well as that of the entire Jewish People. Furthermore, we should work on our middos - character traits. By doing the above, we will continue to fight to preserve and increase the presence of HaShem's Shechinah within our midst. May we be successful in improving ourselves and the world around and overcome all darkness with the light of The Torah. Amein!

Opposing the so-called "Pride Parade"

We are living in a time when there is constantly the threat of war hanging over the Jewish People in Israel, not to mention the threat of World War, with Iran building up a nuclear arsenal with the not-so-hidden intention to use such weapons against the Jewish People in Israel, Heaven Forbid. Now, intelligence experts in Israel are warning of a war with Syria, this war may break out as early as this summer, chas v'shalom. Taking into account last year's war with the Hezbollah, it is all the more obvious how much more so we are in need of HaShem's Help to protect us - HaShem's sheep - surrounded by packs of dangerous lions.

Now, in spite of all of this, the enemies of of HaShem and of The Torah, are determined to trample on the holiness of our dear city of Yerushalayim (Jerusalem) by parading through Jerusalem in under fourteen (14) hours, Heaven Forbid. These people who are taking part in the parade don't care that their "lifestyle" is considered to be an abomination by HaShem Himself, nor do they care that the vast majority of Jerusalem strongly opposes this march through Jerusalem.

Nevertheless, those individuals who hope to take part in the parade - the self-described paragons of tolerance - hope to display that "tolerance" in spite of all of those "intolerant" people who don't want their children exposed to a "lifestyle" which is truly an abomination. The "powers that be" - including the "Court" seem to not be taking much interest in preventing the "parade". See some of my previous posts related to the "pride parade".

Ignoring all of the danger that the Jewish People currently find themselves in, it seems as if the "powers-that-be" in Israel are forgetting - probably ignoring - the Lebanon War of last year and the unprecedented number of planned terrorist attacks which preceded/coincided with the planned time for the "international pride parade". Especially in times of war, we are warned against giving in to a state of immodesty and promiscuity, as we learn in Targum Yonasan ben Uziel on Devarim (23; 15). See some of my previous posts related to the dangers of promiscuity. It is our obligation, as we have the G-d given ability to protest, to do what we can in opposition to this "parade". We should send letters to elected officials, including to Jerusalem Mayor Uri Lupoliansky - see below for his contact information.

SPREAD THE WORD AND FIGHT AGAINST THE "PRIDE PARADE" IN JERUSALEM:

NOTE: IF POSSIBLE, IT IS PREFERABLE TO SEND IN FAXES OF YOUR LETTERS, AS YOUR LETTERS WILL HELP FLOOD THEIR OFFICES.

lpuri@jerusalem.muni.il

FAX: +972-2-6296014, +972-2-6296004

Eliahu Yishai - head of the Shas party: Fax #: +972-2-666-2909, email eyishay@knesset.gov.il.


Form letter to religious officials:

Dear Mayor Lupoliansky (name of other official),

I join my voice along with the majority of the residents of The Holy City of Jerusalem and many others worldwide, to oppose the "pride parade" scheduled for today. It is our responsibility to uphold the dignity of Yerushalayim, and not let the few override the many who are opposed to such a disgrace of our Holy City. Additionally, this event and events like it, threaten the security and stability in the city.

G-d has given you the power and influence to oppose this parade. If the people feel that through you they have a voice within the government, vigilantism will diminish and there will be security and stability. Even if you're not successful in stopping the parade, clear public statements of opposition would still have a tremendous impact socially and spiritually. May HaShem grant you success in these endeavors to save the Jewish People from such parades that detract from the holiness of our Holy City of Jerusalem.

Sincerely,
Your Name

Form letter to secular officials:

Jerusalem Police: Fax# +972-2-5391391. If the Jerusalem police can be convinced that the parade is a security risk, they would likely call it off.

Dear ____,

I want to register my serious concern, along with a majority of the residents of Jerusalem and many others worldwide, over the upcoming "pride parade". Such a parade is anathema to the character of the City of Jerusalem and greatly offends the values and the sensibilities of its residents. Additionally, this event and events like it, threaten the security and stability in the city.

Even if you're not successful in stopping the parade, clear public statements of opposition would still have make an important political and social impact. If the people feel that through you they have a voice within the goverment, vigilantism will diminish and there will be security and stability. I urge you to fulfill your obligation to serve the people of Jerusalem and preserve the character of this holy city.

Sincerely,
Your Name

We hope that HaShem will cancel the "pride parade", especially now that many Jews have made their voices heard in opposition to such a defilement of the holiness and sanctity of the Jewish People and of The Holy City of Jerusalem. HaShem cancelled the parade for the last two years, G-d Willing it will be cancelled this year as well.

May we have the merit in joining together with everyone else who has made their voices heard in opposition to such a parade. Amein!

Please make your opposition known against this "parade".

May we all merit to see the Holiness of Jerusalem completely restored with the coming of the Mashiach speedily in our days. Amein!

THE IMPORTANCE OF REGISTERING YOUR OPPOSITION

Sefer Chasidim (153): "...And you have saved your nefesh" (Yechezkhel) However it doesn't say you merited - zachisa - or you were correct - tzadakta, rather you have saved your nefesh - hitzalta. From here [we learn] that for everything that a person is punished and he doesn't warn him to say "do not do it", behold, [then with regards to] all of the punishment that [the sinner] receives, it is considered as if this one [who failed to warn the sinner in advance], killed him, for he should have warned him and didn't warn him and the blood of [the sinner] is demanded from [the one who could have warned the sinner]. This is [the meaning of] "...and I shall seek out his blood from your hands". (Yechezkhel: 3; 18)

Sha'arei Teshuvah (Sha'ar 3): And Shlomo said [in Mishlei] (24; 10) "You have made yourself weak on a day of trouble, your power has been limited." The explanation of the above being, "If you possess the power to save with advice or with effort and you make yourself appear as if you don't have the ability - your power will [then] be limited, middah k'neged middah. Subsequently, [Shlomo writes in pasuk 12], "Perhaps you shall say, 'Behold, we did not know of this', Behold The One who establishes hearts, He will understand, and The One Who formed your soul, He will know, and He shall return to the person according to his action." Behold, holding back from rescuing and [from] giving advice toward saving, The Holy One, Blessed is He, will consider it as if this person acted [in the negative].

Menoras Ha'Maor, chapter 3: Therefore, [one who is] a fitting leader, if he is an important person and it is fitting to listen to his words, he is obligated to rebuke the sinners and to object to [their sinning] - v'limchos b'yadam - until they perform teshuvah. And if he doesn't rebuke them and doesn't object, [the sinners] are destroyed in their evil and he is punished concerning them, as it says, "when he says to the evildoer, '[Evildoer], you shall surely die' and you did not speak to him to warn the evildoer [to return] from his path (of evil, in order to allow him to live), he is an evildoer, due to his sin he shall die and I shall seek his blood from your hand. (See Yechezkhel (3; 18) However, if you warned him and he did not return from his sin, he (the evildoer) shall die due to his sin, and you have rescued yourself. [Furthermore], we learn in maseches "Shabbos", "[Concerning] all of those who are able to object [to the wrongful actions of the people of his city and he doesn't object, he is held accountable for the people of his city."

Defend the Torah and Jerusalem, Help Stop "World Pride 2006"

Firstly, I would like to thank Rabbi Lazer Brody and all of the heroes across the globe who have made their voices heard, protesting the planned defilement of the Holy City of Yerushalayim this August. Rabbi Brody reported on his blog "Lazer Beams" today that an inside source at Mayor Lupolianski's Office said that the 20,000+ form-letters sent in by readers of his website helped convince the mayor to sign a petition against the planned "world pride 2006" (really planned world abomination 2006). Now we see how effective we can be against this planned "event". As people around the world, regardless of your particular religion, you can play a decisive part in leading to the cancellation of the planned "parade" which "hopes" to draw 20,000 attendees, chas v'shalom. Our goal is to have the parade cancelled.

This success should not be downplayed. However, now that "something" has been done by the Mayor of Jerusalem, we should not feel that we can just "sit back" and see what happens. Heaven Forbid, such an attitude could be defeatist. The "pride" (ga'avah) crowd are of course unhappy that Mayor Lupolianski, at the encouragement of over 100,000 individuals, signed a petition against the "World Pride 2006" in the Holy City of Yerushalayim. The fact that the Mayor signed the petition may not be enough to stop the planned defilement of Jerusalem. It does show us that we have the power to effect a change for the positive and stop the parade - A victory of holiness against defilement and another step on the way to the coming of the Mashiach. I think Mayor Lupolianski (pictured at right) will do more; of course, our added encouragement would definitely not hurt.

__________________________________

Some may argue that, though they are against the lifestyle of the participants of the "pride parade," we should just let them have their "day in the sun" and then they will leave Jerusalem. That conclusion is illogical, for it negates the disastrous physical and spiritual implications of the event (especially in the world's holiest city - Yerushalayim).

What disastrous consequences can occur simply by allowing the "pride crowd" to march through Jerusalem?

I wouldn't want to speculate. However, history does not paint a "pretty picture" of the punishment HaShem inflicted as a result of sexual perverseness.

As I noted in the previous post the following are catastrophic world events associated with behavior glorified by those who hope to parade through the Holy City of Yerushalayim.

1) Major worldwide flood in the time of Noach that wiped out virtually all life on Earth.

2) Destruction of the cities in the vicinity of Sodom - now the area is known as the Dead Sea.

3) The expulsion of the perverse Canaanite nations from the Land of Israel.

Yet the organizers are intent on pushing their perverse lifestyle in the Holy City of Yerushalayim, in the Land of Israel, "The Land which HaShem your G-d seeks out, constantly the Eyes of HaShem your G-d are in it, from the beginning of the year until year's end." (Devarim: 11, 12)

What precisely led to the flood?

Rabbi Huna said in the name of Rabbi (Yehuda HaNasi): "The generation of the flood was not wiped out from the world until they composed marriage documents for male-male and human-animal relations. Rabbi Samlai said, in every place you find sexual immorality, Andralomasia (devastation) comes to world world and kills those who are good and bad. Rabbi Azariah and Rabbi Yehuda the son of Rabbi Simone in the name of Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi, said, 'Upon everything the Holy One Blessed is He is long in showing His Anger, ["everything" that is] aside from sexual perverseness. What is the reason? [In the end of Parshas Bereishis, we read] "The sons of the leaders saw the daughters of man..." afterwards it is written "And HaShem said, 'I Shall wipe out the people that I Have Created from upon the face of the world..." (Bereishis: 6; 2, 7) [In reference to the imminent destruction of Sodom], Rabbi Yehoshua the son of Levi said in the name of Padiyah, 'That entire night, Lot sought mercy [from Heaven] for the people of Sodom and it was accepted from him. Once [the people of Sodom] said to [Lot] 'bring them out to us so that we may [intimately] know them for sexual relations, they (the angels) said to [Lot]: 'What more do you have here' to use in defense [of the people of Sodom]? From this point onward, you may not act in their defense." (Bereishis Rabbah: 26, 5)

The commentator MaHaRDa"Z tells us of an awfully familiar event that occurred prior to the destruction of almost all life on earth. Under the consent and support of the leaders and judges of their generation, marriage documents were written up for person-animal and male-male "marriages". The MaHaRDa"Z notes that the judges and leaders "rationalized" that since people are given free-will and are capable of making decisions for themselves, people should just give into their desires.

Based on this information, it is not a matter of "political correctness" but of truth, courage, and morality. We must maintain the holiness of Yerushalayim even if there would be no physical negative effects as a result of the parade. We must fight against this planned attack on G-dliness, the Torah, and all of those who uphold morality!

From now on we should employ the following approach to combat the planned parade:

PLAN OF ATTACK:

1) E-mail and fax Mayor Lupolianski urging him to following up his signing a petition with concrete action against the implementation of the "World Pride 2006". For a form letter, click here.

2) As Rabbi Brody recommends, contact your local rabbi and encourage him to involve the congregation in events aimed at opposing the "pride parade" (Torah learning, davening, contacting relevant official and news agencies, etc.).

3) Contact your local news agencies - specifically ones that are more opposed to the "pride parade" (conservative news outlets) - and ask them to publicize the planned event and encourage more people to involve themselves in stopping this planned "parade". I would recommend contacting WorldNetDaily.com, specifically Aaron Klein (Jerusalem correspondent - aklein@worldnetdaily.com). Also, call up (and fax) the following radio shows:

a) Israel National Radio To call: US & Canada: 1-800-270-4288, Israel: 1-800-270-428, England: 00-800-3-700-7000, Elsewhere: +972-2-997-2425; To send an instant message: AOL: INR18, Yahoo: inr18, MSN: INR18@hotmail.com, ICQ: 191965205

b) Shaun Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, and Michael Savage

c) and any other sympathetic outlet

4) Contact members of the Knesset - specifically those who may be open to our cause (i.e. members of religious and right of center parties) - via fax, e-mail, phone, etc., thereby driving more opposition to the planned "parade".

WITH HASHEM'S HELP, MAY WE BE SUCCESSFUL IN OUR MISSION AND WIN YET ANOTHER BATTLE ON THE PATH TO THE COMING OF MASHIACH, SPEEDILY AND IN OUR DAYS! AMEN.

Is it Tolerant to Have "WorldPride" in Jerusalem, especially before Rosh HaShanah?

This is an update on the planned "WorldPride" parade through Jerusalem. The police have refused to grant a permit for the parade so the self-proclaimed lovers of "tolerance" - the planners of the parade of intolerance are petitioning the "High-Court" in Israel to allow the parade right before Rosh HaShanah. We should not let our guard down before these perverted individuals who petition the "High Court" of flesh-and-blood to "allow" them to display their immorality publicly in Jerusalem. This month is Elul - the time when "The King - HaShem - is in the field", a time when we have a greater opportunity to petition HaShem. We should do what we can and petition HaShem to truly have the parade canceled. We should also improve ourselves in the way of the Torah. Finally, we should petition people in positions of leadership in Israel to put in the effort to block such a parade. Surely, not having the parade would be great, all the more so before Rosh HaShanah.

Letter Campaign to Jerusalem Mayor Lupolianski: Stop Entire "WorldPride" Event

As you are probably aware, the international "WorldPride" event, scheduled to bring thousands of homosexuals to Jerusalem is set to begin August 6 - just over a week from now. The event itself is scheduled to last a week. Though the parade itself has been canceled, the week-long event is planned to go forward at full swing. Their event includes a day at the Knesset, where the homosexuals intend to brainwash kids to follow in their abominable sexual lifestyle, a beach party of perversion in Tel Aviv, thousands of homosexuals walking all over Israel, especially in Jerusalem, a day trying to "rationalize" how homosexuality and Judaism fit (even though the Torah notes that acts of homosexuality are an abomination that are liable to the death penalty, pending proper courts, warnings, and witnesses).

Remember, we are in the "nine days", a time of mourning for the Jewish People. Now we are in a war with Hezbollah that may turn into a major war with Iran and Syria. The Torah says explicitly that sexual immodesty and immorality lead to a reduction of Divine Protection. (Devarim: 23; 15) For the sake of HaShem, His Torah, and the Jewish People in harm's way, we must act quickly to have this disgusting intolerant event of sexual immorality be canceled. A cancellation of the parade is only one battle won. The army can't run from the war until complete victory is achieved. We must do what we can in this spiritual war to achieve complete victory. In our case, we must show HaShem that we fear Him more than we "fear" the proponents of promiscuity. By sending a letter to Mayor Lupolianski and other leaders, both political and spiritual, you are fighting for an increased level of Divine Protection for the Jewish People in our time of need. The gemara (Sanhedrin, 97b) notes that Mashiach will come once the Jewish People do teshuvah (return to HaShem by following and upholding the Torah). If the Jewish People do not do teshuvah on our own, HaShem will send a leader with decrees as evil as those of Haman (may his name be blotted out). Today we are faced with that Haman - Achmanidejad of Iran. Iran is on the verge of fitting their missiles with nuclear warheads, Heaven Forbid. It is up to us to do teshuvah (and encourage others to follow suit) while the "small" missiles pummel the north of Israel, before the threat of nuclear missiles (Heaven Forbid). Start by doing your part, simply spend even just a few short minutes of your time and send the form-letter below (or your own letter) to Jerusalem Mayor Lupolianski. Mayor Uri Luplianski: e-mail: lpuri@jerusalem.muni.il, fax: +972-2-6296014, +972-2-6296004. With the Help of HaShem, we will successfully get the entire "WorldPride" parade to stop. Remember, "Whoever is on the side of HaShem, come to me"!

Dear Mayor Lupolianski,

Right now we are a little over a week in advance of the weeklong "WorldPride" event planned for Jerusalem. As mayor, it is your obligation to do all you can to prevent the event. It is not enough to comfort yourself that the actual parade in Jerusalem has been canceled; the entire event must be canceled!

I realize that it might seem "much easier" for you to let the weeklong event take place in Jerusalem. Or, you might reason, it is up to other people with power and influence, both politically and religiously, to try their best to stop the parade. Of course there are other people who can do more to stop the parade. Regardless, it is your obligation to do your utmost to put a stop to the event. This event, as you are aware, involves homosexuals walking into the Knesset and meeting with elected leaders while introducing kids to a lifestyle of perversion. At the same time, soldiers in the north have been dying, missiles have been flying, and Iran is on the verge of possession of a nuclear bomb is threatening to annihilate every Jew in Israel, Heaven Forbid. Mr. Mayor, your city is within firing range of Hezbollah's most advanced missile, the Iranian Zelzal missile. The missile can fly a range of 200 km, capable of hitting Yerushalayim, Heaven Forbid. It is our obligation to stand up for the Torah, thereby bringing in extra Protection from HaShem against all of our enemies.

Mr. Mayor, if you succeed in stopping the "WorldPride" event, you can be assured that your reward in Heaven will be great and you can be confident that Jews all over Israel have added Protection from HaShem against our enemies. However, if Heaven Forbid, you decide not to try to do all that is within your power to stop the terrible event, you may be held responsible in Heaven for the terrible abomination in Yerushalayim - a truly frightening prospect. Mr. Mayor, please, especially during this period of the "nine days", fight the Wars of G-d. May you merit to successfully stop this event and reap great rewards, both in this world and in the next.

Mr. Mayor, we are in a war in which we could find ourselves confronted with a nuclear missile threat from Iran. No less an existential threat, is the planned desecration of our Holy Land and City. It is your turn to step up to the plate and do everything in your power to prevent the latter, and by so doing, perhaps even prevent the former.

Sincerely,
Your Name

Parshas VaYeira: The Spiritual War

THE TORAH READING AND SEVEN SUB-PORTIONS: HOW TO COUNT THE WEEK:

Every week, Jewish men are supposed to review the parsha (weekly Torah reading), twice reviewing the Hebrew text and once learning a commentary for each of the verses. (Shulchan Aruch, siman 285) Each of the seven portions within the parsha can be read on each of the days of the week, starting with Sunday. If someone has not completed the weekly shnayim mikrah v'echod targum (review of the parsha), they can complete that parsha up until (not including) the upcoming Wednesday, as the first three days of the upcoming week are connected with the previous Shabbos. (Shulchan Aruch, siman 285, sif 4, sif kattan 11) Therefore, the week can be counted from Wednesday to Tuesday.

PARSHAS VA'YEIRA AND FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2006:

In light of the above, Friday would correspond to the third aliyah of the Torah, this week's reading being Parshas Va'Yeira. Of course, as Jews we do not believe in "random coincidence", rather, everything occurs for a reason, no matter how "random" it may appear to the naked eye. The Jewish knowledge that nothing occurs randomly can be found stated rather explicitly in the third chapter of the Book of Amos:

"Hear this word which HaShem speaks about you, Children of Israel, with regard to the entire family that I brought up from the Land of Egypt, saying. Only you have I known from all of the families of the Earth, therefore I shall visit upon you all of your sins. Do two people walk together unless they had appointed a time [to walk together]? Will a lion roar in the forest and not have prey? Will a lion cub give out his voice from his den unless he has caught [prey]? Does a bird fall on a net on the ground if it does not have a snare? Does a snare rise up from the ground unless it has caught something? Will a shofar be sounded in a city and the nation shall not tremble? If there will be an evil in a city and HaShem has not done it?" (Amos: 3; 1 - 6)

THE PLANNED PARADE OF PROMISCUITY AND PERVERSION AND THE FOURTH ALIYAH OF PARSHAS VA'YEIRA:

As is well known, the infamous so-called "World Pride" parade is scheduled to take place this erev Shabbos in the Holy City of Jerusalem, a city that stands for purity and sanctity, a city that represents the quintessential opposite of the "lifestyle" of the participants in the "Pride" parade.

If anyone had a doubt as to the perversity of the people of Sodom immediately before the cities in that area were destroyed by HaShem, the following quote from the fourth aliyah of VaYeira will quickly remove that doubt:

The two angels arrive at Sodom, one to destroy Sodom, and one to save Lot, they are invited into Lot's house and are about to "lie down" as it is nighttime.

"Before they would lie down, and the people of the city, the people of Sodom, surrounded the house, from youth to the elderly, the entire nation, from the ends [of the city]. And they called out to Lot and they said to him, 'Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we may know them... And the men who were at the doorway of the house were stricken with blindness, from the smallest to the greatest, and they wearied themselves to find the doorway." (Bereishis: 19; 4 - 5, 11)

RaSh"I explains that the men of Sodom wanted to "know" the angels by committing Sodomy against them. Even after being stricken with blindness, we find that the people of Sodom wearied themselves to find the doorway and have access to the people in the house. The unbelievable desire of the Sodomites to commit evil is shown by the insistence to sin.

ORCHOS TZADDIKIM ON HAUGHTINESS:

"In summary: All of those who dress for the sake of being haughty, behold, this one forgets HaShem, Blessed is He. [He] does not care about the mitzvos and will not pursue good actions, for his entire intention is for himself, to adorn his transient body, which in the end will be for the worms. One who adorns his body [for the sake of being haughty], he is close to sexual promiscuity,... and he will come to laughter and light-headedness." Those who are haughty are considered an abomination to HaShem, as it says, "An abomination of HaShem are all of those who are haughty of heart." (Mishlei: 16; 5) The haughty individuals are also given over to the desires of their evil inclinations, for since he is abominable, HaShem doesn't assist him against his Yetzer HaRa.

Maybe the parade being referred to as the "Pride Parade" is not far off from the truth, for these people are trying to push their sexual perversions and promiscuity on the people of Jerusalem.

May HaShem answer our tefillos and Torah learning and cancel this parade. Amen!

World Impure Parade now looks to Tel Aviv - Our Campaign Against this Parade of Immorality Must Continue

Due to strong pressure against the planned "immorality pride" parade, the police are considering moving the parade to Tel Aviv.

Rav Yosef said recently, "G-d preserves His people in the merit of [their] modesty, holiness and purity... The Torah commands not to commit the abominations of the Canaanites - such as men marrying men, women marrying women... They were evil people, abominable... They bring these evil people from all over the world to Jerusalem to defile it. All of us as one, we will all protest this with all our might. On the day they have it - we will make a demonstration, and everyone will be there..."

We must continue our opposition - move people to Tel Aviv to protest the parade as was done against the disengagement.

"Tolerant" "Supreme" Court and "World Pride" leaders push Parade on Jerusalem's Population

Though I detest mentioning "World Pride" due to their perverse lifestyle, I feel that I must do my part to defend the sanctity of our holy city of Yerushalayim. With HaShem's Help and our efforts, we will overcome the intolerant forces who are attempting to "spit" on the holiness of Jerusalem and its population.

Latest News:

Though a vast majority of Jerusalem's residents oppose a so called "Pride" parade through Jerusalem, the "Supreme" Court has, of course not surprisingly, sided with "World Pride" and ruled that the municipality of Jerusalem must allow and provide security for the march scheduled for November 10. While the proponents of perversion turn to the extremely secular "Supreme" Court of flesh-and-blood to parade their perverse lifestyle in Jerusalem, we should do what we can in respect of HaShem, The true Master and Judge, and oppose this parade. Remember what we say each day in Shemonah Esrei - "Hashivah Shofteinu K'Varishonah", we want our judges back who uphold the Torah and thereby the Jewish People will prosper all the more. Remember to have special kavana on that b'racha, as well as all other brachos.

UPDATE: "Gay Pride" Parade Rescheduled to September 21 - Two Days Before Rosh HaShanah

What sickens me does not surprise me. The side of spiritual darkness and impurity are extremely adamant about bringing great impurity to our Holy City of Jerusalem. What's more sickening (and, of course, not surprising) is that they intend to bring such great spiritual darkness to the holiest city in the world two short days before Rosh HaShanah - the days when we beseech HaShem to bring health happiness and goodness to the Jewish People. This, of course, is a test. We, of course, have the ability to overcome this darkness trying to be thrusted on HaShem's City of Holiness. We must not allow this. The police must understand that this cannot be permitted. Olmert's increasingly instable government must be made to understand that we will help push them off of the cliff of their "power" if they dare not intercede against such abominable and intolerant actions in our Holy City. With such great adversaries in the world who only want the bad for the Jewish People, we must do our utmost to show HaShem that we will fight "the wars of HaShem" and thereby merit that Hashem fight our wars! It is of course no coincidence that this parsha, Ki Tzetzei, discusses sexual purity of the Jewish People and protection during war.

The following is from Arutz Sheva:

Gay Pride Parade in Jerusalem Rescheduled

By Yechiel Spira

The Open House organization has announced the International Gay Pride Parade will take place in Jerusalem on September 21st. The event was scheduled to take place in the capital in August, but was postponed due to the war in Lebanon.

Prior to the postponement, opposition to the parade was mounting, with prominent rabbis, the Vatican and Islamic religious leaders joining forces to prevent the event from taking place in Jerusalem.

Jewish Pride for Jerusalem - 5766, Mi La'HaShem Eilai

The Holy City of Jerusalem, the center of the Jewish universe, and the universe itself is the center of holiness in the world, the place where two Jewish Temples stood and where the Third Temple will be built, speedily in our days!

In light of the great holiness of Jerusalem, it is disconcerting though not surprising, that people who take "pride" in what HaShem calls a תועבה - toeivah - abomination plan to flaunt their immorality in the world's capital of Kedushah (holiness). These people are intent on banding together to "celebrate" their sexual immorality publicly, of all places in the Holy City of Yerushalayim, Heaven Forbid. Rav Amnon Yitzchak, Shlit"a (רב אמנון יצחק, שליט"א), offers one solution to stop this problem - a massive rally in Israel, focusing on repentance and modesty.

In the past, monumental historic events have occurred, largely as a result of the lewd sexual perversions of the time. At the time of Noach the world was flooded. One of the main sins that led to the punishment of the flood (mabbul) was sexual perversion - it sure made its historic mark!

(פסוק יא) ותשחת הארץ, לפני הא-להים; ותמלא הארץ, חמס.

(פסוק יב) וירא א-להים את הארץ, והנה נשחתה: כי השחית כל בשר את דרכו, על הארץ. [ס]

"And the Earth was perverted before G-d, and the Earth was filled with robbery. And G-d Saw the Earth and it was perverted, for all flesh perverted its way upon the land" (Bereishis: 6; 11-12)

RaSH"I explains that the Earth became perverted due to the sexual immorality and idolatry. Here we see that sexual immorality, idolatry, and robbery were the major factors leading to the end of almost all life on Earth.

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The cities of Sodom and Amorah, they (and the surrounding cities) were wiped out as a result of their sinful conduct, including their perverse sexual immorality.

(פסוק כא) ארדה נא ואראה:הכצעקתה הבאה אלי, עשו כלה; ואם לא, אדעה.
(פסוק ה) ויקראו אל לוט ויאמרו לו, איה האנשים אשר באו אליך הלילה; הוציאם אלינו, ונדעה אתם

"I shall go down and I shall see whether the cry that came before Me, which they caused has stopped, and if not, I Shall Know." (Bereishis: 18; 21)

"And they called to Lot and they said to him: Where are the men that came to you tonight? Bring them out to us, and we will intimately know them." (Bereishis: 19; 5)

RaSH"I explains that HaShem went "down" to see if the "cry" of Sodom (and outlying areas) had stopped. The "cry" refers to the rebellion of the people against G-d. On the second quoted verse, the men of Sodom threaten Lot to release the men (who are angels, unbeknownst to them) into their "custody" so that they can forcefully have sexual relations with the men. Again, sexual depravity and its punishment. The area was destroyed with sulphur and salt (as recorded later in chapter 19). That area today is often referred to as the "Dead Sea" - "Yam HaMelach".

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Possibly a more current example of destruction related (at least partially) to a planned (and past) similar displays of lewdness was New Orleans. Their decadent "festival" reportedly brought in over 100,000 participants. Scheduled every year, it was canceled due to Hurricane Katrina leaving a largely destroyed New Orleans, only a few days prior to the scheduled onset of the public lewdness.

In fact, in the Torah, the Jewish People are told by HaShem that the nations who resided in Israel prior to the Bnei Yisrael were "spit out" as a result of their sexual perversions.

(פסוק כב) ושמרתם את כל חקתי ואת כל משפטי, ועשיתם אתם; ולא תקיא אתכם הארץ, אשר אני מביא אתכם שמה לשבת בה.
(פסוק כג) ולא תלכו בחקת הגוי, אשר אני משלח מפניכם: כי את כל אלה עשו, ואקץ בם.
(פסוק כד) ואמר לכם, אתם תירשו את אדמתם, ואני אתננה לכם לרשת אתה, ארץ זבת חלב ודבש: אני י-ה-ו-ה א-להיכם, אשר הבדלתי אתכם מן העמים.

"And you shall guard My ordinances and My laws, and you shall perform them; and the Land [of Israel] will not spit you out..." And you shall not go by the ordinances of the nation which I Have Sent out from before you; For all of these have they done, and was disgusted by them. And I Say to you, you shall inherit their land, and I Will Give it to you to inherit it, a land flowing with milk and honey, I am HaShem your G-d, who has made you separate from the nations." (Vayikra: 20; 22-24)

The section immediately preceding the above deals with the sexual relationships forbidden by HaShem. The message: Be sexually moral and you will not be spit out of the Land of Israel.

To publicly bandy around and "glorify" behavior that HaShem calls an abomination is something that no G-D fearing Jew should put up with. It is equally inappropriate to organize "adultery pride" parades, or any event that glorifies behavior that is unacceptable according to Judaism, all the more so in the city of Yerushalayim, where "from Zion Torah comes out, and the word of HaShem from Jerusalem". By organizing such a march in Jerusalem, the participants intend to defile the Jewish religion by showing that they are unstoppable - not even the Jewish State of Israel is willing to intercede to stop the parade - at least that's what the parade "hopefuls" wish will happen, chas v'shalom.

It is interesting to note that the symbol for these people is the rainbow. The rainbow is the sign that HaShem Presented to Noach to let the world know that He would never again bring a flood to destroy the entire world. It seems as if the rainbow may be used (among other reasons) for spite. Now that G-d Promised He Will not destroy the entire world through a flood, His sign being the rainbow, we can flaunt our behavior under the rainbow flag. If He Wishes, has myriads of ways He can bring destruction. Furthermore, the Promise was not to destroy the world with floods - there's no promise against bringing destructive floods. (HaShem's Promise not to Destroy the world with a flood is recorded in Bereishis: 9; 8-17.)

Any group of people that wants to come into Jerusalem, and organizes any event that glorifies an action forbidden by the Torah, whether it be sexual, monetary, or religious, acts in a reprehensible manner.

Intended Tourist Attraction for the "Pride" Charade? Heaven Forbid!

It is time for the Jewish People to stand up for and defend our holy Torah and Holy City of Yerushalayim and show that we fear HaShem more than we fear any man. It is time for the Jewish People to show that we respect HaShem's Torah and nothing will stop us from defending the Torah. As a Jewish country, every Jew with the ability to stop this event should try to give their maximum in deference to HaShem and the Torah.

A Sefer Torah. The Torah is the Jewish People's Pride. Will we defend that which is written in it? I think so! (Full size image - click here)

It is time to change "Jerusalem World Pride 2006" to "Yerushalayim Jewish Pride 5766". Do not give up hope, do not lose resolve. We must stop this planned desecration of HaShem's Holy City of Yerushalayim and stop the planned desecration of just about everything that Judaism holds important.

SPREAD THE WORD AND FIGHT AGAINST THE "PRIDE PARADE" IN JERUSALEM. CONTACT JERUSALEM MAYOR URI LUPOLIANSKI:

lpuri@jerusalem.muni.il

FAX: +972-2-6296014, +972-2-6296004

For more information and a form letter against the "parade", click here (Rabbi Brody's website). More from Rabbi Brody here and here.

Rabbi Amnon Yitzchak's solution is a massive rally of teshuva (repentance) and modesty. To see a video of Rabbi Yitzchak's shiur on this matter (of modesty), click here to go to his website.

The Way to Fight a Successful War: Jewish Life is of Maximum Value

It is clear from the Torah that each Jewish person's life is so important that one who saves a life of a Jew is considered as if he saved a world (Bava Basra 11a). Battles between Israeli ground forces and Hezbollah terrorists have been going on for the past few days. Early this morning (Israel time), eight Israeli troops were killed and two-dozen wounded in heavy fighting with the terrorists in their stronghold of Bint Jbeil in heavy hand-to-hand combat. This fighting brings back to mind the heavy fighting Israel employed against the enemy in Jenin. In April 2002, Israel waged a costly battle against the Palestinian terrorists in the terrorist hotbed of Jenin, where 23 Israeli troops died. A senior member of the "Palestinian Islamic Jihad" noted his excitement when he found out that Israel was planning on sending in ground troops to fight against as many as 200 terrorists in Jenin. Jenin was booby-trapped with 1,000-2,000 bombs and many blood-thirsty terrorists. The senior terrorist remarked that by Israel sending soldiers into Jenin, they were sending them into a deathtrap. Israel said that they sent in the ground-troops rather than bomb Jenin from the air to "limit civilian casualties". Similarly, in Fallujah, many priceless American lives were lost in similar hand-to-hand combat with the Islamic terrorists over there. In these situations, unarmed civilians should be permitted to leave and then the area should be bombed from the sky.

Israel paid a heavy-price, losing 23 Jewish lives, 23 worlds, in Jenin. Just today, Israel lost another eight troops in Bint Jbeil. Now we are in the nine-days, a time of hardship for the Jewish people, where we are supposed to avoid anything dangerous (even unnecessary trips) and take extra precautions. That would mean, sending in the I.A.F. (Israel Air Force) in and bomb the "Hezbollah capital" of Bint Jbeil from the air, using bunker-buster bombs, if necessary, to destroy the underground tunnels the terrorists use. No doubt the death-oriented terrorists relish a fight with the I.D.F., probably happily celebrating each dead Jewish soldier, even at the loss of dozens of their own sick terrorists. Furthermore, the terrorists have been engaging the troops in heavy close warfare and probably have booby trapped Bint Jbeil.

The solution to successful warfare:

As I noted recently, the war against our enemies has several components, the spiritual and physical wars. Of course we need to fight the spiritual wars against immodesty and the planned "WorldPride" event of perversion and sexual immorality scheduled to start in under two weeks. We must contact responsible officials in Israel, as well as religious leaders in our local areas and around the world to express our strong support of HaShem and the Torah and are powerful disapproval of the planned event of abomination. Canceling the parade has been a victory but it is no where near sufficient. This war (planned by HaShem) has been what has probably pushed the police to decide to not allow the actual parade. However, all of the other events of the week-long event are still scheduled, including a visit to the Knesset of the masses of homosexuals. That event itself is meant to encourage people to take on the abomination that homosexuality is. These people on the anti-Torah side are determined to proceed to flaunt their intolerance of G-d and the Jewish People in Jerusalem as soon as possible. We must take to heart the determination of the anti-Torah crowd and be at least as determined in our fight for HaShem's honor and the Torah. It is not for us to sit idly back, not improving in our observance of the Torah and not protesting such desecration of the Name of G-d. We should not think that HaShem will take care of everything. We were given free-will and should use it - we must do all we can to peacefully stop this event. Remember, the desecration of HaShem's Name in Jerusalem is no laughing matter. We could use the protection of HaShem and should not take chances of having diminished protection (Heaven Forbid) by sitting back and allowing such an event.

The military solution - see Parshas Devarim:

Our Sages of Blessed Memory inform us that those who are kind to the cruel end up being cruel to the kind. I see that when Israel sends in Jewish men to risk their lives in unnecessary hand-combat in order to limit "civilian casualties" that the statement of our Sages takes on a powerful new life. The words of the Torah are eternally true. It is safe to bet that many of the civilians who "peacefully" reside in Bint Jbeil (as well as other similar places) are supporters of the terrorists, regardless if they are men, women, or children. In Jenin, children were walking around with bombs to lure Jewish soldiers to death-traps. Women terrorists and mothers of terrorists "take pride" in the murder of innocents Jews. In light of this, when will the Jewish State learn to stop showing undeserved compassion to our enemies and undeserved cruelty to our soldiers. Recent reports note that "IDF officers said they ordered pilots not to strafe Bint Jbiel in order to spare civilian casualties". Of course, loss of any innocent civilian life in war in unfortunate, as would be the case in Bint Jbiel. Therefore before conducting any bombing raid on such cities, warnings and ample opportunity should be provided for the unarmed civilians (who are not known to be affiliated with terrorists) to exit the area. Afterwards, the remaining terrorists can be more easily taken out by bombing raids. The idea is to minimize the danger to innocent civilians and your troops.

Amalek is described in the Torah (Devarim: 25; 17 - 20) as a nation that attacks the Jewish People in a surprise move, choosing to fight those that are unprepared to sufficiently defend themselves. Amalek has a burning hatred for HaShem and the Jewish People and desires to attack them, though Amalek has no hope of defeating the Jewish People. RaSh"I notes that Amalek is compared to a hooligan who decides to jump into a bath full of boiling water. Though the hooligan is well-aware that he will be badly scalded, possibly even die, he is willing to jump into the water to cool it down for the other people. So too, Amalek, though they know they have no chance to defeat the Jews, are willing to suffer severe losses in order to cause any loss to the Jewish People. In the Torah, we are commanded to wipe out all Amalekites, men, women, and children. The Islamic terrorists, as the nazis before them, clearly fit the bill of Amalek. They are willing to fight against HaShem and the Jewish People, willing to suffer terribly in order to inflict weakness on the Jewish People. Amalek, in the parable brought by RaSh"I, jumps into the boiling water in order to cool it off so that others can jump in. Amalek wants to weaken the Jews enough so that others who also hate the Jews will feel that perhaps they have a chance to be victorious over the Jewish People (Heaven Forbid) and thereby conduct their own assault on our People, chas v'shalom.

It is interesting to note that the Torah discusses robbery immediately before it discusses the attack of Amalek. The Torah teaches us that the robbery was the reason for the attack of Amalek. One who steals from another will eventually be punished. Maybe there is a relationship between the destruction of the Gaza communities last year and the current tough situation Israel finds itself in.

The advice from the parsha:

In Parshas Devarim (3; 18) we read, "And I command to you at this time, saying, HaShem, your G-d, has given you this land to inherit it, armed you shall pass before your brothers, the Children of Israel, all the people of the army."

RaSh"I notes that Moshe instructed the tribes of Reuven and Gad that they were to enter the war-zone before the rest of the Israelite army "because they were powerful and their enemies would fall before them, as it says (Devarim: 33; 20) 'And they shall tear off arm, even head'." The parsha ends with HaShem telling us "Do not fear them, for HaShem, your G-d, He is the One who is fighting for you". (Devarim: 3; 22)

IF ONE NOTES THE ABOVE VERSE, IT IS CLEAR THAT, IN ORDER TO FIGHT A WAR, WE MUST FIGHT PROPERLY ON THE PHYSICAL PLANE. YES, HASHEM SAYS THAT HE FIGHTS FOR US, HOWEVER, HE ALSO TELLS US TO SEND IN THE MOST-BATTLE READY TROOPS WE HAVE TO BE MOST EFFECTIVE AGAINST OUR ENEMIES.

TODAY, WITH TECHNOLOGY, HASHEM HAS GRANTED US THE ABILITY TO DROP POWERFUL BOMBS FROM PLANES, THUS GREATLY MINIMIZING THE RISK TO ISRAELI SOLDIERS. WE CAN SEND IN THE TROOPS TO PICK UP THE INTELLIGENCE INFORMATION ONLY AFTER OUR PLANES CARPET-BOMB THE TERRORISTS TO GEHINNOM. ONCE THE AMALEKITE TERRORISTS REALIZE THAT WE ARE NOT SENDING OUR JEWISH MEN INTO "DEATHTRAPS" WILL THEY FEAR US MORE GREATLY. AS FOR THE THOSE NON-COMBATANTS WHO REMAIN SIDE-BY-SIDE WITH THE TERRORISTS: ARE THEIR LIVES MORE VALUABLE THAN THE LIVES OF FELLOW JEWS? DON'T BE "EXCEEDINGLY RIGHTEOUS" IN THE EYES OF THE WORLD AND EXCEEDINGLY CRUEL IN THE EYES OF HASHEM.

Parshas Pinchas: A Solution to Succeed Against Israel's Enemies

Tonight is the 17th of Tammuz, the anniversary of the entry of enemy forces (Romans) into Jerusalem at the time of the destruction of the Second Beis HaMikdash. Currently, Israel is involved in a military campaign in Gaza, precipitated by the capture of Gilad Shalit, by Palestinian terrorists. As of today (Wednesday), eight Israeli troops were murdered and two were taken hostage. Almost immediately, Israel sent troops and tanks into Southern Lebanon, and the Israel Air Force has bombed hundreds of targets (150 targets were bombed in the nighttime). Most recently, the news reports that the IAF bombed Beirut International Airport. Based on the way things look, it appears that this will become a major conflict.

Though the situation may look bad, it can turn out to be a blessing - a great opportunity to take out our terrorist enemies surrounding (and in) Israel. I believe that there is a way that Israel can easily defeat its enemies and get its hostages back. HaShem always wants His nation, the Jewish People, to follow in His ways and return to him. In a previous post I note how immodesty leads to a withdrawal of the Divine Protection and how we must combat such immodesty, including opposing the planned "WorldPride" event scheduled for Jerusalem in about three-and-a-half weeks. We should send letters to leaders in Israel (and religious leaders in America), especially the Jerusalem police and Mayor Lupolianski, discouraging them from having the parade in Jerusalem or anywhere in Israel, whether from a religious standpoint or from a security standpoint (the current events in Israel). It turns out, if the current security situation persists much longer, the police may feel compelled to cancel the parade altogether.

The Parsha of Pinchas and a Solution to the Crisis:

Zimri, the prince of the tribe of Shimon, has relations with a prostitute. This brazen act must have encouraged many other Israelites to have immoral relations with the Midianites and Moabites, for, when it was all over, 24,000 Israelites died in a plague.

What stops the plague?

Pinchas. He is the grandson of Aharon the Kohen and in maseches Sanhedrin, is called one who "turns back wrath" from HaShem. Pinchas went ahead and killed Zimri and Cozbi, the Midianite woman he was having relations with at the time. Pinchas killed Zimri, for, as we learn in the gemara, there is a halacha that Pinchas was aware of - One who has sexual relations with these type of women, zealots (i.e. those who are zealous for the honor of HaShem shall attack the offenders).

So, sexual immorality led to the deaths of 24,000. According to RaSh"I, all 24,000 who died belonged to the tribe of Shimon. Hence, Zimri, the prince of Shimon acted immorally, in turn many in his tribe acted immorally with the women and died.

Pinchas comes, kills Zimri, stops the outrage of immorality and stops a devastating plague, in all likelihood saving many thousands more Jewish lives. In fact, RaMBa"N notes that Pinchas' act atoned for the Israelites and prevented "them all dying in the plague". As a result, HaShem rewards Pinchas with His Covenant of Peace and all his descendants can now become kohanim. (Bamidbar: 25; 12)

What does this mean for us?

Pinchas acted in accordance with Jewish law - an exceptional action against an exceptional transgression of the Torah law. Obviously, nowadays the situation is different. However, the actions of Pinchas are very appropriate to learn from, especially nowadays. We must do all we can, within the confines of halacha, to oppose desecration of the Torah. We must understand that even one person can stop great wrongdoings by many people. To help stop events such as the "WorldPride" event and to encourage others to stop desecrating the Torah, we must put pressure on the appropriate leaders in Israel and make them understand that there are real political consequences to not acting in the interest of HaShem and His Torah. We should also learn extra Torah and do extra davening, as well as improve our middos (character traits) to give our cause a great boost from Heaven. We must encourage our leaders to follow the path of Torah and oppose all sorts of acts against the Torah, especially organized actions such as the planned "World Pride" event. A no-confidence vote against the government related to the issue of "World Pride" did not pass on Monday. Less than two days later, a seemingly tough situation in Gaza has become tougher with the attack by Hizbullah. I can't know for sure, maybe the attack would have occurred regardless of the outcome of the vote. However, as the Chofetz Chaim says, immodesty leads to withdrawal of Divine Protection, Heaven Forbid. May the events of today encourage the Jewish nation to improve in the ways of the Torah and lead to the downfall of all our enemies and the speedy rebuilding of the Beis HaMikdash and the coming of Moshiach ben Yosef and ben David. Amen!

Rabbi Brody is Right On The Mark: The Physical War Against Our Enemies and the Spiritual War Against Immodesty and Immorality Are One

I noted on a recent post that the fight to stop the "Impure Parade" seems to be beginning to bear some fruit as the event looks as if it will be moved to Tel Aviv.

The following is Rabbi Lazer Brody's response:

"Kol HaKavod, YRE, but the war to get it out of Yerushalayim is far from over yet. The Yetzer wants us all to relax, and it's not yet time to relax."

Rabbi Brody is right on the mark - we still must do our utmost to move this parade of perversion out of our Holy City of Yerushalayim. Yes, the Yetzer Ha'Ra (Evil Inclination), noting the strong opposition to the planned desecration of Yerushalayim, attempts to draw the forces of holiness (those of us who stand up for what the Torah commands us) away from this war for Yerushalayim.

There are two wars currently going on which are really one - a spiritual war and a physical war. The secret to victory in the physical war is dependent on our performance in the spiritual war. Maybe that's why Yitzchak tells his son Ya'akov, "הקל קול יעקב והידים ידי עשו" - "The voice is the voice of Ya'akov and the hands are the hands of Eisav" (Bereishis: 27; 22); For if the voice is that of Ya'akov's - learning Torah and fighting the "מלחמות ה" "The wars of HaShem" (Bamidbar: 21; 14), they will be successful in the physical war, with weapons.

In fact, the Kli Yakar comments on the verse from Bereishis that we learn in Bereishis Rabbah (65; 20) that as long as Ya'akov (i.e. the Jewish People) learn Torah, Eisav does not have power over us - it is the voice that pushes away our enemies hands.

In the gemara Brachos 62b, we learn that David had the right to kill King Saul, however the trait of modesty of Saul protected him from death at the hands of David:

"And he said to kill you and he had pity on you." (Samuel I: 24; 11) [The verse] in the place of "he said" should [state] "I said" and [in the place of] "he had pity [should have stated] "I had pity". Rabbi Elazar said, David said to Saul, based on the Torah [law] you are liable to death, for you are a pursuer [intent on murdering] and the Torah says "One who come to kill you, arise to kill him". Rather, it was the tznius (modesty) that you had which had pity over you." The gemara explains that Saul was very modest when relieving himself, going into the depths of the cave. Such modesty on Saul's part brought about Divine Protection for Saul.

If King Saul, the righteous king was protected due to his modesty while on a hunt to kill David the righteous, how much more so would the Jewish People and Israel be successful in fighting our evil enemies, who themselves commit acts openly reprehensible.

To conclude, Rabbi Brody's posts on immodesty and lack of protection against missiles resembles the words of the Chofetz Chaim:

"For HaShem, your G-d, walks in the midst of your camp to save you... and there shall not be seen in your midst nakedness, and He turns from behind you." (Devarim: 23; 14-15)

The above is the verse quoted by the Chofetz Chaim in a letter (1924) when the Jewish People were suffering great troubles. The Chofetz Chaim noted that it was the immodest dress of the women that lead to a lack of Divine Protection and the troubles were occurring as a result. Furthermore, the immodest dress of women is the only thing which leads to "the turning away" of HaShem's Presence."

To stop this barrage of attacks and increase our effect on the physical war on terror, we must encourage modesty for all women of Bnei Yisrael. Similarly, we must oppose the event of immodesty planned for Yerushalayim. Just as there should be modesty all over Israel, so too must we not invite the great immodesty into Jerusalem. It is all one war. The spiritual war against immodesty relates to the physical war against our enemies.

Parshas Balak - The Way to Fight a War - Torah in the Merit of Gilad (Shalit) ben Aviva

WITH HASHEM WE ARE UNBEATABLE

We, of course, are unbeatable with HaShem on our side. How do we get HaShem to Fight for us and make us always successful against our enemies? By following the Torah and praying to HaShem.

The source of this message? This week's parsha - Balak, from the mouth of the evil Bilaam.

The parsha relates how Bilaam tried his utmost to curse the Jewish People, but, as G-d Deemed it, blessed them instead - 4 blessings.

There are similarities between all four of the blessings: The Jewish People serve HaShem and perform His mitzvos (commandments) and are successful against their enemies. Today there are great mitzvos being performed by many thousands of Jews worldwide.

In the merit of the strong Jewish opposition to the "gay pride" parade planned for Jerusalem, may HaShem Grant Gilad a safe return to his people, as HaShem Saved the captive in ancient times. Today there was news that Rav Ovadia Yosef, Shlit"a, and Rav Elyashiv, shlit"a, came out publicly in opposition to the "gay pride" parade. May the merit of these Torah giants assist Gilad Shalit in his time of need and result in his safe and healthy return to his family very soon. As I noted in three recent posts, it is important for us to oppose such scheduled perversion from taking place in Jerusalem, or any place in Israel.

THE PARSHA OF BALAK AND JEWISH VICTORY: THE FOUR BLESSINGS

"For from the top of hills I see them..." (Bamidbar: 23; 9):

RaSh"I: I see their beginnings which are solid and strong in the merit of their forefathers and foremothers.

"Who counted the dust of Ya'akov?..." (Bamidbar: 23; 10)

RaSh"I: "The dust of Ya'akov": These refer to the mitzvos they perform which, like dust, are beyond calculation, for there are mitzvos they perform even with the dust: "Do not plow with an ox and a donkey together...", "Do not plant kilayim (plant mixtures)", "ashes of the red heifer", "dust of the sotah", etc.

"He does not stare (focus) on the sins of Jacob..." (Bamidbar: 23; 21)

RaSh"I: When the Jewish People sin, HaShem does not focus so much on those sins, He Still Resides in their midst.

"Behold, they are a nation as a young lion arises and like a lion he lifts up, he does not lie down until he eats the kill and the blood of corpses he drinks." (Bamidbar: 23; 24)

RaSh"I: In the morning when the Jews get up, they strengthen themselves like a young lion to snatch the mitzvos, to put on tzitzis, read the Shema, put on tefillin.

"He does not lie..." RaSh"I: At night he says the Shema and HaShem Fights off his enemies.

The third blessing of Bilaam also discusses how HaShem Blesses the Jews that they are unbeatable.

The fourth blessing discusses the arrival of Mashiach and the ultimate destruction of Amalek at the hands of the Jewish People (Bamidbar: 24; 20): "And he saw Amalek and he began his parable-prophecy and he said 'First of nations is Amalek, and his end is eternal destruction.'"

RaSh"I explains that Amalek was the first nation that attacked the Israelites and they will be utterly destroyed by the Jewish People in the End of Days. Targum Yonasan ben Uziel and Targum Yerushalmi explain that in the End of Days Amalek will inspire the nations of the East to wage war along with him against the Jewish People - their end is that they will all be destroyed. So may it be soon!

Parshas Mattos-Masei on Fighting War: The Current Conflict in Israel

Note: Posted 6:21 pm, Friday, July 21.

This parsha is Mattos-Masei, and as always, has something to say on the current events in Eretz Yisrael. Im Yirtzeh HaShem (G-d Willing) I will post something at least once a week connecting the parsha to the current situation in Israel.

Mattos-Masei: War Under Fire

As noted in a previous post, reading over the weekly-Torah portion twice with a commentary is very beneficial to a person in a number of ways (in addition to being acquainted with the week's portion). Today we, the Jewish People (not just Israelis) are involved in a war that is both spiritual and physical in nature, it being up to all Jews to fight the battle in the best way they can. Tomorrow's Torah reading discusses another war, both spiritual and physical in nature. That war was between the Israelites and the Midianites. In Parshas Pinchas we read about the great loss of 24,000 Jewish males as a result of the sexual immorality and idolatry brought on to the Jewish People by a bunch of Midianite women. Their mission was to get the Jewish men involved in sexual immorality and thus have them destroyed. After repeatedly seeking to curse the Jewish People to no avail (actually blessing them and praising them four times), the wicked Bilaam decides to advise the Moavite and Midiantes to hand over their daughters to try to get the Jewish men to sin.

According to RaSh"I in his commentary on Parshas Balak (Bamidbar: 24; 14), Bilaam advises Balak how to bring about the destruction of the Israelites. RaSh"I states, "'Come, I shall advise you': What you [Balak] can do [to bring about destruction on the Israelites]. What was the council Bilaam offered? 'The G-d of these (the Israelites) hates sexual immorality (Sanhedrin 106a). You should know that Bilaam gave this advice to cause [the Israelites] to stumble through sexual immorality, for it says, (Bamidbar: 31; 16) "Behold, these were for the Children of Israel [following] in the advice of Bilaam."

Why did Bilaam not advise the surrounding nations to take on Israel together?

RaSh"I states: "He (Bilaam) said to them (the Midianites), even if you were to gather all of the masses of the nations in the world, you will not be able to overcome the Israelites. Are you (Midian) perhaps greater in number than the Egyptians who had 600 choice chariots? Come and I will advise give you [how you can be victorious over them].

From the above, we can understand how dangerous sexual immorality can be for the Jewish People, Heaven Forbid. For without the sexual immorality brought upon the Jewish People by the Moavite and Midianite women, no nation could have overcome the People of Israel. However, after many Israelites decided to take part in the sexual immorality, 24,000 Israelites died in a plague. It was only the valiant action of Pinchas that brought about a cessation of the devastating plague. We must also keep in mind that the Chofetz Chaim warns against immodesty as immodesty leads to troubles in the Jewish Camp, Heaven Forbid.

In Parshas Mattos we learn that HaShem tells Moshe to instruct the Israelites to take the "vengeance of the Bnei Yisrael (Jewish People) against the Midianites. (Bamidbar: 31; 2) The next verse calls the impending war against the Midianites "the vengeance of G-d". RaSh"I notes "that those who stands against Israel [in conflict] is as if they stand [in conflict] againt The Holy One, Blessed is He." (Bamidbar: 31; 3)

Here we see, that barring a complete withdrawal of the Divine Presence, when the enemy fights against the Jewish People, HaShem fights back. Before we would know it, our enemies would be out of the picture. The way to win this war (which may be/lead to the war of Gog and Magog) is to encourage modesty of dress in the Jewish camp. Furthermore, the "WorldPride" event - the quintessential opposite of sexual modesty and modesty (pride = haughtiness) must be opposed on security grounds and religious grounds by people all over the world.

RaSh"I notes (Bamidbar: 33; 51 - 52) that the Israelites are crossing into the Land of Israel on condition that they drive out the nations inhabiting the Land of Israel. If they do not cross with that understanding, Moshe tells the Israelites, "[when you cross the Jordan river,] water will come and drown you (the Israelites)." When the Israelites cross the Jordan, Joshua repeats Moshe's command to drive out the other nations. (Yehoshua: 4; 10) RaSh"I says that if the Israelites were to renege on their obligation to drive out the other nations they would "not be able to exist in the Land of Israel. (Bamidbar: 33; 53) For, as RaSh"I notes, the verse (33; 55) states that the inhabitants of the Land that remains will be as thorns and thistles for the Israelites, causing them suffering. We should take an example from the tribes of Reuven and Gad who, though they were living on the eastern side of the Jordan river, decided to help fight for their fellow Israelite. In Parshas Mattos (Bamidbar: 32; 17), RaSh"I notes that these two tribes rushed to assist their fellow tribes to drive out the other nations from the Land of Israel. Furthermore, these tribes were the strongest and most battle-ready of all the tribes, as the verse states (Devarim: 33; 20) "...and they shall devour arm and even skull."

One of the very important things that we should learn from this parsha is that today's war against the Hezbollah is a war against the enemies of HaShem. However, as we want HaShem to Help us a great deal, we must fight the spiritual war against immodesty and immorality such as by encouraging others to dress more modestly. Now we find ourselves in the middle of the three-weeks, a tough time for the Jewish People. We must not allow the "WorldPride" parade to continue. The "parade" itself has been canceled, however the event has not. All Jews in the world must follow Gad and Reuven's lead and help fight this spiritual battle.