Parshas Ki Savo – Ka’ve E-L Hashem: Hope to Hashem

KA’VE EL HASHEM … HOPE TO HASHEM

By Roy S. Neuberger

“But … if you do not hearken to the voice of Hashem, your G-d, to observe, to perform all His commandments and all His decrees that I command you today, then all these curses will come upon you and overtake you …. Hashem will scatter you among all the peoples, from the end of the earth to the end of the earth, and … among those nations you will not be tranquil, there will be no rest for the sole of your foot; there Hashem will give you a trembling heart, longing of eyes and suffering of soul….” (Dvarim 28:15ff)

How do we deal with these terrible words?

As I write, the city of Houston is being inundated by the most damaging storm in memory, with rainfall in some areas expected to total around fifty inches. One inch of rainfall is significant; fifty inches is almost unimaginable!

“On Rosh Hashanah will be inscribed and on Yom Kippur will be sealed how many will pass from the earth and how many will be created; who will live and who will die … who by water and who by fire, who by sword, who by beast, who by famine, who by thirst, who by storm ….” (Unasanetokef)

Beginning the first day of Elul, we say, “L’Dovid … Hashem is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear?”Dovid Hamelech is speaking about fear of men, but, in general, how do we deal with fear? How do we deal with pain and damage and adversity? 

Fear is disabling. You look into the future and see no way out; you feel trapped on every side. 

In the past, I have described my childhood. I did not know that Hashem existed. I felt locked in by fear, as if I was a prisoner of an evil force which I could not control. 

Years later, when I discovered Hashem, I realized that I was indeed governed by a Force beyond my control, but I discovered something amazing: that Force is Completely Good! That Force is benevolent beyond my understanding, beyond my own benevolence. If I would entrust my fate to that Force, then I would find total protection. 

“Min ha maitzar …. From the straits I called upon Hashem” (Tehillim 118) That is the only way out, the only escape route. We can call upon Hashem from our prison and He will release us. This is what happened with Yosef Hatzaddik. Dovid Hamelech says, “whom shall I fear? G-d is the source of my life’s strength. Of whom … shall I be afraid?” (Tehillim 27)

This ability to call upon Hashem is always within our power. At any moment, in any situation, we are able to decide whether to trust that Infinitely-Benevolent Force. “Hakol bidai Shomayim … Everything is in the hands of Heaven except for fear of Heaven.” (Berachos 33b) Fear of Heaven cancels out all other fear. It can never be taken from us, and this is everything! 

Perhaps that is why we repeat the words “ka’ve el Hashem.” We see this world with our eyes of flesh, and we “hope to Hashem.” But that is not enough. We have to “hope to Hashem” even beyond our ability to see. We exist in a finite world; Hashem’s world, lehavdil, is infinite. We have to hope beyond the finite world; we have to hope to infinity! 

Sometimes, I still remember my childhood fears that my nature is evil, as if it were not true that the “neshoma shenasata bi tahora hi … that the soul You placed within me is pure.” (Morning brachas) What happens if my neshoma is really impure? What happens if my basic nature is evil, G-d forbid? This is when I need an extra layer of “ka’ve el Hashem,” when I need my hope in Hashem to overpower my fear, when I need to understand that, somehow, whatever happens in this world is from a Place beyond my understanding which is all good. 

“Hashem is my light and my salvation, whom shall I fear?” Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch zt”l explains: “Wait upon G-d and, even if your hopes should remain unfulfilled for the present, remain strong, gather new courage from your heart, and never cease to hope.” If our hope comes from the Infinite; nothing in this finite world can overpower us. 

Franklin D. Roosevelt famously said, “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” Those classic words, stated in a moment of national danger, remained in the public mind because fear is so prevalent among mankind. But I believe that we, the Children of Israel, need more than those words. We need to know how to break out of that cycle of fear. 

“Bnai Adam …. Children of Man, who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, shackled in affliction and iron, He removed them from darkness and the shadow of death and broke open their shackles.” (Kaporos Erev Yom Kippur)

We say “Ka’ve el Hashem … hope to Hashem,” and that is directed toward that which is in our power to accomplish. But we can go beyond that. We have to “hope to Hashem” again, even beyond what is in our power. In Rabbi Hirsch’s words, “This awareness of G-d’s Presence, which no one can take from me, makes me feel sure that victory will be mine in the end.”

“Achos ketanah … The little sister, she prepares her prayers and proclaims her praises. Oh G-d, please, heal her ailments now! Let the (old) year and its curses conclude….” Our tefillos never end. Even beyond what seems possible, we implore Hashem!

“Be strong and rejoice, for the plunder is ended. Place hope in the Rock and keep His covenant. You will ascend to Tzion and He will say, ‘Pave! Pave her paths! Let the (new) year and its blessings begin!’” May we see it soon in our days! 

*          *          *          *

Roy Neuberger, author and public speaker, can be reached at roy@2020vision.co.il.

© Copyright 2017 by Roy S. Neuberger

Shabbat Ki Tavoh, the 18th of Elul – The Baal Shem Tov “BeSHT”; and Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, the Baal HaTanya

Shabbat Ki Tavoh, the 18th of Elul – The Baal Shem Tov “BeSHT” and Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, the Baal HaTanya

Birthday of The Baal Shem Tov “BeSHT”
In the small Polish town of Tloste,2 Eliezer and his wife Sarah lived a life of simple piety, serving G‑d with a pure heart. Although seemingly unlearned, Eliezer was actually a member of the fellowship of "hidden tzaddikim," a group of unusually gifted and devoted Jews who, disguised as simple people, dedicated their lives to improving the plight of their Jewish brethren both spiritually and materially.

In their old age, on the 18th of Elul, 5458 (16983), Eliezer and Sarah gave birth to their only child—Yisrael.

This child was destined to infuse vitality into a suffering, depressed people. His name, Yisrael – "Israel" – is also the name of the Jewish People. His birth would serve as a wake-up call for a nation deep in a spiritual slumber.

When Yisrael was five years old, both his mother and his father died. Before his death, Eliezer called his son Yisrael to his bedside and told him, "Fear no one but G‑d. Love every Jew with all your heart and soul, no matter who he is." These two directives would serve as the basis for Yisrael's service of G‑d and future teachings.

The Jewish community of Tloste adopted the young orphan, providing him with his basic needs. Often, after the conclusion of his studies at the local cheder (Jewish school), Yisrael would wander into the fields and forests that surrounded the village. It was in this picturesque setting, secluded and removed from the bustle of everyday life, that Yisrael was able to meditate and recognize the wonders of G‑d's creation.

[. . .] On Yisrael's sixteenth birthday, Elijah the Prophet appeared to him and described to him the great effects the prayers of simple folk had in heaven. Their pure intent and the unwavering faith with which they uttered the words of prayer, Elijah explained, resonated in the "higher worlds" more than the scholarly achievements of great sages. Inspired by his conversation with the prophet, Yisrael made it his personal mission to engage simple Jews in conversation about mundane matters. By inquiring as to their wellbeing and their families' health or livelihood, Yisrael was able to elicit responses rich in words of praise to G‑d. To read a story of one such conversation, visit G‑d's Nourishment.

You can read more about the life and times of the BeSHT at Chabad


The Birth (1745) of R. Schneur Zalman
Rabbi Schneur Zalman was born to his parents, Rabbi Baruch and Rebbetzin Rivkah, near Liozna in the province of Mohilev, Belarus, on the 18th of Elul. This was the same day on which Rabbi Yisrael, the Baal Shem Tov, had been born forty-seven years earlier.

(1748) R. Schneur Zalman’s meeting with the Baal Shem Tov

When Schneur Zalman reached the age of three years, his father, Rabbi Baruch, took him to the Baal Shem Tov for the traditional haircutting ceremony. That was the only time that Rabbi Schneur Zalman saw the Baal Shem Tov in his life, though he was fifteen years old when the Baal Shem Tov passed away. It was the Baal Shem Tov’s wish that Rabbi Schneur Zalman should find his own way of Chassidus.

(1765) R. Schneur Zalman travels to Mezeritch

When Rabbi Schneur Zalman neared his twentieth year, he decided—with the consent of his wife, Rebbetzin Sterna—to travel to a center of Torah learning and service of G‑d. Two centers of Jewish learning and leadership competed for his attention: Vilna, the main seat of Talmudic scholarship, and the fortress of the opposition to the young yet rapidly growing chassidic movement; and Mezeritch, the seat of Rabbi DovBer, the famed Maggid of Mezeritch, heir to the ideology of Rabbi Yisrael Baal Shem Tov and to the leadership of the chassidic movement. Rabbi Schneur Zalman related, “I knew that in Vilna one was taught how to study, and that in Mezeritch one could learn how to pray. To study I was somewhat able, but of prayer I knew very little. So I went to Mezeritch.”

(1769) Birth of Napoleon Bonaparte

(1770) R. Schneur Zalman begins work on the Shulchan Aruch

At the instruction of Rabbi DovBer, the Maggid of Mezeritch, R. Schneur Zalman began work on a new Shulchan Aruch (Code of Jewish Law). The result was an innovative work, which comprehensively explained the legislative underpinnings of each law. In addition, he skillfully arbitrated between the diverse opinions that had accumulated since the publication of Rabbi Yosef Caro’s Shulchan Aruch several hundred years earlier.

A famous story about the Baal HaTanya: 
Hearing the Cry of a Child:  A story with a living lesson

Once, in the middle of the night, one of the Mitteler Rebbe’s children fell out of bed. Entirely engrossed in his studies, he did not hear the child’s cries. However, his father, the Alter Rebbe, heard the cries, closed his Torah books, and went to comfort the child. The Alter Rebbe later said to his son: no matter how deeply immersed you are in holy pursuits, when a child cries you must hear it; you must stop what you’re doing and soothe their pain.

You can read much more about the Baal HaTanya Chabad: Timeline and Biography of Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi



Ohr HaChaim – Ki Tavoh

Moses compliments the Jewish people that they walk in G-d’s paths even in matters G-d has not specifically commanded.

"You have distinguished G‑d this day to be G‑d for you."(Devarim 26:17)

The reason the Torah added the word "this day," may be understood in conjunction with what we learned that "anyone who lives in the Diaspora is considered as if he does not have a G‑d." [Ketuvot 110] The words "this day" limit the application only to people who are in the Holy Land.

Even though at that precise moment the Israelites were still on the land that used to belong to Sichon and Og, this was considered part of the Holy Land, seeing that it had been conquered by the whole nation at the command of their prophet Moses. We have discussed and proved this point in connection with our commentary on Numbers (32:3). Seeing that the land in question was no longer part of the Diaspora, the Israelites could truly claim to have adopted the Lord as their G‑d, and G‑d in turn adopted them as His exclusive people.

...G‑d in turn adopted them as His exclusive people.

Another meaning of this verse may be based on the Zohar (I page 108) according to which the other countries on earth have been assigned by G‑d to a respective heavenly minister, who is in charge of them on G‑d’s behalf. The land of Israel and its people on the other hand are not subject to any delegate of G‑d but are ruled over directly by G‑d Almighty. David phrased it thus: "My judgment will proceed from directly in front of Your eyes." (Psalms 17:2) In other words, we are not subject to the authority of any of G‑d’s deputies.

Still another thought which many be concealed in our verse is that G‑d will utilize His attribute of Mercy when in judgment of the Jewish people. While it is true that G‑d judges everyone and every nation according to their just deserts, in our case, G‑d the Merciful will cause the Israelites [to acknowledge and] to say that His judgment is fair, i.e. they will bless the Lord even when they experience what appears to them to be a harsh judgment.

"…And to walk in His ways…”

Moses compliments the Jewish people that they walk in G‑d’s paths even in matters G‑d has not specifically commanded. As soon as they have divined what it is that He would want them to do, they do so of their own accord. Specific examples are such good practices as visiting the sick, burying the dead. The Israelites learned from G‑d visiting Abraham or burying Moses that these were virtues He wants us to practice, though there is no specific commandment ordering us to do so.

Israel’s walking in the paths of G‑d extends both to His Statues...as well as His other Commandments and His Social Laws…

Israel’s walking in the paths of G‑d extends both to His statures, the laws that appear to have no rationale, as well as His other commandments and His social laws, i.e. the laws governing inter-personal relationships, relationships which are to be administered by terrestrial courts.

"…And by listening to His voice.”

This is a reference to Torah study. The reason the Torah describes this as G‑d’s "voice" may be understood with reference to the question: "how do we know that if one studies Torah from the mouth of a minor scholar this is equivalent to one’s hearing the Torah from G‑d’s own mouth? (Sifri, 115, See Rashi on Deut. 15:5).

Why did the Torah mention Torah study as the last of the virtues Israel is to practice? This is to inform us that even if a person has mastered all the disciplines of Judaism and is thoroughly familiar with all the laws and precepts, he is still obligated to make study of the Torah part of his daily program. It is a commandment all by itself. As long as man lives, he has never fully discharged his obligation to engage in the study of Torah as we know from a mystical interpretation to Numbers (19:14):

"This is the obligation to study Torah. It extends until man dies while engaged in its study.”

[Selected with permission from the five-volume English edition of "Ohr HaChaim: the Torah Commentary of Rabbi Chaim Ben Attar" by Eliyahu Munk.]

MK Smotrich: Pay for Voluntary Arab Immigration

MK Smotrich: *Pay for Voluntary Arab Immigration – Kill Hope for Palestinian State

A new political plan by MK Bezalel Samotrich (Habayit Hayehudi) proposes creating a government mechanism to issue high monetary compensation to “encourage voluntary emigration” of those Arabs from Judea and Samaria as well as green-line Israel willing to give up the realization of their national aspirations between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River. Next week, a conference of Smotrich’s faction, the National Union, is expected to adopt his plan.

“This is not a transfer,” Smotrich told Israel Hayom on Wednesday.

“Today, 20,000 Palestinians leave the West Bank every year. Their own surveys show that 30% aspire to emigrate. I will help them carry this out, fairly, with full monetary compensation, and not by coercion. It will be cheaper than wars and military operations every few years.”

“It is not despair that drives terrorism, but hope, whose main expression is the Palestinian State. That is what I intend to sever.”

[. . .] We can’t expect the IDF to eradicate terrorism and at the same time work to keep alive the hope that fuels terrorism.”




*[Now that’s an idea who’s time has come. This MK is thinking correctly.]

THREE TROPICAL STORM SYSTEMS – IRMA / JOSE / KATIA

THREE TROPICAL STORM SYSTEMS 

HURRICANE IRMA / HURRICANE JOSE / STORM KATIA 

(in the gulf heading eastward and could impact the Florida panhandle)

Hurricane Irma/NEW TRACK! (NE)






[This now corroborates the other video estimating landfall at Georgia–Carolinas. If Katia moves more eastward it will head over Florida from the gulf side, which IRMA devastates from the Atlantic side. Because this/these storms/hurricanes are very unpredictable, the estimations could again change.]

Rabbi Yitzchak Ginsburgh Shlita: Establish the Legal System on the Eternal Principles of the Torah of Israel According to Jewish Law

Rabbi Yitzchak Ginsburgh Shlita: Establish the Legal System on the Eternal Principles of the Torah of Israel According to Jewish Law*

“To his Honorable Mr. Binyamin Netanyahu,”

“I was happy to hear that, during your visit in southern Tel Aviv you identified with the plight of the residents of the area, while expressing understanding that the factor preventing the amelioration of the situation is the Supreme Court, which imposes its opinion on the Jewish people and prevents significant legislation on the matter of infiltrators (and many other matters).

“We must worry for the peace of our people, both on the physical plane and the spiritual plane,” Rabbi Ginsburgh continued. “A fundamental repair in the leadership of the people entails establishing the legal system on the eternal principles of the Torah of Israel and according to Jewish law.”

“Most of the nation of Israel has faith in G-d and the righteousness of his Torah and, on the basis of this faith, we can act together to turn our state into the Jewish state our nation envisioned in all its years of exile. At least, it must be ensured that the minority doesn’t control the majority, as occurs today.”

The rabbi also called for changes in Israel’s educational system. “Much more must be invested than is currently being invested in the quality of state education, education that values the Torah of Israel, both in terms of intellectual honesty and ethical honesty.”

Rabbi Ginsburgh concluded his letter by relating to the Jewish month of Elul currently underway. “In these days of the month of Elul [...] G-d grants us special strength to repent and mend our ways, not only on the individual level but on the general public level, public repentance for leading the nation in the good and honest way. In the words of the Rambam, 'The Torah already promised that Israel will, in the end, repent at the end of their exile - and be immediately redeemed,' speedily in our days, Amen.”


*Does this sound familiar? Think Meir Ettinger.

UPDATE IRMA: Projected Landing in Carolinas 9/11 [UPDATE on Wildfires/Smoke]

IRMA Update: September 5, 2017: 
NEW: HURRICANE IRMA UPDATE / Big storm gets stronger, larger and models are shifting!




IRMA Projected Landfall Carolinas 9/11

Wildfire smoke covers half of USA - 

Citizens struggle to breathe 

- Getting Bad

September 5, 2017: Large, overwhelming wildfire smoke is becoming more and more visible across the USA. These are very intense fires burning out west that need to be stopped. Firefighters out on the frontline and aerial support need more reinforcements right away to get this situation done and over with. They've done enough damage. [Smoke interfering will breathing and everyday life.]

Spectacular “Fireball–Sounded like Thunder" over Vancouver BC

September 5, 2017: "Fire in the Sky" / A spectacular fireball shook the ground rattling windows of homes last night over Vancouver BC.

INTENSITY FORECAST FOR IRMA

INTENSITY FORECAST FOR IRMA

[Winds and Flooding encapsulating all islands along the way]

Source: Weather Underground – Category Six 6



DANGEROUS IRMA  A CATEGORY 5 at 175 mph


Source: YWNews

Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 45 miles (75 km) from the center and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 140 miles
(220 km). NOAA

POSSIBLE 3 STATE LANDFALL – IRMA UPDATE and Addenda

IRMA SWIRLING AT 52.8 Feet Waves 

– up to 191 mph

Moving Toward the East Coast of America
Towering waves predicted near eye of Hurricane Irma!

CAT 4 IRMA could make Triple (3) State Landfall - FL/GA/SC

September 4, 2017: The Florida Governor has declared a "State of Emergency" as Hurricane IRMA strengthens to a BIG CAT 4 Hurricane. **This major storm has the potential, according to models right now which are of course subject to change, to make landfall in THREE different states! BIG heads-up. Incredible…

UPDATE 2: VIDEO CAPTURE OF ANOTHER HURRICANE BEHIND IRMA

BIG CAT 4  Florida Governor Declares State of Emergency

The storm grew in intensity from a Category 3 to a Category 4 Monday as it approached the Caribbean, where it is expected to strike Tuesday.

Even before Gov. Rick Scott declared a state of emergency in all of Florida’s 67 counties about 5 p.m., residents began stocking up on supplies. Spaces on water shelves at several Publix stores were empty. Generators were sold out by mid-afternoon at The Home Depot on Colonial Drive east of Sermoran Boulevard. Full article at Orlando Sentinel

IRMA COULD CHANGE DIRECTION AT ANY TIME

ADDENDA TO HURRICANE HARVEY

LazerBeams highlighted the exact conundrum of Harvey 
[which is something I surmised–An Act of Shamayim]

See that gray and black circle at the center of Hurricane Harvey? Do you think you know what it is?
It's more than just the heaviest rainfall. If you recall, Harvey made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane, and was quickly downgraded to Category 2 in about 5 hours. Usually, hurricanes continue on their path inland, and they gradually lose strength and turn into tropical storms, then regular rain.
But what happened here? Harvey began to stall. And then it started gaining strength.

This goes completely against nature.

PUTTING THE FEAR OF HEAVEN IN YOUR HEART

To Put The Fear of Heaven in Your Heart

During This ELUL

WHAT DOES 40 INCHES OF RAIN LOOK LIKE IN SOUTH FLORIDA?

[to give one an idea if Hurricane IRMA (which might be more grandiose than Harvey) barrels into Miami, DC, Penna. or Brooklyn NY]

(downtown Miami (August) rain flooding)

If a hurricane like Harvey landed in Southeast Florida, hammering one of the most densely developed coastlines in all of the U.S. with torrential rain for days, what would it look like?

Widespread flooding, no doubt. Harvey may eventually be classified as a rare thousand-year storm. But exactly how much flooding would result, until now, has largely been a probability analysis based on statistics. Federal Emergency Management Administration maps look at history and stream flows, but not whether a wetland has been paved over by a parking lot, or a new electric pump replaced an old gravity gate on a canal to flush flood water.

“In a lot of places where we only have 40 or 50 years of records, you just have a probability data point,” said U.S. Geological Survey National Flood Hazard Coordinator Robert Holmes. “We really don’t know what a thousand-year rainstorm looks like because we don’t have a thousand years of data.”

But what if, along with historical data from insurance claims, you could look at land use, flood control operations and how quickly rainfall evaporates? What if instead of a statistical model you built a dynamic model based on real-time information?

Omar Abdul-Aziz, an engineer and assistant professor at West Virginia University, has done just that with a new model he built while at Florida International University as part of a state-funded project to improve hurricane loss models. At the request of the Herald, he agreed to run three rainfall scenarios that might resemble Hurricane Harvey.

The maps he produced stretch from Homestead north to Port St. Lucie, not including barrier islands which are separate land masses, and depict flooding after 48 hours from 20 inches of rain, 30 inches of rain, and 40 inches of rain. Because the maps cover a large area, they don’t show flooding at street level. But Abdul-Aziz said they do provide a far more accurate picture of what would happen across the region.



This map, created by engineer Omar Abdul-Aziz based on a computer model he developed to predict flooding from rainfall, depicts how high flood waters would rise if 20 inches of rain fell in South Florida over 48 hours.
Omar I. Abdul-Aziz


At 20 inches, flooding in parts of Miami, Hialeah, South Dade and Fort Lauderdale rises between nine and 17 inches at least. Abdul-Aziz said he took a conservative approach. With 40 inches of rain, flooding in those same neighborhoods, as well as many more, rises to between 23 inches and more than three feet — enough to begin damaging houses and partially submerge cars.

“Because of the flat land and low elevation, water does not move fast. It goes slow and the drainage capacity is not designed to take that much rainfall,” he said.

When asked, the South Florida Water Management District said the agency had never modeled 40 inches of rain. The best estimate they could provide was at 20 inches.

“The criteria this flood-control system is built on is when we have 18 to 20 inches in a short amount of time,” which would bring flood waters to the tops of housing pads in low-lying areas, said spokesman Randy Smith. “That means water very close to your front door.”

With 40 inches over three or four days, “it’s safe to say South Florida would see widespread flooding,” he said.

According to Abdul-Aziz’s model, at 40 inches over two days, flooding would cover nearly all five counties at depths between 10 and 18 inches.




Omar Abdul-Aziz, an engineer and assistant professor at the University of West Virginia, created a computer model to predict rainfall flooding in Florida as part of a state effort to re-assess insurance rates. This map shows how flooding would occur in Southeast Florida during 40 inches of rainfall over 48 hours.
Omar I. Abdul-Aziz


Typically, rainfall from tropical storms and hurricanes is far less because they tend to move. Harvey was unusual in that it sat nearly stationary, and then rain bands trained, dumping water over and over in the same place. Such events in Florida are rare but not unheard of. In 2012, Tropical Storm Debby dropped 28.8 inches in Wakulla County and Melbourne got hit with 27.65 inches by Tropical Storm Fay. Hurricane Georges produced 38.5 inches in the Panhandle and Key West recorded 25 inches during Hurricane Jeanne in 1980, according to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecaster David Roth.

Parts of South Florida have also wrestled with increasing flooding in the face of sea rise, with Miami Beach in particular seeing a rapid rise.

In advance of storms, water managers in South Florida typically begin lowering water levels in Lake Okeechobee, which they try to keep below 15.5 feet to protect its aging dike, and local canals.

“We know from past history that, generally speaking, one foot of rainfall over the lake's basin could result in a [three to four] foot rise in the lake's water level,” U.S. Army Corps of Engineers spokesman John Campbell said in an email. The dike is at risk of failing at 18.77 feet, he said.
“The dike doesn't have an emergency spillway to lower the water level; the only tool we have to lower the lake level is releasing water over a period of several days or weeks,” he said.

Read full article at the MiamiHerald

Should you ride out a hurricane in a high-rise?

Hurricane Irma moving west with 110-mph winds, expected to grow into an intense storm

Hurricane Irma is back up to a Category 3 storm with 115 mph maximum sustained winds and expected to get stronger, predicted the National Hurricane Center’s 5 a.m. advisory. The storm is moving west-souhtwest, but expected to turn west on Monday. NOAA

Hurricane IRMA - "Worst Case Scenario" - Oh my..

[i viewed this video after writing the above, and was flabbergasted that this is exactly what they are discussing.]

POSSIBILITY OF FLORIDA
September 3, 2017: Any landfall of anywhere of a Category 4 or 5 hurricane is not going to be a good scenario, especially if the area is dealing with sea level rise prior to a landfall and thousands of residents living on the coast in high-rise buildings. The storm is strengthening and lets hope that doesn't happen.

THE WEIRDEST ASPECT IS THAT ACCORDING TO THE MOST RECENT ESTIMATIONS, APPRIZED ON DAILY/HOURLY SCALE, 

 [which are subject to change IY”H] 

LANDFALL COULD BE AT OR NEAR THE POINT OF THE EXIT OF THE ECLIPSE!

****ON SEPT 10/11****

WHOA!

(but again, subject to change)

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/weather/hurricane/article170955607.html

APOCALYPTIC AMERICA

APOCALYPTIC AMERICA

WILDFIRES – MILLION ACRES BURNING 

MONTANA Fires over 600,000 acres burning

OREGON Fires 142,000 acres burning

CALIFORNIA Fires – Evacuees all over California

Montana Fire Update Sept 3, 2017

An estimated 4,000 firefighters, 125 aircraft, and 350 Montana National Guard troops have battled 40 wildfires across Montana this summer; which collectively have scorched about 655,171 acres, with 23 of those fires still burning. The most destructive of these was the Lolo Peak Fire which claimed the lives of two firefighters and has burned 39,719 acres. The Lodgepole Complex Fire in east-central Montana was the largest of the summer, coming in at 270,723 acres.
Historic Fires / Historic Floods 
Evacuees "Never seen anything like it”



September 3, 2017: Wildfires are burning at a furious pace, devouring over a million acres and everything on those acres, forcing evacuations, burning entire ranches and farms. 100's of homes and buildings burnt and the CA Governor declared a State of Emergency for Los Angeles and Los Angeles County as wildfires are growing to never before seen size and strength, forcing 100's of evacuations.

The same situation goes without any saying, as you all well know a 1000 year flood just took place over Houston, Beaumont and most of the entire SE Texas landscape and parts of Louisiana, dropping in some places between 40 and 50 inches of rain Turing the environment into a "Water World", submerging everything in its path in water.

Largest wildfire in Los Angeles history forces hundreds to evacuate

210 Freeway reopened, all evacuation orders lifted as firefighters gain upper hand on Verdugo Mountains fire LATimes

Three homes burned as foothills wildfire grows to 5,800 acres

BURBANK CALIFORNIA:

UPDATE – NORTH KOREA 6.3 TRIGGERS EARTHQUAKE

North Korea Shaken by Strong Tremors in Likely Nuclear Test

North Korea was shaken by as many as two strong tremors on Sunday, with the South's officials saying it was presumed to be a sixth nuclear test. North Korean television later reportedly said it was a successful test of a hydrogen bomb

The explosion at the nuclear test site at Punggye-ri in North Korea’s mountainous northeast triggered an initial magnitude-6.3 earthquake, followed by a magnitude-4.1 temblor that was possibly caused by a structural collapse, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

While it was unclear what set off the second quake, satellite imagery has captured evidence of tunneling activity at the nuclear test site in recent months. Any structural collapse might have been related to that.

Estimates of the size of Sunday’s initial earthquake varied among different agencies, but the USGS said it had a magnitude of 6.3.

Just What is a Hydrogen Bomb



A hydrogen bomb—technically known as a thermonuclear weapon—typically uses a smaller, primary atomic explosion to ignite a secondary, much larger blast. The first stage is based on nuclear fission—the splitting of atoms—and the second on nuclear fusion, which combines atoms, smashing them together and unleashing more energy. Additional stages can be added to increase its destructive force.

That makes the H-bomb more powerful than early nuclear weapons that typically used a single-stage blast based only on nuclear fission. Those weapons are known as “pure fission” devices and are thought to have been used in all of North Korea’s first three nuclear tests, which it said involved atomic bombs.

Source:  Read full article at  WSJ

North Korea just demonstrated a breakthrough hydrogen bomb and EMP "super weapon”

The risk of a global thermonuclear war just skyrocketed by about 50%. Last night, North Korea exploded what they claim is a hydrogen bomb -- a thermonuclear warhead that can also be deployed as an EMP super weapon.

This means North Korea can now bring down the United States of America with a single, high-altitude detonation that would kill 90 percent of the population (in the aftermath of an EMP attack). Things have now reached a tipping point. Massive military strikes on North Korea are now inevitable. NaturalNews

Rabbi Ginsburgh – 778 – Rabbi Yehoshua ben Hanania

Gal Einai LIVE BROADCAST

Also on youtube

Addenda: The next shiur will be on October 1st, the day after Yom Kippur, at Netzach Yisrael (cor. of two great minds: Ramban and Ibn Ezra) at 6:30 PM.

Alexander Hamilton and the Jews

Alexander Hamilton and the Jews

The surprising and extensive connections the Founding Father had with the Jews.

Fans of the hit musical Hamilton have something to celebrate: America’s Library of Congress has announced they are putting hundreds of Hamilton’s letters and other documents online.

Those of us who are curious about America’s Founding Father and the first Secretary of the US Treasury can now learn more about Alexander Hamilton. One surprise might be Hamilton’s extensive Jewish connections.

“An isle in the Caribbean”

In the musical Hamilton, Alexander Hamilton sings that he was “Born in an isle in the Caribbean / I knew I was poor.” The isle in question was Nevis, a British possession then known for its sugar, tea and cocoa plantations and its slave trade. Britain used the island as a dumping ground for criminals, sending shiploads of pickpockets, homeless people, thieves and others from the margins of British society to the tropical island. But Nevis also was home to a thriving Jewish population, most of who fled the Inquisition in Portugal to Brazil, then moved to the Caribbean when the Inquisition terrorized Brazil.

The earliest record of Jewish residents is a muster roll from 1678, listing eight people as “Jewes”. By the late 1670s, 17 Jewish families called Nevis home. They built a synagogue and bought and consecrated a Jewish cemetery. By the time Alexander Hamilton was born in the 1750s (the exact date of his birth is disputed), fully one quarter of the white population of the island’s capital, Charlestown, was Jewish

Nevis Jewish cemetery

In later years, Nevis’ one-time Jewish community was forgotten. That changed in 1957, when an American Jewish historian named Malcolm Stern and his wife took a cruise that stopped in Nevis and he located an old Jewish cemetery, now an overgrown field where goats grazed. Tipped off by locals that Jews had once used the field as a burial site, Stern located 16 Hebrew epitaphs before returning to his ship and later writing about Nevis’ lost Jewish community.

“Founding father without a father”

Much criticism was levelled at Alexander Hamilton during his lifetime for being illegitimate. Though he took the name of his father, the Scottish nobleman and ne’er-do-well James Hamilton, Alexander’s mother was in fact married to a man named Johann Michael Lavien. Historian Ron Chernow (whose 2004 biography Alexander Hamilton inspired the musical Hamilton) notes that divorce was almost impossible to procure in the West Indies in the 1700s and although Alexander Hamilton’s mother left her husband and presented herself to the world as Mrs. James Hamilton, her first husband continued to bedevil the family.

Alexander Hamilton

Chernow also posits that Lavien might have been Jewish. Indeed, when Alexander Hamilton wrote of his mother’s husband, he called him Levine, a Jewish name. Chernow notes “The name Lavien can be a Sephardic variant of Levine, but if he (Johann Lavien) was Jewish he managed to conceal his origins. Had he presented himself as a Jew” mainstream Christian society would not have accepted him.

“Get your education, don’t forget from whence you came.”

Nevis’ Christian schools refused to educate the young Alexander Hamilton. Thirsty for knowledge, Hamilton’s mother turned to a local Jewish school to teach her brilliant son. The future founding father learned about Judaism and even learned to speak some Hebrew.

Hamilton learned about Judaism and even learned to speak some Hebrew.

Hamilton’s son later explained of his father “rarely as he alluded to his personal history, he mentioned with a smile his having been taught to repeat the Decalogue in Hebrew, at the school of a Jewess, when so small that he was placed standing by her side upon a table.”

“Now how’re you gonna get your debt plan through?”

As the country’s first Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton proposed a bold plan for the new federal government to pay all state debts incurred during the Revolutionary War at full value. This enhanced the prestige of the fledgling central government but was wildly expensive. To fund his debt plan, Hamilton’s Treasury issued securities bonds, as well as a host of other financial innovations.
Hamilton’s plan was risky and it brought special ire from anti-Semites. In their book The Presidents of the United States and the Jews, David G. Dalin and Alfred J. Kolatch note that Hamilton “was attacked for having Jewish moneylending interests at heart” at the time.

“I finished up my studies and I practiced law.”

After the Revolutionary War, Alexander Hamilton practiced law in New York. Although there was a Jewish community in New York at the time, Jews were marginalized and few in number, and anti-Semitic attitudes were rife. When a witness was disparaged for being Jewish, Alexander Hamilton passionately asked his opposing counsel: “Why distrust the evidence of the Jews?” It was a bold question and an unusual position to take at the time.

“They’ll be safe in the nation we’ve made.”

Alexander Hamilton was clear in his admiration for Jews and his recognition that the survival of the Jewish people against all odds was a sign of something extraordinary. In notes that he left on the “progress of the Jews”, Hamilton mused on the extraordinary fact of Jewish survival.

“From their earliest history to the present time (Jewish survival for millennia against all odds) has been and is, entirely, out of the ordinary course of human affairs” Hamilton wrote. “Is it not then a fair conclusion that the cause also is an extraordinary one - in other words that it is the effect of some great providential plan? The man who will draw this Conclusion will look for the solution in the Bible. He who will not draw it ought to give us another fair solution.”

Hamilton’s high esteem for Jews and his strong belief in human rights, helped ensure that the new United States was a place where many different peoples including Jews, could dwell in relative security and dignity.


Source: Aish: Alexander Hamilton and the Jews

IRMA UPDATED – PLUS ANOTHER STORM BEHIND IRMA!

NORTH AMERICAN BOUND STORMS – DEVELOPING
IRMA and ?



UPDATE ON IRMA:  FIFTY TWO FOOT WAVES –  POSSIBLE 191 mph
BUT CHANGES OCCUR DAILY – subject to change, daily
Tropical Update: Towering waves predicted near eye of Hurricane Irma!

Parshas Ki Seitzei – ECLIPSES AND WORLD EVENTS

ECLIPSES AND WORLD EVENTS

By Roy S. Neuberger

“When you will go to war against your enemies….” (Dvarim 21:10)

War is deviant behavior. If every created being were “sameach b’chelko,” all creation would live in peace. Conflict occurs because people are dissatisfied with their lot. Today there is an “aroma” of conflict and danger throughout the world, which is reflected even in the movement of heavenly bodies. Recently, a solar eclipse was visible over the United States. Chazal discuss possible ominous implications of such events.

In my book, Worldstorm, I discuss various calendar systems. One can distinguish among the cultures of Yishmael (the Moslem Nations), Esav (the Western Nations) and – lehavdil – Am Yisroel on the basis of their respective calendars. The Moslem calendar is based on the moon; the Western calendar is based on the sun, and – lehavdil – the Jewish calendar is based upon the cycles of both moon and sun. 

The Moslem calendar is anchored solely to the cycle of the moon. Since twelve lunar months add up to fewer days than a solar year, the months are not stable; they “migrate” through the seasons. Thus the month of Ramadan, for example, can occur in the summer, fall, winter or spring. 

The Western (“Gregorian”) calendar is anchored to the sun. In contrast to the Moslem calendar, it is completely “stable.” The months occur at the same season every year. This is the calendar used today in the United States and Europe. 

The Jewish calendar is different. Our months are based on the moon, but they are anchored to the cycle of the sun, because Pesach must always fall within the season of Spring. So the calendar is “corrected” seven out of every nineteen years with an additional month of Adar. Our calendar combines flexibility with stability.

It is amazing how these calendar systems mirror the personalities of their respective cultures. 

Europeans and Americans, the descendants of Esav, are “sun-people.” They labor in general “tachas ha shemesh… under the sun,” from 9 to 5, Monday through Friday. The Romans, their progenitors, were famous for building roads, viaducts, triumphal arches and stadiums, as well as siege machines and other instruments of war. Their descendants, the contemporary Western World, prides itself on its skyscrapers, highways, automobiles, jet planes, rockets and all the material trappings of “advanced” society, including the most terrible instruments of war ever devised. This is the culture which is trying to “tame” the world of nature. 

Islamic culture, by contrast, is the culture of the moon. The symbol of Islam is the crescent moon, the symbol of night. Yishmael and his children move stealthily, often in darkness, with faces and bodies covered and hidden. “And he shall be a ‘pe’re adam,’ a wild ass of a man, his hand against everyone, and everyone’s hand against him.” (Beraishis 16:12) Yishmael and his children are primitive. “The intent [of the prophecy] was toward his offspring, that they would become great, dwelling in the wilderness like wild asses, and would have wars with all other peoples.” (Ramban on Beraishis 16:12) On September 11, 2001, Yishmael’s children employed box-cutters, the most primitive of weapons, to destroy the World Trade Center, the Western World’s monumental symbol of world domination and prosperity. 

Esav builds by day; Yishmael tears down by night.

The calendar itself demonstrates the unfolding panorama of world history, the primordial forces at work in the worldwide conflict between Yishmael and Esav, the conflict which will culminate during Ikvos Hamoshicha withMilchemes Gog Umagog, the mighty battle that will herald the advent of the Geulah Shelemah. (See Malbim on Yechezkel 32:17)

Chazal tell us that, concerning a solar eclipse, “During the time that the sun is stricken, [it is] a bad siman for non-Jews.” (Sukkah 29a) How does the recent eclipse tie in with this scenario? 

The moon is keneged Yishmael; the sun is keneged Esav. During a solar eclipse, the moon – although smaller and weaker – passes in front of the sun, darkening and obscuring it completely. Is this not a reflection of world events today? Rabbi Chaim Vital predicted that, “at the end of days,” we will experience, “the Ishmaelite exile. This … last exile will be the most difficult of all.  It is the exile of Ishmael, who is called ‘pe’re adam,’ a wild man.” (Rabbi Chaim Vital, Eitz Hadas Tov, as quoted in The Ishmaelite Exile)

Clearly, Yishmael is at war with Esav worldwide. Only a few days before the eclipse, attacks occurred in Spain in which many people were killed and injured. In the United States, there are ominous signs of dissension, terrible anger among conflicting groups, with no voice of moderation. During this period occurred “the first total solar eclipse whose path of totality stays completely within the United States since (the country was founded in) 1776!” (Space.com)

In this period of instability and conflict, how are we to protect ourselves? 

During Kiddush Levana, we dance toward the moon and say, “Just as I dance toward you but cannot touch you, so may none of my enemies be able to touch me for evil.” Regarding this era, Chazal tell us, “In the period preceding the coming of Moshiach … upon what can we rely? Only upon our Father in Heaven!”(Sotah 49a)

Soon, all conflicts will be resolved, and the heavens and the earth will return to a state of peace, as in the beginning of Hashem’s Creation of the universe. Am Yisroel’s calendar demonstrates that the moon and the sun can live together in peace, when “the light of the moon will be like the light of the sun … on the day that Hashem bandages the injury of His people and heals the wound of His blow.” (Yeshiah 30:26) May we see it soon in our days! 

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Roy Neuberger, author and public speaker, can be reached at roy@2020vision.co.il.

© Copyright 2017 by Roy S. Neuberger