Securing a Hazard

You took my lock, without my permission, to secure a hazard that you were responsible for; I later came and took my lock, leaving the hazard exposed. Someone then came along and got hurt; who is responsible you or I?

Surprisingly, the Gemara writes that you are responsible; because being that the lock was not yours, you should have assumed that the owner will take it back; thus it is as if you never protected the hazard at all.

Do you agree with the logic? 

(Talmud, Baba Kama 30a) 

Tzaddik vs. Beinoni

What is the difference between the Tzaddik and Beinoni?
A Beinoni can't sin and a Tzaddik can't sin. A Tzaddik can't because he loves Hashem so much that he abhors sin. Yet the Beinoni does that too, by davening! He loves Hashem so much that he puts his taavos to sleep.
So why is it not just a quantitative difference, by the Beinoni the love is for davening and for the Tzaddik all day? And why can't a beinoni love Hashem all day? Is that out of his hands?
Of course this can't be right because there is a beinoni who loves Hashem all day and is called the beinoni who davens all day, and he's no Tzaddik.
So is it that when you strip the tzaddik of everything, of all his avoidah, what do you have? Someone who loves Hashem. When you take a Beinoni and strip him of his avoidah, what do you got? A baal taavah.
Is that the difference?

Listen

Prayer is on of the three pillars of divine service, the other two are study and acts of kindness. The Alter Rebbe teaches that prayer isn’t about talking, as one would think by walking into a synagogue, rather prayer is all about listening. The talking that we do is just to get us into the right mind frame to be able to listen.

What should you listening for? For the sound of your soul, as well as the soul of every creation, singing and longing to G-d. For the divine energy within each person, and each creation, is continuously singing a love song to G-d. For the energy feels it's source and it wants to return to it's source, the divine infinite light. The fact that it is placed in this world by the divine plan does not diminish it's continues yearning to return.

So, next time you go to shul, between reading all those words, make sure you make time to listen. Listen to the voice singing in your heart, in the heart of every human being, in every blade of grass, in every drop of water.

Listen and perhaps sing along.

(Chasidus Mevueres Tefilah, first Mamar)

On Being In Love

I want to be involved with this relationship at every moment. No, doing things for you all day long is not a burden. I look forward to every opportunity I have do something for you. We are in love.


Between the commandments of the Torah and the customs instituted by the sages, Judaism can occupy every moment of the day. To an outsider it may look like a burden, to the person in love with Hashem there is nothing he'd rather be doing.

In the prayer said just before the Shimah we say “enlighten our eyes in your Torah, make our hearts cleave to your commandments, and unify our hearts to love and fear your name”. We want to connect to Hashem with our mind and heart. And we want to fulfill the Mitzvot with Love.