Shavua Tov!

Here’s some more super-interesting comments from the Rav, from a few weeks’ ago, while we’re all sitting here waiting to see what crazy turns the crazy world takes next.

Enjoy!

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Excerpt of a shiur given in Beer Sheva, during the week of Parshat Vayehi, 5785 (January 8th, 2025)

Now it’s the yarhtzeit of Rav Natan [Sternhartz of Breslov].

Get the biggest hall, like when we came to Beer Sheva, we did something there in the biggest hall, in the biggest hall we did something there. Then, the whole of Beer Sheva will come [to Rav Natan’s yahrtzeit celebrations] – the Tzaddik can bring everyone back in teshuva, everyone!

Also Gechazi, also the 42 children[1], even people born in tumah (spiritual impurity), it doesn’t matter.

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Shemayah and Avtalyon, even though they were converts, they were Tana’aim, Shemayah and Avtalyon.

[And also] Rabbi Meir the son of the Caesar Nero, ben Caesar Nero.[2]

[Nero] converted, he burnt down Rome.

They [the gentiles] didn’t know why he burnt down Rome, even to this day. But simply, he decided to convert, and he burnt down the whole of Rome, because it was Sdom and Gomorrah.

What is ‘Rome’? Sdom and Gomorrah. What is ‘New York’? Sdom and Gomorrah. What is ‘Tel Aviv’? Sdom and Gomorrah.

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Queen Elizabeth said that Paris was Sdom and Gomorrah, Queen Elizabeth!

That it was all Sdom and Gomorrah, they needed to burn it all down, and then people would make teshuva. So Caesar Nero burnt the whole of Rome, and afterwards, he disappeared on them. Even today, they have no idea where he disappeared to.

So the Gemara says that he converted, he simply converted – the Gemara, in Gittin.

Simply, he converted, and from this came Rabbi Meir.

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And Rabbi Akiva was the son of converts, so until the age of 40 he was an am ha’aretz (unlearned person).

There was no-one to teach him. Once upon a time, there weren’t kollels, there weren’t yeshivas, there weren’t youth organisations. People didn’t have who to teach them. They didn’t know how to read, and write, they didn’t know how to speak.

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Even [king] Yannai didn’t know how to make a blessing.[3]

It’s written that Yannai, after he’d killed everyone, he didn’t leave a single person alive, in the whole Sanhedrin.

But Shimon ben Shetach managed to escape, because he was the brother-in-law, he was the brother of the queen, there was Queen Shlomtzion, there is Heleni HaMalka, Shlomtzion Hamalka.

All the queens are found here [in the burial ground of the Queens, in Jerusalem, next to] the Court, everything is located on Heleni HaMalka [Street], Shlomtzion HaMalka. So for nine years, she was queen, and she brought the people back in teshuva.

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Translated from Shivivei Or 398.

FOOTNOTES:

[1] These were boys who the prophet Elisha cursed, when he saw that no good would come from them. The Rav previously explained that instead of cursing these 42 children, who were all conceived by their parents on Yom Kippur, when marital relations are forbidden, and so had evil souls, Elisha should have prayed for them to receive new souls, that would be able to make teshuva.

See Kings II 2:23-4:

“[Elisha] went up from there to Bet-el. As he was going up on the road, some young lads came out from the city and mocked him, saying to him, “Go on up, baldhead! Go on up, baldhead!” He turned around and saw them and cursed them in the name of Hashem. Two bears then came out of the forest and tore apart 42 of the boys.”

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[2] See Tractate Gittin 56a:

“There were three wealthy men in [Jerusalem]: Nakdimon ben Gurion, Ben Kalba Savua and Ben Tzitzit Hakeset. Nakdimon ben Gurion was so called because it once happened that the sun miraculously pierced (nakdah) the clouds on his behalf.

Ben Kalba Savua was so called because anyone who entered his house as hungry as a dog (kalba) left satisfied (savua).

Ben Tzitzit Hakeset was so called, because wherever he walked, his tzitzit trailed behind him on cushions (keset); he walked only on cushions made from fine fabric. Some say that he was given this name because his seat cushion (keset) was placed among those of the nobles of Rome.

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“[Bar Kamtza] sent against them (to) Caesar Nero.

Nero set out to attack Jerusalem. As he approached Jerusalem, he shot an arrow towards the east and it fell in Jerusalem. He shot one towards the west, and it fell in Jerusalem. He shot an arrow towards each of the four directions of the compass and [each one] fell in Jerusalem.

Then he asked a young boy, “tell me your verse”. [The boy] recited back to him, “I will take My revenge against Edom through the agency of My people Israel,” (Ezekiel 25:14), i.e. God will ultimately punish Edom through the agency of His people.

He said to himself: The Holy One, Blessed is He, wants to destroy His House and He wants to wipe His hands clean on that man [i.e. Nero himself].

He ran away and converted to Judaism, and R’ Meir was descended from him.”

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[3] See Tractate Brachot 48a:

“King Yannai and the Queen were eating bread together, in the company of members of Yannai’s court – and since [Yannai] had massacred the Rabbis, he didn’t have anyone to recite Birkat HaMazon for them. He said to his wife: If only there was someone who could give us a person who would be able to recite Birkat HaMazon for us.

She said to him: Swear to me that if I bring you such a person you will not persecute him.

He swore to her. She then brought Shimon ben Shetach, her brother. [The king] sat [Shimon ben Shetach] between himself and [the queen].

[The king] then said to him: Do you see how much honor I am giving you?

[Shimon ben Shetach] replied: It’s not you who is giving me honor, rather it is the Torah I have learned that is giving me honor. As it is written: Caress [the Torah] and it will uplift you, it will honor you when you embrace it.

Thereupon, [King Yannai] commented to [the queen]: You see! He doesn’t accept authority!”

[So, Yannai had been justified in murdering all of the other rabbis….]

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Lots and lots of clues here….

See what connections you can pick up yourself, between current events and the Rav’s comments, above.