[Avodah] 13 Middos

[Micha Berger via Avodah]

On Sun, Sep 06, 2015 at 08:56:08PM -0400, Micha Berger wrote:
: Hashem doesn't ask us to say the pesuqim, He asks us to do them.

Rabbi Zev Leff discussed this in his Shabbos Shuvah derashah. (Which
BH ran 2-1/2 hours long, just 2 weeks after the whole family converged
at his bedside expecting the worst!) I was in Moshav Matityahu and had
the opportunity to attend; but thanks to being away in Israel in an
apartment without reliable wifi, I didn't get to writing this email
until back home and much of the detail forgotten.

Of that, about an hour was on this very topic. Although most of his shiur
was on the "emulation" model I took for granted, as that was the position
of most of the acharonim he cited.

He does also discuss the position of the Benei Yisaschar, that Hashem made
a promise about the words themselves. Unfortunately, RZL didn't discuss
rishonim, so he had no call to mention Rashi. But among the acharonim
he named, the BY was alone in this. Still, RZL gave an explanation to
both shitos.

He understands the Benei Yisaschar in a manner that isn't all that far
from RMYG's post <http://www.aishdas.org/avodah/vol33/v33n121.shtml#13>.
RZL tied it to HQBH's greater beris to BY, rather than Oheiv amo Yisrael,
but still about our invoking the beris rather than earning the outcome
through emultion. But by making it about the beris, RZL can consider
it an "obligation" on HQBH that can override justice in deciding how to
treat us.

To add his point that motivated my writing this post:

When someone's animal is "roveitz tachas masa'o" there is a lav against
ignoring it and not helping the person (even sona'akha) unburdent the
animal (Shemos 23:5). The gemara (BM 33a) comments, though, "'roveitz'
-- velo ravtzan." This is only if the animal happens to be crouching
under this particular load; not if the animal is a croucher by nature,
and would do so under normal loads.

RZL explains "whomever says Hashem is a Vatran" will be punished for
it because that says that "leis din veleis Dayan". But that doesn't
rule out a Dayan who sometimes is mevateir in favor of delaying justice
until after meeting other goals.

(I since saw that the Rizhiner Rebbe said something similar about the
grammar of the siddur's "ki Atah Salchan leYisrael". HQBH doesn't merely
occationally solei'ach...)

This is the central point of Zikhronos and the role of mentioning on RH
the concept of Hashem "remembering" berisim.

RZL also addressed the evidentiary problem -- the fact that many
tzadiqim have said the 13 Middos shortly before tragedy struck them.
Promising that the prayer will not return empty doesn't mean that it
will return with what we asked for.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             "And you shall love H' your G-d with your whole
micha at aishdas.org        heart, your entire soul, and all you own."
http://www.aishdas.org   Love is not two who look at each other,
Fax: (270) 514-1507      It is two who look in the same direction.