Who did "Rashi" call a "Rasha" in Parshas Bo?

 

Rashi the quintessential "Rabban shel Yisrael" lived in Troyes, County of Champagne, in France. He lived from the years 1040-1105. 

He lived during very turbulent times for the Jewish people, namely the First Crusade that took place from the years 1096-1099.

Many of the Crusaders were from Champagne, France, where Rashi resided, that's like having Hamas living in Boro-Park. 

According to Wikipedia, the first Crusade was initiated, supported, and at times directed by the Latin Church! The objective was the recovery of the Holy Land from Islamic rule.

This call was met with an enthusiastic popular response across all social classes in Western Europe. Mobs of predominantly poor Christians numbering in the thousands and led by Peter the Hermit, a French priest, were the first to respond. 

What do Christians do in a holy war? They kill Jews! 

So on the way to Yerushalayim they passed through Germany and massacred innocent Jews in the Rhineland, which was infamously called the "Rhineland massacres!" They decimated the Jewish Communities of Speyer, Worms, and Mainz. There had not been so broad a movement against Jews by Catholics since the 7th century's mass expulsions and forced conversions! 

Jews were first attacked in France where Rashi lived, and the Jews of France were of course terrified, and there are letters from Jews who lived in France to the Jews living in the Rhineland warning them of the upcoming disasters, some of which they had experienced themselves.

So what does this have to do with Parshas Bo? 

Rashi lived during those turbulent times and of course, knew about the massacres, but when you read Rashi's commentators on the Torah or even throughout Shas . you would never ever know what he was going through, his commentaries are so gentle and kind and inciteful, and never gives away the fact that Jews were being murdered all around him. 

He doesn't look for answers from the Ribbono Shel Oilim, he doesn't write whether those murdered and raped were frum or chilonim. He doesn't record the miracles (which I'm certain there were many) that happened only to the frum people. Reading Rashi you would think he is sitting in his bungalow in Swan Lake surrounded by his grandchildren. 

And yet, in Parshas Bo, Rashi goes out of his gentle character and calls other Jews "rashaim" evil!!! 

What happened? 

The Torah records for posterity the last plaque before the slaying of the "First Born," namely the plaque of Choshech.... Darkness!

Rashi wonders why Hashem brought this plague of Darkness specifically. 

?ולמה הביא עליהם חשך

שהיו בישראל באותו הדור רשעים ולא היו רוצים לצאת ומתו בשלשת ימי אפלה

כדי שלא יראו מצריים במפלתם 

ויאמרו אף הם לוקים כמונו

Why did He bring the plague of darkness against them? 

(Because) there were amongst the Jewish people of that generation wicked individuals, who did not wish to leave Egypt, and so they perished during the three days of gloom so that the Egyptians would not witness their downfall, and say "They, too, are being smitten as we are."

Wow! A lot to digest... 

Let's take this apart. 

See Hague Prosecutors Digging Tunnels

 

In Hague, digging for evidence against Israel.

It was a GeNOSEide!!! pic.twitter.com/rpZyg1lrlu

— Andrei Schwartz 🎗️🇮🇱 (@andreischwartz) January 13, 2024

Anna Hossnieh the Vicious Antisemite is a producer at @iHeartRadio and works on several high visibility podcasts.

 

Anna Hossnieh (@annahossnieh) is a producer at @iHeartRadio and works on several high visibility podcasts.

Anna Hossnieh also:
- is a rape denier
- disputes the butchering of babies on October 7th
- romanticizes the treatment of victims kidnapped by Hamas terrorists pic.twitter.com/MUI8GwKVPh

— StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites) January 13, 2024

A message from a Psychedelic Integration Therapist .... in Yiddish

 

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A post shared by Bruchy Moskovics LCSW, CCLS (@bruchymoskovics)

Jewish "yemach' she'monicks" participate in a pro-Hamas rally — March4Gaza — in Washington DC. On Shabbos

 

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JUST IN:.... Germany intends to intervene in ICJ hearing in support of Israel.

 

Germany: 

"In view of German history and the crimes against humanity of the Holocaust, the Government is particularly committed to the Convention against Genocide.

This convention is a central instrument of international law to implement the principle of "never again". We resolutely oppose its political instrumentalization.

We know that different countries rate Israel's operation in the Gaza Strip differently. However, Germany firmly and expressly rejects the accusation of genocide now made before the International Court of Justice against Israel. This accusation lacks any basis [and] ... Government intends to intervene as a third party."

Anti-Israel protestors break White House fence

 

📍The White House:

BREAKING

Protestors have breached the reinforced gate and riot police have confronted them - other protestors began scaling the fence

WATCH: pic.twitter.com/HuQ6sBUC1N

— Wid Lyman (@Wid_Lyman) January 14, 2024

 A group of anti-Israel protestors attempted to breach and caused serious damage to a reinforced fence outside the White House overnight (Saturday), causing personnel to be evacuated.

Video from the scene shows part of the fence being lifted off the ground as one protestor shouted "break it down!" Some protestors attempted to climb over the fence

The Secret Service confirmed that non-essential personnel were evacuated as a precaution as the protest grew violent.

Protestors threw water bottles and sticks at the Secret Servicemen who kept them from breaking into the White House grounds.

Demonstrators repeatedly shouted "f- Joe Biden," in protest against the American President's support for Israel in the aftermath of the Hamas massacre of October 7, when over 1,200 people were murdered and over 240 were taken hostage.

Drunk Arab Terrorizes Brisk On Friday Night...Zionist Police Come to the Rescue!

 

It was a frightening moment in the famed Brisk yeshiva building in Yerushalayim, when a violent drunk Arab entered the premises on Friday night and began destroying property.

According to reports, a few Bochrim were learning after 1:00AM in the yeshiva, when suddenly they heard screaming and violent noises. They then saw the man, who began breaking anything he was able to grab, throwing down tables, chairs and Seforim, as the horrified Bochrim froze in place.

The man then seemed to disappear, but it was believed that he was still inside the building. Borchim from nearby Diras awaked and joined in the search for the man. he was eventually located in the dining room of the yeshiva. Upon being found, he began breaking things and turned violent once again.

Eventually, Zionist police arrived, and the man was taken to the hospital in handcuffs.

Upon hearing the horror that unfolded, the Rosh yeshiva, Hagaon HaRav Avraham Yehoshua Soloveitchik said, Bichasdei hashem, no one was hurt and this was “בבחינת השליך חמתו על עצים ואבנים”.

3 Palestinian Terrorists Infiltrate Israeli Yishuv, Get Shot Dead After Injuring Soldier on Friday Night

 

A 34-year-old Israeli soldier was moderately wounded in a shooting attack by three terrorists who attempted to infiltrate the Adora yishuv in the southern West Bank on Friday night.

The IDF reported that after a brief manhunt, the three Palestinian terrorists were killed by security forces and later identified as teenagers from one family who had no prior security offenses and who resided in Idna, a nearby town. The Shin Bet said they were from the nearby town of Idna: Udai Abu Jahisha, 16, Muhammad Arafat Abu Jahisha, 16, and Ismail Abu Jahisha, 19.

The incident unfolded when a reservist tasked with guarding Adora received an alert of an infiltration into the settlement’s industrial zone and was hit by the terrorists’ gunfire when he arrived to check the alert.

Surveillance footage showed the terrorists breaching the outer perimeter of the industrial area, carrying weapons such as an M16, knives, a pickaxe, and Molotov cocktails. The IDF Home Front Command initially ordered residents of Adora to remain indoors and lock their doors and windows as a precaution.

תיעוד: חדירת המחבלים לאזור התעשייה באדורה@carmeldangor @ItayBlumental
(צילום: מצלמות אבטחה, ביטחון יישוב אדורה) pic.twitter.com/LQrGRhCdxq

— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) January 12, 2024

How the Church Kidnapped a Jewish Child and Never Returned Him

 

By Rabbi Yair Hoffman

SCROLL TO BOTTOM TO SEE REVISED INFO 

Recently, the Jewish world was shocked when Pope Francis labelled Israel’s attempt to remove Hamas from power as “terrorism.”  Attempts to have him walk it back have so far not been fruitful.  Let our minds take a tour of a true incident.

Imagine a seven-year-old Jewish boy taken away from his parents and never given back.  No.  This isn’t October 7th, 2023, but Bologna Italy, in 1858.

One of the pertinent lessons that we learned from Yehudah’s approaching Yoseph, the Egyptian viceroy in parshas Vayigash. was that it is important to stand up, respectfully, and call out immorality for what it is. 

A caveat, of course, is not to make things worse and engender more immorality – saichel must be used.

The purpose of standing up for a moral truth is to ensure that history does not repeat itself, and  that moral calamities that have happened in the past never happen again.

One case in point is the kidnapping of a young boy from Bologna, Italy, authorized by Pope Pius IX.  The story was made famous by the remarkable researcher, historian, and captivating author David Kertzer in his 1997 historical account of the horrid incident, entitled, “The Kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara.”

It was a Shabbos evening, June 23, 1858, when the police of the Papal States, of which Bologna was then part, arrived at the home of Momolo and Marianna Mortara. 

Their purpose? 

It was to seize one of their eight children, six-year-old Edgardo, and transport him to Rome to be raised by the Catholic church.

Essentially, a Catholic servant of a Jewish family had claimed, in her confession to a priest, to have poured water on a sick young Jewish boy for the purpose of baptizing him. She did not want the poor boy to burn in hell for not having been Christian.  The church took the child away – forever.  The pope stated that a “Catholic” child cannot be raised by Jews. 

Edgardo was taken to a house for Catholic converts in Rome, built with funds from taxes levied upon Jews. His parents were not allowed to see him for several weeks, and then never again alone. Pius IX took a personal interest in the case, and all appeals to the Church were rebuffed. The church so brainwashed the poor child that he eventually became a priest.

INSANE!!!! Montreal Police Warn that Posting Videos of Thieves is a "Violation of Privacy"

 

In a surprising development in the ongoing issue of porch piracy in Montreal West, local police have advised against sharing videos of thieves online, citing concerns over defamation. This guidance from Quebec’s provincial police force, The Sûreté du Québec (SQ), emphasizes the protection of the alleged perpetrator’s privacy, sparking disbelief and ridicule among local residents and online commentators.

SQ communications officer Lt. Benoit Richard, in a statement to CTV News Montreal, explained, “You cannot post the images yourself because you have to remember, in Canada, we have a presumption of innocence and posting that picture could be a violation of private life.” This notion of defamation, legally defined as damaging someone’s reputation through slander or libel, has led many to view the police’s caution as overly protective of criminals at the expense of victims’ rights.

This stance by the police has triggered a host of reactions online, with one user mockingly commenting, “You ALL know every court in Canada would LOVE to rule that thieves have a reasonable right to privacy while stealing.”

Montreal West councillor Lauren Small-Pennefather acknowledged the regularity of porch thefts, noting, “It’s something we deal with on a daily basis.” The irony is palpable as residents grapple with the legal implications of using security cameras, intended for deterring theft, in a way that could potentially result in legal issues.

Online discussions have extended beyond the SQ’s statement, with one user pointing out the broader legal landscape in Canada, referencing a B.C. Supreme Court ruling on drug use in playgrounds. “Congratulations LiberalNDP, we have reached that point where criminals have more rights than law-abiding citizens,” the user remarked.

The frustration is evident among those who view the police’s warning as an impediment to effectively addressing crime. The sentiment that criminals’ rights are being prioritized over victims’ is a common theme in the online discourse, with over 700 replies to a related post by Canada Proud.

One user highlighted the misconception about defamation, stating, “Defamation involves making false statements that harms someone’s reputation. Posting a video of someone stealing a package is not defamation (laughing emoji).” This conversation comes at a time when porch thefts are increasing, with a FedEx survey showing that 28% of Canadians have experienced package theft, and 70% of online shoppers are concerned about it.

FedEx suggests tracking shipments and monitoring delivery notifications as preventive measures, with 61% of shoppers reportedly doing so. However, Small-Pennefather pointed out that thieves are becoming more sophisticated, often following delivery vehicles to target parcels.

She recommends requiring signatures for parcel delivery or picking up packages from carriers as additional precautions. Lt. Benoit Richard urges citizens to report thefts to the police, assuring that they will investigate and pursue justice. “If you get some proof that somebody might have stolen something, call the police, give that proof to the police. We’ll do the investigation, bring that person to justice and file some charges,” he stated.

For the First Time A new Multidimensional Unit takes out terrorist

 

For the first time since its establishment, the Multidimensional Unit was activated in a ground operation.

The unit, established four years ago, integrates innovative technologies with special capabilities alongside teams of soldiers operating in parallel.

The unit's soldiers were the first to eliminate terrorists using advanced drones and a combination of technological capabilities for target identification and direction of fire.

The soldiers destroyed dozens of anti-tank missile launch positions, observation posts, and weapons storage facilities in the northern Gaza Strip, and eliminated dozens of Hamas terrorists posing a threat to our forces.

In one operation, the unit located numerous weapons in a school and a mosque.

Should We All Make Aliyah?

 

Anti-Israel mob blocks traffic during the morning commute in Los Angeles, on Dec. 13, 2023,

by Kylie Ora Lobell

October 7 was the worst massacre of the Jewish people since the Holocaust. Since that horrible day, Hamas has fired thousands upon thousands of rockets at Israel. Now, the IDF is facing a dangerous battle on the ground in Gaza that will likely last for several months.

Despite all this devastating news coming out of Israel, so many of us are asking, “Should we all make aliyah?”

I think this every morning when I wake up and see another case of antisemitism on a college campus, or pro-Hamas protestors shutting down highways and bridges or another foiled terrorist plot to blow up a shul. I am terrified to be a Jew here right now.

494 Physicians and 83 Nurses Made Aliyah in 2023

 

According to figures presented on Wednesday to the Knesset Committee for Immigration, Absorption, and Diaspora Affairs, chaired by MK Oded Forer (Yisrael Beitenu) by the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, 494 physicians made Aliyah in 2023, as did 83 nurses, 42% of whom came from Russia.

The average age of physicians who immigrate to Israel is 41.4, and the median age is 37.

The Health Ministry reported that over the past five years, 1,753 new olim doctors have been absorbed into Israel’s healthcare system.

The Ministry of Aliyah and Integration helped 928 new immigrant physicians find employment in the healthcare system.

The committee debated ways to remove obstacles to hiring immigrant physicians. The committee heard a report by the Finance Ministry, through the Medical Directorate in the Health Ministry, that 70 positions are allocated annually, on a waitlist basis, for the specialization of immigrant doctors. Over the past five years, 149 new immigrant doctors have filled these positions. On average, 1-3 of these positions become available every month, and doctors from the waitlist are first to be considered.

Israel’s Opening Statement to the ICJ by Dr. Tal Becker but Shockingly State Dept. Spokesman Won’t Side with Israel

 

Below State Department Spokesman Vedant Patel 

State Dept. Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel on Thursday refused to take a stand regarding the insane South African charges at the International Court of Justice in the Hague that Israel is committing genocide in the Gaza Strip. Instead of declaring outright that America’s strongest ally in the Middle East is a moral and law-abiding democracy, and the IDF goes out of its way to avoid harming civilians, in Gaza and everywhere else, Patel demurred.

On Tuesday, the State Dept. issued a statement saying, “Allegations that Israel is committing genocide are unfounded. In fact, it is those who are violently attacking Israel who continue to openly call for the annihilation of Israel and the mass murder of Jews,” and, “Israel is operating in an exceptionally challenging environment in Gaza, an urban battlespace where Hamas intentionally embeds itself with and hides behind civilians.”

So, it was surprising to those of us who read and analyze the State Dept. press conferences (so you won’t have to) to realize that the Department’s spokesperson had such a hard time keeping up with the above clear statement.

AFP State Dept. correspondent Shaun Tandon asked if the US is watching the proceedings in the Hague, and if there was a chance that it could be persuaded by South Africa’s arguments.

Our Boys in Gaza Singing with gunfire heard outside

 

Zera Shimshon Parshas Ve'eirah

 

Tom Friedman's Soft Jihad Against Israel

Tom Friedman YM"S with his Friend Arafat YM"S 

 The New York Times employs a diverse group of anti-Israel writers, such as Soliman Hijjy, who loves Hitler, and Raja Abdulrahim, who blames Israel for Palestinian suicide bombers. Occasionally their over-zealous anti-Zionists get carried away, like Jazmine Hughes and Jamie Lauren Keiles whom the Times fired in November after they signed a letter accusing Israel of "ethnic cleansing," "apartheid," and genocide."

But the Times' most effective anti-Israel scribe is not a raving, knuckle-dragging "river to the sea" enthusiast. Rather, it is Thomas Friedman, the Pulitzer prize-winning columnist whose polished anti-Israel rhetoric has done more damage to Israel than that of the Times' hardcore Israel haters.

As William McGurn observed in comparing Barack Obama's anti-Israel sentiments to those expressed by Rashida Tlaib, "Obama would never be so crude as to invoke river-to-the-sea language or actually come out and say that Israel is as evil as Hamas ... his argument is smooth and sophisticated. That's what makes it so pernicious."

Likewise, Friedman's appeal is his claim to have staked out a consistently moderate and objective approach to Middle East affairs. His soft jihad against Israel is more subtle and acceptable, making it dangerous precisely because it is entertained by rational people and policymakers, especially Democrats.

Friedman loves the PLO/PA

US, British Militaries Launch Massive Retaliatory Strike Against Iranian-Backed Houthis in Yemen... DIN CALLS FOR CEASEFIRE!

 

DIN: How many innocent Houthis were murdered by these US attacks? How many innocent women and children will now be widows and orphans? We call for an immediate ceasefire, and we want to see humanitarian aid delivered to Yemen ASAP!! We must get college students to protest these unprovoked attacks. This is not a proportionate response, this is genocide! 

The U.S. and British militaries bombed more than a dozen sites used by the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen on Thursday, in a massive retaliatory strike using warship- and submarine-launched Tomahawk missiles and fighter jets, U.S. officials said. The military targets included logistical hubs, air defense systems and weapons storage and launching locations, they said.

President Joe Biden said the strikes were meant to demonstrate that the U.S. and its allies “will not tolerate” the militant group’s ceaseless attacks on the Red Sea. And he said they only made the move after attempts at diplomatic negotiations and careful deliberation.

“These strikes are in direct response to unprecedented Houthi attacks against international maritime vessels in the Red Sea — including the use of anti-ship ballistic missiles for the first time in history,” Biden said in a statement. He noted the attacks endangered U.S. personnel, civilian mariners and jeopardized trade, and he added, “I will not hesitate to direct further measures to protect our people and the free flow of international commerce as necessary.”

Associated Press journalists in Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, heard four explosions early Friday local time. Two residents of Hodieda, Amin Ali Saleh and Hani Ahmed, said they heard five strong explosions hitting the western port area of the city, which lies on the Red Sea and is the largest port city controlled by the Houthis. Explosions also were heard by residents of Taiz, a southwestern city near the Red Sea.

Arab MK Facing Impeachment Want Chareidie Parties to Support Him! Will They????

 First publication: After more than 85 Knesset members signed MK Oded Forer's (Yisrael Beytenu) proposal to impeach MK Ofer Cassif from the Knesset, his party, Hadash-Ta'al is trying to thwart the move by pressuring the haredi parties.

All the Knesset members of Shas, all the Knesset members of the Degel Hatorah faction of the United Torah Judaism Party, and MKs Yaakov Tesler and Moshe Shimon Roth from the Agudat Yisrael faction of United Torah Judaism, signed the request to impeach Cassif, together with members of the Knesset from Otzma Yehudit, the Religious Zionist Party, Likud, Yisrael Beytenu, the National Unity Party and Yesh Atid.

In the next step of the impeachment, the House Committee must convene and vote with a majority of 75% in favor of the move. After that, the Knesset plenum has to approve it with a majority of 90 Knesset members.

Arutz Sheva-Israel National News has learned that MK Cassif asked to speak with senior members of the haredi parties in an attempt to convince them not to support his impeachment in the upcoming proceedings. He claimed that he always stood alongside the haredi public, and that supporting the impeachment process is a precedent that will ultimately harm the haredi representatives themselves.

The chairman of the Joint List faction, MK Ahmad Tibi, who has a long-standing relationship with many of the haredi MKs, also began to pressure the haredi parties to stop the impeachment of Cassif.