This the 9th sugia of our Av Mishna, the birth of Shmu’el aligns with the Torah on Rosh HaShanna, recalling the birth of Yitzak Avinu. What Torah oath brit did Yitzak swear unto HaShem to continue and build upon the oath faith of Avraham? At the Akadah, Yitzak remembered the commandment which Sarah commanded – cast out that bond woman etc. Sarah’s commandment made Yishmael unfit for the brit Yom Tov re’gel, because his tuma mother profaned the mensch code; likewise, after Hagar returned, she failed to obey the commandment decreed by the Angel, she lacked the heart necessary to do t’shuva.
Yitzak, bound upon the altar, his tefilla stood upon the mitzva of t’shuva: HaShem King, save my O’lam Ha’Ba children from Akadah Shoah korban, on the merit of Sarah: commandments serve as the toldoth of Avraham’s oath that tohor Middot of HaShem live within the hearts of his O’lam Ha’Ba toldoth.
Its יום ששי, an ideal fixed time to strive for t’shuva. Chag ט’ באב, shabbot crowns the memory of the closing decree of tuma g’lut placed upon the Wilderness generation. T’shuva, the lives of both Moshe and Aaron teach, sanctify the Name of HaShem through tefilla with k’vanna שם ומלכות, speak to our Rock so that living waters give tohor life unto our People who turn to HaShem – through dedication of the 13 Torah sh’baal pe middot, the Day of Atonement revelation at Hovrev, 40 days after the sin of the golden calf. Chag ט’ באב, has almost arrived, if not now when shall we publicly sanctify the Name of HaShem through the mitzva of tefilla?
The Byzantine empire and the Abbasid Caliphate, the rule of the latter – its empire – extended unto the Middle East and North Africa – whereas the rule of the former – its empire – focused upon the conquest of Bulgaria. Arguably internal issues primarily led to the destruction of the Byzantine empire. The Abbasid Caliphate had the Turks as aggressive neighbors. But even by the 870s Egypt had became autonomous under Ahmad ibn Tulun.
Originally a Turkic slave-soldier, in 868, the Abbasid caliph dispatched Ibn Tulun to govern Egypt. Within four years this Turkic slave evicted Ibn al-Mudabbir, the caliph fiscal agent, and took control of Egypt’s finances. Ibn Tulun thereafter established a large military force personally loyal to himself.
Ibn Tulun stands out as the first governor of a major province of the Abbasid Caliphate. Not only did he establish independence from the Abbasid court, but also his son came to inherit his throne. Not since the Ptolemaic Pharaohs had Egypt attained full independent political power. Egypt under his rule developed a sphere of influence encompassing Syria and parts of the Maghreb – a major region of North Africa that consists primarily of the countries Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Libya and Mauritania.
Previously, this commentary has referred to the old North African trade route, and linked it to the Byzantine empire. For the sake of clarity, this requires an amendment . Trade, its not limited only to goods and services. Byzantine culture and religious practices passed throughout Africa by means of this trade route. In this sense, this commentary compares the Israel Torah Republic to the Byzantines. Israel does not seek empire over Africa, but rather trade together with Africa. Civil Wars have plagued both Jews and Africans. We share a history of failed States.
The 2nd Commonwealth of Judea, likewise compares to the defunct Byzantines – both collapsed from internal domestic Civil War. Rome invaded and destroyed the Byzantine empire. Like Africans, Jewish hatred without cause ‘sold our people into slavery’ long before foreign empires pushed over the remaining national husks of our failed state.
Following the Mongol invasions which lasted between 1206 -1258 the Abbasid Caliphate declined as a major power, and the Seljuk Turks became the rising empire The Abbasid Caliphate, another failed state. It ceased to exist in 1543 with the death of Al-Mutawakkil III.
Post WW1 the failed States of
Austria-Hungary and ‘the Sick Man of Europe’ died. A study of failed States teaches powerful mussar. Jews have re-conquered our homelands, now how shall we rule?
Within our lifetimes the socialist model, not only within Israel, but across the planet – has collapsed. The continual and relentless ad hominem attacks, coupled with the rise of senseless mass murder killings, the Democratic Party leadership encourages another American Civil War, by condemning President Trumps “Basket of deplorables”.
The economic reforms initiated by President Trump have produced to date, an ‘Indian summer‘. It appears to this commentator that capitalist America stands on the brink of political anarchy and violent social chaos.
The fabric of American society has many holes and rips. What distinguishes an American from a foreign alien? According to Democratic leadership, the United States should pay for the health care of illegal aliens. That leadership continually makes a drip drip drip, emotion raised racial condemnations and tuma epithets. President Trump won the Republican debates and the general election by means of tuma epithets.
Everyone assumed that President Trump would fail before Hillary Clinton in the 2016. The “Crooked Hillery” epithet exerted a tremendous appeal to American “Basket of deplorables” electorate. But based upon the post election Democratic hysteria witch hunt over the Russian collusion, did President Trump historic success amount to little to late Pyrrhic victory?
The post WW2 new world order, made America the policeman of the planet. The question Republic or Empire? The neo-con Republicans answered emphatically – Empire! President Trump rejected the neo-con aberration away from Jeffersonian democracy. But post election Democratic slander has caught the President, to something comparable to a deer frozen in oncoming headlights.
Restoring the vision of Jeffersonian democracy most essentially requires terminating the patronage system, dismantling the Federal bureaucracies; together with their Corporate lobbies, starting with the patronage corporate monopoly known as the Federal Reserve. Washington has no mandate to determine share of markets by private businesses.
The Trump Administration by contrast has increased Federal spending and debt. It has only nibbled upon the edges of the Wilson – Obama Corporate patronage system. This Administration which rejects the Neo-Con vision of empire, has as of now, not sought to annul the 17th Amendment. Nor has its leadership sought to transfer regulatory authority of the Federal government bureaucracies back to the States of the Republic.
President Trump admiringly addresses his grass roots voter base. But to destroy Corporate patronage his leadership must turn to the leaders inside State legislatures. Passage of a national amendment that requires State legislatures to initiate all bills submitted unto the Federal Congress. Such a policy would destroy the domination of corporate lobbies in Washington. The reduction of Federal regulatory bureaucracies would emphatically reduce the Federal debt; making it possible for Washington to operate within a balance budget as a basic requirement of fact.
As a rule, internal chaos and anarchy within society, compares to a terminal illnesses which produces death. History records the rise and fall of empires, comparable to a death certificate. The Jewish state, stands unique, it has lived and died two times previously and has once again after the Shoah, witnessed the resurrection from the dead. Jews, like this commentator, mock the 1000 year German Reich.
Paleontology makes a study of another failed state, the mass extinctions of animals. The interaction between the mass die off of species, climate change, the destruction of habitat, changes in the biosphere, the consequences of human fire stick farming, and the destruction of animal food sources etc. This commentary endeavors to learn the logical mussar inference נמשל.
How can the Jewish State bring a blessing unto the surrounding environments of the Middle East and North Africa? Can our people make a contribution which causes a fundamental changes in crop growth in the Sahara desert?
This commentator, born in Texas, feels a tremendous debt of gratitude to the United States in general and to the Trump Administration in particular. A two term Trump Administration serves only as a band-aid in the necessity of repairing the rips and holes within the fabric of American society. This commentary seeks to communicate possible strategic leadership objectives for both Israel and the United States.
Prophetic histories within the NaCH mention Davidic kings who repaired the damages and breaches within the Temple walls. The נמשל interpretation of those NaCH histories, the mussar necessity to rebuild a sense of kinship brotherhood which separates the Cohen Yechuda nation, from all other peoples, civilizations, and societies.
As previously stated, the great commandment: love your neighbor as yourself, primarily connects with the subjects of wealth and property. People enduring oppressive foreign rule, wherein their nation exists in the manner of a Banana Republic; such people know hunger, dearth and abject poverty – something akin to the slavery of Egypt.
The mensch code must flourish not only among the Jewish people but as well with our allies and partners. This commentator reached this conclusion based upon the sh’itta נמשל interpretations made upon the Av Mishna ערובין, as previously published. The mensch code should become the chief export of the Jewish State.
The Torah vision of destiny sees that the people of the Cohen nation pursue righteous justice among and within ourselves, together with our gere toshav allies and trading partners. Internal domestic disputes and conflicts come under the משל Headline – tuma Yatzir – together with the משל language – “halachot”. The tuma error expressed through the collective works of the Rambam, Tur, and Shulchan Aruch codes – and there caustic impact upon g’lut Jewry.
T’shuva requires making the necessary logical נמשל inferences – based upon prophetic mussar; learning halacha “מקודשת” together with aggadita – Rashi p’shat as learned from the Chumash. Rav Ashi edited the Shas, he juxtaposed aggadita together with halacha. Therefore the Talmud shares almost nothing in common with medieval g’lut religious codes of tuma law – which divorced halacha from aggadita, without giving the required “get”.
The consequence of this glaring failure of fear of heaven: ritually observant Jews, the faith of our doomed forefathers, lacked the mensch code of ethics. Therefore – like the Wilderness generation – our ancestors failed to do t’shuva – which resulted in ghettos, pogroms, and Shoah.
HaShem permitted the Goyim, as His servants, to commit atrocities to bring tuma Israel to return unto tohor t’shuva. Torat Moshe, ירמיה the prophet, rabbi Akiva, Rav Ashi, Rashi and the Baali Tosafot, the B’hag, Rif and Rosh, rabbi Israel Salanter, and the Mussar Movement ect., validate this conclusion.
Herein concludes the learning on this the 9th sugia of our Av Mishna חגיגה.
Conflict Resolution 