"Brit-Am Now"-374
March 16, 2004
Contents:
1. Moral Tale
2. New Edition of "The Tribes" in Preparation
3. Wingate and Moral Learnings
4. Radon
5. Book for Sale
1. Moral Tale
http://torah.org/learning/ravfrand/5764/kisisa.html
The Chofetz Chaim & Rav Shimon Schwab: A Tale of Two Grandfathers
This is a true story involving the Chofetz Chaim (1838-1933) and Rav Shimon
Schwab (1908-1995).
Rav Schwab once visited the Chofetz Chaim, and the Chofetz Chaim asked him
if he were a Kohen, Levi or Yisroel. Rav Schwab answered that he was a
Yisroel. As it is well known, the Chofetz Chaim was a Kohen [Priest,
descended from Aharon the High Priest].
The Chofetz Chaim said to Rav Schwab, "Do you know the difference between
me and you? Soon the Beis HaMikdash [House of Sanctity - Temple] will be
rebuilt. Everyone will go crowd into the Courtyard of the Beis HaMikdash
for the first time. There will be a guard at the door who will ask the
people whether they are Kohanim, Leviim [Jews descended from the tribe of
Levi], or Yisraelim [Jews from tribes other than Levi]. The Kohanim will
get to go inside and do the Service of the Beis HaMikdash. I will be one of
those people. You, Rav Schwab, with all the other Yisraelim will be left
outside. All the Yisraelim will be terribly jealous of me. They are going
to want to do the Service, but the Halacha will be NO! -- Kohanim inside;
Yisraelim outside."
The Chofetz Chaim continued, "Do you know why it will be like that? Because
of something that happened thousands of years ago. Thousands of years ago,
there was an incident called 'the sin of the Golden Calf.' The Jewish
people sinned with the calf. Only 3,000 people participated in that heinous
act of idolatry. But when Moshe Rabbeinu called out and asked everyone else
to come and put out the fire... When he issued those famous words 'Whoever
is for G-d, gather around me' [Shmos 32:26], do you know what happened?
Only the tribe of Levi showed up. My grandfather came and responded to that
call and your grandfather sat there and did nothing. Therefore, the
Kohanim, who come from the tribe of Levi, will go into the Beis HaMikdash.
But you, Yisraelim are going to be on the outside because you sat there and
did not respond."
The Chofetz Chaim then looked at Rav Schwab and said to him, "What do you
think? Am I trying to make you feel bad? Am I trying to rub your face in
it? Chas V'Sholom [Heaven forbid]! I want to teach you a lesson. Many times
in life, you will hear a little voice go off in your head that will say
'Whoever is for G-d, gather around me.' An event will occur or an issue
will be raised. Everybody is going to be told 'Stand up and be counted.' In
whose camp are you? I want you to know that questions like that and
challenges like that have implications not only for you but for generations
and generations after you. Because your grandfather did not answer 'Yes' in
the affirmative to 'Who is for G-d, gather to me', you are excluded from
the Beis HaMikdash Service. It was an act that has implications thousands
of years later. Because my grandfather said yes, I am a Kohen now and I am
going to do the Service."
"Never forget", the Chofetz Chaim told Rav Schwab, "everybody has his
moments of 'Who is for G-d, gather around me.' When you hear that voice,
stand up and be counted!"
2. New Edition of "The Tribes" in Preparation
>Shalom, Yair, and congratulations on getting "The Tribes" back in print. How
>much is it selling for? And please send me 5 or 6 copies with the bill.
>Blessings,
>C
Answer:
It is not yet in print. We will send out the chapters as they are ready to
the list
and then print a new edition of the book.
New information has become available that we will include (even summarily)
in the coming edition and a few "bugs" that were in the previous editions
we hope to iron out.
We also hope to receive input and even criticisms (where pertinent) from
members of the list
that will help us in releasing the final version. Parallel to all that we
will be preparing a Hebrew-language
version of the work.
God bless you
Yair Davidiy
3. Wingate and Moral Learnings
Our friend, Brit-Am supporter Avi Osduba, just presented us with another
book about
Orde Wingate ("Fire in the Night. Wingate of Burma, Ethiopia, and Zion" by
John Bierman and Colin Smith).
That brings the number of books (all of which are worth reading) we have
concerning Wingate to four plus several articles.
We will prepare an article on Wingate.
Orde Wingate believed that the British are descended from the Lost Tribes.
He was a passionate Zionist and in Israel is still referred to as "HaYedid"
(The Friend).
Wingate helped create the Defence Forces of the Jewish settlers before the
establishment of the State and
contributed to the Fighting Outlook and Military tradition of the IDF.
Lately anti-semitic scumbags have adopted the "Identity" doctrine and are
giving all of us a bad name.
It is worth while keeping Wingate (and others like him) in mind.
[It could be that both presidents Reagan and President Bush were influenced
towards a pro-Israel
outlook by Brit-Am type beliefs or those similar to them].
Wingate later in WWII he expelled the Italians from Ethiopia
and founded the Commando "Chindits" in Burma to attack the Japanese behind
their lines.
He was killed in Burma in a flying accident.
In Burma his Commando unit from a military point of view may not have
justified (according to some opinions)
itself when considering the expense of training and preparing his units and
the military strategy BUT
the Japanese overestimated it and diverted their forces thus ensuring
Allied victory. Also it psychologically
broke the myth that the Japanese could not be beaten in the jungle.
From this we could learn that even mistaken conceptions applied by good
God-fearing men
can sometimes have better results than correct ideas in the hands of
Godless ones.
Wimgate had been raised in the Plymouth Brethren Chistian movement.
These people were extremely devout, emphasized Bible learning and believed
that the Jews should be enabled to have their own state before their
Messiah could
arrive. They were only a very small group. I understand that most
Christians disagree with
these people from all sorts of theological reasons that are no concern of mine.
The point is that they produced Wingate and in the opinion of some ultimately
were one of the main influences that brought about a strong pro-Israelite
attitude
amongst Christians in the USA today.
From this we could learn that an idea that is true
does not necessarily have to be spread by "converting" others straight
away. It could be enough
that those who believe in such a true belief hold it strongly and
internalize it
and then in ways that are not always clear the truth of the idea can spread
outwards.
4. Radon
Subject: Re: Judges 6(Radon)
Dear Brit-Am:
You wrote:
>There are numerous caves in Israel due to the nature of the ground and
>every cave was inhabited in ancient times. Living in caves could actually
>make sense since it saves building materials and provides natural
>insulation. On the other hand in some areas there exists a problem of
>'Radon" which I understand to be naturally occurring radioactivity that can
>be dangerous.
>From the web:
>Radon is a radioactive gas. It is formed by the natural radioactive decay
>of uranium in rock, soil, and water. Naturally existing, low levels of
>uranium occur widely in Earth's crust. Radon is colorless, odorless,
>tasteless, and chemically inert. Once produced, radon moves through the
>ground to the air above. It can be found in all 50 states. Unless you test
>for it, there is no way of telling how much is present. The Surgeon General
>has warned that radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the
>United States.
> * Nearly one in 15 homes in the U.S. has a high level of indoor radon
> * The U.S. Surgeon General and EPA recommend all homes be tested for
>radon.
> * Homes with high radon levels can be fixed.
>We understand that radon is more of a problem in rooms etc below ground level
My brother(engineer) and I(technician) did diagnostic work on the
island of Guam(U.S. territory) in 1991-2 concerning radon levels in private
and public locations (i.e. schools,businesses,residences,etc.).Two radon
experts were dispatched from the National Radon Institute in Colorado
Springs,CO to work with us in an effort to educate the Guam
community(population circa 200,000).At that time Hawaii was known to be the
only state in the U.S. that didn't have any recorded instances of
radon(your website indicated that it was present in all (50) states).The
carcinogenic effects attributed to radon weren't discovered until the 1979
Three Mile Island(PA) near-disaster(and purely by accident at
that).Everything else you cited above I was aware of,except:
* Nearly one in 15 homes in the U.S. has a high level of
indoor radon.
Shalom,shalom
-Kevin S.L. Burke
5. Book for Sale
From: Charles Roberts <revdrcr@earthlink.net>
Subject: Question
Shalom Yair:
I have an extra copy of THE TRIBES that I might be willing to sell to
someone who may want to buy it, but I have no idea what it may be worth.
This edition is paperback, Russell-Davis Pubs, Hebron, Israel, with the
letter of Commendation from Rabbi Feld dated 1983.
My copy is in very good condition, no markings inside, spine is solid and
tight, no loss pages, etc.
Any idea what this copy should sell for?
Do you know of anyone who may wish to buy it?
Sincerely,
Rev Charles H Roberts
Ballston Spa, NY
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